| The Road to Mordor: Happy fifth anniversary, LotRO! Posted: 21 Apr 2012 10:00 AM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Events, in-game, Free-to-play, The Road to Mordor, Anniversary Great Ghost Bear, has it really been five years? Why... it must have been, although it truly seems like yesterday that a magazine article caught my eye about an upcoming game based on Lord of the Rings. Just yesterday it was, when I called my brother-in-law to tell him that he could drop his World of Warcraft subscription because something better was on the horizon. It wasn't but a day ago that we Founders jumped into the head-start and power-leveled all the way to 15. Let me tell you, those Tuckborough Library raids were brutal back then! So it has indeed been five years since Lord of the Rings Online released, a half-decade of Middle-earth stomping, Brandywine swimming, and Weathertop free-climbing. I can't even believe that this is the third such anniversary that I've covered for Massively; boy, how the time flies. Perhaps to make up for last year's lackluster and flawed anniversary celebration, Turbine's pulled out all the stops to make LotRO's birthday an event to remember. We've got a lot to cover and plenty of fireworks left to shoot off, so let's get to it! Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Happy fifth anniversary, LotRO!  The Road to Mordor: Happy fifth anniversary, LotRO! originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 21 Apr 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| WRUP: Pangolin edition Posted: 21 Apr 2012 08:00 AM PDT Filed under: Massively Meta, Miscellaneous There are a few important things that you need to know about pangolins. First of all, they exist. Second, well, that first thing is hard enough to move past. Don't get me wrong; they're beyond adorable, but they have no right existing in the modern era. Look at that thing. It's covered in armor plating with a slow and snurfling gait. It's like a contemporary of mammoths and ground sloths. The fact that it exists in this time and place implies that evolution is very nostalgic on occasion. This week's WRUP isn't really about nostalgia. Sure, it's always about what the Massively staff is playing over the weekend, but our usual bonus question isn't nostalgic either. Instead, it's about what game mechanic we'd like to see excised for all time. So jump on past the break to see what we'll be up to over this fine weekend, and let us know your own plans down in the comments. Continue reading WRUP: Pangolin edition WRUP: Pangolin edition originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 21 Apr 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Daily Grind: Is customizable housing worth the inevitable eyesores? Posted: 21 Apr 2012 06:00 AM PDT Filed under: Game mechanics, MMO industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Humor, Miscellaneous Few MMOs nowadays launch with housing, and a vanishingly small number of those have fully customizable housing, the kind that lets you construct your house from foundation to tower, filling in floors, walls, and decor as you go. Ultima Online is one such MMO; it changed over its pre-fab buildings to customizable housing in the early aughts. Customizable housing in an open-world sandbox setting brings its own set of problems, however, starting with the reality that most players aren't taking time out of their professional architect day jobs to play the game. Consequently, most player homes are decked out in bold colors and tacky tchotchkes and cleverly placed roof tiles that spell "LOL." I don't know about you guys, but my real-life house doesn't have an Escher fountain and mounted fish hanging on the second-story facade (although perhaps it should). What do you think -- is customizable housing a tribute to creativity and freedom or an eyesore immersion-breaker inflicted ruthlessly on every passerby and neighbor? Is that freedom worth the pain?  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: Is customizable housing worth the inevitable eyesores? originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 21 Apr 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Betawatch: April 14 - 20, 2012 Posted: 20 Apr 2012 06:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, MMO industry, Betawatch, Miscellaneous Three new games join Betawatch this week! The Tad Williams-inspired Otherland is now accepting alpha sign-ups; Aeria Games announced Waren Story with a beta sign-up and a trailer; and Gamania opened up the testing rolls for its newest MMO, Soul Captor. Meanwhile, heavy-hitters TERA and Guild Wars 2 are focusing on their impending beta weekends. TERA's first open beta weekend starts today, while Guild Wars 2 plans its first beta event for pre-purchasers next weekend. Finally, Blizzard will be closing down the Diablo III beta come Tuesday in preparation for launch next month. That means that today through Monday is your last chance to get it on the open beta! Read on for the full Betawatch roundup! Continue reading Betawatch: April 14 - 20, 2012 Betawatch: April 14 - 20, 2012 originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Eternal Blade posts a teaser site and class Facebook pages Posted: 20 Apr 2012 04:00 PM PDT Filed under: Fantasy, Video, New titles, Previews, News items, Free-to-play Eternal Blade, if you hadn't heard, is a free-to-play action MMO due out later this year from gPotato. We had a chance to preview the game briefly at GDC, and the team behind the game has stepped up promotions with the addition of a new teaser site for the game. The developers have also finalized the class lineup, but the classes aren't getting pages on the teaser site; instead, each class now has its own individual Facebook page. The Soul Summoner, the Knight, the Archer, the Mage, the Thief, and the Berserker pages each have some photos of the relevant class in action as well as a description of why it's the best out of the six classes. If that doesn't get you interested in the game, the teaser site also features a video showing off cinematics and gameplay. More news on beta testing and launch as it develops. [Source: gPotato press release] Continue reading Eternal Blade posts a teaser site and class Facebook pages Eternal Blade posts a teaser site and class Facebook pages originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Storyboard: One hundred moments and done Posted: 20 Apr 2012 03:00 PM PDT Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Roleplaying, Storyboard, Miscellaneous All good things must come to an end. Roleplaying is all about creating a shared space for your character to inhabit with other characters. It's about crafting trials and challenges that can be overcome through narrative means; it's about building a set of experiences together. And all of the columns I've written up to this point have been entirely about making that work well and creating a shared environment that's fun for everyone. But it can end. One day, you may log in to find that the people you've been roleplaying alongside are no longer there -- that the friends you once had have left, the allies you once charished have moved on, and your universe has narrowed by degrees until it's just you. After all of the roleplaying you've done, it tuns out that your group of fellow roleplayers has slowly drifted away until the only person who remembers these stories is you. And it seems fitting, for the 100th column, to talk about what happens when you're left remembering a universe that never was. Continue reading Storyboard: One hundred moments and done Storyboard: One hundred moments and done originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Latest TERA trailer takes players to the shores of the new Island of Dawn prologue Posted: 20 Apr 2012 02:00 PM PDT Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Trailers, Video, News items, TERA  TERA's open beta test kicked off in earnest today, opening the floodgates for waves of excited players to enter the realm of Arborea. To commemorate the occasion, En Masse Entertainment has released a new trailer that shows off the game's newly crafted prologue area, which gives players a taste of high level play before they enter the game proper. For those not yet in the beta, here's the down-low: Players begin their journey aboard a ship bound for the Island of Dawn, and as anyone familiar with fantasy tropes knows, getting on a ship bound for an unknown land is often just a prelude to a terrible shipwreck. TERA's prologue is no different, and players soon find themselves stranded in exceedingly hostile territory with a rather nasty demon infestation. Naturally, it falls to players to play demon exterminators and get the shipwrecked crew to safety because everyone else is too busy standing around telling the players what to do. Lazy chumps. At any rate, to get a first-hand look at the new prologue zone and all of the demon-ass-kicking it entails, just go watch the official trailer for yourself. Continue reading Latest TERA trailer takes players to the shores of the new Island of Dawn prologue Latest TERA trailer takes players to the shores of the new Island of Dawn prologue originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| The Firing Line: World of Tanks first-anniversary retrospective Posted: 20 Apr 2012 12:00 PM PDT Filed under: Historical, Business models, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, PvP, Opinion, War, Free-to-play, World of Tanks, The Firing Line, Anniversary We've been hearing about World of Tanks for so long that it seems crazy to think the title is just now celebrating its first anniversary. Sure enough, though, Wargaming.net's lobby-based multiplayer title is barely a year old. Well, OK. It's almost two years old if you count its summer 2010 beta release, which we won't since the title up there says first anniversary. Anyhow, what's even scarier than the passage of time is the fact that World of Tanks (and the company behind it) is showing no signs of slowing down. Continue reading The Firing Line: World of Tanks first-anniversary retrospective The Firing Line: World of Tanks first-anniversary retrospective originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Massively to co-host STO panel at the Official Star Trek Convention Posted: 20 Apr 2012 11:00 AM PDT Filed under: Sci-fi, Events, real-world, Star Trek Online, Free-to-play, Massively Event Coverage, Community Q&A Hey MMO Trekkies, are you beaming down to Las Vegas for this year's Official Star Trek Convention? If so, we've got one event that you won't want to miss: a Q&A panel with Star Trek Online's developers co-hosted by Massively and TrekRadio.net! We'll be on the scene as Cryptic Studios fields a wide variety of questions from ardent fans of the game. If getting that burning question you've had off your chest isn't enough of a reason to attend, the developers will also show a few trailers and sneak peeks of upcoming content. The panel will take place on Saturday, August 11th, from 2:00 to 3:00 EDT (11:00 a.m. to noon PDT) at the Rio Suites Hotel in Las Vegas. Massively to co-host STO panel at the Official Star Trek Convention originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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| Prolific MMO blogger Brian 'OddjobXL' Rucker passes away Posted: 20 Apr 2012 10:30 AM PDT Filed under: Culture, MMO industry, News items, Roleplaying, Miscellaneous  The MMO roleplaying community lost one of its most prolific authors this week as Brian " OddjobXL" Rucker passed away at the age of 48. Rucker maintained a blog called The Roleplayer's Redoubt on MMORPG.com, and he was also featured in Massively's The Game Archaeologist, where he talked at length about MUDs, MUSHs, and Star Wars Galaxies. Massively columnist Larry Everett remembers Rucker as "a very prominent member of both of my websites and a personal inspiration to me as a gamer, writer, and roleplayer." Rucker, known as Cap'n in SWG circles, covered roleplaying in dozens of disparate MMO titles. He also offered plenty of sage advice for both newbs and veterans alike. [Thanks to Laura for the tip.] Prolific MMO blogger Brian 'OddjobXL' Rucker passes away originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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