Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures

"All Bow Down Before The King"

Okay. I'm going to sit here and write a review to trump all reviews. Actually, it's not going to be that good, but it should alleviate a lot of the bias going around. Keep in mind that reviews are opinions, but also keep in mind that my opinions are facts. Also, I will not compare this game to any other MMORPG, simply because it is different and I would never compare Zelda to Mario just because they are both platformers.

I'm assuming most of you already know that the atmosphere, graphics, and audio in this game
are astounding, so I won't delve into that, except I will say that I despise Tortage, it's so crowded :(

Simply put- how does this game play? Is it fun? Well, you're about to find out.

Combat is a blast. I've played over four characters and I've found it to generally be like such:
Melee and ranged damage is fun. Fatalities are exhilarating and combat is fast paced. The enemies you fight are hard enough to keep it challenging and always having to pay attention. I don't think the combat system is revolutionary, as some claim. While it seems complicated, new, exciting, and etc, it isn't quite all it's copped up to be, as it eventually just feels like you're pressing the same buttons over and over (which you are). However, the combat is saved from the realm of mundane by many skills, combos, and, of course, fatalities(I'll never get tired of seeing these) that keep it interesting for quite a long time. The fighting is fun, and the combat doesn't get repetitive easily, but it's no Mortal Kombat, folks.

One thing I'd like to delve into detail, though, is the fact that it requires some modicum of skill to be the best. You can't just spam buttons and win, you have to use them in a logical order. If an enemy is defending his head, you shouldn't waste fatigue on an overhead combo that will be parried or whatnot; instead, you should choose the combo for his weak side; however, he might switch to defend his weak side while you are still executing your combo, so be wary! It's things like this that keep it interesting.

That being said, casting is not as well-done, in my opinion. You press your buttons and your magic happens. However, I will not reserve any strong opinions on this yet, as spellweaving has some very interesting potential.

Questing is... well... questing. You go do random tasks for random people that you really don't care about in return for money and experience. Some quests are annoying, and quite a few of them require some tiring walking. That being said, for the most part I didn't notice 'the grind' and the quests are fairly easy to do, are finished fast enough, and provide good rewards.

I will not comment much on leveling as I am not level 80, but I do feel it's at an acceptable pace.

Glitches bring this game down a notch. Yes, they are to be expected, and for the most part I choose to ignore them, believing they will be fixed by Funcom eventually. The reason I am including a section about them in this review is due to the fact that, if Funcom does not address these issues, the game will fall steadily downhill, fast. Nothing gamebreaking so far, just minor annoyances that retract from the atmosphere and make you feel sort as if you're playing an incomplete game.

PvP is sort of pointless, and not very satisfying, in my opinion. However, I usually am not satisfied by things that give no reward. At the moment I find the PvP fighting to be at an acceptable level of depth, requiring more skill than level and gear. With rewards implemented, I feel this could become one of the best aspects in the game. Until then, I'll just be camping anyone who dares try and gank me. Unless they are an assassin. Then I'll just die.

Dungeons I have not had much experience in, but I severely dislike the party system. Once again, I believe Funcom will improve upon this, so I am not putting too much weight into it. The thing I'd say about it now, is that it's like a hamburger. A big, juicy hamburger. It's got all the delicious meat that you want, but it still needs some ketchup and mustard (and bacon and tomatoes, mmm) to give it a satisfying taste. With some polish, group instances could become a gigantically awesome fun event. As of now, they are simply fun. However, also keep in mind that I haven't reached end game yet.

Now, with that last sentence being said, I'm going to jump into the final point of discussion. End game. This is what will make or break this game. Right now, the game is a wheel, going down a hill. A really freaking steep hill, and the wheel having rocket propelled boosters. Conan has more than enough momentum. The only question is- what's at the bottom?

I suggest you play this game, try it out, it's got more than enough fun to keep you interested until the end game. There, you will either find your new addiction or put this game back on the shelf. If you are wary, I'd recommend waiting until players have reached the end game content to have a good opinion about this game.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 05/23/08

Game Release: Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures (US, 05/20/08)