MMO Updates

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• Elite: Dangerous' seventh dev diary divulges alpha, beta plans
• Tamriel Infinium: Selling your wares in The Elder Scrolls Online
• Guild Wars 2 will add the Edge of the Mists to World vs. World
• The Daily Grind: Is crowd control in MMOs dead?
• The Guild Counsel: Is it time to shift your vision or just shut down?
• APB Reloaded survives GTA V, engine upgrade coming
• Watch an orchestra perform War Thunder's Symphony of Steel
• Cryptic tweaks Champions' alert system
• Jacobs pens new Camelot Unchained lore tidbit
• LotRO gives 100% XP boost to everyone for a month
• Black Desert beta vids show questing, fishing, cinematics, and more
• BlizzCon 2013 schedule is now online
• Grand Voyage introduces 16th century maritime trade to your MMO dock
• City of Titans gives a cab's-eye view of the city
• ArenaNet takes its first step toward Guild Wars 2 collaborative development with a call for topics
• Blizzard All-Stars is now Heroes of the Storm
• Final Fantasy XIV promises 'fairly substantial' first update
• Ask Massively: The dilemma of the free-to-play sandbox
• WildStar implores Dominion citizens to go space-west in a new arkship

Elite: Dangerous' seventh dev diary divulges alpha, beta plans Posted: 18 Oct 2013 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Video, New Titles, News Items, Free-to-Play, Community Q&A, Dev Diaries, Sandbox If the recent Oculus Rift announcement has you even more excited to get your hands on Elite: Dangerous, today's new video dev diary has some information you might be interested in, namely a little detail like alpha. In this seventh dev diary, David Braben, founder of Frontier Developments, announced that alpha testing will begin in December. Starting with the combat test build, different aspects of Elite: Dangerous will be rolled out during the alpha phase and then brought all together into a complete package for beta testing. At the end of beta all Kickstarter backers will get the game and have access in their own gamma testing phase before retail release. In the second half of the diary, Braben answers player questions about topics like mission failure and weapon systems on space stations. You can hear all the answers in the video below. [Thanks to Peteris for the tip!] Continue reading Elite: Dangerous' seventh dev diary divulges alpha, beta plans Elite: Dangerous' seventh dev diary divulges alpha, beta plans originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 18 Oct 2013 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Video dev diary #7

Tamriel Infinium: Selling your wares in The Elder Scrolls Online Posted: 18 Oct 2013 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Economy, PvP, Opinion, Crafting, The Elder Scrolls Online, Subscription, MMORPG, Tamriel Infinium When it comes to the economy of MMOs, I usually run the other way. I admit that I'm not an economist, nor would I consider myself a crafter by any stretch. But I'm not completely ignorant of how important in-game trading is for the overall health of an MMO. If the auction house or player stores are consistently stocked, then there is an organic element to the larger game. I find that exciting, and despite my aversion to crafting, I do enough material-gathering and playing the trading game to appreciate the finer details of a healthy, growing game economy. Until recently, we have heard only bits and pieces of how the Elder Scrolls Online economy will work. Developers claim to have a robust crafting system, and given the history of the single-player Elder Scrolls games, I can accept that. But how do I get my wares into the hands of other players? Gameplay Designer Nick Konkle spoke to Shoddy Cast about that very thing. Surprisingly, he revealed quite a bit, and although it's a very interesting listen, I don't think any MMO has tried anything like it. I'm scared and very intrigued. Continue reading Tamriel Infinium: Selling your wares in The Elder Scrolls Online Tamriel Infinium: Selling your wares in The Elder Scrolls Online originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 18 Oct 2013 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Guild Wars 2 will add the Edge of the Mists to World vs. World Posted: 18 Oct 2013 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Interviews, Previews, PvP, Guild Wars 2, Buy-to-Play If you're a fan of Guild Wars 2's large-scale PvP gameplay mode, World vs. World, there's some good news coming your way: ArenaNet is developing a new map called Edge of the Mists, and it's designed to add spice to WvW gameplay and help alleviate some of the ongoing difficulties with queue times. We were invited to a conference call with Game Design Lead Jon Peters, where he let us in on some of the details and philosophy behind this new content. Guilds can apply to be part of an upcoming beta test and help shape the development of this new addition as well. Following on the heels of recent WvW additions such as Borderlands Bloodlust and World Experience Points, ArenaNet plans for Edge of the Mists to be the gateway to even more improvements. Continue reading Guild Wars 2 will add the Edge of the Mists to World vs. World Guild Wars 2 will add the Edge of the Mists to World vs. World originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 18 Oct 2013 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Daily Grind: Is crowd control in MMOs dead? Posted: 18 Oct 2013 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, City of Heroes, Classes, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous, Dungeons, MMORPG Crowd control used to be a major feature of MMO gameplay, so much that CC, not DPS, was considered the third element of the MMO holy trinity until World of Warcraft swept into the market in 2004 without a dedicated crowd-control class. Before that, crowd-control characters enjoyed an almost godlike status in MMORPGs. An EverQuest Enchanter was one class you never partied without, Dark Age of Camelot's RvR was infamous for its unbalanced zerg mezes, and City of Heroes embraced crowd control so closely that it named an entire archetype for it: the Controller. Not only did WoW begin the trend of deleting pure crowd controllers from game rosters everywhere, it also downplayed the importance of crowd control in general, so much that many of WoW's modern dungeons have little to no trash that'd require control in the first place. It's dramatically different gameplay from the style of the aforementioned City of Heroes, which literally threw huge crowds of villains at you to control and subdue in order to make you feel heroic. Are other modern games continuing the trend? Is crowd control, or at least crowd-control characters as we once knew them, dead? And are they a welcome casualty of the slow elimination of group-or-die MMO gameplay? 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 crowd control in MMOs dead? originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 18 Oct 2013 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Guild Counsel: Is it time to shift your vision or just shut down? Posted: 17 Oct 2013 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Guilds, Opinion, The Guild Counsel, Miscellaneous A big part of running a successful guild is having a clear idea of what type of guild you want to have and knowing how to make that work. Everything revolves around your vision for the guild, from recruitment to scheduling events to guild rules and even the overall tone and atmosphere. But what happens if your guild philosophy ends up clashing with that of the bulk of your members? Massively reader Mbbrazen, who commented on a recent Guild Counsel article, illustrated the issue: The other issue I've seen, which is not specifically mentioned in the article, is what should the guild leader do when the people who originally joined the guild because they all had similar interests are gone (burned out, gone to other games, etc.) and the majority of the new people have more varied interests? Should the guild leader shut the guild down or adapt to the new membership? I actually think a guild I was in recently is dying a slow death because the leaders needed to decide to either shut it down or adapt to needs of the active membership. Thoughts? This is a tough situation but all too common. Let's take a look at some options in this week's Guild Counsel. Continue reading The Guild Counsel: Is it time to shift your vision or just shut down? The Guild Counsel: Is it time to shift your vision or just shut down? originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

APB Reloaded survives GTA V, engine upgrade coming Posted: 17 Oct 2013 06:30 PM PDT Filed under: Real-Life, MMO Industry, News Items, Free-to-Play, All Points Bulletin, Dev Diaries Did Grand Theft Auto V and GTA Online impact APB Reloaded? Well, of course. Rockstar's juggernaut affected the entire industry via its total sales and its mind-boggling ascent to the top of the all-time 24-hour sales chart. And that's "all-time" as in the history of all entertainment. Ever. Anyway, APB Reloaded. There's a new blog post on the game's official site that addresses the GTA impact as well as the addition of community management veteran Diane "Tiggs" Migliaccio to the team. Reloaded's Bjorn Book-Larsson also mentions the firm's plans for an APB engine upgrade. The game currently uses Unreal 3, which is basically the same engine that powered the 2008 edition of Epic's Unreal Tournament 3. Book-Larsson says that a "massive engine upgrade" has been in the works since July 2013 that will ultimately move APB to the same version of the Unreal engine that powers Epic's Gears of Wars 3. APB Reloaded survives GTA V, engine upgrade coming originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: APB blog

Watch an orchestra perform War Thunder's Symphony of Steel Posted: 17 Oct 2013 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Historical, Culture, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, War, Free-to-Play Gaijin is making a concerted effort to publicize its War Thunder World War II sim of late, and one of this week's more noteworthy reveals is a performance of the Baltic Symphonic Orchestra captured on video. The group is shown recording Symphony of Steel, a new track written for the game's upcoming ground battles. Feast your eyes -- and ears -- after the cut! [Thanks hilaryminc!] Continue reading Watch an orchestra perform War Thunder's Symphony of Steel Watch an orchestra perform War Thunder's Symphony of Steel originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Symphony of Steel

Cryptic tweaks Champions' alert system Posted: 17 Oct 2013 05:30 PM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, News Items, PvE, Free-to-Play, Champions Online, Dungeons Cryptic and Perfect World have patched in a significant update to Champions Online's alert system. For starters, rewards for Grab and Smash alerts have been swapped. Grabs now give XP while Smashes grant resources and a resource buff. Grab alerts will also require a level 10 character going forward, while Smashes will require a level 20 toon. This was done to prevent low-level XP seekers from signing up for something they likely won't survive. The devs have also tweaked Champions' queue structure so that "there will always be one Grab, one Burst, and one Smash available at a time." Click through the links below for more info. Cryptic tweaks Champions' alert system originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Update

Jacobs pens new Camelot Unchained lore tidbit Posted: 17 Oct 2013 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, Game Mechanics, Lore, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, Camelot Unchained, Subscription Camelot Unchained continued its semi-regular progress reporting earlier this week with a new lore tidbit focusing on the Bean Sidhe. The Banshee, as the race is also known, is the subject of a new Becoming tale penned by City State's Mark Jacobs. Following the story is a list of possible racial abilities including Scream of Fear, Shatter, and What the Hell is That Thing! After that you'll find some possible racial banes and a Hamadryad animation test. Oh, and you'll also find that last bit embedded for you after the break. Continue reading Jacobs pens new Camelot Unchained lore tidbit Jacobs pens new Camelot Unchained lore tidbit originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Update

LotRO gives 100% XP boost to everyone for a month Posted: 17 Oct 2013 04:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Events (In-Game), Free-to-Play Lord of the Rings Online is granting everyone in the game a 100% boost to XP gain in the month leading up to Helm's Deep. From now through November 17th, the boost will give players a helping hand in getting their characters up to the starting line for the expansion. The boost was announced on the LotRO website's front page. Turbine also said that seven members of the player council will be visiting the studio on October 31st to discuss community, localization, development plans, and customer service issues. The studio said that photos and "comments" from the visit will be shared that day. LotRO gives 100% XP boost to everyone for a month originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Player council visit

Black Desert beta vids show questing, fishing, cinematics, and more Posted: 17 Oct 2013 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Video, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, PvE, Sandbox, Black Desert That darn Black Desert! Every time I learn more about it it moves up a spot or two on my must-play list! The sandbox title's Korean beta has started, and according to a post at MMOcast, testers can expect plenty of hands-on with questing, combat, housing, guilds, trading, "NPC relations," and PvP and sieging. The site also has a few gameplay videos that are worth a look. There's footage of the fishing and jumping systems, questing stuff, and the opening cinematic. See for yourself after the cut. [Thanks Dengar!] Continue reading Black Desert beta vids show questing, fishing, cinematics, and more Black Desert beta vids show questing, fishing, cinematics, and more originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: MMOcast

BlizzCon 2013 schedule is now online Posted: 17 Oct 2013 03:30 PM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, Events (Real-World), News Items, Diablo III One of the major annual nerd pilgrimages is less than a month away because on the 7th and 8th of November, hundreds of Blizzard fans will be flocking to Anaheim, California for BlizzCon 2013. If you're one of those lucky pilgrims and you're looking to plan out your visit to Blizzard mecca, you're in luck because the convention schedule is now online. The opening ceremonies will kick off on Friday at 2:00 p.m. EDT, and throughout the next two days BlizzCon will be host to a slew of panels including the intriguing "World of Warcraft: What's Next," and exciting events such as the StarCraft II World Championship Series semi-finals and grand finals. For all of your scheduling needs, the list of events, locations, and a handy map await you at the BlizzCon site. BlizzCon 2013 schedule is now online originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: BlizzCon 2013 Event Schedule Via: WoW Insider

Grand Voyage introduces 16th century maritime trade to your MMO dock Posted: 17 Oct 2013 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Historical, New Titles If you enjoy sea battles and merchant trading in your MMO, but aren't necessarily a fan of playing as a pirate, then you must be a ninja. Or maybe you might just enjoy the new Grand Voyage from NGames. Set in the historically accurate 16th Century Mediterranean coast region, Grand Voyage is described as a late-Renaissance maritime trading MMO that lets you grow from small-time captain to legendary voyager in control of your own fleet. Since all trade prices change dynamically based on player actions, the economy allows for a stock-style way to buy low and sell high. But rest assured, there is combat in Grand Voyage, and captains must keep their ships in top working condition while battling opponents across servers. Grand Voyage is on the Game321.com online games portal, and you can follow them on Facebook or Twitter to find out more. [Source: NGames press release] Grand Voyage introduces 16th century maritime trade to your MMO dock originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

City of Titans gives a cab's-eye view of the city Posted: 17 Oct 2013 02:30 PM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, Lore, News Items, Crowdfunding, Buy-to-Play Superhero games aren't just about having fantastic powers; they're about the space you live in. Cities have characters all of their own; Metropolis is all gleaming idealism, Marvel's New York is like an enlarged version of the real New York, and Gotham City is approximately 85% gargoyles by volume. So it's important for City of Titans fans to know what Titan City is like before they start playing. And who better to explain the city than your average Titan City cab driver? As it turns out, pretty much every joke you can think of about superhuman battles has already been made. In a city filled with heroes, you know that every so often there's going to be a villain knocked through your office, and a support structure exists for dealing with just that eventuality. Read the full Kickstarter update for more details on how the game world works and how people can keep living in a city where you occasionally find a portal to nether dimensions opening right above your favorite Thai restaurant. City of Titans gives a cab's-eye view of the city originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Gabby Cabbie

ArenaNet takes its first step toward Guild Wars 2 collaborative development with a call for topics Posted: 17 Oct 2013 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, PvP, News Items, PvE, Guild Wars 2, MMORPG, Buy-to-Play Last week, Guild Wars 2 studio design director Chris Whiteside announced a new community initiative designed to better filter and address player feedback regarding the future and current state of the game. Today, Whiteside followed up by posting the first set of instructions for participating in the process ArenaNet is referring to as "collaborative development." The Guild Wars 2 team is asking players to begin by choosing three priorities from each area of gameplay and listing them in a response to the initial post. For example, a player's PvE priorities might be ascended items, world events, and roleplaying. ArenaNet will then take the top item in each section and start a separate thread in which players and the team will share opinions, brainstorm, and converse. Our own Anatoli Ingram tackled the initial announcement in this week's Flameseeker Chronicles. As for this first round of feedback, players have "a couple" of days to add their thoughts before ArenaNet compiles the list. [Thanks to Mikey Moo for the tip!] ArenaNet takes its first step toward Guild Wars 2 collaborative development with a call for topics originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Forum Post

Blizzard All-Stars is now Heroes of the Storm Posted: 17 Oct 2013 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, New Titles, PvP, News Items, Miscellaneous, MOBA Blizzard Entertainment announced today that the studio's upcoming MOBA, formerly known as Blizzard All-Stars (and Blizzard Dota before that), will officially launch under the title Heroes of the Storm. The announcement comes after about a month of speculation regarding the Heroes of the Storm name; Blizzard filed the trademark in late September, and guesses ranged from entirely new game to World of Warcraft expansion. Unfortunately, the video doesn't provide any further information on Heroes of the Storm, meaning its release date is likely still "Soon[TM]." Check out the announcement video after the break. Continue reading Blizzard All-Stars is now Heroes of the Storm Blizzard All-Stars is now Heroes of the Storm originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Announcement Via: WoW Insider

Final Fantasy XIV promises 'fairly substantial' first update Posted: 17 Oct 2013 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Patches, Previews, Final Fantasy XIV, Dev Diaries, Subscription Final Fantasy XIV Executive Producer Naoki Yoshida wrote that the upcoming first update for the relaunched title will be "fairly substantial" in several categories. He said that the update will contain more activities for players to do, including daily quests, treasure hunts, new dungeons, primal battles, housing, and the return of the Good King Moggle Mog. Update 2.1 will go on to introduce a character salon, a party search function, changes based on player feedback, an item-sort function, and the return of a character from the old version of the game. Yoshida said that before the update hits, the team will tweak tomestone drop rates to make them easier for players to obtain and fix an issue with the Binding Coil of Bahamut that's keeping players from completing it. Final Fantasy XIV promises 'fairly substantial' first update originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Producer's Letter

Ask Massively: The dilemma of the free-to-play sandbox Posted: 17 Oct 2013 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Business Models, Economy, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, PvP, Opinion, Star Wars Galaxies, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous, ArcheAge, Housing Reader Sharvis recently emailed the Massively Speaking podcast with a question I felt deserved more than just a quick verbal reaction on the 'cast. That, and we just discovered that the ask@massively.com email address went dead approximately three weeks ago, and I've not been receiving your letters there (so send 'em again!). In the meantime: Sharvis. What makes a sandbox so susceptible to its business model in comparison to a themepark? I'm not experienced with sandbox titles, and I can only guess on some of the implications. For example, selling boosters in a themepark is fairly acceptable, but in a sandbox, as Jef pointed out [in his ArcheAge column earlier this summer], that'd be cutting into one of the main features of a sandbox. I'd guess it has to do with these sort of MMOs being more player-centric, and that's a very delicate system to be messing with. See? I told you this was a juicy one. Continue reading Ask Massively: The dilemma of the free-to-play sandbox Ask Massively: The dilemma of the free-to-play sandbox originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

WildStar implores Dominion citizens to go space-west in a new arkship Posted: 17 Oct 2013 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Lore, Previews, News Items, WildStar, Subscription, Buy-to-Play Do you feel the lure of the frontier? WildStar's Dominion certainly hopes you do. But as a citizen of the most powerful organization in the known galaxy, you won't be heading out into the frontier with nothing more than a spacesuit and a poorly written star chart. No, you'll be cruising to Nexus in the finest vessel ever built by the Dominion shipyards, the arkship Destiny! Assuming you pass the tests to be sent out there in the first place. The Dominion can't just send the rabble, after all. The latest installment of WildStar Wednesday details the luxurious amenities in all their glory, ranging from VIP lounges and ample recreational space to training simulations and a fully functional church. Those selected for the journey will be given every opportunity to excel once they touch down on the planet's surface, with experienced travelers given the option of bypassing most of the tutorial experience for a trip straight to Nexus. Take a look at the full rundown to get a better idea of how the Dominion travels in style, which will likely be contrasted by the Exiles arriving in a spacesuit with a poorly written star chart. WildStar implores Dominion citizens to go space-west in a new arkship originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: The arkship Destiny

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