One of the most frustrating aspects of growing up is having the money to buy the games you want, but no longer enough time to play them. That’s doubly true when it comes to the vast worlds and endless grinds of MMORPGs. If you look back fondly on those many evenings and weekends poured into the likes of Ultima Online, World of Warcraft, or Runescape, Dominus Automa wants to offer you a way to scratch the itch without asking you to clear out your entire schedule. Sounds interesting? There’s a playtest underway right now.
Developer Metashift Labs describes Dominus Automa as an MMO “for busy adults who still love online gaming but don’t have endless hours to play anymore.” Rather than lumping the neverending grind onto your shoulders, it lets you make the important decisions, but leaves your hero to do all the boring bits while you’re offline. Choose your character’s class, skills, and combat style. Decide where their priorities lie and their long-term goals, whether that be PvE, PvP, exploration, endgame combat, crafting, gathering, or anything else. Then leave the grind to your avatar.
While you’re online, you can enjoy all the fundamentals that make MMORPGs so special, including hanging out in the world with hundreds or thousands of other players. Group up for dungeons, boss battles, guild wars, or exploration activities. Create a guild, engage with a player-led economy, craft gear to help your companions out, and establish a foothold in the world. Metashift promises “numerous ways to play and grow with no pressure on daily sessions.”
When you log off, however, your hero automatically keeps grinding 24/7, following your chosen priorities. The action uses a ‘combat matrix’ that lets you set out exactly how they’ll fight, removing the pressure of perfecting your rotations. Add logic rules that decide when they use their various attacks and abilities based on the situation around them, creating a playstyle that’s uniquely yours. Want to dive into the fray whenever there are big groups to cleave, or prefer to hang back and heal? It’s all up to you.
Having already gone through an initial single-player prototype and an online stress test, Metashift has now kicked off a full-scale multiplayer playtest. It includes the persistent character progression that will see your hero continue to train, fight, craft, and so on while you aren’t logged in. There’s a new playable class, the Paladin, and a total of 25 levels, 24 skills, ten locations, 20 enemy types, and three bosses to discover during the two-week period.
It’s the ideal way to get a feel for how this time-friendly MMO might fit into your schedule. “Dominus Automa is built for grown-up players who enjoy shaping strategies, making meaningful decisions, and watching their plans evolve at their own pace,” the developer remarks. You can check in with your character’s progress whenever you feel like, and even adjust their priorities or issue direct commands either using voice commands (if your hands are busy with real-life responsibilities) or from your phone.
The Dominus Automa multiplayer playtest is now live, and will run from Friday August 7 until Sunday August 23. To take part, simply head to the game’s Steam store page and click ‘Join the Playtest.’ Metashift adds that 6,500 people already signed up prior to the start, “and that number is still growing fast,” so you should have plenty of company.
“From the very beginning, we’ve designed Dominus Automa around one simple idea: your gaming schedule should never dictate your progress,” the developer explains. “Play whenever it suits you, enjoy the game at your own pace.” If you’re curious about a more FOMO-free approach to the MMORPG, now’s the ideal chance to give Dominus Automa a try.