TenTonHammer.com - Taking MMO Gamers to the Next Level!

by Cody “Micajah” Bye, Managing Editor

In the span of a human life, four years doesn’t seem like such a long time. With the average life expectancy for technologically adept cultures hovering in the mid-70s, four years seems like just a blink in the overall scheme of things. But that doesn’t mean things don’t change in that time; in four years you can have several children, elect a new president, or earn a degree.  

Massively multiplayer games also change in drastic ways in the span of four years. When I first ventured into Lineage II way back in March of 2004, I was a mere beta tester, loading up my Orc Fighter for the first time to see what this crazy, hectic, PvP-centric title was all about. It  was a world chock full of immaturity, gold-sellers, and random players killers (PKers) who got their jollies by killing as many low-level newbies as they could. Let’s just say my initial thoughts on the Lineage II experience weren’t favorable.

The new Kamael playable race is one of the highlights of the latest Lineage II expansion.

However, when NCsoft invited me down to their Austin studio to preview the upcoming expansion to Lineage II, dubbed The First Throne, I put my trials and tribulations aside and sat down to seriously reconsider the game. Even though they had several GMs in the room with us guiding the party through various encounters, I was still impressed with the amount of content that was obviously brand new to the experienced L2 players in the room. The additional dungeons and PvP scenarios were enough to attract my attention and lead me back into L2 for an in-depth, fully realized review of Lineage II: The First Throne.

Upon my initial journey into the Kamael expansion back in December, I was surprised and pleased with the number of additions that the developers have made to the foundation of the Lineage II experience. Beyond simply creating a solid tutorial for players to enjoy, the developers added a number of additional “newbie friendly” mechanics and features to help players begin their journeys in the land of the First Throne. After pounding my way through the first few levels of the game, I opted to take a short break, gain a few more levels, and come back to whip up the in-depth review of Lineage II.

Gameplay

The First Throne expansion – in terms of gameplay – brought several new elements to NCsoft's target audience. Obviously, the new playable race is one of the first new features that many players will notice when they load up the game. With their one-winged profile and gender separated class selection, the Kamael offer new players a chance to jump into the game for the first time and old players the ability to start the game fresh with a new starting race and area to explore.

For those new players that have heard the horror stories of Lineage II’s past – the rampant PKing and horribly difficult new player experience – rest assured that many of these aspects have been upgraded and improved since the game’s release in 2004. Although my initial steps in the new world are chronicled in my first impressions review, it is safe to say that the first ten levels have been made into a much smoother ride than what they were previously.

As far as the expansion is concerned, old and new players alike should be fairly pleased with the amount of new content that was developed and implemented into the Kamael expansion. Along with the new playable race, several new raiding areas have been introduced into the game, including the Crystal Caverns and Hellbound.

From my play experience, the new higher-end content is extremely fun to play through, with well-crafted (if not terribly thought provoking) dungeons that truly elicit some fun emotive responses. For example, when I was playing through the Crystal Caverns on the Isle of Prayer, I often found myself staring at the rich architecture and level design, gazing up at the fish swimming above my head. The monsters in that area were well-wrought and fit the instance perfectly.

Although I never had the chance to play through the particular area, Hellbound sounds like an absurdly fun place to play. With players only allowed to even enter the area if they’re levels 79-80 (80 is the current level cap), it would be a thrilling experience just to set foot in the monstrous area.

A bevy of new areas await potential Lineage II players.

To address those players that are more interested in the intense PvP skirmishes in Lineage II (and who isn’t?), the new fortresses and fortress battles will keep players entertained for long periods of time. Meant for the smaller groups (which is where I fit in), the fortress battles filled an integral spot in the L2 PvP landscape and really rounded out the content found in the new expansion.

However, an individual can’t do a review of Lineage II without hitting upon the nagging nuances that keep the game from really hitting the hearts of North American gamers. From the ground up, Lineage II is designed to be a grind-oriented sort of game. Once you get past level 10, the gameplay slows way down and players will be pressured to go kill monsters over and over and over again.

Although you felt some of this in the first ten levels, it doesn’t become readily apparent until you hit that tenth level. For some reason, the XP needed to progress seems to spike abhorrently and the travel time required to get from one hunting ground to another also ratchets up several notches.