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Earth Eternal Review: Earth Eternal Review - Edit
7
| Pros |
 
|
 Fluid, responsive combat Impressive visuals for a browser MMO Unobtrusive item-shop |
| Cons |
 Long loading times Only 4 main classes Repetitive questing leads to “grind” feeling |
Earth Eternal is a funny beast (pardon the pun). Originally slotted to be released in 2007, Sparkplay Media then obtained a swell of extra funding and decided to put their project back in the oven a bit longer. Now over two years later Earth Eternal is open and ready for anyone to try, with a fully-functional (but not necessary) cash shop. They're calling it Open Beta, but all characters and progress made from here on out are there to stay, so Sparkplay is treating it like a live game. And thus, we're reviewing it as such.
Browser-based MMOs are no new invention. Runescape has been doing it for years after all. But one thing that many might argue has eluded the browser-based game is a level of quality that we may be used to in our client driven games. I believe I can safely say that Earth Eternal has put this old contention to bed. There simply is no better put together MMORPG out there to play within the confines of your Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox.
I've spent my fair share of time in games like Travian and Runescape, but traditionally browser games have rarely held my attention for longer than a week, probably because with the exception of the latter there just usually isn't much depth to them. After several spent with Earth Eternal however, I think it's safe to say I've found a browser-based MMO I can keep coming back to now and again, even if it doesn't quite replace my daily diet of higher profile releases.
However, let me state this before the review goes any further... Earth Eternal is unabashedly taking a lot of its ideas from World of Warcraft, just as Blizzard's behemoth took from its forefathers. Whether you are sick of this trend or find such similarities as a foregone conclusion in a world after WoW is another story altogether. I would not give negative marks to a game for simply playing like another in the same genre. But I would feel no remorse in shaving off points if the game copied elements blatantly and badly, but luckily with Earth Eternal this is not the case. The general look and inherent feel of the game are quite good, even if derivative.
There is one initial drawback that almost had me ready to close my browser before even playing and that's the load times, especially when first booting up the game. Perhaps because Earth Eternal sports some of the best visuals you'll find in a browser-based game, when you first boot up the game there's quite a bit of staring to be done at a slow moving loading bar. Luckily, because I was already there, I just opened a new tab and went puttering around on Facebook while I waited. But I probably could have made myself a sandwich with the time as well.
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Once the game does actually load though, you'll probably be glad you waited. There are 22 races to choose from in Earth Eternal, and while none have any particular advantage over the others, the main difference is looks. After consulting with my fiancée on which animalistic biped I should choose, I eventually landed on a Fangren (a doglike race) because it reminded my betrothed of our pup. Not all of the races are zoological in nature however. While many resemble animals such as owls and foxes, a few are more akin to creatures of myth like the Cyclops or the Sylvan.
Unlike the selection of your race, the amount of classes a player has to choose from is rather limited. The standard fantasy basics of Knight, Rogue, Druid, and Mage make up the rather small list of choices. It's worth noting however that players are not bound to only the skills of the class they choose. There's nothing preventing a Knight from dipping into the spells of the Mage or even the healing Druid if he or she pleases. You'll just want to be careful how thinly you spread yourself across the available classes. You can't level up every skill to the maximum level, so you'll more likely find more use in focusing on just a handful of specific skills. So while there may be a limited number of actual classes, players are certainly not limited in how they level their characters and assign them skills.
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As stated previously, the actual gameplay of Earth Eternal will feel very familiar to most any seasoned MMO vet. The WASD keys control movement while spells and skills are assigned to the usual hotbars. Spacebar will send your little anthropomorphic avatar vaulting into the air, and the usual trappings of an MMORPG UI are right where you'd expect them. But the real matter is whether or not Sparkplay has taken these familiar things and crafted them all into a game that feels right. It was always my experience in Runescape and other browser based games that the controls felt clunky, awkward, or unresponsive. I'm thrilled to report that this is not the case in Earth Eternal. Movement is a breeze and feels on par with its boxed brethren, and combat is both fluid and impactful.
There are some differences that help Earth Eternal stand out from the games it so heavily draws upon as well. The game employs might and will to serve as your mana pool for spells and combat abilities, and also something they call "charges". Charges are built up through the use of certain spells and abilities, and when you have enough built up your character will be able to unleash powerful "Execute" abilities. It's not revolutionary by any means, but adds a nice touch to already solid combat mechanics.
For a free game with an optional micro-transaction model, I expected to find myself with one or maybe two quests per level, with the rest of my game time filled with endless mob-killing in order to level. But for my own time spent with Earth Eternal, I never did run out of quests to perform. Sure enough most were of the "Kill Ten Rats" variety, but for me at least that helps disguise the fact I'm just doing the same thing over and over again. Maybe I'm in a forgiving mood, but I can't harp on Sparkplay Media for following industry standards. It also helps that the progression rate in Earth Eternal is more on par with what Western gamers are used to. When you're leveling at a decent rate, there always seems to be less of a grind, because the task of advancing your character doesn't seem so daunting.
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You may have noticed by now that I've not spent a great deal of time detailing the story of Earth Eternal. That's because to do so would be a fairly herculean task. The official website of the game has a downloadable document of over 140 pages worth of lore and history. The folks at Sparkplay definitely take their world seriously and I encourage you to check it out if you like to know a bit more about the worlds you play in. For my part all I needed to know was that I was a Fangren, and that I should hit things with the pointy end of my sword.
In the end, I can't really say too much bad about Earth Eternal. The item-shop is populated by things every player can get in game by simply using their in-game gold to buy credits, and what's more is that the item shop goods are never really something that gives other players an unfair advantage because there is no PvP to worry about balance over. The loading times, repetitive quests and rather derivative nature are pretty much my only complaints with what is altogether a rather impressive browser-based experience. Surely it's not something that's going to rock the foundations of the MMO industry, but I highly doubt it was meant to do so. Sparkplay Media set out to make a fun, friendly traditional PvE experience and in that area I believe they've more than succeeded. If I can one day get this game working on my Droid, I'll be a happy camper.
Great review! I too was pleasantly surprised when I played the game. It isn't anything new, but the game is very fun. It looks good and it plays very decent. I agree that they need more classes in the game. I also agree that the load times are an issue, but one that the head of the company said they are working on. I got my girlfriend into the game and we both are playing together. This game took the tech from Free Realms and made it into a nice fantasy RPG. I have only played with my significant other, but I would like to see what playing with a full group against a harder npc would be like. The game is extremely solo friendly and that is a major plus to me. When I am not playing Dragon Age, Torchlight, or another game I can load up EE and play it for a bit till I'm ready to head to bed.
I am excited about some of things I have read over on their boards. They have vaults, supposedly they are working on pvp and also going to put in a Guild/Housing system as well. It just seems to me that they are doing things right. I will continue to play the game, because it truly is the best browser game out there and it also gives some of the traditional MMO's a run for their money. It surely beats the other F2P MMO's I have played.
I just want to add that I've played this quite a bit and it's an absolutely fantastic game for what it is.
For me this game is almost a perfect replacement for WoW. Yes, it's far limited by comparison but it's free, is very polished and runs on just about anything.
The lead dev guy has already mentioned they're going to work on the load times. Combine that with all the other stuff they have planned and this game is going to be about as awesome as a browser game can be.
Plus, it's great to play at work if you PC isn't too locked-down and your fed up with whatever sh*t they pay you to do there.
Aryas
Nice review of a solid little title. A point I think was missed was the influence of Iron Realms involvement in the game. They are famous for their Mud style games which are top notch for that genre and have a strong influence on the development of this game. As for depth I've admittedly not played enough to see it yet and it may not be that of Runescape thus far but knowing Iron Realms reputation for continuous development I feel sure it will come. It may already be there for all I know.
I guess my only other caveat to the review is this constant need to compare everything to WoW, lol. If it works it works and its been working since long before WoW, even if they did tweak it a bit, but then they all do don't they?
Other than that, well done :)
Earth Eternal is a wonderful game. I could see these guys shutting Free Realms out in the cold as long as they keep it up.
I cant get the Sparkplug Beta to work.
For a browser based game, they have done a great job. Its something that you could let a younger child play without worrying about the content. However, this also means the adults will find it cartoon like. I'd like to see improved crafting, but I can't really complain for a free, small download game.
check your security and firewall !takes a while to load!but once loaded your good for a while.can be played on your desktop or
in browser if your with a laptop .so far they havent remooved the edge so we re stuck with it even in desktop mode
Yeah iam using laptop, and turned off Firewall, still doesnt work. Get error everytime the new window pops up and starts loading
Yeah iam using laptop, and turned off Firewall, still doesnt work. Get error everytime the new window pops up and starts loading
can you be specific .or google error number often its just a small detail.this game is 32 bit by the way.try the version in the start menu instead of the browser see if that one works.hope it works .its a nice little game.(exept the starting ilse,noob area lol)
One question regarding the comment "There simply is no better put together MMORPG out there to play within the confines of your Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox.", what about Free Realms and Fusion Fall? They're both browser based via plugin, just like EE. The only difference is that EE can be played explicitly within your existing browser window or a stripped down browser-based client. (which is what I play it in).
~Ripper
One of the pros you have for this game is "Fluid, responsive combat", which is not entirely true.
I tried Earth Eternal and found that from Australia the combat is not fluid due to distance latency. While I am sure this would not be an issue close to the server, it was definitely the issue in Australia.
This is the issue with pretty much every game when you live in Australia :(
An 'Unobtrusive item-shop' is a Pro? So it could be a total cash cow, as long as it is not in your face thats a Pro? I really think MMORRG.com need to think about the moral implications of F2P and stop premoting it with these endless F2P reviews.
I think the title is a bit misleading. When I read "Browser based" I'm assuming platform independence, which is clearly not the case if you have to download an .exe file.
The game doesn't look too bad, though and I'll probably try it on my Vista laptop some time.
the download is long true but its a browser or desktop game.dont know the mecanic of it but you dont download the game its more like when you stream a movie.it say loading
that about whats going on here.its a very good game if you use the broswer version(32 bit)dont thing they got a 64 bit version(for
explorer 64)out ready yet.night come eventually.
in my book its THE best broswer game.
Only true at low (1-30) levels. After that, its F2P standards, aka 1-2 normal quests and 1 repeating per level, so expect some HEAVY grinding with some repeating quest flavor (bounty board). That and the absence of an epic story quest chain taking advantage of the detailed background story are the game's main flaws imo.
Really the only new thing Sparkplay introduced was a choice of 22 races that did not consist of any dwarves, elves, orcs or humans; past that everything else they have done in EE has already been done. Now don't get me wrong, I had high hopes for EE (started looking at it in March-April 2009 and was even in CB) but I just couldn't handle all the lag issues that they ignored. There were major lag issues during Closed Beta, and players constanly brought it up in the forums. Yet the lag remained when OB started, and yes players continued to address the issue in the forums..but guess what? no response from the devs. I managed to make it to lvl 27 (ursine druid), but at that point I started dieing due to rubberbanding and lag spikes anytime I wandered outside of the towns. So I quit the game for good and I don't think I can go back..even though my clan was starting to get known (unless the PvP is amazing when it finally comes out..then Uprising will return!).
::EDIT::
oh yea, to the author of this article..
The poster above me is right, did u even make it to anglorum before saying that u don't run out of quests? I think there were a couple of levels (even before i hit the 20s) where i actually ran out of quests b4 i leveled..and that was with killing extra mobs, and w/out any deaths. But once u reach 20+ u have to do a bit of grinding for lvls (just not as much as i and many others had to do since the Bounty Boards came out lol). But yea, u'll definitely hit a point where u have to start grinding or doing bounty boards (which is just grinding with a small bonus for every 10-15 kills) to finish levels.
~Ripper
All it was was WoW in a browser with a new skin and a few gimmacks like groves and such. 22 races are NOT needed. better quests and gameplay IS! I found the gameplay to be very much like a cut and paste job from WoW, and even the UI is exaclty like WoW! If anyone cannot see this disturbing trend amongst MMOs than the industry is doomed. Think outside the WoW box!
The game's graphics were gamecube or N64 quality, but the quests were thrown together and there was not much holding this game together, It seemed gimmacky and a fan-service type game. Furries, RMT, Central auction houses (exchange), character megapersonalistation, 3 some quest system, browser-based, java based, made in the bay fad game.
ISPs will hate this game becuase you have to redownload TONS of crap each time you play. Bandwith quotas will be met in a few days for those aussies and euros who have strict and tight quotas. Runescape can get away with this becuase they have a smaller size due to the lower poly graphics, but EE is just like downloading an entire gamecube game each time you connect almost. Especially when they update. I would much rather download the game to my HD and occassionally download 1/5th of the game's size in patches 4 times a year.
~Ripper
i think that Letter From the CEO came out after I left, cause i never saw it while i was still playing. And about the quests...note that i said there were a "couple" of levels before i reached the 20s, i didn't mean like a whole level range such as 13-18 lol. But i think i ran out once at 14 or 15 and then again at 17 or 19. Then again those couple of times i ran out of quests could have been during the time i was in CB :P
I found the game very enjoyable and somewhat addicting.
Sure, it's got it's limitations, but it's a browser game, and it's still in beta. I'm very curious to see how it develops and even inclined to contributing to it though it's item shop.
I also found the game very fluid and very polished for a browser game.
I'm wondering if they changed the game or something from when I played.
When I played, it was a dull, cookie cutter MMO whose low level experience was virtually loreless and involved grinding multiple kill ten rats quests in an area till you were sent to another area to do more kill ten rats. The character models were low-poly and ugly compared to other F2P games, and the starting cities were barren of any real thing to do. It was bland, and it'sonly real advantage was being a browser-based game. Yet it gets a 7.0?
Great review, except . . . well . . .
I've been playing this game on and off for quite some time and although I still haven't gotten to level 20, and therefore can't say much about the content beyond said level, I WILL say that what I've encountered so far is very entertaining and no less of a grind than 99.9% of the MMO's on the market currently (F2P or P2P).
One thing I can say with certainty is that I'm really tired of everyone comparing every fantasy MMO game out there to WoW. Every time the words fumble from someones mouth I involuntarily perform some form of facial anomaly consisting of momentarily scowling into an eye roll; not to mention the innumerable yawns and sighs as I attempt to delve through the rest of the individuals now-weightless commentary. It's so annoyingly boring to hear that same accusation over and over, especially because it's completely untrue in most cases, including this one (Alganon, yes, Earth Eternal, no).
Simply because a player has had their MMO "cherry" popped by WoW that doesn't mean that every fantasy game that comes out afterwards is a clone. I don't mean to be overly rude here, but let's face it, any game with a skill bar, mini-map and a couple classic RPG fantasy classes is capable of convincing any simpleton into thinking it's a WoW clone. Please keep in mind that WoW was derived from another game which was derived from another game which was derived from Tolkien or D&D; which were largely based on folklore from around the world. We could go back hundreds of years, nay thousands, so let's not stop at the end of 2004 every single time a new MMORPG is released. Oh, and SHUT UP!
That said, this game is not a WoW clone. I've played WoW to the bitter end in every facet possible (questing, raiding, PvP, fishing, armor smithing, mining, etc) and although there are indeed similarities they are no more than the similarities WoW has to Everquest, Asheron's Call, Vanguard: Saga of Heroes . . . the list goes on. The buildings in EE are proportionate in that most boards, structures, accessories and otherwise don't consist of varying thicknesses, overly-vivid colors and oddly-shaped support materials. The enemies in EE are more cartoon-based yet remain fun, clever, light and fantasy-based. I also feel that although the avatars remain largely proportionate to one another in EE the option to choose from 22 different races and nearly infinite color combinations allows players to truly diversify their semi-original alter-egos.
It's a cute (but not too cute) game with a big heart and a serious core, the likes of which easily competes with just about any other MMO in or above it's class. I look forward to continued updates to this game and will, as always, check back often for some real fun.
Fun you say? ::: gasp ::: Can that be had? Sure it can, so go sign up.
Oh, and can we institute an unofficial "no WoW comparison" rule in the MMORPG.com forums? When I was in high school all the kids in the lunch room (1,000+, it was big school) would yell a particular word when someone dropped their chair. Yes, I dropped my chair once and no it wasn't a traumatic experience. It was funny, it always was. Anyway, substitute the dropped chair with a blundering WoW comparison, pick out a word to "flame" back and we could all blast someone's inbox/post for dumbing down a forum with another WoW inference. Anyone game? How about "Cherry" or "RPVirgin"? Ugh, it's not even really worth the effort, is it?
It's a very fun game, but like this article probably said it's not for the "Hardcore" type. The '7' is a pretty good rating, but maybe MMORPG.Com can re-review it when a lot of the bugs/ lag are fixed and there's more content (Beta release?)...
Trust me, a lot more content for Earth Eternal is coming. The next patch will introduce Sparkplay's first stage of PvP, arenas. Two new regions, Swineland and Grunes Tal, are being worked on and by some leaked screenshots I found it's gonna be cool. It has also been confirmed that there will be pets in the near future and Groves by the end of the year. Long ago fishing was being talked about but has been hushed down lately...
Groves are probably Sparkplay's best weapon. From what we're told, they are basically customizable areas that a player owns. Ranging from Islands to Forests, you can build your own special area where fun stuff such as PvP can take place.
"Valley Grove" -Taken during Alpha Testing a long time ago.
:-)
I love this game! I like how customizable it is and the fact that you can Refashion Armor to make it look like any other armor but keep the stats. You don't have to purchase anything because you can buy credits with in-game money using the official website. Also, you can Download ALL the resources and files needed to play the game with one button on the login screen and that doesn't take very long! Loading times are very short when you do this! The combat is fun, there are lots of dungeons and instances and a big storyline and history and almost all quests have some story to them! This game rocks and has really good graphics for a game you can play in a browser. The best part is that there is nothing in the cash shop that gives a huge advantage over those who don't use it, no weapons you have to pay real money for that are the best in the game. Nothing like that. Overall, I'd give this game a 10/10. It's the best MMORPG I've played. And I've played lots of MMORPGs.
[quote="ihaveurnose"]
Really the only new thing Sparkplay introduced was a choice of 22 races that did not consist of any dwarves, elves, orcs or humans[/quote]
if you know the story of the game.. its taking place on earth and the humans have destroyed themselves.. no wonder they did- theyre dumb as shit :D
so don exepect any dwarves and elves