“Throne and Liberty is the most popular project among the games we recently announced. Throne and Liberty was formerly known as or Project TL”
(Ahn Jong-ok) That’s right, <Throne and Liberty> is a project that started with Lineage. The original goal of the project was “Let’s make the next generation Lineage”.
(Moonyoung Choi) I think it was spring three years ago, and in the process of remaking the story of Throne and Liberty it materialized as a new game.
(Ahn Jong-ok) During development, many of the original systems and contents had to be adapted or removed in accordance with current game trends. The result was that the gameplay was also gradually different from the original. I decided to write a completely new story, but after this work, questions also arose within the development team: Should it be called Lineage? So I changed the name to suit the new story. This also reflects the willingness of the development team to move away from Lineage.
What is the difference of Throne and Liberty as an original IP?
(Ahn Jong-ok) Throne and Liberty is a project created from the beginning by rethinking the values that the next-generation MMO for PC and console should show. A lot of work went into designing the immersive world that players enter. The environment has been carefully constructed so that plenty of people can enjoy new experiences and have fun in the world of Throne and Liberty.
For example, there were several attempts to make the game less monotonous. Even in the same area, the terrain can change as the weather changes, the flow of battle can change depending on the direction of the wind, and you may encounter new creatures over time. Hunting methods and goals are constantly changing accordingly. The area, the environment and the player, these three factors influence each other, and we try very hard to make the experience different even in the same area. The different variables are expected to change the gameplay.
What is the goal of Throne and Liberty? I wonder if there is any content prepared for the global release
(Ahn Jong-ok) It’s a bit ideal, but I think if you attract players just for fun, you can be appreciated without boundaries between generations or regions. So, I started thinking about what NC missed and focused on making it up in Throne and Liberty. I don’t specifically divide East and West or aim for a specific target.
What is the main content of Throne and Liberty?
(Ahn Jong-ok) There are two main things. One is a World with a solid system. I believe that understanding the characters in the game must precede the player’s immersion, playing fondly and having fun. To do this, the world in which the character lives must be firmly supported. So, I paid a lot of attention to the story itself. In addition, in order for the story and worldview to be explained naturally in the game, various gameplay tools and directional techniques found primarily in console games and adventure games were used.
The other one is challenging content. Existing NC games had a lot of content that focused on player competition. Sure, in certain classes and regions, it can make the blood boil and bring a lot of fun. The reality, however, is that many more players are more interested in overcoming well-designed challenges than competing to reach their pinnacle. So, in making Throne and Liberty, I tried to put in a lot of this challenging content. In particular, you can see it well in boss monsters fights, which can only be won if several players have a good understanding of the characteristics and abilities of each boss, and cooperate by using their skills
I heard that you can also transform into an animal in the game. What was the background for implementing that content?
(Ahn Jong-ok) The level design of the Throne and Liberty world focused on two things. One was to seamlessly connect all the spaces, and the other was to make good use of this space by making it so that the player could feel it three-dimensionally.
For such a sense of space, it was necessary to reduce the method of movement by teleportation and devise a method of movement with a sense of speed. We found the answer in animals. You can transform into a variety of animals specializing in land, water and air to move, and there are areas that can only be explored by using each animal’s movement abilities well. In addition, you can transform into an animal to carry other players.
It seems everything that happens in the world is considered important. These elements seem to contribute to the sense of immersion, is there another distinct content unique to Throne and Liberty? which one?
(Ahn Jong-ok) In Throne and Liberty, environmental factors such as day and night, rain and wind change every moment. It’s not just the background that changes. It is hard to recognize at first, but as the characters grow, you will gradually realize that the environmental factor is very important. For example, when shooting a bow, the direction and strength of the wind affects the range, and if you use lightning-type magic when it rains, an ability that attacks a single target when it’s sunny changes to an AOE ability if it rains. There are also things that affect terrain. In siege warfare, there are several ways to infiltrate the castle, including through the castle’s subway sewers. However, when it rains, these places can fill with water and become an unusable route.
On the other hand, the player can also influence the environment. If certain conditions are met, the player can change the environment to the desired effect when necessary, such as triggering a solar eclipse or a storm.
A look at the world, the history of two continents
The Throne and Liberty World is an original story that NC has been showing for a long time. To talk about the Throne and Liberty World, we also have to talk about the game <Project E>. When the teaser video was released in February, it was announced that it would share a vision of the world with <Project E>. I wonder where these ideas come from.
(LIGHTBOX House) The worldview of Throne and Liberty was created at LIGHTBOX House. After receiving the newly planned raw story concept, LIGHTBOX House discusses it with the development department and begins to build a worldview. However, there are very few cases where dozens of hundreds of concepts to create a world and story lead to the actual development, it is unfortunate that more stories cannot be conveyed. Still, I hope you know that such an organization exists within NC, and that we are working to create a solid World by discovering and discussing interesting stories to make better games in the future.
From the early days of building Throne and Liberty World I thought it would be nice if several different stories could be branched out from this world with other games. So, I set up the great axis of the worldview very carefully. Starting from Genesis, which is actually too far away for players playing at the moment, we meticulously organized a series of major events. Maps of the entire planet were also created taking into account space, time and weather.
Sharing a World/Universe is very interesting, but hard to imagine at first sight.
(LIGHTBOX House) <Throne and Liberty>and <Project E> take place in a newly created World on the same planet, but on two different continents.
Throne and Liberty: Focuses on the western medieval concept of Solisium.
Project E: Focuses on the Eastern medieval concept of Laisak (provisional name).
NOVCREA Map – Throne and Liberty and Project E Universe
Could you explain how they share a worldview?
(Lightbox House) Since <Throne and Liberty>and <Project E> are based on the same planet, the game time will be the same. They also share the same gravitational and ecological characteristics, as well as magical and fantasy origins. However, because the continents are different, the characteristics of each civilization and history are different. Important events that happened on the same planet are also interpreted and progressed in completely different ways in the two games, so you can have more fun.
What is the central narrative that runs through the World of the two games?
(Lightbox House) There are two main events. The first is an attempt to imprison God. At the time of the War of the Old Gods, an attempt to imprison Silaves with the magic stone ‘Star of Sylaves’ ultimately failed, and the stone which condensed powerful energy, shattered and scattered across the planet. As a result, in Throne and Liberty, a story of wars to get the scattered Silaves Star is derived. In , several fragments of a huge Castle of Disillusionment (just like the star of Silaves in ) fall to the mainland, 4 sky islands, 1 mysterious lake, celestial bodies as divine beasts; divine trees are born and continents will be affected.
The second is war. Humans learn magic from elves, and there is a history of warrior elves with this magic. Orcs also wage large-scale wars to unite their tribes. Because of these wars, some races must leave their hometown and settle in a new place. After that, on the Raizak Continent of Projecy E, the elves changed their names to ‘Nirva’ and the orcs changed their names to ‘Yacha’. This leads to other historical events that cut across the two projects.
Thanks to sharing the world with <Throne and Liberty>, the interest in has also grown a lot, after the video teaser was released. Before we go into details about , we need a brief introduction.
(LIGHTBOX House) After <Throne and Liberty>, the second IP created within the same World was created with oriental concept. So, the direction the development took was ‘Let’s establish a worldview by focusing on showing the various beauties and mysteries of the East’. That is why the E stands for Eastern in the name Project E.
In the released video, the Korean style can be seen, and 16 (Zones/Paises) were formed later so that they could be applied taking into account various historical, ecological and visual references of the East. However, this does not mean that the West is completely excluded; in the world of Project E with a touch of fantasy, various cultures merge and develop beautifully.
And finally, a few words to the players who are waiting for Throne and Liberty
(Ahn Jong-ok) I prepared myself seriously and diligently to create a new MMO that is different from the MMOs I have seen so far. The video presented this time contains real game scenes. I’m always determined to make a game that changes while communicating honestly and with an open mind.
(Moon-Young Choi) What I felt by strengthening communication with customers from the planning stage is that players’ desires are becoming very specific and diversified. Since the game market is evolving and changing faster than any other market, I think in the future it is necessary to actively collect opinions through open communication with customers. We are working hard to bring something new to the world. We wish you to look forward to the progress of <Throne and Liberty> and <Project E>.
