Once again I find myself impressed by the sheer variety found in each zone NCsoft has revealed for the eagerly anticipated massively multiplayer game, though in Eltnen's case, I'm even more impressed by the music. It's the type of music I could easily fall asleep to, and being a relatively hardcore online role-playing game player that's the sort of feature I look for in a game like Aion.

Check out the official description of the Eltnen zone below.

Once the breadbasket of Elysea, Eltnen is now threatened by an encroaching desert. Lady Yustiel, one of the gods of the Elyos, has established several Mystic Springs in hopes of revitalizing the area, but so far there has been little improvement. Could there be a saboteur in the mix? As if this weren't enough, the area is also under attack from mutant wildlife, alluring succubi, statues that have come to life, volcanic spirits, and of course the ever-present Krall. The Daevas are mustering their forces, preparing to defend their ethereal fortress to the death, if that's what it takes.

They completely had me at alluring succubi.

Having not actually played Aion I don't suppose I can really comment on the heim levels of any particular zone, but people don't generally name online game zones ironically. Everquest's Everfrost is permanently frozen. World of Warcraft's Burning Lands are technically burning. You don't name a zone Morheim unless there's an abundant supply of heim nearby.

It's not all sunshine and rainbows in Aion, and this latest batch of teasing screenshots features some rather dismal-looking places and twisted creatures. Of course they still deliver more than the recommended daily allowance of pretty characters standing about looking attractive, but I'm relatively sure they are required to include those by law. I'm hoping the final game contains some sort of reward system for just standing around being attractive for screenshots, because I believe I could excel in that area.

There's something for everyone in today's batch of goodies for the upcoming massively multiplayer online game Aion: The Tower of Eternity, except of course people who wish to actually play the game. No, instead NCsoft has offered up a batch of screens depicting gorgeous people, places, and things doing stuff. If you're more into the whole specifics thing, then the lengthy three-part history of the game's setting should have plenty of information to help tide you over for the next five minutes. After that, you're on your own.

Aion Story: Part 1
The creation of Atreia remains a mystery even to its earliest inhabitants. The existence of Aion, the powerful entity who created it, exists as the only immutable fact surrounding the celestial event. An ageless deity with authority over the cosmos, Aion took the shape of a colossal tower as it presided over the formation of Atreia, and its earliest species, called the Draken. As a master watchmaker would construct an elegant timepiece, Aion molded and shaped every mountain, valley and continent on the planet.

In its nativity, the world of Atreia stood as the pinnacle of creation. Beautiful and pure, life flourished within the interior of the planet where Aion had positioned itself as a wondrous structure known as The Tower of Eternity. The tower pierced the sky and connected one side of the world to the other. A monument to the greatness of Aion, The Tower of Eternity eclipsed everything on Atreia.

The Tower anchored the world as much as the lives of the Draken living on it. However, the Draken were not the only species on the planet. As mysterious as the creation of the world itself, and of the powerful Draken, stood the birth of other sentient species, known as the Sapiens. Humankind was another such species. Humans lived and flourished throughout the known world, nurtured physically and spiritually by the Tower of Eternity and a reverence to Aion. Humans served Aion with humility and were provided with everything they needed through the nurturing glow of the Tower. Life prospered for thousands of years under this celestial arrangement.

Until the day the Draken grew tired of their role as simple stewards of the planet. A mentally and physically superior race to the Humans, and also the Sapiens, the Draken proved a sobering test for the sentient species of Atreia as they grew increasingly violent, bent on conquering everything in their path. As the years dragged on and the Draken's thirst for power grew stronger, the fertile pastures of Atreia were stained crimson with the blood of the dead. Entire species vanished under the cruel eyes of the Draken; others were enslaved and used against the Humans, who stood as the only species on Atreia who fought valiantly against their new adversaries in hopes of stabilizing their way of life.

The Draken swelled in numbers in their campaign against the races of Atreia and they grew increasingly confident and prideful. Before long, the Draken would turn their backs on their creator altogether and forge ahead as a completely autonomous race. Organized through a leadership caste of five Draken – christened the Dragon Lords – the Draken relinquished the name Aion bestowed on them and chose another, the Balaur. The awakening of the Balaur changed the course of Atreia forever.

The humans gathered their numbers and rallied in defense of their world and of Aion, who they still served through their struggle against the Balaur. Sadly, the Humans offered little challenge for their cruel oppressors. The Balaur massacred thousands upon thousands of Humans as they fought to dominate the planet. Out of desperation, Aion created an elite group of 12 guardians to assist the Humans in protecting the Tower of Eternity and restore order in Atreia. These guardians became known as the Empyrean Lords. To further assist the Humans and their newly appointed protectors, Aion created a substance called Aether that lent strength and powerful abilities to those who knew how to manipulate it.

The stage had been set for a battle that would literally tear Atreia apart…

Aion Story: Part 2 – The Millennium War

The fighting continued.

The twelve Empyrean Lords, who Aion appointed to protect the world of Atreia and its inhabitants, fought bravely against the Balaur oppressors for years. Appearing as winged and luminescent beings, the Empyrean Lords were admired and worshipped by the Humans for their bravery and unflinching loyalty to preserving life and a reverence to Aion. The two leaders of the Empyrean Lords – Siel and Israphel –assumed guardianship of the Tower of Eternity. While dissimilar in thought and character, Siel and Israphel united in defense of the Tower.

To assist in the battle against the Balaur, Aion gifted the Empyrean Lords with a powerful substance known as Aether. An energy source with limitless potential, the use of Aether was limited to the pure and devout. This included a select group of Human followers. The Empyrean Lords would identify and handpick certain Humans to undergo a physical and spiritual transformation known as Ascension, which saw each Human candidate infused with the power of Aether. As part of the Ascension process, massive wings would erupt from the backs of each Human, gifting them with the power of flight.

More and more Humans experienced Ascension and received the gift of flight. These select Human followers became known as Daevas and streaked through the skies of Atreia as god-like beings, revered and admired by all followers of Aion. Humans incapable of experiencing Ascension came to believe the Daevas were sent by Aion to destroy the Balaur and protect the world. In a way, that perfectly described their arrival and purpose. The numbers of Daevas multiplied under the watchful eyes of the Empyrean Lords, who led the Daevas into battle against the Balaur forces day and night.

But the ancient Balaur proved formidable opponents. Organized and guided by the five Dragon Lords — Fregion as their leader, followed by Meslamtaeda, Ereshkigal, Vritra, and Tiamat – the Balaur clawed their way through Human and Daeva alike in their campaign for domination. The conflict between the forces of Aion and the Dragon Lords soon escalated from isolated battles into full-scale war. Unimaginable carnage and terror gripped the once peaceful hillsides of Atreia for decades. In hopes of protecting itself from the advancing Balaur, Aion manifested an Aetheric Field around the colossal Tower and the surrounding area.

The newly erected Aetheric Field sparked with energy as the Balaur attempted to break through it. In spite of their efforts, the field withstood even the strongest of attacks and gleamed steadfast in the face of the Dragon Lords and their Balaur followers. But the field had a vital flaw, which the enemies of Aion exploited to the fullest. While the field provided absolute protection for everything it reached, anything left outside of the field lay vulnerable to attack. Knowing this the Balaur showed no mercy and tried to lure the Empyrean Lords out of the sheltering glow of the field. Everything outside of the field vanished under the burning hatred and malice of the Balaur. Rivers turned red form the blood of the fallen and mountains turned to cinder.

The war raged on the outskirts of the field where Daevas and the Empyrean Lords fought bravely against their enemies. Despite the bravery and ferocity displayed on each side of the conflict, each soon realized the futility of the situation. The Balaur could not enter the field to destroy the Tower and the Empyrean Lords and their Daevas could not venture outside the Aetheric Field long enough to secure a decisive victory.

Aion Story: Part 3 – The Epic Cataclysm

The Millennium War raged on with massive casualties on both sides of the conflict. In order to better organize their ranks of loyal Daevas against the Balaur, the Empyrean Lords sanctioned a new body known as the Nobelium. The Nobelium would then move throughout the Daeva recruits and organize them into finely honed combat groups, known as Legions. These newly appointed combat groups kept the Balaur at bay and helped establish years of tepid peace alongside the impenetrable Aetheric Field, established to protect The Tower of Eternity.

And for a time, life went on for the Human inhabitants of Atreia. Protected by the Aetheric Field, and the Daeva Legions, Humans would go about their business and try to forget the hordes of Balaur ravaging the countryside. After years of violence and terrible bloodshed, this limited existence marked a huge improvement for the population of Atreia. But the stalemate came at a huge cost to the Empyrean Lords and their Daeva followers. While life prospered within the radiance of the Aetheric Field, thousands of Daevas lost their lives in defense of it, as the war continued with no end in sight. The cost of the war began haunting the Balaur, as well, as the Five Dragon Lords committed more and more of their number to attacking the Daevas.

Both sides realized the war would never end if things continued unchanged. And then, whispers of peace sprung among the Empyrean Lords. Initiated by Israphel, one of the more daring Lords, the notion of peace soon blossomed into a full proposal brought before the other Lords. Though noble, the proposal divided the followers of Aion for the first time since the conflict began. Certain Lords desired peace, while others considered the Balaur and the Dragon Lords as a cancer on Atreia, long overdue for removal. Israphel believed a truce was the only way to end the war long enough to stabilize Atreia, and seeing no other alternative, Israphel tried convincing the other Empyrean Lords to present his peace plan to the Dragon Lords.

A string of heated debates and discord followed. The Lords would argue the particulars of the plan, for and against. One of them, Asphel, dissented more than the others. He vehemently disagreed due to his utter revulsion of the Balaur and stood firm, preferring to fight until one side eventually triumphed over the other. Knowing full well that Daevas and Balaur alike were dying while the Empyrean Lords argued, Israphel decided to forge ahead with a sole ally, Lady Siel. They would offer the Dragon Lords peace without approval from the remaining Lords. And that's exactly what happened.

Before long, the Dragon Lords and their escorts stood outside the Aetheric Field, having relayed acknowledgment of the peace proposal. They simply stood and waited, apprehensively. Uncertainty still plagued the Empyrean Lords, though the Balaur had made the first gesture of good faith by appearing with only a small contingent of elite warriors. The Empyrean Lords made the next move and lowered the Aetheric Field for the Balaur to enter. For the first time in many, many years, the Tower of Eternity sat vulnerable to attack, with the Balaur a stone's throw away. As a further test of good faith, the five Dragon Lords were asked to enter the Tower alone.
They agreed and entered. The discussions began peacefully. Dragon Lord Fregion and Empyrean Lady Siel began the arduous task of healing centuries of hatred and violence through diplomacy. Each side presented their terms during the ceremony. And for a fleeting moment, it appeared as though Atreia would experience peace for the first time since anyone could remember. What happened next remains a mystery on both sides, as neither side has a full recollection of the events that transpired during the ceremony. What is known is that violence erupted in the middle of the proceedings from an assassination attempt on one of the Dragon Lords. In the blink of an eye, a ferocious battle broke out within the very heart of the Tower. It happened so unexpectedly, in fact, that Siel and Asphel failed to activate the Aetheric Field.

The Tower of Eternity, which lay at the heart of the planet, began to fracture and crumble as the Dragon Lords and Empyrean Lords fought for their lives. Lord Asphel headed to the North end of the Tower while his opponent, Lady Ariel, took to the South, each hoping to play their part in the saving of the world. Regardless of their courage, all of Atreia would break apart unless the Tower itself survived. The two harbingers of the peace proposal, Israphel and Siel, took it on themselves to save the Tower. In an act of pure desperation and guilt, both Lords consumed themselves saving what they could, extinguishing their Aetheric Energy in the process. Their actions, brave in the face of certain death, succeeded in rekindling the Aetheric Field. The two Lords narrowly saved the whole of the planet.

These events, known as the Epic Cataclysm, would usher in a new era for Atreia.

Until we have a solid date on when we'll be able to step foot in the lovely places displayed in videos for zones like Poeta, Atlgard, and now this one for the island of Ishalgen, all these clips amount to is painful teasing. NCsoft has fans among acquaintances of mine who have been foaming at the month for this game for a year, and they don't really need the extra foam.

Maybe a little sprinkle of cinnamon, but definitely no extra foam.

Ishalgen

The island of Ishalgen is a fragment of Asmodae, slowly being pulled apart by several warring factions. The Ulgorn Bandits have established themselves quite comfortably within the Aldelle Village, claiming both the breathtaking Lake Tunapre as well as the mysterious Munihele Forest as their own. Tensions run high within the Odella Plantation, where the fierce Gray Mane Mau have enslaved the Dundun Skurvs to cultivate Odella. Suspicious by nature, the Ulgorn Bandits have found themselves with even more to worry about, as a strange ship carrying unfamiliar faces has recently shown up along the Anturoon Coast. The Ishalgen Prison Camp with its seething hordes of undead remains one of the few uncontested regions of the island, although it is rumored to harbor a powerful secret.

I think Aion finally has me now. After seeing this video and last week's, I haven't wanted to explore a massively-multiplayer world this badly since Square Enix released the graphical benchmark for Final Fantasy XI. Of course that game wound up disappointing me completely, but it was a very pretty sort of disappointment.

Watching the video I can begin to see why fans have latched onto the game with such utter devotion. The damn game looks absolutely gorgeous...definitely a step or two above your average massively multiplayer Korean import. These are definitely places I'd like to get killed in, and with every location in the video residing in just one zone, I can only imagine what other sights await western gamers once the game sees release this fall.

Check out a full description of the Altgard zone below in order to get a better idea of what exactly it is you are looking at.

Altgard

Altgard is a place of extremes, from the Altgard Ice Lake, where the Archon Daevas defend the beautiful Altgard Fortress, which juts out of the ice like a bizarre skeleton, to the lush Moslan Forest, teeming with life. But throughout the region, a clear, brittle light is given by the strange phosphorescent plants that have evolved over the centuries since the Cataclysm.

In Asmodae it is very apparent just how much the modern Humans and Daevas live amongst the ruins of the ancient civilizations that once thrived there, and Altgard is no exception. Impetusium, once an arena, and Urutemheim, built as a monument to heroes long-forgotten, stand as imposing memorials of what once was.

Meanwhile, the Black Claw Mau, a race of fierce cat-warriors, continue to encroach on Asmodian territory, defending their villages and their most sacred places wth a terrifying vehemence.

New Aion U.S. community manager Lani "Liv" Blazier answered some of the biggest questions North American and European fans had regarding the release of the fantasy role-playing game, indicating a fall 2009 release for both territories. Why is it taking so long for NCsoft West to bring the popular Korean game to the west?

The localization effort is enormous, with a vast amount of content. Aion is not simply being translated, a team of dedicated content writers are re-creating the written dialogue and content to provide AAA quality and to ensure that it is culturally relevant for our audience. We are going to do this launch "right" rather than fast.

I say hallelujah! The main problem Korean massively-mutliplayer games have when making the jump to western markets is shoddy translations making them feel rushed and sloppy. Glad to see they're taking the time to hopefully get this one right. If NCsoft West does it right, then maybe other online game operators will follow suit.

A Letter To Our Fans [Official Aion Website via Eurogamer]

“The response we’re seeing in Korea is incredibly exciting,” said David Reid, president of publishing for NCsoft West in Seattle. “Our Aion community in North America and Europe is also rapidly growing. We’ve got aggressive plans for the western launch in 2009”.

See, now Aion has always seemed to me to be one of those Korean titles that looks extremely pretty but then fails to impress you once you are actually online playing it. Is Aion going to be different? Come on, I know some of you have played. Tell me!

Aion: The Tower of Eternity Breaking Beta Test Records in Korea

Commercial launch for NCsoft game only weeks away in Korea; North American and European launches set for 2009

SEOUL, Korea, Nov. 14, 2008—One of the most highly anticipated massively multiplayer online (MMO) games, Aion®: The Tower of Eternity™ from NCsoft®, is already showing signs of reaching hit status in only a matter of days since open beta testing kicked off earlier this week. Aion is scheduled to launch in Korea within the year and launches in China, North America, Europe and Japan are planned for 2009.

Since Tuesday’s launch of open beta testing in Korea, concurrent user numbers have already jumped to more than 170,000 players, making it the most popular beta event in Korean history. According to NCsoft officials, more than 11,000 people were logged into the game after only two minutes of open beta service. In less than an hour, that number had ballooned to 40,000. Currently the number of concurrent players has leapt up to more than 170,000.

To meet the unprecedented demand by gamers, NCsoft rapidly expanded to 25 servers over the first few hours of opening the beta. Even with the increased number of servers, tens of thousands of people were waiting to enter the game. By the second day of open beta, the game reached the top spot in Korea’s Gametrics web site that rates games that are played in Korea’s PC Café industry.

Aion is an epic fantasy MMO that combines an eastern-style focus on visuals and design with western action-oriented gameplay. In Aion, players must fight to save a beautiful and vibrant world ripped asunder by a celestial war; during their adventures, players will ascend to divinity and earn the ability to fly. Flight adds a fun and strategic dimension to the gameplay of Aion and is integral to combat, exploration, harvesting and more.

“The response we’re seeing in Korea is incredibly exciting,” said David Reid, president of publishing for NCsoft West in Seattle. “Our Aion community in North America and Europe is also rapidly growing. We’ve got aggressive plans for the western launch in 2009”.

For more information on Aion, go to http://www.aiononline.com.

Advanced character class system gives players ultimate control of their destiny in NCsoft's Aion: The Tower of Eternity

NCsoft reveals the detailed character class system behind its eagerly anticipated MMORPG, Aion: The Tower of Eternity.
Wednesday 19th December/... Massively Multiplayer Online RPG fans can look forward to a wealth of career opportunities in NCsoft's forthcoming Aion: The Tower of Eternity next year, with gamers able to literally choose their destiny thanks to the game's two-tiered character class system.

Characters begin their journey by choosing one of four base professions - Warrior, Scout, Mage and Priest. This initial tier of development impacts on everything from a character's strength, to their combat prowess, to their magical abilities, ultimately shaping the players actions throughout the game. However, higher-level players can tailor their character further still, with each profession offering two advanced classes, bringing the total number of character types available in Aion: The Tower of Eternity up to eight.

While the initial choice of character class will largely depend on each player's personal style, the ability to develop a character through the advanced class system ensures that players have all the tools they need to create a character that is unique to them.

The Warrior
Bold, brave and possessing immense physical prowess, Warriors excel in close-quarter combat. Strong performers in a wide range of situations, Warriors are relatively easy to master and when fully realised can unleash a spectacular range of physically devastating skills.

Depending on how players prefer to approach combat, Warriors can specialise as either Gladiators, who concentrate on dealing damage through brute force, or Templars, who combine fierce fighting with defensive chants and techniques.

The Scout
The Scout combines great agility with swift attacks. Scout players require a deft and accurate touch to get the most out of this tricky class, however the rewards are great and offer the greatest variety in play style of all the basic classes.

Scouts that specialise in ranged combat develop naturally into Rangers, an advanced class equally adept in the use of blades and traps. For those Scouts who prefer to stay hidden and strike from the shadows, the Assassin class is the perfect choice of advancement.

The Mage
Mages compensate their weakness in physical combat with the ability to launch devastatingly powerful magic attacks. In addition, Mages must learn to divert and evade the enemy so that they're able to attack from the relative safety of range.

As Mages advance, so their mastery over the elements of water, air, earth and fire increase, their choice of advanced class determining how that mastery is manifest. Spiritmasters can summon and control elemental spirits, while Sorcerers channel elemental power into fearsome magical bolts and missiles.

The Priest
Spiritual warriors, Priests can use healing and self-protection spells to excel in melee combat, and launch powerful ranged magic attacks too. This makes them not only useful support characters in a party of adventurers, but also powerful combatants in their own right.

Priests that specialise in healing and protecting their allies naturally progress to the advanced class of Cleric, the ultimate support class. Alternatively, Priests can become Chanters, pious warriors that boast both healing and ability-boosting powers.

Players will be able to experience all eight character classes for themselves while exploring the incredible world of Atreia when Aion: The Tower of Eternity launches later next year.