Ragnarok Online 2
Ragnarok Online 2 (RO2) is a 3D fantasy MMORPG that follows in the footsteps of the beloved 2004 classic Ragnarok Online. It returns players to Midgard with a strong dose of Norse-inspired flavor, and it borrows plenty of recognizable names for towns, monsters, and jobs. While the shift to full 3D and a more modern MMO structure makes it feel like a different kind of game than its predecessor, RO2 still aims to capture some of the original’s charm through familiar iconography and lighthearted adventure.
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Publisher: Warpportal Playerbase: Low Type: MMORPG PvP: Duels / Colosseum Release Date: May 1, 2013 (NA/EU) Pros: +Catchy soundtrack. +Solid spread of classes to start with. +Dungeons and raids are structured well. +Khara Quest board adds worthwhile goals. Cons: -Gameplay loops can feel samey. -Limited PvP variety. -Build options are fairly narrow. |
Ragnarok Online 2 Overview
Ragnarok Online 2: Legend of the Second (often shortened to RO2) is a 3D fantasy MMORPG that arrived for NA and EU in 2013. Even though it is positioned as a follow-up to Ragnarok Online, it is not a simple continuation of the original’s isometric, sprite-driven style. Instead, RO2 presents Midgard in a fully 3D world with a more conventional third-person MMO camera and a quest and dungeon flow that will feel familiar to fans of theme-park MMORPGs.
At launch, the game centers on five base classes, and each one branches into one of two job paths at Level 25. That structure makes the early game straightforward to understand, but it also means the overall progression is much more streamlined than the original Ragnarok Online. Taken on its own terms, RO2 is best viewed as a separate interpretation of the Ragnarok setting, rather than a direct mechanical successor.
Ragnarok Online 2 Key Features:
- Familiar Places & Enemies – explores Midgard again, reusing many well-known monster and city names from Ragnarok Online.
- Class Variety – begin as an Acolyte, Archer, Magician, Swordsman, or Thief, then choose between two job advancements at Level 25.
- Card System – earn cards from monsters and slot them into your character for stat bonuses, with a large collection to chase and improve.
- Crafting Galore – pick a crafting path, create gear and consumables, and even run services through an offline shop-style system.
Ragnarok Online 2 Screenshots
Ragnarok Online 2 Featured Video
Ragnarok Online 2 Classes
- Acolytes – Acolytes draw power from the Odin Orthodoxy, mixing supportive magic with disruptive tools that can hinder enemies. They are the primary healers and can also revive allies in group content. At Level 25, Acolytes advance into either Priests or Monks.
- Archers – Archers focus on ranged pressure with bows, and they supplement their shots with traps and utility. At Level 25, they can specialize into either Beastmasters or Rangers.
- Magicians – Magicians lean into elemental spellcasting, with options that control targets (such as freezing) and attacks that cover wider areas. Once they reach Level 25, Magicians become either Sorcerers or Wizards.
- Swordsman – The Swordsman is built for direct combat, taking the front line and empowering themselves and teammates through aura-style effects. At Level 25, Swordsmen advance into either Knights or Warriors.
- Thief – Thieves thrive on positioning and burst damage, often relying on stealth to open fights on their own terms. At Level 25, they can develop into either Rogues or Assassins.
Ragnarok Online 2 Professions (Crafting skills)
- Alchemists – Alchemists gather herbs and materials to brew restorative potions, SP items, and various buffs.
- Artisans – Artisans work with cloth and hides for lighter armor, and they also craft runes used to enhance equipment.
- Blacksmiths – Blacksmiths mine and process ore to forge weapons and armor, and they can create Rune Hole Punches for rune slots.
- Chefs – Chefs collect ingredients and cook meals that provide temporary bonuses useful for leveling and dungeons.
Ragnarok Online 2 Review
Ragnarok Online 2: Legend of the Second is a 3D fantasy MMORPG developed and published by Gravity, with its NA and EU release landing on May 1, 2013. It is also distributed on Steam. The game revisits Midgard and borrows heavily from Ragnarok Online’s iconography, but it packages that familiarity inside a more traditional questing and instanced-dungeon framework.
From a mechanical standpoint, RO2 plays like many tab-target MMORPGs of its era, with hotbar skills, cooldown management, and dungeon roles that push players toward tank, healer, and damage patterns. That familiarity can be comforting, but it also makes RO2 feel less distinct than the original Ragnarok Online, which built its reputation on an unusually deep job system and a long-running progression ecosystem. RO2 is not necessarily poor because it is different, but players coming in expecting the same kind of depth and identity as the 2004 game should adjust expectations.
Visually, RO2 sits in the middle of the pack for anime-styled MMOs. Character models and environments are serviceable, but they rarely create the kind of striking first impression that stronger contemporaries in the genre can deliver. The overall presentation also shows its age in animation and environmental detail, especially when compared to faster, more kinetic MMOs that became common later. On the audio side, the music is pleasant and fits the tone, although it does not consistently reach the same iconic status many players associate with the original Ragnarok Online’s best-known tracks.
Getting Your Character Ready
Character creation provides enough options to personalize a look, including choices like gender, hair, face features, and voice. It is not an ultra-granular editor, but it covers the basics well enough for a game that places a lot of emphasis on costumes and visual identity later on.
Early Progression and Tutorial Flow
The opening hours are structured around guided quest chains that teach the fundamentals, combat inputs, skill usage, crafting, and how cards work. It is a fairly long onboarding phase, but it does a competent job of leading new players through the first stretch of leveling. Movement is handled with WASD, skills live on the number keys, and combat follows a standard MMO targeting model with auto-attacks and active abilities layered on top. Story beats appear from time to time in cutscenes, which helps the early routine feel less like pure checklist questing.
As you level up, you gain both skill points and stat points. Stat allocation goes into Strength, Agility, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Vitality, which in turn influence common RPG attributes such as attack values, speed, and survivability. Skills are upgraded by investing points into them, with rank caps (typically 3 or 5), and stronger abilities often require prerequisite investment.
Job Advancement at Level 25
At Level 25, RO2’s core class choice arrives: each base class branches into one of two job options. Acolytes choose Priest or Monk, Archers choose Ranger or Beastmaster, Magicians choose Wizard or Sorcerer, Swordsmen choose Knight or Warrior, and Thieves choose Rogue or Assassin. After this decision, progression continues up to Level 50 without further job tiers, which keeps the system accessible but also limits long-term class evolution. If you are used to Ragnarok Online’s extensive advancement tree, RO2 can feel constrained in comparison.
Crafting and the Player Economy
Crafting is one of RO2’s stronger supporting systems. Crafted gear and consumables matter, and the profession choices give players a reason to trade and cooperate rather than relying purely on NPC shops. Potions, buffs, and upgrades are especially relevant once group dungeons become a regular part of your routine.
Each character selects a profession at creation, choosing from Alchemist, Artisan, Blacksmith, or Chef. Gathering is tied to that profession, so Blacksmiths focus on ore, while Alchemists collect plants, for example. Progressing your profession level is driven by crafting, and higher-tier recipes and rarer materials generally provide better advancement. Profession trainers in towns supply recipes and some materials, and the maximum profession level reaches 50.
RO2 also includes the Dual-Life System, which lets your character function as an offline service provider. Instead of relying only on active-time player shops, the game allows other players to access crafting services from characters that are not currently online. It is an interesting twist on the usual marketplace approach and helps keep crafting relevant even when population levels are modest.
Cards and Character Power
Cards remain an important piece of Ragnarok identity here, even though their implementation differs from the original. Monsters drop cards that grant stat bonuses, and collecting and improving them becomes a steady long-term goal. A simple example is the Poring card, which boosts Strength and Vitality by 1 and Wisdom by 2.
In RO2, cards are slotted directly into your character rather than being attached to specific equipment. You begin with a single slot and expand to five slots by Level 50. Beyond monster drops, special merchants can combine cards to upgrade them or convert them into different results, giving the system a collectible and progression-driven feel.
Khara Quests as a Content Backbone
Khara quests are presented through a grid-like interface that functions as both a checklist and a progression map. Completing one task unlocks adjacent nodes, gradually expanding what you can pursue. Many of these objectives grant titles that provide stat bonuses, which makes them more than simple side achievements. In a game where content variety can feel limited at times, the Khara board does a lot of work in giving players additional targets and reasons to revisit activities.
PvP Modes
Player versus player content in RO2 is fairly contained. Duels allow 1v1 fights on demand for players who want quick testing or bragging rights. The Colosseum is a scheduled arena activity that mixes PvE monsters and PvP competition, with scoring based on kills and deaths. It runs twice daily, and participants earn Blood Points that can be spent on higher-end equipment.
The Colosseum structure progresses through five rounds, starting with 30 players and eliminating the lowest six each round until the final six compete in Round 5. A notable design choice is the attempt at normalization: aside from skill access, characters are placed on a more even baseline so that lower-level players are not automatically invalidated by raw stats. A high-level character still benefits from having more abilities available, but the mode is less dependent on gear and level than many open PvP systems.
War of Emperium serves as the larger-scale guild PvP option. Guilds battle for control of Pron Castle, using siege tools and defensive items, and can capture three smaller emperiums on the way to gain guild buffs. Once the castle gates fall, attackers must clear the final Guardian defense and then damage the main Emperium. The guild that deals the most damage and secures control becomes the owner, and ownership shifts the dynamic in future battles where the defending side has a clear objective. The region also functions as a dedicated PvP zone where Blood Points can be gained through player kills, with penalties on death.
Cash Shop and Convenience
The Kafra Cash Shop offers a wide mix of cosmetic items and convenience boosts. Costumes are a major draw for players who enjoy customizing their character’s look, and there are also functional purchases such as increased experience gain and extra defense. A Premium Mount Random Box provides a 14-day rare mount with a chance at a permanent reward.
One of the more unusual offerings is the Guardian Rune, which enables class changes. While it does not directly increase combat stats, it is undeniably a major convenience item because it allows players to switch roles without restarting the leveling process. Depending on your perspective, it can be seen as a welcome flexibility option or as a monetized shortcut around a key RPG commitment.
Final Verdict – Fair
As a standalone MMO, Ragnarok Online 2: Legend of the Second is playable and occasionally charming, especially if you enjoy structured dungeons, collectible progression (cards), and a crafting system that encourages interdependence. Where it struggles is in identity and long-term depth. The job system is comparatively limited, moment-to-moment gameplay can become repetitive, and the overall 3D presentation does not do enough to separate it from other theme-park MMORPGs.
It is also hard not to measure RO2 against Ragnarok Online, a game known for its class variety and lasting personality. RO2’s camera and visibility issues can be frustrating in busy environments, and the game does not consistently deliver a defining feature that makes it feel essential today. For players who want a lighter, more guided Ragnarok-flavored MMO, it can still be worth exploring, but veterans seeking a true mechanical successor may walk away unsatisfied. I would rate Ragnarok Online 2: Legend of the Second 2 out of 5 stars.
Ragnarok Online 2 Links
Ragnarok Online 2 Official Site
Ragnarok Online 2 Steam Page
Ragnarok Online 2 Wikipedia
Ragnarok Online 2 Wikia [Database / Guides]
Ragnarok Online 2 System Requirements
Minimum Requirements:
Operating System: Windows XP / Vista / 7 / 8
CPU: Pentium 3 800 MHz
Video Card: GeForce FX5600
RAM: 2 GB
Hard Disk Space: 5 GB
Recommended Requirements:
Operating System: Windows XP / Vista / 7 / 8
CPU: Intel Dual Core 2.0 GHz or better
Video Card: GeForce FX 8600 or better
RAM: 4 GB
Hard Disk Space: 10 GB
Ragnarok Online 2 Music & Soundtrack
Ragnarok Online 2 Additional Information
Developer: Gravity Interactive
Game Engine: Gamebryo
Producer: Jun Jin Soo
Composer: Yoko Kanno
Release Dates:
Closed Beta Date: March 22, 2011 – March 30, 2011
South Korea: March 26, 2012 (GNJoy Gravity)
North America/Europe: May 1, 2013 (WarpPortal)
Southeast Asia: January 3, 2013 (Asiasoft)
Indonesia: August 28, 2013 (Lyto)
Several localized versions of Ragnarok Online 2 are no longer available.
Development History / Background:
Ragnarok Online 2 was created by South Korean developer Gravity as the intended next step after the massive success of Ragnarok Online. The project first existed as Ragnarok Online 2: The Gate of the World and was built on the Unreal engine, but negative player reception led to the original version being abandoned entirely. The team restarted development and rebuilt the game using the Gamebryo engine, resulting in Ragnarok Online 2: Legend of the Second.
Work on the rebuilt version began after the first attempt was officially scrapped, with development shifting in July 2010 as Gravity aimed to bring the sequel closer in spirit to the original. Although the game launched with some early interest, momentum did not last. Gravity Interactive ended service in South Korea on December 23, 2013, and Asiasoft later closed the SEA version on October 9, 2014. The NA and EU release (May 1, 2013) remains the last active version. Meanwhile, Ragnarok Online continues to perform strongly for Gravity, and RO2 never approached the same level of lasting popularity.