Online game "Naraka: Bladepoint"

Naraka: Bladepoint is rightfully considered to be one of the most unusual "battle royale" games. If in other representatives of the genre characters use automatic rifles, pistols and shotguns, here they are armed with swords, spears, crossbows and arquebuses, because the game's setting is medieval and fantasy. In addition to modes here - as in a real MMORPG: besides the main one, there are adventures, trials, time events, ranked battles, trios, duets, solos and much more. Don't forget that since recently the project of 24 Entertainment studio became conditionally free, although earlier it was sold for money. It's high time to understand the advantages and disadvantages of this original online action game.

Downloading the client is easy - the game is available for free in Steam. But already at the start you run the risk of encountering some problems. Some people, for example, can't get to the server the first time, and others' computers start giving an error. The thing is that Naraka uses not only its own software against cheaters, but also a proprietary anti-virus program - it is what causes the system to protest. Search for solutions on the Internet will help to overcome difficulties. We also advise you to set the option of sticking keys in advance, because gameplay will require merciless pounding on them, and the notification from Windows can spoil your pleasure at the most inopportune moment.

The theme for their work 24 Entertainment employees chose Chinese myths. The backstory tells about the war between two deities, Sanwing and Munban, who wanted to gain control over the universe. But neither of them won, and the result of the fight was the world's first artifact - the Mask of Immortality. To get it, the heroes must go to the island of Morus and fight there not for life, but for death. So, in fact, that explains what is happening in the fairy-tale land.

Having introduced the newcomer to the course of events, the game sends him to the tutorial mode - it is impossible to avoid it. And it's great, because already on the first boss during the introduction it becomes clear that no one is going to babysit the users, and controlling the hero requires skill. Besides basic blows, you have two special moves and ultimatum skill, which requires rage points, as well as several types of acceleration and jerk, double jump, three styles of parrying, sliding, a rich choice of weapons, consumables, reinforcements and even hook-cat, with the help of which parkour elements are realized.

All this set allows you to create circus wonders on the screen: you can fly up to the enemy on the hook and still in the air to charge a strong attack, and then make a somersault to the enemy behind his back and realize some spectacular combo. But after two-button "battle royale" to realize such tricks is difficult. You have to really learn. And if in other similar games your character is unlikely to be killed during the training mission, here it happens easily.

The main mode is called "Survival" - you can participate in it alone, as part of a duo or trio. The rules are familiar: after choosing a hero, you specify a landing point on the map and then fight with six dozen other gamers in a gradually shrinking area, until there is only one left. Well, or a team of leaders - depends on the starting conditions of the match. But if in some PUBG you collect Kalashnikovs, first aid kits and body armor on the locations, here everything is a bit more complicated.

All characters are able to use both cold weapons and primitive firearms like arquebuses and pistols. There are also crossbows and bows. Already at the start you need to understand what kind of arsenal suits your preferences and the hero's fighting style. Nothing prevents you to arm yourself with halberd and musket, to focus on attacks from afar or to emphasize only on the short range - take, for example, a sword and nunchaku. Some of them can also kick you with their bare hands.

Weapons break from use - and they need to be repaired, for which you need repair kits. Interestingly, crossbows and muskets have ammunition consumption instead of wear and tear - using a repair kit restores the stock of their shells. The cat hook also needs its own consumables in the form of skeins of rope. And in addition to armor, which replaces the body armor in Naraka, there are also jades - these are items that give bonuses to attack, defense, health, speed and endurance. You can combine them in any way you like, as long as you like the result.

The richest loot, of course, comes from defeated enemies - a mound full of treasure is formed at the place of their death. Here the game presents another puzzle: since the space in your bag is limited, you have to decide what to take with you and what to leave behind. And in addition, you have to keep an eye out to see if someone is running to kill the hero, who is busy searching other people's pockets. Because such situations arise here all the time - if you're in solo mode, you have to be especially vigilant. At first, the threat is not so great, because newcomers fight with bots under the control of artificial intelligence, but as your character is pumped up in the session you will get more and more live gamers. And with them you don't have to yawn - it takes a few seconds to kill them.

We are accustomed to the fact that the terrain in online fighters is assigned to the role of scenery, and at best it has shelters for ambushes. But here everything is different - the map seriously affects the successes and failures of users. There's nothing unusual about it - it's large in area, just like the polygons in PUBG, and is mostly represented by green hills, cliffs and Asian-style villages with Buddhist temples towering over them. Nevertheless, without using the advantages of one or another location, your chances of victory are drastically reduced. For example, when moving through ravines, you will spend an unnecessary amount of energy and time if you have not stocked up on cat hook reels beforehand. It's worth keeping in mind that many crates and walls in wooden buildings are broken - it's funny to see how sometimes characters punch them with their faces like the hero of the old anime "Fist of the North Star".

When you pass by the gardens, don't hesitate to pick fruits - eating them will give you bonuses useful in battle. If you defeat the green toads on the lawn, you'll get a valuable trophy. Altars near some buildings are also placed for a reason - it is on them once a player can revive the hero. And after revival you still need to get to your barrow to return the lost good. Even healing wounds is not easy, as it takes time and leaves the fighter defenseless. In another "battle royale" you would just hide behind a boulder or in the bushes, but here there is parkour - nothing prevents you from climbing a wall or a tree to eat healing berries, looking around from a height. And since there are no cars with motorcycles in Naraka: Bladepoint, you have to plan your actions more often than in any similar game.

Before each match Naraka offers a choice of characters, different not only in appearance, but also in abilities, as well as in the complexity of control. There are seventeen characters in total, but four are available to the newcomer: Viper Ning, Matari, Tianhai, and Zhiping Yin. The first one has a strong health and can stun enemies, although it is not particularly agile. The latter, however, is an agile girl who uses swift and sneaky attacks. Tianhai is the only guy in this starter set: he's good at everything, but in moderation, and as an ultimatum ability, he turns into a Vajra. As for Zhiping Yin, she's physically weaker than the other three, but she's an excellent healer, so she's welcome on any team.

The rest of the characters are also unique - you won't find a pair of the same ones here. There are, for example, a very difficult to control master of the Drunken Style, who has the mobility and strength of a tiger, Yoto Hime, who inspires terror in enemies, Yueshan, a warrior who strengthens his comrades, and Takeda Nobutada, a judo wielder. All of them are unlocked as they pump or for hero coins, which can be obtained in battle. Characters also play roles in the single-player campaign - the plot here is not simple, as in the games of Mortal Kombat series, but it is still there. And the characters are voiced, by the way, by actors known in Asia.

Those who are not enough unique styles of hand-to-hand combat can pay attention to the appearance menu, where you can find a variety of options - for the same Viper Nin, for example, there is a view 2B from Nier: Automata. You can buy jewelry and costumes for virtual currency, "te", - it is given for successes on the battlefield. There are also gold and silk - to earn these resources, you need to make more effort or throw real money into your account. But keep in mind that from the combat bonuses for real money you will get only the acceleration of pumping, but not a miracle gun. In the game, everything depends on the personal skills of the gamer, so the scheme "pay to win" does not work here.

Progression moves in two directions. On the one hand, you pump heroes and the skill of wielding this or that weapon, and on the other hand, you develop your profile. The first part is organized logically: what character you use, that will grow in levels, getting additional talents, and in addition to the same principle is built on the development of weapons - to pump musket, sword, bow, or, say, pistol, it is enough to kill enemies with them. As for the general development, it opens access to additional activities - for example, to ranked battles and time events.

The developers from 24 Entertainment decided not to limit themselves to just "battle royale", which, by the way, is represented by four formats at once - ranked battles, "Trial of the Messenger", events like "Eternal War" and matches with bots. There are also several types of training and a story adventure. Its chapters are opened as you progress and allow you not only to master the starting characters, but also to learn a lot about the history of the Naraka: Bladepoint universe. Not to mention the earning of resources - they will obviously be useful to prepare for serious competitions.

But that's not all. Speaking of serious competitions, we can't ignore Clash League, a cybersport mode, which is available to everyone upon registration. This is where gamers get the biggest rewards, and applications are accepted from people of different levels - from beginners to masters, ready to face a team of three users alone. However, it's worth bearing in mind that you won't be able to leave the House of Justice, where all participants are added until the very end of the tournament. And if you have decided to take on such a challenge, you should be sporty until the end. Who knows, maybe you'll become a champion?

Naraka: Bladepoint is a spectacular, unique and multifaceted game, but it is demanding to the personal skills of the gamer. Do not expect an easy walk from it and get ready to suffer humiliating defeats "in one-step" from handy Asians who have learned all combos to automaticity. So this entertainment will appeal to fans of complex "battle royale" games and those who have kept their composure after passing the Dark Souls series. Nevertheless, now the game is available for free - anyone is free to test himself. It is possible that kung-fu style fights will be to the liking of people who have never even tried anything like this before.

Zarium. September 2023