A couple of hours ago, Blade & Soul's James Bae took an hour to have an online Q&A session with the China gamers, with the aid of Blade & Soul's China publisher Tencent Games of course. The campaign for the China server has been going on since late last year, which will enter its first Closed Beta phase this August. While some of the questions asked were rather stupid (including if there will be a China server), here are some which made the mark.
Q: What is the characteristic of the latest endgame map?
A: Blade & Soul's storyline will hit a new climax in this new map. Players will also requite to exhibit more control skills to survive. Starting from this map, more PvP elements will be introduced compared to the previous more PvE friendly areas. This can be seen as the start of a new beginning and challenge as well.
Q: How is development for Blade & Soul going on?
A: The Closed Beta 3 areas will be that of the Open Beta's as well. We will be doing some tweaking and adjustments after the test phase ends. I would say it is around 80% complete for release.
Q: Is it true the Summoner class is specially developed for the female crowd?
A: At the start, the Force Master class is supposed to be the easiest one to control and pick up. But subsequently the class began to stray away from that. This is why we need to introduce an easier class for gamers. Our gamers are primarily male as well, so we thought of attracting the female gamers as well. Of course. the Summoner class is not just for the females, anyone who loves cute characters can play it as well.
Q: How is the Summoner class played?
A: Unlike other classes, the summoned cat will target enemies for the player. This will remove extra controls and commands needed for the other classes.
Q: Will there be a PvP arena?
A: From Closed Beta 3's new map onwards, there will be more PvP elements introduced. Of course, we will add in more large scale PvP features in the future. We will be actively be balancing the classes as well.
Q: Is Blade & Soul suitable for solo players?
A: This is where the open world PvE roulette plays a part. Whenever a player deals damage to an open world boss, the roulette will reward players according to the amount of damage done. For instances, there is a cross-channel queue, so players need not worry about finding a party.
Q: Can you further explain the roulette system?
A: In order to prevent "kill stealing" for open world bosses, this system is introduced. Any players who deal damage to the boss will get a reward, although players who first hit, last hit and dealt the most damage will gain additional rewards.
Q: Players are not really sure about the stamina system introduced in Closed Beta 3. What is it for?
A: This stamina system is to shorten the gap between the hardcore and casual players. When it is green, it will be the most optimal period for players to train and gain experience points. This will provide a better leveling environment and not leave players behind.
Q: How are the costumes obtained?
A: They can be obtained from quests, open world boss drops and dungeon boss drops. Players can match different pieces to create unique looks.
Q: Will Blade & Soul require a high performance system?
A: We are still optimizing the game for lower end systems. The lowest requirements now for graphics card is either a Nvidia 8600GT or ATI 4600. Of course, we are still looking to lower the requirements.
Q: Only 4 players are allowed in a party now. Will the quota be expanded?
A: For now, the limit will remain at 4 players. We have plans to increase the limit in future updates, up to 8 and 16 for future dungeons. We have not scheduled a time to implement this system yet.
Q: Is it possible for players to cast skills or spells when using qinggong?
A: Some classes already have this system, including the Force Master who can cast the Ice Palm skill while using qinggong.