I tried Gates of Andaron over the weekend a little bit back, enjoyed it enough that I have not deleted it. I'm also pleased to see that MMORPG.com got a forum spot up for it at last. If anyone else has played on it longer than I have (I've gotten a couple chars up to level 15ish) I am curious as to how much the recently implemented item stores have impacted play (if at all), level caps, how much PvP figures in later on (it seems like a lot) and so forth.

Overall GoA seems to be a better F2P experience so far than many other imported competitors such as Runes of Magic, Shaiya and Perfect World (although I think Atlantica Online is pretty cool, too...not my kinda MMO, but neat nonetheless). And way better than 9dragons and 2moons.

Pre-emtpively: GoA is the American release of a game apparently known in Europe as 4story, so don't get confused there, yes they are the same (so far as I know) and that's that. Not sure why they changed the name, though my suspicion is that its a recognition that putting a number in front of your title among F2P games is tantamount to saying, "This game is crap, we promise, the number does not lie." (cough >2moons and 9dragons< cough).

Thanks for the info.  Maybe I'll give it a whirl.

UPDATE: I played a few hours of it and thought it was pretty good.  The server dropped me a half-dozen times or so.  I will probably play until it gets stale.

 The shops were already there when I first started playing, and to be honest, great gear is sold by word of mouth, though shops are decent for the gear you want to wear trying to level up to 31-34, where the highest level gear are, and for buying materials to make the best gear, etc. They're really helpful. The level cap is 76, expected to be raised to 80 (rumors say within the month).

PvP is a major factor when you start hitting your 30s. Area Conquest is only once a day, and unfortunately, a few people are unable to attend because of time zone issues, but really, it's great fun. A lot of the time, you might be bored and just waste time dueling or watching other people duel in the capital city.

Thanks for the details.

Thanks for the details everyone.It really convinced me and my cousin to join the qame and try it out. :D

 Dammm This game is the C L O N E of WoW, all is almost the same!! how can this be ?!

Level cap is 90 now woot!  Also, in the mission maps, there are "doc wars" (PvP battle to claim/defend your NPC boss) every hour rotates even/odd docs.  This has given much more PvP event opportunity.  Daily Area Conquests still happen, and we also now have weekly Castle Wars.  The game isn't perfected, but we have a great community. 

The two factions are Valorian and Derion...battles can get very heated. 

The PvE is mostly a grindfest to get levelled, so if you aren't fond of PvP, this isn't the game for you.  There are really only 2 safe zones in the game.  All quest areas are open for attack, so watch your back...hehe. 

You can craft gear, but if you can't afford to buy items from the cash shop, you'll have to be good at merchanting to be competitive.

Yes, it's 4story for the US.  Yes, it's a lot like WoW.  The people who play make it unique.