ROBOKITTYZILLA
Member
The purpose of this thread is to collect and update any news and information relating to the upcoming release and launch of the North American and European version of TERA and to discuss the beta. Please keep all discussion and updates related to the North American and European localized version of TERA. Even if information is known about the game due to the releases in Asian territories, only post officially confirmed news and information from En Masse or Frogster! This includes videos, screenshots, and other media!
THE TERA BETA IS OVER! PLEASE VISIT THE TERA |OT| FOR THE MOST UP TO DATE INFORMATION:
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=471756
BETA TEST SCHEDULE [NA]
Head Start: Saturday, April 28, 8:00 AM PDT - Tuesday, May 1
PVE Servers: Dragonfall (GAF PVE), Arachnea, Blightwood, Freeholds, Frost Reach, Serpentis Isle (Unofficial Oceanic Server), Celestial Hills (RP)
PVP Servers: Valley of Titans (GAF PVP), Jagged Coast, Basilisk Crag
Character Slots: 8 per server
Maximum Level: 38
Schedule
Closed BetaCharacter WipePlayer Creation and Name ReservationOpen Beta- Head Start: Saturday, April 28, 12:00 PM PDT - Tuesday, May 1
- Launch: May 1
BETA TEST SCHEDULE [EU]
Head Start: Friday, April 27, 2:30 PM GMT - Thursday, May 3
PVE Servers: Allemantheia, Velik, Kaia (DE), Elinu (FR)
PVP Servers: Essenia, Elion (DE), Callida (FR)
Character Slots: 8 per server
Maximum Level: 38
Schedule
Closed BetaCharacter WipeOpen BetaCharacter Wipe- Player Creation and Name Reservation: Thursday, April 26 - Friday, April 27
- Head Start: Saturday, April 28, 3:00 PM GMT - Thursday, May 3
- Launch: May 3
BETA F.A.Q. [NA]
Q: Are the beta tests under NDA?
A: No, the beta tests are not under NDA. Feel free to screenshot, record, stream, and share your experiences with the world!
Q: Where do I download the beta client from?
A: If you pre-ordered the game from En Masse, log into your En Masse account and check the "Account" page. There should be an option to download the installer. If you received a beta code from a retailer or game site, you will need to redeem the code on your account before the client will become available. If you're having trouble maintaining a good download speed, go into Launcher Settings and turn off P2P sharing.
Q: Will I have to download or install a new client for launch?
A: No. The beta client will be fully updated to the launch client and will carry you through open beta, head start, and beyond.
Q: Where do we submit bug reports and provide feedback from the beta to En Masse?
A: Head to the official TERA community forums. There is an entire sub-set of forums dedicated to beta feedback.
Q: What will happen between each beta phase?
A: Starting with closed beta, En Masse will be treating every player as a paying customer and their feedback will matter. They will work on tweaking short term issues and planning for long term content shifts. Long term feedback will be prioritized into a content update schedule. There is a dedicated team at Bluehole standing by to address all western needs. Gone are the days for games from the east not having the development team's attention and dedication to our market. What En Masse changes and tweaks will be determined by us and not by what update plan another market is following.
A: How will open beta be different from closed beta?
A: First of all, open beta will make major changes to the starting experience that have been in the works for some time now. This may coincide with K-TERA's recent update that includes a complete revamp of 1-40 leveling. In addition, anyone that applies to test during open beta will be granted access to the game during the test period, with or without a pre-order. The open beta is also the true start date for all pre-order customers! See below for more information.
PRE-ORDER CUSTOMERS WILL BE ABLE TO BEGIN PLAYING TERA ON APRIL 19TH!
All pre-order customers that participate in closed beta will be able to carry over all character data until the end of closed beta. Non pre-order customers will have their character data deleted after each beta test. After the final closed beta, there will be a complete wipe. Just before the open beta begins, pre-order customers will be allowed to select their server, create a character, and reserve their character name. Only one character name reservation will be allowed at this time. Finally, the open beta will begin, which will be the actual start date for pre-order customers. There will be no character wipe after open beta!
GENERAL INFORMATION
NA Release Date: May 01, 2012
EU Release Date: May 03, 2012
Developer: Bluehole Studio
NA Publisher: En Masse Entertainment
EU Publisher: Frogster
Rating: M/PEGI 12
Platform: PC
System Requirements
Minimum:
OS: Windows XP, VISTA or 7 (Latest Service Pack)
CPU: AMD Athlon64 3200+ or Intel Pentium 4 3.20G
RAM: 2 GB
Graphics Card: Radeon X1600XT or Geforce 7600GT
At least 30GB of hard drive space
DirectX®: DirectX 9.0c
Recommended:
OS: Windows XP, VISTA or 7 (Latest Service Pack)
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ or Intel Core2 Duo E6750 2.66G
RAM: 2 GB or more
Graphics Card: Radeon HD 3870 or Geforce 8800GT
At least 30GB of hard drive space
DirectX®: DirectX 9.0c
Not sure if you can run TERA? Try En Masse Entertainment's TERA diagnostic tool:
http://download.enmasse.com/diag.zip
Websites:
http://tera.enmasse.com [NA]
http://www.tera-europe.com [EU]
http://tera-gaf.enjin.com [NA/EU GAF Guild Website]
What is TERA?
TERA or The Exiled Realm of Arborea, is an MMORPG developed by Bluehole Studio utilizing Epic's Unreal Engine 3, that was originally released in South Korea on January 25, 2011.
What differentiates TERA from other MMOs?
TERA's biggest selling point is its "True Action Combat" system. The system features live-action interactive combat with a free-targeting mechanism that places emphasis on player skill, positioning, timing, and aim rather than player level and equipment. Timing, dodging, and chaining abilities, spells, and attacks are vital to a player's success.
Who is Bluehole Studio?
Bluehole Studio is a new South Korean based development studio established in 2007 with a focus on creating the best MMOs imaginable for the global market that can exceed both Eastern and Western expectations. Bluehole was founded by former NCSoft veterans and employees that worked on the Lineage series of MMO games. Bluehole is currently working very closely with En Masse Entertainment, their North American subsidiary that was previously known as Bluehole Interactive. Bluehole Studio won the Presidential award for TERA at the 2011 Korean Game Awards. The game also received awards for Graphics, Character Design, and Sound.
Who is En Masse Entertainment and why should I care?
En Masse is comprised of former NCSoft CTOs Dr. Jae-Heon Yang and Patrick Wyatt. Wyatt worked with Blizzard on Warcraft, Starcraft, and Diablo. Wyatt also co-founded Arenanet, developer of Guild Wars. Other team members include Chris Lee who worked on properties such as Need for Speed, Halo, and Age of Empires and former NCSoft employees Brian Knox and Yong Taek Bae.
These industry veterans are responsible for localizing, marketing, and publishing TERA in North America. En Masse worked with Bluehole prior to the Korean release and their close relationship and continued feedback to Bluehole Studio is instrumental in the current and future development of TERA as a global MMO product for all markets. En Masse Entertainment is considered the North American branch of Bluehole Studio and was previously known as Bluehole Interactive, a subsidiary of Bluehole Studio.
Who is Frogster?
Frogster is a Berlin-based international publisher of online computer games, currently focusing on marketing and publishing MMO titles. Frogster has partnered with En Masse and Bluehole Studio to publish the game in English, French, and German for the European market.
STORY
Thousands of years ago, two titans of unimaginable power, Arun and Shara, entered into formless voids and for reasons we can only guess, fell asleep. As the two titans slumbered, TERA emerged around them. The first beings to call Tera home were twelve godlike beings, formed from the dreams of the titans. It was not long before these gods were at war with each other. As the dream continued, new creatures emerged known as mortals. They were less powerful but far more numerous. Arun dreamed of ambitious Elves, clever Humans, honor bound Amani, powerful Giants, scheming Devas, and mischievous Poporis. Shara dreamed of sly Sikandari, dark Gulas and Vampirs, fierce Wendigos, strange Faeries, and serpentine Nagas. The mortals were forced into the divine wars of the gods, which eventually left the gods dead, imprisoned, or otherwise diminished. The mortal races did not escape unscathed. Some—like the Sikandari, and most of the Giants—were wiped out but others rose from the ashes such as the Barakas and Castanics. Now that the wars have ended, the seven races; Amani, Barakas, Castanics, Elin, High Elves, Humans, and Poporis must band together to fend off a new enemy. A metallic race from the underworld called Argons; their goal is to wake the titans and bring about the destruction of TERA. As a Valkyon Federation solider, you must ally with the seven races in a fight for your existence in order to prevent this great cataclysm.
FEATURES
- Dynamic "True Action Combat" system
- Free targeting and location based damage
- 8 classes and 7 races
- 80+ zones
- 1700+ quests
- 600+ unique monsters and enemies
- 200+ unique traits, skills, spells, and abilities
- 7 Professions including Gathering, Alchemy, Tailoring, Leatherworking, Armorsmithing, Weaponsmithing, and Focuscrafting
- Enhancement system that lets you customize equipment, weapons, spells, skills, and abilities through Sockets & Glyphs, Crystals, and Enchanting
- Armor customization via Armor Dyeing and Armor Remodeling system. Customize the color of your armor and use your preferred equipment without penalties by transferring armor stats
- Achievement and Rewards system
- Cross server party match-making system for instance dungeons
- Advanced combo and skill chaining system
- Groundbreaking political system. Choosing a province or continent, players can become Vanarch, the ruler of a province, or Exarch, the ruler of a continent. Doing so will grant the player prestige, glory and power.
- PVP and PVE content including battlegrounds (Summer 2012), duels, arenas, and more
- Streamlined group, party, and guild systems
- Gigantic challenging zone bosses
- Roaming notorious monsters known as BAMS (Big Ass Monsters)
- Advanced enemy AI, providing an intense and engaging combat experience
- Ride horses, lions, and other mounts and travel to cities via teleportation or in style with Pegasus or flying dragons
- Sprint, dash, teleport, jump, dodge, climb, and swim as you explore the massive world of TERA and fight enormous deadly monsters
- Quests with varying degrees of difficulty and challenging solo, multiplayer, and group content
- Explore a massive persistent world full of diverse terrain and beautiful landscapes, without loading screens or zone transitions
- Stunning graphics and beautiful visuals powered by Epic's Unreal Engine 3
PRICING AND PAYMENT SYSTEM
Monthly subscription with a digital release and retail box. Subscriptions can be in 1, 3, 6, or 12 month intervals. Players that subscribe to TERA in 3, 6, or 12 month intervals prior to the May 01, 2012 launch date will receive inaugural pricing with reduced rates. En Masse also tweeted that customers will not be charged any subscription fees until the free 30 day trail period has ended. I can confirm this as I pre-ordered two copies and paid a 12-month subscription up front when the pre-orders went live, and I have only been billed the 59.99 for each game.
Game
Standard Edition: $49.99/€49.95
Digital Collector's Edition: $59.99/€59.95
Digital Collector's Edition Upgrade: $9.99 (NA Only)
Digital Pre-Order Mini: €4.95 (EU Only)
Retail Collector's Edition Box: $79.99/€69.95
Subscription
Monthly: $14.99/€12.99
Special Limited Time Inaugural Pricing
3-Month: $35.85 ($11.95/month)
6-Month: $59.70 ($9.95/month)
12-Month: $107.40 ($8.95/month)
Normal Rate Pricing, Beginning May 1st at 12:00am PST
3-Month: $38.85 ($12.95/month)
6-Month: $65.70 ($10.95/month)
12-Month: $119.40 ($9.95/month)
EU Discount Pricing
3-Month: €35.97 (€11.99/month)
6-Month: €65.94 (€10.99/month)
12-Month: €119.88 (€9.99/month)
PRE-ORDER
You can pre-order TERA for North America from the En Masse official store. You can pre-order a physical retail copy from Amazon, Gamestop, Target, Wal-Mart, or Best Buy. The White Stallion mount is exlcusive to the En Masse store while other retailers will have different exclusive mounts. The EU release can be pre-ordered directly from Frogster. The pre-order options and bonuses for the NA version are listed below. For specific EU pre-order bonus details, please check the Frogster site linked below.
PRE-ORDER TERA FROM EN MASSE [NA]
PRE-ORDER TERA FROM FROGSTER [EU]
Pre-Order Bonus [NA]
The retail Collector's Edition Box which includes the soundtrack, guide, map, and compass is only available via brick and mortar retailers and Amazon. Amazon currently only has the Standard Edition listed.
F.A.Q.
Q: Should I be concerned about the NCSoft lawsuit against En Masse and Bluehole?
A: NCSoft is seeking an injunction against En Masse to prevent the release of TERA in North America. NCSoft is claiming that former employees that created Bluehole Studio stole Lineage 3 assets and used them along with other trade secrets to create TERA. A similar lawsuit was filed against Bluehole in South Korea which resulted in jail time for some employees and fines but did not prevent the launch or ongoing production and development of the game. The court decision was later overturned by a higher court authority in Korea in favor of Bluehole. I see this as nothing more than NCSoft attempting to drag TERA and Bluehole's name through the mud in hopes of getting a pay off. This will likely have zero impact on the launch or maintenance of the game.
Q: Will there be a trial period?
A: Anyone that purchases the game will receive 30 days of free game time. The EU version includes 37 free days of gametime.
Q: Can I play this with a controller?
A: Yes, the game will feature full controller support as well as robust Keyboard and Mouse support.
Q: Will there be a console version?
A: The game is currently PC only and there are no plans to develop a console version.
Q: What is the current level cap?
A: The level cap will be 60 at launch.
Q: Is there going to be open world PVP?
A: There will be PVP and PVE servers available at NA launch. PVP servers will feature open PVP while PVE servers will feature consensual PVP via battlegrounds and duels.
Q: What are the major differences from the Korean release?
A: The English release is being completely localized with full voice acting. En Masse is going the extra mile by ensuring that the localization is appropriate for Western tastes and that the story and lore will meet our demanding expectations. Most items, races, classes, spells, skills, and abilities are direct translations from the Korean version but the story and quests have undergone a few cultural changes. The way PVP works will be slightly different for Western audiences and En Masse will be adding PVP only and PVE only servers for the NA release. In addition, the sexuality of the Elin race has been significantly toned down (e.g. shorts to cover the lower body, extensions to existing armor to cover more revealing parts of the body such as cleavage, etc.).
Q: Does future development of the game look promising?
A: TERA launched in South Korea at the beginning of last year and Bluehole has already released a major expansion for the game with a second expansion coming in February that will add a new class, new zones, new dungeons, and raise the level cap to 60. In addition to the major updates, there have been several minor updates that have added additional content to the game. All of these were released as free updates to the game. Bluehole outlined a massive update plan for the first year of the game's release which still hasn't been finished and I'm sure they have a lot of plans for the future.
Q: Is there an authenticator available for enhanced account security?
A: En Masse uses a proprietary account security system called "Account Armor" that works like "Steam Guard" for Steam. If an unrecognized machine is detected at login, the user will be prompted to enter an authentication code sent to the user's e-mail address.
Q: How many characters are allowed per account?
A: Currently there are 8 individual character slots allowed per server, per account.
Q: Where are the servers located?
A: The NA servers are located on the East Coast, in Chicago. EU servers are located in Frankfurt, Germany.