Ashen Empires

"Simple graphics, no sound, great game!"

Introduction
I discovered the great world that is Dransik (www.dransik.com) about 6 months ago. It is a multi-player online RPG-type game that can provide many many hours of fun. As of right now (March 11, 2001), Dransik is going through a closed beta time period. Version 1.00 is expected to be out soon, with skills, spells, and classes to be enjoyed.

Rating Scale
The categories will be rated out of 10, 10 being best, one being absolute crap.

Gameplay- 8/10
Although simple, the gameplay in Dransik so far is great. You are a warrior, mage, or rouge on an island that is set in medieval times. You gain levels by killing skeletons, spiders, bats, zombies, ghosts, and much much more. You can visit nearby towns to buy rare weapons, armor, and potions. You can interact with NPCs to sell used weapons, armor, turkey, and jewelry. Everything you need to do is done with the mouse and a keyboard. You can chat with people, change your attack mode (green pointed means passive, red means combat), and click on someone to see who they are.

Story- 5/10
The story is simple. You are a person trying to become the best ever. You can go on quests, find weapons, and even duel with other players. You can become apart of a guild, and explore the land with your friends and guild members. But when you die, you lose everything in your backpack, which can leave other Dransikians to loot it. But beware, if you loot, your status will go to red, which can be viewed by everybody you encounter. Red represents evil, and green represents holy. Different status mean different armor that you can use. Pure green users can use Holy Armor, while pure red can use Dark armor.

Audio/Video- 5/10
As of today (date mentioned above), there is no sound. The graphics are 2D, and look good, despite the fact that they are simple. The reason they are so simple is because this online game was made with 56K modem users in mind. The server runs on a T1 line, so there is almost always no lag. Everything you need to know at any given moment is in the top right corner. You can see your health, your armor/weapons, your stats, and yellow bar representing how far or close you are to gaining a level.

Replayability- 10/10
This is a great game that you will want to play again and again so you can get more money, gain more levels, and get the almighty Vorpal Axe.

To buy or to rent? As of today, Dransik is free, and is worth a little bit of your time. Dransik is promised to remain free, and doesn't have any plans for any charging at any time. I recommend it.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 03/16/01, Updated 03/16/01