| The Secret World's Bruusgard talks skill decks, customization Posted: 08 Feb 2012 09:00 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Horror, Game mechanics, Interviews, MMO industry, New titles, News items, The Secret World The Secret World launch is fast approaching (though it may not be exactly when we some are reporting), and plenty of things of things about the game remain, well, secret. GamesRadar recently cornered lead designer Martin Bruusgaard and sussed out a few details regarding the game's skill deck mechanics. Bruusgaard says the system was designed to offer players a way to get their heads around the game's 500-plus abilities. While there are some recommended decks and combos for newer players, Bruusgaard says the intent behind the The Secret World's classless progression system lies is adaptability and plenty of customization options. "Some of the beauty of the system is allowing the players to come up with cool stuff themselves. We want to reward the players who dive into this and take their time to tinker with this, and there are lots of cool combinations we will save for these players," he explains.  The Secret World's Bruusgard talks skill decks, customization originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Vindictus Europe video shows off new boss, new hero Posted: 08 Feb 2012 08:00 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Trailers, Video, Classes, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Vindictus The latest Vindictus Europe video has a scary new boss monster on display. Nexon is introducing Thor (no, not that Thor), a giant crocodile-like creature with three mouths and a nasty disposition. Nexon describes Thor as an "outlaw of the dark and damp underworld," and the trailer shows a cross-section of Vindictus heroes slicing and dicing the new monster using the title's unique action combat mechanics. While we're on the subject of heroes, the video also teases the latest Vindictus Europe playable character, a giant brawler named Karok. Check out all the gory details after the cut. [Source: Nexon Europe press release] Continue reading Vindictus Europe video shows off new boss, new hero Vindictus Europe video shows off new boss, new hero originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Trion releases RIFT wedding trailer Posted: 08 Feb 2012 07:30 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Trailers, Video, Events, in-game, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, RIFT A couple of weeks ago Trion announced its plan to get RIFT in the Guinness Book of World Records for hosting the most virtual marriages in a 24-hour period. Today the company has released a new video designed to show off the matrimony mechanics and give fans a sneak peek of what's in store for the Valentine's Day record attempt. The festivities begin at 12:00 p.m. EST on February 14th, and Trion says that "any two RIFT players who get hitched in-game will be counted in the Guinness World Records title attempt and will receive 'The Avowed' in-game title." Don't forget to check out the video after the break. [Source: Trion press release] Continue reading Trion releases RIFT wedding trailer Trion releases RIFT wedding trailer originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| TERA EU gearing up for second system test Posted: 08 Feb 2012 07:00 AM PST Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Events, in-game, MMO industry, New titles, News items, TERA TERA's European client will undergo another round of testing today at 2:00 p.m. Central Europe time. According to a post on the official boards, this is another "special functional test of [ TERA's] systems," much like the one that went awry over the weekend. The testing period will run for approximately four hours, and it is open to everyone who has redeemed a sneak peek or pre-order key for the European client. TERA EU community manager Raven says that this test is actually a test, unlike the marketing beta events we've grown accustomed to in recent years. "Remember this is not a test to enjoy the game, but rather to test our server infrastructure," she writes. TERA EU gearing up for second system test originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Choose My Adventure: Craft it one piece at a time Posted: 08 Feb 2012 06:00 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Polls, Game mechanics, Ryzom, Opinion, Free-to-play, Crafting Sometimes, a well-planned weekend turns into a complete mess. Case in point: This past weekend, which I fully meant to use to get more of a footing in Ryzom, wound up being almost entirely dominated by a mixture of other responsibilities and necessities. As a result, I didn't get nearly as much time playing the game as I would have liked. The plan is to spend more time crafting away over the course of the week, but this article needs to be written up earlier than that. As you can imagine, this results in a little bit of a hole in the narrative. Fortunately, crafting is pretty deep as a system but fairly thin in terms of a core narrative, unless you find "and then I made another set of light sleeves" to be engrossing. So while I didn't get several hours of story, if you're not familiar with what the system offers, there's still plenty of ground to cover. Continue reading Choose My Adventure: Craft it one piece at a time Choose My Adventure: Craft it one piece at a time originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Funcom debunks The Secret World launch date rumor Posted: 08 Feb 2012 05:30 AM PST Filed under: Betas, Horror, Sci-fi, Launches, The Secret World Could we finally have a specific launch date for The Secret World? Yes, but more accurately, no. While hopeful fans clung to possible news that Funcom had confirmed an April 24th launch date, the studio has issued a statement saying that this was "an internal production date" that was mentioned at a recent press event, and doesn't necessarily reflect the actual release date for the title: Funcom has become aware of postings in various media stating that commercial launch of the online game The Secret World has been set to 24 April 2012. This date was communicated at a press event in the Funcom offices in Oslo today -- as an internal production date.
Funcom has previously announced the launch month for the game to be April 2012 and wants to stress that there is currently no change or update on the expected time for commercial launch of The Secret World. The company will announce the release date at a later stage through a stock notice and a formal press release when the date has been set. The studio recently wrapped up a week dedicated to the Illuminati faction and revealed one of the game's spooky settings, Blue Mountain. Funcom debunks The Secret World launch date rumor originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Daily Grind: Do children have a place in MMOs? Posted: 08 Feb 2012 05:00 AM PST Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Humor, Miscellaneous Today's discussion topic needs a smidge of clarification. I'm not asking you whether or not real-life kids should be playing MMOs, as plenty already do and it's great to be raising a future crop of gold farmers and extreme fashion designers. What I am asking is whether child NPCs have a place in MMOs. When you think about it, most of our virtual worlds are nearly devoid of anyone under the age of 18 (except if you're in certain Asian titles where it seems like nobody, including yourself, has hit puberty yet). Whole cities are bustling with merchants and kings, yet not a single child is to be seen. If there are kids, they tend to be in place for a one-time unique quest or a special event, such as World of Warcraft's Children's Week. But with all of the war, slaughter, and volatile situations, is it a good thing that someone has whisked these kids off to safety? Would MMOs be more questionable with their content if a kid was to come stumbling along while you were skinning a boar or decapitating an Orc leader? Or would these worlds be more believable and immersive if the whole range of ages was represented?  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 children have a place in MMOs? originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Asheron's Call readies radical February revamp Posted: 07 Feb 2012 07:00 PM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Asheron's Call, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, Sandbox When you have an MMORPG that's well into its second decade, there's got to be a strong temptation to simply keep the servers on and let it ride. The community is probably pretty hardcore -- and they're certainly faithful -- and throwing a bunch of changes at them could be a dicey proposition. Turbine is taking that gamble with its venerable Asheron's Call sandbox, though, as the title's February update is bringing sweeping changes to the world of Auberean. New skills and new systems are the order of the day, and whether you're talking about the removal of racial skills or the ability to have six additional specialization skills, there's probably going to be an adjustment period after the patch. Head to official AC boards for all the details. [Thanks to Rehlik for the tip!] Asheron's Call readies radical February revamp originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Game Archaeologist dials up Phantasy Star Online: The players Posted: 07 Feb 2012 06:00 PM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Classes, Culture, Interviews, Consoles, The Game Archaeologist After last week's foray into the colorful world of Phantasy Star Online, I knew I had to step it up for a great follow-through. That's why I got in touch with three excellent MMO bloggers who have long histories with PSO and were more than eager to share their perspective on this unique game world! The Game Archaeologist: Who the heck are you and how did you first get into Phantasy Star Online? What class and race did you play? David: I'm David Lambert, but many people know me better as Branick, host and producer of the LOTRO Academy podcast. I first got into Phantasy Star Online with the original Dreamcast release, which I picked up only about two weeks after it came out. I actually had eight different characters (I bought six VMUs in addition to the two I already had specifically for this purpose), but I definitely favored the HUcast. I wasn't big on using techniques, and the HUcast had the highest attack power in the game. Continue reading The Game Archaeologist dials up Phantasy Star Online: The players The Game Archaeologist dials up Phantasy Star Online: The players originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| CCP releases EVE video aimed at newbie capsuleers Posted: 07 Feb 2012 05:30 PM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Trailers, Video, EVE Online, MMO industry, News items, Sandbox Apparently a brand-spanking-new website wasn't enough for CCP and its EVE Online property, so the company has released a nifty new trailer to go along with the cyberspace re-branding. The clip is two-and-a-half minutes of spaceship porn underscored with the usual fembot voiceover. The video is clearly aimed at EVE newbs, so there's not a lot to get excited about if you're a veteran capsuleer. Just the same, it's an eye-opening glance at the game's first-class visuals and hard sci-fi art direction. Give it a look after the cut. Continue reading CCP releases EVE video aimed at newbie capsuleers CCP releases EVE video aimed at newbie capsuleers originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Bill Roper named Disney Interactive head of game development Posted: 07 Feb 2012 05:00 PM PST |
| Fans share their anticipation for Guild Wars 2 Posted: 07 Feb 2012 04:30 PM PST |
| Ancient and modern clash in new 8Realms trailer Posted: 07 Feb 2012 04:00 PM PST Filed under: Trailers, Video, News items, Free-to-play, Browser, Casual Jagex, creator of the hit browser-based MMO RuneScape, is fixing to break out its latest title: the social empire-building strategy title 8Realms. In 8Realms, players are put in charge of an ancient, primitive civilization, and they're responsible for raising their nascent society into a far-reaching, world-spanning empire. Whether they accomplish this goal through warfare, diplomacy, or other means is up to them. To get a taste of the kind of absurdity you can expect from 8Realms, click on past the cut for a new trailer, then click on over to the official site to build your own empire. Just be sure to watch out for predatory automobiles. [Source: Jagex press release] Continue reading Ancient and modern clash in new 8Realms trailer Ancient and modern clash in new 8Realms trailer originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Winner of Mabinogi's Merchant of Venice contest highlighted Posted: 07 Feb 2012 03:00 PM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Video, Contests, Events, real-world, Expansions, Free-to-play, Mabinogi, Giveaways If you are familiar with the Mabinogi-hosted contest from November called The Merchant of Venice, California, then you know that the popular free-to-play developer and publisher Nexon asked players to participate in order to win a free trip to the company's California studios to play, relax and discuss the new content. The event celebrated the release of the Merchant of Venice update. The addition gave players the ability to literally transport goods across the lands of Mabinogi. Players gain levels, earn in-game cash that can be used to buy special items and weapons, and gain access to better items to be traded. All expansions in the popular free-to-play title are free. Sayre, a player from the Mari server, was invited to meet the developers, tour the office and even give some advice about how to make the game better. He received a free Alienware computer, 500 USD in cash and three nights in a hotel right on Venice Beach! In order to qualify for the contest drawing, players were required to have reached merchant level 9 in each of the game's towns. Click past the cut to watch an exclusive preview of the tour! Continue reading Winner of Mabinogi's Merchant of Venice contest highlighted Winner of Mabinogi's Merchant of Venice contest highlighted originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Star Trek Online unpacks Cardassian mystery boxes Posted: 07 Feb 2012 02:00 PM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Business models, Previews, Star Trek Online While last December's red gift boxes proved controversial in the Star Trek Online community, Cryptic has stated that they were incredibly profitable and that it will continue to produce similar "treasure chest" items that require real-world money to acquire. True to its word, the studio will release a new batch of Cardassian Lock Boxes this Thursday as standard, free drops -- but opening them is going to cost you. The lock boxes contain one random reward inside that ranges from insanely rare (in this case, a Cardassian Galor-class starship) to trivially common (such as consumables) and everything in-between. While the boxes will be attained and traded like any other in-game loot, they can only be opened with a special Master Key purchased in the C-Store. Master Keys will go on sale for 100 CP apiece or 10 for 900 CP. Other potential prizes in the Cardassian Lock Boxes include Tribbles, Hortas, shuttles, Deep Space Nine costumes, and duty officer packs. Star Trek Online unpacks Cardassian mystery boxes originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| EVE Online jazzes up website, opens CSM application process Posted: 07 Feb 2012 01:00 PM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Culture, Events, real-world If EVE Online's website were a teenage girl in a movie -- and we're not for a moment suggesting that it's not -- today is the day she'd go through one of those peppy makeover montages and ultimately reveal the beauty that was there all along (just in hiding -- stupid glasses). The new design is up for the world to see, sporting a sleek sexiness along with an interesting ticker relating the latest and greatest from the game. CCP is hoping that the redesign will come off as more "user friendly" for newbies. In other EVE news, CCP will begin accepting applications tonight for the Council of Stellar Management (CSM). The process is quite involved: Players will apply until the 22nd, after which nominations will be pulled from the list and then community voting will commence. If you're interested in becoming a major voice of the community by advising CCP in EVE's development, then you'd do well to check out the list of candidacy qualifications and get your app in on time! [Thanks to Xilmar for the tip!] EVE Online jazzes up website, opens CSM application process originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Hyperspace Beacon: Mos Eisley Radio part 2 Posted: 07 Feb 2012 12:00 PM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Culture, Interviews, New titles, Opinion, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Hyperspace Beacon Last week, I introduced to you again to the crew at Mos Eisley Radio. This podcast and web site launched itself to the Star Wars: The Old Republic community in 2009 and has been growing strong ever since. In fact, it's hard not to be shocked at the growth in viewers and content since SWTOR launched. Some of the other fan sites have actually streamlined their content to compensate for the fact that their crews are busy playing the game. But Mos Eisley Radio's producers have actually expanded its reach -- so much that I had to talk with them about what they are doing. Executive producer Zach Brown, host Evan Lewis, and guild leader Alan Nauman joined me in a chat about the site, the guild, and the future of the community they are building. If you missed the first part of the conversation, be sure to read that first, then jump past the cut for the rest. Continue reading Hyperspace Beacon: Mos Eisley Radio part 2 Hyperspace Beacon: Mos Eisley Radio part 2 originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| ArcheAge CBT4 extended to March 11th, 'if not later' Posted: 07 Feb 2012 11:00 AM PST Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, MMO industry, New titles, News items, ArcheAge, Sandbox Those of you having fun in ArcheAge's fourth closed beta test will be happy to know that the party isn't stopping just yet. XLGAMES has announced a two-week extension for CBT4, ostensibly to subject the recently introduced siege system to more player-driven tests. Fan site ArcheAge Online says that "the beta will continue on until at least March 11th, if not later." ArcheAge is a fantasy title that seeks to meld the best parts of both sandbox and themepark design conventions. The game is the brainchild of Lineage creator Jake Song, and you can check out Massively's impressions of the beta via our CBT3 recap. ArcheAge CBT4 extended to March 11th, 'if not later' originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Soapbox: Evolution of a class Posted: 07 Feb 2012 10:00 AM PST Filed under: Classes, Culture, Game mechanics, 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. In 1974, the first roleplaying game was published under the name Dungeons & Dragons. Being the first of its field, it still had certain rough parts, which later designers would consider fundamental failures. Modern tabletop design looks at things like classes and levels as being relics in many ways -- elements that made sense as a crutch when the design of RPGs was one step removed from tactical wargames. Compare that to, well, pretty much every MMORPG on the market. While there are certainly games that don't follow the class/level model, they're outnumbered by games that embrace it wholeheartedly. As a result, it's easy to look at the way game development has gone and feel as if the design of online games has not only stagnated but actively slid backward, going from a more advanced system to a far less developed one. Continue reading The Soapbox: Evolution of a class The Soapbox: Evolution of a class originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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