RATING:
Graphics: 7
Sound: 6
Gameplay: 7
Overall: 6.5
Pros: Nice artistic style, fun and addicting gameplay.
Cons: May become repetitive after some time, sounds could be improved.
We’ve lately dedicated some of our time to checking out a popular browser-based trading card MMO that’s free to play: Eredan iTCG. Developed and published by Feerik in 2010 already, the title boasts a plethora of intriguing features, including a story-based PvE campaign, a marketplace and a clan system (currently in beta), as well as pretty original mechanics and unique fantasy lore. So let’s check out together what else is on offer in this TCG!
The MMO is accessible through the official website or directly via Facebook, resulting in a pretty fast and effortless process when registering for Eredan iTCG as it has become usual in nearly each browser-based title these days.
Upon entering the game, players are received with a tutorial that uses a guided battle to introduce them to the game’s basics and explain the each of core mechanics. This first battle moreover acts as an introduction to Eredan’s lore as well as the story-based campaign. The completion of the tutorial rewards players with one of the starter decks available from the different faction/ guilds the game features, such as Zil Warriors, Desert Nomads, Kotoba, Pirates, and so on. There are eleven different factions in total to choose from, each of which has its unique style of play. We opted for the Kotoba starter deck, a faction inspired by Japanese samurais and ninjas which strongly relies on weapons and items to equip your (primarily warrior) characters with as well as physical attacks.
Even when only browsing the starter decks, it’s immediately pretty obvious how much effort the developing team invested in creating a fine and compelling lore, including intriguing character styles, specific art styles and colours that are unique to each faction. They also did a good job in even allowing complete newbies like us to realise the differences between each faction’s play style when taking a glimpse at the cards composing the starter decks. We noticed play styles based on debuffing enemies, cursed items, spell cards and more, all of which was pretty intriguing and extremely promising.
Regarding the gameplay, Eredan follows a pretty different path in comparison to lots of its competitors in the online TCG market. While TCG gamers are normally used to playing numerous hero/ creature cards from their hand, Eredan provides them with only three character/ hero cards which are possibly the most essential ones in the player’s deck and will be in play simultaneously from the start of the battle until they die. Each hero card displays its class, guild and level on the upper part while spirit, attack, defence and life/ HP values are shown at the bottom and special abilities are listed in the centre (e.g. being more powerful during particular turns, chain effects, etc.).
In addition to these three hero cards, the player’s deck can also include spell/ item/ action cards which can be used to defeat the opponent heroes and protect your own ones. While some of the cards, especially spells and actions, can only be used once before entering the graveyard straightaway, item cards (weapons, armour, etc.) are permanently attached to the player’s character for the duration of a match.
A match generally starts with both players (or one player and the AI in the case of the PvE mode) having their three hero cards visibly placed onto the battlefield. Then, the first player will pick the initial two heroes that will face each other, followed by both players choosing one card (item, spell, action, etc.) from their randomly drawn hand to play it during that turn. They can also attempt to trigger the "chain" effect, which allows them to play an additional card during that turn. The "Chain" effect can be simply built into a specific card, an action card, for instance, with the description: "Attack +1, Chain". If such a card is played first, the player’s character attack will be boosted by 1 for that turn and the player is moreover allowed to play another card.
Our Kotoba characters had the "chain" effect triggered when we equipped them with particular weapons, such as daggers or one-handed swords and it was pretty interesting to build chain combos in different ways, given the fact that our deck was based on buff actions and equipment.
The heroes will then attack each other and inflict an certain amount of damage to the enemy's HP determined by their attack/ defence values as well as the cards played during the turn. For the next turn, it’s up to the other player to choose the fighting heroes, and so on. Once a character card's HP drops to zero or below, that character is defeated and can't be used anymore. The battle is over when one player has lost all three of their heroes. In the case that both players are left without any hero alive on the battlefield, the winner is calculated based on the damage inflicted/ healed HP. After each match, character cards earn XP and once their XP bar is filled, they are able to evolve into more powerful versions of themselves.
Being victorious in matches and advancing through the game allows players to unlock several additional features, e.g. the marketplace, training, new campaign missions, deck building and more.
Considering the fact that Eredan iTCG is browser-based, the game’s graphics are quite good, and we actually liked the polished and detailed card illustration and the cartoonish anime style. Although the sounds could certainly be improved, it’s not a big deal after all, as they not that important in games of this type.
CONCLUSION
Eredan iTCG is a simple, quick and pleasant trading card MMO that offers a fun and addictive gameplay and unique mechanics that are sufficiently complex to be intriguing and challenging, while steering clear of being unnecessarily overcomplicated. Those of you who consider themselves TCG enthusiasts and look for something appealing for casual and more seasoned players alike, could definitively give it a shot.
Deja tu comentario
You must be logged in to post a comment.