Lord War

‘Lord War’, a web game developed by FMStudio, commenced its services since last November 25. ‘Lord War’ declared differentiation from conventional web games and was developed with the goal of becoming a web game of enjoying wars. The developers have particularly announced their work has been based on their love for the users, so let’s look into just how much love the game has in store.

Castle Lords Merciful to Losers

The fundamentals of a web game are growth and competition. Particularly, competition adopts the merciless method where the winner takes all. This system often induces the losers to also lose enthusiasm in the game. However, ‘Lord War’ loves its users so much that it prepared protective features that prevent such users from quitting the game.

In ‘Lord War’, a user loses up to only 10% from one’s on-hand resources even when one’s castle is attacked and lost. Also, the attacked castle is protected from 4 to 24 hours from additional attacks. Such damages are sufficiently restored during the protected mode, allowing users not to fear defeats.

Yet, the greatest burden in a battle is the penalty upon defeat. ‘Lord War’ minimized this burden to reduce fear of failure, and thus fostered the environment of fostering battles. Where else would be such merciful invaders who take only 10% of spoils after occupying a castle?

Well-Balanced Cash Items

Most online games are a battle against time, but in web games time is particularly directly connected to growth. This is because the time factor is always included in the development of one’s stronghold, which is the growth factor in the web game. For instance, general games allow users to quickly grow their characters with the help of a friend, good equipments or good skills by hunting monsters faster. Yet in web games, users can grow only by consuming the same period of time regardless of good skills or the amount of money.

Many web games are breaking this balance of growth by introducing cash items. The games sell items that eliminate the time factor required for growth to often shake the very balance of the game. ‘Lord War’ has been careful in its approach towards this breaking of balance from its very planning stages. Also, the game has decided to prioritize on balance even if forfeiting the best profit-making structure.

Of course, ‘Lord War’ does offer cash items that reduce the amount of time required for growth. Yet, the effects are limited to 40% to appropriately compromise between the value of cash items and the game balance. In comparison with a general game, better items allow a faster advantage in growth.

RPG-Resembling Exploration System

Another catchy aspect of ‘Lord War’ is the exploration system. Exploration is conducted through a maximum of 4-member parties, where users explore the fields provided in the game to capture monsters and acquire items.

On exploration fields, users can directly control the characters to battle monsters and gain resources or items through quests, just as in RPG games. The battle adopts the Active Time Turn method and command method of RPG games for direct control over characters. Above all, there is no limit to the exploration mode, which allows users with plenty of time to explore to quickly grow their heroes and monsters, and to quickly acquire additional resources.

Of course, the game also supports auto-explorations for busy businesspeople like me. The auto-exploration can be selected time-wise from 1 to 12 hours, where the users can obtain experience points and resources at a lower amount than manual explorations.

Territory Size = National Strength

In history, most of the great lords were also great conquerors. One of the features of ‘Lord War’ is that achieving victory in an invasion battle allows the invader to steal a portion of the opponent’s territory. The territory capable of building structures in ‘Lord War’ are indicated via numbers rather than visible block units. Territory is required to add various production, convenience and defensive facilities, but is also utilized as a means to increasing one’s rank.

In ‘Lord War’, the user’s rank is determined through the addition of one’s respective growth level and size of territory. The game system of possessing higher rank to impose more taxes makes rank a very crucial factor. Allowing users to take over this important territory makes it realistic of having actual lords fighting over territory. The true spoils of war may be territory rather than resources.

Territory can also be expanded through colonization besides victory in battles. Colonization is also very important in the overall course of the game. Approximately 1/3 of the territory gained through battles is destroyed as unusable land. Thus, repeating battle alone gradually reduces the total size of territory in the game. Focusing solely on stealing each other’s territory without colonizing may result in the lack of territory to maintain a single production facility, let alone territory to steal.

Anyways, ‘Lord War’ seems to be striving for the world view where lords of their own castles fight over land.