‘Luna: War of the Moonlight’, which was released as a global early access game through Steam on November 20th, is creating a new wind in the subculture market through its unique attempt.
Differentiation from existing subculture games
While most subculture games focus on collectible RPGs or single-player storytelling, Ubisoft’s “Luna: War of the Moonlight” adopts a unique structure where players are divided into two factions from the start, enjoying large-scale PvP and growing. This approach emphasizes strategic combat and teamwork.
Upon starting the game, you’ll feel like you’ve recreated a MOBA like League of Legends in 3D. The map’s structure is also typical of MOBAs. Each faction’s summoning points and shops are located at either end, powerful boss monsters occupy the center, and towers at key intersections defend against the monsters that are regularly summoned.
The unique game system ‘Subculture PvX (PvEvP)’
The game incorporates MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) elements, with players growing under the protection of turrets deployed by their clan’s faction. Through cooperation with other clans, players can obtain high-quality items by defeating the final boss in the open-world central area.
Developer Ubisoft is promoting this game as a new genre called ‘Subculture PvX (PvEvP)’, and is providing a differentiated experience that combines attractive characters with anime-style graphics and real-time PvP elements.
A burden-free, consumer-friendly business model
One of the game’s notable elements is its monetization structure. In a subculture game market plagued by controversy over random draw systems, “Luna: War of the Moonlight” adopted a package sales model, allowing players to enjoy all content with a single purchase without additional payments. This likely explains why it received positive reviews from users at various events for its low barrier to entry.
Reasons to look forward to the future
“Luna: War of the Moonlight” is a meaningful work that demonstrates a distinct approach in the crowded subculture game market. Its unique concept—a fusion of MOBA and subculture—a consumer-friendly business model, and field-proven, fundamental fun elements are clear strengths.
Currently in Early Access, the game will likely require further updates to enhance its content diversity and depth. The limited character options, monotonous early gameplay, and lack of RPG identity are all areas that need to be addressed through future improvements.
With major game companies like ShiftUp and Nexon, as well as new releases from overseas companies like Hoyoverse, joining the fray, the subculture market is fiercely competitive, more so than any other genre. Whether Ubis’s challenging PVP-focused differentiation strategy will be accepted by users and prove successful will likely depend on the direction and pace of future updates.
“Luna: War of the Moonlight” is currently available for wishlisting on its Steam page. The Early Access period will allow for continuous improvement based on user feedback. Furthermore, a crowdfunding campaign is currently underway on Tumblbug to further enhance the game’s quality.
Steam Page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3535090/LUNA__War_of_the_Moonlight/
Tumblbug page: https://tumblbug.com/lunawar
