Free Realms

by Elheonor* Sun Jul 10, 2011 8:18 am

Free Realms is a massively multiplayer online role playing video game developed by Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) set in a fantasy-themed world, named Sacred Grove for the PC, Mac and PlayStation 3. The game was released on April 29, 2009, for the Windows PC. The game itself is free to play, although in a job without membership you cannot exceed level 4.

Gameplay

There are many worlds to go to and a large number of quests to complete for coins, stardust, and wearables. Leveling up is handled in several ways, ranging from traditional combat to quests and minigames depending on which job the player wishes to advance. As of November 1, 2009, accounts registered after that date will have some jobs capped to level 5, giving a limit of two jobs that can be leveled to its maximum which is Adventurer and Card Duelist

Unlike typical MMOs, combat is entirely optional; the focus is instead spread across a variety of gameplay mechanics – exploration, combat, building, pet-raising, mini-games and social networking – to ensure its appeal to a variety of audiences.

Free Realms is also playable as a trading card game (TCG), extending game play from the purely online setting to the real world face to face with friends. Both on-line and real world packs of the trading card game feature 10 game cards, and 1 virtual reward card that can be redeemed in-game for various items. Real world game card packs also include 50 Station Cash, usable to purchase items in-game.

Due to the social networking nature of the game, players are able to send links, share images and videos, and chat with friends from their own profile page, which is all optional for parents that want to restrict their child’s access to user generated content.

Of some note, Free Realms is one of the first MMO to incorporate integrated video capture and the ability to upload in-game video captures directly to YouTube. Locally saved captures can also be viewed or edited with any software that supports AVI. Free Realms also contains yearly holidays like The Spooktacular in October, Snow Days in December, Festival of Hearts in February, and Free Realms Bday Bash in April and May.

It should also be noted that the Playstation 3 version of Free Realms lacks a significant amount of the features and depth and functionality of the PC version.[citation needed] It is currently unknown if, in the future, the Playstation 3 version will be patched to include the same abilities, quests, and features of the PC version.

Business model

The game is available to download and play free of charge. The PC version is accessed via the Free Realms web site or, through game arcade sites Candy Stand or Miniclip. During character creation a 3D client downloads in the background and then streams as the user plays. This method is used when encountering any new in-game content or updates, eliminating large or long downloads. A version of FreeRealms for Mac was announced at SOE Fan Faire 2010 for release "within the next 3 months." The Mac version was released on November 2, 2010.

The PlayStation 3 version was released on March 29th 2011 on the US Playstation Store and is accessible via the PlayStation Network.

Free Realms offers an optional membership for a single player, allowing for 3 characters to be created per account plus other benefits such as member-only quests, jobs, and items. Only one character can be played at a time but in the future, a "family" membership will be offered allowing multiple logins at the same time.Also, micro-transactions are available for players interested in purchasing in-game items for their characters.

Free Realms HomeBox