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Aion Correspondent - Trying to make a Difference
Kenneth Tarre, our new Aion Correspondent, has written this introductory article about the upcoming NCsoft MMORPG.
Try to imagine a world where the MMO-gamers were divided between people thinking Lineage 2 ought to be considered the world's 8th wonder, and those that wouldn't touch such a game with an eleven-foot (yes, let's be original) wooden pole. Luckily the world isn't that black and white, but there's no doubt that there are a lot of mixed feelings about Asian-made MMOs here in the west. Pessimists often argue that most of the Asian MMOs are mindless grinders, which is indeed a fair argument, as this has been the reality for a long time now. There's no wonder that people choose to be wary, however I believe we're approaching a season where this reality is about to change, as our global world is closing in on us.
In essence, I think we all agree on the fact that grinding is as natural in MMORPGs as breathing air or visiting mmorpg.com is for us online gamers, but many of us still detest hearing the term with a passion. It's not as much about removing the grind, as it is about hiding it away and sugar-coating it with layers after layers of sweetness, to the point where a diabetic would probably be seeing stars. What I'm talking about is quests, competitive challenges and rewards… you know, everything that makes us forget that we're actually still grinding.
For many of us, it feels 'ooh so much better' if we aren't just told to slay 50 cute chickens for the sake of progression, but that doing so saves a village of innocent child's from imminent doom and destruction, as these cute chickens just happens to be man-eating monster chickens on a quest for world domination. With this in mind, isn't it foolish to believe that one of the world's largest developers and publishers of MMORPGs haven't picked up on this trend yet, and is trying to adapt their new blockbuster title to this philosophy? The company in question is NCsoft, and the country is Korea. I think you see where I'm going with this.
Between the crystal and the granite
I'm actually not here today to talk about the prejudices people in general might have about Korean MMOs, but to open your eyes to a game which just might change the way we will view Asian MMOs in the future. The game in the spotlight today is Aion: The Tower of Eternity, a game which tries to break free from the ever so tiring shackles of just being seen as "another Korean grinder", as it's made by the same company which brought us the above mentioned Lineage 2. Using the spoon which I had in my pocket for no apparent reason, and scratching on the surface of this upcoming MMORPG, I start to see the contours of something that is certainly trying.
Aion could probably best be described as a blend between eastern games such as Lineage 2 and western games such as World of Warcraft. You have the intricate and stunning clothing and armour designs of eastern high-fantasy (not to mention the most in-depth character creation I've seen in years), combined with the extensive questing and story-building we have come to expect from the western AAA-titles. The game is being designed with a western PvE-mindset, yet brings us the sieges and PvP only eastern developers seem to get done right. If you'd be so inclined, it could be said that Aion takes the better from two different markets.
Aion claims to be intuitive in several ways. While the PvE-gameplay is central, you'll actually be able to level quite well in PvP alone, if you so desire. The Abyss is one of the central zones in Aion, and could best be described as a large PvPvE area (which is something that I will touch on in a future article), consisting of several layers of gameplay, which you'll first have access to at level 25. Since the game currently offers 50 levels, this means that you'll be able to join the competitive PvP gameplay quite early, and then be able to remain in those zones until you've reached the highest level, almost entirely side-stepping the usual PvE levelling gameplay.
Another way to take away the sense of grinding is to make sure that the game consistently offers rewards as you progress, never leaving you with the bitter taste of feeling stuck in a monotone process for too long. Being born a human in Aion, you'll soon start your adventure in a Guild Wars-like fashion, with storyline quests to tell the beginning of your story, and to guide your character on the long and winding road to becoming a Daeva, an eternal being. If you want a recent example of how this can play out, imagine a lighter version of the Tortage area in Age on Conan, except it continues. The game will gradually introduce new elements of gameplay as you progress throughout the game, for example the ability to fly and to choose your final class, not to mention the Stigma system, which allows you to borrow skills from other classes in order to individualise your character.
No shine without polish
Am I saying that Aion will most definitely become the "next big thing"? No, but I'm saying that you'll be missing out if you pass it along as "just another grinder". There are a few good signs which suggest that this game is coming along just fine, for example the light-handed NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) that is in place. NCsoft has more or less allowed any information to be leaked to the international players, despite the game being in its closed beta phases, which shows that the developers aren't trying to hide the game's flaws from the masses. Korea is currently moving into its open beta phase, as they claim the game is finished enough to do so, and more information should surface during the Leipzig GC convention in a few weeks. International players can look forward to trying the game during several events and conventions this fall, with exclusive Preview Events taking place in early 2009. In any case, I would strongly recommend you to check out the official website http://www.aiononline.com/us/ for more information about this game. This is surely a title to be reckoned with (no pun intended).
And that concludes the first Correspondent article about Aion: The Tower of Eternity.
cool. thanks
Curious: how do you be a correspondent for a game that is not even released yet?
You have to go off what the developers say (that's what I did for my article).
@article: A very good read, I found it a very good article. I look forward to reading more.
Very good article which perfectly describe the orientation they are taking with the game.
Great article. More!!!
Actually I find the asian pvp to be gank anonymous play. I would hardly call their brand of pvp to be anything to crow about.
Guess we will just have to wait and see, but I do not have high hopes for this game, blending two different playstyles just does not seem to me to be a good idea.
I love that pvp, I like nothing more then to walk up to a random player and kill him or her. Open pvp with clan / alliance wars is what I love most about lineage 2 if AION offers that along with truly allowing a player to level through pvp alone then it will be a huge success.
very nice article
i hope in future installments we get some more hands on info from the beta phase tough ;)
as veteran of lineage 2 playing it for 4 years im really exited about aion
i agree very much with your viewpoint about grinding and the market
i disagree tough that the asian market expects grinding per se. i rather think if any person is confronted with the choice of beating a stone with a stick for 10h or reading his favourite book/manga/comic series hed choose the later.
so the evolution towards more content driven leveling is really a thing id expect for any AAA title wether this content is based on pvp (like war) or leans more towards pve (like aoc) i hope the days where we hit spawning mobs in the same zone for 40h/weekl are behind us. more complex quests in contrast to spawnkill also should reduce the usage of bots a bit wich is (at least for me) one of the biggest downsides of lineage2 today.
Aion could probably best be described as a blend between eastern games such as Lineage 2 and western games such as World of Warcraft. You have the intricate and stunning clothing and armour designs of eastern high-fantasy (not to mention the most in-depth character creation I've seen in years), combined with the extensive questing and story-building we have come to expect from the western AAA-titles.
So basicly there will be lots of repetitive gameplay and all the players will be "beautiful". I might want to look ordinary, ugly or somewhere in between! Maybe I dont want to look angelic along with everyone else. This repetitive gameplay will be covered up by story-telling such as in WoW will it? Thats hardly a selling point ya know. I'm sure the stories are just as deep in the Power Rangers! Read any good kids books lately? WoW fans would be mesmerised by them I'm sure.
Another way to take away the sense of grinding is to make sure that the game consistently offers rewards as you progress, never leaving you with the bitter taste of feeling stuck in a monotone process for too long.
Ahh the mythical golden carrot. The false sense of achievement as a mesage pops up on your screen saying "Congratulations! You are the 5765th person to reach this point! Here have a choice of this sword, this speed boost ability or this piece of armour. You will be unique! Now let us tell you where to go next so we can tell you more of the story." Its good to see that Aion are doing something really new and exciting by rewarding players for their ability to endure mind-numbing boredom. Yeah thats some clever shit!
Who has ever felt "stuck" in an mmo anyway?......apart from the stuck feeling you get when you are shepharded down a story-driven path along with everyone else. The stuck feeling you get when you find that your ability to choose has been taken away from you. Oh goodie you get to be an angel at the end of the story. Can you do anything else or is that your lot in life?
Ah well I wasnt planning on paying Aion any attention anyway. This article just helped to make sure I dont stray from my original opinion
I still expect Aion to be more 'eastern' than 'western' kind of game. Expecting something like Lineage2 in a prettier package, really :)
If Aion's PvE is roughly as good as WoW's I think it will do quite well. The graphics really are amazing for an MMO and combat looks awesome. The Stygma system is also an interesting way of making your character different.
Not to mention there are cutscenes in Aion to tell the story as you progress, which would be more appealing to many as opposed to reading a block of text.
Nice article, it's a good introduction to the game!
Wow, very hypocritical for someone who is into Eve and EQ2.....
Wow, very hypocritical for someone who is into Eve and EQ2.....
That doesnt make any sense at all. Yes I am into EVE at the moment but I am not into EQ2 in the slightest. Neither of those games were mentioned so where did you pull those two titles from?
Besides I could maybe see it as being hypocritical if I loved EQ2 but EVE? How is that game anything like Aion? Are you from the same planet as me sir?
Just to follow up on this question, it's just as mike470 said, I try to stay as informed as possible about the development of Aion, and report to the best of my abilities based on that knowledge. I've spend these last few days at the Leipzig GC 08, to learn more about the specifics of the gameplay mechanics. The NCsoft people are very open about their title, and I've had the opportunity to play the game, albeit at lower levels.
I didn't mean that the Asian market expects the grind per se (though they've certainly been less hostile about it), but that our market expects everything from Asia to follow the same pattern.
Aion isn't following that pattern, it simply doesn't play that way. Anyway, my next article will be more specific, and touch more on the actual gameplay. I'm happy for the comments though.
im looking forward to the next article :)
about the grind, going from lineage2 to conan i have a love/hate relation towards grinding.
in lineage2 grinding didnt matter for me, it was like a ZEN thing. you log in and grind and find time to chat with your friends.
now i play conan and find it redicoulous fast to level. i was so compelled to the story driven quests that i hardly felt like xping at all, it just happened. while doing that i looked down at my friends that stayed in l2 and asked them wth you still grind?
then after a (short) while i was lvl 80 in conan and the story ended and i was soooo bored...
i think my mmo-utopia would be a game that has both grind and story and a way to feed me fresh stories and quests on a monthly basis.
back to aion, i cant wait to test it and really look forward to hear how gameplay feels like in terms of fighting mobs, doing quests and so on. im especially interested if the base system is a point and click like l2 or more action orientated fighting
Great work Caineth!
Hope to see some more articles from u both here and on AoS.