MMO News

MMO News

Firefall begins Battleframe Trailer Challenge

Posted: 10 Feb 2012 03:51 PM PST

Red 5 Studios has announced a new contest for Firefall fans: The Battleframe Trailer Challenge.

The contest, which runs until March 16, challenges players to piece together raw gameplay footage and music (provided by the developer) into a trailer or commercial highlighting their favorite battleframe, similar to the Dreadnaught Introduction shown below. Upload these videos to YouTube, and Red 5 will judge submissions based in part by the likes and views of each submission.

The grand prize will be an all-expenses paid trip for two to PAX East 2012 plus $500 spending money. Other prizes include an Alienware M14x laptop and an ASTRO Gaming A40 Audio System (Firefall branded).

Firefall Dreadnaught Introduction:

Source:

RED 5 STUDIOS ANNOUNCES FIREFALL BATTLEFRAME TRAILER CHALLENGE


Chance to Win a Trip to PAX East 2012, an Alienware™ Laptop, or ASTRO A40 Audio System


Laguna Hills, CA – February 10, 2012 – Red 5 Studios™ announced today the launch of its Battleframe Trailer Challenge, a contest for creative gamers to show off their video-making ability, explore brand new Firefall footage, and compete for awesome prizes – including a trip to PAX East 2012. Red 5 is accepting entries now until March 16th, when the winners are announced. Contestants can submit their completed trailers via Youtube at the official contest page: http://bit.ly/firefallchallenge

"At Red 5 we're very community-focused and this contest is a great way to get everyone involved in the game," said Red 5 CEO, Mark Kern. "Since we're always making action-packed Firefall trailers we thought it would be cool to see what our fans could come up with. Knowing them, they'll put together some amazing videos that are more than worthy of the prizes we're giving away."

Participants will be given previously-unreleased raw gameplay footage along with a handful of music tracks. They'll have until March 16th to craft a flashy trailer/commercial that highlights their favorite battleframe and submit the Youtube link for entry. Red 5 encourages contestants to enter and promote their trailers as early as possible, as the winners will be decided using a special Red 5 algorithm that incorporates the "likes" and "views" of each Youtube submission.

Red 5 has partnered up with cosponsors, Alienware™ and ASTRO Gaming, to ensure that the Battleframe Trailer Challenge offers gamers top-notch prizes. The first, second and third place entries will receive the following:

  • · First Place: An all-expenses-paid* trip for two to PAX East 2012 in Boston, along with $500 spending money.

*Red 5 will cover up to $1,500 per round-trip ticket ($3,000 maximum).

  • · Second Place: An Alienware M14x laptop containing an Intel Core™ i7 processor, 4GB DDR3 Memory, and GeForce 555M 3GB Graphics Card.
  • · Third Place: An ASTRO Gaming A40 Audio System featuring a Firefall branded A40 Headset and MixAmp™ Pro.

Participants can visit http://bit.ly/firefallchallenge to download the official "asset package" and find additional contest details and rules.

Hedone launches 2.4 update

Posted: 10 Feb 2012 03:10 PM PST

Hedone’s closed beta has just launched a new patch, version 2.4, with a host of new updates to enjoy.

New in the update are three locations – Cactus, Wreck, and Studio – and one new game mode, Search & Destroy. Two new weapons, the MK3A1 and Black DE.50 Muzzle Brake, also make their debut. All weapons have also been recalibrated and rebalanced for range, damage, and accuracy. The update also improves some network performance issues, and resets the game for the new phase of testing.

Hedone is published by Acony.

hedone_new_level_studio

Hedone Gameplay Screenshot

Source:

Hello fellow Hedone fans! Today is an exciting day as the pilot of Hedone.TV is going into its next evaluation period. Our teams have been working hard to deliver improvements to the show and you’ll be the first to experience them!

New Arenas & Game Mode

The Location team has been travelling the world seeking out new arenas for Hedone.TV. Three fantastic new locations have passed our evaluation, have been given the Hedone treatment, and will appear in this phase of the show. These are:

Cactus

Our location scouts have found a superb bit of real estate for the contestants to fight over. From above it looks like a wasteland with not much to hide behind but you'll find out quickly that there are intriguing secrets hidden below the sands. This arena really showcases long-ranged combat skills while still keeping contestants on their toes.

Wreck

When we stumbled across this unique setting, it was an opportunity that we simply couldn't miss. We bought the island, relocated the villagers and turned their homes, built from the bones of a wrecked cargo ship, into an amazing arena. Hedone is all about getting to the top. The same is true for this arena, where getting high up is key.

Studio

Who doesn't love the movies? Popcorn, bright lights and expensive soda! Now, we bring the magic of the movies to Hedone.TV with this fantastic arena. We purchased this abandoned movie studio off of a former competitor. Now, our contestants can battle among alien spacecrafts and tentacle monstrosities!

In addition to this the Arena team had another look at the Carpark location and improved it. It will be re-added to the show roster in this pre-season.

Now that we have even more incredible arenas to use, it’s the perfect time to unveil our new show format. Our lawyers have signed off the ruleset for Search & Destroy for you to participate in as part of the pre-season.

Search & Destroy

Search & Destroy is a well-known show format. It has been given the special Lazar twist to create an exciting objective based match that rewards teamwork above all else.

LazarTech Updates

The Tech team has been staying late in the labs to improve the armory and has engineered the following changes and additions:

New Weapons / Mods

  • MK3A1 – Fully automatic shotgun complete with a full suite of modifications ready to go
  • Black DE.50 Muzzle Brake – custom-made exclusive muzzle brake for the Black version of the DE .50.

Weapons and Combat Adjustments

The big news for our contestants is that all weapons have been recalibrated and now perform more reliably over different ranges. As a result all weapon damage has been rebalanced.

Further, the following changes have been made to particular items:

  • G17 – improved accuracy
  • MP5 and MP7 – reduced headshot damage
  • Sniper Scopes – Zoom levels changed to 3x for small scopes, 6x for big scopes and 3x/6x for multi-scopes
  • Endorphex – reduced damage slightly, lowered energy recharges rate, and increased energy costs

General Network Performance

The following changes have been made to streamline the show experience for our contestants:

  • Team Switch – contestants can switch teams faster
  • Server Browser – it’s easier to find show formats that contestants want to participate in
  • Launcher – the launcher was reworked, providing contestants information on the latest updates to the show in a more convenient to use fashion
  • Reward Screen – the look of the reward screen has been improved, in particular it is now easier for contestants to access unlocked rewards in the green room

Other Updates

  • Language – Hedone.TV is now available in German, the language can be switched via the launcher
  • All accounts will be reset for this new phase of the Hedone.TV pilot

We are looking forward to contestants trying out these new locations, weapons and updates. As always we value your feedback and encourage all contestants to let us know their thoughts on the new features on the Hedone.TV  forum.

Let’s put on a show!

Perfect World Games celebrate Valentine’s

Posted: 10 Feb 2012 02:15 PM PST

Perfect World Entertainment is celebrating Valentine’s across its games with various items, events, and more, as listed below:

* Perfect World International: GMs will be roaming the servers in hopes of finding friendly chit-chat and hugs, while welcoming any photo-op requests. Best event themed screenshot will win his or her choice of a rare mount.

* Jade Dynasty: Collective wedding event, a free Tiger Mask for players who get married, and a set of free gifts including a 7-day Aeon Lion mount for every player who logs in on February 14.

* Rusty Hearts: Show your love for Rusty Hearts by entering the art contest to win Roselle Vegerius, the latest premium character in-game.

* Forsaken World:  Players can choose to receive a Valentine's Day card and a random item from four different NPCs. Players can get the random item once per day during the event period. (Event runs from February 14-21.)

* War of the Immortals: Get your chocolate fix in Atlantis by collecting them off the ground and hand them in to an NPC for more experience points. (Event runs from February 14-21.)

* Ether Saga Odyssey: Join the masses in getting married, bid for a rare pet, send a custom broadcast message, and enter the screenshot contest for a chance to gain EXP and other special items.

pwivday1

Perfect World International Gameplay Screenshot

Brawl Busters busts out Valentine’s Update

Posted: 10 Feb 2012 01:45 PM PST

Rock Hippo Productions has released its Valentine’s update for Brawl Busters players.

Players can find new Evil Cutie Costumes to decorate their characters (like the one shown below) and stat-altering accessories, while brawling in their usual style. The game has also added new servers and improved network stability.

Rock Hippo also publishes MicroVolts.

brawlbusters-valentines

Brawl Busters Gameplay Screenshot

Source:

LOVE AND CARNAGE COLLIDE IN BRAWL BUSTERS

Rock Hippo Cuddles with Valentine’s Day Outfits Alongside New Game Servers

Markham, Canada – February 10, 2012 – Rock Hippo Productions announced today its Valentine Day’s plans for the popular free-to-play online multiplayer action game, Brawl Busters. Starting today players can don amorous outfits to lovingly beat up their opponents, and they will find a smoother gaming experience, when they do, with the all-new game servers! To check out this full, downloadable game, players should visit www.BrawlBusters.com/splash and join in the mayhem.

February 14th is a day to show your love, and what better way to do so than to Brawl with your significant other? Do it up in style with new Evil Cutie Costumes as well as never-seen-before stat-altering Accessories.

“Brawl Busters redefines how to celebrate Valentine’s Day for both, the singles out there and the numerous couples who play BB together,” said Howard He, President and CEO of Rock Hippo Productions. “The new Costumes alongside improved network stability means you can Brawl in ways you’ve only dreamed of!”

Brawl Busters was also recently nominated for the 2011 MMOSITE Reader’s Choice Awards and won in several categories. Brawl Busters took first place in both, ‘Best Graphics’ and ‘Best Music’ categories. The game also placed second in ‘Favorite Action and Casual MMO’ and ‘Best New MMO’ categories. More than 4 million votes were cast for the Awards.

Web Fiesta launches today

Posted: 10 Feb 2012 12:32 PM PST

Fiesta Online has launched its browser-based, 3D version of Fiesta Online, Web Fiesta, today.

Web Fiesta offers the same gameplay and features as regular Fiesta Online, allowing players to continue to experience the game in a 3D client without the need to download.

Several celebrations are going on in the community for the launch, including several in-game event. Players can join the Great Leveling Race, the Fiesta Comic Event, Fun With Fiesta, or even Date-A-GM. Players can also redeem a limited edition goldfish mini-pet with the code GOLDIMONWANTSFIESTA (expires February 14).

Fiesta Online is published by Outspark, which also publishes Luvinia Online.

fiesta-online-zoom-attack.jpg

Fiesta Online Gameplay Screenshot

Source:

Web Fiesta Revolutionizes Browser Gaming with Full 3D

Outspark Proving to Be A Genre-Defining Force for Free-To-Play MMORPGs

SAN FRANCISCO – February 9, 2012 – Starting today, millions of Fiesta fans will be able to pick up their game wherever there's a PC without ever leaving the party, as Outspark launches Web Fiesta , the new browser version of Fiesta Online, a wildly popular free-to-play MMORPG. Now on a beach, in a café, on a train, epic battles and romance are just a few clicks away, and in full 3D. That's not something that's been done before.

“This is a huge moment for the free-to-play industry as we bring true 3D to the browser. With Web Fiesta, players can pan 360 degrees around objects, an experience previously limited to the download client. This frees the player to take deep, immersive adventures on the road, and friends they meet along the way can join the fun in just a matter of clicks!" cheered Philip Yun, CEO, Outspark. "It's been truly fantastic working with our developer OnsOn Soft and partner SpawnApps delivering this seamless play experience to our community. It's the same game on the same servers, but now players have the choice to play on their download client or log into the web."

To celebrate the launch of Web Fiesta, Fiesta's Game Masters are hosting several exciting in-game events for valuable prizes. The Great Leveling Race is a race to the top for glory and SparkCash, the Fiesta Comic Event is a showcase of community's clever comic tales, and Fun With Fiesta rewards players for simply exploring the game. In addition, Date-A-GM makes its return as a Valentine's dating game where players face-off in a test-your-wits challenge to win dream in-game experiences with a Game Master.

For details on these events and more, check out fiesta.outspark.com, join our rapidly growing fanbase on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter. Play Web Fiesta for free and receive a special gift, a goldfish mini-pet, which will give your base stats a nice boost. Redeem your free mini-pet here and enter code GOLDIMONWANTSFIESTA, expires 2.14.12.

Forge of Empires Pre-Closed Beta Preview

Posted: 10 Feb 2012 11:41 AM PST

InnoGames is an established publisher when it comes to browser-based strategy games, hosting both Tribal Wars and Grepolis. This year, Innogames is introducing another new strategy game to its line-up: Forge of Empires. MMOHut had the chance to join the Exclusive Preview period of Forge of Empires to get an early look at this new contender.

Not Another Clone

Let's get something out of the way first: Forge of Empires is not another cookie-cutter MMORTS. Naturally, there are some shared elements with other strategy games, including producing resources, building a city, and sending out armies to infiltrate and plunder. But if you're worried that it's going to be another grind where you build and upgrade lumber mills and quarries, mass recruit soldiers to go farm, or sit around staring at a static city map waiting to something to happen, you have reason to relax. In fact, the system for Forge of Empires more strongly mimics Facebook-style strategy games, which require more active participation and less micro-management.

forge-of-empires-research

City Building with Ragu

You'll start out as many strategists do: as the leader of a budding little city in the most primitive state possible. The game offers a solid set of tutorials and tutorial quests with the helper of an NPC named Ragu Silvertongue. For a while, Ragu will be your sole guide; later on, other NPCs will chime in their advice and offer quests to complete in order to take your civilization further.

City building in Forge of Empires is grid-based, but offers a great amount of freedom. You can choose to place buildings and decorations wherever they fit within your city, and even pick up and move these items whenever you need to adjust for efficiency. Many buildings do need to be connected to roads, which are also yours to place as you wish. In fact, as your city grows, you'll find it necessary to rearrange and rebuild parts of your city to maximize its efficiency.

Buildings come in several types, from houses that offer population and regular money, to goods and services that offer regular production, to happiness-boosting decorations and public services, to military buildings designed to train units from your population. One key importance in managing a city is that all of these features require some level of time-watching to maximize their effectiveness: by collecting your money or supplies when they become available, you let nothing go to waste. There's almost always something to check in with on Forge of Empires.

forge-of-empires-city-build

Pillage, Plunder, and Negotiate

Forge of Empires also offers a solid single-player campaign, promoted primarily through the quest system. Through this campaign, you can take your army into different provinces, each of which is divided into further sectors. Conquering each of these sectors (through attacking, negotiating, or infiltrating) grants a small reward, while conquering the entire province unlocks a greater reward. However you choose to conquer, gaining more territory offers bonuses to your home city and progresses you further along the storyline. While not developed fully yet, Forge of Empires also offers PvP. Players can easily challenge each other through the game's menus, and face off in AI-controlled duels. PvP towers also offer weekly tournaments.

forge-of-empires-campaign

On The Battlefield

Battles in Forge of Empires are a nice harken back to classic strategy games. Battles take place on hex-based battlefields, populated with different types of terrain. Terrain offers different bonuses or penalties to defenders and attackers, and so plays a key role in each battle. Each unit (you can only take eight into battle) can be controlled individually through movement and attacks. You can also ask the game to control a unit for a single turn, or to control the entire battle in an auto-battle. Each unit has health that is lost as it battles, and if all its health is lost, the unit is lost as well. Damaged units can return to the city to heal, or be healed with cash currency.

forge-of-empires-battles-an

A Promising Start

Forge of Empires' twists of strategy game systems – from classic to casual – weave together to create something new for strategy fans to enjoy. For an early stage, the game shows a high amount of polish and depth, and it seems that InnoGames is carefully planning each step in the game's development to ensure that each new feature is implemented positively. If you've gotten tired of the common formula for strategy games, keep an eye on Forge of Empires and sign up for beta.
Posted by Shri Krishna

MMO Updates

MMO Updates

MMObility: Let's make a mobile game, part two

Posted: 10 Feb 2012 09:00 AM PST

Filed under: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

My MMO screenshot
Last week I started working with Dave Toulouse, indie developer of Golemizer and Star Corsairs, to build our very own mobile MMO. For the sake of completing the project within the month of February, we kept our game designs simple and easy for anyone to play. The idea was not to create a state-of-the-art video game but instead to build a working framework that illustrated some of the basics of MMO design.

Ironically, my first column on the subject was received rather coolly when I consider my normal column response, but last week's responses taught me a valuable lesson about design: Players often want to talk about what is not possible rather than what is. Dave told me how his players often told him what they wished his games would achieve, without ever considering just how difficult it is to make a game.

Still, there were several great ideas in the comments section. I'm going to use those ideas to break down this week's update.

Continue reading MMObility: Let's make a mobile game, part two

MassivelyMMObility: Let's make a mobile game, part two originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    Celebrate Valentine's Day with Perfect World Entertainment

    Posted: 10 Feb 2012 08:00 AM PST

    Filed under: , , , , ,

    Jade Dynasty - bride and groom
    If you haven't made any MMO-centric plans for Valentine's Day, consider the offerings from free-to-play giant Perfect World Entertainment. The company is playing cupid in several of its online titles, and players can acquire "wedding fashions, romantic items, spectacular mounts, mystery boxes, and more."

    Jade Dynasty     features a wedding event and items for marriage-minded avatars, while Perfect World International GMs will be interacting with players and giving out a rare mount. Rusty Hearts is putting on an art contest, and the prize is Roselle Vegerius (the game's latest premium character).

    Forsaken World     players will receive a Valentine's Day card and random items, while War of the Immortals fans can collect chocolate and trade it for additional XP. Finally, Ether Saga Odyssey players can enter a screenshot contest to win XP and bonus items, as well as bid for rare pets and send custom broadcast messages.

    [Source: Perfect World Entertainment press release]

    MassivelyCelebrate Valentine's Day with Perfect World Entertainment originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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      Diablo III sort of confirmed for Q2 2012

      Posted: 10 Feb 2012 07:00 AM PST

      Filed under: , , ,

      Diablo III - blasted landscape
      Looking for a definitive release date for Diablo III? So are we, and unfortunately Blizzard isn't cooperating. The best the company can come up with is Q2 2012, according to Rock, Paper Shotgun.

      The site reports on Blizzard's recent investors call, during which Mike Morhaime stated the obvious before alluding to the launch window. "Given the popularity of the action RPG genre, and the keen interest in Diablo III, we expect this launch to be a big opportunity for Blizzard. We can also confirm that we are targeting a Q2 launch for Diablo III. We expect to announce more details about the release schedule in the coming weeks," he said.

      But hey, at least he didn't say "when it's ready."

      [Source: Activision investor call]

      MassivelyDiablo III sort of confirmed for Q2 2012 originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 10 Feb 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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      Some Assembly Required: Salem dev talks permadeath, griefing, and skill-based gameplay

      Posted: 10 Feb 2012 06:00 AM PST

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      Some Assembly Required - architecture banner
      Hello, sandbox faithful, and welcome to a special interview edition of Some Assembly Required. We recently had a chance to pitch some questions to the team behind Seatribe's upcoming Salem title, and creative director Björn Johannessen was kind enough to answer them.

      Salem is being advertised by publisher Paradox as "the crafting MMO," but it's also rife with throw-back mechanics including a huge amount of player freedom and a permadeath/punishment system similar to the one in Johannessen's Haven & Hearth.

      Continue reading Some Assembly Required: Salem dev talks permadeath, griefing, and skill-based gameplay

      MassivelySome Assembly Required: Salem dev talks permadeath, griefing, and skill-based gameplay originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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        The Daily Grind: Where does gaming fall on your priority list?

        Posted: 10 Feb 2012 05:00 AM PST

        Filed under: , ,

        Priorities Shmiorities
        Back before I had a family, it wasn't unusual for me to play a video game for eight-hour stretches at a time every day. But now that I'm a father of three, I don't even want to think about playing a game unless I'm playing with my family or it's after their bedtime. On the other side of that coin, there are plenty of people who put gaming before just about everything else in their lives. When you're "too busy" to work or spend time with your family, but not too busy to raid every night, that's a problem in my opinion.

        This might sound odd coming from a guy who has made gaming his career, but I respect balance and moderation. I could go on and on about how so many people are losing their perspective on having fun by being "hardcore," but I'll save that for a Soapbox article one day. In the meantime, I want to know how you feel about gaming on your priority list. Is it numero uno, towards the end, or somewhere in between?

        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: Where does gaming fall on your priority list? originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 10 Feb 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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          This Week in MMO: CCP has gone crazy edition

          Posted: 09 Feb 2012 07:00 PM PST

          Filed under: , , , ,

          Crazy. Crazy for feeling so lonely. I'm crazy for crying, crazy for trying, crazy for loving you.
          It's time for This Week in MMO once more, and this time around, the show kicks off with the rather daring statement that CCP Games has completely gone off the deep end. Well, maybe not that far, but the show does start off focusing on recent comments from the company about how DUST 514 could be one of the biggest shooters of the year... a statement that strikes the hosts as being just a wee bit pompous.

          Aside from that, there's talk about Star Wars: The Old Republic's subscriber numbers and what those numbers mean in the long run as well as the latest trailer for TERA. If you'd like to get some roundtable discussion about the past week's biggest MMO stories, you don't need to go far. Just skip on past the break to watch the newest installment of This Week in MMO, which is quite possibly the best roundtable discussion about MMO news with a six-letter nickname in existence.

          Continue reading This Week in MMO: CCP has gone crazy edition

          MassivelyThis Week in MMO: CCP has gone crazy edition originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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            The MMO Report: Elvis invented rock 'n' roll edition

            Posted: 09 Feb 2012 06:00 PM PST

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            The MMO Report
            This week on The MMO Report, Casey insists that he's a "wise-cracking superhero with a heart of gold," not a noob who doesn't know his MMO history. "For the record," he says, "I do realize that EverQuest wasn't the first MMO. I was just saying it was the game that brought MMOs mainstream attention... like how Elvis invented rock 'n' roll."

            Casey reports on Warhammer 40K: Dark Millennium Online's financial woes, RIFT's new infinite trial, Star Wars: The Old Republic's impressive sales numbers, and TERA's beta plans. Then he dips into Uncle Casey's Mailbag to discuss -- what else -- hot dorf-on-dorf action.

            All this and more in the HD MMO Report tucked behind the cut!

            Continue reading The MMO Report: Elvis invented rock 'n' roll edition

            MassivelyThe MMO Report: Elvis invented rock 'n' roll edition originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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            The Guild Counsel: Why is it so hard to say congratulations?

            Posted: 09 Feb 2012 05:00 PM PST

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            Miracle on ice handshake
            When was the last time you said congratulations to someone in game? And no, I don't mean the spammy "congrats" when someone in guild gains a level, an AA, a skill up, a crafting combine, or any of the dozen other milestones that pop up every day in chat. Those are the easy congratulations because the accomplishment has no direct effect on you. I'm talking about the congratulations when someone beats you in game. You might be in a duel or battleground, and the other guy ends up taking you out. You might be racing for a named mob, and the other guy gets there first. Or you might be in that guild that always seems to fall just a bit short and winds up the bridesmaid when it comes to guild progression.

            There is plenty of competition in MMOs, but you rarely see much sportsmanship from players. In this week's Guild Counsel, we'll look at why it's so hard to say "congrats" and why that has an effect on guilds as well as on the communities overall.

            Continue reading The Guild Counsel: Why is it so hard to say congratulations?

            MassivelyThe Guild Counsel: Why is it so hard to say congratulations? originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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              Ask Massively: We do not play games for a living edition

              Posted: 09 Feb 2012 04:30 PM PST

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              Total paycheck for this bit of roleplaying: $0.00.
              One of the most persistent misconceptions about what we do here at Massively is this idea that we play games for a living. Allow me to be perfectly clear in this: What you're seeing right now? This article? The one I wrote? Writing this is what I do for a living. I write about games, and I enjoy games, but if I decided to not write any of my columns for a month and just play Star Wars: The Old Republic, I would be fired. That is not my job.

              Now that we've gotten that out of the way, it's time for another installment of Ask Massively, this time featuring questions about gambling and the latest City of Heroes cash shop offering. If you've got a question you'd like to see in a future installment of the column, mail it to ask@massively.com or leave it in the comments below. Questions may be edited for brevity and/or clarity.

              Continue reading Ask Massively: We do not play games for a living edition

              MassivelyAsk Massively: We do not play games for a living edition originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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                TERA brings more pre-order customers into the beta process

                Posted: 09 Feb 2012 04:00 PM PST

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                Test how swordproof that thing is!
                TERA has hit a few snags of late, including some woes with the whole system of getting pre-order beta access for appropriately pre-ordered customers. Luckily for some fans of the game, it looks like things are moving forward for players hoping to get into beta testing this weekend. An official announcement on the forums earlier today confirmed that GameStop has received valid beta codes and should be distributing said codes to customers via receipt or via phone.

                Any players who preordered from Amazon or Best Buy and still haven't received a code are asked to send in a letter to the customer service staff before 9:00 a.m. PST on February 10th. Players are all warned that the game's download is currently clocking in at 17 GB, which means that you'll need plenty of time to get the client installed on your computer. A lengthy download is preferable to ambiguity as to whether or not you'll even get your beta access, though.

                MassivelyTERA brings more pre-order customers into the beta process originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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                LotRO struts the runway for Fashion Week

                Posted: 09 Feb 2012 03:00 PM PST

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                Fashion Week
                Are you more into looking good in Lord of the Rings Online than defeating the very heart of evil? Then Turbine's got a special week planned just for you. Starting today and going through the 16th, Fashion Week will be blazing through LotRO.

                LotRO's cosmetic system allows players to assemble their own outfit looks independent of slotted gear and has become a popular feature in the game ever since its inception. Through Fashion Week, Turbine will call on the best-dressed to strut their stuff in the hopes that in-game CMs will see them and award special titles.

                Also included in the week will be fashion-themed lotteries and a screenshot contest in which the best entries will be voted upon by the community. To give players inspiration, Turbine links to three game outfit blogs -- Lotro Fashion, Lotro Stylist, and Cosmetic Lotro -- and has given each of the blogs special codes to hand out for free in-game dyes.

                MassivelyLotRO struts the runway for Fashion Week originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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                WoW loses another 100,000 subscribers

                Posted: 09 Feb 2012 02:00 PM PST

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                World of Warcraft
                Thanks to our sister blog WoW Insider, we've got the scoop on today's Activision-Blizzard investor call. The results? Turns out World of Warcraft isn't dying, but it's certainly seen better days in its record-breaking run. Blizzard's flagship MMO now boasts "only" 10.2 million subscribers worldwide (10.3 million were reported during the call in November). The company believes the success of the 4.3 patch contributed to subscriber retention, as did the success of the annual pass; in fact, a million players took Blizzard up on a deal to purchase a year's worth of WoW in return for a free copy of Diablo III.

                Blizzard also confirmed plans to launch at least two titles this year, including Diablo III in Q2. Mists of Pandaria, WoW's much-maligned upcoming expansion, might be the other, though Titan, Blizzard DOTA, and a new StarCraft II campaign are also in the works. The company's expected revenue for 2012 is $4.5 billion US.

                MassivelyWoW loses another 100,000 subscribers originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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                EVE Online's time dilation keeping game in sync

                Posted: 09 Feb 2012 01:00 PM PST

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                EVE Online
                Leave it to one of the most popular MMO studios to figure out how to control time -- and do so successfully. Through technical wizardry, CCP did just that when it released a time dilation feature into EVE Online last month to reduce lag during massive space battles.

                So far, it's working great, according to CCP Veritas. In a new blog post, he shows off graphs and recounts recent events that show how "TiDi" (as he calls it) is successfully slowing down in-game time to keep player commands and on-screen action in sync.

                "In all cases, it has kicked in appropriately when the server node has become overloaded, keeping things running responsively and sanely," he writes. "In both huge fights [shown on the graphs], the module response time was kept under one second for the vast majority of the action, which is a tremendously large improvement over the 20, 40, 600 seconds we'd sometimes see in fights of this scale."

                EVE Online has also made a few quality of life improvements to EVE Gate, including a better login system, a navigation menu tied in with the rest of the site, and a way to quickly zip to dev posts on the forums.

                MassivelyEVE Online's time dilation keeping game in sync originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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                The Perfect Ten: MMO prisons

                Posted: 09 Feb 2012 12:00 PM PST

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                Perfect Ten Prisons
                Chillin' in the clink. Spending time in stoney lonesome. Thrown into the slammer. Checking in to the big house. Doing (perfect) 10 to life in the hole. Learning the ropes in juvie.

                Prison: The only fun thing about it is the slang that people have come up to describe it. And while you may never actually want to spend any time in the crowbar hotel in real life, chances are you've already done so in MMOs. Jails are an ever-popular locale in online gaming, and they almost always deal with an epidemic of escaped -- yet still milling around casually -- prisoners.

                So in today's Perfect Ten, we talked to the warden and got you a special glimpse into pixelated pokeys, if only to scare you straight. No more exploits and bots for you, young man or woman!

                Continue reading The Perfect Ten: MMO prisons

                MassivelyThe Perfect Ten: MMO prisons originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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                  You (yes, you) can expand Firefall's gameworld

                  Posted: 09 Feb 2012 11:00 AM PST

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                  Firefall - power-gliding
                  Red 5 Studios is making a little marketing push for Firefall, and the first salvo takes the form of a new dev diary video starring CEO Mark Kern.

                  If you're not familiar with the game, this clip is a great place to start. Kern explains how Firefall is really two titles in one, with the first game being a ginormous open world featuring loads of PvE content. The second game is centered around Firefall's e-sport components, which include ranked leaderboard matches ranging from 5-on-5 to 15-on-15.

                  Kern also mentions the game's unique take on beta and launch. In basic terms, Red 5 implements feature sets, collects beta feedback, and iterates on down the line (as opposed to presenting a finished product for mass beta testing). This staged approach will also apply to the game's launch, and Kern says the game will be rolled out "organically" much like Google's Gmail service.

                  Finally, content expansion in Firefall will be player-driven. Cross-server cooperation will be necessary to craft MRU units that will expand the playable area from 10 square miles to an entire globe. Kern also touches on the trendy games-as-a-service mandate, and he says that as long as players are around to support Firefall, Red 5 will be around to generate new content. Watch the full video after the break.

                  Continue reading You (yes, you) can expand Firefall's gameworld

                  MassivelyYou (yes, you) can expand Firefall's gameworld originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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                  Funcom reveals The Secret World skill deck templates

                  Posted: 09 Feb 2012 10:30 AM PST

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                  The Secret World - Illuminati dude with a swell goatee
                  Funcom has penned a new dev diary at MMORPG.com, and the piece reveals three new skill decks from the firm's The Secret World title.

                  What's a skill deck?

                  It's The Secret World's answer to the how-do-you-make-a-level-free-MMORPG question, and it allows players to select from 500 abilities to create "exactly the type of character they want." Funcom thinks the system will seem daunting to players used to simpler class-based mechanics in competing MMOs, and as such the firm is adding a few deck templates to offer players a helping hand.

                  Three of these are profiled in the new diary, including one from each of the game's factions. The Witch Hunter focuses on big damage spikes and represents the Templars, the Warlord is your basic swordfighter from the Dragon faction, and the Thaumaturgist is the Illuminati's answer to the gunmage archetype.

                  [Thanks to fallwind for the tip!]

                  MassivelyFuncom reveals The Secret World skill deck templates originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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                  The Summoner's Guidebook: A community guide to League of Legends

                  Posted: 09 Feb 2012 10:00 AM PST

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                  Greetings, summoners, and welcome to the first installment of the Summoner's Guidebook! For a new player, the Guidebook is a one-stop-shop to gaining familiarity with the various elements of League of Legends. For the more advanced players, we'll also be covering ways to improve on weak areas of your play and how to deal with the toughest of matchups.

                  I was a new player once, and I remember being extremely daunted by the number of things I needed to learn to be competitive in LoL. Although the journey from newbie to expert was long and difficult, I learned a lot about common mistakes and how to reduce them. If you're looking to step up your game or if you're just getting into the League, the Summoner's Guidebook is the place for you to learn without being treated like you're a noob.

                  This week, we're going to cover the community resources available to you. There are a lot of websites dedicated to League of Legends, and it would be foolish to assume that this column is the only place to get advice on the game. If there's something I haven't covered yet or there's a topic I'm unfamiliar with, you can be sure that one of these places will have the info you're looking for. This article can't possibly cover all the League fansites on the internet (there are probably hundreds), but I can focus on the ones with the best information.

                  Continue reading The Summoner's Guidebook: A community guide to League of Legends

                  MassivelyThe Summoner's Guidebook: A community guide to League of Legends originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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