Do you fancy the classic Japanese anime Evangelion? Why am I asking? Well, because today I’m bringing you this new video, which is sponsored by Dragon Raja, one of my favorite MMORPGs of late, and it is only getting more exciting with this crossover that you can play right now. I’ve enjoyed the heck out of Dragon Raja since release and rate it as one of the best games of the genre. It looks amazing, comes with an incredible wealth of content, and it only gets better with crossovers such as this Dragon Raja X Evangelion collaboration event.
This is the first crossover coming to the acclaimed MMO, hopefully of many – fingers crossed. Oh, and you can download Dragon Raja using the first link in the video description, something that I strongly advise you to do, because this is a terrific game. The collaboration with the anime started on April 15 runing through May 12 and there’s a very cool trailer for it.
The crossover started with a nice build-up, as any Dragon Raja player could have seen by visiting Tokyo, Chizuru, or Ehime Prefecture from April 11 to April 14. The sky suddenly turned red at specific times, an indication that something big and gloomy was going on. If I have learned something from my years of videogame experience is that red skies are an unmistakeable bad omen, and you should get your guns at the ready.
But what is going on? Well, the Angels are invading the regions of Dragon Raja, paving the way for new challenges and sub-plots. You can start exploring this limited-time crossover right now, there’s nearly a month for you to discover the new challenges and extras. This includes four limited outfits and a few accessories, as well as the limited vehicle Evangelion Test Type-01, the same that you saw in the trailer. To get these rewards, you earn coupons from Dragon Lair and trade them for precious gifts.
If you wish to take a closer look at two of the staples of the Evangelion anime, you can do it. A giant model of Evangelion 01 is on display at Cassell College, and 3rd Angel Sachie gets the same treatment at Tokyo Tower. Take a good, long look at the impressive models, because these are terrific homages to the Evangelion anime and who knows when you will be able to see them again – if at all, as these crossovers usually go are usually a one-off.
But let’s go back to the start of it all. Dragon Raja introduces you to its intricate world and enigmatic protagonists thanks to a prologue that is both beautiful, emotional, and quite shocking. These events will lead you to Cassell College, a school for the young and gifted, unique beings possessing super skills that can be used for good or evil. Think X-Men, but with less wheelchairs and more cigar. Like Principal Anjou, the imposing and righteous figure capable of freezing time with his Time Zero skill.
Cassell College will be your new home and the open world your playground, as you go on dangerous missions, mysterious side-quests, and even flirting with colleagues. Yes, the charismatic NPCs aren’t shy when it comes to teasing you or inviting you out, either in person or via phone, and that’s one of the things that makes Dragon Raja’s world and cast feel so lively and deep – you’ll love some and hate others, but there’s no denying that most of them are alluring to some degree, either by breathing confidence through every pore (NoNo, Caesar, and Chisei Gen), or by being inscrutable and lacking on self-esteem (Luminous and Erii). I just love the work that went into them and how each trait of their personality was carefully crafted.
Let’s rewind even further to the classes. New options were released in the last few months, ramping up the number of classes up to a very respectable eight. There’s no such thing as gender lock here, and with a bonus – besides male and female, you can also pick Lolita, the little girl that you see in some other MMOs. She’s awfully cute, as proved by the sweet girl-robot fist bump from the Fighter class. Doesn’t that bring a smile to your face?
The latest class is the Phantom Sound, probably the most original of the bunch, and with examples such as the Puppeteer and the Soul Dancer, I’d say that there’s a lot of effort going on to make them stand out. You’re not stuck to your initial choice either; later on, you can chat to a Class Change NPC and pick any other class, significantly changing your playstyle.
The Phantom Sound is a support/caster class, one that uses the power of music to heal allies and deal AoE damage. It is a remarkable and extremely valuable element in a balanced party and takes some learning to make the most out of its skillset.
Your next step is character creation, another well-rounded feature in Dragon Raja. You have control over most aspects of your character, starting by picking one of several templates. You can use the randomize option or manually tweak every element, from body proportions to detailed facial features. Go with eyes to die for, or choose a pair of eyes that could suck the soul out of anyone who dares to stare for too long.
Anyway, the character customization options are pretty cool, with more items to unlock as you complete challenges and dungeons.
One of the things that instantly hit me as I started playing Dragon Raja is just how great it looks. The Unreal Engine 4 is put to great use, and I’m willing to bet that it is one of the best-looking games on mobile. The starting snowy area with your cozy little house is as charming as can be, and when you’re out into the sprawling world, it couldn’t get any more diverse. From the towering neon sights of Tokyo and the new industrial city, Zelan, to the serene areas of Chizuru and Ehime Prefecture, there is a lot of diversity and quirky characters to meet and chat to. There’s even a majestic luxury cruise ship to explore, a funfair where you can even ride the Ferris Wheel and the rollercoaster, and other regions that can be somewhat trippy, like the casino-flavored Paradisio. The way that the characters move is so smooth that I usually spend a lot of time just catwalking my way across various environments to appreciate the quality work here.
I could keep going on about how great the game looks, but it wouldn’t be worth it without significant interactivity. The weather conditions such as rain, sun or snow generate different character responses, from tripping while running or trying to cover your head with your hands, besides opening your umbrella. You can chill out with a friend in a sauna, play basketball, participate in car racing, swim, sit down for a meal or coffee, and so much more. Tokyo features some heavy traffic and if you recklessly stay in the middle of the road, a traffic jam ensues… and who knows, you may even trigger an anecdote.
Speaking of anecdotes, or tales, this is one of my favorite parts of Dragon Raja. While the main story is thrilling and the side-quests are aplenty, anecdotes are these secret missions where you must discover how to trigger them in the first place, based on a simple and often extremely vague clue. The trigger may be reliant on specific in-game hours, weather or location, and it takes a keen eye to understand what the hint is on about. There are gold, silver, and bronze anecdotes, categorized by the complexity and length, which can go from nearly one hour (sometimes you must return the next day to continue) to a few seconds. Some anecdotes aren’t linear, branching out into paths that could be righteous or just downright tragic, often affecting the outcome and the personality traits that you bestow upon your character. There are few comparable joys to being one of the first players in a server to trigger and finish a new anecdote.
Apart from being a rich MMORPG, Dragon Raja welcomed many big features in less than a year. One of the most appreciated is housing, a deep and fully customizable system that you can use to create the abode of your dreams. The options are limitless, with everything from customizing walls, floors, adding a basement, choosing from hundreds of furniture items, to acquiring the most outlandish attractions, including pools, huge soccer, tennis, and basketball fields, among other things. The selection is enormous and placing a new and desired feature is always remarkable, especially because your friends can pay you a visit and leave a vote – there’s this intrinsic competitiveness to go with the goal of having a majestic and original mansion.
When we hop to one of the highest rated houses in the game, you’re in for a shock. Starting with the bridge entrance over a colossal pool, the house is intricate and awe-inspiring, with a gym, lots of leisure areas, and a playground for the kids, where they can let their creative juices flow. A lot of work surely went into building this house, but paradoxically enough, the tools are very intuitive and easy to use.
Kids… They can be quite a handful, don’t you think? In Dragon Raja, they are both demanding and useful in equal measure, with the Heir system as your gateway into the wonderful world of virtual parenthood. You can have an heir by yourself or with another player, known as a soulmate, by going to church. Your heir will grow up through a few stages of development, and eventually help you out in combat, so its not just for show and throwing tantrums. You can have up to three kids – more mouths to feed, but also the more power for you.
In-game weddings can be quite magnificent, and Dragon Raja has such a system in place. You get married to another player in the church, wearing stylish wedding suits, and then there’s a big party for your friends to attend. The way that you can carry the other player in your arms is a feature that looks really cute when used in the context of newlyweds.
You can also entertain yourself by excelling in a couple of careers. You can run a shop, be a superstar, a chef de cuisine, or a pet expert, with beautiful Corgis to follow you around and make everyone go ‘awww!’ at its sight. Or you can go for a cat instead – there’s even a grumpy cat if you prefer those.
What else is there? A lot, to be honest, and it would take too long to go through it all. There’s a battle royale event where everyone starts on a level playing field, but one of the latest trends to make it into the game is the auto-chess mode. You can use the famous NPCs of the game as pawns, form bonds and level up, and have a great time pitting your skills against other players. It’s simple, immediate fun in the spirit of the genre, but with the appeal of the Dragon Raja cast.
So, it’s easy to see that Dragon Raja is one of the best mobile MMORPGs, and the Evangelion collaboration puts a very interesting spin to it. If you’re not playing already because, you know, you don’t like having a triple-A game in your pocket that you can play anywhere… what’s wrong with you, man? You can also play on PC with an Android emulator if you find that more comfortable, but there’s no excuse – why don’t you start now, giant robots and all to ease you in? This concludes our Dragon Raja X Evangelion collaboration event gameplay and impressions, but I won't end without leaving you with our list of Dragon Raja CD Keys.
Dragon Raja X Evangelion Article originally published on FreeMMOStation.com
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