9Dragons
9Dragons 9Dragons is a free martial arts fantasy MMORPG set in the historic Ming Dynasty. Set in Ancient China, this game takes elements of real Kung Fu, and combines them with elements of Chinese history and mythology to create one of the best Martial Arts MMORPGs around.
9 Dragons
9 Dragons isn’t a typical MMORPG games. Where most games of that particular genre are based in medieval times where you are facing off against orcs and goblins, 9 Dragons is set in feudal China where the main combat is martial arts and not swords and magic. The game world is reportedly actually based on the geography of China too. Now that’s what I call authenticity.
The character I created at the start of the game became an expert in Kung-Fu. Although it took quite a while to learn this skill, seeing my character execute combos of multiple punches and kicks can be very satisfying. It gets a little tiresome in other games seeing the characters attack with swords and/or guns all the time. There aren’t that many MMORPG games out there where the character uses their own fists to fight. Thankfully, this is the main feature that separates 9 Dragons from its many competitors.
As much as I admired the animation of the Kung-Fu featured in 9 Dragons, the graphics in the game are horribly outdated. The character models look okay and are based on traditional Chinese culture, although the visuals are hard to stomach in an age where most the games are in high definition. The faded color palettes and blurry textures are hard to overcome when you are playing 9 Dragons in 2011. I understand that 9 Dragons came out in 2004 but even then, the graphics aren’t to the same level I’ve seen from other games in the same era and genre.
Although the graphics might be poor, the game itself can be very fun to play. Quests are indicated on your map and are always clearly marked. In some games, quests aren’t marked on your map properly that it can be a hard task to know where you are going to next. Thankfully, this is not the case with 9 Dragons. The quests themselves are easy enough to accomplish and leveling-up in 9 Dragons isn’t as time-consuming as in Metin 2.
The world in 9 Dragons is huge and around 20 - 40 new quests are added each month. Experienced 9 Dragons players have the chance to explore the world hunting rare enemies in dungeons or facing up against real tough bosses. There are a variety of enemies that you can face in 9 Dragons. This includes normal humans, demons, and even zombies to name a few. At least the character designs are unique as it could get very boring facing against the same kind of enemy for hours on end…
PvP combat is present in 9 Dragons. Unlike in Metin 2, any player can face off against each other no matter what level they are currently at. You can initiate combat with anyone that you can see walking around on the game map. If both players mutually agree to a fight, then the match will commence.
Much like in other MMORPG games, there’s a handy chat feature for you to use at anytime during the game. If you are stuck at any point or just need some advice, there’s always someone out there in the world willing to give you a helping hand.
Although I disliked the outdated graphics in 9 Dragons, the traditional Chinese soundtrack can be pleasing to the ears. This type of music is rarely used in other video games and it’s a nice change from the generic rock music that’s featured in other games these days.
9 Dragons is a highly popular MMORPG game that is played by many gamers all over the world. If you have the free time, there’s hours of entertainment that is on offer here that fans of the genre will absolutely love. 9 Dragons is free-to-play and download so do yourself a favor and try out the game for yourself.
