Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning Preview

Games Radar has dished up a four-page preview of Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning, presumably after checking out the PvP-heavy MMORPG firsthand.

Personality too is important. Whereas (proper) role-playing in a lot of other MMOs seems to be the preserve of tedious escapists who think role-playing equates to talking a bit medieval and saying you really, really hate the other guys, playing in character in WO could turn out to be half the fun. Take the hooligan orcs. A far cry from the misunderstood Shamans of WoW or the monstrous puppets of Sauron in LOTRO, the orcs love war, almost for war’s sake. They love humiliating the dwarves, defiling their buildings and cutting off their cherished beards for trophies.

More to the point, the way the different classes benefit from certain combat styles will force players into a kind of role-playing. Dwarves are better at holding a location, with sniping engineers drawing in the enemy, and Runepriests buffing the Hammerers to cause maximum damage. Meanwhile, goblin Shamans draw power from conflict around them, so will be forced to get close to the action.