For some strange reason, Aion just can't seem to get it right with their holiday in-game events.

When it comes to in-game events and Aion, most fans of this beautiful MMO will be the first to admit (quite loudly, actually!) that, for some reason or another, the two really don't mix. Yes, we can point out that Aion is a developing MMORPG, and holiday events would hardly be the first thing on their minds, but when schedules are slightly behind, nothing really boosts the community's spirit better than a well executed in-game event as a reward for your loyal fans. Unfortunately, Aion's track record for in-game events has been… well… let's say less than stellar.

Thus far, Aion has had a total of four in-game events since its launch in late September, with each obviously coinciding with our own holiday specials. The first of Aion's events, dubbed the "Harvest Revel" (Halloween) definitely intrigued many players with some fantastic lore. An excerpt from a community notice for their Harvest Revel event noted that Asmodians celebrate the Harvest Revel "by racing after the Wild Kurthanir hunt leader," and that the Elyos must "join the roving Dark Night bands to hunt and destroy the undead before they invade Elyos villages."

How awesome is that?

Unfortunately, as things turned out, when most Daevas logged in on October 25th (the beginning of the event), all they received was a small survey with some lore about the Harvest Revel and some free candy (the candy could also be crafted in-game prior to the event). Sadly enough, it seemed as though thousands of Daevas had misread the community event notice, as the last line of the event stated that players should "log in each day during Harvest Revel. Celebrate with us and every day rewards your investment with new Aion lore and tasty treats!" In other words, the lore in the surveys and the candy… was the event!

The next event that took place, dubbed the "Solorius Festival," was much better in comparison to the Harvest Revel, and while there were (as always!) complaints, there was much to the Solorius Festival that made many players happy. Specifically, unlike the Harvest Revel event, both Sanctum and Pandaemonium underwent some Christmas-themed facelifts during the event, and giant pianos were placed in both cities for Daevas to play with. As well, while holiday themed candy made its dubious return for the festival, players could also grab for themselves some Santa-themed clothing to get more into the spirit of things.

Unfortunately, like the Harvest Revel, much of the Solorius Festival had more to do with receiving a few goodies and not much else. While there was a clear consensus amongst players that this event was a marked improvement over the previous Halloween event, the one thing about improvement is that there can always be more.