NCSoft Announces Lineage W, The "Completion" Of The Series, With Worldwide Single-server PvP

NCSoft has unveiled Lineage W, its new vision for a global MMORPG. The "W" stands for "World," and the game "aims to be the zenith and completion of the series," according to Lineage W Group Leader Lee Sung-gu.

In development for our years, Lineage W is played from an ARPG-like isometric view, while employing effects like camera shake to maintain the "distinct, choppy animation sword swings in 2D sprites," as Development Section Chief Choi Hong-young put it. The art and themes are darker than previous Lineage games, especially coming through in the individual class stories.

What sets Lineage W apart -- and brings the "W" to the forefront -- is its focus on the Global Battle Community. Lineage W's PvP battles can involve players from all over the world, and NCSoft has taken steps to ensure that people can play together despite language barriers, including voice-to-text functionality. Instead of guilds, Lineage W will have "blood pledges," along with an Alliance system that forms the basis for the large-scale world battles.

Lee described current Lineage games as "aggressively hostile towards new players," an issue that's especially the case in Korea and would be even worse for an international audience. Lineage W will have more information available in-game, such as monster and hunting ground information, boss stats and respawn time, real-time combat data, and more. Information will be unlocked as you play the game, which Choi called "information farming."

The Lineage W website doesn't have a lot more information beyond the presentation we've embedded below, but will likely be updated in the coming months. You can pre-register for the game right now on mobile devices, and NCSoft plans to launch Lineage W -- globally, of course -- via its Purple platform for Android, iOS, and PC by the end of the year; a PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch launch will come in 2022.