Lets talk about Age of Conan (MMO)

[Skott]

Yeah, if you believe in that they say they read the official forums, in game complaints, and other unofficial forums they know about most of the problems. For the most part I think they do but as said above how long it'll take is another story. Also the patches they release cause extra problems they didnt anticipate. They needed an extra month or two to smooth things out if you ask me but the game is very playable and it is getting better each week.

 

[Scrimmy]

Originally posted by: Skott
Yeah, if you believe in that they say they read the official forums, in game complaints, and other unofficial forums they know about most of the problems. For the most part I think they do but as said above how long it'll take is another story. Also the patches they release cause extra problems they didnt anticipate. They needed an extra month or two to smooth things out if you ask me but the game is very playable and it is getting better each week.

Yeah, those are my feelings, too. Unfortunately, we're stuck in a development cycle right now where it's actually kind of difficult to release a finished product. On the one hand, customers expect that the game is going to be updated with free, additional content as well as paid expansions, so there must be a certain amount of grey area in deciding what's going in at release and what can be delayed a bit longer (higher level stuff, generally) to get more polish.

On top of that, MMO customers have been well trained to have low expectations for polish and content at release because it's been the case in almost every MMO released. Devs realize this and will walk a fine line between releasing a relatively finished game that needs to be balanced and fleshed out a bit more (this is where AoC falls, I'd say) and games that are simply unfinished and broken (Vanguard, and WAR before it was pushed from Beta back into Alpha).

I'm still having a great time in AoC, and just hit level 70 on my bear shaman last night. There are definitely some class balance issues (and always will be in MMOs), some major bugs and oversights (the inability to bind extra mouse buttons without using things like Logitech's Set Point or complicated scripts is just silly), and there needs to be more higher-level areas to get experience in. At the same time, though, the game is a lot of fun, I'm finding PvP to be a blast, and the world's pretty interesting and immersive. Guild cities, trade skills, and keeps in the Border Kingdoms are the other glaring points of incompleteness, come to think of it. But as I said, it's really a good time on the whole and will only get better. Funcom's working pretty hard at churning out updates and will be patching twice a week for an unspecified period of time until the game's in better shape.

 

[FerraraZ]

I love Age of Conan. I've got a 34 guardian and a 20 assassin so I've put my time in the game. I realize that there are flaws but I was just reading that some people, even at high levels like 67, strip their armor and still take the SAME AMOUNT OF DAMAGE! They were saying that the gear in the game is broken and does not really make much of a difference. The only thing that works with gear is any kind of regen of health mana or stamina.

Has anyone tried this? I know this game is all about skill and not gear heavy but I mean the economy isn't great and now if gear doesn't mean anything then its just a game of who gets to lvl 80. Thoughts?

P.S. This is not a bash of the game, I really like AoC and I've played my fair share of WoW.

 

[KeithTalent]

Bumping for OP.

KT

 

[wheresmybacon]

Originally posted by: FerraraZ
I love Age of Conan. I've got a 34 guardian and a 20 assassin so I've put my time in the game. I realize that there are flaws but I was just reading that some people, even at high levels like 67, strip their armor and still take the SAME AMOUNT OF DAMAGE! They were saying that the gear in the game is broken and does not really make much of a difference. The only thing that works with gear is any kind of regen of health mana or stamina.

Has anyone tried this? I know this game is all about skill and not gear heavy but I mean the economy isn't great and now if gear doesn't mean anything then its just a game of who gets to lvl 80. Thoughts?

P.S. This is not a bash of the game, I really like AoC and I've played my fair share of WoW.

If they don't fix the gear being broken everyone will leave shortly after they hit 80.

I personally love the game, but gear is an integral part of what keeps people playing MMO's.

 

[DangerAardvark]

I decided to buy the game today, but it's sold out locally and the digital download servers are down. Any idea when they'll be back up?

 

[Wreckem]

Originally posted by: TurnX

Originally posted by: Naeeldar

Originally posted by: DangerAardvark

Originally posted by: hooflung
The best thing about Age of Conan is that after 13 days that there are so many whiners about the game not being complete on launch as if this was the first game in the history of MMOs to never do so. Like an MMO is supposed to be complete when it launches. I guess thats ok if you expect a prepackaged pile of shit like Guild Wars 1 was which was nothing more than a loby room for meaningless PVP or a 20 hour story arc.

Conan has a lot of flaws, but is pretty good despite it. Just like EVE was/is. Just like WoW was/is.

They say that about every new MMO: "Don't judge it so soon after launch." Then a month passes, and crafting is still shit. Two months passes, still no endgame content. 3 months passes and gameplay oversights still go unfixed. Next thing you know it's 6 months later and the game's dead in the water. I'm not even talking about AoC here. This pattern repeats itself endlessly.

I'm not saying AoC will follow this pattern, but the days of giving MMO's the benefit of the doubt are over. I thought Tabula Rasa was fun too... for 2 weeks.

They've been making some changes already... some have gone in already to fix the caster classes (demon/necro) and more are planned. According to the developers post/schedule most recently they should have a huge content patch to fix some of the issues at mid level this month and another big one for higher levels in July.

Time will tell but they certainly seem to be aware of the issues that are there.

I think they are defiantly aware of the issues, however my main concern is how long its going to take to really get the game where it needs to be. I think most can agree that the game was released before it should have been, which unfortunately seems to be the trend these days with really high budget MMOs. The fact that they are aware is really a step in the right direction, however if they sit on it for too long they may end up losing a lot of people.

Its really a sad state a lot of these games get into... They are out of production money so they have to release the game early to start making some money. At the same time very few people will keep paying for a game that is unfinished. I really hope AoC can pull it together as I had a great time playing through the lower level stuff, and hopefully if I decide to play it again down the road it will still be there.

AoC isnt going anywhere. It has sold around 1.25million in a month.

They are patching twice a week, and plan to start adding additional content.

As much as I bitched the first two weeks, I have no complaints now. FunCom is on the ball.

 

[Wreckem]

Originally posted by: hungfarover

Originally posted by: FerraraZ
I love Age of Conan. I've got a 34 guardian and a 20 assassin so I've put my time in the game. I realize that there are flaws but I was just reading that some people, even at high levels like 67, strip their armor and still take the SAME AMOUNT OF DAMAGE! They were saying that the gear in the game is broken and does not really make much of a difference. The only thing that works with gear is any kind of regen of health mana or stamina.

Has anyone tried this? I know this game is all about skill and not gear heavy but I mean the economy isn't great and now if gear doesn't mean anything then its just a game of who gets to lvl 80. Thoughts?

P.S. This is not a bash of the game, I really like AoC and I've played my fair share of WoW.

If they don't fix the gear being broken everyone will leave shortly after they hit 80.

I personally love the game, but gear is an integral part of what keeps people playing MMO's.

Gear will be "fixed" but it wont be what most people expect.

This is a SKILL based PvP game. Its not like WoW or EQ, or others where gear is be all end all. It never will be like that.

 

[Pepsei]

Originally posted by: Wreckem

Originally posted by: hungfarover

Originally posted by: FerraraZ
I love Age of Conan. I've got a 34 guardian and a 20 assassin so I've put my time in the game. I realize that there are flaws but I was just reading that some people, even at high levels like 67, strip their armor and still take the SAME AMOUNT OF DAMAGE! They were saying that the gear in the game is broken and does not really make much of a difference. The only thing that works with gear is any kind of regen of health mana or stamina.

Has anyone tried this? I know this game is all about skill and not gear heavy but I mean the economy isn't great and now if gear doesn't mean anything then its just a game of who gets to lvl 80. Thoughts?

P.S. This is not a bash of the game, I really like AoC and I've played my fair share of WoW.

If they don't fix the gear being broken everyone will leave shortly after they hit 80.

I personally love the game, but gear is an integral part of what keeps people playing MMO's.

Gear will be "fixed" but it wont be what most people expect.

This is a SKILL based PvP game. Its not like WoW or EQ, or others where gear is be all end all. It never will be like that.

are you kidding? then what's this powerpoints that they just announced? that's giving people the 'i win' button not based on skill at all, but how long you're a subscriber.

enough people are going to bitch about things until funcom turn this game into that game that we aren't suppose to mention that is gear based.

still "shipping" 1 million copies with about 400,000 confirmed sub isn't too bad i guess.

 

[ivan2]

there's no "skill" involved in pew pewing and healing at the same time. they seriously fucked up the balance between healer and everyone else. As currently the game is basically rock and scissor, with the POM/ranger being rock and everyone else scissor. There's no silence, and once you're knocked down, you will be immue to knock down for a minute, which basically means you have 2 interrupts max while they heal away (2 combos isn't enough to kill anyone btw).

basically solo pvp is non-existing ATM if you are not a POM or ranger, group up. it seems to me that they are trying to fit everyone into a model that works only in arena combat (group combat with healer) .

they fucked up world pvp, period.

 

[TurnX]

Originally posted by: Wreckem

Originally posted by: TurnX

Originally posted by: Naeeldar

Originally posted by: DangerAardvark

Originally posted by: hooflung
The best thing about Age of Conan is that after 13 days that there are so many whiners about the game not being complete on launch as if this was the first game in the history of MMOs to never do so. Like an MMO is supposed to be complete when it launches. I guess thats ok if you expect a prepackaged pile of shit like Guild Wars 1 was which was nothing more than a loby room for meaningless PVP or a 20 hour story arc.

Conan has a lot of flaws, but is pretty good despite it. Just like EVE was/is. Just like WoW was/is.

They say that about every new MMO: "Don't judge it so soon after launch." Then a month passes, and crafting is still shit. Two months passes, still no endgame content. 3 months passes and gameplay oversights still go unfixed. Next thing you know it's 6 months later and the game's dead in the water. I'm not even talking about AoC here. This pattern repeats itself endlessly.

I'm not saying AoC will follow this pattern, but the days of giving MMO's the benefit of the doubt are over. I thought Tabula Rasa was fun too... for 2 weeks.

They've been making some changes already... some have gone in already to fix the caster classes (demon/necro) and more are planned. According to the developers post/schedule most recently they should have a huge content patch to fix some of the issues at mid level this month and another big one for higher levels in July.

Time will tell but they certainly seem to be aware of the issues that are there.

I think they are defiantly aware of the issues, however my main concern is how long its going to take to really get the game where it needs to be. I think most can agree that the game was released before it should have been, which unfortunately seems to be the trend these days with really high budget MMOs. The fact that they are aware is really a step in the right direction, however if they sit on it for too long they may end up losing a lot of people.

Its really a sad state a lot of these games get into... They are out of production money so they have to release the game early to start making some money. At the same time very few people will keep paying for a game that is unfinished. I really hope AoC can pull it together as I had a great time playing through the lower level stuff, and hopefully if I decide to play it again down the road it will still be there.

AoC isnt going anywhere. It has sold around 1.25million in a month.

They are patching twice a week, and plan to start adding additional content.

As much as I bitched the first two weeks, I have no complaints now. FunCom is on the ball.

Of course the game isn't going anyway, MMOs take forever to die off if they ever do. However, I do think if Funcom doesn't get their stuff together soon and prioritize a little better they may end up losing a large bulk of their subscriptions. For example, perhaps they should have focused more on balancing classes and adding content instead of wasting time adding dancing to the game.

 

[hooflung]

PVP Gear and Raid Gear in AoC is not what people expect. This gear in the Developers logs is supposed to be gear anyone can get without having to be a part of a guild or have access to a keep. It will not be slotted like crafted gear and all the stats will be uniform in the sets that all the players using it will be some what predicable in what they can do. Thus, the PVP skill will be the only thing separating these people kinda like the way WoW PVP works.

However, Crafted gear has slots which you can add jewls and there will be lots of options to build from. Thus, you can build a myriad of sets yourself and come up with builds that work with your feats differently to make a very unpredictable character. This is the hope of the Developers. However, this coming to fruition remains to be seen.

Most people don't get Age of Conan. Most people seem to be wanting it to be WoW in Hyboria or the next EVE in loincloth. Its neither. It is sort of a middle ground between the two and it will live or die by how the end game PVE and PVP co-exist.

 

[imported_Section8]

Originally posted by: hooflung
PVP Gear and Raid Gear in AoC is not what people expect. This gear in the Developers logs is supposed to be gear anyone can get without having to be a part of a guild or have access to a keep. It will not be slotted like crafted gear and all the stats will be uniform in the sets that all the players using it will be some what predicable in what they can do. Thus, the PVP skill will be the only thing separating these people kinda like the way WoW PVP works.

However, Crafted gear has slots which you can add jewls and there will be lots of options to build from. Thus, you can build a myriad of sets yourself and come up with builds that work with your feats differently to make a very unpredictable character. This is the hope of the Developers. However, this coming to fruition remains to be seen.

Most people don't get Age of Conan. Most people seem to be wanting it to be WoW in Hyboria or the next EVE in loincloth. Its neither. It is sort of a middle ground between the two and it will live or die by how the end game PVE and PVP co-exist.

I hope it never becomes wow like. I am loving this game.

 

[KMFJD]

Originally posted by: ivan2
there's no "skill" involved in pew pewing and healing at the same time. they seriously fucked up the balance between healer and everyone else. As currently the game is basically rock and scissor, with the POM/ranger being rock and everyone else scissor. There's no silence, and once you're knocked down, you will be immue to knock down for a minute, which basically means you have 2 interrupts max while they heal away (2 combos isn't enough to kill anyone btw).

basically solo pvp is non-existing ATM if you are not a POM or ranger, group up. it seems to me that they are trying to fit everyone into a model that works only in arena combat (group combat with healer) .

they fucked up world pvp, period.

I do fine on my Barbarian and Assassin....

 

[miniMUNCH]

AoC has some interesting aspects but all in all... AoC is too unpolished and I'm just having too much fun in LOTRO so that's were i'm going to stay for now.

 

[ViviTheMage]

Cant wait for them to fix/add content and the pvp ranking...til then, I will cancel my account and wait...back to wow!

 

[Pepsei]

yeah, i want this game to be good. since my account expired today. i'll have time to play and finish mass effect, two worlds, and assassin's creed. i'll try again after they fix crafting, trader, stats, and siege.

 

[vyperious]

lol, sorry, the car does not deserve $4.09 9/10 worth of gas

 

[vyperious]

i hate you, you own mass effect and assassins creed? bah! why didnt 'ssassins creed come for ps2! btw, i dont really hate you...

 

[Skott]

My AoC ranger is up to L53 now. I'm enjoying the game so far. Looking forward to FC fixing Feats and Stats, amongst other things. No patch yesterday so Monday's patch might be a big one.