Lineage itself holds a place of honor among MMOs. One of the first Eastern MMOs to hit the market Lineage has left just that on the industry. Lineage 2 grew in popularity and became a success among fans on a global scale. NCSoft slowed on the title after Lineage 2 to launch a host of other games over the last few years. However, as we enter into the new decade Lineage returns to the forefront with Lineage Eternal, a different style of game that will bring the series to the next level. We've worked with NCsoft to bring you info based on the English translation of the dev team's interview from G-STAR last month.

Lineage Eternal changes the style of the game into an over the top view similar in style to Diablo. It also makes use of some very high level RTS mechanics blended in with some serious intelligence in the AI. This combination makes the game ready to host epic battles between heroes and their foes. A slightly different step in style gives Lineage fans a new perspective and some great new methods of game play to test their skills.

One of the fascinating new aspects of the game is the “drag skill” which allows players to set the range and impact of attacks. Classes like the Mage and Elemental Archer can make use of this. When asked why NCSoft returned to Lineage they explained that the classic values of Lineage were something the team really wanted to express in a new way. The epic battles in the game are huge and they wanted to give the Lineage world some new elements while still keeping the classic elements of the game. They expect users to be very happy with the experience.

The dungeon system is another key element to Lineage Eternal which players will be able to explore. Keeping the classic dungeon style adventures in the game is important. This will still be done within the framework of the MMO which will have all the full trappings of the genre. It will have PvP, PvE, instances, and other events which make up the MMO mechanics that players know.

The game has been in development for about 3 years already and has a team of about 80 people working on it. The main focus has been the epic battles in the game from the beginning with other parts being added in as development continues. LE uses an engine developed by NCSoft which also contains some great interaction with the environment. Players can expect some serious damage when a battle occurs with some major interaction on the environment. All of this was built into the engine to improve the players' battle experience. In the Youtube game play video that was released, you can see a ton of monsters and heroes on the screen. NCSoft said that up to 500 monsters and characters were on the screen. NCSoft is doing a lot to optimize the gameplay for a lot of players at once.

In terms of story elements in the game, something Lineage has been criticized for in the past, the developers are very serious about adding a strong story element into the game. They want players to have an in depth experience and story is critical to this. Devs are hoping to add depth to the game world as well. This mixed with a heavy focus on end game content. Developers are working on massive PvP battles for players to enjoy plus lots of raid content.

Lineage Eternal should appeal to fans and gamers new to the genre as well. The game does have some similarities to the Diablo style but works well within this design and gives players a lot of options for growth. With epic battles planned and keeping an MMO sense of a world that never sleeps the game will become a very solid upgrade to the Lineage series. The fact that developers are taking story and large battle elements seriously paints a good picture for players to get excited about in terms of action gameplay. NCSoft is taking a great step forward with Lineage Eternal and NCsoft thinks players will be very pleased with the new approach to the game. So far we have only seen a little of the game play from G-STAR last month, but the gameplay videos are solid and show some great effects. This is the type of fast paced play that will bring the Lineage series into the next decade and we can't wait to see more of it.

And if you haven't already, be sure to check out LineageEternalForum.com to keep informed about all the news about LE!