Should You Play Mortal Online 2 in 2023
Mortal Online 2 in 2023:
Mortal Online 2 is a full loot PVP sandbox MMORPG developed by Starvault and released in 2022. This is hands down one of the most niche MMORPGs we’ve ever covered as it has one of the steepest and most punishing early games. But if you push through this game is incredibly deep, rewarding and is honestly one of its kind. So let’s get into the good, the bad and overall, is Mortal Online 2 worth playing in 2023. Also feel free to check out the video review if you want to see gameplay and in game footage alone side this:
Does Mortal Online 2 Have a Subscription Fee?
Before we get into this. When you buy the game on steam its listed as £31. But once you get into the game, a big pop up comes up saying “subscription currently disabled”. Which means the developers have considered or are considering in the future a subscription for this game. Right now there is no sub, and I don’t think it would be smart to add one given how small the game is, but they have big plans and a big roadmap so who knows. So just bear this in mind. Also feel free to check out the video review if you want to see gameplay and in game footage alone side this:
Character Creator:
Mortal Online 2 Races
First up let’s go through the new player experience, starting with the character creator. You can choose from a range of races, you can the tall burly orc like creatures the thursar, a small elf Alvarin, a furry little oghmir or a human. And the character creator is a lot deeper than it looks.
Your race determines your clad points which are basically talents, some make you better at archer, others make you stronger or more defensive and then there are actions on there as well. In the character creator you also choose things like your age, height, weight, distribute your stat points and design your character. And it’s pretty good.
Mortal Online 2 Builds
There are no classes in Mortal Online 2, you just put points in building out your character however you like freely. Magic, bow and arrow, 2 handed sword tank man, mounted archer, healing magic. Literally make any type of character you want. And it makes this sandbox MMO so exciting, but there is one major issue for new players.
New players don’t have a clue. And don’t know how much this initial choice impacts your build. Maybe you want to play as the big huge ogre but play as a paladin, well your intelligence will be terrible. Want to play a nimble small thin alvarin and use bows. Well you need strength to use good bows. But there is no way for new players to know any of this.
If you are struggling for what to choose, check out our Best Builds In Mortal Online 2 Guide
Haven and Tutorial:
Once you make your character made, you spawn into Haven, which is basically a tutorial island. No pvp allowed, a combat tutorial, a crafting tutorial and loads of easy to obtain resources. It’s a great place to try out your skills, abilities, get a couple of levels and level some of your crafts. Once You’ve gained 2 levels you’re allowed to proceed to the real world, where the map is around 10 times larger. The full loot PvP is on and the real game begins.
One warning is that you will quickly realize that this game is realistic and hardcore. Every single thing in this game is confusing, grindy and punishing. I personally love it, but this is an insane niche game and I want to go over some of the systems in the game and why they are so unique.
Skill System:
Mortal Online 2 Skill Progression:
One of the first things you’ll do in this game is be introduced to the skill system and its wild. You have around 1,000 action skill points and profession skill points and can spend them any way you want. There are tons of skills that all build out your character in a different way, loads of different schools of magic, armour types, weapon types and so much more. Mortal Online 2 in 2023, is honestly has one of the most comprehensive and complex progression systems of any MMO. Think of runescapes slow skill grinds but with update 2023 graphics.
Mortal Online 2 Skill Books:
But learning them isn’t easy. You need to be taught a skill before you can use it and then when you learn it you can level it up to a cap of 100. And these skills come in skill books. There is a library filled with basic books, you even have to learn reading first before you can read these. But then you can hand pick what skills you want to unlock and your character will passively read the skill book and level up.
And these aren’t all just weapons and things you might expect. You can walk around in heavy armour, all slow and over encumbered to train your armour training, as it levels up you can wear heavier armour. You can learn taming and tame board, wolves, horses, and eventually giant beasts. Tons of schools of magic from opening portals, calling down fire and lightning or healing.
The skills system is absolutely one of the most overwhelming things in Mortal Online 2, but it’s one thing I love about the game. Picking how you want your character to be and slowly getting and learning all the skills to make it work is so rewarding. when thinking if you should play Mortal Online 2 in 2023, the skill system is on the main things that would make it worth your time.
For more information on the skills system, check out our Mortal Online 2 Beginners Guide
Crafting
On top of the action skills there are profession skills and again the depth here is awesome. But it is ridiculously confusing. In a normal MMO blacksmithing you would learn how to make a bronze dagger, bronze sword, bronze pike, then onto iron, steel, etc etc. Nah not here. Want to learn weaponsmithing, you learn the blueprint. So you become a master of 1h swords, then you train that you can learn 2h swords, then great swords. Want to learn spears, thats a whole different path.
And you don’t learn all the different types of what you are crafting. You just throw a pattern together, throw in some items and see what happens. Steel armour sounds great, but you’re slow and clunky, maybe mastering leather and making padded armour suits you better. So its so in depth and so immersive. But its confusing as hell. Plus there are tons of different professions, cooking, alchemy, bowery, horse equipment, weapons, armour and it feels fun to learn it all.
Combat and PvE
Mortal Online 2 Combat in 2023
The combat is based on directional aiming, think mount and blade, or Gloria Victis. The combat is super realistic, slow and impactful. Attack coming from the left, position your weapon or shield left and then block or parry. Animals will jump at you, bandits will feint and parry you. Bows must be aimed manually and sway with breathing, have to aim high for gravity and better bows shoot further and stronger. And then there’s magic, which is somehow even more confusing.
Mortal Online 2 Magic Combat
If you like realism in your games, magic is absolutely incredible. If you’ve ever watched Lord of the Rings, Gandalf isn’t throwing fireballs the whole film. And as a mage you won’t be either. You have to buy a spell book, and find spells all around the world, from traders, from bosses and strong mages. Then you have to scribe these spells in your spell book to be able to use them. And to top it all off, you have to use reagents to cast. So as a mage you’ll likely have a secondary weapon and use weaker spells until you need to unleash something huge and turn the tide of battle.
There is full mounted combat too which actually plays super smooth, get a fast horse and be a mounted archer, fully armour your horse and charge people with lancers. Or cast your spells on horseback to control the battlefield.
There are so many cool enemies to fight too, zombies, bandits, wizards, tons of animals, lizardmen, rat people, spiders, loads of dungeon bosses. Most of the PvP content is in the open world, but there are dungeons that are super deep and interesting.
Mortal Online 2 Mounted Combat
There is full mounted combat too which actually plays super smooth. Players can travel to the nomad cities and train elusive archery skills allowing them to learn mounted archery. Warriors can learn to wield lances and charge into enemies with mounted cavalry. And even mages can charge and cast spells from horseback giving this otherwise slow class tons of mobility on the battlefield.
Mortal Online 2 PvE
There are so many cool enemies to fight too, zombies, bandits, wizards, tons of animals, lizardmen, rat people, spiders, loads of dungeon bosses. Most of the PvP content is in the open world, but there are dungeons that are super deep and interesting. This is an open world sandbox MMO and there is danger and challenge around every corner, the bravest of naive will be able to work together to take on mighty bosses and earn the greatest rewards.
Community
This is not a huge MMO, this is very niche, and there aren’t a huge number of players. It only averages just over a thousand players on the main server, but there’s always plenty of people around. This makes the community so strong though. You will learn to recognise people in the main towns, make friends, join guilds, make rivals and it gives me the buzz I haven’t felt since old school MMORPGs. When asking “should you play mortal online 2 in 2023”, if you are looking for an immersive and interactive experience where you can make friends and memory’s, Mortal Online 2 will provide both.
There is full in-game voice chat, so you can sit in a city chatting to people, or overhear conversations about bosses, locations, guild drama. You’ll see people attacking or mugging other players, or even hear about them in the cities and know to avoid them or not trust them.
Player vs Player
This is a full loot PvP game, and that means when you are killed by another player, you drop all your equipment, excluding your accessories, and your entire inventory. The crime system in the game makes players who attack another innocent player become flagged as hostile and doing this often flags them as a murderer.
On the flip side players and guilds will rally against these players to hunt them down. You can place and take bounties in the cities, letting off birds that track your prey. This is a huge incentive to stop people innocently preying upon weaker players. But it happens, it happens a lot and it’s awful. Its probably the main reason that plays are turned away from Mortal Online 2 in 2023.
Overall Should You Play Mortal Online 2 in 2023?
It’s hard not to make this a 1 hour video, because there is so much complexity and confusion to the game.
This is one of the hardest and brutal MMOs I’ve ever played. It punishes new players, it makes you learn by dying, learn by failing but the reward for mastering something in this game, you can’t beat. Master horse archery after training all the skills and learning to shoot at high speeds, you’re an absolute terror. Master a craft and find a certain resource that makes the perfect armour, that’s both durable and lightweight, you’ll be rich. And the feel of pulling that all together, riding around on an armoured horse, in good gear, with other people pushing yourself into harder content, but knowing you could lose it all in a second is such a rush. There is so much I love about the game, but it is not for everyone.
This is the most challenging, niche MMO I’ve ever covered and I’m certain most people will be put off at something. Maybe the full loot PvP, maybe the grinds or the huge learning curve. Its not for everyone and probably not for most people. But if you are tired of the traditional MMO, want a hardcore realistic, immersive MMO with an incredibly close community, where decisions and choices matter. If questioning if you should play Mortal Online 2 in 2023, then hopefully this guide has helped you understand if this game is for you.
If you’re looking to get into mortal online 2, check out the Mortal Online 2 Official Website. Or for something similar but a little less punishing and easier on new players, check out our Gloria Victis in 2023 Review