It's adventure time in Illuvium World with Illuvium Overworld, an open-world exploration role-playing game (RPG) where you embark on an adventure in the seven regions of Illuvium. At the time of writing, only one region is available, namely the Crimson Waste region.

Map of Crimson Waste (Source: Illuvium.Fandom.com)

Illuvium Overworld is still in its Private Beta testing phase, which opened on 12 December 2022. We have ample time to explore the Illuvium world as this phase will run for as long as required. More adventure is in store as additional regions are set to be available moving forward. Not only that, the fun factor would be going into overdrive as more game modes become available in due course.

As of February 2023, the only available game mode under Illuvium Overworld’s Private Beta testing phase is the player-versus-environment (PvE) Survival Autobattler. In this game mode, you will explore the Crimson Waste region and battle AI-controlled Illuvials in an auto-battler game mode similar to what you will experience in Illuvium Arena. The experience from the small but packed Beta test was strong enough for Illuvium to garner the best RPG game of 2022 award at the GAM3 Award.

Illuvium’s GAM3 award for best RPG game of 2022 (Source: Polkastarter.gg)

The main goal of Illuvium Overworld is to explore the environment using your movement abilities and scan the environment to acquire resources and find Illuvials to capture. Armed with your Nethersight visors and companion drone, you can scan the local environment to Harvest Plants, mine Resources Deposits, and capture Illuvials.

• Mining Resources Deposits

You can mine Resources Deposits for Ores, Gems, and Shards. Ores can be used to make weapons and armor. As for Gems, they are augments that come in five elemental types, Air, Earth, Fire, Water, and Nature. Gems can be used to infuse Illuvials with the relevant elemental synergies and give you an edge in the Arena.

If you want to fire up your Illuvial, you can use a fire-based Gem that is akin to the Fire Stone in Pokémon. In the Pokémon world, a Fire Stone can be used for the evolution of fire-based Pokémons such as from Charmander to Charmeleon. Similarly, Fire Gems can be used to upgrade Illuvials by imbuing them with fire elements. In order to use Gems, you will first need to fight Illuvials in the Illuvial wakes and capture them using cured shards.

• Capturing Illuvials

Capturing an Illuvial first requires you to successfully shoot an Illuvial Wake. If your shot was on point, a portal would appear to take you into the auto-battler mode, where you will fight the Illuvial and a number of its friends. Defeating the Illuvials allows you to capture the defeated Illuvials using cured Shards, similar to Poké Balls that you may be familiar with.

Examples of Illuvials (Source: IlluvialMaster.com)

You can mine raw Shards from mineral deposits and then cure the Shards at the Zero Point Forge. The conversion process for cured Shards requires Fuel in the form of Hyperion which can be harvested in Illuvium Zero or purchased from the IlluviDEX. Cured Shards come in different tiers, with higher tiers having higher capturing power, thereby affording a higher chance of successfully capturing Illuvials.

Mining of raw Shards (Source: Illuvium.io)

• Reaping Harvestable Plants

You can reap Harvestable Plants for guaranteed consumables. In the full version of the game, there will also be a chance to acquire Essence.

Harvestable Plants (Source: Illuvium.wiki)

Like most RPGs, Illuvium Overworld uses traditional third-person movement controls. The movements are further enhanced with Jetpack and Gravity Boots.

The Jetpack lets you travel long distances in a short amount of time. To travel to hard-to-reach places, the Gravity Boots create a gravity well underneath you, boosting you to new heights. Both movement abilities require Kinetic energy, which depletes as the abilities are used. Kinetic energy will start to recharge when you make contact with the ground.

Other travel methods include teleport structures known as Obelisks, which instantly teleport you from one location to another. During the Private Beta testing phase, you will receive Fuel in the form of Cryptons (5,000 units per day), which you can spend to use Obelisks to teleport to different Stages in the Crimson Waste region. There are a total of four Stages in the Crimson Waste region, namely S0, S1, S2, and S3. Teleporting back to Stage 0 of the Crimson Waste region of the Sanctum Messa is free of charge.

The Sanctum Messa is the place where you can recharge your energy that gets depleted when you undertake activities such as harvesting plants, mining resources as well as capturing Illuvials. Additionally, the Sanctum Messa also hosts facilities that allow you to craft new armaments, allowing you to make upgrades to your items or carry out the fusion process for Illuvials. These processes would require Fuel in the form of Solon, which can be harvested using Illuvium Zero or purchased from the IlluviDEX.

An Obelisk (Source: Illuvium.io)

Illuvium Overworld is playable on both Windows and Mac devices. The first step is to go to the official Illuvium website and sign up for an account before registering for beta access. According to the developers, some of the factors which they would take into account for their Beta tester selection process include but are not limited to “completeness of registration information and system specifications”. Those who are selected to be Beta testers will receive an invitation email. Once you have been accepted to the Private Beta, you download the game and start your adventure to catch them all!

Downloading Illuvium Overworld (Source: Illuvium.io)

The Private Beta gives you a taste of what’s to come in Illuvium. Fuels acquired from Illuvium Zero powers your experiences in Illuvium Overworld, and this interoperable experience is ultimately realized in Illuvium Arena. In this third game mode, you will be able to show off your captured Illuvials and take on any challenger that comes your way. The exhilarating combat experienced in Illuvium Arena will be discussed in our next course, Be the Gladiator of the Illuvium Arena.