MMO Updates |
- Rumor: Vivendi looking to sell Activision-Blizzard stake
- WRUP: Simon says edition
- The Daily Grind: What's the difference between an MMO trial and F2P?
- Star Wars: The Old Republic posts the newest community answers
- Betawatch: June 23 - 29, 2012
- The MMO Report: Classy edition
- Newest World of Warcraft novel gets a release date and cover preview
- MMObility: Google's Nexus tablet and Dark Legends' update
- Darkfall's 'ultimate promotion' starts next week
- MMO Blender: Eliot's self-made legend
- Storyboard: The social contract
- Age of Conan survey respondents prefer PvE by a wide margin
- EVE Online's Alliance Tournament X starts tomorrow
| Rumor: Vivendi looking to sell Activision-Blizzard stake Posted: 30 Jun 2012 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Business models, Economy, MMO industry, News items, Rumors, Diablo III  How this affects Activision-Blizzard remains to be seen, but Bloomberg says that Vivendi is looking to sell its entire stake, according to "a person with knowledge of the situation." The Wall Street Journal says that Vivendi's board of directors is mulling whether or not to split the company, which could potentially affect Blizzard and its World of Warcraft and Diablo III titles.
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| Posted: 30 Jun 2012 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Massively Meta, Miscellaneous  Simon says that it's time for this week's installment of WRUP. Simon says that the Massively staff members need to explain what they'll be doing over the weekend. Simon says the Massively staff members also need to talk about whether or not they hold grudges against games. Simon says to nod knowingly. Simon says jump past the break to see the Massively staff's answers. Simon says let us know what you'll be up to in the comments. Continue reading WRUP: Simon says edition
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| The Daily Grind: What's the difference between an MMO trial and F2P? Posted: 30 Jun 2012 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Business models, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Opinion, Free-to-play, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous  The "endless trial" model has led to some debate among the Massively staffers as we try to suss out what, exactly, sets an endless trial apart from any other F2P game and how we ought to refer to these sorts of titles on the whole. It'd be easy to say the restricted level cap is the red flag, but if we latch on to that definition, then any free-to-play title with a level cap locked behind a paid expansion -- like Lord of the Rings Online -- could itself be deemed an endless trial, albeit one with a very high (but not max) level cap for free players. Chime in on our debate. What do you think represents the key difference between an MMO that's F2P and an MMO that merely features an endless trial? Is it level caps or content or something else entirely? Or is there not really any difference at all?  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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| Star Wars: The Old Republic posts the newest community answers Posted: 29 Jun 2012 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, News items, Races, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Community Q&A  The answers also go into the details regarding how a tiebreaker is determined in the game's Voidstar matches; a tie goes to whichever team cleared the most objectives in the least amount of time. If none of this round of answers puts your burning questions to rest, there's always hope for next week; head on over to the official question thread and post it for next week's questions.
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| Posted: 29 Jun 2012 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Massively Meta, Betawatch, Miscellaneous  This was a week of beta teases from some of the other games we're awaiting. We had a look at City of Steam's alpha, Firefall announced half a million beta registrations, Cryptic's lifetime subbers are set to receive Neverwinter beta access, SOE chronicled how PlanetSide 2's beta access will shake out, and Phantasy Star Online 2 fans can brush up on their Japanese and jump into that title's open beta. Finally, CCP promised DUST 514 beta invites to players who purchase a special booster pack. The shooter's first beta weekend began yesterday. Immerse yourself in the full Betawatch roundup beyond the break. Continue reading Betawatch: June 23 - 29, 2012
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| The MMO Report: Classy edition Posted: 29 Jun 2012 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Video, Culture, MMO industry, Previews, News items, Opinion, The MMO Report, Miscellaneous  But it's not a show just about one game. This installment also discusses the reveal of PlanetSide 2's classes and their roles, the various exploits in EVE Online, the kick off of DUST 514's beta testing, and of course, the contents of Casey's mail bag. Also, for some reason, cats. Check out the full show just past the break, and stay tuned every week for a new installment of The MMO Report from G4TV and Massively. Continue reading The MMO Report: Classy edition
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| Newest World of Warcraft novel gets a release date and cover preview Posted: 29 Jun 2012 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Culture, Lore, News items  While Jaina has always tried to broker a peace between the Alliance and the Horde, the novel's plot revolves around Warchief Garrosh Hellscream launching an attack against Jaina's home in Theramore, demonstrating the same legendary thinking that's alienated several of the Horde's allies. Whether or not the erstwhile diplomat will be able to retain any hopes of a peaceful resolution remains to be seen, but with Mists of Pandaria promising to focus on the conflict between the two factions, it seems likely that players will be looking at silencing the last and loudest voice for peace.
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| MMObility: Google's Nexus tablet and Dark Legends' update Posted: 29 Jun 2012 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Horror, Game mechanics, Previews, News items, Free-to-play, Browser, Mobile, Casual, Miscellaneous, MMObility  Still, mobile MMO fans have got to be diligent and need to know what to look for. They also need to be a bit flexible in their game choices, sometimes playing around with different styles of MMO like MUDs, browser-based strategy games, and games that are a bit more primitive in the graphics department. Luckily, Spacetime's Dark Legends just released a pretty game-changing patch, so I'll give you the skinny on that as well. Continue reading MMObility: Google's Nexus tablet and Dark Legends' update
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| Darkfall's 'ultimate promotion' starts next week Posted: 29 Jun 2012 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Darkfall, Patches, Promotions, Sandbox  Through the promotion, all current and previous subscribers will be granted several days of free play. These days are July 2nd through the 4th and the 9th through the 11th. In addition, the subscription rate is reduced to $9.95 a month; this rate includes a copy of the game for completely new players. Players also should find their experience in the game on fast-forward. Aventurine is jacking up the skill increase rate by 20 times, boosting the the global loot by four times, and making village control points go active every six hours instead of 12. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
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| MMO Blender: Eliot's self-made legend Posted: 29 Jun 2012 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: City of Heroes, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Final Fantasy XI, Lord of the Rings Online, Culture, Game mechanics, Warhammer Online, Opinion, TERA, Miscellaneous, MMO Blender  What about a game where your personal history has as much to do with your future development as anything else? A game where your accomplishments aren't just backstory but an integral part of your character's abilities? A game where every new encounter is a chance for your character to learn something unique? I'd love to see a game where your accomplishments are not a list of things that you've killed but a clear litany of skills learned and scars accumulated -- a game where the path to power isn't necessarily clearly marked. Continue reading MMO Blender: Eliot's self-made legend
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| Storyboard: The social contract Posted: 29 Jun 2012 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Culture, Lore, Opinion, Roleplaying, Storyboard, Miscellaneous  Picture the scene for a moment: You have a group of people living in an isolated and rural community. Without warning, a man with heavy weaponry bursts in and starts hacking his way through every inhabitant of the community, smashing his way into locked houses. But he also stops at the body of each victim to gather any money or important belongings, slowly working his way through the community until there's nothing left but carrion and a few trinkets he didn't deem valuable enough to steal. On the news, this would be up there as a pretty shocking tragedy. In an MMO, this is a good chunk of the gameplay. And that brings to mind one of the major issues that faced by roleplayers hoping for verisimilitude: the horrible discrepancies between the social contract as we understand it and the one employed by the characters in the game. They're divergent sometimes, identical at other times, and universally ambiguous. Continue reading Storyboard: The social contract
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| Age of Conan survey respondents prefer PvE by a wide margin Posted: 29 Jun 2012 11:30 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Age of Conan, Game mechanics, MMO industry, PvP, News items, PvE, Free-to-play  Craig "Silirrion" Morrison presents the findings from AoC's annual summer survey, which amount to an unsurprising PvE-is-way-more-popular-than-PvP conclusion. The scores are weighted, so we don't get to see exactly how many players voted and what they voted for, but it's an interesting peek into the minds of AoC's community in any event. Morrison says that "overall, 70% of responders listed one form of PvE as their primary interest, with the remaining 30% listing a form of PvP." He also takes a moment to tease AoC's forthcoming adventure pack, which is as-yet unnamed and supposedly set somewhere in the Hyborian south. Full details are at the official website.
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| EVE Online's Alliance Tournament X starts tomorrow Posted: 29 Jun 2012 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, PvP, News items, Sandbox  The first-round matchup will be Agony Empire vs. Exiled Ones, with 15 more pairings following at 20-minute intervals. The pre-qualifying rounds will continue on Sunday as well as the following weekend. For a full listing of events and information on streaming, check out the official schedule. [Source: CCP press release]
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