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At A Glance - A Look at Wurm Online
MMORPG.com Correspondent Mike Balent writes this At A Glance look at the java-based game Wurm Online that apprently holds more than some readers might expect.
Recently, I decided to try out Wurm Online. I went to the site, made a free account and began my adventure. Wurm Online has both premium ($16USD every two months) and free servers. The game is Java based and is being developed by an Indy developer. The game is skill based, and is a refreshing change from the countless clones that flood today’s market.
The Beginning:
As I log on, I can see the corpses of some recently deceased players. It was a very dark night, and it was raining. I slowly walked over to the NPC guide, and he explained to me how harvesting and crafting worked.
Crafting and Harvesting:
Harvesting:
The harvesting system in this game is different than usual. Firstly, a player can train whichever harvesting skill they want, they are not restricted in anyway. They do not have to choose what profession they want to be – they can harvest everything available.
Now, since I am playing on a free server, all of my skills can only reach level 20 until I make a premium account. There are plenty of different skills, and I can learn them all. There are harvesting skills like mining, woodcutting, the list just goes on.
To harvest, it requires a player to travel around the land. You have to search for items you want for crafting, such as a certain type or ore, or maybe some logs to build a house (more on houses later). It can take a good amount of time finding the item you are looking for, and it can become a hassle, but it is worth it for some of the great items you can craft.
My view on harvesting
;)
I found the harvesting to be interesting. It can take a while to find the materials, so you have to be patient. It is also a good idea to just take whatever materials you come by; you will most likely need them in the future. The more materials you have the better.
Crafting:
Crafting is a key part of Wurm Online. While I am still a newb, the community helped me out and explained to me that everything in Wurm can, and is, crafted. You craft anvils, stoves; EVERYTHING in the game can be crafted. There are no restrictions to what you can do.
Crafting isn’t just using harvested materials, though. You have to complete every step, do each little detail, so you can actually make the item. It’s no easy task, and can take a lot of resources to complete. The whole game is based around crafting.
My view on crafting
I found the crafting to be a great system, and you jump right into it when you are low level. The NPC guides actually don’t even teach you combat; they just go over crafting and harvesting. They tell you how to make nails, planks, etc.
Not only that, but the crafting can take time and patience. I was recently making smelting iron ore to make nails, but I had to stay by the fire and make sure it didn’t burn out. I had to feed it every 15 minutes. It is great features like that which makes Wurm Online’s crafting so interesting and unique.
Now, this doesn’t mean there aren’t any problems with the crafting. The crafting is very repetitive and unfortunately involves a good amount of point and click. I believe the good outweighs the bad, though, especially with the amount of freedom that is offered when crafting.
Housing:
In Wurm Online, housing is a very popular feature. Houses can be made anywhere, and can be made from wood or bricks. Fencing and stone walls are also important, and can keep players out of the house.
Wurm Online feels a lot like a colony. The land could be described as a village in the 1500s. Firstly, everywhere in Wurm can be a place to create a house. This ability is taken advantage of, and there are houses everywhere. Big ones, small ones, little ones, large ones, they’re all over the place! Just begin digging, flattening, etc. and you can begin building your house, it doesn’t matter where you are. There are no areas where you can’t create a house. Now, this doesn’t mean the level of certain skills isn’t important. If you do not have a high carpentry level, you will be restricted to crafting certain things. Your digging skill will also have an effect on where you can dig, flatten, etc. a plot for your house (For example, if a place is too steep, this will have an effect on where you can dig and flatten). Also, in certain areas, you need permission to build a house or dig.
The houses can be used for storing different items, or putting a merchant in them and selling items. Due to the fact that banks can only hold up to five spaces (in the free to play server), storing items in houses can be very helpful. Players have to craft the nails, the planks, and all the other items that go with making a house. This can involve a lot of materials, and it takes patience to find all of the items.
My view on housing
The freedom in Wurm really shines through the housing. Players aren’t restricted to doing things, the world is their oyster. Players’ key motivation for building houses is so they have a place to store things, since the bank spaces do not hold many items. Players need nails, planks, etc. to build their houses. The housing in Wurm is the best I have seen, since players can build where they want and every item involved in building houses can be crafted.
Building a house can take awhile. It involves patience and a large amount of materials to create a house, so be ready.
Game Mechanics:
As I have said before, Wurm Online is a very unique game. Because the game is so different, I will explain some of the game mechanics.
- First Person: Wurm Online is a game that is first person; there is no option of having a third person view... Players can see up to 16KM, even on lower end computers.
- Food & Water: In Wurm, players have a dependency for food and water, just like in real life. For the first 24 hours of gameplay you get free food, but after that you’re on your own.
- Community Driven & player controlled: Wurm Online is completely driven by its community. They run the economy, they create items, and the community controls the land itself. The players can do whatever they want; the whole world is in their hands. They could build a house, dig a mine, or maybe even cut down a forest. The choice is theirs.
- Crafting: The crafting is Wurm is very important, and is a key mechanic in Wurm. Almost every single item is crafted by a player. For example, one day it was foggy and players were discussing the possibility of building a lighthouse. That just shows how crafting is a key mechanic; whenever they see a problem they discuss building something that can fix it. A player inventing their own crafted item is very common in Wurm.
- Evolving World: The world changes every day (by both nature and players). Since the world is ran by the players, the world changes constantly. One day there might flat ground and the next day there’s a house! You never know. Nature can also change the world by natural disasters occurring.
- No instances: Wurm Online is free of instances. There are no restrictions, you can go anywhere in the world without being stopped.
- PVP: There is only PvP on the wild servers, which you have to pay for. On the wild server there is open PvP, where town raids happen at least once a week.
;)
One Last Tip:
Before this article finishes up, I would like to throw in one last recommendation. For players who are serious about playing Wurm Online, I highly recommend you take the time to join a village. A village is a group of players that join together; some gather food, others work on houses; they do all the things that you would expect a settlement in the 1600s to do. Everyone has to do certain things to keep the village running.
A village is a great way to meet people, especially if you are new to the game. With the help of your village, you can get land for a house; maybe some players will lend you the materials. Villages really are a great way for players to experience how Wurm Online is community driven.
If you are interested in joining a village, go to this link that shows villages that are recruiting.
In the end, Wurm Online is a truly unique game. It is not a very popular game, having only a few thousand active players. But this is not really a problem, since there is always someone to talk to. Surprisingly, for a Java based game, the community is mature and helpful. I probably had around 50 questions, all of them being answered by the kind community. The community in Wurm isn’t perfect, but in game they were very nice (at least from my experience).
I hear a lot from the community that players are looking for open housing, or a game with in-depth crafting, or maybe a community driven game. Wurm Online is every single one of those, but it is overlooked because of its graphics and being browser based. As the user Nerf09 said, “I have standards, and those standards aren't too high.” This statement is implying that, even though Wurm Online is exactly what he is looking for (and more); he would not play it because it was Java based. If people just look past the graphics, they will be very pleased with the game. After all, Wurm Online is a crafter’s paradise. I would also like to thank Paulscott for the help while writing this piece; couldn’t have done it without him!
Hrm... Afraid you forgot to add the link to 'here'. :)
nvm, must have seen it wrong...
Hi,
I have played Wurm for a couple of years now. It is a very addictive game and would fully recommend it.
It is still being developed and just recently boats were added. You can build your own fleet from a rowng boat to a large sailing ship. There are 3 servers (2 home, no PVP & a wild server which anything goes). It is also possible to sail between servers. This game is a must for anyone that enjoys crafting.
Thank you for this. I will surely try it out.
Many thanks!
Very interesting, I'll have to have a look at this one also.
Thanks for the "At A Glance"
nice article :) but there is some mistake:
15min fire - depense of ql of fire/forge it can be even 2h on one fuel ;)
5 slot for free - premium have same
20 skill on free serv - bah but on free you can be premium too
"Players can see up to 16KM, even on lower end computers." what you mean? :P 16km x 16km is map not view sight
and not all item are player madeable.. yet there is some like deed write merchant contract or trader , spyglass (chrismast gift) farwalker amulet (christmast..) ressurection stone and 2 other stone ;p to be bought from trader rest (1000? item?) are craftable :)
"PVP: There is only PvP on the wild servers, which you have to pay for. On the wild server there is open PvP, where town raids happen at least once a week." - on home server pvp exist to but it's only duel and spar , where both player have to agree for fight :)
Another of those f2p that really are not free to play. Where is the truth in advertising? The trial is free and that is all.
On Java, only a braindead developer would develop a game in Java, language was never intended for such. It just slows down the client, so don't run it i on marginal computers.
Nice article though.
The crafting and housing sound really cool. My main concern would be the combat, creatures, and dungeons for this game. Are they interesting or cool? Regardless I plan to give this game a try.
Heh I dont know why but when I hear the word "wurm:" I think of bad things like computer virus or the wiggly critters people use for fishing (I know different spelling but still)......
Yes although there is no PvP on the home server, we do have a little issue with some rather over enthusiastic fauna - the curse of many a new player is taking their new shovel, striding out into the brave new world and getting eaten by the first spider they find.
So, if you are into hunting, well, villages require meat and meat tends to come from animals who have an opinion about being hunted!
As for dungeons, on Wurm we dig our own.
Take your shovel and dig down till you hit rock, then take up your pick and open up a tunnel.
Some of the mines are now vast! And abandoned ones become the hiding places of cave bugs and giant scorpions.
A note on the Free to Play - On Wurm you can play for free as long as you like. However, if you want to raise your skills above the 20 cap you will need to turn to pay for premium time. This prevents you from doing some things. For instance to build a Stone house you need a masonry skill of at least 30 -so that is a problem. You can build wooden houses though.
However, if you dont want to go premium - that is fine, you can simply carry on playing as you are. No time limit.
One slightly misleading aspect on the article is about houses everywhere. Round Newtown, your starting point on Jenn-Kellon Home, there are houses everywhere, this is true. However, this is not true all over the map. I am on a large island on the far eastern Ocean and there are just a handfull of us,
And the new Mol-Rahan server (premium only) has loads of space, massive mountains and clean wonderful air -honestly, just take a deep breath! More information here: http://www.wurmonline.com/Game-News/a-new-land-is-discovered.html
Wurm is wonderful. So wonderful that I am writing the music for it - and I dont give my time lightly!
See you there, I hope!
nope even on my crap computer (6600, 1 gig RAM, and 3.6 GHZ) at the top of the highest mountains I can literally see a vast majority of the map/server(even on an edge), Sure it's not accurate and distorted(everything is so tiny obviously) but I'm rarely lost when I can get to/see landmarks.
It's a great all around game it's just pretty indy. It has so much stuff that AAA devs can't do just because they're AAA and is pretty much the best arguement around why the MMO genre could possiblely be pretty receptive to indy MMOs.
The world graphics are on par and above a lot of current MMOs, as for characters they're pretty much behind and behind a hell of a lot. The graphic style suits the whole settle theme very nicely(except characters) even if the old graphic engine from beta suited the theme better.
As for why I'm not playing it I played it for 2 and a half years and did most the stuff I wanted to several times. I love the game and will recomend it to just about everyone just because it is so awesome in it's specilizations.
Runescape is extremely optimized and that runs on Java. I never lag in RS no matter how many people are on. Needless to say Wurm does not have any such optimizations and runs very poorly. There is major lag spikes in that game on broadband 15Mb down connection. I played it for a week and ran into so many difficulties with lag spikes, but this was about 4months ago.
To me the game was lacking in being user friendly, it certainly wont boast well to many gamers. There is the problem of finding people also in such a dense world. Sure the starter towns had people but not many.
You gotta dig that groovy song on their web page.
Wurm Is waiting! waiting for you!
Makes me want to watch Hawk The Slayer or Yor Hunter from the future.
One more thing I hated about this game was the housing. There was so many houses all over the place that you would not know if you came across a town or what till you checked the map. The system is flawed and it liters the scenery everywhere with houses. Pretty stupid system in my eye. Houses need to decay if they are not used after a set time along with fences and objects placed by people.
Nice review. This is a nice game I've played for awhile, but the warning I have is it's very addicting! You might end up logging on to cut a tree or fix a fence when you're bored. lol
I have a home near Newton I've been wanting to leave for awhile and go out and explore. But it lets you do everything, even raise and lower the ground with dirt you dig. I've built my house, built fences, raise crops, cooked food, mined metal, you name it it's there. Lots of animations are the only things that are lacking, but trees sway and grass and other stuff grows, you see a tree grow from nothing to very tall. It can actually be set to full screen so it pretty much runs just like a standard game.
The houses decay, everything decays. Takes about 2 weeks for a houses walls to start falling apart then they disapear, same with fences and everything, it also depends on the quality of your building related to it's skills and if you own a "land deed" which slows down decay that detemines how long things last.
Thanks for the tips, comments, and corrections everone; I'll make sure to remember them :).
The crafting sounds interesting but they lost me in the 'first person only' part. For shooting games I tend to prefer first person view, but sometimes third person also depending on the game. For mmo, I have a steep preference for third person. I usually am pulled back to the middle or far distance, so I can get a feel for the world around me and any threats that might be sneaking up on me.
From an rpg aspect, it also feels less immersive. I like to see my character, dress him or her up and be able to see their cool gear that I looted or purchased at the auction house. When I shrug, laugh, dance, clap, etc, I like to see my characters actually perform the animations.
All games are not for everyone though. Sounds like some are enjoying the game and that is nice.
One thing one should keep in mind is that wurm is not really a traditional mmo.
It's indie, low budget. It has a lot of bugs, the ui is crappy, it is grindy to a level that even lineage fails to reach. And if you aproach it like a traditioinal mmo, you will just quit before ever making your first campfire. Wurm also has no Quests, no Storyline to follow. Additionally, in wurm you don't hunt monsters - the monsters hunt you.
But, it is entertaining in a way traditional mmos can't. Travelling through the dangerous lands and finding abandoned or prospering villages, making friends and building your own place.
It's a "game" (trust me, it isn't a game..but i'll just call it a game for now for the sake of it) where people don't ask "What level are you", but "Where do you live". You will settle down, and build something. Changing the landscape is not only a part of wurm, it is wurm. It's what it is all about. Build your village, build your towns, be creative.
I'm currently actively playing wurm on the near deserted Mr Home server and enjoying building my roads and special places, but it will never replace Eve as my favourite Mmo. When i'm bored of space, however, i like to go back to my small hut in the shadow of a huge mountain, chatting with the people also living in out little village, and building or exploring the map. My skillsheet is closed all the time of course, you don't really need it.
It's like Atitd, only with monsters.
Oh by the way.. "farming" is to be taken literarily. There's a reason why you can craft rakes and scythes..
lol "Wurm is waiting!"
lol . The Good: Large map you can terraform the tarrain make mine tunnels through mountains make buildings guard towers to defend your land from the monsters and outlaws, you can tame wild animals to be pets to help you in combat or to lure them into a farm area where you can horde thousands of chickens cows and pigs. On the wild server there is pee v pee you can destroy some ones house,steal all there stuff and flaten there farms and take the deed money while they are offline lol. you have to build a good village and terraform your place so its hard for raiders to break in. so if you want to be a crafter you have a none pvp server to be safe from the free for all pvp.
the bad: its very time consuming to get things done takes a noob one hour RL time to smelt ores so you can make your first few items like metalic tools. dont expect to have much fun they are other felings you may get that will keep you playing this game but fun is not one of them lol. Grind is insane but not as much as some korean mmo's i have tried. stealing you cant leave any thing around you have to watch your fire the whole time or some other noob will take your stuff out of the fire. no customizable characters or visable armor. The healing system sux you will get hurt and have to play that way for hours for some of it to heal or spend hours trying to find materials to make healing supplies.
Yoooooor... Heeee's the maaaaaaaaann.....
(sorry, I couldn't resist)
:-p
Seriously, I tried the game out a bit... It says to go talk to the NPC near where I started, but I couldn't find any such NPC that had any useful information for me O.o. I think he quit.
This is the first time I have ever seen a game advertise the time it takes to craft as a positive thing... And it didnt say fast it said 15 mins...
Hi,
This is a pretty good review, I must say. Thanks to this article I know a lot more about Wurm Online, a good which looked great to me but a bit too hardcore...
But I wish you would say a little bit more about the combat system in the game. Because in this article, you only write about the crafting/harvesting system.
Greetz2Z
pvp is the only minus of game :[ it's pretty unbalanced for now and hard for new player (as most of player on wild are pretty high skiled fighter)
but you can have pvp on home too ;) and it's much safer like:
spar - fight as long as someone have 10-15%hp then it auto stop
duel - you die in this so not good idea ;]
"war" - this one never happened yet as I know ;) if 2 village/ single deed holder want they can declare war each other but on home server both side need to agree then you can kill each other without penalty ;)
The first versions that players could get a hold of didn't even have animals or combat at all. granted that was a really really really long time ago 6+ years.
I really thought that Wurm was really unique, and definately worth checking out as well
My big iffie on it was that it IS NOT 3rd person in any way. The engine is very interesting but very old.
Otherwise, Wurm players, keep supporting the devs!
Me and a few friends just decided to try it out yesterday. We're pretty sucked into it now. We found an abandoned town and we're starting to build things in it again. (Town next to BearBack mountain btw). Can't explain why cutting down trees and making planks is this fun. It just is.
If you have some friends, try it out and attempt to start a settlement. Being alone wouldn't be too thrilling. (Or join someone else in-game).
uh I play 2,5 year and like 1,5 year I lived alone :D
living alone is fun too ;)
but true.... lit not look like that clicking create plank would be fun but it is :D
Yoooooor... Heeee's the maaaaaaaaann.....
(sorry, I couldn't resist)
:-p
Seriously, I tried the game out a bit... It says to go talk to the NPC near where I started, but I couldn't find any such NPC that had any useful information for me O.o. I think he quit.
I would Kill to get the Yor Theme song as a MP 3 LOL!
I would Kill to get the Yor Theme song as a MP 3 LOL!
If you really want it, http://www.bmoviefilmvault.com/downloads/yor's_world.mp3 my brother had me look it up bout a month ago, found the link in the sent email to him. Enjoy.
I would Kill to get the Yor Theme song as a MP 3 LOL!
If you really want it, http://www.bmoviefilmvault.com/downloads/yor's_world.mp3 my brother had me look it up bout a month ago, found the link in the sent email to him. Enjoy.
DUDE!!!
You so totally rock! This goes in my Zen today LOL
Too often, do people think graphics are everything. Graphics are not the game. The graphics are only there to help present the game. The real game is within the mechanics.
This shallow view of games so many idiots have, is really starting to irritate me.
How this horrible game even got a mention is beyond my comprehension. The only redeeming quality I could find was that it was free. I tried it out and played for a few hours and this is what I thought.
1. Graphics - Beyond horrible - Makes original EQ look like the best graphics ever made. No way to switch from 1st to 3rd person. Sure you can see for a mile, but your looking a miles of blocky junk.
2. Tutorial - There isn't one. Supposed to be a starter quest lady, but she wasn't anywhere near where she was supposed to be. Never found her. Great way to introduce new players to the game. Controls are non-standard MMO so you need a tutorial.
3. Quests - There aren't any. You are dropped in the middle of town with nothing equipped, nothing to do and no where to go and no direction and no map. I'm sure this game has a point, but after three hours of randomly running around trying to accomplish something I gave up from sheer frustration.
4. Gameplay - I'm sure some people will enjoy this game, but spending all my time running up and down a river looking for one plot of clay while getting stuck on game geometry items or not being able to climb out of 3 inches of water or jump over a pebble was enough.
Overall Game rating 2 out of 10.
1. graphic is nice in wurm ;P if you have it not on lowest setting
2. tutorial lul there is tutorial if you can find one of 3-4 tutor on each spawn point , wich stand like 5-10 tile from place you spawn then you must be total noob
3.quest that why this game is so great there no quest. Quest make game silly.... 123123123 of player run around and do this same quest again and again.... and in wurm you do whatever you want. and equippment? just make it yourself like every think in game ;) bah and 3 h ? ;p don't be funny , spend on it couple day and you will like it :)
4.yea... jump over pebble , 3 inches water , you sure you launched game not played with icon on your deskopt ?:P
overall maddyn99post rating: 2 out of 10 ;p
bah 99 mean you born 1999 yes ;)?
wurm can be too hard for 9 year old people but I saw younger ingame :)
LOL definitly not a game for wussies. Graphics could use some work yes, but the spirit of the game is great! Now if there was just more critters to wack, and NPCs that actually did something the game would be better, none the less try it out if your not a wuss.
Ever since I first started playing games, I have been frustrated because of limitations. Why couldn't I climb up that slope? why couldn't I go to that area. I see it, I can look at it, why won't it let me walk over there? As I continued on to MMORPGs, the annoyances only continued. Alright, so, I play a druid on World of Warcraft, when I go to the moonglade, there are Taurens right next to the Night Elves, they'll talk to me. Why can I not ask them to teach me to speak Tauren? Why do I have to be an enemy to my fellow druids who happen to be of a different race?
Just as I began to tire of the game, my friend discovered Wurm. As I started playing, I realized that this was the game for me. It was the game I had been dreaming of playing since I first started playing games. True, on my computer I couln't have the graphics up very high, but on my friends laptop, the game looked amazing. Granted, there was no character customization, and some of the graphics were not the best, but the gameplay is what I was interested in. I have been hooked ever since.
Two of my friends and I have moved from Wild to Home, and established a new town there. We are attempting to construct a port town with an established trade route between us and the wild server. This is the only game I know of where you can start from nothing, dream big, and make it come true through sheer will, hard work, and patience.
Yoooooor... Heeee's the maaaaaaaaann.....
(sorry, I couldn't resist)
:-p
Seriously, I tried the game out a bit... It says to go talk to the NPC near where I started, but I couldn't find any such NPC that had any useful information for me O.o. I think he quit.
In the initial instructions it also said you could simply type /mission.
That was my experience with the game as well.