MMORPG News

MMORPG News

Diablo 3: Preparations Didn't Go Far Enough

Posted: 17 May 2012 07:27 AM PDT

Preparations Didn

This just in from the "Ya Think?" files: According to a short report at GamesIndustry.biz, Blizzard has admitted that, despite twelve years in the making, its preparations for the launch of Diablo III "didn't go far enough".

The Secret World: My Wife the Noob and TSW

Posted: 16 May 2012 04:44 PM PDT

My Wife the Noob and TSW

Not everyone knows all things about all MMOs. Once in awhile, a rank amateur joins the legion fans surrounding the MMO-niverse. In our latest look at The Secret World, we check out the game through the eyes of a n00b. See what she thinks and then leave your thoughts in the comments.

The Secret World: Make It Visceral Please

Posted: 15 May 2012 05:04 PM PDT

Make It Visceral Please

We've been messing around in Funcom's The Secret World for days now and have generally been having a great time. There is a lot to like in The Secret World but we have one small request: Make the game more visceral. See why we think that and then leave us your thoughts in the comments.

Age of Conan: Unchained: Screenshot of the Week: Special 4th Anniversary AoC Edition!

Posted: 15 May 2012 05:51 PM PDT

Screenshot of the Week: Special 4th Anniversary AoC Edition!

MMORPG.com and Funcom have partnered up to give away 10 key codes good for four months of premium game time in Age of Conan. Funcom is celebrating the game's four year anniversary and we're excited to partner with them in this special edition of our Screenshot of the Week contest.

General: Ether Saga Odyssey: SOTW Winner's Announcement!

Posted: 15 May 2012 05:40 PM PDT

Ether Saga Odyssey: SOTW Winner

We've pored over your awesome Ether Saga Odyssey screenshots and we're ready to announce our three winner's for the Ether Saga Odyssey Screenshot of the Week contest!

DC Universe Online: Big Names Making a Return

Posted: 16 May 2012 02:41 PM PDT

Big Names Making a Return

Sony Online Entertainment has announced that three big names will reprise their roles in DC Universe Online with the Last Laugh downloadable content. Mark Hamill (The Joker), Adam Baldwin (Superman) and Arleen Sorkin (Harley Quinn) will make their return in the DLC.

General: RTSGuru.com | MechWarrior Tactics

Posted: 16 May 2012 10:51 AM PDT

RTSGuru.com | MechWarrior Tactics

In the first of a series of RTSGuru.com exclusive features from the team behind MechWarrior Tactics, Roadhouse Interactive Producer James Romanchuk takes us into the past and present of BattleTech & MechWarrior, and the future goals for MechWarrior Tactics. Check it out at RTSGuru.com!

Ragnarok Online: Port Malaya Content Expansion Launched

Posted: 16 May 2012 09:39 AM PDT

Port Malaya Content Expansion Launched

Ragnarok Online players will want to head back into the game to check out the latest content expansion that brings Port Malaya online. Port Malaya brings new adventures for players of level 100+ with new quests, dungeons and monsters.

Continent of the Ninth Seal: Tournament to Coincide with Final CBT

Posted: 16 May 2012 09:18 AM PDT

Tournament to Coincide with Final CBT

Webzen has announced that the world championship tournament for C9, Continent of the Ninth Seal, will begin at the same time as the final closed beta test. The events will run from May 17th through May 31st.

The Secret World: Game On | The Closed Beta Weekend

Posted: 16 May 2012 09:12 AM PDT

Game On | The Closed Beta Weekend

Som Pourfarzaneh and Ripper X discuss the recent The Secret World beta weekend on Game On Extra, a new show spotlighting specific games, news and topics in the MMO world. Check it out on our Game On Podcast page!

Diablo 3: Review-in-Progress Part One

Posted: 16 May 2012 03:09 AM PDT

Review-in-Progress Part One

After 12 years was Diablo III worth it? That's far too loaded a question to answer in just a single piece, so we're putting together a review-in-progress series leading up to our final review. Today, we look at Diablo III's launch day and offer our take on our experience with the game so far.

Posted by Shri Krishna

General gaming

General gaming

Akai Katana Review: A Bleedin' All Right Time

Posted: 17 May 2012 06:26 AM PDT

Everyone's favorite purveyor of exceedingly niche shoot-em-ups, Cave, is back again with Akai Katana, a welcome -- and rare -- appearance of one of their console games localized for the West. Not only that, it's a boxed retail game, and crazier yet, it's another horizontal bullet-hell shooter, just like their last Western retail release, Deathsmiles. And if Deathsmiles' gothic lolita stylings sent you running in the opposite direction, Akai Katana is a much more palatable action game, set in a world where young rebels use their warplanes and the power of the mystical Blood Swords to combat the endless hordes of imperial forces. Yeah, no one really plays these for the plots.

As in every shooter, you fly around the screen destroying enemies that appear from the other side of the screen, using regular speedy fire or more powerful, focused fire that slows your movement. The wrinkle in Akai Katana is that killing enemies earns energy orbs that will let you summon your "phantom." With enough energy you can switch to phantom form, where you become your humanoid spirit partner, who is invincible as long as you don't use the stronger fire. As enemy bullets bounce off the phantom, you can move left and right to bat the bullets around and turn them into point value tokens, though they don't last forever and neither does the phantom energy meter, so you'll have to know when to switch forms and collect them for your big scores.

Game of Thrones Review: An Example of Mediocre Interactive Fanfiction

Posted: 16 May 2012 03:51 PM PDT

Consider the following scenario from the Game of Thrones RPG: you get tasked with infiltrating a secure location, and beforehand you assemble a proper uniform -- gauntlets, boots, cape, and helmet -- to gain access. This sequence conjures up the same sort of tension as watching Tywin Lannister and Littlefinger's conversation at Harrenhal in the current season of the show, or reading the duel between The Red Viper and The Mountain That Rides from A Storm of Swords. There's a lot at stake, and one mistake could turn the whole affair catastrophic; but this time, you're in control of this tense situation. You walk up to a guard at a checkpoint, and he asks if he knows you because you seem familiar to him; to this, you reply that you have a very common face that elicits such a question often. Except, as noted earlier, not only are you in disguise, but as part of that disguise, you had put on a full helmet that completely envelops and obscures your face.

That kind of moment embodies playing Game of Thrones, where the occasional moments of intrigue and interest get stymied by bizarre little gaffes, mistakes, and janks. Why is there a conversation about the look of my face when I have a helmet on? It's not an instance of randomized NPC chatter that delightfully skips over the detail of whether the player is wearing a helmet or not -- it's a specific and scripted moment in a mandatory story quest that somehow got past the game's writers and testing.

A Tale of Two Television Games

Posted: 16 May 2012 02:27 PM PDT

It's certainly not easy to make a game based off a hit television series; one has to only look back at properties like Buffy, The X-Files, and The Sopranos to find examples of fantastic shows that transitioned into video games via bland and uninspired adaptations. And the less said about the Home Improvement SNES game featuring dinosaurs, the better. Observing this sad trend makes it all the more surprising that Telltale was able to create a fantastic opening to their downloadable series based on The Walking Dead. Sadly the success that they had with the AMC hit caused an old wound to open in the form of us thinking about the potential behind 2008's Lost: Via Domus, and how it failed in every aspect that The Walking Dead succeeds.

Ubisoft Montreal released their adaptation of the ambitious ABC series at the very end of Lost's third season. As the season finale dramatically widened the scope of the series, Lost: Via Domus attempted to retread over the first 60 episodes by placing fans in the shoes of a brand new character. What followed was a bland, uninspired trod through the jungle without any focus whatsoever. Characters from the show would randomly pop-up for the sole purpose of having fans recognize them, and strange gameplay mechanics were shoehorned for no apparent reason. In short, the game was a bit of a mess. So why is it that Telltale was able to succeed with The Walking Dead where Ubisoft failed with Lost?

walking dead

Understanding the Source Material

Square's Theatrhythm Goes Back to Midgar on Nintendo's 3DS

Posted: 16 May 2012 02:21 PM PDT

Ever since Square unveiled the Final Fantasy VII tech demo back in E3 of 2005, fans have been demanding the company bring their 1997 RPG classic to the era of HD consoles. Instead of delivering on the goods, however, Square decided to instead release port after port of their 2D Final Fantasies, along with the 13th (and unfortunately 14th) iteration of the series. With Final Fantasy XIII receiving mixed reviews and Final Fantasy XIV tainting the brand, it seems fans just want a reminder of why they loved the series in the first place. Instead of something new and different, Final Fantasy enthusiasts ultimately crave a prettier version of VII.
Posted by Shri Krishna
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