General Gaming Article

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• Red Harbinger Cross Desk: A PC Desk That Doubles as a Case
• Nvidia Shield Review
• Corsair Launches Entry Level Force LS Series Solid State Drives
• Sony PlayStation 4 Launches November 15 in U.S. and Canada
• Razer Launches Kraken 7.1 Surround Sound USB Gaming Headset
• Mark Zuckerberg Has a Plan to Bring Internet Access to Everyone
• Gaming Laptops Defy Slumping PC Sales
• Newegg Daily Deals: Intel Core i5 4670K Haswell, AMD A10 5800K Trinity, and More!

Red Harbinger Cross Desk: A PC Desk That Doubles as a Case Posted: 21 Aug 2013 07:13 PM PDT Inspired by the award winning  l3p d3sk case mod, Cross is now available for pre-order From smartphones to smart TVs, convergence is everywhere. Often, it can even be found in places where we least expect it. Take Red Harbinger's Cross Desk, for instance. It's a desk and a PC case rolled into one. Inspired by the l3p d3sk case mod that we covered here a couple of years ago, the Cross Desk has been designed and developed by Red Harbinger, a small outfit that has on board, as its Director of Design, l3p d3sk sire Peter Brands. Red Harbinger was, in fact, conceived with the sole aim of commercialising the Dutchman's creation. "Our goal with Cross was to bring to market the most ultimate and all-encompassing PC case ever created," reads a page on the Red Harbinger website. "The desk itself doubles as the case and completely integrates all hardware, liquid and air cooling systems, lighting systems, and pretty much anything else that you may want to throw at it." PC enthusiasts from Australia, North America and Europe can now pre-order the Cross Desk from the company's online store and have it delivered to them on November 15. And if they act fast enough, they can snag the Cross for $1,699 instead of the usual $1,999. That's not all, as Red Harbinger is also offering a number of other goodies with each order: "shelving and headset mount accessories, a limited edition case badge, a certificate of ownership signed by the Red Harbinger team, limited edition artwork of La Croix (the Cross Desk mascot), and tons of perks around the Red Harbinger forums and website at no additional charge." Here are the Cross Desk's complete specs: Material: Steel and Aluminum, Powder Coated PSU Mount: 1 standard Max PSU Mounts: 2* Motherboard Compatibility: mITX, ITX, mATX, ATX, E-ATX†, XL-ATX†, SSI-EEB†, HPTX† Standard Expansion Slots: 8, 10† Maximum Expansion Slots:  8+8*, 10†+8* 5.25" Drive Bays: 4 (2×2) 3.5" Drive Locations: 8 (left side) + 12 (right side) 2.5" Drive Locations: 6 (right side) + 12 (center, hidden) Glass Type: Scratch Resistant, Tempered with Frosted Border, 10mm Front Ports: USB 3.0 x 2, Audio, Mic, 22mm Power and Switch x 2 Max Front Ports: USB 3.0 x 4, Audio x 2, Mic x 2, 22mm Power and Switch x 4* Cooling Fan Locations: 120mm x 3 (left), 120mm x 3 (right), 120mm x 8 (back) Radiator capacity: 2 x 480 mm rad (back), 1 x 360 (right), 1 x 360 (left) Physical Dimensions (L x W x H): 59.1" x 28.6" x 30.1" (1502mm x 726mm x 765mm) Package Dimensions (LxWxH): 65″x 33.5″ x 25″ (1650 mm x 850 mm x 635 mm) *Available with the Dual PC upgrade kit       †Available with the XL-Motherboard Kit Follow Pulkit on Google+

Nvidia Shield Review Posted: 21 Aug 2013 03:54 PM PDT The Nvidia Shield falls short of being a game changer With the Shield, Nvidia aims to deliver a powerful gaming handheld centered around the Android ecosystem and the ability to stream PC games locally onto a mobile device. It's an ambitious endeavor, but is the Nvidia Shield able to achieve those lofty goals? The Shield is well-constructed, but is a bit too bulky. At its core, the Shield is an Android device through-and-through, albeit a powerful one. Inside is Nvidia's new Tegra 4 SoC clocked at 1.9GHz. In mobile performance benchmarks it scored a 19,343 in 3DMark, 4,582 in Geekbench, and 40,541 in Antutu. That makes it one of the fastest, if not the fastest, Android part out right now. All of this graphical prowess is brought to life on a beautiful 5-inch, 720p touchscreen display that offers fantastic viewing angles. A set of phenomenal (for the size) speakers help round out the experience, even besting some laptop speakers we've tested.  Of course, the bulk of the handheld is taken up by the Shield's controller, which shares the same layout and button configuration as the Xbox 360 controller. Even the construction quality is similarly solid, but at 6.2x5.3x2.2-inches, it's a little bulkier and doesn't contour to the hands as comfortably. Furthermore, at one pound, 4.7 ounces, the Shield is also on the heavy side, weighing a little more than two PlayStation Vitas combined. It's a shame Nvidia couldn't have engineered the Shield to come in at a more reasonable weight, as holding the system for extended periods can fatigue wrists. You'll definitely want to rest it on your lap or a table for lengthy sessions.  Many Android games work great on the Shield, but unfortunately most Android games are shallow. The center of the controller is where you'll find several physical Android buttons for home, back, volume, start, and the games launcher. One surprising omission is the lack of any haptic feedback at all, which according to Nvidia was done to save on weight. As for the operating system, the Shield currently runs a nearly stock version of Android Jelly Bean version 4.2.1. While this may not be the newest version of Android—4.3 at the time of this writing—Nvidia says its goal is to provide the latest OS updates within eight weeks of Google's release. So this means you can use the Shield just like any other Android device. All your favorite Android apps can carry over and you'll be able to watch movies, listen to music, and surf the web just as you would expect to. Still, it's not a perfect Android experience, as the bulky controller can get in the way of accessing the touchscreen keyboard. Thankfully, the battery life is excellent. Even after watching a four-hour 1080p video on the Shield, the device still had 79 percent battery life left. But you probably don't intend to buy the Shield to just watch movies, so let's get to the real meat of the device: the gaming! Here the Shield offers three options: Android gaming, the ability to stream PC games from your desktop to the device, and emulators. Android games work great on the Shield, provided the games support controllers. We counted about 100 at this point. Unfortunately, some popular standouts such as Crazy Taxi and Need for Speed: Most Wanted do not. The bigger problem with Android games currently is that many are tailored to touch-only devices and are extremely shallow experiences as a result. Furthermore, trying to play with the touchscreen here is quite cumbersome as the bulky controller gets in the way. Although the future of Android games is ever-evolving, it requires too much blind faith for us to trust at the moment. The Nvidia Shield features a silver magnetic backplate. You can get them in different colors, but they cost $20 each. Perhaps the most interesting feature of the Shield is the ability to stream PC games from your desktop locally over Wi-Fi, sort of the way the Wii U can stream to its tablet controller, but it's marred by some unfortunate setbacks. In order to take advantage of this feature, you'll need a GTX 650 video card or higher and a dual-band router. While we were set on the GPU-side with our Titan, we tried testing the Shield with a typical Linksys E1200 home router. This $45 single-band router couldn't cut it. Switching to a $140 Asus RT-N66U Dark Knight dual-band, the streaming worked well for the most part with minimal compression and input lag. But even with this premium router, we would still experience random fits of disconnects.  Another disappointment we had is that the Shield is supposed to work with any controller-supported game on Steam, and while it did work flawlessly on the dozen titles we tried it on, we couldn't get the Shield's controller working with Final Fantasy VII or Sonic & All Stars Racing Transformed, even though both titles work well with an Xbox 360 controller. It's worth noting that this streaming service is still in beta, so these issues may eventually be resolved, but it's again an issue of faith. Surprisingly, the most compelling way to game on the Shield at the moment is with emulators. It's remarkable how well classic console games run on this thing with little-to-no tinkering. Still, do you want to pay $300 for a portable emulator? No matter how kick-ass that emulator may be, that's not pocket change.  We like the Shield a lot, but its steep price tag, great barrier to entry, various bugs, and bulk leave something to be desired at this point. It's a solid freshman effort, but if Nvidia hopes for the Shield to be anything more than a niche product, it still has a lot of work to do.  $300, www.nvidia.com Specifications

Corsair Launches Entry Level Force LS Series Solid State Drives Posted: 21 Aug 2013 12:16 PM PDT May the Force (LS) be with you Corsair today added to its ever expanding line of solid state drives with a new entry level offering, the Force LS Series. These new drives are powered by a Phison SATA 6Gbps controller, the first in Corsair's Force family of SSDs to deviate from LSI's Sandforce SF-2200 controller. They also features multi-level cell (MLC) NAND flash memory built by Toshiba on a 19nm manufacturing process. Initially there will be three capacities to choose from. These include 60GB, 120GB, and 240GB. All three are 2.5-inch form factor drives measuring 7mm; they come in desktop and laptop upgrade kits. Even though the Force LS Series is considered a budget line, the drives are rated to run fairly fast with sequential read speeds of up 560MB/s and sequential write speeds of up to 535MB/s. Other features include TRIM support, RAID support, BGC (Background Garbage Collection), built-in advanced dynamic and static wear-leveling algorithms, and SMART monitoring. The drives cost $70 (60GB), $110 (120GB), and $200 (240GB) and are backed by three year warranties. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Sony PlayStation 4 Launches November 15 in U.S. and Canada Posted: 21 Aug 2013 09:38 AM PDT Let the countdown begin You could say that the next generation console wars began when Nintendo's Wii U launched a year ago. Fair enough, though Sony and Microsoft have yet to release their much anticipated consoles, the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, respectively. Well, come November 15, 2013, Sony will officially join Nintendo in the next generation console battle with its PS4, which will be available on that date in the U.S. and Canada, the company announced. Starting November 29, 2013, the PS4's availability will expand to Europe including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. At launch, the PS4 will support Twitch, a live Internet streaming service for gamers to show off their moves. Twitch already receives more than 38 million visitors per month, and that number will surely go up once the PS4 heads into retail. Microsoft's competing Xbox One console will also launch in November, though a specific release date has not yet been revealed. Pricing will start at $500 for the Xbox One and $400 for the PS4. At present, Wii U pricing still starts at $300. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Razer Launches Kraken 7.1 Surround Sound USB Gaming Headset Posted: 21 Aug 2013 09:10 AM PDT Razer releases the Kraken (again) In need of a new audio headset? Razer's Kraken is back, this time in the form of a 7.1 surround sound USB headset for gamers with an advanced virtual surround sound engine that the company claims is capable of ultra-low latency audio processing simulating a 360-degree surround sound experience normally only achievable with multiple positional speaker drivers in each cup. The new version is built on the same platform as the analog Kraken Pro. In addition to surround sound, it also has an enhanced omnidirectional digital microphone equipped with an optimized algorithm for crystal clear voice chat and a superior signal-to-noise ratio than a standard analog microphone. There's a mic mute button, along with an LED indicator on the tip to let you know when the mic is active. "As we continue to develop and build on our software front, we're able to add more and more capabilities to our products. What we put into the Razer Kraken 7.1 is a great example of just that, from the customizable, personalized surround sound engine, to the optimized digital microphone algorithms that gives this headset its incredible performance," says Min-Liang Tan, Razer co-founder, CEO and creative director. "With its superior software capabilities, unrivaled sound quality and comfort, the Razer Kraken 7.1 is the definitive USB surround sound headset for PC gaming." Some specs: Frequency Response: 20Hz - 20,000Hz Impedance: 32 Ω at 1 kHz Sensitivity (@1 kHz, 1 V/Pa): 112dB Output Power: 30 mW Drivers: 40 mm, with Neodymium Magnets Inner Ear Cup Diameter: 50 mm / 1.97 inches Cable Length: 2m / 6.56 ft braided USB cable Approximate Weight: 340 g / 0.75 lbs Connector: Gold plated USB The Razer Kraken 7.1 USB headset is available now for $100. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Mark Zuckerberg Has a Plan to Bring Internet Access to Everyone Posted: 21 Aug 2013 08:42 AM PDT A rough draft on connecting the planet's population Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is ambitious, if nothing else. Whether you're into the social networking scene or not, you have to credit the whiz kid for building the world's largest social playground with over a billion active users around the globe. That's impressive, but it pales in comparison to what he wants to do next. The social star now wants to connect every person in the world to the Internet, and he has a plan to get it done. It's really more of a rough draft, as Zuckerberg himself makes clear in a multi-page outline (PDF) of a new initiative to bring Internet access to all. He's not alone, either. Zuckerberg is joined by some big names in founding Internet.org, a global partnership aimed at making Internet access available to the next 5 billion people. In addition to Facebook, other founding members include Ericsson, MediaTek, Nokia, Opera, Qualcomm, and Samsung. "Everything Facebook has done has been about giving all people around the world the power to connect," Zuckerberg said. "There are huge barriers in developing countries to connecting and joining the knowledge economy. Internet.org brings together a global partnership that will work to overcome these challenges, including making internet access available to those who cannot currently afford it." There are obviously several challenges that need to be overcome if this vision is ever going to be realized. Primary among them is cost. Partners will collaborate to develop and adopt technologies that make mobile connectivity more affordable, though that's only part of the equation. Focus will also be placed on using data more efficiently and helping businesses drive Internet access by developoing a new model to get people online. If you care to read his outline, Zuckerberg dives into more granular details on the technical side about how this can be achieved. It's a long-term plan that's currently in the very early stages of development. "I hope this rough plan can serve as a blueprint for some of what we'll all need to do to connect the next 5 billion people," Zuckerberg says. Image Credit: Flickr (Andrew Feinberg) Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Gaming Laptops Defy Slumping PC Sales Posted: 21 Aug 2013 08:01 AM PDT Gaming is still a goldmine Since the beginning of time, gaming and gamers have driven innovation in the PC realm. Seriously, there's probably a cave somewhere with scribblings from our caveman and cavewoman ancestors giving credit to primitive games for leading up to the invention of the circular wheel. It should come as no surprise, then, that several notebook players are seeing their gaming laptop business grow even though the overall PC market is in a slump. This applies to second-tier ODMs like Clevo and Shuttle, as well as branded vendors including Gigabyte and MSI, all of which are seeing increased gaming laptop sales, Digitimes reports. We're not just talking about minor bumps in sales, either; the gaming PC industry typically sees growth in the neighborhood of 10 percent every year. Granted, the gaming PC industry also sees limited shipments compared to regular PCs, but higher gross margins and less competition are two factors that attract second-tier players to the market, Digitimes says. Clevo, a major provider of gaming laptops and desktop replacements, expects its notebook shipments to grow to 180,000 to 200,000 units in 2014, up 40 percent compared to 2013. After factoring in lower production costs and high proit margins from gaming laptops, Clevo is expecting its profits to skyrocket next year. Gaming laptops have also been good to MSI. After the company started focusing its attention on gaming notebooks in the second half of the year, its overall notebook business begain to flip a profit. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Newegg Daily Deals: Intel Core i5 4670K Haswell, AMD A10 5800K Trinity, and More! Posted: 21 Aug 2013 06:57 AM PDT Top Deal: If you've held off from hopping on Haswell until its been on the market for awhile and had a chance to prove there are no major issues, now is your chance to finally make that leap. Haswell is fast, efficient, and the focus of today's top deal, which is for an Intel Core i5 4670K processor $230 with free shipping (normally $240 - use coupon code 0813BTS46). It's a quad-core part clocked at 3.4GHz with an 84W TDP. Other Deals: Noctua NH-D14 120mm & 140mm SSO CPU Cooler for $75 with free shipping (normally $79 - use coupon code: [0813BTS8]) AMD A10-5800K Trinity 3.8GHz (4.2GHz Turbo) Socket FM2 100W Quad-Core Desktop APU for $110 with free shipping (normally $130 - use coupon code: [0813BTS47]) Kingston HyperX Black 16GB (2x8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory for $120 with free shipping (normally $145 - use coupon code: [0813BTS26]) Toshiba 3TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive for $110 with free shipping (normally $130 - use coupon code: [0813BTS11])

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MMO Updates

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• Choose My Adventure: Final thoughts on my return to LotRO
• Gamescom 2013: Diablo III unveils its first expansion, Reaper of Souls
• MMO Family: MMO trends from kid-friendly game conventions
• World of Tanks opens up European beta for Xbox 360 edition
• WildStar locks you down for a look at crowd control
• The Daily Grind: What do you like about the early game?
• The Elder Scrolls Online will be subscription-based, 'will not jump onto the free-to-play train'
• Divination is RuneScape's 26th skill
• Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean Online sunsetting in September
• Jukebox Heroes: Wurm Online's soundtrack
• Disney's Toontown closing on September 19
• Game of Thrones: Ascent to introduce item enhancements and alliance PvP
• Here's a trailer for Defiance's first DLC pack
• League of Legends compromised; North American accounts and transactions accessed
• The Soapbox: That's not an MMO
• Gamescom 2013: Merc Elite melds MOBA with military tactics
• Guild Wars 2's Clockwork Chaos, end to PvE culling, Zodiac weapons, and the possible return of Super Adventure Box [Updated]
• Shadowfell Conspiracy now live in Dungeons and Dragons Online
• Flameseeker Chronicles: A Guild Wars 2 anniversary wish list
• Hyperspace Beacon: Six misconceptions about SWTOR free-to-play
• Trion's senior vice president of marketing talks RIFT, Defiance, and business

Choose My Adventure: Final thoughts on my return to LotRO Posted: 21 Aug 2013 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Screenshots, Lord of the Rings Online, Previews, Opinion, Free-to-Play, Hands-On, Choose My Adventure This week marks my last time in Lord of the Rings Online for this Choose My Adventure, and I've really enjoyed myself. The game has changed tremendously since I last played it, and it was exciting to finally sit down and spend some quality time with what once was my favorite MMO. Last week, you voted for me to focus on the changes in Evendim for this last write-up, so I will not only do that but also let you know what I think of the game as it stands right now as a level 34 Warden. Continue reading Choose My Adventure: Final thoughts on my return to LotRO Choose My Adventure: Final thoughts on my return to LotRO originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 21 Aug 2013 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Gamescom 2013: Diablo III unveils its first expansion, Reaper of Souls Posted: 21 Aug 2013 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, Classes, Events (Real-World), Expansions, News Items, Diablo III, Buy-to-Play What happens when an angel gets ahold of a demon's soulstone in Diablo III? You probably don't want to know; it's not going to be pretty. The game's first expansion, Reaper of Souls, was announced today at Gamescom, and the fact that Malthael the angel possesses the soulstone harboring Diablo himself is all the justification you need for fighting him. This is a very bad thing. All right, the mechanical side of things does come into play. Even if you don't care about the lore or about fighting off fallen angels, you can still care about features like a refined loot system that focuses on providing less loot that's more likely to be useful instead of quite so much garbage. There's also a new class being added, the Crusader, who looks similar at a glance to Diablo II's Paladin. Add in a new NPC who can reallocate stats on gear and you've probably got all of the incentive you need to look forward to the expansion. Continue reading Gamescom 2013: Diablo III unveils its first expansion, Reaper of Souls Gamescom 2013: Diablo III unveils its first expansion, Reaper of Souls originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 21 Aug 2013 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Joystiq

MMO Family: MMO trends from kid-friendly game conventions Posted: 21 Aug 2013 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Opinion, Free Realms, Kids, MMO Family, Family, Clone Wars Adventures Summer is convention season, and adults weren't the only ones who got to celebrate their favorite games and talk to the developers who make them. Young fans of Free Realms and Clone Wars Adventures attended panels at SOE Live, while Roblox fans recently wrapped up the third leg of the BLOXcon tour, which was held in Chicago, London, and New York City. And Minecraft fans scooped up tickets to MineCon as soon as they were made available. Kid-gamers are a force to be reckoned with, and they can be just as passionate about their games as adults. What can we learn from them about trends in MMOs? Let's take a look in this week's MMO Family. Continue reading MMO Family: MMO trends from kid-friendly game conventions MMO Family: MMO trends from kid-friendly game conventions originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 21 Aug 2013 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

World of Tanks opens up European beta for Xbox 360 edition Posted: 21 Aug 2013 07:30 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Historical, Galleries, Screenshots, News Items, War, Free-to-Play, World of Tanks Fans of tank-based combat who live in Europe have some good news today. World of Tanks has opened its beta servers for European players to test out the Xbox 360 version of the game, thus allowing another continent's worth of players access to all of the console-based tank mayhem. Eager participants in both North America and Europe are encouraged to sign up for the beta on the official site. This particular update doesn't just allow more people into the beta; it also adds new tanks to the game. United States and German tanks of tiers VII and VIII have been added to the game, increasing the firepower on all sides of the playerbase. No word yet on an official release, but the easiest way to speed it along is by logging in and testing to provide plenty of data on the console version's performance. [Source: Wargaming.net press release] World of Tanks opens up European beta for Xbox 360 edition originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 21 Aug 2013 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

WildStar locks you down for a look at crowd control Posted: 21 Aug 2013 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Video, Game Mechanics, Previews, News Items, WildStar, Subscription, Buy-to-Play Whether it's made up of stuns, knockdowns, sleeps, or disarms, there's a whole part of MMO gameplay dedicated to making sure your opponents don't get to do anything. The latest WildStar Dev Speak video notes that this is an important gameplay aspect that's also very challenging to manage from a design perspective. After all, having the ability to disable others adds a lot of strategic depth... but absolutely nobody enjoys being beaten on by multiple opponents without being able to do anything. So what's the WildStar solution? Simple: Make sure that even crowd-controlled players have something to do. If you're stunned, you can mash on a key to try and break out early as in many fighting games. Knocked down? Use a roll to get back on your feet quickly. Disarmed? Run over and grab your weapon! You can see several forms of crowd control in the video below, and while the changes might not prevent you from being stunlocked by seven people, you can at least react with something other than patience. [Source: Carbine Studios press release] Continue reading WildStar locks you down for a look at crowd control WildStar locks you down for a look at crowd control originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 21 Aug 2013 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Daily Grind: What do you like about the early game? Posted: 21 Aug 2013 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous One of the reasons that I can't seem to resist rolling new alts is that they give me an excuse to become reaquainted with an old friend: the early zones. In my experience, these zones are above the cut due to a longer period of polish back in beta, a friendlier atmosphere, and a more relaxed pace. They also bring back memories of my first steps in the game, and I'm always up for a hit of pleasant nostalgia. Of course, that isn't the only good part of the early game. While we sometimes seem to be so focused on what the, ahem, elder game offers, there's something to be said about the charms of the beginning. So what do you like about the early game? 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: What do you like about the early game? originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 21 Aug 2013 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Elder Scrolls Online will be subscription-based, 'will not jump onto the free-to-play train' Posted: 21 Aug 2013 05:45 AM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Business Models, The Elder Scrolls Online, Subscription WildStar isn't the only upcoming MMO that's dipping back into the subscription well, as The Elder Scrolls Online has announced that it will be subscription-only when it launches. ZeniMax General Manager Matt Firor confirmed TESO's subscription model in an interview with GameStar. "Charging a flat monthly (or subscription) fee means that we will offer players the game we set out to make, and the one that fans want to play," Firor said. "Going with any other model meant that we would have to make sacrifices and changes we weren't willing to make." Firor was adamant that this was the right move for the game. "The Elder Scrolls Online was designed and developed to be a premium experience: hundreds of hours of gameplay, tons of depth and features, professional customer support -- and a commitment to have ongoing content at regular intervals after launch. This type of experience is best paired with a one-time fee per month. The Elder Scrolls Online will not jump onto the free-to-play train." TESO will offer 30 days of play with the purchase of the client. The subscription price will be $14.99/€12.99/£8.99 a month, and Firor said that the studio will announce pricing discounts in the future. The Elder Scrolls Online will be subscription-based, 'will not jump onto the free-to-play train' originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 21 Aug 2013 07:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: GameStar

Divination is RuneScape's 26th skill Posted: 20 Aug 2013 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, News Items, RuneScape, Browser RuneScape is all about the changes lately, what with an upgrade to RuneScape 3, a graphical makeover, and plenty of new bells and whistles. Jagex has even added a new skill to the long-running fantasy MMO. Divination is now officially a thing, and it allows players to make signs and portents, transmute resources, and conjur "bountiful divine locations" ripe for harvesting. A new blog post on the RuneScape website has all the details, including where to get started, how to train, and a list of benefits. [Thanks Derrick!] Divination is RuneScape's 26th skill originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Divination

Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean Online sunsetting in September Posted: 20 Aug 2013 06:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, MMO Industry, Free-to-Play, Kids, Sunsets It looks as though Disney is going on a good old-fashioned reaping today and culling some of its less-profitable MMO properties. In addition to shuttering Toontown Online, the Mouse House is sunsetting Pirates of the Caribbean Online on September 19th. The official announcement informed players today of the sad news and explained the decision to cancel this title: "The Walt Disney Company is committed to offering high-quality, entertaining play experiences in both online virtual worlds and mobile apps. At this time, we are shifting our development focus towards other online and mobile play experiences, such as Club Penguin and a growing selection of Disney mobile apps." The upshot of this is that the final month will be playable for free to anyone interested, and any players who paid up past August 20th will receive an email with details regarding refunds. Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean Online sunsetting in September originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Closing news

Jukebox Heroes: Wurm Online's soundtrack Posted: 20 Aug 2013 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Wurm Online, Opinion, Humor, Sandbox, Jukebox Heroes, Music When is a soundtrack not a soundtrack? When it's Wurm Online, of course. This cult sandbox has one of the most unusual scores that I've ever heard paired with an MMO. It's made up of sparsely used incidental music that just so happens to be folksy blues songs (with lyrics), composed by Joss Sanglier and performed by 21st Century Blues. It's catchy, don't get me wrong, but it comes with a case of mental whiplash if you were expecting the typical fantasy fare. Think of it this way: All of these songs sound as if they were originally made for a steakhouse commercial. "In Wurm, we don't play music constantly," explained Lead Designer Rolf Jansson. "Instead we play a song every now and then often based on the setting or a special event such as when you form a village. If you ever played the Lara Croft Tomb Raider game, the rare music scores really enhanced special situations, and that's what I was aiming for as well." To make matters more interesting, recently the Wurm Online team has sponsored the creation of not one, not two, but three concept albums that will be worked into the game itself. The first such album, Meditation and Work, is now out and is quite good. While we're going to look at the "classic" Wurm tunes today, I didn't want to overlook this new project. Perhaps we'll even get back to it some day! Continue reading Jukebox Heroes: Wurm Online's soundtrack Jukebox Heroes: Wurm Online's soundtrack originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Disney's Toontown closing on September 19 Posted: 20 Aug 2013 05:30 PM PDT Filed under: MMO Industry, News Items, Kids, Family Disney's Toontown Online is closing up shop on September 19th. As of August 20th, paid member accounts will no longer feature recurring charges, and memberships are no longer available for purchase. Disney says that all Toons may now play as members for free through the game's closing date. The announcement post also hints at "Toontastic activities and kooky celebrations" on tap for the title's final month. [Thanks Master Von SuperJinks!] Disney's Toontown closing on September 19 originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Announcement

Game of Thrones: Ascent to introduce item enhancements and alliance PvP Posted: 20 Aug 2013 05:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Game Mechanics, Patches, PvP, News Items, PvE, War, Free-to-Play, Browser, MMORPG Big changes are headed to browser-based social MMO Game of Thrones: Ascent. In a lengthy and detailed developer blog, studio Disruptor Beam outlined the challenges it sees with keeping players engaged in GoTA at the endgame point and how it plans to address those challenges. The main problem, it appears, is that there currently isn't enough to do after finishing volumes one and two of the story. Disruptor Beam determined that the lack of options upon the completion of the story leaves players with no reason to play, noting, "There needs to be something more to our endgame." The studio has a two-part plan to keep players engaged. The first is item enhancement, which allows players to modify items to adjust their attributes and unlock new abilities. Improved items can be made permanent so they persist through reincarnation. The second part is alliance vs. alliance combat and diplomacy, which enables players to create alliances of up to 500 members and declare war (or form peaceful bonds). Alliances will be able to own camps and use those camps as launch points for attacks against other alliances. According to Disruptor Beam, both of these features are still in the deep testing phase. The studio hopes to have them rolled out in the next few months. In the meantime, it appears as though Game of Thrones: Ascent is growing more and more into a fully featured MMO every day. [Thanks to Dengar for the tip] Game of Thrones: Ascent to introduce item enhancements and alliance PvP originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Dev Blog

Here's a trailer for Defiance's first DLC pack Posted: 20 Aug 2013 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, Patches, News Items, Defiance, Buy-to-Play You know what today is? Yes, yes it is Tuesday and aren't you clever? But it's also release day for Defiance's first piece of add-on content. The Castithan Charge Pack boasts new story missions, vehicles, customization options, gameplay rewards, and more, according to a Trion press release. The titular Castithan species is available should you wish to create a new character. Or feel free to change the species of your existing avatar if you'd rather. Trion has also added an instanced single-player horde mode option that ties into the new storyline. If you're playing on consoles, you've also got some new achievements and trophies to hunt. The Castithan Charge Pack costs $9.99 on PCs and the PlayStation 3. Xbox 360 users will need 800 Microsoft points. Don't forget to check out the trailer after the cut. [Source: Trion press release] Continue reading Here's a trailer for Defiance's first DLC pack Here's a trailer for Defiance's first DLC pack originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

League of Legends compromised; North American accounts and transactions accessed Posted: 20 Aug 2013 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, PvP, News Items, Free-to-Play, MOBA, League of Legends Riot Games has just issued a letter to League of Legends players revealing that North American account information has been compromised by hackers. According to the message, usernames, email addresses, "salted password hashes," and real names were accessed. Riot insists that password information is unreadable but that players with easy-to-guess passwords might be at risk. Also accessed were hashed and salted credit card numbers from around 120,000 transactions made in 2011. Riot noted that the payment system in question has not been used since July of 2011 and that it is "taking appropriate action to notify and safeguard affected players." If your information was affected, you will receive an email from Riot. All North American players will be required to change their passwords "to stronger ones that are much harder to guess." In the meantime, keep an eye on your accounts for any suspicious activity. League of Legends compromised; North American accounts and transactions accessed originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Riot Games Security Update

The Soapbox: That's not an MMO Posted: 20 Aug 2013 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, EVE Online, MMO Industry, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Free-to-Play, MMOFPS, MMORTS, World of Tanks, The Soapbox, Miscellaneous, MOBA, League of Legends, MMORPG, Buy-to-Play You may not be aware of this, but Massively is a website focused primarily on massively multiplayer online games. It's kind of what we do. However, the world of MMOs in 2013 is far different from the world of MMOs in 2007, when the site was founded. The niche has changed and the games industry has evolved. There was a time when "online" told you everything you needed to know about a game because there was really only one type of online game. You knew in picking up an online game that you and some friends would be leveling, looting gear, and slaying dragons. It took a while for developers to notice that online play was actually a thing that could work in more than one particular format. Nowadays, online games range from traditional MMORPGs like Guild Wars 2 and RIFT to MOBAs like SMITE and League of Legends. There's no clear definition for what an MMO is or isn't because so many games are massive, multiplayer, and online. Maybe it's time to embrace MMO as a broader term than previously thought. Continue reading The Soapbox: That's not an MMO The Soapbox: That's not an MMO originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Gamescom 2013: Merc Elite melds MOBA with military tactics Posted: 20 Aug 2013 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Events (Real-World), New Titles, War, Free-to-Play, Events (Massively's Coverage), MOBA Tired of fantasy MOBAs clogging up your hard drive? Bigpoint's got a change of venue for you with Merc Elite, a near-future military MOBA that's now in beta. The game takes place in a future when five corporations now rule over the battle-scarred planet, and players must fight for one side and (presumably) a 10% corporate discount at the commissary. Merc Elite is being developed by 49Games and is the first title that studio has produced for Bigpoint since being acquired in 2011. It's going into open beta this summer and will be playable in a browser with the Unity 3D engine. The title was introduced at Gamescom this week. If you're hanging around there, you can get your hands on it now in Hall 8.1, booth B11; otherwise, you can sign up for the beta on the website. [Source: Bigpoint press release] Gamescom 2013: Merc Elite melds MOBA with military tactics originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Guild Wars 2's Clockwork Chaos, end to PvE culling, Zodiac weapons, and the possible return of Super Adventure Box [Updated] Posted: 20 Aug 2013 12:30 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Patches, News Items, Guild Wars 2, Buy-to-Play The usual ending of the Queen's Jubilee is not a horde of clockwork monsters attacking all over Tyria. Guild Wars 2 players will need to deal with these party crashers the only way they know how: calm and reasoned discourse. Or egregious violence; that works out pretty good too. Scarlet Briar has revealed both herself and her minions with the latest patch for the game, and that means more things for players to do across the game. Content-wise, activities center around the invasions popping up all over the game world, including enemies from previous Living World updates arriving in droves. New meta-achievements are available along with a new instance to tie up the story and give players the opportunity to push back the invaders for good. If that's not enough for you, you can also pick up new items in the game's cash shop or enjoy the usual array of bugfixes and tweaks. So what are you waiting for? Log in and start smashing some clocks. [Update: ArenaNet's PR has further contacted us to promise an end to culling in PvE. Culling is GW2's system for hiding players and mobs from view to help FPS. Optimizations made since the removal of WvWvW culling enabled the team to turn it off in PvE as well. We've posted behind the break two images provided by Anet intended to show the difference in Lion's Arch.] [Update 2: We've also embedded Richie's awesome preview of the new Zodiac weapons after the cut.] [Update 3: Based on a preview image found on the official GW2 site, clever Redditors have postulated that Super Adventure Box will be returning on September 8th!] Continue reading Guild Wars 2's Clockwork Chaos, end to PvE culling, Zodiac weapons, and the possible return of Super Adventure Box [Updated] Guild Wars 2's Clockwork Chaos, end to PvE culling, Zodiac weapons, and the possible return of Super Adventure Box [Updated] originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Clockwork Chaos patch notes, Clockwork Chaos guide, New Gem store items

Shadowfell Conspiracy now live in Dungeons and Dragons Online Posted: 20 Aug 2013 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Expansions, Launches, New Titles, News Items, PvE, Free-to-Play, MMORPG The next major content expansion for Turbine's Dungeons and Dragons Online, known around these parts as Shadowfell Conspiracy, is officially live. Dragon-slayers across the globe can now cruise the prison city of Wheloon and venture into the mountainous passes of Stormhorms, killing new monsters, collecting new loot, and earning new levels along the way. Shadowfell Conspiracy brings a host of features to Dungeons and Dragons Online including new iconic heroes, the now-standard geographical expansion, and a level cap raise to 28. Two versions of the expansion are available: one collector's edition ($49.99) that includes three character slots and three iconic heroes and a standard edition ($29.99) including one character slot and one iconic hero. Both include varying quantities of Turbine Points and skill tomes. If you're curious to see Shadowfell Conspiracy in action, be sure to check out our in-depth look from July. [Source: Turbine press release] Shadowfell Conspiracy now live in Dungeons and Dragons Online originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Flameseeker Chronicles: A Guild Wars 2 anniversary wish list Posted: 20 Aug 2013 11:30 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Flameseeker Chronicles, Anniversaries, Buy-to-Play Guild Wars 2 is doing very well. Even setting aside ArenaNet's announcement last week that the game is officially the fastest-selling MMO ever, GW2 has enough players who are dedicated to it and spending money on it to justify a content patch every two weeks, and the development team is showing no signs of slowing down. It's a success story in an unforgiving industry where successes are few and far between; while many other studios are restructuring and redefining their games -- or even shutting games down altogether -- GW2 is holding steady a year after launch. Happy birthday, GW2! I love this game. If I didn't, I'd be nuts to devote time to writing a weekly column about it, let alone play it almost every day. Even though I had nothing to do with its creation, I'm proud of it in a way, and I'm happy for the people who made it because they deserve success. Based on what's been talked about, I feel pretty good about what's coming up in the second half of the year. There are a few lingering nitpicks I have, though, that run the risk of becoming so entrenched that they hang out on the back of the priority list for years -- and they're at the top of my wish list for things I'd like to see before GW2's two-year anniversary rolls around. Continue reading Flameseeker Chronicles: A Guild Wars 2 anniversary wish list Flameseeker Chronicles: A Guild Wars 2 anniversary wish list originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Hyperspace Beacon: Six misconceptions about SWTOR free-to-play Posted: 20 Aug 2013 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Business Models, Opinion, Free-to-Play, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Guides, Hyperspace Beacon, MMORPG I am not an apologist for the Star Wars: The Old Republic free-to-play model, but many people (mostly those who have not seen it in action) make it out to be something that it's not. But before I begin breaking down those misconceptions, I would like to talk about some cold hard facts. For Instance, completely free players do have a significant experience point penalty, so much so that I could not finish grinding my way to level 50 in my free-to-play experiment. It was a bust on that front. I believe that BioWare needs to work on changing that portion of SWTOR. However, the game changes when you hit maximum level; at that point, the free-to-play model becomes unlike any other F2P model I've ever seen. In my guild, we have a couple of players who no longer pay for the game through a subscription. Most are raiders who do nothing but raid or roleplayers who are just interested in telling their characters' stories within the MMO. However, there is one member of my guild who I believe has truly beaten the free-to-play model. Surprisingly, he has spent nothing on the game since coming back a little more than a month ago. He has everything unlocked, a stockpile of bonuses and weekly passes, and about three million credits sitting in his bank that he can actually use despite the escrow limitation. During the next couple of editions of my free-to-play experiment, I will focus on his experience. But first, let's debunk some misconceptions about F2P. Continue reading Hyperspace Beacon: Six misconceptions about SWTOR free-to-play Hyperspace Beacon: Six misconceptions about SWTOR free-to-play originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Trion's senior vice president of marketing talks RIFT, Defiance, and business Posted: 20 Aug 2013 10:30 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Business Models, Interviews, MMO Industry, News Items, Free-to-Play, Consoles, RIFT, Defiance, Buy-to-Play There's been a bunch of bad news swirling around Trion Worlds recently, but a new interview with the company's senior vice president of marketing, Noah Maffitt, is far more positive. Maffitt isn't talking about game mechanics or design principles but results, and by those metrics RIFT did quite well with its free-to-play conversion. Sales went up, player figures went up, and his forecast for the game's future seems quite rosy. One of the major elements Maffitt discusses is the company's willingness to try different marketing techniques compared to those traditionally used in the industry. He stresses the need for businesses to change with the times, noting that free-to-play models are something to embrace as a new direction of the marketplace. The result is a need to be more analytical and flexible in strategies and have quicker turnarounds for what does or does not work, a strategy being used with vigor with Defiance. If the business side interests you, check out the full interview with Maffitt. Trion's senior vice president of marketing talks RIFT, Defiance, and business originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Aug 2013 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments Source: Maffitt interview Via: GamesIndustry.biz

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