MMO Updates |
- Guild Wars 2 WvW changes delayed until March
- A Mild-Mannered Reporter: What makes a superhero game?
- Enter at Your Own Rift: Goodbye Scott, hello 2.2
- WildStar reveals 2013 launch window, ambitious plans to make MMOs fun again
- Allods Online's "biggest end-game expansion" to launch in March
- The Daily Grind: Are you a graphics snob?
- Flameseeker Chronicles: Flame and Frost
- EverQuest II starts its new year with new challenges and dungeons
- Just how safe is your online account?
- Forge developer diary discusses the state of the game and what comes next
- MechWarrior Online shows off its pretty new baby
- EVE Online gives a report card to Retribution ships
- Take a gander at DDO's Update 17 screens
- Initial DayZ video blog shows new stand-alone footage
- NCsoft earnings report shows healthy growth
- BioWare details SWTOR's Galactic Reputation system
- Jukebox Heroes: Age of Conan's soundtrack
| Guild Wars 2 WvW changes delayed until March Posted: 06 Feb 2013 09:00 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, PvP, Guild Wars 2, Free-to-play  But the good news is that we get a significant glimpse into the crystal ball of GW2's development as Colin details upcoming improvements such as the continual optimization of game models and data compression to reduce performance problems, and ways to draw more people in to the WvW feature. Be sure to read Colin's entire post over at the GW2 community forums.
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| A Mild-Mannered Reporter: What makes a superhero game? Posted: 06 Feb 2013 08:00 AM PST Filed under: Super-hero, Culture, Lore, Opinion, A Mild-Mannered Reporter  That being said, the characters in their original settings are not superheroes. That brings us to an interesting situation. Superheroes are in no small part defined by their abilities, but in another setting, those abilities are in no way out of the ordinary. So it's interesting to try to define what makes one game with mages and robots and supernaturally skilled swordsmen a superhero game while another one isn't. Continue reading A Mild-Mannered Reporter: What makes a superhero game?
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| Enter at Your Own Rift: Goodbye Scott, hello 2.2 Posted: 06 Feb 2013 07:00 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, MMO industry, RIFT, Enter at Your Own Rift  And thus we begin a new year of RIFT, teetering between uncertainty and promise. For as severe as Hartsman's departure will be felt in the development of the game and in its community, we're also looking ahead to the title's third year of operation and a new update that looks to add even more delectable treats on top of this fantasy buffet. So today we're going to say goodbye to Scott and hello to Update 2.2 as we look at the recent state of the game post. Continue reading Enter at Your Own Rift: Goodbye Scott, hello 2.2
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| WildStar reveals 2013 launch window, ambitious plans to make MMOs fun again Posted: 06 Feb 2013 06:00 AM PST Filed under: Betas, Sci-fi, Events, real-world, MMO industry, Hands-on, Massively Interviews, Massively Hands-on, Massively Event Coverage, WildStar  To mark the occasion, Carbine Studios invited press to the equivalent of a video game debutante ball in San Francisco to see just how much the sci-fantasy sandpark MMO has grown since our last tour (nearly two years ago). I escaped my Editor-in-Chief cage to attend the event and play the game, interrogate the developers, and judge whether those anticipated awards were well-deserved after all. Enjoy the fruits of my sneak peek!
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| Allods Online's "biggest end-game expansion" to launch in March Posted: 06 Feb 2013 05:45 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Expansions, Free-to-play, Allods Online, Dungeons  Entitled Lords of Destiny, this expansion will bring eight all-new astral allods with new 6-man dungeons for each. The public test server will open later this month, giving interested players the chance to try the content out beforehand. Check out our gallery below which shows off 11 new screenshots for the expansion. [Source: Gala Networks Europe press release]
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| The Daily Grind: Are you a graphics snob? Posted: 06 Feb 2013 05:00 AM PST Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous  Have you ever found yourself poo-pooing a game on its looks alone? Are animations and avatar appearances a make-or-break factor in your enjoyment of a title? Does it physically pain you to play earlier-era MMOs due to how crude they look? Do you work in the technical specifications of your graphics card into every conversation you have? Then you might be one of these... visually selective folk. It's OK. I don't judge. I've been known to shut down a game right away if it looks uglier than sin. So where does your visual tolerances lay -- and are you a self-admitted graphics snob?  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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| Flameseeker Chronicles: Flame and Frost Posted: 05 Feb 2013 05:30 PM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Events, in-game, Game mechanics, Lore, News items, PvE, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Flameseeker Chronicles  So! Let's take a look at what ArenaNet brought us in the past week. Continue reading Flameseeker Chronicles: Flame and Frost
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| EverQuest II starts its new year with new challenges and dungeons Posted: 05 Feb 2013 05:00 PM PST Filed under: Fantasy, EverQuest II, Patches, Previews, News items, Free-to-play  The update will include a new two-group dungeon in Wurmbone Crag along with a raid version of Dreadcutter. Beyond that, there's improved bag functionality as well as new daily, weekly, and monthly objectives for players to complete for special rewards. And that's not even the next big game update, which is scheduled for some time in the spring. Even though we're in the second month of the year, it's the start of a new cycle for EverQuest II's development, and hopefully players will be pleased with what it has to offer.
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| Just how safe is your online account? Posted: 05 Feb 2013 04:30 PM PST Filed under: MMO industry, Miscellaneous  The Merchant Risk Council's (MRC) Gamer Safety Alliance (GSA) wants to help you be the safest online netizen that you can be by raising awareness for this second annual event. After a few bad years of an account hacking epidemic in online games, this year's Gamer Safety Week theme is "account safety and security in the online world." Tips include adding security proofs to your accounts, keeping hardware and software updated, utilizing phishing filters, creating strong passwords, and more. You can read more about keeping your online accounts safe at the MRC's website.
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| Forge developer diary discusses the state of the game and what comes next Posted: 05 Feb 2013 04:00 PM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Game mechanics, Patches, Previews, PvP, News items, Dev Diaries  The diary makes it clear that while the number of people playing Forge is down, they believe a lot of that has to do with the steep learning curve new players experience. To fix this, there are plans for a new starter area in which players can practice against bots to get accustomed to the combat and the game mechanics. The team also plans to improve the tutorial and the UI so that what an ability does is more transparent. For players already at the higher end, this is still good news -- the matchmaking system will be updated, visual customization will be improved, and you'll be able to respec at any time to ensure that you aren't stuck with poor choices forever. Check out all the details in the latest development diary.
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| MechWarrior Online shows off its pretty new baby Posted: 05 Feb 2013 03:30 PM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Trailers, Video, Patches, Previews, News items, Free-to-play, MMOFPS, MechWarrior Online  But maybe your existing 'Mech is already the apple of your eye. That's all right, there's still plenty to like in February. The team at Piranha Games is working on a UI overhaul for the MechLab to allow players a clearer picture of what happens when upgrades are slotted in. There's also the third phase of matchmaking, new patterns for decorating your machine of choice, and performance improvements for all computers. But if you're still excited at the thought of a pretty new machine to pilot, you can check out a trailer for the prettiest of all babies past the cut. [Source: Piranha Games press release] Continue reading MechWarrior Online shows off its pretty new baby
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| EVE Online gives a report card to Retribution ships Posted: 05 Feb 2013 03:00 PM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Economy, Expansions, Dev Diaries, Sandbox  The article analyzes the popularity between the five new ships (one mining frigate and four destroyers), noting that the Algos and Corax have proven to be more desirable in PvP. The Venture both sold more blueprints and was destroyed more than the others since the expansion launched, although the mining frigate did account for a sharp uptick in harvested gas overall. If breaking down stats and crunching all sorts of interstellar numbers are your thing, then check out the post for the nitty-gritty details on these ships' performances.
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| Take a gander at DDO's Update 17 screens Posted: 05 Feb 2013 02:00 PM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Patches, Free-to-play  Check out 10 of these new screenshots in the gallery below, and while you're at it, why not read up on our recent tour of Update 17?
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| Initial DayZ video blog shows new stand-alone footage Posted: 05 Feb 2013 01:00 PM PST Filed under: Horror, Video, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Dev Diaries, Sandbox  Hall is joined by production assistant Matt Lightfoot, and the duo have a quite a lot to talk about over the course of the dev blog's 15-minute running time. Topics include major map improvements, the new clothing system, a streamlined UI, and the newfangled ability to spawn loot inside buildings. See for yourself after the break. Continue reading Initial DayZ video blog shows new stand-alone footage
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| NCsoft earnings report shows healthy growth Posted: 05 Feb 2013 12:00 PM PST Filed under: Aion, Lineage, Lineage 2, MMO industry, Guild Wars 2, Blade & Soul, Miscellaneous  Guild Wars 2 accounted for 45% of the company's sales in Q4, followed by Lineage (24%) and Blade & Soul (10%). ArenaNet's newest game increased the North American market from 16% in Q3 to 25% in Q4. It's not completely sunshine and roses, however. Lineage II and Aion both experienced declines during the period. NCsoft's net income was in the red for the quarter and its stock has slid since September, losing half of its value in the process. [Thanks to Paul for the tip!]
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| BioWare details SWTOR's Galactic Reputation system Posted: 05 Feb 2013 11:00 AM PST Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Dev Diaries  The latest BioWare dev blog has all the details, including bits about earning rep points (via consumable trophies) and niceties like legacy titles and other perks. The reputation system is accessible to both free players and subscribers, though the latter group do get a 50% bonus.
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| Jukebox Heroes: Age of Conan's soundtrack Posted: 05 Feb 2013 10:00 AM PST Filed under: Fantasy, Age of Conan, Free-to-play, Jukebox Heroes, Music  You know what? That's OK. Musical preferences are some of the most subjective things in the world, and we can't be expected to like everything, right? If Age of Conan's soundtrack gets people listening to more MMO (and even video game) scores, then that's a win for our niche-within-a-niche-within-a-niche hobby. This score (and all of Age of Conan's subsequent music) was composed by Norwegian Knut Avenstroup Haugen. He won several awards for his work on the game, including the International Film Music Critics Association Award for Scoring Excellence. If you're interested in the man, Massively's Jef Reahard did an interview with him back in 2010 that makes for good reading. Otherwise, let's head onward and I'll share my personal favorites from the original game score! Continue reading Jukebox Heroes: Age of Conan's soundtrack
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