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Why Would a New Player Join AC?
PhelimReagh
Member UncommonPosts: 682
I'm just curious, why would a new player sign up to play a 10+ year old game?
The graphics really wouldn't bother me, personally, but the prejudice I view the game with is: it's got to be dead.
If the game is not, in fact, dead, then I'm sure it's like all other well-aged games and folks are sequestered into their little cliques and generally don't even think about expanding their social circles. A new player would be alone, by-and-large.
And then there's the fact that veterans have a decade's progression on any new player. What the hell would we even have in common to do? Although PvP is not my bag, there's no reason a PvPer could ever catch up, is there?
So why would a potential new player even consider Asheron's Call?
I ask this in all earnestness because from what I've read the game sounds very interesting to me, and graphics are not a consideration for me. But I've tried breaking into "mature" games and it's always been the same (what I mentioned above). Would AC be any different?
Comments
Well for starters, AC uses a global chat. This helps get rid of the we only chat with the ones we know aspect of a lot of older games. Anyone anywhere in the game world can chat in the general chat channel.
Also in AC if you bring a person into your allegiance (guild) that person passes up experience as they level. This makes it beneficial to bring new people into an allegiance and help them level.
Due to buff bots and the fact that buffs last a long time (and are hugely beneficial unlike other games where they just bump you a bit) a new player can get the second to highest spells cast on them and then run around and hunt for a couple hours killing things they normally wouldn't be able to yet. This means faster leveling to catch up.
The nice thing about AC is player skill plays into the game a lot, which means that as you're leveling up your ability to dodge spells/missles (unlike games like WoW where the magic missles track you, in AC they shoot in a straight line and you can physically dodge them by moving your character out of the way) and knowing how to fight different monsters (there are a lot of strategies depending on the monsters) plays in as much as your level and gear do.
They just released a new loot tier (new best loot) a few months back. This means very few players have a set of all top loot. So you aren't competeing against people who all have as good as it can get. Also the tier just below that is easy to come by so you can level up and have the second best gear fairly easily and then be on your way to trying to find the best items in game.
PvE wise, if you pick the right server you should have no problem finding help and going on quests once you're at least level 100 (don't let that number scare you, it's fairly quick and easy to get to level 100 max level is 275, top tier loot is level 150+/180+ for set spells).
PvP wise, if you go Darktide which is full on PvP with full loot it will be a challenge for a while and you're sure to get ganked as you are running around. But you can still find allegiances and get yourself up to a competitive level fairly quickly.
Non Darktide most PvP is "pink" (refered to the color dot your radar changes to) which is PK-lite. This means you don't get a death penalty for losing and you can't be looted. You also turn pink on and off when you want and duel it out with players.
It is a different type of MMO as far as play style and world goes. It takes a week or so to really get used to it but then it is a blast and there's nothing else like it out there. Your character progresses from a slow moving guy who couldn't jump high enough to dunk, into a guy who runs at super human speed and can jump higher then buildings.
The loot is well varied and there are many styles of armor, each of which comes in a wide variety of main/trim colors. This means two people rarely look the same giving you a chance to be more unique.
You can repeat just about any quest in the game, they have different timers, which means no missing out on the ones you enjoyed like most MMOs where you run each quest once on your way up and aren't allowed to again.
You can kill mobs for XP and make just as much if not more xp then questing, unlike other games where you are almost forced to only quest to level up at a decent speed.
You get monthly updates, which means more new quests to run and more changes to improve the game. Recently they added 2 more skills, and they released a list of some things they planned to add in upcoming updates which are really nice.
They listen to their community more then any other MMO I've played, so they respond to forum posts and actually incoporate player ideas. They also often bring up major ideas ahead of time to see how players feel about them.
Hope this helped.
Also the other great thing is that the people that are there do seem pretty damn dedicated to the game and are more then willing to help out a new player.
I just started back myself on a more populated server and found a great group of folks to play with and have fun. I was lucky enough to have a clue what I was doing and have been able to keep myself from having to take items from people by getting my own starter gear. BUT my guild would have been more then pleased to do it; a lot of them have 10 years worth of crap and have some really cool stuff laying around unused.
The other thing that is good about this game is that there is 10 years of documentation on it and a lot of the oldtimers love going on some of the old quests, some for the thrill of it and some just because they never did it because of the lack of rewards. You should have seen the responces to me saying I wanted GSA (used to be the stuff to have, now it bites) I just want it because I always wanted to do the quest and its hard to get the stuff to make it.
The game has such an overwhelming amount of stuff to do and the people that are still there love that game. Find yourself a group of folks and get them to go on some old fun quest with you; you and your new mates will have a great time.
As for leveling in AC; it is really easy now at low levels if you have a mentor to help you with hunting. A level 20 can kill level 80 monsters with buffs easy and gain a ton of experience. I went from lvl 5 to 26 in an hour and a half with completly the wrong weapon because I wouldnt take items from my guild. I could have made 40 in that ammount of time had I had the right weapon. If you give the game a week to learn it and a couple weeks to level up with folks you will be running around with them in no time; plus everyone has low level characters they can hunt with you.
/rambling
Thanks for the replies, guys. It seems like the game will require a bit more research on my part. The more I learn, the more I come to realize I need to do even more research if I wanted to enjoy my experience playing Asheron's Call.
The game itself certainly sounds like an enjoyable challenge, but as I read that you're very reliant on third party tools, well, that was one of the reasons I didn't like WoW (not saying AC and WoW are at all similar, just their reliance on third party tools to play). Sadly, I think I may be looking for something a bit more low-maintenance at my level of MMO burnout. I thought that since AC was "old", it might have been a more relaxing and simpler experience.
I've taken to gaming in a recliner with a latop on tray table. The click-intensive kiting and strafing just does not seem compatable with my level laziness at the moment.
Maybe after a spell of playing single-player RPGs I may find myself wanting to try and MMO again and will definitely check out AC when I get back. I'm torn between AC and Vanguard, although I have a lot more respect for Turbine than I do for SOE, so I would probably go for AC just to not give SOE my money.
Thanks again for the responses, even if it may not have been enough to lure me in. It was absolutely helpful though, because it was only as I did other research into the gameplay that I kinda lost my enthusiasm for AC (your answers went a long way in positively answering my questions about the community, which is one of the most important parts of an MMO to me). I imagine that your great answers will hopefully lure in a few others join up.
Good luck in Dereth, and maybe I'll see you there some time in the future
As a couter, I don't use a single third party tool and never have. You don't need them at all but they are commonly used because the game was always a game of learning. It has a portal system which isn't straight forward (you can't always get directly from A to B, so often times you portal through C then D to get there).
To highlight some of the tools and why they're not needed:
GoArrow and the like: tell you how to get places.
SkunkVision: lightens up the game if you have a dark monitor, highlights impassable terrain although you shouldn't need that really.
Macros: people who like to ACM or UCM(illegal but people still do it. stands for unattended combat macroing). Also used for setting up a tradebot or a buffbot which no new player would be doing. Finally it's used to automate crafting so also not needed.
UI changes: allow different UI setups from the standard AC interface, a new person probably wouldn't start with this either.
You don't need any of the tools. But you did say you used them when you played WoW and I didn't find any need to use them there either.
Also PvE can be played without a lot of strafing kiting etc. In fact for the lazy person it's even better for you. It doesn't have the WoW style numbered attack setup. If you are a melee or archer you hit the attack key and he keeps attacking until you move or stop it. if you're a mage you are more along the WoW setup because you have to choose which spell to cast each time.
I agree, Melee is pretty easy to play and you do not need any third party tools to play. I never used them and still dont also; I can play AC with my UA guy even with my wife nagging me in my ear for something or another.
Well i just downloaded the trial and am wondering, what server is the best for a PvE oriented player whos in the EST times zone?
Frostfell is the most populated (all of the servers seem to have similar peak times so time zone doesn't matter too much)
Then Harvestgain, then Solclaim/Morningthaw.
So you probably want to hit up FF.
I agree about everything here, Asherons Cal was(and still is) one of the most challanging mmogames out there.I have played many games since and only vanguard has come close to AC in fun factor,but AC is still on top when it comes to reward for your grinding.IMO no game ever has had as good reward system for killing suff with the random made loot.It is just amazing.I regulary revisit AC just not to forget the feeling:-) Best game ever.
This thread made my nostalgia meter go through the roof. So many good memories of such a fun game. I miss the old days (prior to marketplace) when Q'alabar was the hotspot due to the Lugian Citadel being so close. The portal storms in Arwic before it was nuked by the shadows and subsequently rebuilt much later; I remember that really angering me since it was one of my favorite towns.
I remember when Dark Majesty released, my buddy and I went on Kithless Siralun hunts to sell the feathers at a high price since they were new and in pretty high demand. I love the memories by hate myself for reliving them. Now I'm tempted to resub.
So do the trial and get back in there, your old characters would be so ou tof date it would probably be easier to start fresh anyways and this way you get 2 weeks to try it out free.
So do the trial and get back in there, your old characters would be so ou tof date it would probably be easier to start fresh anyways and this way you get 2 weeks to try it out free.
I took your advice and did just that. And I brought a friend along with me. We just started playing on Frostfell.
Hi, I wanted to ask two things about the game since I'm thinking of playing the trial:
- Is it linear like today's themepark games?
- Does it actually have a good loot system?
Thanks for the info by the way, it seems this is a great MMORPG.
It's pretty linear.... but far from a theme park. AC lets you do what you want. There is no set weapon/spell school/skill you have to use. It is whatever you choose to level.
To expand on the loot system a little:
Different sell values
Different protective bonuses (below average/average, etc. versus a certain type of damage)
Different spells (there are items which don't have them, but you'll come across more that have beneficial effects)
Different look -- there are a lot of color possibilites (also, there are dyes for armor and it can change the whole piece, or part of a piece of armor) note: certain types of armor can't be dyed
Different names (mainly meaning prefixes.. Example = 'Steel Yoroi Leggings' -- 'Gold Yoroi Leggings')
There are many different types of armor/weapons to go along with this, but for the most part it is completely random.
The exception would be quest items and PP* items.
*Pre-patch items (items which are no longer available or are now upgraded to 1. a new look, 2. new stats)
I haven't played AC in about a year. I started back in '99, played off and on since. It really is a great game and the community makes it worth while (although, the population has decreased quite a bit).
Thanks for the info, I will be giving the game a shot.
How lame..... you have to enter credit card details to just TRY the game. I only wanted to give it a try, but cannot because of this. Yeah thanks Turbine.
So you don't have a credit card or easy access to a credit card? You weren;t really a potential customer. This isn't a F2P game.
A lot of MMOs require a credit card for the free trial. Why give someone a free trial that doesn't own a credit card, they can't possibly subscribe to the game.
I'm not sure how many other MMOs you've done free trials for but you might want to get used to that concept.
To expand on this there are thousands of color/armor combinations which means you can make your guy stand out from others and be original looking. That's without counting the quest only armor items which sometimes have art that can't be found in loot.
Any creature can drop weapons and armor. It's not limited by if the creature is humanoid or not. So you could get a great weapon off of a rat. Keeps it interesting since you never know where that next nice item will show up.
As far as linear or not, it doesn't offer a route to follow like most MMOs where you do town one which then sends you to town 2 to camp 3 etc. They did however just add a newbie hub to help new players get the first few levels.
Mostly there are just NPCs around the world that give quests, they don't have markers over their head saying come here. You walk up to some NPC he gives you a quest and you have to go find it and complete it. There is no order, so with the exception of level restrictions on quests you can go do which ones you want when you want. And almost every single quest in the game is repeatable. So if you find a favorite quest you can do it every so often.
I did the trial about a week ago, and just subscribed yesterday. I have heard good things about AC over the years, and was bored with the grind of WoW, EQ2, and Lotro, so wanted to try something new (or very old). I am having a blast on Frostfell, and was fortunate to get in a great allegiance with some awesome people...very, very active group. Nothing but good things to say about this game...who cares about graphics if the game play is superb?
We have converted another one, the plan for world domination has begun.
How many people are still playing this game?
I use to play AC for its first 3 years, then left. Tried it again when the new starter box came out, but found next to no playing.
AC was the most enjoyable experience I have ever had in any MMP, past or present.
Its great to see that there are still a few die-hards playing it, one day this game will fade off into the sunset, however it will never be forgotten by those who faced the Olthoi hoards and the brave warriors who stood there ground against Baalzaron.
(Played AC from 2000-2005)
There are still quite a few playing on Frostfell, and like I said above, im a complete newb to the game, but i have found friends my level, and have no problem getting fellowships together in the xp-rich grind dungeons. I also see quite a few new characters being made all the time. With the new facility hub, its easy to hit level 50 in a couple of days. Im having a blast, and wish I had discovered this game sooner. The loot system and character customization features are superb...not to mention one of the largest seamless online worlds in existence, with lots of dangerous areas and nice and tasty death penalties!
Its the most fun i have had since I started my MMO gaming career in EQ1.