MMOGaming News

MMOGaming News


[PAX Prime 2012] PlanetSide 2 Lifts Beta NDA

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[PAX Prime 2012] PlanetSide 2 Lifts Beta NDA


SOE kicks off its PAX Prime PlanetSide®2 presence by lifting the game's consumer NDA, allowing show attendees and beta testers to share, live stream and openly discuss their experiences battling thousands of other players in the war for Auraxis.

[PAX Prime 2012] Perfect World Shows Off Neverwinter and RaiderZ Trailers

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[PAX Prime 2012] Perfect World Shows Off Neverwinter and RaiderZ Trailers


Perfect World Entertainment is giving the red carpet treatment to up-and-comers Neverwinter and RaiderZ at PAX Prime 2012 this weekend.

Dungeon Striker: Gangnam Style Invades Closed Beta 2

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Dungeon Striker: Gangnam Style Invades Closed Beta 2


Dungeon Striker introduced an actual Gangnam Style dance emote into the game's CBT2 phase, which opened just a few hours back.

PointMMO: First Digital Distribution Platform Exclusively for MMO Games Announced

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PointMMO: First Digital Distribution Platform Exclusively for MMO Games Announced


A new digital distribution platform solely for MMOs, PointMMO, was announced. The platform helps publishers of MMOs both self-publish and distribute their titles to a dedicated community of MMO gamers.

Otherland Releases a New Trailer to Celebrate the Start of Beta

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Otherland Releases a New Trailer to Celebrate the Start of Beta


Join the Otherland's test today! as this marks the kick-off of the first closed beta weekend. Gamigo has released a new trailer to celebrate the start of the first beta of its action-packed MMORPG Otherland.

Torchlight II Will Launche on September 20th

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Torchlight II Will Launche on September 20th


Torchlight II will launch as a digital download from Runic Games, Steam, Perfect World, GamersGate, GameFly, and GameStop on September 20th, 2012.

Weekend-Long Dance Party for Knight Age Open Beta

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Weekend-Long Dance Party for Knight Age Open Beta


Joymax is continuing to celebrate its open beta for Knight Age with a weekend dance party. The "Gangnam Style" party will be located on the Knight Age Baron Server, inside a stable in Yann Valley Village.

3rd Annual Game Developers Choice Online Awards

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3rd Annual Game Developers Choice Online Awards


2012 Game Developers Choice Online Awards to honor 'Online Game Legend' Raph Koster and inaugura Blizzard Entertainment's World of Warcraft® into Hall of Fame.Awards Will be Presented at a Ceremony on October 10 during GDC Online.

Warface Locations Trailer - PAX Prime 2012

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Warface Locations Trailer - PAX Prime 2012


Crytek and Trion Worlds have today released the official Warface PAX Prime 2012 visually stunning trailer to give gamers another glimpse at what's to come from this truly AAA, free-to-play shooter. Dubbed "Locations," the new gameplay trailer highlights many of the different locations the game's combat will take place including Europe, the Middle East and South America. In addition to the new Locations trailer, Crytek has released a few new screenshots of the Favelas map in Brazil.

MMORPG Reviews

MMORPG Reviews


Gamigo releases a new trailer to celebrate the start of Otherland’s Beta

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 08:49 AM PDT

Gamigo has released a new trailer to celebrate the start of the first beta of its action-packed MMORPG Otherland Source of information: Gamigo press release

- Gamescom 2012 – Masang Soft presents its new flight simulator Air Wars

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 07:30 AM PDT

On our last day at the Gamescom we met up with Masang Soft the developers of Ace Online (USA) / Air Rivals (EU) for an exclusive presentation of their developing title Air Wars. Set around ten years into the future the United Nations battles with terrorists who have taken to the skies. The game will [...]

Conquer Online has just launched a flag feature

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 06:13 AM PDT

Conquer Online has just launched a new way to customize your character, with flags! This will make more easy to meet players of your country, or represent your country when you want. To get your flag you only have to choose your emblem on the status panel, and if you don’t want to reveal your [...]

War of the Immortals has joined the digital distribution platform Steam

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 05:25 AM PDT

The action MMO War of the Immortals has joined the digital distribution platform of Valve, Steam. And the players who join the game will gain access to its newest expansion, Lost Omen. Also to celebrate the debut of the game on Steam, the players who download the game through the digital distribution platform and achieve [...]

Drakensang Online reaches its first year

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 04:37 AM PDT

The action MMORPG Drakensang Online has announced that since the game's launch one year ago now exceeds 10 million registered players. To celebrate this anniversary, Bigpoint is giving away a powerful skill of Ancient Wisdom to all players who are registered for the game newsletter, followed by a series of competitions for the community. In [...]

Grepolis presents some new features

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 03:12 AM PDT

Innogames has announced the arrival of new features for the browser version, and for the Android app of its strategic browser game Grepolis. From today, new players of browser version will have a new tutorial, that provides initial information as well as helpful rewards, and for mobile users, Grepolis Toolbox is going to have several [...]

Dragon Knights Online has released the Paladin class-spotlight video

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 02:21 AM PDT

Aeria Games has published a new video that shows the DK Online Paladin class. In the video you can see the character moves, their emotes as well as some of their more powerful skills. The video shows the Paladin armed with a huge two handed sword, but is not the only weapon that can grip. [...]


General Gaming Article

General Gaming Article


Razer Unsheathes Blade 2 Gaming Laptop

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 08:55 PM PDT

Even though the original only started shipping in late January, gaming peripheral company Razer unveiled the successor to its Blade gaming laptop at PAX Prime on Friday. The good news is that despite boasting better innards, the Blade 2 will cost $300 less than its predecessor.

Described by Razer CEO Min-Liang Tan as being "insanely powerful," the Blade 2 packs an unnamed (and unannounced) quad-core 3rd Generation Intel Core i7 processor, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660M graphics with 2GB VRAM, 8GB of 1600MHz DDR3, and a storage combo consisting of a 500GB hard drive and a 64GB SSD. Here are the detailed specs:

  • Future platform with 3rd Generation Intel® Core™ Processor
  • NVIDIA GeForce® GTX 660M with NVIDIA® Optimus™ Technology
  • 2GB Dedicated GDDR5 Video Memory
  • 8GB 1600 MHz DDR3 Memory
  • 17.3-in. LED Backlit Display (1920x1080)
  • 500GB 7200RPM HDD (Primary Storage)
  • 64GB SATA III SSD with NVELO Dataplex™ Software (Cache Acceleration)
  • Wireless Network 802.11 A/G/N + BT4.0
  • 16.81" (Width) x 10.9" (Depth) x 0.88" (Height); 6.6lbs (Weight)

At 6.6lbs, the Blade 2 is slightly heavier than its predecessor (6.4lbs), but there is no change where dimensions are concerned. According to the official press release, the Blade 2 will go up for pre-order for $2,499 on September 2 and begin shipping on September 30.

"With the new Razer Blade, we set out to design something truly phenomenal with extreme performance for gamers in an ultra-thin form factor," said Min-Liang Tan in a press release. "The design and hardware advancements, combined with our revolutionary user interface, make the new Razer Blade, without doubt, the very best gaming laptop we've ever designed. The Beauty is now the Beast."

Open Source Era for HP's WebOS Begins Today with Beta Release

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 12:57 PM PDT

Everyone who purchased one of Hewlett-Packard's TouchPad tablets last year during the company's infamous fire sale can finally feel vindicated in doing so. That's because the first beta release of Open webOS ships today, HP announced in a blog post. It's been a long eight months since HP first announced it would contribute the webOS software to the open source community, essentially handing the reins over to third-party developers.

The beta release contains 54 webOS components, all available as open source code. It represents more than 450,000 lines of code released under the Apache 2.0 license, "which is one of the most liberal and accepted in the open source community," HP stated in a blog post.

There are two environments developers can tap into with today's release. One is a desktop build, and the second is an OpenEmbedded build, which HP says "provides the ideal environment for porting webOS to new and exciting devices." The latter includes an ARM emulator, and HP said it's actively converging on an OE Core image, which boots to System Manager and the full webOS experience.

HP said more updates are forthcoming, along with a final release in September.

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Thermaltake Constructs Armor Revo Gene Case for Mainstream Gamers

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 12:36 PM PDT

When money's no object, a $300 computer case is totally reasonable. But if you're on a budget, a cheaper enclosure frees up funds that can be better spent on other parts of the build, like a beefier graphics card, faster processor, more RAM, a solid state drive, or whatever. With that in mind, Thermaltake is positioning its new Armor Revo Gene as a "mainstream gaming chassis."

Though it's being pimped as a mainstream box, there are some higher end features on the spec sheet. It has SuperSpeed USB 3.0 ports, for example, along with a top-mounted HDD docking station, a really neat feature that's only on a relatively small number of cases. The Armor Revo Gene is "liquid cooling ready," it has lots of cooling potential, and it supports VGA cards up to 315mm long.

So, what's the cost? Thermaltake didn't mention it in the press release, but a quick glance around the Web reveals the company plans on selling it for less than £99 (~US$157) in the U.K. in October. We suspect it will go for a little less in the States.

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This week's hottest reviews on TechRadar

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 08:40 AM PDT

Google TV

IFA used to be a home entertainment show but this year it's been dominated by mobile products, Windows 8 ones in particular.

It seems if it doesn't run Windows 8 and come with a keyboard dock, it's not worth having at this year's show. The confusing part though has been working out exactly 'what' some of the products actually are.

We've seen ultrabooks that detach from keyboards to become tablets and we've seen tablets that attach to keyboards to become notebooks. What's the difference?

We'll try and work that out when we get more of them in for the full TechRadar review treatment but in the meantime, here are the best and most exciting reviews and hands-ons we've written this past week.

Sony NSZ-GS7 review

Google TV is potentially compelling, but even in the world of regular firmware updates and new apps, is that enough? It's should fetch video from disparate websites and present it in a source-neutral way. Chrome doesn't do that, and nor does a motley collection of mostly smartphone-centric Google Play apps help in that mission. So is it better than the cheaper options, Apple TV or an Xbox 360? Hardware-wise, absolutely not - and the software is not as impressive, either - though with a friendlier, far more streamlined remote and a growing list of apps on Google Play there could be a future.

A great browser it might have, but even a clever Chrome can't locate enough compelling answers to the key question about Google TV; what's it for?

Asus Vivo Tab

Hands on: Asus Vivo Tab review

Asus has fired its off its opening salvo of Windows 8 tablets with a new range of 'Transformer' style devices dubbed the Asus Vivo Tab. Like the Asus Transformer Pad range, the Vivo is a tablet-cum-laptop hybrid where a tablet device docks into a keyboard base-station to become a netbook-sized laptop. Those who are as concerned with etymology as we are will be interested to know that Vivo comes from the Latin verb meaning 'to live', so it's just as well Asus is touting this as a device for both work and play.

Build quality is exceptional, and we prefer the solid keyboard dock to that of the Asus Transformer Prime. It felt solid, and our impression was that the keys had a tad more cushioning and refinement than its Android cousin.

Samsung introduces Galaxy Camera packing Android

Hands on: Samsung Galaxy Camera review

It's about time we saw a camera from a leading brand running Android and we like the look of the Samsung Galaxy Camera a lot. With the popularity of uploading pictures to Facebook and Twitter using apps like Instagram, it makes a lot of sense to release an Android device that can both take brilliant 16MP snaps and upload them straight to your social networking profiles.

The 16-million pixel CMOS sensor inside the camera is a 1/2.3 inch device, the same size as in many compact cameras and considerably bigger than those in the average phone. This should mean that the Galaxy Camera is capable of recording a respectable level of detail with reasonably well controlled noise.

Samsung Galaxy Note 2 review

Hands on: Samsung Galaxy Note 2 review

The speed of the Note 2 is phenomenal. This is, hands down, the best media and internet browsing portable machine we've seen in ages. It's still a bit big to be used as a normal phone – people will still think you're more than slightly odd holding it to your face – but for texting, browsing, emailing, watching movies and more, we haven't seen much better than this. We'll reserve proper judgement obviously until the price emerges – if it's anything like the first Note, we're in for a high-priced shock.

However, get this to the £30 mark and, coupled with some serious marketing again from Samsung, we should have a winner on our hands.

HTC Desire X review

Hands on: HTC Desire X review

This phone is set to sit above the Desire C, but below the HTC One V, in the range of products from the Taiwanese manufacturer. And while we predictably couldn't get HTC to confirm it, the Desire X could come in for just £15-£20 a month on contract, or £180-£200 on pay as you go deals. This would be a real howitzer of a handset to throw at that segment, as while the HTC name doesn't command the same level of fervour among smartphone users, those wanting to stick with the Desire name will love the idea of halving their bills.

The HTC Desire X release date is set for mid-September in the UK, so it won't be long before we get to update this hands on with a full, in-depth review of a possible mid-range marvel.

Laptops

Hands on: Asus Taichi review

Hands on: Sony Vaio Duo 11 review

Hands on: HP ENVY x2 review

Hands on: HP SpectreXT TouchSmart Ultrabook review

Hands on: Samsung Ativ Smart PC Pro review

Mobile phones

Hands on: Sony Xperia T review

Xperia T

Hands on: Sony Xperia J review

Hands on: Sony Xperia V review

Monitors

BenQ GW2750HM review

ViewSonic VX2460h-LED review

Network adaptors

Netgear Powerline Nano 500 review

Routers

AVM FRITZ!Box 7330 review

Storage

Corsair Force GS 240GB review

Western Digital Red 2TB review

Tablets

Hands on: Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review

Hands on: Archos 101 XS review

Hands on: Sony Xperia Tablet S review

Hands on: Asus Vivo Tab RT review

Hands on: Samsung Ativ Tab review

Hands on: Lenovo Ideatab S2110A review

Hands on: Samsung Ativ Smart PC review

Televisions

Hands on: Panasonic 20 inch 4K television review

104 inch TV

Hands on: Panasonic 104 inch glassless 3D television review

Hands on: Panasonic 145-inch 8K Super Hi Vision television review

Microsoft Reveals First Batch of Xbox Live Games for Windows 8

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 08:06 AM PDT

For those of you wondering what Xbox Live titles Microsoft will have ready for Windows 8 when it ships to the general public on October 26, 2012, you can stop guessing. The Redmond software giant today unveiled the first wave of titles that will ship for the platform, a total of 40 games, 29 of which are from Microsoft Studios. If you're expecting heavy-hitting titles like Halo, you're going to be disappointed, but if you're more into Angry Birds these days, you'll like what the company has on tap.

Angry Birds and Angry Birds Space are among the 40 titles, as are similar casual games like Cut the Rope. Microsoft said a number of studios are committed to bringing Xbox Live games to Windows 8, including Rovio, Miniclip, Gameloft, ZeptoLab, Glu Mobile, and Halfbrick studios.

"Xbox games will be super easy to discover through the Games app that comes with Windows 8 and available through the Windows Store," Microsoft said. "Xbox games for Windows 8 will have Xbox Achievements as well as the ability to take advantage of certain Xbox features such as leaderboards, multiplayer modes, and connecting with friends."

You can view a full list of titles on Microsoft's Windows Team blog.

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Razer Announces Aviation Inspired BlackShark Headset Sans Battlefield 3 Branding

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 07:43 AM PDT

If you spend your days dreaming of taking to the skies, Razer's new BlackShark headphones may be the peripheral to keep your head above ground, even if you aren't. The stereo gaming headset was designed to look and feel like the ones worn by attack helicopter pilots, Razer says, and if they look familiar, it's because the gaming peripheral maker already sells a branded pair for Battlefield 3 junkies.

This new pair sports the same design, only without the BF3 branding. It has full circumaural ear cups, memory foam ear cushions that are supposed to mold to the shape of your head, and a detachable boom microphone.

"Soldiers in intense combat situations need to be fully focused with minimal distractions to take the objectives successfully and come out alive. The same goes for gamers seeking the win – and that's what the Razer BlackShark gaming headset was built to deliver," said Robert Krakoff, president of Razer USA. "When you stop gaming to get out and about, detach the boom microphone and you've got the perfect sound-isolating headphones for your audio on-the-go."

The Razer BlackShark will be available to purchase in September for $120 MSRP.

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Google Plus Takes Page from Facebook, Introduces Birthday Reminders

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 07:25 AM PDT

Be honest, do you really have a close relationship with the 500 or 1,000 people in your online social network? Probably not, but Facebook has, for some time now, been reminding you of each one's birthday (optionally), and then it's up to you whether you want to post a message or not. It's a pretty basic feature, and now it's available in Google+. You know, just in case you can't remember the dates for the three people in your circles who actually use the service (we kid, we kid...sort of).

"Everyone deserves a little love on their birthday, so we're making it easier for you and your friends to celebrate on Google. Starting today, you'll see a reminder on Google.com when someone in your circles has a birthday! From there it's easy to share a fun message, photo, or video with the birthday gal or guy," Google announced in a Google+ post.

If you'd rather your wise cracking friends didn't know your birthday, and thus skip the age jokes and sarcastic Someecard links, you can adjust your Google+ birthday preferences "to make sure you're sharing with the right people," Google says. To do that, head to https://plus.google.com/up/birthday

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Dissecting Amazon's Kindle Fire Sales and 22 Percent Market Share Claim

Posted: 31 Aug 2012 07:09 AM PDT

Amazon yesterday announced that it had sold out of its Kindle Fire tablet, ending a nine-month run for the popular 7-inch slate. There were two things of note in the press release. First, company founder and CEO, Jeff Bezos, added fuel to speculation that an upgraded second generation Kindle Fire tablet is en route when he said Amazon has "an amazing roadmap ahead." Second, Amazon made the claim that Kindle Fire had captured 22 percent of tablet sales in the U.S. Exactly how many tablets is that, anyway?

Horace Dediu at Asymco crunched the numbers and estimates Amazon must have sold 5 million Kindle Fire tablets in the U.S. He arrived at that number by taking tablet sales claims that Apple and Samsung revealed in recent court filings.

"The iPad added up to 16.14 million units (Q4 2011 through Q2 2012) and the Tab was 540,00 units. That makes the iPad and the Tab add up to about 16.7 million units," Dediu explains. "Assuming an additional 1 million units for the other (non-Kindle) total yields an estimate of 22.7 million tablet devices sold in the nine months ending June. Applying the 22 percent claim to that total gives a Kindle sales total of 4.987 million. That's awfully close to a round number of 5 million."

It's the best estimate that's out there to date, and if its accurate, Dediu says it's "not an auspicious start for a disruptive product." Due to the device's low price tag, Dediu estimates Amazon lost $40 on each Kindle Fire device it sold (which is probably a high estimation), and with five million units sold, that translates into a $200 million charge.

"Did Amazon earn a profit on content sales of $40 on each of those five million units?," Dediu ponders? "The margins on content sold through Amazon are so low that I have a hard time imagining that Fire users are that ravenous in their consumption."

It's expected Amazon will launch a second generation Kindle Fire at its press event on September 6, 2012.

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Dell Unleashes Trio of XPS Windows 8 Devices

Posted: 30 Aug 2012 10:54 PM PDT

The second day of the ongoing Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA) trade show in Berlin once again belonged to Windows 8. Among the Windows 8 devices showcased on Thursday was a disparate trio of Dell XPS PCs: the Dell XPS 10 Windows RT tablet, the XPS Duo 12 convertible Ultrabook, and the XPS One 27 all-in-one PC.

Dell XPS 10: Recently, Dell was named by Microsoft as one of its few Windows RT launch partners but no device was revealed. If you've been wondering what Dell's maiden Windows RT device is going to look like, the answer is now here in the form of the ARM-based Dell XPS 10, about which we know very little apart from the fact that it has a 10-inch display, long battery life, and a mobile keyboard dock.

XPS Duo 12: If you've seen the Dell Inspiron Duo netbook, which was launched in late 2010, then you know where the inspiration for the Duo 12 convertible ultrabook came from. The XPS Duo 12 is equipped with a 12.5-inch full HD display. Thanks to its "flip hinge" design, folding the Duo 12's Corning Gorilla Glass-covered display over its keyboard gives you a Windows 8 tablet.

XPS One 27: Like the other two XPS devices unveiled today, the XPS One 27 too is a touchscreen device, albeit a considerably bigger one. Its 27-inch Wide Quad HD Display (2560x1440) is said to deliver "twice the pixel density of any other 27-inch AIO PC."

"The Dell XPS 10, XPS Duo 12 and XPS One 27 will be available for sale when Windows 8 is available at the end of October," Dell stated in a press release. "More details on pricing will be announced when available."

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