Any ideas?

[ellyiana]

Hello guildies,
I am almost done from school. Tomorrow is my last final test and class. I was taking 9 classes this semester so it was really hard this year. I want to come play on Aion with all my guildies. The only problem I have is that the next semester starts in Jan 11, which is only 3 weeks off from school. I been looking for a free trial one week in Aion, but nothing. Then I was planning on playing for one month but it said they are giving one month free in the beginning. Any suggestion? I really don't see it worth it. I really wanted to have fun for three weeks after school which bums me out, especially with all my friends. Anyone have any suggestion? Probably not. But maybe I cannot find this seven trial free maybe or it is too early

[Drakhon]

I'm not sure what you mean about the one month thing - like most of the big MMOs, you get one "free" month of play time included with your purchase of the game. If that was all you were going to play, though, I could see how that might not be worth the $50 to you.

I know of no regular trial. Someone can do the Refer a Friend (http://na.aiononline.com/referral/) thing to get you a demo account, but they only last 3 days, 5 hours of play or to level 7 (which ever comes first), so I don't think that really gets you what you want.

[ellyiana]

yeah was thinking of that too, it's a bummer that I only get three weeks off from school. I really did not not remember that most MMO give one month free, probably cause my husband paid it. thanks drak:)

[Vasan]

yeah was thinking of that too, it's a bummer that I only get three weeks off from school. I really did not not remember that most MMO give one month free, probably cause my husband paid it. thanks drak:)

Heya Ellyiana, hope school has been going well for you!

[Drakhon]

Also, 9 classes? Are they full semester-length (~4 months, for me) classes?

[ellyiana]

It's basically a full semester.It's basically only 3 months. I started september 9 and it went till december 18 was the last day, but in spring I have to start in jan 11 to April 30 next semester. The good news next semester is going to be only 7 classes.
Hi Vasan I am doing great in all my classes. There was one class I am hoping I pass in that I had trouble. I already got 2 certificates this semester which is awesome!! I miss everyone. I hope the game is going good.

[Vasan]

Hi Vasan I am doing great in all my classes. There was one class I am hoping I pass in that I had trouble. I already got 2 certificates this semester which is awesome!! I miss everyone. I hope the game is going good.

Well done! Glad to hear you made a good decision to hold off on gaming and concentrate on school work. Keep up the good work. =)

[Malifex]

Howdy Elly! Me and Storm where just talkin about you guys. Glad school goin well. Hope all is, goin well for you and Bomb. Mabye see you guys in new Star Wars?

[ellyiana]

Well good news I passed all my classes!! I had trouble with one class. I cannot believe I passed by one percent on it. hi Thanor good to hear from you too. Bomb and I doing good. Right now I am trying to clean up the house and get ready for xmas. Btw I am not sure but how is the end game on Aion Vasan? I barely see much talking on forums. People on vacation or too busy maybe? the problem is when I am home I am so used to playing games. Trying to other stuff lol

[Vasan]

Yeah lot less chatter for Aion on the boards for some reason. Prehaps a lower population density?

Still working on the endgame, so really don't have a hands on perspective on it.

Prehaps someone else can comment on the endgame directly?

So far it seems the endgame is farming for tradeskills, running instances or forming gank squads for pvp, with the odd keep take. Have to see how fun it is after awhile, though not sure how long the pvp will hold my attention for at 50.

Few people like gutz and gore have already lost interest in Aion, but them, like you, we can hopefully see in stars war when it launches in a year or so.

[Gisli]

Most of us right now are in that long, hard period prior to the end game when leveling is toughest (40s levels). Very similar to DAOC in that respect. We can see the end game coming, but we aren't there yet.

As such, we just don't really know how the end game will be. Fortress assaults are really good. Very similar to DAOC in many ways. That is the good news.

The bad news is... there might be nothing else in the end game in terms of RvR. And fortress assaults happen only during very narrow windows. 8pm Eastern time most nights, there are fortress battles. The current rules have them over around 8:30 or so (this is new, they used to last up to two hours). At 10pm there could be another round of battles. Over around 10:30 or so (until they change the rules again). There is a slight possibility of another battle at midnight, but that seems rare. And that is it for the fortresses. At this time, while the option for open-field fighting between groups or forces at other times is there physically, the community has not developed to make them happen, and the game mechanics do not encourage them. Specifically, there are no objectives to fight over other than the fortresses, so there just isn't as much open-field activity as there needs to be for a successful game. One can often go "rifting" which means go and attack enemy players who are trying to level up in their PvE zones, similar to WoW on a PvP server. I think that will get old.

So the single most important question about Aion still remains unanswered: Will meaningful endgame RvR develop? Based on what I can tell right now, if DAOC is rated as a 10 (just as a benchmark), then Aion is a 6, Warhammer is a 4, and WoW is a 1 for RvR. To me, Aion is clearly better than Warhammer or WoW, but that doesn't really say much. Aion has HUGE potential for RvR, it could easily be better than DAOC. The game performance is better so that it can handle the players. PvP mechanics are fine. Fortress fights are pretty good. The RvR reward system (abyss points and gear you get for them) is sound. We just need a "draw" to get people out fighting over something besides the fortresses, and able to earn significant abyss points by fighting other players. If NCSoft makes that happen, its going to be a long-term winner. If they don't get going on that real soon, I predict that most of us will lose interest in a few months.

I tell you though, for you none of this matters. It would take you many months to get to the end game even if you play actively. While some hardcore players got to 50 in 2 months, for most of us who are very active its looking like 4 months. Those who are not so persistent take many, many months if playing just a few hours a week. So if you are interested in playing an MMO primarily for social reasons, you certainly should get the game and play without worrying about the end game. Because, honestly, you probably won't get there. Which is perfectly fine. I don't want to encourage you to spend time doing this instead of stuff at home/school. But if you are going to spend some time playing games anyway, this one would be perfectly fine for you. You can spend time with your friends for awhile even if the endgame doesn't pan out. The PvE with occasional RvR is entertaining enough for six months at least.

[ellyiana]

Thanks Gisli,
yeah gonna maybe wait till after second semester. I spent money on college and it was pretty hard first semester, so I plan to see how I do next semester. After that I will join you guys in this game or whatever next plan is in the future. I might as well get everything organize and plan ahead for school. You will see me soon, and I plan to keep in touch with all of you and see how it goes for aion.
/hugs all:)

[Rardac]

re: School

I really have to say how glad I am that games like this didn't exist while I was in college, or even grad school. There's no way I would have graduated! Kudos to you for putting the important things first!

And, thanks, Old Crow, for the nice game summary. I hope you have been urging NCsoft to add some more capture points to fight over.

Happy Holidays, all!