MMO Updates

MMO Updates

The Anvil of Crom: Unchained, free at last, and some initial observations

Posted: 03 Jul 2011 10:00 AM PDT

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Timing, as they say, is everything, and so I'd like to take a brief moment to thank Funcom for fouling up my carefully laid column plans this week. Also, it's a rare day that I'm not prowling the interwebs in search of news for our fair website, so of course, the second day out of the last six months that saw me take some time off was naturally the very same day that Funcom decided to launch Age of Conan: Unchained.

And yeah, I said Unchained, not Unrated, and if you think you're going to have trouble referring to the game as such after cozying up to the former moniker for the last month, console yourself with the fact that you now have David Lee Roth careening around inside your head for the foreseeable future. You're welcome.

In all seriousness, though, Age of Conan is free at last, free at last, thank God almighty it's free-to-play at last (even if it was a little sudden).

Continue reading The Anvil of Crom: Unchained, free at last, and some initial observations

MassivelyThe Anvil of Crom: Unchained, free at last, and some initial observations originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 03 Jul 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Global Chat: We're only human edition

Posted: 03 Jul 2011 08:00 AM PDT

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Welcome to this week's Global Chat! We love hearing what you have to say at Massively, and we love it even more when we can share the best comments with all of our readers. Massively staffers will be contributing some of their favorite comments every week, so keep an eye out every Sunday for more Global Chat!

This week's edition of Global Chat focuses on combat styles and playable races. Follow along after the jump to see what our readers had to say this week!

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MassivelyGlobal Chat: We're only human edition originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 03 Jul 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: What game has your favorite instanced PvP?

Posted: 03 Jul 2011 06:00 AM PDT

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In some ways, it's much easier to design an open PvP environment than an instanced battlefield. All one needs for the former is a world wherein anyone can attack anyone else, but creating an instanced map requires a set of objectives for players to fight over, an interesting layout to create diverse battles, and a balance so that every side within the instanced map will have a fair chance out of the gate. It's similar to creating a solid map for a first-person shooter, but with far more variables at play and much wider ranges of abilities for all participants.

Despite the obstacles, the instanced PvP map has become one of the most common features of games with any sort of PvP system. So which games offer the best instanced PvP experience? Is it Warhammer Online's diverse and varied Scenario maps? RIFT's balanced Warfronts with specialized PvP-only character builds? What game makes instanced PvP feel the most vibrant and interesting in play?

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!

MassivelyThe Daily Grind: What game has your favorite instanced PvP? originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 03 Jul 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Not So Massively Extra: Our impressions of Vorp!'s DotA mode

Posted: 02 Jul 2011 06:00 PM PDT

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At E3, developer END Games showed off the Vorp! alpha, a fully 3-D Facebook game with Asteroids-esque controls and action-based gameplay. Built in the Unity 3D engine, much of Vorp!'s gameplay involves steering, aiming and accurately modeled physics interactions. The game's developers revealed that the ultimate aim was to produce a sci-fi Defense of the Ancients style game with iconic space ships and pilots instead of fantasy heroes. Until now, Vorp!'s multiplayer has been limited to a simple deathmatch mode. With the game's planned DotA mode now live, deathmatches have been replaced by classic DotA-style team gameplay with a twist.

Massively got some hands on time with DotA mode this week during a brief dev testing session this week. Skip past the cut for our views on the Vorp! alpha and its new gameplay mode, and head over to Facebook to give the game a try and see what it's like for yourself.

Continue reading Not So Massively Extra: Our impressions of Vorp!'s DotA mode

MassivelyNot So Massively Extra: Our impressions of Vorp!'s DotA mode originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 02 Jul 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Not So Massively: Character reveals, e-sports tournaments, and legal battles

Posted: 02 Jul 2011 04:00 PM PDT

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Welcome to Not So Massively, our weekly roundup of the top news from popular multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBAs) and other multiplayer online games that aren't quite MMOs. Published every Saturday, the column covers games such as League of Legends, Heroes of Newerth, Rise of Immortals, Bloodline Champions, and more.

Last week we saw the end of Dreamhack with some huge prizes being handed out to the winners of competitive MOBA tournaments. We got to see what high-end competitive gameplay looks like in League of Legends, Heroes of Newerth and Bloodline Champions thanks to the recorded Dreamhack matches with live commentary. We also got a look at League of Legends' new champion Yorick the gravedigger in a new champion spotlight, and we checked out Realm of the Titans' new hero HaZ'zard. We then introduced a recent dev interview with Rise of Immortals' lead designer Amanda Flock.

In this week's Not So Massively, we examine the recent legal battle between FireFall developer Red 5 and its publisher Webzen. Competitive tournament play is also still buzzing this week, with both Heroes of Newerth and Bloodline Champions looking into new sponsored tournament deals for players. League of Legends players look forward to upcoming female tank champion Leona, while Heroes of Newerth shows off its upcoming ranged anti-juking hero Emerald Warden. As it nears open beta, Rise of Immortals also revealed Balak this week, a ranged agility hero with an extremely fast attack animation.

Continue reading Not So Massively: Character reveals, e-sports tournaments, and legal battles

MassivelyNot So Massively: Character reveals, e-sports tournaments, and legal battles originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 02 Jul 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One Shots: Flying high

Posted: 02 Jul 2011 02:00 PM PDT

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Today's One Shots comes to us from Massively reader and EVE Online player Angrymatt. Incarna and character creation might be the the buzzwords lately, but the ships are still where it's at:
This is Ellohem Daehedra standing in front of her pride and joy, Elemiah II, an Amarr Anathema covert ops frigate. I acquired her mostly by running missions until I saved up the 9 mil needed to purchase her.

I know this is a pitiful sum for a lot of EVE players, but this is by far the coolest ship in my inventory. I've been playing for about three months now, steadily working the game with a handful of friends. I know some old guard are bemoaning the Incarna thing, but I find I pretty cool to get to see my character walk about and observe her ship in dock.
We're wrapping up gear week here on One Shots, and it's time to get those pet pictures in. Snap a screenshot of your favorite pet and send it to oneshots@massively.com. Let us know your name, the name of the game, and how you came by your furry, feathered, or scaled friend!

Gallery: One Shots: 2011

MassivelyOne Shots: Flying high originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 02 Jul 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CCP responds to monoclegate, reaches consensus with players

Posted: 02 Jul 2011 01:15 PM PDT

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This has been a difficult week for EVE Online developer CCP Games, with massive controversy hitting the media surrounding what should have been a momentous expansion release. The first stage of the eagerly awaited Incarna expansion went live this month, bringing with it the new captain's quarters. Unfortunately, simple complaints over some very overpriced microtransactions soon escalated into outright panic and even in-game riots with the release of an internal company newsletter and subsequent internal email casting doubt on the game's vanity-only microtransaction policy and its development direction in general.

A devblog released in response to the issue only served to make things worse, so CCP opted to fly the game's democratically elected Council of Stellar Management to Iceland for a series of emergency meetings to get a handle on the situation. Those meetings were concluded yesterday, and both the CCP and CSM made statements today to clarify the decisions reached. During the meeting, the CSM negotiated on behalf of the playerbase to hammer out an agreement on EVE's microtransaction policy, overheating issues with the captain's quarters, and other recent hot topics.

Skip past the cut to watch the video accompanying the statement, and head over to the EVE devblog to read the official statements. If you have any further complaints or issues relating to the recent controversy, please mail them to brendan@massively.com or leave them in a comment and I'll do my best to ask the CSM delegates or pose your questions to CCP at Tuesday's upcoming press conference.

Continue reading CCP responds to monoclegate, reaches consensus with players

MassivelyCCP responds to monoclegate, reaches consensus with players originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 02 Jul 2011 15:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Recruit-a-Friend program comes to EverQuest

Posted: 02 Jul 2011 12:00 PM PDT

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Sony Online Entertainment's Recruit-a-Friend program (otherwise known as the powerlevel-your-alts-with-multiple-accounts program) has been a hit in EverQuest II for quite some time now. It's only natural that the initiative make its way to the original incarnation of Norrath, and SOE's Piestro has posted a notice on the official EverQuest boards marking just such an occasion.

Recruits and recruiters will enjoy a wealth of benefits including in-game mounts, bonus Station Cash, Legends of Norrath booster packs, a unique title, and of course, loads of bonus XP. Check out all the details on the o-boards, then hit up the official RaF page to get started.

MassivelyRecruit-a-Friend program comes to EverQuest originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 02 Jul 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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