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Aion: The Tower of Eternity Steelbook Edition
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| List Price: | $49.99 |
| Price: | $46.99 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details |
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Average customer review:
Product Description
The Thrill of Flight: Flying is a strategic and integral part of the game, adding a fresh dynamic to all aspects of the genre, including combat, quests, and exploration. Stunning World: Discover a meticulously crafted fantasy world brimming with otherworldly inhabitants, mysterious enemies, and ancient secrets. Innovative PvPvE: Aion introduces a new dynamic to MMOs by combining both PvP and PvE gameplay into an exciting new style. Intense Visceral Combat: Engage in a spectacular and evolving combat system utilizing combos, skill chains, counterattacks, and spectacular aerial combat. Unprecedented Customization: Take individuality to a new level through an incredibly in-depth character creation tool, advanced crafting systems, and extensive item customization.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #918 in Video Games
- Brand: NCsoft
- Model: NC00468
- Released on: 2009-09-22
- ESRB Rating: Teen
- Platforms: Windows Vista, Windows XP
- Format: DVD-ROM
- Dimensions: .55 pounds
Features
- The Thrill of Flight: Flying is a strategic and integral part of the game, adding a fresh dynamic to all aspects of the genre, including combat, quests, and exploration.
- Stunning World: Discover a meticulously crafted fantasy world brimming with otherworldly inhabitants, mysterious enemies, and ancient secrets.
- Innovative PvPvE: Aion introduces a new dynamic to MMOs by combining both PvP and PvE gameplay into an exciting new style.
- Intense Visceral Combat: Engage in a spectacular and evolving combat system utilizing combos, skill chains, counterattacks, and spectacular aerial combat.
- Unprecedented Customization: Take individuality to a new level through an incredibly in-depth character creation tool, advanced crafting systems, and extensive item customization.
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
| Aion is a visually stunning massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), where players ascend to divinity and fight in a celestial war. Here they will wield divine powers and the capability of true flight, to bring deliverance to your people and restore balance to a world shattered by cataclysm. Choose your side, spread your wings, and claim your rightful place among the immortal legions of Atreia. This is the glory that is Aion.
Explore one of the most amazingly beautiful and detailed MMORPGs ever as you fight to save a vibrant world ripped asunder by a celestial war. Choose between two divine factions, the Asmodians or the Elyos, and save your people from an ancient evil that threatens to destroy everything in its path. Over 1500 story-driven quests lead you through a wondrous and expansive world like no other. Experience the Thrill of Flight Engage in Visceral Combat Unprecedented Customization Key Features
Battle for control of valuable strongholds and artifacts within the Abyss, a hotly contested battlefield resting between the upper and lower halves of Atreia. Plan and execute raids against rival factions, earn special ranks and rewards through victory, and prepare for unexpected attacks by the Balaur, an ancient race freed from imprisonment within the Abyss. System Requirements:
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Amazon.com
Cutting-edge graphics redefine your expectations of online role-playing and reveal a true fantasy world where divine beings wage a war that will determine the future of the world. Your role in this war is pivotal. The fate of the world rests on your shoulders as you and your allies participate in brutal warfare, devise brilliant strategy, and claim power.
- For the first time in the MMORPG genre – Aion brings PvP and PvE together. PvPvE manages the complex relationships between races and guilds and also controls the mighty Dragons, a non-player faction and a common enemy to all players.
- Take combat to the skies – Flying is not just a means of transportation. Flight is an extension of the combat system and can be an integral part of taking on your foes in battle.
- A supremely powerful graphical engine – brings the world of your fantasies to life like never before.
- Ryo Kunihiko – one of the world’s leading composers of movie and television soundtracks, is creating incredible music that seamlessly interweaves with on-screen action, setting the perfect atmosphere for your adventures in the world of Aion.
Customer Reviews
A solid game, not my cup of tea though.
Aion is a good looking game, this is true. Looking past the pretty façade I however am left underwhelmed by the game. It doesn't seem to offer anything particularly new or exciting.
Character creation is decent, there are quite a few options to customize both your facial and body features. I can't really fault it in any way considering that you'll eventually be decked out in armor and character creation in such a game usually stands as a generic look. There unfortunately isn't much avoiding looking like everybody else in a broader sense because there are only two races. Upon close inspection you should find that most characters manage to create a pretty unique look. As you progress through the game you can choose to maintain various armor looks despite equipping other pieces though which is a nice way of looking unique in the long run.
There have so far been pretty annoying race lockouts on certain servers in an effort to balance them. For example I haven't been able to play with many of my guild mates because no more Asmodians are being allowed on their server. I imagine this will be fixed to some extent but I can't really lie and say that I'm not a bit bitter about being blocked from playing with my friends. Hopefully those who choose to jump in to the game after my writing this don't have this minor annoyance to deal with.
After some initial hiccups at launch the game actually runs quite well. Again the game looks gorgeous with interesting environments and flashy attack animations. The default UI is alright, pretty standard action bar with health bars, but if you're coming from another game it may take some getting used to. I for one am hoping for add-on support or UI customization though since I would personally prefer a slightly more minimalized UI.
The introductory zones come paired with help messages which offer limited video and audio help which I found to be a pretty nice newbie feature. Quests also have a keyword location feature which is like a built in quest helper. I find this feature to be pretty neat, I feel that it adds a sense of authentic adventuring to it for some reason and it doesn't clutter you map with all sorts of quest waypoints. So with these two features getting in to the game and advancing up to level 10 is rather painless.
At level 10ish you become a Daeva which grants you wings and allows you to choose from 2 specialties with your class. There isn't really anything of particular note here but it does add a bit more depth to game play.
Following level 10 it seems that the game becomes increasingly grindy which I don't much care for. Following level 15+ leveling is still quite doable but the rate at which I'm being rewarded for my time is a very important factor for an MMORPG for me and I don't feel that I'm gaining skills or equipment quite fast enough to hold my interest in the game. This has nothing to do with slogging through content too difficult for my character or being oblivious to other questing hubs, I'm simply noting that experience gain tapers off quite quickly. Gaining levels doesn't appear to get you anything aside from skills another factor contributing to the slow feel of the game. It has thus far been quite common for my character to go 2-3 levels getting very little aside from statistical boosts. This is hardly an issue unique to Aion but again it's another one of those things that takes away my desire to get from one skill to the next.
Eventually you get access to Stigma Stones which are sort of like a generic talent tree that allows you access to more skills. I was a rather let down to find out this was the feature which NCSoft was heralding as the way to play your character totally different from another player. While it is true that it allows you to diverge away from other players within your class specialty it isn't so broad in its choices that you'll find a slew of viable builds. I'm looking at it right now as something that will easily be theorycrafted to a point where everybody competitive will play a given class in maybe one or two ways.
Skills are pretty standard for the most part but one pretty cool thing so far is that you get chain skill where one initial attack triggers the use of further more powerful attacks. Unfortunately you can't use chain skills out of sequence but I do like the feel of an attack coming off cool down allowing you to unload on an enemy all at once. Having more than one chain attack generally allows you to be in constant active control of combat. The various chains and what you need to complete them are listed in your skills window and there appears to be quite a variety for the various classes.
Another feature I like is having your own personal shop which others will be familiar with from games such as Ragnarok Online or Fiesta Online. Basically you can open a little shop anywhere and sell your stuff. I far prefer this to auction houses typically because it allows you to be more competitive as a salesman than an auction house typically does because location becomes a valid choice and undercutting doesn't kill all chance at profits. It's also good for going afk for extended periods of time.
Flying is a big part of the game considering you have wings and all. I haven't liked flying much at all so far and I'm really kind of dreading parts of the game where it becomes more necessary. The controls seem very clunky and the limitations of cool down between use and the overall flight time lead to a high preponderance of ineffectiveness of death. You can modify your wings and combat abilities while flying so perhaps by the time I really need to worry about flying it's more tolerable but up to where I'm at now it seems little more than a poorly implemented gimmick. After quite a bit more practice with my wings I'm still only finding the flight mechanics to be marginally more tolerable, perhaps I suck but be fairly warned.
PvP has so far been respectable, especially for a rather new game. I haven't personally encountered any particular class which I feel is broken beyond belief despite some community complaints of balance issues. There does seem to be an attitude of this game and its PvP being "hardcore" and I have to comment that I feel this is a rather glorified designation. The flying adds a bit of depth and skill to PvP but I feel that's where the unique aspects of PvP in this game end. I don't think anybody playing WAR or WoW, particularly PvP servers, are going to switch over to this game and be refreshed by the PvP. It's fun and well implemented but at its core this has been done before.
Pros:
Good looking
Overall solid game
Seemingly popular
Cons:
High grind possibility
Awkward flying
Race lockouts
In summary, I don't think I'll be sticking with this one for long, I'm simply not being moved in any particular way by it currently. It's different enough from other games to warrant some consideration but it also hold so many cliché similarities that prevent me from getting too excited about it. The game has great potential for many players but I recommend taking a long look at it before biting the hype bullet. If I had to recommend it I feel that fans of Guild Wars, Lineage 2, FFXI, or even first time MMOers would like the game quite a bit.
Into Eternity
Just putting a post, to give out some information for those folks "sitting on the fence" wondering if Aion is worth ordering or not . I'm trying not to be negative about the game per se, rather saying it maybe not for everyone. It tends to lean heavy on the "PvP-aholic"; "Grouping is where its at" ,"I luv to grind XP " style of game play. Which don't get me wrong is a perfectly valid style of play, but tastes do differ. I much prefer the exploration aspects of a Morpg verses bragging rights.
Graphically it's very nice. Similar to Guild wars in appearance,but perhaps a little more advanced and shimmering. The zones are similarly laid out; with the usual "single road" and long corridors to fight over/through. If your expecting the freedom of flying and therefore tons of massively open 3D areas; be prepared at least for levels 1-30 to be largely ground based (there's lots of no fly zones) and be hemmed in by mountains. Leveling is and can be a bit of a Lineage 2 grind fest, with the usual kill 10 of these, deliver this experience. When you start reach lvl 18 + quests , then your kinda forced to group. It's hard to solo, not impossible, just be prepared for lots of repetitive "farming". Most folks find it a drag until you reach lvl 25 then you begin the main part of the storyline.
Overall the aim of the Aion is to get you to this massive open ended Zone "the Abyss". As this is where the game is suppose to shine, with the focus tending to lean heavily on PvP and again grouping to survive. Bear that in mind if you buy the game, yes there are other things to do, crafting,big boss instances etc. But it's in the open 3D "battleground" of the Abyss, where the NCSoft are putting the heart of the Aion Experience.
Overall it's a fine MORPG, nice visuals, follows the standard pattern of leveling by gaining XP thing. And that's where it's strengths and weaknesses are. Is it a good game? Yes. But the next "big" new thing? In my experience sadly no. Hopefully one day a developer will have the courage to break free from the Everquest style of design and produce a different gaming online experience.
Easy on the eyes, but a relentless grind (updated review)
(*EDIT (Amazon, please note that I'm changing my score from '5 stars' to '2 stars'): I don't think it's fair to review a MMO once. The review should be refined as time goes on, because the experience truly changes a few weeks in as you come up against the business decisions developers make towards their long term goal of retaining customers - so, I have given this review a final update on 10/24/09, after playing for about three weeks and reaching level 30 (of 50))
Put simply, Aion is a very fun fantasy game with beautiful graphics. And while Aion does stick to many common MMO conventions, its wildly imaginative and impressive setting makes it unique within the fantasy MMO market. It feels like you've walked into a Studio Ghibli film and were made the lead star - especially once you've ventured beyond the starting area (which is massive for a starting zone). The graphics engine is powerful: the game looks and runs great even on computers with middling hardware (looks almost as good on my older laptop as it does on my newer gaming rig). I've spent much of my time zooming into first person view and gandering at the imaginative fauna, architecture, and natural scenery. Each city/town and zone has a unique and vibrant character, architecture, and design - with subtle influences from the predominant culture. The screen shots really don't do this game any justice. They invested heavily into the aesthetics of this game.
The content, overall, is rich and engaging but very basic - there's plenty of cut scenes, cut aways, private instances, flashbacks, and intuitively linked quest chains and story lines. However, it's all non-interactive and feels like the kinds of content that was found in MMOs circa 2003. The content is so thin gameplay devolves into simplistic and pure grinding by level 26, and after reaching level 30, it only gets worse.
Game play is comparative to World of Warcraft with a heavy dose of Guild Wars, though Aion seems to have less structure and control overall. Many attacks (both spell and melee) are tied to long animations and root your character in place, with many animations running a full second longer than it takes to actually see the effect (you launch spell, it hits target, but the animation lasts for another second before you gain control over your character again). Compared to the fast paced, dynamic and instant-cast abilities found in other modern MMOs, Aion's control system ends up feeling clunky and slow. And although there is a chain/combo system at play in Aion, overall your characters receive very few genuinely new abilities as you progress - the vast majority are just new spells that have the same (though more potent) effects of previous spells. Very little synergy at play.
There's a unique take on gathering and crafting. Everyone can gather any crafting material, and you're not limited by the number of vocations you can earn (weapon crafting, tailoring, alchemy, etc). This allows crafting junkies to really indulge themselves and pursue advancement across every discipline. However, you can only "master" two of them. While diverse and non-restrictive in some ways, crafting is an awful time sink in other aspects. Every action from gathering to product creation has a chance to fail. And you will fail often. It detracts from the experience and needlessly balances luck (driven by a random number generator) against the player. This may be a solid design decision for a free to play MMO, but it feels needlessly punitive for a game with a subscription model and wide-open crafting system.
There's extremely high levels of character customization - both during creation and while you're collecting items and gear. You can easily design your avatar to look almost anyway you want, even replicate fantasy races like dwarfs and elves. For a small price you can make an item of gear (armor, weapons, etc) look just like anything else you've found - for example, say you have this wicked looking staff at level 30 but find one with much better stats at level 33. You can make that level 33 staff look just like the one you're fond of, but it keeps its superior stats. But that's about where customization ends. There are no talent trees or other methods to set your character apart from all of the others of their class; you only get to select from from a handful of spells (known as stigmas) to determine what makes you different. It all feels very backward, as if the game were designed way back in 2003 - before such simplistic character customization was made antiquated.
Unlike many other (modern) popular MMOs, there's no organized PvP prior to level 20. No level 1 scenarios or anything of that ilk, for example. However, it is designed differently, and the way the story and progression works out it isn't really a problem unless you're one of those gamers that absolutely needs PvP from the get go. However, PvP has become such a staple of the genre, it's going to be difficult for the average MMO gamer not to notice how lacking in this department Aion is.
The game is, largely, casual-friendly from levels 1-20 and is bound to charm both adults and children alike. However, many MMO players will likely find this game to be a hellish grind afterward, as advancement isn't driven by quests and other interactive content but rather activities that largely deal with vanquishing many, many computer-controlled antagonists (grinding). It is nowhere near as bad as MMOs from the distant past, but those of you whose only MMO was World of Warcraft, you're going to notice it. Perhaps you'll like it more, perhaps less? We all have our subjective opinions. But the grind is made worse by ubiquitous money and time sinks that run through the game, touching every single aspect. You are nickle-and-dimed constantly in many esoteric ways which contributes to the grinding atmosphere. For example, you lose experience upon death, you must pay steep fees to "bind" to locations (think hearthstones in WoW), you must pay steep fees to use the gates that connect the PvE world to the Abyss/PvP setting, and even inserting stones into your gear to enhance it (like gems in WoW), and even enchanting your gear for that matter, has a chance to fail and destroy all of your previous modifications.
So, in the end, the punitive time and money sinks, lack of content and relentless grind, and general lack of PvP (and a vacancy of organized PvP until level 50) greatly outweigh how well the game looks and plays up until level 20. Aion is nice to look at, but playing it very much feels like you've been teleported back to 2003 - the genre has simply progressed far beyond the mechanics and design decisions that drive this game. I give it a 2, out of 5.
