OMG just *look* and who she (Carolyn Koh) spoke with! She was @ E3 and spoke with *cough* the FunCom AoC Product Manager and the *cough* Eidos' marketing guy! These two are very likely the guys who were most responsible for most, if not all that sizzle in AoC's pre-release hype -- tons of broken promises and when they did deliver the game there was very little steak -- AoC went live with a Closed Beta product, which even today, in it's third month after the game went live, we still have not seen a release quality product. Mr. Erling tell Ms. Koh that AoC "probably has the largest live team around at this time as the entire team is still working on the game"... I said "*HELL YOU'D BETTER BE! THE GAME IS STILL BETA QUALITY!*" ... but then later on in the article, they tell Ms. Koh they are breaking some people away from AoC to work on the Expansion -- Expansion?!!? Focus on the beta game you have now please -- get it to release quality ASAP, and only then pull people out ok? LOL! I'll give FunCom credit for one thing these guys mentioned -- bravo to FunCom on tghe CSAs -- Customer Service has improved tremendously and are closing the gap/almost up to par with Turbine.
All thta Liz said, but also... add some frikin content!
What EQ2 achieved in the same technical space at time of release made this game just embarrasing.
AoC is a case study of style over substance. Avoid at all costs.
This thread is 99% negative. While I agree with many points, I find most are overstated. If there are 700k people still playing, most likely less by now, they must be trying to enjoy the game. For some, it's something to do until Fall when more games are released.
“Players constantly surprise us,” said Rick. “We found that they were doing things in their 40s that we didn't expect them to tackle until their 50s, hence we have a need to concentrate development in the 55 – 60 content right now.”
Haha, wtf is he thinking? You can level from 1-80 in 2 weeks! Oh and don't say funcom have those promises and will fix things soon, they develop this game for 5 years and is still POS beta broken game.
This thread is 99% negative. While I agree with many points, I find most are overstated. If there are 700k people still playing, most likely less by now, they must be trying to enjoy the game. For some, it's something to do until Fall when more games are released.
Where do you get the idea that they have 700K still playing? They've only ever announced that 700K copies activated their accounts. Funcom has never released any figures about how many players continued their subscription past the first free month. Nor have they stated how many people canceled before this week's billing (like I did).
My guild is the largest and most active on our server. We were the first to put up a battlekeep. We're progressing well through the raid content. Yet less than 50% of the member count has logged into the game in the last seven days. Xfire statistics also show about a 50% drop in player activity since the game launched.
Yes, 700K copies were sold. But that does not equal 700K current subscribers. 350K is a more reasonable figure, which is still a good number. Only six years ago, anything over 100K was considered a "hit" game. But AoC has already seen its best days. They have a long road ahead of them with tons of fixes and new content to put out before they're going to have even a chance of winning old players back or new subscribers over. Given that there are several major releases coming up in the next few months from other companies (Wrath of the Lich King, Stargate Worlds, Warhammer, etc.), it's very unlikely that AoC will ever see that 700K mark again.
Their marketing wizards are most likely going to continue to spout "copies sold" numbers and spin that as continued growth of the game. Don't be fooled. As I said, "copies sold" is always larger than "current subscribers". It's the latter figure that really matters; if the figure is growing, the game is doing well. If the figure is shrinking, the game is hurting. For AoC, the figure is currently shrinking.
And by the way... if a thread about the state of the game is "99% negative" as you say on a forum that is not in any way affiliated with Funcom, doesn't that tell you something about the way that the general public views the game? For that matter, look at AoC's ratings here at MMORPG.com. They start out shining, but have steadily declined since the game launched. Now they are every bit as negative as this thread.
Yes, some people still love the game. Others see its potential and hope it'll be reached. Others (like me) see its potential, but doubt it'll ever be realized thanks to the holes that Funcom has dug for itself by foisting a beta off on the paying public. And yes, some hate the game. Most really wanted to like it, but found themselves disenchanted for one reason or other.
Did you notice I said IF, and MOST LIKELY LESS BY NOW. I have no idea how many are playing now.
Also, I said much was overstated, perhaps with good reason for the indiviuals who were disappointed. I see the game as enjoyable to a certain extent, perhaps it will even improve to the point of being an enjoyable game overall. There are some good plans. I just see no reason to be 100% negative. I do agree Conan was released before finished. We in the beta told them so.
Did you notice I said IF, and MOST LIKELY LESS BY NOW. I have no idea how many are playing now. Also, I said much was overstated, perhaps with good reason for the indiviuals who were disappointed. I see the game as enjoyable to a certain extent, perhaps it will even improve to the point of being an enjoyable game overall. There are some good plans. I just see no reason to be 100% negative. I do agree Conan was released before finished. We in the beta told them so. Btw, I'm on the Testserver now.
Test Center. God bless test center(z). right, they nerfed that too...
may i ask some part of the funcom/eidos compagny (with my game box when i buy it) and the right to use the code source of the game too ? no ? at this level of dev i think it s the case no ?
We want to see some major improvment in terms of bugs and server side lag spikes in crowded areas , pvp and at raid content. There is no way you can PvP or raid decently in a lag - spiked enviroment, please devs there.
Lack of content in the 55-60 area is not an issue, there are ways to bypass it (villas, apprentiship etc). Lack of good in game communication is crucial issue where you fail. I hope you dont expect in your recent query to get a good score there.
Unfortunately a bunch of rl friends are going to leave the game before trying the 80 lvl experience. I shall stay and hopefully i will be rewarded for my resilience.
Ah two more things
Less braging, more work.
I dont want to hear for an expansion again as long as you have ziliions of things to solve.
Didn't any of you notice the part that said Eidos isn't showcasing Age of Conan in their stand at E3. Appearently Eidos is trying to distantiate themselves from Age of Conan already and know more then most of us. If Age of Conan is such a success, then Eidos would have been proud in Showcasing the product they distribute isn't. Says enough really (and sadly).
Mhm, certainly makes sense to me. Hell, Microsoft was quick to rub it in Sony's face that they got the NA PS3 Exclusivity out the window and now are releasing FFXII on the 360. So honestly, if the game was doing so well, I think Eidos would of been prancing around and bragging about it. But they arent.
Only 3 more feet to go to get 6 feet under . Holiday pack to pay for fixes ? this is a new low for any gaming company.
Ever heard of The Sims? Your "an all time low" has already been done, and been proven to sell well. And anyways, the "holiday edition" is just gonna be a new box cover with an added extra item, some of you are reading waaay too much into it.
- Kenneth Tarre - Aion Correspondent The contents of this post do not necessarily reflect the views of MMORPG.com and its management.
In a quirky kinda way I wasn't in the least bit surprised that funcom was hard at work on Christmas retail boxes.
Funcom just never ever stops shooting itself in the foot. Furthermore as mentioned earlier, they're at E3 of all places and no game showcased. Bang the other foot just been hit.
This thread is 99% negative. While I agree with many points, I find most are overstated. If there are 700k people still playing, most likely less by now, they must be trying to enjoy the game. For some, it's something to do until Fall when more games are released.
haha 700k? Yeah sure. not me or 5 of my friends played after the first free month. Having read the US and EU forum + this forum pretty much every day I can tell you that theres a lot of people that've left
Would love to see how many subscribers fell off after the 1st month. I know I was one of them, lack of communication and game stability. How about fixing all the bugs for a Holiday Edition.
yup, me too.
"Xbox360 version of the game to launch in late 2009"
...same time as the rest of the content that should have been there at PC launch?
Didn't any of you notice the part that said Eidos isn't showcasing Age of Conan in their stand at E3. Appearently Eidos is trying to distantiate themselves from Age of Conan already and know more then most of us. If Age of Conan is such a success, then Eidos would have been proud in Showcasing the product they distribute isn't. Says enough really (and sadly).
Mhm, certainly makes sense to me. Hell, Microsoft was quick to rub it in Sony's face that they got the NA PS3 Exclusivity out the window and now are releasing FFXII on the 360. So honestly, if the game was doing so well, I think Eidos would of been prancing around and bragging about it. But they arent.
Hmm... just thought of this...
Perhaps... Funcom, is the Uwe Bole of MMOs?
nah. most people would agree (i hope) that 'The longest journey' and 'Dreamfall' are two of the best story focused games ever. They should just just slap the AoC dev managers aroung the face a bit with an angry sea bass... then work exclusively on 'Ragnar Tornquists' games.
The bugs,lag,broken quests,detracted from each and every day's play.Finally,I decided that if I was going to play a broken game,I'd play a beta(for free).
I love how people knock the game who never even played the game, experienced cities, and the whole game experience, feel they know enough to knock the game.
Believe it or not, AOC is a great fun game. Of course you are entitled to your opinion, but you really make yourself look like an idiot by your posts.
Comments
I'm so happy for them that the game beat their expectations. apparently their expectations wern't to high.
I just want to my pets to be able to attack! The last patch made my pets useless (17 July). Forget the new content, just fix the game!!
Actually, the best 'hardcore' games were co-op games, so what you you gotta say about that?
Your reference to VG is pointless and desperate.
All thta Liz said, but also... add some frikin content!
What EQ2 achieved in the same technical space at time of release made this game just embarrasing.
AoC is a case study of style over substance. Avoid at all costs.
i'd rather get a lump of coal
This thread is 99% negative. While I agree with many points, I find most are overstated. If there are 700k people still playing, most likely less by now, they must be trying to enjoy the game. For some, it's something to do until Fall when more games are released.
“Players constantly surprise us,” said Rick. “We found that they were doing things in their 40s that we didn't expect them to tackle until their 50s, hence we have a need to concentrate development in the 55 – 60 content right now.”
Haha, wtf is he thinking? You can level from 1-80 in 2 weeks! Oh and don't say funcom have those promises and will fix things soon, they develop this game for 5 years and is still POS beta broken game.
Where do you get the idea that they have 700K still playing? They've only ever announced that 700K copies activated their accounts. Funcom has never released any figures about how many players continued their subscription past the first free month. Nor have they stated how many people canceled before this week's billing (like I did).
My guild is the largest and most active on our server. We were the first to put up a battlekeep. We're progressing well through the raid content. Yet less than 50% of the member count has logged into the game in the last seven days. Xfire statistics also show about a 50% drop in player activity since the game launched.
Yes, 700K copies were sold. But that does not equal 700K current subscribers. 350K is a more reasonable figure, which is still a good number. Only six years ago, anything over 100K was considered a "hit" game. But AoC has already seen its best days. They have a long road ahead of them with tons of fixes and new content to put out before they're going to have even a chance of winning old players back or new subscribers over. Given that there are several major releases coming up in the next few months from other companies (Wrath of the Lich King, Stargate Worlds, Warhammer, etc.), it's very unlikely that AoC will ever see that 700K mark again.
Their marketing wizards are most likely going to continue to spout "copies sold" numbers and spin that as continued growth of the game. Don't be fooled. As I said, "copies sold" is always larger than "current subscribers". It's the latter figure that really matters; if the figure is growing, the game is doing well. If the figure is shrinking, the game is hurting. For AoC, the figure is currently shrinking.
And by the way... if a thread about the state of the game is "99% negative" as you say on a forum that is not in any way affiliated with Funcom, doesn't that tell you something about the way that the general public views the game? For that matter, look at AoC's ratings here at MMORPG.com. They start out shining, but have steadily declined since the game launched. Now they are every bit as negative as this thread.
Yes, some people still love the game. Others see its potential and hope it'll be reached. Others (like me) see its potential, but doubt it'll ever be realized thanks to the holes that Funcom has dug for itself by foisting a beta off on the paying public. And yes, some hate the game. Most really wanted to like it, but found themselves disenchanted for one reason or other.
Did you notice I said IF, and MOST LIKELY LESS BY NOW. I have no idea how many are playing now.
Also, I said much was overstated, perhaps with good reason for the indiviuals who were disappointed. I see the game as enjoyable to a certain extent, perhaps it will even improve to the point of being an enjoyable game overall. There are some good plans. I just see no reason to be 100% negative. I do agree Conan was released before finished. We in the beta told them so.
Btw, I'm on the Testserver now.
OH HAI!!
U Still PlaYin!?
OhHAI!
U Can HAZ HOLAIDA+Z!!!
Seriously, this released leik galaxies. with rules.
%$@! em...
Test Center. God bless test center(z). right, they nerfed that too...
if i finance the developement of a game
may i ask some part of the funcom/eidos compagny (with my game box when i buy it) and the right to use the code source of the game too ? no ? at this level of dev i think it s the case no ?
in the next "future of aoc" interview they will be talking about how they decided to make it F2P
Remember Old School Ultima Online
Didn't any of you notice the part that said Eidos isn't showcasing Age of Conan in their stand at E3.
Appearently Eidos is trying to distantiate themselves from Age of Conan already and know more then most of us.
If Age of Conan is such a success, then Eidos would have been proud in Showcasing the product they distribute isn't.
Says enough really (and sadly).
Dear Erling and RIck (open letter )
We want to see some major improvment in terms of bugs and server side lag spikes in crowded areas , pvp and at raid content. There is no way you can PvP or raid decently in a lag - spiked enviroment, please devs there.
Lack of content in the 55-60 area is not an issue, there are ways to bypass it (villas, apprentiship etc). Lack of good in game communication is crucial issue where you fail. I hope you dont expect in your recent query to get a good score there.
Unfortunately a bunch of rl friends are going to leave the game before trying the 80 lvl experience. I shall stay and hopefully i will be rewarded for my resilience.
Ah two more things
Less braging, more work.
I dont want to hear for an expansion again as long as you have ziliions of things to solve.
Cheers!
Mhm, certainly makes sense to me. Hell, Microsoft was quick to rub it in Sony's face that they got the NA PS3 Exclusivity out the window and now are releasing FFXII on the 360. So honestly, if the game was doing so well, I think Eidos would of been prancing around and bragging about it. But they arent.
Hmm... just thought of this...
Perhaps... Funcom, is the Uwe Bole of MMOs?
Ever heard of The Sims?
Your "an all time low" has already been done, and been proven to sell well. And anyways, the "holiday edition" is just gonna be a new box cover with an added extra item, some of you are reading waaay too much into it.
-
Kenneth Tarre - Aion Correspondent
The contents of this post do not necessarily reflect the views of MMORPG.com and its management.
In a quirky kinda way I wasn't in the least bit surprised that funcom was hard at work on Christmas retail boxes.
Funcom just never ever stops shooting itself in the foot. Furthermore as mentioned earlier, they're at E3 of all places and no game showcased. Bang the other foot just been hit.
haha 700k? Yeah sure. not me or 5 of my friends played after the first free month. Having read the US and EU forum + this forum pretty much every day I can tell you that theres a lot of people that've left
I would actually play then
yup, me too.
"Xbox360 version of the game to launch in late 2009"
...same time as the rest of the content that should have been there at PC launch?
/bitter ex-customer off
/sigh.
Mhm, certainly makes sense to me. Hell, Microsoft was quick to rub it in Sony's face that they got the NA PS3 Exclusivity out the window and now are releasing FFXII on the 360. So honestly, if the game was doing so well, I think Eidos would of been prancing around and bragging about it. But they arent.
Hmm... just thought of this...
Perhaps... Funcom, is the Uwe Bole of MMOs?
nah. most people would agree (i hope) that 'The longest journey' and 'Dreamfall' are two of the best story focused games ever. They should just just slap the AoC dev managers aroung the face a bit with an angry sea bass... then work exclusively on 'Ragnar Tornquists' games.
I really had high hopes for AOC.
The bugs,lag,broken quests,detracted from each and every day's play.Finally,I decided that if I was going to play a broken game,I'd play a beta(for free).
well, I did.
It was so full of bugs and empty of contents I couldnt keep paying another month. Maybe ill go back to AoC for christmas...
I love how people knock the game who never even played the game, experienced cities, and the whole game experience, feel they know enough to knock the game.
Believe it or not, AOC is a great fun game. Of course you are entitled to your opinion, but you really make yourself look like an idiot by your posts.