Aion is a new MMO being released end of summer, it's graphics are incredible, I think it uses the cryengine, may be mistaken on that. It looks to be the next big thing in the MMO world, with some intresting new mechanics such as having your character sprout wings and fly, while still mainting all your abilitys and the like. I'm considering picking up the collectors edition, as I love such things, and will probaly at least play it for the free month. Anyone else intresed in it? Or did anyone get in the beta?
Aion: The Tower of Eternity
(77 posts) (7 voices)-
I've been following Aion closely for quite a few months now. Unfortunately I've not yet gotten into the beta because the last time I checked most of those beta invites were from silly competitions. I'm waiting for a more viable chance to sign up, but until then I'll just be patient.
If I recall, the CryEngine is used in Aion as you've guessed. I'm sure some of you have heard me raving about this game on Xbox Live and how gorgeous it looks. Visuals can often be down to preference but I just adore the dream-like style and the vibrant colours I've seen so far in the screenshots.
I definitely do plan on picking it up, it's one of the few upcoming MMOs that interest me in the slightest. Here's a link to the official website's screenshot gallery for those of you not in the know.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
Oh look, a clone of a game that cloned other games!
Posted 2 years ago # | -
I can safely say before the game even comes out that it will not break new ground in terms of gameplay. You're basically looking at a game that looks sexy, but will ultimately have the classic MMO battle system combed with the fact you can fight whilst flying, which ultimately isn't such a big difference when you get down to it.
Regardless of all this which I've know about for ages, it doesn't stop me from looking forward to this game. The game world looks very lush, but who knows, I may grow bored of the same old gameplay mechanics after a few weeks. I'll know when I pick it up on launch.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
I've just found that with MMOs, they're all cloning the same interface and gameplay mechanics because that's what works in the industry - but none of them are doing it well enough or bringing anything unique enough for the games to compare to those doing it best, which is why games like Age of Conan are hyped right until the release day, and then they die out.
I'm personally looking forwards to the MMOs of 2012, when hopefully consumer standard of graphic processing power will have improved.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
Darfuria wrote:I've just found that with MMOs, they're all cloning the same interface and gameplay mechanics because that's what works in the industry - but none of them are doing it well enough or bringing anything unique enough for the games to compare to those doing it best, which is why games like Age of Conan are hyped right until the release day, and then they die out.
I'm personally looking forwards to the MMOs of 2012, when hopefully consumer standard of graphic processing power will have improved.
Personally I'm tired of the combat system in MMOs like WoW, WAR, FFXI etc. I don't detest it, but I've just grown bored of the fact that they feel too passive. That's probably why I was so hooked on Phantasy Star Online back in the day, because even though you were pretty much doing the same damn combo over and over as a Hunter, at least combat was in real time.
I'd like to see a game which has a battle system like Kingdom Hearts, but isn't instance-based or has a limited amount of players. This mainly hasn't been doing due to technical restrictions, but I think it's not too far off anymore and it's just a matter of one studio having the balls to take the risk and give it a shot.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
Yeah, that style of relatively non-tactical button mashing does become very dull very quickly. I've always been quite keen on seeing an MMORPG that combines the tactical learning curve of a fighting game such as Street Fighter, or perhaps the lighter choice of something like Tekken with the RPG elements of something like World of Warcraft - fast paced, with some form of difficulty and strategy involved.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
Darfuria wrote:Yeah, that style of relatively non-tactical button mashing does become very dull very quickly.
I know people who still play PSOBB, and I'd still play it too if it wasn't for the fact that SEGA is charging the standard monthly fee for a game that is nearly dead. Naturally it's down to the individual how interesting it will be to have that kind of battle system, but I'm not just talking about an MMO where you mash one button to do the same combo all day. Like PSO you get a melee, range and magic class at the very least. Each class has various skills like your usual MMO, except all of these happen in real time.
I would add a Rogue class for example, which can double jump thus making it more agile in combat but also having the least HP. Parties would consist of like 6-8 players so when you're all doing an instance there would be a lot going on, and once again all in real-time like a brawler. It would be taking the PSO concept to the next level basically.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
DiabloCableGuy wrote:Again, going back to Jumpgate, it is all real time,twitch based combat, none of that "oh that cooldowns up, hit button 4" mechanics.
Yes but Jumpgate will probably make sacrifices for that kind of gameplay. Either combat will be instance based or there will be little variety to combat etc. The only advantage it has in terms of setting is that space allows them to just slap on a background for stars and shit, so no need to worry about things like trees and grass.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
DiabloCableGuy
MemberThey claim an open world like EVE, with open PvP, 1000vs1000 is possible as well (can anyone say lag?). There are instanced PvP zones as well, similar to Scenarios in WAR and battleground in WoW.
As for the "little varitey to combat", I've yet to see any MMO that has true varity to combat, even EVE with it's massive array of ships and weapons dosen't change combat mechanics every fight.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
Yes but there are usually many flaws in such games, and very few keep the promises they make. Look at Global Agenda for example. Reading the game details would make it seem pretty badass, but if you play the Alpha which is obviously still a work in progress, you can see they make some sacrifices to make some of those more interesting features a reality.
I'm not saying Jumpgate will suck, I'm looking forward to playing it too. I'm merely sceptical about MMOs nowadays who promise so much and bring so little to the table. I hope Jumpgate will fulfil its promises and provides a nice Sci-Fi MMO experience that will keep me interested for more than a few months.
The only reason I'm excited about Aion is the art direction. It's not the graphics in particular, just the colours and the dream-like result it creates. Graphics are partly why this is possible but it's only one ingredient in the visual pot.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
DiabloCableGuy
MemberI agree that Aion's visual stlye does look really intresting. I'm really glad that the MMO market is picking up steam, more games means more choice and more competion which can only mean good things for the gamers.
Edit:
The release dates for Aion were just announced. September 22nd in North America, and September 25th in Europe.
Edit 2:
I pre-ordered the collectors edition from GAME, as Play.com has sold out. Pre-ordering will give you beta access, a 2 day head start, some exclusive items, and the ability to reserve a name on the server of your choice before the game goes live. I'm fairly excited, it'll be the first MMO I've played at launch.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
DiabloCableGuy
MemberYeah, that sold it for me. I remeber when TBC launched, I played on a medium pop server but the blood elf starter zone was hell, server went down every 10 mins and you had to fight over spawns. And ofcourse with the beta weekends I can decide on what class I want to play without falling behind the curve.
I am thinking of upgrading my Graphics Card for this game, as mine isn't spectaular. Any thoughts on these cards?
Posted 2 years ago # | -
DiabloCableGuy wrote:Yeah, that sold it for me. I remeber when TBC launched, I played on a medium pop server but the blood elf starter zone was hell, server went down every 10 mins and you had to fight over spawns. And ofcourse with the beta weekends I can decide on what class I want to play without falling behind the curve.
I am thinking of upgrading my Graphics Card for this game, as mine isn't spectaular. Any thoughts on these cards?
The beta entry and two day head start is enticing but they're charging £50 for a 'collectors edition' that doesn't seem to come with anything special aside from these two temporary luxuries. I might get it but with that price tag I'd feel like an idiot.
As for a video card, I've been considering buying a new one myself since it's probably the weakest link in my setup at the moment. However many people have advices me to just wait for the holidays so that the new DX11 cards come out. I can either buy a DX11 card when the holidays come or I can buy one of the previous DX10 cards which will become piss cheap once the new line of video cards are on the market. Either way, it's more cost effective.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
DiabloCableGuy wrote:The Collectors editon also comes with a statue, sevral posters, the OST, sevral ingame items (including a set of wings), a unique title, and a refrence card. So more than just a couple of early entry stuff.
Nice, I'm pre-ordering it in that case.
It never listed any of that shit on GAME's product page, which is a wasteful.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
DiabloCableGuy
MemberYeah, GAME's site sucks, why the major brick and mortar games seller can't build a good site is beyond me. The full list of goodies is on this page, genrally not a bad looking collectors box. Although I miss the inclusion of a concept art book, I love those. According to the fan site I was reading earlier the main draw for the wings with the CE is that they don't cost you, while the normal level 30 ones do.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
Well, I just placed my pre-order.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
DiabloCableGuy
MemberI just downloaded the NCSoft launcher and installed Aion, login screen looks good, nicer than WoWs. I emailed GAME about the beta keys and they said that they will be sending them out tommorow, I imagine Play will do the same so I'll have two keys. We'll be able to play both sides up to level 20 from Thursday, and I think it lasts to Tuesday. I want to try out a Scoreesor (spelling) and a Cleric. DPS and Healer respectivley. From what I understand Aion runs better than WoW on most machines, despite being much better looking so performace shouldn't be an issue.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
DiabloCableGuy wrote:I just downloaded the NCSoft launcher and installed Aion, login screen looks good, nicer than WoWs. I emailed GAME about the beta keys and they said that they will be sending them out tommorow, I imagine Play will do the same so I'll have two keys. We'll be able to play both sides up to level 20 from Thursday, and I think it lasts to Tuesday. I want to try out a Scoreesor (spelling) and a Cleric. DPS and Healer respectivley. From what I understand Aion runs better than WoW on most machines, despite being much better looking so performace shouldn't be an issue.
I'm just going to play as a Scout and then reach Assassin since that's the closest thing there is to a Rogue class in it. Gotta keep my tradition alive.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
DiabloCableGuy wrote:Haha. Reading forums the Sorc actully seems to be the lowest DPS compared to the Scout classes and the Gladiator, so I'll try Ranger instead.
Keep in mind they can easily patch the Sorcerer in the near future so make sure you pick the class that you think you'll enjoy most, not the most potentially OP. I'm not quite keen on having to play as a Scout just to become an Assassin, but since there's not really any way around this it's better to try and look on the bright side instead of moan about something that isn't going to change. I've not even checked what weapon the Scout uses, I'm assuming it's a bow but I wouldn't be surprised if they gave you the choice of using a blade or a bow in preparation for your advanced class.
Posted 2 years ago # | -
I just got my beta keys for Aion, will download the client when I get home.
Posted 2 years ago # |
Reply »
You must log in to post.