Turf Battles is back and better than ever, this time being published by the ever changing Aeria Games, the same people who have brought you other popular games such as Last Chaos, 12 Sky, Shaiya and Dream of Mirror. However, I’m sure many of you must be wondering, what’s the point in publishing a game that was previously shut down? Well, to answer that, we’re going to have to take another look at this games rather impressive features.

At first, this game takes the aspect of most other MMORPGs already on the market – that is, one click auto attack and movement, talk to this npc, kill this monster, collect that item, get these and then put them in here – but don’t let that fool you as while Turf Battles might seem to be just another you know what close, countless other unique facets lurk just beneath the surface. As said, movement is by way of the mouse, yet you can also jump and there are some other hot-keys such as auto-loot to help you out on your way. Essentially, this makes grinding – which unfortunately is a part of this game – much quicker and less repetitive.

Within the game, you will find two races, human and Nephilim, which you can choose between. Essentially, though both races are the same, the one you choose will affect which character classes you are able to follow. As a human, you will be able to choose between the following classes; blade warrior, fist warrior and the red mage, whereas the Nephilim can choose between the archer and blue mage. You should choose your race and class carefully as while some have aspects which allow for progression, others do not. Essentially, this might be seen as a limitation by some players, yet the idea was to simplify character classes so as to allow for developers to focus on other areas of game play.

Much of the fun in Turf battles revolves around Player Vs Environment situations in which their are countless monsters to discover and battle as well as heaps of quests which you obtain from the various  NPC’s you will meet throughout your adventure. Some of the monsters, specifically those found in the dungeons are really tough, thus it would be advised that you hook up with other players and form parties. For those of you who like to solo, it is possible; it just means that you will have to wait a little longer before taking on some of the bigger baddies. Like most MMORPG’s killing monsters equals both loot and experience. Experience gains you levels and attribute points which go towards your basic stats as well as learning new skills. Loot, however, is yours to do with as you will. You can spend it on items, weapons and armour. You can also craft your own stuff, if you have the right skills and materials.

By far, the largest draw card of Turf Battles is both the concept of Turfs – this being an area which players can control and must therefore defend against other players who would seek to take it from them – Player Vs Player content which many gamers have said is the best they have ever seen. It is fast, furious, fun and can take part just about anywhere in the game once you reach over level 40, which believe me, does not take as long as you might think as levelling in this game is very simple. PvP combat, as I have said, is fast and can take place and just about anytime, whether you are willing or not. However, penalties for dying aren’t too bad and you loose nothing more than a little experience.

Turf Battles is simple and can be a bit of fun when played with friends. The graphics and sound, due to the game’s age, aren’t great, but the other content more than makes up for it. This is a title which should just be played casually and not taken too seriously. If you do that, you will have no fun at all.