Elsword Free-to-Play

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Elsword Free-to-Play is a multiplayer casual role playing game. It was developed by KOG Co. Ltd. and was released on June 14, 2018. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Elsword – manga-style beat 'em up Unleash the power of each unique character in Elsword, featuring stunning skill effects and dynamic combat. Every battle is a visual spectacle! In Elsword, you can choose from 15 unique characters, each with their incredible skills, creating a dynamic and exciting combat experience. From powerful combos to smart, well-timed moves, the game’s fast-paced and thril…

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60%

Audience ScoreBased on 229 reviews

gameplay22 positive mentions

grinding18 negative mentions

Elsword offers a vibrant and dynamic gameplay experience with a deep combat system that allows for unique character styles and combo attacks.
The game is enjoyable for casual play, especially with friends, and provides a nostalgic experience for long-time players.
The character design and anime-style graphics are appealing, making the game visually engaging.

The game has a significant pay-to-win aspect, making progression difficult for free-to-play players and requiring substantial time or money investment to compete at higher levels.
The user interface is cluttered and confusing, which can detract from the overall experience, especially for new players.
Many players feel that the game has become repetitive and lacks meaningful endgame content, leading to frustration with grinding and limited rewards.

gameplay
45 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
49%
44%
7%
The gameplay of the game is generally praised for its fun and engaging mechanics, with a strong emphasis on character customization and a rewarding combat system. However, many players express disappointment over recent changes that have simplified combat and reduced content, leading to a less challenging experience. Additionally, the game faces criticism for its pay-to-win elements and technical issues, which detract from the overall enjoyment.
- “Played this for 12 years, still one of the greatest gameplay feelings I've experienced.”
- “It's a side-scroller beat 'em up MMORPG with phenomenally executed gameplay which both looks and feels fantastic.”
- “The combat surprised me positively, featuring several advanced mechanics and focusing on player skill far more than normally any MMORPG does, while still considering gear stats and builds significantly.”
- “In my first 20 minutes of gameplay, I already encountered 5 bugs, one of which nearly killed my ears (I had the volume on 28% and it was around 90 decibels).”
- “You can buy obscenely overpowered consumables which shoot your power through the roof, which are realistically not obtainable through regular gameplay.”
- “PvP is horribly unbalanced and totally unplayable due to bugs, weird mechanics, and lag.”
story
35 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
65%
9%
The story aspect of the game receives mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the interesting character backstories and engaging narratives tied to each character, while others criticize the overall story as lacking depth and being overshadowed by gameplay mechanics. Many feel that the ease of progression and focus on monetization detracts from the storytelling experience, making it less immersive. Overall, while the game offers a variety of missions and character-driven plots, the narrative is often seen as secondary to the gameplay.
- “On the plus side, the game has a good story and some interesting characters of the 14 that can be chosen, each with their own playstyle and backstory!”
- “The story is very interesting and the overall design is quite charming.”
- “Well, the story in my opinion is pretty good considering what type of game this is.”
- “The story isn't great but it could have certainly been worked on.”
- “The game is pretty fast-paced, you can reach level 99 in under 10 hours, the story is a bit boring but it's okay.”
- “Too much grind, at a certain point you can't continue even the story without being a whale.”
grinding
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The grinding aspect of the game is a significant focus, with players noting that while it requires extensive effort and time, the rewards can be satisfying for those who enjoy the grind. However, many express frustration with the repetitive nature of farming and the feeling that achievements quickly become obsolete, especially in end-game content. Overall, the game is described as a "grinding simulator," appealing primarily to players who are willing to invest considerable time and effort into progression.
- “Late to end game - as a person with 3.5k hours (without NA and private servers) I can say all you do is farming ED and abyss raid, there is nothing else to do, unless you want to build up other characters, which is miserable as a free-to-play.”
- “Even grinding like a madman doesn't help to progress.”
- “The strongest possible weapon and titles that took months of extensive grinding (like beating dungeon X 500 times) quickly became obsolete after just a year or two.”
graphics
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
54%
23%
23%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the character designs and art style, while others criticize the outdated visuals reminiscent of earlier gaming eras. Despite options for higher resolutions, many feel the graphics lack significant improvement and can be considered basic or even poor. Overall, while the visuals are not groundbreaking, they are deemed decent enough to complement the engaging gameplay.
- “Very fun and engaging <3 like for the graphics and the gameplay”
- “Elsword is very addicting, graphics are pretty good, love the character designs”
- “The art style of the game is also fantastic.”
- “The graphics are basically horrible too; even though they provided the option for 1920x1080, I see nothing different compared to the default 1024x768.”
- “Graphics:”
- “The graphics are okay; there is so much fighting and a lot of characters to choose from.”
monetization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The monetization in the game has received largely negative feedback, with many users criticizing it as heavily skewed towards pay-to-win mechanics that detract from gameplay. While some players acknowledge the presence of microtransactions, they express frustration over mandatory purchases that impact character performance, suggesting a lack of balance and focus on improving the game beyond monetization. However, a few users note that the microtransactions are not overly invasive, indicating a mixed reception overall.
- “Of course microtransactions are present, but they are not too invasive and I did not see any kind of terrible paywall around.”
- “Had fun playing this game; unfortunately, the game is quite monetized by microtransactions such as costumes with good stats (ice burner) or a necklace that gives +MP, which is mandatory for certain MP-hungry classes.”
- “There are so incredibly many systems in this game which have atrophied because the focus has exclusively been put on power through monetization.”
- “Stay away from this if you don't like pay-to-win monetization.”
- “TL;DR: fantastic gameplay and fantastic art direction, but it's run like trash and they seem generally uninterested in actually improving anything other than just pushing people towards their extremely pay-to-win monetization.”
- “The things that I really want to talk about, however, is the absolutely atrocious monetization.”
optimization
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
20%
40%
The game's optimization is criticized for requiring significant time investment to enhance character stats, particularly for accessing advanced regions, while also facing performance issues such as a poorly designed UI and frustrating gameplay mechanics. Despite some users noting good performance, the overall experience is marred by pay-to-win elements and repetitive grinding, leading to a negative perception of optimization.
- “Great performance.”
- “Performance and stability are excellent.”
- “The game has an 'item level' mechanic; endgame regions are hard to reach or impossible without a +9. While Elrianode is reachable, the continent after might be quite impossible unless you optimize your character stats, which takes a lot of time.”
- “If you're able to deal with issues like obvious pay-to-win mechanics, fast AOE attacks from bosses that one-shot you at matching levels, and a boring grind that forces you to repeat the same dungeon while locked to the same fight style and weapons, you'll also face non-permanent skill slots that require purchasing with El coins (which can only be obtained with real money) or grinding for limited-time skill slot expansion medals. The optimization is bad, the UI is horrible, and seriously, who designed the UI?”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is heavily criticized, with numerous users reporting frequent crashes, bugs, and glitches that significantly hinder gameplay. Many players have experienced issues such as being placed on incorrect servers, lack of tutorial instructions, and game elements disappearing, leading to a frustrating experience overall. Overall, the consensus is that the game suffers from severe stability problems that detract from its enjoyment.
- “Not sure if anyone else has this problem, but it constantly crashes and is buggy for me, so I won't recommend it.”
- “Horrible. Me and my friend live in the same country and city, but for some reason, I was put on a different server and can't play with my friend. Did I have a choice of servers? No, the game was like 'screw you.' Also, the game is buggy as hell. During the first tutorial, I got to the end with no instructions at all. The boss attacked, I hit him, and he went under the world. I played the tutorial a second time to find out that there were supposed to be instructions, but the first time I played, they weren't there. Long story short, it's a terrible game that doesn't care about you.”
- “Buggy as hell.”
music
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
100%
The music in the game is highly praised for its nostalgic quality and ability to enhance the overall experience, with a large and fitting soundtrack that complements the various environments. However, some users have noted issues with sound design, particularly bugs that can disrupt the audio experience.
- “I played this game a lot in my teens and just wanted to come back to play it the same old way like how I used to: same character, same class change, same dungeons/maps, and listening to the amazing music.”
- “The sound design (when it isn't bugged and blasting your ears) is also great, with a large, wonderful soundtrack that fits the vibe of all the many places you go.”
- “The soundtrack feels repetitive and lacks variety, making it hard to stay engaged.”
- “The audio quality is subpar, with some tracks sounding muffled and poorly mixed.”
- “The music doesn't match the game's atmosphere, which detracts from the overall experience.”
character development
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
33%
Character development in the game is marked by initial excitement during mid-game raids and the grind for character power, but this quickly turns into a repetitive experience that lacks satisfaction. While players appreciate the character design and customization options, the overall grind and outdated content detract from the enjoyment of character progression.
- “The character design is impressive, and the variety in character development options allows for a unique gameplay experience.”
- “Elsword is very addicting, and I love the character designs and the depth they bring to the game.”
- “The mid-game experience offers a mix of character development and challenges, making it enjoyable despite some repetitive elements.”
- “Mid-game character development feels tedious, as players struggle to gain the necessary CP for later maps and grind for raid titles. While the initial experience can be enjoyable, it quickly becomes repetitive and boring.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by a self-aware, meta commentary that highlights the player's struggles, often portraying them as amusingly futile. Players feel that the developers are playfully mocking their dedication, adding a layer of irony to the experience.
- “The last thing I want to say is that the meta is not even terrible; it's just funny.”
- “You are only digging yourself deeper into your grave believing you can get through, while the devs are laughing at your addiction.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is largely criticized, with users feeling that it fails to evoke genuine feelings or nostalgia, leaving players unsatisfied and disconnected from their experiences.
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The overall atmosphere of the game is positively received, with users noting it as pleasant and enjoyable.
- “The overall atmosphere is immersive and captivating.”
- “The game's atmosphere draws you in and makes you feel part of the world.”
- “Every detail contributes to a rich and engaging atmosphere that enhances the gameplay experience.”

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10h Median play time

173h Average play time

10-500h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 3 analyzed playthroughs

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Frequently Asked Questions

Elsword Free-to-Play is a casual role playing game.

Elsword Free-to-Play is available on PC, Windows and Cloud.

On average players spend around 173 hours playing Elsword Free-to-Play.

Elsword Free-to-Play was released on June 14, 2018.

Elsword Free-to-Play was developed by KOG Co. Ltd..

Elsword Free-to-Play has received mostly positive reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its gameplay but disliked it for its grinding.

Elsword Free-to-Play is a multiplayer game with local co-op support.

Similar games include KurtzPel, Closers, Vindictus, Tree of Savior, Kritika:REBOOT and others.

Elsword Free-to-Play

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