True Fantasy Live Online Preview

Developer	Level 5
Publisher	Microsoft
Genre	Role-Playing
Release Date	2004

It doesn’t matter that the PS2 had a year’s head start on the X-Box, or even that Sony Online hit the market three months before X-Box Live – since last November, Microsoft has been capitalizing on the unstable online market by offering numerous titles with online compatibility, and using the power of the almighty dollar to get some exclusive online features as well. While it would be pointless to run through the number of games that X-Box has linked through either content download or straight-up online play, it will suffice to know that by the end of this year, in theory, those ranks will be joined by the X-Box’s first Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG), True Fantasy Live Online. And from the looks of it, the game, like a lot else involving Microsoft’s online plan, will be good.

When considering an MMORPG, the chief problem is that the genre stems from PC-style RPGs, a genre that, until Knights of the Old Republic, hasn’t been hugely popular with console gamers. The idea that you create a character from scratch and then wander aimlessly about the world only barely caught on with fans of Morrowind last summer, and most console gamers still prefer the Final Fantasy archetype of having a tortured character in an epic battle versus good and evil, with the only choice beyond that stemming from which order you perform sidequests in. But the ambition of True Fantasy Live Online encompasses that and other concerns, and developers Level 5 seek to make the game as playable and as enjoyable as possible, no matter how you approach the game.

The approach is the key aspect. Instead of allowing you freedom with your character but still placing you down the road to the epic confrontation sooner or later, TFLO offers near total freedom with what you do in the world. Not only can you be a thief, an adventurer or a warrior, but also a tailor or a blacksmith, performing mundane tasks as you see fit. But gamers who remember Dark Cloud 2: Dark Chronicle, the last game which developers Level 5 gave their touch, will be pleased to note that the many, many additional mini-games in that title are being fleshed out in full here, so even the most unappealing jobs will have some measure of fun attached to them.

Of course, here lies another important point. In addition to Final Fantasy XI, this is one of the only MMORPGs out of Japan, clearly evidenced by the anime-style characters and cel-shaded graphics. And while the effect may be tired at this point, it’s interesting to note that Microsoft’s first MMORPG is not of Western design, as so many are – perhaps a hint at what the company’s future strategy might be. But the cel-shaded graphics also serve another purpose.

Like another upcoming X-Box title, Fable, everything a character does will have an affect on their appearance. For example, a character who spends a lot of time working as a blacksmith will gain incredible amounts of muscle mass, but as a result of standing in one place for so long, they will be unable to move as fast. Similarly, if a character is too poor to afford food, they will become frail and skinny – something that, while exaggerated in the game, will be interesting to look out for.

As expected, the world is nearly as huge as the means to get around it. From walking to horse-back or camel-back riding, taking a carriage or taking a ship, or even flying a broomstick or a dragon(the former being my personal choice as a Harry Potter fan), the means of travel are almost a microcosm of how vast and extraordinary TFLO’s world really is. There are plenty of locations to visit too, and although the screens we’ve seen so far are mostly lush, grassland areas and a few cities, we’re told that the areas will include dungeons, forests and even some wintry areas – although it isn’t yet known whether the developers will utilize a seasonal cycle in the game’s persistent world. Further, even more areas will be available for download via X-Box Live, so who knows what the developers may envision?

Unfortunately, very little is known at the time about the backstory to the world, if there is any, and by the time we update this preview, we should have knowledge of that and other things which have thus far been kept secret by Level-5 and Microsoft. But from the looks of it, this game can’t go anywhere but up. The current date is December 2003.

Preview by Adam Matlock