Today, NCSoft shared a Director's Preview video of its upcoming next-generation MMORPG Throne and Liberty.
In the 10-minute-long footage, the Korean game developer and publisher showed new locations and scenes while also revealing some fresh details about the game. To begin with, producer Ahn Jong-ok talked about the implication of a completely seamless world (dungeons included).
The world, which has no boundaries, is the foundation that allows players to connect with one another. It allows for endless ways to interact. Take for example an underground dungeon, with a separate entrance and main area. In it, there are multiple floors and spaces, but we have connected all the spaces together. Moving immediately to the lowest floor is possible.
Aid can be given, or damage can be dealt to others on different floors. By connecting the interior, exterior, top, and bottom of the dungeon, we hope that players can share this common spatial experience. Moreover, rather than just rushing through the fields, players can discover their own routes in the three-dimensional terrain of Throne and Liberty.
The reason why we connected the world into a single zone is that meeting others, constructing communities, and discovering who we are is the essence of an MMO.
Lee Moon Seop, Design Director of Throne and Liberty, took over to say that the game features a classless system where the roles are defined by the two weapons picked by players. Moon Seop also revealed that PvP (Player-versus-Player) combat wouldn't be forced upon unwilling players.
Most of TL's fields are safe zones. Once competitions like regional events or boss raids begin, certain fields allow combat to occur. Players can proactively choose to participate or not.
In whatever area a player is in, they can check what events and competitions are planned, allowing strategic gameplay and ensuring that there is no chance for players to fall into unexpected PvP situations. Throne and Liberty's world is comprised of different and diverse areas, and competitions are based on the background stories of each region. For those regional events, all players in a certain region can participate. Players will compete for approximately 20 minutes in order to move up in rank.
Guilds will fight over control of the so-called Possession Stones. The guild controlling them obtains 'enhanced capabilities' and some necessary raw materials.
Lastly, NCSoft confirmed that Throne and Liberty is targeting a global release on PC and next-generation consoles in the first half of 2023. However, it will be also possible to stream the game to mobile devices, likely through the cloud.
