MMO Updates

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• Jagex levies a lawsuit against RuneScape botters
• In Russia, APB Reloaded hijacks you!
• Choose My Adventure: Meet Alira
• A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Choose your side or don't
• The Daily Grind: What would you ask your favorite game dev in person?
• SOE releases new PlanetSide 2 Terran Republic info
• Perfect World delays War of the Immortals beta
• Massively Exclusive: WindSlayer 2 developer diary looks at ranged classes
• Cliffhanger Productions shares some details on Shadowrun Online
• Final Fantasy XIV bringing you another producer's letter all the way live
• The Game Archaeologist answers Asheron's Call 2: The community
• DUST 514 could be the PS3's 'most important game'
• The Soapbox: Applying Neal Stephenson's Innovation Starvation to MMOs
• SOE apologizes for delay of SWG customer loyalty free trials
• Hyperspace Beacon: Crafting preview
• New 17-hole course coming to Pangya United
• Digimon Masters launches worldwide

Jagex levies a lawsuit against RuneScape botters Posted: 26 Oct 2011 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, RuneScape, Free-to-play, Legal As RuneScape staggers under the assault of thousands of bots, Jagex is pulling out a pair of big guns to meet the problem head-on. The first weapon was yesterday's "Bot-Nuking Day," in which a patch was released that was supposed to deal with 98% of the botting in the game. The second is an official email sent to suspected botters threatening them with a class-action lawsuit if they don't desist. In the email, Jagex calls out the suspected behavior and offers the player a "one-time amnesty lifeline" to shape up. These players will be placed on a watch list and will be monitored for any further botting action. If the player persists in cheating, then Jagex promises to not only remove their account permanently but to include the player in a mass lawsuit. "If you ignore our offer and instead continue use botting software, we reserve our rights to pursue statutory damages against you for between $200 to $2,500 per act of past, present, and/or future botting," the letter states. A Jagex mod on the RuneScape forums confirmed that these emails are real. Jagex levies a lawsuit against RuneScape botters originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 26 Oct 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: RuneScape forums Via: MMO Fallout

In Russia, APB Reloaded hijacks you! Posted: 26 Oct 2011 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: MMO industry, Free-to-play, Legal, All Points Bulletin, Crime, Sandbox All Points Bulletin's comeback looks to be in a stronger position than ever before as GamersFirst has just inked a deal with Innova Systems to publish and distribute the title in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. This hugely expands APB Reloaded's potential market as the title is on the verge of relaunch. While you may not have heard of Innova, GamersFirst's Rahul Sandil said that the company is well-established with a solid reputation in the region. "After an exhaustive diligence, it became clear that Innova was truly the only choice for distributing APB Reloaded to the Russian Federation. With six years of local market experience and more than two million active users, we know that APB Reloaded will flourish in Russia under Innova's watchful guidance," he said. APB players in Russia will need to use Innova's 4game publishing platform to access the game -- which, like it is elsewhere, will be free-to-play. In Russia, APB Reloaded hijacks you! originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 26 Oct 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Choose My Adventure: Meet Alira Posted: 26 Oct 2011 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Polls, Screenshots, Hands-on, Humor, Choose My Adventure, Final Fantasy XIV Everyone, I'd like you to give a warm welcome to my brand-new Final Fantasy XIV Choose My Adventure character, the Miqo'te Lancer Alira Zhyn. Before we get down to the nitty-gritty, let me go ahead and address the fact that yes, the top vote for gender was male, while the top vote for race was Miqo'te, and it's not possible to roll a male Miqo'te. I made an executive decision to allow race to override gender, as I feel race is a bit more of a deciding factor when creating a character than gender is. Now that that's out of the way, head on past the cut to read about Alira's first few days of adventure in Eorzea! Continue reading Choose My Adventure: Meet Alira Choose My Adventure: Meet Alira originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 26 Oct 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Choose your side or don't Posted: 26 Oct 2011 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, City of Villains, Expansions, Game mechanics, Opinion, Free-to-play, A Mild-Mannered Reporter Do you remember Going Rogue? Of course you do, even if it's had some of its thunder retroactively stolen by City of Heroes Freedom. And of course you remember that one of its big selling points -- its only selling point at launch for existing characters, arguably -- was that you could swap between the alignments of the game. Villains could become Heroes, go back to being Villains, hang out as a Rogue for a while, and so on. It seemed like the sort of thing that would be a real game changer. Well, it's been more than a year since we first started seeing the groups swap sides, and surprisingly enough -- or not -- the much bigger change was in the business model alteration and the ensuing changes to the game environment. Not that I'm complaining, mind you, but it brings to mind a question: Has there really been any long-term effect of the alignment system? If you aren't roleplaying the swap, does being one faction or the other even matter in the long run? Continue reading A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Choose your side or don't A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Choose your side or don't originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 26 Oct 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Daily Grind: What would you ask your favorite game dev in person? Posted: 26 Oct 2011 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: MMO industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous Let's say you found that golden ticket. Somehow you had the chance to tour your favorite game studio to meet your most admired MMO game developer. There he or she is, standing before you, willing to answer any question you can throw at him or her. As an added bonus, the dev can't avoid your question! So what would you ask? Would you ask Curt Schilling if you could play the Project Copernicus MMO? Would you ask Mike O'Brien when Guild Wars 2 is coming out? Or would you ask anyone at Blizzard what they were thinking when they decided Kung Fu Panda would make a great expansion to World of Warcraft? Let us know in the comments below! 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 would you ask your favorite game dev in person? originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 26 Oct 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

SOE releases new PlanetSide 2 Terran Republic info Posted: 25 Oct 2011 09:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, PvP, News items, MMOFPS, PlanetSide 2 Well, it's not exactly a deep gameplay reveal, but it's better than another lore snippet! What the heck are we talking about? Why, the latest PlanetSide 2 press release of course. Sony Online Entertainment has dropped a new screenshot on the masses, and the exciting image is accompanied by a wall o' text from creative director Matthew Higby. Higby spends a bit of time telling us about the Terran Republic, which is one of three warring factions in SOE's sci-fi shooter universe. The Republic is a professional military organization, and as such its members are equipped with weapons that "have the fastest firing rates, largest ammo capacities, and are generally designed to allow for maximum sustainable damage." The Terrans also have two unique vehicles at their disposal. The Mosquito is "an extremely agile attack aircraft" and boasts the highest top speed of any PlanetSide 2 air vehicle. The Prowler tank is the fastest empire-specific piece of heavy armor, and Higby describes it as "one of the deadliest vehicles in the game." Check out the full article at the official PlanetSide 2 website. SOE releases new PlanetSide 2 Terran Republic info originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 23:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: TR Debrief

Perfect World delays War of the Immortals beta Posted: 25 Oct 2011 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Free-to-play With all the Perfect World MMOs floating around, it's occasionally hard to keep them straight (especially when they have similar-sounding names like War of the Immortals and Battle of the Immortals). One way to tell these two apart at a glance is by their respective launch dates: One (BoI) launched in 2010 and one (WoI) is getting ready to enter closed beta. Unfortunately there's been a slight delay for said beta, which was originally scheduled to kick off on October 25th. Happily, Perfect World has just updated its WoI news page with a brief blurb announcing the new closed beta start date as November 2nd. Why the delay? The short answer is additional content, and PWE says that "it will add a tremendous amount of value to the game." Perfect World delays War of the Immortals beta originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: WoI beta update

Massively Exclusive: WindSlayer 2 developer diary looks at ranged classes Posted: 25 Oct 2011 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Classes, Game mechanics, Previews, News items, Free-to-play WindSlayer 2 has kicked off its closed beta, giving a select group of players the chance to see how the game plays before it goes live. But for everyone else, the game's previews are the only clues as to how the game will play once you can log in. Here at Massively, we've been posting a series of exclusive diaries straight from the team over at Ignited Games to show off what the game will have to offer players fond of the side-scrolling sprite format. Our last diary, of course, dealt with the game's three classes devoted to getting within arm's reach of monsters and pounding them senseless -- the melee classes, to be more prosaic. So it's appropriate we have a new exclusive today previewing the game's three ranged classes. Click on past the break for discussion of the Archer, Mage, and Priest -- what they're able to do, how they're meant to play, and what players can expect from each. Continue reading Massively Exclusive: WindSlayer 2 developer diary looks at ranged classes Massively Exclusive: WindSlayer 2 developer diary looks at ranged classes originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Cliffhanger Productions shares some details on Shadowrun Online Posted: 25 Oct 2011 05:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Sci-fi, Interviews, Previews, News items, Browser Almost any veteran of pen-and-paper games is at least passingly familiar with the setting for Shadowrun Online, currently under development by Cliffhanger Productions. It's a big setting with plenty of space for many different player types, so the real question comes down to what the developers want to do with the upcoming browser-based game. A recent interview puts forth just that question, with the development team answering some questions about what potential players can expect. Of course, all of the answers are provided with the caveat that the development process has only just begun. But the game is currently set up to split between a tactical action map for missions such as infiltration and assault, with a city map and a more text-based interface for negotiating contracts and managing your character. There are also plans to keep the game's plot evolving based on character actions, such as which side players favor during a corporate war -- something that should keep players interested even with the admission that beta is at least a year out. [Thanks to Onyx for the tip!] Cliffhanger Productions shares some details on Shadowrun Online originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: RPS Cliffhanger Interview

Final Fantasy XIV bringing you another producer's letter all the way live Posted: 25 Oct 2011 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Patches, Previews, News items, Consoles, Final Fantasy XIV Between the release of patch 1.19 and the announcements regarding the game's future, Final Fantasy XIV has been drumming up quite a bit of excitement from its fans. And what better way to capitalize on that excitement than to have another installment of the producer's letter live for everyone to enjoy? On November 3rd, Naoki Yoshida will once again be taking to the broadcast waves to answer player questions about the most recent patch and future updates. The official announcement notes that the particulars of the broadcast are not yet determined, but as with the previous live event, players can submit questions in advance or via Twitter on the day itself. While Yoshida will strive to answer as many questions as possible, there will be time constraints, and of course the audio will be in Japanese with a translation to come further down the road. Still, it's a chance to get more questions about the game answered by the man with the plan himself, and that's something many players will no doubt be excited by. Final Fantasy XIV bringing you another producer's letter all the way live originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Producer's Letter Live II

The Game Archaeologist answers Asheron's Call 2: The community Posted: 25 Oct 2011 04:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Asheron's Call, Culture, Opinion, The Game Archaeologist Time machines are expensive, and with gas the price it is today, it's not always viable to fuel up your DeLorean and travel back to the early 2000s just to check out some of those long-gone MMOs. Fortunately, jawing about them with former players and developers is the next best method of revisiting canceled MMOs. It's been a personal treat to spend the month covering a game I never got to see when it was live. Asheron's Call 2 seems like it was a special game that tried hard and resulted in spectacular ideas and flaws alike. We've gotten to hear from former fansite owners and a developer on the team, which leaves just one group to check in with: the players themselves. So today it's all about reminiscing over AC2 with the players who still carry a torch for this title and perhaps have a poster of it on the ceiling over their beds. I wouldn't be surprised if there's one or two people out there who made "children" out of discarded Asheron's Call 2 boxes and have enrolled them in elementary school only to be declined because they couldn't be authenticated. That's just how much love there is out there for this game. Continue reading The Game Archaeologist answers Asheron's Call 2: The community The Game Archaeologist answers Asheron's Call 2: The community originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

DUST 514 could be the PS3's 'most important game' Posted: 25 Oct 2011 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Culture, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Consoles, MMOFPS, DUST 514, Sandbox Still miffed about CCP's decision to limit its DUST 514 MMOFPS to Sony's PlayStation 3 console? According to an article at Develop, the title is worth following anyway because it could be just what the doctor ordered in terms of bridging the gap between the PC and console gaming markets. "The console space right now is where the PC was before the internet really kicked off," CCP's Thor Gunnarsson told Develop. "It is about to leap forwards and it won't look back." Unlike traditional console games that may see an update or two (and in more recent years, a handful of downloadable content packs) before fading into obscurity, DUST will be built "iteratively in front of our community, with the same tight feedback loop as before," according to Gunnarsson. The ongoing attention, and the game's real-time connection with EVE Online, should allow for an engaging console experience to be found nowhere else. It's not all roses, though, as Develop points out that console shooters are casual games almost by definition, while the EVE Online experience is anything but. Hit the source link to read the full article. DUST 514 could be the PS3's 'most important game' originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Develop

The Soapbox: Applying Neal Stephenson's Innovation Starvation to MMOs Posted: 25 Oct 2011 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Sci-fi, Culture, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Opinion, The Soapbox, Miscellaneous, Sandbox Disclaimer: The Soapbox column is entirely the opinion of this week's writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column. You've probably heard of Neal Stephenson. The celebrated sci-fi author recently released his 13th novel, Reamde, and while it treads a little closer to traditional thriller territory than some of his more cerebral efforts, it still packs a futurist punch (and even led the author to comment on MMOs, virtual worlds, and World of Warcraft in a recent interview). In addition to speculative fiction, Stephenson is also prone to the occasional essay, the latest of which found its way onto the intarwebs a few weeks ago. While not directly related to the gaming or massively multiplayer industries, the piece does feature some interesting observations about the stagnant creative culture to be found in contemporary corporate America, and Stephenson also offers plenty of food for thought that can be applied to the current state of the MMO space. Continue reading The Soapbox: Applying Neal Stephenson's Innovation Starvation to MMOs The Soapbox: Applying Neal Stephenson's Innovation Starvation to MMOs originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

SOE apologizes for delay of SWG customer loyalty free trials Posted: 25 Oct 2011 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, News items, Star Wars Galaxies Many Star Wars Galaxies players were disappointed to find that the free membership trials promised to them by October 15th had not been delivered. Well, Sony's sorry too, but don't worry: The company is making it up to players by... actually activating the free trials this time! An official post over at the Star Wars Galaxies forums apologizes for the delay and offers players free trials for five SOE titles: DC Universe Online, Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures, Free Realms, EverQuest, and EverQuest II. While most of these games are technically free-to-play, Sony's offer will upgrade all prior SWG account-holders to paid membership status for each game until December 31st of this year. So if you had a SWG account in good standing prior to October 15th, head on over to the official forum thread for details on how to claim your free trials. SOE apologizes for delay of SWG customer loyalty free trials originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Star Wars Galaxies official forums

Hyperspace Beacon: Crafting preview Posted: 25 Oct 2011 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, New titles, Opinion, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Hyperspace Beacon, Crafting BioWare calls the Star Wars: The Old Republic's crafting system Crew Skills. It's labeled quite appropriately because the majority of the work is performed by the companion characters and not the player himself. If you venture over to the official website, the developers have put together a brief outline of all the Crew Skills and a short video describing them. Every MMO with crafting has had two basic steps and SWTOR is certainly no exception. However, our space-opera MMO adds to standard gathering and crafting steps a third element: missions. But that's not the only thing different. When I asked Live Producer Blaine Christine about crafting over a year ago, it had not been announced yet, but he did say, "I think it's a different take on crafting than what people will be expecting. It's not the standard implementation. It's going to be a treat." He was definitely correct about it not being the standard implementation, but how about that "treat" part? During the last couple of weeks, BioWare allowed me to explore a little bit of Crew Skills system on the beta server without devs over my shoulder like at conventions or press junkets. After the jump, I'd like to explore each piece of Crew Skills and compare it to other crafting systems in other MMOs. I suggest that if you're not interested in spoilers you stop reading now because I'm about to spill everything about this unique game mechanic. Continue reading Hyperspace Beacon: Crafting preview Hyperspace Beacon: Crafting preview originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

New 17-hole course coming to Pangya United Posted: 25 Oct 2011 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Sports, Patches, News items, Free-to-play Popular anime-style golfing MMO Pangya United has a new update coming its way, SG Interactive announced in a press release today. The update will bring with it a brand-new golf course known as Wiz City, which -- as you may have divined -- is home to Pangya United's witch and wizard population. The 17-hole course is the largest update to hit the quirky MMO title in over a year. If you want to get in on the golfing action (wait, isn't that an oxymoron?), head on over to the game's official site to sign up. If you do so between now and November 9th, you'll receive in-game bonuses such as Gacha Coins and Time Boosts. [Source: SG Interactive press release] New 17-hole course coming to Pangya United originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Digimon Masters launches worldwide Posted: 25 Oct 2011 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Launches, Free-to-play, Kids Enough with the waiting -- there are battles to be won, and today's the day in which to win them! Joymax's Digimon Masters emerged from its beta cocoon, spread its wings, and flew into release today. It's much cooler if you think of it as a monstrous mechanized butterfly with atomic ray eyes, of course. Unlike previous Digimon games, Digimon Masters will eschew turn-based combat to take place in real-time. Players assume the roles of Tamers who train combat-worthy creatures to battle each other. Digimon Masters has been released worldwide and is currently only available in English. You can jump into the game through the Joymax portal. Gallery: Digimon Masters Digimon Masters launches worldwide originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

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