I'm getting deeper and deeper into the AA 'verse with the beta, and the more I see of it, the more I like it! Yes, things are pretty restricted right now for the beta, but if you step back and realize that its just a small part of what seems to be a pretty indepth and expansive overall game world... well I'll just say that I for one see all sorts of potential!

And yes, at its very basic core its a pretty simple "drive and shoot" mechanic, but it has the potential to go way beyond that and will likely morph itself into several variants before all is said and done - most MMORPGs well after launch have several tweak stages they go thru where some pretty technical changes are made to the the core mechanics of the system. Thats just how it works.

It's a little wierd to me right now, actually, that one of the things I like about it the most is also one of the things I don't like! The crafting mechanism is essentially a "repair" step - you don't really learn how to ever make an original item! Say I managed to loot a good front-mounted machine gun, one with a +20 accuracy and good damage. I use my Reverse Engineer skill to "break" it, and then when I "repair" it, assuming my Projectile weapons crafting skill is high enough, I have a good chance of memorizing the recipe. Then I can make more. And if I have a good expirementation crafting skill, I can possibly add ingredients to the recipe and risk giving it another ability, say a +3% to its range or something. But I cannot just make a gun without first breaking one. A different take on crafting to be sure!