The mind behind Lost Ark is working on a new project for Smilegate, and this could be the successor to the popular MMORPG.
What kind of project is it? Smilegate, the developers of Lost Ark, are working on the new project “Orpheus”. It is led by MMORPG expert and the mind behind Lost Ark, Keum Kang-sun. The developers describe it so far as a next-generation fantasy open-world RPG.
But aside from marketing talk, there is already some initial information about what Smilegate intends to do with the game.
A game against the trend
What are the rumors? In a personal letter, Keum Kang-sun is said to have reached out to potential allies according to invenglobal.com, revealing what he wants to achieve with “Orpheus”. He speaks for a PC and console title, not a mobile game.
The focus will be on the characters and the story. It aims to be a “resonant epic” with “lovable and charming characters”.
The goal is to bring back passion to game development and break away from the industrial grind. The developer wants all employees to present the title with pride to their loved ones.
What will the gameplay look like? The job postings for “Orpheus” provide some initial details. The developers at Smilegate are focusing on a challenging combat system that rewards thought rather than rotations and clicking.
The world should also hold up when players attempt to take unpredictable paths or even cross boundaries with exploits. Visually, they want to maximize the hardware capabilities and create a “beautiful and captivating world”.
What does this have to do with Lost Ark? While the player numbers of Lost Ark continue to decline in the West, “Orpheus” could potentially be the successor to the MMORPG. The name “Orpheus” fits into the universe of Lost Ark and is also the name of the universe of Lupeon, the God of Order, as explained by the MMORPG website 17173.com.
It is conceivable that the two games are somehow related. Also, with multiplayer projects, one must expect a development time of about five years – by then, Lost Ark, started in Korea in 2018, would be 12 or 13 years old. Moreover, the MMORPG is still running on Unreal Engine 3, which was already outdated at release.
However, there is a catch: So far, Smilegate has not mentioned it as an MMORPG. It could be that this is again a hybrid game like Where Winds Meet or Honor of Kings: World, which offers MMORPG elements but is no longer a classic genre representative.
It will likely be years before the release of “Orpheus”. According to the current information, the developers are still at the very beginning. You can find out the current state of Lost Ark here: After layoffs, fans are concerned about the penultimate MMORPG from Amazon, is the fate of New World in danger?
Your opinion is important to us!
Do you like the article? Then let us know!