TERA Online review - a deep look at the enchanted realms of Arborea

Picking an MMORPG these days is a never-ending task. Massively multiplayer online role-playing games have come a long way since the beginning of gaming history, constantly evolving according to what players want. Some players prefer strategy games, some prefer action combat experiences, and others like to play massively multiplayer action games. In the end, the decision is made by each player. Needless to say, you should take an intense look at the Tera video game before deciding to invest your precious time into it.

Because you know what's sad? Spending all day playing games like the MMO ones where, in the end, you'll need to pay a lot of money to enjoy it, even when they are being promoted as free to play experiences. Playing TERA Online is surprisingly fun, we know that. We also know that in this MMO game, TERA can offer a combat system that the players can genuinely enjoy. The world of Tera Online is one of the most fun titles out there, but that doesn't take away the fact that we should look at this game with a magnifying glass to make a conclusive statement.

It is why this TERA game review is being written. Sellers and Friends will properly show you if this game is worth your time, we will talk about the PvP, the fantastic action combat system and also we'll take a profound look at the game world. After you read this TERA Online review, we know that making a decision will be easy for you. Buckle up at let's find out all of the new things that this MMO has for all of the new and experienced players!

Let's start at the beginning - what's TERA Online?

The Exiled Realms of Arborea is the world where all of your combat will take place. TERA presents itself as a change of airs to the MMO genre thanks to the fast action mixed with the phenomenal combat system and beautiful lore that the developer, Bluehole Studio, created with the help of En Masse Entertainment. In order to expand and save what’s left of this beautiful lands, the company said they will implement two events in months like December, so this work of art gets enjoyed hours and not minutes. On May 1, 2012, the release date was right when the MMO genre seemed to get into a void of oblivion.

Don't get us wrong, MMO games have always been one of the most fun and outstanding genre out there, but there was a point in gaming history when some players began to say that MMO games were too similar to each other. En Masse Entertainment knew this and wanted to create high expectations around the release date. Games like this where not the fans favorite at the time, but En Masse Entertainment managed to create a free to play experience that the world loved.

Where can TERA Online be played?

It is an intriguing point to get into. It is known that TERA was first released on PC. This action packed game has one of the best open world PVP out there. Its style is pretty much unique, so if you really want to play TERA on the Sony platforms, PC, or an Xbox one, we assure you that you’ll consider it one of the best fantasy MMOs out there.  Everything was fine at that moment, but the game's success had made the developers produce a version to Xbox One and PS4. 2012 was the end of the seventh generation of game consoles, so they wanted to wait for the eighth generation to be already out and ready to go.

It brings us to 2018, where the game was released for these platforms. The game's overall performance was not mediocre at all, but some players report that in the PS4 version, the frames rate lowered a lot if the characters on screen were numerous. It doesn't happen as often as you may think, you'll probably never experience this playing in the PvP, but if you are fighting many big ass monsters at the time, the combat could be affected.

The worst part of the multiplatform availability is the fact that cross-platform doesn't exist at all. You can't play this game against Xbox One users if you own a PS4. You can't play against PC users if you own an Xbox One, and so on. It was one of the major letdowns to the gaming community that loves TERA, but hey, at least the game is free to play... isn't it? Let's see.

So, is TERA Online a P2W game?

Luckily, this question can be solved quickly. In theory, no, TERA is not a pay-to-win game. It means that you can achieve everything you want and be among the absolute best players of the game only if you invest enough time to develop your skills. It is a strong positive point for TERA, a game that started with a monthly subscription model.

MMO developers realized that even if they have the most thrilling PvP, fun combat system, and a wide world full of mysteries - the subscription model won't work unless you are World of Warcraft. Bluehole Studio learned it quickly, so all the items and expansions that can be bought in TERA are mostly pure cosmetic changes that won't have a special outcome on the combat.

Of course, users can still buy a subscription to become "Elite" players in which they will receive extra rewards for completing the new dungeons and challenges, but that doesn't mean that they are necessarily better than users who don't pay. Going from the minimum level to level 20 and beyond is a sign that a user wants to get better in this game. Isn’t great? This impressive product found the key to meet players’ requirements without sacrificing the standard options of MMORPG. We need to give this a positive point to TERA, as in general terms, it is indeed A free to play game.

Let's talk about the game modes on TERA

If we review this game, we need to swim deep in the waters of the PvP and the PvE. First of all, the lore of this game is incredible. You can like this game or hate it, but you can't deny that the delightful world of this MMO can leave you stunned just by contemplating it.

The classes system is very straightforward: you see the classes, select the one that adjusts you the most, and start your adventure soon enough. Players can choose between Archer, Mystic, Priest, Slayer, Sorcerer, and so on, but they can also unlock newer classes as they progress, such as the Ninja, the Gunner, and the Reaper. Although it might seem extremely simple, the magic comes when the classes are mixed in a battle of four players against the big ass monsters or the other new enemies. The lore feels alive and varied, but from time to time, it is normal to experience a sense of repetitiveness if you circle through the zones completing dungeons.

In this TERA review, we will share with you what we really believe of the game based on the hours we spent questing and fighting against BAMS, behemoth of little difficulty, and other monster-like creatures. In order to kill these creatures, the player needs to search for good equipment and improve the attacks skill to have a chance against them. However, to get the latest gear needed to fight the different races of monsters all you need to do is going out and complete the main quest, participate in a guild and enjoy the gameplay and never-ending content.

The leveling system is not bad at all. We genuinely believe that every user can level up without any problem, only investing effort and time. Some quests are repetitive, while others are unique, but keep in mind playing as a group to acquire more bonuses and experience points.

I’ve played this game through steam, enjoyed the recent main expansion featured in it without having to download and buy some specific service. But the real star of the show is the combat system on this MMO. The combat system is fun, enjoyable, and also kind of innovative for this genre. It's not like the developers invented the combat of this game, but they did a brilliant job keeping players hooked into it.

TERA Combat System

It is where TERA separates itself from other MMO titles in the market. Unlike most MMO role-playing games out there, here you need to have real skills to defeat all of your adversaries. It might be a hybrid between RPG and Third Person Shooters combat due to the perfect mix of the strategic process and the fast-paced action sense. The damage that the players receive in the PvE depends on critical and heavy hits. We are not talking about a hack-and-slash game. In TERA, you need to know where, when, and with what to hit.

Is TERA's PvP as good as it seems?

Multiplayer conflicts are what give us reasons to live. To enjoy the PvP, you must first reach level 60 in this game. PvP duels 1 v 1 are hard, so users need to understand this game mechanics before jumping into combat fully. New players might feel like investing time in leveling up is not fun at all, but trust us, this is one of the best things you can do in TERA. Bluehole Studios got some interesting ideas for this title such as the ones they used to implement in their past games. If you want to know how the last dungeon looks like, get the latest news about this game, etc, be sure to hit that share button and it’s done! You will always be informed. The fact that players can join guilds and massive PvP combat in Battlegrounds is simply outstanding. The PvP also varies depending on each user's taste, but overall we can review that it is an excellent game mode.

Graphics and Sound

It's not a secret for every gamer that the graphics of TERA are superb. They are not the best in the world, that's obvious, but for a TRULY free-to-play experience, it looks gorgeous. The lands, the mountains, the enemies, the characters, the weapons - it all looks perfect. The most satisfactory part about it is the immersive feeling that it makes us experience. Few games can captivate gamers as strong as TERA does it, so we need to give a positive point in this review to the graphics.

The developers know how to implement the magic of the Unreal Engine 3 by creating a Lore that breathes and walks with us. The lighting, the colors, the ecosystem: everything changes with us walking on it. Nonetheless, we already mentioned the drop on the Frames Per Second that some gamers experience. The animations are as good on PS4 and Xbox One as they look on a powerful enough PC, so we can't ask for more in a F2P title.

The same goes for the sound department. The sounds effects are amazing, swords hitting with each other, people forging new weapons, and nature moving around us sound as good as they can. In addition, the soundtrack also sounds good and perfectly transitions from aggressive battles to peaceful walks. The voices are on point, meaning that we don't have any complaints when we refer to the sound portion of TERA Online.

Constant Updates

One thing is sure about TERA: the game is not finished yet. It's not like you can't appreciate it if you log in and start playing right now, but you can be certain that new updates and events are yet to come. Among the events we can find on TERA, players have witnessed significant milestones on the game experience. The developers are always creating events for each month. June, July, and August are some of the months with more events in the year. They want to please as many players as they can with guild wars, less grind, and lower loading times. Instead, they want the gaming community to feel close to them, so they can continue their support thanks to the wide range of things to do available. The Reaper class apparition was implemented back in 2014, and the landscape changes according to the story.

Players no longer start on the Island of Dawn due to its devastation, they now start at Stepstone Isle, for instance. These updates, and many other updates, encountered a significant and obvious flaw revealed by the launching of the console version. PS4 and Xbox One players were just too far behind PC users due to the difference of 6 years between versions.

As a direct result of this, some gamers started to change their minds from "TERA Online will never be finished, awesome!" to "TERA Online will never be finished... we are stuck." It is why a large number of PC players decided to abandon the game back in 2019. The developers make a genuine effort to make the game feel different from time to time, but it is impossible to satisfy everyone, right?

So, what's TERA's strongest point so far?

Let us declare it out loud: TERA doesn't perform anything special. If you like to play this genre, you will not be disappointed with this one, but you won't get impressed either. The main difference between TERA and all of the MMORPGs out there is the combat features, but these days is not hard to find a similar fighting system that the one we see in TERA.

Bluehole Studio didn't invent this system either, so we can't say they were emulated. If we want to play as the "gaming police," we could state that TERA plays it safely. It is safe enough to be a good game, but also safe enough not to stand out of the rest. It may be bad and good at the same time - it all depends on the player's point of view, but, overall, you must like to play this game if you say that TERA is a game-changer when in fact, it's not.

It is free-to-play, though. Players can’t attack the boss unless they found enough gold (AUG) or an Elf item to increase their rating through loot and other helpful activities, not by paying. At least in that part, we give it up to En Masse Entertainment. It might sound weird to praise this fact, but we already know that some game companies like to say their games are F2P and end up being pay to win. We are thinking about the exact same companies that came across your mind.

Either way, we are not thrilled nor disappointed with this game. Unlike other reviews, we are not going to give a score of this game. We don’t believe it’s something utterly necessary in this case, but we do believe this is a great, well-made title even when its ups and downs. It doesn’t feel old, it also doesn’t feel like a top launch, but it can certainly be enjoyed by anyone regarding the gender and race he or she chooses to play with. If you like the genre, you will enjoy it more than you believe. But let's face it, it will be a much better game if you are a casual gamer rather than a hardcore gamer. Therefore, if we talk about Sellers and Friends' opinions, we would definitely recommend giving it a try.

The Verdict

After reviewing every single part that revolves around this game, we can finally make a final statement. It is clear that MMORPGs are not everyone the same way that not all players like shooters or racing games. It is why making a game review is not easy. We are aware of that, and we also know that it is impossible to make every single gamer happy.

But leaving all of that aside, we are sure that TERA is a perfect option for every lover of the genre. If you are a console player, you can now experience how good PC's MMORPG's are. To put it in few words, we can summarize the positive aspects of this game in this list:

• True Free-to-play, a rarity these days in this industry. Of course, players can still invest money in this game, but it is not crucial to make real progress.
• Gorgeous graphics and sound department. The environment looks cool, the character looks cool, everything sounds cool too.
• Fun and compelling combat experience. Unlike most MMORPGs, the fights here feel fresh and surprisingly fun.
• Good online mechanics, enjoyable events, wide availability (PC, Xbox One, PS4)

On the negative side, this is what we have to say:

• TERA plays it safe. It doesn't surprise, but it doesn't disappoint. It's a 7 out of 10 game. Just good, nothing more, nothing less.
• No cross-platform. It's not mandatory, but the huge delay between PC and consoles version should at least be rewarded with cross-platform, although we understand why it's impossible.

Play the game, you won't regret it. Sellers and Friends will always be here to help you overcome all of the obstacles you come across. What are your thoughts on TERA? Leave us your review in the comments section below!

FAQ

Is TERA pay to win?

No. You can play this game without investing a dime. It is one of the best things about this Bluehole Studio title.

Is TERA worth playing in 2020?

Hell yeah! If you love the genre, prepare yourself for a phenomenal experience.

Is TERA Online cross-platform?

Sadly, it's not. You can still have a good PvP and PvE experience with your friends if they have the same gaming platform, though.