I rolled characters only on PTS2 (the media test server that was also used for first week pre-orders) on purpose since I wanted to see how the more heavily trafficked server would handle the added load from the public (more on that below). PTS3 is the second test server for Unchained.
Questing and leveling in 6.0 (Shadows Revealed) for the free to play and Unchained versions of ArcheAge seems to have some minor streamlining as well as the Twitch live stream mentioned experience changes (since Dwarves and Warborns used to level faster than the other races). I can’t say for sure though since the last time I leveled on live was back in 2016 (it felt a lot slower).
Main story questing to level 30 happens at a fairly faster pace from what I remember. At certain points, quest completion provides a teleport scroll to move you quickly to the next objective. The game also provides more tutorials for upgrading equipment (since starting with 6.0, your main story quest gear is used to upgrade all the way to max level Hiram gear). So you begin infusing that initial equipment the game provides and then awakening it to the next tier (doing that as you level when the story rewards you with infusions and awakening scrolls). The leveling XP does drop after level 30 (where the main story for your race ends and the progression takes you through the open world PvP zones).
It took me less than 4 hours to get to 30 via only the main story (I’m leveling a Harani and Dwarf; Harani has less combat related quests compared to the Dwarf but I’m actually getting to 30 a little bit faster on the latter). I’ve purposely tried to stay online as much as possible to see if there were any instabilities; so far, no disconnects and just one CTD unlike the multiple I had earlier. Rolling characters on PTS2 also allowed me to see what sort of progression the first week players have been able to achieve when it came to housing (right now, there are various stages of constructions; the ones no-lifing the PTS already have completed structures). Some public farms (in the Harani area) are packed with trees (I didn’t really see this in the Dwarf area).
Performance wise, there are spots where it takes awhile for other players and NPC’s to render though (doesn’t matter if the client is also installed on SSD). There are also minor visual issues like variable labels displayed instead of your character name during quests, text kerning issues where text is truncated, occasional graphical glitches (especially in snowy environments where it periodically does this annoying flash; disabling weather effects helps reduce but not completely eliminate it) that have carried over from the existing free to play version. The updated client still lacks decent UI scaling for even 1440p though (so 4K is going to be an eyestrain when it comes to any text).
Regarding the marketplace, it is most definitely tame compared to the existing live version. Given that the Unchained PTS servers are still connected to the existing currency (so basically credits for the live version are what is linked and will probably remain this way until the Unchained service goes live, where the PTS for it will then be able to link to that data). The same goes with Patron (which will always be active on Unchained) where the loyalty benefit is also acquirable on the Unchained PTS, but unusable (since there is no loyalty shop). I’m still evaluating the prices they have listed on both the credit and Diligence shops.
As Gamigo also noted, they enabled Easy Anti-Cheat with the public access version (they had to disable it for the media access and initial week for pre-orders due to game client issues); it remains to be seen if they can thwart most of the common exploits that have plagued the live version since launch. This Friday’s live stream should have some interesting metrics as well as insight if they will stick with the October 15th launch. The most surprising aspect has been the lack of queues (considering that it is now open to the public but without the population caps in place during the first week). After being able to stay connected without issues for several hours, I then began exiting out and launching again to see if I would end up in a queue. Even on day 2 during prime time, no queues (the text may show “queue” on the server selection screen).
This tells me that even with pre-orders, the level of actual interest is going to probably be manageable for Gamigo. There are presumably many still waiting on pulling the trigger on pre-ordering (or maybe planning to just wait and see how the actual launch goes). Myself, I’m probably going to decide after this Friday’s live stream.
