Pretty game with clunky combat
I've played for a couple hours now and reached level 11, worked on professions to craft some nice weapons, and attempted the first dungeon. The fighting experience was not very enjoyable.
The game is tile grid based. Your character can only move a full tile in one of the cardinal directions. This is not a new concept, but it just doesn't feel right here. Maybe it's due to the low movement speed?
Back to the combat. Attacks are also happening on the grid. In the beginning, you can only attack enemies on a tile next to you. Later on, you'll start to see different attack patterns on enemies and weapons. Stripes, cross shapes and waves seem to be common in the level 10 range.
The game advertises its combat as one where you have to actively dodge and attack, and that's indeed something you have to do. The problems arise when trying to do both at the same time. While moving you can't use items/weapons and after using an item or a weapon you can't move for a short time. Combine this with slow player arrows / magic projectiles and melee weapons with tiny ranges and you got a recipe for frustration.
Another thing I noticed is the severe lack of item storage. You start with 20 bag slots + 10 hotbar slots, and you can add up to 10 more slots by doing certain quests. For reference, just working on professions can take up 20 slots alone, and it's not something you finish immediately. It's clear they want you to buy bag slots from the cash shop, and there are a few other things for annoying free players, although not as bad as the bag space problem.
There are some other minor issues that probably will be sorted out in a future version, such as lack of sound effects, bad music looping, weird cursor control etc. They are noticeable if you look closer but don't break the game.
The graphics are probably the best part of the game. The world is pretty, which makes just strolling around something fun to do. There are a lot of places to check out, but it feels like the game isn't utilizing them well. Hidden loot or other secrets could make exploring more interesting to everyone.
Another thing I really liked is the equipment-based class system. This way you can easily experiment with and switch classes however you want.
Overall I can say that this game was interesting to check out, but unfortunately the combat, which should be the core mechanic of an rpg, didn't live up to my expectations.