MMO Updates

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• The Road to Mordor: Happy fifth anniversary, LotRO!
• WRUP: Pangolin edition
• The Daily Grind: Is customizable housing worth the inevitable eyesores?
• Betawatch: April 14 - 20, 2012
• Eternal Blade posts a teaser site and class Facebook pages
• Storyboard: One hundred moments and done
• Latest TERA trailer takes players to the shores of the new Island of Dawn prologue
• The Firing Line: World of Tanks first-anniversary retrospective
• Massively to co-host STO panel at the Official Star Trek Convention
• Prolific MMO blogger Brian 'OddjobXL' Rucker passes away

The Road to Mordor: Happy fifth anniversary, LotRO! Posted: 21 Apr 2012 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Events, in-game, Free-to-play, The Road to Mordor, Anniversary Great Ghost Bear, has it really been five years? Why... it must have been, although it truly seems like yesterday that a magazine article caught my eye about an upcoming game based on Lord of the Rings. Just yesterday it was, when I called my brother-in-law to tell him that he could drop his World of Warcraft subscription because something better was on the horizon. It wasn't but a day ago that we Founders jumped into the head-start and power-leveled all the way to 15. Let me tell you, those Tuckborough Library raids were brutal back then! So it has indeed been five years since Lord of the Rings Online released, a half-decade of Middle-earth stomping, Brandywine swimming, and Weathertop free-climbing. I can't even believe that this is the third such anniversary that I've covered for Massively; boy, how the time flies. Perhaps to make up for last year's lackluster and flawed anniversary celebration, Turbine's pulled out all the stops to make LotRO's birthday an event to remember. We've got a lot to cover and plenty of fireworks left to shoot off, so let's get to it! Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Happy fifth anniversary, LotRO! The Road to Mordor: Happy fifth anniversary, LotRO! originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 21 Apr 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

WRUP: Pangolin edition Posted: 21 Apr 2012 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Massively Meta, Miscellaneous There are a few important things that you need to know about pangolins. First of all, they exist. Second, well, that first thing is hard enough to move past. Don't get me wrong; they're beyond adorable, but they have no right existing in the modern era. Look at that thing. It's covered in armor plating with a slow and snurfling gait. It's like a contemporary of mammoths and ground sloths. The fact that it exists in this time and place implies that evolution is very nostalgic on occasion. This week's WRUP isn't really about nostalgia. Sure, it's always about what the Massively staff is playing over the weekend, but our usual bonus question isn't nostalgic either. Instead, it's about what game mechanic we'd like to see excised for all time. So jump on past the break to see what we'll be up to over this fine weekend, and let us know your own plans down in the comments. Continue reading WRUP: Pangolin edition WRUP: Pangolin edition originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 21 Apr 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Daily Grind: Is customizable housing worth the inevitable eyesores? Posted: 21 Apr 2012 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Game mechanics, MMO industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Humor, Miscellaneous Few MMOs nowadays launch with housing, and a vanishingly small number of those have fully customizable housing, the kind that lets you construct your house from foundation to tower, filling in floors, walls, and decor as you go. Ultima Online is one such MMO; it changed over its pre-fab buildings to customizable housing in the early aughts. Customizable housing in an open-world sandbox setting brings its own set of problems, however, starting with the reality that most players aren't taking time out of their professional architect day jobs to play the game. Consequently, most player homes are decked out in bold colors and tacky tchotchkes and cleverly placed roof tiles that spell "LOL." I don't know about you guys, but my real-life house doesn't have an Escher fountain and mounted fish hanging on the second-story facade (although perhaps it should). What do you think -- is customizable housing a tribute to creativity and freedom or an eyesore immersion-breaker inflicted ruthlessly on every passerby and neighbor? Is that freedom worth the pain? 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! The Daily Grind: Is customizable housing worth the inevitable eyesores? originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 21 Apr 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Betawatch: April 14 - 20, 2012 Posted: 20 Apr 2012 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, MMO industry, Betawatch, Miscellaneous Three new games join Betawatch this week! The Tad Williams-inspired Otherland is now accepting alpha sign-ups; Aeria Games announced Waren Story with a beta sign-up and a trailer; and Gamania opened up the testing rolls for its newest MMO, Soul Captor. Meanwhile, heavy-hitters TERA and Guild Wars 2 are focusing on their impending beta weekends. TERA's first open beta weekend starts today, while Guild Wars 2 plans its first beta event for pre-purchasers next weekend. Finally, Blizzard will be closing down the Diablo III beta come Tuesday in preparation for launch next month. That means that today through Monday is your last chance to get it on the open beta! Read on for the full Betawatch roundup! Continue reading Betawatch: April 14 - 20, 2012 Betawatch: April 14 - 20, 2012 originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Eternal Blade posts a teaser site and class Facebook pages Posted: 20 Apr 2012 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, New titles, Previews, News items, Free-to-play Eternal Blade, if you hadn't heard, is a free-to-play action MMO due out later this year from gPotato. We had a chance to preview the game briefly at GDC, and the team behind the game has stepped up promotions with the addition of a new teaser site for the game. The developers have also finalized the class lineup, but the classes aren't getting pages on the teaser site; instead, each class now has its own individual Facebook page. The Soul Summoner, the Knight, the Archer, the Mage, the Thief, and the Berserker pages each have some photos of the relevant class in action as well as a description of why it's the best out of the six classes. If that doesn't get you interested in the game, the teaser site also features a video showing off cinematics and gameplay. More news on beta testing and launch as it develops. [Source: gPotato press release] Continue reading Eternal Blade posts a teaser site and class Facebook pages Eternal Blade posts a teaser site and class Facebook pages originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Storyboard: One hundred moments and done Posted: 20 Apr 2012 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Roleplaying, Storyboard, Miscellaneous All good things must come to an end. Roleplaying is all about creating a shared space for your character to inhabit with other characters. It's about crafting trials and challenges that can be overcome through narrative means; it's about building a set of experiences together. And all of the columns I've written up to this point have been entirely about making that work well and creating a shared environment that's fun for everyone. But it can end. One day, you may log in to find that the people you've been roleplaying alongside are no longer there -- that the friends you once had have left, the allies you once charished have moved on, and your universe has narrowed by degrees until it's just you. After all of the roleplaying you've done, it tuns out that your group of fellow roleplayers has slowly drifted away until the only person who remembers these stories is you. And it seems fitting, for the 100th column, to talk about what happens when you're left remembering a universe that never was. Continue reading Storyboard: One hundred moments and done Storyboard: One hundred moments and done originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Latest TERA trailer takes players to the shores of the new Island of Dawn prologue Posted: 20 Apr 2012 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Trailers, Video, News items, TERA TERA's open beta test kicked off in earnest today, opening the floodgates for waves of excited players to enter the realm of Arborea. To commemorate the occasion, En Masse Entertainment has released a new trailer that shows off the game's newly crafted prologue area, which gives players a taste of high level play before they enter the game proper. For those not yet in the beta, here's the down-low: Players begin their journey aboard a ship bound for the Island of Dawn, and as anyone familiar with fantasy tropes knows, getting on a ship bound for an unknown land is often just a prelude to a terrible shipwreck. TERA's prologue is no different, and players soon find themselves stranded in exceedingly hostile territory with a rather nasty demon infestation. Naturally, it falls to players to play demon exterminators and get the shipwrecked crew to safety because everyone else is too busy standing around telling the players what to do. Lazy chumps. At any rate, to get a first-hand look at the new prologue zone and all of the demon-ass-kicking it entails, just go watch the official trailer for yourself. Continue reading Latest TERA trailer takes players to the shores of the new Island of Dawn prologue Latest TERA trailer takes players to the shores of the new Island of Dawn prologue originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: En Masse Entertainment official YouTube

The Firing Line: World of Tanks first-anniversary retrospective Posted: 20 Apr 2012 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Historical, Business models, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, PvP, Opinion, War, Free-to-play, World of Tanks, The Firing Line, Anniversary We've been hearing about World of Tanks for so long that it seems crazy to think the title is just now celebrating its first anniversary. Sure enough, though, Wargaming.net's lobby-based multiplayer title is barely a year old. Well, OK. It's almost two years old if you count its summer 2010 beta release, which we won't since the title up there says first anniversary. Anyhow, what's even scarier than the passage of time is the fact that World of Tanks (and the company behind it) is showing no signs of slowing down. Continue reading The Firing Line: World of Tanks first-anniversary retrospective The Firing Line: World of Tanks first-anniversary retrospective originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Massively to co-host STO panel at the Official Star Trek Convention Posted: 20 Apr 2012 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Events, real-world, Star Trek Online, Free-to-play, Massively Event Coverage, Community Q&A Hey MMO Trekkies, are you beaming down to Las Vegas for this year's Official Star Trek Convention? If so, we've got one event that you won't want to miss: a Q&A panel with Star Trek Online's developers co-hosted by Massively and TrekRadio.net! We'll be on the scene as Cryptic Studios fields a wide variety of questions from ardent fans of the game. If getting that burning question you've had off your chest isn't enough of a reason to attend, the developers will also show a few trailers and sneak peeks of upcoming content. The panel will take place on Saturday, August 11th, from 2:00 to 3:00 EDT (11:00 a.m. to noon PDT) at the Rio Suites Hotel in Las Vegas. Massively to co-host STO panel at the Official Star Trek Convention originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Official Star Trek Convention

Prolific MMO blogger Brian 'OddjobXL' Rucker passes away Posted: 20 Apr 2012 10:30 AM PDT Filed under: Culture, MMO industry, News items, Roleplaying, Miscellaneous The MMO roleplaying community lost one of its most prolific authors this week as Brian "OddjobXL" Rucker passed away at the age of 48. Rucker maintained a blog called The Roleplayer's Redoubt on MMORPG.com, and he was also featured in Massively's The Game Archaeologist, where he talked at length about MUDs, MUSHs, and Star Wars Galaxies. Massively columnist Larry Everett remembers Rucker as "a very prominent member of both of my websites and a personal inspiration to me as a gamer, writer, and roleplayer." Rucker, known as Cap'n in SWG circles, covered roleplaying in dozens of disparate MMO titles. He also offered plenty of sage advice for both newbs and veterans alike. [Thanks to Laura for the tip.] Prolific MMO blogger Brian 'OddjobXL' Rucker passes away originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

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General gaming

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• Halo 4: The Community Preview Debate, Part Two
• If SimCity's Always-Online Requirement is Worth It, Why Not Let Gamers Decide?
• Skyrim Kinect Excels Through Subtlety

Halo 4: The Community Preview Debate, Part Two Posted: 20 Apr 2012 12:57 PM PDT 1UP community member Ben Tate and I both love the Halo series enough that we thought it a good idea to double-team the recent Halo 4 information explosion that recently hit the Internet courtesy of Game informer. Today, Ben and I follow up on the first part of our discussion by breaking down multiplayer, the new cooperative mode called Spartan Ops, and Halo 4's impressive visual style. Infinity Ben: The desire to intertwine single player and multiplayer seems to be popular in games these days. I just don't think most players care if their multiplayer has a backstory or not, and that makes 343 Industries' goal of contextualizing Halo 4's multiplayer admirable but not essential.

If SimCity's Always-Online Requirement is Worth It, Why Not Let Gamers Decide? Posted: 20 Apr 2012 11:09 AM PDT Those without a stable Internet connection needn't even bother read about the new SimCity. As announced last month, the game requires an Internet connection to play. And not just to launch; to play the game, even on your own, you'll need to be constantly connected to the Internet. This was said to be due to an emphasis on multiplayer and passive interactions with other players that happen as you play. We haven't heard a whole lot more about the specifics of how that will all work, though one of the game's developers has tried to justify the decision to make being online a precondition for playing. "From the ground up it's been a multiplayer game," said Maxis producer Jason Haber in an interview with Eurogamer. "I'm not surprised we're getting some reaction like this. But I think once people see it in action -- and at E3 we're really looking forward to showing people multiplayer and how it works -- hopefully that will show them why it's such a great feature and it's totally worth having.

Skyrim Kinect Excels Through Subtlety Posted: 20 Apr 2012 08:05 AM PDT If you're anything like me, hearing the word "Kinect" immediately brings to mind images of people embarrassing themselves as they foolishly pantomime various actions in the middle of their living rooms. Honestly, using theatrical gestures to control a video game has very little appeal to me. There are some obvious examples of experiences that benefited from the use of motion controls, including The Gunstringer and Fruit Ninja Kinect. These games succeeded on a design level by providing simple and immersive pleasures that quite frankly could not be replicated via a controller. Sadly, most Kinect titles end up transforming into frustration simulators (yes, we're looking at you, Kinect Star Wars). With the news that Bethesda was preparing to release a patch for Skyrim that weaves Kinect functionality into the game, many of us worried that we'd end up looking like jackasses as we played through one of 2011's finest titles. Thankfully, these fears were quickly squashed when we saw how refined and subtle the new non-traditional method of control is in Skyrim. Bethesda was wise to forgo the obvious route of having players flail their arms like a Dovahkiin in a slap fight. You won't find yourself using your Kinect to swing a battle ax or target specific enemies in the the middle of a fracas. In fact, Skyrim doesn't even make use of the technology's camera function whatsoever, instead focusing on the use of voice commands to streamline the experience and help maintain a steady tempo to the game. You can assign specific arms to every class of weapon, allowing you to pull out out your favorite sword when you say, "sword," and equip your favorite bow when you say, "bow." This simple shortcut does an amazing job of maintaining the tempo and rhythm of the game in the middle of combat by not forcing you to navigate a series of menus as soon as you spot a tough enemy on the horizon.

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MMORPG News

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• General: Roleplayer's Redoubt Blogger, OddJob, Passes Away
• TERA: Island of Dawn Trailer Released
• Guild Wars 2: Concept Art Revealed for FB Milestones
• Dungeons & Dragons Online: 'Let's Play' Live Stream Coming Saturday Night
• Torchlight 2: Opening Cinematic Unleashed
• Rift: War of the Wanton Maw
• Eternal Blade: Class Community Q&A -- Give Us Your Questions!
• General: RTSGuru.com | Illyriad Changes the Game
• Lineage 2: Live Stream Community Q&A -- Give Us Your Questions!
• The Repopulation: New Bestiary Entry Published
• Dominus: Why Don’t They...
• General: Four Tanks & a Healer Kickstarter Program
• Diablo 3: Open Beta Stress Test This Weekend
• Ragnarok Online: iOS Version Launches in the EU

General: Roleplayer's Redoubt Blogger, OddJob, Passes Away Posted: 21 Apr 2012 06:19 AM PDT Fans of our user blogs will be sad to hear that Brian "OddJob" Rucker, the voice behind the Roleplayer's Redoubt here at MMORPG.com has passed away at the age of 48. There are few details available but we are stunned and saddened to hear of Brian's death.

TERA: Island of Dawn Trailer Released Posted: 20 Apr 2012 02:36 PM PDT The first time players log into TERA, they will find themselves on the Island of Dawn, a forbidding place to help fill in some of the lore behind the game. En Masse has released a new trailer showing players what they will be up against on the Isle of Dawn.

Guild Wars 2: Concept Art Revealed for FB Milestones Posted: 20 Apr 2012 02:18 PM PDT Arena.Net has introduced a new feature to its official Guild Wars 2 Facebook page to entice fans to "like" the page. Every 10,000 likes will see a new piece of Guild Wars 2 concept art revealed up to the 500k mark. The first piece has been posted and is gorgeous! At 470k, a load screen will be posted.

Dungeons & Dragons Online: 'Let's Play' Live Stream Coming Saturday Night Posted: 20 Apr 2012 12:15 PM PDT Our own Grakulen will be hosting a live stream event on Saturday night from 1:00-2:00 a.m. EDT (12:00 CDT, 11:00 MDT, 10:00 PDT). Join him in our MMORPG.com Live Stream Channel for some Dungeons & Dragons Online goodness.

Torchlight 2: Opening Cinematic Unleashed Posted: 20 Apr 2012 11:24 AM PDT Runic Games and Klei Entertainment have unleashed the opening cinematic trailer for Torchlight II. Called "New Heroes Will Arise", the trailer bridges the gap between the ending events of the original Torchlight and the upcoming Torchlight II. Enjoy!

Rift: War of the Wanton Maw Posted: 20 Apr 2012 11:03 AM PDT It's a clear fact that the fun things in life only hang around for a short time before disappearing. It's a hard fact that Caedryn the Dwarf has discovered in his latest Chronicle of One Telaran. See what he's been up to in Rift and then leave us your thoughts in the comments.

Eternal Blade: Class Community Q&A -- Give Us Your Questions! Posted: 20 Apr 2012 01:15 PM PDT MMORPG.com has partnered with gPotato to put on a community Q&A for their upcoming game, Eternal Blade. Unlike past community Q&As, however, this one has a bit of a twist!

General: RTSGuru.com | Illyriad Changes the Game Posted: 20 Apr 2012 10:00 AM PDT RTSGuru.com editors have a new article detailing some of the big changes in store for Illyriad. Illyriad is making some major changes to the game including a new model for the way animals are generated in the world. Player impact will be vital. Check it out at RTSGuru.com.

Lineage 2: Live Stream Community Q&A -- Give Us Your Questions! Posted: 20 Apr 2012 09:49 AM PDT NCsoft and MMORPG.com have partnered up for a live stream interview on Lineage II on Friday, April 27 from 5-6PM EDT and we want to get you involved!

The Repopulation: New Bestiary Entry Published Posted: 20 Apr 2012 09:13 AM PDT The team behind The Repopulation has posted a new lore piece giving some background information about one of the members of the bestiary. Thiss time, the Setlang is profiled.

Dominus: Why Don’t They... Posted: 18 Apr 2012 06:26 PM PDT There's a line in Robert Heinlein's last novel that reads "Any question that starts out 'why don't they--' the answer is always 'Money.'" And so begins our latest Developer Perspectives column. Intriguing, isn't it? Keep reading!

General: Four Tanks & a Healer Kickstarter Program Posted: 20 Apr 2012 09:01 AM PDT The Four Tanks & a Healer team has let us know that they have started a Kickstarter program to help fund the animated series. The official Kickstarter page has been launched and is ready for investors to come pouring in.

Diablo 3: Open Beta Stress Test This Weekend Posted: 20 Apr 2012 08:33 AM PDT Blizzard has announced that it will be conducting an open beta stress test for Diablo III beginning at 12:00 PDT today (Friday, April 20th) and running through Monday, April 23 at 10:00 PDT.

Ragnarok Online: iOS Version Launches in the EU Posted: 20 Apr 2012 08:24 AM PDT Ragnarok: Violet, a single player version of Ragnarok Online, has officially launched for iOS devices in Europe.

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