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A look at the last test session for Black Desert
Black Desert had its last beta event recently, and if you're not in the Korean beta, you can only watch and wait from the sidelines. So how was it? Steparu has a full review and discussion of the experience available now, and while it's not perfect, it seems to be hitting the notes it's aiming for. There are also plenty of videos if you would prefer to watch and evaluate for yourself; we've embedded a bit of gameplay past the cut. According to the review, the game's biggest weaknesses are the enchanting system (which is a good system but hard to gain access to and unbalancing for endgame PvP) and the endgame PvE content (which is largely absent). The review praises graphics, customization, side activities, and the overall feel of combat. Check it out if you're looking for an opinion on the game before it launches, and keep your eyes peeled for more details as it approaches localization for the US post-launch.
Let's throw a private little war in Black Desert
It's more or less an accepted fact that Black Desert is a very pretty game. There's a new video for you to gawk at past the break, and you know, it's still pretty. Yes, there are lobbed shells being thrown all around, and that's not exactly welcoming, but the way the world looks when smoke and dust is obscuring the field of vision is very nice. It's probably the prettiest war you can recall seeing. On a more relevant note, the footage comes from InpoylemQQ's channel and captures the middle of a war between two NPC factions; players could take part by assaulting the troll side of the battle if they so desired, or they could simply do their best to dodge the cannon fire. Click on past the break if you'd like to see the battle video. [Thanks to Onion75 for the tip!]
Black Desert's non-combat stuff on display in new trailer
Another day, another Black Desert trailer. It's in Korean instead of Russian this time, but I enjoyed it anyway and I thought you might, too. It's only a minute long, but it highlights many of the fantasy sandbox's non-combat activities, including fishing, hunting, mining, chopping wood, and hanging out on the roof with your cat.
Black Desert gets an official Russian trailer
If your eyes are closely fixed on Black Desert, you're probably soaking up any piece of information you can get about the game. So you'll be happy to learn that an official trailer is now available. The down side is that it's in Russian, which will render the words of the trailer a bit impenetrable to those who don't speak the language. Then again, language hurdles have always been an issue for fans of this game in America, and you can still enjoy the game footage just past the break. There's no announced release date on these shores, but with a certain publisher lined up, it's only a matter of time.
Black Desert getting naval transportation, combat
Fan site BlackDesert.com spoke to representatives from Pearl Abyss and Daum Communications at Gamescom. The resulting interview is worth a read, and it mentions that Black Desert will in fact be getting some sort of naval system. "Yes naval transportation and combat will be present in Black Desert Online," said Daum's Park Yoo Jin. "Players will be able to control boats and ships and depending on the kind of naval unit, there will be the possibility to board it with more than one person." Pearl Abyss had previously announced that it was adding naval combat at this year's E3, but thus far the systems have not been made available during Black Desert's Korea beta tests.
Here's a preview of Black Desert's CBT3 updates
We still don't have any inkling of when Black Desert's western client will arrive, but we do have a preview of some new stuff being added to the Korean fantasy sandbox MMO courtesy of next month's third closed beta test. Updates include the decorating system, readable books, easier fishing, armor dyes, new pets, and new world bosses.
Black Desert's Korean version is almost 80% finished
If you've got your eye on Black Desert now that it's definitely making the trek to the West, then Brian Oh is a name you'll want to know. He's Pearl Abyss' director of overseas business, and 2P chatted him up at this past weekend's ChinaJoy about class balance, sea battles, costumes, dyeing, swimming, the non-existent level cap, and why Daum was selected to publish Black Desert in the West. Of note, Oh and Chinese Community Manager Cheng Ying said that Pearl Abyss has "almost completed about 80% of the game." The English version is not yet half translated; the Korean version, at least, will be free-to-play and will block foreign IPs during open beta. According to the interview, PA remains "very interested " in porting the game to consoles but could not speculate on timing of the NA beta launch. [Thanks, Dystopiq!]
Daum hiring industry 'veterans from western region' for Black Desert
When Pearl Abyss announced that Korean internet giant Daum would be publishing Black Desert in the west, my first reaction was "really?" It makes a certain amount of sense, though, as having one worldwide publisher (Daum is also releasing the fantasy sandbox in its native Korea) could work in the title's favor in terms of localization and time-to-launch efficiency. On the other hand, Daum has no real presence in Europe or North America. That last point was recently addressed by Pearl Abyss Director of Overseas Business Brian Oh, who spoke with MMO Culture at ChinaJoy 2014. "Daum is looking to set up a new games business team and hiring veterans from the western region to operate the new games platform," Oh explained. The interview also delves into Black Desert's translation process as well as IP restrictions and other notables.
Black Desert's NA and EU publisher is Daum
Black Desert's search for a Western publisher has made news on more than one occasion in recent months. As it turns out, though, the fantasy sandbox MMO will be published in North America and Europe by the same company publishing it in its native Korea. That company is Daum, one of South Korea's largest internet conglomerates. News of the deal was confirmed by Steparu via an email exchange with a representative of Black Desert development studio Pearl Abyss. While there is no information available regarding Western beta dates, Pearl Abyss began working on an English client over seven months ago. Black Desert Korea will kick off its third closed beta sometime in late August or early September.
Rumor: Black Desert in 'final phase of negotiations' with NA, EU publisher
You know how Massively sometimes posts about feature-packed Korean sandbox import Black Desert? And you know how there's always that one commenter who's all "why are you writing about this? We'll never get to play it!" Well, that dude is apparently wrong. Korean website Inven says that Pearl Abyss is in the "final phase of negotiations" with a North American and European publisher. A PA rep wouldn't divulge the company or companies involved when asked at this week's E3, but he did say that the publisher in question "should be familiar when mentioned," according to MMO Culture.
Fans translate part of Black Desert's substantial lore
With the help of enterprising fans and a lot of workarounds, dedicated fans of Black Desert can do their best to muddle through the game's Korean beta if they don't read or understand Korean. Understanding the game's setting, however, is another matter entirely. But the fandom is still trying to translate and make the best of it, and now the game's first major lore article has been translated, covering some 50 years of history for the city Calpheon. In short, a plague rampaged through the city, and what started was a long campaign of war against the desert nation blamed for the contagion. This was followed by more wars, trades, magical artifacts, and... well, you get the idea. You can read the whole article to get a better sense of the world's history, whether you're trying to figure out how to interact with the game when you don't read the native language or just watching from afar. [Thanks to Irene-24 for the tip!]
Black Desert might have a PvE ruleset, separate F2P and P2P servers
Black Desert has found a Russian publisher, and while that news may seem like a tease to Western fans of the full-featured fantasy sandbox, there's a potential silver lining. 2P reports that the game may have separate F2P and P2P servers as well as PvE-only rulesets that disable open-world PvP in favor of arena matches, guild wars, and sieges. The site also mentions that Black Desert's Russian cash shop will be limited to cosmetic items, there will be no IP blocking, and there will be no dungeons (only open-world bosses). Finally, the site says the Russian alpha will happen in December 2014 with a closed beta to follow in January. Korea-based developer Pearl Abyss is actively shopping for a North American Black Desert publisher. [Thanks tandarighttanon!]
The Daily Grind: What's the ideal level cap for an MMO?
Massively commenters recently debated whether a game without levels is the same as a game without a leveling cap thanks to Black Desert's proposed character advancement system, an increasingly common lateral advancement system that allows players to build their characters more sideways than up. But outside of such sandboxes, most themepark games stake their mechanics on levels, for good or bad. And that got me thinking about the ideal level cap for an MMO. Even if two games require roughly the same amount of time to cap, a bigger number can seem so much more intimidating. Asheron's Call's 150 levels and Anarchy Online's 205 320 always seemed unreachable to me, and wasn't it cute back when World of Warcraft expected but 60 levels out of you? What do you think -- what's the ideal level cap for an MMO with levels? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Pearl Abyss attending E3, looking for NA Black Desert publisher
Steparu's latest and, for now, last Black Desert beta review has been published. It highlights castle sieges and endgame PvP, world raid bosses, and more. Interestingly, the writeup posits that the final version of ArcheAge "offers a much more vast open area with more freedom," though it's worth noting that Black Desert has plenty of room to grow since the observation was made in the game's second closed beta phase. Steparu also reports that Pearl Abyss is attending next month's E3 in search of a North American publisher.
New Black Desert closed beta videos focus on environments
YouTuber Inporylem is back with more closed beta goodness from Black Desert, the Korean action-sandbox (seems a fair term, right?) whose western arrival is still up in the air. Building on last week's video, City Life Part 1, today's videos show off the Naisu environment and continue the tour of city life within the game; both are embedded below. Contain your drool, folks! [With thanks to Berg for the tip!]
Here's another awesome Black Desert video
Ready for your daily helping of Black Desert awesome sauce? Good, because this particular video is one of my favorites. YouTuber InporlemQQ has captured 22 minutes of city and country life from the Korean fantasy sandbox. There's little in the way of combat here, but it's an explorer's paradise featuring some of the prettiest MMORPG visuals to date as well as a fun in-game soundtrack. Enjoy after the cut!
There's no level cap in Black Desert
Part three of Steparu's Black Desert beta review-in-progress has been posted. Topics covered include the skill enchanting system, sieges and open PvP, the NPC trading and the market/auction system, and the curious lack of a level cap. Black Desert endgame is kinda sorta 50, as that's when new skill acquisition ceases. But you can continue gaining XP post-50 and even continue training your previously acquired skills via more skill points from quests or mob grinding. "Black Desert is like a grinding machine's dream, perhaps too hardcore for other gamers outside of Asia," Steparu concludes.
This is how mounted combat looks in Black Desert
Pearl Abyss released a new Black Desert gameplay vid this morning that focuses on the fantasy sandbox's mounted combat. MMO Culture reports that not all character skills can be used while mounted, but "a couple of new ones are granted." Click past the cut to view the footage.
Black Desert's open PvP and death penalties explained
Steparu has posted part two of a lengthy Black Desert beta review-in-progress. This installment focuses on the fantasy sandbox's leveling experience, enchanting, the combo system, and open world PvP. Pearl Abyss has raised the minimum PK level to 40 for this particular beta phase, and Steparu says that people "who misbehave and kill random players will increase their karma points and become chaotic." Chaotic status causes random inventory drops upon death, whereas Black Desert's normal PvP death penalty is "a random chance to lose socketed gems and weapon enchants." You can read more at Steparu.com, and don't forget to watch the beta gameplay vids after the break!
Here are a couple of Black Desert beta reviews
Steparu and MMO Culture are both playing Black Desert's second Korean closed beta, and both sites have published recaps of their various adventures. Steparu details the fantasy sandbox's combat and skill system as well as the process of catching a mount with a lasso! MMO Culture focuses on the melee brawler Giant class. Both sites have uploaded gameplay videos, which you can sample after the cut.
