I do alot of work on the road. So when it came time to replace my computer I went with a laptop. My laptop is a Toshiba SLI2. It has SLI 8600 vid cards with duo2 2.1 processor and 2 gigs of ram...I am going to upgrade the ram soon to 3gigs but the problem I am having is...In beta the game was crashing to desktop...A LOT...it was to the point of being unplayable...my concern is buying the game and it still being CTD a lot. Anyway...just trying to see what you guys think.

The game has made massive improvements in terms of stability since release. It really doesn't even feel like the same game that I tested in open beta.

If your main concern is the game crashing a lot, I think you will be pleasantly surprised...

Thanks... it was so bad I played a couple days and just gave up...I have a $10 coupon and a $6 Gift card I might go ahead and pick it up.

Hard to say, my laptops a bit better than yours, and it never crashes in the retail game.

Normally the crashes you are talking about are related to video driver incompatibility.

This is very problematic for laptop owners as we can't just go out and download the recommended nvidia/ATI drivers, ours are always customized by the manufacturer for our machine and we have to wait (and hope) they provide an update.

When I installed AOC I got a message saying my nvidia driver was one known to have problems.  Well fortunately, the game plays just fine with it, since when I checked with Gateway, they haven't released an update since Dec 07 so I'm  a bit out of luck.  I spoke with tech support and they claimed a patch update was on the way, but offered no date and I suppose its time to call them back this weekend and bitch about it.

So go see if you can update your graphics driver and then maybe try and get a buddy key for the retail version (once they are activated) before you go out and buy it.

I agree with the above poster. Also, because you are running 8600 in SLI, you shouldn't have any FPS problems around the Medium settings, the way other 8600 users do. Most 8600 users need to play on Low Settings. SLI cards seem to double the performance from what I am hearing in-game. There are several discussions a day in-game concerning performance and what people are running it on. I am pretty sure you are one of those that can run it on Medium Settings, which is nothing to sneeze at.

I have 2 gripes about the game.

1.  Loot.  I kill a mob that is named or heroic, whatever.  Nothing of use drops.  Almost like there is no reward.  Im only lvl 28 I am hoping for better stuff as I progress.  Perhaps they will add more loot in time.

2.  UI.  By UI i mean the hotbars and chatbox etc.  EQ2 UI was by far the best i have experienced.  Shrinkable, movable  everything was customizable.  As many or as little bars as YOU (the player wanted).  Again, Perhaps ths will change in time.

I did cancel my acct., but i am gonna play throughout the month and check back in as more content is delievered.   I am not giving up on this game yet.

Thanks for the info...I guess the only way to really find out is just buy the game and be done with it...Hell, I have played everything else, why not AoC.

Originally posted by Smilex0311

2.  UI.  By UI i mean the hotbars and chatbox etc.  EQ2 UI was by far the best i have experienced.  Shrinkable, movable  everything was customizable.  As many or as little bars as YOU (the player wanted).  Again, Perhaps ths will change in time.

 

ESC key .. interface options .. advanced i believe.. you can add several hot bars to your screen.

also holding ALT key brings up and alt numeric hotbar

I've gotten some special weapons and armor from killing bosses on Tortage. I am only lvl 16, so I cannot comment on how it is later in the game.

To be honest, the Bosses weren't that much harder than the regular mobs, so it isn't worth me bitching about to the Devs.

If I were you OP, I would hold off on buying the game for a couple of months. its going through a lot of turbulent changes both technically and community-wise. Servers vibrant now will die, others will become lively. I would say 4-6 months is what it will take for AoC to settle down, where you see it was you get.

About loot. Let's think about this a little.

The person who had the initial concern about it states he is level 28. So, most of his experience has been Tortage and the "starting" areas afterwards.  If this were WoW, he basically has gotten to Deadmines/WC level at this point.

Now I know what you're saying. "But Terr, you sexy devil you...WC and Deadmines have great loot!" And so they do...as a reward for fighting ELITE mobs in a group instance.

To put it bluntly, there's little risk in tackling anything in the "normal" version of a zone/dungeon, and thus the rewards are sub-par. Now, try that same area on the Epic challenge level with a group. I bet your rewards are better...

Originally posted by blackstarr

 

Originally posted by Smilex0311

2.  UI.  By UI i mean the hotbars and chatbox etc.  EQ2 UI was by far the best i have experienced.  Shrinkable, movable  everything was customizable.  As many or as little bars as YOU (the player wanted).  Again, Perhaps ths will change in time.

 

ESC key .. interface options .. advanced i believe.. you can add several hot bars to your screen.

 

also holding ALT key brings up and alt numeric hotbar

your talking about the two additional hotbars?  yeah two ok, but I am a priest with all spells ...still clunky and large and ......still agravating me.

Good point, I am lvl 30 now and perhaps i will try on the harder versions of the zone and see if loot is better.  - good idea.

Originally posted by farok

I do alot of work on the road. So when it came time to replace my computer I went with a laptop. My laptop is a Toshiba SLI2. It has SLI 8600 vid cards with duo2 2.1 processor and 2 gigs of ram...I am going to upgrade the ram soon to 3gigs but the problem I am having is...In beta the game was crashing to desktop...A LOT...it was to the point of being unplayable...my concern is buying the game and it still being CTD a lot. Anyway...just trying to see what you guys think.

 

 

My laptop has only 8600, the same cpu and 2 gigs of ram, except mine is a Vaio(dunno if it makes a difference) i get anywhere from 15-30 fps running around. The only problem is when moving in cities i sometime get a stuttering effects from the game trying to load new textures ( i think it is textures). As far as stability goes i am pleased.

Originally posted by farok

Thanks for the info...I guess the only way to really find out is just buy the game and be done with it...Hell, I have played everything else, why not AoC.

- even if you do not subscribe

Originally posted by Smilex0311

Originally posted by blackstarr

 

Originally posted by Smilex0311

2.  UI.  By UI i mean the hotbars and chatbox etc.  EQ2 UI was by far the best i have experienced.  Shrinkable, movable  everything was customizable.  As many or as little bars as YOU (the player wanted).  Again, Perhaps ths will change in time.

 

ESC key .. interface options .. advanced i believe.. you can add several hot bars to your screen.

 

also holding ALT key brings up and alt numeric hotbar

your talking about the two additional hotbars?  yeah two ok, but I am a priest with all spells ...still clunky and large and ......still agravating me.

Grab MirageUI or WerikUI. More hotbars, smaller icons, less (or no) artwork on the bottom of the screen.

Originally posted by Smilex0311

Good point, I am lvl 30 now and perhaps i will try on the harder versions of the zone and see if loot is better.  - good idea.

 

 

There's plenty of loot and good gear in the game. But it's not just handed to you on a silver platter...you need to find it, and earn it.