MMO Updates |
- RaiderZ video and screenshots show off goblin village of Rengot
- Aventurine confirms character wipes for Darkfall reboot
- Guild Wars 2 video and dev blog explain legendary weapons
- Yoshida: FFXIV Realm Reborn alpha test coming in October
- Ten things to do in City of Heroes before it's gone
- The Daily Grind: Are dynamic events another MMO fad?
- Forge beta launches, new video of map released
- Curt Schilling might pay back debt by selling baseball memorabilia
- SOE community webcast focuses on Player Studio
- The Summoner's Guidebook: Making League of Legends a better place
- ArenaNet's plans for supporting Guild Wars 2
- EVE Online posts an update to the state of Crimewatch
- Firefall extrapolates on its new progression system
- LotRO dev diary spotlights roving warbands
- World of Tanks' 8.1 patch to feature British heavy armor
- Pirate101 sneak peek open to all going on until 9 tonight
- Chaos Theory: Four more essential Secret World tips
- The Guild Counsel: What to do when the old guild leader returns
- Lips are unsealed as NDA drops for MechWarrior Online
- Funcom hints at Halloween tricks and treats in The Secret World
| RaiderZ video and screenshots show off goblin village of Rengot Posted: 05 Oct 2012 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Screenshots, Trailers, New titles, News items, Free-to-play  Home to the infamous Rengot goblin tribe since the goblins' loss in the war against the humans and their subsequent banishment, this village hides the mind-controlled golem abominations. Check out images of the village in the screenshots below, and watch a tour in the video after the break. To learn more about RaiderZ, you can catch Massively's video impressions. [Source: Perfect World Entertainment press release] Continue reading RaiderZ video and screenshots show off goblin village of Rengot
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| Aventurine confirms character wipes for Darkfall reboot Posted: 05 Oct 2012 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Darkfall, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, PvP, News items, Sandbox  "These are different games and the DFUW character system is incompatible with the old characters. These are two completely different worlds, there is a different skill acquisition system, different skills, different stats, all the way down to the story-line; everything makes them incompatible," explains producer Tasos Flambouras. Interestingly, he mentions that the old characters will be preserved in some fashion, possibly for "Darkfall-related side-projects we are considering." Finally, the Unholy Wars client will be free of charge to everyone who has ever purchased the original game. Read more at the official Darkfall blog.
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| Guild Wars 2 video and dev blog explain legendary weapons Posted: 05 Oct 2012 08:45 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, Game mechanics, New titles, News items, Guild Wars 2, Dev Diaries  Once created, players will have an impressive new weapon that blends art and effects to make a unique style. Check out some of the weapons and their effects in the video after the cut. Continue reading Guild Wars 2 video and dev blog explain legendary weapons
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| Yoshida: FFXIV Realm Reborn alpha test coming in October Posted: 05 Oct 2012 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, MMO industry, News items, Final Fantasy XIV  "There will not only be stress tests for the new servers' coding and hardware configurations, but also tests for what will be the backbone of the game's new system, which is why we're being very cautious with development. Bear with us for just a while longer," says Naoki Yoshida in the latest producer's letter. Yoshida also says that the dev team will likely keep the current version of FFXIV available for a time, even though no character data accumulated after November 11th will be ported to A Realm Reborn. The decision is based partly on player poll voting. Yoshida says he was "planning to keep the servers open so long as 30% of the players voted for it."
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| Ten things to do in City of Heroes before it's gone Posted: 05 Oct 2012 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, Opinion, Free-to-play  Welp, so much for that. As we've been covering for the last month and change, NCsoft is pulling the plug on City of Heroes come the end of November, and the genre is faced with the loss of yet another pioneering and ostensibly profitable MMO long before its time. While there are still soldiers fighting for that slim chance NCsoft might sell the game to a willing investor, the likelihood is that it's game over for Paragon City, at least in its current incarnation. Fight on, I say; don't give up. But make sure you enjoy the game that exists right now, too. Log in. Play. You may never get the chance again. Today, I'll tell you 10 things you should do in City of Heroes... before it's too late. Continue reading Ten things to do in City of Heroes before it's gone
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| The Daily Grind: Are dynamic events another MMO fad? Posted: 05 Oct 2012 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Events, in-game, Game mechanics, MMO industry, PvE, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Massively Meta, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous  But is this actually the type of content we want to see from our MMOs, whatever their flavor? Never mind whether they're actually dynamic -- do you actually think they make for fun, desirable content? Or are we just so sick of themepark-style questing and leveling that we're willing to accept anything in its stead, even if that "anything" might be a fad akin to MMO story? What do you think -- are dynamic events all that and a bag of chips?  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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| Forge beta launches, new video of map released Posted: 04 Oct 2012 08:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Video, MMO industry, New titles, PvP, News items, Free-to-play  Players who registered for the game early in the summer have access to this closed beta, as do those who have pre-ordered the game. If you missed your chance to sign up previously, pre-orders are still being taken on the official site. Also, anyone who registers on the site now will be able to log a little bit of beta time using a free 14-day trial set within the beta. Dark Vale games also released a peek at one of the upcoming maps, called Capital Siege. For a preview of this map, check out the video after the break. [Source: Dark Vale Games press release] Continue reading Forge beta launches, new video of map released
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| Curt Schilling might pay back debt by selling baseball memorabilia Posted: 04 Oct 2012 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Real life, Business models, Events, real-world, MMO industry, News items  Curt Schilling is most recently famous for failing spectacularly at using loans from Rhode Island and investors to create a Kingdoms of Amalur MMO. As the founder of the now-bankrupt 38 studios and someone who personally guaranteed some $12 million worth of loans related to the studio, Schilling's lucky that he was famous for other stuff before stepping into game development. For example, Schilling was one of the best pitchers in American League baseball in 2004 and played for the Boston Red Sox, the only team in MLB history to win a seven-game series after losing the first three games. A bloody sock that he wore during that series is listed (along with World War II-era memorabilia, one of Lou Gehrig's baseball caps, his home, and a stake in a private equity firm) in a collateral filing.
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| SOE community webcast focuses on Player Studio Posted: 04 Oct 2012 06:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, EverQuest, EverQuest II, Business models, Culture, Economy, Game mechanics, News items, Vanguard, Free-to-play, Free Realms, Livestream  User-generated content is an awesome way to breathe life into games (and cash into your wallet, if you don't mind stretching that metaphor to the breaking point). Sony Online Entertainment's Player Studio has been generating interest since its introduction as a way for EverQuest, EverQuest II, Free Realms, and (eventually) Vanguard players to create and sell their own in-game items. In response to that interest, SOE's most recent community webcast focuses the spotlight on the Player Studio, with input from Director of Artistic Development Joe Shoopack, Sr. Manager of E-Commerce Rick Reynolds, and Global Community Relations Director Linda Carlson. Together, they talk players through the idea of the Player Studio and its origins in the wealth of fanart and persistent excitement about the games involved, what sort of effort will go into making items, and the magical journey that a submission undertakes before it emerges as a full-fledged, purchasable asset. While some of the initial item possibilities are still being nailed down, players can expect to be able to submit housing items, weapons, and shields for EQ, cloaks and housing items for EQII, and similar items for the other games. Skip below the cut to let the pros speak for themselves. Continue reading SOE community webcast focuses on Player Studio
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| The Summoner's Guidebook: Making League of Legends a better place Posted: 04 Oct 2012 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Opinion, Free-to-play, MOBA, League of Legends, The Summoner's Guidebook  Riot hasn't let the issue lie, though. The Tribunal was a good first step toward building a better community, and if reports are to be believed, it does a fairly good job. However, simply punishing players doesn't encourage good behavior. That's where the latest effort, the Honor system, comes into play. Honor allows players to give positive feedback to friendly or supportive players, either friend or foe. Gaining honor alerts a player of his or her good behavior, and Riot has hinted that it may be the basis of future rewards. Is it a good step in the right direction, or will it just encourage "honor trading?" Continue reading The Summoner's Guidebook: Making League of Legends a better place
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| ArenaNet's plans for supporting Guild Wars 2 Posted: 04 Oct 2012 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Guild Wars, News items, Guild Wars 2, Dev Diaries  Guild Wars 2 has been live for more than a month. Now that ArenaNet has more or less dealt with initial problems like server stability, absurd imbalance, and exploits, the company can start looking forward. ArenaNet devs have long talked about providing new content and huge support for the game, and a blog post this morning details some of their plans for that. ArenaNet has "formed multiple live teams focused on expanding Guild Wars 2 in the long term." So what are those teams, and what do they do? The Live Security team is all about cracking down on bots, spammers, and scammers. The Live Response team is made up of the fine folks addressing balance issues and bugs. The Living World focuses on adding new content and rewards for PvE and WvW. There's a PvP and Esports team focused on making Guild Wars 2 the best PvP game it can be. Holidays and Events have their own special team, dedicated to keeping up the Guild Wars legacy of amazing holiday content. In addition, the Holidays and Events team will be creating one-off events that occur in the world. The Mac and Performance team is working on getting Guild Wars 2 to run on the widest possible range of hardware. Bonus teams will take care of any projects that don't fall in the direct domain of other teams. Last but not least, the Commerce team will be keeping an eye on the Guild Wars 2 economy and thinking up new goodies for the Black Lion Trading Company. Hit up the full post for all the gory details.
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| EVE Online posts an update to the state of Crimewatch Posted: 04 Oct 2012 04:30 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Game mechanics, Previews, News items, Sandbox  The short version is that the game has broken down the flags into four basic categories based on player actions, each of which has a variable duration and prevents you from taking certain actions. For example, players who use weapons against another player will be flagged and will be unable to jump, dock, or switch ships in space for 60 seconds. The full breakdown of flag types and their associated penalties in different parts of space can be found in the official blog entry, well worth a look if you still want to skirt the laws in your spaceship.
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| Firefall extrapolates on its new progression system Posted: 04 Oct 2012 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Classes, New titles, Free-to-play, Firefall  Hot on the heals of its blog post about dynamic events, Red 5 Studios now hopes to change up the whole progression system in its third-person shooter Firefall. The development team revamped the existing mostly linear advancement system to a more dynamic (there's that word again) skill-tree system. And now, Lead Class Designer Dave Williams has posted that the team that the team wanted to "increase the number of choices that were available to players within their progression." Williams explains that players generally pick a battleframe based on their individual playstyles. With the skill trees, a player can break that playstyle down even further. He gives the example of a Mammoth Dreadnaught vs. a Rhino Dreadnaught. The Mammoth builds heavier defenses, whereas the Rhino packs a heavier punch. MMOs and other online games are trending away from the linear progression style to a more horizontal progression style. Firefall is heading in that direction, too. Will this be enough push Firefall toward being the next great online shooter? Red 5 hopes so.
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| LotRO dev diary spotlights roving warbands Posted: 04 Oct 2012 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, News items, Free-to-play, Dev Diaries  The idea behind the warbands was to give players the feel of world bosses -- and the fight or flight feelings had when stumbling upon them -- without forcing spawn camping. When players travels bring them into the vicinity of a warband, a quest will pop up offering a quest to defeat the rampaging horde. Utilizing the open tapping method, any player will be able to participate regardless of group affiliation. Rewards will then be delivered via the quest, not loot drop, allowing players to freely assist one another when confronting these new packs of foes. For more about Riders of Rohan, check out Massively's exclusive hands-on experience.
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| World of Tanks' 8.1 patch to feature British heavy armor Posted: 04 Oct 2012 02:30 PM PDT Filed under: Historical, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, News items, War, Free-to-play, World of Tanks  Now comes word of WoT's next patch, and 8.1 is bringing with it a whole slew of British heavy armor. "The Brits invented the first tank, pioneering the evolution of the whole industry, and it's an honor for us to greet them in World of Tanks," says producer Mike Zhivets. The patch will allow players to master everything from the Vickers Medium Mk I to the heavyweight FV 214 Conqueror as well as the legendary Churchill tanks. No release date has been set as of yet, but you can learn more at the official WoT website. [Source: Wargaming.net press release]
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| Pirate101 sneak peek open to all going on until 9 tonight Posted: 04 Oct 2012 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Events, in-game, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Free-to-play, Pirate101  So grab your parrot and swashbuckle on over to the official site to sign up and download the game to get started; the open sneak peek will close promptly at 9:00 p.m. EDT tonight! And while it's downloading, you can learn more about the game in Massively's Pirate101 reveal.
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| Chaos Theory: Four more essential Secret World tips Posted: 04 Oct 2012 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Horror, Game mechanics, PvE, Opinion, The Secret World, Guides, Chaos Theory  As you're probably aware, The Secret World is a pretty deep game, and some of its niftier features and functionality aren't always apparent to the newb or the novice. Heck, one of my MMO veteran colleagues has been playing since launch and was recently surprised to learn of the ability to save builds via the gear manager! Read on for a few handy tips. Yes, even you, mister know-it-all smartypants. Continue reading Chaos Theory: Four more essential Secret World tips
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| The Guild Counsel: What to do when the old guild leader returns Posted: 04 Oct 2012 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Guilds, Opinion, The Guild Counsel, Miscellaneous  But what if a guild leader leaves and then returns to see that his guild is doing fine or that it's even better than when he left it? Apart from the obvious "awkward" moment, let's consider a few potential issues in this scenario, from the perspective of both the returning guild leader and the guild as a whole. Power struggle or cause for celebration? This week's Guild Counsel will tackle the subject! Continue reading The Guild Counsel: What to do when the old guild leader returns
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| Lips are unsealed as NDA drops for MechWarrior Online Posted: 04 Oct 2012 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, New titles, PvP, News items, MechWarrior Online  Players can also show off their mad skillz in a video and screenshot contest -- devs will pick their favorite submissions to highlight on the front page of the official site. Entries should be sent to submissions@infinitegamepublishing.com before 11:59 p.m. EDT on October 10th. More contest details can be found on the game's official website. So now that the NDA has been blasted away, tell us what you think about the game!
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| Funcom hints at Halloween tricks and treats in The Secret World Posted: 04 Oct 2012 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Horror, Real life, Events, in-game, News items, The Secret World, Dev Diaries  The official spook day content will be released around October 15th. According to Short, players can look forward to a more light-hearted experience than the main plot. In fact, she states, "Halloween should be more like 'an episode of Buffy.'" The storyline will begin in Kingsmouth and will flesh out a couple of cat characters who have been waiting in the wings as well as add depth to the stories of two known characters. Stonehenge is also in the spotlight, and players can get a Head-O-Lantern for a limited time. For more details (and a close up look at Irusan, King of Cats), check out the full dev blog.
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