MMO Updates

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• Perfect Ten: Annoying things you hear in general chat
• WRUP: For spacious skies
• The Daily Grind: Are you still playing TERA?
• SMITE claims four million players since launch
• Betawatch: June 21 - 27, 2014
• Darkfall's action-mode HUD to get some lovin' in July patch
• City of Steam previews its 2.7 update
• Wakfu details boost benefits for free-to-play model [Updated]
• Captain's Log: A year of Star Trek Online: Legacy of Romulus
• Blizzard dispatches Warlords of Draenor closed beta invites
• Final Fantasy XIV breaks down Desynthesis
• EVE's Crius to revamp manufacturing on July 22
• Anarchy Online turns 13, celebrates with Desert Nomads event and member offers

Perfect Ten: Annoying things you hear in general chat Posted: 28 Jun 2014 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Opinion, Humor, Perfect Ten, Miscellaneous General chat, sometimes called "Barrens chat" or "zone chat" or "the party line," is both the bane and the secret fixation of my existence. It's like a text-based reality show that plays out in real-time whenever I log into an MMO. If -- for some rare reason -- I'm bored of playing the game or talking with friends, at least I have the jibber-jabber of screeching opinions to fill my eye sockets. It's safe to say that general chat earns its bad reputation, but have you ever stopped to analyze exactly why that is? I have. I have traveled that long, terrible path, and at the end I peered over the edge into the abyss, and the abyss told me that I was a carebear who needed to L2P. Here are my findings. Continue reading Perfect Ten: Annoying things you hear in general chat Perfect Ten: Annoying things you hear in general chat originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

WRUP: For spacious skies Posted: 28 Jun 2014 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Massively Meta, Miscellaneous Welcome back to Massively's What Are You Playing, the game in which we tell you what we're playing this weekend and you sign our petition to make Ra'merica the official mascot of SMITE. He might just be the only character in the whole game unlikely to offend anyone. Except eagles, I guess. Continue reading WRUP: For spacious skies WRUP: For spacious skies originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Daily Grind: Are you still playing TERA? Posted: 28 Jun 2014 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous You know what's one MMO that I haven't heard much about lately? TERA. I guess it's doing fine following its free-to-play switch, but it seems like there's been zero chatter about it in the comments or on blogs, so I'm wondering if anyone's still playing it. Are you? Maybe you are still playing and enjoying TERA. Maybe you have good things to share about the new Reaper class. If so, pipe up for this game today! Why are you playing it and why should others check it out? 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 you still playing TERA? originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

SMITE claims four million players since launch Posted: 27 Jun 2014 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Historical, Business Models, Game Mechanics, Interviews, MMO Industry, PvP, News Items, Free-to-Play, MOBA In a new interview with RedBull.com this week, Hi-Rez Studios COO Todd Harris revealed that since SMITE's launch last March, both the MOBA's dev team and its player population are on the rise. In fact, he says, the game has become so profitable that Hi-Rez has "double[d] the size of [its] studio." At the game's release in late March, we were at three million players, and we are now well over four million. We are not on Steam, but comparing to Steam stats, SMITE would sit around number 10 to 12 in terms of popularity and daily players. Most importantly to us, the playing population has increased every month since the start of the Beta. [...] Our players are currently 45 percent Europe, 40 percent North America, 10 percent South America and five percent other. Harris drops a few other bits of trivia, including the fact that SMITE's original sci-fi IP was based on the studio's MMOFPS Global Agenda, but the mythology theme was deemed more "compelling." [With thanks to keen-eyed tipster Sorenthaz!] SMITE claims four million players since launch originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jun 2014 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: RedBull.com

Betawatch: June 21 - 27, 2014 Posted: 27 Jun 2014 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, MMO Industry, News Items, Massively Meta, Betawatch, Miscellaneous This week, sandbox hopeful Pathfinder Online kicked off a pay-to-play alpha for its Kickstarter donors and folks who bought access through the game's website. What else is new in the world of MMO betas? World of Warcraft began its closed beta for Warlords of Draenor. Swordsman will slash its way into open beta on July 3rd. Destiny's Xbox beta is slated to begin in late July. LEGO Minifigures Online's open beta became a soft launch as Funcom promised no wipes of characters or cash-shop purchases. Elite: Dangerous entered what it's calling Premium Beta 2. Nexon launched the beta for its new mobile MMO, Legion of Heroes; this round ends June 30th. Finally, Massively's MJ will be playing and streaming ArcheAge's alpha for July's Choose My Adventure series. The complete Betawatch roundup is below. Continue reading Betawatch: June 21 - 27, 2014 Betawatch: June 21 - 27, 2014 originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jun 2014 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Darkfall's action-mode HUD to get some lovin' in July patch Posted: 27 Jun 2014 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Darkfall, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, PvP, News Items, PvE, Sandbox, Subscription Aventurine has published a lengthy blog post previewing Darkfall's update schedule. Now that the game's custom roles are a thing, the devs are turning their attention to two July patches. The first is basically a fix and balance update to address bugaboos with the recent custom roles patch. The second update will the first of two designed to flesh out the game's action-mode HUD and will provide "a far more customizable experience with those GUI elements that are most used and most visible)," Aventurine says. After that, the devs are circling back to the planned economy rebalance as well as tweaks to quests, inventory management, alignment, and more. Darkfall's action-mode HUD to get some lovin' in July patch originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jun 2014 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Announcement

City of Steam previews its 2.7 update Posted: 27 Jun 2014 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Game Mechanics, Patches, Previews, News Items, Free-to-Play, Browser, City of Steam, Steampunk City of Steam has another update in the works, and it's going to make you look good. How, you ask? Well, partly by adding a new and expanded wardrobe system that will improve categories and free up storage space for your cosmetic outfits. The interface is still rough, but it's also a step toward giving players more options and power when it comes to character appearance. What else is coming? There's a new Lucky Wheel option in the works, allowing players a chance to spin and win all sorts of great prizes whether they're playing for free or not. The Mercenary system is also being revised, with appearances being improved, new mercenaries being added, and an improved interface for organizing and managing the soldiers of fortune. You can check out the full patch preview, which sadly for players does not yet include a targeted release date more specific than "soon." City of Steam previews its 2.7 update originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jun 2014 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Patch 2.7 sneak peek

Wakfu details boost benefits for free-to-play model [Updated] Posted: 27 Jun 2014 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Business Models, Previews, News Items, Free-to-Play Wakfu has always had a free option for players, but the game is saying goodbye to subscriptions altogether with its relaunch, giving all players access to every part of the game from start to finish. Of course, there has to be some way to balance that, since the company running the game will still need to make money. That incentive will take the form of boosts, allowing players to gain bonus experience on their first and subsequent characters. Boosts will be available in several different durations, with the longest duration corresponding to the greatest overall bonus. Players will have improved drop rates, health regeneration, and battle rewards as well. Prices have not yet been announced, but the goal is for the boost days to be affordable. Players with subscriptions will also see their remaining subscription days converted into boost days, allowing everyone currently playing to reap the benefits early. [Update: The team has just posted another chart with all of the veteran rewards that will be distributed to current subbers on July 9th.] [Thanks to Avaera for the tip!] Wakfu details boost benefits for free-to-play model [Updated] originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jun 2014 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Wakfu boost benefits, Wakfu veteran rewards chart

Captain's Log: A year of Star Trek Online: Legacy of Romulus Posted: 27 Jun 2014 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Culture, Expansions, Lore, Opinion, Star Trek Online, Free-to-Play, Captain's Log, Subscription The first expansion to Star Trek Online was the expansion everyone expected and yet one that no one really expected. Romulans were the obvious choice, the big gap in the game's factional lineup, the third major power that had been floating around in the darkness like some vast, predatory bird since the original series. But the idea of seeing a new faction after the Klingons had languished for so long seemed like a pipe dream. When it actually happened, I know I was sort of left just staring and disbelieving. Of course, now we've had the Romulan Republic as a playable sort-of-faction for a year now, and that prompts all sorts of reactions. In many ways, this expansion is better than we could have hoped for, and in other ways it feels as if it kind of falls short. I come here not to praise or to bury Legacy of Romulus but to look at it a year out from launch and perhaps see what lessons could be gleaned for the expansion we're due to receive late this year. Continue reading Captain's Log: A year of Star Trek Online: Legacy of Romulus Captain's Log: A year of Star Trek Online: Legacy of Romulus originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jun 2014 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Blizzard dispatches Warlords of Draenor closed beta invites Posted: 27 Jun 2014 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, Betas, Fantasy, Events (Real-World), News Items, Subscription Blizzard has begun sending out the first wave of closed beta invitations for World of Warcraft's upcoming Warlords of Draenor expansion. Overnight, WoW Community Manager Bashiok tweeted, First #Warlords beta invite wave on its way! Check your account for flagging. Targeting first wave toward WoW veterans. (Realms up tomorrow) Players can check their Battle.net accounts to see whether their accounts have been flagged prior to the arrival of the emails. Bashiok further reminded followers that additional waves of invites are coming; this first round targeted "accounts that have been playing recently, with a long history of active subscription." The closed beta itself begins today at 5 p.m. EDT. Blizzard dispatches Warlords of Draenor closed beta invites originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jun 2014 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Bashiok's Twitter Via: WoW Insider

Final Fantasy XIV breaks down Desynthesis Posted: 27 Jun 2014 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Game Mechanics, Patches, Previews, News Items, Consoles, Final Fantasy XIV, Subscription In most MMOs, you want your efforts with crafting to produce more items by the time you're done, not fewer. But the upcoming Desynthesis system in Final Fantasy XIV is meant to destroy items rather than make new ones, although you can end up making new ones after you break them down. It's a chance to take your crafting skills and apply them to break down items that you have no use for, making something better from the resultant materials. Desynthesis will allow the breakdown of items by crafting classes above level 30, who will recovering some of the items used in its construction. Skill level affects the odds of a successful desynth; there is a maximum skill level shared across all crafting classes, which will prevent players from being equally skilled in all crafts. More to the point, breaking down an item can unlock materials that can't be acquired through other means, allowing players to make even more powerful items than would otherwise be available. Final Fantasy XIV breaks down Desynthesis originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jun 2014 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Desynthesis preview

EVE's Crius to revamp manufacturing on July 22 Posted: 27 Jun 2014 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Economy, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, Patches, News Items, PvE, Sandbox, Crafting, Subscription Are you sorta curious about EVE Online's science, manufacturing, and research aspects but have never managed to jump in with both feet? If so, you might want to hold off until July 22 when CCP releases its Crius update. The patch will feature "a complete overhaul of the tools for industry activities," along with dynamic pricing across New Eden helped along by the removal of slot limitations for science and industry jobs. Traveling worker teams will also be available, as will new options for reprocessing. There's a lot more to the update, too, and CCP has helpfully provided links to all the appropriate dev blogs in today's news post. EVE's Crius to revamp manufacturing on July 22 originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jun 2014 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Crius features

Anarchy Online turns 13, celebrates with Desert Nomads event and member offers Posted: 27 Jun 2014 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Anarchy Online, Events (In-Game), MMO Industry, News Items, Anniversaries If you're a former Anarchy Online player, you may have gotten an email touting the long-running sci-fi MMO's 13th anniversary as well as a trio of membership offers that Funcom hopes will lure you back to Rubi-Ka. The devs have also added an in-game event called Desert Nomads that kicks off today and runs through July 11th. If you didn't get the email, full details are available via the AO website. Anarchy Online turns 13, celebrates with Desert Nomads event and member offers originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jun 2014 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Announcement

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MMORPG News

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• General: Orcs Must Die!: Unchained - Hands-on Preview
• Runescape: Old School RuneScape Midsummer Event
• Entropy: Super Nova Comes to the Steam Summer Sale
• Destiny: COO Pete Parsons and the $500 Million Dollar Rumor
• General: Entropy: A Game for the Future Based on the Best of the Past
• General: Atavism MMO Creator Heads to Steam Greenlight
• Marvel Heroes: End-of-Anniversary Event This Weekend
• Dragons and Titans: Latest Patch Brings Quality of Life Improvements
• PlanetSide 2: Hossin Continent Goes Live
• Shards Online: Community Round Table Event Coming June 28th
• Warhammer 40.000: Eternal Crusade: FAQ Updated with New Information
• Pathfinder Online: Alpha Live Stream Event Later Today
• WildStar: Review in Progress #3
• Rift: The Nightmare Tide is Coming In
• World of Speed: Our First Look from E3
• Star Conflict: Invasion Mode Enters Closed Beta
• Dungeon of the Endless: Dungeon of the Endless Preview

General: Orcs Must Die!: Unchained - Hands-on Preview Posted: 26 Jun 2014 05:17 PM PDT Robot Entertainment first expanded upon traditional tower defense mechanics in 2011 with the frenetic Orcs Must Die! The sequel, Orcs Must Die! 2 continued to elaborate on the genre by adding co-op play, and this year, we see Robot's most ambitious tower defense-derived idea yet--team-based PvP. This week, the guys at Robot challenged the press to a savage siege-off during a hands-on preview of its third game, Orcs Must Die!: Unchained, and it was a match to remember.

Runescape: Old School RuneScape Midsummer Event Posted: 27 Jun 2014 11:04 PM PDT Nothing says summer like Druidic rituals - unless they're not working. RuneScapes' Druids are in a quandary about their non-working protection spells and are willing to reward anyone willing to get them working with a special Druid's wreath of their very own.

Entropy: Super Nova Comes to the Steam Summer Sale Posted: 28 Jun 2014 01:17 AM PDT Jagex's Entropy has added a gladiatorial combat sport called "NOVA" and the stars have aligned to make this coincide with Steam's Summer Sale. That means that until June 30, Entropy enthusiasts can snap up all three Founders programs for 33% less than regular price.

Destiny: COO Pete Parsons and the $500 Million Dollar Rumor Posted: 28 Jun 2014 01:06 AM PDT Somehow, people started whispering that Bungie's Destiny was set to be the most expensive game ever made, with a $500 million dollar development cost. Who knows what game of "telephone" caused this idea to spread, but this week, Pete Parsons straightened it out.

General: Entropy: A Game for the Future Based on the Best of the Past Posted: 27 Jun 2014 04:21 PM PDT Entropy Online is a game that has its roots in the best space games of yore, including Elite and the X-Wing series. Entropy, however, aims to bring free-form sandbox play to space with hundreds of solar systems, a three faction struggle between megacorporations and much, much more. We had the chance to interview lead designer Andy Butcher about a recent (and included!) developer interview all about Entropy. Check it out!

General: Atavism MMO Creator Heads to Steam Greenlight Posted: 27 Jun 2014 04:08 PM PDT For the would-be MMO megamind in all of us: Atavism is a new MMO creation package that allows players to get a quick start bringing their dreams to life. Atavism uses Unity as a front end system and acts as a plug-in, giving creators the ability to create nearly any type of MMO experience they wish.

Marvel Heroes: End-of-Anniversary Event This Weekend Posted: 27 Jun 2014 03:57 PM PDT Marvel Heroes 2015 is closing out its anniversary fete with a blow out weekend that gives players the opportunity to revisit twelve epic events from the gam'e first year. It's a great chance to check out all that has been added to the game and to have a terrific time taking advantage of buffs and bonuses that many of the events bring back.

Dragons and Titans: Latest Patch Brings Quality of Life Improvements Posted: 27 Jun 2014 03:51 PM PDT Wyrmbyte has let us know that a new patch has been applied to the MOBA, "Dragons and Titans". Many of the updates bring quality of life improvements into the game including minimized queue times and better match rewards. In addition, a new story-driven content expansion has been added called "Act IV: The Titan's Hand". Titan's Hand is solo content to further expand on the game's lore.

PlanetSide 2: Hossin Continent Goes Live Posted: 27 Jun 2014 02:06 PM PDT Sony Online Entertainment has announced that a new continent has been added to PlanetSide 2. Hossin is now available for players to explore and will present a challenge to players due to the unforgiving nature of the environment.

Shards Online: Community Round Table Event Coming June 28th Posted: 27 Jun 2014 01:58 PM PDT The Shards Online team will be hosting a community event via its Twitch.tv channel. During the event, the team has plans to chat with fans as well as the revelation of the development road map.

Warhammer 40.000: Eternal Crusade: FAQ Updated with New Information Posted: 27 Jun 2014 01:55 PM PDT Fans of Warhammer 40k: Eternal Crusade will want to check out the updated FAQ on the official site. The most notable new information is the release information on the alpha modules.

Pathfinder Online: Alpha Live Stream Event Later Today Posted: 27 Jun 2014 01:50 PM PDT Fans of the crowd-funded Pathfinder Online will want to log into the game's Twitch channel to check out a special live stream event taking place from within the alpha client itself. The team will also be on hand to discuss the game's vision and to answer fan questions. Check out the information below and be there at the appointed time!

WildStar: Review in Progress #3 Posted: 27 Jun 2014 11:54 AM PDT Next week, we'll finally slap a score on our WildStar review. I can already taste the disgruntled sentiment of some readers, the tears of joy from others, and the /shrugs of even more. I'm actually running out of things to talk about here, as between myself and our weekly WildStar columnist Gareth Harmer, I feel like we've gone over and over pretty much every aspect of the game.

Rift: The Nightmare Tide is Coming In Posted: 27 Jun 2014 12:04 PM PDT After two long years of waiting, Trion has finally pulled back the curtain on what's next for RIFT: Nightmare Tide. Announced during this week's State of the Game letter, Executive Producer Bill Fisher tantalized fans with hints of what's to come. With a few hints under our belt, we sat down with Bill, as well as a Lead Content Designer, Mike Daugherty, and Community Manager, Eric "Ocho" Cleaver, to talk about just what players can expect from Nightmare Tide.

World of Speed: Our First Look from E3 Posted: 25 Jun 2014 05:40 PM PDT Hello everyone and welcome back to should be my last recap article from E3 before I get back to my regularly scheduled weekly column. I think next week I'll focus on all the information pouring out of the Goblinworks camp about the Pathfinder Online alpha. But until then let us talk about another ground breaking MMORPG, World of Speed, only in this game instead of taking your avatar and picking up mighty weapons and slaying prime evils you... race cars?

Star Conflict: Invasion Mode Enters Closed Beta Posted: 23 Jun 2014 06:15 PM PDT Star Conflict players have a new goal with the announcement that Invasion Mode is now in closed beta throughtout the summer. In order to access the closed beta and participate in the development of Invasion Mode, Star Conflict players will need to earn one of the following achievements: Strikeforce Prometheus or Universe Conqueror.

Dungeon of the Endless: Dungeon of the Endless Preview Posted: 25 Jun 2014 05:33 PM PDT Dungeon of the Endless is a bit of a mind-bender to describe. In fact, when I first heard of it, I had trouble conceptualizing what the game even was. A rogue-like melded with tower defense? What does that even look like? If ever there were two genres I didn't expect to meet, those were it. Imagine my surprise when I found that it's also a full-fledged RPG with definite RTS leanings. Mind. Blown.

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