Perfect World can rightfully be considered a real long-liver of the MMORPG genre. Released in 2005 by a Chinese team Beijing Perfect World and reached the Russian market in May 2008, she does not plan to retire in 2023 either. On the contrary, Ideal World, like a bottle of exquisite baiju, only grows stronger over the years, keeping veterans by its side and attracting new connoisseurs. This year, the game celebrated its third anniversary in China and 12 years in Russia with a major update. Let’s take a look at the phenomenon Perfect world, her abnormal popularity and her ability to stay so firmly on her feet.
Back in 2005, the MMORPG market was divided by colossus of the genre, like World of Warcraft and Lineage 2, fundamentally different in everything: from the general philosophy of game design to the chosen style. But even being born between a rock and a hard place, Perfect World managed not only to survive in the Chinese market, but also strangely find a response in the soul of a Western and Russian player. There were several success factors, but some are worth mentioning separately.
Firstly, the setting itself turned out to be successful. For most Europeans, an interest in Asian fantasy worlds resembles an interest in Asian food. Many people sometimes want to taste something oriental, somewhat exotic, but without obvious gastronomic excesses. For example, few people will refuse to eat Chinese noodles in neat boxes with chopsticks. Or eat a few cubes of tofu for dinner. But boiled bats and fried spiders will clearly scare off an unprepared gourmet, who will characterize these everyday delicacies for the Chinese market as inedible “game”. The situation is about the same with game worlds. Many people want to plunge into a bright fairy-tale universe, enveloped in the subtle atmosphere of the east. However, there is a cultural line beyond which most Western players will simply feel rejected, the luscious Korean spirit, or a bias towards anime and lolly. It was the competent cultural balance that played into the hands of the developers of Ideal World at the time, making the game incredibly popular in the Western and Russian markets. In Perfect World, there are no notorious lolly and big-eyed chibiks, the characters’ faces and physique are similar to ordinary people, which was a wonder even for the classic World of Warcraft with its awkward human proportions. But at the same time, “Ideal World” was based on Chinese mythology, dazzled with bright colors and built the plot as clear as possible to everyone. The races inhabiting the game world were, to one degree or another, distinguished by their anthropomorphism. Initially, there were 3 of them, 2 unique classes for each: People, Zoomorphs and Sids. If everything is more or less clear with the former, then the Zoomorphs possessed certain animal features, say, a fox’s tail and ears. Seeds are similar to classic elves, but use wings – one of the exceptional features not only of a single race, but of the entire game.
“MMO with wings” – this we smoothly move on to the point “second”. No joke, but the ability to fly freely around the game world at any time in 2005 was intoxicating. Even in World of Warcraft, you could only fly along certain routes in the role of a weak-willed passenger, but not a single representative of the genre allowed to soar where and when you wanted. Of course, the developers highlighted this as one of the key marketing moves. In addition, this detail made it possible to emphasize the individuality of each race: if the Sids used their own wings, then people preferred to use huge swords like hoverboards, and zoomorphs saddled giant birds and amazing mythical animals.
The third factor of success can be considered a shareware distribution model. Separately, I would like to ponder how the client of the game could be found on one of the discs together with the Igromania magazine, which definitely influenced the popularity (and later the cult) of the Ideal World of the game in the CIS countries.
Of course, there were many more reasons for the explosive success of the game. “Ideal World” turned out to be quite good-looking, both externally and internally. Pleasant controls, coupled with addictive gameplay, did not allow the newly arrived players to break away from the wonderful Chinese craft.
The gameplay was based on measured grind by killing all kinds of animals and unhurried pumping … Extremely unhurried pumping! At the time, this approach was quite standard for MMORPGs. Almost all quests were based on battles with monsters, but the difficulty was not as severe as in vanilla WoW, which made it possible to play a little more relaxed.
Perfect social network, perfect chat, perfect Tinder
The main difference of the Asian approach inherent in Perfect World can be considered a vast social component, which to this day remains a fundamental factor in the longevity of the game. At a time when social media as such was just getting hot, some MMO games weren’t shy about taking over their functions. Virtual worlds were then perceived not just as entertainment for the evening, but also very deeply wedged into a person’s personal life, being not only games, but also chats, and even dating sites. It was not for nothing that in those days, many seriously believed that the entire industry would creep online in the future. Many were dizzy by the fact that in the role-playing game, loyal party members, bitter enemies and even everyday traders are the same players as they are, because virtual worlds were taken quite seriously, users were much more willing to get used to the role. Perfect World has competently motivated to be not just another casual passer-by, but to become a part of a large friendly community.
One of the first important quests at level 19 was a dungeon that couldn’t be completed alone. To clear it, it was necessary to ask for help from other players, preferably of a higher level. To do this, each had special tokens, called signs, which were used in front of the final boss so that the assistants received a valuable reward. Experienced players have even taught inexperienced adventurers to activate these signs. At that time, this motivation was more than convincing. In a similar way, throughout the entire leveling, the game taught beginners not to hesitate to ask for help from veterans, and experienced players to help newcomers. Naturally, it was much more profitable for people to join clans, to use an auction and a trade tent, decorated in the form of a cute cat standing on its tail. In the Ideal World, being on good terms with all the inhabitants of the server is incomparably more useful than pretending to be a sociopath.
It’s no joke, but even today, entering Perfect World, you feel some kind of atmosphere of your own, divorced from the rest of the Internet space of the social network. The chat is bursting with an abundance of emoticons in every message and everyday chat. People almost never refuse help to newcomers, and they certainly do not turn up their nose from someone’s inexperience. The Ideally World community in the CIS countries can rightfully be considered one of the strongest and most responsive in online games.
The social network for dating was mentioned for a reason. Perfect World, in principle, turned out to be a rather attractive pastime for female gamers due to the style and bottomless possibilities for character customization. You can dress a character for every taste, hiding the display of formidable armor, say, under a summer T-shirt. The game even implements a full-fledged marriage system between characters of different genders. The heroes who find their soul mate are allowed to undergo a wedding ceremony, optionally decorated in a European or oriental style. Few MMORPG will allow you to develop relationships like this, get married and go right in wedding suits on dazzlingly beautiful horses to admire the virtual sunrise on the mountainside … And later find out that the beauty with fox ears, to whom you gave your virtual hand and heart, preparing to present real ones. .. in the real world he is a schoolboy from Saratov … Oh, Perfect World is full of surprises.
Is the Ideal World a world without politics and wars? Not this time!
The game did not pass by the harsh PvP fans of varying degrees of scale. There are epic wars for territories with sieges of castles not without the help of catapults, intrigue and betrayal … There is even a recently launched royal … no, the Imperial Battle!
In 2013, with the add-on “At the Crossroads of Worlds” in Perfect World, grandiose cross-server battles appeared, which became an integral part of the game in the future.
How much is life in Perfect World?
The concept of “shareware” often causes a suspicious squint among video game fans, instantly giving rise to associations with cheese in a mousetrap. And for good reason, because a huge number of games of this distribution model gradually turn out to be a real nightmare for a player who is not ready to regularly and in large quantities uncover his wallet.
Perfect World allows you to play at any stage without investment. Many gamers fundamentally do not bring a single ruble into the game, proving that it is possible to live and live here “lightly”. On the forums, beginners will learn in detail how to swing comfortably, develop a character, dress and simply relax without donation.
Of course, donation has always been, is and will be in such games, and the advantages of a paying player can hardly be overestimated. Money in Perfect World can solve a lot of troubles: pump faster, dress more solidly and sharpen weapons sharper. And the question of your contribution to the game will be determined rather by what exactly you want to get from it. Become the best on the server? Be incomparable in some PvP modes? Reach the maximum level instantly?
Another question – do you want to feel the pleasure of gradual progress?
No one forbids trying your luck in the market by buying and reselling valuable loot, as well as resources obtained from dungeons. The gaming community can sometimes share some item with you, and you, having become a seasoned player, will certainly support someone in need yourself.
For a long time, leveling up to level 100 or more was an incredibly long process, it could take about a year. But after 2014, a rebirth system appeared, which allows you to reset the level after 100 and go all the way again, but unlocking additional hero power-ups.
More recently, the speed of progress has accelerated significantly. What has been calculated in years has been reduced to months and even weeks. In part, this upset many veterans, because some of them remember the times when someone’s level 100 was a real event, and the phrase “marked by the whole server” was not that joking. But times are changing, the game must move forward, and everyday things for a veteran will seem to the modern player sheer wildness.
But in addition to the level itself, over time, various branches of development appeared, designed in the form of maps, star disks and atlases, and the swing of the heavens. The progress system works so that you always have a place to develop. It is better to calm down the desire to “pump everything in and faster” at once, because this “everything” is incredibly much. Perfect World is subordinated to the philosophy of endless improvement.
Life on the other side of the grind
However, although battles, pumping and fiddling with equipment are the cornerstone of the Perfect World gameplay, the game does not prohibit, and to some extent even pushes towards peaceful and contemplative things. We have already mentioned weddings, trade and material mining. And what about the opportunity to take possession of a piece of land in the Cloudy World, build your own house in it and invite friends to it? It is also allowed to decorate the living space to your taste and color, equip a garden, dig a reservoir of any shape, change the landscape … There are a lot of opportunities to customize your cozy nest, and the garden will require careful maintenance if you want to grow something there.
If you don’t sit at home … How about going with an armful of friends to the Adventure Kingdom? At its core, this is analogous to Disneyland with many ways to entertain yourself with a lot of fun tasks. Here you will find your own shooting range, carting, and even a Ferris wheel with a magnificent view of the Sea of True Love …
However, if you start casually listing all the ways to keep yourself occupied in Perfect World, this article will never end. And is it possible to convey how huge and diverse the world has been created by the developers over the years? Since 2009, in various forums, every now and then comes the conversation about the closure of the project, and if not this year, then next. Many people who have heard about the project earlier are sincerely surprised that Perfect World is still alive, and inadvertently looking at the server (the game is free), they are amazed at how much alive. There are plenty of players, chat is bursting with messages, and add-ons are released with enviable regularity. Added three new races: Amphibians, Ancients and Shadows. The world has grown in breadth and depth, the number of activities is innumerable, and freedom intoxicates. But what can I say, the addition “Northern Lands” released this year is truly striking in scale.
Of course, a decade and a half make themselves felt. Graphically, Perfect World is hardly capable of impressing the sophisticated gamer. Game design, largely based on grind, is far from being understood and accepted by everyone. But unlike modern representatives of the genre dazzling with fashionable technologies, Perfect World feels great on old hardware. The mechanics are old-fashioned, but polished, the amount of content is incredible, and the community that has been forming for decades is always ready to help you figure out the intricacies, support you with advice, deed, or even a gift.
Perfect World has already jumped over its 12th anniversary in Russia and clearly does not plan to go into oblivion. In the near future, a cross-server battle royale is promised, the opportunity to collect a collection of styles, flights, decorative and mount pets in the encyclopedia. And the developers have already expanded the Northern Continent. A large team is still working on the game, which includes former players. In any case, an interesting future awaits Perfect World, probably no less eventful than the past.
Author of the material: Alexey Bezdenezhny (KOZIK).
You can download Perfect World on the official website…
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