General Gaming Article

General Gaming Article


Rumor: Windows 8 Beta Launching in September, With An April 2012 RTM

Posted: 10 Jul 2011 06:00 PM PDT

Windows 8Steven Sinofsky and his team are guarding the release date of Redmond's next OS pretty carefully these days, but despite the all the clues that point to a 2012 launch we haven't had much to go on until now. According to ZDnet's Mary Jo Foley, Microsoft should be ready to launch Windows 8 by no later than summer 2012, with an official beta being seeded to developers at the September build conference. 

Foley's trusted source within Microsoft also claims to know for a fact that this will be the one and only beta release, with an RC version coming soon after in January if no major bugs are discovered. Microsoft has already openly admitted that they are somewhat less interested in feedback this time around, so a shorter beta period makes sense if the rumored timeline holds true.

I suppose we'll have to wait and see, but is less than 3 years too soon for a new version of Windows?  

Netflix Slams ISP Bandwidth Caps In The Wall Street Journal

Posted: 10 Jul 2011 12:17 PM PDT

SpartaNetflix's subscriber base for instant streaming seems to be growing by leaps and bounds, however, the rise of increasingly stingy bandwidth caps threaten to send it all crashing down. Netflix has introduced new methods of adjusting the video quality as a method of working around the problem, but the otherwise powerless company has finally decided to take it's fight with ISP's to the mass media. In an incredibly eloquent opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal, Netflix's general counsel David Hyman tells us what he thinks of bandwidth caps, and why we shouldn't put up with it.

According to Hyman, "Bandwidth caps with fees piled on top are a lousy way to manage traffic." He goes on to accuse ISP's of creating the false impression among consumers that "bandwidth is a scarce resource and that imposing caps and overage fees will relieve pressure on high-speed networks." Many high profile ISP's have very publically come out against bandwidth caps as a method of controlling infrastructure costs, and almost all network experts seem to agree that the cost of delivering 1GB of data is around one cent, and falling at a rapid pace. "Wireline bandwidth is an almost unlimited resource due to advances in Internet architecture. Adding more capacity is easy."

Hyman argues that at most, ISP's should focus on finding ways to control usage during peak hours, since delivering bits outside of this short period costs next to nothing. 

 

Opera Joins Chrome and Firefox On The Rapid Release Bandwagon

Posted: 10 Jul 2011 11:06 AM PDT

OperaChrome has brought plenty of amazing new innovations to the table since its introduction less than three years ago, but one feature of Google's flagship browser caught all the established players off guard, their ability to iterate at an unbelievable pace. Some simply accuse them of being too liberal with version numbers, but either way you look at it in less than 30 months Google has gone from a beta release, all the way to version 12, with no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

You can call it clever marketing if you like, but one thing seems clear; this type of version numbering seems to resonate with consumers. To keep a fickle generation of web users engaged with a brand, browser makers need to be seen as innovating as quickly as Google, or risk being left in the dust. Firefox famously re-enforced this concept by jumping from version 4 to 5 in a matter of months, and Opera is getting ready to join the party with today's alpha release of Opera 12, less than two weeks after the debut of version 11.5. 

Opera 12, codenamed "Wahoo" (yes after the fish), is designed to run alongside version 11.5, so users who wish to give the alpha version a try can feel free to do so, without ditching the most recent stable release. Currently the Opera 12 alpha is little more than a series of bug fixes and performance improvements, but we expect to see more as the weeks roll on. 

With Opera joining Firefox in the race to keep up with Chrome, do you think Redmond will finally cave to the pressure and step up the release rate for Internet Explorer? Business have clearly weighed in against the idea of rapid releases for compatibility reasons, so perhaps Microsoft will choose to sacrifice a bit of ground in the consumer space, especially if it means maintaining their foothold in the corporate world. 

Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Google Claims Orkut Will Co-Exist With Google+

Posted: 10 Jul 2011 09:43 AM PDT

OrkutWith Google + sucking up all the social networking mojo these days, it's easy to forget about good ole Orkut, Google's first attempt to bring over-sharing to the masses. With so much positive energy leading up to the final release, naturally everyone was wondering would become of Orkut's tens of millions of existing users, most of who reside in either India or Brazil. Turns out Google does have a plan, and the front page reads steady as she goes.

According to a Google spokeswomen, "Orkut and Google+ are different products, and will both exist. Over time, we'll determine what makes the most sense in terms of integrating these products". While it's not surprising Google wouldn't want to risk losing the millions of users it has already built up, it is surprising that they view Orkut and Google + as different products. Either way what this tells us is that Orkut users can go about their lives normally, and trust in Google to find some way to preserve their data in the future if they choose to migrate over to Google +.

It's a great to see Google doing the right thing here by allowing Orkut's users to transition over at their leisure, rather than pulling another Wave where users were given a matter of months to find alternate arrangements. 

MMO Updates

MMO Updates


The Anvil of Crom: Blood, glory, and some Deathwish impressions

Posted: 10 Jul 2011 10:00 AM PDT

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Oy, Funcom, you're absolutely killing me here. Last week I had a column written prior to a guess-what-we're-launching-Unchained-today announcement. This week I was typing away on a review of some of the new instance content that showed up alongside the F2P update when the hey-Blood-and-Glory-launches-tomorrow bomb dropped.

A veritable mad scramble ensued here at The Anvil of Crom offices, and as the piles of wadded up loose-leaf and discarded notes fluttered about, I was left wondering when my previous two pieces were going to see the light of day.

If I sound somewhat perturbed, I'm not really, as this is a fantastic spot for any game columnist -- or Age of Conan fan -- to occupy. There's a lot of new content and not enough time to write about it; really we should all be so lucky. Sooo, that's my lengthy way of saying won't you join me after the cut for some initial impressions of hardcore PvP, AoC-style.

Continue reading The Anvil of Crom: Blood, glory, and some Deathwish impressions

MassivelyThe Anvil of Crom: Blood, glory, and some Deathwish impressions originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 10 Jul 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Katamari creator to work on Glitch MMO

Posted: 10 Jul 2011 09:00 AM PDT

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Tiny Speck has just added one of gaming's wunderkind developers to the team working on its Glitch MMO. Keita Takahashi, renowned as the brains behind Katamari Damacy and Noby Noby Boy, left Namco Bandai last year and has been keeping a low profile ever since.

He's also apparently been having serious discussions with Tiny Speck, and founder Steward Butterfield says that Takahashi has a lot in common with the existing creative team. "We shared the same values -- deep beliefs in curiosity, humor, absurdity, and above all a belief in the positive power of play," Butterfield told GamaSutra.

Glitch is a browser-based side-scrolling casual MMO that is currently undergoing beta testing. The game will launch sometime in 2011 according to the its official website.

MassivelyKatamari creator to work on Glitch MMO originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 10 Jul 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Global Chat: Of developer decisions and player perception

Posted: 10 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 Massively reader discussion covered all sorts of topics, but game developer drama and sandbox-style games were high on the list. As usual, we've chosen a few of our favorite comments from our reader base to share with you, so follow along after the jump to see what our readers had to say on this week's Global Chat.

Continue reading Global Chat: Of developer decisions and player perception

MassivelyGlobal Chat: Of developer decisions and player perception originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 10 Jul 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: When do NDAs get counterproductive?

Posted: 10 Jul 2011 06:00 AM PDT

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On Wednesday, several notable Warhammer Online fan bloggers were brought to the BioWare Mythic offices to get a sneak preview of coming attractions. That in and of itself is good... but the bloggers had to sign an NDA to find out about some of the further development going on for the game. Which meant that the big cool things that the bloggers saw couldn't actually be announced to the public, which sort of defeats the purpose of having a bunch of notably outspoken fans visit your office.

NDAs are an important part of keeping a company's secrets, well, secret. Unfortunately, they can also sometimes stymie useful discussion about a game's future. So when do you think an NDA has been more harmful than helpful? Has it been for an update or expansion where the leaks started too early for an NDA to matter? A neat new feature that would have built more excitement if more people had talked about it? Or do you feel like NDAs are always beneficial to the development process?

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: When do NDAs get counterproductive? originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 10 Jul 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SOE Fan Faire 2011: The future of Clone Wars Adventures with Senior Producer Todd Carson

Posted: 09 Jul 2011 06:00 PM PDT

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Clone Wars Adventures is a unique MMO that links together a children's game with the TV show on Cartoon Network. Todd Carson, the Senior Producer of CWA, sat down with Massively to talk about some of the new content that's coming for fans, as well as a new storyline in game that will complete the transition between season three and four of the TV series.

Read on for highlights from the interview, including a closer look at the Battle for Iceberg 3, new housing items, and even some new mounts!

Continue reading SOE Fan Faire 2011: The future of Clone Wars Adventures with Senior Producer Todd Carson

MassivelySOE Fan Faire 2011: The future of Clone Wars Adventures with Senior Producer Todd Carson originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 09 Jul 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Mog Log: Time to relax

Posted: 09 Jul 2011 04:00 PM PDT

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Time is strange. It's everywhere and yet invisible, and all we can do is represent it through measurements of time. Time flies, but time drags, and sometimes you're not sure where the time goes. Time keeps on slipping into the future, but you'll never get your time back, and you wait for the right time for what seems like an endless stretch of time. Time pushes us forward, holds us back; we put in hours of time at our jobs in order to get more time for play and relaxation, trading time for time.

Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy XIV both love time and timing. We have no shortage of timed events in both games, with the latter having almost gone overboard with the amount of time that matters. You're timed on your guildleves, which have a reset timer to contend with. The upcoming dungeons will be timed. You're even on a short clock of time when it comes to crafting. Why all the fascination with time? Do we need this much time? What would it matter if we stripped out all of the timing?

Continue reading The Mog Log: Time to relax

MassivelyThe Mog Log: Time to relax originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 09 Jul 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One Shots: The Ent is walking

Posted: 09 Jul 2011 02:00 PM PDT

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Massively reader Eera has sent us an intimidating Runes of Magic pet image for today's One Shots:
Hi! This is a shot of my awesome Ent pet, Shambles. He may not be cute or cuddly, but he's good in a fight and having Treebeard walking around with you is awesome.
We're loving the pet screenshots, but we're preparing for next week's One Shots theme as well. We've seen your gear, your mounts, and your pets; now it's time to see you! Snap a screenshot of your favorite character in your favorite MMO. Let us know about him or her by sending the screenshot, your name, and some information about the character to oneshots@massively.com, and we'll feature the character here on One Shots!

MassivelyOne Shots: The Ent is walking originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 09 Jul 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Get your game on with a prize package from Frogster and Steel Series!

Posted: 09 Jul 2011 12:00 PM PDT

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Runes of Magic fans, listen up! The team at Frogster has partnered up with the professional gaming gear team at Steel Series, and the result is a pile of prizes for one lucky Massively reader.

The prize list consists of a Runes of Magic t-shirt and aluminum water bottle, a RoM poster autographed by the GMs, a Steel Series Runes of Magic mouse pad, and a code for a permanent RoM mount. But wait, there's more! The winner will also receive a Steel Series Siberia v2 gaming headset, rounding out an already-generous goodie bag from the two companies.

So what do you have to do to get your hands on this prize package? Well, as always, start by checking out our contest rules; you need to be over 18 and a United States resident. Then leave a comment here telling us a little about your Runes of Magic play: When did you start? What kept you playing? Do you have a favorite class and/or zone, or do you love it all?

Leave your comment by noon EST on Saturday, July 16th. Once the deadline hits we'll draw one winner and send the items directly to him or her. Best of luck!

OFFICIAL RULES

MassivelyGet your game on with a prize package from Frogster and Steel Series! originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 09 Jul 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MMO updates

MMO updates


The Weekend Journal

Posted: 10 Jul 2011 07:43 AM PDT


Initially, I decided to skip this week's Weekend Journal as there is simply not much I have to write about. Hmn... Well, I am getting piled up with review requests, partnership requests and proposals to join various gaming websites, but I will have to push everything away. The reason? Given that I have a full time job and part-time university classes, there is not really much time and I do need some spare hours during weekends to do my own things. Hence, I sincerely apologize to all who emailed me.


Let's see what else I have in mind... Oh yeah, as the only local staff in a new Korean gaming company, it is a really interesting experience. I do not speak or read Korean, but we do communicate in English. My Chinese mother tongue helps sometimes as well. From observing how a company works its way up from the ground, the back-end operations and preparations, I never thought I would have the chance to go through all these. I am loving every moment of it and can't wait to launch our games! And yes, I do love kimchi alot, alot. That is all for this week, let's hope this coming week will provide me (and you) with more gaming news!

MMOGaming News

MMOGaming News


Recommended MMOs in July 2011

Posted:

Take July's new MMO as an example, almost all the new MMOs in this month are free-to-play, including those who come from the opposite P2P faction.

Guild Wars 2 Rumor, Possible Mounts...

Posted:

I don't know if this is true or not, only time will tell us if Guild Wars 2 is going to have mounts, but there is a growing concern in some people about having a horse or elephant to ride in GW2…

[Part 2]Blade & Soul: Beautiful Female Characters from 4 Races

Posted:

It is known that numerous MMORPG players are attracted by Blade & Soul's magic charm. What is Blade & Soul's charm?

ARA Online Interview: 4 Factors to Demonstrate The Wholly New Actions

Posted:

The newly-established South Korean game company Aquarius has recently made public its brand-new online game, ARA Online, being developed currently. So far, abundant actions and diversified skills have been tied into this game.

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