![]() Instead of the mindless rush to the level cap that characterizes many of its competitors, Black Desert Online thrives on a vaguely sandboxy design. Play But as with the horse taming, that realism also springs from the wealth and depth of its many secondary systems. There's a price for that detail-the highest settings challenged my GeForce GTX 980 in crowded areas-but I never tired of the way Black Desert Online uses it to create a believable world where humble Tuscan cottages stand in for the outlandish castles we usually see in this genre. That cozy realism reveals itself in the Witcher-esque detail of the world, where carefully maintained vineyards hold vigil alongside wind-tossed grasses and weatherworn fenceways. ![]() There's an (unplayable) race of otter folk, but they blend with the low-fantasy ambience as comfortably as saguaros in Arizona. There are fantasy staples like elves here, but they're subtle, with their ears usually hidden beneath luxurious hairstyles. Horse taming is but the tip of what it offers. I can think of no other contemporary massively multiplayer online RPG that grants me that same satisfaction.I say that in part because few other MMORPGs’ worlds feel quite so real as Black Desert Online’s. But there's always a moment of quiet joy when I managed to win one over with a handful of sugar. The loop in the catch-rope I cast is laughably too small, for instance, and I can't even tell the gender of the horse for breeding it with other horses until I've caught it. ![]() But like so much else in Black Desert Online, something about how the system works seems ever so slightly off. It's something I fondly remember from real-world experiences in my teens, and I thus admire that such an option even exists in this expansive sandbox-style MMORPG. Still, it's pretty, it's the most interesting part of the game to me, and unlike the game proper, you can download the standalone character creator now.I've spent the last few hours in Black Desert Online not plunking arrows into orcs or testing my skill against other players, but in attempting to tame horses. The class of character you select will still ultimately determine the majority of how your avatar looks, with your tweaks either creating a broken monster or making minor changes to eyebrows. There are a lot of customisation options, but even with the ability to tweak nose ridges a dozen different ways it feels as if you're dressing up a template rather than able to create something entirely new. I found that to be impressive, though perhaps less so than I'd hoped. I experimented Black Desert during its last beta but didn't move any further than its character creator. It looks like cosmetic and convenience items can be bought with money alone, while those that affect mechanics more can be bought with either real money or a fictional currency (called 'mileage') earned through play. ![]() A recent post on the game's forum broke down the kind of things you'd be paying for. When the game launches later this year, there'll also be in-game microtransactions available to further grease the moneywheels. ![]() Instead, come the beginning of February you'll be able to apply for a chance to access the beta for free. If you pre-order the game you get guaranteed access to the beta, but don't do that because you don't know if the game is any good yet. The release of the character creator comes alongside dates for the second and final closed beta, which will take place on February 18th. Now you can do the same without needing to download the full MMO it's connected to, as the character creator can now be downloaded and used for free as a standalone thing. That's not entirely due to the character creator, but that is the main focus of my own interest, since it allows you to poke, prod, stretch and smooth each face in umpteen different ways, creating monstrosities like that above. Black Desert is a Korean MMO that's prompted a surprisingly large amount of excitement from the MMO players I know. ![]()
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