| The Naga 2013: Improving on a classic by degrees Posted: 04 Aug 2013 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Launches, MMO Industry, Opinion, Hands-On, Miscellaneous, MMORPG One of the hardest things to do is look at something you've created and try to make it better. Because sometimes you can't. I first picked up a Razer Naga back when I was first working at Massively, mostly because it suited my piloting style in Star Trek Online. Once I had it in my hand, I never wanted to let it go. It was small, which was a welcome fact for someone with small hands. It had a useful thumb-pad for keys that felt comfortable and intuitive. It was responsive, it was attractive, it was everything I could want from a gaming mouse. Of course, the Naga was getting a bit long in the tooth. So it got redesigned. I was sent a review copy of the mouse to take for a spin, to see if this new edition of the product was nearly as good as the existing mouse that I've been using for nearly four years. Is the new Naga a worthy inheritor, or did something beautiful get ruined by a redo? Continue reading The Naga 2013: Improving on a classic by degrees  The Naga 2013: Improving on a classic by degrees originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 04 Aug 2013 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| One Shots: The music makes you jump, jump Posted: 04 Aug 2013 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Screenshots, Lord of the Rings Online, Culture, Star Trek Online, One Shots, Humor, Miscellaneous, Defiance Party people in the house, get up off your chairs for One Shots this week! Put on some loud tunes, don your boogie shoes, and flail around like you just don't care. If you do, you'll be right there alongside of these folks in Lord of the Rings Online who don't know the meaning of the emote /sit. "This is one of my favourites," reader Lisa wrote in. "It's from an RP event on Laurelin hosted by the Songbird Strollers just outside of Bree. We were dancing to their jumping song." Deed accomplished: Totally krossed out. If you don't get the reference, then put your clothes on backwards and learn about the highlights of '90s pop culture. The rest of you may proceed to the remaining screenshots. No, you may not sit back down. Dance! Dance for your life! Continue reading One Shots: The music makes you jump, jump One Shots: The music makes you jump, jump originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 04 Aug 2013 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Daily Grind: What have you purchased in-game lately? Posted: 04 Aug 2013 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous I'm always fascinated with gamers' spending habits. Some of us have plenty of disposable income to splurge on frills while others of us have to watch what we buy very closely. MMOs are littered with ways to spend your money, from outfits to boosts to character slots to lockbox keys. I am still burning through my virtual wad in RIFT, having accumulated a great amount of credits from my previous subscriptions. I indulged in a guilty pleasure of picking up a swimsuit for Summerfest the other day because I just had to be a Cleric kicking butt in a tasteful two-piece beachwear. But I also resolved to save the rest of my credits for RIFT 3.0's new souls when they come out. Other than that, I haven't bought a lot in MMOs lately. What about you? What have you purchased in-game this past month or so? Was it worth it?  Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!The Daily Grind: What have you purchased in-game lately? originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 04 Aug 2013 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| SOE Live 2013: Five of EverQuest Next's classes announced Posted: 03 Aug 2013 07:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Classes, New Titles, News Items, Free-to-Play, Events (Massively's Coverage), EverQuest Next While yesterday's big reveal showed us what races are confirmed as playable so far in EverQuest Next (Dwarf, Human, Ogre, Elf, Dark Elf, and Kerran), only two classes were highlighted during the demonstration. We also discovered that characters will be able to learn more classes -- and there are more than 40 of them -- as they adventure. But what are all the classes and which ones can players choose when they first embark on their next Norrathian exploits? We cannot answer the latter, but we now have a partial answer to the former. Five of the classes that will be available in EQ Next are: Rogue, Warrior, Tempest, Blademaster, and Wizard. Any, all, or even none of these may be one of eight starting classes. A few other tidbits about classes were also discussed during SOE panels, including how to distinguish what class a player or NPC is (answer: how s/he stands and holds his or her weapon) and character builds (items plus abilities will together constitute a build). Hungry for more info? Keep your eyes peeled for a more in-depth look at the philosophy and mechanics of classes coming soon!  What happens in Vegas doesn't stay in Vegas, at least where SOE Live is concerned! Massively sent intrepid reporters MJ Guthrie and Karen Bryan to this year's SOE Live, from which they'll be transmitting all the best fan news on EverQuest Next, EverQuest II, DC Universe Online, and the other MMOs on SOE's roster.SOE Live 2013: Five of EverQuest Next's classes announced originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 03 Aug 2013 21:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Repopulation adds vehicles, NPC inquiry system Posted: 03 Aug 2013 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, Sandbox, The Repopulation It's a new month, which means Above & Beyond Technologies has released a previous-month progress report for its sci-fi sandbox known as The Repopulation. As per usual, the update post is exhaustively long, with details on major bug fixes, minor tweaks, and a bunch of stuff in between. Chief among the upgrades were inquiries, which allow players to query most of the game's NPCs, and vehicles, which now include hover-speeders, hover-cycles, and a mech. More info is yours at The Repopulation's official website. [Thanks everyone who tipped us!] The Repopulation adds vehicles, NPC inquiry system originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 03 Aug 2013 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Mog Log: You got your Final Fantasy XIII in my Final Fantasy XIV Posted: 03 Aug 2013 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Culture, Lore, Opinion, Consoles, Final Fantasy XIV, The Mog Log If there was any doubt about it before, it's a known fact now: Lightning of Final Fantasy XIII will be showing up in Final Fantasy XIV, and players can go so far as to earn a copy of her outfit to wear out and around Eorzea. Odds are pretty much absolute that it will be purely cosmetic, but that doesn't make it any less unusual. Aside from ruffling the feathers of anyone who particularly dislikes Lightning, the inclusion opens up the weird snarl of non-continuity along the entirety of the franchise. I like Lightning, but this certainly does feel unusual. Even without seeing the quest, I have plenty of questions about how the games tie together, what the possible explanation could be, and how this will affect both worlds (as Naoki Yoshida has said specifically that this is Lightning herself, not someone who looks and acts as she does). So let's talk about crossovers, let's talk about Final Fantasy XIV's existing fanservice, and let's ask ourselves if this is the straw that breaks the camel's back. Metaphorically. I don't think there are camels in Eorzea. Continue reading The Mog Log: You got your Final Fantasy XIII in my Final Fantasy XIV The Mog Log: You got your Final Fantasy XIII in my Final Fantasy XIV originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 03 Aug 2013 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Game Archaeologist: The PLATO MMOs, part 1 Posted: 03 Aug 2013 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Culture, The Game Archaeologist, Miscellaneous In tracing the history and pre-history of MMORPGs in this column, we've spent a lot of time outside of the 2000s and into the explosive '90s, the experimental '80s, and even the extraordinary '70s. Early pioneers like MUD1, Dungeons & Dragons, GameLine, bulletin board systems, Habitat, Island of Kesmai, and even Maze War have contributed to the development of these games we enjoy today. But I think we're going to outdo ourselves this week. We're going to go back further than ever before in the The Game Archaeologist time tunnel. When we arrive at our destination, we'll see that MMOs started germinating within a decade of computers being able to talk to each other. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you 1961. Continue reading The Game Archaeologist: The PLATO MMOs, part 1 The Game Archaeologist: The PLATO MMOs, part 1 originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 03 Aug 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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