MMO Updates |
- CCP shows off seven years of DUST 514 skill training
- New World of Warplanes gameplay video showcases fighters
- Runic not ready for Torchlight MMO anytime soon
- The Daily Grind: How do you define pay-to-win?
- WildStar Wednesday showcases a rogue's gallery full of rogues
- En Masse addresses TERA lawsuit speculation
- A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Status report, last year
- EVE Online streamlines the process of figuring out who's crippling your ship
- Warhammer Online is cross-promoting with Wrath of Heroes
- Massively Exclusive: City of Heroes previews the upcoming Mecha Armor
- RIFT's patch 1.8: Infernal Dawn goes live
- Free for All: The importance of those first moments in a game
- MechWarrior Online devs field 'Mech customization queries
- Choose My Adventure: Ultimate road trip edition
- Guild Wars 2 announces first beta weekend for April 27th to 29th
- Why I Play: Star Trek Online
- TERA open beta begins this weekend
| CCP shows off seven years of DUST 514 skill training Posted: 19 Apr 2012 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-fi, Video, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Free-to-play, DUST 514, Sandbox  "Much like in real life, and in EVE Online, we don't expect that a player will master all of these skills," explains CCP marketing guru David Reid. Specialization is the name of DUST 514's skill game, and Reid says that most players will probably choose a few skills and "get really, really good at them." DUST isn't just about skills, though. It's an MMO, and an MMO means gear, so the game will launch with upwards of a thousand items (the vast majority of which can be lost in battle). How do you manage and equip these items? Through the fitting screen, of course, and today's video gives us a good look at the system in action. Continue reading CCP shows off seven years of DUST 514 skill training
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| New World of Warplanes gameplay video showcases fighters Posted: 19 Apr 2012 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Historical, Trailers, Video, Classes, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, News items, War, Free-to-play, World of Warplanes  Like all of WoWP's aircraft, fighters will feature various engines, ammunition types, and assorted customizable modules that allow players to tune for optimum combat performance. World of Warplanes is currently in global alpha, but Wargaming.net says that closed beta is "coming soon." In the meantime, check out the clip after the cut. [Source: Wargaming.net press release] Continue reading New World of Warplanes gameplay video showcases fighters
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| Runic not ready for Torchlight MMO anytime soon Posted: 19 Apr 2012 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Interviews, MMO industry, News items  "An MMO is a hell of a commitment," Schaefer tells Rock, Paper Shotgun. "It means we're gonna be doing that for a few years at least prior to release and then committing years of support for it afterward. So it's a decision we take very, very seriously." RPS says that a Torchlight MMO has always been Runic's end goal, but given the fact that the 30-man company is still fiddling with Torchlight II, the massively multiplayer version remains a ways off.
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| The Daily Grind: How do you define pay-to-win? Posted: 19 Apr 2012 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Business models, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Opinion, Free-to-play, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous  Free-to-play makes it quite challenging to separate monetization decisions from game design decisions, and as a result, developers are understandably concerned about avoiding the dreaded pay-to-win stigma. Pay close attention to any interview or press release that talks about a title's business model and you're guaranteed to hear a dev (or executive) say something vaguely reassuring in terms of how his title's monetization scheme absolutely isn't pay-to-win. The problem is that there is no agreed-upon definition of pay-to-win. "Convenience" items are a good case in point. Some folks don't mind them, while others point out that they can make your character more powerful in less time, depending on the system. For today's early-morning discussion, we'd like to know your thoughts on pay-to-win. More specifically, how do you define it?  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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| WildStar Wednesday showcases a rogue's gallery full of rogues Posted: 18 Apr 2012 09:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Lore, Previews, News items, WildStar  Marauders are intergalactic pirates, the Darkspur Cartel is essentially an interstellar mafia, and the Crowe Gang is a group of smugglers and moonshine brewers. But all of them have an interest in Algoroc, and none of them are open to outsiders or anything law-abiding in the area. That means players are going to have to face off against all three, and from the looks of the preview, none of these groups will go down easily.
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| En Masse addresses TERA lawsuit speculation Posted: 18 Apr 2012 08:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Legal, TERA  A posting on the official TERA blog says that the upcoming action MMO will launch as scheduled on May 1st despite "baseless accusations" and "unfounded rumors" regarding the theft of Lineage III assets by former Bluehole employees in Korea. The piece states that "after extensive Korean proceedings, Bluehole Studio was not found to have made any use of any NCsoft trade secrets in the form of source code or game design." It also notes that NCsoft product performance has suffered since TERA's Korean launch more than a year ago.
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| A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Status report, last year Posted: 18 Apr 2012 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, Culture, Game mechanics, Opinion, Free-to-play, A Mild-Mannered Reporter, Anniversary  Certainly if you had told me back then that every major superhero game would be free-to-play before the year was up, I wouldn't have believed it. But that's what's happened, and as the game has shifted, so has the market around it. That means that the game has really had to face off against its two "direct" competitors on a straight footing, and that might not have been in the game's best interests as a whole. Continue reading A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Status report, last year
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| EVE Online streamlines the process of figuring out who's crippling your ship Posted: 18 Apr 2012 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Game mechanics, Patches, Previews, News items, Sandbox  Starting with the next patch, the new Effects Bar will show a quick overview of all the effects currently in place on your ship as well as the source of same. So if there are two people attacking you, an icon will pop up, and you'll be able to target and counterattack appropriately rather than fumble through more clumsy interface methods. If the blog entry explaining the system isn't clear enough for you, check out the short preview video just past the break. Continue reading EVE Online streamlines the process of figuring out who's crippling your ship
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| Warhammer Online is cross-promoting with Wrath of Heroes Posted: 18 Apr 2012 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Game mechanics, Warhammer Online, News items, Free-to-play, Promotions, MOBA  There's no complicated process to getting the bonus; if you have both accounts on the same EA/Origin account, your characters will reap the benefits, although it may take up to 24 hours for the system to line up if you've just started a subscription. The bonus also stacks with items from the Wrath of Heroes store, letting veterans of Warhammer Online get ahead in the new game.
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| Massively Exclusive: City of Heroes previews the upcoming Mecha Armor Posted: 18 Apr 2012 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, Galleries, Screenshots, City of Heroes, Previews, Free-to-play  The gallery below contains an image of a male, female, and huge character in the new costume set, complete with wings, backpacks, and other armor reminiscent of any number of Gundam designs. Like other Tier 9 VIP rewards, the armor will only be unlockable for a limited time, so if you're feeling a desperate need to play with these costume parts -- and we can't blame you -- it's best save up your reward tokens now.
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| RIFT's patch 1.8: Infernal Dawn goes live Posted: 18 Apr 2012 03:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Patches, News items, RIFT, Dungeons  Maelforge and Laethys better be watching their backs because RIFT's patch 1.8: Infernal Dawn is now live, and players are now able to head into the eponymous Infernal Dawn raid to lay the smack down on the pair of dragon-gods. On top of that, the patch will be ringing in a new world event known as the War of the Wanton Maw, which will presumably involve players fighting back against Maelforge's Wanton cult and Laethys' Golden Maw. If you're a less combative type, don't worry. Infernal Dawn is also bringing some more relaxing activities in the form of two new tradeskills. Those looking to spend a calm day on the water can bait a hook and spend an afternoon fishing, while those who want to rough it in the great outdoors can craft food and shelter with the new survival skill. For the full details on what this monumental patch is bringing to the game, just head on over to the official forums to check out the patch notes yourself. Oh, and if you're curious about what you're going up against, just click on past the cut for a look at Maelforge and Laethys in the official Infernal Dawn trailer. Continue reading RIFT's patch 1.8: Infernal Dawn goes live
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| Free for All: The importance of those first moments in a game Posted: 18 Apr 2012 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Bugs, Culture, Opinion, Free-to-play, Casual, Free for All, Miscellaneous  I was nervous from the moment I installed the game. NCsoft hosts a notoriously odd account management system. Sure, once you break the code and understand how to make an account for your master account that signs into your game account (or something like that), it might seem elementary. Until that moment, though, the system makes you feel like an idiot. It makes you feel as though the publisher literally doesn't want you to play the game. I had a week filled with such moments. The frustration I felt led me to today's topic. Continue reading Free for All: The importance of those first moments in a game
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| MechWarrior Online devs field 'Mech customization queries Posted: 18 Apr 2012 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-fi, Game mechanics, Free-to-play, Community Q&A, MechWarrior Online  A good bulk of the 27 questions thrown to the four members of Piranha Games' team revolve around 'Mech customization. MechWarrior Online will be pretty flexible in this regard, although not as flexible as pen-and-paper fans might hope. For example, custom decals won't be in the game at launch, as their inclusion would require too much monitoring. Still, if you're trying to get a sense of the scope of MWO's 'Mech customization, this Q&A might impress you. Just because the community could ask doesn't mean that Piranha had to answer, however. When queried about the in-game economy, Creative Director Bryan Ekman put the answer off until later: "We're not ready to go into details on the economics of the game. We plan to cover this in greater detail in the next couple of months via our dev blogs."
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| Choose My Adventure: Ultimate road trip edition Posted: 18 Apr 2012 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Polls, Hands-on, Choose My Adventure, Miscellaneous  Just like Mikey of Life cereal fame, I ventured into the realm of Choose My Adventure once before, and I liked it! Grand adventures, camaraderie with readers, exploring the unknown... what more could I ask for? More time, obviously! It ended all too soon. I was totally revved up and ready to jump right back in, but unfortunately neither pleading nor bribery worked to continue my stint as your plucky puppet (and locking the other staff members in a dark closet didn't pan out either -- they escaped), so I had to park it and wait my turn. It took much too long, but finally my time has come again. *happy dance* Now the boss may have handed me the keys, but you will be the ones driving. The top is down, and I've got snacks and shades; all that is left to begin our adventure for the next six weeks is to pick which direction to head and floor it. Although a lot of good places have already been visited, there are plenty more to choose from. In the mood for fantasy? Capes? Nebulas? Heavy artillery? Cast your votes by Sunday, April 22nd, 2012, at 11:59 p.m. EDT for your chance to steer me to the world of your choice. Our possible destinations (in no particular order) are... Continue reading Choose My Adventure: Ultimate road trip edition
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| Guild Wars 2 announces first beta weekend for April 27th to 29th Posted: 18 Apr 2012 12:15 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Events, in-game, News items, Guild Wars 2  Guild Wars 2 fans, prepare to rejoice; the time has nearly come to throw open the floodgates. ArenaNet has taken to Twitter to announce that the first public Guild Wars 2 beta weekend event will be taking place the weekend of April 27th. Other details are scant at the moment, but the team promises that a blog post with further information will be going up tomorrow. If you want to get in on the fun but don't have a beta key, don't fret. The tweet also reminds players that prepurchasing the game will grant instant beta event access for this weekend and others to follow. So that's it, folks: You've got a little over a week to call in sick, stock up on the most dangerously caffeinated beverages you can find, and kiss your sleep schedule goodbye. We'll see you in Tyria.
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| Posted: 18 Apr 2012 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Opinion, Star Trek Online, Free-to-play, Why I Play  An hour later, our mission was accomplished, and my wife had another tale of husband-geekery to share around the office. To her credit, the very next week she happened to be driving by another Del Taco and purchased me six additional cups to give away to fans who otherwise couldn't get one. That's how awesome she is. I tell you this story because it is indicative of my relationship with Star Trek Online: silly yet passionate, excitable yet frivolous, and flawed yet fascinated. I've played this game off and on for the past couple of years and have become convinced that while it's clunky and lacking in areas, it's an MMO gem that deserves much better than the slander it's endured. This is why I play it. Continue reading Why I Play: Star Trek Online
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| TERA open beta begins this weekend Posted: 18 Apr 2012 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, News items, TERA  The action starts right away as you're shipwrecked on the Island of Dawn and immediately set upon by hordes of hungry demons. You'll jump into TERA's action combat from the get-go, as opposed to the traditional tutorial experiences in many other MMOs. Signing up for the beta is pretty straight-forward. All you need is an En Masse account and the ability to remember the TERABETA promo code. Step-by-step signup instructions are available after the cut. [Source: En Masse press release] Continue reading TERA open beta begins this weekend
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