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Zenith

Platform(s): PC, PlayStation 4
Genre: Online Multiplayer
Developer: Ramen VR

About Rainier

PC gamer, WorthPlaying EIC, globe-trotting couch potato, patriot, '80s headbanger, movie watcher, music lover, foodie and man in black -- squirrel!

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'Zenith' Shows Off Gameplay, Gets Beta 1 Date, Keys Being Given Away - Trailer

by Rainier on Dec. 3, 2021 @ 12:42 p.m. PST

Zenith is a fantasy cyberpunk VR MMORPG that offers a futuristic universe in which players will fight, craft, explore, and live as they forge alliances and friendships in guilds and parties.

What if you could become the hero you were always destined to be…

Zenith is inspired by anime and JRPG classics and reimagined as a dynamic living world where players will be able to play, socialize, and create their own unique experiences in the first cross-platform VR MMORPG.

Zenith is a VR MMO that marries a colorful open world with adrenaline pumping action adventure gameplay with beautiful, hand-crafted environments that you’ll spend hours getting lost in. From lush canopies in the Amarite Forest, to turquoise blue waters at the Radiant Coast, to the hyper futuristic city of Zenith itself.

Set generations after a cataclysmic event known only as The Fracture, players will be drawn into an engrossing tale as they fight man and gods alike to prevent catastrophe from striking again. Using the power of Essence, the magical lifeblood of all living beings, players will grow increasingly powerful as they adventure together — meeting a colorful cast of champions and villains along the way.

In the game world, the city of Zenith has been sheltered from the mayhem unleashed by the crash of a massive starship. While the beasts and horrors brought by the spaceship have been brought under control, the seal imprisoning the God-King responsible for the chaos grows weaker every day—heroes are needed to venture forth to save Zenith from another calamity. Characters who take up this challenge can participate in epic raids and world events or go solo to become a powerful leader whose deeds will be forever immortalized.

Zenith developer RamenVR announced that Beta 1 starts on December 18, 2021.

Okay, now to talk about the trailer. One of my absolute favorite things we’ve added to the game recently is the “sensitive gliding” mechanic that gives you wicked awesome control when you fly, being able to dive towards the ground like an eagle swooping towards its pray, swerve through a narrow arch at the last second, or hover over an enemy for a moment before you drop down on them and take them out, ninja style. The freedom that sensitive gliding gives you is incredible and I can’t wait for you all to experience it yourselves!

Another cool mechanic that the trailer shows off is being able to throw your swords in combat (I showed that a little in the last email). This mechanic can be strategically used to stun and damage enemies from afar before you take them full-on for more damage in closer ranged melee combat. For mages, the trailer gives glimpses of new abilities and spells and even a new magical shield!

Lastly, the trailer shows off a bit more of the diversity of the world, spanning from desert villages, to lush forests, to different parts of the city, plains and even sewers below the city. One thing that's harder to see from the trailer is the completely rewritten AI system from the ground-up that brings characters in the world to life, makes them more engaging and interesting to fight and makes the whole world feel more alive.

Honestly you all, we wouldn't have made it to where we are today without you all and we can’t wait for you to join us in the Beta soon!

RamenVR are giving away ~1000 Beta Keys to help test. Join the Discord and our Mailing List for a chance to get access!

In Zenith you can climb anything. Use your hands to climb up the sides of skyscrapers or giant cliff faces, discovering secret areas and searching for hidden treasure. You have limited stamina, which increases as you explore the world, so you’ll need to plan your ascent carefully. Soar through the skies using our Gliding system to quickly fly to distant areas of the map, get the drop on some enemies, or just take in the view.

The most amazing open world doesn’t mean squat if you don’t have a deep core game loop to keep you satisfied for hours, and that’s exactly what the developers aim to deliver with a hyper-immersive combat system that’s only possible in VR. 

While many MMORPGs feel like spreadsheet simulators, Zenith feels tactile and simple to learn. Instead of learning a million formulas about damage, you’ll be mastering intuitive mechanics like throwing, blocking, and dodging. Parry the cold steel of your enemy’s blade, slam your staff like a wizard, and even dodge arrows while slowing time.

Mastery of blade and magic in Zenith takes both time and practice as you learn how to launch the perfect combination of attacks, blocks, and spells while fighting a variety of powerful enemies that will test your mettle. For your perseverance you’ll be rewarded with rare and powerful weapons and abilities that will help you reach the heights of power.

No MMORPG would be complete without the “Massively Multiplayer” ingredient and Zenith is no exception. The social experience is especially important to us as developers because we believe that online games can empower people, and build relationships as strong as real life!

Zenith will feature loads of party content including epic world bosses, public events, and dungeons. Particularly challenging content will require careful coordination, and that’s where our guild system comes into focus. Start your own guild with your friends and rise to prominence, or join an established guild to conquer Zenith’s greatest challenges.

One of the joys of VR is that it gives you a chance to completely reinvent yourself and RamenVR has crafted its class system to do just that. In Zenith your class doesn’t dictate what role you’ll play. Roles aren’t tied to your class, so you can Tank as an Essence Mage or heal as a Blade Master whenever you want! RPGs are all about choice, so the devs designed all their systems to provide fun and surprising new combinations to match any playstyle.

Key Features

  • Dynamic Living World: Huge, visually striking, and beautiful environments with no loading screens, created with Improbable and using Spatial OS, the worlds most advanced MMORPG platform
  • Cross-Platform Play: Players who don’t yet have VR can play on PC in the same world as VR players—no one is left out of the adventure
  • Class and Character Customization: Play your character exactly as you want, with every class able to become each role, depending on which skills are equipped
  • Advanced AI: An immersive world filled with believable characters and AI—monsters will dodge, hide, and hunt in lifelike ways and AI avatars allow characters to continue playing with other people while their players are offline
  • Streamlined, Physical Combat System: Leverage the physicality of VR for satisfying gameplay using timing and rhythm; pull earth shields out of the ground, suck creatures in by fast balling a gravity well, or simply blast them using chain lightning

The game’s technology is powered by Spatial OS, the world’s most advanced MMORPG platform, which enables the creation of large and dynamic open worlds. The platform will enable real physics, complex AI, and a landscape that evolves and is shaped by players and NPCs alike. There are also plans to use Spatial OS for features like conquerable player settlements, crafting, and customizable player housing.

Zenith is the brainchild of Andy Tsen and Lauren Frazier, co-founders of Ramen VR with a decade of experience at Unity, Google, and building startup companies. The duo met at Oculus’s VR accelerator program, which they won, and then co-produced with Oculus Conjure Strike, a 3v3 competitive VR shooter that was nominated for VR Game of the Year and Multiplayer Game of the Year by Unity. In addition to the game’s core team comprised of passionate game talent, Adam Hetenyi, the lead game designer on Trove and The Surge 2, serves an advisor on the project.

Zenith is in development for PSVR, Oculus Quest and Rift, scheduled for 2021.


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