Mabinogi: Substance Over Flash
MMORPG.com Mabinogi Correspondent Beau Turkey writes this article discussing the merits of substance over flash when it comes to Nexon America's Mabinogi.
Graphics are a funny thing. Discussing what good graphics are, and why a player prefers them, is a lot like discussing art. After all, everyone has an opinion and there can be no "right" or "wrong," just preferences.
Some players tend to like more "realistic" looking games like Vanguard, Everquest2 or Lord of the Rings Online. Others lean towards "cartoony" or cel-shaded games like Dream of Mirror Online or Maple Story. Then there are games like Mabinogi that show off a style that can be semi-realistic and very cartoony all in the same world.
The question is, do you allow graphics to make or break a game for you? Does it need to look like real life to feel authentic, or do you need bright colors and big explosions to help you have a good time?
Mabinogi utilizes the Pieione Engine, which seems robust enough to create a massive dragon battle while still taking very little of a PC's resources. I have had Mabinogi running in the background while checking other games, and can easily switch between it and checking email, writing blogs or posting on forums.
;)
I will admit that at first I worried that I would not be able to get past the semi-Anime look of Mabinogi, but quickly the "true sandbox" quality of the game sucked me in. The graphics grew on me as well. Also, Mabinogi does not boast the intense animations or colors that many Anime style games do. Instead, it has a more muted color range, characters that are more in proportion (as adults) and animals/pets can sometimes be beautiful and graceful.
Here are a few examples of other media that, in my opinion, do the same thing as Mabinogi:
- The Blair Witch Project: This movie was made by throwing actors into the woods with video cameras and scaring the crap out of them, all based around a loose series of events. Not only did it result in great performances, but the hand-held camera work (and choppy sound) was later edited into a movie that let your brain do most of the work. You didn't see much of anything, and what you did see gave you a very strong impression of what that thing was.
- The game of chess: This board game has been entertaining people for, what, centuries? I have played it in e-mail form, 3-d "monster" form and in person with another human. Despite its limited lighting, sub-par monster design, and simple rule-set, I am drawn in every time. In my head I get an impression of my army conquering the other side.
- Old Radio Shows: Many people used to sit around and "watch" the radio after dinner, listening to adventure tales, the news, and comedy programs. Even to this day, radio is a viable and vital form of entertainment. Yet, no graphics whatsoever. Again, your brain does the work and it takes the impressions of a character or item and you see it in your head.
;)
Mabinogi uses a few things to give you a great impression of a fire, for example. In fact, campfires seem to crop up anytime players are congregating. When they do, many of them sit around it and talk. Making a fire is a simple process, filled with simple graphics, but it works better than in most games.
How simple and basic is it?
- Equip a nice new axe.
- Chop down wood and gather it.
- Start the fire making skill, and nominate a point on the ground.
- Sit, share a meal with other players (another fun system,) heal up or just talk and enjoy the stars.
Not only do the graphics do their part, but the game actually says "The fire feels warm.." which gives you the impression of sitting around a real campfire. I carry an axe anywhere I go.
When a new game is announced, one of the first things players are concerned with is how it looks. Next, they are concerned with "Will my PC run it?" System requirements go up as PCs become more powerful, players upgrade their systems to follow, and the cycle continues. Mabinogi has decided to stop that never ending process by making a game that feels very real, but not due to just the graphics. When you have a game that would have been considered a graphical powerhouse years ago, you have allowed the games graphics to stay where they are at, and do without the constant struggle to keep up with graphics-hungry players.
FPS gaming is notorious for putting out the same game-play wrapped in an ever-increasing system hungry engine. Players brag about their Frames Per Second, sometimes more than of their enjoyment of the game. As someone that went through school for art, I can tell you that one of the worst things to do is to try and capture reality, especially when you do not have the ability to do so. I saw so many students grab a picture and a canvas only to come out with a work that distracted you with the lack of reality rather than the beauty of the piece. Your eye tended to notice the little flaws, being that the artist was not good enough to make the painting look like the photograph. I went for the impression of a photograph, I tried to make images like those you see in a memory.
;)
Even the most powerful engines we gamers can run do not work at realistic levels, at least not right now. In order for a game to run smoothly while rendering other players and keeping up with what the system is doing, not only would the engine need to be light but our PC's would need to be heavy. Both are not common enough for photo-realstic MMO's to be the norm.
Games like Mabinogi work because they dismiss the rules of this reality and take you into it's own. You accept its lighting effects and big eyed characters because it all blends together with exciting game-play.
Also, Mabinogi doesn't distract you with over-the-top explosions or fire effects. It goes for the middle ground and delivers a game that can not only run on many different systems, but that pulls in many different players from many different age groups. The kids seem to like the semi-Anime style, the adults love the sand-box gaming. Then, each side slowly discovers the other and what comes out is a more rounded community.
So, are realistic graphics needed for you to enjoy a game? Do you value graphics over game-play? If a game like Mabinogi was wrapped in the skin of a LotRO or a Vanguard, would you give it a chance?
I say give it a chance anyway. You'll find more options in this game than in almost any game out there. The graphics will grow on you.
I just skimmed through your text... Mabinogi may be fun and so but... didn't you mean "Substance over FlEsh"?
I just want a game which has the following:
Open skills - let me be whatever I want to be
Live Content - Companies should hire students to play ingame boss mobs
Open World - RVR / Castle Seiges - that is meaningful to the world/your guild and yourself
Dungeon Crawling/exploring
Let me and my friends slay dragons
Make is easy for me to find groups
Take away the grind, make the game fun and all about endgame
Grpahics although important do not make up for poor game play or poor game design.
Most of my points gamers have been making forever, unfortunately game companies don't listen to well.
There's only one thing that really annoys me about Mabinogi ...
The IP Block for Europe so only Americans can play the game, It's a kick in the balls because it's something i would be playing otherwise.
You just kind of described Mabinogi perfectly. My answers are in your post.
Beau
Agh! I heard about this...I have no idea why some games do this and some don't. I wish I knew.
beau
I thought the graphics were great.
Games with realistic graphics tend to have unrealistic violence (which I dislike, since I'm not accustomed to violence). Yet the last I had heard about Mabinogi, ~2000 users got banned for... Being rich?
Remark: Duping --> gold --> massive bans (and a lot of accounts were wrongfully banned)
And I stopped playing when I spent a skill-point on the wrong skill. I may - I will start playing this summer, as it is a good use of time and the in-game community is ok.
Regarding fire... *Phenoca offers you newbie-bread*
Yeah that's exactly what I want too.
Now that is an awesome idea, I don't know why game developers haven't tried this. Im sure there are some hard core PvPers out there that would sit in from of a computer screen all day trying to wipe a party. Hell It even sounds fun to me. lol
Just imagine how much more fun it would make dungeon runs, I think it would make them so much more fun. You never know what they are going to do next and it makes you think on your toes. Like in WoW your grinding the same damn thing just hoping for that drop. Why not make that loot drop more often but have someone playing the boss so its harder to beat them and if you do, you get the loot because your actually a a good player and not because you have time to do the damn thing a million times to get that very rare drop.
Now that is an awesome idea, I don't know why game developers haven't tried this.
RO
Carpe Diem
I would like it if the latter were hosted, but it is not.
I am sure there are more, as well as games that are PvP-enabled (which is indeed awesome).
I really like Mabinogi and started playing because Beau had blogged about it. :) BUT I'm a case of I don't have enough time on my hands for it. I will say this it is a game that stays on your mind for a long time and the graphics on screenshots and even videos do not do justice to the in game experience. The world meshes so very well together it's difficult not to find yourself immersed.
What I didn't like was the fixed camera angle when you enter buildings feels like a 2D game at that point. Click to point usually annoys the heck out of me but in this game I don't mind due to the really fun combat moves. Harvesting is so cool!
Wow it's late now so I'm ranting and my points don' t follow each other, but point being Mabinogi is totally worth the download and the space on your hard drive. :P Looking forwards to Mabinogi 2 news eventually also and I don't mean Mabinogi Heroes which is more console oriented. XD
Grphics to me have become a bigger issue in the churning of the clones of clones. The game that had the best graphics to me was Granado Espada, sexy ass men that you could dress in next to nothing. Why is this important to me? Because no other game really has that. It's all about stripping down the women and jiggling their boobs... I do not like that thing. Then again I'm not their target demographic. However the cutesy stuff isn't "sexy" enough for me. It all looks like a bunch of little kids running around. Once you've seen one you've really seen them all. I really want a game where there I'm the demographic and it isn't cutesy at all, like Granado Espada. (You can even go so far in the game to have a complete male harem as you play with 3 characters and can pick and choose them ;D ).
Really I haven't seen much different in terms of graphics. I've also played Mabinogi, and everything looks about the same in it, I would say it's still a very cutesy game in terms of graphics. True is has a lot behind it and a "sandbox" feel, but you need money to do anything, and if you run out of money, so does the fun of the game run out.
Someone on the Mabi forums said that the graphics looked a little dated because the game was a little old, not that the company was trying to keep away from having to update it.
My point was that regardless of the reason for the "dated" graphics, it can be a blessing in a lot of ways because the developers could avoid having to be the latest, most realistic game out there, and could be open to being played on many more systems than a game that requires a state of the art machine.
Also, just a side-point, if you put a skill point in the wrong area, you can either get it back by paying for a service that will give you a pill that "refunds" a skill point, or you can just get a free re-birth, which starts you over with all your skill levels but with a character that is at level one.
I will write a feature article about that, tough to explain without playing it.
Beau
I completely disagree. Granted, spending a little money DOES gain you a lot of cool stuff, but it is not forced.
Especially now with free rebirths and even free storage services (for accounts under a total age of 30) you can do it all without spending a dime. Does it help? Of course.
Consider the game free, but with an option to spend money to take less time to do things. That's fine by me! :)
Beau
beauturkey i don't suppose you could get any information about a European release or even any info about Nexon lifting the ip block could you?.
Sounds like a fun game, but the anime characters just don't do it for me sorry to say. Hard to get immersed in a game when the characters look like they do.
I agree, sometimes the graphics can be distracting. Once you see a lot of the game you see how nice the engine can look, especially for it's age. The game-play really makes up for it.
A European release? That'd be awesome. Nexon is not really responsive to emails and such, being that it's hard to even find one to contact them with! lol
I'll see if I can get any answers though! :)
Beau
I've been playin' Mabinogi for... almost a year if not already.
The game has good quality overall. It has a very unique fighting style, almost constantly updated game world, Graphics are good for lesser computer capabilities, and it provides a good social environment.
Though it has had me hooked for almost a year, I can't say I haven't found some issues that would of been nice to have it fixed.
The extras you can buy are nice, and with the latest updates, the game has literally gone completely free playable, but unfortunately those who have had them for a long time, pretty much relys on the extras. So once you start gettin' far into the game, you end up having to use at least Nao or Banking services (Nao is like having extra lives, and Banking is for extra inventory space) in order go make any good progress anymore.
in the past, the main storyline was limited to only those with some kind of extra on their account, which isn't the case now. So it's nice to know if I have to loose my extras, I wont have to have them to continue the storyline when it progresses. (Although, I can't say I care much for the Generation Skipping. G1, yeah, skip away, but G2 and 3?.. eh..)
The game is completely customizable, all the way down to the color of your clothes, which is a great bonus, making it harder to find two people that look alike.
Gold is frustrating at times. As I said before, you almost have to rely on the extras when you get to a point, and the whole economy on major things that you may need, is a little spastic at times. When one event makes an item easy to get, it drops the value drastically, and ups the price of items that help the event. So you pretty much sell now, or you wont get the same price in the next week or so.
The MMO actually has a nice little storyline. If you read the books and actually read over what happens, it's pretty in depth. (Though the recent story is kind of iffy.. not much to say about the story of the Elves or Giants.)
The game is really one sided on a single class really. Archery is over powered in both PvP and dungeons, when ranked enough. It gets annoying, though we wait for a new update that brings a skill that will counter archery for us Warrior Focus players.
Anyway, the game is good, but it would be nice to see some changes here and there. Maybe more things to do, and a little less unstable servers. So many server updates are suddenly popping up, it's almost disturbing. A little more to do would be great. Once you beat the all of the Generation Stories and have pretty much every skill, you have nothing else to do but train, and for those who can't afford a Rebirth every single week like the majority of the players now-a-days, you really only play every three weeks, play for maybe two days, then get off till you can Rebirth again. It gets frustrating at times.
Overall: It's really a good game, and those who like an MMO that has a lot of freedom in skills, looks, and pretty much everything, should check it out. The Graphics are a little anime style, yes, but the entire world complements the look so well, you really don't notice the look, but more that it all belongs.
One of the few games to feature tree punching.
Thanks for some clarifications Slykik, I wasn't able to cover most everything. Of course, this article was mainly about graphics. Sort of. lol
I can see the reliance on the shop, for sure. I don't think that's anything bad, though, being that it is still cheaper than most subs, and you can spend it when and if you want. I just like the choice.
Beau
Heh, sure thing. I still enjoy the game and pop in every once in a while. I still have advanced item services after all xP
But I know what you mean, you don't really need the shop items, in fact I know a good amount of people who are completely free now with Rebirths and such being completely free. I think it's more of a peer pressure in the game, the wanting to get stronger so you can take on your rivals or whatever challenges your friends want you to join in. So it gets annoying to see people rebirthing every week when not only is it a bit of a waste in AP (Ability Points used for ranking skills) in the end, but people shooting past you in the overall levels.
Not to mention the pets and such that are out there. There are new ones out every month or so. So everyone is rushing to get that limited time only pet. So those without the ability to get Nexon Cash (Nexon, the running company of Mabinogi, form of funds for Cash Shop items) fall short.
I'm not ranting on the shop, in fact Maplestory and Mabinogi are, as I would assume, are most of the funds and profits for upgrades Nexon America is able to get.
What kind of got my attention was the free services lasting only to level 30. Honestly, any player that has any slight experience and know what they're doing, can hit level 30 in a single day of just beginner quests alone. (And maybe some help on dungeon running for gold)
I hear people complaining about Nexon America being cheap and overpriced about things, but honestly I think they're just stingy. I haven't gotten anything besides my monthly Fantasy Pack (A special deal containing all three special services in one cheaper price) when it comes to Cash Shop items. I'd like to see the next updates for sure. (Though I'm mostly waiting for Chain Casting, the ability to charge more than one charge on a spell depending on the rank of upgrade on a wand, and Assault, a melee ability to rush at an archer without being stunned and taking minimal damage depending on ranks.)
Either way, since I've been playin' for a while, I've been able to see most of the common problems around the game and such. I can go into more depth, but I don't think this thread is really called for it. Don't take me wrong though, Mabinogi has more plus sides, in fact massively more plus sides than negative, and a very unique gameplay, as I stated before.
First time I played Mabinogi I enjoyed it and used to watch hens fight foxes but my internet was slow so I couldnt play. After I got faster internet...
Well, I came back to Mabinogi like a month or so ago and I've been enjoying it. I'm a level 30 human but I feel like I made a good choice.
Sometime halfway through my gaming time I get bored, so I switch and go mining, sell some ores and make some easy money.
Overall, I agree with everything that has been posted and I hope I will enjoy Mabinogi alot more!
I completely disagree. Granted, spending a little money DOES gain you a lot of cool stuff, but it is not forced.
Especially now with free rebirths and even free storage services (for accounts under a total age of 30) you can do it all without spending a dime. Does it help? Of course.
Consider the game free, but with an option to spend money to take less time to do things. That's fine by me! :)
Beau
I found this a great help, it's a post that's in the mmorpg.com forum, that shows how to play it for free, it's a bit dated, but still worth a read.
http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/thread/209783/Free-forever-play-is-possible-very-deep-guide.html
Yeah, I know what you mean about the internet. A huge downside of the game is that, if you don't have a good internet that doesn't lag, you're goin' to have issues fighting.
Since everything is fast paced real time fighting, you have to be able to charge skills and do everything exactly as you need. If your skill takes even a fraction of a second longer than you want to charge, you get killed. This gets VERY frustrating for archers and mages alike, because they can't use their skills to the fullets, and you pretty much die in every other fight.
If you still want to play despite your internet, I'de advice being a "tank". (Someone who has masses of HP and Defence so they take close to nothing in damage when hit, and pretty much never has to heal) I'm pretty much a mage tank. Maxed out Lightning Bolt rank (Rank 1) and currently working on defence and other HP increesing skills. (Currently rank 6 defence and rank 8 combat mastery.)
All you really have to rank mainly for a tank, is to get your defence up as high as possable. It's extremely easy to train and the AP cost isn't too bad. (Compared to most higher class skills anyway)
The easiest way to train defence, is to simply spam the skill against mimics. I know if you don't have a good internet, this can be harder to do than you would think, but mimics only hit 1s to the general player, and they attack twice before they circle you to attack again. So you may get hit once, but the first one you can defend, then charge it again after gettin' hit.
You can pretty much use that tactic on any monster that has only defence skill (meaning they don't use any spells or especially smash) and deal very minimal damage.
Either way, someone who has a slow internet kinda like myself (It's not always slow, just spikes alot) will mostlikely have issues playing Mabinogi well.
I only have time to post a wee response, or the dogs will kill me if I don't get them on their walk!
For combat I only concentrated on Smash, and have rank uhm..8 or 7 I think? And Combat Mastery is level 9. But after my re-birth I am loving blacksmithing, so all points have been going into that. Refining is kind of hard to level, though!
Beau