Xbox: E3 2003: True Fantasy Live Online
- True Fantasy Live Online, announced exclusively for Xbox in America and Japan, may be the first MMO on Microsoft's big green box. Set to ship sometime in 2004, TFLO allows 3000 gamers to hop into a single world where they'll take on roles as both explorers and regular citizens. Developed by Level-5, TFLO was a mystery for over half a year, but now, thanks to the beauty of E3, the mystery is somewhat solved.
This massively multiplayer online RPG set in a fantasy world is not just an Everquest monster-masher. In fact, players will be able to choose from over a dozen different professions and join one of over ten different adventure guilds. Characters can buy houses and furnishings and create their own virtual domicile.
Towns will be filled with other Xbox Live members with their own unique characters. Players can then form parties of up to ten people to go out adventuring. You can go out and do your own thing, wander into dungeons, find monsters in forests, or whatever else you desire, or you can join one of 10 guilds and receive quests from your specific guild.
Creating your unique character is relatively painless and filled with options. Whether it's clothing, face shape, eye shape, hair style, skin tone, or even your girth, there's little you can't control when setting up a character. It was quite easy to create J. Lo with a big ol' booty. Progressing through the game unlocks new clothes, skins, and physical adjustments. Yes, TFLO is the first game to feature unlockable boobs.
After getting a nice long view of TFLO in action, it's apparent that you could stay in town and never go out adventuring and still find things to enjoy.
There are not only 70 unique spells in the game, but each profession comes with its own skillset. So, while someone can be a mage and a chef (and therefore have special lifestyle skills associated with a chef), another could be a mage and a shop owner. The combinations are numerous. This is one of those rare games that emphasizes both the adventuring and lifestyle aspects of a character. You can be a wandering nomad, hopping from town to town, or you can have your own home bought with the spoils from your latest adventure. The choice is yours.
There is plenty to do in town. Here's a good example. You know how in most RPG's you just accumulate lots of crap for no reason and eventually either sell it or never use it? In TFLO everything can have some value, because you can set up your own street market shop anywhere. Select the option, choose a sign, and put your sellable wares out for sale. Remember, there will be 3000 people online, so you will buy and sell from real people in real time.
And there are many more applications for this city lifestyle in TFLO, which will be revealed over the coming months.
Battles are in real-time and fairly easy to perform. In fact every part of the interface is very simple -- text lists have been replaced with a visual inventory. But the combat was basically a point and attack or perform a spell. It's smooth though, and doesn't look clunky, slow, or unfun like Everquest. You can hop on certain creatures and ride them over land or into battle.
All sorts of fantastical creatures exist in TFLO, though a final number couldn't even be tabulated. The most impressive was a part-wolf, part-dragon, part-bull creature with two heads and wings.
Perhaps what impressed me most about TFLO was the visual style. The cel-shaded look is one of the best I've seen (no, it can't even touch Zelda). It's not cartoony at all, but it doesn't delve into the heavy and dark graphics found in many MMORPG's. It's clean, it runs fast, and is filled with awesome visual touches, like in the forest, where the shadows from the tree leaves move back and forth across the ground as the wind blows by.
Outlook
TFLO is one of the more impressive games at E3. I didn't know what to expect when I walked into the demo room, but now I can't wait to see what else Level-5 has up their sleeves. What I've revealed is just a fraction of what TFLO looks to offer. And there are many, many questions that have yet to be answered. We'll have more soon.