Spotlight On - Forsaken World (at E3 2010)

E3 isn't over yet, so we made a pit stop at the Perfect World Entertainment booth to see Forsaken World--the next free-to-play online game from the company that has already brought you many free-to-play online games. Forsaken World will be a colorful, high-fantasy game that bears an unmistakable resemblance to a certain other world where war is crafted, and like any good massively multiplayer online role-playing game, it will let you create a persistent character to venture forth into the world to fight monsters, gain levels, and all that good stuff.

According Forsaken World' story, the world itself is very much not forsaken. It is, instead, very harmonious and all of its races live together in peace and prosperity. The only problem is some jealous, all-powerful evil god who would prefer to destroy everything, so your job as a character is to not just to kill five of those spiders over there, but also to eventually unite the world in preparation for the coming war.

Forsaken World has five different playable races (human, elf, dwarf, stoneman, and kindred), each with different racial abilities and a few with exclusive character classes. For instance, only dwarves may become rifle-wielding marksmen. In addition, the game will have an unusual zodiac system that is keyed off of a persistent zodiac icon at the top of the screen. When clicked every 15 minutes or so, the icon will offer a new, free reward, such as weapons, armor, or quests that will encourage you to vary your playing style. When creating a new character, you're required to enter your birth date (or a birth date), which gives your character a certain zodiac alignment. If the rotating season on the server becomes aligned with your sign, you'll receive better rewards. Should 100 percent of all players on a single server consult the zodiac at the same time, higher-level rewards will be unlocked on the server, such as player housing.

The game has several other notable features, such as a job system that lets you not only craft items, but also use more socially interactive skills, such as wheedling higher level quests out of reluctant quest-giving non-player characters or crafting potions that are more powerful than can be bought in a store. It'll also have several different types of currency tied to hunting. When successfully defeating a monster, you'll pick up glowing green orbs, which fuel your character's power meter to let you eventually unleash a superpowerful attack. You'll also pick up glowing yellow orbs, which are soul currency that can be spent only by your character (however, you can also find gold coins that can be traded among players). However, neither currency may be purchased through the game's cash-op microtransaction store. This will likely focus on consumable convenience items and unique apparel. To further help players who don't have lots of time or lots of money, the game will also have an item refinement system, which lets you upgrade your slots in your existing armor and weapons with magic items that increase their durability and effectiveness, such that you'll be able to use the same gear for 10 to 20 levels.

Forsaken World has a closed beta test planned for the end of the year and is projected to launch early next year.