Ascension
Latest
Enter at Your Own Rift: Song of a superhero
When it comes to fantasy MMOs, we've been there so long and done that so often that we hardly think about the framework that supports these worlds and our assumptions about them. This is doubly the case when it comes to who we are: We are always talented warriors or wizards who are out to do noble good deeds and get all, like, awesome and stuff. But we are mortal. We are people, just the best of people. We have adventuring spirits. Except that this doesn't quite apply to RIFT. When you really look at it, our characters in RIFT aren't generic adventurers. Who we are is not only clearly stated time and again but made an integral part of the game and its story. It's an important distinction that's worth examining. We are Ascended. Another word for that is "superhero."
Wings Over Atreia: Aion adopts lockboxes
It was bound to happen. Rare is the free-to-play game that evades incorporating this quintessential cash-shop concoction. The good news is, if you entered a pool for when NCsoft would introduce lockboxes into Aion and your date was January 30th, congratulations -- you won! Of course, this may have been one pot that you were secretly hoping no one would ever claim; there are certainly those who have a deep-seated hatred for lockboxes and all they purportedly represent. Those who enjoy the random nature of that treasure, however, probably wondered what took so long. Love them or loathe them, lockboxes are a now permanent part of Atreia's landscape. But is that a good or a bad thing? Are lockboxes a fun feature or one step on that slippery slide toward nickel-and-diming players like a number of other F2P offerings? One of the best things Aion has going for it is the unique free-to-play mode that allows folks who choose not to pay to experience the same exact game as those who drop cash in the shop. Can Aion maintain its Truly Free philosophy while pushing lockboxes? I believe the answer is yes.
NCsoft earnings report shows healthy growth
NCsoft just released its fourth quarter 2012 earnings report, and things are looking pretty good across the board for the multi-MMO company. NCsoft's earnings are up both quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year due to the releases of Blade & Soul and Guild Wars 2, not to mention "record-breaking annual revenues" from Lineage. Guild Wars 2 accounted for 45% of the company's sales in Q4, followed by Lineage (24%) and Blade & Soul (10%). ArenaNet's newest game increased the North American market from 16% in Q3 to 25% in Q4. It's not completely sunshine and roses, however. Lineage II and Aion both experienced declines during the period. NCsoft's net income was in the red for the quarter and its stock has slid since September, losing half of its value in the process. [Thanks to Paul for the tip!]
Wings Over Atreia: Laying the smackdown on RMT in Aion
Sports don't have a monopoly on pregame rituals. I know for a fact some folks have their own sets of customary actions that are performed before logging into Aion. These routines are as varied as the players themselves; some may grab a drink or snacks before settling in, while others may put on their lucky PvP socks. I'm acquainted with at least a few people who lock the door to keep pesky interruptions (i.e., roomies) from dog piling on them. Me? Well, I'd like to say I have a cool routine, but I don't... yet! However, regardless of what you do before you log in, there is one ritual most of us share once we get in: block the RMT spam. As much as I can understand and even encourage a wide array of gaming rituals, this particular one really needs to go. But it's out of our hands; in order for it to happen, kinah-selling must be seriously curtailed in Aion. Some players have questioned whether NCsoft even cares about the kinah-selling problem. I think the answer to that came in the studio's announcement this past week. In a bold new move in the fight against illicit RMT, NCsoft is poised to piledrive the kinah-selling population.
Aion 3.5 finally lands on EU servers today
While North American Daevas have been enjoying all the goodies that came with Aion 3.5 since last October, folks across the pond had to continue to wait for their turn. Now, though, the wait is finally over as Gameforge has released patch 3.5 on the European servers. EU Daevas can get their PvP on in new arenas, enjoy special legion quests (along with a legion level cap increase to eight), and dive into new dungeons like Tiamat's Stronghold. Players wanting a break from the adventuring side of life can take part in the new village improvement process to get new housing designs and add NPCs to the neighborhood. Get a glimpse of Tiamat as she awaits you in the trailer after the break, then hop in game to face her for yourself! [Source: Gameforge press release]
Wings Over Atreia: PvP tourney produces victory for winner and Aion
Well, speak of the devil! No sooner did I get done exploring the topic of whether or not PvP is player-generated-content than I stumbled upon some players generating content based on PvP in Aion. And by "stumbled upon," I mean "noticed on the launcher while loading up for some winged fun." The group Epidemic Gaming was set to host a PvP tournament on the Tiamat server. As an obvious fan of PGC, I immediately made plans to attend. I'll be the first to admit I am not by any means a master of PvP (so you can quit your laughing over there before your sides split), but both the announcement and the message itself brought a smile to my face and more hope to my heart. Heck, I may even have more spring in my step! Why? I'll tell you why! Join me as we check out this battle royal where the Daevas of Tiamat duke it out until there's only one standing as well as what an event such as this means for Aion.
'The Free Bundle' collects free indies Nitronic Rush, Abobo's Big Adventure and more
The Free Bundle is a collection of five gratis games headlined by Nitronic Rush, the "survival driving" game from Team Nitronic, a group of DigiPen Institute of Technology students.It also includes Flash game Abobo's Big Adventure, which sees the iconic Double Dragon foe tracking down his lost son, Aboboy. Meanwhile, Ascension is a side-scrolling horror game about a groundskeeper looking for his lost daughter on the day of a terrible incident.Celestial Mechanica is a retro-looking puzzle-platformer, with animations done by Super Crate Box's Paul Veer. The fifth game is ImScared, a self-professed "MineCraft meets Slender" game where players navigate the spooky and seemingly abandoned halls of a massive house.So there you go: five well-done, free games that you haven't downloaded yet because you are still reading this.
Wings Over Atreia: Aion's 2012 naughty and nice list
The end is near! No, not of the world -- the end of 2012. And as is customary at the conclusion of a year, we look back over the past 12 months to assess the damage... er, I mean, review the highlights. This year, however, I'm not going to just ruminate on the top stories in Wings Over Atreia; I'm going to spice things up a bit with a naughty and nice list! That's right, folks; we are delving into both the great and the not-so-great things that have transpired in Aion since January. So bust out the spiced mela cider, grab a plate of gingerbread shugos, and join me as I make a list and check it twice to see how NCsoft has been naughty and nice.
Tour the lands and classes of Aion 4.0 in two new trailers
We've been teased with bits of information and still shots for various aspects of Aion's upcoming 4.0 expansion for quite some time. Today, we finally get to see it live! No, I don't mean the patch is live, sadly; rather, NCsoft has released two trailers highlighting the new lands, classes, and skills that eager Daevas can expect when the expansion finally hits North America. The first video highlights the new zone Katalam with its various landscapes, shows off a fortress siege, spotlights the new classes, and demonstrates a number of new skills, including the new intensity skills players charge for a more powerful effect. On top of that, it zooms through a host of new instances, introducing even more than those already revealed. It also appears to suggest a new type of character customization, but there is no additional information currently available. The second video focuses solely on the new skills coming to existing classes. Feast your eyes on all of the visual goodness in the two trailers after the break and tell us what you think!
Design a weapon for Aion's new Bard class
Immortalize yourself in Aion! Previously, NCsoft gave players the chance to make their mark in Aion by designing a unique weapon for the Gunner class in the upcoming 4.0 update; now, it's the Bard's turn. So instead of guns, get those creative juices flowing for musically themed creations. Like the previous run, players should note that it is not actually a contest -- no prizes will be awarded either inside game or out. However, if your submission is chosen, you will not only get official recognition that your artwork will be incorporated in game, but you will also be able to participate in the naming process of your weapon. The non-contest is open to everyone and runs from now until January 3, 2013. To participate, designers need to submit an original work, either hand-drawn or computer-generated, along with an explanation of the concept and intent behind the design. For full details, read the official rules.
StoneBlade Entertainment (formerly Gary Games) shows off SolForge, coming next year
Ascension is still one of the best digital card games on the App Store -- it's a deckbuilding game that made the jump over to iOS, and it's probably the best example yet of how to take a great offline game, and put it on Apple's touchscreen device. Gary Games is the original creator of Ascension (though they worked with a company named Playdek to publish it on the App Store), and they held a Kickstarter earlier this year for a game called Solforge. The game is a card-based followup to Ascension that was set to be released as a physical card game, with versions available on both iOS and PC. That Kickstarter was eventually funded, and Gary Games has just emerged from their offices with a brand-new walkthrough video for SolForge, with a look at the game and how it works. And they're also going through a name change, so Gary Games is now known as StoneBlade Entertainment. As you can see from the video, embedded below, SolForge looks great -- the main mechanic is that cards you play can be transformed by leveling up, which allows for a lot of great strategies around not only deciding what to put down, but how and when to transform up the cards you've placed. I got to see the game in action at PAX earlier this year, and it looks like a whole lot of fun. StoneBlade has said the title is due out on iOS as soon as it's ready sometime in 2013 (and I'm sure the company is eager to recreate the success it's seen with Ascension), so we'll look for it sometime then.
Wings Over Atreia: My grown-up Solorius list
The strains of festive music wafting about Santum and Pandamonium. The glow of twinkling lights adorning the trees. The chatter of Shugos wearing red velvet robes and hats. Yes folks, it's that time of year again: It's Solorius in Aion! And you know what that means... OK, besides a festival filled with holiday-themed goodies. It means it's time for the annual Solorius wish list! And this year the venerable list is combined with another annual tradition: the Solorius medley. You may notice that this season's list is actually more modest compared to those from years of yore. It's not that I don't want to see a plethora of goodies injected into the wonderful world of Aion. On the contrary! But we already know of many things coming our way in 4.0, and I don't want to distract the devs from getting them out to us quickly. And besides, those previous lists have been whittled down as wishes have been granted. Don't believe me? See for yourself. Then be sure to add anything else you want to see in Atreia to the list.
A closer look at the Ascension talent for monks
Interested in trying out the new monk class, but can't tell your Tiger Strikes from your Tiger Palms? Written by Chase Hasbrouck of World of Monkcraft, WoW Insider's new monk coverage will get you kicking in no time! Ascension: Passive talent. Increases your maximum Chi by 1, your maximum mana by 15%, and your energy regen by 15%. In patch 5.1, Blizzard quietly reworked Ascension to make it a more useful talent. (I say quietly, because the change wasn't listed in the official patch notes, which was likely an oversight.) Previously, the talent had only increased maximum chi by 1, which made the talent useless for most players. Sure, in theory, you could use it to save up an extra chi for burst-type situations, but Chi Brew and its instant four chi was a much better choice for those anyway. After finding out about the changes, my initial reaction (after a bit of napkin math) was that the talent was significantly improved to the level where it was a reasonable choice, but probably still not ideal over Power Strikes or Chi Brew. After I posted that in last week's column, a few commenters asked me to take a closer look, so I'll go spec-by-spec and take a closer look at the talent.
Aion adds fuel to the 4.0 fire with announcement of four new instances
If the trickles of information about Aion 4.0 are making you crazy with anticipation, you might be pleased to hear that NCsoft has just revealed the four new instances coming in the expansion. The new dungeons are: Underground Katalam, a labyrinth where owning the fortresses will make travel easier; Lunadium, home of the broken-hearted witch Grendal; and Katalamize, a 12-Daeva instance boasting the strongest boss of all of 4.0. On top of those, the expansion is also bringing yet another new type of siege, just like 3.0 introduced a new one with the Hearts in Tiamaranta. The new fortresses will also have two unique additions to the standard fortress instance: a solo instance and a special version for the controlling legion that offers better rewards than the original. For more details, check out the official announcement.
God of War: Ascension, Power Stone, and paying allegiance to the gods
When asked about how he and the team at Sony Santa Monica are bringing multiplayer into the God of War series with God of War: Ascension, game director Todd Papy digs deep for inspiration. The single-player side of the game is obviously an influence, he says, as multiplayer side of the game attempts to enhance the always cinematic world of Kratos with a new character called the Avatar.But then things get a little nuts. "You can look at Allegiance levels," says Papy, referring to the mode's customization choices defined by the four gods Zeus, Hades, Poseidon, and Ares, "and you can look at Diablo and Call of Duty and other games that have skill trees that you basically level up."And then you can look at Power Stone," says Papy, "as far as that old school melee feel to it." Yes. That's the one. Playing God of War: Ascension's renamed "Favor of the Gods" mode, and running around with up to eight other players flipping switches, executing combos, and earning favor points does feel a whole lot like the Dreamcast classic. In a strange way, to be honest. But a good one nevertheless.%Gallery-172713%
Aion 3.7 goes live today, adds new instance
With so much news trickling out about Aion's upcoming -- and as of yet undated -- 4.0 expansion, it was easy to miss news about today's 3.7 patch. Mum's no longer the word, though, as NCsoft has just released the patch notes so folks can read up on what to expect when the servers come back online. So what tantalizing new things await Daevas? For one, there's a brand-new level 55+ instance called The Hexway deep in Silentara Canyon. Many other higher-level instances will have altered entry times, changing from timed lockouts to opening at a specific time each day. Other additions to the game include a 2v2 training arena in the Crucible Coliseum, a new escape skill (in case you get stuck in terrain), and furniture paint guestblooms and paint remover. On top of that, Daevas also get a separate cube for quest items, coins, and tickets! Changes are also coming to the Fast-Track server. Along with the Steel Rake instances, this PvP-free zone will allow Daevas up to level 55; however, the server XP boost is not available for the level 50+ crowd.
Aion's new class looks like a battlemech
Aion's third and final new class has been revealed, sort of. MMO Culture reports on a lengthy Korean press release focused on the title's upcoming 4.0 patch during which NCsoft teased a couple of images that show a Daeva encased in some sort of fearsome mech suit. The site says "it is almost certain that these machines can switch between cannon-ranged mode and a lance-melee mode." The class's English name is not yet known, but the Korean translates as Armored Castle. You can view the hour-plus press conference via the video after the break, but be warned that it's in Korean and lacks subtitles. Aion's 4.0 patch is scheduled for December 20th in Korea. There is no word yet on a European or American launch date.
Wings Over Atreia: Are Aion exploits ingenuity or abuse?
Exploit: an act or deed, especially a brilliant or heroic one or to make use of selfishly or unethically? Well, both. But as much as I wish the title of this week's Wings Over Atreia referred to my amusing (and oh-so-heroic) antics throughout the gorgeous world of Aion, it is actually about the latter. Or is it? Most likely, one of your first thoughts when you hear the word exploit is that it's a trick that takes advantage of some bug for personal gain. That thought is often followed by images of a banhammer. It makes sense; you are gamers, after all. Now, whether you regard exploits with admiration or with unbridled loathing is a matter of personal opinion. But does it have to be one or the other, or can it be both? It depends on the actual use of the word itself. Thanks to a recent foray into Lower Udas Temple, exploits have been at the forefront of my mind lately. I have noticed that we actually use both definitions of the word for a variety of situations in Aion, yet we also ascribe the negative connotation to many of them. But is this warranted -- couldn't some actions simply be ingenious examples of problem-solving, or must they all be considered ban-worthy abuse? If the former, where do you draw the line?
Aion 4.0 will bring an increased level cap and new skills
In case new classes and a new region weren't enough to whet your appetite, Aion's 4.0 update is raising the level cap and ushering in some new skills! The new level cap will be 65, up from 3.0's cap at 60. What good is a level cap raise without some skills to populate the new progression? No good at all, of course. Gladiators, Rangers, Clerics, and Chanters will get shiny new survival skills. Spiritmasters, Sorcerers, Assassions, Templars, and Gladiators will get their hands on some powerful offensive skills. Finally, a new skill type is being introduced: Charged skills will have stronger effects based on how long they are charged, and it's up to the caster to decide how long to channel them. These skills will include "Induce Sleep" for Sorcerers, which will keep the target asleep longer based on the length of the charge; "Healing Splendour" for Clerics, which will heal members more based on charge duration; and "Lethal Strike," a Chanter skill that can be charged for greater damage.
Wings over Atreia: Twelve things to be thankful for in Aion
I can't really help it. I was trying to pen an article or a guide about any of a number of features in Aion, but my mind kept wandering back to the spirit of Thanksgiving. This time of the year I just get to feeling so extra thankful for those things that make life better, easier, and more enjoyable. So instead of fighting it, I decided to go with the flow and just share some of the top things I am grateful for in Aion. As luck would have it, once I started this top 10 list, I kept thinking of more things, as you no doubt noticed by the title! I am sure I could keep adding, but the article had to stop at some point, so I ended my list at 12. Take a look at what made the cut and see if anything from your own list made it on mine.
