General Gaming Article

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• Judge Says Asus Can Keep Selling Transformer Prime Tablets Despite Hasbro's Objections
• NZXT Slaps New Special Edition Paint Jobs On The Phantom 410 Chassis
• Nvidia GPUs Helping To Send Lunar X Team's Rover To The Moon
• You Probably Can't Afford Panasonic's 152-inch Quad-HD 3D Television
• Japanese Court Orders Removal of Google Autocomplete Terms in Defamation Case
• Rovio Crashes Benchmarking Party with Futuremark Games Studio Acquisition
• Outdated Law from 1980s Blocks Netflix from Releasing a Facebook App in the U.S.
• FTC Lauds 'Do Not Track' Web Technology in Final Privacy Report
• Rumor: Windows 8 Release Candidate to Arrive in May

Judge Says Asus Can Keep Selling Transformer Prime Tablets Despite Hasbro's Objections Posted: 27 Mar 2012 11:08 AM PDT Would you rather toy around with a Transformer Prime than a new iPad? If Hasbro had it way, you wouldn't have the option. Way back in December, we reported that the toy company was dragging Asus into court, claiming that "Transformer Prime" name was too close to "Optimus Prime," "Transformers" and the "Transformers Prime" animated series for comfort. A federal judge disagrees; he tossed out Hasbro's request for a preliminary injunction (read: sales ban) against the Asus tablet. PaidContent reported the judge's words: "There is nothing gimmicky about the Eee Pad Transformer or the Eee Pad Transformer Prime, nor can it be said that there is any similarity in the use or function between Hasbro and Asus's products." The fact that the Eee Pad Transformer Prime can, well, transform into a notebook (using the optional keyboard dock) also helped to sway the judge's decision. Apparently, the Transformer Prime -- despite its Tegra 3 chops -- isn't exactly tearing up the charts, either. Asus told the court that only 2,000 direct orders from customers were waiting to be filled, and "retailer fulfillment orders for the next two months total approximately 80,000 tablet computers."

NZXT Slaps New Special Edition Paint Jobs On The Phantom 410 Chassis Posted: 27 Mar 2012 10:31 AM PDT NZXT's new Phantom 410 chassis only hit the streets in December, but apparently, finicky system builders have already grown tired of the red, white and black color options available at launch. Rather than telling said finicky system builders to shove it, NZXT polled them on Facebook, asking users which colors would be preferable on the case. The results are in in the form of the Phantom 410 Special Edition, which is available in four new hues. NZXT's press release informs us that the new colors are "Black with Orange Trim, Black with White Trim, White with Blue Trim, and a surprise Gunmetal black edition with a gunmetal interior and exterior matte finish." The Phantom 410 SE is a virtual clone of the standard Phantom 410 in all other respects, right down to the tool-less bay drive design, the nifty window on the side, and support for ATX, Mini-ATX and Micro-ATX motherboards. You can read all the nitty gritty details on the Phantom 410 page on the NZXT website. So what'll the new paint job cost you? Just $99 -- the same price as the normal Phantom 410. The press release says the Phantom 410 Special Edition will be available by late March, and since it's already the 27th, expect to see the new colors any day now.

Nvidia GPUs Helping To Send Lunar X Team's Rover To The Moon Posted: 27 Mar 2012 10:07 AM PDT With CPU-integrated graphics upping their game and handling most casual gaming and HD video watching tasks without too many problems, AMD and Nvidia could find the bottom dropping out of the low-end discrete graphics market before long. The question is, how do the companies make up for it? One answer lies on the opposite end of the spectrum: high-end super-duper-computers often take advantage of the raw computational power of GPUs. That same processing efficiency is opening up new (final) frontiers -- Nvidia's helping a Lunar X team in their quest to go to the moon, Alice! Nvidia announced that the German "Part-Time Scientists" team -- best name ever, right there -- has begun using Nvidia Tesla GPUs in the command center for the Asimov lunar rover being built by the group. The GPUs will be used for a wide array of number-crunching activities, ranging from simulating mission scenarios and navigation techniques in preparatory exercises to actually monitoring the Asimov and processing its massive video feeds when it (hopefully) hits the giant hunk o' cheese in the sky. The team expects a five- to ten-time boost in video processing speeds thanks to the addition of the Nvidia GPUs. The team hopes to land the Asimov on the moon by 2015, and Google plans on doling out over $30 million to the first private groups that actually make it there. (Twenty-six teams are taking part in the Lunar X prize race.) If you want to learn more about GPU computing and the wonders it's capable of, check out Loyd Case's awesome The State of GPU Computing: Is the CPU Dead Yet?

You Probably Can't Afford Panasonic's 152-inch Quad-HD 3D Television Posted: 27 Mar 2012 07:24 AM PDT Look, we're not here to judge how much money you earn or the size of your bank account. That's not the point. For one or two of you reading this, our headline is all wrong, because you're a 1 percenter and can, in fact, afford to drop £600,000 on a television, which works out to more than $957,000 in U.S. currency. But for the rest of us, Panasonic's 152-inch 4K2K 3D television is out of our league. That doesn't mean we can't appreciate an ultra-expensive and insanely huge screen. Panasonic actually showed off a prototype at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this year, and apparently it's now ready for prime time. According to the U.K.'s Telegraph, Panasonic's display is going on sale at Harrods, which is also launching a technology deparment with exclusive buys from BlackBerry, Fujifilm, and Lowe. In case you go looking for it, the model number is TH-152UX1W. It's a professional display, though it will sit alongside pricey cameras, loudspeakers, and other high priced electronics at Harrods starting this Thursday. If you plan to pick one up, you might also be interested in a £300,000 ($478,000) Jean Michel Jarre iPad. Just saying. As for Panasonic's TV, it sports a 4096x2160 resolution and 17:9 aspect ratio. It supports 3D, has multiple inputs, and a 5,000,000:1 contrast ratio. Oh, and did we mention it's one hundred and fifty two freaking inches? Image Credit: Panasonic

Japanese Court Orders Removal of Google Autocomplete Terms in Defamation Case Posted: 27 Mar 2012 07:10 AM PDT First introduced in late 2004 as a Google Labs project, Google's autocomplete search feature has been an integral part of the world's most popular search engine ever since its widespread rollout in 2008. This nifty search aid hasn't had a controversy-free existence, however. It now finds itself at the heart of a fresh controversy in Japan. More after the jump. A Japanese court has ordered the removal of certain terms from Google's autocomplete search feature. According to a report by The Japan Times, the court was acting on a petition accusing Google's autocomplete feature of being defamatory. The petition was filed by a Japanese man (name not disclosed) who alleged that some of the autocomplete suggestions accompanying his name were not only defamatory but also breached his privacy. The unnamed petitioner, in fact, claimed that these defamatory search suggestions even cost him his job. "This [autocomplete feature] can lead to irretrievable damage, such as job loss or bankruptcy, just by displaying search results that constitute defamation or violation of the privacy of an individual person or small and medium-size companies," The Japan Times quoted the man's lawyer Hiroyuki Tomita as saying. But Google seems to be in no mood to subject itself to the Japanese court's order. It contends that the court has no jurisdiction over its U.S. headquarters, and that its own privacy policy does not necessitate the deletion of any search terms in this matter. "A Japanese court issued a provisional order requesting Google to delete specific terms from autocomplete," the Google spokesperson said in a statement. "The judge did not require Google to completely suspend the autocomplete function." The autocomplete feature has found itself in the middle of similar controversies in the past too, with virtually identical cases being filed in other countries as well.

Rovio Crashes Benchmarking Party with Futuremark Games Studio Acquisition Posted: 27 Mar 2012 06:58 AM PDT Coming out of left field (from a 'fowl' hit? *groan*) is Rovio Entertainment's announcement that it has acquired Futuremark Games Studio, the gaming arm of benchmarking software developer Futuremark. Rovio, of course, is the developer behind the hugely popular Angry Birds franchise, which was just recently launched into space in the latest multi-platform installment, Angry Birds Space. "They are an incredibly talented and experienced team, and we are thrilled to have them on board," said Mikael Hed, Rovio Entertainment's CEO. "Rovio's success is founded on the excellence of our team, and Futuremark Games Studio is going to be a superb addition." Futuremark CEO Jukka Mäkinen said he was "proud to see the potential of [Futuremark's] talented games team recognized by Rovio." As for Futuremark, the benchmarking company will do what it does best and "will now focus on supporting gamers and industry with 3DMark." Mäkinen said there will be a new version released later this year, one that will allow gamers to compare performance across operating systems. For Rovio, this is the developer's second acquisition in the past year, after scooping up Kombo Animation Studio last summer.

Outdated Law from 1980s Blocks Netflix from Releasing a Facebook App in the U.S. Posted: 27 Mar 2012 06:32 AM PDT Do you remember what you were doing in 1987? It was the year the Simpsons appeared for the first time as a series of shorts on The Tracy Ulman Show, Bow Wow was born, and both Larry Bird and Magic Johson were still in the NBA. It also happens to be the year an incident led to the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA), which was enacted a year later, nearly a decade before Netflix was founded and 16 years before Facebook launched. Yet this quarter-of-a-century old legislation is the reason why Netflix hasn't released a Facebook app in the U.S. A CNNMoney report is drawing attention to the issue and explains that VPPA arose from "strange circumstances" in 1987 involving the failed Supreme Court nomination of Robert Bork. While Bork was being considered, a freelance journalist was able to obtain his rental history from a video store. Bork's rental history wasn't particularly damning in any way, but it made Congress uncomfortable and they quickly enacted VPPA, which made it illegal for a "video tape service provider" to disclose "personally identifiable information" about its customers without their written consent. Looking beyond VHS, Congress included language referring to "prerecorded video cassette tapes or similar audio visual materials." "It's ambiguous about whether it applies to us," Netflix told CNNMoney. "We just don't know, and we'd rather be in compliance than risk stepping over the line." Netflix is lobbying for Congress to update VPPA, which not only is preventing the streaming service from launching a Facebook app, but is also proving costly via lawsuits, including a $9 million settlement in 2011 to customers who accused Netflix of holding onto their personal data for longer than a year.

FTC Lauds 'Do Not Track' Web Technology in Final Privacy Report Posted: 27 Mar 2012 05:56 AM PDT The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued its final report on protecting consumer privacy as the agency continues to call on companies to adopt best privacy practices and give American consumers greater control over the collection and use of their personal data. FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz said many companies have already adopted the agency's final recommendations and is confident consumers will have an easy to use and effective Do Not Track option by the end of the year. In the latest revision, the FTC notes it received more than 450 public comments in response to the preliminary report from various stakeholders, including businesses, privacy advocates, technologists, and individual consumers, which helped shape the current framework. Based on those comments, the FTC made revised recommendations in three main areas. They include: A tighter scope set forth by the framework that seeks to address concerns about undue burdens on small businesses. The final framework doesn't apply to companies that collect only non-sensitive data from fewer than 5,000 consumers a year, but only if such businesses refrain from sharing that data with third parties. A modified approach to how companies should provide consumers with privacy choices. The FTC recommends that Congress consider enacting targeted legislation to provide greater transparency for, and control over, the practices of information brokers. The report, which you can read in its entirety here (PDF), was approved by the Commission with a 3-1 vote. Image Credit: FTC

Rumor: Windows 8 Release Candidate to Arrive in May Posted: 26 Mar 2012 09:12 PM PDT The general response to the recently released Windows 8 Consumer Preview hasn't been entirely positive. That does not mean that all is lost, though. With the first Windows 8 products widely expected to debut in the later part of 2012, Microsoft still has some time on its hands to make amends. If Microsoft does intend to make some important changes, they will most probably be part of the Windows 8 Release Candidate. But when exactly will the software giant deliver the Release Candidate? The answer, according to WinUnleaked.tk, is late May or early June. The site claims that the Release Candidate of Windows 8 will include some "light" UI changes as far as the Charms bar, Internet Explorer 10 (desktop version), and the language input menu are concerned. It further claims that the Customer Experience Improvement Program will be disabled by default. This latest Windows 8 rumor follows close on the heels of a Bloomberg report that hinted at an October launch for Windows 8. When asked to comment on these rumors by CNET, Microsoft refused, saying it had nothing to share.

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MMO News

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• Spirit Tales highlights the Lunar Tribe
• World of Mercenaries Announced
• Firefall to be Showcased at PAX East
• Cloak and Dagger Pack Revealed for Tribes Ascend
• Webzen Celebrates 3rd Anniversary
• MMOHut Weekly Recap #79 Mar 25 – Vanguard, Digimon Masters, UWO, & More
• CrimeCraft asks: u mad bro?
• Lime Odyssey Dev Blog #5: The Warrior
• Three new Mythos Global videos
• Vanguard to go free-to-play

Spirit Tales highlights the Lunar Tribe Posted: 27 Mar 2012 03:08 PM PDT KoramGame has released a new highlight for the Lunar Tribe in Spirit Tales. The Lunar Tribe offers two classes: Sorcerer and Assassin. The Sorcerer is a magical DPS class that fights from long range, and can use a staff or wand to fight. The Assassin is a high-speed melee class that uses swords, katanas, or daggers to fight. You can see more of these classes in the handy image guide below.

World of Mercenaries Announced Posted: 27 Mar 2012 12:43 PM PDT City Interactive SA has announced they are developing World of Mercenaries as a free-to-play AAA MMOFPS.  The game utilizes the Unreal Engine 3 for amazing graphics, and also promises fluid controls, customizable weapons, and a focus on teamwork for player progression.  The game will be delivered digitally through Steam. The goal of the game is to be made by, with, and for competitive FPS players.  Their development staff is comprised of avid FPS players, and their closed beta will be an integral part as to how the game develops further. City Interactive SA have published a couple of single player FPS games prior to World of Mercenaries. Source: CITY INTERACTIVE ANNOUNCES 'WORLD OF MERCENARIES'; NEW FREE TO PLAY FIRST PERSON SHOOTER POWERED BY UNREAL ENGINE 3 PC Exclusive to Deliver Premium Gameplay and Graphics at No Charge WARSAW, POLAND, March 27, 2011— Did upgrading your PC to a hardcore gaming machine leave your wallet a little light?  Don't worry, you're still entitled to a premium gaming experience and City Interactive SA is going to give it to you with World of Mercenaries, a new free to play AAA first person shooter currently in development exclusively for PC. Powered by Unreal Engine 3© and to be distributed digitally via Steam©, World of Mercenaries is a skill based competitive FPS with stunning graphics, fluid controls, customizable weapons and focus on teamwork as a core element for player progression. Immerse in the life of a fearless mercenary! "Our veteran team is comprised of some of the most devoted FPS fans in the world and we're excited to use our knowledge and experience to fuse the best elements of previously released games in the genre with new and exciting advancements – be it in terms of graphics, controls or skill based game play." says Bogdan Oprescu, Executive Producer for the title. "Our closed beta program will be an integral part of the development process for World of Mercenaries, as it is our goal to deliver a game made by, for and with FPS fans. We are shaping the future of competitive FPS, and are fully confident it will be achieved with the enthusiasm and help of our beta testers." More information on the game and the launch of the Beta registration process will be made public soon at www.worldofmercenaries.com. Follow us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/worldofmercenaries) and Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/wom_TheGame)!

Firefall to be Showcased at PAX East Posted: 27 Mar 2012 12:23 PM PDT Attendees of PAX East will be able to experience Firefall first-hand. The exclusive beta that will take place at the event from April 6-8 will give players an opportunity to get a feel for the open world immersion of the game, and play around with previously unrevealed PvP content.  Visitors will also receive access to the invite-only beta test. Players will also have the opportunity to meet two key characters, Typhon and Mourningstar, complete with full their battleframe costume at the show.  The team will be at booth 536. Firefall is published Red 5 Studios. Firefall Gameplay Screenshot Source: RED 5 STUDIOS BRINGS FIREFALL, THE ANTICIPATED OPEN WORLD PC SHOOTER, TO PAX EAST NEXT MONTH Visitors Will Receive Hands-On Demos in the First Public Unveiling of the Invite-Only Live Beta April 6-8 Laguna Hills, CA – March 27, 2012 – Red 5 Studios™ announced today that it will bring its upcoming free-to-play, open world PC shooter, Firefall™, to PAX East in Boston, Massachusettes, April 6-8. Players will receive live demos of the exclusive beta, which will contain new elements of Firefall's immersive open world experience as well as previously unrevealed PvP content. All visitors will walk away with access to this invite-only Firefall beta and will also have the chance to meet key characters, Typhon and Mourningstar, in full "Battleframes" at the show. Firefall, an upcoming free-to-play, open world PC action shooter, is set in a unique and beautiful science fiction universe 200 years in the future. Players are part of the last remnant of humanity on Earth, fighting to survive against all odds on a hostile planet ravaged by an aggressive energy storm and under attack by a mysterious humanoid race, known as the Chosen. One of the most anticipated PC games of 2012, Firefall consists of two triple-A components that will entice shooter fans: a polished PvP combat system tuned for elite-level eSports competition and a robust open world experience designed to immerse players in a deep storyline with dynamic events and social gameplay. The Red 5 team will show Firefall during PAX East on April 6-8 at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, booth 536. Those attending will get the first live beta demo of Firefall's deep open world – revealing key characters, missions, and crafting mechanics – as well as receive a permanent invite into the game for after the show. Typhon and Mourningstar will also be there in full "Battleframes", designed and handcrafted by renowned artist, Steve Wang. Firefall is currently in the first stage of its exclusive, invite-only beta – planned to rollout during 2012. Players can sign-up for the chance to be invited into the beta and meet Firefall's enthusiastic community at the official homepage: http://www.firefallthegame.com/home

Cloak and Dagger Pack Revealed for Tribes Ascend Posted: 27 Mar 2012 12:14 PM PDT This week’s Tribes Ascend update will include new content for the Infiltrator Class. The class will be receiving new weapons and two new cosmetic skins — a first for the game.  The Smoke Grenade allows the Infiltrator to quickly re-enter stealth when detected.  The Jackal allows remotely detonated explosives to be placed in an area, then exploded when opportune.  Throwing Knives allow the infiltrator a close-range, highly damaging option. Further class updates will be available in the future, with weapons and skins similar to the Infiltrator. Tribes Ascend is published by Hi-Rez Studios, which also publishes Global Agenda. Tribes: Ascend Infiltrator Preview Source: This week´s Tribes: Ascend update will include new content for the Infiltrator Class — Hi-Rez Studios will add 3 new weapons and for the first time two cosmetic skins: The Assassin and the Mercenary. The weapons include a Smoke Grenade, a Jackal and Throwing Knives. Check out the new Infiltrator skins and weapons in the Tribes: Ascend preview. All new weapons can be unlocked with gameplay XP or Tribes Gold. The cosmetic skins will be purchasable via real-money only (Tribes Gold). Going forward Hi-Rez Studios will offer similar updates for other Tribes: Ascend classes – including cosmetic skins as well as alternate weapons.

Webzen Celebrates 3rd Anniversary Posted: 27 Mar 2012 11:58 AM PDT Webzen has announced several events to celebrate their third anniversary. Players of MU Online, Soul of the Ultimate Nation, and Archlord will be able to win prizes that include an XBox 360, Webzen currency, and new items by inviting friends through the official Facebook pages,  These events will run from March 28 until April 18.  Closed Beta for Archlord X will also continue until March 29. The company plans to release several new titles this year, including the action RPG C9 and an MMOFPS called Arctic Combat to expand their free-to-pay genres. Source: WEBZEN.com' Celebrates 3rd Anniversary of 'Free-to-Play' Online Game Portal WEBZEN Inc. (WWW.WEBZEN.COM), the Next Generation of Free-to-Play Online Games, has announced their 3rd anniversary event, celebrating 3 years since the launch of its global game portal site 'WEBZEN.com'. Since 2009, 'WEBZEN.com' has successfully published 3 live titles during the past 3 years, and this year they plan to launch several new titles including the Action RPG 'C9' and MMOFPS 'ARCTIC COMBAT', providing more 'free-to-play' online game genres to worldwide users. Also, last January, they renewed their portal website with an expanded multi-language service support, and improved functions including the user-friendly interface designs, renewed forums, and more. To celebrate the 3rd anniversary, an event for the live titles, MU Online, Soul of the Ultimate Nation, and ARCHLORD will be held from March 28th until April 18th. Here users can win prizes including an 'Xbox 360', WEBZEN's virtual currency, and powerful in-game items by inviting new friends through the official Facebook pages. Jihun Lee, Head of Global publishing, said, "With the start of MU Online, 'WEBZEN.com' has received much support from our users. As a result, in 3 years we have been able to become one of the leading global game portals." Also he said, "With the service experience of 'free-to-play' online games, we are making all efforts to meet the users' needs and provide better services." Meanwhile, the 2nd free CBT for ARCHLORD X has started on March 18th and will continue until the 29th which is open to all users along with a prize giveaway event. More information about the titles serviced at 'WEBZEN.com' and the 3rd anniversary event can be found at the official website (http://www.webzen.com)

MMOHut Weekly Recap #79 Mar 25 – Vanguard, Digimon Masters, UWO, & More Posted: 26 Mar 2012 03:31 PM PDT A quick look and discussion for every major announcement and update during the week! This week we discussed updates from the following games: Vanguard, Tribes Ascend, Digimon Masters, Skylancer, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Luncet Heart, Uncharted Waters Online and Runes of Magic. The biggest news comes from the announcement that Vanguard: Saga of Heroes is going F2P. Vanguard was released in 2007 as a P2P game by Sony. It is not known when Vanguard plans to make the change to F2P but its expected to happen this summer. You can view all the individual news articles mention over at the MMOHut.com News section.

CrimeCraft asks: u mad bro? Posted: 26 Mar 2012 02:27 PM PDT CrimeCraft has announced a new bundle of updates for its gunners. Newly released are rage comic face masks, including the famous “troll face.” You can see these masks in their hilarious action in the video below. CrimeCraft is now also fully integrated with Steam Trading, letting Steam players trade items in game with items from other games. All Steam users will be given a Mask of the Dead as an item they can use to trade with, and can add any non-bound items to a Steam Trading tab in their ATM. Easter will bring new items including a Bloody Bunny Mask and Rabbit Ears hat. Players will also be able to find Easter Eggs during Riot matches (and more rarely, PvE matches), during April 8 to April 15. These eggs will include prizes from vendor trash to 5 slot-weapons and Black Market exclusive items. The upcoming spring update will also include updated Quickplay messaging, reduced lobby level requirements, new graphic HUD for teammate health, on-screen player healing display, new clothing, and both class and weapon balance. CrimeCraft is published by Vogster. CrimeCraft: Trololo Trailer Source: CrimeCraft Wants to Know, Why U Mad? New Rage Comic Masks, Steam Trading Coming to Premier Free to Play MMO/Shooter Hybrid NEW YORK, NY, March 26, 2012 – Vogster Online is bringing a little mean spirited fun to CrimeCraft this Spring with Steam Trading integration, an Easter event, and new meme-inspired clothing items. The new rage comic faces are designed to inspire rage in your online enemies, even if they're the ones doing most of the killing. Few things in life are more satisfying than splattering your foe into bloody giblets then asking, "U mad bro?" This spirit is captured in the Rage Comic Mask trailer at http://youtu.be/KbbLD39v0Vw. "It's something that's fun and looks really cool in game," said Daniel Prousline, vice president of game development. "We wanted to put in a few fun features for the March update and between the new masks and the Easter event, we've done that." For Easter, CrimeCraft is adding a few new items, including the Bloody Bunny Mask and Rabbit Ears hat. A new drop is also being introduced for the holiday: the Easter Egg! These eggs drop during Riot (every man for himself game mode) matches and, rarely, in PvE matches like Safeguard and Headhunt. Easter Eggs will only drop during the week of April 8 through April 15. Players can open eggs for prizes that include: vendor trash, Black Market exclusive items like name color changes, 5-slot weapons, boosts, and Gold ammo. Players can also sell unopened Easter Eggs in the auction house. Finally, CrimeCraft will be fully integrated with Steam Trading on March 26. Steam Trading is an innovative feature that allows Steam users to trade items from one game for items from another game. We'll give each of our Steam users the Mask of the Dead as the first item for their Steam Trading inventory, but they will be able to add any non-bound item to a Steam Trading tab in their ATM. "Steam Trading is great for our players and it's great for us," said assistant producer James Casale. "It's another way to reach out to users who have never played our game while making it more valuable to the people who already know about us. Personally, I can't wait to score some cool items." Beyond these new features, the CrimeCraft Spring Update is focused on player requests and fixes. These include: Updated Quickplay messaging and level reduced to enter lobby Added graphic representation of teammates health in combat All player healing displayed by on-screen graphic Class and weapon balance New clothing, including Fire and Shock modifiers The CrimeCraft March update is expected to launch mid-month.

Lime Odyssey Dev Blog #5: The Warrior Posted: 26 Mar 2012 02:12 PM PDT Hey All, Now that we have finished with the race introductory videos, we wanted to share a brief intro to each current playable class. I know this doesn't tide you over until closed beta, but hey, it doesn't hurt. THE MIGHTY WARRIOR! Playable by: Human, Turga, Muris Usable Weapons: Sword, Greatsword, Battle Axe, Mace Note: Warriors cannot dual wield. The undisputed masters of straightforward battle, Warriors are tanks with a tendency to charge headfirst into a fight. Their abilities are equally balanced between offense and defense. All Warriors begin their journey with the skill "Wild Charge", a basic attack that inflicts 137 damage, and one skill point to grab a new ability of their choice. As players level up, they can work their way along Attack and Defense skill trees to learn more new skills and abilities. The Attack tree is for those who want to cleave their enemies with well-polished two handed swords and axes. Aside from hack and slash style abilities, the Attack tree offers a variety of power increasing abilities for both yourself and your party, best used to maximize damage per second during those grueling boss fights. Anex's favorite skill in this tree: "Steel Tornado" Spin your weapon to become a deadly whirlwind, dealing a certain percentage of your weapon damage to all nearby enemies with each successful hit. This attack also has a chance to stun any enemies hit for 3 seconds. This attack hits multiple times. - It hits everything nearby – for a lot. It's a fun skill when you have a cleric to keep you up and you can spin spin spin. The Defense trees primary focus is exactly as one would think, to absorb up all the damage while dishing a little out in return. When taking this route, one will always want to yield a shield to protect against the onslaught of arrows, slashes, mashes, crashes, bites, and stings! Aside from buffs to increase physical and magic defense, the Defense tree also adds plenty of utility type abilities such as malice increasing shouts and short duration stuns. Anex's favorite skill in this tree: "Divine Shield" Throw a holy shield at the target, inflicting magic damage. This also has a chance to stun the target, and will drastically increase their Malice. - I love this skill because it's a great way to initiate or re-pull aggro after your mage or thief started blowing up the wrong target. Don’t forget to check out the LO Website Warrior Description for more skill info.   Until next time, Anex

Three new Mythos Global videos Posted: 26 Mar 2012 01:41 PM PDT This week, why not start off with a trio of new Mythos Global videos? The videos, released today, show off the game’s crafting systems, item hunting system, and achievement system. Mythos Global is published by T3Fun, which also publishes Hellgate. Mythos Global Crafting Video Mythos Global: Loot & Items Video Mythos Global: Titles & Achievements

Vanguard to go free-to-play Posted: 23 Mar 2012 09:23 PM PDT Sony Online Entertainment has announced that one of its last pay-to-play games, Vanguard, will go free-to-play this summer. The team expects the free-to-play model to be similar to that of EverQuest and DC Universe Online, although exact details have not been laid out. The game is also preparing to release more frequent updates as the Vanguard development team has expanded. Sony Online Entertainment has been transitioning all of its titles to the free-to-play model in North America, utilizing an optional subscription model combined with microtransactions. Vanguard Gameplay Screenshot Source: Exciting Vanguard Announcement – March 2012 Producer Letter We’ve got some exciting changes in store for Vanguard! Since many, if not all of you reading this letter are the most die-hard of Vanguard players, let me start off by saying thank you for your unwavering support of the game!  Let’s talk about the great things we have planned over the next few months… Vanguard going Free-to-Play At SOE, giving players choices is the theme of how we’re moving forward as a company. We see free-to-play (or as we refer to it, Free to Play. Your Way.) as a big part of our future and we like the flexibility it offers players. Therefore, I’m happy to announce Vanguard will be the next in line of our AAA games to make this transition.  Since we’ve literally just begun on the work, I’m not ready to go into much detail.  However, I will say that you can expect something similar to EverQuest®, EverQuest® II and DC Universe™ Online when we roll-out our free-to-play offering this summer.  Once we have more information to share, you’ll be the first to know. Getting the band back together… Now for the part I’m most excited about, let’s talk about the great team of developers we’ve assembled.  To begin (and I realize I’m stating the obvious) we’ve had a dry spell of game updates over the past few months.  That said, I’m happy to announce the drought will be coming to an end this week, with our first scheduled update since last December.  We plan to roll out game updates MUCH more frequently than years past, which will include general improvements, new content and more. A few weeks ago, we began ramping up the Vanguard development team with some familiar faces.  Our criteria was simple; we wanted the most Vanguard-knowledgeable, passionate developers.  While we plan to continue growing the team over the next few months, I wanted to briefly introduce a few of our team leads, including Salim “Silius” Grant (Creative Director), Todd “Hobart” Schmidt (Technical Director) and me, Andy Sites (Director of Development).  Fortunately, I am the only noob to the world of Vanguard, although having been part of the original EverQuest, EverQuest II, Free Realms, and Clone Wars Adventures teams, I’ve spent most of my career working on MMOs. Over the next several weeks, we plan to roll-out individual “spotlight” pieces for each team member, to give you an opportunity to get to know each of them.  In addition, you can expect to see more frequent game updates, as well as more detailed information regarding the upcoming free-to-play aspects of Vanguard. Talk to you soon and we’ll see you online! Andy Sites Director of Development

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Latest Gaming and MMORPG Updates

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• NetEase teases Game-X with short footage
• Where Should Star Trek Games Boldly Go Next?
• NYCC: What the Heck is Pokemon Rumble Blast, Anyway?
• Path of Exile
• New Chrono Trigger Fan Remake May Not Be Safe in the Shadows
• Red Blood Online (KR)
• Wild Buster (KR)
• Terra Militaris £500 Giveaway
• Phantasy Star Online 2 (JP)

NetEase teases Game-X with short footage Posted: 27 Mar 2012 09:36 AM PDT As posted a couple of days back (link), China’s number 2 MMO company, NetEase, is looking to reveal its self-developed and big-budget MMORPG soon. A teaser footage was shown earlier today by the Chinese media, and it no doubts resembles Blade Soul in some way. With its fiercest rival, number 1 Tencent Games, getting a huge pop for acquiring NCsoft’s Blade Soul, there is no doubt Game-X will be a direct competitor. The official game’s title and trailer will be shown this coming Friday at a big media conference. NetEase is also currently preparing to battle against Tencent’s League of Legends and upcoming publisher-less Dota 2 with its own take on the MOBA genre, Heroic 3 Kingdoms (link). Find similar article at: http://www.mmoculture.com/2012/03/netease-teases-game-x-with-short.html

Where Should Star Trek Games Boldly Go Next? Posted: 27 Mar 2012 09:35 AM PDT It’s hard not to marvel at Jonathan Blow’s chutzpah. Braid, his 2008 XBLA puzzler, played with the concepts and consequences of time travel through its mechanics as well as narrative. After high sales and quite a bit of accolade, Blow used most of the money he made off of Braid to help finance his next project, a first person exploration game called The Witness. While a decision like this would seems cripplingly frightening, you have to applaud the confidence that Blow has in his art. This confidence is part of the reason why The Witness is my most anticipated game of 2012, and after sitting down with Blow during GDC, it remains at the top of my list. Although the game still has a ways to go, Blow is confident that the final portion of the game is the single best thing that he’s ever designed. Coming from the man who created one of my favorite video games of this generation, it’s safe to say that my anticipation for The Witness grows with every new look. In preparation for its release, I’ve compiled a list of five ways to ready yourself for the title, some of which Blow himself alluded to while others contain connections that I’ve made from what we learned about the game. Dear Esther Upon first viewing the screenshots for The Witness, the immediate comparison to Myst sprang forward. They’re both environmental puzzle games played through a first person view and set on an enigmatic island. Blow even admits to drawing inspiration from the PC classic. But instead of replaying Myst for the dozenth time, try something a little more modern. I suggest Dear Esther, a Half-Life 2 mod created by British developers thechineseroom. The mod was first released 2008, but just last month received a full-fledged remake that improves on the original in every way possible. The game places you in the role of a nameless wanderer who explores the expanses of a dreary island. Narration in the game is delivered via snippets of letters sent to a woman named Esther. There are no puzzles or combat scenarios whatsoever, so the game ends up becoming equal parts ghost story and walkabout. From what we’ve seen from The Witness, both games share a similarly lonesome tone that emanates from a mysterious island lost in time. Dictionary of the Khazars Find similar article at: http://www.1up.com/previews?cId=3186907

NYCC: What the Heck is Pokemon Rumble Blast, Anyway? Posted: 27 Mar 2012 06:12 AM PDT Once upon a time, getting about in a Zelda game was such a clear-cut process. You had your dungeons (anywhere from four to 12, depending) and you had the overworld that linked them all together. Aside from the occasional spin-off (Four Swords Adventures was broken into levels, and Majora’s Mask centered around the hub of Clock Town), that’s how it always worked. You’d wander around, maybe poke into a cave for a Heart Piece, clear away some scrub, fight some bad guys, and eventually work your way to the next subterranean puzzle labyrinth. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is mixing things up, and — for the first eight hours of the game, at least — the results are pretty great. Skyward Sword’s design makes the distinction between overworld and underworld much muddier than in past games. Perhaps that’s appropriate, since this adventure divides its world into three layers rather than the usual two. Above the dungeons, you have the overworld; meanwhile, above it all is the realm of Skyloft, best described as an aerial take on Wind Waker’s sea. At the heart of Skyloft is a large city held aloft by (one assumes) ancient magic or technology or something, but the skies are littered with floating islands, and Link travels between them on the back of a huge red bird. Find similar article at: http://www.1up.com/previews?cId=3185963

Path of Exile Posted: 27 Mar 2012 03:35 AM PDT [Game website] Before you hae doubts, note that Path to Exile will be a Free to Play title at launch, just that it is currently in Closed Beta status. This weekend’s public opening from March 30 till April 1 will be for server stress testing, with Open Beta happening “in  a few months”. This is basically asking the whole gaming community to crash their servers legally! So what exactly is Path of Exile? Posted a couple of months before, Path of Exile is an upcoming Free to Play title developed in New Zealand by Grinding Gear Games. New Zealand?! Yeah I was surprised as well initially, as the country seems more famous for its cattle. The game somewhat gives off a Diablo vibe, with tons and tons of equipments with different looks to be looted. Watch the videos in this post, and sign up for an account now! Find similar article at: http://www.mmoculture.com/2012/03/path-of-exile-open-to-public-this.html

New Chrono Trigger Fan Remake May Not Be Safe in the Shadows Posted: 26 Mar 2012 09:35 PM PDT Chrono Trigger is one of the most beloved RPGs of all time, and with good reason. It’s an excellent game, and despite Square Enix releasing the game on a fair number of platforms over the years, fans have no less of an appetite for remakes and re-releases. A new HD remake of the game is now allegedly in the works and is hoping to learn from the mistakes of its predecessors. Fans have attempted to release remakes in the past only to see what Square Enix’s legal team is paid to do. Chrono Resurrection was an enhanced remake of the original game which received a great deal of attention in 2004. A public reveal resulted in several months of heavy traffic from Square Enix IP addresses, which in turn led to a cease and desist being issued to the team behind it. There was also Chrono Trigger: Crimson Echoes, a modded version of the game in development for more than four years. Just prior to its release in May 2009, Square Enix issues a cease and desist which ended development and blocked its release. Despite this, an alpha version lacking many key features and bug fixes was leaked at one point before the final release made it out. Chrono Resurrection, a remake initially slated for release on N64, also fell victim to a cease and desist. So what makes those behind Chrono Trigger HD believe they’ll be any more successful in getting anything Chrono Trigger-related into the hands of fans? For starters, the fact that I can’t be more specific than saying “those behind” it is a big reason. As indicated by the image below, which surfaced on Reddit over the weekend, the developers have no intention of putting up a website or including their names in the credits. It’s an admirable thing to do, creating such a project and not taking the credit for it. It’s also seemingly the only way to get away with releasing a Chrono Trigger game at this point, but it’s not a guarantee it will work. Saying it’s “certainly an interesting idea,” Law of the Game‘s Mark Methenitis told 1UP releasing the game in this fashion “doesn’t make [it] any more legal.” Not having a name or email address attached to the project does make things more complicated for Square Enix. It does not, however, leave it without options. “Square may be able to get a court order to have the various involved hosting companies turn over records related to that image in order to serve the cease and desist,” Methenitis said. “Square would likely exhaust every remedy they could, which would also likely include takedown requests on anyone hosting the final project. I doubt Square would avoid any potential remedy here given their history with fan Chrono projects.” Methenitis noted he is a fan of the game and would be happy to see an updated version released by Square Enix (and he believes “it’s at least more probable that Square is working on something given the attention the game has had in the last few years”). He also pointed out the number of re-releases the game has seen, noting fans have not been “neglected to nearly the degree that, say, Earthbound’s fan base.” That doesn’t legally give Chrono Trigger HD’s developers any right to take matters into their own hands, though. “Neglect is certainly no excuse,” he said. It would appear those behind the game have anticipated the possibility of being tracked down and are going to great lengths to avoid having that happen. In the comments on the Reddit post, “ct_throwaway” indicated the submission and subsequent comments had been made over “hijacked wifi.” It was said that updates for the project aren’t going to be provided except for the occasional screenshot. Some Reddit members were understandably skeptical the project is real and requested screenshots to prove its existence, to which the submitter responded, “[W]e’re not going to start bending over backwards because people on reddit develop a false sense of ownership or entitlement. Your cautious optimism makes perfect sense but remember, you’re not paying for anything.” He or she later relented, stating that screenshots — without any consistency — would be made available “in a few days.” Further updates will follow at some point later, either a few days or a few months from now. Other comments reveal the remake — which is being built using the Unreal Development Kit — includes everything from the PlayStation 1 version plus anything extra that can be done “without making the project take 15 years.” (The DS version featured some significant additions and is the best version available; it’s presumably these optional extras that could be added.) As for how far along it is, ct_throwaway said, “1000 A.D is mostly mapped, some areas need another pass. Basic game play is in place. Lucca is a box robot place-holder. There are no techs yet.” Whether we ever see anything from this project, assuming it is real, is hard to say at this point in time, though I’m all for any excuse to replay Chrono Trigger (particularly if it looks even nicer than we’re used to). Square Enix will surely do all it can to shut it down if it does not prove to be a hoax, but if the developers do stay silent and the game is suddenly distributed via torrent, a cease and desist will have a difficult time keeping it out of the hands of fans. Find similar article at: http://www.1up.com/news/chrono-trigger-hd-fan-remake

Red Blood Online (KR) Posted: 26 Mar 2012 06:13 PM PDT Later today, the latest 3D action MMO to hit Korea, Red Blood Online, will be entering its very first Closed Beta phase. With multi-target action combat as its main feature, along with a “Stage Automation” system where dungeon routes are not the same everytime players enter one (link). Below is a brief skill demo for the current 3 classes revealed, Warrior, Knight and Elementalist. Each class will have 3 different types of skill trees available, According to early media reports from Korea and Taiwan, Red Blood Online will not be having a true open persistent world, but rather similar to Dragon Nest and Guild Wars where only party members can see each other once stepping out of town. Only 3 maps will be available at the start, including the beginner town of Ironshore. More features are planned for the undated Closed Beta 2, including the Family system and pets. The Family system will be one of the core features as well, as it will determine the learning of high level skills, character growth, new quests and Family-exclusive dungeons. Find similar article at: http://www.mmoculture.com/2011/10/red-blood-online-kr-closed-beta-1-draws.html

Wild Buster (KR) Posted: 26 Mar 2012 03:35 PM PDT Diablo in space with guns? Well, almost, I guess. This is Wild Buster (with an attached Project Titan, probably the original codename) developed by Korean outfit Star Ducks Studio, with the team comprising of staff with around 10 years of experience. Wild Buster only started development last year, hence I must say I am quite impressed with how the game is looking right now. As you can see, the Diablo reference came from the isometric view. Wild Buster really reminds me of another Korean MMO which went quiet since G*star 2010, NCsoft’s Metal Black: Alternative (link). Players will be grouped in parties of 5 to clear various maps infested with various robotic monstrosities. Other than PvE, there are group PvP maps as well such as capture the flag and team PvP. This will happen between the 2 warring factions of course, identified by their colors of blue and red. The character selection screen for both factions, Guardians and Abandon, looks pretty similar to that of MOBA games’ such as League of Legends and Dota 2, with various heroes each with different specialties to choose from. The developer promised combat will be fast, exciting, with simple controls allowing even the most unskilled players to enjoy. The first beta is currently scheduled for late 2012 in Korea. Find similar article at: http://www.mmoculture.com/2012/03/wild-buster-kr-diablo-in-space-with.html

Terra Militaris £500 Giveaway Posted: 26 Mar 2012 03:35 PM PDT TPCG.com and gPotato is offering totalpcgaming readers a Terra Militaris goody bag worth nearly £10! Each one contains around 20 items, all you have to do send us an email with your account name and 'Terra Militaris' in the subject header. If you don't already have a Terra Militaris account, you can sign up for one for free and read more about the strategy MMO on the official Terra Militaris website. Find similar article at: http://www.totalpcgaming.com/mmo/terra-militaris-500-giveaway/

Phantasy Star Online 2 (JP) Posted: 26 Mar 2012 09:35 AM PDT Phantasy Star Online 2 held a really awesome press conference earlier to announce what its developer SEGA is planning for the latest title in the long-running franchise.Some of you might have played the English version of Phantasy Star Online: Blue Burst, hence PSO2 will be really of interest to you as well. Coming Free to Play (F2P) early this summer in Japan, the game will share similar content with the PlayStation Vita version coming spring 2013. The smartphone (iOS/ Android) game coming this winter will have a separate game, but nevertheless still have some linked content with the other 2 platforms. The smartphone version, of course, will spot a simpler control scheme and character customization will not be as extensive as well. This is the part which impressed me the most from a business point of view. SEGA also rolled out various partnership with PC brands to promote Phantasy Star Online 2. In the pictures below, you can see some of the bonus items players can get when the purchase the corresponding hardware pieces. Like I said, from a business standpoint, this is absolutely a complete presentation of how much effort SEGA is putting in. Closed Beta test, in Japan only of course, will be happening soon in late April. For this test, SEGA will be granting a whopping 100,000 gamers access to the game servers. Hopefully, the game will see light in the English market next year or in 2014. Find similar article at: http://www.mmoculture.com/2012/03/phantasy-star-online-2-jp-2nd-media.html Incoming search terms: mmorpg reviews 2012 (1)

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