General Gaming Article

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• Oculus Should Refund Kickstarter Money
• BlackBerry Posts $423 Million Loss in Fourth Quarter, CEO Eyes Brighter Times Ahead
• Microsoft Finalizes Design of Kinect for Windows Version 2 Sensor
• Here's What Respawn's Doing to Improve Matchmaking in Titanfall
• Newegg Daily Deals: Western Digital RE 4TB Enterprise HDD, AMD A6-5400K Trinity, and More!

Oculus Should Refund Kickstarter Money Posted: 28 Mar 2014 02:53 PM PDT Column: Oculus should do the right thing Facebook purchasing Oculus was an unprecedented acquisition. No Kickstarter company has ever been bought out by a large corporation prior to their crowdfunded project being released--at least not on the immense scale of $2 billion.    The surprising acquisition has spurred a lot of animosity from virtual-reality enthusiasts, most notably from the original Kickstarter backers. Several Scumbag Oculus memes have gone viral. Is the hate unwarranted? Perhaps some of it, but many of the Kickstarter backers have a right to feel betrayed. Take a moment and imagine that you've always dreamt of going sailing, but never had the means to obtain a boat. One day you meet and befriend a passionate and intelligent boat builder, Ted, who shares the same dreams of sailing as you do. Ted says that once he builds his boat, you'll be able to go sailing on it, whenever you please. Sounds perfect, doesn't it? But because Ted needs funds to build the boat, he asks you for a donation. Because you fervently believe in his vision, capabilities, and promise, you comply. After several months, Ted takes you out on some test runs. You find the ship to be shaping up nicely and can already imagine yourself sailing the seven seas with it. Then, all of a sudden, some rich executives walk by and throw a boatload of cash at Ted to acquire it.  The original Oculus Rift Kickstarter video Ted, by textbook definition, just sold out. And in doing so, crossed the boundaries between the trust and vision that you guys shared together. Still, Ted assures you that once he's done building the boat, you'll still be able to take it out on joyrides whenever you want, but deep down inside, you know the execs hold the keys to the ship, and you can't help but fear that they may wreck it. This is analogous to how Oculus says no changes will be made to their original vision, though it's difficult to imagine a future where Facebook won't try and integrate their services into it, pester you with annoying ads, or steer VR away from its original open-source/mod-friendly gaming intention.  If that's not an infuriating situation, I don't know what is. Is what Oculus did illegal? No, but Oculus did break a gentleman's agreement. They violated an unwritten rule. It's like a friend who asks to borrow five bucks, wins the lottery, and doesn't pay you back.  Now, to be clear, as a VR enthusiast, I am not entirely against the Facebook acquisition myself. I do think that a lot of good can come from the situation. Up until this point, Oculus has had to rely on off-the-shelf parts, but with the backing of Facebook, Oculus should have the capital to actively design, develop, and manufacture the parts they need.  As it stands right now, however, the original Kickstarter funds are no longer needed, and Oculus has benefited greatly from the initial investment. In the process, a great deal of trust has been violated from the community that put Oculus on the map. Now does Oculus have to do anything to rectify this? No. But if they want to win back some goodwill, they should. What could the company do to make amends? For one thing, they could give every Kickstarter backer an Oculus Rift, no matter how much they originally donated. But I believe that the most obvious method to solving a problem is often the best way to solve a problem: Oculus should give the original backers their money back.

BlackBerry Posts $423 Million Loss in Fourth Quarter, CEO Eyes Brighter Times Ahead Posted: 28 Mar 2014 11:21 AM PDT Big losses have become all-too-familiar for BlackBerry The numbers are in for BlackBerry's fourth quarter of fiscal 2014, and once again, they're not pretty. To get some of the bigger ones out of the way, BlackBerry posted a $423M loss, or $0.08 per share diluted, for Q4, which contributed to a $5.9 billion loss for entire year. Despite the heavy losses, BlackBerry's recently inaugurated CEO John Chen said he was "very pleased" with how things are going. Confused? Though BlackBerry has suffered some heavy losses, they're not as big as they could otherwise have been without the cost cutting measures Chen recently put in place. Compared to the same quarter a year ago, operating expenses are down 51 percent. "I am very pleased with our progress and execution in fiscal Q4 against the strategy we laid out three months ago. We have significantly streamlined operations, allowing us to reach our expense reduction target one quarter ahead of schedule," Chen said (PDF). "BlackBerry is on sounder financial footing today with a path to returning to growth and profitability." This is the first quarter of an eight-quarter turnaround plan, and assuming it works out, more losses are in store. Chen doesn't expect cash flow to reach a break even point until the end of fiscal 2015, with a return to profitability expected in 2016. For that to happen, Chen's gamble on returning to BlackBerry's roots will need to pay off. After witnessing the failed attempt at winning back customers with BlackBerry 10 devices, the Canadian handset maker brought back the classic QWERTY keyboard by launching the Q20 last month. As another throwback to the past, the company is planning to bring back the BlackBerry Bold. On top of that, Chen is shifting some focus onto software and services, especially its BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) program, which now stands at 113 million registered users and 85 million monthly active users. Furthermore, Chen is considering a desktop version of the app, so that users could begin a conversation on their PC and pick up where they left off on their mobile device. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Microsoft Finalizes Design of Kinect for Windows Version 2 Sensor Posted: 28 Mar 2014 09:10 AM PDT Microsoft gives a glimpse of the Kinect for Windows v2's final hardware design Despite the occasional rumors to the contrary, Microsoft has held firm that the second generation Kinect motion control senor bundled with its Xbox One console would not work with Windows, and that a special version for Windows would eventually be released. That day still hasn't come, however Microsoft did decide to show off what the final hardware will look like for the Kinect for Windows Version 2. It doesn't look any different from its console counterpart except that it says "Kinect" on the top panel, and the stylized green "x" is just a simple power indicator. Outside of its appearance, Microsoft talked a little bit about the hardware, saying it needs a hub and power supply to work. The hub accepts three connections -- one for the sensor, another for USB 3.0 output, and power, which supports voltages from 100 to 240 volts. "As this first look at the Kinect for Windows v2 hardware indicates, we're getting closer and closer to launch. So stay tuned for more updates on the next generation of Kinect for Windows," Microsoft said. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Here's What Respawn's Doing to Improve Matchmaking in Titanfall Posted: 28 Mar 2014 08:35 AM PDT You can test drive Titanfall's latest matchmaking tweaks Respawn Entertainment says it's been keeping an eye on performance in Titanfall and is well aware of the lack of variety in teams. The development team has vowed to fix that, and if you're eager to try out some of the new changes, you can hop into the "Improved Matchmaking (Beta)" playlist under "Play Classic MP." For now, Respawn wants to watch how things play out in the beta to see what other tweaks are necessary before rolling out the changes to other playlists. Titanfall relies on a behind-the-scenes skill system to find teammates and opponents. However, teams sometimes have a tendency to be lopsided, and it only takes a few matches for that to become obvious. To address that, one of the changes in the beta is that the search process will take more time to look for players that are a good skill level match instead of just prioritizing speed over quality. The other change is that the game will periodically split the teams apart and search for new opponents for each team. So, if one of the teams keeps crushing the other, the game will update the skill for all players and find each team a better suited match for the next round. "This should end some of the frustration with playing for extended periods when you're having an off night," Respawn said. Respawn's matchingmaking announcement comes hot on the heels of its decision to send rule breakers to a server full of other cheaters rather than outright banning them from the game. In doing so, Respawn said it would be like the Wimbledon of aimbots. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Newegg Daily Deals: Western Digital RE 4TB Enterprise HDD, AMD A6-5400K Trinity, and More! Posted: 28 Mar 2014 06:03 AM PDT Top Deal: The world's first hard drive was a massive unit released by IBM in 1956. Called the IBM 350 Disk Storage, it came with the IBM 350 RAMAC system. The 350 measured 60 inches (L) by 68 inches (H) by 29 inches (D) and had 50 magnetic disks containing 50,000 sectors. It had a small air compressor, electronic and pneumatic controls, and 5MB of storage capacity. Compare that to today's top deal for a Western Digital RE 4TB 3.5-inch Enterprise Internal Hard Drive for $310 with free shipping (normally $335 - use coupon code: [EMCPGHE27]). It's devoid of an air compressor, but it does have 64MB of cache, a SATA 6Gbps interface, a 7200 RPM spindle speed, and multi-axis shock sensor, to name some of the highlights. Other Deals: AMD A6-5400K Trinity 3.6GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) Socket FM2 65W Dual-Core Desktop APU for $55 with free shipping (normally $60 - use coupon code: [EMCPGHE26]) Raidmax RX-850AE 850W ATX12V Ready 80 Plus Gold Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply for $80 with free shipping (normally $120 - use coupon code: [EMCPGHE222]; additional $20 Mail-in rebate) Kingston DataTraveler SE9 16GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive for $8 with free shipping (normally $10 - use coupon code: [EMCPGHE62]) PNY XLR8 SSD9SC240GMDA-RB 2.5-inch 240GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive for $120 with free shipping

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MMO Updates

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• Working As Intended: What Guild Wars 2 got right
• FFXIV's Yoshida on the business benefits of the subscription model
• Six things you will and will not find in The Elder Scrolls Online
• ArcheAge Japan going F2P, getting 1.0 patch in April
• The Daily Grind: Which MMO has the best 'ding'?
• An analysis of the Glitch auction house
• The Think Tank: How MMO players prepare for launch
• Founders leave Torchlight developer Runic
• WildStar bonus weekend begins Friday morning
• APB: Reloaded team details Unreal Engine upgrade
• PlanetSide 2 rolls out new missions system
• The Stream Team: More Landmark beta, more codes!
• Skyforge gives a glimpse into The Factory
• RIFT opens up player PvP dimensions
• The Elder Scrolls Online announces PvP campaign names
• Chaos Theory: Grand plans for The Secret World's Black Watchmen ARG
• Final Fantasy XIV offers more retainers for a price
• League of Legends introduces the new Team Builder queue
• Guild Wars 2 signals end of armor repair costs
• Here's an early look at Star Citizen's room system
• Age of Wushu on Steam today

Working As Intended: What Guild Wars 2 got right Posted: 28 Mar 2014 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Business Models, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Hands-On, Crafting, Buy-to-Play, Working As Intended I returned to Guild Wars 2 recently after months away and was pleasantly surprised with what I found. No, there was nothing earth-shatteringly new, and no, I'm not going to praise the latest installment of the plot, but I realized that I'd forgotten just how much Guild Wars 2 managed to get right. I have many complaints about the game ranging from the way group combat in dungeons flopped to how the economy tanked to the fact that the living story bores me to tears. But Guild Wars 2 has some true nuggets of brilliance all the same, even if it doesn't have (I'm gonna say it) Cantha. Let's talk about them. Continue reading Working As Intended: What Guild Wars 2 got right Working As Intended: What Guild Wars 2 got right originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 Mar 2014 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

FFXIV's Yoshida on the business benefits of the subscription model Posted: 28 Mar 2014 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Business Models, Interviews, MMO Industry, News Items, Final Fantasy XIV, Subscription Final Fantasy XIV producer Naoki Yoshida recently expounded on the benefits of the subscription model in an interview with GamesIndustry.biz. While he acknowledges the popularity of F2P, he also says that it's not necessarily the best choice for every MMO. "With the subscription model, you have that constant flow of revenue. As game developers, creators of games, we want to be able to continue providing the best gameplay experience and sustain that," Yoshida explained. "Of course, the initial subscriber numbers might not be as many as the free-to-play model, but we have that constant stream. We're not thinking just about the business of the moment. We want to think about the long term and being able to have the funding to continue making updates. Some people might be focused on quickly gaining revenue, but you have to think about the long term." FFXIV's Yoshida on the business benefits of the subscription model originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 Mar 2014 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: GI.biz

Six things you will and will not find in The Elder Scrolls Online Posted: 28 Mar 2014 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Lore, New Titles, Mac, Races, Roleplaying, Guides, The Elder Scrolls Online, MMORPG The Elder Scrolls series launched in 1994 with Arena. The game was sold on floppy disks, for goodness' sake. It's been around for a long time. With that extended life comes convoluted and complicated lore. Even after I'd heard the time period for The Elder Scrolls Online, I had to research to find out whether certain pieces of lore would actually appear in the game. Of course, I'm not going to be able to tell you everything in this one article, but before ESO launches, I can hit some of the highlights. Continue reading Six things you will and will not find in The Elder Scrolls Online Six things you will and will not find in The Elder Scrolls Online originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 Mar 2014 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

ArcheAge Japan going F2P, getting 1.0 patch in April Posted: 28 Mar 2014 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Business Models, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, Free-to-Play, ArcheAge, Sandbox Japanese ArcheAge publisher GameOn has announced that the fantasy sandpark will switch to a free-to-play business model on April 24th. The monthly subscription will still be available, and MMO Culture reports that players who pony up will "get tons of bonuses." The April 24th update will also bring the controversial 1.0 patch to ArcheAge Japan as well as an increase in the level cap from 50 to 55. Continue reading ArcheAge Japan going F2P, getting 1.0 patch in April ArcheAge Japan going F2P, getting 1.0 patch in April originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 Mar 2014 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: MMO Culture

The Daily Grind: Which MMO has the best 'ding'? Posted: 28 Mar 2014 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous, Music Unless you're into sandboxy skill-based MMORPGs, the actual process of leveling up is probably an important part of whatever themepark you're playing. WildStar has been jeered at for its over-the-top level-up animation. EverQuest's ding is infamous; the jarring "chonnggggg" of it still haunts me, and some clever modder even made a plugin to add it to Skyrim. On the other end of the spectrum is Guild Wars 2, in which I frequently overlook the fact that I've leveled up at all because the cues are relatively unobtrusive. What do you guys think is the best MMORPG "ding" of all time? 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: Which MMO has the best 'ding'? originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 Mar 2014 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

An analysis of the Glitch auction house Posted: 27 Mar 2014 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Economy, News Items, Free-to-Play, Browser, Sandbox Glitch is gone, but it lives on in our hearts, and it makes for a fascinating case study. The game arrived, enraptured, and departed so quickly that a great deal can be extrapolated about the game. A new analysis over on Gamasutra focuses on looking at the game's economy over time, seeing how it kicked off and where it wound up, and uses that to draw conclusions about handling player-run economies in other games as well. The article outlines how Glitch handled currency and items, then notes the market trends and how players interacted with both one another and the economy. It concludes that in addition to monitoring the economy, designers need to keep an eye on the small number of players who serve as major economic drivers and watch them closely. The behaviors of players will also vary over time, meaning that past data have to be checked against more recent data to be relevant. If this is your sort of analysis, by all means, read the article in its entirety. An analysis of the Glitch auction house originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Analyzing Auctions: The Case of Glitch

The Think Tank: How MMO players prepare for launch Posted: 27 Mar 2014 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Culture, Events (Real-World), Launches, Massively Meta, Miscellaneous, The Think Tank Launches are a big deal to MMO players. Diablo III and SMITE both released this week, Landmark made a break for closed beta, and The Elder Scrolls Online, the first major MMORPG of the year, will become a reality next week. So how do you prepare for these launches in an era of digital downloads? That's exactly what this week's Think Tank asks the Massively team members, who cleverly pretended that they don't call in sick from Massively itself on launch days. Ahem. Continue reading The Think Tank: How MMO players prepare for launch The Think Tank: How MMO players prepare for launch originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Founders leave Torchlight developer Runic Posted: 27 Mar 2014 05:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, MMO Industry, News Items Runic Games co-founders Travis Baldtree and Erich Schaefer have departed the studio responsible for Torchlight and its sequel. Baldtree announced the decision on the Runic forums, and wrote that he's "super-stoked" to return to indie development and the ability to wear many hats at once. "I should say from the outset that this is an amicable departure, that I consider the amazing team at Runic my friends and family, and that it is a privilege that they've let me get away with running the place for this long," he explained. VG247 reports that Erich Schaefer's brother Max, a fellow Blizzard North alum, is staying on as Runic's CEO. Founders leave Torchlight developer Runic originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: VG247

WildStar bonus weekend begins Friday morning Posted: 27 Mar 2014 05:20 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Events (Real-World), News Items, WildStar, Subscription, MMORPG Carbine has just announced an extra special bonus beta weekend for its upcoming sci-fantasy themepark, WildStar. Says the forum post, Starting tomorrow, Friday 3/28 at 7:00am PDT, the servers will be live and the party ain't stopping until Sunday night! Also, the level 17 cap is gone and is now being replaced with a level 20 cap. My quick math skills tell me that's an extra 3 levels! This bonus weekend is a way to get more testing time for us, awesome, as well as more game time for all of you, double awesome! This is our way of gathering the feedback we cherish and saying thank you to all of our loyal testers. Which is why we would love it if you logged in this weekend, enjoyed the extra 3 levels and the bonus game time because it will greatly help us be that much more prepared come launch day June 3rd. That's 10 a.m. EDT tomorrow for those of you on the East Coast. Have fun, and don't forget that logging in gets you mystery boxes with special loot! [Thanks to everyone who sent this in!] WildStar bonus weekend begins Friday morning originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 19:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: WildStar forum post

APB: Reloaded team details Unreal Engine upgrade Posted: 27 Mar 2014 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Patches, Free-to-Play, All Points Bulletin, Crime, MMOFPS, Dev Diaries APB: Reloaded's Unreal Engine upgrade is detailed in the latest dev blog at GamersFirst. In it, we get word that progress is slow but steady as the current version (from 2008) needs to be stripped and rebuilt due to the custom-built additions made in the original engine. Think of it like when you have to manually update your mods every time World of Warcraft has a new patch. Although the latest version of Unreal will aid with performance and compatibility improvements, the Reloaded team says that you may not even notice much of a difference visuals-wise. GamersFirst hopes to roll the new upgrade out soon, although a release estimate is still to come. Check out the full dev blog for more details on the Unreal Engine upgrade. APB: Reloaded team details Unreal Engine upgrade originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: GamersFirst dev blog

PlanetSide 2 rolls out new missions system Posted: 27 Mar 2014 04:30 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Patches, Free-to-Play, MMOFPS, PlanetSide 2 Players logging into PlanetSide 2 today will find a brand-new missions system perfect for their trigger fingers. The missions system is designed to help funnel players to specific offensive or defensive objectives. These include attack and defend missions and will assist coordinating squads and platoons to finding the best action. This is only the first phrase of the system, however. A future phase will include player-created missions and new mission types. PlanetSide 2 is also giving increased incentive to subscribe with a monthly members-only double-XP weekend. Even if you aren't subbing, significant store sales during this weekend could entice you to check out the game. PlanetSide 2 rolls out new missions system originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Patch notes

The Stream Team: More Landmark beta, more codes! Posted: 27 Mar 2014 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Video, New Titles, Free-to-Play, Giveaways, EverQuest Next, Livestream, Sandbox, The Stream Team, Player-Generated Content, Landmark Landmark's closed beta is a whole day old! That means Massively's MJ has only had 24 hours in which to lose herself in this brave new world. We know that is not nearly enough time, so she's diving right back in (has she even left?!) and exploring, mining, and logging to her heart's content. And did we mention she'll have more closed beta codes to give away? Be sure to join us live at 6:00 p.m. EDT to watch more adventures unfold (and maybe start some of your own!). Game: Landmark Host: MJ Guthrie Date: Thursday, March 27th, 2014 Time: 6:00 p.m. EDT Enjoy our Stream Team video below. Continue reading The Stream Team: More Landmark beta, more codes! The Stream Team: More Landmark beta, more codes! originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Skyforge gives a glimpse into The Factory Posted: 27 Mar 2014 03:30 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Galleries, Screenshots, Free-to-Play, Skyforge Skyforge is looking better and better, as the team released a new set of pictures today for the upcoming MMO that focus on the title's industrial side. The three new pictures showcase the high-tech Factory, a large installation that's recently seen a riot by intelligent robots. Players will no doubt be asked to go in and quell in the microchip insurrection. "Cleaning up the plant is not an easy task," the devs teased. "Lives of the personnel are the price of a failure." You can take a peek at the Factory in the gallery below. [Thanks to Dengar for the tip!] Skyforge gives a glimpse into The Factory originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Skyforge forums

RIFT opens up player PvP dimensions Posted: 27 Mar 2014 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, PvP, News Items, Free-to-Play, RIFT, Housing, Player-Generated Content, Subscription Do you like instanced PvP but hate being subject to the PvP maps that the game's designers have put together? Maybe you have an idea for an even better map in RIFT, one that would really give even veteran players a run for their money. Good news, then: Now you can go ahead and make that map a reality with the addition of player PvP dimensions to the game's cash shop. PvP dimensions are available as part of two-team or three-team Starter Packs, or they can be purchased individually. These maps also give you access to another personal dimension, but their real purpose is letting you build custom maps with the use of scoreboards, damage areas, invisible tiles, and plenty of other tricks to create a truly memorable experience. If you've ever wanted to design an MMO battleground like an old DOOM deathmatch arena, you can go ahead and get started crafting your ideal arena now. RIFT opens up player PvP dimensions originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Player PVP Dimensions available

The Elder Scrolls Online announces PvP campaign names Posted: 27 Mar 2014 02:30 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, MMO Industry, PvP, News Items, The Elder Scrolls Online, Subscription, MMORPG If you're hoping to get organized for mass PvP in The Elder Scrolls Online, then there's good news for you today, as ZeniMax has just announced the names of the PvP campaigns that will be available across the game's megaservers. You can choose your home campaign at level 10, and each one will track progress separately and be available on both US and EU megaservers. The campaign names will be familiar to Elder Scrolls vets: Bloodthorn, Scourge, Chrysamere, Auriel's Bow, Wabbajack, Volendrung, Skull Crusher, Dawnbreaker, Goldbrand, Hopesfire ZeniMax also reminded players that they can use the beta client for the final game rather than reinstall. You can begin patching in prep for early access as of today. The Elder Scrolls Online announces PvP campaign names originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: ZeniMax FAQ, Campaign names post

Chaos Theory: Grand plans for The Secret World's Black Watchmen ARG Posted: 27 Mar 2014 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Horror, Real-Life, Events (Real-World), Interviews, The Secret World, Miscellaneous, Chaos Theory Last week we revealed that a new persistent alternate reality game is in the works from Human Equation, the studio that brought us the pre-launch and End of Days ARGs for The Secret World. But that little introduction is just a drop in the bucket compared to what the company has planned for the community. Human Equation has bought the license to operate the Black Watchmen IP from Funcom, and that means TSW players, fans, and puzzle-enthusiasts have much more in store for them than they realize. Although a major premise behind an ARG is figuring out clues and discovering information over time, I sat down and chatted with Andrea Doyon, the chief innovation officer (aka puppet master) for the ARG to bring you the scoop on those very plans. Check out all the details in this exclusive interview, including future job possibilities, and get a peek at two never-before-seen pieces of concept art. Continue reading Chaos Theory: Grand plans for The Secret World's Black Watchmen ARG Chaos Theory: Grand plans for The Secret World's Black Watchmen ARG originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Final Fantasy XIV offers more retainers for a price Posted: 27 Mar 2014 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Patches, News Items, Consoles, Final Fantasy XIV, Subscription A new patch for Final Fantasy XIV is out and playable today. It's full of stuff to do, things to craft, and of course, items to acquire. This might not be a welcome bit of news to players already struggling to fit items into their burgeoning banks. But help is here, after a fashion. If you truly can't reduce your items any other way, you can now buy more retainers to take care of the many things you've still got kicking around in your inventory. The downside? It'll cost you real money. Players are allowed to purchase up to two additional retainers for their characters at the price of $2 per month for each. The extra retainers are available to all characters on your account and will not be deleted if you discontinue the extra monthly fee but won't be accessible until you pay again. For more details on signing up and interacting with your normal retainers, check out the full update. Final Fantasy XIV offers more retainers for a price originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Introducing New Optional Services

League of Legends introduces the new Team Builder queue Posted: 27 Mar 2014 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Trailers, Video, Game Mechanics, News Items, Free-to-Play, MOBA, League of Legends You know what you're good at playing in League of Legends. Which is all well and good, but sometimes you choose to play something that requires a degree of support that's just not there from the rest of your team. Wouldn't it be nice to just choose your character and your playstyle right from the start, so you can form a team meant to compliment your strengths and weaknesses? That's what the new Team Builder queue is all about. Queueing up requires selecting both your character's position and role, then filling in the blanks by matching with other players who can support your initial decision. You can also invite friends in to the queue along with you, filling out the missing spots with other suitable candidates. A preview video is embedded just pas the cut, but you should take a look at the full article and FAQ for more information on forming a team that's the best it can be. Continue reading League of Legends introduces the new Team Builder queue League of Legends introduces the new Team Builder queue originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Team Builder description

Guild Wars 2 signals end of armor repair costs Posted: 27 Mar 2014 12:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Patches, Previews, Guild Wars 2, Dev Diaries, Buy-to-Play The latest developments in Guild Wars 2's upcoming April feature pack will improve the quality of life around Tyria, as the game will be ending armor repair and sharing gear and WvW XP across accounts. The team said that it feels as though the loss of time is enough of a death penalty that it will be removing the costs for armor repair when the patch lands. Because this will take out a goldsink, the team is also reducing the coin dropped by champion loot bags. Legendary gear, ascended items, and World vs. World XP will become account-bound rather than character-bound come April as well. This means that players can character hop and retain their progression and expensive items instead of getting them individually. Guild Wars 2 signals end of armor repair costs originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Goodbye to armor repair costs, Account-bound WXP, legendaries, and ascended

Here's an early look at Star Citizen's room system Posted: 27 Mar 2014 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Video, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, Sandbox, Star Citizen If you missed yesterday's Wingman's Hangar, it's worth watching to get an early glimpse of Star Citizen's room system. The room system is core technology that will be used to build out planetside locations, hangars, ship interiors, and more. Montreal-based Behaviour Interactive is currently building the system out, and the video shows off plenty of behind-the-scenes footage as well as portions of Star Citizen's asteroid hangar. Continue reading Here's an early look at Star Citizen's room system Here's an early look at Star Citizen's room system originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Wingman's Hangar 62

Age of Wushu on Steam today Posted: 27 Mar 2014 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Business Models, MMO Industry, News Items, Free-to-Play, Sandbox, Age of Wushu Wuxia sandbox Age of Wushu is coming to Steam today. Don't go trying to download it just yet, though, as the announcement page says that there's still a few hours to go before it unlocks. The official launch time is listed as 7:00 p.m. EDT in Snail's press release, which we've made available to you after the break. [Source: Snail Games press release] Continue reading Age of Wushu on Steam today Age of Wushu on Steam today originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Mar 2014 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

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