Project Alfheim

Started by SiniCat, May 07, 2022, 11:38 AM

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SiniCat

Just wanted to write a review for this server since there's no way to do so on the RMS website with this server being delisted.

Pros

This server (3x/3x/5x) is great for someone who wants to play a low-rate server but doesn't have the time to play a 1x server, predominantly because of the 5x drop rates. There are also many quality of life changes that greatly benefit casual players, such as:

   • Greatly improved HP/SP recovery when sitting - probably the best feature of this server
   • Level 10 Blessing/Agility Up for 30 Minutes when healing at the Inn
   • Warp points for Non-Kafra towns and dungeons
   • Item captor system (guaranteeing an item being given to you after 4000 kills)
   • Daily 1-hour experience buff
   • Pet tames essentially being a 100% success

There are many costumes and pets that make this server great for a casual player. There are headgear quests, a currency system and treasure hunt system that provide a range of equipment, usable items and costumes.

The Sweets Festival, Old Glast Heim, Sakura event were very fun events. I was going through a lot of personal hardship IRL in mid-April, and it brought me a lot of joy doing Treasure Hunts, finding rare items and getting cute costumes. In terms of other events, Devil's Square, Hide and Seek and Cluckers events are regularly run by the GMs.

Mixed

The cash shop is 100% cosmetic (only costumes), however, these costumes aren't account-bound and players can sell them to make zeny.

The admin is very active and responsive in-game and on Discord, but is generally blunt and unfriendly in the way he talks to players. There have been several instances where the response has simply been that something is too hard and he doesn't have time to do it. For example, Rodex has been broken for weeks now and left that way because it's too difficult to fix.

In terms of the other staff, Lapaco (GM or not a GM, it's never been made clear) does his job well but sometimes has backhanded/unnecessary comments to make after dealing with situations on #main. It's important to note that he's a member of one of the two main guilds. Patsi is great, she welcomed me when I first started and always puts on events - unfortunately, she's rarely online. I think there are other GMs (Stitchy?) but honestly, they haven't been active enough for me to form an opinion of them.

The community is a mixed bag, as with any community in this game in this day and age. There are some very friendly and nice people who will go out of their way to help you, and then there are people who go out of their way to make your experience a negative one. #main is often a source of drama. English is the main language, but the two main guilds are both PH-based, and most drama tends to come from the Last Resort guild, who have the largest online presence.

Cons

The biggest con for me is the way this server has handled the Gravity situation. Taking the website/Patcher/Wiki offline with zero notice, for several days as of today, has left a lot of people in limbo, unable to register new accounts, unable to use the online Marketplace, unable to make donations and in some cases, unable to play. Not having the Wiki and completely wiping the Discord has made it extremely challenging to try and find any kind of information, especially in terms of pricing and market history.

I can appreciate that this is a challenging time right now, but knowing that Gravity was suing private servers from at least a fortnight ago, there definitely should have been some form of preventative maintenance/contingency plan put in place that wouldn't inconvenience players as much as it has. I think it shows a lack of planning and management that as a result of the current situation, a major update for Rachel/Ice Dungeon that was planned for next week has been pushed back to June, and WoE/BG has also been pushed back. I think pushing back an update for a few weeks is fine, but there wasn't really a proper explanation given as to why an additional month is needed for this content.

I also really don't like that people aren't allowed to talk about the Gravity situation in-game or on Discord without receiving a warning or being muted. Some people can't even access the new Discord because they're trying to keep a low profile - you can't even link the new Discord in-game.

The economy in general is all over the place. A lot of cards that are sought aren't sold, so there tends to be one person selling that card at an extravagant price. For example, someone has been trying to sell Drops card for 9M and as of now, 7M. Equipment with average rolls are sold too high, equipment with good rolls are sold too low, and four people can sell the exact same costume from 400K to 2M.

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Overall, it has been a mostly enjoyable experience, but I really don't like the direction that the server is heading, which is the main reason why I left.

yC

Thanks for taking the time to do an in-depth review here.  Given the current uncertainty surrounding the community, we must understand and respect the decisions taken to protect the interested parties.

xLuckyDo

#2
So you acknowledge the current situation regarding the recent news/drama... And your only con is that the project is taking necessary measures to avoid said situation just like almost every other "server" is doing???