aion posts

The Daily Grind: Are you still playing a September MMO?

by Brooke Pilley Nov 6th 2009 at 8:00AM

Filed under: Aion, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Fallen Earth, New titles, The Daily Grind, Champions Online

September 2009 saw the release of Champions Online, Dungeons & Dragons: Eberron Unlimited (an older MMO going F2P), Fallen Earth, and Aion. This was easily the busiest month for MMOs in recent memory and we're sure many of you at least picked up one of them to try out. We're curious to know if you're still playing a September MMO just over a month later. If so or if not, why?

No MMO in the history of MMOs has experienced a perfectly smooth launch and these September titles were no exception. Did the action-packed combat of CO pull you in or did the lack of content push you away? Were you awed by DDO-EU's polished suite of tools or annoyed by the limitations put on free accounts? Was Fallen Earth's post-apocalyptic setting a breath of fresh air or did you choke on a mouthful of radioactive bugs? Did the beauty and smoothness of Aion make your heart beat faster or did its grind and bot infestation crush your soul? Just how impressed were you with September's crop of new MMOs?

Tags: aion, champions-online, cryptic, ddo, ddo-ebberon-unlimited, fallen-earth, icarus-studios, ncsoft, new-titles, the-daily-grind, turbine

NCsoft responds to City of Heroes speculation

by Eliot Lefebvre Nov 5th 2009 at 4:00PM

Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, Business models, Interviews, MMO industry, Opinion, Rumors

A couple days ago, we had a post detailing some speculation on what City of Heroes: Going Rogue meant for NCsoft West, City of Heroes, and the future of the entire branch of the company. Ryan James, director of corporate communications for NCsoft, took the time to issue a direct response to us regarding that post. We also got an opportunity to ask him a few questions regarding NCsoft's current and future direction, which helps provide some context and some behind-the-scenes information to offset the speculative nature of the aforementioned post.

The official response is as follows:

"We wanted to respond to your post from November 2 on City of Heroes and clarify a few points for you and your readers. In short, the piece offers a rather sensationalist view of NCsoft West and our success thus far.

We're very proud of what we've accomplished here in the West – we have several major MMO franchises, including City of Heroes, Lineage and Guild Wars. And our newest addition to the NCsoft portfolio, Aion, has just seen a very successful launch here in the West. As you point out, we have had to make some tough portfolio decisions, but this is very much par for the course for any major game publisher today. That being said, we remain extremely proud of the Paragon team's accomplishments with the City of Heroes franchise. City of Heroes is still the world's most popular super-powered hero MMO. Even with an increasingly crowded landscape, City of Heroes remains the gold standard for comic book-inspired MMOs – it has stood the test of time and we're excited to be bringing Going Rogue to players next year.

As you note, the author of Vicarious Existence is indeed 'alarmist' in his assessment of NCsoft West and our future. We couldn't agree more. On the contrary, we're optimistic about our future."

Following the statement, Mr. James took the opportunity to answer a few questions about the company's game portfolio and future plans. Take a look at the questions and responses after the break.

Tags: aion, aion-the-tower-of-eternity, business-models, city-of-heroes, city-of-heroes-going-rogue, city-of-villains, coh, cov, cox, dungeon-runners, going-rogue, guild-wars, gw, interviews, lineage-2, lineage-ii, ncsoft, ncsoft-west, opinion, rumors, ryan-james

How much is riding on City of Heroes: Going Rogue?

by Eliot Lefebvre Nov 2nd 2009 at 8:00PM

Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, City of Villains, Business models, Expansions, MMO industry, Opinion

At the six-year mark, City of Heroes is still moving forward, with City of Heroes: Going Rogue targeted for release in the second quarter of 2010. It's certainly not the oldest game to receive an expansion, but Vicarious Existence has an interesting point to be made: exactly how much is riding on the success of this expansion? In true heroic sense, it may well be the fate of NCsoft West and of NCsoft's entire western presence in the market.

It's no secret that NCsoft West has had a difficult time in the market, with the first rumbles having been made clear with the sad tale of Auto Assault. And it's hardly necessary to dredge up painful memories about the games that have also gone the way of the dodo. But as the post points out, there's not nearly as much revenue coming in from the western branch of the company as they'd like, even with the success Aion has been having in the marketplace. (If that sounds cynical or as if it's expecting too much money, Adam Martin has an excellent explanation of why NCsoft could and would be so draconic about profits.) To be fair, the post is a bit alarmist, but it does posit that there could be a great deal of trouble on the horizon for City of Heroes -- and perhaps the whole studio -- based on the performance of the expansion. And even if the idle speculation is wrong, it certainly does put you in the right mood for the expansion, doesn't it?

Tags: adam-martin, aion, auto-assault, business-models, city-of-heroes, city-of-villains, coh, cov, cox, expansions, going-rogue, ncsoft, ncsoft-west, paragon-studios

Details for Aion's new Veteran Rewards Program

by Brooke Pilley Oct 31st 2009 at 10:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, News items

We probably don't need to point out the glaring congruity that each month you play Aion will soon be rewarded with four XP boost amulets; but we will. NCsoft just spilled the beans on their new Veteran Rewards Program. This seems slightly ironic because the game has only been out for a month. We suppose it's probably a good strategy to entice players to stick around; especially after an MMO's first month, which is arguably the rockiest.

Players will now receive special items for each month they remain subscribed to Aion. Months one to six award four Lodas Amulets (20% bonus XP for one hour) and four Revival Stones (self/player resurrection). Additionally, month one gives a cube expansion ticket (+1 free row) and a special Michael Jackson dance emote. Month three grants an extra title (Adept of Aion ) and another Forbidden Dance emote. Month six gives players special level 40 Black Cloud wings.

The disclaimer states that NCsoft can expand, revise, or end the Veteran Rewards Program at any time. With the first six months plotted out, it seems likely they will continue as the game soars ahead. Check out the official description page for full details on how to qualify.

Tags: aion, lodas-amulet, michael-jackson, nc-west, ncsoft, revival-stone, veteran-rewards, veteran-rewards-program

Aion releases tentative patch notes for 1.5.1

by Rubi Bayer Oct 30th 2009 at 10:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, Patches, News items

In last week's community address, Aion promised some changes on the way in the next update. Today they released some tentative notes for that update as a preview of things to come. Of course the patch is still in testing and things are open to change, but it's a look at where things are headed.

Thankfully, it looks like the issue of EXP is being addressed pretty extensively. There are new repeatable quests that focus on crafting, increased EXP for gathering and crafting, increased EXP rewards for many quests in both regions, and a slight reduction in EXP penalties when you're in a group. We're anxious to see how this plays out when the patch is implemented -- a decrease in the grind will undoubtedly be welcomed by the Aion community. Rewards will be getting a little boost too, in the form of increased drop rates in several areas and new rewards here and there to make the grind a bit more rewarding.

The patch notes also include the standard tweaks -- bug fixes, skill balances, and changes to items and NPCs. Check out the full notes for all the current details, and we'll keep an eye out for a release date.

Tags: aion, ncsoft, patch, patch-1.5.1

Last chance to upgrade Aion from standard to collector's edition

by Brooke Pilley Oct 28th 2009 at 5:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, New titles, News items

If you've been holding off on upgrading your standard edition version of Aion to the full-fledged collector's edition, now's your last chance. NCsoft is extending the upgrade window by only 48 more hours from Thursday, October 29, 2009 at 12:01 a.m. PDT to Friday, October 30, 2009 at 11:59 p.m. PDT. (Check the time in your area.) Here are the in-game goodies you'll receive for a $10 USD upgrade fee:

Black Cloud Wings (gives 40 seconds of additional flight time)
Black Cloud Earring (gives an HP and an MP boost)
Special character title (Settler of Aion) with stat boost
Rich purple dye to tint 10 in-game items
Two character emotes

The original upgrade period ended a bit earlier than NCsoft intended due to an interneal error, which is why they are extending it until this Friday (or Saturday depending on where you live). Keep your eye on the NCsoft store if you don't want to miss out on this limited time offer. It's actually a pretty good deal because the price difference between the pre-launch standard and collector's editions was up to $20 USD depending on the merchant.

Tags: aion, black cloud, collectors-edition, emotes, nc-west, ncsoft, standard-edition, upgrade

One Shots: Elvis is everywhere

by Krystalle Voecks Oct 28th 2009 at 2:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Screenshots, Aion, One Shots

Okay, okay. It's not Elvis, but we feel reasonably certain he'd approve of those dashing sunglasses and the hair. That said, this One Shots comes to us from Justin M. who felt that a screenshot we've run earlier didn't do the lovely looks of Aion justice. As such, he sent in his own pretty shot along with the following note for us all to enjoy! Justin writes: Saw you post a picture talking about how beautiful Aion is, but the picture wasn't nearly as great as the many, many scenes that this game has. Here is one of my early pictures showing the diversity and beauty of the landscape, creatures, and my toon at level 14.

Think you've found a cooler looking shot from your favorite game? Why not toss in your own contribution and show off how awesome your favorite game is! It's easy to do. Just email it to oneshots AT massively DOT com along with your name, the name of the game, and a quick description. We'll post it out here and give you credit for capturing a great moment.

Gallery: One Shots

Tags: aion, justin-m, nscoft, one-shots, screenshot, screenshots

Massively interview with Aion's new community manager

by Kyle Horner Oct 28th 2009 at 11:30AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, News items, Massively Interviews

Aion is easily one of the biggest MMOs of the year, so when a new North American community manager took over recently we decided it was the perfect time for an interview with the new team member, Andrew Beegle -- known as Tamat to community members.

We asked Tamat about new methods of community interaction, the hotly anticipated experience boost patch and even some personal questions about our new community manager. You can never really know enough about the person serving as the conduit to your main MMO -- at least that's what we tell them!

Tags: aion, community, experience, experience-boost, experience-patch, featured, interview, korea, korean, massively-interviews, nc-west, ncsoft, north-america, north-american, patch, server, tamat, translation

Massively interview with Aion's new community manager part 2

by Kyle Horner Oct 28th 2009 at 11:30AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, Massively Interviews

Tags: aion, blizzard, community, daoc, dark-age-of-camelot, everquest, lineage-2, lineage-ii, nc-west, ncsoft, ncwest, planetside, soe, sony-online-entertainment, tamat, world-of-warcraft, wow

Chinese company bans gender-bending

by Eliot Lefebvre Oct 27th 2009 at 3:00PM

Filed under: Culture, MMO industry, News items, Legal

You can frequently get asked to prove an awful lot in MMOs -- that you actually know how to beat this boss, that you really have insider access to the game developers, or perhaps most commonly that you are who you say you are. Aurora Technology over in China has apparently decided to cut out the middleman in the equation -- they're banning any male players who play female characters, requiring players to confirm their gender via webcam in order to enforce the ruling.

The ruling currently only affects the Aurora-developed game King of the World, but there's always the possibility that this action could have further-reaching consequences. After all, Aurora is a subsidiary of Shanda, a company responsible for publishing Aion and Dungeons and Dragons Online in the region, which are names slightly more familiar to players on this side of the pond. China is a fair bit more litigious than the US when it comes to its online games, and the country as a whole has taken some surprising moves already. While this ordeal has been going on for over two years now, we can't help but wonder if this will herald the start of some rather restrictive policies. We're assuming that you'll need to provide pictures or it didn't happen.

Tags: aion, aurora-technology, china, china-gaming, chinese-gaming, culture, ddo, dungeons-and-dragons-online, gender, legal, mmo-industry, shanda

The Digital Continuum: 'Comfort' grind

by Kyle Horner Oct 26th 2009 at 3:00PM

Filed under: MMO industry, Opinion, The Digital Continuum

Often times grind is lambasted as the worst part of this genre, something to be minimized and removed to any and all extent. I understand all too well why; hundreds of hours of brain melting repetitiveness. Only here's the rub: the very nature of MMOs -- persistence -- creates a grind. Unless you keep it under a reasonable number of hours played, it'll turn into a festival of grind.

I used to think this was a colossal problem, yet lately I'm beginning to rethink my stance.

Tags: aion, blizzard, borderlands, comfort, eq, everquest, featured, gearbox-software, ncsoft, opinion, soe, sony-online-entertainment, the-digital-continuum, world-of-warcraft, wow

A look back at Aion's first month and impressions

by Brooke Pilley Oct 26th 2009 at 12:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, Opinion, Massively Hands-on

43,829 minutes. That's roughly how long Aion's been out in the West. Depending on your tolerance for grinding, it may or may not have felt like that amount of time passed. There's no doubt it's been a busy month full of ups and downs, so we'd like to take an extensive look back at the last 30-days and give our impressions on the game.

Smooth criminal

Aion experienced one of the most technically smooth launches in MMO history, which was the result of hard work, innovative design, tough decision-making, and of course nearly a year between the Eastern and Western releases. Anti-cheat software, GameGuard, was stripped from the client in the 11th hour. This no doubt eliminated most of the open-beta issues that would have sent a lot of potential players packing shortly after release. Players just aren't as forgiving as they used to be.

Tags: aion, botters, featured, first-month, gameguard, grinding, impressions, nc-west, ncsoft, spammers, xp-grind

A retrospective of Aion's first month (part 2)

by Brooke Pilley Oct 26th 2009 at 12:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, Opinion, Massively Hands-on

Tags: aion, asmodian, assassin, first-month, hands-on, impressions, nc-west, ncsoft, opinion

One month: Aion October community address

by Brooke Pilley Oct 24th 2009 at 4:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, News items

Aion has officially been out for one full month and NCsoft just released an October community address in response. The notice reads less like a giant pat on the back and more like a checklist of major issues they are working on, which is bound to churn up speculation about how well the title is doing. Oh, we're sure Aion is doing quite well even though we haven't heard the official numbers yet, but developers usually use these opportunities to shout about their accomplishments rather than their shortcomings.

The top three issues mentioned in the letter are experience curves, client performance, and spammers/botters. Most players will agree that it can feel like a part-time job to level your character at times. Some players have had performance issues specifically related to "Cryssystem.dll." And finally, everyone has been forced to /ignore the odd spammer... or fifty. NCsoft is using this opportunity to yet again tell players they are aware of these issues and fixes are on the way.

We're curious how this may relate to differences between eastern and western gaming cultures. Aion has been released for nearly a year in Asia and yet only the outcry from European and North American players against experience grinds and gold spamming specifically seems to be sparking a change.

Tags: aion, botting, client-performance, community-address, experience-grind, farming, first-month, gold-farming, grinding, nc-west, ncsoft, spamming

Five quick tips for Aion (week 3)

by Brooke Pilley Oct 21st 2009 at 6:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, New titles, Tips and tricks

Welcome to our third installment of "Five quick tips for Aion." The title is pretty self-explanatory so let's just jump right into things, shall we? This week's post features the trade broker, group recruitment, faster XP, rift locations, and custom signatures!

1. Quickly search the trade broker
It can get annoying typing out the full name of an item in the 'Buy' tab, especially when the names are all case-senstitive and can be quite long. Here are two quick tips to speed up the process.

a) If you have an item in your inventory and want to do a quick 'Buy' search to see how much it is selling for, simply ALT + Left Click the item in your inventory and the search bar will be auto-filled with the complete item name.

b) If you don't happen to have an item in your inventory but know its name, you can simply enter the first letter of each word (capitalized) in the search box. For example, you can search 'T S L J' instead of Thin Soft Leather Jerkin. Some item names share the same initials, so you can narrow the search by adding a second letter in lower-case. For example, 'M W F' will result in Major Weapon Flux and Minor Weapon Flux. If you only want Major Weapon Flux, search for 'Ma W F.'

Tags: abyss, aion, aion-tips, featured, grouping, ncsoft, pvpve, strategy, tips-and-tricks