| Watch Might and Magic: Duel of Champions' producer destroy Massively Posted: 19 Apr 2013 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, Game Mechanics, Interviews, New Titles, Previews, PvP, Free-to-Play, Mobile, Hands-On, Trading Card Games, Humor, Community Q&A, Livestream, Miscellaneous Might and Magic: Duel of Champions is a new collectible card game brought to us by Ubisoft Quebec. Some folks might say that trading card games are a dime a dozen and that once you've played one, you've played them all. But I think the genre is always moving forward and expanding, introducing new designs and interesting ways to play, which is true of Might and Magic's latest go at the TCG market. During my tour, I found myself up against producer Stephane Jankowski. Unfortunately for me, he is no stranger to the game. He takes it quite seriously, going so far as to "go easy" on me so that I was not embarrassed. Little did he know that I am a noob at every game out there, so no harm was done. Might and Magic: Duel of Champions is a great game for those who want not only more strategy but also a faster pace. The tutorial walked me through some of the basics, but I learned more in the hour I played with Stephane than I had playing during the previous week. Click past the cut to watch the livestream and read up on what makes this one stand out. Continue reading Watch Might and Magic: Duel of Champions' producer destroy Massively  Watch Might and Magic: Duel of Champions' producer destroy Massively originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 19 Apr 2013 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| Xsyon update focuses on in-game economy Posted: 19 Apr 2013 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Economy, Patches, News Items, Free-to-Play, Xsyon, Post-Apocalyptic, Sandbox, Crafting Although it's been a while since the post-apocalyptic sandbox Xsyon has seen a patch, today's update looks to make up for that. With a focus on developing the in-game economy, this update introduces a number of new features, including new resources and materials, new Artisan and Master armor sets, a tribal upkeep system that offers bonuses, special trade totems, alliance and family group formation, and more. Trade will be bolstered through the new totems; the new trade and quest versions allow tribes to place additional totems that will serve as a marketplace and quest hub. Even better, besides the ones placed in the tribe's own land, additional quest and trade totems can be placed on allied land. For more details on this and the other new systems, check out the full patch notes. [Source: Notorious Games press release] Xsyon update focuses on in-game economy originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 19 Apr 2013 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| Trailer shows off China's upcoming Monster Hunters Online Posted: 19 Apr 2013 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Trailers, Video, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, Free-to-Play If you've had the urge to slay dinosaurs, dragons, and even giant beavers, you'll have the chance -- if you live in China. The Monster Hunter franchise is expanding into the Chinese market with a free-to-play version called Monster Hunter Online. Along with the aforementioned giant bosses (and plenty of others), the MMO will add more weapons, monsters, and locales to the series. Developed by Tencent Games and Capcom, Monster Hunter Online will be powered by CryEngine 3 instead of Capcom's own engine. How big of a difference does that make? Check out the trailer after the cut and see for yourself. Continue reading Trailer shows off China's upcoming Monster Hunters Online Trailer shows off China's upcoming Monster Hunters Online originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 19 Apr 2013 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| Massively Exclusive: Neverwinter pre-launch interview, part one Posted: 19 Apr 2013 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Interviews, Launches, Free-to-Play, Neverwinter Andy Velasquez has seen his fair share of MMO launches, but that doesn't make a new one any less exhilarating or terrifying. As lead producer, he's the captain of the Neverwinter ship and must make sure it's seaworthy before slipping out of drydock and heading into the unknown waters of release. Metaphor or no, it's a daunting job with little downtime, especially in this final week leading up to the soft launch of open beta. Velasquez took a half-hour out of his busy schedule to sit with us and talk about the preparations being made for Neverwinter's big moment. Read on for his candid insights into beta stories, launch day, and making tough calls when tough calls had to be made. Continue reading Massively Exclusive: Neverwinter pre-launch interview, part one Massively Exclusive: Neverwinter pre-launch interview, part one originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 19 Apr 2013 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| The Daily Grind: Do you like moddable MMORPGs? Posted: 19 Apr 2013 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous, Player-Generated Content WildStar's announcement this week that closed beta players have already started modding the game's UI to their personal preferences got me wondering once again about whether MMO gamers have been influenced by games like World of Warcraft and Star Wars: The Old Republic when it comes to acceptance of modding. As recently as last November, when SOE outlawed all mods in PlanetSide 2 -- including benign mods that enhanced graphics and FPS -- our commenters seemed split over whether mods were a good thing. One, who specifically singled out Diablo III and Guild Wars 2 as key offenders, argued that developers' "play it how we made it because we know best" attitude stifles player freedom. Another wrote that on the contrary, Guild Wars 2's anti-mod approach was the right one; he liked that everyone is made to play with the same interface because "the fact [that] you almost need different UIs and addons for endgame in WoW" is a turn off. So let's take this topic's current temperature: Do you like moddable MMORPGs? Why or why not?  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: Do you like moddable MMORPGs? originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 19 Apr 2013 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| Ask Massively: Why we cover what we do, part one Posted: 18 Apr 2013 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Culture, MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous Welcome back to Ask Massively. We're all aboard the yacht this week, answering your questions while dressed like characters in Scarlet Blade. Because that's pretty much what the characters in Scarlet Blade should be doing rather than, you know, mortal combat in a thong. Yes, today we're talking Scarlet Blade. In between all the crazed commenter ranting, several of you guys posed legit questions about why we covered it in the first place. Let me try to answer you without turning this into a debate about sexism. Why? Because it's not really about any one specific -ism. Continue reading Ask Massively: Why we cover what we do, part one Ask Massively: Why we cover what we do, part one originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| The Guild Counsel: Finding a guild with off-peak playtimes Posted: 18 Apr 2013 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Guilds, Opinion, Guides, The Guild Counsel, Miscellaneous One of the things that always makes me grumpy about MMOs is the number of game-imposed barriers to players doing things together. Levels, gear, skill points, group and raid caps, and prerequisites are just a handful of common game designs that make it hard to be social. MMOs are getting a little better at removing those hurdles, but one they can't address is the reality of conflicting playtimes. Everyone has real life responsibilities, and that means we sometimes can't be online when our friends are. For some players, this is a constant challenge because their work, school, or family responsibilities allow them to log in only during off-peak playtimes. Last week, Massively reader Barachiel1976 brought up this very topic, and it's actually surprisingly common. So in this week's Guild Counsel, let's look at a few options for players who want to be part of a guild but can't play during peak playtimes. Continue reading The Guild Counsel: Finding a guild with off-peak playtimes The Guild Counsel: Finding a guild with off-peak playtimes originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| The Summoner's Guidebook: It takes skill to right-click stuff in League of Legends Posted: 18 Apr 2013 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: PvP, Opinion, Free-to-Play, MOBA, League of Legends, The Summoner's Guidebook I've mentioned in passing that my favorite role on Summoner's Rift is ADC, otherwise known as "AD Carry" or "ranged DPS." This might be a bit of a surprise for some of you. Typically in League of Legends, the jungler is the playmaker, and if not, the support is. The playmaker roles seem like more suited to me, especially because I write guides on how to make plays. The ADC is the opposite of a playmaker. She's incredibly reactionary, relying on others to start things so she can finish them. Bruisers, tanks, junglers, mages, and supports all have tools to make things happen, but not the ADC. I didn't learn to love carrying right away. It was sort of an evolutionary process, moving from support to mid to never-playing-SR-again to top to jungle to ADC. One of the things I love about ADC is that you can't be good at it starting out. You can be better than the people you're playing against, but you can't be good at it at all. The huge technical curve, more than anything else, is what attracts me to the role. Continue reading The Summoner's Guidebook: It takes skill to right-click stuff in League of Legends The Summoner's Guidebook: It takes skill to right-click stuff in League of Legends originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| Black Desert interview talks active combat and the big picture Posted: 18 Apr 2013 04:30 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Game Mechanics, Interviews, News Items, Sandbox Black Desert is not a game that can be faulted for lack of ambition. A recent interview with the design staff helps show off just how big the game aims to be, which includes territory control, building relationships with NPCs, and an open-world housing system with a limited number of houses. It also discusses the game's combat, which is meant to be realistic active combat with an emphasis on skill and momentum. The game's combat system will include combat on foot or while mounted, with mounted combat having several obvious advantages -- charging while mounted can be incredibly damaging, and you have an easier time knocking down targets on foot. Combat is meant to be slightly loose rather than forcing characters to have perfect timing, but the emphasis is on "realistic" combat over a string of abilities. For more details, take a look at the full interview (scroll down to see the English version). Black Desert interview talks active combat and the big picture originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| SMITE unveils Ne Zha with a video preview Posted: 18 Apr 2013 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Video, Patches, News Items, Free-to-Play, MOBA Are you ready to jump into SMITE's deific battles with a new god? Then you'll be happy to know that the game has just added its 34th god, Ne Zha. The Third Lotus Prince gets to show off his stuff in the video preview located just past the break. On the battlefield, Ne Zha acts as a melee assassin, with abilities to enhance his melee damage and pull himself to a distant target as needed. He also has a ranged ability to add a stacking resistance debuff and a passive ability that turns a dead Ne Zha into a healing beacon for nearby allies. As usual, the video closes out with some demonstrations of what Ne Zha can do in various combat scenarios. Ne Zha's addition also sees the inclusion of integrated streaming into the SMITE client, with a special skin available to players who stream more than 5000 minutes of the game. Check out the full list of changes on the official patch notes. Continue reading SMITE unveils Ne Zha with a video preview SMITE unveils Ne Zha with a video preview originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| RIFT invites players to move into a new dimension Posted: 18 Apr 2013 03:30 PM PDT |
| SWTOR reloads Bounty Hunters and Troopers Posted: 18 Apr 2013 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Classes, Expansions, Free-to-Play, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Dev Diaries The dev diary march to cover all of the changes to Star Wars: The Old Republic's classes continues, with today's twin postings focusing on the Bounty Hunter and Trooper. Bounty Hunters should have an easier go at it now, as BioWare's handing out Hydraulic Overrides and Chaff Flares to everyone. The team also redesigned the Kolto Overload skill to give the class a huge bump to survivability when it activates. Over on the Trooper side of things, the team's brought the class' resource mechanic in line with the Trooper's Bounty Hunter counterpart. All Troopers now get Hold the Line and Diversion skills, as well as a more survival-happy Adrenaline Rush. The smaller but still significant tweaks to the advanced classes are worth reading carefully if you play one of these classes, as there are plenty to note. SWTOR reloads Bounty Hunters and Troopers originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| Final Fantasy XIV shows off the jobs and professions of 2.0 Posted: 18 Apr 2013 02:30 PM PDT |
| LotRO hands out daily 'Hobbit presents' Posted: 18 Apr 2013 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Patches, Free-to-Play, Giveaways Hobbits love getting gifts, and Turbine loves players being in its game, so now everyone will be rewarded with daily and weekly presents for logging into Lord of the Rings Online. The so-called Hobbit Presents will be awarded daily, with VIP players getting a better version once a week. Each present is held only for 24 hours, after which it is gone forever (but don't cry, Argentina; a new day brings a new present). The Hobbit Presents will drop a variety of goods, including gear, gold, boosts, and food. The weekly presents have a higher chance of dropping rare rewards. Turbine says that the system will factor in a character's class and level when generating the reward and that only one free present per account will be given daily. A double-XP weekend began today to celebrate the game's sixth anniversary, and Update 11 is scheduled to go on the test server tomorrow. LotRO hands out daily 'Hobbit presents' originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| Make your EVE Fanfest plans with the official program Posted: 18 Apr 2013 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Events (Real-World), MMOFPS, World of Darkness, DUST 514, Sandbox EVE Fanfest is next week and the faithful are preparing to descend upon Reykjavik, Iceland, for the three-day convention. If you're one of the travelers who are heading there or are just looking to follow along on livestream, CCP has released the full program with the event's schedule. Fanfest will have three keynotes about the past, present, and future of CCP's titles, respectively. There will also be several panels, including one discussing EVE Online's inclusion in the New York Museum of Modern Art. EVE Online also released a new dev blog talking about the team's war on unauthorized client modification and violations of the EULA. Apparently CCP has taken additional steps to beef up detection and prevention, and the team wanted to be clear with players as to what is and is not allowed. Make your EVE Fanfest plans with the official program originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| The Think Tank: Have you ever quit an MMO over an update patch or expansion? Posted: 18 Apr 2013 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Expansions, MMO Industry, Patches, Opinion, Massively Meta, Miscellaneous, The Think Tank One of the beauties of the MMO is that it's ever-changing. This means that the world expands, the community grows, and skills are always being re-balanced. Sometimes this comes in the form of a patch or update, and sometimes it comes in the form of a full-fledged expansion. But when these changes affect the original game too much, it's inevitable that some players will not like what the devs see as improvements. In the case of the infamous Star Wars Galaxies NGE, players left in droves. So I threw the question out to the Massively staff to see if anyone had been so turned off by a game update that he or she left for good. Read on to find out who left what and why Patrick might need to leave the country for a bit. Continue reading The Think Tank: Have you ever quit an MMO over an update patch or expansion? The Think Tank: Have you ever quit an MMO over an update patch or expansion? originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| WildStar chronicles closed beta metrics and milestones Posted: 18 Apr 2013 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Bugs, Game Mechanics, News Items, Humor, Dev Diaries, WildStar, Player-Generated Content Last night, WildStar's Jeremy Gaffney posted up a dev blog recapping the first days of the game's closed beta, which you are likely not in. We feel for you; we're not in either. Who is in? An Aurin by the name of Poptart, who became the first closed beta tester to make her way through character creation and set foot on Nexus. The first player-created UI mod, a friend-finding tool, was also whipped up within 24 hours. (Massively broke the news on how WildStar's modding system will work back in February.) And apparently, the Algoroc zone is a nasty place; it boasts four of the nine mobs most responsible for player death. Gaffney offers up these metrics for humor, but he's actually serious business about data parsing and player feedback even as he wants the early invitees to enjoy themselves: We're tracking almost everything that goes on in the game. Combat timings, level timings, movement, you name it. The players' actions matter to us. Betas aren't always fun per se (there's often a big difference between "playing" and "testing"), so we've tried hard to make sure the game is actually fun even in this, our very first round of external testing. Tester feedback, he says, is funneled to straight to a rapid response team to deal with on a daily and weekly basis. And if testers don't submit that feedback? "One player actually found that some taxi drivers in a fit of generosity would give you money for flying to your destination instead of taking it and spent four hours riding back and forth," Gaffney admits. "We left him with 50 copper of the 14 gold he farmed as thanks for making us laugh." WildStar chronicles closed beta metrics and milestones originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| New dev blog details Neverwinter's crafting Posted: 18 Apr 2013 11:30 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, Free-to-Play, Crafting, Neverwinter How would you feel about a Neverwinter professions blog? No, you're not expected to write one, silly, but you can certainly read one if you're interested in the game's crafting mechanics. In a nutshell, crafting involves hiring numerous NPC assets to complete crafting-related tasks. These NPCs include Leadership Mercs, Platesmithing Miners, Mailsmithing Prospectors, Leatherworking Skinners, and Tailoring Weavers. Over time, completing various tasks will award profession XP as well as resources and rewards. Your NPC assets will work on your tasks while you're out adventuring, and you can also "tinker with your professions on the Neverwinter Gateway website when you're outside of the game client," according to the diary. Learn more at the game's official site. New dev blog details Neverwinter's crafting originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| Second Wind: Spiral Knights Posted: 18 Apr 2013 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Business Models, MMO Industry, Opinion, Free-to-Play, Browser, Hands-On, Second Wind There's something to be said for the rise of browser-based games. What once was an elephant graveyard of bad ideas, low-res graphics, and trite or incomplete game mechanics has now evolved into a veritable playground of new ideas and fun casual titles. Games like City of Steam and Drakensang Online continue to push the boundaries of what's possible in a browser window, delivering engaging experiences with depth and high fidelity. Browser game represent some of the coolest technological innovations in the MMO niche. They also, often, represent the very worst in predatory monetization schemes and " pay-to-win" exploitation. Spiral Knights does both. And it does both well. Continue reading Second Wind: Spiral Knights Second Wind: Spiral Knights originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
| Massively's Darkfall launch week diary: Day two Posted: 18 Apr 2013 10:30 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Darkfall, Game Mechanics, Launches, MMO Industry, New Titles, PvP, PvE, Opinion, Hands-On, First Impressions, Sandbox I'm doing Darkfall Unholy Wars wrong. See, I'm one of those sandbox carebears who could not care less about PvP. I'll attempt to defend myself if attacked, and I'll add another body to the zerg if I'm in a clan or whatever, but I don't seek out conflict with other players. I mention this because that attitude obviously informs everything I write about Darkfall, which, at its core, is a great big high fantasy murder simulator. Yes, the game has crafting, harvesting, player housing, and better PvE than it's given credit for, but on some level all of this stuff exists to power the FFA PvP meatgrinder that in turn attempts to satiate the bloodlust of Aventurine's target demographic. And would you believe that despite that, Darkfall is still one of this carebear's favorite MMORPGs? Continue reading Massively's Darkfall launch week diary: Day two Massively's Darkfall launch week diary: Day two originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments |
