Aion

[Borror0]

Pure PvP = no content whatsoever.

Well, there is a niche for that. If Aion is doing a solid job at appealing to that niche, then good for them!

I'm  PvE player, so I don't expect Aion to be a game for me. It does not mean that the game is poorly designed. All the contrary, from what I have of Aion, it is extremely well designed and there is very little wrong with it considering their goals. Of course, I could be wrong since I didn't get to actually play it for more than an hour in open beta but the comments on the blogosphere seem to go that way as well.

My next prediction:  Half of Aion's subscriber base heads back to WoW or elsewhere.   I already see our server filling back up with people, and Raid PUGing picking back up.   Give it a couple months.

You say that like if it's a bad thing. It happens to every MMO, and it will happen to Aion as well.

That will happen and, around the one year anniversary, they'll probably merge a few servers to ensure a solid population in each shard. Then, they'll start to send out invitations and try a few promotions to try to attract players back so they can see how much the game improved in a year. That's how it works when your name is not Blizzard. 

[Arveene]

I am not going to sugarcoat this though. If you are playing this game for PvE instances, you will be sorely disappointed. Do not think for even a second that this is a PvE game, it's not. It's a RvR game.

In other words - that's an admit that it's barren of content and ... the players make the game 100%.

That's what I said all along.   What would happen to this game if you subtracted the users?   Yeah, exactly - it would suck hardcore, it would be unplayable - just like all Korean MMOs.   ( WoW - that changed my view of MMOs - why?   Because it has content and entertainment value rather than social and nothing more. )

Pure PvP = no content whatsoever.

Sure - you can pvp in anything, can in WoW - but you can only do it for --- how long?   All you've got to do in order to get a really good fight going, whip up a nice big 20 party and head down to any main city.   Whiners will drag out all the good stuff.

Ditto for that.

Maybe a pure PvP game = no content to YOU. For me, and many others who are enjoying Aion, it's not. Roaming PvP, RvR, that's what I'm playing it for. That's why I'm enjoying it. You're missing the fact that Aion isn't a "WoW killer" - nothing is. Too many MMOs are aiming for that. Instead Aion has aimed for it's niche and it's hit the mark, almost dead on. Yes, there are next to no PvE instances, I didn't say there aren't any at all. There's some, and some nice world bosses. They aren't the most challenging, but they're decent. The primary focus is PvP, and it does that quite well. I don't get where your idea of PvP is not content comes from. Heck, I could say WoW has no PvE content because it all FUCKING BLOWS. Yeah, not a very good argument is it? So stop using it. Edit: Actually this comparison for your argument also fucking blows, but I'd still like to know where the idea of PvP not counting as content comes from. Because I really don't understand how PvP cannot equal.

Difference here - is when that's not going down, you still have things to do.

Aion ... don't have that.  There's no E at all.   If you aren't playing with a bunch of friends, a good guild, or whatever - the game's going to suck hard.

( My next prediction:  Half of Aion's subscriber base heads back to WoW or elsewhere.   I already see our server filling back up with people, and Raid PUGing picking back up.   Give it a couple months. )

Arveene, any clue when there'll be a trial for Aion?

I'd like to see that - because I'm not about to spend $50 to play something I believe to be borderline on horrible.   They should have thought of that beforehand - they've got the badge of shit stamped on their title:  "Made in Korea".   I'd like them to prove it wrong without me needing to spend money on it.  

You might be right, they do have the "Made in Korea" badge on their title. Unfortunately, I rather enjoy that aspect. The grind to 50 wasn't even that bad compared to most Korean MMOs, and they're making it easier next patch. They're making it ridiculously easy. You prediction may or may not be true. For some people, PvP might not be their cup of tea. They'll go back, but anyone who's playing this game for the PvP will stay because they're doing things right for now.

I do agree that a trial would be nice for people who are on the fence about the game. You're already going into the game saying it sucks, I highly doubt a trial would make any difference for someone like you.

[kyanwan]

I'll just point one thing out before you discount me.  

If you asked me what I thought about WoW 2 years ago - I'd have said it's a festering pot of vomit and feces.   From release to about a year ago - I was *extremely* anti-WoW.  ( Mainly, because they make you pay a monthly fee.  Yeah, bad eh?   Not to mention I was turned off towards MMO / RPG ... because of the reflex requirement for FPS - playing MMO / RPG really cuts down on that, destroys your quickness / response time required for a great ratio.  Takes a couple weeks for me to get up to par, if I wasn't on a long RPG bender that is.  )  

I finally broke down ... and tried the trial.  

I was impressed.  I tried it, I liked it.  If I were to rate the game - I'd give it a 9/10.   The -1 because they nerf & modify gameplay too much ... though they're very active on fixing any issues that pop up.   Other than that - great title.   I'm surprised at how well they did end-of-game.   Once you hit max level - the real game has only just begun - literally.  

Then there's levels of PvP - with multiple paths to take - world, battlegrounds, even arena.   They've got an extremely robust end-of-game, that can literally last a year on top of it, then even drag you into the realms of replay value.  ( replay an mmo?  Can't even imagine myself saying that at this point. )

The competition for Aion is tough - I will admit.  They've [Ncsoft] got near perfection that they are measured up against - this isn't an uphill fight they've got here - it's an up-mountain fight --- with a handicap [their perceived bad rep just for who they happen to be].  

[Arveene]

I'll just point one thing out before you discount me.  

If you asked me what I thought about WoW 2 years ago - I'd have said it's a festering pot of vomit and feces.   From release to about a year ago - I was *extremely* anti-WoW.  ( Mainly, because they make you pay a monthly fee.  Yeah, bad eh?   Not to mention I was turned off towards MMO / RPG ... because of the reflex requirement for FPS - playing MMO / RPG really cuts down on that, destroys your quickness / response time required for a great ratio.  Takes a couple weeks for me to get up to par, if I wasn't on a long RPG bender that is.  )  

I finally broke down ... and tried the trial.  

I was impressed.  I tried it, I liked it.  If I were to rate the game - I'd give it a 9/10.   The -1 because they nerf & modify gameplay too much ... though they're very active on fixing any issues that pop up.   Other than that - great title.   I'm surprised at how well they did end-of-game.   Once you hit max level - the real game has only just begun - literally.  

Then there's levels of PvP - with multiple paths to take - world, battlegrounds, even arena.   They've got an extremely robust end-of-game, that can literally last a year on top of it, then even drag you into the realms of replay value.  ( replay an mmo?  Can't even imagine myself saying that at this point. )

The competition for Aion is tough - I will admit.  They've [Ncsoft] got near perfection that they are measured up against - this isn't an uphill fight they've got here - it's an up-mountain fight --- with a handicap [their perceived bad rep just for who they happen to be].  

Fair enough. I'm not personally discounting you, I was just saying it's unlikely you'll like the game if you already have such a negative impression of it. I would like to counter your point about multiple PvP levels. World PvP is dead in WoW. BGs are just to get gear for arenas, but for the sake of argument we'll count that as a separate level. There are WoW players who still only BG as well. In comparison, you could say Aion has the same thing. In Aion you have fortress sieges, world PvP, and Dredgion. Each of which are very different.

Fortress Sieges and world pvp are self-explanatory. Dredgion is similar to a BG. It's a 6v6 PvEvP BG where a group of Elysians and Asmodians race to kill the captain of the Balaur battleship. It's actually a lot of fun and quite challenging when 2 good groups are up against each other.

The Aion vision trailer was just posted yesterday in case anyone missed it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PAM0wr7cZ8

I'm curious to see when the content update for some of this stuff will be. It looks like they'll be pushing the engine to its limits as well. I also have a few predictions for storyline / lore stuff based off of certain.. events shown in the trailer.

(click to show/hide)

For anyone who has done the Theobomos campaign quests, some of those giant things towards the end appear to be the same from Project Drakenhammer. Considering the fact that they're not in the abyss, on land, flying, and fighting asmodians, I think that eventually the two halves of the world will become one again at some point. I'm wondering what would happen to the abyss at though. Even if I'm wrong, it'll be interesting to see when this stuff comes out.

Edit: Fix't typo.

[newy]

The Aion Vision trailer was awesome. Saw it yesterday too. Only time will tell when they are going to implement that.

[AceD]

BGs are just to get gear for arenas

grinding BG's is boring as hell...doing PvE and using the crappy Emblem of Conquest tokens for pvp kit is a more fun route...and easier  

so really, BG's are pointless these days!

[GoGeTa006]

In other words - that's an admit that it's barren of content and ... the players make the game 100%.

That's what I said all along.   What would happen to this game if you subtracted the users?   Yeah, exactly - it would suck hardcore, it would be unplayable - just like all Korean MMOs.   ( WoW - that changed my view of MMOs - why?   Because it has content and entertainment value rather than social and nothing more. )

Pure PvP = no content whatsoever.

IIRC
MMORPG stands for Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game

therefore there is not of a big point in making a solo game.
I dont know about you but I cant picture myself playing solo WoW on an empty server. Take the users out of wow and you have a regular 1 player game, Id rather buy FF7 or some other REGULAR RPG, maybe download a gameboy emulator and play pokemon.


MMmmm let me make an analogy:

dude 1: Dude! that pizza is the best pizza I've ever had
dude 2: . . .its not that great man, if you took the cheese, the peperony and the spices out you would'nt have anything special

======

dude 1: dude! this is the best casino ever
dude 2: its not that great man, if you took the card games and the slot machines it wouldnt be anything special

[Borror0]

IIRC
MMORPG stands for Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game

therefore there is not of a big point in making a solo game.

First statement is correct, but not the second one. Damion Schubert had a great presentation in AGDC this year, explaining the importance of solo play in an MMO. There is a long list of reasons to allow solo play in your MMO. Google it, if you're any curious.

With that said, kyanwan's argument is a silly one. It's only logical that, if you remove all the great components of a game, you'll end up with a bad game. In the case of Aion, remove the players and the game suddenly sucks because it's designed to be with other players.

[GoGeTa006]

IIRC
MMORPG stands for Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game

therefore there is not of a big point in making a solo game.

First statement is correct, but not the second one. Damion Schubert had a great presentation in AGDC this year, explaining the importance of solo play in an MMO. There is a long list of reasons to allow solo play in your MMO. Google it, if you're any curious.

With that said, kyanwan's argument is a silly one. It's only logical that, if you remove all the great components of a game, you'll end up with a bad game. In the case of Aion, remove the players and the game suddenly sucks because it's designed to be with other players.

my point exactly!

anyways. . .ive been questing in abyss. . .must say DAMM FKIN BITCHES ELYOS! whatever happened to carebears!?

also I find it imposible to beat a cleric with my lvl 30 templar. Sins are piece of cake and glads just take long but its a 50/50, ive only come across a sorcerer, got me from behind with half hp, got him to half before I died.

[GoGeTa006]

I dont know if this should be merged into the other one but anyways. . .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PAM0wr7cZ8

I dont know if its going to be an expansion (it better not be) since it just got released
but that video looks KICKASS!

mount taming. . .I can mount a dinosaur!
I can buy a house, fukin shugos!

[shabutie]

I'm really hoping this is a free update. (I'd be really surprised if it wasn't)


I pretty much quit after my free month was up because it felt kinda lacking and ... well... incomplete.


Hopefully this turns it around.  I'll probably renew my account once this launches.




(Also, in before kyanwan's flexnuts)

[newy]

This should be closed Arveene (I think) posted that link in the existing Aion thread a long time ago.

[GoGeTa006]

if its released within this year it CANNOT be an expansion, its too early for that

[Arveene]

Oh hey, refer a friend program for Aion. PM me if you want a demo key.

Unfortunately you won't be able to get too far.

Aion demo accounts are good for three days, five hours, or level 7, whichever is reached first.
(Edit)

[Borror0]

Aion demo accounts are good for three days, five hours, or level 7, whichever is reached first.
(Edit)

This is ridiculous. Can you even, you know, really try the game at that point?

I'd like to try the game but five hours seem very little to form a good idea of the product...

[Drew]

Lol, five hours or level 7? Level 7 will definitely come first. I'd hardly call that a demo, especially considering how long it takes to max even one character. More like a trailer, if that, even.

I will mention that I'm so bored with games in general at this point, sans Torchlight, that I'm thinking about renewing my account and maybe finally pushing to 50. I've got probably enough rest experience to get me at least part of the way through 40. Hm...

[Arveene]

Lol, five hours or level 7? Level 7 will definitely come first. I'd hardly call that a demo, especially considering how long it takes to max even one character. More like a trailer, if that, even.

I will mention that I'm so bored with games in general at this point, sans Torchlight, that I'm thinking about renewing my account and maybe finally pushing to 50. I've got probably enough rest experience to get me at least part of the way through 40. Hm...

If you account has been active, don't forget you have all of those Lodas Amulets from veteran rewards. Hit 50 so we can duo gank people in the abyss. =p

[Slysoft]

Lol, five hours or level 7? Level 7 will definitely come first. I'd hardly call that a demo, especially considering how long it takes to max even one character. More like a trailer, if that, even.

If you happen to do your trial on a double xp weekend, it's even shorter. With double xp getting to low-mid 20's in one day is very easy.

[GoGeTa006]

im having problems!
Apparently AVG thinks Aion has some sort of virus, I added it to exceptions and all but now it keeps crashing or i get 2000 ms server response. . .which isnt good

[kyanwan]

Aion demo accounts are good for three days, five hours, or level 7, whichever is reached first.
(Edit)

This is ridiculous. Can you even, you know, really try the game at that point?

I'd like to try the game but five hours seem very little to form a good idea of the product...

A 5 hour demo? 

Come on.   Even WoW lets you get 1-2 weeks depending on your source - and has a cap of L20 - so you can get a feel for the game.   

Wonder what they're afraid of.    Even I would have given it a shot ( so I can hate legitimately ) to see what it's all about. 

Other software gives ya 30 days - 30 count em.   Even others yet - they give you a couple levels of the game to play to your heart's content ( World at War, Call of Duty, etc ).   

So I ask again - what's NCSoft afraid of?