Brighter Shores Early Access Review

mmorpg.com:

Brighter Shores is a new MMO from Andrew Gower, one of the founders of Runescape. The game stands out for all the right reasons. This point-and-click MMO is in Early Access on Steam and instantly calls to mind its spiritual predecessor while establishing its own unique identity through an original episodic approach. After spending approximately 35 hours playing what’s currently available, there is a lot I can say about this title.

The start in Hopeport

You start as newly recruited guards in Hopeport, a bustling port city that acts as the MMO’s opening hub. Brighter Shores has four episodes or areas, giving you a new narrative that expands the profession system. The main gameplay loop involves skill growing, quests, and some monster bashing, but this MMO mixes the formula up with a sandbox-like style of character growth.

You’ll be able to choose between the Cryoknight, the Guardian, and the Hammermage when you create your character. Every class needs certain things for crafting and progressing down a specific class’s path. Unfortunately, the Early Access build has no class-specific combat skills.

Brighter Shores’ most significant achievement is the profession system. It currently has 18 different professions spread across 4 episodes. There is an impressive level of 500 for every profession, which gives a ton of scope for long-term progression. These professions are distinguished from others by their level of attention to detail. 

For example, in blacksmithing, instead of just clicking to build stuff, you have many steps to be involved with. You start the furnace, put ore on the furnace one by one, manage the smelting process, refine the ores, and craft items one by one. Every step has its own animation with unique motion. In fishing, like in other forms of gathering, you must actively target and catch most types of fish.

The way the MMO is divided into episodes is a fun twist on the profession system. New professions are limited to each new episode zone. At first,