Many MMO games, especially ‘free to play’, are played by casual and hardcore gamers who invest time in them, enjoy them, meet new people then move onto the next game which catches their eye. There’s nothing wrong in an MMO being part of this mix, but some games do warrant greater attention than others.
Lucent Heart, the MMO from leading publisher Gamania, has been designed from the ground up to provide players with extraordinary depth, background, lore, charactisation and adventure coupled with an all encompassing social experience.
Gamania has enjoyed great success with its MMOs which focus on how players interact and play their games together. With Lucent Heart, it is the zodiac which is key in bringing the right players together from every background to build, fight, craft and even love within the mythical realm of Acadia. When creating characters to explore these fantastical lands, as well as choosing their name, gender and appearance, Lucent Heart requires new players to provide their birth dates and star signs as well.
As a player develops their character and skills, they are quickly encouraged to visit ‘Cupid’, whose matchmaking system asks players to take a personality test which matches star signs and characteristics to other players. Once matched, players are encouraged to team up, socialise in-game and get to know each other. If they choose, they can advance their relationship to enjoy an array of added benefits including improved experience gains and buffs when teaming together, a selection of new emotes which add additional powerful buffs and advantages, and access to new dungeon instances and unique special items. Having the right selection of partners and team-mates to play with enhances the in-game dynamic, making gameplay more enjoyable and more memorable.
This experience is further enhanced with the daily horoscope system that uses the player’s birth date to determine the effect of the zodiac on the key character attributes of Love, Battle, Work, Wealth and Agililty. Players are presented with their fortune when they enter the game and each day these attributes are boosted, or diminished, depending on your horoscope. Some days will be better for battle, whilst others will be more suitable for finding love. All of this has an effect on players’ characters and their abilities.
It is at this point where a player’s partner or team can help them. They can change their strategies to aid each other, providing greater protection or taking greater risks. There is no formula to how Lucent Heart can, or should be played, it all depends on how the players want to play the game, and of course what their stars are saying that day!
Niall Callaghan, Product manager for Gamania UK said, “Lucent Heart is an open world where players ‘adventures are written in the stars’ but their experience can be more immersive if they have the right partners and team around them. Players have been ‘liking’ our Lucent Heart Facebook page www.facebook.com/lucentheartuk, keeping in touch with Twitter http://www.twitter.com/LucentHeartUK and playing in our sneak peek beta weekends and there is a real buzz developing. Once you’re into the world of Acadia and Lucent Heart, you develop a real emotional connection with it and we feel this is due in most part to players who are ‘matched’ correctly and who share a fun, lively and exciting adventure – to experience something together makes it very special.”
Lucent Heart is gearing up for its official closed beta test. To keep up and team up, join us on our Facebook and Twitter links