NPIXEL well showcases the potential of Korean mobile games with its insanely beautiful MMORPG, Gran Saga. With its Japanese version launched last week and its global version coming next year, players can definitely expected a stunning and action-packed MMO experience that no other games in its genre could offer.
▍Fantasy Adventure in the land of Esprogen
The fantasy tale of Gran Saga begins in the land of Esprogen, a special place blessed by the goddess who guards and protect all the living being on it. The kingdoms, built by humans now become the home of different races who live together peacefully and harmoniously. But the Black Dragon defied the Goddess and is trying to disturb this peace along with the forces of chaos.
To defeat the Black Dragon, 12 Knights from the 12 Kingdoms raise to protect the land of Esprogen. Looked up by the young knights, they are known as the Grand Knights. Players start off their adventure by choosing three knights in different classes, who fight against the Black Dragon to restore peace in Esprogen.
The main story features stunning animated cutscenes along with fully voice acted dialogues for each character in-game. The well designed creatures and monster enemies encompassing different types of animals and fantasy creatures like Slimes, hybrids, etc is a fresh take. The gorgeous aesthetic and background music gives players the vibe of living in a real fantasy land.
▍Action Packed Combat with a Handy Auto Mode
Gran Saga features an action-based combat system where players can control any of the 3 knights in their formed party. Each Knight has their own basic attack and combos but their skills can be customized according to their Grand Weapons and Artifacts equipped.
Players can choose to let the AI take over with the handy auto mode. Auto Battles work flawlessly but are not recommended at the higher-level quests because of the heavy DPS they do.
Each Knight has four different abilities, while their effects are dependent on the Gran Weapon players opt for. These weapons can change the play style of the hero according to your preferences and strategies. During combat, players can synergize abilities to deal more damage by switching their Knights.
Players currently have a roster of 6 heroes, in which players can choose three to form a party with. More Knights will be added to the game as the game progresses.
▍Strong Equipment is What You Need!
Gran Saga do have a Gacha system, not for heroes or units but for equipments (Gran Weapons/Artifacts). Equipments come in different rarities – R, SR, and SSR with SSR being the highest rarity and the one that gives the greatest number of stats.
The gacha system is your standard run of the mill system where players summon for their desired equipment, be it gran weapons or artifacts, or both on the different banners available. Each Summon costs 300 Crystals and a 10 pull costs 3,000 Crystals. The drop rate for SSR equipment may not high, but players are guaranteed to obtain at least SSR equipment after summoning 100 times without a single SSR.
▍Build Your Own Play Style
As previously mentioned , players develop their own play style with the selection of different Gran Weapons and Artifacts equipped on their Knights. Gran Weapons decide the skills of your Knights while Artifacts enhance the stats and provide immune skills. This makes your characters more versatile as they are not pre-decided what they are meant to do. Only their base play style remains the same.
For example, Las the Knight is a melee warrior that can be built as an AOE burst hero or somebody who empowers allies by providing critical hit rate buffs. This makes you strategies flexibly when facing bosses with different features. The team building process is also exciting with no dull repetitive play style.
▍Multiple Systems to Increase CP
Gran Saga also has a unique Combat Power (CP) system which calculate the stats of each Knight. It will be affected the Gran Weapons, Artifacts and accessories you equipped.
You can also unlock the potential of the hero to increase the base stats, level up your heroes, increase their bonding by talking to them, etc. The Knights also have fully-voiced individual stories for you to learn more about them.
There are indeed lots of things that you can do to increase the combat power of your knights, but it may get tedious and confusing for new players or those who are not used to traditional RPGs.
▍Tons of Multiplayer Content
Gran Saga also features tons of multiplayer content, which will be unlocked after players clear the various chapters of the main story. You can expect real-time boss raids, Advent, and Extermination battles where players can opt to defeat the five major bosses of Gran Saga with friends and players.
It also features Tag and Team battles where players can face off three other players at the same time or they can choose to challenge them 1 by 1. A Guild system is also available for players to chat and hang out in their Guild Halls.
Infinite Library is a unique content never found in other MMORPGs as it combines elements of the traditional JRPG.The Infinite Library has many floors that you can challenge to reap many different kinds of rewards. As you move through the panels with your chibi characters, you can find treasures, get into battles, etc.
Gran Saga also has PvP content in the form of Arena. However, it is a bit let down as it features a top-down turn-based battle system instead of a MMORPG gameplay.
▍Final Thoughts
Gran Saga is an aesthetically pleasing MMORPG that encompasses elements of other genres. NPIXEL has done a good job keeping the system complex to get you hooked. The smooth animations and customizable play style separates it from other contenders of the same genre. However, on the negative side, the lack of collectability of different heroes might be a turn-off for some players.
Gran Saga definitely shines among other MMORPGs with its unique take on the genre and mesmerizing graphics. It definitely delivered more than what we were expecting. If you’re a fan of gacha-based MMORPGs in a grandiose fantasy world, it will surely fit your tastes. Give it a try and share your thoughts about Gran Saga below!
