Revelation Online

Whenever we hear about Asian MMOs, the first things that come to our mind are flashy, over-the-top skills and effects, fan service, and the traditional anime-inspired art style. While some MMOs try to differ from that trend, adopting a more western style, Revelation Online is not one of them.

From the moment you log in and try creating your first character, you will be stunned at just how beautiful the art style is. Strictly from a graphics perspective, the game looks flawless, with shaders, textures, and reflection that give it a AAA vibe. This feeling is reinforced once you enter the game world and glance at your environment, where you can explore a vibrant world of ancient mystery, admire stunning views with the power of flight to experience an absolute freedom of exploration. Speaking of which, flight is one of the core elements that the game has to offer, being much more than a means of travel between two distant checkpoints.

You can spread your wings or master one of the many aerial mounts to soar through the sky, diving into the waters or climbing to the top of the world. But this is not a task you will be done with any time soon, since we are talking about a map the size of ten provinces, along with areas that are explorable either underground or up in the air. These locations are filled with either cities players can visit, or are the location of various dungeons and raids.

The game is crafted around a central storyline packed with beautiful cut-scene where players can contribute via QTEs (Quick Time Events). Dungeons and raids pretty much follow the same formula as any other MMO, as they have instanced areas, where the monsters are far more difficult to kill, dying, is easier, but the loot is always worth it. Teamwork is the key to success, as dungeons require the coordination of five or ten players, while full-on raids require up to 20 players, with all of them needing to put their heads together if they hope to face-oo the end bosses.

Regarding how combat is handled in Revelation Online, you'll be happy to know that the game supports three different combat styles. These are "Lock-on-target" which lets you select a target and lock on it; then you can use your keyboard to control your characters movements and control the camera with your mouse. Locking guarantees your spells will land. The more traditional "Click-to-Move" is also present, and this blast from the past is where you want to go and simply click and lock on your target to land attacks and spells. Those of you that enjoy a more challenging system may want to try the "Free Aiming" system, which is their equivalent of active combat where you use your keyboard to control your characters movements, and you are free to aim at any target with the directions of your mouse.

Combat is extremely fun in Revelation Online, but going toe-to-toe against another player is more fun, and that is another aspect that this game does not lack at all. PvP ranges from open-world PvP, where you can get the jump on anyone, to arena matches, aerial combat, and massive castle sieges. Of course, not everyone fights using the same style, and the game currently has seven classes to suit every need, each of them with their unique quirks and abilities.

While there are other MMOs out there that pretty much have all the elements that Revelation Online does, there is no doubt that this game is very enjoyable, up to the point where you no longer care whether the story or gameplay is original or not.