Don’t play Black Desert Online* it’s for your own good

It’s an enjoyable experience, but it’s also an experience that rapidly draws you in until 24 hour days pass quicker than minutes and your real life, separate from the game, fizzles out into white noise. Distracting, totally unnecessary, white noise.

I only know two kinds of people that play Black Desert Online: either they tried it for a week and dropped it, or they became totally obsessed and shove BDO into every facet of their waking life and spend hundreds of dollars on in-game items. I commonly “anti-recommend” it, warning people away from its dangerous hold.

But I guess overall it’s good, or else I wouldn’t be writing about it right now.

If you haven’t played BDO, it’s an MMO where a bunch of people go online and loiter. It’s kind of a mess, really. I haven’t played a lot of MMOs, just BDO and Wizard1o1, but it feels like a trend of the genre to be a chaotic mess. Also, there’s always someone better than you, you never have any idea what other players are talking about, and big towns are laggy.

BDO has some elements that I’ve been led to believe make it unique from other MMOs, like a really comprehensive AFK system, soft level caps, and a super in-depth character creation, but I don’t really care about those elements. When I was making a list of my favorite things about the game, there were really only two things on that list, and I found that for once, I couldn’t narrow it down to just one.

So we have a tie! Here on Those Two Things, that blog about the two elements of a video game that make it unique and one of my favorites. Yeah, I changed the name of the blog as you were reading this. Don’t check the header or URL, just take my word for it.

Usually, I wouldn’t be about changing the rules of something so basic (see: 2 ≠ 1), but in this case, I decided to appeal to the grand jury of myself and allow it just this once, because the two elements feel like opposite sides of the same coin.

Let’s talk about the first element that makes BDO one of my favorite games, and this is a little abstract, so let me paint a picture.

Do you remember the last time you went on a picnic? Personally, I can’t.

But I can remember the feeling so clearly. Sitting on a small threadbare blanket older than I am, fighting the itch of the grass tickling my bare ankles as ants launch an assault on the PB&Js we packed. The ground is hard under the blanket and the wind keeps blowing my hair straight into my mouth. It’s uncomfortable, but peaceful.

The wind pushes through the tree branches, scattering a sprinkle of little leaves over our coleslaw. There is a euphony of distant noises, as mothers call to their kids from the nearby playground and dogs bark excitedly over the open grassy field. A stone’s throw away is a busy intersection, a parking lot, a line of glimmering cars exuding heat and impatience, a reminder of the life you’re taking temporary reprieve from.

You’ve successfully carved out a place of solace where no one is paying your lazy butt any notice.

That’s one of the elements of BDO that I like the most. Those isolated places that feel so real and peaceful. When I’m sitting there in the game, I feel like I’m really there, soaking up the ambiance and slight melancholy of the “girl hiding in the corner of the party” syndrome.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

And there’s an abundance of them. You could park your butt anywhere slightly out-of-the-way and feel the effect. Spots where you can sit and listen to the sound effects of water and wind blowing through the 0’s and 1’s. It’s so relaxing, at least until someone runs up and PKs you.

But wait, there’s more! This is a two-for-one game.

The other element that keeps me comin’ back to BDO is… the combat.

It ticks all the boxes for me: there’s a learning curve, a large move set, and it’s fast. So, you know, feeling peaceful and lying around is cool and all, but sometimes you just gotta

So much is happening, sometimes you can’t even see yourself. It’s total mayhem and if you’re not watching your health bar, it could lead to a very embarrassing death. I don’t wanna brag, but I’ve died a lot. I’ve spent so many hours grinding in this game, I had to make my own playlist for the occasion.

It might seem a paltry thing behind the poetics of lonely places, but it’s completely undeniable that the combat feels downright good. The hits are satisfying, the controls feel tight, and moves look cool.

And, once you reach level 56, you “Awaken,” which unlocks a new weapon and crazy powerful moves. The difference between someone who’s Awakened and someone who hasn’t is staggering, and Awakening reprieves the monotony of the game.

There’s no doubt that when your moves are hitting and you’ve gotten into the rhythm of the combat, you feel absolutely powerful. At least until someone runs up and PKs you.

Admittedly, it’s a little harder to make whacking things with sharp objects sound as lovely as picnics and a nice nap, but the sensation of satisfiable combat is so difficult to put into equally satisfiable words. It’s more of a visceral feeling, and if it’s made right, you find yourself craving it even when you’re away from the game.

As for BDO, I absolutely love that there are two wildly different experiences side-by-side in the same game. I feel like there’s a duality to these two elements: you can sit back and relax somewhere calm, or you can run around like a madman and swing a sword around. Two opposites, that together, make the game something to return to.

Hopefully not too often. I just reclaimed my life from BDO, I don’t want to repeat the process again for at least another six months.

*Irresponsibly :b