Lost Ark is an online multiplayer action role-playing game created by Smilegate RPG, a video game company from South Korea. It was announced in South Korea on November 12, 2014, by Smilegate. On the first day of its launch, 250,000 players were online at the same time. Within one week, the number of players online at the same time reached over 350,000. The game requires devices that support DirectX 9 or higher. A Focus Group Test (FGT) was held in August 2015, the first Closed Beta Test (CBT) took place on August 24, 2016, the second CBT occurred on September 15, 2017, the final CBT was conducted on May 23, 2018, and an open beta test was held on November 7, 2018. The game officially launched on December 4, 2019.
It was released in Europe, North America, and South America on February 11, 2022, by Amazon Games. The game had the second-highest number of players online at the same time on Steam, with more than 1.3 million players. This caused long waiting times, and a new server region for Europe was added. Lost Ark cost about US$85 million to develop. The game received generally positive reviews.
Gameplay
Lost Ark mainly focuses on player versus environment (PvE) activities and exploration, such as completing quests, collecting items, and crafting. It also includes player versus player (PvP) elements. Players begin by creating and customizing their character, choosing their appearance and selecting one of six main classes: Warrior, Martial Artist, Gunner, Mage, Assassin, or Specialist. After choosing a main class, players select one of its advanced classes. Reaching level 50 allows players to enter advanced dungeons and raids, where further progress depends on the character's gear score.
At first, 18 characters were planned, but only 12 were released. Now, there are 26 characters available.
The game's combat system is known for being fast and responsive. It encourages players to combine different moves to attack enemies effectively. Each class has a unique set of skills, allowing players to adapt their strategies during battles. Using the skill tree system, players can unlock and improve abilities over time, tailoring their character's strengths to match their preferred playstyle. This system increases the complexity of combat and lets players refine their abilities based on their choices.
Development and release
The development of Lost Ark started in 2011 with the temporary name "Project T." The game uses Unreal Engine 3. It first supported DirectX 9 but was later updated to also support DirectX 11 before its release in Western countries in 2022.
Lost Ark was fully released in South Korea on December 4, 2019. It was released in North America, South America, and Europe on February 11, 2022, with Amazon Games as the global publisher. Players who pre-purchased one of four founder’s packs could play the game three days earlier, on February 8, 2022. The game was not available in Belgium and the Netherlands at first because of strict rules about loot boxes. Later, the Netherlands changed its decision. Within one day of its release, Lost Ark became the second most played game on Steam.
In 2021, Smilegate and HappyTuk planned to launch Lost Ark in Taiwan. However, the launch was delayed until May 30, 2024. The game’s Japanese server was shut down on March 20, 2024.
Reception
Lost Ark received mostly positive reviews from Metacritic, a website that collects and summarizes game reviews.
PC Magazine praised the game's combat system, stating that abilities look good, sound strong, and are enjoyable to use. The review noted that players feel powerful when using skills like diving to attack groups of enemies or defeating weaker foes.
Rock Paper Shotgun enjoyed some of the game's side activities but criticized its overall structure. The review said that while some players might enjoy the slow progress and rewards, the game's main story and tasks did not offer anything unique compared to other similar games.
PC Gamer liked the combat abilities but pointed out that the main story was not very engaging. The review mentioned that the characters in the story were not very detailed and often acted in overly simple ways, such as being either completely good or completely evil.
The version of the game released in the West also faced criticism for having a large number of bots, which are automated players that can disrupt the gaming experience.