Darkfall is an upcoming MMORPG by Aventurine SA that is estimated to release in 2008. “Darkfall is the next generation MMORPG that combines Real-Time action and Strategy in a fantasy setting.”

What is Darkfall though? The halls of the goddess stand empty and her word-stones are scattered and lost. Agon is a world of war and chaos, where kingdoms rise and fall as powerful clans vie for supremacy. But now the long lost book of Chaldea is revealing ancient secrets, and mortals will once again wield the power of the word-stones.

Darkfall is focused mainly on skill, teamwork, and most of all Player versus Player (PvP). Though before your hopes get shot down, you do not have to be interested in any of these aspects to play, but you may find this game too harsh for your likings. Player solo-ability is possible, but war is everywhere… literally, there are no safe zones. This means you can attack anyone, anywhere, at any time. This means one of two things; 1) Your going to love this game 2) Your going to want to throw your keyboard at the wall because you just got sniped from an archer that you can’t even see. Team play is almost a requirement to be able to enjoy this game to its fullest intent. Let’s review some features that will be included upon release, or at least what have been announced so far.

• Players can build ships, and cities.


• Massive servers (worlds, realms) that will hold up to 10,000 players each.


• No instances – you cannot hide.


• No level/class/skill requirements for equipment.


• Weather (night, day).


• Nearly everything in the game can be player-crafted.


• Mounts – they fly, they swim, and they can go anywhere.

Darkfall sounds promising, but what should we 'the player' expect? There are situations I can pinpoint to already have some issues. First off, you can kill a player anyone, anywhere, at any time… how have they made it so low level players can begin the game without being camped for days? No level/class/skill requirements for equipment, I’m assuming this means armor as well. This means that as soon as you enter the game, if you have some good connections you can get hooked up with the best items in the game from day one. This means Darkfall is going to be a huge target for Real World Trading or RWT, are they going to do anything to prevent this in anyway? The animations are somewhat iffy but the game is still in development so i'm not too worried about this at this time and moment, gameplay is what really matters.

What will be the target player (market) for Darkfall? Pre-existing clans that move from game to game. As I said earlier, team work is nearly a requirement to enjoy this game and having an existing clan already moving into the world is going to give you a huge advantage. You are able to build kingdoms, and even run your own economies within the kingdom itself. Kingdoms will be able to build their cities near water, and build a navy to defend itself. Beware though, there are pirates out upon the horizon watching for your weakest hour and can strike at any time. They will come wielding raiding ships designed for quick mobility to take down your kingdom and pillage all of your goods.

Darkfall is certainly a game to be reckoned with; it will bring a whole new aspect to Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing Games. Only time will tell though, and who better to judge than the player who has tested the game for his or herself, so sign up for beta!

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Resources
Darkfall's Official Website