A new patch for an MMO is a bit like a present. At best, it can provide a number of new opportunities for fun and enjoyment. At worst, it can break several things you already liked and now have to replace. Aion has recently deployed the new patch 1.5.1 and, as could be expected, fan reaction is somewhat split on whether it's a nice present or the immortal pairing of socks and underwear. Certainly there isn't a major content influx, and the often-requested reduction of the game's grind has yet to be implemented, but there are still a number of nice updates and additions.

Leaving aside the bugfixes and optimization with only a mention that they should help the game play more smoothly all around, several instanced dungeons have been adjusted somewhat. Nearly all of these changes look beneficial to players -- reductions in difficulty and increases in reward, as well as added UI displays for important objectives. They've also added stealth-detecting NPCs to starter areas and increased several NPC health totals in an effort to curb destructive PvP tendencies. Quest experience at mid-to-high levels has been adjusted upward, rewards have been slightly improved on several quests, and level-difference experience penalties have been reduced. Last but not least, there's now more incentive to hold a fortress in the Abyss and work to defend it, as rewards are offered for defending players. Aion's fans aren't all happy about the changes, but it's best if you take a look at the changes yourself. Just remember that even if you don't like it, this present is unreturnable.

The latest additions to Aion's 1.5.1 patch notes illustrate the "damned if you do, damned if you don't" reality that is MMO development. They also show a potential communication disconnect between the game's players and developers or possibly even unrealistic expectations. Upon reading the pages and pages of player comments on these patch note additions, the general opinion can be summarized as such: "These changes don't address our major complaints."

There's no doubt that 1.5.1 will greatly improve Aion (less grind anyone?), but players seem to be sticking on a few major points that aren't yet in the tentative patch notes. Most of the players commenting on these notes seem to feel that Aion's first big patch should tackle the crashing fortresses issue (crysys.dll), flying spiritmaster pets, better UI customization, and a number of other issues (less grind included). There also appears to be resistance to a new debuff that will be added to aether extraction. Players will now be randomly debuffed when gathering, but can quickly remove it by typing a captcha. This change is obviously aimed at bots, but many state this will become an annoyance for everyone.

Check out our summary of part one of the patch notes and AionSource's interview with NCsoft's Lani Blazier to get a comprehensive view of the situation.

The folks over at AionSource were kind enough to translate the latest Aion patch notes being tested in Korea. There's no word yet on when western players will see these changes, but the notes are still worth reading because there are some big improvements. Three items stood out to us especially.

Based on the table shown in the notes, quest experience is being increased; to the tune of almost 500% on average (if our calculations are correct). The craziest example is a level 44 quest going from 13,300 to 703,820 experience (53 times as much).

Extracting aether now has a chance to debuff you with "Aether Venom." This debuff reduces your chance to successfully extract a gatherable down to 0. Players can remove this effect with a "Word of Purification" ability. Each character has this ability but to successfully use it, one must properly type in a captcha. This seems like an obvious attempt to prevent bots from gathering up all the game's resources.

Finally, Spiritmaster pets can now fly. We're not quite sure how this issue ever made it into the game at launch (design oversight or complication?), but 1.5.1 aims to finally remedy it so Spiritmasters aren't totally gimped in aerial PvP. Be sure to check out the full notes here.

[Update: These notes are for the Korean test server, so they're not final notes for the Western version.]