New Games for 2012

Aion

In 2012, Aion will be closing in on its third birthday, so why is it that I think it’ll be rounding out the top ten? I’m going to go out on a limb right now and say that it really could be any number of games from the crop here in 2009 that could fill this spot, but in my opinion, Aion has the best chance.

Aion is a game designed to appeal to number of different player types: PvP, RvR, PvE, RP and others. Then, you’ve got the fact that NCsoft North America needs Aion to be a success on this side of the world. This first major launch since the cancellation of the company’s previous flagship title, Tabula Rasa, has a lot riding on its shoulders and NCsoft didn’t gain a reputation as one of the premiere publishers on this side of the world by letting opportunities pass them by in a pinch.

The real reason that I put Aion on the top of the heap though is probably the fact that it has the advantage of being a rare imported game that was designed with our market in mind. So often, Western games are marred by buggy launches that take at least a few patches to work out, losing at least some players in the process. Then, after some time has gone by we see news that the same game has launched in an Eastern market or two, more polished and more completed than it was for us. With Aion, the roles are reversed and lessons can be learned on players from another market. Maybe that’s just the shot in the arm this game needs to gain the kind of popularity that will see it on the Top 10 charts in 2012.

More games fo 2012...