MMO Updates |
- Free for All: Second Life, the little 75 million-dollar engine that could
- LotRO shows off the vistas of Rohan in new video and stills
- SMITE schools us with tutorial video
- Face of Mankind updates include public apartments
- The Daily Grind: When have you gotten revenge?
- Latest PlanetSide 2 gameplay video is short but sweet
- Brian Knox discusses the future of TERA
- Massively Speaking Episode 205: Revolt!
- Facebook backing away from Facebook Credits and adding subscription billing
- Patch 1.0.3 released for Diablo III complete with an interesting new bug
- The Game Archaeologist: Will classic MMOs survive without free-to-play?
- The Soapbox: Meaningful solo play
- Anarchy Online brings global market interface online
- Realm of the Mad God studio acquired by social game maker
- Heroes & Generals brings persistent WW2 action to your browser
- Star Wars: The Old Republic brings team ranked warzones back to the PTS
- MechWarrior Online founder's packages detailed
- Flameseeker Chronicles: Nostalgia ain't what it used to be
- Aeria Games releases seafaring expansion for Grand Fantasia
- Help a newbie with RIFT's upcoming mentoring system
- DC Universe Online's Last Laugh DLC now available
- ArenaNet asks of Guild Wars 2, 'Is it fun?'
| Free for All: Second Life, the little 75 million-dollar engine that could Posted: 20 Jun 2012 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Second Life, Free-to-play, Virtual worlds, Free for All, Sandbox, Anniversary  Don't worry; this column will not be a fanboy rehash of the successes of Second Life and will not be a recount of my favorite memories. Instead, we'll focus on facts to prove just how incredible this latest ninth anniversary is. Continue reading Free for All: Second Life, the little 75 million-dollar engine that could
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| LotRO shows off the vistas of Rohan in new video and stills Posted: 20 Jun 2012 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Video, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, News items, Free-to-play  To give players a taste of the area, Turbine has released numerous screenshots of the beautiful landscapes of the Rohan region. A flythough video also highlights waterfalls in East Wall, fields in The Wold, settlements in Norscrofts, and the forests in Eaves of Fangorn, as well as other notable areas. Check out all of the new images in the gallery below and head past the break for the video flythrough of the gorgeous scenery of Rohan. And for more information about the expansion, check out The Road to Mordor's recent feature focusing on Riders of Rohan. [Source: Turbine press release] Continue reading LotRO shows off the vistas of Rohan in new video and stills
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| SMITE schools us with tutorial video Posted: 20 Jun 2012 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Video, Free-to-play, MOBA  The video explains both the ins and the outs of MOBA gaming in general as well as SMITE in specific. Players are walked through a 5v5 match between the gods. Some of SMITE's particulars are important to note, such as how the game is played in third-person over-the-shoulder view and relies on skill to hit targets (versus locking on to them). You can get your beginners SMITE certificate by watching the video after the jump. Certificates are completely fictitious and will be mailed seven to nine weeks after course completion. Make sure to also read about our recent hands-on impressions of the game. Continue reading SMITE schools us with tutorial video
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| Face of Mankind updates include public apartments Posted: 20 Jun 2012 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, Patches, Sandbox  Also in the update was a new character panel that helps players organize their character better as well as stay on top of new information released about major combat revisions. To encourage players to get the word out about the game and the new features, FoM implemented a new referral system that rewards 15 days of premium-level game time to anyone (including trial accounts) who has a friend sign up through the referral link and then buys a premium subscription. [Source: Face of Mankind press release]
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| The Daily Grind: When have you gotten revenge? Posted: 20 Jun 2012 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous  But... but every once in a while, an opportunity for revenge comes along. Finally, you're able to deliver some payback. Maybe you did it fully within the confines of the game's mechanics -- PvP, for example -- or maybe you structured a revenge scheme so unorthodox that several motion picture studios are vying for the film rights. Let's hear your revenge stories today. When did you get it, and did it satisfy you in the end?  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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| Latest PlanetSide 2 gameplay video is short but sweet Posted: 19 Jun 2012 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Trailers, Video, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, PvP, News items, Free-to-play, MMOFPS, Sandbox  Galaxies? Check. MAXs? Check. Ground troops? Check, check, and check. The clip, titled Ground Assault on Tech Plant Hvar, shows off a firefight between forces of the New Conglomerate and the Terran Republic. You'll find it after the cut, so double-time it soldier! [Source: Sony Online Entertainment press release] Continue reading Latest PlanetSide 2 gameplay video is short but sweet
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| Brian Knox discusses the future of TERA Posted: 19 Jun 2012 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Interviews, News items, TERA  En Masse Entertainment's action-packed title TERA has been out for just over a month now, and the game's really beginning to pick up steam. The title recently unveiled its much-awaited political system, which led to some pretty exciting activity in the campaign for Vanarchy. Still, many players are now looking toward the future. Do you wonder what En Masse has up its sleeve now that TERA is up and running? Then you're in luck because the game's Senior Producer, Brian Knox, sat down to answer a few questions for the folks at DualShockers. It's a pretty interesting interview that covers a range of topics, such as the relationship between En Masse and Bluehole Studio and plans for expansion of TERA's endgame. Roleplayers get a couple of shout-outs as well, which is a refreshing change. Heck, Knox even comments on the game's ridiculous MMO-Fo ad campaign. For all of the delicious interview details, click below to read the full piece.
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| Massively Speaking Episode 205: Revolt! Posted: 19 Jun 2012 05:30 PM PDT Filed under: Podcasts, MMO industry, News items, Guild Wars 2, Massively Meta, Massively Speaking, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Miscellaneous  Have a comment for the podcasters? Shoot an email to podcast@massively.com. We may just read your email on the air! Get the podcast: [iTunes] Subscribe to Massively Speaking directly in iTunes. [RSS] Add Massively Speaking to your RSS aggregator. [MP3] Download the MP3 directly. Listen here on the page: Read below the cut for the full show notes. Continue reading Massively Speaking Episode 205: Revolt!
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| Facebook backing away from Facebook Credits and adding subscription billing Posted: 19 Jun 2012 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Business models, Culture, MMO industry, News items, Browser, Miscellaneous  Yes, that's right: Facebook is opening up the option for subscriptions to its games in the hopes of drawing in more money. Subscriptions are already being tested in several games, such as KIXEYE's Backyard Monsters. This coincides with the development team's shift away from Facebook Credits as a universal microtransaction currency for all of the many games floating around, mostly since developers preferred to use in-brand virtual currencies instead. None of this is particularly new to MMO veterans. It's still rather interesting after years of business model changes to see subscriptions being touted as the future of payments. [Thanks to Space Cobra for the tip!]
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| Patch 1.0.3 released for Diablo III complete with an interesting new bug Posted: 19 Jun 2012 04:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Bugs, Game mechanics, Patches, News items, Diablo III  Unfortunately, it looks like the patch has brought an odd glitch along for some players -- namely, a glitch preventing them from gaining any experience. Player testing seems to reveal that changing your password fixes the issue and allows you to gain experience once again, and the issue is only affecting players with a digital version instead of the game discs. While no official word has come down from Blizzard as of yet, it wouldn't be surprising to see the issue hotfixed in the near future.
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| The Game Archaeologist: Will classic MMOs survive without free-to-play? Posted: 19 Jun 2012 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Asheron's Call, Dark Age of Camelot, Dungeons and Dragons Online, EverQuest, Lord of the Rings Online, Business models, Ultima Online, Vanguard, The Game Archaeologist, Miscellaneous  I think this brings a pressing question to bear in the field of classic MMOs: Will they survive without free-to-play? It's a pretty important question for a few reasons. One, a surprising majority of remaining sub-only MMOs are older ones; two, people now expect free in games they try; and three, players aren't exactly flocking to classic MMOs anyway. This week I want to explore the conundrum that these games are in and why some players may have blinders on when it comes to the fate of their favorite games. Continue reading The Game Archaeologist: Will classic MMOs survive without free-to-play?
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| The Soapbox: Meaningful solo play Posted: 19 Jun 2012 03:30 PM PDT Filed under: Culture, Game mechanics, Endgame, Opinion, The Soapbox, Miscellaneous  I'm going to open this piece off by laying my cards on the table: If you read my last Soapbox two weeks ago about why solo players choose to play solo and you absolutely hated it, then honestly, I have to tell you that this installment isn't for you. You aren't going to like it. Go read a book or play a game or something else because there's no reason for you to read something that I can promise you straight-up you won't like. I spent that entire column talking about why people might play solo, but I spent absolutely no time discussing what players are supposed to do solo or how games can handle the dichotomy between solo and grouped players. There does need to be some parity between the two, and that works both ways. Solo players need content and rewards, but group players need to have something to work toward as well, and you need to have the feeling of an overall shared world. So how do you mix a solid solo experience with a solid MMO? Continue reading The Soapbox: Meaningful solo play
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| Anarchy Online brings global market interface online Posted: 19 Jun 2012 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Anarchy Online, Economy, Patches, Free-to-play  Version 18.5 has a lot more than just this new interface. The launcher for the game's been improved and now takes you to a visual character select screen. Other improvements include more staying power for pets, tweaks to specific buffs, and clarification for PvP encounters. There's plenty of line items to pour over in the patch notes, so check them out if you've got a summer vacation planned to Rubi-Ka.
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| Realm of the Mad God studio acquired by social game maker Posted: 19 Jun 2012 02:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Business models, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Browser, Casual  Realm of the Mad God originally launched in 2010 as an indie game competition entry before finding purchase on Steam and morphing into more of an MMO. Gamasutra says that designer Willem Rosenthal will stay onboard to direct the project. Check out Massively's Realm of the Mad God impressions via our Rise and Shiny column.
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| Heroes & Generals brings persistent WW2 action to your browser Posted: 19 Jun 2012 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Historical, Trailers, Video, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, PvP, News items, War, Free-to-play, Dev Diaries  The update brings several weapon tweaks, new weapon modifications, and new town map layouts to the World War II shooter. And before you make the mistake of thinking that H&G is yet another FPS, have a look at the feature set as well as some of the other videos on display at the game's official website. The title is basically two games in one. You've got a massively multiplayer online FPS and a strategic asset management game, both of which affect the other via persistent campaigns. All of this happens in your browser, too, though how Reto-Moto manages the game's high-fidelity visuals and sprawling environments is part of the company's proprietary Retox engine secret sauce. Check out the dev blog after the break, and take a gander at our first impressions for further gameplay details. [Source: Reto-Moto press release] Continue reading Heroes & Generals brings persistent WW2 action to your browser
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| Star Wars: The Old Republic brings team ranked warzones back to the PTS Posted: 19 Jun 2012 01:45 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, PvP, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic  BioWare has some good news today for the more competitive Star Wars: The Old Republic players: Team ranked warzones are back on the PTS. With this feature, players will be able to rally into groups of eight to take on opposing groups for honor and glory. Thanks to some newly implemented tech, players will remain in their premade groups even after the PvP match is over, which should make re-queuing after the fact considerably simpler. In addition, the studio has announced a feature known as dual queuing. With this feature, players will be able to queue themselves for both a ranked and an unranked warzone simultaneously. If a player in a normal warzone gets a ranked warzone pop, that player's spot in the ranked warzone will be reserved until she finishes the normal warzone match, which should help make the waiting time for ranked warzones pass a bit more quickly. For the full details on the upcoming team ranked warzones, check out the full post on SWTOR's official site.
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| MechWarrior Online founder's packages detailed Posted: 19 Jun 2012 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, News items, Free-to-play, MechWarrior Online  If you've got your heart set on MechWarrior Online, today is a good day for you! The founder's program goes on sale today, with an additional tier of awesomeness available. The new $120 legendary tier comes with a three-month premium MechWarrior Online account. Additionally, you'll get four founder's BattleMechs, $80 worth of in-game currency, a founder's tag for extra status boosting, game credits, and early access starting August 7th. The $60 elite package has the same tags, in-game currency, and early access as the Legendary tier, but only two months of premium account access and one BattleMech. If you're not worried about frills, the $40 veteran package will get you $40 worth of in-game currency, one month of premium status, founder's tags, and early access. [Source: Piranha Games press release]
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| Flameseeker Chronicles: Nostalgia ain't what it used to be Posted: 19 Jun 2012 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Guild Wars, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Flameseeker Chronicles  The original Guild Wars is riddled with memories for me. I may have spent only a paltry 2,500 hours in-game, but they've been superbly full hours. I had two big surges of nostalgia this past week: once when I was hip-deep in the Fissure of Woe and remembered how utterly awesome I'd felt the first time I got a Chaos Axe drop, and again as I ran through the hall of burning trees in the third level of the Cathedral of Flames and thought about the countless times I'd run through there on my Smite or 600 monk, buddied up with my best friend and dropping the Enchanted Weapons like flies. I can't wait to have that kind of nostalgia in Guild Wars 2. Continue reading Flameseeker Chronicles: Nostalgia ain't what it used to be
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| Aeria Games releases seafaring expansion for Grand Fantasia Posted: 19 Jun 2012 12:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Expansions, News items, Free-to-play  Along with the increase in the level cap comes the new lands of Heirloom Peninsula, Frostfire Pass, and Aurawhisp Hamlet to adventure in. A level 90 dungeon with 12 new world bosses to defeat and plunder also awaits all players wanting to begin their adventures on the high seas. [Source: Aeria Games press release]
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| Help a newbie with RIFT's upcoming mentoring system Posted: 19 Jun 2012 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, News items, RIFT  RIFT fans are surely excited about the game's upcoming patch 1.9, which will bring a number of new features, such as the three-way conquest PvP mode, to the popular fantasy title. The mentoring system allows players to scale their levels down so they can play with lower-level teammates while still receiving XP and rewards comparable to their true levels. Trion Worlds has designed the system to be easy to use: If you want to drop your level to match someone else's, simply invite that player to a party, right-click on his character's portrait, and voila. In addition, if you join a random instant adventure group, you will automatically be lowered to the appropriate level. And remember, you do continue to gain level-appropriate rewards and XP even when your level has been lowered by the mentor system. For instance, if your character is level 45 but you're mentored down to say, level 30 to play with a friend, you'll continue to gain XP suitable for a level 45 character, and you'll always be rewarded with the appropriate variety of sourcestone. For the full details on the game's upcoming mentoring system, head on over to the RIFT official site.
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| DC Universe Online's Last Laugh DLC now available Posted: 19 Jun 2012 11:30 AM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, PvP, News items, Free-to-play, DC Universe Online  If that's not enough to whet your whistle, Last Laugh also features new shield powers, safe house battles, headquarters battles, and legends characters including Power Girl, Ursa, Bizarro, and various Lantern and Sinestro notables. Last Laugh is free for legendary players or $9.99 for free and premium members. You can download it via the PlayStation Network or the in-game marketplace. [Source: SOE press release]
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| ArenaNet asks of Guild Wars 2, 'Is it fun?' Posted: 19 Jun 2012 11:01 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, News items, Guild Wars 2, Dev Diaries  To that end, he relates that the fairly standard gear treadmill has been more or less removed from the game. While there is item progression through levels, rare items are made desirable by visual, not statistical, distinction. Dungeons, rather than having a tiny chance of dropping high-demand items, reward players with tokens that can be traded for items. Within those dungeons, variations have been made possible so that players can choose different routes to explore rather than be forced to do the same exact run again and again. Continue reading ArenaNet asks of Guild Wars 2, 'Is it fun?'
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