I Feel Like An Old Man…

I feel like an old man. Not because of my age but because I’ve been there from the start of it all. The arcade revolution, the home computer revolution and the home console revolution from 8-bit up to next generation. Through all of this I’ve stumbled from genre to genre and I feel as if I’ve seen everything gaming has to offer; like I’ve experienced the best and the worst of gaming.

Then I played Aion and I’ve been missing out on a whole world of experiences.

I’ve played World of Warcraft and EVE but I’ve not been gripped by an MMO.

My devoted friends argued for the social aspects of these games, they’d tell me that this was the main reason for playing and why they still play after many years. I always thought this was nonsense. I’m an outgoing guy, I lend myself to most social situations with my jovial approach to life, I like trying new things and I love it when a plan comes together, so if there was some other form of easy social interaction out there, why wasn’t I already involved in it?

The reason was simple. With previous MMO titles I hadn’t been involved from the start. With the recent launch of Aion I was there at the beginning and, with the added bonus of a Ready-Up Legion, I was excited about the prospect of a real social experience.

I worked up from level 1 to 21 in about 3 days. I found myself getting more and more involved in groups to do quests, not (solely) for the experience points but for the social interaction. The game was turning into a big, friendly chat room with the characters as avatars and the opportunity to hit things with a hammer, which, as a Glaswegian, is a perfectly natural way to carry on a conversation.

I now have a new outlook on MMOs. I used to hit what I called MMO saturation point – the point at which collecting rabbit’s skins and chasing wolves for a random drop becomes automated – and I’d uninstall the client and never speak of it again. Now I also feel part of the big, social chat room. The game has become somewhere I’m free to have a laugh with people that I’ve never met. I’ve also found that being a Cleric (healer class) is the best class for meeting people, everyone wants the heals and I’ve got plenty to give.

So if you don’t have much on the cards and you’re wanting to spend some time with the (world famous) Juggernips, then I suggest you grab yourself a copy of Aion and get onto the Castor server where I’ll be there to greet you with my chat avatar, I mean character.