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Author: otomage

There. I said it. Tatsumaki, the "great scam" (more on that later), is quite possibly the greatest concept since EvE.

Before you hit the big red BURY button, read on. I'm going to dispell some rumors right now.

Tatsumaki has been in beta for 2 years, according to MMORPG. That would be disheartining to anyone who reads about this game. However, in reality, It hasn't hit Alpha yet. There is no news from the developer of any client being released. So, its just been in development for 3 years. It's a project being done by about 10 people part time. They're looking for more people, but that's another issue. Point is, the team is tiny, and part time. Media and even updates do not come easy with 10 guys working part time on a near-AAA game. So, the lack of information and progress is expected.

... You still with me? OK. Good. The boring stuff is almost over.

Tatsumaki's rep had been set up. An old member was banned and was out for blood.

A 4 year member's take: 

If I remember correctly, One person from the forums (about as far back as 5 years possibly) got fed up with the devs and started ALOT of those rumors to try and get back at T:Law for imagined personal insults. I think he was banned from the forums for breaking the rules a few too many times.

The creator, Sykoi, responded:

I remember that... He had applied to be a historian and I turned him down so he started a lot of rumors - that was not fun.

Not to mention that Sykoi also posted an update on the status of the game and this topic here: http://landatwar.com/news/view-23.

So on the accusations that Tatsumaki is a scam: that's my proof that it's not, a disgraced member posted faux info on a game, and the developers couldn't keep up with him becuase they were too busy working on their GAME.

Now, lets get past that drama so we can on to the fun part, why I think Tatsumaki will revolutionize MMO's and the sandbox market.

Cities, towns, forts, fortresses, and holdings can be built ANYWHERE. Yes. Anywhere. There are no clanstones, no pre-defined "Build here!" spots. You just place your blueprint down (as long as the bulding is on ground and at a stable angle) gather your resources, and start building. There is no word on how long it will take. You won't loose your blueprint after placing it down, only after building the building.

The developers are painstakingly accurate on the time period their game focuses on.  Houses looked like sharpened 3d illustrations of Japanese houses from the 1600s, and those housers are from pre-renders from two years ago.

The historical facts and timelime of the period the game is based on is imbedded into the 'lore' and overal gameplay, which is a major improvement over other games who are "historically based". My personal opinion is that the life expenctancy in combat is expected to be a bit shorter then DFO, between MO and DFO. The damage model is very new, however.

Rather than having certain "combos" do 'number damage' - we will put a force 'number' behind each movement; when an attack hits another player - the force behind the attack will be compared to the other player's armor, certain attributes (Possibly), as well as a few other factors; if the number is higher - the remainder will be considered the damage amount; but rather than lowering the overall health of the other player - it will do a certain amount of damage to whatever area is hit (See below for more information).

That (See below for more information) gives another relatively new concept for MMO's: The damage doll, and taking hitbox damage that hinders attributes.

Rather than having an overall, unrealistic “Health” meter, bar, or number - Tatsumaki: Land at War will feature a “rag doll”, with multiple areas a player can be damaged at. If a player is at “full health”, their rag doll will be pure white; but if they hurt their arm or leg, that area on the rag doll will be discolored depending on how bad the wound is; if the wound is simply a scratch, that area will be a very light pink; however - if the wound is very severe, it will be a deep, dark red and will greatly hinder a player’s attributes.

And the combat itself is a new concept for MMO's.

Tatsumaki: Land at War's combat system will be very similar to a Fighter, with four base buttons + movement keys, but with a basic mouse detector; "Combos" will be formed by pressing these buttons in a precise order, in a given amount of time - and will become increasingly complex. Combinations, or "combos" - will vary from each combat style to the next, as will the animations used in these; we hope to one day, allow players to create their own "Combos" - thus having the ability to create their own martial art forms / styles and techniques, which will greatly add to the game's community, as we allow players to open their own dojos and schools.

So, right off the bat, we have: A new, revolutionary combat system, including attributes being effected by damage to certain hitboxes, a game that throws away the health bar, cities and building being built anywhere by anyone, and developers that know their time period.

But wait! There's more!

EVERYthing you eat and do causes different effects. Your character will need proper nutrition, the better your character's diet, the better your characters body reacts to stimuli such as exercise. Malnutrition will cause serious adverse effects like muscle loss, physical weakness, lack of stamina, agility etc. Health training includes physical training such as running, swimming and martial arts as well as maintaining a proper balanced diet. A truly healthy character can make a truly strong character and maintaining a proper balance of exercise and nutrition will ensure that you live a long life.

There are NO monsters, however, there are wild animals. You can hunt down Boar to use for a feast. You can train on the occasional fox (Though sparring with your family-Tatsumaki's clan system-will probably be better for you in case those claws are infected.). You may find a traveling compainion in the way of a stray dog! Yes, you may be able to keep that dog you met as a pet.

If you own a Dojo (Whether it be family/clan or public), you can teach a class.

The system to teach will be quite simple and much like real life: Your dojo will have sparring dummies, an area for students to practice on each other, and an area up front with a “black board”. You, as the teacher, will be allowed to go up front and “Write” (Type) on the black board. This will obviously be shown to everyone, even if you leave, until you erase it. The best method to teach a class would be to explain everything in-depth through normal chat, and then of course: write out the basic flow of things onto the blackboard (Kick + punch + left + kick = flying round house). You can commence class, simply by stating “Start”; this, of course, relies on the maturity, respect, and intelligence of your audience/students.We realize the requirements of this kind of system, and your presence is purely optional, as there will be several pre-defined NPCs readily available for your use.

The list goes even further. Stealth will be a skill. Farming is actually profitable (Cow meat and leather are some of the two most important resources in the game). The crafting system is one I should have touched on at least, as it is so revolutionary, but ran out of room. Hunting has four skills: Tracking, Trapping, Skinning, and Gutting, all which will effect the quality of game and quantity of meat you get for your labor. The weather is a major factor- limiting mobility and sight-perfect for military operations. The clan system is ingenious as well. Player made items are as varied as Borderlands, and therefore, player made LIBRARIES exist to teach players to make a specific type of item (each book is WRITTEN by a player and checked by GMs).

And the list goes even further. The point is, Tatsumaki has all the makings of the new Sanbox MMO to play, as it is just so darn INNOVATIVE. I mean, Tatsuaki has DOJO's in which you can write on chalkboards. You can have a Dog! If you eat a bad mushroom, you get sick! If you dont excersize, you get weak! Talk about immersion! And despite what most people may say, that this game is too darn Hardcore for me, keep in mind the developers keep saying this: 

We will strive to make the game actually fun to play. Users will be presented with a world that will entice them to not only play to get a better character, or better items but rather because they simply enjoy playing. There will be so many opportunities available to you that you may never look at MMO games the same way again.

Sykoi wrote to the community the following: 

While I would like to release more information on what has been keeping us, I don't think it would be appropriate at the moment. We are planning to let everyone know what has happened, however given the circumstance, we feel it is best we wait for the massive update to release this information.

All in all, Tatsumaki has my attention. And I can't wait for that new massive update.

Tatsumaki's website is here: http://www.landatwar.com/ and the wiki with all the released features is here: http://www.landatwar.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page/ .

*EDIT* All views presented are my own. I am not an employee of Eyes Out Entertainment.