Recently I had a chance to talk with Jonathan Belliss, Director of Marketing, about the Forsaken World MMO which is finally opening its doors to the first round of closed beta testers. I had a chance to jump in shortly after they went live, and I am having a lot of fun. There are the normal bugs, glitches, and odd font or two but with how early in the process the game is, it’s a lot of fun and looks great.

[GDN] What makes Forsaken World different from other games in the genre, and other Perfect World games as well?

Forsaken World sets itself apart from other PWE games in a variety of ways.  In terms of theme and art style, most PWE games are very Chinese in nature; however Forsaken World is culturally ambiguous. I would say it most closely emulates European culture and architecture if anything. The game quality and features sets Forsaken World apart from the entire genre and from fantasy-themed MMOs or MMOs in general with unique features such as the God System and Guild Command Centers. Guild Command Centers will unlock additional guild-specific content as well as let guilds challenge each other in all out guild warfare. Through the Unique Server Progression system, players will see their world physically improve or become more twisted as they level up and unlock new content.

[GDN] The class/race system is pretty limited compared to some other MMORPG’s, was this done for a reason and how will those limits be transcended?

The reason why the classes/races are restricted for some combinations in Forsaken World is because we wanted to have an extremely stylized set of classes.  It doesn’t make sense to have a fragile elf function as a Protector, much less have a savage Stoneman play eloquent music as a Bard. There’s a strong lore and cohesive story within Forsaken World and by allowing players to be any race with any class, we feel like we lose some of that closeness with our lore.  However, we’ll see what our feedback is during Closed Beta and will see if we ultimately made the right decision.

[GDN] What makes the way classes/races are done unique to the genre and how important is creating something new for the players?

We like to take the typically fantasy-themed classes and give them a bit of a darker twist, while providing players with new customization options. Unlike typical vampires, our Vampire class uses a giant cross on their back as a weapon and use their own blood/health to both deal damage to enemies as well as heal allies. Additionally, our female dwarves aren’t ugly, they’re short and attractive. We’ve done a lot to ensure that we’ve made a strong departure from the standard design concepts that define the MMO genre.  Players can also further customize their characters with classes, occupations and skill trees that will impact players’ attributes and appearance in game.