GameOgre.com recently had a Q&A session with Dragon Oath’s General Manager Martin Tan. Questions by GameOgre.com are in bold.
To start things off how well do you think the pre-closed beta did?
The pre-closed beta was a solid success. We received a great deal of positive feedback about the quality and strength of the game as well as some suggestions about how we can improve the game experience for the players. We will be sitting down and looking at these suggestions and seeing what we can fine tune before Open Beta and Launch.
How much input will Dragon Oath’s community have during closed beta?
What makes a great game is a great community and we are committed to building that community from the very beginning. We feel it is extremely important to listen to our player?s feedback and grow the game from their thoughts and suggestions. Already in pre-closed beta we saw an enormous amount of participation from the community creating walkthroughs game guides and even item lists and we know that we will continue to see that as the game move forwards.
Speaking of community what type of community features does the game offer?
In the game alone there are a number of key features and tools that we know our community will utilize and enjoy. From daily in-game events to a unique Master/Disciple system (which will offer you an XP bonus to use as you level) to a rich guild system the players will never be bored and will always be connected with each other. Furthermore in the online forum community we plan to run regular contests and events to keep the player excited both inside and outside the game.
Can you explain the game’s life skills?
Life skills are abilities that you can learn which will provide you with activities to do when you need a break from leveling your character. Each skill will offer the opportunity to create items which will help you as your character progresses. From improving your farming fishing or mining to becoming an expert chef blacksmith or alchemist you will never run out of something to do. The best thing about Dragon Oath?s life skills is that the player can have as many of them as they would like. Most games limit you to 2 or 3 but in Dragon Oath we feel that the player shouldn?t be restricted in their activities.
Can you give details about the game’s PvP system and what role it will play in the game?
Dragon Oath?s PvP system in the game is extremely rich with a multitude of options. Instead of your typical 1v1 or arena system you see in most games Dragon Oath gives you options on who you want to be able to attack and even the option to engage in guild versus guild combat. But beware; a player?s PvP exploits will have moral implications on their character. Over time the more PvP a person engages in the more crime points they will accrue. After a player has gained enough crime points they will eventually be thrown in jail so one must choose their battles wisely!
What sets your pet system apart from the rest of the free MMORPG industry?
In addition to there being a multitude of pets (seriously the number of pets one can collect is staggeringly high) each pet has their own skills personality and attributes that can be merged with a pet of the same species through the breeding system. The offspring will have a combination of the parents? talents which gives the player the ability to mix and match until they truly get what they want out of their pet.
What have you done to lessen the grind in Dragon Oath?
Every MMORPG has a certain degree of ?grinding? involved in leveling a character. What makes a great game is its ability to make a player forget about ?just getting to the next level?. In Dragon Oath we have allotted five hours of double experience time per week to each player to be used whenever and however they would like. Furthermore they have the ability to pause the timer on their double experience if they need to log out for whatever reason. Players can also earn bonus experience for fighting in groups fighting alongside kin and fighting alongside their master or disciple.
End-game content is becoming vital in MMOs to retain players for long periods of time. Do you feel that Dragon Oath’s end game content will be compelling enough to retain players for the long term?
Dragon Oath is a rich and well developed MMORPG. Our team has logged countless hours experiencing what the game has to offer and we have barely scratched the surface of all that you can do. Furthermore new content will continue to be developed on a regular basis based on feedback from our community. We are fully confident that players of all types from the casual to the hardcore will enjoy Dragon Oath for a long time to come.
Is there any set time-line for the official launch of the game?
So often in this industry we have seen a game pushed to launch too early only to see it unfinished which taints and ultimately ruin the user?s experience. We want to ensure that this does not happen to Dragon Oath. Currently we are in the final stages of localization.
Are there any future features in Dragon Oath that we can look forward to?
New features and content are constantly being developed for the Chinese version of the game. We will see many of these features come to the US version. Furthermore player feedback and suggestions will be relayed to the developer. The game will be ever growing and evolving based on what our community would like to see.
Any closing comments?
From its intricate pet system to its nine unique and highly developed classes Dragon Oath is an extremely rich and deep MMORPG which will provide fun and entertainment to every type of gamer.
Great article.