Lineage II

Im thinking about coming back to this game, i liked it a lot when i played the game on a trial about two years ago, it seemed the population was decent back then. The only thing thats holds me back from actually buying this game and playing it is that i feel like it would be a waste of time, considering its age and other things about the population. So im wondering if it is currently healthy atm, and if you expect it to last even a few more years being healthy. I wouldnt want to start playing, and not be able to find a group or anything like that. It wouldnt feel alive if it had no one else in the world. I understand if you like this game, you would want to see more new players, but please tell me the truth about this, dont BS it and lie just to get more players. Thank you

The game will definitely last a couple of years, the subscription rate has been very constant judging by its age and it seems that many will be coming back when the Gracia update becomes available as it will make leveling a lot easier.

when is the gracia update coming?

sorry for the double post, also, im wondering how many people are usually on the server Bartz, as that is where ill play. The server i play on in ffxi has around 1600 players on all the time, and around 2500 at peak times, if bartz is like this then that will be perfect

The game's definitely going to be around a while. They still have Lineage I running, so it's not likely that they'll pull the plug on L2 anytime in the next few years. That being said, as far as the end game pvp'ers are concerned, the glory days are over. We used to see random 200 players vs. 200 players pvp on a weekday afternoon, with 500+ at sieges. Nowadays, a siege w/ over 300 players is rare (that's including both sides). But, that doesn't mean that the game is dead. The game itself is actually better in many ways than it used to be and w/ Gracia it will be even easier to earn xp (and it's already easier than it was a few years ago).

Bartz actually runs higher than your current server in FFXI. It averages about 2,500 during normal play time. Franz and Teon are the highest populated servers w/ 4,500+ players most of the time, Luna runs about 3,500 and is also a new server, so there are lots of lower level players leveling up. Some of the older servers were recently merged so they (Aria, Phoenix and Sayha) run around 1,800 - 3,000 (I'm guessing, based on their numbers before the merge.)

Gracia will be on the Test Server on Thursday but they haven't given a date for release on the live servers yet. I'm guessing it will probably be about 2-3 weeks from now.

A little bit of advice if you do start - get in an academy ASAP. A clan is almost essential to enjoying this game. :)

so if i do come back, i probably want to start on Luna?

Well, it depends.

Luna is a Euro server, w/ Euro based sieges, so siege on Saturday would be mid-afternoon and siege on Sunday would  probably be late morning. (Not exactly sure, w/ daylight savings time in the US and not knowing your timezone.) Also, Olympiads (which you won't be high enough to compete in for quite some time) would be earlier as well, maybe, mid to late afternoon?

And of course Luna is going to have a lot of Euros on it. On the other hand, it also has a lot of Americans. Some new players, some old players that wanted a fresh start on a clean server, etc. And even the American servers have a lot of Euros on them, so you're going to find a mix no matter what server you go to.

Luna probably would be easier to find groups on and you'd be closer in range to the majority of the player base, as opposed to the older servers where the majority of players are 78ish w/ 1-2 subs. So on Luna you'd have more ppl your level to hang with, more competition your level and you'd be able to compete (pvp-wise) sooner, since you won't be going up against so many 78s w/ epic jewels and S-grade gear.

If you're not all about being a high level PvPer, then any of the servers would be fine. On every server there's a large body of casual players, who are not level 78 yet, who have mains (or alts they play a lot) which will be closer to your level, who are willing and happy to take a new player into their clan and help that player level, earn gear, etc.

So it really comes down to what do you want out of this game?

well, i guess Luna is out for me. I want an american server with the highest population, so im guessing Bartz is it?

Originally posted by Rocksha

well, i guess Luna is out for me. I want an american server with the highest population, so im guessing Bartz is it?

Yes, Bartz.

It doesnt seem they want me to buy the game anywhere :(. I try to buy it from the plaync website and when i put through my information it says the image has timed out, the image that you have to verify and type in at the bottom of the screen. Ive also tried to purchase it from direct2drive, and it doesnt work there either, im waiting on an email from them, but i have been waiting all day, this is getting dissappointing, to the point where i might not buy it.

Originally posted by Rocksha

, im waiting on an email from them, but i have been waiting all day, this is getting dissappointing, to the point where i might not buy it.

Ok, first of all, what type of thinking is that? Seriously. You are not 5. Granted, I agree with you, you should be able to purchase the game easily from their company. But "not" purchasing it because there are some difficulties seems a bit punative. You either want to try it or not. And what if the issues you are experiencing are on your side? You are then punishing yourself for something that is not their fault.

Ok so I tried the playNC site and got to the "pay with credit card" part. So if you are not getting to this part then the issue might be on your side.

You can also do what I would do since I'm not really a child of the internet era. You could go to a store to buy it or purchase the box from Amazon.

Sorry, I suppose I owe you an apology but it's very hard for me to accept the fact that a small amount of difficulty creates such a drastic response. It seems a bit too focused on the instant gratification philosophy of life.

In MY day you sometimes had to wait weeks to get something you ordered (from a catalog no less). Stores weren't really open on Sunday a