MMO Updates

---

• Ex-BioWare dev: Negativity too much for Zeschuk, Muzyka
• Age of Wushu beta and launch announced
• 38 Studios assets to be auctioned off in October
• Blade & Soul introduces the Lyn Blade Master
• The Daily Grind: How important is intellectual property to your MMO?
• Analysts: Mists of Pandaria sales disappointing
• Phantasy Star Universe is gone for good
• RaiderZ previews Mt. Eda
• The Guild Counsel: Dealing with returning members at the dawn of a new expansion
• Save CoH movement invites NCsoft execs to play, petition passes 20,000 signatures
• DayZ receiving a standalone version before the year is out
• Chaos Theory: Stuff The Secret World needs
• LotRO explains history of mounted combat
• RIFT lets you go on the offensive with Hunt Rifts
• Get EVE Online: Inferno for $5 this weekend only
• Blizzard offering free server transfers to offset Mists of Pandaria queues
• Garriott shares Ultima Online anecdotes for 15th anniversary

Ex-BioWare dev: Negativity too much for Zeschuk, Muzyka Posted: 28 Sep 2012 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Culture, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Star Wars: The Old Republic Former BioWare dev Trent Oster thinks that fan negativity probably contributed to the recent exit strategy for BioWare founders Greg Zeschuk and Ray Muzyka. "The last time I met up with [Greg], I felt his exhaustion," Oster told Now Gamer. 'Punch out, eject, get the hell out,' was my suggestion to him and it hit closer to the mark than I had realized. I also think the Mass Effect 3 fan reaction and the Old Republic fans' negativity was just too much." Oster goes on to express surprise at Muzyka's departure, saying that he had him "pegged as an EA lifer." "I'm sure the internal culture at EA had pinned the Old Republic conversion to free-to-play as a failure and hung that completely on Ray, so that would have hurt his upward climb. But, I figured he would fight harder. EA upper management must have been even worse than I thought," Oster explained. Ex-BioWare dev: Negativity too much for Zeschuk, Muzyka originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Now Gamer Via: PC Gamer

Age of Wushu beta and launch announced Posted: 28 Sep 2012 08:30 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Launches, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Free-to-play, Sandbox Folks who were anticipating the global release of the English version of Age of Wushu in October will have to wait a bit longer; Snail Games has announced that the free-to-play martial arts MMORPG will release on May 3, 2012. However, fans eager to get in and experience the upcoming sandbox game can look forward to two closed beta sessions, one in November and one in December. Players can gain access to the November closed beta by purchasing the limited-time Elite pre-sale package for $9.99 USD. The package includes a full version of the game as well as exclusive in-game items. After the November beta closes on the 25th, players can purchase one of three Age of Wushu gift sets -- filled with in-game and real world items -- to get access to the next beta starting December 20th. The gift sets have the additional perk of allowing players into an exclusive access period starting February 1st, giving them 90 days of play before the official launch. [Source: Snail Games press release] Age of Wushu beta and launch announced originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

38 Studios assets to be auctioned off in October Posted: 28 Sep 2012 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: MMO industry, News items, Legal, Miscellaneous After a series of misfortunes, 38 Studios closed down last May and then filed for bankruptcy in June. Next month, the assets of the company that was working on the MMO known as Project Copernicus will be auctioned off. The auctions -- scheduled for October 16th and the 23rd -- will include office furniture and equipment, TVs, audio recording equipment, graphic design and animation equipment, computers, servers, and more. Currently listed in the assets are XBox 360 Development Kits, which Microsoft is requesting be removed since they are the property of Microsoft and not 38 Studios. 38 Studios assets to be auctioned off in October originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: GamesIndustry International

Blade & Soul introduces the Lyn Blade Master Posted: 28 Sep 2012 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, Classes, Patches, Previews, Free-to-play, Blade & Soul The wait is still on for Blade & Soul to make it across the Pacific, but at least we can drink in news and updates from those already enjoying the title. Steparu.com has a big preview of the Lyn Blade Master class as well as the game's October update. As one might infer from the title, Lyn Blade Masters are quite skilled in slicing and dicing. Players using the class can employ stuns, flying swords, and AoE attacks. The Lyn Blade Master has use as a tank too, with strong grabbing skills to keep the enemy rooted and focused on him or her. October's update to Blade & Soul has a slew of changes and tweaks. NCsoft is revamping the Summoner class, creating a new endgame dungeon from an old one, adding a solo dungeon called the Tower of Mushin, implementing a cross-server party matching system, throwing in a tournament system, and more. Check out the Lyn Blade Master reveal video after the jump and let us know if you'll be playing one! Continue reading Blade & Soul introduces the Lyn Blade Master Blade & Soul introduces the Lyn Blade Master originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Steparu.com

The Daily Grind: How important is intellectual property to your MMO? Posted: 28 Sep 2012 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous MMOs began as online versions of your favorite games. Ultima Online brought the familiar world of Britannia to players online, allowing them to play with their friends or meet new ones. But EverQuest showed us that a fresh new world could succeed as an MMO, with future online games exploring both sides of the IP coin. It's nice to have a familiar world in which to play, as games like World of Warcraft, Lord of the Rings Online, and Star Wars Galaxies have shown us. But fresh-from-scratch worlds are usually just as enticing. Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2 seem to be doing pretty well for themselves. So which do you prefer? Does a familiar world matter to you, or do you reward originality? 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: How important is intellectual property to your MMO? originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Analysts: Mists of Pandaria sales disappointing Posted: 27 Sep 2012 09:50 PM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Expansions, MMO industry, News items Is Mists of Pandaria a sales disappointment? Analysts at investment bank Lazard Capital Markets have estimated that this week's expansion has sold between 600,000 and 700,000 retail copies since its Tuesday launch. This is a significant drop from the 3.3 million unit sales of Cataclysm, World of Warcraft's last expansion which shipped in December of 2010. One important caveat is that Lazard doesn't take digital sales into account, but VentureBeat reports that the firm believes "digital sales won't make up for [MoP's] poor retail performance. Analysts: Mists of Pandaria sales disappointing originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 23:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: VentureBeat

Phantasy Star Universe is gone for good Posted: 27 Sep 2012 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Events, in-game, MMO industry, News items Saying goodbye to a game you love is sad. Phantasy Star Universe has been in the process of bidding its players adieu for quite some time, beginning by departing from the PS2 and PC platforms two years ago. Since then, players have been clinging to the XBox 360 servers and dreaming of a happy future. Today, with the closure of the Japanese PSU servers, players had to bid the game a final farewell. Fans got together on the PSO World forums to share memories and final screenshots. [Thanks to savvy reader Kassandra for the tip.] Phantasy Star Universe is gone for good originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: SEGA of Japan announcement

RaiderZ previews Mt. Eda Posted: 27 Sep 2012 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Previews, News items, Free-to-play The RaiderZ preview train continues onward, this time taking a look at the snow-covered Mt. Eda just past Hero's Lane. Mt. Eda used to be a place of peace and serenity, but in the game's timeline, it's become the site of an ersatz turf war between tribes of trolls and ogres. That means a lot of trolls and ogres to fight in a lot of ancient ruins... and that's not actually the worst part of what players will be dealing with. Players can warm themselves up for the mountain's challenges with PvP matches on the slopes. That practice will hopefully prepare them for fighting the giant yeti near the mountain's peak. Or they can try to go through the tunnels beneath the mountain... tunnels infested with diabolical tribes and huge colonies of marauding insects. Check out the full trailer just past the break for a rundown of what you can expect from the mountain. [Source: Perfect World Entertainment press release] Gallery: RaiderZ Gallery Continue reading RaiderZ previews Mt. Eda RaiderZ previews Mt. Eda originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Guild Counsel: Dealing with returning members at the dawn of a new expansion Posted: 27 Sep 2012 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Expansions, Guilds, Opinion, The Guild Counsel, Miscellaneous The launch of an expansion is always an exciting time. There's new content to explore, new features to check out, and for guilds, a sudden influx of new and returning players. Some of those fresh faces were once on your roster, and it's not that surprising that they're suddenly showing up on your doorstep again, ready and willing to get back into things. On the surface, the sudden roster boost might seem like a welcome scenario, especially for raiding guilds. But in reality, it can turn into a disruption that has the potential to add drama and headaches for the guild leader. In this week's Guild Counsel, we'll look at a few things to be mindful of when you're faced with a sudden influx of returning members. Continue reading The Guild Counsel: Dealing with returning members at the dawn of a new expansion The Guild Counsel: Dealing with returning members at the dawn of a new expansion originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Save CoH movement invites NCsoft execs to play, petition passes 20,000 signatures Posted: 27 Sep 2012 04:30 PM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, Events, real-world, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play The shutdown date for City of Heroes looms over the game's fans, but the movement to save the game has maintained its intensity. The online petition to save the game has continued to gain steam, with just above 20,000 signatures as of this writing, and players continue to plan events and rallies to protest the decision. One player has put forth a unique idea: Instead of asking NCsoft executives to reverse their decision, he's asking them to come play the game. Other fans have taken to mirroring the letter and sending it to the address set up for CoH-related messages. The hope is that playing and experiencing the game will convince the people in charge how much the game means to the players who have spent years in Paragon City. If you've already signed the petition and sent your letter, you might be looking for a bit of happy news. That would come in the form of photos of the player-bought lunch for Paragon Studios, a gift from the community to the team. It's a sign of the dedication behind the Save CoH movement and an inspiration to those still hoping that the game's sunset will be averted. [Thanks to Jeffrey for the tip!] Save CoH movement invites NCsoft execs to play, petition passes 20,000 signatures originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Save CoH Petition, One letter sent, CoH Dev Dinner made reality

DayZ receiving a standalone version before the year is out Posted: 27 Sep 2012 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Horror, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Post-Apocalyptic, Miscellaneous Are you interested in zombie survivalist fantasies but not interested in buying an unrelated first-person shooter? DayZ has already garnered a fan following despite being a mod for an existing game, but a standalone version of the game is in the works for release before the end of the year. Creator Dean Hall has stated that in terms of what the team wants to accomplish (some of which was outlined in our interview on the game), the alpha version absolutely has to be out by the end of the year. Hill has not named an exact price, but he has made it clear that the standalone version will be cheap. He's also made a point of stating several of his longer-term plans for the standalone version, including the spread of diseases, makeshift first-aid remedies, and the eventual inclusion of vehicles. All of it is very ambitious, but that's part of the reason that the team is dead-set on having the standalone game out before the end of December. DayZ receiving a standalone version before the year is out originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: DayZ standalone release this year

Chaos Theory: Stuff The Secret World needs Posted: 27 Sep 2012 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Horror, MMO industry, Opinion, The Secret World, Giveaways, Housing, Chaos Theory Well, I think The Secret World has been out long enough for me to start listing some things the game needs. No, I haven't cleared Transylvania yet. In fact, I'm still happily lost in the latter portion of the game's Egyptian area, so this isn't a column full of complaints about endgame or the lack thereof. Good MMOs are virtual worlds, though, and Funcom's got plenty of options for expanding immersiveness and gameplay potential going forward. Oh, and fair warning: If you're one of those lulz-we-don't-need-no-stickin'-fluff types, this week's column isn't for you. Continue reading Chaos Theory: Stuff The Secret World needs Chaos Theory: Stuff The Secret World needs originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

LotRO explains history of mounted combat Posted: 27 Sep 2012 02:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, Game mechanics, Free-to-play, Dev Diaries As the core feature for Lord of the Rings Online's upcoming Riders of Rohan expansion, mounted combat is understandably the focus of many player concerns and questions. To hopefully answer a few, Turbine's unleashed a horse-sized developer diary about how mounted combat came to be and how it functions in the game right now. The diary begins by recalling the history of mounts in the game, back to the very earliest days when they were barely implemented in time for launch. The notion of mounted combat went from insurmountable to a strict on-rails system to a much more free-form system. It also dropped several ideas along the way, such as momentum, horse attacks, and purely generic combat skills. War-steeds will take some getting used to, according to the devs: "Probably the very first thing you notice when you ride your War-steed for the first time is that it moves completely differently than your standard horse or goat. The War-steed is a large creature and its part of a much larger system, one that requires some skill, time, and practice to master." LotRO explains history of mounted combat originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Dev diary

RIFT lets you go on the offensive with Hunt Rifts Posted: 27 Sep 2012 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Expansions, Game mechanics, RIFT The titular feature of RIFT is getting another tool for its belt: Hunt Rifts. This new type of dynamic event is coming in Storm Legion and allows players to go on the offensive instead of merely reacting to planar invasions. Hunt Rifts are challenging events in which players will be targeting planar commanders. According to Trion Worlds, these commanders are tough prey indeed; you'll need a hearty group and advanced tactics to take them down. Hunt Rifts will be found in the two new continents: Dusken and Brevane. The cool part about Hunt Rifts is that they allow players to work their way up the chain of command in the enemy's forces, earning special items and gradually unlocking super-tough Great Hunts. Great Hunts are impossible for players to accomplish without the help of Torvan Hunters and many friends. RIFT lets you go on the offensive with Hunt Rifts originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Hunt rifts

Get EVE Online: Inferno for $5 this weekend only Posted: 27 Sep 2012 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Promotions, Sandbox If you're thinking about dipping your toes into the warm, sunny waters of EVE Online, CCP Games has a limited-time offer just right for you. The studio partnered with Amazon to offer the newest expansion, all previous expansions, and 30 days of game time for just $4.99. Sweetening the deal, this offer is for the limited edition of Inferno, which means that savvy shoppers can also snag a special ship, a cerebral accelerator booster, and in-game shirts for both avatar genders. The fee will deliver a code that can be used only to upgrade new or trial accounts, so current or previous subscribers are not eligible. Get EVE Online: Inferno for $5 this weekend only originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Amazon

Blizzard offering free server transfers to offset Mists of Pandaria queues Posted: 27 Sep 2012 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Expansions, MMO industry, News items Mists of Pandaria queues got you down? Our sister site sussed out the fact that Blizzard is offering free time-limited realm transfers for some North American World of Warcraft servers. If you're on one of eight high-population realms, you can migrate immediately (though you can't choose your destination shard). Blizzard says that guilds may also move as long as the leader purchases a Guild Master Realm Transfer, after which point the remaining member migrations will be free of charge. Head to WoW Insider for full details. Blizzard offering free server transfers to offset Mists of Pandaria queues originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: WoW Insider

Garriott shares Ultima Online anecdotes for 15th anniversary Posted: 27 Sep 2012 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Culture, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, Ultima Online, Sandbox It's been a week of remembrances for past and present members of the Ultima Online dev team. The title's 15th anniversary has offered ample opportunity for stories from the early days, the latest of which come courtesy of Lord British himself (and no, it's not the one about his in-game death). Richard Garriott tells of his run-in with a player thief bent on ruining the game experience for a new player. It's an amusing anecdote that illustrates how UO's early incarnation led to plenty of unexpected gameplay scenarios. "After [the incident], I began to think more carefully about the rules we ourselves put in the game, and the inevitable play styles that would come of it," Garriott writes. Garriott shares Ultima Online anecdotes for 15th anniversary originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Memorable moments

You are subscribed to email updates from Massively To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

MMORPG News

---

• MechWarrior Online: Beta Key Giveaway!
• MechWarrior Online: FPSGuru.com | Beta Key Give Away
• DK Online: PvE Spotlight
• Dino Storm: New Update to Bring Challenges, XP Changes
• SMITE: MANOWAR Teams Up with Hi-Rez Studios
• ArchLord: The Dark Revelation Announced
• City of Heroes: Sunset FAQ Posted

MechWarrior Online: Beta Key Giveaway! Posted: 26 Sep 2012 08:59 PM PDT MMORPG.com and Infinite Game Publishing have partnered up to give out 3,000 keys to the MechWarrior Online beta. If you love the idea of giant machine-on-machine combat, you'll want grab yourself a key!

MechWarrior Online: FPSGuru.com | Beta Key Give Away Posted: 26 Sep 2012 05:23 PM PDT Piranha Games and Infinite Game Publishing set us up with a grand total of 3,000 beta keys to give away for their upcoming title in the MechWarrior franchise, MechWarrior Online. To make things even more interesting, it's going to be Free to Play, so grab your key at FPSGuru.com!

DK Online: PvE Spotlight Posted: 27 Sep 2012 08:16 AM PDT Aeria Games is committed to giving DK Online players a 'dazzling' world to explore when the game goes live in the near future. The development team is promising a lush landscape, robust cities with crafting as an integral part of the player experience. In addition, the world will be populated with fearsome monsters for even more PvE excitement.

Dino Storm: New Update to Bring Challenges, XP Changes Posted: 27 Sep 2012 07:06 AM PDT The Dino Storm developer blog has been updated with new information about the next update. New quests and dailies will be added as well as improved group quests and all experience points earned being added to the UI XP bar. The patch is expected to go live today.

SMITE: MANOWAR Teams Up with Hi-Rez Studios Posted: 27 Sep 2012 06:41 AM PDT Hi-Rez Studios has announced a collaborative effort with heavy metal band, MANOWAR, for SMITE. The band is known for its mythology-based music. To celebrate the announcement, Hi-Rez and MANOWAR have released a gameplay video set to the band's "The Sons of Odin". Check it out!

ArchLord: The Dark Revelation Announced Posted: 26 Sep 2012 03:33 PM PDT Webzen has announced that ArchLord will be expanding soon. Called "The Dark Revelation", the expansion will bring a major new feature on board in the form of the Shrine system. Shrine battles require cooperative teamwork to defeat other groups of players. Winners will earn Shrine Coins for successful wins.

City of Heroes: Sunset FAQ Posted Posted: 25 Sep 2012 07:24 PM PDT NCSoft and Paragon Studios have posted a new 'Sunset' FAQ surrounding the November closure of City of Heroes. In it, player questions are answered on topics including the exact end date, refunds of Paragon Points and much more.

You are subscribed to email updates from MMORPG.COM News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

General gaming

---

• Interview: Jordan Mechner on The Last Express
• Solaris: The Last (Atari 2600) Starfighter
• Defending the Worst of 2600
• Guest Column: My Father the Gamer
• Guest Column: How The Atari 2600 Shaped Pop Culture
• Guest Column: Memories of an Atari Baby

Interview: Jordan Mechner on The Last Express Posted: 27 Sep 2012 03:55 PM PDT Feature Share it: Tweet Interview: Jordan Mechner on The Last Express The creator of Prince of Persia talks about his sole adventure game. By: Bob Mackey September 27, 2012 The original release of The Last Express stands as one of the worst cases of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. By the late 90s, classic PC adventure games had lost the traction they'd built up over nearly two decades, causing the genre to sputter and die as gamers sought out experiences that offered the same amount of story without skimping on the action. Too bad for them -- as adventure games go, The Last Express may be the most ambitious one in existence. Though Mechner's masterpiece limits your environment to a single six-car train, the game features a (semi) real-time clock and a hefty cast of characters, each with their own schedules, agendas, and secrets. The Last Express saw nothing but praise from press at the time due to its advanced mechanics and fully realized world, but the market's growing disinterest in the genre combined with some particularly terrible publisher problems caused the game to quickly fade from retail shelves. 15 years later, and Mechner's lost classic has reemerged on the iOS marketplace, giving those who missed The Last Express the first time around to see what they missed -- and in a very friendly format, at that. On this momentous occasion -- for adventure game fans, anyway -- I had the chance to catch up with Mechner himself for some behind-the-scenes information about his very unique game.

Solaris: The Last (Atari 2600) Starfighter Posted: 27 Sep 2012 03:17 PM PDT Feature Share it: Tweet 1UP COVER STORY 1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 24 | 35 YEARS OF ATARI 2600 Solaris: The Last (Atari 2600) Starfighter Cover Story: Though it had the misfortune of being born on the ailing Atari 2600, Solaris was a remarkably deep game for its time. W hen Nintendo pulled the North American video game market out of its mud puddle in 1985, early adopters immediately noticed two massive differences between the old market and the new one. First, Nintendo's sober grey box did away with the faux wood paneling that defined game consoles in the '70s. Second, and more importantly (unless you're really fussy about interior decorating), the NES's definitive game, Super Mario Bros., was a well-structured adventure with a story and a clear goal. Compared to Atari 2600 games that merely challenged players to grab a high score, being instructed to travel across eight worlds to rescue a princess felt like playing through a storybook. Crash or no crash, Did the 2600's primitive two-color sprites ever have a chance against the NES's sophisticated, multi-screened games? Technically, yes -- but it would have required more 2600 games to be at the technical level of Solaris, a 1986 third-person space shooter put together by game designer Douglas Neubauer. Solaris utilized the 2600's hardware in clever ways to deliver a surprisingly deep adventure that challenged players to explore hostile planets, navigate dangerous territory, and change up their fighting strategy according to the nature of the enemy that was trying to murder them. Maybe most importantly, Solaris gave players an end goal -- a definite conclusion they could work towards, one of the traits that made NES and PC games so special at the time.

Defending the Worst of 2600 Posted: 27 Sep 2012 01:44 PM PDT Feature Share it: Tweet 1UP COVER STORY 1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 24 | 35 YEARS OF ATARI 2600 Defending the Worst of 2600 Cover Story: We go to the mats to explain why three infamous Atari games aren't as bad as you think. I n 1980, I was 6 years old and I wanted two things for Christmas: A Tyco electric race car track and an Atari 2600. I received both, and although the race track has since been scrapped, my Atari 2600 sits in my man-cave in decent working condition. No console system in my life has had the same impact that my Atari did. I spent many days and nights playing Combat, Adventure, Kaboom! and other great titles... but as much as I'd like to go on about the greats, this article isn't about those; it's about the not-so-great ones. The ones that make gamers cringe, roll their eyes, and lash out in anger. The ones that suck.

Guest Column: My Father the Gamer Posted: 27 Sep 2012 12:42 PM PDT Feature Share it: Tweet 1UP COVER STORY 1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 24 | 35 YEARS OF ATARI 2600 Guest Column: My Father the Gamer Cover Story: The Escapist's Susan Arendt looks back at lessons learned gaming with family on Atari 2600. T he fact that both of our names was on the box informed me that this Christmas gift was a Really Big Deal. My mom was very careful about making sure that my brother and I came out pretty much equal at Christmastime, so if a gift was meant for both of us, it was probably really expensive ... which meant it was also something really, really amazing. We waited while she poised the Kodak, flashbulb at the ready, then greedily ripped through the paper to discover the pinnacle of high-tech coolness (at least as far as the late '70s were concerned), an Atari 2600. What I didn't realize until much, much later was that my brother and I were just a handy excuse my dad could use to get an Atari into the house. It was far too expensive a toy for him to pick up just because he thought it was neat, but if he couched the purchase as a way for him to spend more time with us, she could hardly turn him down. As an adult, I can now appreciate his blatant manipulation of the situation, but as a kid, all I knew was that were video games in the house.

Guest Column: How The Atari 2600 Shaped Pop Culture Posted: 26 Sep 2012 04:04 PM PDT Feature Share it: Tweet 1UP COVER STORY 1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 24 | 35 YEARS OF ATARI 2600 Guest Column: How The Atari 2600 Shaped Pop Culture Cover Story: Atari's classic home console has affected our lives in ways we never anticipated all those years ago. T he Atari 2600 certainly exerted its influence on the games industry. Released in October of 1977, the console was also called the VCS, or "Video Computer System," as seen on its original packaging. It was the first home video game system from the young Atari company, who to that point had only produced a few arcade titles. While the 2600 was not the first device to bring video games into the home, it would soon become the first to break through to mainstream success and begin permeating pop culture at large. Just as the VCR had done for movies, and television would ultimately do for sporting events, the Atari 2600 finally presented the public with a device that could pose the same entertainment value as the arcades in the comfort of one's own home. Dazzling colors, signature sound, iconic gameplay, and even an arcade-style joystick were available for players. The possibilities seemed limitless, and the Atari 2600 caught on as millions upon millions of game cartridges flew off the shelves.

Guest Column: Memories of an Atari Baby Posted: 25 Sep 2012 05:15 PM PDT Feature Share it: Tweet 1UP COVER STORY 1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 24 | 35 YEARS OF ATARI 2600 Guest Column: Memories of an Atari Baby Cover Story: How the 2600 shaped the life of one gamer before he could even pick up a controller. I  may not have entirely understood what was going on when I first held an Atari controller in my hand back in 1983. I imagined I put it in my mouth first or shortly thereafter. While I quickly learned it wasn't for consumption, it would be much later that I realized the impact the console would have on me and how I interacted with my family. I was too young to notice the couch was falling apart or I was half naked. The connection with the Atari 2600 was deep and real. The electronic beeps and boops were alive, reacting to whomever was controlling them. Though looking back, maybe it was those hypnotic effects that brought my family together. I was thrilled to watch and learn about the games my six siblings liked, which in turn, taught me a bit about my siblings, too.

You are subscribed to email updates from 1UP RSS feed To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610