Action games

Blade and Soul is a Korean MMORPG recently published by veterans of the MMO industry, NCSoft.

Originally published in Asia, a little over four years ago, the long anticipated game finally makes its way westward. Fans here in the west have long been clamoring for Blade and Soul: the flashy anime inspired graphics and the apparent innovation of its highly touted combat system make NCSoft’s newest experience seem like an amazing proposition.

The question though, does it live up to all the hype? In many ways yes, the game’s combat is reminiscent of classic combo based fighting games, making each encounter engaging and unique.

The graphics are great, if a little dated. However optimization issues and lag run rampant, PvE is somewhat lack luster, and gearing at max level can be a bit of a chore.

The game is a mixed bag, it does some things right and some wrong, however the things it does correctly may be enough to outshine its rougher aspects by the standards of some players.

➔ Main points:

• 2016 Free to Play MMO
• Action Combat
• Fun 1v1 PvP
• Great Environments

Crossout is an online shooter based around vehicular combat in a post-apocalyptic future. One might go as far as to say that it is mad… to the max. Or at least, one day it might be, but for the moment Crossout is a few interesting ideas bundled into a grindy open beta. So naturally, a lot of what the game is and offers is subject change over time. Until then, though, Crossout is all about grinding for weapons and car parts in order to build a better vehicle to allow you to continue grinding for even better weapons and car parts.

➔ Main points:

• Vehicular Combat
• High Customization
• Six Distinct Factions
• Dated Graphics, But Light on System Requirements

Last Chaos is a bit of an oddity. Despite its age and dwindling popularity it seems to preserve in an MMO ecosystem rife with other choices. It’s a relic of a bygone era, and maybe this is what makes it compelling to some players.

Originally published way back in 2006 by Aeria Games, their first game ever in fact, Last Chaos has recently changed hands and is now being handled by Gamigo. Last Chaos is a game victimized by its own age. Its graphics, animation, and systems all attest to the game’s age. None are particularly impressive by today’s standards.

However fans looking for a nostalgic MMO experience may find Last Chaos enjoyable. It has a classic feel that modern games can fail to capture. Last Chaos boasts a plethora of classes to choose from, these are gender locked however. Unfortunately with all of it’s classes and somewhat charming nostalgia, Last Chaos still falls flat gameplay-wise. It’s repetitive, and for the most part uninteresting.

➔ Main points:

• Guardian System
• Level Cap is 184
• Classic Gameplay
• Robust Crafting

CrossFire is the world's most popular free to play tactical FPS shooter, and the game has achieved this thanks to it's solid gameplay mechanics that makes matches quick, fun and easy to play. The game also boasts a huge amount of match modes and weapon customization that offers players plenty of options and keeps them coming back for more.

While the graphics are horrendously outdated, it doesn't hinder the game but enhances it instead. The majority of maps available are small in size which offers non-stop action and players will have no problems finding a match due to CrossFire's large player population.

CrossFire is a fanstastic tactical FPS game that's easily accessible and fun to play regardless of player skill levels and PC specs.

➔ Main points:

• Solid FPS Gameplay that's been tweaked to perfection
• Small maps that provides non-stop action
• Large variety of match modes, weapons and customization
• Huge player population means no problems finding a match quickly
• Very accessible due to light and fast client download

Savage Hunt - Dragon's Prophet is a relaunch of the original Dragon's Prophet. All the dragons are now free, and the game is the culmination of five ears of bug fixes, changes, and new content.

➔ Main points:

• Lots of dragons to tame.
• Action-based combat is fun.
• Large-scale Frontier PvP.

Almost approaching its' tenth birthday, Grand Fantasia is an F2P Anime MMORPG that doesn't reinvent the wheel of the genre but follows the 'If it isn't broke, don't fix it" mentality.

Pleasantly cheerful music, and a game world that is bright and colorful, Grand Fantasia's art style holds up well. What doesn't, is the PVE and PVP content. Quests in Grand Fantasia are painstakingly boring and what's left of the PVE content is little more than level grinding for PVP.

PVP is all but inaccessible to anyone but high-level players, and the P2W game model the game uses makes PVP very unbalanced, as all the top Pkers have spent real-life money to give themselves a huge advantage over the competition and grant themselves powerful end-game gear. PVP is the best part about Grand Fantasia, but unless you spend money, you don't stand a chance.

The game is dead and that makes it hard to recommend. A new server, Siwa was released 5 months ago, and it is already a ghost town. A world full of lively things is now lifeless.

➔ Main points:

• Downloadable F2P Anime MMORPG
• Vibrant and cheerful art style
• Game world is too big and spread out
• Often feels like a single-player experience because no one else is ever around
• P2W PVP, only high-level spenders can be competitive

Playing Warframe is as close to being a ninja as many of us will get. Set in a sci-fi universe full of insane alien enemies, you'll have to count on your powerful exo-skeleton to survive.

The gameplay is an interesting mix of classic third person shooter and action, with some undoubtedly enjoyable RPG-like features. You can play co-op with friends or take on one of the many available missions solo.

Graphics are beautiful and due to the game’s proprietary engine, you won’t need a beefy rig to run it. Updates are released regularly so even more fun is to come.

Warframe is a great free-to-play title with a hectic pace and rewarding weapons. It has a plethora of progression options to keep you engaged. Most of all, though, it's a blast to play. Moment to moment gameplay is intense, face paced, and visceral.

➔ Main points:

• 2013 Cooperative third person shooter (MMOTPS).
• Incredible, adrenalinic combat both in solo and co-op PvE.
• Inspired art direction and triple-A quality graphics, with affordable minimum requirements.
• RPG elements and original (at least for a shooter) progression options.

Game Overview

When I had first heard of a Soul Calibur MMO, I was a bit surprised. I never would’ve thought that a classic fighting game franchise would enter the world of MMOs. After all, how would an MMO fighting game work? What else would there be to do that online competitive and non-competitive play didn’t already cover?

And then when I went to the game’s website and discovered that it was a Chinese browser MMO all my curiosity dissipated entirely and turned into disappointment. Chinese browser MMOs have a reputation for being a niche genre of video games, that caters to very specific gamers.

You will either like them, or you won’t; there is no in between. If you like games that you can heavily AFK and or put on auto-pilot, then you’ll probably like Chinese browser MMOs, but if you want your games to be engaging and interactive, then these games are not for you. Soul Calibur is your run on the mill Chinese browser MMO. It doesn’t change the wheel in any way, and in some cases, it actually makes the wheel worse.

➔ Main points:

• Chinese Browser MMOARPG
• Uses the characters from the Soul Calibur series
• Horrible UI cluttered by pop-ups and cash offers. Heavily P2W
• Very boring combat. The game plays itself
• Rudimentary, non-compelling dialogue, non-existent story

The world of NosVille has turned to chaos and your character comes in with tremendous power and fighting abilities to bring it to peace.

You'll have a number of NosMates (computer-controlled characters) to help you in this quest, as well as pets. Over the course of the game, you will also gain access to different cards that will give your character newfound skills.

NosTale comes with a number of unique classes and their interesting sub-classes with each character possessing special abilities depending on which group they are from.
To make the game less gloomy and more fun, you can train pets as well and make them get involved in missions too.
With all these features and so much more, NosTale really promises to be an excellent adventure for you.

➔ Main points:

• An anime MMORPG game with an interesting storyline.
• A number of fun activities including pet management and fighting.
• 15 unique classes and sub-classes.
• Graphics (anime-style) have a room for improvement.

Star Conflict is an MMO set in space. The player customizes and controls his very own fleet. Take command and complete various PvE missions, alone or with a group. Then pit one of more than a hundred different ships against one another in the game’s stellar PvP battles.

Enjoy a deep meta game. Send your ships out to autonomously gather credits and earn influence for your chosen faction. Complete increasingly difficult challenges and claim your spot on the leaderboards. Whatever it is that you like in a video game chances are you will find a sliver of it in Star Conflict.

The true wonder is that Gaijin’s game does all of this while still being one of the prettiest free to play games to date. If you like space, or video games in general, I recommend giving Star Conflict a go. I’m sure you can find something you love in this diverse a game.

➔ Main points:

• 2013 MMO Shooter with great PvP action
• Fair business model
• Intense Combat.
• Great looking graphics, and awesome progression trees.