I’ve been playing a lot of Sword of the New World (SotNW) at the behest of a reader. I won’t reinvent the wheel since Ten Ton Hammer’s Cody “Micajah” Bye has reviewed the game already, but I’ll share my thoughts because someone took the time to write me with a suggestion. First, I like the graphics of SotNW for both their quality (high) and their style. The game has a very Victorian feel that I find refreshing in a market cluttered with fantasy look alikes. The quest system and lore give a sense of a real world with real politics. The hang up for me is the combat. SotNW lets players control three characters at a time, but the execution is lacking. Despite the number of skills and stances my characters learn, I find that auto attack is the best way to fight. In fact, I’d park my family near a spot with a few spawns and set their stance so they attack anything that wanders near. I’d go get something to drink, play my Nintendo DS, or watch a movie while I leveled up. It’s not the most engaging combat system I can imagine, so SotNW won’t make my Top Ten.

Building off of the theme of games that play themselves not being very engaging, I am moving Magic World Online out of the list this week after having it there nine months. The story is great, the character development of NPCs almost is unmatched, and the gameplay is fun—except for the bot. This built-in automated AI program is designed to take the dull grind out of the game, but it really just succeeds at taking the player out of the game. It’s why Eric “Dalmarus” Campbell rates an otherwise great game only one hammer out of five.

Moving into the list is Perfect World International (PWI), which has some great features despite feeling a bit like a grind. Stay tuned for more on PWI.

Top Ten Free-to-Play Games January 6, 2009
Rank		Game
1 Last week: 2		Runes of Magic - (www.runesofmagic.com) Frogster Runes of Magic Portal Preview
2 Last week: 1		Atlantica Online - (http://atlantica.ndoorsgames.com/) NDOORS Atlantica Portal Ten Ton Hammer Review
3 Last week: 3		Dungeon Runners - (http://www.dungeonrunners.com) NCSoft Dungeon Runners Portal Ten Ton Hammer Review
4 Last week: 4		Mabinogi - (http://mabinogi.nexon.net) NEXON Mabonogi Portal Ten Ton Hammer Review
5 Last week: N/A		Requiem: Bloodymare - (www.playrequiem.com) Gravity Interactive Requiem Portal Preview
6 Last week: 6		Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine - (http://megaten.aeriagames.com) Aeria Games & Entertainment Megaten Portal Preview (coming soon!)
7 Last week: 7		Warrior Epic - (http://warriorepic.com) Possibility Space Warrior Epic Portal Preview (coming soon!)
8 Last week: 8		Dream of Mirror Online - (http://domo.aeriagames.com) Aeria Games & Entertainment DOMO Portal Ten Ton Hamster DOMO Portal
9 Last week: 9		Exteel - (www.exteel.com) NCsoft Exteel Portal Ten Ton Hammer Review
10 Last week: 10		Perfect World International - (www.perfectworld.com) Perfect World Entertainment, Inc. Perfect World International Portal Preview

About This List
Please refer to the Top Ten Free-to-Play Games Portal to find out how to get a game you make or like on this list.