| Final Fantasy XIV previews Frontline Posted: 17 Jun 2014 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Game Mechanics, Patches, Previews, PvP, News Items, Consoles, Final Fantasy XIV, Subscription Carteneau, the site of the final clash before the Calamity in Final Fantasy XIV, is now a smoldering wasteland devoid of any worthwhile objects... save a number of Allagan ruins. All of the great nations of Eorzea are eager to claim those ruins, but rather than starting a bloody conflict, the nations have agreed to a join contest by the Grand Companies to settle matters in a civilized fashion. It's all the justification you need for Final Fantasy XIV's Frontline, a new PvP mode in which 72 players face off for a three-way conflict. Participating in the battle comes down to moving between control points on the map and acquiring them for your company, earning points for your side as you maintain control. Points can also be earned via slaughtering other players and taking out monsters that appear on the battlefield. Those who take part will earn PvP experience, Wolf Marks, and tomestones, meaning that Frontline offers a reliable one-stop shop for all sorts of bonuses.  Final Fantasy XIV previews Frontline originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 17 Jun 2014 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Assemble to try the LEGO Minifigures Online open beta Posted: 17 Jun 2014 12:30 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, News Items, Free-to-Play, Mobile, Kids, Family, Miscellaneous If you miss being able to play with LEGO bricks in an online environment, you'll be happy to know that LEGO Minifigures Online has just entered open beta. The last time a LEGO-themed game came out, it didn't turn out so well, but the new game is a very different experience, allowing players to take control of the many LEGO minifigures currently available to adventure in a variety of LEGO-themed environs. Currently, the beta test is available only for Windows computers in English, with other localizations and a tablet client slated for release during the test process. Open beta will also see the refinement of game mechanics and the free-to-play business model, so nothing that's in the game right now is set in stone. If you've been feeling the loss of brick-based gameplay, now might be the time to jump in and start playing for yourself. [Source: Funcom press release] Assemble to try the LEGO Minifigures Online open beta originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 17 Jun 2014 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| WildStar's first update is Strain Posted: 17 Jun 2014 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Patches, Previews, WildStar, Subscription "Something is waiting," teases a new page on WildStar's site. The "something" might be nebulous, but it will be packaged in the game's first big update, called the Strain ultradrop. WildStar will be revealing more details about the ultradrop over the next week and has posted a schedule for those reveals. A video will be coming tomorrow, followed by a spotlight on the new locations of Blighthaven and Northern Wastes on June 24th. Two days later on the 26th will be a focus on housing and customization, and finally a dev speak concerning the patch will come on the 30th. Massively will have your first look at Strain from E3 coming tomorrow, so stay tuned! WildStar's first update is Strain originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 17 Jun 2014 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| E3 2014: The Division recaps its demo Posted: 17 Jun 2014 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Real-Life, Events (Real-World), Previews, News Items, Consoles, MMOFPS, Post-Apocalyptic, Miscellaneous Eager to hear more about The Division in the wake of the E3 media blitz? For those of you not on the ground during the convention, the latest development blog recaps the fine points on display in the game's E3 demo. As the blog explains, the core conceit of The Division is that you're not accepting the collapse of civilization but pushing back against it, chiefly by shooting the heck out of bandits and creeps until they're not a problem any longer. As described by the blog post, the game utilizes a complex AI for enemies -- sniping a bandit but not his friends results in the others running back for reinforcements, leading to a pitched firefight and a chance to use special unlocked abilities. The demo also showed off using the support app to take control of a drone, allowing you to see around walls and provide important data to allies even without being directly in the game. Check out the full recap for a thorough breakdown of where the game is right now in terms of game mechanics.  Massively's on the ground in Los Angeles during the week of June 10-12, bringing you all the best news from E3 2014. We're covering everything from WildStar and Landmark to Skyforge and H1Z1, so stay tuned!E3 2014: The Division recaps its demo originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 17 Jun 2014 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars 2 features that time forgot Posted: 17 Jun 2014 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Flameseeker Chronicles, Buy-to-Play It's hard to believe it's the middle of June already. School's out, E3 has come and gone, and all that's left for us Guild Wars 2 fans to do is to pick up our World vs. World Spring Tournament rewards and kick back with a tall glass of omnomberry juice (pro tip: don't). We're still two weeks out from the start of the living world's second season, and ArenaNet has so far been especially cryptic where the future is concerned. We've speculated all there is to speculate for now, and summer heat makes me cranky, so before we blast off to any new horizons, let's take a look back at a few of the unfinished, unimplemented, and underutilized elements of GW2 that could really use some catching up. Continue reading Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars 2 features that time forgot Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars 2 features that time forgot originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 17 Jun 2014 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Frontier COO talks Elite, dev team size, and more Posted: 17 Jun 2014 09:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Business Models, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, Sandbox, Crowdfunding, Elite: Dangerous, Buy-to-Play Elite: Dangerous is often compared to Star Citizen, at least here in the Massively comment section. While it's certainly a fair comparison since they're both crowdfunded space sims made by veteran developers, Elite seems to get more slack, possibly due to its accelerated development schedule and the perception of Frontier as a smallish indie firm. In reality, the company employs some 240 developers and is in the middle of a recruiting drive that will add nearly 50 more. COO David Walsh talks about that and more in a new interview at GamesIndustry.biz that touches on Frontier's success in the midst of a rocky period for the British games industry. Frontier devs aren't just working on Elite, either, as the studio is also responsible for titles like Kinectimals, Zoo Tycoon, and Roller Coaster Tycoon 3. "Everyone in the company is plug-and-play between the different projects. They're all using the same tech," Walsh explains. "The engine we use for Elite: Dangerous is the same as the engine we use for LostWinds on smartphones. There are different technology modules that you plug in there, obviously, but it's the same fundamentals." Frontier COO talks Elite, dev team size, and more originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 17 Jun 2014 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Roberts on Star Citizen's work-in-progress flight model Posted: 17 Jun 2014 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Video, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, Sandbox, Crowdfunding, Star Citizen, Buy-to-Play If you're keeping up on Star Citizen current events, you probably know that there's been quite a debate brewing amongst the game's backers with respect to the controls and the flight model in the recently released Arena Commander module. Cloud Imperium has heard the feedback, and Chris Roberts has responded with a huge post that clarifies his goals for the game's Intelligent Flight Control System (IFCS) as well as the flight model going forward. If you're a flight sim fan, you'll likely find it fascinating reading. If not, the primary takeaway is that Roberts and CIG are confident in the direction of the model despite community concerns. As Roberts says, "a portion of our community clearly feels the current flight model is 'wrong.'" "We actually allow for a lot more variation and nuance in flight and combat than a simplified Wing Commander/ X-Wing-style flight model," Roberts counters. "Like learning to drive a car really well... it requires some learning. You have to anticipate where you want to be and plan for it." He goes on to explain how most space games use an atmospheric flight baseline with predefined pitch, roll, and yaw rates as well as capped speeds and linear acceleration applied to a simplified mass point. " Star Citizen doesn't do that," he writes. "We model what would be needed on an actual spaceship, including correct application of thrust at the places where the thrusters are attached to the hull of the ship -- in our model moment of inertia, mass changes and counter thrust are very necessary. Star Citizen's physical simulation of spaceflight is based on what would actually happen in space." Continue reading Roberts on Star Citizen's work-in-progress flight model Roberts on Star Citizen's work-in-progress flight model originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 17 Jun 2014 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| E3 2014: ANet recaps Guild Wars 2's Season One Posted: 17 Jun 2014 07:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Trailers, Video, Interviews, Patches, Guild Wars 2, Events (Massively's Coverage), Buy-to-Play With Season Two of Guild Wars 2's living story starting up on July 1st, players are eager for more information. So far, only snippets and clues have teased fans. To try and glean more details, I sat down with Associate Game Director Steven Waller and Studio Design Director Chris Whiteside at E3 2014. Before moving on to what lies in store, however, the devs wanted to look back at the impact of the first season. Oh, and they offered a new trailer that adds a bit more fuel to the teasing fire! Continue reading E3 2014: ANet recaps Guild Wars 2's Season One E3 2014: ANet recaps Guild Wars 2's Season One originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 17 Jun 2014 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Daily Grind: What MMO documentaries would you like to see? Posted: 17 Jun 2014 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Culture, MMO Industry, News Items, The Daily Grind, Sandbox, Crowdfunding Yesterday we reported on an upcoming EVE Online documentary, and while I haven't seen it yet, I'm very much looking forward to it. The announcement also got me to thinking about which other MMOs, communities, and personalities I'd like to see examined in documentary format. But The Daily Grind is all about you, so how about it, Massively readers? What MMO documentaries would you like to see?  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 MMO documentaries would you like to see? originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 17 Jun 2014 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| TUG team releases behind-the-scenes video for Playtest Fridays Posted: 16 Jun 2014 07:00 PM PDT Filed under: Video, MMO Industry, Humor, Sandbox Ahh, making video games. It's all about just playing games all day, right? Well, actually, for Nerd Kingdom, that is true for Playtest Fridays. A brand-new video was released by the TUG developer today showing off a bit of light-hearted behind-the-scenes fun during the sandbox MMO's development. The indie dev team dedicates every Friday to playtesting the game to squash bugs and focus on player feedback. The video shows a glimpse inside the studio during meetings, play sessions, and more. So if you're into secret whiteboard scratchings and hidden codes on colored sticky notes, check out the video after the cut in slow-mo. [Source: Kickstarter] Continue reading TUG team releases behind-the-scenes video for Playtest Fridays TUG team releases behind-the-scenes video for Playtest Fridays originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 16 Jun 2014 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Not So Massively: Destiny, Star Citizen, and Elite at E3 Posted: 16 Jun 2014 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Historical, Trailers, Video, Events (Real-World), Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, Previews, News Items, War, Free-to-Play, Marvel Heroes, Mac, MMOFPS, World of Tanks, Miscellaneous, Not So Massively, World of Warships, MOBA, Diablo III, Destiny, Star Citizen, Elite: Dangerous, Virtual Reality 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: Destiny, Star Citizen, and Elite at E3 Not So Massively: Destiny, Star Citizen, and Elite at E3 originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 16 Jun 2014 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| MechWarrior Online video blog answers game balance questions Posted: 16 Jun 2014 05:00 PM PDT |
| Destiny's PlayStation players will receive exclusive co-op content and maps Posted: 16 Jun 2014 04:30 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Business Models, MMO Industry, PvP, News Items, PvE, MMOFPS, Dungeons, Destiny When Bungie's Destiny launches on the PlayStation 3 and 4 in September, gamers on those consoles will be entitled to a bevy of exclusives that they can crow about to the likes of Xboxers (never mind PC gamers who might never see Destiny at all). The official PlayStation blog revealed the full list of bonuses earlier today; it includes: - a unique three-player co-op Strike located on Mars, in which you'll "track a Cabal extraction team through the husks of an ancient human skyscraper [...] buried in the shifting dunes of Mars and face a new enemy, the Psion Flayers";
- the Exodus Blue exclusive competitive multiplayer map, a "mid-sized Crucible arena that pairs perfectly with Control and Skirmish game modes";
- special armor for each of the three core classes;
- an exotic assault rifle (The Monte Carlo) and exotic hand cannon (The Hawkmoon); and
- three special ships known as the Aurora Wake, Crypt Hammer, and Outrageous Fortune.
Destiny's PlayStation players will receive exclusive co-op content and maps originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 16 Jun 2014 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Knight's Fable launching on Wednesday Posted: 16 Jun 2014 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Launches, New Titles, Free-to-Play, Browser "The world needs a hero," the Knight's Fable website proclaims. "You be the one." Well, I guess that's it. You're the one. This means that you need to load up on Hot Pockets and Mountain Dew because you're going to need the fuel to save the world come Wednesday, June 18th. That's when Knight's Fable releases and the world gets that one hero it's always craved. This new browser MMO comes courtesy of iMiGAME. It features trainable pets, a battle party system, a PvP arena located in Hell (seriously), and four classes. Knight's Fable also says that it uses "fast-paced turn-based combat," so take that as you will. [Source: iMiGAME press release] Knight's Fable launching on Wednesday originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 16 Jun 2014 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Derek Smart justifies Line of Defense's early access fee, new playable female characters Posted: 16 Jun 2014 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Business Models, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, News Items, MMOFPS 3000AD announced last week that its MMOFPS Line of Defense will arrive on Steam's early access platform in July, sporting a hefty $99 buy-in. In response to gamer rumblings over the status of the early release and the price, studio president and lead developer Derek Smart posted on Twitlonger to explain that the game is fully funded already but can't afford to let "freeloaders" in: "The $99 EA price tag - which has a LOT of perks - ensures that only serious people who can provide meaningful feedback through their commitment, need apply. And for that they get a lot more than they would if they waited for the final game release. We're simply not interested in letting freeloaders gain early access to the game, not provide meaningful - if any - feedback, while we foot the bill for the backend services, servers, bandwidth etc. We're a SMALL independent game dev making a MASSIVE game in a genre dominated and monopolized by SOE and their popular @planetside2 series. [...] And unlike those other guys, we don't take your money, then plonk you in useless assets (how do you like that hanger now?), a largely unfinished product or a product that may not even see the light of day." Smart also alerts potential players to the fact that the studio has altered its original plans to omit female characters from the game: "My decision to now fund and add two bad-ass female characters comes from the fact that, well, we as an industry need to start making a concerted effort to cater to our female players because good faith can only get you so far." Derek Smart justifies Line of Defense's early access fee, new playable female characters originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 16 Jun 2014 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Stream Team: Soaring through the story in Marvel Heroes and sharing costume codes Posted: 16 Jun 2014 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Super-hero, Video, Free-to-Play, Comics, Marvel Heroes, Livestream, The Stream Team Have you been in and experienced Marvel Heroes' big 2015 anniversary update? Massively's MJ suffered superhero withdrawals while at E3 2014 and cannot wait to get back to MH and its sweet, sweet loot. She might even have room in her inventory for it! OK, let's not get too crazy. This round, MJ will continue with more story missions on either Storm or Psylocke and take viewer votes on which hero to highlight next. Join us live at 4:00 p.m. EDT to champion for your favorite champion and for a chance at a random costume box! Game: Marvel Heroes Host: MJ Guthrie Date: Monday, June 16th, 2014 Time: 4:00 p.m. EDT Enjoy our Stream Team video below. Continue reading The Stream Team: Soaring through the story in Marvel Heroes and sharing costume codes The Stream Team: Soaring through the story in Marvel Heroes and sharing costume codes originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 16 Jun 2014 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Star Trek Online Season 9.5 revamps crafting big-time Posted: 16 Jun 2014 01:30 PM PDT Filed under: Sci-Fi, Star Trek Online, Free-to-Play, Dev Diaries, Crafting Star Trek Online Executive Producer Stephen D'Angelo has just one word for you concerning July's Season 9.5: crafting. OK, he's got more words than that, but you probably can guess where he's going with it. D'Angelo posted a short dev diary today stating that the team will be focusing on a crafting overhaul for the next big update: "In this release, the STO dev team has completely reworked every element of crafting in the game... Our goal is to have a crafting system that our players enjoy and are excited to use." D'Angelo said that players will have new ways to earn crafting mats, multiple schools of crafting, and a fresh UI to explore. Duty officers will also be utilized in the revised crafting system. Star Trek Online Season 9.5 revamps crafting big-time originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 16 Jun 2014 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Elder Scrolls Online on solo veteran content, dungeon scaling Posted: 16 Jun 2014 01:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Game Mechanics, Patches, News Items, Community Q&A, Dungeons, The Elder Scrolls Online, Subscription ZeniMax is back from E3 with a brand-new Elder Scrolls Online ask-us-anything variety pack. Here are the highlights: - The Craglorn update will be included as launch content when ESO arrives on consoles.
- Dungeon-queueing intentionally locks out overleveled characters for balance reasons, but the devs are working on a scaling system that will eventually adjust dungeons to the leader's level.
- ZeniMax is aware that Enchanting levels slowly. It'll be tweaked in a future update.
- Using Equilibrium to exchange magicka for health to gain Ultimate power isn't considered an exploit but might be revised in the future.
- There will eventually be veteran content that doesn't require grouping.
Notably, the developers request that players continue to use the report player chat option to help combat bots and gold spammers. More questions and answers await over on the official site. Elder Scrolls Online on solo veteran content, dungeon scaling originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 16 Jun 2014 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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A better decision than trading them in at GameStop
Even after applying a Heartbleed patch, many websites are still vulnerable
Motherboard built specifically for overclocking doesn't disappoint at Computex 2014
Just 100,000 motherboard shipments stand between leader Asus versus Gigabyte in race for first place
A 3D printer that uses recycled drink bottles
