The Very WoW-Inspired Free-To-Play MMO Tarisland Is Available Now

Tarisland, a new free-to-play MMORPG from Chinese gaming giant Tencent, is available now, and it very much looks to have taken some inspiration from World of Warcraft.

For those looking for a classic, tab-targeting fantasy MMO, Tarisland fits the bill. Unlike some free-to-play MMORPGs, Tencent states it's looking to create a game without pay-to-win mechanics and "insists on creating a fair world that offers pure fun." The game will release new seasonal content regularly, which Tencent says will add new maps to explore, quests, and dungeons. It's available on PC and mobile, and features cross-play and cross-progression between platforms.

At launch, Tarisland features nine classes to choose from, ranging from fantasy staples like Paladin, Warrior, and Priest to more-unique archetypes, like the Shadow Swordsman or the Phantom Necro. In terms of endgame PvE content, Tarisland currently has five five-player dungeons and eight 10-player raids. For the PvP inclined, there is also an Arena mode.

The MMO, which is available on PC as well as mobile, was revealed early last year, right around the same time Blizzard's MMO was pulled from China due to a breakdown in contract negotiations between Activision and Blizzard's Chinese publisher, NetEase. Blizzard announced earlier this year it had struck a new licensing deal with NetEase that will see WoW and other Blizzard games return to China.

Tencent's timing of the announcement, and the look of Tarisland, didn't go unnoticed by WoW players at the time, who quickly labeled the MMO a "WoW clone." There's no denying Tarisland does takes heavy inspiration from WoW and the various races of Azeroth, with one of the game's cinematics even mimicking the opening cinematic of WoW's Cataclysm expansion. One of the first groups of NPCs players encounter are a group of bull-like characters that look extremely similar to WoW's Tauren, right down to their Native American-inspired clothing and dwellings. In another example, Tarisland's Ranger class has some strong Night Elf energy, and there are even airships adorned with giant eagles that look extremely similar to the ones Alliance players in WoW have ridden on for decades. The list goes on. Even one of WoW's original creators, Chris Metzen, had to do a double-take after the first Tarisland trailer was revealed.

However, all those similarities don't necessarily have to be a bad thing, as the game seems capable of standing on its own. For those interested in checking out what Tarisland has to offer, the game is available for download on the iOS and Google Play stores, as well as directly through the Tarisland website for PC players. Watching Tarisland gameplay on Twitch between June 21 and July 8 will earn players some additional rewards. At the time of writing, around 60,000 people were watching Tarisland content on Twitch.