Note to Dial-up users: If you want the review
without the images, then you can view it here:
http://forums.graal2001.com/forums/s...ad.php?t=53806
What’s it all about:
Shaded legend appears to have taken a change for the better. However boring it may seem that the only players currently in and out of public are old ones, re-done, Shaded Legend is worth the look.
They have added a story line which is strongly followed through quests and parts of the world by various cut-scenes which will randomly appear to allow you to catch up on the story line, and where you now stand.
The playerworlds appearance is nice, and quests are similar to those of ‘Classic Graal’, by which I mean the length and time taken to make the quest interesting, so you will enjoy yourself while completing quests.
First Impressions:
When you first log on you will be in a castle level, it is advised to take the time to download the midi pack, as the midis are great and during quests and certain levels it makes the atmosphere perfect with the great use of the right music. If you don’t download this at the start then it can be done later, but you may as well do it now.
Your second big choice at the start is if you are going to view all the cut scenes or skip them all… personally I think you may as well view it, because they are there for a reason and will allow you to enjoy the whole server more, and will allow you to follow the story line, but at times some cut scenes can be quite long, so it all depends on your patients and level of interest to reading the sub-titled cut-scenes.
When you log on you will also notice the GUI, which is very easy to use. The GUI shows you a lot of things such as:
-HP/MP
-Location
-Weapon/Money/Bombs/Arrows
-Date/Time
At times messages will pop-up in the bottom right, from NPCs as well as Staff, which are mostly notices such as events and errors (e.g: ‘This item is not for sale’). If you have the midis downloaded then you will hear a little bleep as a message pops up.
Levels:
If you press (M) for the Map you will be able to view the size of Shaded Legend, it is huge and it contains areas for expansion at a later date, as well as open spaces for other additions along the way.
The detail of the level is great, although in areas it does slip a little and so parts do look less visually impressive than others, but all in all there is enough detail over all the levels and in the right places to make this overworld look great.
The quests use lights effectively to make the level detail look a lot better, lights are also used in spells and other items, but they are not everywhere, which is good news for those who lag with the mass display of lights. Althought at night time there are quite a few lights, but not plastered everywhere, there are just the right amount.
Interactivity:
This had to get its own section, because around the overworld in random places there are NPCs having conversations. Which adds to the fun of the server because quite a few have some witty comments. But as well as joking around they also help you because some have comments will allow you to learn locations and about jobs/items, so they can act as a source of information too.
Quests:
I saw two quests, the dragon quest (which was posted on the forums before), and a cave quest, which played mind tricks on me.
The quest in the cave was quite interesting, after I while I arrived in a castle and a message appeared on my screen ‘The Castle of Illusions’ (or something similar), which got me thinking what it could be.
Anyway after a while this quest gets really interesting because the wrong ways are suddenly the right ways, doors appear and disappear from places, going one way so many times will make you arrive at a different location, so it’s a very cool quest.
The quests end with a ‘Boss’, which I like because you have to work your way up to a boss, and then defeat it. So any quests with bosses are interesting, because it makes them harder and longer, so adds to the fun factor of actually completing quests.
Jobs:
There are plenty of jobs to do on this server, if you’re a button basher or not there is something for you. The jobs are: Lumbering, Baking, Fishing, Mining, Herb Growing (legal herb growing, mind). The two jobs I looked at were Mining and Herb Growing.
Mining was basically the same usually mining, except you have ‘Job Skill’. This feature has been quite popular in recent RolePlaying games, basically the more you mine, the higher your Job Skill will be. And the benefit of a higher job skill? You won’t need to mine for as long, because you will be more efficient at mining.
The second job was ‘Herb Growing’… this is a job for none-button-bashers because it is so easy. You simply buy seeds, plant them, wait about 10seconds, pick it and sell it. It couldn’t be more simple, so I personally liked this idea and would probably use this more because I find some jobs tedious sitting there button bashing. Of course this job will pay out less, but if you need quick cash and want it quickly, then this is a good job to do.
Fun Things:
There are a lot of fun things tto do on Shaded Legend, from Spells and Weapons to Events and Hats.
:Spells:
The spells are great and allow you to actually use Magic points, for magic spells. Which is often not done, and playerworlds just use magic points for a fire weapon, so the introduction of actual spells is quite nice. The two spells I liked the most were: Meteor and Death Sentence.
Meteor makes… well you guessed it, a meteor come out of the sky wherever you click on the screen, (see screenshots below).
Death Sentence, once again with a simple mouse click (but this time on a player), gives that player 1minute to live before they die. (again see the screenshots below).
And because some of these spells are powerful, the only way to get Magic Points back is to buy a Green potion from the potion shop, as it doesn’t regenerate by it’s self.
:Weapons:
There is a nice range of graphically stunning weapons on the server. Some weapons are very complex, such as the bow which require you to aim and set the power, this isn’t really practical for killing really, but it is a nice weapon.
But apart from the bow the other weapons are very basic and easy to use, simply pressing ‘D’ to equip them, and ‘S’ to use you can cause damage to players and NPCs via a range of weapons. Some weapons also have a special function, by pressing ‘F’, such as spin or throw, for a more defensive or long distance attack.
:Events:
Shaded Legend has some quite interesting events.
The event I played was ManHunt, where by there are two teams and the 'Soldiers' must
hunt down the 'Merry Men'.
The Merry Men, when hit by soldiers, get warped into a jail. The aim of the game is to hide from the Soldiers by using trees which you can hide behind, but will become transparent for the players who step under them, so your coverage will only hide you for a while.
If the Merry Men stay outside the jail uncaptured for a certain time (shown on the screen), they will win. But if the Soldiers capture all Merry Men and keep them in Jail and stop them being rescued, then the Soldiers will win.
My Marking: PASS – Classic Tab
Things left Before Public Pass:
-Houdini Man Review
-VT Review
-Lance (GST) NC Inspection Final Verdict
ETA: 7-14days
Note: No playerworlds should be removed, as Bravo has opened up a space, so please don't start the rumours about 'Is it true ___ is being removed from the Classic list' as it's not true.
07-16-2004, 03:18 PM
Linear Mode
