Once Human is the latest massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) that has the player take control of a customizable meta-human character in a world ravaged by creatures identified as Deformities. The game was developed by Starry Studios and published by Netease Games. The game features both a PVP and PVE mode that can be accessed via different servers and can be played online with friends or other players. The game is accessible through mobile devices and Steam, but is it worth your time despite being free to play let’s find out together. 

The story of Once Human centers around a catastrophe that has wiped out most of human civilization known as the Stardust Pollution unleashing a plague that turned most of the population into creatures called Deviations or deformities. This catastrophe has ravaged the planet for over 30 years leaving the planet a chaotic waking nightmare with the remaining humans having to scrape by with whatever resources they can find and build from whatever remains. Humanity isn’t completely helpless however as over those 30 years of chaos some humans have gained metahuman abilities and other extraordinary tools that allow them to combat the chaotic threat. Now with these abilities, the player must do everything they can to help rebuild the planet and drive away the deviations before the world becomes destroyed. 

The best way to describe Once Human’s gameplay is that it is a mixture of Palworld and DayZ. Once Human blends the open-world survival multiplayer shooter with a game that allows players to capture and control creatures who help battle other enemies. The game allows the player to craft and construct weapons, buildings, machines, and other tools similar to other survival crafting games with only a few differences that stand out compared to other types of survival crafting games. One of the biggest differences that could be divisive is how when it comes to gun crafting players not only need to find and collect the materials needed to build the gun, but they also need to craft the separate gun parts to fully put it together which wouldn’t be an issue, however, the parts are only craftable after discovering their blueprints which are found in mystic chests that are mostly located in stronghold type locations. While this does incentivize players to play the game, their chances of actually finding the components needed for the weapon are dependent on how the drop system works. In terms of combat, the game’s gunplay and melee combat are well-tuned with very few issues from my end. Base building is also very simple to understand with only very few resources required to build starting homes, workbenches, furniture, and other essential equipment for starting players. I would imagine that higher quality resources are more required as the player crafts better equipment, but so far everything a beginner needs is given to them very generously especially if they choose to play PVE instead of playing PVP. One element I wasn’t expecting was that this game features drivable and customizable vehicles from motorcycles to other cars making it much faster for players to explore the environment. 

When it comes to the open world of Once Human I can certainly say that this is so far one of the best MMORPG maps I’ve played in a long time. To make an interesting open-world experience the world must be immersive with plenty to find, explore, and enjoy. This world accomplishes all three without feeling overwhelmed, especially as a beginner. The world is massive but has plenty of room to build and relocate bases if needed and plenty of resources to find and scavenge. What also sets this world apart are various amounts of enemies with some having unique designs and abilities that can assist the player in combat once they are defeated and obtained. There are also plenty of strongholds and silos that act as dungeons that can be replayed as many times as the player wants, all with custom difficulties the player can choose before starting for those who want an extra challenge and a chance at better resources. What also stands out about this open world are the various world events that could happen as players explore. For example, there was an event that involved a house coming to life as a player was inspecting it for resources, and another that involved a roaming subway car with arms that reward players daily with a loot chest when brought down. These and many other events bring life to the MMO that most regular single-player games can’t outside of a few titles in recent years. 

Overall, Once Human has the potential to become the next big MMORPG. As long as it can keep a good flow of content going that maintains the player’s interest for a good amount of years as well as release a steady flow of patches and fixes. While it has a few hurdles to get used to the game has so far been very well-balanced in terms of combat and basic crafting. 

Overall Score: 9 out of 10

Reviewed On: PC