Hailed as 1 of the biggest martial arts MMORPG to hit China next year, Butterfly Sword Online did not have a good year. Its developer and publisher, 9you, oversaw executive departures, closure of games and retrenching of development teams as targets were not met financially. Luckily, this project was not canned .
Developed using the Unreal 3 Engine, there are currently 3 playable characters, each with 3 different weapons to choose from. A simple class system without too many gimmicks, a personal favorite.
Let’s jump straight to combat. This is the closest we will find for action combat in an open world in recent years, Free to Play wise. The dreaded tab or left-click select and ugly red target ring is still there, but there is more to it.
Normal attack requires players to press the “F” button repeatedly, like an action arcade game. You can just hit the “F” button until it hits a mob without selecting a target first. Most, if not all attacks, can hit multiple targets.
The weapon I chose is a double blade, which is really fun. The first few skills mainly consist of totem-like blades placed on the ground, dealing AOE damage to nearby mobs, stunning mobs when get into range and even one which increases defense. Not really the skills I expected, but combat is still fast and furious.
I am loathing the fact why 9you did not bother doing away the red target ring and place the default normal attack button to left click. I mean, if they really want to export the title overseas, a pure open world action martial arts MMO will no doubt be an amazing hit. I don’t get developers sometimes.
Butterfly Sword Online also has various Qingong skills, like scaling walls, dashing and walking on water. However, there is no active dodge or block in the game. I will be playing more, so stay tuned to see if I have anything else to report as the Closed Beta continues!
