MMO Updates

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• Jagex announces new account security for RuneScape
• EVE's latest dev blog talks ship balancing for winter update
• SWTOR's Daniel Erickson 'actively looking for new opportunities'
• The Daily Grind: Are there too many MMOs?
• Secret World's lead designer 'not with Funcom anymore'
• Not So Massively: Diablo III world-first level 100 and PAX wrap-up videos
• Fallen Earth unveils new weapons and bosses in time for its third anniversary [Updated]
• The War Z allows cash shop items to be lost forever
• Leaderboard: Fight for City of Heroes or let it go
• SWTOR's 1.4 patch live on public test server today
• ArenaNet resumes digital sales of Guild Wars 2
• Mists of Pandaria TV ads spotted in the wild
• Guild Wars 2 launch trailer released
• PAX Prime 2012: Marvel Heroes video interview touches on costumes, public combat zones
• Captain's Log: Star Trek Online's Daniel Stahl's Q&A at Raptr

Jagex announces new account security for RuneScape Posted: 11 Sep 2012 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, News items, RuneScape, Free-to-play, Browser Account security is a pretty big deal. Because it's a pretty big deal, Jagex has created the Jagex Account Guardian (J.A.G.) to help RuneScape players to better manage and defend their own security. Players can use the J.A.G. to connect specific trusted devices with their accounts for an extra line of defense. After the J.A.G. has been enabled on an account, any attempts to play from an untrusted device will require the user to go through additional steps of verification. Mark Gerhard, CEO of Jagex, says that "Ensuring the integrity and security of our valued community's information has always been a top priority," and adds that Jagex is taking the responsibility of protecting players' investments very seriously. [Source: Jagex press release] Jagex announces new account security for RuneScape originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Sep 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

EVE's latest dev blog talks ship balancing for winter update Posted: 11 Sep 2012 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Game mechanics, News items, Dev Diaries, Sandbox Previous efforts to balance ships in EVE Online resulted in improvements to 19 different frigates and mining barges. However, that sum only represents 10% of all available EVE ships. With such a long ways to go, CCP wanted to pick up the pace for the upcoming winter expansion, according to the latest dev blog. And the company did just that: Eight destroyers, 16 frigates, and 16 cruisers are all getting various tweaks and upgrades to enhance specialization and increase utility. That's 40 more ships feeling the developer love! For specific details on the changes coming to each individual ship, check out the dev blog. You can also learn more about the winter expansion in EVE Evolved's spotlight. EVE's latest dev blog talks ship balancing for winter update originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Sep 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Dev blog

SWTOR's Daniel Erickson 'actively looking for new opportunities' Posted: 11 Sep 2012 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, MMO industry, Star Wars: The Old Republic Is Star Wars: The Old Republic's lead designer and creative director looking to move on from the studio? This is the question that comes from reading Daniel Erickson's LinkedIn profile, in which he includes the phrase "actively looking for new opportunities" in his header. Erickson has been with BioWare for well over seven years at this point. We're cautious about deducing too much from a single blurb on LinkedIn, but then again, he puts it right up front and center. What do you think: Is Erickson looking to move on from BioWare, and if so, what impact will this have on SWTOR? [Thanks to Soeren for the tip!] SWTOR's Daniel Erickson 'actively looking for new opportunities' originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Sep 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Daniel Erickson on LinkedIn Via: SWTOR strategies

The Daily Grind: Are there too many MMOs? Posted: 11 Sep 2012 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: MMO industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind It's no secret that there are more MMOs on the market today than at any time in the genre's history. How many good MMOs are on the market today is another thing entirely, though it's of course a subjective observation. That said, it sometimes seems as if there are too many games, as companies are tripping over themselves to MMOify popular IPs or rush assembly line products to market in order to capitalize on the free-to-play craze. As one Massively commenter put it, "We're saturated as is. We're going to lose some good games over the next year or so just because of the amazing number of MMOs to play." What do you think, dear readers? Are there too many MMOs, or is there no such thing? 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: Are there too many MMOs? originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Sep 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Secret World's lead designer 'not with Funcom anymore' Posted: 10 Sep 2012 08:45 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Horror, MMO industry, News items, The Secret World Funcom's recent reorganization reached higher up the developer food chain than we initially expected. Earlier today former Secret World lead designer Martin Bruusgaard informed Twitter followers that he was let go from the company last week. The good news is that Bruusgaard has already found work, although he called it "a grown-up job, for now... still in IT, with a good solid company based in Oslo." Bruusgaard also speculated about the severity of Funcom's job cuts, saying that "I think that 50 percent was an overall Funcom percentage. The Oslo office got hit much much harder." [Thanks to E. for the tip.] Secret World's lead designer 'not with Funcom anymore' originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Sep 2012 22:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Twitter

Not So Massively: Diablo III world-first level 100 and PAX wrap-up videos Posted: 10 Sep 2012 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Events, real-world, Game mechanics, New titles, PvP, Endgame, News items, PvE, Free-to-play, Not So Massively, Dungeons, MOBA, League of Legends, Diablo III, Firefall The League of Legends North American regional tournament concluded this week with Team Solo Mid, Team Dignitas, and Counter Logic Gaming securing spots in October's World Championship games. Riot Games also revealed its new livestream portal this week; it supports popular livestreamers with news coverage and even prizes to give away to viewers. Wrath of Heroes released its new ranged Dwarven Engineer hero Durrig, and we heard that upcoming Korean free-for-all MOBA Core Masters Online may be getting an English-language release. As game developers around the world recover from PAX 2012, videos are starting to surface showing highlights from the event. Firefall developer Red 5 Studios laid the whole PAX experience bare in a three-part video series covering the tense week of preparation for the event and its final execution. Torchlight II developer Runic Games posted its own PAX wrap-up video and its official release trailer this week, pre-empting the game's launch in just under two weeks time. Upcoming free-to-play action RPG Path of Exile released its 10th video in the popular Build of the Week series. Diablo III celebrates its first player to reach paragon level 100, and developers published a new journal entry on upcoming changes to the game's crowd control mechanics. Continue reading Not So Massively: Diablo III world-first level 100 and PAX wrap-up videos Not So Massively: Diablo III world-first level 100 and PAX wrap-up videos originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Sep 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Fallen Earth unveils new weapons and bosses in time for its third anniversary [Updated] Posted: 10 Sep 2012 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Galleries, Screenshots, Fallen Earth, Game mechanics, Patches, News items, Free-to-play, Post-Apocalyptic, Anniversary Anniversary gifts require careful thought, but Fallen Earth seems to know just what its players want. So patch 2.5 adds three powerful new weapons for players to use across the wastelands as well as three new bosses that carry required components for those weapons. It's not really the traditional gift for a three-year anniversary, but some traditions are going to go out the window when the entire world is a ravaged wasteland dominated by crazed survivalists. The three G.O.R.E weapons each have three tiers and can be upgraded, although the process is greatly enhanced by players who find G.O.R.E. enhancements. Not coincidentally, these can be found on the three new bosses added with the patch. The full patch notes also include a few art fixes and minor quality-of-life improvements, the sort of things that go very nicely with your new anniversary guns. [Update: The team has updated the patch notes to clarify that not all of the new weapon components can be purchased through the cash shop. Specifically, "all components that are required to build the weapons are earned in-game using resource harvesters, killing boss mobs, and from high-level merchants (for in-game currency only)." Players may purchase optional G.O.R.E. enhancements and new boss baits through the cash shop, although both of these drop from monsters as well.] Gallery: Fallen Earth Fallen Earth unveils new weapons and bosses in time for its third anniversary [Updated] originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Sep 2012 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Patch 2.5 notes

The War Z allows cash shop items to be lost forever Posted: 10 Sep 2012 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Horror, Business models, Free-to-play, Sandbox Imagine that you're playing the hot new zombie MMO, and you decide to splurge a few bucks on that shiny weapon you've been eying. You get your grubby mitts on it and go to town on a few living undead, only to find yourself over your head and quickly killed. When you wake up, your gun -- and the rest of your stuff -- is gone. Forever. And the devs are totally OK with that. This is about to become reality for players of the upcoming The War Z, as even cash shop-purchased items are not safe from being lost due to death. In a recent interview with Gaming Blend, Hammerpoint Marketing Director Alex Josef was unapologetic about that point: "You'll lose what you have in your backpack when you die in both in normal and hardcore modes. And yes, if you bought something using real money, you'll lose that item as well. This is a price you'll have to pay." According to Josef, this level of item loss was a deliberate decision by the team to cause player to treat the game more seriously. "We've discussed that a lot," he said, "and at the end decided that this will provide a pretty good incentive for players to either be extra cautious while playing or just not spend too much money in the game and instead try to procure all items by finding them in the game world." The War Z allows cash shop items to be lost forever originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Sep 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Gaming Blend Via: PC Gamer

Leaderboard: Fight for City of Heroes or let it go Posted: 10 Sep 2012 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, Polls, City of Heroes, Opinion, Free-to-play, Leaderboard You may have heard of this little kerfuffle involving NCsoft summarily shutting down City of Heroes and axing Paragon Studios, as well as a massive player movement to save the title. It's... been mentioned. Some people see it as a David vs. Goliath story, with NCsoft taking the role of the giant that tramples over the little people while pursuing the almighty dollar (or won). While the protesters have a lot of support, both inside the game and in the larger MMO community, there are those who have taken NCsoft's side in this. They see an aging game that perhaps needs needs to be let go after its good run. So while they may have sympathy, these players are at peace with City of Heroes sunsetting this November. But where does that leave you? Are you part of Occupy Paragon, or do you think it's time to let the game go? Vote after the jump! Continue reading Leaderboard: Fight for City of Heroes or let it go Leaderboard: Fight for City of Heroes or let it go originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Sep 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

SWTOR's 1.4 patch live on public test server today Posted: 10 Sep 2012 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Video, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic Last week BioWare gave us a sneak preview of Star Wars: The Old Republic's 1.4 update via a lengthy dev blog. This week we get to try out the patch proper on the game's public test server. The 1.4 update features the new Terror from Beyond operation as well as new weapons and armor, group finder tweaks, and facial emotes and associated slash commands. You'll need a pre-existing PTS character, and you can leave your testing feedback on the official forums. Head past the break for the latest developer dispatch video that looks at the new operation. Continue reading SWTOR's 1.4 patch live on public test server today SWTOR's 1.4 patch live on public test server today originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Sep 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Announcement

ArenaNet resumes digital sales of Guild Wars 2 Posted: 10 Sep 2012 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Business models, News items, Guild Wars 2 A little over a week ago, ArenaNet brought a temporary halt to first-party digital sales of Guild Wars 2. At the time, the message was this: "Ensuring the best possible play experience for our fans is our highest priority. We've said before that we would be willing to temporarily disable first-party digital sales if we felt our high player concurrency may compromise player experiences. We have now reached that point." It seems like we may be beyond that point now, however. While there's no official statement from ArenaNet yet, the digital purchase page for Guild Wars 2 appears to be up and running once again. On the same page, players are being prompted to include BradyGames' official Guild Wars 2 digital strategy guide ($14.99) and advised to "make the most of [their] time in Tyria with this comprehensive guide packed with tips and tactics, crucial info, and detailed analysis." ArenaNet resumes digital sales of Guild Wars 2 originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Sep 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Buy Guild Wars 2

Mists of Pandaria TV ads spotted in the wild Posted: 10 Sep 2012 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Trailers, Video, Expansions, MMO industry, News items It's hard to escape the long arm of Blizzard's Mists of Pandaria marketing campaign these days. World of Warcraft's newest expansion is making its way to your television set via a couple of new ad spots. The clips are composed of footage from MoP's opening cinematic, which features a kung-fu panda named Chen Stormstout. Both clips are viewable after the cut. Mists of Pandaria launches on September 25th. Continue reading Mists of Pandaria TV ads spotted in the wild Mists of Pandaria TV ads spotted in the wild originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Sep 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Battle.net

Guild Wars 2 launch trailer released Posted: 10 Sep 2012 11:30 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Trailers, Video, Launches, News items, Guild Wars 2 Roughly two weeks after the game itself, Guild Wars 2's launch trailer has, well, launched. A couple of teaser images in mid-August and a series of incredibly portentous quotes beginning late Sunday evening clued fans into the fact that something was afoot, and the video has just gone live. This trailer is several steps removed from the cinematic- and gameplay-heavy videos that have promoted the game thus far, featuring a significant amount of real-life footage. We're given a tasty bit of in-game footage at the end, though, including a good, long look at Zhaitan himself. Skip below the cut to view the launch trailer in all its glory. Continue reading Guild Wars 2 launch trailer released Guild Wars 2 launch trailer released originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Sep 2012 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Launch trailer

PAX Prime 2012: Marvel Heroes video interview touches on costumes, public combat zones Posted: 10 Sep 2012 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Super-hero, Video, Game mechanics, New titles, News items, Free-to-play, Marvel Heroes In a video interview at PAX Prime, Associate Producer Matt Group discussed different aspects of the upcoming superhero MMORPG Marvel Heroes. Some of the topics he touched on include rotating between characters, public combat zones, multiple costumes, the free-to-play philosophy, and the fact that much of the world is open (although boss fights are mostly instanced). Group also mentioned that Gazillion Entertainment has access to every Marvel character and location possible. Folks who prefer console gaming but love the idea of slipping into the skin of their favorite super heroes can take heart; Group stated, "Once we have a solid grip on [the PC game] we want to move on to whatever other platforms there are out there." When is the game launching? Group says, "Sooner than you think." Closed beta, however, is beginning on October 1st. Check out the full interview after the cut. Continue reading PAX Prime 2012: Marvel Heroes video interview touches on costumes, public combat zones PAX Prime 2012: Marvel Heroes video interview touches on costumes, public combat zones originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Sep 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Lore Hound

Captain's Log: Star Trek Online's Daniel Stahl's Q&A at Raptr Posted: 10 Sep 2012 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Patches, Opinion, Star Trek Online, Free-to-play, Community Q&A, Captain's Log The past week was met with such interesting Star Trek Online news that I'm postponing my advice series: STO launched a formal affiliation with gaming social media site Raptr, and Cryptic Studios' Executive Producer Daniel Stahl spent a majority of the day answering questions posed to him in the site's community threads. Stahl revealed quite a few tasty tidbits of information and even though the thread can be accessed by non-members members (the link is below in the comments section), I am taking the liberty of reporting on some of his responses. Join me after the break to read what's in store for the future of STO. Continue reading Captain's Log: Star Trek Online's Daniel Stahl's Q&A at Raptr Captain's Log: Star Trek Online's Daniel Stahl's Q&A at Raptr originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Sep 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

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General gaming

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• The Essential 100, No. 46: Spacewar!
• The Essential 100, No. 47: Guitar Hero
• The Essential 100, No. 48: Colossal Cave Adventure
• The Essential 100, No. 49: Super Mario Kart
• The Essential 100, No. 50: Civilization
• Cover Story: 1UP's Essential 100, Part Three
• The Last Story Review: Deconstructing Fantasy Heroes

The Essential 100, No. 46: Spacewar! Posted: 10 Sep 2012 05:04 PM PDT Feature Share it: Tweet 1UP COVER STORY 1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 10 | THE ESSENTIAL 100, PART THREE The Essential 100, No. 46: Spacewar! Cover Story: How a few hackers predicted video games' future schism in the process of creating the medium. "A ccessibility" may be the single most controversial term in video games today. Forget "digital rights management" or "downloadable content." Roll your eyes when you hear "outsourcing" or "annualization." If you want to angry up the core gamer's blood, sing the praises of accessible game design. To the dedicated gamer, the word "accessibility" speaks of compromise. Surrender. Ceding vast swaths of a beloved pastime, a medium that has given them countless fond memories, to the inevitable evil of marketability. Developers hesitate to use the word. Gamers froth at the mouth when they hear it. To many, accessibility represents the vanguard of gaming's conquest by the same outsiders who once sneered at them, shoved them into lockers, stereotyped them as friendless losers, insulted them, refused to date them. The girl who laughed when you asked her to a movie back in 9th grade because you kept your school papers in a Legend of Zelda binder? She's all grown up now, and she plays video games. Her ChefVille requests clog your Facebook feed. She likes games, now. They're accessible.

The Essential 100, No. 47: Guitar Hero Posted: 10 Sep 2012 04:03 PM PDT Feature Share it: Tweet 1UP COVER STORY 1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 10 | THE ESSENTIAL 100, PART THREE The Essential 100, No. 47: Guitar Hero Cover Story: When American rock music met plastic, it helped gamers live the thrill of performance. B efore Guitar Hero set living rooms across the U.S. ablaze with the sound of rock 'n roll, Konami had already successfully married rhythm and plastic for their own music-focused series, GuitarFreaks, a spin-off of the already popular (in Japan) Beatmania games. Between GuitarFreaks 1999 arcade launch and Guitar Hero's 2005 debut, Konami shipped 14 different versions of the game. So why did Guitar Hero sales blow past of an already established competitor by presenting a suspiciously similar take on the same idea? Compare their soundtracks, presentation styles, and respective overall approach, and you'll see why one series took off in the American living rooms while the other sat faded in the arcade. The music of Guitar Hero strayed far from the J-Pop quirk that lived within Konami's GuitarFreaks, leaning heavily on a set of beloved rock classics. In it you could find Ozzy Osbourne's "Bark at the Moon," "Spanish Castle Magic " by Jimmy Hendrix, Queen's "Killer Queen"; even a David Bowie track made it into Guitar Hero's metal-focused soundtrack. The music didn't include a wide spectrum of talent, but the choices sent a clear message: Guitar Hero would let you play some of the most devilish and iconic music by means of a plastic guitar.

The Essential 100, No. 48: Colossal Cave Adventure Posted: 10 Sep 2012 02:24 PM PDT Feature Share it: Tweet 1UP COVER STORY 1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 10 | THE ESSENTIAL 100, PART THREE The Essential 100, No. 48: Colossal Cave Adventure Cover Story: How Will Crowther's humble project proved that video games could do anything. A s 1UP soldiers on with our Essential 100 series, I've noticed a certain misconception about the ranking of our chosen games. So, allow me to put you at ease: a higher-ranked title isn't necessarily better than those that came before it, just more influential to the medium as a whole. And there's no greater example of this than 1976's Colossal Cave Adventure, which comes in ahead of more than half of our entries, yet provides the charmingly primitive experience you'd expect from a game quickly approaching its fortieth birthday. It may be difficult to grasp the importance of Colossal Cave Adventure without first knowing that no one had done anything like it before, despite how obvious its ideas may seem in retrospect. Though assembled as a simple diversion by a dad looking for a way to bond with his two daughters, the work of programmer William Crowther served as a direct inspiration to the first wave of game designers, whose influences we can trace further still. Of course, Colossal Cave Adventure wouldn't have spread to the outside world without some help; Crowther originally developed his game for the PDP-10 mainframe computer, a monstrosity which looked like set dressing straight out of Dr. Bunsen Honeydew's Muppet Labs. But Crowther didn't design Colossal Cave Adventure for commercial sale (even if such a thing could happen in 1976), so friends passed it along during the early days of the Internet, where the few people with access to computers found themselves addicted without knowing just where this brilliant game came from. In the early '70s video games typically involved a car, spaceship, or ping-pong paddle set against a black void of nothingness, but Colossal Cave Adventure had players exploring an environment that they could map out for themselves -- inspired by Cowther's own knowledge of Kentucky's Mammoth Cave.

The Essential 100, No. 49: Super Mario Kart Posted: 10 Sep 2012 01:20 PM PDT Feature Share it: Tweet 1UP COVER STORY 1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 10 | THE ESSENTIAL 100, PART THREE The Essential 100, No. 49: Super Mario Kart Cover Story: 20 years ago, Mario appeared in his first true spin-off and created a genre in the process. W hen Shigeru Miyamoto first created Mario, he originally thought to call the then-nameless hero "Mr. Video." His thinking was that Mario -- or rather, Mr. Video -- would serve as an all-purpose protagonist, able to stand in for any role his creators could possibly conceive. Despite going with the more affable moniker "Mario," Nintendo put Miyamoto's Mr. Video plan into effect from the very beginning, thrusting the character into a number of Game & Watch titles shortly after the debut of Donkey Kong. A couple of years later, the Famicom (NES) home console launched in Japan, and even before the revolutionary Super Mario Bros. debuted Mario had his hands full with cameos in a great many early NES titles. Still, these were mere footnotes in game history, grist for trainspotters to compile their "complete list of Mario appearances" wikis, or a meaningless factoid for video game trivia contests. NES Golf, Tennis, Pinball, or even later titles like Dr. Mario had nothing whatsoever to do with the character; they were simply standard games into which the character had been shoehorned for greater visibility (and salability). It wasn't until 1992, more than a decade after his debut, that Nintendo finally and at long last gave its most important character his own true spin-off.

The Essential 100, No. 50: Civilization Posted: 10 Sep 2012 11:26 AM PDT Feature Share it: Tweet 1UP COVER STORY 1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 10 | THE ESSENTIAL 100, PART THREE The Essential 100, No. 50: Civilization Cover Story: How Sid Meier destroyed billions of man-hours of productivity by being a board game fan. E xpand! Explore! Exploit! Exterminate! These are the tenets upon which game designer Sid Meier built his seminal strategy game Civilization... though the "4X" concept wouldn't be canonized in gaming parlance until a few years later, once the brilliance of Civ has trickled out and inspired other creators to try their own respective hand at developing the concepts Meier converted into video game form. Expand! Turn-based strategy games have always shared a close relationship with role-playing games; at their most basic level, they're macro-level variants on the same fundamental concepts of resource management, exploration, and conflict that RPGs deal in. Rather than controlling a handful of warriors as they make moment-to-moment decisions in battle (as you would in an RPG), a 4X places players in control of the overall army or nation, allowing those RPG battles to play out behind the scenes. Individual combat actions take a back seat to large-scale planning, general strategies, and managerial decision.

Cover Story: 1UP's Essential 100, Part Three Posted: 10 Sep 2012 11:25 AM PDT Feature Share it: Tweet 1UP COVER STORY 1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 10 | THE ESSENTIAL 100, PART THREE Cover Story: 1UP's Essential 100, Part Three We edge closer to the top in our countdown of the 1UP's community picks for most important games ever. We've passed the halfway mark in our countdown of the 100 most important video games of all time, meaning that this week we'll be recounting the back half of the top 50. Now we're in the same territory we covered in our Essential 50 series nearly 10 years ago -- though you'll definitely find this list is not at all the same as the original. Time has marched on since then, bringing new ideas, new franchises, and new directions to the medium and the industry. While you'll definitely see some overlap with that older list, you'll also find new selections that we didn't even consider a decade ago. Of course, the biggest difference -- as we've mentioned before -- is that the Essential 100 doesn't simply represent the 1UP editorial crew's opinions. We are not proclaiming these selections from on high, but rather worked in tandem with you the reader to build a democratic and comprehensive list. Needless to say, as with all such lists, these picks are completely subjective. You may not agree with every selection. You definitely won't agree with the placement of certain titles. And since we're a U.S.-based website with a predominantly North American audience, the list omits plenty of titles that would be on a European or Japanese-based list. I don't think a single Spectrum or C64 title made the list, although games like Elite definitely deserve to be on here!

The Last Story Review: Deconstructing Fantasy Heroes Posted: 10 Sep 2012 10:54 AM PDT 20 hours seems like a ridiculously short amount of time, especially when it comes to caring about someone. Making a friend or falling in love takes much longer than that. 20 hours is nothing compared to the length of a life; yet games, at times, can compress so many emotions into a handful of meaningful minutes that once you have completed your adventure and the credits roll, you feel like a little part of your heart has gone -- that you've said farewell to a friend you've known forever. The Last Story is one of these rare games. It's not simply a nice experience; in many ways, it feels alive. The game's rich and colorful cast makes this magic happen. The story begins in the middle of a mission that serves both as a brilliant tutorial for the action-oriented battle system and as an introduction for the main group of mercenaries you control.

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