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''Ashes of Creation'' is an upcoming
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massively multiplayer online role-playing game A massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) is a video game that combines aspects of a role-playing video game and a massively multiplayer online game. As in role-playing games (RPGs), the player assumes the role of a Player charac ...
being developed and published by Intrepid Studios. It was announced in 2016 and gained recognition by hosting a
Kickstarter Kickstarter, PBC is an American Benefit corporation, public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York City, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative project ...
campaign, meeting its goal of $750,000 in under 12 hours and eventually raising over $3 million. It features a dynamic system of world building, where players' actions directly contribute to the layout of the game world.


Gameplay

In ''Ashes of Creation'' players can pick from a range of races and classes. Initially, the player creates their character and picks one of the nine races. These consist of Kaelar or Vaelune Human, Empyrean or Py'rai Elf, Ren'kai or Vek Orc, Dünir or Niküa Dwarf, and the Tulnar. The players will also pick one of the eight primary archetypes which consist of Tank, Cleric, Mage, Fighter, Rogue, Ranger, Bard, and Summoner. Upon reaching level 25, the player can pick a secondary archetype from the initial list creating a combination of 64 possible class combinations. Like most other MMORPGs, the gameplay is driven in third-person, utilizing a hot-bar and tab-targeting for combat. ''Ashes of Creation'' features a player driven world building mechanic. As players play, designated regions will dynamically form, known as nodes. As more individuals play in that region these nodes can eventually turn into towns or cities, allowing for land development, a housing system, and a player driven political system. Players have the opportunity to battle against other nodes, and defend their own against other players. Dynamic PvE events will occur within the nodes and how players interact with the events will impact their development. For example, if players fail to address goblins in the area, their settlement will continue to grow and have a further impact on the area. NPCs in the node may react to these changes and develop hatred for the mobs as well.


Setting

''Ashes of Creation'' is set in the fictional medieval high-fantasy world of Verra. This world features a diverse range of biomes, both based on the real world, such as snow, jungles, plains, etc. and biomes created by Intrepid such as corrupted areas and the Underrealm.


Development

''Ashes of Creation'' was first announced on December 10, 2016, on a blogpost on the official website. The creation of the game is primarily funded by Intrepid Studios' founder Steven Sharif. In June 2017 a Kickstarter campaign was launched. According to Intrepid Studios, this was done to "connect directly with the players most invested in our success". The Kickstarter campaign met its initial funding target of $750,000 in less than 12 hours, eventually raising over $3.25 million from over 19,000 backers by the end of the campaign, making it one of the fastest and highest funded projects on the platform. The Kickstarter campaign drew criticism due to its use of a referral program that rewarded players with premium game credits or cash when referring others to donate to the Kickstarter campaign. Despite it being revealed that this practice was against Kickstarter's rules, the referral program continued and no action was taken against the campaign. By July 2018, 500,000 users had registered accounts on the official website and 40,000 had purchased access to the alpha and beta. In August 2018, Intrepid Studios came to an agreement with publisher My.com for rights to publish the game in EU and CIS regions. When players voiced concerns regarding creative control, My.com's Voker Boenigk published a statement that Intrepid would retain full control over the direction of the game. In August 2020, My.com and Intrepid decided to part ways and the studio would self-publish in those regions. In December 2018, a free battle royale game, ''Ashes of Creation: Apocalypse,'' was released by Intrepid Studios. The game was released as "a testing ground for new systems and content" according to the studio as well as showcase the work that has been completed since the Kickstart campaign ended. While the game was free, it did include options to purchase cosmetic items and any cosmetic items that were earned in ''Apocalypse'' would transfer to the main game once it released. In September 2019, the game was released for free on
Steam Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...
. ''Ashes of Creation: Apocalypse'' was taken offline on March 10, 2020. On May 27, 2021, it was announced that the lead game designer, Jeffrey Bard, would be leaving the project, and on September 17, 2021, Wynne McLaughlin, lead writer for games such as Elder Scrolls Online, had been hired by Intrepid as a senior narrative designer. Originally scheduled to start in June, ''Ashes of Creation'' began its first closed alpha playtest period on July 14, 2021. The alpha was available for players who purchased a $500 pre-order package and was subject to a
non-disclosure agreement A non-disclosure agreement (NDA), also known as a confidentiality agreement (CA), confidential disclosure agreement (CDA), proprietary information agreement (PIA), or secrecy agreement (SA), is a legal contract or part of a contract between at le ...
. The first alpha period was open until August 15, 2021. A second alpha period is set for Q3 of 2024. In December 2021, Intrepid Studio announced that it would be changing the game engine from the
Unreal Engine 4 Unreal Engine 4 (UE4) is the fourth version of Unreal Engine developed by Epic Games. UE4 began development in 2003 and was released in March 2014, with the first game using UE4 being released in April 2014. UE4 introduced support for Physically ...
to
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. According to Intrepid Studios, this was done to allow for faster development and to take advantage of additional tools available in Unreal Engine 5. They released a teaser trailer to show a preview of the visual effects enabled by the new engine. The game is planned to have a $15 a month subscription model with no upfront box cost.


Referral program

The Ashes of Creation referral program is an incentive system designed to reward players for referring new participants to the game. After registration, players can request a personal referral code to share with friends. When new players sign up using a referral link or code, the referring player earns 15% of the referred person's ongoing account purchases as Intrepid Bucks. These virtual credits can be used within the game's marketplace to purchase cosmetics, services, or other in-game items.


References

{{reflist


External links


Official website

Intrepid Studios website
Upcoming video games Massively multiplayer online role-playing games Unreal Engine 5 games Video games developed in the United States Windows games Crowdfunded video games