MMO Updates |
- Win an Ultimate Comics Spider-Man character in Super Hero Squad Online
- Aeria Games acquires Punch Entertainment, brags about growth
- Star Supremacy enters the closed beta event horizon
- Dragonica's New Origin expansion launches today
- LotRO dares you to photograph the White Hand of Saruman
- LEGO Universe introduces Ninjago expansion
- Fallen Earth devs answer your F2P questions
- SWTOR's Damion Schubert pulls some ideas off the Wall of Crazy
- The Daily Grind: Do you participate in guild events?
- MapleStory Adventures scores 3 million players -- before it even launches
- Newest version update lands for Final Fantasy XI
- Guild Wars 2 designers deliver more Asura goodies: Inquest and Golems
- Not So Massively: Bloodline Champions gets a revamp
- John Smedley talks free-to-play across the industry
- Flameseeker Chronicles: Asura week wrapup
- Wings Over Atreia: Aion anniversary, take two
- Firefall adds pets for you to cuddle... and kill
- One Shots: Flying high!
- Take a ride through LotRO's Gap of Rohan with a new walkthrough video
- CCP working on EVE ship spinning patch
- Lost Pages of Taborea: State of the economy
- Online gamers solve microbiology puzzle, contribute to anti-HIV solutions
- GamersFirst teams up with Adknowledge for virtual currency offers
| Win an Ultimate Comics Spider-Man character in Super Hero Squad Online Posted: 20 Sep 2011 10:30 AM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, Classes, Free-to-play, Kids, Promotions, Super Hero Squad Online  To mark this solemn-yet-cool occasion, Gazillion is giving Super Hero Squad Online players the opportunity to add Ultimate Comics Spider-Man to their roster. The character not only comes with a sleek new look, but special powers and emotes. Unfortunately, there can only be 30 recipients of this limited-edition superhero. SHSO players are encouraged to enter in the code "MILES2011" on the official website for a chance to win one of these characters. The sweepstakes ends on the 28th, so sling your web fast and true if you want in on the fun! [Source: Gazillion press release]
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| Aeria Games acquires Punch Entertainment, brags about growth Posted: 20 Sep 2011 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Browser, Miscellaneous  Aeria's latest acquisition includes the internal development team at Punch Entertainment as well as an unnamed iOS and Android game that will soon be added to a stable of titles that numbers over 30 strong, including Shaiya and Eden Eternal. "As we move forward, we will continue to form strategic partnerships and grow our development teams while building and acquiring more engaging content to reward our dedicated power gamers," said Aeria CEO Lan Hoang. [Source: Aeria press release]
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| Star Supremacy enters the closed beta event horizon Posted: 20 Sep 2011 09:30 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-fi, Events, in-game, Free-to-play, Browser, Promotions  Star Supremacy announced that its closed beta program starts today and can be joined by any space pilot who happens to possess... the key. Where do you get... the key? It's actually not too hard, as the official site lists a slew of participating partners that will gladly give you one of their... keys. The game is also giving away in-game currency and items to players who participate in one of four beta events. These rewards are designed to be incentives for good beta testing behavior, as they lure players into submitting bug reports, providing feedback, and promoting Star Supremacy.
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| Dragonica's New Origin expansion launches today Posted: 20 Sep 2011 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Classes, Expansions, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, News items, Free-to-play, Dragonica Online, Dungeons  As the title suggests, the new race is the Drakan, and it's unlocked once players reach level 20. There are two new Drakan classes, the Amazonian and the Shaman, and both of them are playable to the new level cap (80). Once you've obtained your spiffy new Drakan warrior and explored the new Drakan town of Kareuza, you'll probably want to partake of the game's new dungeon system. Parties are now able to brave the depths of Dragonica's dungeons with eight players (up from the previous four), and the expansion introduces a couple of new instances in the form of the Akia Cave and Black Claw Nest. More info is available on the game's official website. [Source: Gala Networks Europe press release]
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| LotRO dares you to photograph the White Hand of Saruman Posted: 20 Sep 2011 08:30 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Contests, Expansions, Free-to-play  With the studio's White Hand of Saruman contest, LotRO players are tasked with photographing people, objects or environments plastered with the iconic sigil of Isengard's key bad guy. Turbine's not encouraging players to flirt with the wrong side of the law, as it adds the disclaimer "Permanently defacing property or committing illegal acts is not permitted" to the contest rules. Players can download the white hand template from the contest website, set up an interesting picture, and then submit it for a chance at one of several prizes. These prizes include a custom-built Alienware PC, lifetime memberships to LotRO, and in-game Turbine Points. The contest will end on November 15th, after which the winners will be declared.
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| LEGO Universe introduces Ninjago expansion Posted: 20 Sep 2011 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Trailers, Video, Expansions, Free-to-play, LEGO Universe, Kids, Family  In addition to inserting over 100 new ninja-themed missions, this "largest expansion to the game yet" will raise the level cap to 45 and introduce new weapons, new enemies, and new gear -- all just in time for next month's first-year anniversary for the game. The expansion is free for all premium members starting today, and you can check out the screenshot gallery below and launch trailer just after the jump. [Source: LEGO Universe press release] Continue reading LEGO Universe introduces Ninjago expansion
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| Fallen Earth devs answer your F2P questions Posted: 20 Sep 2011 07:30 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Fallen Earth, Business models, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Post-Apocalyptic, Dev Diaries  Surprisingly, GamersFirst is allowing free-to-play customers to make use of the auction house, mail, and trading systems, but this may change "if gold farmers get totally out of control." There's also good news for pre-existing Fallen Earth subscribers who would like to convert to a free-to-play account but are worried about losing access to their alts. "If you had ever bought the game or paid for a subscription, those character slots were included with your game, so they belong to you regardless of the change in business model," writes Joseph "Linus" Willmon. Head to the official Fallen Earth dev blog for more.
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| SWTOR's Damion Schubert pulls some ideas off the Wall of Crazy Posted: 20 Sep 2011 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, New titles, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic  Of particular note, the dressing room made it in (alt-rightclick to preview an equipment piece's appearance on you or your companion). The ability for group leaders to mark targets with symbols his party members can see just went in. We also have a couple of minor features we're putting in designed to make it easier for players to find and form groups -- features I'm more willing to talk about once we've vetted them as improvements to the game in general.The obvious implications of marked targets should excite any raid leader, and perhaps the dressing room is the first step toward the fabled appearance tab. We will all find out for sure when the game launches -- when is that, again?
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| The Daily Grind: Do you participate in guild events? Posted: 20 Sep 2011 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Guilds, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous  Most groups will have some sort of organized event on a semi-regular basis. RIFT's Gaiscioch Family, for example, has organized a huge ongoing event. Many guilds in various games acknowledge their members' busy lives by setting aside a designated night and time to play together. Today we want to know what you think: Are these things your cup of tea, or do you prefer to jump in and out on a more spur-of-the-moment basis?  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!
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| MapleStory Adventures scores 3 million players -- before it even launches Posted: 19 Sep 2011 08:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, MMO industry, Free-to-play, Browser  MapleStory Adventures is Nexon's first Facebook game, and it is soon to be joined by the company's second: Wonder Cruise. Nexon's been making strategic moves into the social gaming market this year, including a recent partnership with developer 6waves Lolapps. The company saw an impressive 59% increase in revenue last quarter. MapleStory was an obvious choice for a Facebook conversion, considering that the title was already in 2-D and has a mass-market appeal. While MapleStory Adventures is similar in many ways to its predecessor, some elements have been simplified for the platform, such as the number of classes and skill trees.
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| Newest version update lands for Final Fantasy XI Posted: 19 Sep 2011 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Final Fantasy XI, Game mechanics, Patches, News items, Consoles  Along with those major changes comes a host of smaller updates, including a long list of items that can be sent through the mail to other characters on the same account and the addition of Grounds of Valor tomes to several areas previously lacking them. Dynamis has also received another pass of updates, up to and including the option for players to resell any timeless hourglasses they no longer have a use for. It's a good day to be a Final Fantasy XI player, even if waiting for the update to download might feel like an eternity.
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| Guild Wars 2 designers deliver more Asura goodies: Inquest and Golems Posted: 19 Sep 2011 06:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Game mechanics, Lore, New titles, Guild Wars 2, Races  First, Grubb and Soesbee told PC Gamer that the Inquest wanted to be the culture that invented the device that would take down the elder dragons, and its members are willing to do whatever it takes to come out on top. Grubb explained, "Most Asuras will not experiment on sentients. That's one of those things that's just not a good thing. The Inquest don't have that limitation. They are more willing to not just manipulate, but to harm others because they've made the judgment that they're superior and therefore have the right to do what they will without worrying about you." Jon Peters was a little less verbose regarding the Asura's battle suit skills, mostly because these abilities are still in development. However, we learned that although the battle suit is designed for a single operator, when a battle suit is called, any race can pilot it. And when asked if these mechs could be used in PvP, Peters replied, "In World vs World vs World PvP, absolutely yes! In competitive PvP the battle suit will get banned from tournaments." We hope you caught all of ArenaNet's Asura-related activities last week. If not, we have everything you need to know right here, including a wrap-up in today's Flameseeker Chronicles.
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| Not So Massively: Bloodline Champions gets a revamp Posted: 19 Sep 2011 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Video, Game mechanics, New titles, PvP, News items, PvE, Free-to-play, Hands-on, Not So Massively  The big news for MOBA fans this week is the release of Bloodline Champions' colossal Dawn of the Relics update, which has breathed new life into the impressive indie title. Rise of Immortals reveals details of its first post-launch Immortal Trovoc this week, and he's a great big freakin' dragon. In addition to releasing a champion spotlight on Riven, Riot Games this week published new information on how minions will feature in League of Legends: Dominion's point-capturing gameplay. Blizzard revealed this week that PayPal will be handling sales in Diablo III's controversial real-money auction house. In preparation for opening the D3 beta to the public, Blizzard also released a series of new class pages and a Diablo III skill calculator. Fans of the Tribes series will be glad to know that its online multiplayer sequel Tribes: Ascend has officially started accepting applications to join the upcoming closed beta. Skip past the cut for details of this week's biggest news from the world of MOBAs and other online games that aren't quite MMOs. Continue reading Not So Massively: Bloodline Champions gets a revamp
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| John Smedley talks free-to-play across the industry Posted: 19 Sep 2011 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Business models, MMO industry, News items, Miscellaneous  As Smedley sees it, free-to-play has a number of advantages, but one of the big ones is that it levels the playing field between big developers and smaller outfits when the games can both be played up-front without an initial investment. It's also more commonly accepted as a worldwide model, which matters in an industry that increasingly looks to other markets aside from the US. Sony Online Entertainment is slowly moving into the free-to-play realm itself, and only time will tell if the model will be a success for DCUO, but it's interesting to see the thought process behind the model expanding on a regular basis. Look for our own interview with Smed regarding his thoughts on the growing free-to-play trend, coming soon.
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| Flameseeker Chronicles: Asura week wrapup Posted: 19 Sep 2011 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Lore, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Races, Flameseeker Chronicles  Guild Wars 2's Asura Week is over, bringing with it the end of Guild Wars 2 race reveals. We've now had an in-depth look at all five races of Tyria, and I have to say that these little guys might be my favorite. I was pretty enamored of them after logging some Asura playtime at PAX, and I loved getting to know their cocky little selves even better this week. Follow along after the jump and let's take a look at some of the highlights of Asura Week! Continue reading Flameseeker Chronicles: Asura week wrapup
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| Wings Over Atreia: Aion anniversary, take two Posted: 19 Sep 2011 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, Events, real-world, Events, in-game, Opinion, Wings Over Atreia  In the past year, NCsoft has added and tweaked the game to make it a better experience for veteran and returning players alike. And that is on top of the many additions brought about in the game during the first year! This is not your 2009 game; Aion has more content and more options. Sometimes, less is even more -- there is even less grind. Now what's a celebration without... celebrating? NCsoft is offering goodies galore to citizens of Atreia throughout the month-long anniversary celebration. And so that no Deava is left out of the festivities, a 10-day reactivation event will take place beginning at 11:00 a.m EDT on September 22nd and running until 11:00 a.m. EDT on October 2nd. All inactive accounts in good standing on or before September 14th are eligible for reactivation. Wondering what exactly you are missing? Catch a breeze and float past the cut as Wings Over Atreia looks at how Aion has evolved over the past 12 months as well as what gifts, goodies, and events await Daevas during the celebration. Continue reading Wings Over Atreia: Aion anniversary, take two
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| Firefall adds pets for you to cuddle... and kill Posted: 19 Sep 2011 02:30 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Events, in-game, Game mechanics, Previews, Free-to-play, MMOFPS  Of course, this being a red-blooded shooter, Firefall's pet system can't stop with extended grooming and cuddles. "We had had to do little things to actually make it interesting," Kern explained. "Not only can you get a pet, but we're thinking that there's actually an item you can buy in the store to load your gun with special ammunition so you actually shoot the other guy's pet." Red 5 will be hosting an upcoming promotion starting on Wednesday called Crystite Challenge that will give fans a chance to get into the beta and unlock a Penny Arcade "The Merch" pet. "The Merch is awesome because he's all about merchandising and he fits with our item-based theme," Kern said. Firefall is currently in beta and gearing up for a December launch. Curious onlookers would do well to check out Massively's hands-on impressions of the title from PAX.
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| Posted: 19 Sep 2011 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Free-to-play, One Shots  This screenshot is one of the airships in Dungeons and Dragons Online flying over the Stormreach Marketplace. They act as guild halls for guilds, and you can see them traveling above the world night and day.Now it's your turn! Show us your favorite aerial image -- whether it be taken from the ground looking up or from atop a high-flying mount, we want to see! Add your name and a little bit about the image, send it in to oneshots@massively.com, and we'll feature it in this week's One Shots!
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| Take a ride through LotRO's Gap of Rohan with a new walkthrough video Posted: 19 Sep 2011 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, Previews, News items, Free-to-play  Lord of the Rings Online is gearing up for the release of its next expansion, Rise of Isengard, and the fine folks at A Casual Stroll to Mordor have your needs covered. After the recent Dunland walkthrough video, the Gap of Rohan is up for display. Of course, fans of the series will recognize Rohan as the home of the horse-loving Rohirrim. But even players encountering the lands of the Horse Lords for the first time will find plenty to love (and plenty to kill). The video shows off some gorgeous scenic landscapes, a variety of cities and settlements, and of course plenty of baddies just waiting to be whacked. Just saddle up and ride on past the cut for the full video. Continue reading Take a ride through LotRO's Gap of Rohan with a new walkthrough video
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| CCP working on EVE ship spinning patch Posted: 19 Sep 2011 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, News items, Sandbox  Today's second piece of EVE Online news comes courtesy of Torfi Frans Olafsson's latest blog post. In it, he mentions how CCP is rethinking its captain's quarters design and working toward reimplementing the ability for bored pod pilots to rotate their cameras around their active ship while docked. The ability disappeared with the introduction of full-body avatars in last summer's Incarna expansion, and Olafsson says that soon "you will simply be able to board and unboard your ship, toggling between captain's quarters and ship spinning mode." Incarna's hefty graphical requirements have also inconvenienced players logging in via "craptop" portable computers that lack gaming-quality hardware, and the post says that fixes for this are on the way as well. Finally, there are a few blurbs about improvements to captain's quarters shaders and new turret graphics. Read all about it at the official EVE website.
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| Lost Pages of Taborea: State of the economy Posted: 19 Sep 2011 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Economy, Opinion, Free-to-play, Runes of Magic, Lost Pages of Taborea  I've stopped asking questions that pointed and started asking how this new economy makes sense. I don't think anything is more wrong with the economy now than it was before. Prices are higher, much higher, on everything. For some, that's enough of a problem, but is it a problem for the operation of RoM? In this week's Lost Pages of Taborea, follow me down the rabbit hole to see how the weird might actually be normal. Continue reading Lost Pages of Taborea: State of the economy
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| Online gamers solve microbiology puzzle, contribute to anti-HIV solutions Posted: 19 Sep 2011 11:30 AM PDT Filed under: Culture, News items, Massively meta, Miscellaneous  Hey guys, look! Gamers are good for something! After struggling for some time to successfully map the structure of M-PMV, "a protein involved in a virus that causes a form of simian AIDS," scientists decided to hand the task off into more capable hands. Unfortunately, the only hands they could find were those of online gamers. Always willing to rise to a challenge, however, the gamers didn't disappoint. Through the use of a program called Foldit, which takes the mapping of molecular structures and transforms them into a sort of puzzle game, gamers (particularly a group calling themselves the Foldit Contenders) were able to successfully map the protein. Scientists hope that the crowdsourced solution can be used to design new drugs, such as treatments for HIV. Way to prove our worth to society, folks. You've made us proud.
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| GamersFirst teams up with Adknowledge for virtual currency offers Posted: 19 Sep 2011 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Fallen Earth, Business models, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, All Points Bulletin, Crime, Post-Apocalyptic, Miscellaneous  Adknowledge's AdStation program allows gamers to earn in-game currency by completing extra-game tasks including watching videos, taking surveys, and subscribing to various online services. This generates advertising leads for Adknowledge clients, and a new GamersFirst press release calls it "a great opportunity for us to get our titles in front of their vast global network." Said titles include APB Reloaded and Fallen Earth, but thus far GamersFirst has not released details on how the games will be affected. [Source: GamersFirst press release]
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