My favourite thing about Aion 2? The freedom to make a freaky lil’ guy in a world of beautiful people

Aion 2 has arrived, and there’s a lot to like if you’ve got a hankering for a new MMO: meaty combat, challenging boss encounters, a seemingly endless grind for completionists, and, yes, it’s free to play. However, one of my very favourite things about it is the character creator.

Like many South Korean MMOs, much love has been poured into Aion 2’s character creator. It comes with countless adjustable settings, allowing players to tweak each facial feature to the minutest detail, as well as some truly adventurous facial markings and hair styles. I tend to start every new MMO with a few spins of the character randomiser; fishing for inspiration with each new roll. And with Aion 2, I struck gold.

Suddenly, there he was: a tiny man with bright red eyes and green hair, his gut looming over stumpy legs; a different sort of hero. I rolled up my sleeves and started to finesse: I made his jawline flat and angular, his mouth blobfish wide. I changed his hair to the most irregular option I could find, and giggled at my ridiculous, magnificent creation.

The best video game character creators, I reckon, let you make both beauty and beast. Some people – the vast majority, perhaps – get pleasure making cool protagonists, handsome and strong in a way that plays into the classic hero fantasy. That’s okay, obviously. But the freedom to get a bit weird with it offers a different kind of joy.

Aion 2’s story is fine. It’s an unremarkable tale of grave threats and devilish forces out to do bad things to good people. But drop in a character alien to this very serious world – in both looks and vibe – and the disconnect creates friction. Story cinematics might lose their gravitas when everyone else is looming over my silly looking guy, but I get a real kick out of his jarring presence, and he brightens every step of an otherwise straight-faced adventure.

Take pets, for example. Much of Aion 2’s customisation and player power comes from these collectibles. They’re found by killing enemies, and their models vary wildly – some monstrous, some not. You can ride pets as mounts, increasing ground movement, and I can’t get enough of the Krall Laborer – an orcish humanoid with a broad build and permanent scowl. It pairs perfectly with my small fella who rides on its shoulder, me giggling as we rugby run through the world.

I’ve got such a kick out of my silly goober over the last week that I’ve spent real-world money on premium cosmetics to make him stand out even more in this fantastical world. I bought the loose-fit streetwear outfit for just over £20, giving him a chain, a bum bag, and a pink baseball cap. Maybe that makes me the silly goober, but it was worth every penny. I don’t care.

And it turns out Aion 2 offers some surprisingly practical perks for atypical heroes like my portly pal. For one, this is a fast-paced action MMO with many movement features, obstacle-vaulting among them. And as a character of smaller stature, my green-haired guy flips over logs and other low barriers with pleasing dexterity.

So, here’s to the games like Aion 2 – games with the kind of character creators that aren’t afraid to let you go wild, and aren’t afraid to let you bring some of your own silly personality into the adventure. It’s a pretty good MMO too, even if you don’t want to play as a miniscule fiery eyed plonker.