Gameloft has finally turned its uncanny game mimicking powers to World of Warcraft and the result is a surprisingly enjoyable iPhone MMO with a great deal of potential.
But is it a clone? There are definitely elements of Order & Chaos Online that seem ripped directly from World of Warcraft. The characters, for instance, do indeed look like low-polygon versions of the ones you'd find running about Azeroth. The equipment is quite similar as well; the warrior's starting shield could have been ripped directly off the back of a young WoW adventurer. The game's fiction smacks of the Horde versus the Alliance. It's humans and elves versus orcs and the undead.
Other elements may seem similar, but could have been ripped out of any current massively-multiplayer games. You're doing quests, gaining levels, earning new skills, crafting new items. For an iPhone game, it's rather full-featured, even if you are limited to four races and four character classes: Warrior, Mage, Monk, and Ranger.
Where Gameloft sets itself apart is the game's combat controls. A virtual left stick controls character movement, while a scrolling wheel containing skills and spells rests comfortably under the right thumb. It's an amazingly comfortable and intuitive control system. I can play this stretched out on the couch with my iPad held aloft over my head. The only problem is I don't have a hand free to guzzle Mountain Dew and stuff my mouth with chips.
Maybe that's not a problem.
Order & Chaos Online is available for $6.99 on the iTunes App Store. The game comes with three months free play, after which players will have to fork over an exorbitant $.99 a month to play. Is it worth it? So far, so good I'd say. As long as new character classes and races are in the pipeline, it might be worth sticking around to see where Order & Chaos Online goes.
Order & Chaos Online [iTunes App Store]