Asheron’s Call 2 – Pillars of Change

1. The Past Issues

Last July 2003, I wrote a soapbox article about AC2 and some of the issues that were afflicting the game. A lot has changed in the game since last year at this time. Here is a recap of some of the issues that was impacting AC2.

Remember when we had all the numerous server authentication issues? Many could even log on and play the game. MS could not seem to resolve these issues no matter what was tried. Well now that has been fixed for the most part with a few issues now.

Remember when we could finally log on but guess what? The curse of chat continued. You could not sent tells, /cg was not functioning and the global channels had to be turned off while Microsoft tried many fixes get it right. Turbine was finally given the go ahead to fix chat and they did. Now chat works better than ever but it still has some issues. I can't wait until the GUN server and the cursed software are swapped out.

Remember we were going through major skills rebalancing? Well this one still going on and on. When is this going to end? Well the developers have always said this going to be continual. Is this all really necessary? You could argue this either way but it's time to put the polishing effects on rebalancing this game and move forward and fix other issues affecting the game. Perfection is always nice but too much perfection is not going to benefit the game at all and is eating precious dev time. Perhaps most of this is due to constant change in direction of the game and it's content.

2. The Present Issues.

Now with the past behind us, where is AC2 going now? Several months ago we received the news that Turbine is taking the franchise (AC1/AC2) over from Microsoft. Turbine has added more staff to the live team and things are starting to happen.

Probably one of the most important things at this time is migration of Microsoft billing systems to Turbine and it's partners. A lot can go wrong and can have a large impact on the game. Let's not relive last year. Here is to hoping they get it right.

Another very important item is the remarketing of AC2. Without marketing how will customers come back to AC2? We have all seen how word of mouth can affect the game and the various forums discussions are mostly a negative reflection of this (another soapbox forthcoming). The game is now downloadable and can be purchased online. Is this going to save the game? No, absolutely not. Is this going to increase your subscription numbers? A little bit. This isn't going to change much until you can get this game back on the shelves. Let's hope this isn't going to have to wait until an expansion is completed sometime in 2006 because that's a long way off.

3. Content.

While AC2 has improved quite a bit in the amount of available content, there are still many areas lacking in that respect. If you can't keep people interested many will not stay. I think content must also be geared so it can be recycled in less repetitive ways.

When Hero content was added last September, the level cap was raised to level 150. Many of us quested to become a hero and enjoyed some of the content that being a hero had to offer. But what was left after that? Well we now have a huge level grind that will take several years to accomplish. While I am not totally against level grinds, I think it is way to steep. I don't think that to get to level 150 it should take endless hunting. One of the things I like about AC1 is the soft cap and to get to level 126, it only takes a number of months to a year or so max but you can still gain experience. Much more balanced in my opinion.

In future months we see consignment vendors coming and Hero 2.0. This will be a great improvement for AC2 but it's really a core feature that should have been released two years ago along with storage, housing (in some form or another), and end game content.

4. Final Remarks.

AC2 is a great game. Hopefully when Hero 2.0 comes about, we will have more to look forward to in the higher levels. A lot has changed since it's retail release and a lot needs to change now that it's in Turbine's hands. Hopefully these pillars of change will soon collapse and the live team can again focus on why we are all here, to have fun and enjoy this game in the right direction.