General Gaming Article

Blitz Red Dragon Memory From Avexir Available in Europe

Posted: 02 Mar 2014 09:04 PM PST

Blitz Red Dragon memory branded to match MSI Gaming motherboards

Avexir's latest memory kits are not only useful, but stylish, with the Blitz Red Dragon 1.1 DDR3 memory series sporting a black and red motif with tribal dragon designs. They've also got red LEDs on the top of each piece, which can be set to pulse as though they're breathing, giving the hardware a more "organic" feel. Just like a dragon. Any Targaryen fans in the house?

The Red Dragon units range between 1600 and 3200 MHz, with timings set at CL9 and CL13 for 1600 MHz and 3200 MHz modules, complete with Intel XMP 1.3 support. Unfortunately, these memory kits are only available currently in Europe, starting at €100 for the 8 GB kit. Unfortunately, there's no word just yet on whether or not we could see these slick-looking kits in the U.S. -- if you're in Europe, however, you've got some neat-looking hardware to pick up.

Windows 8.1 Release Date Announced For April 8th

Posted: 02 Mar 2014 07:42 PM PST

Putting a date on the much-anticipated upgrade

Microsoft had been reportedly waiting until April to officially unveil Windows 8.1, and now the latest rumors dictate April 8 as what could be the concrete date for consumers to download the upgrade. Coincidentally, that's also the same day that Microsoft will be pulling support for Windows XP. This date comes from Paul Thurrott, Supersite for Windows editor and co-host of Windows Weekly and What the Tech podcasts.

Additionally, reports indicate that MSDN subscribers will be able to use the final build of Windows 8.1 on April 2nd -- this is also the first day of the Microsoft BUILD 2014 conference. Though the date has been disputed and discussed over the past few months, it was thought at the very least an update would come out of BUILD or sometime shortly thereafter, but Paul Thurrott's tweet put rumors to rest as the update itself was confirmed on Sunday by Joe Belfiore, vice president of operating systems for Microsoft.

It appears the wait is over. Are you ready to get the upgrade taken care of or are you going to be holding off a bit longer?

MMO Updates

Free for All: Five reasons to continue loving MMORPGs
One Shots: Off the Grid
The Daily Grind: What's your favorite anthropomorphic MMO race?
New Dark Age of Camelot developer promises game upgrades and player polls
Dragon's Prophet patch adds arenas, evolution, and compendium
Twitch Plays Pokémon... beats Pokémon
Video: The Elder Scrolls Online Imperial Edition goodies
Moon Knight joins Marvel Heroes roster
Watch Star Citizen teams design the next great starship

Free for All: Five reasons to continue loving MMORPGs

Posted: 02 Mar 2014 09:00 AM PST

Filed under: Business Models, Culture, Game Mechanics, PvP, Opinion, Second Life, Free-to-Play, Browser, Casual, Free for All, Miscellaneous, Sandbox, MMORPG

It's been all gloomy around here lately, hasn't it? Well there's a good reason for that, as you might know. Luckily I have survived the cuts that affected much of the AOL Tech network, although that means that Rise and Shiny and MMObility, my two other regular columns, will be consolidated into this one. While it might seem like less work for me, in actuality it means that I have less room to tell you, fair reader, about all of the fantastic MMOs that continue to come out.

Yes, I said continue to come out. It's easy to become a Seymour ("I hate my interests!") in these days of non-stop hype, but the truth is that the MMO genre has continuously pumped out content for many, many years and will keep doing so for some time. So to celebrate the fact that three of my columns are now coming to you in one megacolumn, I thought it'd be fun to remind ourselves just why we enjoy this hobby.

Continue reading Free for All: Five reasons to continue loving MMORPGs

Free for All: Five reasons to continue loving MMORPGs originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 02 Mar 2014 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One Shots: Off the Grid

Posted: 02 Mar 2014 07:00 AM PST

Filed under: Screenshots, Anarchy Online, City of Heroes, Culture, Guild Wars 2, One Shots, Vindictus, Miscellaneous

As a former Anarchy Online player, I was always curious what the Grid looked like for the Fixer class, but I never was so curious that I rolled one up. Fortunately, reader Azzura was able to satisfy my curiosity this week with this awesome-looking structure.

"This is one of my favorite screenies I have, inside the Grid," he submitted. "You would click a machine and get digitized in to this area filled with exits to all over the game. Funcom seems to like this method of travel as you can tell by popping into Agartha in The Secret World.

We have sights and wonders the likes of which will make your ocular cavities gush forward in unabashed emotion after the break. Frankly, I wouldn't risk it; your eyes might not be able to take the strain.

Continue reading One Shots: Off the Grid

One Shots: Off the Grid originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 02 Mar 2014 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: What's your favorite anthropomorphic MMO race?

Posted: 02 Mar 2014 05:00 AM PST

Filed under: Fantasy, MMO Industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Races

Anthropomorphic races are old hat in MMOs at this point. Nearly every fantasy title has a humanoid cat, dog, lizard, dragon, or any one of a dozen other furry/scaly options to satisfy your exotic character creation needs.

I'm kinda partial to cat people myself, though unlike most of my fellow feline aficionados I tend to roll tomcats. What about you, Massively readers? Do you like anthropomorphic MMO races, and if so which is your favorite?

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: What's your favorite anthropomorphic MMO race? originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 02 Mar 2014 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New Dark Age of Camelot developer promises game upgrades and player polls

Posted: 01 Mar 2014 05:00 PM PST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dark Age of Camelot, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, PvP, Community Q&A, Subscription

If you're a Dark Age of Camelot die-hard, you might be interested in Mythic community manager Carol Kenny's question-and-answer post published yesterday. It covers everything from inventory adapters to hard-coded screenshot key binds to upcoming community initiatives.

"There's a wealth of content in Dark Age of Camelot that deserves an upgrade in mechanics, difficulty, and rewards," the post says. "Look forward to polls and questions from Carol as to which encounters we should start with, and what kind of rewards you would like to see."

New Dark Age of Camelot developer promises game upgrades and player polls originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 01 Mar 2014 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: Q&A grab bag

Dragon's Prophet patch adds arenas, evolution, and compendium

Posted: 01 Mar 2014 03:00 PM PST

Filed under: Fantasy, Patches, PvP, Free-to-Play, Dragon's Prophet

Three is a good number, especially when it comes to the number of big new features in a patch. If you want triple your patching value, then head over to Dragon's Prophet, where the team added three significant systems this past week.

First on the docket for the patch are dragon arenas, where players can form a team of three dragons to fight others' teams. Next is the new evolution system, which allows for dragons to learn an additional skill. Finally, the compendium compiles all of the information and statistics related to dragons captured and those still untamed.

The patch contains plenty of bug fixes and tweaks, so give the notes a read for the full scoop.

Dragon's Prophet patch adds arenas, evolution, and compendium originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 01 Mar 2014 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: Patch notes

Twitch Plays Pokémon... beats Pokémon

Posted: 01 Mar 2014 01:00 PM PST

Filed under: Culture, News Items, Browser, Miscellaneous

When is a single-player game an MMO? When you hook it up to a chat parser and let everyone fight for controls, much like wrestling with five other people to play a single-player game. Twitch Plays Pokémon has garnered a great deal of attention based on its quirky premise and execution, but all good things must come to an end. After 16 days of play, the game has finally concluded with victory for the multitudes.

The channel is currently counting down to something happening on Sunday morning. Will it be a restart? Another Pokémon title? An attempt to use a similar premise on another game? No one knows. (Most theories involve a restart or the next generation of Pokémon titles, though.) You can keep an eye on the page to see what happens next, or you can just enjoy one of the strangest stories of turning a single-player game into a multiplayer online one... even if it was just for half a month.

Twitch Plays Pokémon... beats Pokémon originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 01 Mar 2014 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: Twitch Plays Pokémon

Video: The Elder Scrolls Online Imperial Edition goodies

Posted: 01 Mar 2014 12:00 PM PST

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Video, Business Models, Previews, News Items, Hands-On, The Elder Scrolls Online

Friend of Massively Richie "Bogotter" Procopio has YouTubed up for MMO fans a detailed tour of all of the bells and whistles included in The Elder Scrolls Online's super-special Digital Imperial Edition. His new video walks players through the creation of an Imperial character, the adorableness of the mudcrab minipet, and the extra bonuses Imperials can brag about. Butt sliders are included! Enjoy it after the break.

Continue reading Video: The Elder Scrolls Online Imperial Edition goodies

Video: The Elder Scrolls Online Imperial Edition goodies originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 01 Mar 2014 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: Bogotter's YouTube Channel

Moon Knight joins Marvel Heroes roster

Posted: 01 Mar 2014 11:00 AM PST

Filed under: Super-hero, Classes, Events (In-Game), Free-to-Play, Marvel Heroes

The mysterious and mystical Moon Knight has surfaced in Marvel Heroes, joining the game's growing collection of superheroes.

Moon Knight is a masked vigilante who was given a little supernatural assistance by an Egyptian God. Gazillion is selling the Moon Knight in a hero pack with two costumes and other assorted goodies.

Marvel Heroes is also throwing a combined Carnival and Mardi Gras celebration in the game. Players will get a daily gift for logging in, discover themed drops, and have the chance to buy Halloween items and costumes on sale.

[Thanks to Spacejesus3k for the tip!]

Moon Knight joins Marvel Heroes roster originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 01 Mar 2014 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: Moon Knight, Celebration sales

Watch Star Citizen teams design the next great starship

Posted: 01 Mar 2014 10:00 AM PST

Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Video, Contests, Sandbox, Star Citizen

Star Citizen's Next Great Starship contest is down to 16 teams battling it out to get their designs into the upcoming space sim. Cloud Imperium has released the fifth episode of the contest in which the judges and participants talk about the various concept art that has been submitted. If you've got an hour and a desire to see some of the possibilities for the game's starships, hit the jump and give it a watch!

Continue reading Watch Star Citizen teams design the next great starship

Watch Star Citizen teams design the next great starship originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 01 Mar 2014 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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