MMO Updates

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• Guild Wars 2 inflates your character's head
• Roberts praises Oculus-Facebook deal, says Star Citizen will remain independent
• Massively's Elder Scrolls launch diary: Day two - Skills and progression
• The Massively April Fools' Day Quest
• The Daily Grind: Should WoW's garrisons count as 'housing'?
• Not So Massively: Diablo III's expansion, LoL's team builder, and the Oculus Rift acquisition
• The Stream Team: Goodbye, Free Realms
• World of Tanks unveils new 7v7 combat mode
• Final Fantasy XIV teases human-NPC relationship system
• Neverwinter spoofs game-within-a-game
• Shards Online developers plan for a player-run MMO
• Darkfall's getting PvE dailies, and no, it's not April Fools' Day yet
• The Stream Team: Adventuring in The Elder Scrolls Online's early access

Guild Wars 2 inflates your character's head Posted: 01 Apr 2014 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, News Items, Guild Wars 2, Humor, Buy-to-Play So everyone thought that Guild Wars 2 was just going to do Super Adventure Box again. But no, this year is going a different route. After all, you're super important in the game, aren't you? So why not let all of that importance go straight to your cranium? The designers have turned on the game's big head mode, and it's probably going to significantly improve your experience within the game as a whole. Maybe. Who knows, it could happen. The point is that the super adventure is now in your skull, which is greatly engorged, and you can log into the game right now to start playing with the biggest head your character has ever had in Tyria. Bigger even than Trahearne's head! Check out the full infographic on the update just past the break (click for a larger version) and enjoy the new visuals as you head into battle. [Source: ArenaNet press release] Continue reading Guild Wars 2 inflates your character's head Guild Wars 2 inflates your character's head originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 01 Apr 2014 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Roberts praises Oculus-Facebook deal, says Star Citizen will remain independent Posted: 01 Apr 2014 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Business Models, Culture, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, Sandbox, Crowdfunding, Star Citizen, Buy-to-Play Star Citizen topped $41 million in crowdfunding yesterday, and Cloud Imperium boss Chris Roberts penned a new Letter from the Chairman as a result. The latest stretch goal unlocked the procedural generation R&D team, but perhaps more notably it served as an opportunity for Roberts to weigh in on the Oculus-Facebook debate and reassure Star Citizen fans of the game's independence. Roberts explained how Facebook's investment will help defer the obscene manufacturing and supply chain costs involved in bringing new hardware to the mass market. He also pointed out that Star Citizen features none of those costs, so there's no desire to sell to a larger firm. "We don't need to go to anyone with deep pockets to make our dream a reality," Roberts wrote. "Luckily our ships are digital so we have hardly any cost of goods, just the cost of developing the universe of Star Citizen and running servers that Star Citizen's universe will be simulated on. Thanks to the generosity of the Star Citizen community we have these two things covered." Roberts praises Oculus-Facebook deal, says Star Citizen will remain independent originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 01 Apr 2014 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: $41 million

Massively's Elder Scrolls launch diary: Day two - Skills and progression Posted: 01 Apr 2014 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Classes, Game Mechanics, Launches, MMO Industry, New Titles, PvE, Opinion, Hands-On, The Elder Scrolls Online, Subscription Never in 15-plus years of MMO gaming have I been so bewildered when it comes to picking a main class and character. Part of this is because I ignored The Elder Scrolls Online prior to March 30th. So I'm drinking from the information firehose in terms of game mechanics while simultaneously trying to keep up with friends. The other part of it stems from the fact that ESO has an absurd amount of build customizability. I'm glad it has only four classes instead of six or eight because six or eight would probably send me over the decisional paralysis edge and into some sort of fugue state. I think for the purposes of this launch week diary -- and my own sanity -- I'm just going to stick with my Redguard Nightblade and forge ahead. There. Done. Maybe. Continue reading Massively's Elder Scrolls launch diary: Day two - Skills and progression Massively's Elder Scrolls launch diary: Day two - Skills and progression originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 01 Apr 2014 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Massively April Fools' Day Quest Posted: 01 Apr 2014 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Contests, Events (Real-World), Humor, Miscellaneous As a citizen of the internet, you know what to expect on April Fools' Day: lots of sites trying to trick you into believing outrageous lies or attempting to make you laugh. As Massively is a paragon of both truth and humorlessness in journalism, we promise to do neither today. Instead, we challenge you to a quest: a Massively April Fools' Day Quest. We have created a super-secret page here on the site that can be discovered only by finding five special words. So your task is to play scavenger hunt with our posts today -- specifically, to look at the tags at the bottom of each post that goes out during the day and find five separate tags (total) that clearly do not belong with the rest. All posts published today are eligible! Once you find these five words, you'll use them to assemble the url, starting with "massively.joystiq.com/" and then adding the five words separated by hyphens. For example, if the five words were apple, banana, pear, mango, kiwi, you could try "massively.joystiq.com/apple-banana-pear-mango-kiwi" to see if that worked. Yes, part of the challenge of the quest is to experiment with the order of the words because there is only one path to the solution. If you complete the quest, please be a good sport and keep the answer to yourself. The first person to figure out the solution and leave us a tip with the correct answer in it will have his or her name added to this post and will forevermore be internet famous. Good luck! The Massively April Fools' Day Quest originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 01 Apr 2014 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Daily Grind: Should WoW's garrisons count as 'housing'? Posted: 01 Apr 2014 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous, Housing, Subscription, MMORPG Every time we cover World of Warcraft's upcoming garrison feature -- the one that will grant an upgradeable town to every WoW player -- someone scoffs that it's not housing and shouldn't be considered such. And to the extent that it isn't a house or a zone that you can customize tile by tile or object by object like some of the more epic housing systems in MMOland, I'd agree. Even WoW Insider's Matt Rossi wrote that the garrison system seemed more like "bringing the RTS [genre's] whole 'construct a base, generate resources, use them for battle' gameplay into the MMO" than like the game's farms, let alone like traditional houses where you can stash your loot. Still, I have to wonder how that's so different from a housing system like WildStar's, which also attempts to create a private and mechanically useful space for players rather than offer a purely creative, mercantile, or social space. What do you think: Should WoW's garrisons count as MMO housing, or are they just upjumped farms? 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: Should WoW's garrisons count as 'housing'? originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 01 Apr 2014 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Not So Massively: Diablo III's expansion, LoL's team builder, and the Oculus Rift acquisition Posted: 31 Mar 2014 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Business Models, Events (Real-World), Events (In-Game), News Items, Free-to-Play, Massively Meta, Miscellaneous, Not So Massively, MOBA, Crowdfunding Welcome back to No So Massively, where every Monday we round up the highlights from the past week in the world of MOBAs, roguelikes, MMOTCGs, and other games that aren't quite MMOs. It's been a week of launches in the MOBA and multiplayer ARPG world! Diablo III officially launched, entering the UK sales charts at number six. SMITE made its launch official as well and kicked off a giant tournament with massive money prizes. MOBA Prime World officially launched its western version. Shadowrun Online's Steam early access begins today. Facebook bought up the Oculus Rift VR company for two billion buckaroos. Infinite Crisis announced new character Nightmare Superman coming in April. League of Legends formally launched its new team builder. Heroes of the Storm previewed character Tyrael in a new video just after the break. Continue reading Not So Massively: Diablo III's expansion, LoL's team builder, and the Oculus Rift acquisition Not So Massively: Diablo III's expansion, LoL's team builder, and the Oculus Rift acquisition originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 31 Mar 2014 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Stream Team: Goodbye, Free Realms Posted: 31 Mar 2014 05:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, Events (In-Game), Free-to-Play, Massively Meta, Hands-On, Free Realms, Livestream, The Stream Team, Sunsets, MMORPG Since 2009, Free Realms has entertained children and adults with go-kart racing, playing trading card games, and of course, being a ninja. Unfortunately, even the good MMOs must end. Join Massively's Larry Everett and his son at 7:30 p.m. EDT as they take one more lap around Free Realms and maybe catch one more demolition derby. Game: Free Realms Host: Larry Everett Date: Monday, March 31st, 2014 Time: 7:30 p.m. EDT Enjoy our Stream Team video below. Continue reading The Stream Team: Goodbye, Free Realms The Stream Team: Goodbye, Free Realms originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 31 Mar 2014 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

World of Tanks unveils new 7v7 combat mode Posted: 31 Mar 2014 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Historical, Video, Game Mechanics, Patches, PvP, News Items, War, Free-to-Play, World of Tanks, Dev Diaries Wargaming.net has just announced a brand-new combat mode for its tank-flavored MMO World of Tanks. The mode is a 7v7 random battles mode called Labyrinth. David Bowie is not included, but a new vehicle is: The only vehicle available in the upcoming mode will be the German self-propelled gun Karl-Gerät that will be added with Update 1.04 as well. Tankers will also get an original battle arena, developed specially for Labyrinth, as well as a new medal, awarded for exceptional performance in the new mode. The translated version of the latest WoT developer diary discusses the new combat mode in depth; we've got it embedded below. [Source: Wargaming press release] Continue reading World of Tanks unveils new 7v7 combat mode World of Tanks unveils new 7v7 combat mode originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 31 Mar 2014 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Final Fantasy XIV teases human-NPC relationship system Posted: 31 Mar 2014 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Humor, Final Fantasy XIV, Subscription Well it's April 1st already, at least in Japan, and Final Fantasy XIV has something to contribute to this off-beat day: a Favour system for the game. Allegedly, this system will help players curry favor with NPCs and develop relationships with them because that's not creepy at all. To build an NPC's affection, players will have to perform certain tasks, hand out gifts, and even sport a particular look because that's not demeaning at all. As a player rises in affection, he or she will move to later "phases" and have access to new features (such as minigames) and interactions with the NPC. So if you've ever wanted to start a relationship with a cute NPC that will result in an over-possessive, jealous lover who will deny you the ability to group with members of the opposite sex, here you go. Because that's not bizarre at all. Final Fantasy XIV teases human-NPC relationship system originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 31 Mar 2014 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Introducing the Favour system

Neverwinter spoofs game-within-a-game Posted: 31 Mar 2014 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Events (Real-World), Free-to-Play, Humor, Neverwinter Neverwinter has jumped the gun on April Fools' Day with its "preview" of Respen's Marvelous Game. The idea is that Neverwinter will add a game-within-a-game, allowing characters in the MMO to sit down and engage in some good ol' fashion tabletop D&D: "Respen's Marvelous Game takes place atop a table, with your character being transformed into a miniature statuette. This new event will challenge you on a whole new level. Now you will know what it is like to be on the other side of a tabletop game!" Of course, this is just a joke. Or is it? Cryptic teased the possibility of earning a green slime companion and said that it will be revealing more details tomorrow. Neverwinter spoofs game-within-a-game originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 31 Mar 2014 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Respen's Marvelous Game

Shards Online developers plan for a player-run MMO Posted: 31 Mar 2014 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Game Mechanics, New Titles, News Items More or less every MMO starts up its advertising with some trace of the idea that you can play however you want. Not every MMO talks about the idea of letting players run the servers at the top level, however. But that's what Shards Online is aiming to provide. A recent interview with the developers discusses the idea, with studio co-founder Derek Brinkmann explaining that it's one of the first steps to dismantling the idea that the designers have to tell you how to enjoy yourself. Citadel Studios is a team made up of former Ultima Online developers who wondered why more games haven't embraced the idea of taking live events to their logical conclusion with modern technology. Shards Online is set in a multiverse, with several different worlds featuring slightly different rules, while players can tweak the overall structure to their individual preferences by running their own servers. The game is in development for Windows, Linux, and Mac, with an alpha expected later this year. Shards Online developers plan for a player-run MMO originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 31 Mar 2014 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Polygon

Darkfall's getting PvE dailies, and no, it's not April Fools' Day yet Posted: 31 Mar 2014 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Darkfall, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, News Items, PvE, Sandbox, Subscription From the things-I-never-thought-I'd-type category, here's a story about Darkfall adding PvE dailies. Aventurine calls them feats in keeping with the PvP title's Unholy Wars progression system, and "there are several personal PvE daily feats that require specific monsters to be killed in order to be completed." The firm is also adding weekly feats, which, like the dailies, will reward prowess and occasional material rewards like raw resources. [Thanks Dengar!] Darkfall's getting PvE dailies, and no, it's not April Fools' Day yet originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 31 Mar 2014 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: DF forums

The Stream Team: Adventuring in The Elder Scrolls Online's early access Posted: 31 Mar 2014 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, New Titles, Livestream, The Elder Scrolls Online, The Stream Team For those with early access, life began for real in The Elder Scrolls Online yesterday. Not one to be left behind, Massively's MJ has jumped in on her new Redguard and is working her way out of the beginner lands in order to acquire all possible lore and read every text. Oh, and pilfer too! With nimble fingers and prying eyes, no loaf of bread nor locked drawer will be safe! Join us live at 1:00 p.m. EDT for her jump start into adventure. Game: The Elder Scrolls Online Host: MJ Guthrie Date: Monday, March 31st, 2014 Time: 1:00 p.m. EDT Enjoy our Stream Team video below. Continue reading The Stream Team: Adventuring in The Elder Scrolls Online's early access The Stream Team: Adventuring in The Elder Scrolls Online's early access originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 31 Mar 2014 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

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