Is it worth starting to play DFO?

[u/InvalidBann]

Hi, I've been reading Light of Arad: Forerunner manhwa, and now that I have some free time for a few weeks, I was wondering if you think the game is worth starting over in late 2026.

[u/Important_Young_4461]

Nah. Me and my husband just dropped this game. No one wants new players for end game content. We can’t find any party for Inae or Delizie (end game bosses), cause low fame. So… This is our experience about this game. Maybe your experience will be different.

[u/teacheryuza → u/Important_Young_4461]

They treat the global version as if it were the Korean version. It's totaly retard. You can't play it solo cause the rewards in solo mode are like a punishment. They force players to play group mode even though the game clearly doesn't have the same number of players as the original version.

[u/KoniKze → u/teacheryuza]

It's past time to make raids more available for people playing solo, or make adjustments for EN servers because it just doesn't work here anymore. We have raids with 8~12 players in a game that is slowing dying, in peak hours you find like 6 parties trying to fill up, all them asking for saders, and the only people actually doing raids are the same people rotating their alts.

But it's never going to happen, they couldn't even figure out how to fix the shit ass net code after 8 years and a video promotion talking about it.
They just don't care. DFO have a small community but this small community spend a shit ton of money in the game to be part of the scam events they started to release since 105~110 cap. This game is not much different from a gacha game nowadays, but people love to be on the top spending money while doing it, so why they would bother to fix anything.

[u/Late_Swimmer_6371 → u/teacheryuza]

True!

[u/Accordman → u/Important_Young_4461]

how are you going to instantly get to endgame stuff with an hour of gameplay

set some expectations this is an old ass korean mmo you get what you signed up for

[u/Important_Young_4461 → u/Accordman]

My main is F. Nen (83k fame), my husband’s main is M. Saider (90k fame). Every (literally, EVERY) party just ignores us. We just tired of this shit.

[u/DimensionalCharacter → u/Important_Young_4461]

That's actually not bad. 80pct discord 2.0 is planning to start up some weekend raids if you want to come. Just read up on some mechanics and be available when the raids are hosted. https://discord.gg/afWj384tb . Freecom from riskyclick guild also hosts raids on weekends and accepts anyone

[u/Acy37 → u/Important_Young_4461]

Unfortunately, fame is a very inflated number after the update especially on jump characters/new players. Do your characters have CAT ? What are their actual equip scores / buff power? Any player can make a new character with the event that "meets" fame but actually contributes nothing to raid, which is likely why they aren't getting accepted.

For frame of reference I have a jump bag buffer who has basically no gear aside from the jump stuff and lucky drops makes them easily have a fame of over 90k but the actual buff power is below 20k.

Even then there are quite a few groups now who accept pretty much ANYONE for green party for clears, so there could also be something else going on. Which groups are you applying to, etc.

[u/FubukiYuki → u/Acy37]

on the topic of applying because there are groups that will accept anyone i life to differ to this old ass wall of text

the role of basic bitch green DPS is a hot commodity and fills almost instantly. And I'm saying that as someone who has lead pubs (not bakal) and was applying my spares in bakal pubs. It's important to recognize, sometime you're just another basic bitch applying for a saturated position; you're hoping you're getting your clears checked or the raid leader somehow correctly guesses you know how to do gimmicks. The competition is fierce. There's also the other issue that there often are other characters ahead of you. You see an open DPS slot you can fill, you apply, and they take someone else "over you". When in reality they didn't even SEE your application because they were looking through the dozen or so apps that applied faster than you, thinking about what they have and what they need, getting those chars before the other pub does, all while multiple bitches are sliding into the DMs................-

Pubs don't always know gimmicks, sometimes there's connection issues and you have to play "geography tetris" as a static friend put it, where you have to be able to move DPS up so parties can connect................-

Sometimes you just need a body with a brain that does damage, even if it isn't as much damage as it could be, it may be sufficient.

In essence it's a very complicated question that varies by situation with different perspectives. I do think that DFO does have gatekeeping and gatekeepers. But knowing what is a case of gatekeeping and knowing whether that's why you didn't get in is a very different thing

the last statement i bolded is very noteworthy since there is no feedback on whether application is rejected or not too so no one should know why their applications wasnt accepted unless its just really obvious or were told so by all raid leads because an assumption is not conformation

[u/Acy37 → u/FubukiYuki]

Yeah, pubbing has always been rough and outdated, matching sort of alleviated this but as content gets lumped as older it's only a bandaid of sorts. Delezie in particular suffers from this because it's old now, but still required, so you have a battleground of characters far too strong for it competing for limited spots.

I'm more of a serial pubber myself though so I can only offer broad strokes as to why people get in or don't get in, but recommended fame is a loose suggestion at best nowadays. To me, a 90k sader trying to get into inae (provided RL is actually looking, that's yet another issue) should be pretty much instant. They did mention Msader so it could've been a Dealer sader as well.

Statics and discord as recommended by Dimensional is probably the go to method to getting into a group and getting real explanation of why characters are or are not accepted,

[u/FubukiYuki → u/Acy37]

yup this is why i raise my eyebrow whenever i see someone say they arent getting accepted into content for [insert reason] like how did they know it was for [insert reason], did they confirmed it with the raid leads or something because for the most part they really shouldnt actually know the reason in the first place and its far more likely to just be a bias assumption

overall its too many variables on why someone isnt getting accepted cuz just because you put out doesnt automatically mean someone will put u in and that our current cap 115 part 2 electric boogaloo is like only a few weeks old so we're still amidst a transitional phase of sorts where the standard fame value on the lower end of the fame spectrum is increasing without much substances on top of not being too applicable to inae/delezie as theyre older content and their req fame values were for a different standard then the current which is exacerbated by apoc legion just dropping a few days ago too so actual gauging of competency of a pub is gonna be wonky for a while

like not to call anyone out specifically and the person was new too but just 20mins ago i had a delezie hard raid that had to remake because we failed the first time due to a 110k yellow dps not knowing gimmicks causing multiple wipes of yellow party and not knowing how the final pattern works so didnt revive for it either and caused us to fail at iirc less then 100% left so we had to rearrange parties after to get the clear... yes 110k dps, even at a fame rating that most would deem fool-proof can still be a liability

[u/Vashard19]

It is if you like the art and sick music it has.

[u/ArtichokePotential44]

I think its ok. art style and music is fire. If youre looking for a nostalgia definitely play DFO.

[u/fullyuki]

It doesn’t hurt to try since the game is free to play, me personally like the music and art style, although the action element is weaker than before due to power creep but still enjoyable to me.
I also find the lore is interesting, however due to them trying to shorten the leveling grind it omitted a lot of the detail it had in previous level caps for about until level 100, I find it cool that certain classes have special flavor dialogues and even different paths during segments related to their lore.
As with any mmo it becomes a time sink if you want to play seriously, so keep that in mind if you want to spend your time on a live service game.

P.S: PVP is dead, speaking as a semi-serious pvper many years ago, I can barely get a match nowadays. It also runs on a peer to peer system for parties and pvp so you need a stable internet for multiplayer content like raids or you'll be making everyone miserable.

[u/DimensionalCharacter → u/fullyuki]

I heard the pvp guys meet up in practice arena every day around 5pm either pst or EST I don't remember

[u/helloWorldcamelCase]

Is it worth trying out? 100%

Would I put significant commitment for mmo aspect of game? Nah, big $ and time sink for an environment you cannot thrive unless you are in the club

[u/teacheryuza]

It's a very nice game with amazing characters. But that's all! The rest is dumb RNG, mindless grinding, and content rush.

[u/Zarkrash]

The game very heavily incentivizes playing a lot of characters. If you can join a community group then the game is not so bad, but like many mmos, you either find a community or gtfo

[u/Sharp-Corner6239]

progressing in the global version has been made to fast imo. I blast passed levels and I passed first way back in 40 cap.

when ever I return im created to a bunch of dialog I between dungeon where I just on hit stuff. it ruins the progression to me.

like someone else said though, it is free and it was my favorite action mmoblike 20 years ago

[u/jordanjoestar76 → u/Sharp-Corner6239]

I feel similarly. Havent played in a year and before that one time, like 3yrs, bc I lost interest in easy solo grinding. During nexon days, the playerbase was highly active and the game was tough. I remember mercenaries who ran dungeons for gold. Being able to find parties for most things easily bc parties made many dungeons much easier. Even the first awakening itself was a huge feat. PvP was insanely fun to me to bc not only was it easy to find 1v1/s, we had 3v3 both elimination and a crazy chaotic arena. If I could pick only one game to relive its multiplayer, it would be DFO from 20yrs ago. Only upside to neople in charge of DFO Global nowadays is that there’s easier access to skins (as opposed to gambling) but that’s not nearly as important as gameplay.

[u/Sharp-Corner6239 → u/jordanjoestar76]

I actually got to high gladiator cause after burning that fp, it was to the pvp .
i remember feeling almost weaker at lv 20 than 15. bwanga lives rent free for the bantu in my head for ever.

Getting an ALL KILL in a competitve room, the "Ready and wating" arcade style ui and everything with the music is peak. i hope they bring a classic for it back soon even if its not exactly the same.

[u/jordanjoestar76 → u/Sharp-Corner6239]

Bro, FR. I recorded a clip of me solo’ing Bwanga with only one ability / no legendary avatars/expensive gear during a fun cooldown event bc he was so hard at the time, so it really felt like I did something risky/semi-impressive hehe.

https://reddit.com/link/p83oys3/video/v8di03esttnh1/player

And yeah, seeing someone kill a whole team was insane. Elimination was sooo cool and such a nail-biter watching your teammate continue on if you lost. Like, that exists in Valorant/Counter-Strike but it’s pretty unique for basically 99% of fighting game tournaments, which is essentially what PvP was, a unique fighter. Also, the game was never too toxic compared to many other games with multiplayer. I watched the MAD combo vids so many times “it’s an omen-men-men…” 🎶

[u/KnightofAntimony]

Not unless you plan to hard commit to it. There's a weird amount of RNG that can stall progress and it's tough for new players unless you already have an in group. The content is also poorly explained in game as they've left it up to the community to make guides. The game has really lost its luster.

[u/Jazzlike_Sample3343]

no

[u/No_Sail7178]

Five years ago, I told myself I wouldn't come back; I deleted my first-generation characters, and yet, here I am.

I play solo, with my new generation of characters, focusing on the main characters whose levels and gear I actually care about, plus a few alts for variety. but only enough so that they aren't weak

It’s not for me to say whether the game is worth it or not; that’s something only you can decide.

[u/blogtruyenclone]

Please, just stay away at least until next year. We've been in this cap since FOREVER.

[u/Spare_Programmer_127]

Imo its worth playing a bit just to try it out, the base gameplay is fun and why i still occasionally play, also very unique game imo, but I wouldn't invest heavily in it, I treat it kinda like i treat gw2, nice little occasional treat

[u/No_Sound5483]

Try Rusty Hearts Revolution. DFO just bans anyone who is looking to play it. 

[u/Sharp-Corner6239 → u/No_Sound5483]

i didnt know rusty hearts was still running anywhere!

[u/Hawly → u/No_Sound5483]

Never heard of this game. Is it good?

[u/Nomaddo → u/No_Sound5483]

D-5 song is still an absolute banger
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJ8u2rouiUc

[u/FinancialMoney6969]

This game is dead now. no

[u/RiceNChickn]

Nope, not worth it. This game is poop now and for what its worth, if you really want to play join a private server

[u/moal09]

If PvP was still active, I would say yes, since it's content anyone could get in to with minimal investment

But since matchmaking is fucked in global, not really

[u/DimensionalCharacter → u/moal09]

I heard the pvp guys meet up in practice arena every day around 5pm either pst or EST I don't remember

[u/NovaPulser1 → u/DimensionalCharacter]

Yeah you'll have much better luck in the evenings and later in the night for sure. There isn't a whole bunch of us left (thank you for being global + p2p, absolute genius move) but there's still some that are still around.

[u/Albanil1707]

WAIT this game has a manhwa??

[u/scrangos → u/Albanil1707]

besides the one people replied to you already, im pretty sure reva is making some sort of dnf based comic since i was looking to figure out what their next work is since they've gone radio silent since they finished their previous one.

theres also kings avatar which has nothing to do with arad but uh... took some extremely mirror worthy inspiration on all the classes and skills.

[u/FubukiYuki → u/Albanil1707]

i briefly looked it up, its definitely not some official work on the lore or storyline but just someone's fanfic of them actually playing the game or something

[u/Acy37 → u/Albanil1707]

I've read it and quite enjoyed it, it's not official but I would consider it as a solid webseries from both art and story.

A general synopsis is that MC is a high ranked player who gets trapped in DFO universe as his character, but mysterious deviations occur with the DFO universe story and he has to "fix" it so that it follows the original game plot so he can return home/not die (no revives allowed). It starts off a bit slow but when he finally gets party members is when it really starts to shine IMO.

[u/Sharp-Corner6239 → u/Acy37]

what is the manwhas name, if you don't mind me asking?

[u/Acy37 → u/Sharp-Corner6239]

Light of Arad: Forerunner

OP was brought here from it

[u/Sharp-Corner6239 → u/Acy37]

ty

[u/Elmrina]

No, don't bother.

[u/littleraccon]

It's fun casually but playing seriously it's really difficult since you need to have a good account seed because the random number generator is broken.

[u/martinello1197]

Nah, don’t waste your time

[u/lekwid]

Simple answer no

[u/KoniKze]

DFO is one of the best MMO's out there, well if you like this sorta of style. Actually i don't believe we have anything that comes even similar, Kritika was the only thing that come even close to me, but Kritika is dead.

Said that, answering your question, absolutely not. DFO might be one of the best MMO's out there, but everything in the game make the core game worse and worse. Every single "update" the game becomes more boring and insupportable. You top that with this such bad look towards new players, they banning everyone left and right.
Just go play something else, find something fun because at the point DFO is right now i would even play Tree of Savior instead, and ToS is in a incredible bad situation too.

[u/Illustrious-Ad-6998]

It’s definitely worth it my only suggestion would be to try to make some friends in game it’ll make life a lot easier for you

[u/robotbanana3000]

I’m having a great time. Come in - take it slow. Enjoy the process.

[u/One_Construction_653]

After neople picked up the game i actually enjoy it now less greed

[u/ElysiumSC]

Don't play. The gatekeeping is dreadful.