Legends of Aria wanted to be a kind of modern Ultima Online. A sandbox MMORPG where players find a second home and where PvP plays an important role as well. It didn’t quite work out that way. But could the upcoming MMORPG Fractured succeed?
What did Legends of Aria aim to achieve? Legends of Aria (LoA) attempted to revive the feeling of playing Ultima Online (UO). UO thrived on essentially just providing players with the world itself. What happened there was left in the hands of the community.
Ultima Online managed to build a virtual society. There were indeed players who operated taverns, were fishermen, or blacksmiths. They supplied adventurers with self-crafted items like weapons, food, and more. In Ultima Online, one could build a kind of second life.
And this is exactly what Legends of Aria also tried to do. However, it hasn’t quite succeeded (so far).
Why did Legends of Aria fail with its approach? One reason is the unfinished state in which the game was released. Although it is still in Early Access, it still presents the first impression that one gets from the MMORPG. And this is simply too unfinished even for an EA version.
LoA gives the impression of a construction site that has just started. There are plenty of bugs, sometimes severe lags, the controls feel opaque and unintuitive, and Legends of Aria also fails to impress visually. However, what weighs much heavier is that there is far too little content.
PvP is another reason. In many areas, you are not forced into PvP, but this approach does divide the community a bit. At the beginning, Ultima Online was a vast PvP zone where every step was dangerous. Then the game had to be split into two servers to provide an incentive for those who did not want to be constantly attacked.
LoA has PvP zones where you can be attacked without penalty at any time, as well as safe areas. However, some fans of Ultima Online do not like this. They would prefer a separation into PvP and PvE servers.
Fractured wants to know
What is Fractured? In the MMORPG, you live in one of three worlds, which not only determines your race but also how much focus PvP receives. In this world, you go your own way and try to get as far as possible.
- Each of the three worlds is huge and there is so much to explore
- By mining resources, you craft items and buildings
- You can participate in the economy, which is entirely player-driven
- Together, you build cities and even entire kingdoms and form guilds
- Fights are fast-paced and action-packed
- PvP is important depending on your choice of world
- If you play a human, then PvP is heavily restricted and follows the rules of a justice system
- If you play the beastmen, then there is no PvP in their world
- With the demons, however, everything revolves around PvP and territorial battles
- It is possible to travel to the worlds of other races under strict rules
What goal does Fractured pursue? Basically, Fractured also aims to provide you with a sandbox world where you forge your own path. The game is therefore also heavily inspired by Ultima Online. Quests play no role. You experience your own story in the three worlds.
The MMORPG could succeed
Why could Fractured achieve this more successfully than Legends of Aria? The previous videos of the MMORPG show a smoother gameplay. It looks less complicated, but seems to have a similar depth to it. This is evident, for example, in the fights, which are faster and more active compared to the rather sluggish Legends of Aria.
Additionally, the approach with the three worlds, where there is either no PvP, only limited player-versus-player combat, or hardcore PvP, allows each player to choose the world that suits them best. It is basically like playing on a PvP or PvE server.
The use of Spatial-OS technology could also help developers manage three large worlds where players can really unleash themselves:
What is still the problem with the MMORPG? The game does not look particularly impressive visually yet. The isometric perspective is no longer contemporary for modern online role-playing games, but it is not the biggest problem. Games like Wolcen or Diablo 4 show that titles from a bird’s-eye view can also be visually convincing.
The landscapes in Fractured currently seem very sparse, the world feels empty. The developers still need to put in a solid effort here. Because graphics simply always play a major role.
When will Fractured be released? The MMORPG is currently in Alpha. If you want to join in now, you can purchase the Legend Founder Pack for around 90 Euros on the official website. If all goes well, the beta should begin later this year, but the release is not planned before 2021.
