Online game "Sphere 3: Wrath of Crusher"

"Sphere", the first Russian multiplayer RPG, came out in 2003 and became very popular, offering a really high-quality gameplay, in which the traditions of the best representatives of the genre neighbored with their own interesting ideas. Then there was "Sphere 2: Arena", focused exclusively on the battles between users. It did not last long, however, and in 2015 the more traditional, but updated and large-scale "Sphere 3: Enchanted World" returned. After some time, the authors also updated it, remaking the balance and changing the name to "Sphere 3: Wrath of Crusher" - that is the name of the most current, modern and free version of the game. Why is it popular and what can it offer to fans of the genre? We tell you in detail in our review.

The world of "Sphere 3" is a classic fantasy, where there is a constant war between humans, who belong to the "children of water", and demons, the "children of flame". That's right - each of the races (and there are also elves and dwarves) corresponds to one of the four different elements, and there was once a great confrontation between them. The history of the races, their creation, relationships and conflicts is very detailed and described on the official website of the project.

So, people are at war with demons, and players are free to join either side. So there are two scenarios here. Choosing a human, we find ourselves in Erikuria and act as a wounded warrior, who finds himself without memory in one of the villages.

He is nursed there, the soldier in return helps the locals solve their problems, and then gets to his own outpost, where he learns that he was the only warrior who managed to get close to the demon army leader and thereby turned the tide of the recent great battle. And only then, on the way to the hospital, the wagon train went astray and the fighter ended up in an unknown village.

Accordingly, our hero is destined for a unique fate - demon magic has no effect on him. Which the warlords, of course, want to make the most of - that's actually where the big story begins

If we play as demons, then we get to the training camp in Tir Tuayde, where we immediately learn that the events that happened at the birth of the hero (or heroine, the gender we choose), occur once every 2 thousand years - that is, we're talking about a chosen one with unique abilities here too.

In any case, whoever you choose, both scenarios are interesting, intense, with a lot of events, political squabbles, intrigues and betrayals. For example, when playing for humans you already have to work for the smugglers at the very beginning, acting against your own fellow soldiers.

The fact that the story is interesting, not surprising - he worked on it a famous science fiction writer Alexander Zorich (this is the creative pseudonym of Dmitri Gordevsky and Yana Botsman). In addition, the storyline here is truly epic - it includes more than a thousand quests and is designed for more than 600 hours of game play. Plus a lot of side quests. It is clear that many of them are traditional for the genre - collect, find, kill so many "lake ogres" and so on. But, first of all, many quests are interestingly plotted (how do you like the task of searching for the clones of a mad drug-addicted alchemist?), and secondly, almost all are accompanied by high-quality dialogues, which are pleasant to read and you don't want to miss them - you can feel Zorich's hand at once.

In addition to story and side quests in "Sphere 3" there is a lot of interesting activities for PvE-content - that is, for the players' battles against monsters. For example, implemented a system of tests (collect 30 craft resources, kill 40 monsters with a difference between them in 3 levels, and the like), the implementation of which increases the user's progress in the next combat season. And the higher your level in the season, the better rewards you get.

In place, of course, and daily tasks that can be repeated once a day, and rewards for logging in, for time in the game, for obtaining new levels. Plus numerous promotions dedicated to Father's Day, Valentine's Day, or simply, for example, a number of tasks from special trainers, allowing you to get a unique pet

By the way, the pets in Sphere 3 are given special attention - there are those who are directly involved in combat, there are those who help to collect trophies, and those who need to be fed and pumped to give you various bonuses. As a result, even in the initial locations you can run with three animals at once. And "run" not on foot, but on a colorful horse.

Starting at level 8 you can visit the Test Arena, where you are required to consecutively destroy waves of enemies. And in every fifth wave a boss appears. The longer you last, the higher the reward. At level 20 you will be available to search for dungeons - these are special, designed for groups of players locations that must be cleared, defeating the final boss to get steep rewards. It is important that the dungeon is created individually for each team entering it - that is, other users you will not meet here. In this case, before you start walking you need to specify your role in the group - conditionally, it can be an attacking, defending or supporting. You can try to pass such an area alone, but then you have to get to it by yourself, without using the search function.

There are a total of seven dungeons in the game, designed for different levels of characters. Two of them are in human territory, two are in the domain of demons and three are in neutral zones. No one forbids exploring the dungeons of the opposite faction, but then you have to get to them yourself, on your feet (or on your riding animals), overcoming a lot of dangers that await in foreign territory.

Of particular interest are the global epic missions, which are also designed for groups of several well-developed players - for the victories there are issued valuable equipment. Finally, there is also a system of world bosses: in each location you can bump into a particularly strong monster, whose level is equal to the maximum level of the area. At the same time bosses are very big, and with time they get stronger. Therefore, to defeat them you will need the joint participation of 10-25 characters. The distribution of the loot (and it is extremely valuable) depends on the contribution made.

There are 8 of these world bosses (four on each side) in the human and demon lands, all of which have unique combat tactics. For example, the "great troll" constantly throws boulders and periodically sets fire to the ground around him, the "spirit of suffering", which looks like a huge mosquito, applies a bleeding effect to everyone. And the "gnome commander" loves to hit the ground so hard that the blow throws back the fighters in front of him - so you should try to go behind his back.

The Sphere series has always paid special attention to PvP content, i.e. battles between players and their clans, alliances and factions in various modes. So, in the third part, they can take place in many locations, sometimes even at the start. There are peace zones where killing is forbidden, there are free PvP zones where attacks on other users are not punished in any way.

And there are neutral zones where you can freely terrorize members of another faction (ie people or demons), but to attack their allowed only if the status of PK (i.e., "player killer"). And in this case you will receive karma penalties. The more of them - the higher the chance to permanently lose valuable equipment and items if you die. With each death of your hero negative karma points decrease. You can also clear your reputation by killing monsters. All this is true only for PvP-servers, but on PvE-servers players are allowed to fight with each other only by mutual consent or in special zones.

Most battles between users take place during large-scale sieges of castles - this is also a signature feature of the series. There are quite a few such fortresses in the world of Sphere 3. Some are located on the territories of specific factions - and try to capture them can only representatives of the opposite side. Others are located in neutral locations and originally belong to no one - so both factions fight for them. And the most powerful castles that give the most bonuses to their owners are in free PvP zones, where it is allowed without penalty to attack anyone - in these locations for castles fighting in general all. That is, even clans belonging to the same faction can compete

The very process of siege and defense is implemented with attention to detail. To capture the attackers have to establish a castle headquarters, build various siege weapons. And resources for their construction are limited, so you need to approach the process wisely so as not to be left without, for example, a battering ram, having set up catapults. Then you will have to break the gates, kill at least 30% of the defenders and capture all control points with flags

In addition to the siege, there is also "Olannor Fields of Battles" - a mode where players are divided into two teams and fight with each other for particularly valuable resources. It's a mode where you have to capture and hold control points.

It is clear that the best and most effective way to participate in battles with other players, when you are not in the proud solitude, and belong to a clan. Anyone who reached at least level 10 can create it, but he must be a "rich kid" - it costs 60 thousand coins. In the future, the clan must be developed in different ways, it also has its own level (and the maximum - the 13th). At the same time, all members contribute part of their own experience to the overall progress. In return, they also receive benefits - for example, the ability to use the clan treasury and learn special skills.

As you can see, the game has a lot of modes, quests, and activities. And in order to participate in it all, to look decent, you have to do basically everything you need to do in such online RPGs. In particular, to acquire and be rewarded with various levels of coolness, improve it, enchant it with scrolls, inlaid with precious stones. To work with the equipment implemented a convenient system of crafts and crafts - pumping appropriate skills, collecting different materials, we get access to more advanced features and resources to create items.

For participation in various trials and battles between players you earn points of combat glory, which can be exchanged with special characters for especially valuable equipment. But the luckiest are those who, as part of their clan, own a castle - for this you get powerful sharpened weapons, armour, jewellery and consumables from a special chest. Plus the characters get temporary boosting auras, which become stronger and more effective the longer your clan keeps the castle.

Well, and, of course, you need to properly develop your character, know all the advantages of the chosen class and be able to apply them. There are 9 classes in Sphere 3 in total.

A barbarian, as it should be, hates magic, can fall into battle trance and store rage. Paladins can divert attention to themselves, heal others at the expense of their health, and rise from the dead like the Phoenix. Particularly strong in close combat, warriors deliver terrible blows and make enemies bleed. Pathfinder, on the contrary, prefers to act from a distance - in addition to several types of shots he has access to traps and a unique pet spider. Monks fight with their bare hands and, for obvious reasons, are able to create different defensive and discarding auras. Dexterous Assassins rely on the ability to become invisible for a while and poison their opponents.

Warlocks set enemies on fire and even put them to sleep. Some of the most valuable are Priests - because they support their comrades in every way and can even resurrect the fallen. Although they can stand up for themselves, for example, shackling the enemy with the bonds of darkness, which inflict periodic damage. Finally, necromancers, as they should, are able to raise corpses and make them their allies.

Each class has its own pluses and minuses. For example, the same necromancer has the most health of all magical professions, and his skills cause huge periodic damage. But he has low mobility, and when there is little necrotic energy left for spells, you have to make up for it with your own health. So every player is free to make his own tactics for the chosen class, taking into account all its features.

Speaking of "Sphere 3", it should also be noted, albeit not the most modern on the stuffing and technology, but quite picturesque and expressive graphics. If the character models look outdated, the landscapes, architecture and colors are very pleasing to the eye. Moreover, the game looks better and nicer in action than it does in the screenshots. In addition, with a picture of the game is as accessible as possible in terms of system requirements.

There's also a rather complicated combat system that uses a "non-targeting" system: that is, you have to aim at your enemies yourself. And if there are no problems with monsters, then in battles with other players, as you understand, it's much harder to hit.

Finally, the game has a quite democratic and unobtrusive system of micropayments. Yes, here, as it should be, there is an in-game store, but you can get the goods from it not only for cash, but also for free - complete special tasks, and thus earned special coins exchanging the merchants on the desired items.

In general, "Sphere 3: Wrath of Crusher" is an interesting, diverse and accessible game from almost all sides: with an epic story written by a professional writing tandem, with many adventures and locations, with unique castle sieges, with a lot of challenges and bosses, with a clear, not overloaded leveling system and with different classes, which have their own pluses and minuses. And at the same time, despite the rich history of the series and a few "tired" character models, the very "Sphere 3" by its ideas and gameplay does not look obsolete.

May 2021