Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures Preview

[GameBanshee News]

AtomicGamer is the latest to preview FunCom's upcoming MMO Age of Conan.

Age of Conan gets rid of the traditional "auto-attack plus specials" melee system that has been going on since EverQuest. Instead, you must choose between a left, center, or right attack every time, and your special moves are actually combos that you activate and then perform with a sequence of regular attacks. It's a good system that adds a bit of action to the experience. Playing as a caster is pretty similar to other MMOs, though, so if you want to take advantage of the higher level of action that I'm sure will be advertised on Age of Conan's box box, don't play a caster. Otherwise, a feat system similar to World of Warcraft's talents and a pretty familiar interface will greet you. There are no stats in this game, however, and instead leveling will give you skill points you can put into things that WoW had as trade skills. There's climbing, the ability to regenerate mana or health faster, hiding and seeing hidden people, and quite a bit more. These changes are permanent, too, so it's important to choose wisely.