For those of you that enjoy MMORPGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games), there’s a Kickstarter going on right now for a new game called Camelot Unchained. I am supporting this Kickstarter myself, and hope that some of our readers can join in the support as well! If the Kickstarter doesn’t meet its goal, it’s unlikely that it’s going to see the light of day, so we can’t let that happen. Unfortunately, I’m a couple weeks late getting this post up due an extremely busy schedule, but as of the writing of this post there are still 37 hours left to help draw in any support we can. Now, what is this Camelot Unchained you may ask? Check out the video and read on to find out!
Back in November of 2001, I experienced my first foray into the world of MMORPGs through a game called Dark Age of Camelot (DAoC). It was an amazing world filled with knights, wizards, and assassins that lurked in the shadows (to name just a few classes). It was a realm like no other that thrust you into rich Arthurian, Celtic, and Norse lore and mythology. In this world, you belonged to one of three realms: Albion, Hibernia, or Midgard. As a proud member of your realm, it was your duty to equip yourself, and your realm mates, to battle the other realms for control of the frontiers, a vast expanse littered with keeps, towers, and relics ripe for the taking. It was this realm vs. realm experience that set DAoC apart from any other MMORPG of its time, and even the current MMORPGs of the day. It was possible to find yourself in large-scale, epic battles of hundreds of people fighting over a single keep. Depending on the strength and tactics of your group, you could find yourself in one battle for 15 minutes or a couple of hours.
Unfortunately over the years, as the majority of the player base moved on to other games, and various changes were made to attempt to lure in new players by making the game easier to play, it slowly began to lose its luster. After taking a break for a few years, I picked the game up again for a very short time a couple years ago. It was still incredibly fun, but the game was beginning to feel sparse due to the dwindling player population. Queue Camelot Unchained! I’m pretty excited about this game, which is being headed up by Mark Jacobs, the founder of the company that originally created DAoC. In a nutshell, he is pulling in all of the elements that brought the large-scale, epic wonderment to DAoC while stripping out the elements that, at times, bogged DAoC down and made it a bit of a chore to play. Here’s a quick list of the features that I’m most excited about:
- Camelot Unchained will consist of the PvP (Player vs. Player) elements of realm vs. realm that brought epic battles to DAoC. The PvP world is a persistent world, which means that when your realm takes over a keep, it’s yours until an enemy realm takes it back. Compare that to the typical battlegrounds that a lot of games have, where you fight for a short time, and the map resets when your battle is over.
- They will be stripping out the PvE (Player vs. Environment) elements of fighting computer mobs and grinding through quests to try and level up. For those of you that love to level up your characters, fear not! The element of leveling up and getting better gear is still there, but is done completely through PvP play. This essentially lets you jump into the PvP from day one, instead of playing for a month or two before you ever get to partake in sieging a keep with your realm mates.
- Fast travel will be limited! This may sound like a bad thing to a lot of people, but it’s one of the things that took out a lot of the grand feeling of DAoC when it was added in a few years after launch. The world feels much bigger when you find yourself traipsing all over it, as opposed to the less grand feel you get when you’re just getting teleported everywhere. This really helps you to become immersed in the world you’re playing in.
- Maps, hovering arrows, etc. won’t be guiding you to your objectives. As with fast travel, some people may not like this idea, but again it continues to encourage exploration of the world, and adds yet another layer of immersion for the player.
- Crafting will not be an add on, but a main component of the game. For those that love crafting, but aren’t so keen on the fighting, you will play just as big a role in conquering for your realm as any other class. If you so desire, you could essentially play the game as just a crafter, and still experience the level of immersion that every other class has.
- The economy will be completely player driver, and all gear will be supplied by players. Given the fact that there is no PvE gameplay through which to attain weapon and armor drops, and the fact that crafters are a main part of the game, it only makes sense that the economy consists of only the players. You’ll be able to set up shops to sell your wares, and won’t have NPC (Non-Player Character) shops to compete with.
To be honest, I could probably go on for another 5000 words about why I’m really looking forward to this game, but for your (our readers’) sake I won’t. I just hope that there is enough backing and community support for the game to see it developed. Is anyone else as excited about this game as I am? Let us know in the comments below!
