Perfect World

Perfect World Classes

• Archer - Archers are guardians of the winged elves, an apt name considering they learn the ability to fly at level 1 making them unrivaled for mobility. They are one of the primary DPS classes in Perfect World, able to dish out critical hits with precision.
• Assassin - relying on stealth, Assassins are able to conquer any other class in the game in a 1v1 match. Covert skills combined with overwhelming critical hits deplete enemies HP in a matter of seconds.
• Barbarian - tearing through their opponents in a rage, the Barbarian is able deal massive damage and endure enemies attacks. While they are natural tanks, the Barbarian can be built to be agile warriors that move faster on the battlefield then other classes on mounts.
• Blademaster - years of combat training make Blademaster's versatile damage dealers. Taking control of the battlefield by stunning enemies, they are effective at controlling crowds and slicing enemies apart one at a time.
• Cleric - the healers of Perfect World, the Cleric is also able to bring teammates back from the dead. They prove formidable against enemies due to their ability to heal themselves on the battlefield. Clerics are able to fly at level 1 and learn powerful spells in later levels.
• Mystic - wielding magic to decimate enemies, Mystics use magically imbued weapons to summon pets or plants and heal themselves. Providing buffs and AoE effects makes them experts at controlling multiple enemies on the battlefield while also acting as support for fellow players.
• Psychic - the masters of PvP, Psychics are the fastest magic-wielders in Perfect World. They fortify themselves with skills that punish enemies for attacking, such as reflect damage and reflecting debuffs. Fully buffed psychics don't have to attack; waiting for enemies to attack them and kill themselves is more than enough.
• Seeker - using swords and wearing heavy armor, Seekers cut down any enemy that threatens their world. Able to absorb a high amount of damage, the Seeker proves an effective support class while also wearing down enemies.
• Venomancer - at one with nature, Venomancers partner with bats, foxes, and other creatures to battle the wraiths that threaten Perfect World. They can take the form of a fox to increase their physical defense and fight with strength, or explore their magic roots using ranged poison attacks.
• Wizard - casting spells always puts the Wizard at risk but, once chanted, devastating damage is unleashed on their enemies. Drawing on the elements, the wizard focuses on burst damage or can surround themselves with magical defenses to withstand the onslaught of enemies.

Perfect World Review

By Sean Sullivan,

In Perfect World, Chinese mythology comes to life in an MMORPG setting. The story is rather simple. A bored and lonely God named Pangu creates the universe, but his world is largely imperfect—wraiths and monsters infect it like a plague. And it’s up to the races that embody Pangu’s vision to create order from chaos. You start by selecting one of six origins that are then subdivided into classes. Each selection highlights a character that dances with their weapons in an exaggerated spectacle . Humans look the least sapien of all the playable races, with faces squished like they've been stuck in a vice for the the last twenty years. I chose to be an Earthguard-Seeker, wielding two swords because I like to repeatedly stab enemies long after they've been vanquished. I was eager to conquer the mythological world of Pangu.

Forging Your Character

I haven't had this much fun with character creation since I built a computer solely to play Oblivion. Clicking Advanced Settings unlocked sliders for every portion of my characters face, from eye openness to jaw height. The number of ridiculous possibilities teased my imagination. Do you want your character to look like a Bobblehead? Do you want your character’s stomach to look like it’s leaving this dimension? Well in the Perfect World your wildest dreams come true. In pursuit of manufacturing the ultimate warrior I was able to customize the top, mid, and bottom portions of my characters mouth to look like a devious exhibitionist. Dilate those pupils or send your eyebrows to the back of your skull. It’s truly glorious, a game where I can finally place my inner-self in the virtual world. I set out to craft my masterpiece, a statuesque character epitomizing my soul. What emerged was eternally beautiful. I christened him “FabFrank” and we set off to adventure.

Navigating Mythology

FabFrank, the legendary warrior, had finally arrived in Panbu. I let sunbeams glisten off his pasty skin before he took his first steps—the first clunky and disorienting steps. Using WASD to navigate is simple enough, but "Q" and "E" are not assigned to camera-pan, as is common in many MMORPG's. So, you must hold right-click to rotate the camera. But then, holding right-click and left-click also moves your character; while clicking on the ground with left-click sends your character to the designated spot. Three navigation systems all compete for the player's attention. They topple over each other like FabFrank's first steps. Sometimes when I meant to swing the camera to snap an epic photo of FabFrank’s newest gear I ended up sending him into a river. The controls grow on you but the messy introduction was frustrating.

"My Pangu" makes FabFrank jump like he's playing FreeStyle2. Pressing space bar once sends you rocketing to the moon in a pristine crane stance. Press it again and your character flaps his hands, spitting in gravity's face and lurches even higher. And that's not all. Press "X" and you can pull of some sweet flips as you gently glide back to Earth. Every character in Pangu is born with years of gymnastic training. Good MMORPG’s always have a jumping mechanic, no matter how useless it might be. The acrobatics aren't limited to the air. While you're walking from one quest to the next you can press X to somersault your way to victory.

Seizing Your Destiny One Quest Marker at a Time

Questing is almost too easy; easy and brain-dead. An algorithm would have more fun questing than I did. The game holds your hand and introduces you to your first master, who is completely unmemorable. Go there, kill that, collect this, come back so I can send you to the same area again. Questing is the fastest way to level but you'll be sent to an area to kill "two" creatures or collect "one" item before running back to the quest-giver. Force me to stick around and kill some mobs! You spend more time running than you do killing and collecting. It quickly turns into a running simulator. Luckily for me, FabFrank is easy on the eyes so I didn't mind.

With all the running around involved, Perfect World at least incorporates an auto-navigation feature. Never worry about where to go again! Clicking the quest name will move your character to the next designated area or quest giver. Oh I got to kill some blood wolves. Doubleclick “Blood-wolf” under my quest info and FabFrank jogs himself over while I make another coffee. Oftentimes I would alt-tab out only to return and find FabFrank getting himself into shenanigans: either stuck between rocks, hanging in a field of fiery moths, or trying to drown himself. I would scoff and shake my head, “Oh FabFrank,” before setting my minion back on his correct path. He’s all beauty and no brains.

At one point. I found myself in need of quests with no idea where to go. But the quest log has a nice feature so that players don't feel lost. Opening your log by pressing aptly assigned “Q” allows you to see available quests that you may have missed picking up. It also provides you with details as to who provides quests with a hotlink so you can auto-nav your way there.

Music on a Loop

As you watch your character run through the map, soothing Chinese music calms your nerves. It's the same tunes used to relax the body during acupuncture and massage therapy. As you move through areas on the map, it gracefully fades out queuing what should be the next track to fade in. But it doesn't. The same song fades right back in. Immersion is instantly broken and I can't help but wonder what the developers were thinking. The same track starts, stops, I back up a few feet, starts again, stops, and then starts. Sometimes you're in an area for three seconds. And you better believe you're going to hear the same three seconds of song you just heard as you left that area. What started as a soothing melody appropriate for meditating made me wish I was deaf. Despite the poorly designed mechanic, the game's overall sound is pretty good. I could find enlightenment under a waterfall listening to Perfect World's soundtrack.

Fighting Mobs

Combat follows typical MMORPG blueprints. Attack enemies using basic attacks or use skills assigned to your numbered hotkeys. You'll only have one skill for a while, and it will one-shot everything. It is never a struggle to kill any mob, at least in the beginning of the game. I get that beginner areas are designed to introduce players to the game but there was no satisfaction in beating enemies. In Ragnarok Online, Porings would explode in a fireworks display of loot and experience. In Perfect World, enemies would die and I had no idea I had beaten them. Their animation was anticlimactic. Not that I could tell I was hitting them to begin with because the range for engagement seems arbitrary. The sound effects of combat seemed delayed and I never once believed I was actually engaging an enemy.

Expanding Mythology

Perhaps Perfect World's most interesting mechanic is its grand scale PvP that pits 80 players from clans against each other for territory. With 44 areas capable of being conquered there is plenty to win and lose. Losing clans have to pay protection money to their conquerors to rub in the shame of losing. Open world PvP proves just as merciless. After passing level 30 you're flagged for PvP outside of safe zones and subject to being ripped in half by unrelenting players. It is fun but to guarantee a win in PvP you have to turn to the cashshop.

While the developers touted that the cash shop would not be necessary to play, it is necessary to win in PvP. HP and MP charms are pretty much required before testing yourself against other players. Same with faster mounts. So at level 100 you're running around with your discovered gear but everyone else at 100 has opened their wallets for boosted items. It turns into pay-to-win. Unless you don't care about PvP, in which case there's not much else to do. End-game instances are about making money or finding that extra piece of gear. And there's no raids; just parties of six. The novelty quickly wears off.

Honestly, I had no idea what was going on as FabFrank ran from one quest to the next. The enemies are ubiquitous and uninspired. The world is repetitive and uninteresting. Combat is bland and boring. Attacking in a festive dance wears off after the first mob. Lastly, quest rewards provide no incentive to keep playing.

Final Verdict - Good

Maybe Perfect World was great three years ago. But it has aged, and fallen far from its original standing. Its reigning feature is the character creation system that allows for some of the best character designs I have seen in an MMO. Rarely do you find a game that allows for Frankenstein concoctions. But beyond that, the game is a clunky mess. It feels dated, a relic from some bygone age that should only be appreciated at a distance.

Perfect World Screenshots

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Perfect World Videos

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Perfect World Requirements

Minimum Requirements:

Operating System: Windows 2000/XP/Vista/7
CPU: 1 GHz
RAM: 1 GB RAM
Video Card: GeForce 4 Ti4200 64MB or ATI Radeon 8500 64MB
Hard Disk Space: 8 GB available space

Recommended Requirements:

Operating System: Windows 2000/XP/Vista/7
CPU: Dual-Core 2.5 GHz CPU
RAM: 3 GB RAM
Video Card: GeForce FX 5200 128MB or ATI Radeon 9500 128MB
Hard Disk Space: 8 GB available space

Perfect World Music

Perfect World Additional Information

Developer(s): Beijing Perfect World
Publisher(s): Beijing Perfect World, Level Up Games!, Games-Masters Ltd., Perfect World Entertainment, Arc Games

China Release Date: July, 2005

Closed Beta: August 19, 2008 (English Version)

Open Beta: September 2, 2008 (English Version)

International Release Date: September 2, 2008

Development History / Background:

Perfect World was first released in China in July 2005 and developed by China-based online game company Perfect World. It wasn't until September 2, 2008 that primarily English-speaking countries were able to play. Beyond Perfect World, the company also operates Neverwinter, Swordsman Online, and Jade Dynasty. On May 31, 2011, Perfect World bought Cryptic Studios, responsible for games such as City of Heroes/Villains and Star Trek Online, from Atari for $50 million. On October 8, 2012, Valve Corporation agreed to grant Perfect World rights to Dota 2 operations in mainland China.