Age of Conan Tries to Remedy Low Numbers

If you’re a former subscriber to Age of Conan, than you’re sure to have heard about Funcom’s latest drive to get you back into the game.  While Age of Conan may have been the best selling MMORPG release of 2008, it failed to meet expectations and even worse was the player retention.  Make no mistake, Funcom knows how to recover a slow start which is proven from the rebound of Anarchy Online.  The Age of Conan that launched is certainlty different from today's version, which has been helped by the addition of Game Director Craig Morrison and several new game overhauls.  Of course some bill this as a desparate attempt to lure in gamers by basically giving it away, but the truth is that this something that makes sense if you want to bring back players that may not have enjoyed the initial version of the game. 

For those that may be sceptical about paying for a game they had written off, the developer is giving all previous subscribers two weeks of free game play for those that come back within the month of November, and double experience during those two weeks; additionally, if these players re-subscribe, Funcom has prepared a bunch of stacking goodies to sink your teeth into:

·    One month subscription:  seven additional days.
·    Three month subscription:  guaranteed spot in open beta for The Secret World.
·    Six month subscription:  receive an in-game level 40 helmet with a 10 percent XP modifier.
·    Twelve month subscription:  receive a free copy of the Rise of the Godslayer expansion.

This aggressive move by Funcom shows their confidence that AOC has changed dramatically since launch.  While the one month bonus doesn’t seem amazing, the three, six, and twelve month bonuses are sure tempting; and remember, these are stacking bonuses, so the longer the subscription the sweeter the deal.

“Limiting options to gamers will not relieve piracy or hacking because it is the natural progression of today’s retail model,” says Joshua Hong, CEO of GamersFirst. “The Free2Play model has consistently gained momentum because it allows the gamer to build around their game activity without the need for a cash investment.  GamersFirst has built a strong and loyal community, based on principles that put joy back into the gaming experience.”

The highly anticipated Demon Dragon will be making its introduction into Runes of Magic, along with a reworked crafting system when patch ‘2.1.3 – Lair of the Demon Dragon’ launches on Thursday, 19th November. Ready to defend itself against the onslaught of players that will be making raids to down it, the Demon Dragon (flame dragon Gestero) is camped within the Aotulia Volcano and will present one of the most difficult tests of Runes players since launch. 

Along with patch 2.1.3, Runes of Magic will also be gaining the use of a twelve man raid dungeon.  The updated crafting system is mainly a user interface improvement but will also allow 2 additional levels of item rarity.

Along with these content changes, there will be events tied to the patch launch with an ‘Autumn Banquet’ that is giving players a harvest thanksgiving festival where all sorts of delicious treats and varied tasks will be on offer.  Gift tables are spread across the entire continent and are filled with food. Daily quests in and around the acquisition of supplies, or gathering resources, round off the event.

Gamers can get registered to play at the official site www.runesofmagic.com.

"The second closed beta for Mercenary Wars provided us with valuable feedback on how players interact with the game and areas where we need improvement," said Chris Keswani, Marketing Manager of Uforia.
"Hosting this third closed beta allows us to gain even more feedback and give our players better content."

Closed Beta 3 Official Event Details - In addition to the closed beta 3 test, players can also participate in the Night at the Museum event from November 16th at 5 PM through November 19th at 5 PM. During the event period, each kill made in the new Museum Map will be counted as a raffle ticket. Kills made in the mode "Plant the Bomb" will be counted as two raffle tickets and detonating and defusing a bomb will count as 4 raffle tickets. At the end of the event Uforia will tally up the tickets and randomly pick three players to win a Razer eXactMat Gaming Mouse Pad.