Rest in peace Age of Conan

No game in my honest opinion has done so many things right, that will go down in history as such a catastrophic failure as AoC. Now, not everyone has played AoC, those who didn't buy it right away will probably never pick it up. It only sold 15 k copies in its second month on shelves. And, that being the case, I would like note the parts of AoC that are truly lamentable in their absence from the genre.

- The graphics have to be mentioned first. For any kind of game, on any system, AoC would still be a stunning game to behold. This unfortunately for Failcom was a double edged sword. On the one hand, it set AoC apart from the other cartoony/late Xbox-quality graphics that are commonplace in the genre. And, On the other it placed a C-Peen-barricade in front of most newly-bored technically deficient WoW players.

- The character creation in AoC was simply fantabulous. If you spent enough time working with it you could make almost anything you wanted. I literally spent hours making chars, deleting them, and then remaking different looking ones.

- AoC's music really can't be overstated in it's quality or epic'ness. The composer though obviously overqualified to be working in the game industry, will probably never be rewarded for his work, since AoC's production is now nothing more than a ghost story for MMO developers. From the perfectly suited pirate music of Tortage, the sweeping middle-eastern inspired music of Stygia, the grand echoing anthems of Aquilonia, to the haunting angelic ballads that coarse through the valleys of Cimmeria. AoC's music bleeds authenticity and surrounds the player in the loving embrace of World of Conan. The music of the different lands in the game are meshed seamlessly with random battle music, that really catches the feeling of an epic battle scene in a movie.

- Though these pleasures would have all been easily passed by if the combat wasn't engaging. But, engaging the player in combat is exactly what AoC's combat mechanics were designed to do. Every move requires a string of button commands, that make fighting feel more like the player is performing a dance of death at the expense of their usually headless opponents. Headless not because it because of horrendous AI like MGS 4, but because the player, both caster and melee characters have fatalities that though available from level one, increase in their variety as the player levels.

- The landscapes of AoC were functionally disconnected by, irritatingly frequent and extremely awkward loading screens guised as wagon trips. But, once the loading screen dissipated the zones were just amazing.
- After leaving the Jerusalem inspired Stygian capitol Khemi, I hopped on a boat to the nearest starting zone. I stepped off the row-boat lightly banked on the close side of what was unmistakeably designed to be the Nile River. The water looked amazing, I really couldn't resist my urge to go get a glass of cold water. When, I returned to the keyboard I did a quick turnabout to see what this new zone looked like. But, immediately I was left aghast by what seemed a unpossibly huge black pyramid towering in the distance. Forsaking all near by quest givers, I cut a swath through lion packs, caravan robbers, and massive black rhinos, but the closer I felt I was to the pyramid the more it began to dawn on me that the pyramid far bigger than I had first believed. Approximately half the zone away on a map, 3/4's the size of the Barrens. The gates of the pyramid immediately sent me into flashbacks of the Mummy movies. 2 impressive golden statues of Stygians gods guard a shadowy hallway descending into the bowels of the burial chambers built around the entrance of the pyramid.

- In the Aquilonian starting zone, a gigantic mountain range is topped by a menacing gray castle which is visible from almost anywhere in the zone.

- A jungle nearer Stygia is covered in lusciously emerald-green foliage, teaming with flocks of enemies looking more like the Bird-predators from post-mammal-rising BC age.

- The Animations in AoC were really the best in any game yet made in my opinion. The motions were fluid, satisfying, and visceral all without being overly floaty in regards to game terrain.

- The mounts in AoC were incredibly beautiful and very nicely animated but, nothing that would make them worth lamenting. The movements, and controls of the mounts however were really something special . They had weight, mass and a very well tuned sense of momentum that almost made it feel more like I was playing Oblivion and less like a MMO.

- AoC's dungeons/instances are behind the intimidating doors of structures that have lorded over your view for large segments of leveling, as nothing more than a reminder of what adventures await you around the next level.

- The loot you get from these dungeons are surprisingly accurately modeled after real world armor of the ancient world. Roman/Greek legionary's gear, Celtic/Germanic tribes furs and horns, and exotic light armors inspired by the Egyptians and late Muslim forces of the Crusades.

These things add together making AoC feel extremely epic and amazingly grand. This feeling makes imagining yourself in a fantasy epic almost unavoidable. And, with characters that can be so uniquely yours thanks to the character creater, AoC becomes an adventure, that though never ultimately rewarding or well polished, is hard not to be intoxicated by.