Online game "MIR4"

Korean company WeMade is known for The Legend of MIR series. But the fourth part developers decided to make the most unusual MMORPG, because of which controversy immediately broke out around it. It would seem that the advantages are obvious: simultaneous release on different platforms, free access for all, support for 12 languages, autopilot for combat and resource collection, but most importantly - the chance to earn real money in the virtual world. The influence of the real economy on the game economy through tokens NFT and alarmed fans of the genre. Critics also note that the project not only gives money, but also takes a fee for strengthening heroes, which negatively affects the balance of battles. Let's see who is right and whether the game is worthy of attention in 2023.

Although MIR4 is available on Steam, to run it you still have to download the client from the official site, and then log in via Google mail - enter login, password and even "captcha" for extra security. And it should be done once a day. The solution is not the most convenient, but what can you do for the sake of getting acquainted with such an unusual game. However, its beginning is quite standard. The window of character creation opens, where you need to choose from six classes, and then fine-tune the appearance, if there is such a desire.

The line of heroes opens with the sword master, a classic melee warrior who uses a two-handed weapon and is the first to charge into the enemy ranks. The spellcaster uses the power of the elements on the battlefield. She is effective at area attacks, but needs the support of someone with good health. The battle mage is another sorceress, but she is equally good with spells and light swords, and can heal herself and her partners. She is followed by the rubaka, whose arsenal consists of halberds. This is a typical damage dealer, a character who can deal maximum damage in a short amount of time. The crossbow-wielder, as it is easy to guess, hits with arrows, and the fatal brunette, called the Dark Taoist, terrifies enemies and paralyzes them with forbidden charms.

In other words, classes are tied not only to special skills, but also to gender, so there are a couple of men and four ladies to choose from. The editor allows you to customize all of your character's traits, from hairstyles to clothing colors. Conveniently, you can do without fiddling with sliders. It is enough just to use ready-made portraits, which are abundant here.

It is also noteworthy that the story, which traditionally precedes battles in multiplayer, begins with what other games usually end with - you have to rescue a princess from imprisonment. The adventure starts in the Secret Valley, where Samarthi's teacher and the hero's brothers are trying to use demonic energy for good. But the experiment, as it often happens, gets out of control: a demon awakens, and undead crowds come out of the crevices in the rocks, and your character, his younger brother Yoon and older Sanbaek have to spill the gruel brewed by the old teacher.

Although the gate to the other world is closed, the heroes will not be able to defeat the demons without Princess Cheonpa, who is being held in an underground dungeon by the forces of evil. The brothers are sent to the prison, where they face a host of enemies, from minotaurs to the guards of the Heavenly Castle and its captain, who acts as a boss. Already during this introductory episode MIR4 presents several surprises. First of all, here any action, including running to the right point, gathering resources and fighting, can be put on the machine. And at the same time you can exit this mode at any time, if you want to stretch your arms. Secondly, the game has something like QTE (Quick Time Events). For example, while flying from one ledge to another and jumping up the wall, a round icon appears in a random place of the screen, which you need to click on with your mouse. Such mechanics are rare guests in MMORPGs.

What else is impressive about WeMade's work is its scope. Usually games of this kind are simpler: you rush along the corridor, occasionally engaging in fights, and beyond this path there is nothing but hastily assembled scenery. Here, too, you can follow from task to task and don't turn anywhere. But you should turn off the automatic mode and go to explore the location, as a lot of activities open up for you. Here the hero takes an additional task, there - meditates to get a charge of vigor. Nothing prevents you from hunting, gathering resources or clearing a glade with monsters, in the middle of which stands a chest with valuable items. The lion's share of content is hidden from those who are in a hurry.

And although it is noticeable from MIR4 that it was prepared primarily for smartphones, it is made in a mature way. Every now and then the characters' adventures are interspersed with perfectly staged scenes, dialogues are voiced by actors (though in Korean, but still pleasant), and the script gives the impression of participation in a real blockbuster. With correction for the Asian flavor, of course. The authors of the game, for example, quote the trilogy of Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" - here, too, there is a squad of black ghost riders chasing Princess Cheonpu, and they look like nazguls from the movie. In general, fans of the genre will appreciate it.

Defeating evil is not easy. The hero is confronted by various creatures of hell: demons, rampages, toads, spiders, bears, assassins, black mages, predatory plants, giant scorpions, vepreglavas, knights seduced by the dark side and nefariox - the local analog of orcs. There's no one else. There are a lot of opponents, and the story consists of a series of battles with them. You run to a certain point, chop monsters, then there are several dialogs, collecting resources for the next feats or, for example, to treat a wounded friend. And back into battle - the forces of darkness are not slumbering. When it comes down to it, you have a choice whether to act on your own or rely on algorithms. In the first case you need to click six pictures with skills, where there are attacks and defense techniques, and in addition - the icon of ultimatum strike and potion boxes, if you need to replenish life resources.

The second option, when the game passes itself, is good for routine tasks - like clearing a clearing with monsters or working in a mine. But for special cases, such as fights with bosses, you need to make exceptions. Or, for example, the customer tells you to collect medicinal mushrooms, but they grow on a mountain glade, where you need to get there by jumping, like in a Mario platformer. Autopilot will not take you to such a place, so you have to control your character manually. Each skill, including flying in the style of kung-fu action movies, can be developed, and you can also change unnecessary skills into more useful ones, thus forming your fighting style.

Progression in MIR4 follows several parallel paths. The hero has basic characteristics such as health, attack, evasion, accuracy, magic, physical and magical defense - all this is developed at the expense of resources according to the formula "copper coins + something else". And the stakes are increasing. For example, to pump up the defense at the first level you just need to throw in coins, and at the tenth level - use copper, herbs and mushrooms reishi. In a similar way, the development of the skills that are used during fights is organized, but here you need to add not plants to the copper rounds, but energy balls and special books knocked out of enemies.

It is logical to ask: where are the experience points and what do they affect? This is also an important part of the progression, because the level of the hero depends on the number of available opportunities. In particular, at level 10 you can join a clan, at level 20 you get a riding animal, and at level 40 you are allowed to trade using the virtual market. In addition, the choice of available tasks grows with experience: if at first you only need to progress through the story, then later you will be able to open errands, daily tasks, raids, expeditions and other activities.

Equipment also plays an important role. All things, be it pants, wristbands, jewelry or amulets, you get in battle. The exception is weapons - you can forge them if you have enough resources and the character's level allows it. And every item is subject to improvement. An additional bonus is given by special stones for inlaying - by activating them in a special window, you increase various characteristics.

Completing the picture of pumping magical assistants, or spirits. They are connected with the mechanics of "gacha", i.e. collecting and using creatures with unique properties. You start off with a dragon named Horyong, which at the same time familiarizes newcomers with the basics of gameplay, then a rabbit Jumping Rabbit and dozens of other animals become available. They too can be improved, changed in active cells, deleted or combined. All of the above is collected in the main indicator of the hero - combat power (BM). And this is already familiar to many MMORPG fans.

Interaction between players starts with clans, where you are invited from level 10. It's worth bearing in mind that the pass is BM points, so you can't get into the club right away. But if you are accepted, it opens up a whole range of advantages: you can send your hero to automatically mine resources in clan-controlled mines, go on the same autopilot against group bosses, siege castles, use the clan store and participate in several types of competitions - from duels to fighting for territory. There are many battles for large squads - in an expedition, for example, you need to recruit at least 15 people.

It is noteworthy that there is an opportunity to kill the leader of a hostile group, although for such feats you need to have a very powerful character. Those who want to participate in the local "Game of Thrones" or get a lot of treasures in battles in the arena, but are not ready to endure for a long time, they are free to buy reinforcements for real money.

On the other hand, MIR4 allows you to earn real currency - and this is the main feature of the game, which was emphasized by the developers. They intended to create another revolution by allowing gamers to cash out the funds accumulated in the virtual world. To perform such operations, you will need ingots of dark steel - a decent amount of them can be mined for hundreds of hours in the mines or from the Hidden Valley, if it is controlled by your clan. The steel is then exchanged for tokens, which in turn are exchanged for dollars at the exchange rate. The exchange rate is constantly changing, and these days it's almost unrealistic to wait for a decent token value. But the inhabitants of the servers, judging by the reviews, are still earning something.

Today we can state that MIR4 has not revolutionized the MMORPG market, although its authors had high hopes for the NFT system. But it doesn't mean that the game has no merits. It is more beautiful than most similar projects, released on PC and mobile platforms, and in addition, it has a good plot. If you use a smartphone for entertainment, not a computer, you will be impressed by the graphics. The second important point is the possibility to put any action on the machine: you run the game in the background, and do other things while your hero is swinging and extracting the coveted dark steel. At the same time, nobody prevents you from fighting the old-fashioned way, enjoying the effects and loot from the defeated enemies.

Zarium. August 2023