| Tamriel Infinium: Seriously, you should craft in Elder Scrolls Online Posted: 15 Apr 2014 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, News Items, Opinion, Mac, Guides, Crafting, The Elder Scrolls Online, MMORPG, Tamriel Infinium I've come to the conclusion that Elder Scrolls Online is not a game you want run through quickly. If you fly past each town just running from quest marker to quest marker, you'll miss some of the most important things the game has to offer and burn-out comes that much faster. In the first day, we had a player reach max level in less than 18 hours. Of course, some players cry "exploit," but for me, that's not really the point. I would feel I was missing something if I rushed to the end. And because I didn't rush to the end, I can try out some parts of Elder Scrolls Online that I would not even think about trying in any other MMO, like crafting. I have a long-standing angst toward crafting in MMOs. I played Ultima Online, but I didn't really craft in that game. I didn't start to understand the importance of crafting until I played Star Wars Galaxies. As we know, crafting was central to the success of that game. But after ZeniMax announced that an auction house would not exist in ESO, I wrote off crafting as unimportant and ultimately a waste of my time. Then late in beta, a friend of mine crafted a set of armor for me. I was surprised. The armor she made was better than my looted armor. I had to find out more. I put this little primer together for those who want to get started making their own weapons and armor. Continue reading Tamriel Infinium: Seriously, you should craft in Elder Scrolls Online  Tamriel Infinium: Seriously, you should craft in Elder Scrolls Online originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 15 Apr 2014 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Star Citizen tops $42 million, adds towels Posted: 15 Apr 2014 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Business Models, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, Humor, Sandbox, Crowdfunding, Star Citizen, Buy-to-Play The Star Citizen money train is still chugging along, as Chris Roberts' latest chairman letter makes clear. What's the occasion? The crowdsourced space sim sandbox just passed $42 million in funding, which unlocked several "celebratory goals" including an updated observist guide, an explorer-class mobiGlas rig for backers, a new Squadron 42 fighter craft called the Gladius, and most crucially, a towel for your hangar that comes complete with its own damage state. Roberts says that the SC team is back at work on the dogfighting module after its PAX East hiatus, and he also provides a poll for choosing the next stretch goal reward. Star Citizen tops $42 million, adds towels originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 15 Apr 2014 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Take a look at Star Trek Online's Earth Spacedock revamp Posted: 15 Apr 2014 08:00 AM PDT |
| PAX East 2014: Guild Wars 2 on the Feature Pack and beyond Posted: 15 Apr 2014 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Game Mechanics, Patches, News Items, Guild Wars 2, Events (Massively's Coverage), Buy-to-Play If you're a Guild Wars 2 fan, we all know what you're excited about today. After a year(ish) of small incremental patches and living story, the game is rolling out a big patch full of features appropriately dubbed the Feature Pack. It's not new content, but it's a lot of big bonuses and improvements to the ways that players already play the game's existing content. And we got to see a bit of it in action at PAX East. Some of the information about how these features will work has already been discussed, but not everything, and seeing all of the improvements in action definitely gave a sense of tangible change not visible in development blogs. It's part of a shift in ethos for the development team, as well; rather than trying to roll out changes along with Living Story updates, ArenaNet is implementing a big set of improvements at once to make the whole update feel meatier. Continue reading PAX East 2014: Guild Wars 2 on the Feature Pack and beyond PAX East 2014: Guild Wars 2 on the Feature Pack and beyond originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 15 Apr 2014 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Daily Grind: What real-world lessons have you learned from MMOs? Posted: 15 Apr 2014 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Culture, MMO Industry, Massively Meta, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous Back in January, a Lifehacker op-ed chronicled six things the writer had learned from playing World of Warcraft -- useful, real-world things, not just how to spec out a frost Mage. For example, he learned that things you like can feel like a grind, and he learned how to quit something wonderful with grace. I've learned even more practical things than that from my years in MMOs. I've learned leadership skills, honed math and spreadsheet skills, and worked on mastering the art of patience -- OK, so I'm still working on that one. I've also watched ESL guildies perfect their language and writing skills and seen still others parlay this hobby of ours into careers in gaming and coding and journalism. What about you? What real-world lessons or skills have you learned thanks to MMOs?  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 real-world lessons have you learned from MMOs? originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 15 Apr 2014 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Warhammer 40K: Eternal Crusade's founder program detailed Posted: 14 Apr 2014 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Business Models, News Items, Warhammer 40k, Crowdfunding In a newsletter sent to fans today, the Warhammer 40K: Eternal Crusade team fleshed out its previously mentioned plans for its founder program. Within the next few months you will be able to buy a Founder's Pack for Warhammer 40,000: Eternal Crusade. Buying a Founder's Pack will give you full access to the full game at launch, and all four races. You'll also get to select unique rewards from the following categories:
► Identity - Enhance your character's core identity with unique Founders-only squad emblems, Heroes, and background-related titles, biographies, and cosmetics
► Weapon Skins - Unique cosmetics for each race
► Armor Skins - Unique cosmetics for each race
► Space Ship Decorations - Unique cosmetics to dress up your Squad or Strike Force Cruiser's interior the way you want
► Miscellaneous - Unique execution animations and pets, both utility and non-combat
► Vehicles - Unique Founders-only vehicles
► Consumables - Extra ammunition, grenades, and other convenience items
► Accessories - Unique equipment pieces The developers promise updates to each category over time and also note that playable modules will become available much earlier to founders than to everyone else. [Thanks to Dengar for the tip!] Warhammer 40K: Eternal Crusade's founder program detailed originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 14 Apr 2014 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Not So Massively: Heroes of the Storm's new heroes, Dawngate's beta launch, and Diablo III's latest patch Posted: 14 Apr 2014 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Classes, Game Mechanics, Interviews, Launches, MMO Industry, Patches, PvP, News Items, Free-to-Play, Mobile, Hands-On, MMOFPS, Events (Massively's Coverage), Miscellaneous, Not So Massively, MOBA, Diablo III, Hearthstone Welcome back to No So Massively, where every Monday we round up the highlights from the past week in the world of MOBAs, roguelikes, MMOTCGs, and other games that aren't quite MMOs. Continue reading Not So Massively: Heroes of the Storm's new heroes, Dawngate's beta launch, and Diablo III's latest patch Not So Massively: Heroes of the Storm's new heroes, Dawngate's beta launch, and Diablo III's latest patch originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 14 Apr 2014 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Face of Mankind starts open beta on April 18th Posted: 14 Apr 2014 05:00 PM PDT |
| World of Tanks Xbox 360 gets Update 1.1 Posted: 14 Apr 2014 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Trailers, Video, Patches, War, Free-to-Play, World of Tanks, MOBA World of Tanks' console drivers have a reason to rejoice: Update 1.1 has arrived for the Xbox 360. The update has a slew of goodies for players to dig through, including recruitable crews for tanks, the map of Himmelsdorf, and five British vehicles. Crews earn experience through battles, level up, and add perks and abilities to the tank commander. We've got the new trailer for World of Tanks Xbox 360 Edition and its 1.1 update after the break. Continue reading World of Tanks Xbox 360 gets Update 1.1 World of Tanks Xbox 360 gets Update 1.1 originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 14 Apr 2014 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The new player experience in EverQuest Next and Landmark Posted: 14 Apr 2014 03:30 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Video, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, News Items, Free-to-Play, Community Q&A, EverQuest Next, Sandbox, Landmark In this week's EverQuest Next roundtable video, Senior Brand Manager Omeed Dariani and Lead Designer Darrin McPherson tackle the new user experience in Landmark and EQN. The pair say they recognize that developers don't always see the game the same way players do and that players need to be caught early by the game, especially a free-to-play game, or they'll leave. "In both games, we won't have a lock-step approach to a tutorial... we definitely want to have something more free," McPherson explained. Learning the game will be a set of achievements. For example, when you equip an axe, the game will tell you you can chop wood with it, and when you chop wood, the game will tell you how to craft, granting achievements along the way without forcing players to complete any one element of gameplay to proceed. Enjoy the full dev video after the break. Continue reading The new player experience in EverQuest Next and Landmark The new player experience in EverQuest Next and Landmark originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 14 Apr 2014 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Get Trove alpha access for $20 Posted: 14 Apr 2014 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Business Models, Free-to-Play, Sandbox Brick by brick, Trove's world has been shaped by both its alpha community and dev team. Now, Trion Worlds has announced that the alpha program is about to get even bigger. Starting now, Trove has expanded the benefits of its Adventurer supporter tier to include instant access to the game's alpha. The Adventurer tier, which costs $20, also includes a few thousand in-game credits, an inventory upgrade, and other goodies in addition to alpha access. Get Trove alpha access for $20 originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 14 Apr 2014 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Elder Scrolls Online answers Craglorn questions Posted: 14 Apr 2014 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Lore, Patches, Previews, Community Q&A, The Elder Scrolls Online, Subscription If you were intrigued by the reveal of Elder Scrolls Online's upcoming Craglorn zone expansion but felt as though there were gaps in your formal education, prepare to get schooled. ZeniMax posted a new community Q&A today about Craglorn. The studio said that there will be rewards for everyone, not just those who make the leaderboards. Players can expect to spend between a half-hour to 1.5 hours per trial with 60 resurrections allowed for the group as a whole, and they will need to be at least veteran rank 11 to participate. Some players had asked what these Celestials are, to which ZeniMax responded, "The Celestials are a new concept based on the existing lore of the constellations in The Elder Scrolls games. There's quite a bit of lore in Craglorn that will be interesting for fans to discover." Elder Scrolls Online answers Craglorn questions originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 14 Apr 2014 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| PAX East 2014: Erin Roberts on Star Citizen's development Posted: 14 Apr 2014 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Interviews, Sandbox, Crowdfunding, Star Citizen Star Citizen's backers have been waiting to see the game's dogfighting module in action for quite some time now, and it finally happened just before PAX East 2014. Unfortunately, it also wound up having some technical difficulties right at the beginning, which wasn't exactly what anyone had in mind when showing off the whole thing in action. It wasn't quite as bad as having the computer running the module burst into flames and die, but it was bad. Do the developers regret it? Not a chance. We got a chance to sit down and talk to Squadron 42 producer Erin Roberts and were told, in no uncertain terms, that even hitting technical hiccups like that don't make a more private development cycle feel better. In a way, having the development cycle be so public actually makes technical hurdles less problematic for the company when they're encountered because the language is in place to keep a meaningful dialogue going with the fans. Continue reading PAX East 2014: Erin Roberts on Star Citizen's development PAX East 2014: Erin Roberts on Star Citizen's development originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 14 Apr 2014 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| PAX East 2014: Pre-launch words with WildStar's Jeremy Gaffney Posted: 14 Apr 2014 12:30 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Economy, Interviews, Launches, Endgame, WildStar, Subscription, Buy-to-Play WildStar is being released in about a month and a half. It feels as if it's been forever since the game first revealed its announcement trailer. Now we've finally got a release date in sight, and the last few features for the game are being revealed to the public. It's one of the last chances that we'll have to talk about the game before it releases. On the last day of this year's PAX East, I had a chance to sit down with executive producer Jeremy Gaffney to chat a little bit more about the game before it launches. While the game has gone gold and the discs are being manufactured, the team is still refining and improving the game and plans to do so up until the day of launch. That meant talking about the endgame, the development process, and the changes that have been made already in the most recent stages of beta. Continue reading PAX East 2014: Pre-launch words with WildStar's Jeremy Gaffney PAX East 2014: Pre-launch words with WildStar's Jeremy Gaffney originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 14 Apr 2014 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Istaria revamps Island of Ice with new patch Posted: 14 Apr 2014 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Patches, Dev Diaries A new update named A Bitter Wind came to Istaria this past week, and with it we see a revamped region, the return of the Spring Festival, bug fixes, and much more. The Island of Ice is the revamped region, with changes including a new quest hub called the Expedition Camp, a new set of ruins protected by the dead, renamed mobs, and "more reasons for players to actually visit and enjoy the region," according to the patch notes. Check out the notes in their entirety for more on how busy the Virtrium team has been this last week. [Thanks to Dengar for the tip!] Istaria revamps Island of Ice with new patch originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 14 Apr 2014 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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