Most modern MMOs like Venge io have their own take on the usual questing, exploring, and dungeon crawling, with player-versus-player combat as an afterthought, but Crowfall skirts all of that entirely. It focuses instead on PvP campaigns lasting at most 30 days, which is basically seasons. These campaigns are meant to culminate with full-on, guild vs. guild warfare by the end. You might experience a siege, or even a fortress fight if you keep at it. If you’re lucky enough, you may even be able to build your own realm. It’s not possible for an average player to build a custom realm, just like in EVE Online, which is dominated by PvP.
Crowfall’s best feature is its character generator. There are 12 fantasy races and 11 classes, and some truly interesting choices, such as the Stoneborn and the Guineceans. Each of these characters has unique abilities. The class system allows you to change your role quickly by inserting Major and Minor Disciplines. Crowpedia is a highly detailed resource that you can access directly from the talent menu. It provides a comprehensive overview of the specializations of your classes, races, or Disciplines. It’s possible to mix and match a wide variety of abilities and traits. It’s great fun to experiment with new traits. You’ll also find three Promotion Classes in each class. These are subclasses that let you customize your character even further.
But, not all of that effort will result in a wonderful experience.
The tutorial is covered by a introductory leveling arc that ranges from one to thirty. It’s quite short in practice. MMO enthusiasts need to know that the tutorial is the only place where you will find any quests. Even then, they are essentially a “run here, don’t do this” type of thing. This tutorial feels like a buffer. While it is important to know your class before you can lead a full-blown siege campaign, the entire section feels meaningless. It’s not teaching you anything other than how your class works when fighting small groups PvE enemies, and it doesn’t even go to the end.
Crowfall is a PvP MMORPG with a strong guild- and faction-building system. However, it has little appeal to anyone other than its most dedicated and loyal players. If you just want to kill others while having fun with your friends, Crowfall is a great place to do so, provided you are okay with the interface and similar combat system. It’s clear that the open-world, faction-based, PvP systems it is built around are meant to bring everyone together to work towards a larger goal. However, there is so much grinding involved that it feels like only the most dedicated players can enjoy the most enjoyable gameplay.