Project Gorgon feels like an MMO that escaped from 2003, learned a few modern tricks, and then refused to compromise its personality. It does not try to impress you with flashy cutscenes. It throws you into the world and expects you to pay attention. That sounds harsh, but it ends up being one of its biggest strengths.

I went in expecting something quirky and low budget, but what I found was a systems driven MMO with more depth than most big studio titles.

The first thing that stands out is the lack of traditional classes which is honestly refreshing (especially as a long time RuneScape player). You equip two combat skills at a time and that pairing defines your build. Fire Magic and Shield can make you a sturdy caster. Archery and Animal Handling turns you into a ranged fighter with a pet companion. You can experiment constantly because you are not locked into a permanent class choice. If you get bored, you swap skills and try something new. The game almost expects you to rebuild yourself multiple times.

Under the surface, the skill web is enormous as combat skills are only one layer. Crafting skills, gathering skills, social systems, and oddball skills like Dying all play a role. Yes… Dying is a skill. Certain types of death grant experience and unlock unique interactions. In most MMOs, dying is something you avoid. Here, it can be a calculated strategy. That alone tells you what kind of design philosophy you are dealing with.

Exploration is heavily inspired by Morrowind style design, or at least that is the feeling I get and LOVE it. NPCs give you real directions and say things like head here or there (or even leave you with pretty vague answers… Like just go find someone who knows about X) but it isn’t marked on your map. There are no giant quest arrows glued to your screen and you read the dialogue. You look at the terrain. You get lost sometimes. When you finally find the location, it feels satisfying because you navigated there yourself. The world feels like a place, not a hallway, and I found myself wandering around a ton.

NPC favor is another layer that adds depth. Building relationships with specific characters unlocks abilities, recipes, and progression paths. It is not necessarily about leveling skills, but rather about who you know and how much they like you. You end up revisiting towns not just for quests, but to check in on trainers and see what new options have opened up (big fan of the sandbox design).

The transformation mechanics deserve their own paragraph for sure. You can become a cow. Or a deer. Or other creatures. These are not cosmetic toys. They change your gameplay and how NPCs interact with you, and some towns even treat you differently based on your form. It adds a strange, almost experimental layer to the MMO formula. One minute you are fighting monsters. The next minute you are figuring out how to navigate town politics while technically being livestock.

The world itself certainly feels handcrafted and layered. Regions like Serbule and Sun Vale are significantly more than quest hubs, with interconnected spaces filled with hidden trainers, strange side systems, and environmental storytelling. You discover things because you wandered off the road, not because a quest tracker told you to.

The community also feels like a throwback. Global chat is active and surprisingly helpful and vibrant as heck. Veteran players answer questions without condescension. There are player run events, music gatherings, and spontaneous social moments (attended my first poetry jam over the weekend and it was epic). It feels like people actually live in the world instead of silently queueing for instanced content.

Yes, the graphics are dated, but honestly that is part of the charm. The animations are not cutting edge and you will notice that in the first minute. By the first hour though you will be too busy planning skill synergies and favor routes to care. The depth overshadows the presentation.

This game highly rewards curiosity. It rewards patience. It rewards players who enjoy reading quest text and experimenting with builds instead of following a glowing breadcrumb trail. If you miss the feeling of early MMOs where discovery mattered and systems were allowed to be complicated, this game delivers that experience with confidence.

Project Gorgon is unapologetically itself and the most excited I’ve playing an MMO in years. And for players who crave that old school Morrowind style exploration mixed with modern sandbox experimentation, Project Gorgon feels like a hidden gem that refuses to be polished smooth.

Reviewed by D.B. for MMOWire.com

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