Dungeons and Dragons Online – Game Review
Sometimes a game can rise out of the ashes of another, Dungeons and Dragons Online, a free to play MMO based on the D&D 3.5 rule set is such a game. Released in 2006 under the title Dungeons and Dragons Online: Stormreach, the game promised to bring the pen and paper experience to an MMO unlike any seen before. Sadly, with dwindling subscriptions the game was forced to either die a slow death or rise anew as something else. Thus rather than retire itself it became a free to play MMO and dropped the Stormreach part of the title.
If you have played Stormreach, there are some things that have changed since the change to free to play, first off you can now reach a max level of 20 and there is the new class of the Favored Soul. Also there is no longer a subscription model required to play. There is a subscription model in place if you want access to extra areas and features or you can purchase these items from an online store. Otherwise the game is pretty much the same as Stormreach.
First off, you create your character, if you are not under the subscription or have not paid for any content you do not have access to two of the races or the classes. The races are Humans, Dwarves, Elves, Halflings, Drow Elves, and Warforged. Unfortunately you have to pay for the Drow Elf and Warforged, but once you purchase it, it is available on your account, and you can make multiple characters of that race. This also goes the same for classes, the classes in the game are Barbarian, Bard, Cleric, Favored Soul, Fighter, Monk, Paladin, Ranger, Rogue, Sorcerer, and Wizard. The Monk and Favored Soul classes both need to be purchased to be unlocked, and are slightly more expensive than the races.
If you are unfamiliar with D&D, the game will not be difficult to get into, since the game is action based. This can be unfortunate for those who want to play a more turn-based style game like the pen and paper one. Even though it is action based stats matter and your feats and skills do play a key role in the game. There is a very nice mix of stats vs action reliance in the game, if you are a rogue, you will get to see this most, since you can unlock doors and disarm traps. Depending on how high your search and spot are you can find secret areas and control panels for traps. There are some Stat based doors that require specific things, like a high strength or high intelligence to get past. Naturally leveling is pretty much the same as in the pen and paper game, but to reach a new level you have to go up five ranks in the current level. When you reach a new rank you get an enhancement point which lets you purchase skill and feat enhancements for your character. One thing to note is the level cap for players starts at four and can only be increased with an item that can be gained as a quest reward (if you are lucky) or through purchasing in the store.
As much as stats are important, the game is about dungeon exploration and combat. When you get a quest you can go to the entrance to the dungeon and choose a difficulty, normally you would have solo and normal difficulty unlocked, unless you or a party member has already beaten the dungeon on the lower difficulty. When you enter a dungeon, you are entering an instance, for those unfamiliar with the term, an instance is a copy of the dungeon that you and your party are playing in, meaning you cannot run into random players and the dungeon is filled with monsters and loot rather than with corpses. You are given a goal to complete, which can range from obtaining an item to doing some task. One minor touch which makes the game great for those who still want to have the atmosphere of the pen and paper game is the dungeon master’s voice, who describes the dungeon and the environment when you enter the dungeon and before key events in the dungeon. Of course this feature can be turned off, which is important if you find yourself running the same dungeons a few times in a row, as the voice can get annoying if you have heard it too often.
Like all MMOs, content is always being added. Yet the game still has a few bugs littered around, and game play is being tweaked to better fit the growing audience. This can be a nuisance to people trying to create their best character based around certain feats that may not work quite right. For those who don’t care so much, the game works and is stable and fun can certainly be gleaned from it.
Now for ratings, D&D Online is a difficult game to rate, as it has great graphics for a free MMO and the store is something to be expected in that business model. Unfortunately if you don’t want to pay any money you may not be able to create the character you want. Also the level caps for free players who have not purchased a particular item can be a pain. Ultimately it comes down to fun, and while these things can hinder the fun, it is possible to play using only free things and still have an enjoyable experience. If you like D&D and MMOs D&D is a solid cool. If you only like the pen and paper game, it is probably more of a cool- or a meh+. The one important thing to remember is that it is free, so the only thing you waste in playing it is your time, if you have a bit of free time it is worth a look, especially if you don’t have the money to pay monthly fees.
Trailer
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I actually went to grab the game to have a look just for being an old D&D player but it isn't Mac compatible unless you use boot camp of virtualization. To find that information on their website thou is near impossible. To actually find any sort of specs needed I ended up in the forums.