monthly-dev-update
Latest
Age of Conan dev update details free content, spiffy server tech
Hullo Hyboria fans, and welcome to the traditional end-of-the-month update letter recap. What's the update letter, you ask? It's Funcom executive producer Craig Morrison's way of keeping players abreast of development happenings on Age of Conan. This month there are quite a few interesting tidbits, including a mention of the game's next adventure pack, the crafting update, and of course, the new tier four Khitai raids in and around the Jade Citadel. Also noteworthy is the latest mention of Funcom's single-server tech. You may recall that Morrison mentioned this in 2011 as a way for players to form their own niche communities within the larger server community. Not much has been said about it since, but Funcom's Dreamworld engineers have been working on it behind the scenes to get it ready for its debut in The Secret World. After that, Morrison says, the tech will make its way into AoC, and chances are you'll have a chance to vote on the implementation. "This will most likely be the main subject of our summer surveys this year given how radically we could change the experience with this technology," Morrison explains. "It is one of those things that could be implemented in a way that you don't even notice, or it could be deployed to make things work in ways that are not typical for MMO games (like potentially allowing players to define their own communities, or even, at the furthest fringes of what's possible, defining their own rulesets!)." Look for our exclusive interview with Morrison later this afternoon.
The Anvil of Crom: Evaluating the dev update - crafting edition
Hallelujah, amen, and by frickin' Crom! What's got me all excitable this week? Well, the latest dev update, for starters, and I apologize in advance for reneging on last week's promise to devote today's column to a deeper examination of the new Savage Coast of Turan content. The last time we met, I gave you a quick rundown on the Ardashir Coast, but with all due respect to Funcom's content designers, the most interesting bit of Age of Conan news from the last little while is the crafting revamp that Silirrion hinted at in the August 31st update letter. But Jef, how interesting could it be if it's taken you over a week to write about it? Well, you got me there, and I could throw in some excuses about needing to get something Turan-related out last week, as well as the fact that I was doing the DragonCon shuffle, but I won't. Anyhow, holy shitaki mushrooms! Funcom mentioned AoC's tradeskills! Join me after the cut and bring the smelling salts.
Age of Conan dev update talks new content, crafting revamp
Yeah, you read that right, Age of Conan fans. Funcom is planning on remaking the game's much-maligned tradeskill system. While the exact nature of the changes has not been revealed, and the deployment date is pretty far in the future (sometime in 2012), it's a big step for what has thus far been a squarely combat-focused game. This month's AoC development update has the details, along with teasers for a new adventure pack in the early part of 2012, not to mention additional content before the end of 2011. That content includes the conclusion of tier four raid progression in Khitai as well as the long-awaited House of Crom dungeon. Funcom game director Craig "Silirrion" Morrison describes the space as part open dungeon (similar to the Onyx Chambers) and part team instance with dynamic opportunities for both cooperation and conflict. Today also marks the deployment of the Savage Coast of Turan adventure pack to the live servers (though it's worth noting that you won't be able to access it until September 8th unless you ordered the early bird pack), and Funcom currently advises players of a six-hour down time on the AoC patcher. Finally, the devs have put together a community survey that is open to everyone, so be sure and fill it out to make your voice heard with regards to AoC's future development.
