| The Road to Mordor: All hail the Farmer's Faire! Posted: 28 Jul 2012 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Events, in-game, Free-to-play, The Road to Mordor It's a crazy time for Lord of the Rings Online players. Not only is this the game's fifth anniversary, but there's a new expansion is on the horizon, and Turbine's sliding in its second new festival for the year (I'm counting the revamped anniversary festival because prior to that it was a sad, misshapen thing). Now where are those flying eagle mounts we back-ordered? This week marks the debut of the Farmer's Faire, the game's sixth festival. It's an incredibly odd duck of a celebration, marking neither real-world season nor game milestone. Instead, it's a fun-for-its-own-sake bash involving food, Hobbits, more food, more Hobbits, and acid mushrooms. The sheer number of times LotRO has made me drunk or stoned against my will is tantamount to drug abuse, I say. So let's sift the wheat from the chaff and figure out what parts of this festival are worthy of inclusion -- and what should've been left on the brainstorming table. Continue reading The Road to Mordor: All hail the Farmer's Faire!  The Road to Mordor: All hail the Farmer's Faire! originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 28 Jul 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| WRUP: Sorry about failing to save your fantasy world edition Posted: 28 Jul 2012 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Massively Meta, Miscellaneous To the many, many residents of video game worlds that I have completely failed to save: I'm really sorry. You have to understand that there are a lot of games out there, and sometimes saving you just isn't worth it. I've had Mass Effect games to play, and really, that's a lot more worlds to save. Also, in some cases, I didn't have a lot of choice about saving you -- looking at Final Fantasy VI here. I hope this won't damage our working relationship if I come crawling back for a sequel. If it does, well, I'll just not save you again. To our Massively readers: This week's installment of WRUP is just past the cut; in it, the Massively staffers explain what they'll be doing over the weekend as well as whether or not they're sick of raid progression. Read our plans, and then let us know what you'll be up to down in the comments below. Also, if anyone from Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn asks about me, I'm not here. Continue reading WRUP: Sorry about failing to save your fantasy world edition WRUP: Sorry about failing to save your fantasy world edition originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 28 Jul 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Daily Grind: Where's the line between expansion and patch? Posted: 28 Jul 2012 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Business models, Expansions, MMO industry, Patches, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous Back when boxed games were king, it wouldn't have occurred to anyone to ponder the difference between an expansion and a patch. Duh, right? An expansion came in a box and cost money, whereas a patch was something a game developer delivered via download much later at no cost to the players. But with the rise of the eternally changing MMO, free-to-play models, and digital distribution, the line between expansion and patch has become blurred. We joke that freemium games call their patches "expansions" just to get more coverage and attention. We're impressed when a big-budget MMO like RIFT or Lord of the Rings Online bothers to launch an old-school expansion. And games like EVE Online compound the confusion by calling their reasonably large updates "expansions" while delivering them gratis. So what does it take before you'd call a patch a true expansion? A fee? New lands? Quests? Races? A spot on a shelf in a brick-and-mortar store? Where do you draw the line?  Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!The Daily Grind: Where's the line between expansion and patch? originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 28 Jul 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Interview on The War Z outlines more on gameplay and design goals Posted: 27 Jul 2012 08:00 PM PDT Filed under: Horror, Game mechanics, Interviews, Previews, News items, Post-Apocalyptic, Miscellaneous If you've been waiting patiently for your zombie survival kit in the basement to stop gathering dust, you're probably very interested in how the upcoming title The War Z will play out. The game's billed as a persistent open-world zombie survival sandbox, but how will that work in practice? According to executive producer Sergey Titov in a recent interview, the key is making a game that has a wide enough set of tools for a single objective and then allowing players to make most of the actual gameplay. Titov elaborates that the game won't have any traditional quests or missions; instead, players are simply given the goal of surviving against hordes of zombies. Experiences emerge through interactions with environmental situations, such as dealing with "safe settlements" that have created hard rules to ensure the town's safety against zombies. Take a look at the full interview for more peeks at the game's development cycle, shooter style, and economic design. [Thanks to Joseph for the tip!] Interview on The War Z outlines more on gameplay and design goals originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| APB: Reloaded drops a major patch with major promotions Posted: 27 Jul 2012 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Real life, Patches, News items, Free-to-play, All Points Bulletin, MMOFPS, Promotions It's patch day for APB: Reloaded with one of the larger patches in the game's lifespan. Patch 1.9.0 has gone live and brought along brand-new Activities. Activities are special side missions that players can complete during Fight Club; they take the form of minor challenges in three tiers of difficulty and provide an optional goal for players looking for bigger rewards. The patch also brings a new store with new outfits and weapons, and of course there are several bug fixes and balance changes. But if you're not lured in by the promise of a new patch, the staff at GamersFirst has put together several promotions to encourage players to jump into the game once again. Until the end of the month, 20% of funds spent in the game's store will be refunded to the players (with the refund taking place after the promotion ends). Players will also be given a free code for Joker tickets to start outfitting their characters, also good until the end of the month. If you're happily shooting away or you've taken a break, now would be the time to jump into the game and give it a shot. APB: Reloaded drops a major patch with major promotions originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Star Trek Online's Foundry is back online, sort of Posted: 27 Jul 2012 06:30 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, Patches, News items, Star Trek Online, Free-to-play Star Trek Online Executive Producer Dan Stahl has just posted his latest state-of-the-game letter to the official site, declaring that Season Six marks the perfect time for a new player to jump in, thanks to its streamlined mission structure and brand-new starbases. Here's the juicy bit: Current players know that The Foundry, the game's player-generated content system, has been offline for quite a long time as a result of tweaks made to it by the Season Six patch. Stahl notes that the team is still working on the issues but has finally brought part of the system back online: Season 6 also introduces some nice improvements for our Foundry. As some may have noticed though, we have yet to turn on these new features yet. The QA team is working diligently as they continue to sort through some specific bugs with previously existing missions. Once those bugs are sorted through, we will then open up the editor - as of today, we have turned on the ability to play existing, republished missions. Stahl finishes with a quick mention of the dreaded lock boxes, the Star Trek convention in August, and plans for Season Seven. Check out the entire state-of-the-game letter at the official site. Star Trek Online's Foundry is back online, sort of originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Betawatch: July 21 - 27, 2012 Posted: 27 Jul 2012 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, MMO industry, Massively Meta, Betawatch, Miscellaneous This week on Betawatch, we say farewell to Divina, which officially launched on Wednesday with festivities and bonuses including new minipets and mounts and an ongoing event in celebration of the Olympics. Mists of Pandaria, the World of Warcraft expansion that's been tickling the Betawatch list for many months now, finally has a launch date: September 25th. If you can't wait and are in the mood for something with a hint of Blizzard about it, try Diablo-inspired Path of Exile, which is running another open stress test starting today. If you want something more MMORTS-flavored and can wait another week, you can sign up for End of Nations' next beta event. We've also added Lord of the Ring's Online's Riders of Rohan to our closed beta list. Ride for ruin and all that! Finally, PlanetSide 2 released a new beta trailer and clarified the beta invitation process. All this and more in the complete Betawatch roundup behind the break! Continue reading Betawatch: July 21 - 27, 2012 Betawatch: July 21 - 27, 2012 originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| En Masse suiting up for TERA summer event Posted: 27 Jul 2012 05:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Events, in-game, MMO industry, News items, TERA Is your High Elf looking a little pale? Want to show off those washboard abs on your Baraka? You're in luck because En Masse is gearing up for a TERA summer event sure to put a smile on the face of beach lovers and bikini collectors of any race. The fun starts August 3rd and runs through August 13th. You'll need to defeat monsters in TERA's coastal zones to collect special event boxes. Inside you'll find fireworks, rare crystals, consumables, and 30-day swimsuits (yes, they are temporary). There are also a few new achievements on tap, so head to the official TERA website for further details. En Masse suiting up for TERA summer event originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| SWTOR explains automatic transfers and more in weekly Q&A Posted: 27 Jul 2012 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Community Q&A Star Wars: The Old Republic's weekly Q&A session with the devs made it to release on time this week! BioWare's Will Wallace, Hall Hood, Rick Burton answer questions about travel perks in PvP, the seven commemorative pillars on Corellia, and the aftermath of the Rise of the Rakghoul plague event. Principal Lead Systems Designer Damion Schubert joined in to respond to a player with concerns about how automatic transfers will work for players who do not opt to transfer their characters manually: Once we do automatic transfers, we will be doing everything possible in order to maintain the basics of the current ruleset as possible - PvE vs PvP, regional choice, language (for Europe); so in many cases, you should have a good idea of which populations you are likely to end up with. Another top concern is trying to help the populations that result have a good factional balance. We will give out a specific list once we are closer to implementation of this plan - watch for more info soon! Schubert also explains what "server stability" fixes really mean. The complete Q&A is online now at the official SWTOR blog. SWTOR explains automatic transfers and more in weekly Q&A originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Storyboard: The RIFT project - week 2 Posted: 27 Jul 2012 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Roleplaying, RIFT, Storyboard, Miscellaneous This week, the RIFT project slowed down a little bit. Oh, we didn't stop playing by any stretch of the imagination, but when you're also playing (and roleplaying) in two other games, you're going to find some time crunches, especially when the novelty of a game starts to wear off and gets replaced with the more mundane tasks of playing the game into the doldrum levels. And the middle levels are always the doldrum levels, no matter how elegantly they might be handled on a whole. New characters were made and played, but as of yet, they haven't really interacted with the main group, so the focus remains on the same quartet as the first installment. As such, I'll be jumping right into a recounting of the week's events and an examination of where the project is going. And the splinter I mentioned in passing is still there, but I don't think that needs to be discussed this week, does it? Continue reading Storyboard: The RIFT project - week 2 Storyboard: The RIFT project - week 2 originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| MMObility: Parallel Zombies is PerBlue's best game yet Posted: 27 Jul 2012 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Horror, Game mechanics, Launches, New titles, Previews, Opinion, Free-to-play, Mobile, Casual, Post-Apocalyptic, MMObility I have to be honest: I'm sick of zombies. I know, I know, it's the cool genre that's sweeping even the evening news, but I'm as excited about new zombie games as I am about a pop in the nose. It's probably just a light case of burnout, though, because there are still some frightening (and fun!) zombie games, movies and stories cropping up occasionally. I will always reference my Western example: In a movie set in the old West, you can expect to see some guns, a few horses, and possibly a large hat or three. These common props do not always distract us from a good story. Zombies are props too. What the writer or developer does with the story or game is really what matters. PerBlue, maker of Parallel Kingdom, Parallel Mafia, and now Parallel Zombies, has steadily increased the production value of each one of its titles. This new one takes the design in an entirely unique direction, combining standard location-based gameplay with non-stop action. Continue reading MMObility: Parallel Zombies is PerBlue's best game yet MMObility: Parallel Zombies is PerBlue's best game yet originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| End of Nations second closed beta event scheduled for early August Posted: 27 Jul 2012 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-fi, Events, in-game, Free-to-play, MMORTS This cold war... just got hot! Now that we've got cheesy movie poster taglines out of the way, let's talk about End of Nations' upcoming closed beta event. Trion Worlds announced that the event is scheduled for August 3rd, starting at 12:01 a.m. EDT and going until August 5th at 11:59 p.m. EDT. If you don't have a key for the beta yet, don't despair. You can sign up on the End of Nations beta page for a chance to get in, or watch Trion's social media for giveaways. Alternatively, beta access is guaranteed for those who pre-purcase the digital Founder's Edition. [Source: Trion Worlds press release] End of Nations second closed beta event scheduled for early August originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Pirate101 co-creator: 'Our goal is to become the Pixar of online gaming' Posted: 27 Jul 2012 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Interviews, MMO industry, Free-to-play, Wizard101, Pirate101 KingsIsle Entertainment Vice President J. Todd Coleman sat down with Forbes to give some insight into the development process of the studio's upcoming Pirate101 -- and how the studio plans to expand its empire. "We have more plans for the 101 universe," Coleman said, "but we're also looking to expand beyond it with other properties. Our ultimate goal, to summarize it easily, is to become the Pixar of the online gaming space." Coleman went into the challenges of developing a title set in the same universe but with a different thematic bent and combat system. He also said that the Pirate101 team is twice the size of Wizard101's, mostly because the studio's follow-up MMO is bound to be compared with its eight-years-in-development predecessor. Competitors might want to think twice about taking KingsIsle on, however. Coleman notes that many have tried and failed, such as LEGO Universe. "Realistically, if you want to compete with Wizard101 at this point, you're looking at an investment of at least 5 to 6 years and well over $100 million in total cost," he said. Pirate101 co-creator: 'Our goal is to become the Pixar of online gaming' originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Valve, Blizzard wary of Windows 8 Posted: 27 Jul 2012 12:30 PM PDT |
| Massively Interview: Allods Online talks health, housing, heroes, and horizons Posted: 27 Jul 2012 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Business models, Economy, Expansions, Game mechanics, Guilds, Interviews, Lore, Patches, Free-to-play, Massively Interviews, Allods Online, Dungeons, Housing Allods Online takes a lot of flak for its early direction, particularly over its F2P model, so we weren't entirely surprised when last month the game downsized to a single North American server. But when just a few weeks later gPotato opened a new server and then announced what looks like a whopper of an expansion (complete with the Allods-equivalent of player-owned housing!), we couldn't help but be intrigued. What the heck is this game up to? That's where gPotato Production Coordinator Aaron "Condulus" Biedma comes in. Biedma graciously stepped up to answer in detail our frank questions about the health of the game, the new expansion, the cash shop, and what lies beyond New Horizons. We even sneaked in a question about sexism in the lore. It's all after the cut! Continue reading Massively Interview: Allods Online talks health, housing, heroes, and horizons Massively Interview: Allods Online talks health, housing, heroes, and horizons originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| RIFT exclusive: Storm Legion lore bonanza Posted: 27 Jul 2012 11:45 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Expansions, Lore, RIFT With fall on its way, the dark forces of the Storm Legion are preparing to invade RIFT and give its players a new challenge. Fans of Trion Worlds' maiden MMO are no doubt scouring the internet for any scraps of relevant information about the expansion, which is why we're pleased to offer you two exclusive lore pieces on the Infinity Gate and the Storm Legion itself. In addition to this lore, we've got brand-new concept art and screenshots to give you a taste of what's to come with Storm Legion. When you're done soaking all of this in, you may want to check out Executive Producer Scott Hartsman's Reddit AMA (ask me anything) that's going on today! Continue reading RIFT exclusive: Storm Legion lore bonanza RIFT exclusive: Storm Legion lore bonanza originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 13:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Phantasy Star Online 2 tops 700,000 users, 91,000 concurrent Posted: 27 Jul 2012 11:30 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Sci-fi, Launches, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Free-to-play MMO companies are usually pretty secretive about their user numbers. Sega bucked that trend recently when it announced that 730,000 players had registered for Phantasy Star Online 2. The registration metric is pretty fluffy when it comes to actual player numbers, though, and fortunately the company also announced that PSO2 achieved a peak concurrent user number of 91,513 on July 7th. These numbers are solely the result of the recent Japanese launch. The game is slated to debut in Europe and North America sometime in 2013. Phantasy Star Online 2 tops 700,000 users, 91,000 concurrent originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| gPotato reveals Age of Wulin sects Posted: 27 Jul 2012 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Free-to-play, Sandbox gPotato has released some more information about its upcoming Age of Wulin fantasy martial arts sandbox. The game will feature eight different sects, which are basically an analog for factions in other massively multiplayer titles. Each of the game's sects will be either good-, evil-, or neutral-aligned, and each will feature a unique fighting style "shaped by its identity and philosophy." Good-aligned sects typically boast strong melee combat abilities. Evil groups focus on "ruthless techniques" and blade weapons, while the neutral sects offer everything from absorption and debuff skills to a "dance-like" fighting style designed to combat multiple opponents simultaneously. Good-aligned groups include the Shaolin, Wudang, Emei, and Beggars' sects. The Blissful Valley and Royal Guards sects are evil-aligned. Finally, the Tang Clan and the Scholar's Academy are Age of Wulin's neutral sects. For more on the game, check out our impressions from last month's E3. [Source: gPotato press release] gPotato reveals Age of Wulin sects originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Secret World will open to everyone during one-month celebration next weekend Posted: 27 Jul 2012 10:30 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Horror, Events, in-game, New titles, News items, The Secret World Besides answering questions from viewers while hoofing it around London and Kingsmouth, the developers of The Secret World revealed this tasty tidbit during the official livestream that just wrapped up: TSW will be open for anyone to play next weekend. To mark the one-month anniversary, Funcom will be hosting events, giving players fireworks to set off, and offering rewards for completing a set series of missions. But more than that, gamers interested in checking out the game will be able to log in for the weekend and experience it for themselves. Players will be able to use accounts created for beta even if they did not purchase the game; those who don't have an account can make one in order to participate. The devs promised that more details would be forthcoming. If you've been waiting for a chance to delve into the conspiracies of The Secret World and see what all of the hullabaloo is about, mark your calendar. And we'll keep you informed as more details are released! [Source: The Secret World official livestream] The Secret World will open to everyone during one-month celebration next weekend originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Having far outstripped its original Kickstarter funding goal of $995,000, Android-based video game console Ouya has already earned a place in the annals of crowdfunding history. But the real challenge for the Ouya team will begin when the $99 machine hits the market next year, for their ultimate goal is building a great console. While the possibility of Ouya foundering under the weight of all this hype can not be ruled out, prenatal celebrity has its fair share of advantages too. 
Micro-Star International is currently busy refreshing its C-series multimedia notebook line. But instead of getting through with the update in one fell swoop, the Taiwanese vendor is taking its own sweet time, announcing new notebooks one at a time. While it was the 
