Tree of Savior FGT/CBT Review (English Version)

FGT/CBT Review by Veeshadow

English Version

Greetings

Hey guys, I’m Veeshadow here to share a review for one of upcoming online game, called Tree of Savior or abbreviated as ToS. I’m just an ordinary gamer with normal life with games as my hobby. Just visit my Youtube, Twitter, and social media related to me for more information about me. Let’s start this review with some prologue lol..


 

Disclaimer

• Review might be lenghty. Well, this review is the merge of my thoughts from like more than 1 month ago. It’s just easier to compile my thoughts here, although I probably will make different Youtube videos related to it.

• ·Review is purely comes from my personal experience and opinions. You can argue or disagree with things. My opinion might be offensive for old games, but really that’s what you got for managing games so badly.

• ToS is famous with the staff who develops it go involved in Ragnarok Online (RO) before. There are so many things that can be compared between games but I’m not going crazy for it. ToS should be treated as different series, just like former FF staff, Hideo Kojima, and Inafune for Megaman wanna be game. I have no intention to make offensive arguments.

• For English version, some review aspects are omitted or adjusted since the original Indonesian version has some exclusive Indonesian complaints

 

Intro

Oh crap, why we still in introduction. Come on, we need to greet this game first. But well, you can pretty much gather so much information for this game on google already. This intro will focus to my interest for this game. If you know irowiki, the RO fanbase forum, they discuss about this game, so there you go I join them. The surprise is how developer’s attitude to its fans, sharing things in the blog, communicating with players. I think this is something rare for online games… Then until CBT announced, everything changed when Pyromancer attack (this is not Avatar, eh?)

Part 1: Leveling, Class, And Field System

Let’s start shall we?  It’s a bit hard to explain if you’re not at least playing MMO games. ToS is another kind of MMORPG, so the main course of that genre will be including what classes availablein the game, how about the leveling system and how about the field.

Class System

ToS offers 4 classes immediately when you create your character, the character lodge system for character creation also looks good. However outside gender the customization pretty much just adding hair styles, but some quests in-game will unlock other options to change your character’s cosmetic. Back to the class, you will pick  Swordman, Cleric, Wizard, or Archer.

If you are expert or hardcore of MMORPG, you probably feel the class selection is just few and too generic. But here’s the deal, until the latest update of ToS, the game has 7 rank class and you have option to apply new class or upgrade your old class. Total classes so far until rank 7 is 52 (let’s play Solitaire lol). Player can upgrade old class 2 times until 3rd circle which leads to C1, C2, dan C3. Job level maxed at 15, compared to RO that reach 60. What aboutThief and Merchant from former RO? They are listed as advanced class from 4 classes, despite the class name is different.

Someone calculated up to 900 combination builds from class selections alone, although these classes actually a bit camouflage compared to usual MMORPG. For example, Priest got battle, magnus, and support build in RO. In ToS these 3 builds are separated into 3 different classes as analogy. Still you can get different builds from same classes due to only 15 skill points and many classes offers many skills at once with different effects and roles. One good thing is every class get costumes and you can switch any class costumes anytime you want. So don’t look a Cleric outfit if he/she is lv 200 as low ball class.

Class amounts and selections give challenges to players, unless you copy and paste everyone can’t make exactly same builds, factoring skills, stats, and equipments.. Stat system in ToS really similar to usual MMORPG, you can simply google it. One thing for ToS, there is a stamina meter that used by some classes. Some skills are using stamina instead SP.

Leveling System

Leveling in ToS is something that probably new even for me. I really don’t know if there is other game that take this leveling system but so far from my MMOs played: Seal Online, RO, RO2, and some forgotten web based games I’d say the leveling system is something new. These are quick points:

• Leveling using the combination of grinding and quest. In comparison of RO you just help NPC to kill thousand enemies then get huge EXP. That can be boring after a while
• Quest in ToS really vary, even some complicated ones that you need to solve puzzles in dungeon. In other side, Questing can’t be just your only source for leveling. Unless with 2x EXP or events like that, you will get underleveled in next maps if you just doing Quests. The quest reward also involving EXP card instead direct EXP, so you can increase EXP anytime you want. That means you want to conserve the items as much as you want and decide when you want to level up fast.

• ·Grinding system is also something you can’t simply do without strategies. First, majority of physical dan magical damage have elements. If you played Persona 3 you will recalled these physical attacks Slash, Pierce, dan Strike so if your class can equip multiple weapons that have different elements then you want to keep them and not just relying on one weapon. Every class has different elements for physical and magical so grinding spot can be different if the concept is farm the monster that weak against your attack. Dungeon party is where different classes gather and work together, since those mostly harder to complete on solo player.

• EXP table in ToS also designed different and not linear. Base level using same system as job level where EXP will back to low amount of EXP required, you can see this link: http://www.tosbase.com/game/exp-tables/base/So you can relax a bit if you can pass the EXP peak. 

      I personally feel that leveling start to get challenging around level 165-185, most EXP you need so far is 17 million EXP at lv 280, compared to RO that need 300 million EXP on final levels.

 

Unfortunately ToS also using level penalty system similar to renewal RO. So you will get less EXP if difference between your level and monster level getting bigger. 20 levels is the usual cap that also applies on RO.

Field System

The next part is field system. Start with the World Map. Check this link first for your map in the game.  http://www.tosbase.com/game/world-map/

This is the newest version of world map that likely different design than CBT in the past. Fortunately not changed too much, the developers even bring new updates that allow you to choose one of two cities when starting the game: Klaipeda atau Orsha (you can visit other town later).  For former RO players you can see how big the world map dan you will visit most of them for leveling and grindings. This is one of ToS pros with many places to level up instead just relying 1 or 2 maps.

The maps inside contains some good fields (read: not modern graphics wise). However, the maps seem lack of variety. All you see until lv 100 are forests, savannas, mountains, and something like that. This game contains tree name, does that mean they want to only show green fields and GO GREEN? Still I want to see something different like Volcano, Snow, Sea, modern fields, etc. Let’s hope that higher level get new environment.

Maps and graphics will followed by Background Music (BGM).  Alright music is different thing and made us good to listen it over and over, not just one music loop. Maybe you will feel weird with some discotic BGM in forest maps but it is cool music after all. If you played Final Fantasy XII you will somewhat feel familiar with its exploration.

There are also secret maps you will find unexpectedly and you can meet field boss if music changes (MVP if you recall old games). So beware if you get lost, there is a guest waiting for you XD.

Part 2: Cleric Class

People that know me from online games and social media like Youtube will recognize my class as Healer and most likely never a full support ones. ToS is surprisingly giving different experience despite playing class under the same name. As I said before, ToS get so many classes that you need to brainstorm your character build for stats and skills. Everyone has different taste, so my personaly build can be good or bad just depend on opinions.

In short, I already made separate preference for my own build here. This review will be just talking about Cleric in general.

http://www.tosbase.com/tools/skill-simulator/build/dwi3e4r83g/

http://www.tosbase.com/tools/skill-simulator/build/ovuynoopfe/

Cleric or Acolyte, the 2 familiar names for MMORPG hardcore. This class gives surprise about how developers design it. Cleric’s advanced class names are taken from existing familiar names and leaders or roles of certain religion, a bit like Bishop for that particular religion (Sadhu is like Hinduism). List class can be viewed in this link: http://www.tosbase.com/game/classes/

Cleric Pros:

• Various advanced classes, in my eyes Swordman/Archer most likely just a physical classes and Wizard can be magic with small physical portion DPS. Cleric in other hand can focused to either one or even both of physical and magical.

• Choose your role beside Healer, you can pick support, DPS magic, DPS physical, tank support, debuffer, and unique role. Druid for example, you can transform as monster and get monster’s skills like Blue Mage.

• Multiple choices to weapon and armors. You can access 3 physical elements if you can have all type of weapons. If you watch Sword Art Online anime this is your chance to make Berserk Healer like Asuna :p

Cleric Cons:

Cleric class cons come from roles you lack of from your build. If you just making full support, then all you do is just chill or doing normal attack. I don’t want to play RO1 v.2 really. While if you just doing DPS like full DPS Krivis-Sadhu, you can be replaced with other DPS class. People will still expect you to become Healer dan Support in party so don’t expect your DPS will be cooler than Swordman/Wizard class. 

That’s why my build can access many roles, even with some lacking roles as well. Also even if you make DPS class at beginning, you just playing the game like dropping bombs and traps then hiding until cool down expires. Stat is also most complicated compared to other rank 1 class, since every stat counts, unlike Swordman when INT is useless.

This game also has Pet system that all characters in same account can use. Even when I plan to make Cleric as mains, I will make alt first for making silver than focused on main Cleric. Pet doesn’t have significant role until latest test, but it does good job to distract and tank enemies and fast leveling on low levels.

So, are you ready to become Cleric?

Part 3: Game Features Review

In this part, I’ll describe the game features in general, the good and the bad for the game

Economy

Economy system is the unique system compared to other similar MMORPG. Many features in the game require you to pay with your Silver, your in-game money. Attribute is the major one, spending silver to enhance the skills you learned or even learning new passive skills like Increase Weight for Priest. So faster leveling doesn’t mean your character can be stronger. You also need to buy equipments, buying and training pets, supplies like potions dan stamina pills, refining equips equip, making guild (10m silver, wow), and what else I forgot? In comparison to RO, if any server including private ones go to OBT, new players will get zeny crisis but once server runs by months and years, you barely used zeny outside trading (and make the RMT price is a joke)

The Price…Eh…Lol

This implies that developers want to control RMT dan in-game money in general. RMT is something you hardly can prevent, so developers are smart enough to make silver consumed by NPC and limiting trading between players via premium features. This is a good step although of course it has flaws and many players disagree with it. For me, it’s fair enough to make the game run in matter of years, not just months.

Misc Game Features

ToS has so many features that you can try and have fun with the game. Most of them are actually not brand new features for MMORPG hardcores but they got something to make features more creative. I already explain attributes so I’ll just explain some of them.

• Game Control: This is probably something you need to adapt, you generally need to choose keyboard or mouse mode. If you get used for WASD movement then practice direction button on your right side of keyboard.

• Market: In ToS you can visit NPC to sell and buy things even without meet players. OBT updates said that developers will limit this feature and require premium features to get rid them. Some classes can open their services and leave their character offline while service on going (those offline chars become NPC).

• Refinement: You can also upgrade equipments by buying anvils, so it’s your duty to upgrade your own equipments yey. Fortunately ToS doesn’t have concept fail refine = lost equipment, equipment has potential stat that will decrease if you fail to refine it. If your potential become zero and your equipment is +8, you will stuck with that value forever, you must refine another same equip if you want more refinement.

• Crafting: You can get recipes and materials written on the recipe from monster drops or quest rewards. You can also write your own equipment name and description so you can confess to someone lol.

• Video Recording dan Screenshot: ToS can access these two things really simple. Print screen and F12 will be your friend. But the video size can be huge, so use OBS and re-record for smaller size.

•  One of teased features that we can’t access yet. Is this Harvest Moon?

Despite of many interesting features, ToS also lacks some good features from similar games. Storage only acts as safety safe and reduces your items in the bag. Mail does not exist, so this makes trading even become harder just to contact someone. The game itself doesn’t have more safety features like second PIN etc (I know international using Steam but still…). PvP also looks bland, so I hope developers can improve the game further.

The Future

For the game that takes long to enter OBT, you will be surprised that CBT only offers incomplete game. Korean OBT adds more update with rank 7 classes, max level 280, etc that does not exist yet in CBT. Even as former RO2 players for almost 3 years, I can say ToS contents are already bigger than that lousy game.

ToS management is something different I feel compared to existing MMO games, if you read this then you need to think if you want this game become big and success. Rushed OBT is not something I look for. The game itself can be entered easily even with IP blocks, so google is your friend bro, don’t be lazy if you want to try this game.

In other side, I really don’t want to mock former MMO games I’ve played. But really, online games shouldn’t just all about money. That’s what I feel for at least RO that I used to love to, make the game fun for everyone not for just someone who has $1000 and obsessed with MVP cards.

Last Words

If you ask me about my opinion about this game, it’s pretty much generic game. If you are hardcore MMORPG, former RO players, or similar games, do not expect something special. ToS is different game that wants to expand its gameplay rather than graphics.

I personally take this game as oasis in middle of desert of online games. Many MMO are not good these days, at least in term of gameplay and more cash milking. Some good MMO actually exist, but uhhh I don’t like graphics like FF VII remake you know…

Last but not least words, I hope ToS can be expanded more and make new solid community. I need to thank you to IMC games and other publishers for inviting us. Time to boot this screen hundred times after OBT, shall we?