THIS GAME IS GOING FREE TO PLAY IN APRIL! Just so if you're interested in the game, but not willing to shell out $20 / $30 (off-sale) I don't understand why people are hating that this will be f2p, if youwait you'll miss out on the rewards.

($20 is a really good price imo. You'll get a mount (Specteral Wolf), some gold, and another thing (forgot) when this becomes free 2 play.

[Long review because I see many negative reviews that baffle me, will put 3 sections for this game. Informative, Good, and Bad.]

============================[Informative]=================================

First of all, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE take the time to research this game before paying $30 for it. There is a lot of grinding. (Although, they're making it easier with the monthly challenges that give you so many tomes of insight [free xp basically]) This game has a unique artstyle. Its not going to have Black Desert graphics nor can you change the camera. As I see a lot of people care about graphics like that matters more than gameplay. I enjoy the graphics, and they work on subpar gaming rigs / even my school laptop (with around 20ms, playable) you can get this game on your tablet if you manage to get one of the keys to them. (I am still trying)

You can also get a trial key to try out the game up to T4 I believe. Which again, baffles me that people try out the game for >1 hour and complain they don't like it. Don't spend $30 on a game you don't know about!

Gear scales downwards depending on the zone. Arena is also scaled gear down to make it more balanced! So you cannot just wipe the floor in T8 gear while the enemy is in T4. Gear doesnt scale down in black zones where you'll most likely be when you're this far anyways.
pls play arena guys, 40min queue times kill me late at night ;-;

The game is not dead either, don't just follow the steamcharts since there are a lot of people playing on the albion launcher.

==============================[The Good]================================
The good, or what keeps me playing.

+ JOIN AN ACTIVE GUILD IT MAKES A HUGE DIFFERENCE. I can't stress this enough, i was about to quit @ 100hours in because the first guild I was in didn't do anything! Now I'm doing ZvZ's, mages, dungeons, etc! Which then also speaks about the community.

I like the community. I don't see how people say this community is toxic unless you havent played Overwatch / League or you don't talk at all in video games. Nothing new, and its more laid back than other games. Just saying mods are pretty cool and let a lot of things slide in the game. The only time is late in the morning (3AM) when no one talks / other languages than english start talking.

+The grind isnt bad if you know what you're doing. I have alliance members who average 525k fame an hour in dungeons. It helps if you're into a guild and they'll power level you really quickly in higher tier dungeons. Again, join a good guild / alliance and get involved!

+ZvZ's, GvG's, HCE's, Mages, Hellgates, and even Gathering. It all starts to get addicting once you start doing them. Most are pvp, but gathering is like your Runescape woodcutting / mining. Click and watch. Which could be a good or bad thing.

+Classless PVP is the best MMO imo. I hate being locked onto a tank character and then making a new character just to heal. You can really make your own build if you want. (Tank with daggers sure why the ♥♥♥♥ not)

==============================[The Bad]=================================
Thirdly, i want to talk about the "controversial" or "what people like to "complain" or give reasons to hate this game

-Premium. Its something everyone complains about. It helps you gather more (Premium Bonus) and gives you Learning Points. Learning Points let you automatically level a skill up once you hit 20% on that level. Its really worth it, and you can pay for it with in game silver too. (Although, we all agree that just spending $10 for an entire month is better since its just 1 hour of work)

-This game is PAY2PROGRESS, I find this different than Pay 2 Win (P2W). I want to explain. I always think P2W was always about locking people out of good weapons / items until they paid for the item. While pay 2 progress is more like anyone can earn the items in game, but you can buy your xp to use the weapons. This may sound like an advantage, but you're not gonna get far in the pvp zones unless you are with a guild anyways since everyone ganks anymore. Which leads to my next issue with the game.

Note:
I WANT TO SAY THE PAY 2 PROGRESS AND PREMIUM IS NOT AS BAD AS YOU'RE THINKING AND I REALLY DONT SEE PEOPLE PAYING $100+ GOLD TO JUST LEVEL UP

- Rarely does anyone solo pvp in full loot. The only time I've been killed by one person alone was when we were both in fishing gear fighting for a lake with bloodletters. You will see gankers and they are common! IF not, expect to be ganked :)

- There isnt a story, which isnt a problem for me as I value the gameplay more but I know others do care. There aren't any quests beside the tutorial to get yourself a Tier 2 donkey.

- My main gripe, not enough solo content. I can't really explain nor give any ideas. But when all my guild members log off. I would still like to do more of the bigger dungeons. The "solo" dungeons really arent good fame nor good money. You can go invis and go straight to the boss, its more efficient just killing roaming T8 mobs.


I'll keep comments enabled, I want to see if others agree / disagree. I personally enjoy this game and did get my money's worth. I'll clean up the review and make it neater in the future.
============================Oberon Update==============================

THEY MADE EARLIER TIER (GATHERING / GEAR) EVEN EASIER

Random dungeons - These are actually awesome and a lot of fun.

Lower tier mobs will give more fame (easier to level gear!) I leveld my spear from lvl 6 -> 23 in like 30 minutes - to an hour. Its insane.

New players rejoice!

The random dungeons are a breathe of fresh air, and you better be ready for people to dive in. Its good fame and good money.



List of Edits:
January 21st - added more things and explaining why
January 29th - Tried to attempt to make it neater.
March 11th - Oberon Update preview
March 20th - Actual Oberon Update