MMORPG News

MMORPG News

General: Meet Erin Loelius, the 2014 SOE G.I.R.L. Scholarship Winner

Posted: 02 Oct 2014 05:12 PM PDT

Meet Erin Loelius, the 2014 SOE G.I.R.L. Scholarship Winner

Sony Online Entertainment gives a great scholarship to one woman per year. This year, Erin Loelius earned the scholarship and a ten week internship with SOE. We had the opportunity to interview Erin to what her thoughts are about gaming and making games.

Shroud of the Avatar: Update #93 - Q4 Release Schedule, Now Accepting Bitcoin

Posted: 03 Oct 2014 11:46 PM PDT

Update #93 - Q4 Release Schedule, Now Accepting Bitcoin

After many requests, the makers of Lord British's much-talked about Shroud of the Avatar announced the game will be taking Bitcoins for pledge, add-on purchases and Player Owned towns. More significantly, they've also released details of the Q4 release schedule.

EVE Online: CCP Games Releases Fanfest 2015 Details

Posted: 04 Oct 2014 12:00 AM PDT

CCP Games Releases Fanfest 2015 Details

EVE Online players, if you haven't bought your tickets to next year's EVE Fanfest, there's good news and bad news. The good news is, you won't be able to get your hands on the cheapie package because it's sold out. The good news is, there's still hope of getting ahold of a limited number of discounted tickets.

General: Pixel Brawler Warlocks Funded in the 11th Hour

Posted: 04 Oct 2014 12:11 AM PDT

Pixel Brawler Warlocks Funded in the 11th Hour

This week, Polish indie developer One More Level S.A. got an eleventh hour save when backers helped it hit its Kickstarter goal. Based in Krakow, One More Level S.A. was not surprisingly, ecstatic.

The Repopulation: New Tutorial System Takes Center Stage in September

Posted: 03 Oct 2014 04:54 PM PDT

New Tutorial System Takes Center Stage in September

The latest update has been posted on The Repopulation site that lays out the details on what the team has been working on for the previous month. This month, the entire tutorial system has been overhauled, medics have been given a lot of love and Points of Interest have been added.

WildStar: Carbine Cancels Christmas

Posted: 01 Oct 2014 06:22 PM PDT

Carbine Cancels Christmas

Over the last seven days, Carbine Studios has outlined its plans to bring WildStar back on track. In his column this week, Gareth Harmer reviews all the revealed changes and when we can expect them.

Gauntlet: It’s Time to Throw Down

Posted: 01 Oct 2014 06:09 PM PDT

It

Nostalgia, it is the warm feeling we get when we look back on the old corpse runs of yesteryear. It is the glow that surrounds us as we remember fondly pumping quarters into machines at the arcade in an attempt to see how long we could get those 25 cents to last. Arrowhead Games Studios attempts to capitalize on this sense of nostalgia with their reboot of the quarter guzzling arcade classic Gauntlet and its manic co-op dungeon crawling shenanigans.

Wizard101: Five B.O.X.E.S. Begins & Halloweenfest Begins

Posted: 03 Oct 2014 11:48 AM PDT

Five B.O.X.E.S. Begins & Halloweenfest Begins

KingsIsle has let us know that Wizard101 players can take part in a pair of events taking place in October. The Five B.O.X.E.S. event has already started that can lead to craftable mounts and more epic loot. In addition, the annual Halloweenfest has returned that features some brand new fish to catch.

General: Four Myths about the Video Games Industry

Posted: 01 Oct 2014 05:53 PM PDT

Four Myths about the Video Games Industry

If we take a look at the video games industry as a whole, there are three broad groups of actors: developers, consumers, and press. Developers, of course, do the dirty work of creating within our favorite medium (and are often represented by publishers), while consumers shape the direction of the industry by influencing its supply and demand with their wallets.

General: The Best RPGs for PS4 and Xbox One

Posted: 01 Oct 2014 05:40 PM PDT

The Best RPGs for PS4 and Xbox One

The next generation of consoles has been out long enough that they have officially transcended their label. The PS4 and Xbox One are current-gen and that means it's time for us to look at what the current best RPGs are. As luck would have it, virtually every game on this list is cross-platform, so no matter what flag you fly, there's something here for you. Stay with us and I think you'll agree, these are the best games for RPG lovers currently on the platform.
Posted by Shri Krishna

MMOGaming News

MMOGaming News

Epic Invasions Occur in Skyforge, Female God Artwork Unveiled

Posted:

Epic Invasions Occur in Skyforge, Female God Artwork Unveiled


Obsidian Entertainment has revealed the epic Invasions in Skyforge. Invasions are events of incredible scale that affect all players where alien forces of enemy gods invade the Skyforge planet of Aelion. Players must fight off invading parties by banding together and teleporting to the part of the planet being attacked.

Albion Online: A Look at the Destiny Board

Posted:

Albion Online: A Look at the Destiny Board


Albion's method of progression isn't based on levels, but rather achievements. These are handled through a system that is called the "Destiny Board," which shows how to move to higher tiers of gear and crafts, as well as the exact path that needs to be taken to achieve the things you want.

ArcheAge: Revenge of the Bots

Posted:

ArcheAge: Revenge of the Bots


I just wanted to touch a little on the bot situation. Now it's said tomorrow will be a patch to handle the issue. But I don't think that will work or be enough. I've been gaming a long time. And the only way you can ever seem to kill bots. Is to have "Active" live GM's actually personally deleting accounts in real time.

Beasts of Prey New Sandbox MMO Preview

Posted:

Beasts of Prey New Sandbox MMO Preview


Beasts of Prey is a new MMOFPS(first person) with a randomly-generated world in the genre of the sandbox.This might be the first mmo that gives the players a chance to survive on the godforsaken island of crowds aggressive players, and no less aggressive dinosaurs.
Posted by Shri Krishna

MMORPG Reviews

MMORPG Reviews

Star Conflict Gameplay Commentary

Posted: 03 Oct 2014 03:43 AM PDT

We dedicated some of our time to playtest Star Conflict, a fast-paced and entertaining 3rd-person space shooter MMO from Gaijin Entertainment, which puts players in control of their personal futuristic combat spaceship to engage in action-packed team-based battles. In addition to various different game modes and maps, the free-to-play title also offers great options to […]

The post Star Conflict Gameplay Commentary appeared first on MMORPG Reviews.

A New Expansion for Might & Magic Duel of Champions

Posted: 03 Oct 2014 01:50 AM PDT

Ubisoft has just announced the release of Sins of Betrayal, the next expansion for Might & Magic Duel of Champions, which is scheduled for October 9. Players will then be able to collect up to 100 new cards and experiment with new decks. The box will contain 10 Super Packs for 1250 seals and each […]

The post A New Expansion for Might & Magic Duel of Champions appeared first on MMORPG Reviews.
Posted by Shri Krishna


General Gaming Article

General Gaming Article

Logitech Announces the New M320 Wireless Mouse

Posted: 03 Oct 2014 03:07 PM PDT

Logitech M320Back to basics

Sometimes the basics are all you need when it comes to a mouse. At least that is what it appears Logitech is going for with its latest offering. Today, Logitech revealed its new M320 wireless mouse that was designed for comfort and will cost $30. 

The M320 features a curved shape design with soft rubber grips created to be comfortable for the user. It has two mouse buttons and a wide scroll wheel that will transmit to the nano receiver which will provide a reliable connection to the user's computer. The M320 also makes use of Logitech's Advanced Optical Sensor for a resolution of 1000dpi and is compatible with a range of operating systems - Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Linux Kernel 2.6+, and Mac OS X 10.5 or later. 

Logitech's M320 mouse will only require one AA battery that can, according to the manufacturer, last up to two years. In order to increase its energy efficiency to last that long, the M320 will automatically put itself to sleep whenever it is not being used, prolonging the battery's life. It also measures at 4.15 inches in height, 2.67 inches in width, and 1.51 inches in depth. 

The Logitech M320 wireless mouse will cost $30 and comes in red, black, blue, and gray.

Logitech M320 Black

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Maximum Debate: Is Microsoft’s $2.5 Billion Minecraft Acquisition Worth It?

Posted: 03 Oct 2014 12:25 PM PDT

Dr Evil memeJimmy and Sean disagree on whether or not it was wise of Microsoft to purchase Mojang for $2.5 billion

Welcome to Maximum's inaugural Maximum Debate article, a new opinion column where two Maximum PC editors duke it out over a specific topic. This time around, Online Managing Editor Jimmy Thang and Contributing Editor Sean Knight debate the merits of whether or not it was a good idea for Microsoft to purchase Minecraft developer Mojang for $2.5 billion dollars.

Read through the debate below and let us know where you stand by voting in our poll at the end of the article or by leaving a comment. 

Sean's opening statement: 

Microsoft's recent acquisition of Minecraft developer Mojang has been the subject of many discussions lately. While the acquisition of Mojang is a good move on Microsoft's part, the company paying $2.5 billion for the developer has surprised everyone. It's a lot of money for a small developer with one successful game, so far, under its belt. But is Microsoft's acquisition of Mojang worth it?

I personally think that this deal is definitely worth it for the company. Not only is Minecraft a very popular title, but it has been downloaded 100 million times on the PC and, last we were told, had sold around 54 million units total over the various platforms it is on. It is a juggernaut that has captured the attention of not only older gamers, but the next generation of gamers,  and there is no sign of its popularity waning anytime soon.

Minecraft Chickens

Should we be counting our chickens yet?

Jimmy's opening statement: 

To put how much money 2.5 BILLION dollars into perspective, that's roughly 2.5x the amount Amazon bought the world's most popular game streaming website Twitch for (which some suggest is also too much). In general, if you were to ask me about all these massive tech buyouts, I'd say it's unsustainable and is a bubble just waiting to burst, but that's a different matter.

Off the top of my head, I'd say there's really only three current gaming franchises that are perhaps worth that pretty penny moving forward: League of Legends, Dota 2, and the World of Warcraft. Like Minecraft, all those aforementioned games have a large player base, but unlike the Mojang-developed title, they are cash cows that consistently bring in revenue via either a monthly subscription or micro-transactions. They are, for the most part, rock solid revenue generators. As Minecraft stands right now, you spend $20-something bucks and you're all set. I would imagine Microsoft will try to monetize the game further with micro-transactions, but considering that most of the Minecraft audience isn't used to that business model, an abrupt shift could be off putting and hurt the existing community. Furthermore, how do we know that Minecraft hasn't hit critical mass and reached saturation? While you could also say that of the other aforementioned games I've mentioned, I'd argue that they're still safer bets considering they bring in a constant barrage of money via micro-transactions each month from huge user bases.  

That's not to say that Minecraft isn't a cash cow in its own right. Considering the game has sold 54 million copies to date across all platforms, it's certainly also in a league of its own. But when you crunch the numbers, there's still a steep hill to climb in making $2.5 billion moving forward.

Considering the game sells for $27 (with the mobile and console versions being significantly cheaper, but we'll disregard that), total revenue equates to around $1.4 billion in a best-case scenario. This is no small chunk of change, mind you, but that's still more than $1 billion shy of what Microsoft paid for the developer, and roughly the amount Microsoft had to lay down to resolve that nasty red ring catastrophe with the Xbox 360. And again, who's to say that Minecraft hasn't already reached critical mass?

I can understand why Microsoft would want Mojang and Minecraft, but in my humble opinion, they should take a lesson on learning how to buy low to sell high.

Minecraft Storm

A storm is brewing over this debate

Sean's rebuttle:

Minecraft is far from reaching critical mass. There is still a huge market for it on PCs, consoles, and mobile devices. It's safe to say that Minecraft has been a cash cow for Mojang as well. In addition to selling the game, there are LEGO Minecraft sets and a variety of merchandise such as plushies, hoodies, foam pickaxes, keychains, stickers, cups, caps, and more. On consoles, there are texture packs that are being sold to gamers and even themed-texture packs for games such as Halo. As for mobile devices, the pocket edition is in the Top 10 apps for both Android and iOS devices on a consistent basis. So imagine if Microsoft were to start offering mobile users texture packs for sale?

But Microsoft could take things even further. Just look at its Halo franchise. That franchise has had a webseries, will have a live TV series debuting later this year, and a Halo channel that will be launching soon. A Halo channel dedicated solely to Halo! So I wouldn't be surprised if we saw something similar with Minecraft from cartoons to, as crazy as it sounds, a movie. 

Minecraft may not have a story, but this game is appealing to a ton of kids. Kids who tend to go on YouTube to watch Let's Play and Minecraft-related videos. That is the target audience Microsoft will, presumedly, focus on. An audience that will continue to grow unless Microsoft screws things up. 

We also have to look at China, now that Microsoft's Xbox One has just launched there since the country's 14-year ban on consoles has been lifted. So far, there are only 10 games available for the Xbox One in China and titles such as Halo are not among them due to Chinese regulators being wary of violent games. This means that Minecraft could easily be brought over to the Chinese market.

I also believe that Minecraft is the equivalent of Nintendo's Mario and LEGOs rolled into one. For many, Mario was the gaming icon for a generation of gamers while LEGO continues to be relevant and profitable because it appeals to the imagination of children. Minecraft is this generation's Mario and could have the endurance similar of that to the LEGO brand. Microsoft just needs to be smart and continue to cultivate the audience that has grown around Mojang and Minecraft.

Minecraft lake

Does the deal provide endless possibilities?

Jimmy's rebuttle: 

While it is debateable whether or not Minecraft has reached critical mass, Mojang did lose its prominent founder Markus "Notch" Persson, which would be akin to the Mario franchise losing Shigeru Miyamoto (game designer behind Mario and Zelda). In other words, it's a big blow to the franchise. And without Notch's presence, who's to say Microsoft won't screw the franchise up? After all, they turned Rare from the beloved developer of Goldeneye to an average developer making mediocre Kinect games. 

GoldenEye Box

 Before Microsoft bought Rare

In regards to your comments about them being able to push Xbox Ones in China, I highly doubt it will have much of an impact unfortunately due to the high amount of piracy that happens there. 

Kinect Sports

After Microsoft bought Rare

Moreover, if Minecraft falters, they have no other established IPs to rely on considering Mojang has ever only made one game. Talk about putting all your eggs in one basket. When Activision acquired Blizzard, at least they got WoW, StarCraft, and Diablo. 

Minecraft foam sword

Do these swords look like they are worth $2.5 billion to you?

And sure, they can try to make a Minecraft TV show (though I find that a little challenging considering, as you mentioned, there is no story to Minecraft) and they'll continue to sell Minecraft foam axes and whatnot, but call me skeptical, but I don't think they'll be able to sell $2.5 billion worth of it. 

That's what we think anyways, what do you think? Vote in the poll below!

Do you think Microsoft purchasing Mojang for $2.5 billion was a good deal?


 
pollcode.com free polls

Leaked Press Photo Suggests MSI is Readying a Lite Edition GeForce GTX 970

Posted: 03 Oct 2014 09:18 AM PDT

MSI GTX 970 Gaming Lite EditionMSI may release a slower and less expensive version of the GeForce GTX 970

Nvidia has a winning architecture on its hands with Maxwell, and as we've seen in benchmarks, both the GeForce GTX 970 and GTX 980 are fine graphics cards. As is typically the case, Nvidia's third-party partners have taken to customizing the reference designs with their own cooling solutions and factory overclocks, though interestingly MSI appears to be preparing a Lite Edition of the GeForce GTX 970.

The folks at videocardz.com posted what looks to be a legitimate press image (it's worth noting that they've caught early scoops like this several times in the past) of an MSI GTX 970 Gaming Lite Edition graphics card. If you look closely, you can see the "Lite Edition" label in the lower left corner of the box next to two other labels pimping 4GB of GDDR5 RAM and PCI-E 3.0.

There are no specs to share, though videocardz.com says it will indeed be a slower and cheaper version of MSI's regular 970 Gaming card, with pricing in the range of reference (between $330 and $340).

For the sake of comparison, MSI's 970 Gaming card boasts 1140MHz core and 1279MHz boost clockspeeds and streets for around $356 shipped. Nvidia's reference design calls for the core and boost clockspeeds to be 1050MHz and 1178MHz, respectively, along with a $329 MSRP.

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Yes, DirectX 12 is Shipping with Windows 10

Posted: 03 Oct 2014 08:20 AM PDT

ForzaMicrosoft confirms that DirectX 12 will be included in the final release of Windows 10

In case you were wondering, Microsoft fully intends to bake DirectX 12 support into the final version of Windows 10 when it releases next year, the company confirmed in a DX developer blog post. Oh, and also in case you were wondering, Microsoft thinks "it's going to be awesome," which is much better than the company saying, "Meh, it's simply okay. Actually, it kind of sucks, but we're including it anyway."

Game developers who want to get a head start playing with the API can register for the DirectX Early Access Program. Those who are accepted will receive updated runtimes, API headers, drivers, documentation, and samples, all of which Microsoft says will work with the Windows 10 Technical Preview.

But wait, there's more! Microsoft has teamed up with Epic to create a DX12 branch on the Unreal Engine 4 GitHub repository. It supports UE 4.4, which is the latest publicly released version of the Unreal 4 Engine. Those who also subscribe to Unreal Engine 4 can join Microsoft's open development project.

Like AMD's Mantle technology, the DX12 API offers developers deeper access into hardware to improve performance. It also introduces a set of new rendering pipeline features that Microsoft says will "dramatically improve the efficiency of algorithms."

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JPMorgan Data Breach Exposed 76 Million Households

Posted: 03 Oct 2014 07:48 AM PDT

JPMorganOne of the biggest breaches in recent times

A cyberattack on JPMorgan Chase & Co., the largest bank in the U.S., impacted around 76 million homes and 7 million small businesses, the company revealed in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission this week. Compromised data includes user contact information, including names, addresses ,phone numbers, email addresses, and internal JPMorgan information relating to 83 million users.

JPMorgan first disclosed the attack back in July. At the time, the bank believed that only around 1 million customers were affected by the breach, though it became clear in recent days that the fallout was bigger -- much, much bigger. On the bright side, JPMorgan says there's no evidence that account information such as account numbers, passwords, user IDs, dates of birth, or Social Security numbers were compromised in the attack.

According to a report in The New York Times, it seems that overseas hackers got their hands on a list of the software applications that run on JPMorgan's computers. They used that list to look for vulnerabilities that could allow them access into the bank's systems.

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Newegg Daily Deals: AMD FX-8350 Black Edition 8-Core CPU, LG 25-inch LED Monitor, and More!

Posted: 03 Oct 2014 06:13 AM PDT

AMD FX-8350 Black Editionnewegg logo

Top Deal:

Hey Ma, look at me, I'm riding eight cores! What? Of course I'll be careful, don't worry, I know what I'm doing! Yes, I remember what happened when I tried to ride four cores at once, but that was different, I forgot to bring a heatsink. This time I won't! Seriously Ma, even you can do it! How? Just hit up today's top deal for an AMD FX-8350 Black Edition Vishera 8-Core Processor for $170 with free shipping (normally $180 - use coupon code: [EMCWPPH68]). Hang on, this sucker races at 4GHz to 4.2GHz, and that's before we get to overclocking it!

Other Deals:

Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120G 2.5-inch 120GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive for $60 with free shipping

WD Black Series 2TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5-inch Internal Hard Drive for $120 with free shipping (normally $140 - use coupon code: [EMCWPPH24])

LG 25-inch 5ms (GTG) Dual HDMI UltraWide screen 21:9 LED Backlight LCD Monitor IPS for $230 with free shipping (normally $250 - use coupon code: [EMCWPPH39])

AMD A8-6600K Richland Quad-Core 3.9GHz Socket FM2 100W Desktop Processor for $90 with free shipping (normally $100 - use coupon code: [EMCWPPH22])
Posted by Shri Krishna
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