It’s hard to believe just how quickly Issue 10 was tossed into closed beta testing. Now there’s video’s and open testing. Is it really going to be as good as it seems? The short answer is probably hell yes! This issue offers several things that people seem to be have been wanting for a long time.
The biggest thing happening is, of course, the Rikti Invasion! I can see how this may not appeal to some people, but personally, I’m looking forward to this intensely. With the exception of the Giant Monsters during the Halloween event. I was not around for the other invasion events, and they all seemed like fun with a capital F! So now I can go and kick Rikti around the streets of Paragon and the Rogue Isles with my mates, and the thought is so pleasing I can’t help but look for Rikti in the streets now, hoping they snuck the issue in and failed to mention it!
To go with the Rikti popping up everywhere, the invading force got an art upgrade as well. Oh my god! No more naked Rikti! Life will never be the same. Personally, I do think it’s an upgrade thats long overdue. So many aspects of the game need that kind of attention, I can understand why it might seem that way, but the Rikti are some serious, long term enemies, and there’s actually very little variation. It will be nice to see new and interesting Rikti – though we can hope it’s just before kicking their butts.
Issue 10 also gives us another updated zone, this time the Rikti Landing Zone, which will become the Rikti War Zone. However, the best part, in my opinion, is the fact the zone will cross factions, allowing Hero-Villain teams to work together to face the Rikti threat! When I think how much I loved the Hero-Villain teams during the Christmas event, I can hardly wait to see this implemented. To be the icing on the cake, this zone is a level thirty five to fifty zone, giving a whole new slough of content for the Heroes and Villains in this range.
There’s some new invention recipes and the Vanguard, who are in charge of the Rikti War Zone, sell these off for merit points, which, apparently, are not to difficult to obtain once you do the first few missions in the zone. After you do those missions, you get merits for doing what you want to do anyways – beat up Rikti!
Now, the major Rikti Invasion event is only going to last for a short time, and you can be sure I’ll be enjoying it as much as I possibly can! However, the Rikti War Zone will have a brand new Task Force as well, which, apparently, will trigger one of the random zone invasions even after the main event stops, so we can still enjoy the fun of the Rikti invading random zones and dropping bombs on us. In other words, just because the main event is over, doesn’t mean the Heroes and Villains get to sit back and relax. The Rikti are here to stay, and are determined to stomp us all into the ground!
Over all, this looks like one heck of an issue, and following so close on the heels of Issue 9 and the invention system it’s looking like the Developers are still as in love with the game as the players. So I’ll see you out there, kicking the Rikti back off our world. -@Mialiah
