Aion (Open Beta, Launch Day Info too!)

[waffel]

Preordering games in hopes that the end game, which you've never played or experienced, will be worth it is very warhammery.

[Nebu]

Preordering games in hopes that the end game, which you've never played or experienced, will be worth it is very warhammery.

To be fair, I preordered WAR because I knew that I'd get enough play in the first two tiers to be worth the box cost.  If people think Aion will entertain them for a week or two, then it's worth the preorder. 

[nurtsi]

Is there any way of leveling with PVP in this game? After warhammer, and now with WoW catching up on that as well, no game should try without that option.

Anyway, the game is pretty pretty, but I've seen this stuff before. Suprisingly, there doesn't seem to be a lot of gear involved. I played to like level 5 without getting any upgrades.

[skrigg]

From what I understand after you can go into the abyss (lvl25) you can get xp from players and level that way, I heard the mobs there give really good xp as well.

[AcidCat]

Preordering games in hopes that the end game, which you've never played or experienced, will be worth it is very warhammery.

Maybe I've got it all backwards but I'm always more concerned with how fun and engaging the leveling game is when I'm interested in an MMO. I figure if the leveling is entertaining enough, I'm getting my money's worth even if I don't do much at endgame - pretty much the scenario that kept my interest in WoW for 4+ years despite not liking raiding or grinding out honor. Warhammer, it only took me a few hours with beta to realize I didn't care for the leveling game or have much interest in the gameworld. My time with Aion has shown the opposite, so that's all that really matters to me. And any kind of PvP endgame is going to be more entertaining that PvE raiding, as long as it doesn't degenerate into some kind of repetitive grind for gear.

[tmp]

Preordering games in hopes that the end game, which you've never played or experienced, will be worth it is very warhammery.

As opposed to pre-ordering any other game?

[DLRiley]

Preordering games in hopes that the end game, which you've never played or experienced, will be worth it is very warhammery.

To be fair, I preordered WAR because I knew that I'd get enough play in the first two tiers to be worth the box cost.  If people think Aion will entertain them for a week or two, then it's worth the preorder. 

How much is the preorder.

[Draegan]

5 bucks.

[DLRiley]

Hmm in that case I may gives this a first hand try.

[Threash]

Pre orders are free, you can't be charged until a product actually launches.  At least amazon hasnt charged me anything so far.

[Draegan]

You could probably walk in and ask a gamestop person to just give you a preorder case.  It's just a small DVD case with a card inside.

[Hawkbit]

They can't supposedly.  They're bar coded and require a scan to leave the building with a preorder attached.  So I was told, twice.

[Numtini]

If you preorder online from Gamestop, they claim it can't be cancelled if it's purely online and if you are ordering direct to store that if you don't pick it up within 48 hours you'll have a $5 restocking charge. I imagine if you call and whine and don't have a record of doing it every single release they'll relent, but that's the official policy. I'm pretty sure if you pre-order in the shop they take a $5 deposit.

[Rendakor]

Yea but you can cancel that $5 deposit (albeit with much kicking and screaming) and still have your beta key.

[Strazos]

Has to be scanned? lol, what a load of shit. I'm still on GameStop's payroll, btw.

I simply walked in and took it out of the drawer. We had extras, and practically no one who shops at that store does so for PC.

[NiX]

Has to be scanned? lol, what a load of shit. I'm still on GameStop's payroll, btw.

I simply walked in and took it out of the drawer. We had extras, and practically no one who shops at that store does so for PC.

Key please and thank you!

[schild]

if you don't pick it up within 48 hours you'll have a $5 restocking charge.

lolwut

When did they make this asinine policy?

I still haven't picked up the only thing I've preordered in 2009, BlazBlue, because I haven't been able to get to the store (no car!).

[jayfyve]

If you preorder online from Gamestop, they claim it can't be cancelled if it's purely online and if you are ordering direct to store that if you don't pick it up within 48 hours you'll have a $5 restocking charge. I imagine if you call and whine and don't have a record of doing it every single release they'll relent, but that's the official policy. I'm pretty sure if you pre-order in the shop they take a $5 deposit.

It only took a combined "stop payment via CC" and BBB threat after their standard "can't be canceled" spiel to get my cancellation through.

[stealyphil21]

i have read quite a few of the posts on this particular thread, and felt i needed to add some input. Those who are saying "the quests and content is adding nothing new and exciting" are looking for something that is way beyond the scope of Aion. You will not be satisfied by any available mmo until swotr, mmo's may be out of the question for you for a while.  If you liked world of warcraft, like apparently 11 million players did, than you will be a fan of Aion. I myself have played wow out over the past 4+ years of the game since open beta, and would like a great alternative that provides a new game atmosphere, different story/classes/game world while adding in better pvp game mechanics. After playing Aion in open Chinese and closed NA weekend, i would highly recommend it to anyone looking for something to sink there time into until swotr/ff14/diablo 3 even... comes out. Do not assume that this game will beat world of warcraft, or do anything more than provide an alternative, or be the "next big thing".

[Morfiend]

Do not assume that this game will beat world of warcraft, or do anything more than provide an alternative, or be the "next big thing".

I don't think anyone here thinks Aion is going to be anything beyond what you listed. As for assuming it will beat WoW. Fat chance.

[01101010]

Do not assume that this game will beat world of warcraft, or do anything more than provide an alternative, or be the "next big thing".

I don't think anyone here thinks Aion is going to be anything beyond what you listed. As for assuming it will beat WoW. Fat chance.

Indeed sir. Everyone seems to be smitten with the crack (WoW) and its addicting qualities. I prefer to delve deeper into the abyss... anyone for mescaline?

[sam, an eggplant]

I haven't played the beta or anything, but I just waded through the aion version of wowhead (aionarmory) and looked at the various abilities. This game is a real step back. I was particularly dismayed by the whack-a-mole healing mechanics, a deevolution from conan's directional cones and WAR's damage-dependent healing. What's the opposite of innovation? Stagnation? Aion, nutshelled.

I will not be preordering.

[Nebu]

Like I said a few pages back:  DAoC combat + flying + WoW style Pve. 

It's an alternative to WoW.  Nothing more. 

[sam, an eggplant]

It doesn't take any chances. It doesn't advance the genre one bit.

Aion's success would likely stifle innovation elsewhere. I actively hope it fails.

[Draegan]

I don't think they are trying to hide what the game is.  Nebu said it.  I said it.  It's a new WOW but with more PVP implications.

It's not going to stifle innovation at all either.  It's just another well made game with some different stuff in it.  I don't get the reasoning that people thing a game is bad only because it doesn't "do something new".  Why do games have to take a risk?

[DLRiley]

This game is a big kick in the face to everyone who figures only a brand new mmo that advances the genre will be able to put the money in the money hats. You wanna realize what type of game is going to be released upon the market, consider this SWTOR and Jump Gate Evolution have to be perfect to even be considered profitable. All Aion needs to be is operational. In a way I hope Aion is the game that ends the growing trend of finding the smallest most hardcore market and spend 30 million on them. Or ends my all time favorite "We're not competing with WoW" mantra.

[Draegan]

Sometime I think you're just an internet bot that puts out random words in a post.

[DLRiley]

I guess I'm going to have to wait for this game to launch.

[Threash]

I just want it to be the game that launches in a playable state with a workable endgame that actually manages to keep most of their initial surge of subs so we never get another aoc/war.  Being able to launch with several months of patching already under the hood is a huge advantage, imagine how well AoC would have done if it also launched with patch 1.5? (war would still be fucked of course).

[tmp]

This game is a big kick in the face to everyone who figures only a brand new mmo that advances the genre will be able to put the money in the money hats.

So some people are proven wrong about global-scale predictions made basing on little else but their personal tastes. BFD?

[Threash]

As far as pre orders go just use amazon, they dont give you any hassle for canceling.  Hell they offered to cancel the pre order for me when the release date changed.

[Draegan]

Group PVP from a clerics POV  Not sure what you can infer from that but it looked interesting.

[Threash]

I hate group pvp videos, even on games i play its practially impossible to tell a damn thing.

[Draegan]

Yeah but you got to see flying time at max level and things like pacing.

I didn't notice a shit ton of CC either.

[DLRiley]

Actually this was quite easy to follow, consider everything was panned out. Hard to tell if they was fighting an organized groups or a bunch of low levels kittens (though I'm leaning towards low level kittens), but generally this game hasn't seem to reach beyond the "oh there's pvp" stage especially if those were organized groups, for example everyone on the other side didn't have much of a strategy beyond attack the first person you see. The healer only got targeted twice in 6 minutes with only 1 on those attempts at killing him being semi coordinated. There was several teams of melee, can't tell if they was all mdps, and hardly anyone was rpds and i counted few people that looked like healers. The cleric also wasn't affected by any stuns, roots, or any negative conditions at all that I can tell. Doesn't seem too much different than early beta WAR videos.