Aion: The ! of Diku?

Tipa, of West Karana, has a great non-NDA breaking post regarding Aion's NA beta:

But there’s no NDA that tells me I can’t talk about the players.

Take one step into the world of Aion, and from that moment on, you’re an expert player. All your years playing MMOs has prepared you for this moment, and nothing you encounter will give you a moment’s hesitation. By the end of the preview Sunday, many characters were fairly high level, guilds had been set up and there was a rough hierarchy of achiever guilds vs casual, friend-based guilds.

Tipa is addressing the general crowd that reads West Karana, which is probably the same sort of crowd that shows up around here. Mostly, veteran MMO players that have played everything from Ultima Online to World of Warcraft. More importantly, we all understand the Diku-inspired MMO structure. We have long been experts. We grind levels and loot bosses in our mother-f'n sleep.

While the Aion beta is still under NDA, there's tons of freely available information from other countries that have the Live version of the game already. A quick search for Aion on YouTube or Bing, brings up all manner of info for the game.

The general consensus is that Aion is pretty good, but derivative of all games that have come before it. Aion delivers on the basics and adds a little flair (like flying, the Abyss PvP, etc.). It's all wrapped up in a great looking package and delivered by a company with a somewhat reliable track record. Everything for Aion is in place for it to be a serious contender in the MMO space.

Where World of Warcraft was the definition of Diku-based MMOGs, it appears Aion will be the exclamation point.