At the summer showcase, the NCSoft team presented the future of Aion 2. It was not only about the new content of the upcoming updates, but also about comprehensive adjustments based on community feedback.
What criticisms is Aion 2 addressing? As successful as Aion 2 was in Asia last year, the Free2Play payment model of the MMORPG faced strong criticism – with its various subscriptions, battle passes, Pay2Win elements, and restrictions for free players.
During the summer showcase on June 14, 2026 on YouTube, the developers announced that they would address some of these areas. Here are the main points regarding monetization:
- The previous subscriptions will be consolidated into one, with the new price expected to be around 16 US dollars (thus halving the current subscription costs).
- The duration of the subscription will be increased from 28 days to 30 days.
- The cap on dungeon tickets will be removed. Those who wish can thus roam the dungeons of Aion 2 endlessly and grind rewards this way.
- Pets and skins will no longer be purchased for just one character, but for the entire account. Additionally, pets will receive an automated loot collection function (previously, the function had to be triggered manually).
- All instanced PvP content will rely on normalized gear – your character’s actual equipment will not matter there.
A first step in the right direction
Is everything good now? The payment model of Aion 2 becomes more bearable with these changes, but still has some pain points. For instance, the benefits of the subscription are crucial enough that players who play regularly should probably plan for the monthly costs. Without the service, you lack access to the auction house, player trading, and currency exchange.
Moreover, you likely still need the subscription to earn the premium paths for the battle passes. Additionally, there is the real money component: You can exchange the paid currency Quna for Kina and then upgrade your gear as best as possible. Those who want to achieve this through gameplay will need a lot of time and luck due to the significant random factor.
How is the community reacting? Discussions in the western community show that the announced adjustments are far from sufficient.
- Kurtdh explains on Reddit: “As long as they don’t eliminate the Pay2Win elements, the game will be dead on release.”
- Dandy62 adds on Reddit, regarding normalized equipment in PvP: “Yes, Pay2Win has greater implications in PvP, but I don’t understand why one claims there is no P2W anymore?! P2W also affects the economy and PvE.”
- xGreir finds on Reddit clear words: “16 US dollars? So they went from shamelessly 32 in two separate subscriptions to a model that is still more expensive than a subscription-based MMO like WoW, while it continues to be marketed as F2P and has an extremely exploitative cash shop. How greedy can one be …”
What do you think? What adjustments does NCSoft need to make for Aion 2 to make the payment model fair? Feel free to let us know in the comments!
What else have the developers announced? Aion 2 is set to be significantly expanded with the upcoming updates in Asia. NCSoft promises a new class, two new regions, fresh capitals, dungeons, a battle royale mode, and much more. However, these contents are unlikely to be part of the game at global launch.
It is unclear whether the developers plan further adjustments to the payment model and other areas for the western market. We had asked the team a corresponding question and unfortunately received only feedback that they do not want to comment on this at the current time. What we believe the devs should change has already been outlined here: 4 things Aion 2 must change despite its success in Korea to rock the West
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