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True Games Interactive had me up to the office today and one of the games I was shown was Sky Legends. Sky Legends was just announced today. Sky Legends is a free to play flight combat PvP MMO set in a fantasy world, but that doesn’t accurately describe where the development team is going with it. It’s a browser-based 3D game being developed in the Unity engine and the art style is leaning towards bright colors. The expectation is that the game will be easy for anyone to pick up and play, and while it’s a flying game, it will likely appeal heavily to the shooter crowd.
Plane customization is an essential component to the game. Players will be able to create a stable of planes and will be able to customize all aspects of the plane, from internal components like propellors, to the appearance of the plane, to its weaponry. All weapons will have three levels of upgrades and one type of weapon the developers are very excited about are melee weapons. Yes, that’s right, melee weapons in the plane. We were shown some concept art of the molten flail, which, among other things, can be set on fire for an increased amount of damage. The planes themselves are all open-cockpit style and the development team went back and looked at all the plane designs of the past, many of which never actually flew, and took the approach with those designs of ‘what if they did fly?’ So players will find some unusual plane designs, like a plane that flaps its wings, for example.
There are two playable factions and six distint races for players to choose from. The factions are based upon homeland and the two areas are Islandia, a green, forest area, and Tierra, a dry, desert area. The factions will determine the appearance of some things the players will have available to customize their planes. In addition to factions, players will be able to form squadrons, which are essentially guilds, and squadron leaders will be able to set up Squadron Insignia. There are four game modes currently being planned for launch, which are dog fight, team dog fight, capture the flag and training/tutorial missions. Sky Legends will be 100% PvP at launch, with plans to add more character development later on, like wingmen, which are the pets of Sky Legends. There is also talk of crafting being added at a later date.
The game is being designed for casual players to be able to jump in and play with ready made planes, but with a depth that will satisfy the hardcore gamer, thanks to the customization options. That’s where the microtransaction economy will come in. For those interested in customizations, weapon upgrades, plane upgrades, cosmetic upgrades, the aforementioned squadron insignia, among other benefits like a buff that gives players 2x experience for a time, will all be available for purchase in the store.
The developers mentioned that their target demographic is males 12-21 and they really believe the shooter crowd (those currently playing Combat Arms or Battlefield Online) is who will love playing Sky Legends. Of course, the hardcore flight simulator crowd will also likely find this game satisfying. Open Beta is currently planned for March 2011 and will be available on both Mac and PC.