Age of Wulin

Did you watch Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and think “hey they should make a game like that?” Well have I got news for you, Age of Wulin, otherwise known as Age of Wushu, by Snail is a free-to-play MMORPG that allows you to flip and fly around the Ming Dynasty and fight foes with a variety of legendary combat techniques.

Gameplay

As you would expect in most MMORPGs, there is a lot of gameplay to be discovered in Age of Wulin. You decide which of the 8 factions you wish to join: Shaolin, Wudang, Emei, Beggers’ Sect, Tang Clan, Scholars Academy, Royal Guard or the Wanderer’s Valley all of which provide internal skills that are unique to that school. If you leave that school, you lose its abilities.

You run around this world completing quests and other activities like crafting, combat and fetch quests; all of which allow you to gain cultivation points that let you upgrade fighting skills. As its an MMORPG, there is also the Raid element that allow you to team up or solo a dungeon to earn cultivation points.

The Game doesn’t stop there as it also adds a lot of other systems that improve the overall gameplay from professions, housing, mounts and more, all of which increase the immersion afforded to the player. It felt a bit like Jade Empire by Bioware but with a bit more to it. It allows you to “live” in the world not just pass through it. Age of Wulin also offers a much more satisfying vertical movement aspect, where you may jump and run up walls and is just more kinetically fun to play.

Combat

The combat system is something I quite enjoyed as it moves away from the standard class and level system with all its restrictions and instead prefers a genuine skill based game. The one with the better proficiency wins, not the one with the higher numbers. A lot of its martial arts contains realistic interpretations of the art forms all while maintaining a superhuman element as shown in films like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Combat falls mostly into a 3 tier system; Attack, Feint and Block. Each requires you to know the animation that’s performed when one is happening. If you or the enemy feints and you accidentally drop your defence afterward, they can get an easy strike on you. It’s a thoughtful combat style that implores players to stay mindful throughout the encounters. You can fight PvE and PvP so the content doesn’t get boring quickly, which I am grateful for.

The World

A vibrant world is presented to the player. As an RPG, it gives you lots of villages and towns to explore with jungles and woods to travel through. You’ll see a lot of what’s offered simply by playing the game, fetch quests frequently require you to travel into other areas and explore. I personally really enjoyed seeing the games take on Chinese architecture. It really helps sell the feeling of being where the game is set.

Pros

• Skill based game
• Great character manoeuvrability

Cons

• Low visual quality
• Slow running speed