| Massively's Third Annual Frindie Awards Posted: 01 Jan 2014 09:00 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Screenshots, Game Mechanics, Ryzom, Wurm Online, Opinion, Second Life, Free-to-Play, Browser, Mobile, Casual, Virtual Worlds, MMORTS, Free for All, Miscellaneous, Sandbox It's time once again for me to throw out my awards for the best of free-to-play, indie, and oddball MMOs, a real niche-within-a-niche. It might seem that I am assigned many of these titles as though I were some modern day Mikey, but the truth is that I get a huge thrill out of finding a new game but get even more of a thrill when I realize that no one is covering it. I had to really think hard about the criteria for the awards this year, mainly because "indie" is quickly becoming one of those often hard-to-define words, alongside "MMORPG" and "free-to-play." Fortunately, I think I know it when I see it. I kept my choices to games that I have actually played this year. I wanted to avoid games that appear to be really cool. If you want a more broad batch of prizes, check out Massively's best of awards. (Side note: I voted for Defiance as my game of the year.) These awards are for games that are being created on a shoestring or independent of massive budgets. Some of them are connected to some money, of course, but instead of trying to define "indie," I will only repeat: You'll know it when you see it. Continue reading Massively's Third Annual Frindie Awards  Massively's Third Annual Frindie Awards originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 01 Jan 2014 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| World of Warcraft survey asks, 'How much would you pay?' Posted: 01 Jan 2014 08:00 AM PST Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Expansions, MMO Industry, Subscription There's a new survey floating around from Blizzard that's polling World of Warcraft players about how much they might be willing to pay for various features in the game. Among the topics covered is a new annual pass program, whether the Warlords of Draenor expansion should be sold for $39 or $49, and how much players might pay for a character upgrade to level 90. One such upgrade will be included in the upcoming expansion, but this survey strongly hints that Blizzard is looking to monetize the feature as well. Out of curiosity, how much would you pay for these features and what would you like to see included in an annual pass program? World of Warcraft survey asks, 'How much would you pay?' originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 01 Jan 2014 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| MMO Mechanics: Kill 10 rats can be fun! Posted: 01 Jan 2014 07:00 AM PST Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, EverQuest II, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, PvE, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, MMORPG, MMO Mechanics Quests are increasingly an MMO enthusiast's bread and butter, often becoming the staple component of a game's typical serving of progressive content. Over the years, developers have tried to serve up this familiar progression mechanic in many different ways: The modern themepark MMO makes us fetch, carry, explore, and investigate our way to the endgame through countless quest types and story arcs. Among the varieties of quest on offer, kill quests seem to cause the most tears and tantrums amongst picky players. No matter what developers do, there just isn't much love for missions that send characters off with a shopping list of mundane creatures to crush. Kill quests have become so common that plenty of MMOs have cheekily referenced the "10 rats" trope by literally making us smash in some rodent skulls, but killing cute, twitchy-nosed creatures is not the real problem. It's the uninspired kill list mechanic that often incites complaints of developer laziness, an argument that I don't think is justified. Kill quests exist to hone your skills through repetition, but they don't have to feel like an arduous grinding task and are actually a very useful mechanic for game designers. In this week's MMO Mechanics, I stand up for the unloved stepchild of questing; I'll show you that killing a list of creatures can be both contextually engaging and mechanistically interesting, depending on how it's presented. Continue reading MMO Mechanics: Kill 10 rats can be fun! MMO Mechanics: Kill 10 rats can be fun! originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 01 Jan 2014 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Leaderboard: What was the best year for MMOs? Posted: 01 Jan 2014 06:00 AM PST Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, Leaderboard So, it's like, 2014. Happy New Year or something. Let's take a trip down memory lane and revisit some of the MMO genre's more notable years. Maybe you're partial to 1999, since it gave us Asheron's Call and EverQuest. How about 2001, which introduced Anarchy Online, World War II Online (now known as Battleground: Europe), and Dark Age of Camelot? Don't forget 2003, which featured the launches of Star Wars: Galaxies, EVE Online, PlanetSide, Shadowbane, and A Tale in the Desert, just to name a few. Oh, OK, we probably shouldn't forget 2004 either, since it brought us World of Warcraft, EverQuest II, and City of Heroes. My point is, there are plenty of choices when it comes to picking great MMO years. What about the best year in terms of MMO launches, though? Vote after the cut!  Ever wish that you could put to rest a long-standing MMO debate once and for all? Then welcome to the battle royal of Massively's Leaderboard, where two sides enter the pit o' judgment -- and only one leaves. Vote to make your opinion known, and see whether your choice tops the Leaderboard!Continue reading Leaderboard: What was the best year for MMOs? Leaderboard: What was the best year for MMOs? originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 01 Jan 2014 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Daily Grind: Are you a creature of habit? Posted: 01 Jan 2014 05:00 AM PST Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Races, Miscellaneous To some extent, I think that most of us are creatures of habit when it comes to our lives and our gaming. We go through an experimental phase, we learn over time what works for us, and then we settle down into a comfortable routine from then on. There's a reason why adults tend to stick with the same haircut after age 28, kids. Speaking for myself, I definitely have my comfort zones in MMOs. I prefer theme parks over sandboxes, I like hybrid and pet classes most of all, I almost always go with a short race if given the option, and I am quite happy soloing most of the time. But lately I've been trying to challenge myself to try new things, to go through a new experimental phase, and see what I might be missing. I'm giving myself permission to break the habits and enjoy new flavors and new vistas. I'm curious today if there are any others out there that recognize the comfortable routines and choices they've established, and if, like me, you've decided to venture outside of the bubble to lands you've long rejected.  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: Are you a creature of habit? originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 01 Jan 2014 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Stream Team: Send off 2013 with a clean sweep of High Keep in EQII Posted: 31 Dec 2013 04:00 PM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Video, EverQuest II, Free-to-Play, Livestream, Dungeons, The Stream Team Before the new year settles in, there's one thing Massively's MJ has to do -- give EverQuest II's High Keep a good scrubbing! Those goblins have really made such a mess of the place, and who wants to start the new year tripping over dishes, giant pigs, and dead bodies? The party starts at 7:00 p.m., so join us and say goodbye to 2013 in true EverQuest Two-sday style! Game: EverQuest II Host: MJ Guthrie Date: Tuesday, December 31st, 2013 Time: 7:00 p.m. EST Enjoy our Steam Team video below. Continue reading The Stream Team: Send off 2013 with a clean sweep of High Keep in EQII The Stream Team: Send off 2013 with a clean sweep of High Keep in EQII originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 31 Dec 2013 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Jukebox Heroes: Reader request 3 Posted: 31 Dec 2013 02:00 PM PST Filed under: Aion, Final Fantasy XI, Lord of the Rings Online, Culture, Opinion, Star Wars Galaxies, RuneScape, Miscellaneous, Jukebox Heroes, Music Since it's our very last Jukebox Heroes column of the year on the very last day of the year, I thought it would be most appropriate to open up the reader request lines once again and feature MMO tunes that are your favorites. If you'd like to put in your own request for the next time I run one of these columns, please list your favorite MMO music track in the comments along with an explanation as to what you love about it! So check out what your fellow soundtrackophiles appreciate and stay tuned for a totally rockin' 2014! Continue reading Jukebox Heroes: Reader request 3 Jukebox Heroes: Reader request 3 originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 31 Dec 2013 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Soapbox: My MMO resolutions Posted: 31 Dec 2013 11:00 AM PST Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Launches, MMO Industry, PvP, PvE, Opinion, Free-to-Play, Consoles, EverQuest Next, The Soapbox, Miscellaneous, WildStar, The Elder Scrolls Online, Destiny, Star Citizen, MMORPG, Buy-to-Play Today is the last day of 2013, a long year of extended betas, early access pre-purchases, and soft launch nonsense. The release slate for 2014, however, brings slightly more excitement. 2014 is the year we'll (hopefully) first set foot into Elder Scrolls Online, EverQuest Next Landmark, Destiny, Star Citizen, WildStar, and more. It's the year in which a record number of MMOs will go live on consoles. And most importantly, it's likely the year in which consumers will decide whether the traditional MMO is dead or just in need of a good kick in the pants. Ordinarily I'm not the type to make New Year's resolutions. It seems arbitrary to hang important life changes on a date on the calendar. But the end of the year does bring a nice opportunity to look back on my gaming habits over the last 12 months and provides me with an opportunity to draft a list of things I'd like to do better moving forward. 2014 will be an MMO year like no other, so perhaps it warrants a few adjustments in behavior. With that in mind, these are my 2014 MMO resolutions. Continue reading The Soapbox: My MMO resolutions The Soapbox: My MMO resolutions originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 31 Dec 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Hyperspace Beacon: The rest of SWTOR's year-end report Posted: 31 Dec 2013 10:00 AM PST Filed under: Sci-Fi, Culture, Expansions, Patches, Endgame, PvE, Opinion, Free-to-Play, Roleplaying, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Hyperspace Beacon, MMORPG The end of the year is nigh, and as I promised, I will give you my final thoughts on Star Wars: The Old Republic and its achievements for 2013. I wanted my assessment to be based on something other than squishy feelings. Of course, opinions are extremely subjective, but that doesn't mean they cannot be based on something a bit more substantial. In July, I created a mid-term report card for SWTOR using Dr. Richard Battle's studies as the starting point. Bartle's study allowed me to step out of my normal playstyle and observe the game from the standpoint of different types of MMO players. Some players find discovery and exploration to be the most important part of an MMO. Others want to achieve the highest scores or defeat the biggest bosses. Some want to prove that they are better than other players in direct combat, and yet other players want to use the game as an interactive chatroom or work with a group to achieve a goal. Few people fall neatly into one category or other, but nearly everyone will have a dominant motivation. A couple of weeks ago, I graded the game based on the perspective of Bartle's Killer type, giving SWTOR a C- in the category. Because of Galactic Starfighter and 4v4 arenas, I raised the grade from the F I gave it during the mid-term report. I gave the game an A- for Achievers, B for Explorers, and C for the Socializer earlier this year. Has SWTOR been able to raise its grade in these other categories? Continue reading Hyperspace Beacon: The rest of SWTOR's year-end report Hyperspace Beacon: The rest of SWTOR's year-end report originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 31 Dec 2013 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Google Music All Access subscribers have a chance to shake their Glass
Heads up, travelers
This is an apparent first for Steam
A money saving plan for bachelors
Nothing is out of bounds
A Mantle patch is coming, but bug stomping takes top priority
