Originally posted by gessekai332

ok time to defend this game.

I have been playing this game for about 3 months now. most people I know that tried this game were instantly hooked. right now more and more people are coming in now that the dolldrums of mmorpgs has set in (WAR, WoW, LotR, all overplayed and boring now... DF is a failure).  If  you want honest an honest opinion of the game, ask someone who recently joined, not one of the old guys who had to go through AoC's rough times (Q1-Q3 2008) because a lot of them are bitter, unforgiving and spiteful, and will never view the game in a positive light even if funcom were paying them to do so.

I, myself, left WAR for AoC and am enjoying it immensely. the pvp is REALLY hardcore, i was brutalized like hell when i first started but hey, can you really expect to be a master at pvp from day 1? No you can't, at least in this game. God forbid an mmorpg comes around where you actually need to use skill instead of mash buttons all day long (Guild wars is button mashing compared to this game btw). If all else fails, you can take the carebear way out and join a PvE server and only played instanced pvp or pvp in pvp only areas.

Theres no other game that comapred to AoC in terms of intricate pvp combat. Asides from skills and spells, all characters can dodge, block, and stun by tapping directional buttons. It also matters where you hit your opponent-side, front, rear, as they can decide shield themselves in any of those areas. All other games pvp is just run around and then press your hotkey buttons in a certain sequence depending on what archetype opponent you encounter, move on, rinse and repeat.

Whatever you do, take your time in the game. Whoever says the game is not worth playing until end game is full of shit, I dont care how many months of AoC they played. I have several characters lvl 43-65 and I am taking my time, enjoying the early-to mid game content as thoroughly as I can. For a pvp oriented game, the PvE and questing is pretty good. The early quests and storyline are amazing- they even have character voice overs. Mid game questing and dungeons are ok, and end game dungeons I don't know, I havent got to that point yet. However there have been many updates lately, especially to end game and a lot of players who returned recently are quite happy about it and are planning to stay.

So yeah, of all the mmorpgs out there right now, this is probably the best one. The moment you step into the game you will know that it is a quality game just by looking at the intricate environment,  immersive ambiance, and how closely the devs paid attention to detail when constructing the newbie town and storyline.

 

Yeah and I guess having leveled 3 80s before the ToS LS nerf 5 months ago (legit no power level) makes everything I say completely redundant.

The game isn't fun, there's no end game at all, either you raid the same boring few raids, or you go PvP in Keshetta, or jump in 1 of a couple minigames.  And even the minigames aren't near as fun as WoWs, I had way more fun running flags in WSG 10v10 then AoCs version.

There's gear PvP rewards but only after you sacrifice more hours then you did in WoW getting PvP exp.  WoWs arena system is even faster than that garbage.  Takes someone a solid 6 months straight at 80 to get PvP 5 working HARD.  If not longer.  If you PvP you will probably quit simply due to the fact its a longer grind than WoWs arena.

Pick up the flag with 3 team-mates with you, omg wait who 1 shot me, OH crap dang ToS.

AoC should be renamed whoever has the most ToS Stormcrown spec wins.

And every heal in that game is a HoT, minus a burst heal on a cooldown that puts a debuff on you so you can't recieve another one for a long peroid of time.

And all the HoTs require you to heal the guy right on top of them.  There's no jump PoM heals like in WOW, no HoT castable in a huge range away from the person recieving, no big heal spammable, no utility heals, just a small HoT 1 burst on a cooldown thats all you get.

Seriously the healing in AoC is even horrid lol.

Originally posted by TSamee

Well, the moment is almost upon me . I'm probably going to Game today (been stayng in London for the past three days), and I'll be picking up Conan and, if it's there, EVE's new boxed edition. I know that EVE has a free trial, but the boxed edition, with its access to a constantly updated career guide; an exclusive ship; and access to large-scale, organised combat early on in the game; seems to be making it easier than ever for new players to start. Hopefully, I'll have some impressions by tomorrow.

I'm curious to hear what your impressions are of the game :)

Sadly, my impressions have been postponed. Couldn't make it to Game yesterday, definitely going today.

Greetings again.

I've played 2 days now and made several level ~10 characters just to feel how they are, just testing out which one would fit my style and I have settled with ranger, its maybe because they are rather strong in the lower levels thought Im aware that they will get equal to others in about level 40. The real problems Im having with the game is 2 things, 1) the Global chat, I think I dont want to explain any further but I will. I came from SWG, which still I think has the best community, the global chat is full of immature little kids talking about nonsense, atleast this is the case in Fury server. Im sure you could find a good bunch of mature guilds in later levels, but the global chat is just giving a horrible image of the game for the newcomers. 2) As much as I love the pvp and I know this is a cruel world where we are in but the gank fests are just upsetting. I was trying to do quests in two low level areas (the white sands, underground something? cant really recall the names, sorry) but anyways there was _always_ a group of people waiting in the spawn just to kill us "noobs" and there wasnt really any chance to progressing in the leveling. Well this has been my first experience from the game and Im looking forward to others. As far it goes now, Im not still quite convinced to subscribe.

TSamee, I am glad to hear that you are going to give AoC a try.  MMORPG has a free 7 day trial now for AoC(which you probably already seen).  Looks like you get a few cool items for trying it that way.  I have heard that Eve Online is a nice game too.  Wherever you wind up, good luck and happy adventuring :)

Originally posted by rando1

Greetings again.

I've played 2 days now and made several level ~10 characters just to feel how they are, just testing out which one would fit my style and I have settled with ranger, its maybe because they are rather strong in the lower levels thought Im aware that they will get equal to others in about level 40. The real problems Im having with the game is 2 things, 1) the Global chat, I think I dont want to explain any further but I will. I came from SWG, which still I think has the best community, the global chat is full of immature little kids talking about nonsense, atleast this is the case in Fury server. Im sure you could find a good bunch of mature guilds in later levels, but the global chat is just giving a horrible image of the game for the newcomers. 2) As much as I love the pvp and I know this is a cruel world where we are in but the gank fests are just upsetting. I was trying to do quests in two low level areas (the white sands, underground something? cant really recall the names, sorry) but anyways there was _always_ a group of people waiting in the spawn just to kill us "noobs" and there wasnt really any chance to progressing in the leveling. Well this has been my first experience from the game and Im looking forward to others. As far it goes now, Im not still quite convinced to subscribe.

I usually roll on pvp servers; but the ffa pvp ruleset in AoC made me roll on a pve server. I do not regret it. If I want a gankfest I can (at late levels) go to FFA pvp zone in border kingdom. Until my new char gets up the levels I use the battlegrounds to get my pvp fix.

3 Solutions

1) supposedly rolling on cimmeria server puts you in a more mature population

2) If you are getting super ganked you gather a bunch of other people who are also the victims of the gank and then slaughter the gankers.

3) You can also change instance to avoid gankers

4) You can hide and sneak past the gankers in the entrance

The pvp in this game is really hardcore. You can't just give up right away. If you encounter gankers, kill them. theyre not invincible. The only reason they are kicking your ass is because A) they have more numbers, B) They are more skilled than you. if they have more, get a group yourself. If you lack skill at pvp, keep on fighting them to train yourself even if you die all the time. If all else fails, hide or change instance.

I was comparing Eq1 necro to AoC necro.   In eq1 your pets were nothing more than a dot past a certain  level.   It is the same in AoC.   Infact, I only use pets right now to steal life from them as I have zero points in pet tree. Thats not true, I also use pets to sacrifice for  casting fear.  I also sacrifice them for increased damage and increased health.  Pets are kinda useful in a utility way.   I look at them as minions that I control to help me not get my ass kicked.   I am not limited to my pets. 

Diablo is a different game altogether.   Not an mmo.   I wont argue the coolness of raising my first skele and it sorta popped outa the ground.  Its always nice to have an army of them.  

The guys that are here saying they have x number of level 80's and the game is crap sorta makes no sence.   You still leveled multiple toons to max.   Obviously you had some fun doing it or else......   you should probably do other things with your time.   You simply got tired of the game.  Even I got tired of EQ1 and WAR.   I LOVED  both games.  I played them everyday till  the buzz wore off.  Neither or bad games, I just needed something new.

No one listen to the haters on this forum.   AoC is far from bad.  Trust me, I own no stock, I dont get payed.  Im just a gamer that likes to pass the time.   If anything, I want the game to grow, So,  I make it a point to argue the haters.   

Its a fun game.. try it for yourself.   Its cheap enough now to buy it and not care if you hate it

edited:   Yes the pvp servers on AoC are hardcore.  FFA sucks, no doubt about it.   I just need constant pvp to spice up my PvE.   I will say the few friends I have made on tyranny have come from people ganking me and me ganking them back all day until they say "ok, i give bro.. you wanna quest?".    That is pretty cool.  I think the community on Tyranny is better than the community on sartok (ffa, vanguard).

I have found a fair few of instances that I can go to get away from the gankers when I need to.

I do think that PVE would offer a very pleasant experience.    There  are mini pvp games that u can just click a button and queue up for.   Thats one way alone to get your pvp fix on a pve server.

Ye,s the white isle thing in tortage is crap.   I suggest leveling past tortage without ever even going there.   Once you leave Tortage the ganking is MUCH better.    The only people that go to white sand isle (orwhatever it is) are the worst of the worst gankers.   DO NOT LET THAT THROW YOU OFF. 

In the real world its usually people your own level ganking you atleast.   I havent been ganked by an 80 yet.  What more could you ask for on a ffa server.

After months of not bothering or not enough time, I've used the summer to pick up AoC and give it a spin. I'm not gonna lie: From levels 1-20, I was blown away. Ganking on White Sands Isle wasn't anywhere near as bad on my server, and I wasn't killed once there.

The Tortage underhalls had some level 23s hanging around, but, after finding conveniently that nobody bothered putting skill points in Perception, I just hid in a corner while they walked past, killed the relevant boss/got item x, and left.

Combat was awesome, and, even now, jaded as I am, I still love using my bitching demonic links to become a giant, slimy, tentacled badass monster wielding a massive 2-handed sword, before Hellstepping up to someone and killing them with two combos. Herald of Xotli is, unarguably, the most fun class I've ever played in an MMO.

Unlike most MMOs, I actually gave a damn about the main story. It was intriguing, fun and the quests changed depending on your Archetype (Mage, Warrior, Rogue, Priest), so that your quest was suited to your playstyle. Though it wasn't quite Mass Effect the story was still a cut above anything I've seen in WoW, WAR and every other MMO I've played. And the fact that, during the final quest, a random fatality occurred, and I decapitated Strom as a slimy, tentacled demon wreathed in flames, made it all the sweeter.

Sadly, my elation at finding a truly awesome MMO vanished in a puff of smoke after leaving Tortage. Upon arriving in my homeland, I found that the genuinely impressive voiceovers (for an MMO), were gone, only to show up in the main story quests, which now occur every 20 levels as one quest.The atmosphere of Tortage was gone, to be replaced by a desert city populated almost entirely by soulless NPCs, and filled with taverns where a deep, lore-revealing or interesting conversation with an NPC was impossible.

Quests changed from Archetype-specific, relatively interesting affairs to "Kill person X, because he sucks", or "Find my friend or I'll throw his cargo into the sea". The most interesting NPCs I found on Khemi were a main story character who posed as a beggar and called me a "plaything on the gods", and a man who watched grains of sand on the beach.

Possibly the worst part was returning to Tortage to find that Strom still reigned, and the Red Hand were still in power. All of the NPCs who I was able to have deeper conversation with, including my general trainer, a drunk who also happened to be a powerful mage, now merely had conversation trees limited to "tell me about yourself", and "goodbye", as it had been before I'd started the main questline. Alyssa, a barmaid at the Thirsty Dog Inn, who, apparently, would have loved to spend the night in my arms once the Red Hand was off my back, said exactly the same thing.

A suggestion for Funcom: Make two instances of Tortage: one for players who've complted the story there, where Valeria rules over the place, people love you and think you're awesome, quests are harder and things have evolved and you can bang Alyssa; and one for the players who haven't, where the Red Hand, with their evil bastard undead leader, still rule. This will also help with the problem of noobs being ganked on white sands/in the underhalls, as the people who've come back after finishing the story and just kill noobs all day can't do it now: They'll be faced with players of their own skill level, and above.

I'm hanging in there for the PvP, but I have the feeling that I'll cancel my subscriprion soon. Still, until my free month ends, there are still Tempests of Set that need to be shown who's boss, internet tough guys who need a beatdown, high-levels who need noobs to gank and women who haven't been harassed by a fiery, dancing demon who then turns into a Stygian in his underwear after twenty seconds.

And after that... Well, I guess there's only one hope for us MMOers who want quality like Tortage all the way through. I'm cool with waiting ten years, if need be. Just please, please let The Old Republic be good... Until then, I'll be having wet dreams about ME2. Have fun, and for those of you who truly love beating the shit out of stuff in Conan, I salute you. I've seen your way of life, and it's awesome. I'm just too dumb to kill something without a reason.

 I downloaded the trial and was amazed by the graphics, the gore and the combat style. There were even small fish swimming in the waters.  The quests were pretty interesting, but I found it interesting that all of the female characters hit on my female character as if she were a guy! Oh and running around topless the entire time and being called a whore was funny. But as mentioned by the previous poster, once I left the starting town it was boring. I also lagged a lot in the city which was made me quit that game. My system is not the best, but if I can play Oblivion maxed out I should not lag on low settings in AoC. 

I played on the roleplay PVP server and was only killed a few times; then I joined a guild and had a few people with me to help repell people. I was surprised that a lower person could still damage a higher one, and with numbers could kill them. Other than that I did not see much roleplay except the one person that asked why I am running around loking like a whore, to which I replied "Duh, because I am!" I was also surprised that some people were going to kill me, but then didnt because the character was a female (blonde with big ones).

I also agree with the previous poster about going back to the starter town and nothing I did changed it. Kinda made me lose interest real quick, aside from the lag problems. I made two characters: a warrior type, and then the Priest of Mar, which was the chick character. The melee fighting got real old and seemed to reliant on gear, but the PoM was a smiting machine. She went through mobs like you would not believe and I got to level 25 with her, the melee guy to like 12ish.

As well the game is nice, but the lag problems I had, and the feeling that I didn't change the world in the starter town just was too much for me. I am glad I only did the trial  and didnt buy the game like i did with LotRO.