Aion nears open beta in Korea
Western version being "culturalised".
NCsoft has announced a date for the Korean open beta test for its forthcoming MMO, Aion: Tower of Eternity. The beta will begin on 11th November.
The company also took the opportunity to update us on the status of the US and European version of the game, although it stopped short of giving any timeframe for beta or release.
"We are currently in the process of localising and culturalising the game for the western market in order to reach the same level of quality that the game provides and are in heavy planning for our testing phases in North America and Europe," said the post.
"We are taking the utmost care in the localization process and we're dedicated to releasing the very best product in NCsoft West territories. With the ball now rolling, expect to hear much more, and see much more out of Aion in the coming months."
In other words, they're not rushing it, but it sounds like the game is still on course for its projected release in the first half of 2009.
Aion is NCsoft's concerted attempt to make a game that will appeal both to Lineage-obsessed Asian players and the World of Warcraft hordes of the west. It features the beautiful character models and intense, factional player-versus-player conflict of Korean MMOs, with the rich questing and more easygoing mechanics of Western tradition. Also: flying.
Check out our Aion preview for more.