An initiation into The Secret World

The Secret World recently converted from a subscription model to a free to play with a subscription option. Surprisingly, and completely unlike Star Wars The Old Republic, it doesn’t suck. Also unlike SWTOR, I had not played The Secret World (TSW) prior to its format conversion. I have only been playing for a short time now, but I’m already impressed with how well put together the game is and how much flexibility is built into the game mechanics. So take up arms and enter a world of madness, conspiracy, honor, and chaos.

Story

Funcom has done a fantastic job of putting together a story through voice and text that pulls players in and makes them want to investigate the world around them. Presuming, of course, that you’re interested in a deep plot involving generations of deceit and betrayal with hints of dark occult rites and powers. If you just want to click on a yellow exclamation point and go kill 10 wolves, this might not be your cup of tea. The town of Kingsmouth is a veritable love letter to H.P. Lovecraft complete with lost sailors returning from sea and bringing a mysterious fog with them that brings horror to the town. I am very interested in seeing how the story of my Illuminati initiate continues as I get farther into the game.

Adaptable game mechanics

I’ll admit that I was initially a little apprehensive about the progression system in The Secret World. The no-class system was bewildering at first and a bit overwhelming. However, I quickly found that breaking ranks with the expected class and level system isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Experience points gained from combat and quests is used to produce ability and skill points. The player can then spend those points toward improving weapon and armor usage. While that’s pretty cool and all, it can be a little random seeming and confusing. You can acquire and spend enough points to eventually max out everything, but the catch is that you can only equip seven active skills and seven passive skills at a time. Creating synergy in powers is of utmost importance. Worry not, there are suggested pairings called “decks” that can help a new player get the hang of pairing weapons and abilities while also providing unique outfits to show off. Granted that I am a little confused by my assault rifle being a healing tool, there are much stranger phenomena found in the world of TSW.

Aesthetic and functional

Yeah, I’ll admit it; I have chosen armor in certain other MMOs for their looks while sacrificing functionality. Thankfully, that’s not a problem in The Secret World. Avatars are basically paper dolls for you to dress up. Visible outfits are completely distinct from the game’s armor (called talismans) which will have no effect on your appearance. Outfits are also, thankfully, not counted among your inventory and can be changed through the dressing room menu. I don’t know about you, but I like to look good while battling the forces of darkness and evil.

Adapting to free to play

Let’s get straight to the point, converting from a subscription based model for an MMO to a free to play model is apparently a bit tricky. Clearly SWTOR screwed it up in a big way by placing ridiculous restrictions on players that take advantage of the free option offered to them. Does TSW do any better? Yes! 100% yes! The cash store for TSW is comprised of items that are mostly aesthetic or boosts for players. Items like outfits and pets do not impact the experiences of other players while letting the purchaser more thoroughly customize their own experience. Beyond that, there is a subscription option (which they call membership) as well that provides a cash store discount and an allotment of monthly cash store credits. The membership also comes with an item-of-the-month gift and an item that doubles xp for an hour that has a sixteen hour cooldown. To further help with monetary considerations of running the game, all future expansions will be treated as DLC and be available for a small fee.

If you’re a fan of MMOs and happen to have a little extra cash to check out something new, you can pick up The Secret World for $30 or less which also includes a month of membership. Go forth and celebrate your fascination with Lovecraftian horror and secret societies. TSW provides a large world to explore with a rich lore enjoy. I confess that I wasn’t immediately enthralled by the game, but it really grew on me once I started diving into the crunchy bits of the progression mechanism. I’m absolutely taken by this shining example of innovation in a cookie-cutter world of MMO games.