Players can select from 4 different character classes: the swift Dragon Knights, the hard-hitting Berserkers, the long-ranged Valkyries, and the magic-caster Elementalist. Each class is capable of wielding different kinds of weapons, like spears and dual swords for Dragon Knights. Even the bow-using Valkyries can use bladed weapons for melee combat. This wide selection of weaponry gives a sense of versatility for the players without causing undue imbalances to the game. One unfortunate mistake SUN did is gender-locking the classes. To be honest, the era of gender-locked jobs is over and done. The game should’ve been more lenient with this part. Expect to see guys with girl avatars, especially from the Valkyrie class. It’s best not to get fooled. But as compensation, the character’s height, head, hair and facial features maybe changed with the limited selection the game has. I look forward to the day SUN allows the gender selection option, and more character customization options.

SUN Online is a quest-driven game. A huge chunk of your stay in SUN is led by long chains of quests that are also plot-driven. There’s some lengthy text to read in some occasions, but it won’t generally slow down play time. It also provides a clearer understanding of your role in SUN. The number of quests increase as the character reaches higher levels and explores more maps. Thankfully, you’re rewarded generously with exp, items and money. Even the tutorial quest chain is kind enough to award your character with an armor set. Perhaps the only flaw in SUN’s quests would be the increasing demand for monsters. Some quests require taking down a field miniboss, which in turn, every single player would target. Although partying remedies the situation a bit, the demand can still be quite high, doubling the waiting time for the other parties. Once you’re past that problem, there’s the Area Conquest system you have to look into. This system measures in percentage the extent of a certain map’s completion. Conditions for completion depend on the quests completed in that map, monsters (regular, elite and hidden) killed, and PvP points gathered. Higher percentages yield better rewards, of course. For compulsive or competitive gamers, this feature is for you. It’s no World of Warcraft achievement, but it gives players something to do other than pointlessly grinding. 

SUN Online has a slightly different take on character building. Apart from distributing the usual stat and skill points, SUN Online adds something else to keep things complex, interesting and balanced at the same time. Each character class has two different skill trees to choose from. To gain access to the skills in a certain skill tree, players need to allocate stat points to unlock the skill tree. It’s a bit fussier for new and experimenting players, but it also opens up to more diverse skill builds. On the other hand, this character building process makes hybrid builds less formidable at higher levels, due to the inherent lack of skills.

As you journey into the SUN world, you’ll notice the absence of tradeskills. The only visible presence of harvesting/gathering is during quest item searches. Players would rely more on monster loot for rare equips. To compensate for this, SUN has a unique Battle Zone system for weary hunters and grinders. Players can create dungeons according to their terms and level. Some dungeons can be a PvP battle zone or a simple map for hunting and grinding. Mission maps are more connected to the story and some quests. Each room can accommodate up to 10 players, escalating the experience to that of a raid. Players could spend more than a hundred hours just mastering and clearing every single user-created dungeon. I personally enjoyed creating my own battle zone, my own dungeon to hunt and grind to my heart’s content. This was one of the best features SUN has. It gave players the assurance of extended gameplay, more than hundreds of hours to devote time to!

When the SUN website advertises about the graphics, you’d better believe it! The SUN is definitely shining on this one. Despite being developed in 2005, the graphics were way ahead of its time. Environments are lush and vibrant. Character, NPC and monster models are rendered in sheer accurate detail. Even the armor and weapon details have the sharp details that complement the character’s prowess. There’s the issue on animation though. The movements are often too stiff for its own good. It reminded me of the robotic-moving Lineage II or Granado Espada. But here’s another consolation: musical score. Do you remember the Lord of the Rings trilogy? I’m sure everyone’s heard of it. The composer for LotR trilogy, Howard Shore, was at the helm of composing the musical score for SUN! Now, how’s that for something epic? You may hear hints of LotR-inspired orchestra in the game, eventually. SUN’s music delivers something very powerful for an online game. The musical score is at par with the game’s setting and that feel of being immersed in a world filled with chaos and disarray. To put it simply, Howard Shore’s work for SUN is the best orchestral music made for an online game. I have yet to hear BGMs better than this. And by the way, you can buy the original soundtrack from Amazon too!

Final words: it’s not “ultimate,” but SUN is sure to be in between the lines of “epic” and “awesome.” Amazing graphics, a legendary musical score, immersive gameplay… What more can you ask for? I am now a firm believer that Soul of the Ultimate Nation was worthy of all the praise and recognition it had from South Korea. We have a masterpiece here! If you don’t have the money to play Aion or World of Warcraft, have no fear. Soul of the Ultimate Nation will fix your daily gaming dietary needs. Its free-to-play option and manageable system requirements make this game almost impossible to resist. Soul of the Ultimate Nation is definitely a must-play!

Review Lord Rein
October 26, 2009