LAGWAR | GAMING'S BEST IN TOP NOTCH MEDIOCRITY

World of Warcraft and Aion. They share the same relationship the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees do – they are indisputably the two biggest players in a competitive market. And just like the Yankees and Sox there is an intensely heated rivalry between their fans. Drop a post anywhere on the internet with “WoW is better than Aion” or “Aion beats WoW” in the title and watch it light up in flames like a dry Christmas tree. Since Aion debuted in North America in September there have been many salvos fired back and forth between the two giants. Normally I try to don some flame retardant clothing and keep to myself, but the most recent flame-fest has me intrigued, so here I am, entering the fray…

Raim: Bless me father for I have sinned.

Priest: (vaguely Italian accent) What have you done my son?

Raim: I have been unfaithful. I have broken the holy sacrament of game loyalty and have cheated…on World of Warcraft.

Priest: Think, my son, what caused you to commit this act?

Raim: I do not know father. WoW has always been faithful to me; she has always been there when I needed her. But I was weak. I was tempted by another game. And in a moment of weakness I created a new character with her.

Priest: This new game. What was her name?

Raim: Aion, father, her name was Aion…

I did it.
I put down my fanboy, and stepped into the role of objective critic. I’ve figured out what Aion did right, what it does so very wrong, and where it needs a few tweaks. This list should be a crystal ball since the things that are “wrong” and need to be tweaked will either [...]