MMO Updates

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• Funcom highlights Age of Conan player numbers, offers in-game reward pack
• Final Fantasy XI goes 11-11-11 wild
• EQII Age of Discovery pre-orders available
• Guild Wars 2 developer explains updated cinematic conversations
• SOE touts one million new DCUO players
• Storyboard: The couple that roleplays together rolestays together
• The Daily Grind: Do you prefer pre-made class characters?
• Behind the Mask: How tanking got easier
• A new invasion is hitting Star Trek Online's test server
• Ask Massively: This is a sneaking mission edition
• Latest Elsword patch introduces enhanced PvP, grouping incentives
• Captain's Log: To spec or not to spec?
• MindArk announces Planet Calypso land grab
• Gabe Newell confirms Steam security compromise
• The MMO Report: Giving it away for free edition
• Firefall makes with the G-Star trailer explosions
• Wargaming.net honoring U.S. Veterans on Veterans Day
• New EVE video takes you behind the core technology curtain
• First Impressions: SD Gundam Capsule Fighters Online
• Perfect World Entertainment teams up with Nexon Korea
• The Guild Counsel: The problem with guilds
• SOE releases EverQuest II Beastlord Q&A
• Lime Odyssey introduces crafting professions
• EverQuest II goes fully free-to-play: Our chat with Dave Georgeson
• Massively mammillary online: Evony hires model to be the... face of the game
• Lineage Eternal trailer shows off drag-and-hold combat

Funcom highlights Age of Conan player numbers, offers in-game reward pack Posted: 11 Nov 2011 09:00 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Age of Conan, Business models, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play DC Universe Online isn't the only MMO crowing about its freemium changeover this week. Age of Conan made the switch last summer and now Funcom is highlighting the fact that more than 600,000 players have tried the Unchained version of the fantasy title since July. As a token of appreciation, the company is presenting players with a little ditty called the King's Reward pack. Everyone who logs in prior to November 21st can grab the bundle via the special offers tab of the AoC item shop. The pack contains various potions designed to speed your way through Hyboria, but it's also limited to one character per account, so make sure you're on your main when you claim it. Funcom highlights Age of Conan player numbers, offers in-game reward pack originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 11 Nov 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: King's Reward pack

Final Fantasy XI goes 11-11-11 wild Posted: 11 Nov 2011 08:30 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Final Fantasy XI, Promotions You totally can't blame Square-Enix for taking advantage of the once-in-a-lifetime 11/11/11 calendar event to throw a Final Fantasy XI promotion. That's serendipity, right there. With the "11 on 11-11-11" sale, the company is unleashing a thunderstorm of lightning deals. Starting off, curious players can give Final Fantasy XI a try for free for 14 days with a new account. If the sampling is deemed subscription-worthy, the full Ultimate Collection Abyssea Edition can be purchased for 50% off the retail price. This package includes the core game, four expansions, three scenarios, and three Abyssea battle areas. And while you can't purchase it today on the 11th, Square-Enix wants to let you know that the Final Fantasy XI Plus soundtrack will go on sale on the 15th. This two-disc OST has previously unreleased tunes from the game and PlayOnline. Players who snag a first-edition copy will also get a code for an in-game keyboard that will play a random tune when you enter your house. You can only preorder this right now through the Square-Enix store. Final Fantasy XI goes 11-11-11 wild originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 11 Nov 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Square-Enix store

EQII Age of Discovery pre-orders available Posted: 11 Nov 2011 08:00 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, EverQuest II, Business models, Expansions, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play EverQuest II may be gearing up for free-to-play, but Sony Online Entertainment is still charging a premium for the game's latest digital expansion. When Age of Discovery launches next month, the content pack will be available in two flavors: A regular edition for $39.99 and a collector's bundle for $59.99. The catch is that the collector's edition price is actually a discount, and if players fail to pre-order the pack, the price increases to a whopping $89.99. What do you get for such a princely sum? In addition to the new AoD content, players will receive a flying mount, a cloak, a robe, a Lavastorm house, a Beastlord pet, two dungeon-maker mob spawners, and a custom dungeon-maker map layout. SOE has yet to announce an official release date for Age of Discovery, nor does the company's announcement page say when pre-orders will close. We'll keep you updated as we learn more. EQII Age of Discovery pre-orders available originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 11 Nov 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: AoD pre-order page

Guild Wars 2 developer explains updated cinematic conversations Posted: 11 Nov 2011 07:30 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Guild Wars 2, Dev Diaries Guild Wars 2 fans are starting their morning with an interesting update and some entertainment, thanks to ArenaNet's motion capture and cinematic guru Chuck Jackman. Chuck is the mind behind the newest ArenaNet blog entry, all about the recent improvements to Guild Wars 2's cinematic conversations. The cinematic conversations in Guild Wars 2 are the brief cutscenes that take place between player characters and NPCs at significant points in the story line. Until now, players trying the demo have only seen the placeholder versions of these cinematics, which consisted of a lot of seemingly-random emotes and what Chuck describes as "some very basic lip-synch that resembled more of a duck's bill than a human's mouth." The team has been hard at work on improvements, though, and today's blog entry unveiled two videos of the new cinematics. It's a fairly lengthy read, with plenty of explanation of everything from emotes to facial animations to voice work. If your eyes glaze over at even a hint of tech-speak, fear not. While we have our doubts about Chuck's claims of blotting out the sun and tearing code from the minds of ancient gods, it's definitely an entertaining and informative read for any gaming fan. Check out the full entry at the ArenaNet blog. Guild Wars 2 developer explains updated cinematic conversations originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 11 Nov 2011 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: ArenaNet blog

SOE touts one million new DCUO players Posted: 11 Nov 2011 07:00 AM PST Filed under: Super-hero, Business models, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, DC Universe Online The success notices keep rolling in for DC Universe Online. This time Sony Online Entertainment is touting the fact that one million new players have joined the game's community over the past week. Executive director of development Lorin Jameson says that the numbers are split 50/50 between the PC and PlayStation 3 platforms, and he also intimates that more good news is in the works for fans of the superhero MMO. "We have a lot of exciting things coming up for players to enjoy in the game and are thrilled at the initial enthusiasm for the game's free-to-play transition," Jameson said via press release. [Source: SOE press release] SOE touts one million new DCUO players originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 11 Nov 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Storyboard: The couple that roleplays together rolestays together Posted: 11 Nov 2011 06:00 AM PST Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Storyboard, Miscellaneous When Ms. Lady first got into MMOs, she had a very firm opinion on roleplaying, filled with subtleties and coherent arguments. Her overall thesis was "roleplaying is dumb," backed up with further evidence such as "you're dumb for liking it" and "let's talk about something else." This lasted until she really tried it, at which point she changed her thesis to "roleplaying is awesome" and supported it with "I was dumb to say that" and "you'd better not put this in an article several years from now." What I'm getting at is that we roleplay in-game together. Quite a lot, actually, to the point that a good number of my roleplaying anecdotes involve her in one capacity or another. Roleplaying in a committed relationship poses its own unique set of issues, however, the sort that just don't happen when you are roleplaying with people who live at least in another house. So here are a few tips to ensure that while you and your significant other will probably still argue about pointless things, roleplaying will only be an infrequent guest star to the stupid argument party. Continue reading Storyboard: The couple that roleplays together rolestays together Storyboard: The couple that roleplays together rolestays together originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 11 Nov 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Daily Grind: Do you prefer pre-made class characters? Posted: 11 Nov 2011 05:00 AM PST Filed under: Classes, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous Although it's not a new trend, the practice of making pre-made playable characters to represent each class in an MMO is becoming more and more popular. In games like Rusty Hearts, Vindictus, Diablo, Torchlight, Aika and a few others, you pick from an assortment of pre-made characters to play the game. Customization is non-existent or minimal, but you're not really playing those types of games for a deeply customizable character. Without worrying about getting your hair and eye color just right, you can grab a character and just start playing. So is this a feature you prefer over heavy customization? Do you accept it for certain games, based on their style, or is it a complete turn-off for you across the board? Let us know in the comments below! 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: Do you prefer pre-made class characters? originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 11 Nov 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Behind the Mask: How tanking got easier Posted: 10 Nov 2011 06:00 PM PST Filed under: Super-hero, Opinion, Free-to-play, Champions Online, Behind the Mask, Guides I've mused for a long time about the problems with tanking in Champions Online, since it's my preferred PvE role. Gold members can build freeform characters with everything one would need for a tank, leaving only skill as a requirement. On the other hand, Silver members have been left out in the cold. It's unfortunate, but there has simply been no decent archetype tank. This all changed with the launch of the Master, a martial arts-themed melee fighter with everything needed to compete in the toughest lairs. Although he isn't a perfect tanking package, he is completely functional and does his job well. He's the Mind of tanking archetypes: He soaks damage, he owns face, and he isn't reliant on a healer for sustainability. I think I'm in love. Although he is not a free archetype, unlocking the Master is a one-time purchase. If you're into the tank playstyle but you're not into a subscription, this archetype is for you. Continue reading Behind the Mask: How tanking got easier Behind the Mask: How tanking got easier originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

A new invasion is hitting Star Trek Online's test server Posted: 10 Nov 2011 05:30 PM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Events, in-game, Previews, Endgame, News items, Star Trek Online, Free-to-play There has never been a shortage of stories about the Borg assimilating a culture, but it's rare for the race to actively invade a planet. But that's exactly what's happening on Star Trek Online's test serve: Defera undergoing a large-scale invasion by the Collective. Players in both the Federation and the KDF are tasked with fighting back against the Borg in a variety of different settings across the planet to help test out this new large-scale event. Running for two hours once started, the event is currently being activated frequently enough so that players can consistently test all of the new elements introduced. If simply taking part in the push to prevent the Borg from getting a foothold isn't enough, the event also offers players new items as mission rewards, drops, and craftables. It should be an interesting event for players to explore in full on the test server, and it serves as another example of the game taking the war against the Borg up another notch. A new invasion is hitting Star Trek Online's test server originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Path to F2P #22

Ask Massively: This is a sneaking mission edition Posted: 10 Nov 2011 05:00 PM PST Filed under: Game mechanics, Opinion, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous Let's get something straight: Even though I'm late to the party with Metal Gear Solid 4, I'm a fan of the series. It's not perfect by any means, but it's one of my favorite franchises of all time. That having been said, why is it always a sneaking mission? Just once, I'd like to be told that this is a march-in-with-an-automatic-gun-and-shoot-people-in-the-face mission. But no, solo sneaking mission, every single time. I know, it's the series hallmark, but since my second playthrough is already going to be a bloodbath with a stealth unit equipped, part of me wants to do that on the first playthrough. Just once. Appropriately enough, this week's questions for Ask Massively involve stealth in MMOs. They also involve subscription fees, but that doesn't really segue naturally. If you've got a question you'd like to see in a future installment of the column, feel free to leave it in the comments or mail it along to ask@massively.com. Continue reading Ask Massively: This is a sneaking mission edition Ask Massively: This is a sneaking mission edition originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Latest Elsword patch introduces enhanced PvP, grouping incentives Posted: 10 Nov 2011 04:30 PM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Patches, PvP, News items, Free-to-play Kill3rCombo's anime-style sidescroller Elsword has just received a brand-new update that adds a few new features for players to enjoy. PvPers will surely be overjoyed by the newly enhanced PvP system, which boasts new matchmaking functionality and the addition of Arena Points. Arena Points are earned by players through participation in matchmade games and can be used to purchase new weapons. Social players will find that partying up now grants increased experience points, which should provide greater incentive to adventure as a group. The final two Velder town levels are now available, and so are two new pets which will assist players on their adventures. To get in on the fun, head on over to Elsword's official site. [Source: Kill3rCombo press release] Latest Elsword patch introduces enhanced PvP, grouping incentives originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Captain's Log: To spec or not to spec? Posted: 10 Nov 2011 04:00 PM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, Opinion, Star Trek Online, Free-to-play, Captain's Log, Guides Captain's Log, Stardate 65340.3... Hello, computer (and players)! Unlike an answer to Shakespeare's original question, the answer to the question in this week's title is probably a no-brainer for most of you: Yes! Choosing a specialization, or "speccing," in MMOs is something that stretches across most titles out there, and Star Trek Online is no different. Whether you wish to resist attacks longer, do more damage, or add strength to your powers, choosing a customized spec can be rewarding and a challenge at the same time. With so many variables and places to spend your points, the possibilities are endless. While this week's Captain's Log is not here to tell you what you should spec into for your particular class or ship set-up, I would like to go over the space skill point overhaul that STO is about to go through. In the past, one of the biggest complaints from players was that they did not have a clear understanding of which skill tree affected which ability. The devs heard this feedback and have been working on a complete revamp to make these decisions simpler. Hopefully, this will allow you to have a better understanding of where and why to spend your points in a particular skill when you do have to re-spec at the launch of F2P on January 17th, 2012. Ensign, warp 10! Let's get our readers' bookmark buttons ready... Continue reading Captain's Log: To spec or not to spec? Captain's Log: To spec or not to spec? originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

MindArk announces Planet Calypso land grab Posted: 10 Nov 2011 03:30 PM PST Filed under: Economy, Events, in-game, News items, Virtual worlds, Planet Calypso, Miscellaneous MindArk's Planet Calypso is certainly one of the most unique virtual worlds out there, due in large part to the fact that the game's real estate is bought, sold, and traded for real-world cash. Land management, however, has generally been an activity for the ludicrously rich, with some properties costing as much as 500,000 USD. MindArk looks to change that, however, by introducing a whopping 60,000 new plots of land (each measuring at 100 square meters) that can be bought for the (relatively) low price of 100 USD. Each deed that a player purchases "entitles the holder to a share of the 50% planet partner Gross Revenue generated by Planet Calypso." So if you've got a few hundred bucks to blow on virtual real estate and want a piece of the pie, head on over to the official site and sign up. MindArk announces Planet Calypso land grab originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Planet Calypso landgrab announcement

Gabe Newell confirms Steam security compromise Posted: 10 Nov 2011 03:15 PM PST Filed under: News items, Miscellaneous A few days ago we reported that Valve's Steam forum security had been compromised. A letter from Valve head-honcho Gabe Newell today confirms this fact and reveals that the intruders also gained access to a Steam database that contained a ton of personal information, such as usernames, encrypted passwords, email addresses, and encrypted credit card information. Newell adds that there is currently no evidence that any of that information was actually taken by the intruders or that credit card numbers or passwords were cracked. Steam users will be required to change their forum passwords when the forums are opened back up. While the company claims that no Steam accounts have been compromised, if your forum password was the same as your account password, a change would likely be a good idea. Gabe Newell confirms Steam security compromise originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 18:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Shack News

The MMO Report: Giving it away for free edition Posted: 10 Nov 2011 03:00 PM PST Filed under: Video, News items, Opinion, Humor, The MMO Report, Miscellaneous Today on The MMO Report, Casey chronicles DC Universe Online's F2P growing pains ("It's almost like they're giving it away for free," he says cheekily) before moving on to the Total Recall MMO, Star Wars: The Old Republic's server types, Guild Wars 2's pet system, and the bizarre addition of Second Life to the FBI's watch list for criminal gangs and drug traffickers. "Way to give criminal organizations a wonderful idea, FBI," jokes The Beard. This episode also sees the return of Uncle Casey's mailbag and a new contest to devise an MMO Report-themed drinking game. Winners will receive (what else?) World of Warcraft-themed MEGA Bloks. Casey ends the show on a Skyrim note: "For some reason, I am always drawn to the most useless skills and end up creating a character that's only good at talking to people and getting lower prices on things but not so great at killing things." Sounds like some of my toons! Hit the break for the full episode! Continue reading The MMO Report: Giving it away for free edition The MMO Report: Giving it away for free edition originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Firefall makes with the G-Star trailer explosions Posted: 10 Nov 2011 02:30 PM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Trailers, Video, Events, real-world, MMOFPS, Massively Event Coverage If you have two minutes to spare and a desire to become moderately pumped-up about Red 5's up-and-coming sci-fi shooter, then you could do far, far worse than to watch the G-Star trailer for Firefall. There's no narrative behind it, mind you, but if you love eye candy, then you're in for a treat. Explosions, super-jumps, flights, weapons of all makes and models, snipe attacks, anti-aircraft batteries, and intense brawls are spliced together to give you a quick-and-dirty feel for the game. Currently the game is in limited beta testing. You can watch the full Firefall trailer after the jump! Continue reading Firefall makes with the G-Star trailer explosions Firefall makes with the G-Star trailer explosions originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Firefall

Wargaming.net honoring U.S. Veterans on Veterans Day Posted: 10 Nov 2011 02:00 PM PST Filed under: Culture, News items, War, Free-to-play, World of Tanks Tomorrow, Americans will be celebrating Veterans Day and honoring the service of our armed forces. Wargaming.net has announced that it will be joining the celebrations by donating proceeds from World of Tanks gold bundles to the Paralyzed Veterans of America organization. For every $14.95 gold bundle purchased, Wargaming.net will donate $5, and for every $49.95 gold bundle purchased, it will donate $15. So if you want to support war veterans while blowing some tanks to kingdom come, head on over to World of Tanks and join the fight. [Source: Wargaming.net press release] Wargaming.net honoring U.S. Veterans on Veterans Day originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

New EVE video takes you behind the core technology curtain Posted: 10 Nov 2011 01:30 PM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Video, EVE Online, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, Sandbox Holy cow, would you believe that CCP has put out another positive press blurb? We know, it shocks us too, and the unfailingly chipper Icelandic development firm is winding down a week full of dev blog updates with a behind-the-scenes look at EVE Online's core technology team. Thankfully there's a video involved, as a text-based behind-the-scenes look would be almost as boring as a New Eden mining run. Also, flying-in-space fans, beware: There are some stretches of the clip that focus on full-body avatars and other "non-essential" gameplay elements. Aside from that, there are bits dealing with ship shadows, readability and usability issues with the star map, and some details on the new open source crash reporting system. Click past the cut for the full clip. Continue reading New EVE video takes you behind the core technology curtain New EVE video takes you behind the core technology curtain originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: YouTube

First Impressions: SD Gundam Capsule Fighters Online Posted: 10 Nov 2011 01:00 PM PST Filed under: Betas, Sci-fi, Galleries, Screenshots, Game mechanics, Previews, Opinion, Free-to-play, Hands-on, Massively Hands-on, First Impressions Like the gameplay of SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online, the title of the game itself may need some translation. "Online" and "Fighter" you can probably make sense of, and even if your knowledge of Japanese cartoons ends on Saturday mornings in the '80s and '90s, "Gundam" is probably familiar -- this is a game where you drive robots around shooting at each other online. But "Capsule" might throw you a bit, and "SD" was a new one to me. "SD" means "super deformed," and Gundam Capsules are like those little plastic balls you can get from 25-cent-machines in the supermarket. They're toy versions of Gundam mechs, basically. In other words, SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online is essentially a game about toy robots fighting. It was first released in South Korea in 2007, and it's slowly made its way around the world here to North America, where it's in closed beta and is set for a full free-to-play release in "early December" by OGPlanet. As you might imagine, it's cute, and the mechanic of collecting and customizing these little robot machines that you can send into battle will likely appeal to quite a few players. Unfortunately, after playing a few matches of the third-person shooter at OGPlanet headquarters recently, I determined that it'll be tough to recommend the title to anyone but the most die-hard of Gundam fans. Gallery: SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online Continue reading First Impressions: SD Gundam Capsule Fighters Online First Impressions: SD Gundam Capsule Fighters Online originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Perfect World Entertainment teams up with Nexon Korea Posted: 10 Nov 2011 12:30 PM PST Filed under: MMO industry, News items, Miscellaneous Chinese MMO powerhouse Perfect World Entertainment has teamed up with Nexon Korea in order to expand Perfect World's games to Korean players. Nexon CEO Min Seo says that "[Nexon is] very excited about establishing this New Company with Perfect World to bring more of their titles into the Korean market." Perfect World CEO Michael Chi believes that the pairing will help the studio to "further expand [its] user base and provide the highest quality services to local players in the Korean market." Perfect World Entertainment teams up with Nexon Korea originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: GamesIndustry

The Guild Counsel: The problem with guilds Posted: 10 Nov 2011 12:00 PM PST Filed under: Guilds, Opinion, The Guild Counsel, Miscellaneous Last week, I put up a poll asking you, the Massively readers, to indicate whether you had a character in a guild or not. The response was great, and many of you voted and posted your thoughts as well. While this was a very unofficial survey, the results are interesting because it turns out that only a little more than half (56.6%) of those who replied are in a guild. (And for the record, the word guild is used as a catch-all phrase to refer to any in-game organization of people.) There are some overall factors that might account for the results. This website, for example, covers hundreds of games, and the results might be much higher if the survey were done on a particular MMO's official website, where the playerbase is more focused on one game. But there are some valid reasons why players choose to forego guilds, and they're worth taking a look at. I chose three in particular that many commenters seemed to echo in last week's column, and in this week's Guild Counsel, I'll examine why they contribute to giving guilds a bad rap and whether it's possible to turn things around. Continue reading The Guild Counsel: The problem with guilds The Guild Counsel: The problem with guilds originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

SOE releases EverQuest II Beastlord Q&A Posted: 10 Nov 2011 11:30 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, EverQuest II, Classes, Expansions, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play Beastlords! BEASTLORDS! Sorry, but long-time Norrath junkies are somewhat excited by the upcoming appearance of the popular class in Sony Online Entertainment's venerable EverQuest II title. When the Age of Discovery expansion debuts next month, pet-loving players will have a lot to look forward to, according to lead designer Akil "Lyndro" Hooper. "One of our goals for Beastlords is to experiment with some new play styles. Beastlords have warders that they can tame, who work in combination with the Beastlord to create a new style of combat tactics. Beastlords have fewer buttons to press, and a more active and reactive playstyle than our other classes," Hooper explained in a new Q&A released yesterday. Head to the official EQII website for more of the discussion including the differences between warders and more specifics on combat. SOE releases EverQuest II Beastlord Q&A originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Beastlord Q&A

Lime Odyssey introduces crafting professions Posted: 10 Nov 2011 11:00 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Classes, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Free-to-play, Crafting Aeria Games is ramping up its PR efforts for Lime Odyssey, a new free-to-play fantasy MMORPG that's been in the works for a while now. The newest info drop concerns the game's dual-class system that "allows a character to adopt both a battle-themed role and a professional trade." In addition to a race, players will need to pick a battle class and a domestic profession for their avatar, with the latter featuring a choice between Chef, Tailor, or Blacksmith. Aeria says that players may then "switch between their character's battle class and profession at any time with the push of a button." In sharp contrast to many combat-focused MMOs, Lime Odyssey features hundreds of crafting quests, and the end results of a crafting combine are "either a helpful tool or a viable commodity for trade." [Source: Aeria press release] Lime Odyssey introduces crafting professions originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

EverQuest II goes fully free-to-play: Our chat with Dave Georgeson Posted: 10 Nov 2011 10:30 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, EverQuest II, Classes, Expansions, Game mechanics, Interviews, Previews, Free-to-play Earlier in the fall, Massively's EverQuest II column, The Tattered Notebook, took a look at the differences between the live servers and the free-to-play server and speculated on the possibility of making all servers free-to-play. As it turns out, we no longer need to speculate because SOE has officially announced that EverQuest II will make the full transition to free-to-play in early December. Just in time for the release of the newest expansion, Age of Discovery, all servers will now share the same subscription plans, Marketplace, and forums. Last week, Executive Producer Dave "SmokeJumper" Georgeson took time to share with us the details of the free-to-play transition as well as highlight some of the new features coming with the expansion. Read on for a look at what's to come for EQII. Continue reading EverQuest II goes fully free-to-play: Our chat with Dave Georgeson EverQuest II goes fully free-to-play: Our chat with Dave Georgeson originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Massively mammillary online: Evony hires model to be the... face of the game Posted: 10 Nov 2011 10:00 AM PST Filed under: Business models, Events, in-game, Free-to-play, Browser, Humor, Miscellaneous Quick -- what's missing in your life? No, not your dog; that beast is never coming back and you might as well get used to it. We're talking about Evony's tasteful, classy, and omnipresent chest-centric ads that had absolutely nothing to do with the gameplay itself. While Evony eventually replaced those ads with ones that showed elements from the actual game, it was only a matter of time before the bosoms of glory returned. To solve the crisis of the irrelevant breasts, the game studio hired a model to portray an in-game character, Eva, in a new series of ads. According to the press release, Eva was chosen by the game's players to find the right look for the person to represent the game. Eva will be displayed as both a real model and cartoon version. Undoubtedly, this is the high point of civilization as we know it, and everything will go downhill from here. Massively mammillary online: Evony hires model to be the... face of the game originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Vertical Wire

Lineage Eternal trailer shows off drag-and-hold combat Posted: 10 Nov 2011 09:30 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Trailers, Video, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, News items Lineage fans have a lot to be excited about this week, as NCsoft has finally announced the third franchise entry at G-Star 2011. Lineage Eternal is shaping up to be a throwback to the original Lineage title due to its overhead camera, and it also sports a fairly unique "drag-and-hold" mechanic designed to make combat more immersive via drawn mouse patterns for various actions like spell-casting. We say fairly unique here because while the mechanic is new to AAA MMO franchises, a similar idea was employed earlier this year in the Shadow Cities iPhone game. You can get a look at the mechanics in action, as well as over 14 minutes of Lineage Eternal gameplay, in the trailer after the cut. [Thanks to John for the tip!] Continue reading Lineage Eternal trailer shows off drag-and-hold combat Lineage Eternal trailer shows off drag-and-hold combat originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: MMO Culture

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General gaming

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• Downloading Your PSP UMD Games on Vita Will Cost You
• Review: Saints Row: The Third is The Craziest Game You've Ever Played
• Review: The Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword Soars, But Struggles With Its Past
• Skullgirls is The Fighter That Every Competitive Player Should Pay Attention To
• Steam Breached, Potentially Compromising Credit Card Info
• Gotham City Impostors Dated for January 10 Following Open Beta
• Saints Row: The Third Season Pass Detailed: DLC at a Discount
• EverQuest II Going Free-to-Play After Seven Years
• Final Fantasy XIII-2 Collector's Edition Centered Around a 4-Disc Soundtrack
• Call of Duty Elite Founders Get a Free Month for Their Troubles

Downloading Your PSP UMD Games on Vita Will Cost You Posted: 11 Nov 2011 07:32 AM PST PlayStation Vita may not have gone digital-only -- it's not the right time, Sony says -- but that won't help should you want to play your PlayStation Portable's UMD games on the system. With no UMD slot, those games might as well be Coleco cartridges. Sony does see a business opportunity here and, as previously reported, will allow UMD game owners to purchase a digital version on Vita. Sony has now offered details on this functionality along with prices for how much those in Japan will be paying to do so.

Review: Saints Row: The Third is The Craziest Game You've Ever Played Posted: 11 Nov 2011 12:01 AM PST Saints Row: The Third stars Lara Croft, Christina Hendricks, and Zack from Dead or Alive. At least my playthrough did. The game, like its predecessor, lets players change their appearance any time for any reason. As the leader of the street gang turned international celebrities (The Saints), you can duck into a plastic surgeon's office at any time and change from an Elvira look-alike to a 300-pound blue-skinned cross-dresser with a beehive hairdo and a pink Snidely Whiplash mustache; and your fellow gang members won't bat an eye. It's also worth noting that this is probably the least absurd thing about the game and its story. The Third doubles down on what made Saints Row 2 a notable game in a post-Grand Theft Auto IV world. It opens on your gang robbing a bank in order to give a ride-along actor inspiration for his upcoming role in a Saints Row movie. The mission begins with your gang barging in disguised as giant bobble-headed versions of Saints superstar Johnny Gat. The heist gets foiled not by the cops, but by an international crime syndicate that would feel more at home on The Venture Brothers than in Grand Theft Auto. The Saints are told that they can either pony up the majority of their profits to "the Syndicate," or die. The leader chooses the former option and guns down armed goons, jumps out of the plane, kills enemies in mid-air, pulls the parachute only to crash through the windshield of the same plane, free-falls through the entire cabin (killing enemies the entire way through), falls back out of the plane, catches a parachute-free Saint on the way down, and lands safely. That's just the tutorial. Then it's time to raid an army base for supplies.

Review: The Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword Soars, But Struggles With Its Past Posted: 11 Nov 2011 12:01 AM PST No video game bears the same burden of expectation as a new entry in The Legend of Zelda. Each chapter generates a massive wave of pre-release excitement, followed closely by inevitable post-launch debates. Questions like, "Is this the best Zelda game ever?" or even, "Is this the best game ever?" dominate forums for months -- even years. So, is The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword the best game of the franchise? Unfortunately, no. But few things should ever be viewed in absolute terms. The better question would be, "Is Skyward Sword another great Zelda game?" To that I'd say, "Absolutely." Skyward Sword shows that Nintendo EAD has learned a lot since 2006's Twilight Princess and the two portable games that followed. With this latest sequel, the developers have crafted a remarkable adventure that implements some of the most forward-thinking ideas of the series.

Skullgirls is The Fighter That Every Competitive Player Should Pay Attention To Posted: 10 Nov 2011 05:05 PM PST One could easily pass off Skullgirls as nothing more than a gimmicky fighter due to its risqué art style and unknown character roster. At first glance, it's hard to blame anyone who would think it's simply trying to cash in on the same demographic that purchases anime hug pillows and boobie mouse pads. And hey, that may be partially true, but try not to get too distracted by all the fan service as there is a lot more going on with Skullgirls than you may realize. With long time tournament player Mike Z. behind the wheel -- making adjustments to the gameplay system at tournaments on the fly based on player feedback -- it's safe to say the game is in good hands. After spending just a few minutes with the game, I can instantly tell it's been carefully crafted for the tournament level fighting game community.

Steam Breached, Potentially Compromising Credit Card Info Posted: 10 Nov 2011 03:04 PM PST Valve has notified users their personal information -- included encrypted credit card information -- has been compromised following an intrusion that recently took place. The Steam forums were taken offline earlier this week after they were defaced by hackers (as pictured below). There was no indication at the time that anything significant had taken place beyond users finding an exploit in the forum software valve uses. Visiting them continues to bring up the same message: "The Steam Forums are temporarily offline for maintenance. Your patience is appreciated."

Gotham City Impostors Dated for January 10 Following Open Beta Posted: 10 Nov 2011 02:38 PM PST Monolith's quirky, Batman-themed first-person shooter will be out in exactly two months' time following a beta that's set to take place in December. Gotham City Impostors was first announced this past May and involves teams of Batman and Joker wannabes facing off against one another. It's a class-based first-person shooter with all sorts of crazy gadgets, as is to be expected from a silly game being developed by Monolith.

Saints Row: The Third Season Pass Detailed: DLC at a Discount Posted: 10 Nov 2011 01:20 PM PST A game launch just wouldn't feel complete (at least from the publishers' perspective) without an accompanying Season Pass to purchase. As such, Saints Row: The Third will provide gamers with the opportunity to get a handful of downloadable content planned for release next year at a discount. The Saints Row Season Pass entitles buyers to three downloadable content packs planned for release in 2012 as well as the bonus (and obnoxiously-titled) Nyte Blayde DLC, which is coming out on November 15. It consists of four components, all pictured above: the Nyte Blayde Mobile, a red, vampire-hunting sports car; the Altar Boy outfit; the Bloody Canoness outfit; and the accompanying Bloody Canoness bike.

EverQuest II Going Free-to-Play After Seven Years Posted: 10 Nov 2011 12:20 PM PST Not a day after rattling off a list of formerly subscription-based MMOs to adopt the free-to-play model, another game has joined the F2P ranks today. Sony Online Entertainment has announced EverQuest II is going free-to-play early next month, right around the same time its newest expansion, Age of Discovery, is launched. This move comes about a year after a free-to-play version of the game, EverQuest II: Extended, was released. The difference is that whereas that was a separate, free version of the game that divided the community, this applies for the entire game and will merge the two communities back into one.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 Collector's Edition Centered Around a 4-Disc Soundtrack Posted: 10 Nov 2011 11:11 AM PST The inevitable Collector's Edition of Final Fantasy XIII-2 has been announced. Unlike many of the other CEs announced in recent months, this one won't cost you a whole lot more than the standard game. Of course, there's a reason for that -- it doesn't include a great deal of stuff. If you're not a fan of Final Fantasy music, you almost certainly won't be interested as the main component of XIII-2's CE is a soundtrack.

Call of Duty Elite Founders Get a Free Month for Their Troubles Posted: 10 Nov 2011 10:10 AM PST Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's launch has gone smooth in terms of online multiplayer stability -- players can play without experiencing any widespread issues like those faced by Battlefield 3 players following its launch. What has not been working quite so well is the new Call of Duty Elite service. Users have been experiencing issues registering, logging in, accessing stats, and so on because Beachhead has had "trouble scaling the service to meet demand."

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