Jared Rea

This week’s issue of The Escapist is up and it’s dedicated to Korean gaming. Having played just about every MMORPG on the market and tons of Pump it Up in my time, naturally, this was a perfect fit. So I went to San Francisco and checked out Aion: Tower of Eternity from NC Soft.

The current crop of Korean-developed MMORPG titles like Dream of Mirror Online, FlyFF and Rappelz are living relics of a time long forgotten. This is the climate facing Aion:The Tower of Eternity, the latest from the original Korean MMOG creators at NCsoft. Not only are they looking to wash away the sins of Korean MMOG hell with this new game, but their own distorted image as well.

If you didn’t catch the joke on the title, you should probably educate yourself on old Korean pride pop anthems. I felt it was totally appropriate.

And I quote..

I’m going to try and take it easy for the next few days, clear my head and figure out where to go from here. I have some personal stuff I can catch up on and I’ll try not to spend my days achievement whoring or picking up a new MMORPG.

- Myself, May 30, 2008

Yep, we’re totally screwed now.

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Friends and coworkers alike can tell you that I have a serious problem with MMORPG’s. Every cliché surrounding the crack-like nature of their addictiveness rings true and if I’m not looking for something to level or loot to brag about, I’m in search for the most awesome of hats to compliment my latest avatar. When I read Massively I can only imagine that this is what recovering sex addicts reading Hustler must feel like.

Which brings us to this past week and my 10-day free trial of Turbine’s other forgotten RPG, Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach. Though it’s been around for almost two years now, I’ve only ever met one person who has actually played it and that was before release even. Despite a lack of anyone I know playing it, it’s somehow been popping up more and more in conversation. Maybe everyone is burnt out of what’s available and they’re not sure about the year ahead. Regardless, I wanted to see what all the fuss, or lack of, is all about.

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