Asheron's Call

by Microsoft

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00002NDSI
• Media: CD-ROM
• Release Date: November 15, 1999
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (98 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #30,714 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

In a land overrun with monsters and villains, the mighty wizard Asheron has sent out a call to the bravest warriors and spell casters to return to the land of Dereth via magic portals. You and thousands of other Internet-connected players assume these adventurers in Asheron's Call.

Unlike other massively multiplayer online role-playing games (or MMORPG, if you prefer), Asheron's Call takes a more holistic approach to game design. In the arena of character generation, rather than simply choosing a character class such as warrior or wizard, characters are designed based on the spending of skill points. If you want to play as a wizard that also dabbles in swordplay, Asheron's Call lets you make that decision. And unlike other MMORPGs available today, Asheron's Call offers a seamless world that avoids the lengthy halts whenever an entire new area is downloaded to the player's local computer. The game achieves this by performing constant smaller downloads behind the scenes. The only noticeable load times occur when you actually delve into a dungeon.

These and other innovations--such as an intriguing combat system that involves choosing specific hit locations (which vary from opponent to opponent), a multicomponent spell fabrication system, and extensive character appearance possibilities numbering in the hundreds--make Asheron's Call an enjoyable and new experience for all.

One specific innovation merits special mention--the practice of allegiances. Any MMOPRG will be a bit confusing to new players upon their arrival, regardless of whether they have played games of this genre or not. Usually, with polite persistence, new players can discover what they need to know from the more experienced players. Asheron's Call has taken this fact of virtual life and incorporated it into the game through allegiances. An established character will offer to become a "patron" of another, resulting in a formal relationship in which the elder gives assistance, and perhaps some equipment, while the "vassal" is obligated to perform certain services. The vassal can in turn become a patron down the road, thus bringing a full feudal flavor to the game.

Depending on the number of vassals a patron has, he or she can even gain title and access to equipment he or she could not have had otherwise. This means a multitude of players will look to assist new arrivals, and, as either side can end the allegiance, be responsible to uphold their ends of the bargain.

Oddly, unlike in other MMORPGs, your sword and sorcery alter ego on Dereth must be human (though you may select from three different ethnicities). For those wishing to play elves or ogres, other games of this genre are better suited. Again we see this lack of diversity in character roles. While you can spend character points to increase skills typical for rogues, warriors, priests, or wizards, these are the limit of your choices. Those who wish to assume the role of other fantasy staples, such as that of a necromancer or bard, need to look elsewhere.

But for those who prefer in-depth detail over archetypal breadth, or for those who don't care and just like the idea of adventuring in a world with thousands of other online colleagues, Asheron's Call is a call worth answering. --Brus Wasson

Product Description

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Best of the current crop of MMORPGs, January 3, 2000

By 

Keith Vaglienti (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Asheron's Call (CD-ROM)

When EverQuest came out it was clear that the developers from Verant had learned from the mistakes made in Ultima Online. Now with Asheron's Call, it's clear that the developers at Turbine have learned from the mistakes made in EverQuest.

The evironmental graphics are superb, easily better than EverQuest's eye candy. Unfortunately the character/monster graphics aren't quite as well done.

Sound is wonderfully well done. You can actually identify many monsters by the sound of their footsteps, something that can't be said for EverQuest with a few notable exceptions. There's no repetitive midi music to get on your nerves every time you go to town.

Unlike EverQuest, Asheron's Call won't force you to group with others. That means that you can still play even when you can't find a group to join. In EverQuest I almost never ventured into dungeons because I was usually playing solo and dungeons just weren't viable. In Asheron's Call I've spent a lot of solo time in dungeons with no trouble at all.

Camping is not as much of a problem in Asheron's Call as it is in EverQuest. It still happens because people know they can get certain items in certain places but you can actually get better items off of random kills.

Kill stealing also isn't as much of a problem. Whoever does the most damage to the monster still gets primary looting rights to the corpse but at least you earn experience as you fight monsters instead of when you kill them, which means you'll at least get your fair share of experience.

Derath is a huge world compared to Norrath so overcrowding isn't as much of a problem. If there are too many people where you are now, just pick a direction and run off a little ways and you'll be all by your lonesome.

When you die you temporarily lose some hit points and stamina, but you get them back as you gain more experience. You also only leave behind half your money and one or two of your most valuable items on your corpse so if you can't get back to it for some reason, it's no big deal. That's a lot better than EverQuest where you lose increasingly large chunks of experience and leave all of your gear on your corpse, losing everything if you can't recover it for some reason.

Customer support is good. I've actually seen advocates wandering around asking people if they need help with anything. Turbine also announces planned updates well in advance giving full details and explaining why the changes are being made. And Turbine plans to have monthly developer online chats so the players can make their opinions known.

Turbine also plans to have a special event every month that will advance their ongoing storyline and so far the special events have been designed so that everyone can participate in some manner. Thats a lot better than EverQuest where a special event is defined as letting the GMs see how many 10th level and lower players they can kill with an army of 20th level warbone skeletons before the high level players step in to help the newbies out.

Asheron's Call does have some drawbacks, which is why it only gets 4 stars instead of 5. As I've already mentioned, the character/monster graphics aren't all that great. The interface is a bit clunky and could definitely be better. The chat system also needs work to make it easier for players to communicate with each other. Monster AI isn't all that good, often making monsters easier kills than they should be. Since the game is being bankrolled by Microsoft, you have to play it on the Zone which means you're getting lag from people playing other games and you have to use Internet Explorer instead of Netscape Navigator or another web browser.

On the whole, though, if you're looking to get into a massively multiplayer online role playing game, Asheron's Call is the way to go. At least until another MMORPG comes out that's learned from AC's mistakes. ;-)

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Travel the World .. Meet new Friends .. Complete huge quests, January 18, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Asheron's Call (CD-ROM)

Asheron's Call, the latest addition to the Massively Multiplayer Role Playing Game Arena offers more then any other game in its marketplace. ONE: The World Feels HUGE. They did a good job here and made "Teleporting around" a very difficult skill so to get from place to place you must use the limited portal systems, or you must simply run. Running is a pleasure in this immersive environment, and the adrenaline caused when a pack of mean critters chases you off their land, is an added bonus to the lush landscapes and incredible skys. As you traverse the land, you can actually see the sun slowly setting or storm clouds roll in. Again, these effects make you feel like you are really in a large, mystical, distant land. TWO: The allegiance system in the game is unique, and a very fun experience. With the allegiance system you can gain vassals and followers or a mighty patron who will aid you in your adventures. From your vassals you gain extra experience points so you grow faster in the land, and from your patron and Monarch you gain valuable aid and teachings. The best thing about the allegiance system is it forms an extended family. People within your allegiance will come to your aid at any time, and are always fun to fellowship with when you are going out on new adventures. THREE: Unlike the other online RPG games, Asheron's Call's character development system and combat system are relatively complex and exiting. It really does matter how you develop you character, and in battle you must think quickly as the enemy attacks .. "what type of armor/hide does that enemy have .. should I use my Mace or sword, or perhaps the mage should use Fire against it? Wait, how will it attack me? With a fierce blade, or a cruel bludgeon?" It makes a difference and forces you to THINK .. not just Hack and Slash. FOUR: The Forts and Dungeons are a pleasure as taking on a fort with 100 monsters may require a large party, or several partys, and it will certainly need a good strategy. Other games in the category just don't offer the same mental challenge. FIVE: Server Events and large quests. Recently a strange happening occurred in Dereth. The entire world is covered in snow. No huge patch was necessary, I simply logged on and the world was snowing. After a couple of weeks of searching for information, I found that a party traveling north had not been heard from and was feared to be lost, and the word was out to aid them. After an extremely fun quest with a few dead ends and strange twists and turns across Dereth, my small party discovered what happened to the lost adventurers ( I wont give away more, but it was related to all the snow) I spent at least 100 hours on this quest, and there are countless others like it in Dereth, and they add at least one new one ( like this one was added) each month.

SUMMARY: I have Played UO and Everquest extensively, but I feel that Asheron's Call is by far the most immersive, enjoyable Online RPG experience to-date.

48 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Initial Effort by Turbine/Microsoft, November 30, 1999

By 

J. Bailey (North Carolina) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Asheron's Call (CD-ROM)

Positives? Allegiance system (higher level characters help lower level ones), lush 3-D graphics (I'd recommend a 3D card to get the full effect), evolving world, wonderfully complex magic system, customizable characters, huge variety of monsters, weaponry, armor and locations of interest, massive world, oodles of opportunity for expansion, great interface, very helpful admins, lots of player support (websites, lists,etc.), non-player killer worlds.

Negatives: Large emphasis on hack and slash, occasional lag.

I've looked at all the online RPGs and AC is without peer. The point of online RPGs are two-fold (imho): (1) immersive world experience and (2) online interaction with real people. AC delivers both of these objectives more effectively than any other online game.

IMMERSIVE WORLD EXPERIENCE

The graphics of AC are quite simply beautiful. They are fully 3D based polygonal rendering (not the sprite-based cartoons of other online games). The scenes are so beautiful I often screen capture various scenes and use them as my background in Windows. The sounds, the environment, the variety of perspectives (including first person) allow for a wonderfully beguiling experience.

ONLINE INTERACTION WITH REAL PEOPLE

Again, AC delivers like no other. The Allegiance system of AC is a master stroke. Other games are plagued by "gods" who are on 24/7 and roam about in gloating elitist snobbery. On AC, the high-level characters help you out! Why? Because they want vassals to advance in allegiance rank. Vassals (low-level characters) get help in the form of money, items, spells, etc. Patrons (high-level characters) get experience points based on the amount of experience points their vassals generate. Its extraordinary. Rival allegiances produce grand challenges. An extensive communication option allows for communication with friends online, allies, and enemies.

AC is the only game I play. I thank the makers of AC for creating a wonderful game and raising the bar for all the other developers to have to rise above.