Lesley Smith
Norfolk, UK - http://www.throughtheeyesofajournalist.com
Lesley's life revolves around games and she has gained a reputation for writing about MMOs (where from she is not sure). While she does play WoW a lot (as an Alliance druid named Serisa on EU-Daggerspine), Lesley is not afraid to try other titles, especially if they happen to be Asian in origin. She lives surrounded by manga, DVDs, various consoles and two black cats named Isis and Ceridwen.
by Lesley Smith 
Sep 6th 2009 (2 months ago)
NCsoft
Transportation is important to any MMO, especially one like
Aion which doesn't include the option of a mount. Yes, there are no cats, no horses or flying creatures to ride. It's just you, your feet, your wings and a little magic. Now the starter zones might look small but the main areas are ten times the size which can take a good half an hour to cross, not including time spent dying. Today we're going to have a look at transportation and what you need to know to navigate around. Elysea and Asmodae so join us after the jump to find out the secrets of travel in
Aion.
by Lesley Smith Sep 6th 2009 (2 months ago)
Flight is probably the thing which has drawn most people to
Aion. The idea of soaring high above the cloud on a pair of white/black-feathered wings is a universally appealing one. The reality, however, is a little different. Flight in
Aion is not something you can do immediately nor indefinitely and the rules for this are not just to be annoying, they are a part of the game's world and lore.
Join us after the jump when we look at everything you need to know about using your wings.
by Lesley Smith Sep 6th 2009 (2 months ago)
With
NCsoft's release of
Aion coming up on the 22nd and 25th September in North America and Europe, we thought we had better give you the basics on the land of Atreia ahead of the
open beta which begins today. So, we're going to give you all the info you need to dive into their beautifully detailed world. After the jump, we're going to look at the five things you need to know if you've never played
Aion before.
by Lesley Smith Sep 2nd 2009 (2 months ago)
NCsoft
NCsoft and
DC Comics have teamed up to create a limited edition comic based on
Aion which focuses on the Asmodian Daeva Aiva. She might look familiar as her image is used to advertise the game and a statue of her will also be found in the
Collector's Edition when
Aion is released later this month.
"Aiva's Story" is the work of artist Neil Googe and writers David Noonan and Ricardo Sanchez. Aiva's life is torn apart when her family is killed by an Elyos raiding party. Embittered, she endures a harsh life as a mercenary, fighting Karnifs and the Mau. She brings with her a festering hatred for the white-winged Elyos, eventually ascending to Daevahood and is posted to the Abyss. The comic book will be available (albeit in limited quantities) at the
Aion booth at this weekend's
Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle but fans will also be able to get their hands on a copy by purchasing the game at GameStop in the US and Electronic Boutique stores in Canada..
You can check out our gallery below to see the cover art in it's full glory, as well as some internal artwork.
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Want to know more about Aion? NCsoft invites you into the world of Atreia where the Elyos and the Asmodians fight each other and the evil Balaur for control of the shattered planet. Check out out all our coverage of this must-play MMO!
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by Lesley Smith Aug 31st 2009 (2 months ago)
AoC
FunCom
The devs over at
Age of Conan have just
posted their August newsletter on the game's official website. In it they look back over the last month and the announcement of the new
AoC expansion,
Rise of the Godslayer, as well as clarifying some titbits about the new expansion. This includes thanking players for their feedback and explaining why they chose to venture to
Khitai (the
Conan-version of China) over other lands featured in the original books. The devs also touch on the fascinating subject of world design and how player feedback has shaped the new armor they are working on.
The most interesting nugget in the newsletter is a sneak peak at what the immediate future holds for
AoC in the form of the 1.06 update. This includes the possibility of splitting the update into parts rather than deluging players with a giant patch. They also look at the new level 80 dungeon, the House of Crom, the Veterans System and Tier Three Raiding. So if you're an
AoC player excited about the new expansion and the next big update, you might want to head over to the official site and check out the
newsletter for yourself.
by Lesley Smith Aug 28th 2009 (2 months ago)
Wired.com's
GeekDad blogger Curtis Silver has
taken some time to sit down with
LEGO Universe's Producer, Ryan Seabury, and the games development team. The lengthy interview was posted earlier this week and really gets under the skin of this odd little MMO. Silver also snagged two new exclusive screenshots and states that
"LEGO Universe will bridge the generational gap between geek parents and geek kids". After all, who doesn't love LEGO?
The interview itself is really quite in-depth. Silver asks, for example, if we will be able to play as Batman or other characters from the LEGO franchise videogames (no). Additionally, the piece also goes into what kind of gameplay and building we can expect and what sort of PC you're going to need to play it. The dev team seem to be aiming at a wide audience from geeks young and old to kids experiencing LEGO for the first and their parents. Indeed from the interview it certainly sounds awfully promising:
"Whether you're brand-new to LEGO construction or an expert brick builder, whether you like to follow the instructions or just go crazy making up your own creations, you'll be able to use bricks to build virtual LEGO models both on your own and with other players. You'll be helping to create and customize the worlds of LEGO Universe as you play. You'll be able to chat, team up for quests, build amazing LEGO creations together, and choose whether to cooperate or compete as you complete fun and creative challenges ... or adventure and build all on your own if that's your thing. How you play in LEGO Universe is up to you."
[Thanks Hector!]
by Lesley Smith Aug 28th 2009 (2 months ago)
NCsoft
Aion's open beta is
officially on the way so everybody will be able to sample the delights of Atreia between September 6th and 13th. Ahead of this,
NCsoft has
announced the availability of the
Aion beta client. The client can now be downloaded from various corners of the internet, including
FilePlanet and
GamersHell, but the company has also announced they are making it available via
BitTorrent.
Despite its shady reputation as the medium of choice for file-sharers and illegal downloads, BitTorrent itself is quite legal. Indeed it's a popular method of downloading files which has been embraced by numerous companies over the years. However, if you still want to use traditional methods, NCsoft has also announced that FilePlanet will be giving away a selection of open beta keys beginning Tuesday, September 1st. But anyone who has pre-ordered the game or won a full beta key from a competition just have to bid their time until the open beta begins.
by Lesley Smith Aug 27th 2009 (2 months ago)
GW
NCsoft
There have been
rumblings for weeks about an open beta for
Aion,
NCsoft's latest MMO and the company has finally confirmed details about what we can expect. North American and European gamers who may not have gotten access to the
Closed Beta Tests will get an opportunity to sample
Aion, exploring the beautiful world of Atreia as either an Asmodian or Elyos. The beta will take place between September 6th – 13th and will include the new Westernised character customization options, as well as a chance to see
The Shadow of Balaur, the newest patch which was added to the Korean version of the game in August.
As with the final CBTs, the open beta will have a level cap of 30, which means new players to the game can experience
ascension to
Daevahood as well as the PvPvE area known as
the Abyss. Gamers who pre-ordered
Aion will also get access to the pre-select and a two-day headstart before the game officially launches on September 22nd in the US and the 25th in Europe. The pre-select will take place on September 18, while
Aion's headstart period will begin September 20. So if you want to take part, it might be wise to pre-order now, especially given the new
Guild Wars cross promotion we told you about earlier in the week.
by Lesley Smith Aug 26th 2009 (3 months ago)
CoH
NCsoft
It's nearly September which means the
Penny Arcade Expo is swiftly approaching. Taking place between September 4th-6th in Seattle, PAX is fast becoming the new must-attend convention for all sections of the industry, from developers to publishers and gamers.
NCsoft has just announced their plans for this year's convention and this focuses on their three big IPs:
Aion,
Guild Wars 2 and
City of Heroes.
NCsoft will once again have booths at the event, one per game. On the
Aion front, they will be showing the latest build of the game, which includes
patch 1.5 (aka
The Shadow of the Balaur). Producer
Brian Knox and Associate Producer
Lani Blazier will also be on hand at booth #642. At the
Guild Wars 2 booth (#842), there will be Q and As with the Live Team, a talk on the upcoming novel
The Fall of Ascalon and the chance to win a 128 page
Art of Guild Wars 2 artbook. Finally at the
City of Heroes booth (#542) you can take a peek at the new update ("Power Spectrum") and nab a special PAX Costume Power code. There will also be a player meet up on the Saturday night (September 5th) hosted by the Online Community Relations team, for more information on that click
here.
by Lesley Smith Aug 25th 2009 (3 months ago)
GW
NCsoft
Everyone loves wings right? That's one of the reasons
Aion appeals so much. Well
NCsoft has launched a little cross promotion based on that fact. Essentially it boils down to this: if you buy a first edition of
Aion (either the steelbook or the shiny Collector's Edition) you'll get a special emote which will be tied to your account. This will then allow you to summon a pair of wings in
Guild Wars!
Unfortunately the wings are purely cosmetic, your Guild Wars avatar won't be able to take to the air but the wings will move and look awfully authentic (as seen in the image to your left). The emote itself can be triggered by typing /aion in any
Guild Wars title. Before you ask, it's completely free, has unlimited uses and will become active on September 22nd, the day
Aion launches in North America. However it is worth stressing that the code can only be gained by getting physical versions of the game, not through digital download. The code emote is also available to gamers both in North America and Europe and will be tied to your account forever.
For more information on how to get and redeem your emote, as well as check out what it will look like, click
here.
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