Lately, “Survivors”-style games have suddenly become a big trend. Not only has a player used AI to make the fan game RO Survivors, but Lineage—a shared memory for the sixth- and seventh-grade cohorts—has also arrived. A web game called Lineage Survivors recently appeared online. From the login queue and characters to the Talking Island and Giran maps and orc monsters, it is almost identical to Lineage. However, the gameplay is not the old stand-in-place-and-farm-mobs style; instead, it is a survivors game where you need to keep moving, auto-fire arrows, and hold out until the boss appears.
AI-assisted creation of Lineage Survivors recreates familiar characters, monsters, and maps.
The current version of Lineage Survivors is v1.0. After entering the game screen, a “Project Statement and Intellectual Property Notice” pops up first. In the notice, the developer positions the game as an “AI-assisted game research and technology experiment project,” with the classic Lineage as the subject of research and tribute. AI involvement includes game mechanics analysis, data research, programming development, and gameplay design. The developer’s identity is not disclosed on the page; only a LINE community is provided, used solely to discuss the game and exchange ways of using AI:
Once you get into the game, veteran players should feel very nostalgic. You start in the newbie village, Talking Island, and the town also has a warehouse, shops, and NPCs such as Nerupa, who handles weapon crafting, and Wenor, who sells weapons. In the weapon list, you can also see familiar names like Elven Bow, Crossbow, Elven Dagger, and Silver Throwing Knife, and enhancement still relies on scrolls. The battle maps you can depart for include Talking Island, Gludio, the Desert, Giran, Dragon Valley, Dragon Valley Dungeon, and Elven Forest.
Although it looks a lot like Lineage, it plays quite differently. Players need to move with WASD or the arrow keys, the bow automatically aims at the nearest enemy, and all you have to do is dodge monsters while picking up drops. In each match, you only need to survive for 4 minutes, then the boss appears; defeat it to clear the stage.
The progression system is divided into two layers. When you level up during a battle, the game pauses and lets you choose an enhancement or learn spirit magic. There is also a permanent level and talent tree; for example, “Strong Physique” increases max HP by 6% per level, up to 5 levels. Some controls also retain the original game’s conventions, such as F5–F12 for quick magic and items, I to open the inventory, C to open the character window, and enhancing equipment is still “click the scroll first, then the equipment”—veteran players should smile at that.
There are three major differences between Lineage Survivor and the original Lineage:
- Each match is short: four minutes per match, so you no longer need to spend long hours grinding online.
- Attacks are handled by the system: players only need to handle positioning and choose upgrades, with no need to constantly click enemies.
- Death penalties are lighter: in the original, dying causes you to lose experience and even drop equipment, while in this game, after you go down, everything you picked up in that run is retained.
Although the developer of Lineage Survivors has stated that this web game is an AI-assisted development research and experimental project, has no official partnership with the original Lineage publisher or related rights holders, and does not claim intellectual property rights over materials related to the original work, because it uses elements such as characters, monsters, and maps identical to the original Lineage and has not obtained authorization from the original publisher, even if the gameplay has changed, it may still involve copyright and other intellectual property disputes.
From RO Survivor to Lineage Survivor in this article, we can see that AI-assisted development has already given players the opportunity to recreate their favorite games, add more creative game ideas, and actually bring them to life, rather than stopping at the imagination stage.
Source: KOCPC Chinese