Ashes of Creation (PC) is the great MMORPG hope from the West for many players. However, there has been a strict NDA on the game so far, which meant that alpha testers could not talk about their experiences. This NDA was surprisingly lifted last night. However, what the testers describe is still a very raw and unfinished version of the game.
Steven Sharif, the Game Director of Ashes of Creation, spontaneously announced on May 17 at 11:33 PM our time that the non-disclosure agreement (NDA) had been lifted.
The testers from the previous alpha can now freely talk about the MMORPG, but are not allowed to show images and videos of it. Therefore, there are now first experiences with Ashes of Creation on reddit and Discord.
What do the testers say? The testers paint a picture of a very raw and unfinished version of the MMORPG:
- There are currently only 3 class types: Tank, Cleric and Mage. 8 classes are planned, which can also have a secondary class
- The max level is 15, although it only went up to level 10 for a long time
- All gameplay content such as nodes or caravans are still in an initial stage
- Quests are said to give little XP and are very simple (kill XY, go to person XY)
In the early days, there were said to be many bugs, lags, and server issues. While these have been resolved by now, many still believe that Ashes of Creation will not be released before 2023 or even 2024. However, many emphasize the great potential they see in the MMORPG.
We at MeinMMO were also able to take a brief look at Ashes of Creation and can confirm the impression of a raw and unfinished version. Additionally, we conducted an interview with Steven Sharif, which will be published here in the coming days.
To give you a glimpse into the gameplay, we have embedded the latest video from the developers from April:
Ashes of Creation is in a real alpha
Is Ashes of Creation ready for the public? Almost all reports and statements from the testers paint the same picture. Ashes of Creation is in a “real alpha” and is still far from a finished state.
It is important to note that so far, only people who have spent at least 500 dollars or have obtained a key from the developers have been able to play.
The fact that Ashes of Creation is very unfinished is emphasized by the user qwety9000 in their reddit thread titled “The game is not ready for the public” (via reddit):
I know, this post will upset a lot of people, but this game is simply not ready to be streamed/viewed by probably millions of people. After playing Alpha 1, I can say that the game is still very basic. Many systems do not work, bugs, rubberbanding, quest bugs, UI bugs, and combat needs a lot of work as well.
But trust me, this game has a lot of potential, but if you let someone like Asmongold [a well-known Twitch streamer] stream this alpha in front of 80,000 viewers, it will be a disaster. Please Steven, remember, it’s not just about transparency, but about saving the game. The reality is that this game is many years away from release.
Other testers on Discord and reddit also believe that the Alpha 1 without NDA, which has already been postponed multiple times, should not start in July either. They fear that viewers and streamers could be deterred by the raw state of the MMORPG.
We at MeinMMO already reported in March that an alpha today is more than just a test environment: Ashes of Creation shows why the classic alpha no longer exists in MMORPGs.
What do the testers say about the combat system? The player Talents has documented his experiences as a tester from December 2020 until now (via GoogleDocs). He goes into detail about the combat system:
- You can already switch between tab-targeting and action fights
- In tab-targeting, you press “Q” to execute your auto-attack, in action mode the left mouse button. Other users added that there is currently no way to change the key bindings, so the auto-attack has to stay on Q
- There is a dodge roll, but in his opinion, it feels meaningless because you do not evade damage while dodging
- Moreover, he criticizes the movement, which is said to feel very generic, and the enemy mobs that “hit until you die.” Only a few of the mobs are said to have real mechanics
A major criticism from Talents is also that there are penalties for death. Currently, you lose about 50% of collected materials and XP when you die. Another user says you would lose 2.5% through PvE, 5% through PvP, and 10% XP through PvP if you had previously collected a lot of bad karma.
Other users also note that magical damage is currently significantly stronger than physical. Auto-attacks are said to only deal 7 to 15 damage in some instances, while spells deal 90 and more (via YouTube). There are also said to be issues with action combat for some players (via reddit).
The YouTuber Narc explains the combat system in more detail in his video, where he sees more potential and less of the current state. He describes fighting as a mix of the good and fluid animations of Guild Wars 2 with the action and Holy Trinity from ESO. He especially praises the ability to crit enemies and utilize momentum from jumps (the descriptions of the combat start at minute 2:50):
What do the testers say about the game content? Talents and other players have also extensively commented on the game’s content:
- The character editor is still very simple
- The map is a little more than 1/10 the size it is supposed to be at release
- The nodes, the highlight of the game, can be leveled up to level 3 out of 6
- The mayor system has been buggy so far
- The caravan events, which transport materials from one node to another, are currently pointless because there is nothing to transport
- The housing in AoC currently only consists of an interface that says: “This is your house.” You can store items there. You cannot yet enter or decorate an apartment
- The loot is currently very basic. There are 3 different types of shards that can be sold or used for caravans
- There are supposedly 4 dungeons, one raid, and a few mini-bosses in the game
- You can already gather materials, chop wood, and fish, although the materials are always located in the exact same spot. Also, the rest of the crafting system is not yet complete
What do the testers say about the graphics? Even the first videos from the developers of Ashes of Creation show a beautiful game world. This has also been confirmed by the testers, although not all areas of the map are said to be detailed:
- The player Talents describes especially the starter zone as beautiful. However, the “Midland” seems to look a bit outdated in comparison.
- The reddit user FishermanSushi describes the world as beautiful with a great mix of flora and fauna (via reddit).
What do the testers say about performance and bugs? Regarding performance, the previous voices also agree. It is said to have been particularly difficult around February and March, which is why the first postponement of the alpha took place.
There are also said to be endless bugs in the game. The reddit user SanicExplosion listed some in his feedback on alpha (via GoogleDocs), including:
- An infinite sprint bug
- Summoning mounts leads to a bug that prevented the use of action mode
- You lost your house after a server restart
- Many quests were not completable
- There were various display errors when gathering
- There were bugs with the environment, lighting, and flying mobs
Release likely not until 2023 or 2024
What is the testers’ conclusion? Almost all players see incredible potential in Ashes of Creation, although many must have seen that before testing to spend 500 dollars at all. The MMORPG attracted many players in advance with the promise of an action-packed combat system, huge PvE and PvP battles, and the construction of cities.
However, nearly everyone emphasizes that the release is still a long way off and will likely not take place until 2023 or even 2024. This is a dampener for all those who are already looking forward to the finished version of Ashes of Creation.
We at MeinMMO were able to spend a few hours in the Alpha One of Ashes of Creation. Due to limited time windows, we managed to play about 6 hours in the alpha when we add up our playtime.
However, we can confirm what the testers describe. Ashes of Creation is still clearly in a raw state, where only the core elements of the game are present. A big problem was the rubberbanding. In other words, the character was reset every few meters as if it were connected to a rubber band.
Right at the beginning, you could decide which path you wanted to follow. You could choose between different quest lines. Some led directly into battle, while others were intended for exploration. I chose the exploration line and was able to see quite a bit of the game world as I had to search for animals on the map for my quest.
Despite the technical shortcomings, it can be said that the material shown by the developers does not lie when it comes to visuals. The world is detailed and can suck you in, if not interrupted by bugs and a jerky movement. There is potential to be seen, but it is still too early to really judge the game. We also believe that a release would be realistic at the earliest in 2023.
Leya Jankowski
Editor-in-chief of MeinMMO
2021 is a good year for MMORPG fans, so they are not necessarily reliant on Ashes of Creation. Here we explain what is happening: 13 reasons why MMORPG fans can look forward to 2021.
