Nadirim

Nadirim
Developer(s)	Twisted Tribe
Publisher(s)	Twisted Tribe
Release date(s)	November 7, 2011
Genre(s)	MMO, RPG
Mode(s)	Single player and multiplayer

Nadirim is a free-to-play, browser-based, massively multiplayer online, role playing game developed and published by Twisted Tribe Ltd. It's placed in a fantasy world inspired by the tales of the Arabian Nights. Nadirim doesn't require downloads or installation; it's an F2P game, and the developers are promising strong PvE and PvP content.

The game, developed first by Digital Reality was first announced on 14th of July 2010. ^[1] Five months later, on 12th of October, 2010 Nadirim was announced to go to closed beta phase. ^[2] Shortly, only two weeks later the launch of the closed beta was postponed to the end of 2010 and finally went to CB phase on 8th of December, 2010. ^[3][4]
Nadirim was officially released on 7th of November 2011.

During the closed beta the development was taken over by Twisted Tribe Ltd. and a new version of the game was announced. After 8 months of developing the game finally went to open beta on 26th of July, 2011 and the developers still add new features almost on weekly basis. ^[5]

Gameplay

Nadirim is a combination of classic isometric Diablo style RPG and traditional role playing games like ^[6] Final Fantasy where players travel in a top-down board along an invisible grid.

The game incorporates an open ended gameplay, where the main plot of the game unfolds through story quests, while daily and group quests and strong PvE content provides deeper exploration of the maps. The open word was introduced only in the open beta; in the CB the players were able to explore only three main cities. Because of the open world the main quest can be postponed or ignored for as long as the players wish in order to explore the expansive game world, by following side-quests, slaying mobs and developing their character. The player is free to go anywhere in the world of Nadirim at any time while playing the game even after completing the main quest, so basically the game never ends and the players may build up the character indefinitely.

A screenshot taken in the city of Zenithar.

According to the developers the current map is made out of 17718 average screens and that is 200 times larger than the players could meet in the closed beta. Since the map is this large fast travel system is available between the larger cities with caravansary and NPC’s with what players can travel on shorter distance. ^[7] One can fight Mobs, and engage in various PvP competitions to gain extra experience or share the loot from the looting, players can easily find friends to enter group quests or fights with. Using different skills in the turn-based combat allows players to make each battle a unique one. ^[8]

The story is getting a central role in the game, this kind of strong accent on the story is not too common in browser games. In the game the players begin in a training area, where they are introduced to the tutorial and can learn the basics of interacting with quest-giving and "talking dummy" NPCs, how to use items and equipment, and participate in two simple fights. After completing the quests, players can start to explore the expansive open world. There they can opt to follow the plentiful quests, to battle mobs of their own choosing, or combine the two methods to gain experience and loot. The main questline (green) must be followed through the end of the second area to be granted access to the later cities and higher level enemies, however there are also side (yellow) and daily (blue) quests enough to keep a player growing and progressing up to the current level cap of 25. Unaccepted quests and current quest destinations can be located using the in-game, zoomable map. A directional arrow will point players to the next quest location or to the general area of mob spawn for the quest actively selected in the Quest Tracker. Along the way, players must choose the skills and equipment best suited for their character class, personal style of play, and enemies being challenged. To earn more dinar, the in-game currency, to purchase additional equipment, clothing or healing potions, players can collect and sell gathered items and unwanted loot. ^[9]

Regarding the game mechanics, each character starts with a limited number of Energy Points. Energy is needed to accept quests and PvE battles, although PvP battles are free of charge. Energy will regenerate automatically at a set rate. Additional energy can be restored by the use of Elixirs, a limited number of which can be won in-game with more being available for purchase through the Gem shop.

Nadirim offers self-directed character development both in combat statistics and physical appearance. Upon start-up, players can customize gender and physical appearance of their characters. As play progresses armor, weapons and apparel can be obtained through purchase from vendors or loot drops from defeated enemies. These unique representations can be viewed in greater detail during combat. ^[10]

Plot

The background story of the game starts somewhere in the desert where Anwar, a pure hearted young man finds a rusty oil lamp from what he releases a very powerful and evil djinn the Nadir. In return the djinn fulfills one wish of Anwar, who wanted to become an immortal emperor of a prospering empire. But Anwar did not know the background of the pact between men and djinns: without an equal trade, the Nadir could take back the granted wish.
After 100 years the Nadir returns to destroy the empire, but the people were fighting back. The demons created by the djinn were very almost invincible at night but powerless in the light of the day, this is why Anwar sacrificed his eternal life to stop the Sun at the zenith, bringing eternal daylight to the empire, sealing the forces of darkness. His spell drew its power from the heart of the people and after the people start to forgot this they started to turn against one another and the sun began slowly to set.

Anwar's female descendants created the secret order of Inama and called for heroes who were to save the world from the Nadir. ^[11]

Character creation

There are currently three character classes available:

• Warrior- melee range character focused on high damage and high defense
• Sage- range attack/healer can be specialized as a support character or as a dealer of massive damage
• Rogue- trickster who combines melee and range to trap and attack victims

An additional two character classes are currently under development:

• Nomad- after defeating a beast, can tame and train it as a battle companion or mount
• Caravan Master- uses power of persuasion to lead humans and animals alike into battle to fight for him

^[12]

Combat

Nadirim employs a turn-based combat system on a hexagonal tile grid, in which each player is allotted one skill and one movement action per turn. Up to four players can group up against NPC mobs, or players can duel each other one-on-one with up to 20 spectators watching. Each character class and mob has a unique set of skills, based on its strengths and weaknesses. With the options exceeding the number of skills actively available in each endeavor and the personalization of skill choices and equipment, each battle is truly unique, requiring strategic planning. ^[13]

By leveling up players are awarded a new skill displayed in the bottom left corner of the screen. Active skills can be used in combat, but since one cannot take all of his skills with them into battle players have to activate them by dragging them to their skill preset. So in combat players will use these preselected skills to defeat their enemy. ^[14][15]

Audio and sounds

Following the lead from games and movies with similar settings and drawing inspiration from Arabic musical traditions and local, authentic instruments, BAFTA-winning composer Tamás Kreiner (Best Original Game Music, Imperium Galactica II., 2000) and Ervin Nagy at Newtex Productions created an all-original score which captures the mood and mysticism of the land and immediately draw the listener into the experience. The exotic and sultry sounds of the dudek evoke images of the hot, desert land while dynamic sound effects and the commanding rhythms enhance the excitement and intensity of combat scenes. ^[16]

References

1. ^ Jaime Skelton (2010-07-12). "Arabian Nights Themed MMORPG Nadirim Announced". MMOHUT. http://mmohut.com/news/arabian-nights-themed-mmorpg-nadirim-announced. Retrieved 2010-11-03. 
2. ^ Pedro Pinero (2010-07-12). "Nadirim Closed Beta date announced". MMOCrunch. http://www.mmocrunch.com/2010/10/01/nadirim-closed-beta-date-announced. Retrieved 2010-11-03. 
3. ^ Martuk (2010-10-13). "Nadirim Closed Beta delayed until later this year". TentonHammer. http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/90696. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
4. ^ Pedro Pinero (2010-10-13). "Nadirim Closed Beta date announced". MMMOCrunch. http://www.mmocrunch.com/2011/07/28/nadirim-closed-beta-date-announced-2. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
5. ^ Xiberion (2011-02-07). "Welcome". Nadirim. http://devblog.nadirim.com/?p=2. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
6. ^ Ron Fair (2010-12-26). "Complete preview of Nadirim". BBGsite. http://games.bbgsite.com/content/2010-12-26/complete_review_of_nadirim_by_ron_fair,1.shtml. Retrieved 2011-10-14. 
7. ^ Xiberion (2011-07-05). "Size Matters". Nadirim. http://devblog.nadirim.com/?p=1358. Retrieved 2011-10-14. 
8. ^ Rainier (2010-10-05). "Nadirim announced". WothPlaying. http://worthplaying.com/article/2010/10/5/news/77326/. Retrieved 2010-12-24. 
9. ^ Beau Hindman (2011-08-21). "Rise and Shiny recap: Nadirim". Massively. http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/21/rise-and-shiny-recap-nadirim/. Retrieved 2011-10-17. 
10. ^ Joe Robinson (2010-09-10). "Nadirim Preview". Strategyinformer. http://www.strategyinformer.com/pc/nadirim/previews.html. Retrieved 2011-10-17. 
11. ^ "Nadirim exclusive interview". Freemmostation. 2010-08-10. http://www.freemmostation.com/2010/08/nadirim-exclusive-interview.html. Retrieved 2011-10-18. 
12. ^ Kei Beneza (2010-08-10). "Get Your Harem Pants Ready!". Freemmostation. http://www.onrpg.com/MMO/Nadirim/review/Nadirim-Online-Beta-Preview---Get-Your-Harem-Pants-Ready. Retrieved 2011-01-26. 
13. ^ Xiberion (2011-02-07). "Welcome". Nadirim. http://devblog.nadirim.com/?p=1561. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
14. ^ Xiberion (2011-06-06). "Nadirim Backpack". Nadirim. http://devblog.nadirim.com/?p=1125. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
15. ^ Kei Beneza (2010-08-10). "Get Your Harem Pants Ready!". Freemmostation. http://www.onrpg.com/MMO/Nadirim/review/Nadirim-Online-Beta-Preview---Get-Your-Harem-Pants-Ready. Retrieved 2011-01-26. 
16. ^ Whiskeyjack (2011-05-23). "Turn the Volume up!". Nadirim. http://devblog.nadirim.com/?p=1125. Retrieved 2011-10-18. 

External links

• Nadirim homepage
• Nadirim Development Blog