A year ago, "Aion fever" infected most of NCSoft's fans, overshadowing the company's other projects. But now, the "next-gen" MMO-meets-fighting game—Blade and Soul—is back in the spotlight.

Around this time last year, fans of NCSoft's games weren't just buzzing about Aion; back then, the company had another recently-announced MMO that gamers were looking forward to. But as time went on, Aion's development pushed ahead into the lead, and it won the lion's share of press coverage and hype. The other MMO—out of the limelight, but not forgotten—is called Blade and Soul, originally announced by NCSoft in July of 2008. Now that Aion's time to shine in the world of pre-release excitement has come to an end, many fans are once again looking ahead to "next big thing" territory.

Part of the reason that Blade and Soul's buzz-factor is on the rise is its distinctive art style and high-octane gameplay. Dubbed with the "next-generation" tagline, Blade and Soul's combat more resembles a console-based fighting game than a traditional MMORPG (check out NCSoft's latest video trailer). In fact, rumor has it that NCSoft is developing the game with the intention of releasing a console version at some point after its PC launch. So it's no surprise that, in a time when every MMO developer on the block is slapping the "innovative" label on their product, fans are yearning for something that truly stands out.

When NCSoft announced Blade and Soul, it described the game as an "Oriental Martial Arts MMORPG" that sheds the usual high-fantasy motif in favor of an original world based on "Oriental mysticism." According to NCSoft's initial announcement, the game world is inspired by a Korean myth called "Song of Genesis." Player factions are designed from characters in the mythology, and the basic premise is similar to many creation myths; you fight against God-like forces to bring the world back to its original harmony.

At the time, NCSoft released a handful of concept art and screenshots to accompany the announcement, along with a single gameplay video that showcased Blade and Soul's action-oriented, arcade-fighter-esque combat. The video was well-received among MMO and martial-arts gamers, especially after learning that Blade and Soul's art direction was modeled after famous Korean artist Hyung-tae Kim.

Under the direction of the same team that developed NCSoft's successful Lineage II, Blade and Soul was built with the Unreal Engine 3 (the latest generation of Epic Games' ultra-solid and magnificently-optimized Unreal Engine). By using this engine to design an MMO, the developers will have an easier time delivering on the promise of a next-gen,  "AAA" title—but on the other hand, the more complex the engine, the more time and money it can take to build.

According to this post on a Blade and Soul fansite, the game could be delayed until 2011; apparently the developers need more time to reach the full potential of what they can do (scouting Taiwan's landscapes to create a more realistic game environment, for example). Blade and Soul will also feature a dynamic environment that engages the player in different ways; that is, players can manipulate certain conditions in the environment, just as the environment can manipulate the player's experience.

NCSoft is making some lofty claims regarding Blade and Soul's next-gen aspects, as many bloggers have commented after running down the features list. An MMO with combat that's played out like Tekken? Is it even possible, from the practical/accessible standpoint? NCSoft has remained tight-lipped about Blade and Soul's specific gameplay mechanics, but after all, the company is billing it as a "next-gen" MMO. Maybe this time, a publisher isn't just using the term as a marketing buzzword.

Unofficial fansites like BnSFacts claim to have confirmed various features or gameplay elements, like this fact sheet from the aforementioned blog. According to these facts, there is no skill bar displayed on-screen, your position in relation to your opponent is very important in combat and you have the ability to counter enemy attacks. A "swift jump" ability is also named, which is the only way players can access certain areas of the world. Leveling is said to be dependent on proficiency with weapons, which might imply a skill-based progression system.

The latest round of Blade and Soul news came out of Gstar 2009 in Korea earlier this month, when NCSoft released the 11-minute gameplay trailer mentioned above. There is still no word as to when the North American version of the Blade and Soul will be developed (as confirmed by IGN's recent interview with art director Hyung Tae Kim). However, NCSoft did unveil four new races (the Gon, Jin, Kun and Lyn) and four new classes (Kung-Fu Master, Blade Master, Force Master and Destroyer) in the video.

For now, fans are stuck with the familiar waiting game, as NCSoft puts the finishing touches on Blade and Soul in Asia. North American and European gamers will have to wait a bit longer, until the developers officially announce the distribution of NA/EU versions (which will presumably be passed off to NCSoft West for localization). In the mean time, you can visit our new Blade and Soul portal site for more news and information as it's released.