Aion re-review by an MMO vet, and thoughts on the current state of the genre...

bjacobs

Originally posted by MephistoR


Ye they will release the stuff in Aion Vision. But the same stupid parasites will play the game and post on forums.

 

If the game makes it that far, at the moment its heading down the pan, faster than last nights vindaloo.

The whole genre is stagnant and has been for years, the initial excitement of originality, back in the days of UO and EQ allowed companies to mask the fact that its playerbase enjoyed self lobotomies, while mindlessly hitting the same string of keys over and over like a hamster on amphetamines, trying to get off its wheel.

This mentality of gaming died out years ago and any game that follows this mantra deserves exactly what it gets, less and less users till it shuts down. Feel sorry for the poor  saps who can't see the wood for the trees and keep throwing their money at the 'Vision'.

Sylvari

Whats with all the anger people? Chill out...

133794m3r

sorry but i'm not going to read this thread via the title. Anyone feeling they have to state that tehy're a "vet" is obviously just looking for attention/is a troll. If you wanted to put a re-review up. YOu could've said "aion re-review after i've seen it for awhile after launch and thoughts on the state of the genre"  Your title just sounds like troll bait. So i'm not evne going to read it. Just wanted to help you make better threads from now on.

Chimps

Originally posted by fiontar


I've kept playing Aion, in spite of some serious misgivings, because there is just nothing else that has caught my attention in the genre.
Early on, I cited some flaws for the game. After time has passed, those flaws have been confirmed for me.
PvP. The biggest problems here are that most PvP is not level range restricted, on top of that, higher level characters get huge evasion/resist bonuses, rather than relying on gear and class skill progression to provide the advantage. Also, showing opposing players on Radar removes any thrill of the hunter/hunted dynamic. For a game so heavily weighted on PvP, these are huge flaws that for many ruin any enjoyment that PvP might have otherwise offered.
World Size. I said at launch the world size was way too small. After playing a few months, it feels absolutely tiny. Not only does this make game play even more boring and repetitive, put it also ruins the excitement of world PvP seen in other games.
That you might, through wits, attentiveness and quick reaction, be able to adventure productively in contested areas, or even behind enemy lines, has always been the thrilling factor for me when it comes to World PvP.  In Aion, that's gone. You know you will be found fairly quickly. No chance to duck behind a tree or a hill, or lose a foe in the thick underbrush. Every encounter is kill or be killed, tempered by the knowledge that if they are three or more levels higher than you, unless they are brain dead or from a class yours dominates in the rock>paper>scissors mathematics, you will be dead.
The game has many pluses and minuses, but these two are the biggest reasons I see my time with this game coming to an abrupt end in the near future.
The world is far too small to foster long term interest in the game and PvP is almost completely flubbed, seemingly designed to appeal (long term), to no one except high level griefers.

 

Have yo usee nthe visions of future on aion trailer?

They are adding huge new areas to explore making the game seem hell alot bigger so your 2nd issue is going to be fixed. Not sure about 1st issue though.

However they are improving so many things in the future of aion.

Sovrath

Originally posted by fiontar


PvP. The biggest problems here are that most PvP is not level range restricted, on top of that, higher level characters get huge evasion/resist bonuses, rather than relying on gear and class skill progression to provide the advantage. Also, showing opposing players on Radar removes any thrill of the hunter/hunted dynamic. For a game so heavily weighted on PvP, these are huge flaws that for many ruin any enjoyment that PvP might have otherwise offered.
It's not a flaw for me. If players want more power then work for more power. This is the way it should be, at least any pvp game that I would be interested in playing. You want more power, better gear? then work to get more power and better gear. If one doesn't want to be ganked all the time then run with other players for back up. now, having said that, if one doesn't like this then there are other pvp games that put players within appropriate level ranges. But back when I played L2 I would be attacked by a pk'er so I worked to make sure that I could overtake that pk'er.
World Size. I said at launch the world size was way too small. After playing a few months, it feels absolutely tiny. Not only does this make game play even more boring and repetitive, put it also ruins the excitement of world PvP seen in other games.
I would also have preferred a more open world than the sort of path that each zone has runing along it. This is not to say they all are like this but it seems a good many are. The world feels deliberate to me. So that any place you go the devs meant for you to go.
That you might, through wits, attentiveness and quick reaction, be able to adventure productively in contested areas, or even behind enemy lines, has always been the thrilling factor for me when it comes to World PvP.  In Aion, that's gone. You know you will be found fairly quickly. No chance to duck behind a tree or a hill, or lose a foe in the thick underbrush. Every encounter is kill or be killed, tempered by the knowledge that if they are three or more levels higher than you, unless they are brain dead or from a class yours dominates in the rock>paper>scissors mathematics, you will be dead.
It's not like players lose much from being killed by another.
The game has many pluses and minuses, but these two are the biggest reasons I see my time with this game coming to an abrupt end in the near future.
The world is far too small to foster long term interest in the game and PvP is almost completely flubbed, seemingly designed to appeal (long term), to no one except high level griefers.
I don't know, I like that I can get back at others who have ganked me. At one point two players took me out. Then, later in the day, I see both of those players attacking another in the distance. I infernoed, wind cut and then some smaller attack and one went down. The other was damaged by my inferno and by then others were running to help and the 2nd took off.
It's not arena pvp. It's more of an open world style where anything can happen. you can get attacked by someone higher or you can get attacked by another your lvl and you can win. Or you can attack someone with all the confidence in the outcome only to realize he is far more powerful than you. That's the game. If you don't like it then more power to you but I don't consider it a flaw.