Earlier this week, Ten Ton Hammer had the chance to spend a little time
with href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/254"
target="_blank">Aion:
The Tower of Eternity Producer,
Brian Knox and glean some information on the upcoming release of
NCsoft's latest title. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/65952" target="_blank">There
are some great nuggets to be had in that piece
but there's one question I didn't see asked that, although completely
uncouth, would have been interesting to get any kind of answer to.
Since it wasn't asked then, I'll ask (and attempt to answer) it in this
week's edition of Forever Fantasy.


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This
could hurt...

Can Aion take North America by storm?



My knee-jerk reaction is to say no because no Asian crossover has
managed to do it yet. Of course, also call it a knee-jerk reaction
because that reaction always has a tendency to make you look like
little more than a jerk. Fortunately though, most of us are grown
adults (or mature enough anyway) to take a minute to step back and
really think about the question before giving such a biologically
uncool answer.



Normally, I'm not one to jump to such a reaction so quickly, but let's
face facts for a brief moment. Asian MMOG's have not had the greatest
success on this side of the ocean. Some may argue that href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/66120" target="_blank">Final
Fantasy XI is a success, but I
don't think it is. It falls into the same trap of the grind. For the
majority of the online Asian games that have released in North America
(or *every* one that I've had to play), at some point in a character's
life, you are reduced to grinding. I don't mean the grinding involved
with taking a sharp blade and honing it to a razor's edge. I'm talking
about the kind of grinding involved to turn the edge of a steel support
beam into a blade suitable for a katana of master craftsmanship. In
theory, it could be done, but the majority of us would rather die a
slow and painful death first... which is exactly what you're heading
towards if you attempt to keep up with the grind required in some of
these games.



I'm hoping this fate does not befall Aion. In the previously mentioned
interview, Brian basically stated that the powers that be are well
aware that even though this is being touted as the spiritual successor
to href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/65765" target="_blank">Lineage,
this is being released in a far different age. There will be plenty of
quests to keep players busy, even when they're not out grouping or
enjoying laying the smack down on some poor unsuspecting soul like
**insert whatever character Dalmarus is playing here**.




It's important for NCsoft to realize that this really is a different
age and that even though our characters will be able to fly, forcing us
to grind our way through mindless content won't. Be aware that my
discussion about combat is nothing more than speculation at this
point.  I'm simply pointing out what I perceive as a flaw in
some past models and hope the NCsoft crew avoids repeating those
mistakes. At this point in time, there's nothing to indicate they won't
do exactly that and present us with an outstanding game.


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Don't
walk into the light!

No matter how the combat plays out, there is something that I feel
gives them a big chance to grab a staggeringly large Western audience
and that's the eye candy. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/65801" target="_blank">The
video footage we've been able to
watch has been mind blowing. The world of Aion is far more gorgeous
than any piece of pixilated canvas has any right to be. I can't imagine
how hard the art team has worked on it, but every drop of blood, sweat,
and tears shows. The areas we've seen so far will leave you nothing
less than absolutely breathless by its beauty.



Pretty graphics can't make up for shoddy game play, but they've
instantly gotten one thing that every publisher and advertiser in the
world is absolutely desperate to get - your attention. That alone is
virtually priceless in today's market. It won't guarantee success by
any means, but it does give them the opportunity to make a great first
impression. A game can have the greatest gameplay in the world, but if
it's not pleasant to look at, you're going to have a ling road to
travel in your quest to spread the word. Aion's graphics have already
spread the word, now they just have to prove they can deliver.



Amazingly, the Aion team has another ace up their sleeve as well, and
this one just might trump them all - the chance to provide the most
seamless launch of an MMOG in North American history. I'm not saying
it's guaranteed to happen, but the pieces for this golden puzzle are
theirs for the taking if they can seize upon this opportunity.
Almost a
quarter of a million players have already been pounding on the game and
its servers for months now since the game went live in Korea last
November.
These haven't been laid back beta testers either, but paying customers.
If you think those gamers are going to just be quiet when something
bothers them, you've obviously been hiding under a rock for the last
decade. Gamers can be some of the loudest, pushy, and self entitled
customers a company could ever dream of.
It may be a pain for them at
times, but it can be a boon to all of you.



So in retraction of my earlier knee-jerk answer, and because I'd like
to think I'm not actually a jerk, I've come to a new conclusion. I'm
not a hundred percent sure Aion: The Tower of Eternity will be a smash
hit in North America and take us by storm, but I am positive about one
thing - they're in a unique position to do just that and do it with
style. Personally, href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/66141" target="_blank">I
can't
wait!






To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our Aion Game Page.

Last Updated: Mar 13, 2016

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