As one of the most ambitious MMORPGs in recent years, Ashes of Creation has attracted gamers’ attention with its concept of a living, dynamic world where players’ decisions directly influence the development of civilization. The game was first announced in 2016 and has since undergone a long and arduous development process accompanied by numerous delays and changes in concept.
Over the course of nearly ten years, the Intrepid Studios team has promised to create a unique experience that combines classic MMORPG elements with innovative mechanics. One such mechanic is a dynamic system of nodes that influences the economy and political map of the world. However, after the game’s release on Steam in 2025, many players and critics encountered serious issues that fell far short of expectations.
For those unfamiliar with Ashes of Creation, it stands out from other MMORPGs thanks to its unique features.
First is the node system, which consists of dynamic settlements and cities that evolve based on players’ actions and decisions, influencing the game world’s economy, politics, and geography.
Second, Ashes of Creation offers a living, reactive world in which events and player actions directly alter the environment and social structure, creating a sense of true world evolution.
Third, Ashes of Creation emphasizes large-scale PvP battles and sieges where guilds fight for control of nodes, affecting access to resources and bonuses. Additionally, Ashes of Creation combines elements of a sandbox and a classic MMORPG. This gives players freedom of choice in character development and interaction with the world. This differs from the more linear and fixed scenarios of competitors such as World of Warcraft and Final Fantasy XIV.
However, the game’s technical state at the time of release was subpar. Despite its lengthy development period, Ashes of Creation was released with numerous bugs and technical glitches that interfere with a smooth gaming experience. Players regularly report crashes, freezes, server stability issues, and numerous graphical errors. These issues are especially problematic in PvP battles and mass events, where delays and lag can ruin the entire experience. Not only in PvP, but during normal farming, mobs sometimes spawn through walls and attack in groups of five, making survival nearly impossible. For example, during a simple sweep of a passageway, you might kill a mob, heal yourself, and, just as you regain your health, find that the mob has respawned.
This situation raises questions about the quality of the game’s testing and its readiness for an early access release. Compared to genre giants like World of Warcraft, which have undergone numerous patches and optimizations over the years, Ashes of Creation appears very unpolished and incomplete. This is particularly evident when compared to the stability and smooth gameplay of its competitors. Yes, it’s only early access, but more on that later.
The project’s intended strong point, the gameplay, also fell short. The balance between classes and mechanics is clearly off; some builds dominate, negating the variety of tactical decisions. The progression system is drawn out and requires excessive grinding, which tires players out and reduces their motivation to develop their characters.
Additionally, the promised depth of interaction with the world and other players has only been partially implemented. There is insufficient content, particularly social and economic content, at launch. Many areas are empty, and the quests are monotonous and uninteresting: kill five of these mobs, seven of those, go there, and bring this.
In this regard, Ashes of Creation falls short of genre classics such as Guild Wars 2, which has dynamic events and a variety of activities that create a lively, rich world, and Final Fantasy XIV, which is renowned for its well-thought-out quest system and social mechanics.
The game interface is particularly disappointing. It seems awkward and clunky, and it is not intuitive, which makes it difficult to learn, especially for beginners. Unlike World of Warcraft, which has a convenient and flexible interface that evolved and optimized over time to accommodate different play styles, Ashes of Creation’s interface looks outdated and poorly designed. Add to that the empty world and unattractive locations, and it’s as if we’re back in 2015.
Navigating the menu, inventory, and other systems often causes confusion and frustration, negatively affecting the overall impression of the game. This is particularly important for MMORPGs, where ease of control and quick access to information are key to successful gameplay. Even entering the upgrade menu is difficult. See for yourself what it looks like:
The plot and player direction in Ashes of Creation leave much to be desired. The story seems like a vague backdrop that doesn’t try very hard to engage or immerse players in the game world. Quests are often monotonous and shallow, and the lack of clear direction and hints makes navigating the game world difficult. In this regard, Ashes of Creation falls far short of projects such as The Elder Scrolls Online, which has well-developed and varied storylines and always provides players with clear goals and motivation to explore the world. Even classic MMORPGs, such as EverQuest II, offer a richer, more structured story experience that keeps players engaged.
The developers’ communication with the community has also attracted a lot of criticism. Over the years and through numerous delays, players’ expectations have skyrocketed. However, the Intrepid Studios team has not always provided clear and timely information about the project’s current state and future plans. This has led to mistrust and disappointment, especially when promised features are postponed or cut. Patches and updates are often perceived as rushed and insufficiently thought out, which only exacerbates the situation. Now, after the release on Steam, players feel that the developers have released the game and will spend the next month or so fixing problems, after which things will be much the same as before.
Despite years of development and lofty ambitions, Ashes of Creation was released on Steam as an unfinished and technically unstable product, which did not impress me personally. The game requires significant refinement and optimization to live up to expectations and become the unique project the developers promised. Those willing to overlook the current issues and wait for improvements may find Ashes of Creation to be an interesting experience with unique mechanics. However, the release version leaves most new users with more questions than answers and is disappointing.
