| WoW Archivist: Tier 0.5, the epic conclusion Posted: 25 May 2014 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Game Mechanics, Lore, Endgame, PvE, Dungeons, WoW Archivist WoW Archivist is a biweekly column by WoW Insider's Scott Andrews, who explores the secrets of World of Warcraft's past. What did the game look like years ago? Who is etched into WoW's history? What secrets does the game still hold? It first appeared on our sister site on May 21st and is included here by permission. Last time on WoW Archivist, we reviewed the first half of the Tier 0.5 quest line, including the controversial 45-minute Baron run in Stratholme. As we left off, the ghost of Anthion Harmon had asked us to assemble the pieces of Valthalak's medallion. He sent you into Blackrock Depths with an enchanted banner to challenge the gladiator Theldren. Laying down the law The next step required a 5-player group to enter the Ring of Law inside Blackrock Depths. As you were being sentenced, you summoned the Banner of Provocation. Theldren and his team stepped in instead of the usual BRD bosses. Now you were in for a scrap, and it was a wildly different fight that any other in classic WoW. Continue reading WoW Archivist: Tier 0.5, the epic conclusion  WoW Archivist: Tier 0.5, the epic conclusion originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 25 May 2014 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| One Shots: Weather forecast Posted: 25 May 2014 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Screenshots, Lord of the Rings Online, Culture, Star Trek Online, One Shots, Final Fantasy XIV, Miscellaneous, ArcheAge We've got a lot of great player-submitted screenshots revolving around weather and the environment in-game, starting off with this fantastic picture by Star Trek Online player Chris. "Here is Captain Hannah Welch and the senior staff of the USS Aurora on the surface of an alien world at dusk," Chris writes. "This is one of my favorite screenshots -- it captures what Star Trek has meant to me since I was a kid. A tight group of friends in a universe filled with wonders we've yet to see. One of my favorite quotes from the series (from the pen of Maurice Hurley) comes from Q at the end of the episode that introduces the Borg; 'It's not safe out here. It's wondrous, with treasures to satiate desires both subtle and gross. But it's NOT for the timid.'" If you're adventurous and without timidity, continue reading to see what our community conjured up for this week's weather forecast One Shots! Continue reading One Shots: Weather forecast One Shots: Weather forecast originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 25 May 2014 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Daily Grind: Are we on the cusp of a AAA MMO lull? Posted: 25 May 2014 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind WildStar is launching in a week or so, and that launch arguably closes the book on what has been a pretty incredible run of AAA MMO releases staggered over the last three years. Looking back, we've seen heavyweights ranging from Star Wars: The Old Republic to Final Fantasy XIV to Elder Scrolls Online to Guild Wars 2 go through massive pre-launch hype cycles and, in most cases, settle into successful post-launch grooves (it may be too early to say that for ESO, but I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt). Aside from possibly ArcheAge, the upcoming AAA cupboard looks a bit bare in comparison, at least in my opinion. What do you think, Massively readers? Are we in for a big-game lull over the next few years, or do you think other AAA titles will come out of the woodwork?  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: Are we on the cusp of a AAA MMO lull? originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 25 May 2014 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Newest test for Tree of Savior features English localization Posted: 24 May 2014 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, MMO Industry, News Items The slowest part of bringing in a game from another part of the globe is always the localization, but Tree of Savior has apparently taken care of that ahead of time. The most recent testing session for the game featured an option to switch the game's language between English, Korean, and Japanese, changing both text and dialogue. It's unclear at this point whether this is going to be an option within the game's client in all regions, but that decision may be left up to regional publishers; all current test servers are located in Korea, since that's where the game is being developed. Still, it's an encouraging sign for those hoping to see the game on American shores sooner rather than later. Newest test for Tree of Savior features English localization originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 24 May 2014 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Make My MMO: May 18 - May 24 Posted: 24 May 2014 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Business Models, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, Crowdfunding, Make My MMO This week's MMO crowdfunding news was dominated by a familiar trio of gamemaking heavyweights as well as an upstart studio bent on updating the magic of Ultima Online. Star Citizen announced a date of May 29th for its dogfighting module Arena Commander thing, while fellow space sim sandbox Elite: Dangerous released its Alpha 4 client, posted a new progress video, and targeted the end of May for its next major release. Meanwhile, Richard Garriott's Shroud of the Avatar published its Release 6 client this weekend, while UO descendant Shards Online kept its fledgling Kickstarter project in the news with a series of promotions. Click past the cut for the rest of Massively's crowdfunding roundup. Continue reading Make My MMO: May 18 - May 24 Make My MMO: May 18 - May 24 originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 24 May 2014 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Star Citizen tops $44 million, talks trading, map rooms, and more Posted: 24 May 2014 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Business Models, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, PvE, Sandbox, Crafting, Crowdfunding, Star Citizen, Buy-to-Play Star Citizen has topped $44 million in crowdfunding. As you might expect, Cloud Imperium boss Chris Roberts has penned a thank-you letter and it features a couple of interesting nuggets. First is the concept art, shown above, of a Banu Merchantman freighter. More specifically, you're looking at the negotiation room, and it exists so that traders can have other players visit their ships, display their wares via the visible cargo bay, and generally go about the business of being a trader. "Transporting cargo is going to be more complex than just finding the ship with the highest storage capacity," Roberts writes. "It's going to involve finding the right ship type for the job." In terms of the usual million-dollar milestone backer rewards, the latest unlock is a map room hangar add-on that will allow players to walk through a holographic representation of the known universe. Star Citizen tops $44 million, talks trading, map rooms, and more originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 24 May 2014 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Game Archaeologist: The persistent worlds of Neverwinter Nights 1 & 2 Posted: 24 May 2014 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Culture, Free-to-Play, The Game Archaeologist, Player-Generated Content At the end of next month, dozens of online worlds will flicker and vanish with the flip of a switch. It's a online apocalypse the likes of which we have not seen in quite some time, although you might be forgiven for not having heard of it before now. When GameSpy Technology goes offline on May 31st, dozens of EA games that relied on the platform for multiplayer functionality will lose their online components by June 30th. Because of this, Neverwinter Nights and Neverwinter Nights 2 will find that their persistent player-made and -run worlds are in danger. For over a decade now, players have poured creative energies and roleplaying enthusiasm into these micro-MMOs. Could an era be about to end? Fortunately, players are already swinging into action to work around the shutdown, keeping their worlds alive and detached from GameSpy's umbilical cord. I see this event as a wake-up call for people like yours truly who are acquainted primarily with BioWare and Obsidian's single-player offerings and are ignorant of the larger Neverwinter Nights community out there. Let's take a look at this engrossing online realm and how it came to be. Continue reading The Game Archaeologist: The persistent worlds of Neverwinter Nights 1 & 2 The Game Archaeologist: The persistent worlds of Neverwinter Nights 1 & 2 originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 24 May 2014 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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