LAST AUGUST 14, Run Up Philippines launched its first Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG) Luna Online at the Phi Bar in Metrowalk Ortigas.

There was dancing by the 26K girls. An elf mage cosplayer socialized with the guests. Everyone was a winner, as they received prizes ranging from notebooks to gift certificates.

The highlight of the event was a gold-gathering tournament. It saw two lucky winners walk away with a brand new iPhone 3G each.

Starting the game, you immediately get an idea of the target market of Luna Online: The anime-loving otaku community, which has grown to epic proportions in the last few years.

?Bulilit subalit malupit,? as the tagline states, should tell you something about the game?s style. The graphics aren?t going to be suited to everyone?s taste. If you?re looking for epic battles reminiscent of Lord of the Rings, you?re likely to be sorely disappointed. Even at the higher levels, the graphics are quite cartoonish; the animation, however, is noticeably fluid, which is a definite plus.

The characters are the wide-eyed cuties we?ve come to expect from anime. And besides the requisite armor and robes, Luna goes the extra mile and allows you to wear costumes over your protective gear to give your characters that extra something to make them stand out.

Of course looks wouldn?t matter if you couldn?t act the part. The game features an extensive set of emoticons and motions that let the people around you express how you?re feeling or simply bust out a dance number in between fighting all the monsters.

The gameplay, overall, is a bit generic. You?re given a choice of being an elf or human, which can begin as a Fighter, a Rogue or a Mage.

Like most RPGs, you use your avatar to explore the world via a mouse click, fighting slimes, mushrooms and turtles (like I said, all cute) at the request of random Non-Player Characters (NPCs) who then reward you with gold and experience points that contribute to your character?s growth.

Choose

As you get stronger, you can then choose skills and jobs which will help you specialize in a specific role, be it a tank, a healer, or damage dealer.

There are more than 40 jobs which you can access as your character grows, each with its own special abilities, so your options grow as your character does.

To access the more varied choices, though, your character has to reach a significantly higher level, and with each one taking progressively longer to reach, it can become tedious at times.

Probably the most unique aspect of Luna which sets it apart from other MMOs is its focus on socialization. While it?s common for most MMOs to have guilds with other players, Luna allows you to set up a personal ad space which helps you find potential dates based on your likes and dislikes. In the game, you and your partner can go into special dating dungeons and even form your own family, which will give you access to special items.

Unfortunately, given that one can choose the gender of one?s avatar, it?s highly unlikely that you?ll really be dating someone of the opposite sex.

While its core gameplay may not be enough to pull players away from their current MMO, those that enjoy the cute graphics and cosplaying may have found just the game for them.
The game is totally free to play, so just create an account at http://luna.runup.com.ph/ and you can see just how fatal your cute characters can be.