MMO Updates |
- The Soapbox: Bigpoint's cash-shop policies and why they are OK
- Former Lineage II artist returns to NCsoft for new MMO project
- Research firm: SWTOR has 350,000 peak concurrent users
- Bethesda vs. Interplay case finally settled
- The Daily Grind: Would you use an official wiki in your game of choice?
- Multiverse shuts down: Firefly, Buffy MMOs officially dead
- Not So Massively: A quiet week in the land of MOBA
- Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars' elite areas -- Urgoz's Warren
- Anonymous not targeting Sony customers in OpSony
- BioWare responds to SWTOR's Ilum exploits
- SOE tweaking EQII's dungeon finder mechanics
- Leaderboard: 2011 vs. 2012
- Setting the record straight: Massively's interview with Pando Networks
- BioWare: Mac version of Star Wars: The Old Republic is something it's 'looking at next'
| The Soapbox: Bigpoint's cash-shop policies and why they are OK Posted: 03 Jan 2012 09:00 AM PST Filed under: Business models, Culture, Opinion, Browser, Battlestar Galactica Online, The Soapbox, Miscellaneous  I have been tasked with explaining to Massively readers why I am OK with Bigpoint's very public policy on selling "advantages." I imagine that this will not be an easy task. After all, we gamers aren't much different than the rest of humanity in the way we tend to care about things that have little or no effect on us. We all have an opinion on "selling power," but I think it's high time that someone attempts to explain why it really isn't always power that Bigpoint is selling -- and why it would be fair even if it were. I will attempt to stick to the specific topic of Bigpoint's policies, but much of what I say will probably apply to any game developer that sells practically anything for real world money. Yes, I am talking about those wonderful collector's editions and favorite cash-shop mounts. They all fall under the same category that Bigpoint's ships or special drones do. Click past the cut and I'll explain why. Continue reading The Soapbox: Bigpoint's cash-shop policies and why they are OK
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| Former Lineage II artist returns to NCsoft for new MMO project Posted: 03 Jan 2012 08:00 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, Lineage, Lineage 2, MMO industry Jeong signed back on with NCsoft as of yesterday to be the art director of an unknown MMO project. This is a marked step up from his previous role in the company as a member of the character production team, and those who know Jeong's art style are already expressing excitement with his current role. Following his stint on Lineage II, Jeong worked for several other game companies including Gravity, NHN, and Npluto. While speculation is swirling over the exact nature of the project to which he's been assigned, the most common assumptions are either that he's working on another Lineage or Aion title.
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| Research firm: SWTOR has 350,000 peak concurrent users Posted: 03 Jan 2012 07:00 AM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Business models, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic  That's a far cry from the 491 servers currently in use by World of Warcraft players, and though some analysts and fans expected TOR to compete with Blizzard's subscription king, Cowen and Company says the new title has had "minimal apparent impact" on the market leader.
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| Bethesda vs. Interplay case finally settled Posted: 03 Jan 2012 06:00 AM PST Filed under: MMO industry, Legal, Fallout Online, Miscellaneous  Well it looks like it is finally over, one way or another. An administrator on the Fallout fan site Duck and Cover says that a settlement has been reached although the details have yet to emerge to the public: Today, DAC has confirmation that a settlement has, in fact, taken place. It actually took place the day of the trial -- and had I been able to get online and sort through the documents I would have reported as much. We do not yet have the details of the settlement -- they will be announced this month (January 2012) -- but we can report that on the day of trial, the atmosphere in the court room was tense until the judge recessed. This recess was extended, and then they recessed for lunch. After the lunch recess, the court room was locked to everyone except attorneys and clients. When our source asked why this was the case, our source was told it was because they were working out a settlement. The following day, another source called the court reporter to ask what the next hearing schedule for the case was -- this source was told there was no schedule as a settlement had been reached.We'll be following this story as it develops to see how it affects the potential Fallout Online and what each studio is walking away with from this bitter dispute.
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| The Daily Grind: Would you use an official wiki in your game of choice? Posted: 03 Jan 2012 05:00 AM PST Filed under: Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous  With a few exceptions like the Guild Wars Wiki or EVElopedia, the majority of the MMO game list lacks a comprehensive official wiki -- a central hub for update news, gear and loot details, gameplay guides, and so on. Many games have but don't maintain them, and many more don't have them at all. Is this something that should be remedied, or is the lack of supply due to the lack of demand? What do you think -- should more developers put resources toward the creation, expansion, and maintenance of this sort of thing?  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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| Multiverse shuts down: Firefly, Buffy MMOs officially dead Posted: 02 Jan 2012 06:00 PM PST Filed under: Culture, MMO industry, News items, Miscellaneous  Multiverse was slated to be the engine powering both the Firefly and Buffy the Vampire Slayer MMOs, but as of December 7, 2011, fans will have to look elsewhere for their Whedonverse fix. There is always Firefly Universe Online, but due to the unauthorized nature of the project and the lack of updates, we're not holding our breath.
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| Not So Massively: A quiet week in the land of MOBA Posted: 02 Jan 2012 05:00 PM PST Filed under: Betas, New titles, PvP, News items, Free-to-play, Not So Massively, MOBA  League of Legends had a quiet holiday week, issuing a reminder to players that the dodge rune removal scheduled for last week is now complete. Bloodline Champions officially released its new bloodline Stormcaller and relocated its servers to Sweden in order to improve performance. Finally, Valve threw hundreds of Dota 2 beta keys into its holiday giveaway over the past week, and Massively managed to snag one. Skip past the cut for details of this week's biggest news from the world of MOBAs and other big online games that aren't quite MMOs. Continue reading Not So Massively: A quiet week in the land of MOBA
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| Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars' elite areas -- Urgoz's Warren Posted: 02 Jan 2012 04:00 PM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Guild Wars, Flameseeker Chronicles, Guides, Dungeons  I really enjoy Urgoz's Warren for a couple of reasons. Obviously, it gives me tons of Kurzick faction, but once you've got the hang of it, it's a fun challenge even without the perks. It's full of environmental effects and hidden enemies that prevent you from simply charging in and blasting away, so you have to think ahead, be careful, and play strategically. Follow along after the jump and we'll take a closer look. Continue reading Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars' elite areas -- Urgoz's Warren
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| Anonymous not targeting Sony customers in OpSony Posted: 02 Jan 2012 03:00 PM PST Filed under: Culture, MMO industry, News items, Miscellaneous  Internet superhero/supervillain organization Anonymous is at it again, and this time it's leading the charge against internet censorship act SOPA. At the moment, Sony stands in favor of SOPA, and Anonymous does not plan on letting that fly. Considering the fact that this is the group responsible for bringing down PSN last year, many gamers have raised concerns over what Anonymous' latest plan could mean for them. Normal gamers can breathe easily, though, as Anonymous seems to have deemed PSN untouchable. The group also mentioned that it would not be releasing the private information of Sony customers, but some Sony employee information -- including names, addresses, credit card numbers, etc. -- has already been posted online. So there's that, we guess. We're glad that someone is standing up to SOPA, but this could get ugly very quickly. What do you think of Anonymous' OpSony?
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| BioWare responds to SWTOR's Ilum exploits Posted: 02 Jan 2012 02:00 PM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, New titles, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic  Recently, some of these players were surprised to find their accounts temporarily suspended. Normally, we do not contact gaming companies because of bans, but there was some confusion in the community regarding a section in the rules of conduct that states: "You may not engage in any conduct or practice that results in an Account containing items, objects, currency, character attributes, rank, or status that are inappropriate for the level or rank of the character contained in the Account, i.e., 'item loading.'" Community Manager Stephen Reid pointed us to a forum post he created after we contacted him, in which he comments about the suspended accounts: It's important to remember that our Terms of Service team is extremely careful and thorough in their investigation of any potential exploit or unusual activity in-game. Working closely with the development team and using extensive metrics based on player activity, they are able to determine what is normal player activity, what is unusual and what is exploiting. Our goal is always to ensure a fair game experience for all players while also protecting the rights of individuals, and if people are disrupting the play experience for others action will be taken.In the post, Reid clarifies that only accounts suspected of gold farming were actually banned. Only a small number of accounts were temporarily suspended for the Ilum exploit, and also any action taken against an account may be appealed.
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| SOE tweaking EQII's dungeon finder mechanics Posted: 02 Jan 2012 01:00 PM PST Filed under: Fantasy, EverQuest II, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, News items, Free-to-play, Dungeons  Sony Online Entertainment has announced a couple of tweaks designed to incentivize the mechanic, and EQ2Wire has the relevant developer quotes as well as a bit of commentary on the process. In a nutshell, SOE is adding contested dungeons and daily rewards into the mix. While this may result in a temporary upswing in dungeon finder interest, it doesn't address the primary reason veteran and high-level players shun the mechanic. The system still won't take player gear into account when forming parties, so it is therefore quite useless when gear-dependent content -- like any of the dungeons from the Destiny of Velious expansion -- is the goal.
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| Posted: 02 Jan 2012 11:00 AM PST Filed under: Opinion, Humor, Miscellaneous, Leaderboard  Oh sure, you might say it's unfair to compare a known quantity with an unknown one, but since when has that stopped MMO players from prognosticating the definitive outcome of everything within a 0.0001% margin of error? 2011 was light on major releases, but the ones it did have were certainly significant. Plus, it was a year of major change in the industry as free-to-play spread its tendrils everywhere, studios took risks on new ideas, and if you could get past the loud whining in one corner you'd see millions upon millions of happy gamers flocking to these games daily. Then again, 2012 could be the real deal, the contender for which we've all been waiting. It could see several big AAA releases even as the industry tries to branch out from the established ruts of the past. It's a year full of potential, promise, and play, and it's out there waiting for you. Ultimately, which do you think will go down in history as the better year? Vote after the jump! Continue reading Leaderboard: 2011 vs. 2012
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| Setting the record straight: Massively's interview with Pando Networks Posted: 02 Jan 2012 10:00 AM PST Filed under: Interviews, Massively Interviews, Miscellaneous  After the post ran, Pando Networks contacted Massively hoping to clear up some of the questions and concerns surrounding the Pando Media Booster. We called up CEO Robert Levitan, who was eager to set the record straight with much to say about the technological features -- both real and misunderstood -- about his company's product. Follow along after the jump for the complete interview. Continue reading Setting the record straight: Massively's interview with Pando Networks
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| BioWare: Mac version of Star Wars: The Old Republic is something it's 'looking at next' Posted: 02 Jan 2012 09:30 AM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Interviews, MMO industry, Star Wars: The Old Republic  "I'd say 'not yet,'" Zeschuk assured me when I told him that, as a BioWare fan, I'm unable to play The Old Republic on my less than two-year-old MacBook. Though Muzyka was quick to remind me that I can technically play the game on a Windows partition, he also admitted that it wasn't an ideal situation. "We've done a lot of Mac ports before of our games. We haven't announced any details yet for The Old Republic, but we know that's an important and large audience." Neither would offer a strict timetable on the Mac version, but Zeschuk did note, "That's definitely one of the things we're looking at next. We want to get this launch under our belt and everything stabilized and happy, and then we'll look at other platforms, and that's obviously one of the first ones."
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