MMO updates

MMO updates

Dragon Ball Online (TW) - Complete registration guide

Posted: 13 Jun 2011 07:01 AM PDT


The Open Beta phase for Dragon Ball Online Taiwan starts in a few days on 15th June, hence I thought I should create a registration guide for all to give the game a shot even if you do not know the language! There are 11 step-by-step picture guides to follow, so be patient and look through them. I do not know if there will be any IP block, but it seems there was none during Closed Beta. So start registering now! More information about the game can be found here.

Langrisser celebrates 20th Anniversary

Posted: 13 Jun 2011 02:55 AM PDT


Langrisser, a classic game franchise with many avid fans, celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. If you did not know, Taiwan's Gamania Corp is currently developing Langrisser Schwartz, a new Free to Play MMO in the series. 2 videos were recently uploaded, depicting thoughts from Noriyuki Iwadare, who composed music for the series since the early days and Gero, who performed the theme song for Langrisser Schwartz. More information about the game can be found here.

Swordsman Online (CN) - Nearing Closed beta

Posted: 13 Jun 2011 01:38 AM PDT


One of the big 2 martial arts MMO in coming to the Free to Play English market, Swordsman Online (the other being Age of Wulin) recently underwent its first Focus Group Test in Perfect World's Beijing Headquarters. All 6 clans which were revealed were available for play, while the main focus was on the PvP and PK mechanics. Do note that the English server is apparently confirmed since last year, but it wouldn't be ready anytime soon.


If you have not read, the game uses a PvP system pretty much like a scissors-paper-stone game, where each stance or skills can be countered using the appropriate skills. The game will be going into Closed Beta at the end of this year in China, while the release date for the English server is still unknown (most probably in 2012). More information about the game can be found here.

The Weekend Journal

Posted: 12 Jun 2011 08:25 AM PDT


Another busy week for me, especially so due to E3 2011. I was thinking that the online games would mostly be shown during the first day, but boy was I wrong. How did you guys find this year's E3? The future looks pretty promising to me despite the market getting saturated though. I mean, mor echoices can only be good for the consumers (though probably not the companies).

I have something to rant about. There are a few Asian online gaming companies starting to shift almost entirely towards social media games, and I am not happy about it. Take Shanda Games in China for example. Recently, they revealed a plan to eventually have 90% of the company's income generated from online social games.

What? Why are they focusing so much and jumping on the bandwagon instead of creating something new? Take for instance, Project R1 by the former lead of Ragnarok Online, Mr Hakkyu Kim, He is trying to implement the social aspects of social games into traditional MMORPGs instead of abandoning the genre altogether. Why can't the mega rich companies do the same?


There are a few games I am waiting personally for right now, but the closest one would be Hellgate Global. I hate normal FPS game, but this is PvE based! Well, the FPS camera angle is simply adjusted by scrolling the mouse wheel in. I don't get how some players hate the game... Where is the love? At least this is not another generic grinder ^_^


Nothing much going on in my personal life, perhaps the lack of chances to find myself a missus. It is really, really hard to find the fated on in this small island country of mine where majority of the females have eyes only on the rich. Haha. I only had 4 hours of sleep yesterday, I think I will be turning in now. Have a good week all!
Posted by Shri Krishna

MMOGaming News

MMOGaming News

Four Character Classes Trailer of Dragon Nest from E3 2011

Posted:

Dragon Nest offers four gender-locked classes that you get to choose when you start the game, which can later be branched off into two sub-classes. For example, the Warrior can grow into the Swordsman (faster attacks) or Mercenary (attacks slowly but higher damage).

Hellgate Features New Duel Areas in the Latest Trailers

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Hellgate: London isn't just making a simple comeback as Hellgate Global slated to come out this summer - a batch of new contents are ready to show off to the fans. Hanbitsoft and T3Fun have announced that a Duel Area will be added to Hellgate for PvP fans. Check out the video previews of the two new arenas after the jump.

TQ Digital Announce Edge of Night Expansion for Eudemons Online

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Titled 'Edge of Night', the expansion promises to suck - in a fiendishly good way.

Anime-inspired MMO Eden Eternal Interview

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During Eden Eternal's Closed Beta, the level cap allows players to unlock up to 10 unique classes. For Open Beta and beyond, 2 more classes become available with the level cap increase.

Gravity Interactive Hosts Ragnarok USRC 2011!

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USRC is the United States regional championship for Ragnarok Online global PVP tournament. The yearly PVP tournament USRC is a chance for Ragnarok players to compete for the top prizes, and prove their team is the strongest in the PVP team around.

[Hot Blog] League of Legends Shows off Three New Champions at E3

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At the end of the first day of E3 I got the chance to spend some time talking to Riot Games about where they are going in the next few months.

League of Legends Unveiled 3 New Champions at E3

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Revealed during E3 this past week, Riot Games has three new champions down the pipeline that we're very excited about: Yorick the Grave Digger, Leona the Radiant Dawn and Skarner the Crystal Vanguard.

WarFlow Community Manager on Strike

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Rokkumon, one of the most experienced Community Managers , posted up a thread in the WarFlow forum board, cursing the official and threatening to leave the position with anger. Furthermore, a secret thread posted by Rokkumon but deleted by the official was recently unveiled as well.

Gods & Heroes Releases a New Trailer and Pre-Order Details

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Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising, Heatwave Interactive's highly anticipated Roman mythology MMORPG, is ready to launch on June 21. Just in full preparation for the launch, the dev team today released a quirky new live-action game trailer titled Gods & Heroes: Nerds Rising. Check it out after the break.

Dragon Nest NA Closed Beta Commence on June 15

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Coming back from E3 show, Nexon US announced that Dragon Nest NA closed beta will launch on June 15 and end on June 20.

6 Screenshots Give You A First Look At Trions Worlds' Defiance

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It's the first time that you can take a look at what's the game look like, the world, the characters, and the weapons.

Rift 1.3 - Planar Essences Changes, Thumbs up or down?

Posted:

Hey guys, this morning I saw the news in mmosite about the upcoming Planar Essences changes that are going to take place in Patch 1.3, after looking the whole thing I notice that everything is going to be change lol…
Posted by Shri Krishna


General Gaming Article

General Gaming Article

Razer Ups Gaming Mouse Ante with 4G Dual Sensor System

Posted: 12 Jun 2011 05:51 PM PDT

Razer's gaming mice are taking a generational leap with the new 4G Dual Sensor technology, the company announced last week. Unveiled at the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the latest versions of Razer's Mamba and Imperator mice are its first "4G" dual-sensor mice, which means that they feature both an optical and a laser sensor. 

Calling the 6400dpi dual-sensor system the "most precise and advanced sensor technology", Razer USA president Robert "Razerguy" Krakoff said: "We worked closely with many pro-gamers to fine-tune the sensor under intense gaming conditions, ensuring it achieved a level of tracking accuracy that met their high-level demands."

As per the press release, the 4G Dual Sensor System packs a raft of new features, including "surface calibration, lift-off distance customization, and ten times faster surface detection than any sensor from the previous generation."

The wireless Razer Mamba can be pre-ordered now from the company's website for $129.99, with shipping expected to begin sometime later this month. Already listed as "in stock" on the site, the Imperator is a wired mouse priced at $79.99. The two mice will be available worldwide in July.

Habey Launches A Post-it Note Sized x86 Computer Capable of HD Decoding

Posted: 12 Jun 2011 02:02 PM PDT

HabeyHave you ever dreamed of a future where you could hold fully functional x86 computer in the palm of your hand capable of playing back not just one, but two 1080p video streams at once? We can't imagine why you would, but hey it certainly makes for an awesome tech demo right? A little known company by the name of Habey has released the SOM-6670 E6XX, a post it note sized computer module sporting the Atom E600 1.0 Ghz CPU, along with an integrated GMA600 GPU. 

This CPU/GPU combo is the same set powering the current generation Boxee Box, and supports full HD video hardware decoding. Additional thickness is added when you factor in the I/O ports and a storage solution, but this is still a fairly impressive offering for OEM's seeking out the smallest x86 form factor possible. 

Chipsets like this are fairly common in the ARM world, but it does show that Intel is starting to narrow the gap. Maybe an x86 powered Smartphone isn't so far fetched after all.  

See the SOM-6670 In Action (Video)

1Gbps Internet Access For $70 in America? Sonic Says Yes

Posted: 12 Jun 2011 12:07 PM PDT

SonicIf Comcast's 105Mbps service costs $199.95 per month (in select markets), then naturally 1Gbps service should cost around $2,000 a month right? Well according to scrappy independent ISP sonic.net, $69.99 sounds much more reasonable, and they plan to put their money where their mouth is. The company has committed to rolling out 1Gbps fiber service to around 700 homes in the Sebastopol California area, and will study the results over the next few months to prove that its possible to offer such a high tier of service for $70, and still remain profitable. 

According to Dane Jasper, Sonic.net's CEO, "Honestly, only as those wrap up will we have a complete picture of the economic model". "But I believe that fast service for a low cost is possible."

Sonic.net has been around since 1994, but fist made national headlines when it partnered up with Google to roll out fiber service for Stanford University on the search engines dime. And while the ISP has a long history of standing up for consumers, this represents the first solo attempt by the indie ISP to go straight after users with anything faster than 40Mbps DSL. 

Accomplishing this ambitious task will require the company to manually string its own fiber optic cable to homes along existing hydro poles, and monetize the costs over several years. Even if you don't live in the Sebastopol area, we'll be keeping our eyes on this one. Sonic's CEO rightly points out that the US market is long overdue for a truly disruptive pricing model for broadband Internet, and hope is on the way.

Apple’s iCloud Won’t Support Windows XP

Posted: 12 Jun 2011 11:17 AM PDT

iCloudThe promise of cloud computing is simple. Platforms don't matter, and accessing your data is seamless experience from any Internet connective device with a modern browser. These values are usually considered sacred when setting out to create a new cloud service, but apparently Apple didn't get the memo. 

According to the companies recent press release: "Using iCloud with a PC requires Windows Vista or Windows 7; Outlook 2010 or 2007 is recommended for accessing contacts and calendars."

The reason for Windows XP getting the snub isn't immediately apparent, but it does suggest that Apple might be slowly dropping support for Microsoft's now ten-year-old OS in upcoming versions of iTunes and Safari. iTunes 10.3 still lists Windows XP as supported, but this may not be the version number come fall when iOS 5 & iCloud officially release.

Apple only supports it's own operating systems for a period of four years, so while the move isn't totally unexpected, it is somewhat troubling. Since the vast majority of iOS users are actually Windows customers, this could start cutting off a disproportionally large percentage of their clients from future updates.

An Interview With The New Bill Gates, And How He’s Still Teaching Us To Be Better Geeks

Posted: 12 Jun 2011 09:28 AM PDT

Gates

Every geek knows who Bill Gates is, but just who is the man behind the legend? In an uncharacteristically candid interview with the UK's Daily Mail, he describes not just his family life, but what he plans to do with his personal fortune. It might sound like an easy question to someone like you and me, but if you actually stop and think about what you would do with $56 billion (after making $28 billion in charitable donations), you'll begin to appreciate why it's not so cut and dry.

Here is the coles notes version if you don't feel like reading through the full article.

When asked about his children's future.

'The Billionaire song is what my kids tease me with,' he says. 'They sing it to me. It's funny.'

In reference to his personal fortune, Gates responded: 'I don't think that amount of money would be good for them.' He won't specify what they will get, but the reports that they'll receive 'only' $10 million each can't be far off, because he concedes, 'It will be a minuscule portion of my wealth. It will mean they have to find their own way.

'They will be given an unbelievable education and that will all be paid for. And certainly anything related to health issues we will take care of. But in terms of their income, they will have to pick a job they like and go to work. They are normal kids now. They do chores, they get pocket money.'

What does Bill Gates do when his kids ask for an iPad?

His face hardens: 'They have the Windows equivalent. They have a Zune music player, which is a great Windows portable player. They are not deprived children.'

What About Cars?

"I drive myself around town in a normal Mercedes. I've had a Lexus. The family has a Porsche, which is a nice car that we sometimes take out. We have a minivan and that's what we use when it's the five of us. My eldest daughter rides horses, so we go to a lot of three-day shows."

When asked if Philanthropy is more important to him now than Microsoft.

'My full-time work for the rest of my life is this foundation.' 

Will he ever return to helm Microsoft? 

'No. I'm part-time involved. But this is my job now.'

On Mark Zuckerberg

According to Gates, Zuckerberg "has already pledged to give most of his fortune away. Gates lets slip that Zuckerberg may be engaged to Priscilla Chan, his long-term girlfriend: 'I didn't say to Mark, "Give me all your money!" He was predisposed to do it and he came to me seeking advice".

When asked if Gates still sees himself as a Geek.

'Hey, if being a geek means you're willing to take a 400-page book on vaccines and where they work and where they don't, and you go off and study that and you use that to challenge people to learn more, then absolutely. I'm a geek. I plead guilty. Gladly.'

(Image Credit DAILYMAIL.CO.UK)
Posted by Shri Krishna

MMO Updates

MMO Updates

Firefall art lead builds battleframes

Posted: 12 Jun 2011 09:00 AM PDT

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Firefall isn't being marketed as a traditional MMO, and in fact there aren't many traditional MMO staples in this Red 5 Studios creation. For instance, the class system is series of battleframes. These are armor sets that any player can wear, and they define what role he plays in a group.

Another way Firefall is attempting to carve its own gaming niche is found in the art style behind this third-person shooter. Art Lead Adam McMahon takes a few moments in the latest Firefall dev blog to talk about the evolution of the battleframe design. Some of the original designs for the battleframes conjured up scenes from Alien or Starship Troopers. But the art team quickly realized that it was "making a game for the global market," and therefore, as McMahon explains, "the art needs to be special and it needs to appeal to that broad audience." At that point, the design took a totally different direction and eventually became the look you see in the promo art now and you will see in the game.

If you'd like to read more about how McMahon and the Firefall team inspired the look of the game, be sure to read the whole developer diary. While you're there, take a moment to sign up for the beta.

Gallery: Firefall battleframe design

MassivelyFirefall art lead builds battleframes originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 12 Jun 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Global Chat: Surprisingly not all about E3 edition

Posted: 12 Jun 2011 08:00 AM PDT

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Welcome to this week's Global Chat! We love hearing what you have to say at Massively, and we love it even more when we can share the best comments with all of our readers. Massively staffers will be contributing some of their favorite comments every week, so keep an eye out every Sunday for more Global Chat!

Sure, we spent a lot of time on E3 last week, and it certainly dominated the news scene. Our readers found time to ponder non-E3 general gaming talk in addition to E3 talk, so follow along after the jump to see some of what they had to say this week.

Continue reading Global Chat: Surprisingly not all about E3 edition

MassivelyGlobal Chat: Surprisingly not all about E3 edition originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 12 Jun 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: What do you find the most fun in MMOs?

Posted: 12 Jun 2011 06:00 AM PDT

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"Fun" is one of those wonderful properties that every single game tries to capture, and whether or not a game succeed is completely subjective. Some people find the freedom and constant tension of free-for-all PvP to be fun; others find it limiting and an open invitation to grief. Some people like having a clearly delineated quest experience to enjoy; others find it restrictive, arbitrary, and ridiculously narrow. It's that gap between personal tastes that allows us to have so many different options in the MMO field, from Ultima Online to Vindictus and everything in between.

We ask a lot of broad and sometimes abstract questions here, but let's boil this one down to something very basic -- what experiences in MMOs do you find really fun? Large-scale raiding with friends? Acquiring new equipment? Making off-beat characters? Roleplaying? Do you like skill-based action systems like Global Agenda's to let you prove how good you are, or do you like slower group combat as found in Final Fantasy XI to let you flex your mental muscles? What do you find to be most captivating and enjoyable?

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!

MassivelyThe Daily Grind: What do you find the most fun in MMOs? originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 12 Jun 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Star Vault releases Mortal Online Dawn features list, new videos

Posted: 11 Jun 2011 08:00 PM PDT

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Mortal Online's first expansion was announced a while ago now, and players are still waiting on the mammoth patch to make it to the game's live server. Star Vault is no doubt anxious to placate its ravenous PvP-centric customer base, and the company has released a lengthy changelog on the game's official forums.

The listing outlines many of the features forthcoming in the Dawn expansion, but as post author (and Star Vault CEO) Henrik Nystrom writes: "This note may not be final." It's probably a good representation though. As such, let's take a quick look at what Dawn brings to the table. We've got new mechanics including the gene system, task/transport system, and housing friend system. We've also got new mail functionality, dynamic mounts, alchemy and cooking, and a load of bug fixes that we haven't the space to list.

You can check out the full changelog on the Mortal forums, and be sure to watch the one-year anniversary and Dawn preview videos after the cut.

Continue reading Star Vault releases Mortal Online Dawn features list, new videos

MassivelyStar Vault releases Mortal Online Dawn features list, new videos originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 11 Jun 2011 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Not So Massively Extra: League of Legends reveals three new champions

Posted: 11 Jun 2011 06:00 PM PDT

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Massively was on the floor at E3 this year to get the low-down on League of Legends' new spectator mode and find out how successful the player-moderated banning Tribunal has been. There was so much information from the League of Legends team at E3 that it has spilled over into this Not So Massively Extra. In a special E3 reveal, Riot Games released the full details of LoL's next three champions. Yorick the Gravedigger, Leona the Radiant Dawn and Skarner the Crystal Vanguard are scheduled to go live over the coming weeks and are sure to provide a great deal of combat variety to this ever-growing game.

Gallery: League of Legends


Skip past the cut for a run-down of the three new characters, their abilities, and what they look like.

Continue reading Not So Massively Extra: League of Legends reveals three new champions

MassivelyNot So Massively Extra: League of Legends reveals three new champions originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 11 Jun 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Not So Massively: E3 was full of interweb games

Posted: 11 Jun 2011 04:00 PM PDT

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Welcome to Not So Massively, our weekly roundup of the top news from popular multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBAs) and other multiplayer online games that aren't quite MMOs. Published every Saturday, the column covers games such as League of Legends, Heroes of Newerth, Defense of the Ancients, Bloodline Champions, and more.

E3 2011 was packed full of news from the wide world of gaming, with an absolute ton of new information on upcoming MMOs. Not all the online games showcased at E3 fall neatly into the category of MMO or non-MMO, but Massively was there to get the scoop on them nonetheless.

Last week, we got to grips with League of Legends' new champion Orianna and took an in-depth look at Heroes of Newerth's completely overpowered new hero Amun Ra. We also introduced the Rise of Immortals 3vE map layout and Realm of the Titans' new hero Abraxas, then we highlighted Karma Online's upcoming closed beta.

In this week's Not So Massively, we chatted to devs on the floor at E3 to bring in-depth looks at popular free-to-play MOBA League of Legends and upcoming sci-fi action game Vorp!. Realm of the Titans has also added a new Crystal upgrade system this week, which allows for permanant character upgrades that persist between matches. Finally, Petroglyph's community manager joins the MOBA Champions podcast to give some inside details on the development of Rise of Immortals.

Continue reading Not So Massively: E3 was full of interweb games

MassivelyNot So Massively: E3 was full of interweb games originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 11 Jun 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Mog Log: Grounded

Posted: 11 Jun 2011 02:00 PM PDT

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After last week's column, I mentioned that I was pretty energized to give some of Final Fantasy XI's other additions a try. Chief among them, naturally, was the addition of Grounds of Valor, which is essentially Fields of Valor with special sauce. Said special sauce is a stacking buff for each successful regime completed, meaning that staying in one zone and working your way through training regimes is even more rewarding than it was before.

Well... in theory, anyhow.

Rather than just subsisting on the basis of theory, I decided it was high time for Rhio to continue in the experimental process she had engaged in long ago. So after donning a Destrier Beret and making sure she had her fair supply of grotesquely powerful anniversary rings, I set out into the wilds to try my hands at the new grounds system. The results were... well, I'd like to say they were surprising, but mostly they were just a reminder of a universal truth about Final Fantasy XI.

Continue reading The Mog Log: Grounded

MassivelyThe Mog Log: Grounded originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 11 Jun 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Trion Worlds takes players on a tour of RIFT's upcoming Hammerknell raid

Posted: 11 Jun 2011 12:00 PM PDT

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Ia! Ia! Akylios f'htagn! You may have (read: should have, and if you haven't go do so now) seen our hands-on impressions article covering the new raid coming with RIFT's patch 1.3, Waves of Madness. The instance takes place inside of the abandoned Dwarven city of Hammerknell, where Akylios -- the Dragon of the plane of water and the object of worship of the Abyssal Cult -- has long been imprisoned. The cult has now breached the ancient stronghold and is in the process of awakening its aquatic master.

In a new walkthrough video from Trion Worlds, VP of Development Russ Brown gives RIFT players a sneak-peek at the world event that will accompany the opening of Hammerknell's long-sealed doors. Once the doors have been opened, we're treated to a tour of the halls of the city itself, where the ghosts of fallen Dwarves and Abyssal cultists alike stand to prevent Telara's heroes from interrupting Akylios' awakening. The video shows off four of the raid's bosses, including Akylios himself, so those of you wanting to avoid spoilers can consider yourselves warned. Russ also takes some time to stop and admire the hauntingly lovely architecture and lighting of the deserted city, which is truly stunning. Any RIFT players who don't mind a few minor spoilers and who want to get a look at the upcoming content can click on past the cut for the full video.

Continue reading Trion Worlds takes players on a tour of RIFT's upcoming Hammerknell raid

MassivelyTrion Worlds takes players on a tour of RIFT's upcoming Hammerknell raid originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 11 Jun 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Darkfall dev blog talks armor system updates, roles, and PvP viability

Posted: 11 Jun 2011 11:00 AM PDT

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The latest Darkfall dev blog update has an interesting new Q&A session dealing with the game's armor system (and ongoing attempts to balance it). Aventurine devs collected a sampling of related questions from users on the sandbox title's official forum, and Tasos Flambouras has a pretty lengthy list of answers that should be of interest to Agonian veterans and newbs alike.

Aventurine's goals for the upcoming revamp are threefold: more diversity in terms of the number of combat roles available to the player, a reduction of the time it takes to become viable in PvP, and retaining the ability for players to freely select, combine, and change roles at any time.

Flambouras also spends a bit of time explaining Aventurine's stance on Darkfall physics, particularly bunny-hopping. "It's a fun way of using physics," he says, "but we never intended for players on foot to be able to keep up with mounts." Head to the official Darkfall website to see the changes coming to Agon in the near future.

MassivelyDarkfall dev blog talks armor system updates, roles, and PvP viability originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 11 Jun 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Posted by Shri Krishna
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