While we haven't really covered this MMORPG in the past, the premise is actually refreshing, breaking away from the typical full-blown fantasy or sci-fi setting. The Secret World instead is based on a modern-day world where "magic, myths, conspiracies and dark horrors" are a reality. It's now available on the PC for $49.99 USD, and costs $14.99 USD per month to play.
"The Secret World is the first MMO set in a real, modern-day world where every conspiracy theory, fable and urban legend is true," reads the MMORPG's description. "The power to rule the world is fought over by three secret societies - the Illuminati, Templars and Dragon - that pull the strings of governments, corporations and CEOs."
In the game, players will travel across the globe, visiting familiar locations like New York, London, Egypt and Transylvania, fighting the evil that has infiltrated myths and folklore for centuries. Enemies include Dracula, werewolves and even the Bogeyman himself. Honestly, this MMORPG almost sounds like a mixture of The X-Files and Supernatural -- maybe aliens and Lucifer will be in expansion packs?
"We are proud and very excited to launch The Secret World with Funcom," said Sinjin Bain, Vice President, EA Partners. "This is truly a unique offering in the MMO genre, and we’re confident players are going to love exploring familiar locations in a real, contemporary world as they uncover the game’s many secrets and wonderful story."
Player characters won't level up, and they won't have specific classes, but instead will develop based on skills. This gives the player complete freedom to be whoever they want to be, and however they want to play. Characters will also be highly customizable including clothing, and "thousands" of weapons and supernatural powers.
"Community reception for The Secret World has exceeded our expectations and exceeded all Funcom’s previous records with over 1.5 million beta sign ups," said Trond Arne Aas, CEO of Funcom. "This launch represents years of hard work here at Funcom and we are thrilled to share this unique immersive experience with players around the world."
Included with the purchase of every copy of The Secret World is 30 days of access to the game, which players can naturally continue to play through subscribing at $14.99 USD per month. The MMORPG is available at retailers worldwide, and EA's online store Origin.
Here are the minimum system requirements:
OS: Windows XP SP3, Windows Vista SP1, Windows 7 SP1
CPU: 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo or equivalent AMD CPU
RAM: 2 GB RAM for Window XP / 3 GB RAM for Windows Vista and Windows 7
ODD: 8x or better CD/DVD ROM drive required for physical disc installation only
HDD: At least 20 GB of free space
GPU: Nvidia 8600 GT / 512 VRAM or better
DirectX: DirectX 9.0c compatible
Input: Keyboard & mouse
Online: 512 KBPS or faster Internet connection
EA didn't make or publish the game, they're just facilitating distribution through Origin. Funcom has a good track record of solid games.
I've played this game occasionally for 3 days now and I really like it so far, but it's hard to make up my mind just yet. There are so many things to discover and so little time. Some may be turned off by the recurring monthly fee, but in my opinion a month of fun for 15$ isn't that much of a bad deal.
It's definitely a change from WoW and alikes. The no-levels-no-classes approach is refreshing. The more real world and story driven approach as well (although there are fantasy elements in it). Together with a modern and customizable interface out-of-the-box I would recommend to try out this game.
Before your jump in know that this is a more involved MMO and you'll need some time to get the hang of it. If you want to grind-grind rush-rush to the end you may as well head back to your friendly WoW and leave The Secret World... secret.
I've heard all around great things about it. I bought it, patching right now
you wont be getting many subscribers from my country. here avg speed is 64KBPS.
Now this that require purchase the game for a huge 50 bucks + 15 bucks every month. Starwars has fail I dont see how this can be success, especially with GW2 coming out.
that's probably kilobits per second