Vanguard: Saga of Heroes Previews
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Category: News ArchiveHits: 947
I learned that combat in Vanguard has quite a bit of depth to it, particularly if you're in a group. Your basic spells and special attacks are popped into a user-customized bar on-screen, and these abilities can be queued up while others are cooling down or in the process of being executed. Positional attacks aren't just for backstabbing rogues either, with quite a few different moves made available based on being in the right place at the right time. In the group environment, certain attacks will also trigger opportunities for other players to add a special attack of their own. A system of combos and finishers is thus accessible to those capable of paying attention during battle, much like the Renkei system utilized in Final Fantasy XI. Gone are the days of hitting auto-attack and reading a book between pulls, unless you're looking to cause a group wipe.
And a snip from GameZone's article:
But while all that is well and good, the differences are what will make this game shine. Some of the initially noticeable ones come from the user interface (UI), which is loaded with information and continues to give more as you progress. There are two (chat) style windows, one for actually chatting and one for combat information. Mob bars and team member bars appear, but rather than just bars displaying HP (hit points), they also show spells and skills being used. Knowing what the mob is loading up to attack you with is important because there is a chance you can interrupt that attack or exploit a weakness while your opponent is preparing that attack.
