General Gaming Article

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• Dear Esther, Proteus, and Journey: Are These Truly "Games?"
• Steam Summer Sale: Day Two
• How to Stream Your Games on Twitch TV
• Microsoft Helps Retailers Dump Surface RT Inventory with $150 Price Cut
• BetArmy Gambles on Feedback System to Regulate Online Gamers Competing for Money
• EVGA's 500B Power Supply is 80 Plus Bronze Certified, Haswell Ready
• Newegg Daily Deals: Samsung 840 Series 250GB SSD, Kingston 8GB DDR3-1600 RAM, and More!
• Gartner: PC Industry Hit Its Lowest Point in History During Second Quarter

Dear Esther, Proteus, and Journey: Are These Truly "Games?" Posted: 28 Jul 2013 01:39 AM PDT Examining non-violent video games Like Dear Esther and Journey before it, Proteus has some pundits revving up their "is it a game?" arguments again. It's funny, but I don't recall a similar chariness when we started putting simulations—which arguably include most shooters and RPGs—under the rubric of "game." I've worked on an old-school game and puzzle magazine for most of my career, and our idea of "games" has a history measured in millennia, not decades. You can sketch a line from Senet to Skyrim, but it won't be a particularly direct one, and it will detour through so many other arts along the way that it becomes too difficult to recognize it as a "game." Proteus Trailer That's why games are already part of a subcategory called "interactive entertainment." To go all Aristotle on your ass, the "telos" (purpose) of Proteus may not fit the classical definition of a game, but its "techne" (craftsmanship) does. I didn't love Proteus (or Dear Esther), but I respect that it tries to do something different and stretch the medium a bit. In Proteus, you just kind of wander around on an island as it changes seasons to the accompaniment of an ambient soundscape. If you like the music of Brian Eno and a 16-bit approach to Impressionist landscapes, it might just scratch an itch. But if you scoff at the idea of a meditative, self-consciously "artistic" interactive experience, my guess is you won't be bothering with Proteus anyway. So why get all heated about what it's called? Dear Esther trailer Proteus is a tone poem, a mood piece. I'm not dialed into its particular wavelength, but that's more a matter of aesthetic differences than any real complaint about the experience itself. I like that the forms and tools of conventional gaming can be used to make such an individual statement and get it out there for the world to see. We can worry about what to call it later.

Steam Summer Sale: Day Two Posted: 12 Jul 2013 03:20 PM PDT Gaming's never been so economical  Steam's summer sale started yesterday with big titles like BioShock Infinite and Far Cry 3 receiving big discounts. Day two of the Steam summer sale is in full swing today with the hot deals being Call of Duty: Black Ops II Digital Deluxe Edition for $40 (50% off)and The Walking Dead for $6.25 (75% off). If you're looking for a steal, Steam has Just Cause 2 for only $3, Sniper: Ghost Warrior 2 for $4.50 and last year's KickStarter success Faster Than Light for only $2.50. Steam's flash sales include 75% off Legend of Grimrock and XCOM: Enemy Unknown making them just $3.75 and $10, respectively. While Far Cry 3 is still available on a flash sale for $24, GTA IV is currently the community choice and on sale for only $5. Continuing with Steam's community choice you can vote on the next game to recieve a 75% discount that includes Total War: Shogun 2, Super Street Fighter IV and Sleeping Dogs.

How to Stream Your Games on Twitch TV Posted: 12 Jul 2013 01:50 PM PDT Become a live video streaming expert! You've bought the game, you've mastered the basics – or failed horribly – and you're ready to show off your exploits to the rest of the gaming world. Could you be the next Twich TV guru?  That, or you've officially thrown in the towel on your Starcraft II career and are ready to become a broadcaster instead of a Baneling rusher.  As Bronze Leaguers ourselves, we understand; multiplayer isn't for everyone.  Sometimes it can be more fun to watch than participate, especially if you catch a fellow Starcraft enthusiast throwing down the fabled Protoss Mothership as a last-ditch effort to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. The biggest name in the online broadcasting game is Twitch TV — a spinoff of the lifecasting service Justin.TV that's become the place to go for match replays, streamed live broadcasts, and witty commentary for all walks of games.  But we're not here to tell you how you can watch the gamers' equivalent of a live YouTube; we're here to tell you how to participate. What does it take to get a live game stream up and running?  Spoiler: Not much.  You aren't going to need a bunch of technical wizardry or time to get going; just follow our simple instructions! Create Your Account To start streaming on Twitch, you'll need to have an account on Twitch.  Guess what that entails?  Hit up the Twitch website – Twitch.tv – and make an account.  Don't get distracted by the live video playing at the top of the site's main page; you might find yourself accidentally spending hours watching an Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 match. And, yes, you can even sign up for Twitch using your Facebook credentials; one-button login, here we come! Twitch TV settings If you want to get serious about broadcasting, make sure you click on your name in the upper-right corner of Twitch's main page (once you've completed the account creation process and logged in), and click on the "Settings" link.  If you want to check out Twitch's subscription feature – "Turbo" – which removes display ads from the service and gives you some extra chat colors and badges, feel free.  We're more concerned with the "Connections" portion of your Settings screen, which will allow you to link up your YouTube account (for easy uploading of stream highlights) and Twitter (to annoy the heck out of your friends when you're about to go live.) One more suite of settings to keep in mind: If you want to limit just who might be able to see your channel for whatever reason, you'll find a host of privacy options – where else – within the Privacy section of your Settings screen.  It's there where you'll be able to hide your broadcast streaming from Twitch's primary directory and search features, as well as preventing users from viewing any of your past broadcasts.  You can also give your account an access code, which you'll then be able to give to your friends if you'd like to limit, but not completely ban, access to your broadcast archives. Got it?  Let's get broadcasting! Broadcast Your Games Before we even show you the first thing about game broadcasting, let's get the tough talk out of the way.  You're going to want to have a decently powerful computer if you want to simultaneously game and stream your gaming accomplishments to the Web. Twitch itself suggests that you should be rocking at least an Intel Core i5-2500K CPU, eight gigabytes of DDR3 memory, and an operating system at least as current as Windows 7 Home Premium.   Note that we didn't say a word about graphics cards.  Frame rates are important for the simple sake of having a quality experience to stream, but the prowess of your GPU shouldn't directly affect your streaming capabilities. Ready?   Twitch doesn't technically offer any kind of broadcast software of its own; it provides the service.  You're on your own as to how, exactly, you want to translate your gaming to stream-friendly content. Our recommendation is that you grab a free app called Open Broadcaster Software — it's one of the latest and greatest apps you can use to get a stream up and running for Twitch, and many consider it an even better (and more user-friendly) app than Twitch's recommendation, XSplit. Hit up the Open Broadcaster Software website, download the app, and install it.  Once the installation process is complete, the app will automatically fire up.  If you're running a 64-bit version of your OS, you might not want to take the app up on this offer and instead launch it with administrator rights from your Start Menu.   Once loaded, you'll see that the app comes with a single "Scene" already preconfigured for you.  A word on that: A "Scene" is basically a single configuration setting, matching a single video source to a single set of options.  It's your game, for example; a second scene could be a video you want to play during your stream, or a switch to a different window that you want to feature, et cetera. Open Broadcast Software First, you'll want to make sure that you've fired up your game — unless you have a burning desire to stream the contents of your desktop to the world at large.  Alt-tab back to Open Broadcaster Software and right-click within the app's "Sources" box – currently empty – and highlight "Add" with your mouse.  Select the "Game Capture" option and give it a creative name, then click "OK."   Game Capture software Select the "Application" from the drop-down menu, which should be the title of your game that's currently running in the background.  You can also simply assign this input source to a hotkey, if you want to quickly jump around different streaming sources without having to manually toggle to a new input within the app itself – it saves plenty of time, trust us.   Manage your scenes At this point, we like to hit "OK" and head back to the main Open Broadcaster Software screen.  It's time to fire up a preview to ensure everything is looking correctly, which you can do by clicking on (aptly named) "Preview Stream" button.  If you notice a black border around your video – if you're running your game in a window, for example – you can always kick up your game's resolution, set it to full screen or, if you don't mind a slight degrade in quality, enable the "Stretch image to screen" option on the screen you just existed.  That screen, we note, you can get back to by right-clicking on your streaming source and left-clicking on the "Properties" option. Tweak Twich TV's bitrate Assuming everything looks good, click on the "Settings" button on Open Broadcaster Software's main screen.  Click on Encoding to take a look at the app's quality settings.  There's a careful dance that happens between the app's "Quality Balance" setting and its maximum bitrate setting — in other words, the quality of the stream itself and the maximum bandwidth the app should use to stream your game.  When in doubt, go as high as your system and Internet connection can support and test, test, test before you push your stream live to the Web.  When really in doubt, check out Open Broadcaster Software's estimator tool to get a sense of what your settings could be. Adjust your live stream settings Under "Broadcast Settings," you'll want to select "Twitch / Justin.tv" under the drop-down menu for Streaming Service.  You'll then want to copy your Twitch "Stream Key" to the empty section within Open Broadcaster Software – you can find said key by clicking on the big "Get Started" button underneath the "Become a broadcaster" section on Twitch's main webpage.  Click on the "Show Key" button on the subsequent page to reveal that which you must copy and paste. The Video sections of the app's Settings screen will allow you to define your source input's resolution (if that needs to change) as well as the maximum frame rate that the program should shoot for within the stream.  It defaults to 30, but feel free to kick it up to 60 if your system and connection can support it.  Audio will allow you to set up a supplemental microphone input in addition to your game's normal audio, if you want to offer a little bit of commentary while you stream. Click on "OK" once you're done fiddling around in the app's Settings menu.  If your preview is still running, stop it, and click on "Start Streaming" to do just that.  If you pull up your Web feed and notice that nothing's happening, don't freak out: If you're running your game full screen, you actually have to be within the title in order for the streaming to work.  Otherwise, you can always run the game in a window if you need to access other elements on your PC without interrupting the stream.  The Broadcaster Dashboard However, you should now have your very own PC gaming stream up and running!  Don't forget to jump back into Twitch's Dashboard (via the same, upper-right-corner drop-down menu that you used to access its Settings) in order to give your broadcast a title – and don't forget to switch it from "Not Playing" to "Playing."

Microsoft Helps Retailers Dump Surface RT Inventory with $150 Price Cut Posted: 12 Jul 2013 06:29 AM PDT Surface RT now available at a more reasonable price On hindsight, Microsoft overestimated the demand for its ARM-based Surface RT tablets and the willingness of consumers to pay $500 for an unproven slate. What made Surface RT an even tougher sell at the original asking price is that Android slates have been getting much more affordable in recent months. Stuck with all that stock, Microsoft is reportedly planning to slash $150 off the price of Surface RT. News of the impending price cut came courtesy of The Verge, which itself obtained the information from "sources familiar with Microsoft's Surface plans." As of this writing, Microsoft is still selling Surface RT for $499 (32GB) and $599 (64GB) on its website, though at least one retail partner has already confirmed the price cut. A Staples ad lists the 32GB Surface RT at $349 with no mention of this being a sale price or otherwise a temporary price cut. Expect more retailers to follow suit. When they do, you'll be able to find Surface RT 64GB for $449, Surface RT 32GB with Touch Cover for $449, and Surface RT 64GB with Touch Cover for $549. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

BetArmy Gambles on Feedback System to Regulate Online Gamers Competing for Money Posted: 12 Jul 2013 05:30 AM PDT Weed out sore losers based on user feedback Fancy yourself a competitive gamer? If you're willing to put your money where your mouth is at, BetArmy.com will help set you up in matches with other competitive gamers who want to play for cash. The inherent challenge with playing for money is that a sore loser can refuse to pay up as promised, and BetArmy's solution to this is to use a "sophisticated feedback reputation management system" to weed out such players. There are several genres available, such as sports, racing, fighting, and shooting, and on platforms such as PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Steam, Origin, Battle.net, mobile, PC, and more. Let's say you and a person agree to play a particular title. When your arranged game is finished, you receive a note, and if you both agree who won the match, money exchanges hands. If you don't agree, then no money changes hands and you both receive a negative hit on your feedback. As time goes on and more people play, you'll have a better idea of which opponents are worth playing against based on their feedback, similar to browsing Ebay auctions.' "Like us, gamers are competitive and we wanted to provide an experience were gamers could have fun, stay competitive, yet not break the bank with service fees," said John Jerney, president of BetArmy. "We kept hearing that gamers wanted a place to go where they could compete and play what they wanted and when and have a wider variety of games to choose from. This coupled with being able to play on a plethora of platforms gives our customers the positive experience they are looking for." BetArmy will also host online events and tournaments with entry fees and prizes. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

EVGA's 500B Power Supply is 80 Plus Bronze Certified, Haswell Ready Posted: 12 Jul 2013 05:15 AM PDT New PSU from EVGA takes home the Bronze Is your power supply (PSU) certified to work with Intel's 4th generation Core processor (Haswell) line without hiccups? Lest there be any doubt, EVGA specifically lists its new 500B PSU as being Haswell ready. It's also 80 Plus Bronze certified with up to 85 percent efficiency under typical loads, a feature that's not always found on PSUs aimed at users on a budget. The 500B utilizes a single +12V rail, which delivers up to 40A. It has braided cables, a quiet fan that supposedly runs "near-silent," and is backed by a 3-year warranty. As for cables, they consist of: 1 x 24 pin ATX 1 x 4+4 pin EPS12V 2 x 6+2 pin PCI-E 6 x SATA 3 x Molex 1 x FDD All that's missing is information about the price and release date, neither of which EVGA is providing at this time. Given EVGA's emphasis on budget builders, however, we'd peg this being around $100 or less. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Newegg Daily Deals: Samsung 840 Series 250GB SSD, Kingston 8GB DDR3-1600 RAM, and More! Posted: 12 Jul 2013 05:00 AM PDT Top Deal: Click! Click! Click! Hear that sound? It's your mechanical hard drive going bad. Your first order of business is to backup your precious data -- you know, saved games and the such. And secondly, swap it out with a solid state drive (SSD) STAT! No need to dial 9-1-1-, just click to take advantage of today's top deal for a Samsung 840 Series MZ-7TD250KW 2.5-inch 250GB SATA III SSD for $175 with free shipping (normally $190 - use coupon code EMCXNXM22). Other Deals: HGST Touro Desk Pro 4TB USB 3.0 Black External Hard Drive for $150 with free shipping (normally $190 use coupon code:[EMCXNXM22]) Kingston HyperX Black Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory KHX16C9B1BK2/8 for $57 with free shipping (normally $74) Adata DashDrive UV128 16GB Flash Drive for $13 with free shipping (normally $16 use coupon code:[EMCXNXM23]; additional $5 mail-in rebate) Asus VS248H-P Black 24" 2ms HDMI LED Backlight Widescreen LCD Monitor for $180 with free shipping (normally $200 use coupon code:[EMCXNXL53]; additional $20 mail-in rebate)

Gartner: PC Industry Hit Its Lowest Point in History During Second Quarter Posted: 11 Jul 2013 11:28 PM PDT Fifth successive quarter of year-on-year shipment declines The ongoing decline in PC shipments simply refuses to bottom out, with the troubled industry slumping to its fifth successive year-on-year quarterly shipment decline during the second quarter of 2013. This is by far the longest period of decline the PC industry has ever witnessed. According to research firm Gartner's preliminary PC shipment estimates for the recently concluded second quarter, worldwide shipments fell 10.9 percent year-on-year during the period to reach 76 million units, making it "the longest duration of decline in the PC market's history." Further, the decline was truly global, with not even one of the major markets managing to buck the trend. Of course, some regions were more badly hit than others. "The fall in the Asia/Pacific PC market continued, showing five consecutive quarters of the shipment decline, while the EMEA PC market registered two consecutive quarters of double-digit decline," reads an Gartner press release announcing the preliminary data. "In the U.S. market, PC shipments totaled 15 million units in the second quarter of 2013, a 1.4 percent decline from the second quarter of 2012. This decline was less than the past seven quarters, and the market grew 8.5 percent sequentially." Considering how long this decline has gone on, we expect you to be fully familiar with its causes by now. In case you aren't, however, here's what Isabelle Durand, principal research analyst at Gartner, has to say: "The sharp decline in the second quarter of 2013 was partly due to the shift in usage patterns away from notebooks to tablets, and partly because the PC market was exposed to inventory reductions in the channel due to the start of the transition to new Haswell-based products. Touch-based notebooks still account for less than 10 per cent of the total consumer notebook shipments in the last quarter." Follow Pulkit on Google+

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MMO Updates

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• Storyboard: Grieving in character
• End of Nations rebranded as a MOBA
• TUG to release first alpha on Monday
• Eternal Saga goes into alpha testing
• Anonymous donor posts 500K bail for jailed League of Legends player
• Marvel Heroes makes it easier to earn new superheroes
• The Daily Grind: Why do you avoid MMO guilds?
• Netmarble announces the shutdown of Arcane Saga
• The Summoner's Guidebook: A League of Legends guide to guides
• DUST 514 issues a challenge to all players
• Guns of Icarus adds new ship, upgrades chat and more
• Guild Wars 2 releases Bazaar of the Four Winds music
• Lost Continent: Should we worry about ArcheAge's crafting?
• The problem with F2P is dishonest product marking, says David Paris
• Firefall hosts beta e-sports tournament
• Defiance is currently 66% off on Steam
• World of Warcraft player becomes trade chat hero
• The Guild Counsel: The guild leader's gone - now what?
• The Think Tank: Which MMO can you just not bring yourself to delete?
• Hurk released to Mabinogi Heroes test server

Storyboard: Grieving in character Posted: 12 Jul 2013 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Roleplaying, Storyboard, Miscellaneous Grief is not the same as being sad. Being sad is something I've discussed before, and it's a temporary emotional state. Grief is a filter, something that colors your whole perception and pushes you into a holding pattern of regret and sorrow. Real grief colors even things you do that make you happy so that even as you're smiling and laughing there's a pall over what you do. It's the way you feel when you lose a parent. Or a lover. Or a nation. Or almost anything profoundly important that you can lose, that you weren't ready to lose, that you don't know how to exist without. The point is that it's a very important human emotion, one that is going to come up in roleplaying. But it's also a problematic one because you have to convey what is in large part an internal sensation externally. So how do you get the sense of grief across without just making your character into a constant font of moping? Continue reading Storyboard: Grieving in character Storyboard: Grieving in character originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 12 Jul 2013 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

End of Nations rebranded as a MOBA Posted: 12 Jul 2013 09:30 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, New Titles, War, MMORTS, Miscellaneous, MOBA Trion's End of Nations, which started its life as an MMORTS, is now being called a MOBA, according to the game's website and discovered by Eurogamer. The game suffered through some layoffs late last year as developer Petroglyph handed the game over to its publisher, Trion Worlds. All's been quiet on the EoN front since then, but the changes from the original game to a MOBA seem to already be underway as shown off by five hero vehicle images on the website. If you'd like to find out more about what Trion is calling "The first MOBA RTS," head on over to the game's official site and sign up for the beta. End of Nations rebranded as a MOBA originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 12 Jul 2013 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Beta Sign-ups Via: Eurogamer

TUG to release first alpha on Monday Posted: 12 Jul 2013 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, MMO Industry, New Titles, Sandbox, Crowdfunding There comes a time in every crowdfunding backer's life where s/he questions when (and if) entrance to that magical new world will actually happen. For TUG supporters, the answer is next Monday! Nerd Kingdom has announced that The Untitled Game will launch alpha testing in the early evening hours of July 15th. At that point, all alpha backers will be able to log in and see firsthand what their funds are building. The studio invites those qualified to jump in and help find potential bugs for the development team to squash. However, it also emphasizes that this is early alpha, and as such there will not be any real gameplay such as combat or tree climbing (or any other terrain interactions) -- yet. Constant and regular updates are expected throughout the alpha testing stage, implementing new mechanics, functions, and systems. Oh, and plenty of bug fixes, too! TUG to release first alpha on Monday originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 12 Jul 2013 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Alpha release date

Eternal Saga goes into alpha testing Posted: 12 Jul 2013 08:30 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, New Titles, Free-to-Play, Browser Browser-based Eternal Saga is heading into alpha testing today, R2Games announced. This testing phase will conclude on July 18th. Eternal Saga may appear like a typical fantasy MMO on the surface, but R2Games says that it has unexpected twists. There's a pet leveling system, weapons can be fed to mounts, and there's even an option to hang out on an AFK map. Players start out with a choice between three classes -- Warrior, Hunter, or Mage -- and will zoom around the world on their first mount, a paper airplane. While all characters will be wiped at the end of the alpha, R2Games is giving players the opportunity to earn rewards during the week that will be carried over to the live game. Eternal Saga goes into alpha testing originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 12 Jul 2013 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Alpha announcement, Alpha events

Anonymous donor posts 500K bail for jailed League of Legends player Posted: 12 Jul 2013 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Culture, Events (Real-World), MMO Industry, News Items, Free-to-Play, MOBA, League of Legends Two weeks ago we reported that a teenager from Texas was incarcerated last March after his comments on Facebook during a verbal exchange with another League of Legends player were deemed terrorist threats by authorities. Jailed for months, Justin Carter has been in solitary confinement after repeated assaults by other inmates and on suicide watch due to depression. After reading about Carter's plight, numerous folks have stepped forward to sign the petition for the boy's release. Another anonymous donor has come forward and donated $500,000 to the family to meet bail, allowing Carter to return home until his court appearance on the July 16th. Anonymous donor posts 500K bail for jailed League of Legends player originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 12 Jul 2013 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: MSNBC

Marvel Heroes makes it easier to earn new superheroes Posted: 12 Jul 2013 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, Game Mechanics, Free-to-Play, Marvel Heroes, Dev Diaries While it's always been possible to gain new superheroes in Marvel Heroes via loot drops, Gazillion CEO David Brevik says that the current system is less than ideal. "The best loot should be challenging to acquire," he writes, "but we don't want players to be overly frustrated with the process of acquiring heroes." To address this, Gazillion is preparing to scrap the current hero token drops and institute Eternity Splinters instead. Splinters are a new type of currency that will drop from mobs more frequently than hero tokens did and can be saved up to purchase the hero of the player's choice. They'll also be used to purchase ultimate power upgrades and hero respecs. Brevik says that the team is committed to adding new heroes to the game so that players will always have something new to earn. He also posted a FAQ regarding the upcoming system for those who have specific questions. Marvel Heroes makes it easier to earn new superheroes originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 12 Jul 2013 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Eternity Splinters, FAQ

The Daily Grind: Why do you avoid MMO guilds? Posted: 12 Jul 2013 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Culture, Game Mechanics, Guilds, MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous I've been thinking a lot about guilds lately, inspired as I am by Karen Bryan's columns on the subject, and I have to say to all the unguilded people out there -- I don't know how in the world you do it. In this era of bloated perk systems that reward massive guilds for accruing warm bodies and collective achievements, I feel crippled enough in a small guild. I can't even imagine how those of you who shun the politics of guilding get by in MMOs that clearly don't care to incentivize your style of play, and I've found myself longing for the days when the perks of being in a big guild stopped at duh more friends and raids and didn't continue on to free gold, feedback summits, and special quests. So let's poll the Massively community: If you avoid guilds, what's your rationale? What reason is so compelling that you would willingly pass up the free stuff games shower upon favored groups of players? And how do you survive in MMORPGs? 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: Why do you avoid MMO guilds? originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 12 Jul 2013 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Netmarble announces the shutdown of Arcane Saga Posted: 11 Jul 2013 08:45 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, MMO Industry, News Items, Free-to-Play, Sunsets It can only be hoped that during your brief time with Arcane Saga you have not gotten too attached to it. The game relaunched in the US just over a month ago, and now the game has announced an impending shutdown later this year. Somewhat unusually, the actual shutdown date is September 16th, meaning that the game will be waiting for the final shutdown longer than it was running normally. Netmarble has already closed up the cash shop; players are able to spend any remaining cash shop currency on the company's other titles. According to the announcement, the game simply wasn't taking in enough money to remain profitable. Arcane Saga was a relaunch of Prius Online, which had already been shut down once before. Our condolences go out to any gamers who had hoped for a long and fruitful future with the game. Netmarble announces the shutdown of Arcane Saga originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 22:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Summoner's Guidebook: A League of Legends guide to guides Posted: 11 Jul 2013 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Opinion, Free-to-Play, Guides, MOBA, League of Legends, The Summoner's Guidebook The goal of The Summoner's Guidebook is and always has been to encourage the development of player skill in League of Legends, especially for beginner and intermediate players. The focus on developing individual skills means that we do fewer in-depth guides on specific elements of the game. When I write about why you should not always buy Deathcap, I'm trying to help you develop the critical thinking skills to look at items and make in-the-moment value decisions about which item is better. I could use any item, but Deathcap has a lot of little things to think about. Either way, there are other guides out there for League of Legends. Let's not kid ourselves here. There are thousands (maybe hundreds of thousands?) of guides out there. Actually, there are probably thousands of websites that provide information on LoL of some kind or another. The Guidebook is really just a drop in the ocean. Therefore, this week I'm going to talk about them. Continue reading The Summoner's Guidebook: A League of Legends guide to guides The Summoner's Guidebook: A League of Legends guide to guides originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

DUST 514 issues a challenge to all players Posted: 11 Jul 2013 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Events (In-Game), News Items, MMOFPS, DUST 514, Promotions There are a lot of players who have been enjoying themselves in DUST 514. Veterans and potential new players alike will have more reasons to enjoy themselves, as the Mordu's Challenge event starts today and runs until Thursday, July 18th. Mordu's Legion is one of the most respected mercenary companies in the universe of EVE Online, and as cloned mercenaries take to the battlefield in greater numbers, the company is issuing challenges to these clones to see if they can stand up to the pressure. So what can you get out of participation? A whole lot of weapons and armor, that's what. Kill 100 enemies, hack 100 objectives, assist in 100 kills, or destroy 100 installations, and you get an appropriate set of gear for your preferred playstyle. Hit all four objectives and you get an even bigger prize. There's no registration required, so take the time over the next week to log in and start showing how great you can be. DUST 514 issues a challenge to all players originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Event page

Guns of Icarus adds new ship, upgrades chat and more Posted: 11 Jul 2013 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, Patches, PvP, News Items, Steampunk, Buy-to-Play Now might be a good time to check in with Guns of Icarus Online if you're fond of steampunk airships or blowing them out of the sky. Muse Games' buy-to-play title recently updated to version 1.3 of its client, which adds a new ship type, a new gun, and plenty of upgrades to the game. The new ship is called the Mobula, and Muse says that it's ideal for both standoffs and pursuit. "Of course, this comes at a price," the company's press release says. "Its slow turning speed makes it vulnerable to flanking maneuvers, and its repair points are tucked away inside the hull." Also new this patch is the ability to form parties, assemble crews prior to entering a match, and a "bigger, better, faster, stronger" chat system. Various other systems have been tweaked, and we highly recommend visiting the official website to find out how. Guns of Icarus adds new ship, upgrades chat and more originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: 1.3 update

Guild Wars 2 releases Bazaar of the Four Winds music Posted: 11 Jul 2013 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Guild Wars 2, Music, Buy-to-Play Guild Wars 2's soundtrack might be best known for its core Jeremy Soule composition, but fans of the game are quite aware that ArenaNet has been adding in new tracks on a regular basis with its updates. This week's Bazaar of the Four Winds event included two brand-new pieces of music, and now the studio has released them on its SoundCloud page. The two tracks are Labyrinthine Cliffs and Sanctum Sprint. Give them a listen and let us know what you think! Guild Wars 2 releases Bazaar of the Four Winds music originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: SoundCloud

Lost Continent: Should we worry about ArcheAge's crafting? Posted: 11 Jul 2013 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Economy, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, New Titles, PvP, PvE, Opinion, ArcheAge, Sandbox, Crafting, Lost Continent It finally happened. XLGAMES did something to ArcheAge that I really don't like, and while I'll stop short of labeling it a deal-breaker, it's definitely made me think about the game in a different light. To be fair to the company, this particular gameplay tweak was made to the Korean version several months ago, so it's a) not a certainty for the American version and b) not exactly breaking news. It was breaking news to me when I read a recent high-level review of the title, though, because I'd been purposely steering clear of the Korean release in order to more fully enjoy myself when the game finally lands on U.S. soil. Continue reading Lost Continent: Should we worry about ArcheAge's crafting? Lost Continent: Should we worry about ArcheAge's crafting? originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The problem with F2P is dishonest product marking, says David Paris Posted: 11 Jul 2013 02:30 PM PDT Filed under: Business Models, MMO Industry, New Titles, Opinion, Free-to-Play Game developer David Paris has penned a new blog at Gamasutra focused on the stigma of free-to-play business models. Paris, whose bio lists him as the builder of the world's first subscription-based internet MOG (Valhalla), says that there's nothing inherently wrong with F2P that more honest product marking won't fix. And thus we come to the core of the problem - the lack of honesty about how much impact IAPs [in-app purchases] have on games. The truth is that F2P monetization is frequently very much about concealing exactly this impact from its players so that we will either play until we are so invested that we will cough up and pay, or so that we'll provide an audience for the whales to lord it over. Burying pay-to-win mechanics under an initial layer of skill-to-win, providing advantages that become required for competitive play, roadblocks or surprisingly reduced game functionality tucked underneath paid barriers that weren't obvious when you started. He cites League of Legends and Marvel Heroes as games that do it right and wrong, respectively, though he does criticize LoL for failing to offer an all-the-content-for-a-single-price option. The problem with F2P is dishonest product marking, says David Paris originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Gamasutra

Firefall hosts beta e-sports tournament Posted: 11 Jul 2013 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Contests, Free-to-Play, MMOFPS, Firefall Yes, Firefall was serious about that e-sports thing. Like, super-serious, guys. Showing that it's in it whole-hog, Red 5 Studios announced that it will host the first open beta tournament series this summer. The tournament is called Go4Firefall and begins Sunday, August 4th. It will be run in cooperation with the Electronic Sports League and take place across North America and Europe. The best teams will take home some of the $10,000 and €10,000 prize pools over a series of weekly matches. Go4Firefall will utilize Firefall's Jetball mode. In Jetball, five-man teams have to fly or shoot a ball into their opponent's goal. The catch is that the ball carrier can't use weapons, making him or her a prime target for foes. Firefall hosts beta e-sports tournament originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Go4Firefall

Defiance is currently 66% off on Steam Posted: 11 Jul 2013 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, MMO Industry, News Items, Promotions, Defiance, Buy-to-Play If you still haven't picked up Defiance and you're at all interested in Trion's Syfy shooter MMO, Steam has a summer sale you'll want to check out. Technically it's called the Summer Getaway Sale, and in addition to a bunch of cheap single-player titles that will keep you inside and out of the humid, sweat-soaked nastiness that is the middle months on your calendar, Defiance can be had for a whopping 66 percent discount. That works out to $13.59 if you're wondering. More info on the game itself can of course be had via its official website. Defiance is currently 66% off on Steam originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Steam

World of Warcraft player becomes trade chat hero Posted: 11 Jul 2013 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Culture, Subscription It started with an innocent question in World of Warcraft's trade chat: "What would you do with 200,000 gold?" Among the various responses, a player said that he'd like a Vial of the Sands to give to his friend. The vial actually gives the player a Sandstone Drake flying mount, one of the more difficult-to-obtain mounts in the game. The story doesn't end there: The asker of the question then tracked down the guy who answered and delivered the super-expensive vial into his hands. When the donor found out that the mount was for the guy's friend, he bought and gifted a second mount so that the two friends would have matching rides. The reason for the generosity? "I wanted to make someone's day," the donor said. And thus the legend of the trade chat hero is born. World of Warcraft player becomes trade chat hero originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Reddit Via: WoW Insider

The Guild Counsel: The guild leader's gone - now what? Posted: 11 Jul 2013 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Guilds, Opinion, The Guild Counsel, Miscellaneous Every guild needs a good leadership structure in order to succeed, and much of it revolves around the guild leader. The leader helps establish the vision, tone, and atmosphere for the guild, screens potential members, and establishes goals for the guild to work toward. But there is a growing number of in-game powers that a leader has as well, making it even more important for him to be online and active. So when a guild leader suddenly becomes inactive, the guild comes to a virtual halt, and it can lead to a guild's downfall. And unlike most other guild problems, this one can't always be solved internally. Let's look at the issue of MIA guild leaders and why studios should sit up and take notice. Continue reading The Guild Counsel: The guild leader's gone - now what? The Guild Counsel: The guild leader's gone - now what? originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Think Tank: Which MMO can you just not bring yourself to delete? Posted: 11 Jul 2013 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Opinion, Massively Meta, Miscellaneous, The Think Tank Whether it's a closed MMO icon still taking up space on your desktop or a free-to-play game that you "might play again one day," there's bound to be at least one MMO that you just can't bring yourself to delete from your hard drive. Since many of Massively's writers are MMO hoarders (we can stop at any time!), I felt it was fitting to take some time aside and work out our issues with separation and letting go. Hold my hand and breathe normally while we tell you which games will always maintain a special place in our hearts (and on our PCs). Continue reading The Think Tank: Which MMO can you just not bring yourself to delete? The Think Tank: Which MMO can you just not bring yourself to delete? originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Hurk released to Mabinogi Heroes test server Posted: 11 Jul 2013 10:30 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, Classes, MMO Industry, News Items, Free-to-Play, Vindictus Last month we were introduced to Hurk, the newest hero to join Korea's Mabinogi Heroes lineup. And now we can get to know him a little bit better: Steparu.com reports that Hurk has landed on the test server and offers various videos to show the character and his skills off. While there's no word yet on Hurk for the North American version (known as Vindictus), it's a pretty good bet that he'll join the team here, too. Get a glimpse of Hurk's gameplay in the video after the break, and visit Steparu.com for more videos on character customization and testing counter timing. Continue reading Hurk released to Mabinogi Heroes test server Hurk released to Mabinogi Heroes test server originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Jul 2013 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Hurk videos

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