Predating long-running behemoths like Runescape and World of Warcraft, 1997’s Tibia is an MMORPG that’s still going all these years later. While not as widely known or heavily supported with new content, it’s still a name many players of a certain age will remember fondly, and one that many still enjoy to this day. However, it’s revolved around the same lineup of four classes since it launched, but that all changes today – after 28 years, Tibia finally has a brand new vocation: the Monk.
A 2D, pixel art, tile-based MMORPG, you’d be forgiven for thinking that Tibia is a little basic-looking in comparison to its biggest genre rivals. However, after years of updates and expansions, it boasts a large and varied fantasy world for you to explore, and all the bells and whistles you’d expect from any MMO worth its salt – loads of quests to complete, interesting NPCs to meet, guilds, massive boss battles, and of course, fishing.
However, as mentioned, it’s stuck to its guns when it comes to its offering of classes. For almost three decades, your four choices have essentially boiled down to the Knight for close-range combat, the Paladin for long-range damage, the Sorcerer for spell casting, and the Druid for healing. Now, there’s a fifth way to enjoy Tibia, thanks to the Monk.
With a focus on melee and using mystical abilities, the Monk is far from one dimensional, making you a close-range threat while also giving you some support and healing tools too. In order to integrate the Monk into a game as old and complex as Tibia, developer CipSoft has apparently tweaked more than 130,000 lines of code in order to get the new vocation to interact with existing quest lines, NPCs, and systems.
Alongside the Monk’s debut, a brand new area called Blue Valley has been added to Tibia’s already massive world, alongside 70 items and 25 spells.
The Monk vocation is live now in Tibia, which can be played for free from its own launcher or, as of today, the Epic Games Store too.
For more, check out some of the best fantasy games and best old games on PC.
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