Ten Ton Hammer - Taking MMO Gamers to the Next Level!

I love holidays in the real world.  Not only do they give a purpose to the season that sort of shakes up the daily grind of life, but they also tend to bring communities and families together for a short period of time (but then they go away again, thank goodness! A girl's gotta game ya know).

I feel the same away about in-game seasonal events.  I really don't care what they call it or what the lore is behind it, every MMOG should have holiday events that coincide with popular holidays in our real lives. Games like EverQuest II go all out for holidays and the fans absolutely appreciate the effort. Having that little extraordinary break from the daily game to get smashing drunk or craft special holiday treats to send off to your friends is so wonderful!

After the lack of event for the popular Halloween holiday, many were not only disappointed that a opportunity passed NCsoft by to wow the fans, but it really gave gamers little hope that holidays were going to be a priority for the dev team.  I realize that there may have not been enough development time between launch and Halloween and it isn't really a traditional holiday outside North America.  I recall reading up on the Asian versions of the holiday and they certainly were more formal and morbid than our tradition of trick-or-treating and decorating pumpkins which makes it understandable that it was a no show in Aion this year.

The winter holidays of Solstice, Christmas, and Hanukkah are celebrated worldwide however and in my personal opinion, it would have been just negligent to allow this happy season to pass without representation in game.  Thank goodness NCsoft understands because Atreia will soon be celebrating The Solorius Festival!

"The Solorius Festival is not only one of the year’s most anticipated events, but also one of the oldest. Its origin dates back to before the Cataclysm. It is a festival of communion, sharing, and appreciation. Wealth and status are set aside each year as families make diligent preparations in advance to honor the ascended. Many Atreians travel to a capital city to immerse themselves in the festivities."

Along with traditional holiday decorations in the capital cities, the holiday Shugos will be selling holiday goodies, and a giant piano for you and your friends to play on will be in both cities.  The holiday will surely bring out the little Asmodian and Elyos in all of us and while we may not have peace this holiday season, I'm certain that the festivities will offer a fun diversion for all.

~Savanja
Aion Site Lead

Is your quest update in another "hard to find location"? Yeah, I hate that too.  Remember, some items that don't have a clickable link in your quest journal that will point the way, still may have some directional assistance if you use the command /where.  For example, to find the fossil in Verteron, you can type "/where fossil" into your chat box and your map will be marked with the appropriate location. This works for other items in game so before giving up and going home, try it with whatever you are looking for!

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• NCsoft Announces Aion's Winter Holiday Event - Get the details on what gamers can expect for this holiday season in game.
• Win a Copy of Aion's Collector Edition - Good gifts don't get any better than FREE!

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