Age of Conan Week: The Verdict Comments by Oli Welsh

sounds promising for the 360 port (if it ever arrives)

by the sound of it it seems to be geared a bit towards console play? or am I just going crazy

There will probably never be a 360 port. Hopefully there will be though.

I like the look and feel of the game. The blood, gore and rough melee combat make it something entirely more mature and different from WoW.

My PC can't and won't run the game, unfortunately, so I might never see what the game is like for myself. This preview does point out some areas that might put me off, but generally speaking I think this could be a fantastic MMORPG.

A 360 port...really?!

That would be cool...if only :)

Sounds interesting... maybe like a cross between Guild Wars and more traditional MMOs like WoW and LotRO.

I don't like the sound of loading screens everywhere. One of the best aspects of WoW is that it's so seamless, so fluid and so non-disruptive.

The stability of the release is a huge improvement over the beta tests. However, it was fixed and patched so frequently at the end of beta that they had no time for balancing - so don't expect all classes to be anything like as balanced as, say, WoW. Just remember that in MMOs overpowered and underpowered classes exchange places as the game develops.

The depth of the game is a big question mark - at this point there doesn't seem to be any tactical intricacies to PvE, a mob of Barbarians deal with anything which may be true to the books but potentially makes for limited lon term interest.

There are also exploits to be addressed - people hit the level cap a couple of days after pre-release started. This is more important if you are interested in PvP, especially as there appears to be graveyard camping in game.

After all the hype I am getting for the game, when I played it in the past 2 days I feel underwhelmed.

The article is spot on about the game. Beautiful and smooth graphics, voice acting, unique combat system .. they are all pluses.

But I didn't get the same level of feeling I had when the first time I played WoW. The world feels disjointed. I remember the first time I got to Westfall in Azeroth and said "Holy Shit, this is as big as Elwyn Forest and oh look there are 30 other areas like this". In Hyboria, I merely just trudging the paths with no sense of "Oh, I wonder what I will find if I just go to this part of the map".

Chat system is crap. Emote system is crap. There is no sound when you say /hi to some body and the is nothing on the chat panel that say I say hi. Really crap. There is very little socialisation going on even thoug it is supposed to be an MMO. I don't even know if I can whisper to someone /sigh.

This game has a mountain to climb if it wants to dethrone WoW off the top MMORPG spot.

Shame, because I like the women.

EG any chance we could have some real in game shots YOU took not just pretty ones handed out by Funcom?

Welllll, EVE-Online only got an 8 from EG and I am still playing that 5 years after launch! So a 7 may not be such a bad thing. MMO's grow and change with their audience, Conan should be no different.

Might try it....

I thought the 360 port was announced and confirmed, though admittedly around a year down the line?

Darkedge, if I had a better PC I would, but I don't think it's fair to the game to show it on low quality with half the effects turned off. That's no more indicative of what players will see than those official shots.

Well, as World of Warcraft got an 8, I suppose 7 isn't that bad eh Eurogamer?

/poke Kieron

I've certainly been enjoying the Early Access, and it's been surprisingly stable for an MMO at launch.

That said: the class balancing feels slightly bonkers at times, with some classes being an exercise in frustration during the enforced single player bits early on. And there's a bit of a question mark floating above its head (like all those in-game quest givers) regarding whether I'll still be playing it at the end of my 30 days.

The time I've spent so far has been thoroughly enjoyable though. And you can't beat a class that uses two handed swords and turns into some sort of Guyver Cthulhu hybrid.

Oli, aren't you guys "POWERED BY ALIENWARE!!!1"?

@rhinoxious

yup, it's confirmed idd, but haven't heard much from it besides that...

Yeah... there is no doubting the 360 port. Microsoft purchased the rights to it and it should be with us this time next year.

But having played the game for about an hour, I kind of feel this is another game that's only going to work smoothly on the PC. A console port may just feel a bit clunky with lots of different things between controlled by only a few buttons.

Worth noting that Mythic got Warhammer AOC running on a 360 aswell, more of a proof of concept though but I think they may have been angling for sweet sweet MS money for a port to 360 (not everyone has blizzards pockets). The only obstacle for a 360 MMO is the UI and a slightly smaller user base, however there is less competion on the format.

"A console port may just feel a bit clunky with lots of different things between controlled by only a few buttons. "

Hmm I thought the combat system was more suited to a console than a PC.

"Hmm I thought the combat system was more suited to a console than a PC. "

I could see the basic combat working with a 360 controller yeah, but once you factor in the numerous different skills and abilities that you learn as you level... I could see it getting a little over-complicated. #

But if they can pull it off, it would be great to a see a decent MMO working well on consoles... I don't think SquareEnix pulled off FF11 too well on the 360 myself.

I'm pretty sure a 360 "port" will happen:
"Age of Conan 360 won't "just be a port" says Funcom:
"...this is not going to be just a port from the PC, but we're actually going to great lengths to make a tailored version for the Xbox 360"
http://www.computerandvideogames.com/art...

Seems to be a big downer on the the whole instanced zones thing. Every mmo is instanced to a degree. Every WoW server is effectively 3 main instances with lots of smaller raid and pvp instances off of that. Trouble is with WoW if you all congregate eveyone to one place the whole continent crashes. It's not as if its even like guild wars either where it was you and your party lovin it up in your own instance. Its a somewhere in between which should prove to be a nice balance i.e get to play with loads of folk online but not have an entire server go titsup cos 200 people want to have a mass cyb0ring in one zone.

Their registering app sucks. Hurrah, I logged in with my existing Funcom account - used for AO back in the day - and clicked the "add new subscription" link. Got taken to a form - where I had to create a NEW username instead of having the game attached to my existing user...

Ah well, install should be finished soon so I can get that 27 GB patch...

Oli: I think a lot of people would like to know what PC games look like at lower settings. We don't all have 8800s.

Tbh, you probably shouldn't bother with this unless you have an 8800 of some sort, or an even better card.

so far so ... ok, better than wow's launch but then they get the advantage of watching wow's launch and adapting their approach. supposedly the pvp servers have queue's now but the wait is around the three minute mark, i think next Monday evening will be the big test of the servers load handling capabilities

I have an 8800, I'm so awesome

A primary reason I jumped on the mmorpg bandwagon was to avoid updating my computer every 18 months; another reason was to enjoy an open, seamless gameworld. Instanced zones were a deal-breaker for me in Tabula Rasa, and the Conan ip is not one I'm willing to go quad core, etc. over.

Still, kudos to Funcom for pulling off what seemed to be an improbable smooth launch.

Next, please...

One question comes to mind after reading your preview and seeing your comment in this section.
The comment was :
"Darkedge, if I had a better PC I would, but I don't think it's fair to the game to show it on low quality with half the effects turned off. That's no more indicative of what players will see than those official shots. "

Oli, you have actually done the preview on an older computer forcing you to play on low settings?
You use a computer like that on the most system heavy MMORPG releaced to date?

Without a good graphics card Cpu and enough RAM for starters, this game give you a few long brakes i take it (loading)...
In your preview you complain about loading and the game feeling instance heave. I have read other previews where the previewer have used an up to date gameing pc. They haven't complained about this.

You guys are the biggest european gameing site. Atleast use an updated rig when previewing/reviewing system heavy games. If not state the specs on the rig used so we can draw better conclusions based upon your feedback.

Or even better, give us a preview based upon playtime with a powerfull pc. The kind of pc this game was made for.....

Thats my to cents anyway;-)

Re: the system specs I am running this on an 8600m GT on a laptop - and it's playable on High and smooth as silk on Medium.

Problems with the game start to show up once you get past level 20 in my view - lots of broken quests and bugs after that.

I agree with 1simen1.

Been playing since Saturday.

Servers are marred by downtime, the combat is OK but a little dull and lag cripples you totally. The graphics are lovely though.

I have been stuck in an empty instance for 23 and a half hours now due to a bugged monster, unable to leave as I can't get credit for killing someone for a quest. As it's the end of the single player level 20 quest I am "locked in". I petitioned a GM when I went to work, they replied with "You're offline, please put in another petition if you still need help" and that reply took 45 minutes. I am now in a 75 person queue for help again. I have emailed, no response. Other people have been similarly stuck for 3 days now...

Nice graphics, average game, appalling customer support.

I will not be paying after my free 30 days at this rate.

@Scribble

As bad as that is... do remember their GM's are probably being inundated with people asking for help seeing as this is a brand new game that's only just launched.

Well, my P4 2,8 GHz 1GB RAM old-ish machine went to 99% CPU and... no game.

Gotta consider a new machine at some point. But is the MMO genre really worth it? It seems from the forums there is just as much - or more - grinding in ACHA as in LotRO or WoW... and both of those run on my old rig.

Also lots of reports of bugs. Par for the course when it comes to Funcom though. :P

Well, then.

I realize a lot of people are clamoring for reactions from established reviewers, so this is how I'll explain away the premature and half-assed assessment that a typically excellent review team is offering us here.

It's important to emphasize that no one has had that much time with the retail game and I'm guessing the almost miraculous improvement over the beta version has also caused a delay in general gaming media coverage, but at the very least, today's readers should be careful they don't conclude too much from the opinions of people who don't know there is a mail system or don't know you can send tells in-game.

I'm going to write a bit here, but if you have any interest in this game at all (I'm assuming you do if you've made it this far), I'd ask you to bear with me.

If anything, the game lacks a certain level of polish on a few mechanical things that have been ironed out in games which have been running for 2-5 years vs. 2-5 days. But these are ALL EASY TO FIX. (caps AND italics - no he didn't!) While I agree that Funcom needs a tad more polish to make it friendlier to new MMO players, they have said all along that they are targeting a generally more "hard-core" user base. Thus higher technological requirements, no walkthrough of how to send tells and more emphasis on unique and fun skills, real siege pvp, the ability to fight from mounts, etc. They do have the best quest system that I've seen, clearly identifying where to go and what to do - everything but lay a trail of breadcrumbs at your feet ;). Most important to me is that - just like its largest peer - AoC is powered by a pulsing heart that binds the whole thing together and delivers a fiercely compelling gaming experience.

That doesn't mean that what it offers will appeal to everyone, the cartoonishness of WoW grew on me over time, but based on the feedback I've heard in-game, it's certainly resonating with a lot of players. Some further observations:

Almost every class in this game has hybrid elements to it, not even counting the Feat system (think WoW talents) that adds real customization. A barbarian deep in the dual-wield tree will play very differently from a barb specializing in 2-handers. That's been one of the repeated criticisms of certain classes in Blizz's game for years (Palladins?) - and something I think the Funcom folks did very well out of the gate. Classes will all evolve over time, as they do all good MMOs (again, wow Paladins), so let's not worry too much about the balance issues of avatars only a quarter of the way through their development (lvl 20s vs eventual 80 cap).

I should interject and say that I like both WoW and LoTRO a great deal, so I'm not a crazy fanboy. I thought Turbine did a great job with the LoTR IP, but Funcom has really made a living, vibrant world that everyone who has any interest in the genre owes it to themselves to at least explore for a time directly. And it is a blast to explore - I went cliff-jumping yesterday at the spur of the moment and the graphics were so impressive (better than oblivion) that my girlfriend was inspired to start looking into a tropical vacation.

"Not your father's Conan": For those that want a real introduction to the delicious world of Conan, check out the comics by Kurt Busiek and Cary Nord. It's THIS world that Age of Conan re-creates, not the lumbering abomination of Arnold's movie.

To the guys at Eurogamer, whom I respect a great deal, even if your site is under-appreciated here in the US, I'd say be cautious in your early judgments, if only to save you the effort of having to write a lengthy "re-visiting AoC" article in 3months. It has put up some incredible early sales numbers and from my time in the game there are a ton of people who are settling in on this as their #1 online game and have no plans of leaving. My own view is that WoW has been a wonderful introduction to MMO gameplay for millions of people, but for those looking for the next step, or just something new and worthwhile, AoC presents a greater realization of its potential.

Now if they would only fix the auction house.

[longer than i expected - now no one will read it - a shame]

Nice graphics, except... why are the skies so ugly?

What's happening with Age of Conan really reminds me what happened when WOW was released
Today I went to several videgoames stores just to find that the game was sold out

I really don't think they can achive the succes of WOW but I feel that this game is gonna really cause a big impact in the MMORPG world, and tha't is gonna sell several miillions units.

Just when a lot of people is saying that the pc game market is dead.

P.D. I consider myself a big Conan fan and I think that the first Arnie-Conan movie wasn't that bad.

I've not played AoC yet, but as an early WoW adopter I've seen the game change massively, fundamentally in fact.

Any niggles about interface, class balance and possibly even the over-instancing can, and probably will. be addressed.

The question is whether the player base will keep the game funded until those improvements arrive and if so, THEN it can gain a mass audience and challenge the big W.

"the game's user interface is very slick and attractive"

Are we playing the same game here? The UI is absolutely horrible, reminiscent of something straight out of 1998. It's an embarrasment in this otherwise potentially great game.

pc gamer ( remember that anyone ; ) ) used to do system check on the games with high scores once upon a time. it would tell you what the game was like on a pc of the gods and then on a min spec system etc or the average system.

maybe a good idea would be to take a mean of the valve pc spec questionare and base a rig on it so we get the 2 version of the game - ideal and real world. then everyone can decide how different the version of the game they play will be from that which is "recommeded"
sure its a recognised pc attitude that if you cant afford to upgrade they gtfo of the pc market and into the console one but i think this is a tad harsh myself and would like to see perhaps a side box of a few screenies taken at min spec and frame rates achieved.

PC's will soon have to fight for the right to exsist as more than an elite form of entertainment for those who can put 2 grand into a pc. let it start here and now with euro gamer - who "gets this stuff" from reading the articles and editorials.

oh and to go back on topic - Aoc is real fun at the moment ( a bit gutted to hear that the voice acting only goes to tortage :( )
they have got to sort the chat stuff as well as various other interface things - oh and get the bank mail and Ah working asap. but playing it as a basically single player rpg at the moment im totaly into it- im in a hardcore raid guild in wow so for Aoc to work the game needs all the chat stuff and UI stuff sorted fast to as it could be a pain soon in a mass raid.

very true what the rei/preview said as a rpg its the bomb but unproven at the endgame or as an mmo as yet - but im hopefull

"not the lumbering abomination of Arnold's movie. "

Euh, the first Conan movie had all the traits a Conan-product should have imo (even more, I'd say it's still the best adventure/fantasy movie out there), it's only the second flick where things went awfully wrong (and family-friendly :( ).

Don't think I'll be upgrading for this but there are enough other games to start a new PC hardware cycle for nowadays, and it certainly doesn't need to cost 2 grand to be "safe" for the next few years. Has never been like that anyway, at least if you check price/quality of your components.

How much is it every month?

Are we playing the same game here? The UI is absolutely horrible, reminiscent of something straight out of 1998. It's an embarrasment in this otherwise potentially great game.

Try Pirates of the Burning Sea, Vanguard or pretty much any other MMOPRG excpet maybe WoW if you want to see what a truly horrible interface is. Conan's is pretty damn good, albeit lacking a few functions which I am sure they'll add.

Argh, nein! The 2 grand myth again! Can we leave that out please? 2 grand would buy you a pc that could power Droitwich.

Anyway, only been able to play this for a few hours but lurrrvin' it. I'm starting to feel something I haven't felt since the summer of 2005, when WoW was at its peak. This is bad, as I have exams coming up in a week!

Chat, guild management, UI etc are supposedly all being worked on by funcom at the moment.

@mikeck
Yeah it is supossed to come out on 360 though I personally don't care since I wouldn't play it on my xbox since im loving it on my pc.

@1simen1
it's sad that YOU had to tell them and they couldn't think of it before or something. Yeah, not only for the review to be acurate even through his eyes for us but also cause this is really not a review. Like you can't review a game when its in its prealpha state and call it a review. Same thing.

Personally I love the game.. As expected it's got BUGS! Tones of em you could say. If not a lot there are some basic bugs. Though from a new game of the kind and so developed and with so many new features and graphically improved than anything else of the kind you really can't expect anything more than that for such an early stage. Wow was full of them at first. Lotro was. Everything has to (not has to but its only normal for the first couple of months ) be since it's MMO.

The game in my and my friends' opinion is just amazing. It's really REALLY fun since it's something important to the gamer. It's refressing and not hard to get used to since so different from other MMOs. They were also smart enough to keep the good things from games like wow. Things that made your game experience convinient and easy to handle as the player. Examples? Tab = switch targets / F = assist / Num = autorun etc etc... So it's user friendly really. The game even with really low details looks and feels nice though once you apply the higher details on a good speced rig you will NEVER ever go back since its just beautifull. wowed everyone since I put it on in a place with around 60 ppl around me at that moment.

All i have to say is that it's worth. Don't really mind it's bugs since those will be smoothed out by the time ofc. The gaming is great like i said and in a group you'll see that the 12 races are all great and unique and personally I dont find a race for the first time in a game that I wouldnt like to play with which is also really a good thing. And the finishing moves are even if silly just great :) The blood splatter on the monitor also something to love. Well just buy it or get a buddy key and try it out. Its a great game and I never really talk like that about specific games. Was what i expected from a new MMO since i was tired of the same old looking wow... I will miss my chars but AOC got my full attention. Even my 360 will get dusty for a long while. Just one last thing to worry me. -=ENOUGH TO DO WHEN CAP LVL=- that was what noone left WoW and why i kept on playng as well. Hope they knew why Lotro failed to keep any of us.

Enough said. thnx for ur time. hope i was usefull. going to make me something to eat now lol.

I'm generally enjoying the game. They've made a few interesting choices which do make it a bit different from many other MMOs, which is nice.

That said, the UI is a bit fiddly, and the chat system is AWFUL. Luckily, I'm playing through the largely single-player parts at the moment, so hopefully the chat and the trade and PvP bugs that I hear about will be ironed out by the time I get out of Dodge. I mean Tortage.

you guys might wanna mention the problem with keys and that as some pppl have had keys that are corrupt? so they need new ones but despite emailing customer support theyve not got them yet!!!