How to Play
The Child of Prophecy
Before players start fulfilling any prophecy, or save the world, they must create their characters. Players are given the option of choosing from one of four iconic classes: Warrior, Mage, Rogue, or Shaman. Without a character customization feature in place, and since all the classes follow the same storyline, class-choice depends on personal preference. Or, in my case, which of them looks cooler. After creating their characters, players go through an unskippable prologue that also serves as a basic tutorial, similar to previous R2Game titles. Throughout the course of the game tooltips appear to guide the player through new gameplay elements like distributing skill points, recruiting mercenaries, and setting up party formations. The game also constantly bombards players with microtransaction offers and discounts on Gems, the game’s premium currency. Unfortunately, there’s no way to turn both features off so you’ll have to deal with it. On a positive note, you do get to see scantily clad angels when offers pop-up, which makes things a bit more bearable.
Beguiling Guardians
Winterfrost Legacy is basically League of Angels with a different story, better graphics, and even more alluring angels (called Guardians). Surprisingly, it has all the makings of a good MMORPG, including a good story, quests, dungeons, mounts, end-game raiding, and clan wars, if it weren’t for the fact that the game virtually plays itself with minimal interaction required from the player—another R2Games trademark. Quests, which usually involve clearing instanced dungeons, are how characters gain experience points needed to level up. Character skills, as well as certain game features such as the Tavern, are automatically unlocked by reaching specific levels. Not a problem considering that game progression is incredibly fast and easy, yet another thing that Winterfrost Legacy has with its predecessors. I reached level 5 within seconds of starting the game by simply speaking to two NPCs, and level 45 in less than an hour without even breaking a sweat. While this gives players the ability to experience end-game content faster, it makes the game feel like child’s play and I like my games with a bit of challenge to them.Recruiting Mercenaries
Combat in Winterfrost Legacy features a turn-based combat system similar to classic RPG’s. Players attack using one of the skills bound to their hotbar. Unfortunately, players have no control over which enemy unit their skills target. There’s an auto-combat option which is basically the same as regular combat except that the AI chooses the skills for you. Players also have control of their character’s position in the party along with any mercenaries they recruit. Players up front receive the brunt of damage from enemies and are perfect for tanks while units in the back receive less and are suitable for ranged DPS characters. While I do like the concept of being able to recruit mercenaries and having free reign on party formation, having absolutely no control over them defeats the purpose of the feature, other than making the game even less challenging than it already is. It’s bad enough that players can usually kill an enemy with one shot without adding powerful AI units to the mix.Clan Wars
Players who want to engage in PVP can join 1vs1 arena battles as soon as they hit level 40. They can also join Clans, or form their own, and join Clan Wars that take place twice a week at specific times. Players must be at least level 50 to participate in Clan Wars. During Clan Wars, the number one clan must defend their gate’s statues for 20 minutes. They win the match and receive a victory point if they succeed. Should they fail, they will be replaced by the attacking team until time runs out. The winning clan receives a buff that raises the merit they earn from merc trials and gold obtained from Crypt battles. The clan leader also receives the title “King of Clans,” while participating members get the title “Kings Watch.” All participants receive a participation prize if they stay for more than five minutes.Cash Shop
The fact that the game shamelessly bombards players with microtransactions at every turn should probably be enough to tell you that this is a pay to win game. Players can unlock guardians and buy gems that permanently increase stats as well as a variety of overpowered wings that grant huge bonuses to character stats. The items definitely break the game’s PVP aspect. The rest of the game however, with its automated gameplay, overpowered mercs, and relatively easy opponents shouldn’t be overly-affected, other than make things even easier for players.
The Final Verdict - Good
Winterfrost Legacy is another production-line MMORPG from R2Games. I’ve played a bunch of their games and, surprisingly, they're starting to grow on me. The super-easy automated gameplay and the microtransaction bombardment might be a little off-putting, but you gotta love Winterfrost Legacy’s artwork—scantily clad angels aside. The game also features a storyline that may seem cliché, with its good versus evil plot, but still mildly interesting to say the least. Overall, Winterfrost Legacy is eye-candy and definitely not recommended for hardcore gamers. Play Now