I have been playing since launch now and I have 3 characters past level 60 so I can give some insight.
I have a quad core, 4 gig of ram, 8800gt 512 card and a new mobo. just for the record.
Performance:
* I run the game on high with maximum view and out of the city I get 40-50 fps, inside the cities I get 20-40 fps.
* Crash To desktop use to happen 3-4 times in 2-3 hours. Now I am getting 1 now and then.
* Population is always on medium load and I play on a RP-PvP EU server. Unlike a lot of new launches like Vanguard, TR, PotBS there are plenty of people around after the initial 3 months. However if you go off track you wont see many people.
Where I get frustrated is trying to find groups but that is in every game. Its not too bad but I wish there was an automatic group option. People complain about content not being added at launch but I have played a lot and really enjoyed leveling 3 characters past 60 and I have not been in a situation where I have not had anything to do. PvP games are not too far away either so I guess I will get into that.
I don't want to go into every thing about the game but for anyone that has a high end rig and likes traditional MMO's then they are mad not to try AoC because I am still amazed at the detail and shading plus the performance at that level. Fatality and adult content really makes a big difference as it feels more real. Combat is improved and more interesting compared to the Vanguard, WoW's of this world. World is big and some of the maps are huge and you wont see a loading screen for hours.
Highlights for me:
Watching our guild city going up. Its quite amazing to see what players can create and to run around the walls with incredible scenery is truly something. Now they just need to add siege combat properly!
Combat: Bloody and in a group it can be quite destructive and movie like.
Music: Its the first time I have been tempted to listen to the CD that I got with the SE. Its professional, moody and so sets the setting.
If you have a good rig then definitely try it because its worth playing for 1 month regardless as the first 20 levels is like a pretty good single player game and the classes are quite interesting to.
Maybe a good idea for finding out the state of the game would be to check out the official forums.
I will say that server load is no indication of server population as Funcom has set all servers to medium. I also know that Doomsayer is becoming a Ghost town as most are rerolling to Deathwhisper. I believe that Deathwhisper and Cimmeria are high population servers in North America. I also believe that AoC is twice as popular in Europe as it is in North America.
I should state that I am a bit of a troll. As I feel that Funcom has ripped me off promising more than the game delivers.
First post here. I can say that i ve played the game (slow leveler) from day 1. I m actually only level 60, but i amnot to fond of the game. I found it uninspiring and well boring. Technical issues aside this is how i felt. Population mught say medium but theres no way in hell it s medium. There are times i don t see a person for an hour. That said the game could have been great , but fell short bigtime. I would suggest not to get it and wait for other games on the horizon.
a lot of hype came from it for being a big game when it comes to pvp
when it launched, sieges were promised, i dont think they were in. when it launched, pvp levels and a pvp system was promised, neither were in, all you could do was attack people and it really didnt do much. now they are adding some bullsh*t nonsense "criminal" system where if you PVP on a PVP server you turn grey or w.e, then if you do it too much, you turn red. until you work off the red, you can be attacked by anyone without any consquence and THEY can loot you, you cant loot them or if you are neither grey or red and you want to pvp some in the world you cant loot you opponent...honestly, what's the point? if you're going to coppy UO, copy it right
oh yeah, endgame pvp is pretty much who can get their first combo off first because it doesnt take much more then that to kill someone.
Ok here are some of my reviews as I played the game. The first one is the early review where I loved it then each following is higher lvl and talks about issues I've encountered. You can see me go from a fan to disappointment.
In the end I quit the game around lvl 57 and went back to everquest 2 but got sucked into vanguard when I decided to try the free month and that's where I am today.
There just isn't much good to say about AoC right now.
It actually ran better the first week of launch if that tells you anything.
The GMs and forum Mods have a serious cop mentality, which is magnified by how poorly coded the terrain in the game is, which, in turn, creates a whole lot of exploitable situations for the players for which they get banned. And of course that induces some serious trolling on the forums, which causes the forum cops to beat down their customers, creating even more hostility.
That is pretty much what AoC is now. A downward spiral of epic fail.
Its funny because I am not sure if I play the game because I like it or its due to there being anything else out there to play right now. Not only that but after so many years playing MMO's I know that there isn't any big game coming out that will supersede it so much that I will be blown away. Even WAR won't fill that massive gap straight away...Darkfall..maybe. Either way games like Vanguard are picking up now because its had 1 year of polish and content added. AoC for me launched 1000% better than Vanguard because I could actually play it from day one. So in a years time people will be slamming WAR still and going back to AoC because all that promised content will be there and the client very solid.
For me the biggest issue with AoC is the lack of RP elements. E.g. Vanguard has crafting halls and this really helped generate an overall RP feel. However I do prefer AoC in general.
Its a fun game. Decent content. The server population is good. I've played since release and have had almost no problems with crashing and bugs. Just realize that the vast majority of people that play, really like this game. And also realize the vocal minority come to the forums and bash the game. My advice would be to play it. If you dont like it, then u dont like it. But dont just take what people say for the 100% truth.
You have to be kidding me... The vast majority playing may like it, but the vast majority that bought it aren't playing it. It is not a vocal minority that doesn't like the game. That is just SOEism if I've ever seen it.
To the OP. I didn't really like the game from the get go, even before I got out of the intro town that even the people that really hate this game seemed to like. I found the combat to be really clunky. The melee combat had an action style control to it, where you would attack in certain directions and use combos, which would have been cool. BUT, they added a combat queue to it, which completely ruined it in my opinion. You basically had an action style control scheme but had to wait for attacks to happen after you pushed the button.
I also found a lot of graphical errors(not fps errors as my fps was great even on max settings). Thinks wouldn't render right, or just plain bugs such as all of the character features going invisible when you go stealth(this includes clothes, facial features, everything).
Another thing I hated about the game was the instancing. Having multiple copies of each zone completely ruined the immersion for me.
Just my .02
Lions and Tigers and TROLLS oh my!!!!!...
To the OP the best advice I can give you is to try it out an form your own opinion.....Your really not going to get honesty on here...
Its a fun game. Decent content. The server population is good. I've played since release and have had almost no problems with crashing and bugs. Just realize that the vast majority of people that play, really like this game. And also realize the vocal minority come to the forums and bash the game. My advice would be to play it. If you dont like it, then u dont like it. But dont just take what people say for the 100% truth.
You have to be kidding me... The vast majority playing may like it, but the vast majority that bought it aren't playing it. It is not a vocal minority that doesn't like the game. That is just SOEism if I've ever seen it.
To the OP. I didn't really like the game from the get go, even before I got out of the intro town that even the people that really hate this game seemed to like. I found the combat to be really clunky. The melee combat had an action style control to it, where you would attack in certain directions and use combos, which would have been cool. BUT, they added a combat queue to it, which completely ruined it in my opinion. You basically had an action style control scheme but had to wait for attacks to happen after you pushed the button.
I also found a lot of graphical errors(not fps errors as my fps was great even on max settings). Thinks wouldn't render right, or just plain bugs such as all of the character features going invisible when you go stealth(this includes clothes, facial features, everything).
Another thing I hated about the game was the instancing. Having multiple copies of each zone completely ruined the immersion for me.
Just my .02
Lions and Tigers and TROLLS oh my!!!!!...
To the OP the best advice I can give you is to try it out an form your own opinion.....Your really not going to get honesty on here...
from any one fan or hater lol..
read the forums make up your mind that way..
any game i buy now adays with the mind set of the players and the corps that make them is what i spend on mmo's is what i do not mind losing. and AoC was loss to me.
Only good thing I can say: AoC was'nt as bad as Vanguard at release.
I can honestly say FunCom had no idea how to make PvP the end game in Anarchy Online, and after 8+ years of failing to find a way to do it there, they failed to do it again in Age of Conan. By November of this year the PvP will be thrown to the gutter while they put all efforts into PvE, it's what they did for AO, and by all indications will again do with AoC.
Note: For those that did'nt have the "pleasure" of playing AO at launch FailCom talked up the AO PvP just as much as they have for AoC. To give you the short version they lost over 80% of their subscriber base with in 3 months and centered on PvE to keep the few thousand accounts they still had.
I know this might be asking a lot on the mmorpg forums hah, but can anyone that plays the game give me a fair review of the state of the game as it is now... I'm very interested in playing and would like to get some insight on server population, stability,and fun factor.. I know there are a lot of things funcom failed to reach so far, but I would really like some postives also. thanks
"It is like a steak and fine wine. And the other games are like McDonalds."
Seriously, I'd like to give you more, but I can't. Just thinking about how hard this game flopped and the damage it did to the credibility of the MMO genre makes me want to vomit.
So many people I know said "that's my last MMO" before their free month was even over. Granted, they may play another, but that's really pathetic to see a game flop that hard.
Comments
I have been playing since launch now and I have 3 characters past level 60 so I can give some insight.
I have a quad core, 4 gig of ram, 8800gt 512 card and a new mobo. just for the record.
Performance:
* I run the game on high with maximum view and out of the city I get 40-50 fps, inside the cities I get 20-40 fps.
* Crash To desktop use to happen 3-4 times in 2-3 hours. Now I am getting 1 now and then.
* Population is always on medium load and I play on a RP-PvP EU server. Unlike a lot of new launches like Vanguard, TR, PotBS there are plenty of people around after the initial 3 months. However if you go off track you wont see many people.
Where I get frustrated is trying to find groups but that is in every game. Its not too bad but I wish there was an automatic group option. People complain about content not being added at launch but I have played a lot and really enjoyed leveling 3 characters past 60 and I have not been in a situation where I have not had anything to do. PvP games are not too far away either so I guess I will get into that.
I don't want to go into every thing about the game but for anyone that has a high end rig and likes traditional MMO's then they are mad not to try AoC because I am still amazed at the detail and shading plus the performance at that level. Fatality and adult content really makes a big difference as it feels more real. Combat is improved and more interesting compared to the Vanguard, WoW's of this world. World is big and some of the maps are huge and you wont see a loading screen for hours.
Highlights for me:
Watching our guild city going up. Its quite amazing to see what players can create and to run around the walls with incredible scenery is truly something. Now they just need to add siege combat properly!
Combat: Bloody and in a group it can be quite destructive and movie like.
Music: Its the first time I have been tempted to listen to the CD that I got with the SE. Its professional, moody and so sets the setting.
If you have a good rig then definitely try it because its worth playing for 1 month regardless as the first 20 levels is like a pretty good single player game and the classes are quite interesting to.
Hope this helped...
Maybe a good idea for finding out the state of the game would be to check out the official forums.
I will say that server load is no indication of server population as Funcom has set all servers to medium. I also know that Doomsayer is becoming a Ghost town as most are rerolling to Deathwhisper. I believe that Deathwhisper and Cimmeria are high population servers in North America. I also believe that AoC is twice as popular in Europe as it is in North America.
I should state that I am a bit of a troll. As I feel that Funcom has ripped me off promising more than the game delivers.
Waiting for the next thing
First post here. I can say that i ve played the game (slow leveler) from day 1. I m actually only level 60, but i amnot to fond of the game. I found it uninspiring and well boring. Technical issues aside this is how i felt. Population mught say medium but theres no way in hell it s medium. There are times i don t see a person for an hour. That said the game could have been great , but fell short bigtime. I would suggest not to get it and wait for other games on the horizon.
a lot of hype came from it for being a big game when it comes to pvp
when it launched, sieges were promised, i dont think they were in. when it launched, pvp levels and a pvp system was promised, neither were in, all you could do was attack people and it really didnt do much. now they are adding some bullsh*t nonsense "criminal" system where if you PVP on a PVP server you turn grey or w.e, then if you do it too much, you turn red. until you work off the red, you can be attacked by anyone without any consquence and THEY can loot you, you cant loot them or if you are neither grey or red and you want to pvp some in the world you cant loot you opponent...honestly, what's the point? if you're going to coppy UO, copy it right
oh yeah, endgame pvp is pretty much who can get their first combo off first because it doesnt take much more then that to kill someone.
Ok here are some of my reviews as I played the game. The first one is the early review where I loved it then each following is higher lvl and talks about issues I've encountered. You can see me go from a fan to disappointment.
www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/post/2020473#2020473
www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/post/2028325#2028325
www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/post/2042396#2042396
www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/post/2097355#2097355
In the end I quit the game around lvl 57 and went back to everquest 2 but got sucked into vanguard when I decided to try the free month and that's where I am today.
---
Ethion
There just isn't much good to say about AoC right now.
It actually ran better the first week of launch if that tells you anything.
The GMs and forum Mods have a serious cop mentality, which is magnified by how poorly coded the terrain in the game is, which, in turn, creates a whole lot of exploitable situations for the players for which they get banned. And of course that induces some serious trolling on the forums, which causes the forum cops to beat down their customers, creating even more hostility.
That is pretty much what AoC is now. A downward spiral of epic fail.
Can anyone give me a fair review?
There's not enough fairness in the world to describe how badly Funcom funcomed us off with AoC.
Its funny because I am not sure if I play the game because I like it or its due to there being anything else out there to play right now. Not only that but after so many years playing MMO's I know that there isn't any big game coming out that will supersede it so much that I will be blown away. Even WAR won't fill that massive gap straight away...Darkfall..maybe. Either way games like Vanguard are picking up now because its had 1 year of polish and content added. AoC for me launched 1000% better than Vanguard because I could actually play it from day one. So in a years time people will be slamming WAR still and going back to AoC because all that promised content will be there and the client very solid.
For me the biggest issue with AoC is the lack of RP elements. E.g. Vanguard has crafting halls and this really helped generate an overall RP feel. However I do prefer AoC in general.
You have to be kidding me... The vast majority playing may like it, but the vast majority that bought it aren't playing it. It is not a vocal minority that doesn't like the game. That is just SOEism if I've ever seen it.
To the OP. I didn't really like the game from the get go, even before I got out of the intro town that even the people that really hate this game seemed to like. I found the combat to be really clunky. The melee combat had an action style control to it, where you would attack in certain directions and use combos, which would have been cool. BUT, they added a combat queue to it, which completely ruined it in my opinion. You basically had an action style control scheme but had to wait for attacks to happen after you pushed the button.
I also found a lot of graphical errors(not fps errors as my fps was great even on max settings). Thinks wouldn't render right, or just plain bugs such as all of the character features going invisible when you go stealth(this includes clothes, facial features, everything).
Another thing I hated about the game was the instancing. Having multiple copies of each zone completely ruined the immersion for me.
Just my .02
Lions and Tigers and TROLLS oh my!!!!!...
To the OP the best advice I can give you is to try it out an form your own opinion.....Your really not going to get honesty on here...
You have to be kidding me... The vast majority playing may like it, but the vast majority that bought it aren't playing it. It is not a vocal minority that doesn't like the game. That is just SOEism if I've ever seen it.
To the OP. I didn't really like the game from the get go, even before I got out of the intro town that even the people that really hate this game seemed to like. I found the combat to be really clunky. The melee combat had an action style control to it, where you would attack in certain directions and use combos, which would have been cool. BUT, they added a combat queue to it, which completely ruined it in my opinion. You basically had an action style control scheme but had to wait for attacks to happen after you pushed the button.
I also found a lot of graphical errors(not fps errors as my fps was great even on max settings). Thinks wouldn't render right, or just plain bugs such as all of the character features going invisible when you go stealth(this includes clothes, facial features, everything).
Another thing I hated about the game was the instancing. Having multiple copies of each zone completely ruined the immersion for me.
Just my .02
Lions and Tigers and TROLLS oh my!!!!!...
To the OP the best advice I can give you is to try it out an form your own opinion.....Your really not going to get honesty on here...
from any one fan or hater lol..
read the forums make up your mind that way..
any game i buy now adays with the mind set of the players and the corps that make them is what i spend on mmo's is what i do not mind losing. and AoC was loss to me.
Only good thing I can say: AoC was'nt as bad as Vanguard at release.
I can honestly say FunCom had no idea how to make PvP the end game in Anarchy Online, and after 8+ years of failing to find a way to do it there, they failed to do it again in Age of Conan. By November of this year the PvP will be thrown to the gutter while they put all efforts into PvE, it's what they did for AO, and by all indications will again do with AoC.
Note: For those that did'nt have the "pleasure" of playing AO at launch FailCom talked up the AO PvP just as much as they have for AoC. To give you the short version they lost over 80% of their subscriber base with in 3 months and centered on PvE to keep the few thousand accounts they still had.
"It is like a steak and fine wine. And the other games are like McDonalds."
"Death never looked so hot."
Yeah, sure. Here's my fair review: It sucks.
Seriously, I'd like to give you more, but I can't. Just thinking about how hard this game flopped and the damage it did to the credibility of the MMO genre makes me want to vomit.
So many people I know said "that's my last MMO" before their free month was even over. Granted, they may play another, but that's really pathetic to see a game flop that hard.