Icarus is a free-to-play third-person multiplayer role-playing game in a fantasy style, inspired by Korean and Japanese comics. It stands out from other MMORPGs with its many hundreds of animals that players can tame as companions or ride as mounts. There is a large game world with huge locations, various community events, massive battles, and ranked duels. Those interested can try unique dungeons with five levels of difficulty.
Icarus begins like other MMORPGs: you need to create a hero, customize their appearance and class, and then level up to over 60 to unlock all game content. There are events and quests with computer environment (PvE) and with other players (PvP). You can join Alliances and Guilds.
The game's highlight is the battles on pets, of which there are nearly a thousand. If you dreamed of flying on an eagle, riding a unicorn, controlling a mythical giant, or taming a dragon, Icarus offers you that chance! Taming animals is a separate challenging mini-game, but if successful, you get not just a loyal friend but also a partner who can be sent on special quests.
Animals are divided into classes - from simple to epic and come in two types. The first is a pet, which can be a companion and enhance the player's stats. The second is a mount, which can become a full-fledged squad member that you can ride. Flying mount battles are a common event in the game.
All animals have their own combat abilities and characteristics, which can be raised or combined at the beast farm. Taking a mount into battle can significantly increase your combat efficiency.
As for the combat system, it is simple and easy to understand quickly. It uses auto-targeting for the character's line of sight, but you can manually select targets with the mouse if desired. Attacks are linked to proper button pressing and timely use of abilities - the game features simple combo moves.
The action of Icarus takes place in the fictional fantasy world of Midlas, on several continents. The plot develops as in other games of the genre - at the beginning of the game, you need to escort Princess Lania to the King, but halfway through the journey, the squad is attacked, the guards are killed, and the princess is kidnapped. One of Lania's bodyguards, the protagonist, is the only survivor and ends up in prison.
Trouble doesn't come alone - the demon Salant has escaped from heavenly guard, restored his enormous power, and wants to take revenge on the local good deities who imprisoned him. As a result, the magical world of Icarus is on the brink of destruction.
The main quest begins in the capital. The hero must earn the King's trust, overcome palace intrigues, and dispel suspicions of treason. Along the way, Salant will be defeated, and the princess will be returned to the kingdom.
The player will visit various locations – from large cities and their suburbs to remote villages where people barely make a living, and will also venture into unique dungeons – the Lava Cave, Dracula's Mansion, ancient ruined pyramids, and even the world of demons, the walkthrough of which we described in the guide.
In Icarus, the player has access to six different classes, but the race is the same for all – humans. You can find out your class by taking our test, and here's what you will encounter in the game:
- Assassin – a melee fighter, very agile and fast. Throws daggers at enemies, strikes with short swords. Deals massive damage to a single target but cannot control crowds. All this requires confident handling, making this class difficult to master.
- Berserker – the simplest class to master in Icarus, wielding a large two-handed sword and clad in heavy armor. Excellent at crowd control, driving them into a corner with sweeping strikes, and wounds only make him stronger.
- Priest – a classic support class, strengthens team members, and if someone dies or loses a lot of health, the priest can resurrect them (restore health). The priest has low damage but is hard to kill since he wears light armor and can mass control enemies.
- Archer – skilled in both melee and ranged combat, uses the power of rain to unleash chaos on enemies. Dressed in sturdy shield armor and is a valuable member of any squad. One of the most difficult classes to master in the game.
- Mage – a classic wizard, a powerful master of elements, dealing massive area damage. As expected, has minimal health compared to other characters and does not wear armor. Casts simple spells while moving, but complex ones need to be read.
- Guardian – another melee fighter, but can be called the "tank" of Icarus, as he easily withstands enemy assaults, enhances the abilities and characteristics of allies nearby, and increases the experience gained by party members.
Player vs Environment Modes
Upon reaching the maximum level of 60, all PvE options become available to the character:
- Events in which you can participate alone or with a team of guild friends. During these events, you need to find an item (kill an NPC) and report it to the quest giver. For example, obtain a mana stone and deliver it to the NPC.
- Dungeons are performed in a separate game area and are divided into five difficulty levels, they can be completed solo or in a group of up to six players, this is the main mode for leveling up.
- Territory Bosses – exceptionally strong enemies that cannot be defeated alone, only as a team, they appear daily in specific locations on certain maps. Designed for four to six players.
- Raids – once a week, a portal opens to special locations where powerful and deadly bosses, supported by an army of minions, reside, and can be defeated by a dozen well-leveled heroes under the control of experienced players.
- Ellora's Spire – a huge tower reaching beyond the clouds. Содержит 30 небольших по площади этажей и успешное прохождение одного открывает доступ к следующему этажу. Игроков ждут сложные NPC, легендарные чудовища и титаны.
- Приручение животных – самые редкие существа прячутся от игрока в легендарных подземельях, а чтобы такого приручить потребуется особый свиток питомца. В дальнейшем животное можно перевести в камень и вставить в экипировку, оставить в обычного питомца или оседлать как маунта.
Режимы «Игрок против игрока»
Начиная с 30 уровня игрок может участвовать в следующих PvP:
- Дуэль – битва с персонажем другого игрока «один на один» для оценки своих сил и умения играть.
- Война Альянсов – разнообразные многопользовательские баталии с целью контролировать глобальную карту. Победу одерживает та сторона, которая первой убьет 1 000 противников.
- Режим Арены – битва, в которой участвуют две группы из 2-4 героев и каждый берет в бой своего питомца. Игра в игре, со своими правилами, тактикой и стратегией.
- Пустоши Экзорана – зона свободного PvP, где на игрока могут напасть другие игроки в любой момент и с любой стороны. Если же удастся выжить, то можно получить хорошие вещи.