Aion's $9.99 Valentine's Packs Draw Community Ire
While it was noted just yesterday that NCsoft would be launching their Paid Account Services for Aion players who were unsatisfied with their characters' name, physical appearance or gender, it seems as though the team had even more in store (literally!) for Valentine's Day enthusiasts. In celebration of Valentine's Day on Sunday, February 14th, NCsoft announced to players that they would be selling two special Valentine's Day packages in their NCsoft store for the price of $9.99 USD per package.
The first package, the "True Love Package," offers 5 "True Red" dyes, 10 Love Potions, a Sunflower Headband and a Heart Emote. The second package, titled the "Chocolate Valentine Pack" offers 5 "Hot Pink" dyes, 10 pieces of Dark Chocolate, a Tulip Headband and the Flowers emote.
While players initially believed that the emotes were unique to the Valentine's packages and that the Love Potions / Dark Chocolates offered some unique benefits (perhaps an +XP% bonus, like Lodas Amulets), it was soon discovered that players could easily purchase the "Heart" and "Flowers" emotes for a mere 10,000 kinah from Seraphim, in Pandemonium (just south of the Capital Building), and Andreas, in Sanctum (in the Outer Docks). In addition to this, the 10 consumable Valentine's Day treats (the Love Potions and the Dark Chocolates) were merely Aether Jellies and Greater Recovery Serums in disguise, respectively; items that cost only a few thousand kinah on most servers.
Ultimately, Aion fans around the world are disgruntled by the fact that these $9.99 USD packages only offer Sunflower / Tulip headbands and 5 "True Red" / "Hot Pink" dyes as unique items, while the rest can be easily found in-game. ZAM readers, do you feel that it's worth it to pay $10 for a floral-themed hat and 5 red / pink colour dyes?