We’ve all been watching Lost Ark a very long time; I remember writing an article about it way back in 2014 because I was so excited for a true MMOARPG. I certainly didn’t imagine way back then that we’d be waiting until 2022 to see it launch, but then I also didn’t imagine that Amazon would have a games studio, that it would be publishing the game, and that it would be a smash hit setting records on Steam. Eight years is a long time in a genre only 25 years old.
For this week’s Massively Overthinking, let’s talk about Lost Ark. If you’re playing, what are your initial thoughts on gameplay and monetization, one week in? If you’re not playing, are you feeling the pull? What do we think about the game’s short-, mid-, and long-term chances in the overall market? Does it tick all the MMO boxes? Is the game going to edge its way into the top five MMOs, or will it slump down to reality in a month or two like Amazon’s other MMORPG? Will it spawn copycats and reinvigorate the MMOARPG corner of the genre? What do we all think about Lost Ark?
​Andrew Ross (@dengarsw): Not feeling any pull here whatsoever. 2.5D POV is hard for me to get over, but so is a game that’s eight years old and only now being ported over. No, age shouldn’t mean a thing for a good game, as we saw FFXIV’s rise years after re-release, but even my brother gave it a whirl with his friends and wasn’t impressed. I could really be wrong, but especially as I lack faith in Amazon to do much more than cut prices and deliver physical goods to the edge of my line of sight without ringing the doorbell, I just can’t see Lost Ark bringing a surge of very much beyond short-term sales.
Andy McAdams: I’ve got kind of an unpopular opinion here in that nothing about it strikes me as enticing. I tried playing during one of the early sessions, and it just killed me at the gender-locked classes. I loved the creator itself, but its a 2.5 ISO; 99.9999% of the time I’m not seeing what my character looks like anyway. It just strikes me as a generic Eastern port. Playing a mage was embarrassing because really, stilettos on a sandy beach? And her hip anatomy was… well, it was sure something else. I’m happy people are enjoying it and having fun, but I struggle to see how this maintains its popularity. Everything I can see makes it feel bland.
Here’s hoping it does great and that it keeps some legs for the people who love it, but it’s just not my cup of tea.
Ben Griggs (@braxwolf): I’m not playing at the moment, but I do admit to a passing curiosity. On one hand, there’s no real cost to entry, but on the other hand, I’m already waist-deep in another “free to play” game in World of Warships, and I don’t think I can stomach any more F2P monetization tactics. I’ll probably download it at some point, long after everybody else’s excitement has subsided.
Chris Neal (@wolfyseyes, blog):Â As people have maybe already read, I’m having a wonderful time 30+ levels in. I’ll not repeat too much of what I’ve already written here, but in my opinion this game is highly entertaining and enjoyable, with combat that feels visceral (even if it’s not mechanically so), an entertainingly cheeseball story, and systems that drip-feed little obsessions; I like improving my stronghold and adding points to skills and getting engravings. There are certainly things to grump about – the cash shop does seem to desperately want to sell currencies over cosmetics – but I’ve been having a huge deal of fun and have been pretty fully hooked.
Long-term, I kind of feel like I’ll still be enjoying myself even as I hit endgame grinds. I’ve done some research and watched/read guides and nothing really feels like it’s something to hyper-obsess over. This is probably owing to the fact that I treat endgame progression as a casual, calm, slow-stepping marathon and not a blitzkrieg sprint to some self-imposed win condition. Of course, the proof will be in the pudding and I intend to share my thoughts when I reach that point.
It’s that endgame grind, its systems, its gear score lockouts, and other things like the requirement to have alts feed a main that probably will sink Lost Ark’s longevity, I suspect. There will be many who are furious that they can’t run pell-mell into the upper echelons or will find time gates to be too much of a hurdle, and that’s fine. A lot of those systems, coupled with some truly unfortunate and frankly vile attitudes towards Korean-made MMOs, will probably see this game drop out of top five contention. Ultimately, though, I would love to see this one find its playerbase and enrich it. Right now, I’m going to enjoy the good times and continue to be curious about what unfolds.
Justin Olivetti (@Sypster, blog): I’ve only put maybe three or four hours into it, so I’m not the person you’d want to go for an in-depth review, but I will offer a few surface observations. It looks very pretty, but of course you knew that. The music is stunning, which you might not have. I didn’t like how long the tutorial was and how little combat it involved, especially touring around the town, but that’s a small issue. Combat is decent — repetitive but has a punch — and I really do like being able to level up and customize skills. Decent UI and intuitive design that’s not overly cluttered. I’m nervous to see if the game gets more and more confusing in terms of upgrades and systems, but so far, it’s a breezy way to waste an afternoon.
Sam Kash (@thesamkash): I’ve mentioned that I’ve never gotten into ARPGs in any significant way before. I don’t know why, I just missed lots of the formative games in that perspective so they don’t usually stick with me. With that said, the buzz around Lost Ark definitely has me interested. I downloaded it a few days ago and plan on getting in there soon.
I have my doubts that it’ll stay as popular as it is appearing to be currently. But I still can’t believe how popular Genshin Impact is either. So we’ll see. Once I’ve played it hopefully I’ll have a better sense of its longevity.
Tyler Edwards (blog):Â Truthfully, I think Lost Ark’s current, massive popularity is as much to do with the dump trucks full of money Amazon has been pouring into hyping as it is to do with the game itself, and I don’t think the current population is sustainable long term.
That said, I do think it’s a pretty solid game, and I believe it will continue to do well in the long term. Just not on the scale it currently is. My only real concern is that when the population does contract, they don’t currently have any infrastructure for server transfers or merges, so when the population starts to shrink, you could end up with a lot of empty servers. It’s a fixable problem, but it could make for some troubles in the near term.
For me personally, I remain a bit of the fence. I feel much the same as I did with New World, albeit for entirely opposite reasons. New World really knocks it out of the park in some ways, but it has severe flaws. Whereas Lost Ark has few if any major stumbles, but it also struggles to excel in any particular area. It’s very “safe.” In both cases I’m left struggling to decide if the game is truly for me.
Every week, join the Massively OP staff for Massively Overthinking column, a multi-writer roundtable in which we discuss the MMO industry topics du jour – and then invite you to join the fray in the comments. Overthinking it is literally the whole point. Your turn!
