MMO Updates

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• Choose My Adventure: Heavy Assault with PlanetSide 2
• This is the advanced AI tech that's powering Star Citizen
• Exploring WildStar's endgame raids and dungeons
• Battlegrounds, arenas, and warplots: How PvP works in WildStar
• WildStar announces June 3rd launch date, preorder bonuses
• The Daily Grind: How do you feel about other genres invading your game?
• Defiance's Gunslinger Trials DLC is now available for season pass holders
• Jukebox Heroes: Top 40 MMO themes, #20-11
• World of Tanks adds limited-time campaign for Xbox 360 players
• Wakfu getting crafting and class revamps, spy stuff
• Perfect World enjoys a profitable 2013
• Hearthstone launches, offers players a way to earn a special World of Warcraft mount
• Massively Speaking Episode 288: Open house
• Watch the fury of Diablo III's Crusader in action
• Black Gold's alpha starts March 20, keys still available
• Elder Scrolls Online sounds rallying call for final stress test weekend
• Trion Worlds introduces Glyph gaming platform
• Age of Wushu's Tempest of Strife expansion announced for Spring

Choose My Adventure: Heavy Assault with PlanetSide 2 Posted: 12 Mar 2014 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, War, Free-to-Play, Hands-On, MMOFPS, Choose My Adventure, PlanetSide 2 Jumping back into PlanetSide 2 is always fun because, as they say, war never changes. Sure, the maps might get tweaked and new vehicles might be introduced here and there, but it's still a contest of shooting one's enemy in the face repeatedly. For this edition of Choose My Adventure, you voted for me to play a gutsy heavy soldier fighting for the Terran Republic, someone who's not afraid to run into the thick of battle with guns blazing. This goes against every fiber of my nature, but you might be pleased to hear that I'm really enjoying the polar opposite of what I usually play. Continue reading Choose My Adventure: Heavy Assault with PlanetSide 2 Choose My Adventure: Heavy Assault with PlanetSide 2 originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 12 Mar 2014 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

This is the advanced AI tech that's powering Star Citizen Posted: 12 Mar 2014 09:30 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, PvE, Sandbox, Star Citizen, Buy-to-Play Cloud Imperium has publicized its relationship with Moon Collider, maker of an advanced AI middleware technology known as Kythera. A new press release says that Star Citizen fans will get their first taste of what Kythera can do in April's dogfighting module, while CIG chairman Chris Roberts enthuses over what the tech brings to the table. "The dynamic nature of the technology allows for more realistic dogfights, but at the same time it delivers a very true-to-life universe where planetside environments will be able to display very large scale city simulations all going on at once," he explains. "Kythera will give Star Citizen a true world AI rather than a less dynamic scripted AI which you may find in other games." You can read the full release after the cut. [Source: CIG press release] Continue reading This is the advanced AI tech that's powering Star Citizen This is the advanced AI tech that's powering Star Citizen originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 12 Mar 2014 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Exploring WildStar's endgame raids and dungeons Posted: 12 Mar 2014 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, Interviews, Previews, Endgame, News Items, PvE, Events (Massively's Coverage), WildStar, Dungeons, Subscription, MMORPG For those who like endgame PvE content, Carbine's upcoming MMO WildStar is hoping provide not just lots to consume but a variety of ways to consume it. I'm no longer the type of gamer who has to race to max level, and fortunately for me, WildStar plans to give us that "raid feeling" even while we're leveling via adventures and shiphand missions and world bosses and even public quests. But there's much more to PvE than that. At last week's press event, I sat down with Lead Combat Designer Chris Lynch and Lead Dungeons and Raids Designer Brett Scheinert to talk about endgame and PvE in the next big themepark. Continue reading Exploring WildStar's endgame raids and dungeons Exploring WildStar's endgame raids and dungeons originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 12 Mar 2014 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Battlegrounds, arenas, and warplots: How PvP works in WildStar Posted: 12 Mar 2014 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, Interviews, Patches, Previews, PvP, Endgame, Opinion, Hands-On, Events (Massively's Coverage), WildStar, Subscription, MMORPG PvE is a staple of MMORPG gameplay, but if you prefer the challenge and adrenaline rush of fighting against another human being while bashing on a keyboard and circle-strafing to dizzying effect, then you, my friend, are a PvPer. And if you've PvPed in other games, you'll be familiar with WildStar's battlegrounds and arenas. But warplots? What's a warplot? That's just one of the PvP-related questions I asked at a press event last week at Carbine Studios with the WildStar team. Battlegrounds Designer Kevin Lee and Lead PvP Designer Jen Gordy explained to me that PvP is one of the key focuses of the game; all PvP content in WildStar will be on a cross-realm queue. Your level and gear stats will be normalized to provide an equal playing field. WildStar's telegraph system ensures that PvP is extremely reactive, which is typical, but what's not typical is being able to see where your enemy is aiming that AoE or conal attack. Continue reading Battlegrounds, arenas, and warplots: How PvP works in WildStar Battlegrounds, arenas, and warplots: How PvP works in WildStar originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 12 Mar 2014 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

WildStar announces June 3rd launch date, preorder bonuses Posted: 12 Mar 2014 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Galleries, Screenshots, Trailers, Video, Business Models, Events (Real-World), MMO Industry, News Items, Promotions, WildStar, Subscription, MMORPG It's official: WildStar is launching worldwide on June 3rd, and as of right this very moment, the NDA has lifted. Preorders for Carbine's sub-based sci-fantasy MMORPG will be available next Wednesday, March 19th. The $59.99 preorder provides beta events, early access on May 31st, housing deco that grants a rest XP bonus, character and guild name reservations, a 10-slot storage bag, and the exclusive rocket house shown above, in addition to the Standard Edition's 30 days of play time, buddy passes, and more deco. Another $15 gets you a Digital Deluxe version with a hoverboard, costume, title, and dye set. Stay tuned today for Massively's coverage from the recent press event, and enjoy the newly released images and launch announcement trailer. [Source: Carbine press release] Continue reading WildStar announces June 3rd launch date, preorder bonuses WildStar announces June 3rd launch date, preorder bonuses originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 12 Mar 2014 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Daily Grind: How do you feel about other genres invading your game? Posted: 12 Mar 2014 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous One of the big controversies that I remember when World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade came out was the inclusion of "space goats" and their high-tech crystal starship into some people's sacred fantasy landscape. Personally, I had no problem with it (their Shaman totems looked way cool), especially considering that WoW already had a strong steampunk influence plus a zone with a werewolf theme. It wasn't a game that took its fantasy boundaries too seriously, in other words. But it made me realize that not everyone is comfortable with other genres invading their game. I guess the issue is one of breaking immersion and lore, and that as popular as these elements might be, they have no logical reason for being smashed together in an unholy Oreo of flavors. Have there been any genre invasions into your game that really irked, delighted, or puzzled you? How did you deal with it? 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: How do you feel about other genres invading your game? originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 12 Mar 2014 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Defiance's Gunslinger Trials DLC is now available for season pass holders Posted: 11 Mar 2014 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Video, Game Mechanics, Launches, Patches, PvP, News Items, Defiance, Buy-to-Play Defiance's newest DLC, Gunslinger Trials, is now available for season pass holders on both the PC and Xbox 360. Forum posters are reporting that the DLC is not yet available for piecemeal purchase on Steam or the Trion store, but we presume it will be soon. Sorry, PS3 players; if you're not subbed with a season pass, you'll have to wait until March 24th to pick it up. The DLC boasts a new scoring system for events, improved rewards, and co-op arenas. Enjoy the official trailer after the break. Continue reading Defiance's Gunslinger Trials DLC is now available for season pass holders Defiance's Gunslinger Trials DLC is now available for season pass holders originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Jukebox Heroes: Top 40 MMO themes, #20-11 Posted: 11 Mar 2014 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Age of Conan, Darkfall, Final Fantasy XI, Guild Wars, Opinion, Star Wars Galaxies, Allods Online, Blade & Soul, Miscellaneous, PlanetSide 2, Defiance, Jukebox Heroes, Dragon's Prophet, Music We're growing ever closer to my top picks for MMO theme songs, but we're not quite at the end yet. This week we are on to the third part of our Top 40 MMO main themes countdown. To repeat my self-imposed rules for this list: I limited myself to just one theme from a particular title, even if there were multiple themes in a game. Entries had to be a main theme or the closest equivalent of that; they had to be from MMOs, not from MOBAs; and I had to divorce my weighting of the track itself from the popularity of and my experience with that game. So there were no points added or subtracted based on my love of the game. I'm counting down the best music, period. If you missed earlier parts of this series, check out themes #40-31 and #30-21. Otherwise, hit that continue button and get listening already! Continue reading Jukebox Heroes: Top 40 MMO themes, #20-11 Jukebox Heroes: Top 40 MMO themes, #20-11 originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

World of Tanks adds limited-time campaign for Xbox 360 players Posted: 11 Mar 2014 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Historical, Patches, War, Free-to-Play, Consoles, World of Tanks, Promotions Beginning March 18th through the 24th, World of Tanks will offer a brand new campaign that's only available for a limited time to players of the game's Xbox 360 version. Map Madness allows players to combine forces to cumulatively reach a tank destruction quota used to unlock three possible maps. The urban Lakeville map will be unlocked when 10 million cumulative tanks are destroyed, desert-based El Halluf is at 25 million, and the classic Prokhorovka that should be familiar to PC players is at 40 million. [Source: Wargaming press release] World of Tanks adds limited-time campaign for Xbox 360 players originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Wakfu getting crafting and class revamps, spy stuff Posted: 11 Mar 2014 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Classes, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, Patches, News Items, Free-to-Play, Crafting What's new for Wakfu in 2014? Quite a lot according to the game's latest website update. Ankama is prepping class revamps, a crafting revamp featuring the ability to "become a real entrepreneur," and some sort of shadowy spy mechanic that involves "having a secret life" and using it to "fight the nations from within." Finally, if you'll be anywhere near Lille, France, on May 2nd, you'll want to stop by the Ankama Convention since admission is free. [Thanks Avaera!] Wakfu getting crafting and class revamps, spy stuff originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Wakfu 2014

Perfect World enjoys a profitable 2013 Posted: 11 Mar 2014 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Business Models, MMO Industry, Free-to-Play, Neverwinter Perfect World Entertainment is celebrating this week as the most recent financial reports show a revenue increase of 11% for last year, thanks to forward-thinking initiatives aimed at investments in other companies and a focus on mobile gaming for the future. Most impressive was the Q4 results showing a net profit growth from RMB86.4 million to RMB209.8 million ($34 million), according to a report at Gamesindustry.biz. All of this, of course, is on the heels of DotA 2's upcoming release in China and Neverwinter's Chinese release later this year which both may play a part in even further growth for 2014. Perfect World enjoys a profitable 2013 originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Gamesindustry.biz

Hearthstone launches, offers players a way to earn a special World of Warcraft mount Posted: 11 Mar 2014 02:30 PM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Launches, Free-to-Play, Trading Card Games, Promotions, Hearthstone Whoa, this sneaked up on us unexpectedly! Blizzard abruptly announced today that Hearthstone has officially launched and updated to the new 1.0.0.4944 patch. The free-to-play card game has been widely available for some time now, but now it's all there for keeps. Today's patch includes golden hero and special card backing visuals as rewards for ranked play. Other changes include balance tweaks, a reconnect feature, access to multiple regions, and a whole lotta bug fixes. Players can also earn a Hearthstone mount for World of Warcraft by winning three games in play or arena mode. Hearthstone launches, offers players a way to earn a special World of Warcraft mount originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Patch notes, Hearthstone launch announcement

Massively Speaking Episode 288: Open house Posted: 11 Mar 2014 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Podcasts, MMO Industry, News Items, Massively Meta, Massively Speaking, Miscellaneous Instanced housing vs. public housing? Oh, the battle is on in this week's podcast, as hosts Justin and Bree battle it out for the most comfortable living spaces and poshest decorations. There might even be a metaphorical throw pillow fight or two during the proceedings. Get all of our opinions and analysis on the most important stories of the past week right here on Massively Speaking, the industry's leading MMO podcast. And if you have a comment, question, or topic for the podcasters, send an email to podcast@massively.com. We may just read your email on the air! Get the podcast: [RSS] Add Massively Speaking to your RSS aggregator. [MP3] Download the MP3 directly. [iTunes] Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. [Stitcher] Follow the podcast on Stitcher Radio. Listen here on the page: Read below the cut for the full show notes. Continue reading Massively Speaking Episode 288: Open house Massively Speaking Episode 288: Open house originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Watch the fury of Diablo III's Crusader in action Posted: 11 Mar 2014 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Video, Classes, Expansions, Diablo III, Buy-to-Play With all of the fun that players seem to be having with the recent Diablo III pre-expansion patch, it might be easy to forget that there's still more to come with Reaper of Souls -- including a new class, the Crusader. Blizzard hasn't forgotten, of course, and the studio posted a new video today to spotlight the class' mechanics, lore, and visual flair. On paper the Crusader sounds like a near-invincible melee class, but how does it look in action? Check out the video after the break and you tell us. Continue reading Watch the fury of Diablo III's Crusader in action Watch the fury of Diablo III's Crusader in action originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Crusader dev blog

Black Gold's alpha starts March 20, keys still available Posted: 11 Mar 2014 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, Free-to-Play, Steampunk, Black Gold Snail Games has published a news post hyping its Black Gold alpha test that starts on Thursday, March 20th. The company says that keys are still available, but interested players will need to fill out a survey and then hope for the best, as Snail will select testers from "the pool of applicants based on their responses." Black Gold is a free-to-play steampunk fantasy MMORPG. The survey and account registration info are available via the links below. Black Gold's alpha starts March 20, keys still available originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Announcement

Elder Scrolls Online sounds rallying call for final stress test weekend Posted: 11 Mar 2014 12:30 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Giveaways, The Elder Scrolls Online, Subscription With launch right around the corner, ZeniMax is pushing hard to get Elder Scrolls Online in top shape for its world debut. This means one last big stress test weekend is on tap for later this week. ZeniMax is sending out a huge wave of invites for the test and reminded players that any previous beta testers are automatically included in the fun. There is no NDA for the weekend, and any participants will be given a monkey vanity pet upon launch. MJ will be streaming ESO from this beta test on Friday at 2:00 p.m. EST, so if you can't get in the game, definitely give her adventures a watch! Elder Scrolls Online sounds rallying call for final stress test weekend originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Beta weekend announcement

Trion Worlds introduces Glyph gaming platform Posted: 11 Mar 2014 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Launches, MMO Industry, Free-to-Play, RIFT, ArcheAge, Sandbox, Defiance, Trove Trion Worlds is getting into the digital gaming platform business, as the studio announced today that it will be releasing its own "lightweight digital hub" called Glyph. Glyph was created to connect developers with audiences, and is purported to be friendly to use from both sides and DRM-free. The platform will take over the responsibility of being the launcher for Trion's titles, including RIFT, Defiance, and Trove (we'll believe ArcheAge when we see it). Trion says that the studio has already handled "more then 10 million gamers" in the past three years and that Glyph will be a great help to pair those players up with current and future titles. Glyph will also handle games from Trion's partners, as the studio has already begun signing on developers. It will launch shortly after GDC 2014. [Source: Trion Worlds press release] Trion Worlds introduces Glyph gaming platform originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Age of Wushu's Tempest of Strife expansion announced for Spring Posted: 11 Mar 2014 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Expansions, PvP, News Items, Free-to-Play, Age of Wushu While many people are looking forward to better weather and sunshine come spring, Age of Wushu players will have thunderstorms, blizzards, and even sandstorms thanks to one of the new features in the upcoming Tempest of Strife expansion. In addition to immersive weather that can trigger mysterious events, this fourth expansion also includes six new sects to join. Players ready to cast off the shackles of their old masters can betray their school and sign up with one of the three sects open to all (Villa of Beasts, Xu Family Manor, and Golden Needle Sect) or one of the three that require a large reserve of talent first (Palace of Shifting Flowers, Peach Blossom Island, Rootless Clan). Want to forgo masters altogether? Become a vagrant! Additional expansion features include the ability to change your looks through a face-lift and the opportunity to personalize your equipment by inscribing unique names on each piece. Tempest of Strife is due out later this spring. [Source: Snail Games press release] Age of Wushu's Tempest of Strife expansion announced for Spring originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

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