With the success of Guild Wars, NCsoft is once again entering MMO territory with their latest game, Aion: Tower of Eternity. Last seen at E3 in 2007, Aion: Tower of Eternity was made available to the public at this year’s Penny Arcade Expo. NCsoft blends the best of both worlds in this game, by taking the art direction from Eastern-style MMOs and combining it with the gameplay of Western-style MMOs.

The planet Atreia has been destroyed. It has been reduced to a pathetic, apple core-shaped mass. Three major races live on what remains of Atreia and are locked in a hellish war. The Elyos live on the north side of Atreia and thus are fortunate to have sunlight. They can be described as radiant and angelic, but somewhat arrogant. On the south side are the Asmodians, who don’t benefit from the sun’s rays. They’re not as physically attractive as the Elyos and sport claws and leathery wings. While neither side is inherently good or evil, the Balaur is a different story. This race lives in the Abyss, located in the “apple core” that is Atreia.

You can choose to play as an Elyos or Asmodian (the Balaur are NPCs), and from there can choose a class. You start out with four standard classes: warrior, mage, scout, or priest. However, you pick a subclass when you hit level 10. For example, a mage can become either a sorcerer or spiritmaster, while a warrior can choose between a gladiator and templar. Character customization progresses even further at level 20, with the stigma system. This allows you to equip skills as if you were equipping a weapon. For example, a warrior can equip some healing skills.

The game offers both PvE and PvP gameplay, but in a unique manner. In fact, NCsoft calls it PvPvE. While players can duke it out as Asmodians and Elyos in PvP, they may also be occasionally joined by the NPC Balaur for some PvE play. In fact, the Balaur may ally with one side and fight against the other, or human players may form a united front against their mysterious common enemy.

One of the most talked-about features in Aion: Tower of Eternity is flight. At level 10 your character receives a pair of wings and can fly around for a short period of time. As you level, you’ll be able to increase your flying time with special items. Flying isn’t just a method of travel, however. There will be quests that require you to fly on tops of very tall trees, for example. Best of all is that you can fight while in the air.