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Perfect world was originally a Chinese MMORPG, released back in 2005. The English version is currently in open beta, and is to an extent playable. The major elements of the game are finished, and there are only a few that are yet to be implemented. Unfortunately the unique aspects of the game are still not usable but are steadily being introduced. These include being able to design your own plot of land and house, as well as the option to get married. It’s easy to think; “Asian MMORPG, free to play, It’s a grindfest isn’t it?” Well, yes and no, although it leans more towards the yes side of the statement. It’s a complex game, but we’ll take you through it step by step.
The first time you start Perfect World, you’re greeted with a typical login screen, one with a peaceful scene in the background; a relaxing waterfall and a pagoda. A song starts playing in the background gesturing you to step into a Perfect World. It’s a cheerful melody that gives off just the right impression; this game is going to be fun. You’ll make friends and you will enjoy yourself. Character creation is one of Perfect World’s strong points. Remember when you played The Sims, or Oblivion. You would tweak that character until it looked just like you wanted. It could be a beautiful woman, a fierce looking warrior or, as I used to do a lot, a hideous looking mess. The customisation is basically that. You can tweak almost everything, depending on the race. As you’d expect, hairstyles and faces can be changed, with presets to choose from if you lack creativity. The real beauty emerges when you delve deeper into it the character creation. Options such as eye distance, rotation, and colour are all changeable. Rarely does a free MMORPG have this level of detail in character creation, and that is including most pay to play ones. The tools are so complex that competitions are held with the aim to make a character look most like a famous person, sometimes with amazing results. There are three playable races in Perfect World. The Humans, represented as humans typically are: industrious and ignorant. The Wing Elves, beautiful and sleek in their appearance with smooth architecture. Finally is the Beast kind, who are basically anthropomorphic wolves, pandas and bears. That includes the Werefox, the only female beast type, a mix between a human and a fox. Each race differs greatly thanks to the fact that jobs are tied to a race. For example, only a human can be a magician and only a Wing Elf can be an archer. Although jobs are given fancy names, they are of the general MMORPG fare, (Warrior, Mage, Archer, Healer, Druid and a mix of Hunter/Druid). As each race starts in a different area, balanced parties can only be achieved when people of higher levels meet up, around level 30.  Starting the game is easy, whatever race you choose, the tutorial is the same, and controls are similar. Humans start in a forest outside the main Human town; “Ethersword”. The Elves also start in a forest, outside the “City of Feather” and the Beastkind start outside the imaginatively named “City of Beast.” The first few quests involve getting used to the controls, using skills; basically learning the gameplay mechanics. Initiallity, the main difference between the races is that the Wing Elves can fly from the beginning. All it requires is a simple push of F6 and you’re on your way, with the option to fight while flying. For a free to play RPG, its build quality is pretty amazing. The graphics are remarkable and the music really sets the atmosphere. Imagine being in a forest, a man playing a guzheng somewhere. It reeks of those Chinese martial arts movies. The music helps you to relax, and makes even the menial tasks like grinding slightly more enjoyable. Controls are fluid, using the classic WASD layout with spacebar commanding jump. They are more akin to a third person adventure game but they really work well. After the initial quests, you’re sent off to your race’s main city. Sadly, the starting enemies are all the same, although it gradually pans out to give each area a distinct feel. You are given a constant stream of quests, ranging from the optional to the vital which further the story. These are known as ‘Cultivation quests’, and must be completed every 10 levels, otherwise you’re inflicted with a level cap. Annoyingly is the fact that for a game that has been so fresh so far, most quests involve killing a set amount of enemies, sometimes within a time limit, or simply walking from one NPC to another. Sometimes, just talking to somebody in a quest will give you more experience than killing any amount of monsters. When your character reaches around level 15, the difficulty of the monsters increases exponentially, and you are almost forced to party. Finding a group isn’t very hard, a lot of people play. I found that most of them were kind, grateful even to be invited into a group. If you can put up with a bit of grinding here and there, Perfect World offers a lot of exciting new features than no other MMORPG has yet offered. Similar games limit where you can go, even at higher levels. At the beginning you can jump around, on top of buildings, back flip and soar through the skies. For the start of a game, it’s impressive, and it gives you the freedom of exploration that too many games do not have.  New skills are pretty regular. Some look fantastic, with the character animation being top-notch. Magician magic gives of a sense of power, and when fighting as a warrior, you can almost feel the blade hitting the victim. The sound plays an important part in combat, and is synced perfectly. Skills are learned at intervals from a trainer, and they can be upgraded into more powerful forms as you level up. You’ll need them for the areas and monsters that come later in the game. Many of the later areas are based on the concept of flight. For every race except wing elves, flight is possible at level 30. It’s fully 3d, and it looks beautiful. Wing Elves have angelic wings, Humans fly on majestic flaming swords, and Beastkind have enormous mounts. This adds a whole new aspect to gameplay. Remember that mountain that you previously visited? Well now you can see what’s on top of it. Want to stand on that tower in the town and peer at people below? Do it. At some point through the game, you will probably get invited to perform a ‘Hoist Cuddle’. This isn’t anything dirty, it’s extremely helpful. Put simply, it allows another character to hold you in their arms, if they have wings; you can go anywhere they go. If they have mount, you ride it with them. As well as a practical tool, it is also a social one. You know somebody cares about you when they hug you. If you’re looking for a change of pace from the general crowd of MMO’s then try Perfect World. It’s certainly not for everyone, but once you fall through the initial ceiling of doubt, it becomes a fun and rewarding game. It’s got delicious graphics, tremendous music that fits into the game world and it should be a crime to play this game with sound muted. It may lack a storyline and weak dialogue but it has oodles of innovation; a constantly changing game that is always thinking of new ideas. For further information as well as guides, and most importantly, the game download, please visit www.Perfectworld.com.my Score: 8/10 Jack Bulmer is the newest member to the Avid Gamer team and when he’s not writing, he’s playing games, browsing the internet, and generally being a recluse.
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