Allow me to end this, my very first post on the official forums, by saying that I am thrilled to see the amount of feedback coming in already, and that I try to read through as much of it every day as my free time allows. I might not always reply, even in the future, but I do my best to listen to what the players say and take it with me into our design meetings as suggestions for what to implement something new or how to implement something already existing.
We've been playing the game for about five days so far and while there are still kinks to be worked out - including some sluggish frame rates and graphical bugs - there is serious potential here.
Age of Conan has already sold 500,000 units in the US and continues to hold the number 1 spot in the charts. According to Funcom, the Age of Conan websites attracted over 8 million unique visitors from over 200 countries in 2008.
The rest of the top mainly went to either Electronic Arts or Blizzard, with armies of Sims and World of Warcraft dwellers fighting for each step.
Despite the predictable quests, bugs and missing features, the game's combat system and free-for-all player-versus-player combat serve as a strong incentive to play. Instead of using a click to auto-attack system, the game requires you hit a key for every sword swipe.
Rumors and complaints were fueled by FunCom's initial silence on the matter, but the company issued a statement earlier today indicating the gender difference was unintentional. "There should of course be no difference between a male and a female character of the same class (other than the looks)," FunCom Community Manager Oliver Kunz said in a forum post. "But we have gathered the feedback about this and are looking into it."
If you try daytime questing during your first 20 levels, you'll eventually realize that none of the early quests require grouping, either. A cloth-wearing priest can easily solo a level 20 "group" quest that is supposedly designed for multiple players.
It's certain that Funcom will alter the game over time, but as it stands now, a strong desire for PvP is the only compelling argument for subscribing to Age of Conan.
Social Updates: Funcom plans on making the game more social and fun. First up. combo-based dancing. Get your groove on. Top that off with the usual quest updates, and your schedule is pretty heavy for the rest of the year. For more info about the Bounty System and the eventual ASnti-Greifing Prison System, check out The MMO Report: Age of Conan Special.
Turbonegro has yet to appear in Rock Band in any form. The band is not known to be part of the game's upcoming downloadable content lineup, though downloadable tracks are generally announced five days in advance of their release.