MMO Updates |
- Elite: Dangerous Kickstarter page updated with video, concept art
- MMO Blender: Larry's anti-power-creep MMO
- MMObility: Windows 8 and gaming in the Metro browser
- Disney partners with Smilegate for Marvel MOBA
- The Daily Grind: What's the worst thing a cash shop can try to sell you?
- Forge reveals a new trailer of beta gameplay footage
- The Guild Counsel: How to make a happy guild
- RaiderZ gets down and dirty with sewer instance
- The Summoner's Guidebook: Tiers don't belong in League of Legends
- RIFT unveils Return to Telara promotion
- Ask Massively: Missives from the Massively yacht
- Why I Play: The Secret World
- Cryptic, Riot, and more weigh in on free-to-play growing pains
- The Perfect Ten: Character creation options nobody uses
- EverQuest II's 8th anniversary: Celebrating a pivotal year
| Elite: Dangerous Kickstarter page updated with video, concept art Posted: 09 Nov 2012 09:00 AM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Video, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Sandbox  In any event, Frontier's Kickstarter page has updated with some concept images and a new video. This is quite a step up from last Tuesday's announcement that was heavy on nostalgia and light on everything else. The video is mostly David Braben talking, though to be fair, he does chat up some cool stuff including procedural generation and adding do-anything-you-can-imagine multiplayer to Elite's vast universe. Head to the official Elite Kickstarter page for further info, and have a look at Braben's video after the break. Continue reading Elite: Dangerous Kickstarter page updated with video, concept art
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| MMO Blender: Larry's anti-power-creep MMO Posted: 09 Nov 2012 08:00 AM PST Filed under: World of Warcraft, City of Heroes, PvP, PvE, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic, RIFT, League of Legends, MMO Blender  In my quest to find the ultimate MMO, I have searched for game elements that reduce the amount of power creep but still come together to support a themepark game. Let's be honest: Sandbox games might suffer power creep, but because most sandboxes are skill-based, that power creep is not as prevalent or can easily be mitigated by tweaking classes. But themeparks are linear by design, and to remain fun, they have to retain part of that linear quality. Progression and continually racking up numbers and achievements is enjoyable to a large number of MMO players, otherwise it would be games like Ultima Online and Star Wars Galaxies dominating the market, not World of Warcraft. Believe it or not, there are online games that have done a tremendous job of trying to defeat power creep, but unfortunately, they do not exist as one game... until now in my Anti-Power-Creep MMO! Continue reading MMO Blender: Larry's anti-power-creep MMO
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| MMObility: Windows 8 and gaming in the Metro browser Posted: 09 Nov 2012 07:00 AM PST Filed under: MMO industry, Opinion, Free-to-play, Mobile, Casual, Miscellaneous  But how does Windows 8 affect a mobile MMO fan like yours truly? Well, Windows 8 does a heckuva lot. It offers a ton of flexibility and fun new ways to interact with your PC. But it can also be a very confusing new addition. I sat down to figure out some of these issues with the help of Ben Adams, CTO of Illyriad Games. He knows more about mobile tech than I do and was able to sort out the differences between the Windows 8 browsers for me. Let's get to it. Continue reading MMObility: Windows 8 and gaming in the Metro browser
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| Disney partners with Smilegate for Marvel MOBA Posted: 09 Nov 2012 06:00 AM PST Filed under: Super-hero, MMO industry, New titles, News items, MOBA  Disney and Smilegate have codenamed the game Project PK. Smilegate is mostly known for CrossFire, a free-to-play online shooter originally released in 2007.
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| The Daily Grind: What's the worst thing a cash shop can try to sell you? Posted: 09 Nov 2012 05:00 AM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Business models, MMO industry, Opinion, Free-to-play, Massively Meta, The Daily Grind, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Miscellaneous  I've certainly played free-to-play MMOs that didn't try to milk me dry or annoy me into a subscription, so I know it's possible to design a hybrid pay model that doesn't generate the community's ire. Still, most every cash shop features at least one thing that gets under my skin. So today we're wondering, what's that one thing for you -- what's the worst thing a cash shop can try to sell you?  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!
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| Forge reveals a new trailer of beta gameplay footage Posted: 08 Nov 2012 05:00 PM PST Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Trailers, Video, Previews, PvP, News items  The trailer is fairly short, as trailers are wont to be, but it still gives a picture of what the game looks like in terms of animation and gameplay. Take a look at the full video just past the cut, which covers both navigation and combat from the viewpoint of several classes within the game. There's reason to hope that release dates and pricing information might not be too far off, either. [Source: Dark Vale Games press release] Continue reading Forge reveals a new trailer of beta gameplay footage
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| The Guild Counsel: How to make a happy guild Posted: 08 Nov 2012 04:00 PM PST Filed under: Culture, Guilds, Opinion, Guides, The Guild Counsel  If you're a guild leader, you will undoubtedly run into unhappy members (although hopefully it's not half of the roster!). And while the country might be polarized for the foreseeable future, it is possible to keep and maintain a happy guild atmosphere. Let's look at a few ways in today's Guild Counsel. Continue reading The Guild Counsel: How to make a happy guild
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| RaiderZ gets down and dirty with sewer instance Posted: 08 Nov 2012 03:00 PM PST Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Trailers, Video, Previews, Free-to-play, Dungeons  While RaiderZ shoots through the rapids of open beta on its way to the waterfall of launch, Perfect World is evangelizing this title to any and all who will hear the message of an action MMO with memorable monsters. Today the company is reading from the Book of Dungeons, Chapter Six: the Rietz Sewer. [Source: Perfect World Entertainment press release] Continue reading RaiderZ gets down and dirty with sewer instance
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| The Summoner's Guidebook: Tiers don't belong in League of Legends Posted: 08 Nov 2012 02:00 PM PST Filed under: PvP, Opinion, Free-to-play, MOBA, League of Legends, The Summoner's Guidebook  Unfortunately, even tier lists that are fairly accurate are fundamentally flawed in any competitive game, and they're especially flawed in League. At their best, tier lists show characters who do well in many situations or who are very difficult to counter. At their worst, tier lists are flawed and show a lack of understanding on the part of the author. This doesn't mean that there aren't strong or weak champions, but a tier list doesn't even tell part of the story. It just gives an arbitrary rating that says very little about a character's true strengths or how to leverage them. Continue reading The Summoner's Guidebook: Tiers don't belong in League of Legends
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| RIFT unveils Return to Telara promotion Posted: 08 Nov 2012 01:00 PM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Events, in-game, Expansions, News items, RIFT, Promotions  It's time once again for the Ascended of Telara to answer the call-to-arms with yet another Return to RIFT promotion to celebrate the imminent launch of the game's first expansion, Storm Legion. From now until Sunday, November 11th, Trion Worlds is inviting new and returning players to jump into the game for five days of free gameplay leading up to Storm Legion's launch. During this free play time, players will be able to "go hands-on with sweeping Soul changes and dive into a pivotal World Event that shatters the peace on one continent... and opens the gates to two more." It certainly sounds as if Trion has an exciting experience in store for players, whether they're returning veterans or green recruits, so if you want to get in on the excitement, just head on over to the RIFT official site for all the details.
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| Ask Massively: Missives from the Massively yacht Posted: 08 Nov 2012 12:00 PM PST Filed under: Culture, Events, real-world, MMO industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous  Hopefully you've guessed that Massively doesn't have a yacht. We don't even have an office. The Massively yacht is a mythical destination, a running joke that's only mildly funny and then only to the people who work here, since only we know what we're paid, how insanely strict the Joystiq network is about accepting items on the spectrum between gifts and bribes, and how that strictness both hurts and helps us and you. That's something worth talking about in light of the Eurogamer debacle. Continue reading Ask Massively: Missives from the Massively yacht
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| Posted: 08 Nov 2012 11:00 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Horror, Opinion, The Secret World, Why I Play  Last week, I finally gave into the guilt and hopped back into the game. I had kept my subscription running, as I knew that even if I wasn't actively playing, I still wanted to support Funcom's endeavors with what I felt was a remarkably refreshing entry into the stagnant MMO marketplace. Last I left my Illuminati agent Rouage, he had hit something of a brick wall in Blue Mountain thanks to a very short-sighted and subpar character build. I figured I'd probably be replaying Kingsmouth and/or Savage Coast just to get the AP to rectify my build anyway, so I scrapped him and started from the beginning. This time, it clicked. So here I am to tell you why it clicked, and of course, why I play The Secret World. Continue reading Why I Play: The Secret World
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| Cryptic, Riot, and more weigh in on free-to-play growing pains Posted: 08 Nov 2012 10:30 AM PST Filed under: Business models, MMO industry, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic, League of Legends, Neverwinter  According to these publishers, there's no argument that F2P will become a major force in the industry. Cryptic Studios COO Craig Zinkievich remarked that although F2P is stigmatized as evil in the social market, the recent influx of titles has gotten the core gaming audience more excited about the model. More consumer excitement, of course, leads to higher-quality games. Sean Decker, VP of EA's Play4Free label, noted, "The good thing about so many companies moving into the free-to-play space is that it's great for the players: the quality of graphics are going up, the quality of the gameplay is going up." However, in the rush to capitalize on F2P, some are going to crash and burn. Zinkievich said, "I think there will definitely be failures within the next 12 to 24 months. Many who are entering the market right now are doing it as almost a money-grab." He added, "But subscription is dead. [Star Wars:] The Old Republic was the biggest possible swing for the fences. There is no longer any argument over whether that can be done. Free-to-play is the way of the future. It is the new world." Does that include console gaming? According to these folks, yes.
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| The Perfect Ten: Character creation options nobody uses Posted: 08 Nov 2012 10:00 AM PST Filed under: Game mechanics, Humor, Perfect Ten, Miscellaneous  I think there could be a doctoral thesis for someone willing to investigate which visual character creation options most of us use and which ones we ignore. My hunch is that most of us are looking to recreate an impeccable standard of beauty or handsomeness, resulting in game worlds exploding with Abercrombie & Fitch models. Because exploring the "most-used character creation options" isn't as much fun, today we're going to examine the 10 options that pretty much nobody uses. And yes, you'll feel compelled to comment that you do indeed use one of these and prove me wrong, so let me give you a gold star in advance for doing so. You're awesome. Continue reading The Perfect Ten: Character creation options nobody uses
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| EverQuest II's 8th anniversary: Celebrating a pivotal year Posted: 08 Nov 2012 09:30 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, EverQuest II, Game mechanics, Reviews, Free-to-play, Anniversary  What's new? For starters, new lands, new sandbox features, a new payment model, and a new class have all appeared over the course of this past year. But that's not all; no one can accuse SOE of just sitting on its laurels because the changes keep a-comin' at seemingly ever increasing speeds. Not only does this anniversary sit literally on the cusp of even more major dramatic alterations (the dust's hardly settled from SOE Live and the ninth expansion, with all of its content, launches in just five days), but two innovations have slid in right under the wire! Whether you've been away or you just want to reminisce, let's take a moment to look over the past year in EverQuest II before we lose ourselves in Chains of Eternity. Continue reading EverQuest II's 8th anniversary: Celebrating a pivotal year
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