MU Online () is a 2001 massively multiplayer online role-playing (MMORPG) video game developed and published by the South Korean company Webzen for Windows.
MU Online takes place on the mythical continent of Mu, also known as Lemuria, a lost civilization in the Pacific Ocean proposed in the 19th century by writers James Churchward and Augustus Le Plongeon.
Since its launch on 19 November 2001, in South Korea, MU Online has had twenty-two major expansion packs, known as Seasons.
MU Online was inspired by the action role-playing game Diablo.
MU Online theme songs were composed by Jeong Jae-hwan and performed by the Seoul Metropolitan Chorus ().
Gameplay Mu Online was created in December 2001 by the Korean gaming company Webzen Inc. Like most MMORPGs, players create a character among nine different classes and set foot on the MU Continent. To gain experience and thus level up, a player needs to fight monsters (mobs). MU is populated by a large variety of monsters, from simple ones like goblins and golems, to more challenging ones such as the Gorgon, Kundun or Selupan. Each monster type is unique, has different spawn points, and drops different items. Outside of a duel, PvP fighting is possible but discouraged. When one player attacks another, a self-defense system is activated, in which the attacked player may kill the aggressor within a time limit. Self-defense is also activated when a player attacks an Elf's summoned creature. Outlaws have disadvantages during gameplay, depending on their Outlaw level.
Character classes At the start of the game, players can choose from 16 character classes: Dark Wizard, Dark Knight, Fairy Elf, Magic Gladiator, Dark Lord, Summoner, Rage Fighter, Grow Lancer, Rune Mage, Slayer, Gun Crusher, White Wizard, Mage, Illusion Knight, Alchemist, and Crusader. Two of these, Magic Gladiator and Dark Lord, are unlocked by raising a single character to a certain level (220 and 250 respectively), while the others can be unlocked by purchasing character cards. Each class has its own unique powers and items. As characters level up and complete quests, they can evolve into stronger classes. Each class change grants access to new spells, skills, weapons, and wings, along with a change in appearance. 1st Evolution 2nd Evolution 3rd Evolution 4th Evolution 5th Evolution Dark Knight Blade Knight Blade Master Dragon Knight Ignition Knight Dark Wizard Soul Master Grand Master Soul Wizard Darkness Wizard Fairy Elf Muse Elf High Elf Noble Elf Royal Elf Magic Gladiator Duel Master Magic Knight Duple Knight Dark Lord Lord Emperor Empire Lord Force Empire Summoner Bloody Summoner Dimension Master Dimension Summoner Endless Summoner Rage Fighter Fist Master Fist Blazer Bloody Fighter Grow Lancer Mirage Lancer Shining Lancer Arcane Lancer Rune Mage Rune Spell Master Grand Rune Master Majestic Rune Wizard Inifnity Rune Wizard Slayer Royal Slayer Master Slayer Slaughterer Rogue Slayer Gun Crusher Gun Breaker Master Gun Breaker Heist Gun Crusher Magnus Gun Crusher White Wizard Light Master Shine Wizard Luminous Wizard Glory Wizard Mage Wo Mage Arch Mage Mystic Mage Battle Mage Illusion Knight Mirage Knight Illusion Master Mystic Knight Phantom Pain Knight Alchemist Alchemic Magician Alchemic Master Alchemic Force Creator Crusader Impact Crusader Master Paladin Sacred Paladin Templar Commander
Spells and skills Like most MMO games, characters in MU can use many different kinds of magic and special abilities. Each character has its own set of spells, and some weapons may be enchanted to provide the character with a specific spell. Casting a spell costs MP (mana, or magic points) and sometimes AG or stamina.
Communications Mu Online has a built-in chat system that allows all visible players to communicate easily via text. Users can add custom players to their Friends List in order to make it easy to keep in contact with one another. Other methods of chat were also available, such as Guild chat and Party chat.
Cooperative play Players can choose to team up with other players in a "party", in which players cooperate against enemy monsters to share exp and loot. Early seasons of the game encouraged party play by rewarding the player with the highest level more experience points for helping lower-level players. Players could not see the level of other players in the party, but because spending character points on vitality was highly discouraged, players could guess quite accurately the level of other players by seeing their health bars. Some builds were made for parties only, like the part elf, which focused on filling up the energy stat, being protected by a summoned mob, and buffing party members.
Expansions Data compiled from the official MU Korea version timeline.
Version Duration Season 0 February 12, 2001 – August 17, 2005 Season 1 August 17, 2005 – August 29, 2006 Season 2 August 29, 2006 – December 6, 2007 Season 3 December 6, 2007 – February 26, 2008 Season 3+ February 26, 2008 – August 26, 2008 Season 4 August 26, 2008 – April 2, 2009 Season 4.5 April 2, 2009 – August 27, 2009 Season 5 Part 1 August 27, 2009 – October 27, 2009 Season 5 Part 2 October 27, 2009 – February 4, 2010 Season 5 Part 3 February 4, 2010 – April 27, 2010 Season 5 Part 4 April 27, 2010 – October 7, 2010 Season 6 Part 1 October 7, 2010 – March 3, 2011 Season 6 Part 2 March 3, 2011 – August 25, 2011 Season 6 Part 3 August 25, 2011 – November 21, 2011 eX700 November 21, 2011 – March 29, 2012 eX701 March 29, 2012 – June 13, 2012 eX702 June 13, 2012 – November 27, 2012 Season 8 Part 1 November 27, 2012 – April 16, 2013 Season 8 Part 2 April 16, 2013 – July 30, 2013 Season 8 Part 3 July 30, 2013 – December 10, 2013 Season 9 Part 1 December 10, 2013 – April 22, 2014 Season 9 Part 2 April 22, 2014 – August 19, 2014 Season X Part 1 August 19, 2014 – December 16, 2014 Season X Part 2 December 16, 2014 – May 21, 2015 Season X Part 3 May 21, 2015 – October 21, 2015 Season 11 Part 1-1 October 21, 2015 – November 5, 2015 Season 11 Part 1-2 November 5, 2015 – May 17, 2016 Season 11 Part 2-1 May 17, 2016 – June 9, 2016 Season 11 Part 2-2 June 9, 2016 – November 1, 2016 Season 12 Part 1-1 November 1, 2016 – November 17, 2016 Season 12 Part 1-2 November 17, 2016 – May 23, 2017 Season 12 Part 2 May 23, 2017 – October 24, 2017 Season 13 Part 1-1 October 24, 2017 – November 14, 2017 Season 13 Part 1-2 November 14, 2017 – May 16, 2018 Season 13 Part 2-1 May 16, 2018 – June 7, 2018 Season 13 Part 2-2 June 7, 2018 – October 16, 2018 Season 14 Part 1-1 October 16, 2018 – November 29, 2018 Season 14 Part 1-2 November 29, 2018 – May 21, 2019 Season 14 Part 2-1 May 21, 2019 – June 11, 2019 Season 14 Part 2-2 June 11, 2019 – September 24, 2019 Season 15 Part 1-1 September 24, 2019 – October 17, 2019 Season 15 Part 1-2 October 17, 2019 – November 5, 2019 Season 15 Part 1-3 November 5, 2019 – April 21, 2020 Season 15 Part 2-1 April 21, 2020 – May 11, 2020 Season 15 Part 2-2 May 11, 2020 – September 15, 2020 Season 16 Part 1-1 September 15, 2020 – October 6, 2020 Season 16 Part 1-2 October 6, 2020 – October 27, 2020 Season 16 Part 1-3 October 27, 2020 – April 13, 2021 Season 16 Part 2-1 April 13, 2021 – May 4, 2021 Season 16 Part 2-2 May 4, 2021 – September 28, 2021 Season 17 Part 1-1 September 28, 2021 – October 19, 2021 Season 17 Part 1-2 October 19, 2021 – November 9, 2021 Season 17 Part 1-3 November 9, 2021 – April 19, 2022 Season 17 Part 2-1 April 19, 2022 – May 10, 2022 Season 17 Part 2-2 May 10, 2022 – September 27, 2022 Season 18 Part 1-1 September 27, 2022 – October 20, 2022 Season 18 Part 1-2 October 20, 2022 – November 8, 2022 Season 18 Part 1-3 November 8, 2022 – April 18, 2023 Season 18 Part 2-1 April 18, 2023 – May 18, 2023 Season 18 Part 2-2 May 18, 2023 – September 19, 2023 Season 19 Part 1-1 September 19, 2023 – October 12, 2023 Season 19 Part 1-2 October 12, 2023 – November 1, 2023 Season 19 Part 1-3 November 1, 2023 – April 30, 2024 Season 19 Part 2-1 April 30, 2024 – May 14, 2024 Season 19 Part 2-2 May 14, 2024 – June 4, 2024 Season 19 Part 2-3 June 4, 2024 – September 24, 2024 Season 20 Part 1-1 September 24, 2024 – October 15, 2024 Season 20 Part 1-2 October 15, 2024 – November 5, 2024 Season 20 Part 1-3 November 5, 2024 – April 22, 2025 Season 20 Part 2-1 April 22, 2025 – May 13, 2025 Season 20 Part 2-2 May 13, 2025 – May 29, 2025 Season 20 Part 2-3 May 29, 2025 – September 30, 2025 Season 21 Part 1-1 September 30, 2025 – October 21, 2025 Season 21 Part 1-2 October 21, 2025 – November 11, 2025 Season 21 Part 1-3 November 11, 2025 – April 21, 2026 Season 21 Part 2-1 April 21, 2026 – May 12, 2026 Season 21 Part 2-2 May 12, 2026 – June 9, 2026 Season 21 Part 2-3 June 9, 2026 – September 15, 2026 Season 22 Part 1-1 September 15, 2026 – Present
References
External links
MU Korea official website Webzen Press Releases in Korean Global MU Online (GMO) official website Webzen Press Releases in English