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How's the game today
Rollerrat
Member UncommonPosts: 200
I played AoC a bit after the launch and I got my barbarian to level 40-something. Can't remember why I quit. I've been considering to check the game again but would like to know a few things before downloading and installing the client.
1. How's the population? Enough people to team with to do low-mid level dungeons? (I will roll a new character from scratch)
2. Expansions/DLCs they have added after the base game and how to get them?
3. What kind of cash shop? "In-your-face" or more subtle kind of?
1. How's the population? Enough people to team with to do low-mid level dungeons? (I will roll a new character from scratch)
2. Expansions/DLCs they have added after the base game and how to get them?
3. What kind of cash shop? "In-your-face" or more subtle kind of?
Comments
2. There is the expansion, Rise of the Godslayer. Once you lvl cap it is almost mandatory (provides alternate advancement after level cap, grants access to the most played max level dungeons and raids in the game - where the best gear is). To play it you need to buy it from the store AND keep a running subscription. There are a few DLCs but you can skip them all if you want to - plenty of game to play without them and not having them won't impact you negatively.
3. I think the cash shop is very unintrusive. You can get mounts, expanded inventory and other useful stuff but nothing you really need or can't get normally without too much hassle.
4. (you didn't ask but I think the F2P should be mentioned) F2P: gold limit 10g, not a problem while levelling unless making and hoarding money is your prime objective. Can't use all chat channels, can't send private tells (quite bothersome if you want to form PUGs). Can't play the expansion. Can't do some of the levelcap dungeons and raids. Don't get the tokens rewarded to subscribers (used to buy nifty stuff such as inventory space and fast travel locations)
I suggest starting out F2P and then start subscribing later if you like it.
MAGA
2. "how to get them" from the store through FC points. Based on when you purchase the points, they're around 10-13 $/Euro. However, as User wrote, for using Godslayer you also need to maintain the subscription (or buying passes from the store... if you play more than 2 weeks, it's cheaper to pay the sub for a month than getting the pass).
DLCs can skipped, but Turan is nice to have if you plan to level up with questing and not with daily grind. At the end, the usual "mmo endgame treadmill" it's good to have Godslayer if you're fine with raid grinding
3. shop is barely there, at login it pops up with the latest sales, after that you can forget it's there. So, at first "in your face", then it's gone.
4. the two "main" restrictions are the 10 gold limit, and the limited inventory / trader place. The latter can unlocked through the store, the gold limit is fixed. If you're not a hoarder and/or like to "play the market" with crafting and buying/selling, both limits are mostly fine during leveling. At the endgame however, both are fairly limiting.
I agree with User, I too used to suggest to play it through as free, and then you can decide for yourself whether you like it enough or not, for a subscription. Since at the end, AoC is still more like a p2p game - but the leveling is pretty much free, and it's great.
AOC has very low population and is still not worth the monthly fee. I am waiting for it to turn in to B2P model like TSW with a good fleshed out cash shop and i will happily spend my money on it till then TSW is best Funcom game to play.
Game was released in 2008 - it won't suddenly get a surge of new people. That was proven after F2P transition. Or at least that they won't stay even for free.
Seemingly employees keep getting cut from the project as well - game is what it is and that is pretty much all it will ever be at this point.
It's unfortunate if the population is too low. I'd like to play in groups and feel I'm playing a MMO not a single player game. Maybe I just pass this game.
Now it's a small niche game run by a company, that needs financial help and they keep skimming developers from it to fund The Secret World - another flop along with Lego Online.
It is quite sad.
All of their MMOs (except the Lego one which was totally doomed it seems) would have been better off with more development done before launch and more development and marketing done after launch. What would AoC had been today if more work had been done on it before launch, if it got a bigger dev team post-launch and more marketing? If the expansion had NOT been focused on expanding the market to Asia (which it failed to do)?
From my view, Funcom has been trying hard to GO BIG, always reaching for something new at the expense of what they already have.
This was all changed last month finally. You no longer need to have a sub to play Rise of the Godslayer. It's now just like any other games where once you buy the content you own it and can play it anytime no matter if you have a sub or are a F2p player.
As to the OP questions; Pop is pretty good. Especially if you're going to start a new character. Make friends in Tortage, maybe join a guild and you shouldn't lack for others to help you down the road.
In addition to Rise of the Godslayer (expansion), there are 2 seperate zone packs; Turan provides you an alternate lvl 50 to 70 zone which is pretty nice. The other Vanir something is small and not very cost effective.
There were other F2p changes besides the Godslayer change; there are now more open dungeons for F2p types and a few other nice things.
SWG (pre-cu) - AoC (pre-f2p) - PotBS (pre-boarder) - DDO - LotRO (pre-f2p) - STO (pre-f2p) - GnH (beta tester) - SWTOR - Neverwinter