Overview

Ragnarok Online has had many incarnations over the years, with several of them on mobile. Ragnarok Origins was published by Gravity Games, but shut down in late 2023. They stated that wanted a global version and that somehow required them to shutdown the existing game, which makes sense, but they oddly couldn't transfer characters, which is weird. In any case, the new version is Ragnarok Origins Global. It's the same game, as far as I can tell.

Classes

Ragnarok Origins Global (ROO) boasts the same classes as its predessor, including Swordsman, Acolyte, Mage, Apprentice, Thief, and Merchant. These have subclasses as you progress and while the build variety isn't huge, they're still enjoyable enough to play.

Character Creation

There's not much to it, to be honest. There's some variety but, the game is stylized and cartoony and that limits the creativity allowed.

Gameplay

ROO is quest-heavy with plenty of systems that have their own sidequests. Yes, there are dailies. A lot of the game can be autoplayed, but several of the dailies cannot, which is refreshing. Combat is basic, but ROO keeps true to its lineage with damage number display. Attacks feel impactful because of the big numbers. The game throws health and mana potions at you and provides a device to automatically use them, so as long as you're not too ambitious, it's easy to survive. That said, it is possible to bite off more than you can chew, so death certainly happens. There is auto-pathing and plenty of fast travel (Kafra Service), so it's simple to hop between cities and other locations.

The Gacha

It's a mobile title, so of course there's gacha. This is primarily in the form of pets. The pets are both collectible and assistants in battle. I'm not sure how much they really help, but they're often cute, so who cares. I'm just glad they're not all waifus. Some of them are, but it's almost a requirement at this point.

The Story

ROO, like other Ragnarok titles, is set in a realm heavily influenced by Norse Mythology. The world is Midgard and you're The Chosen One^TM^. The story itself starts off with a bit mystery and is rather engaging. It might not be innovative, but that doesn't mean it's not enjoyable.

Final Thoughts

This game appeals to me. It doesn't take itself too seriously, but has a lot of heart and it's cute. I can spend a surprising amount of time in the game without realizing and that's pretty amazing for a mobile title. Sure, the monetization is everywhere, but it's also easy enough to tune out and just experience the journey.