| Age of Conan long-term subs available, Funcom gifting weekly consumable packs Posted: 05 Oct 2011 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Age of Conan, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Promotions We've got more Age of Conan-related subscription news for you this morning. Yesterday we mentioned the lifetime sub sweepstakes currently ongoing at AoC's Facebook page. Today we came across some new time-limited sub offers on the game's forums as well as a blurb about free weekly login items. The sub offers come in three-, six-, and 12-month flavors, and each also features a bundle of in-game goods designed to make your Hyborian life a little easier. All three packs give you assorted potions and the basic riding skill, while the six- and 12-month varieties give you mounts to go with it. The weekly login items feature packs of consumables and are available via the special offers tab of the in-game store. This week's pack is labeled A Bountiful Harvest, while subsequent weeks will feature A Hearty Harvest, A Fine Harvest, and The Harvest Reward packs.  Age of Conan long-term subs available, Funcom gifting weekly consumable packs originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 05 Oct 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Ten things to do in Star Wars Galaxies before it's gone Posted: 05 Oct 2011 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Opinion, Star Wars Galaxies, Roleplaying, Humor, Sandbox When SOE announced that Star Wars Galaxies would be sunsetted by the end of the year, many players despaired. They gave up. They saw their long years (eight years!) of play turn to dust. But others looked on the impending closure as incentive to do all those things they'd been putting off, all the activities they just hadn't gotten around to. There hadn't been time. The game is too big for anyone to do it all. And that's precisely why Star Wars Galaxies is a legend among sandbox fans despite the NGE disaster. It's a living museum of great MMO ideas from the past, of player-driven economies, of open-world housing, of high-end, game-supported roleplay, of roaming in a game that lets you dictate the terms of your play. It's a rare relic you should see in the flesh, today, right now, before it's gone. You can pick up a weapon and fight in any MMO (excepting A Tale in the Desert, that is), but there are so many things you can do in Star Wars Galaxies that you can't do anywhere else with the same level of immersion. And I'm going to tell you which 10 you should do first... before it's too late. Continue reading Ten things to do in Star Wars Galaxies before it's gone Ten things to do in Star Wars Galaxies before it's gone originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 05 Oct 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Repopulation adds action mode combat toggle, military system Posted: 05 Oct 2011 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Sandbox Last week we told you about a new three-faction sandbox MMO called The Repopulation. Today we've got the very latest on the game courtesy of Above & Beyond Technologies' end-of-September progress report. As it turns out, some of September was dedicated to preparing for the game's initial announcement and piecing together the accompanying trailer. Other than that, though, the devs did make a bit of progress on gameplay proper. Action mode combat was the biggest addition, and the update describes an interesting mechanic that allows users to "toggle between action- or RPG-mode combat at any time during gameplay." The other big addition is The Repopulation's military system. In a nutshell, it's a ranking system that allows players to gain military XP while performing various duties for their nation's armed forces. Ranks, medals, and perks like armor, weapons, vehicles, robotics, and special abilities are among the system's rewards. The Repopulation adds action mode combat toggle, military system originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 05 Oct 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Spotlight on the Outcasts Posted: 05 Oct 2011 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, City of Villains, Lore, Opinion, Free-to-play, A Mild-Mannered Reporter One of the elements that doesn't get explored often enough in MMOs is the concept of the people who didn't quite make it. It's generally accepted on some level that adventurers or superheroes or whatever you play are a cut above normal people, but there's still a point at which you stop being a Assault Rifle/Devices Blaster and start being just a guy with a gun and some toys. And the people just below that mark, just shy of reaching the big time, have a story to tell, just like the player characters. So today's look at City of Heroes' villainous groups highlights one of the game's suggestions about what happens to those people. It's a group composed of those not quite strong enough to make a name beyond thuggery but just strong enough to be more dangerous than the low-level mooks you don't even notice. I'm talking, of course, about the Outcasts, the elemental-themed gang of mutants that terrorizes Steel Canyon, goes to war with the Trolls, and makes a cottage industry out of being almost good enough to hit the big time. Continue reading A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Spotlight on the Outcasts A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Spotlight on the Outcasts originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 05 Oct 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Daily Grind: What's your end-of-the-year MMO to-do list? Posted: 05 Oct 2011 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous With only a little less than three months left in 2011, it's time to start thinking about what we want to accomplish before 2012's crop of MMOs arrives. Maybe you want to reach level cap in some of 2011's launches like Allods Online or DC Universe Online, or dive into the newest shinies like LotRO's Rise of Isengard. Either way, there's a good chance you're completing your goals with one eye on 2012, which looks to be quite a year for the MMO industry. So tell us what your end-of-the-year goals are. Is it something related to completing a current game, or some kind of rigorous sleep-deprivation exercise that gets you ready for the launch of Star Wars: The Old Republic, Guild Wars 2, or another anticipated MMO?  Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!The Daily Grind: What's your end-of-the-year MMO to-do list? originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 05 Oct 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Testing players to receive rewards in Star Trek Online Posted: 04 Oct 2011 08:00 PM PDT |
| Luck be a lady tonight! LotRO lotteries returning Posted: 04 Oct 2011 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Events, in-game, News items, Free-to-play You feelin' lucky, punk? You... You are? Oh, OK then. Well, that may just be for the best because from the looks of things, Lord of the Rings Online's lotteries will be making a return very soon. Over the next few days, Turbine will be running some "small, short, unannounced lotteries" to stress-test the feature, and if all goes as planned, players should expect the lottery to make a triumphant return by this weekend. So if you want to try your luck for some fabulous prizes, just head on over to my.lotro.com, click the lottery button, and cross your fingers. Good luck, ladies and gents! Luck be a lady tonight! LotRO lotteries returning originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Win an Age of Conan lifetime sub in new Funcom sweepstakes Posted: 04 Oct 2011 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Age of Conan, Contests, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Promotions Feeling lucky? If so, you want might want to enter Funcom's new Age of Conan sweepstakes. One grand-prize winner will take home a lifetime premium sub to the fantasy MMORPG along with 6,000 cash shop points and the opportunity to have an in-game NPC named after one of your characters. Five first-prize winners will grab the ultimate Conan fan pack, which includes an in-game pleasure companion (nope, we're not kidding), 2,500 Funcom points, and three purebred mounts. Finally, second-prize winners will receive 1,000 Funcom points. The sweepstakes starts today, October 4th, and runs through November 22nd. Check out the details on the Age of Conan Facebook page, and don't forget to take a look at the official contest rules while you're at it. Win an Age of Conan lifetime sub in new Funcom sweepstakes originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Take justice to the streets in City of Heroes Posted: 04 Oct 2011 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, Video, City of Heroes, City of Villains, Classes, Game mechanics, News items, Free-to-play, Dev Diaries If you're not satisfied taking out thugs with merely a katana or a kick, then Paragon Studios has your answer: Street Justice. It's a brand-new powerset just released in City of Heroes Freedom, available to Scrappers, Brutes, Stalkers, and Tankers. It looks like a flashier mashup of the Martial Arts and Super Strength sets, and according to a post by Paragon's Phil "Synapse" Zeleski, Street Justice is like many of the newer CoH sets in that it comes with a special mechanic, in this case, combo levels and finishing moves that give more freedom to the player than does the similar gameplay hook of Dual Blades. Street Justice is available for purchase in the game's cash shop for 800 Paragon Points (about $10 US). It is one of two new powersets not granted freely to VIP subscribers. Check out the video after the break to peek before you buy. Continue reading Take justice to the streets in City of Heroes Take justice to the streets in City of Heroes originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Game Archaeologist answers Asheron's Call 2: The highlights Posted: 04 Oct 2011 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Asheron's Call, Classes, Expansions, The Game Archaeologist MMO sequels are funny animals. Sequels (along with prequels and "reimaginings") are ingrained into the entertainment industry so deep that it makes sense that MMO studios would follow suit. And yet these types of games -- with their ever-growing nature and heavy involvement with loyal playerbases -- are not always conducive to such projects. More often than not, a sequel to an online game becomes its ancestor's main competition, which is not a desirable outcome for the studio. Perhaps back in the early 2000s, studios simply didn't know better. There's good evidence that the typical "hit video games need a sequel" mindset ran rampant across the industry, from the multiple attempts at Ultima Online 2 to the release of the don't-call-it-a-sequel sequel of EverQuest II. Perhaps developers didn't realize that MMO players didn't necessarily want to be uprooted and moved to a new game every few years. While sequels, spin-offs and remakes are still present, the genre learned a hard lesson with Asheron's Call 2 in the first half of the decade. Asheron's Call was a success on Microsoft and Turbine's behalf, and a sequel -- with vastly improved graphics and deeper gameplay -- seemed like a logical next step. Unfortunately, it was a Greek tragedy in the making, destined for a short but memorable life in our world. This month we're going to look at the brief shining star of Asheron's Call 2 and get all sorts of misty-eyed romantic over it! Continue reading The Game Archaeologist answers Asheron's Call 2: The highlights The Game Archaeologist answers Asheron's Call 2: The highlights originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Hyperspace Beacon: Hyperspace... beacons Posted: 04 Oct 2011 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Lore, New titles, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Hyperspace Beacon A hyperspace beacon in Star Wars lore guides a space traveler from one safe lightspeed jump to the next. Basically, a nav computer communicates with a hyperspace beacon, requesting jump points to its intended destination, and the hyperspace beacon, being in contact with other hyperspace beacons, replies with the fastest route to that star system. Explorers, like Gav Daragon, would take risky jumps in directions beacons didn't point to. That is how they found Korriban. By the time period of Star Wars: A New Hope, hyperspace beacons were no longer in service. However, we know for certain that less than 300 years before Star Wars: The Old Republic, hyperspace beacons were still in use. Since technology appears to advance quite slowly, I can only assume that they are still used in some capacity during SWTOR. As evident by the galaxy map that BioWare launched this past Friday, the worlds of this time period are strongly divided into territories. The planets of the movies appeared to be united under one banner (although that's not entirely accurate). What I'd like to do today is give you a little tour of the galaxy, comparing this map to something you may be a bit more familiar with: the Star Wars movies. So strap yourself in, kid -- we gotta make the jump to hyperspace! Continue reading Hyperspace Beacon: Hyperspace... beacons Hyperspace Beacon: Hyperspace... beacons originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Soapbox: It doesn't have to be for you Posted: 04 Oct 2011 02:30 PM PDT Filed under: Culture, MMO industry, Opinion, The Soapbox, Miscellaneous Disclaimer: The Soapbox column is entirely the opinion of this week's writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column. It's a natural problem: MMOs are all about making you feel invested in your character and your playstyle. The best games let you choose your style, your preferred content, the way you want to level, the times you want to play, and so forth. And so it's only natural that you'll gradually start to think of the way you like to play as the one part of the game that actually matters. Sure, you aren't going to say it out loud, but you still think in your heart that PvP or raiding or small-group content or roleplaying or dancing naked on a mailbox is the real core of the game. Or you think that free-for-all PvP or crafting sandboxes or directed themeparks or whatever are the real kind of MMOs and everything else is a pale imitation. And that's a shame because even if you like those sorts of things, not everyone does. Continue reading The Soapbox: It doesn't have to be for you The Soapbox: It doesn't have to be for you originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Uncharted Waters Online celebrating first anniversary with special events Posted: 04 Oct 2011 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Events, in-game, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play Birthday cakes and kazoos are the order of the day in Uncharted Waters Online. The nautical MMORPG is celebrating its first anniversary, and the team at gPotato has prepared a series of events designed to reward long-time players and entice new captains into the fold. First up is the premium ticket blast, and funnily enough, it rewards players with a premium ticket, provided that they are logged in at precisely 8:00 a.m. on October 8th. The ticket is, well, your ticket to trying out a "coveted sailing vessel or other valuable prizes." There's also a three-week marathon event in which players will receive daily boosts and free items simply by logging into UWO. Beginning on October 5th, you'll want to check in once a day to claim your prizes, skill proficiency buffs, and extra fame points. Finally, the devs are hosting a UWO writing contest, and there are 13 prizes up for grabs (including a few custom ships). [Source: gPotato press release] Uncharted Waters Online celebrating first anniversary with special events originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| FFXIV's 1.19 patch features new group content, Ifrit primal Posted: 04 Oct 2011 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Trailers, Video, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, Final Fantasy XIV, Dungeons It's patch day in the world of Eorzea, and today's 1.19 update looks to bring quite a bit of new content to Final Fantasy XIV. Said content includes a new confrontation with Ifrit, a fiery primal who waits for brave adventurers at the end of one of the game's newest quests. Final Fantasy XIV's lodestone has all the details, and apparently the Ifrit encounter comes in two distinct flavors. One is designed for level 30 light parties (four members), while the other is a hard-mode run intended for eight-man level 50 groups. Ifrit wears his badassery on his sleeve if the accompanying video clip is any indication, and the lodestone entry describes him as "a demon spawned by the seven hells" whose exhalations "produce heat of such torridity as to reduce iron to pools of white-hot liquid." See for yourself after the break. Continue reading FFXIV's 1.19 patch features new group content, Ifrit primal FFXIV's 1.19 patch features new group content, Ifrit primal originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Trion Worlds treks to NYCC with a trio of games Posted: 04 Oct 2011 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Events, real-world, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Massively meta, MMOFPS, MMORTS, RIFT Trion Worlds has three gaming worlds up its sleeve right now, and it aims to talk about all of them at this year's New York Comic Con. In fact, the company has announced that several of its developers will participate in a panel "to discuss the future of [its] online gaming portfolio." RIFT junkies can look forward to a chat with Design Producer Hal Hanlin and Lore Lead Morgan Lockhart about the studio's upcoming plans for the fantasy MMO, while MMORTS fans will get their PvE and PvP on with Senior Producer Chris Lena from End of Nations. And attendees looking for their shooter fix won't be left out: Rob Hill, Senior Producer for Defiance, will be on hand to cover the MMOFPS and its integration with the Syfy show. The panel takes places on Friday, October 14th, from 5:15 to 6:15 p.m. EDT in room 1A24. Tickets for the con are still available on the official NYCC website. [Source: Trion Worlds press release] Trion Worlds treks to NYCC with a trio of games originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond handing out trips to the (virtual) moon! Posted: 04 Oct 2011 12:30 PM PDT Filed under: Historical, Astronaut: Moon, Mars, and Beyond, Promotions, Miscellaneous As Project Whitecard wraps up its Kickstarter fundraiser to raise funds for Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond, it wants to give a little extra incentive for any would-be donors. Anyone -- past, present and future -- who gives to the NASA project will be entered into a drawing for one of 50 free copies of Project Moonwalk. Project Moonwalk is a video game simulation of the 1969 Apollo 11 mission, designed to be not only fun but also educational. The game hits the high points of space race history, from Sputnik's launch to the lunar landing and subsequent return to Earth. Made with the Unreal Engine, Project Moonwalk will be released this fall. Currently, Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond has raised over $41,000 through Kickstarter, well exceeding its $25,000 goal. If you're interested in helping in the second great space race, then you have six days to get your pledge in to the cause before the fundraiser ends! Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond handing out trips to the (virtual) moon! originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| DCUO's latest update takes you to the Fortress of Solitude Posted: 04 Oct 2011 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, News items, Free-to-play, DC Universe Online, Dungeons We still don't have a date for you with regard to DC Universe Online's impending payment model switcheroo. We do have the latest Sony Online Entertainment press release, though, and it's full of details about the superhero MMO's latest content patch. Listen up, Superman fans, as today's patch brings about the second phase of a three-part raid in which players must stop Brainiac from harnessing Kryptonian technology and using it to destroy the entire planet. The update, appropriately titled The Fate of the Fortress, features Superman's iconic arctic hideout known as the Fortress of Solitude, and the patch allows would-be heroes to team up with Kal-El, Lex Luthor, and their fellow players to tackle a challenging eight-man group combat raid. There's a bunch of new loot to be had as well, and today's update also features a new hard-mode option for the HIVE tier-two alert as well as a new Batcave PvP map. Finally, SOE has incorporated a new dueling mechanic into DCUO, so fire up your launchpads, button up your underoos, and get ready to save Gotham City and Metropolis from the clutches of the megalomaniacal Brainiac. [Source: SOE press release] DCUO's latest update takes you to the Fortress of Solitude originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Star Wars: The Old Republic increases invitations to this weekend's beta test Posted: 04 Oct 2011 11:45 AM PDT |
| Cryptic explains Star Trek Online's quick turnaround time Posted: 04 Oct 2011 11:30 AM PDT |
| Black Prophecy celebrates World Space Week with bonus events Posted: 04 Oct 2011 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Events, in-game, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Black Prophecy, Promotions Did you know that it's world space week? Yep, it is, and gamigo is leveraging the occasion to hype its free-to-play Black Prophecy MMORPG. A new company press release has the details, and they boil down to a couple of special events both in and around the space shooter. First up is an XP boost that grants players a 25% increase on both missions and enemy kills. gamigo is also offering an additional 15% extra cash on all cash shop packet purchases. Also of note is Black Prophecy's first official expansion. Episode 2: Species War is out now, and you can view an official trailer for the new content after the break. [Source: gamigo press release] Continue reading Black Prophecy celebrates World Space Week with bonus events Black Prophecy celebrates World Space Week with bonus events originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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