The sand park MMO ArcheAge has received a lot of criticism in recent weeks, but it also has some plus points to offer, such as unprecedented possibilities in crafting, the importance of community and guilds, and a touch of madness.
ArcheAge has taken a lot of criticism in recent weeks since the release. Most of it referred to issues surrounding the game: long wait times, hacks, cheats, bots, problems with customer support. And of course, the game also has some design issues.
However, the reporting has focused solely on the negative aspects (which is completely justified), overshadowing what ArcheAge truly brings that’s new and interesting to the western MMO climate, which is drained from WoW clones and soulless Free2Play cash machines.
Reason 1: Community is important
We have already reported that the German guild Impact, together with their alliance partners from Midgard, built the Black Pearl, a large guild project that required the members to collaborate. This serves as a symbol that the community is significant in ArcheAge, providing players with opportunities to express themselves and achieve something as a team. With the launch of Auroria in a few weeks, this will become even more prominent, and PvP will come into focus.
While the community in ArcheAge often appears hostile externally, as different groups on a server compete with each other, leading to situations where etiquette is rarely observed in a mining cave, there exists a completely different atmosphere internally within the communities, and many derive their enjoyment of ArcheAge from the sense of being part of something larger.
Reason 2: Trade, housing, and crafting are mysterious and deep
A noteworthy aspect of ArcheAge that has unfortunately lost much of its appeal and shine amid the turmoil with hacks and cheaters is the crafting, trading, and housing system in the game. It is truly deep.
It is a science in itself, and players who wish to dive fully into it can spend weeks and months on it. There are only relatively few opportunities to learn about how the individual professions work outside the game. This is also by design, as the “successful” players like to keep their secrets to themselves, just as master craftsmen once protected their tricks and mysteries. Getting to uncover these secrets in ArcheAge can indeed be exciting and satisfying.
Of course, it would be much better if there weren’t so many external influences in this area.
The mechanics, the core ideas of what can be done with crafting, such as learning other languages, composing songs, starting your own livestock, obtaining a monopoly on sheep wool, or anything else in ArcheAge, are present and must be acknowledged. It is one of the first games in a long time where crafting, trading, and housing are not isolated mini-games that run parallel to the “real” game, but are deeply rooted in the DNA of ArcheAge.
Reason 3: Madness reigns
As a third reason: ArcheAge is truly different. There are opportunities to stamp your own seal, upload images from your computer and integrate them into the world, wear masks, put a box on your head, and express your personal style.
For example, the Joker is currently pleased that he has a Thunderstruck Tree in front of his house, a particularly valuable material that is created when a tree is struck by lightning:
