Ashen Empires Review – Is It Worth Playing?

Ashen Empires is a retro MMORPG that has been around since 2002, but just recently had its Steam Release.

Ashen Empires was inspired by Ultima Online and has very similar isometric style graphics. If you are not a fan of truly old-school MMORPGs or RPGs, I think it’s safe to say that Ashen Empires won’t be for you.

The game is the sequel to the even older Dransik that was originally released in 1998, both are set in the world of Dransik. Dransik was in fact also released on Steam at the same time as Ashen Empires.

The games were developed by Asylumsoft, now known as Iron Will Games.

Surprisingly, Ashen Empires is currently seeing quite impressive and stable concurrent player numbers on Steam for such an old title, peaking every day between 200 and 300 players. It currently has Very Positive reviews on Steam, mostly praising its gameplay, systems, and mechanics.

Gameplay

Ashen Empires feels like a mashup of Ultima Online and Tibia, with a dash of pen and paper RPG.

There are no classes and no skill caps. Combat is skill-based and players can either use weapons to fight in melee combat or learn spells.

Other Gameplay features include dungeons, sailing, housing, and crafting.

Graphics

The graphics in Ashen Empires is about as good as you can expect from an indie isometric MMO from 2002, meaning pretty terrible.

They do have their charm though, in a very nostalgic way, so if you are an old-school RPG player, you might appreciate them.

Sound

The sound in Ashen Empires is very outdated 8-bit style music and sound effects, which can get pretty repetitive to listen to.

Is Ashen Empires Free-to-Play?

Yes, Ashen Empires is free on Steam.

Is Ashen Empires Pay-to-Win?

I wouldn’t say Ashen Empires is heavily pay-to-win but it does have some items in the store that will give you an advantage.

Conclusion

Ashen Empires is a great game for fans of old-school MMORPGs, but might not be everyone’s cup of tea due to its poor graphics and outdated sound. However, the gameplay is interesting and engaging, making it worth checking out for fans of Ultima Online and Tibia.

Do you agree with our Ashen Empires review? Let us know in the comments below!