Defiance

Are you tired of bombing around the post-apocalyptic wastelands of the Bay Area, shooting hellbugs in the face and popping wheelies on your four-wheeler, with none of your friends around to watch/high-five? Trion Worlds feels your pain.

The studio has just announced a recruit-a-friend system for its video game/television experiment, Defiance. If you have a copy of the game on any platform and a valid Trion Worlds account, you can hop over to the Defiance Ark Hunter recruitment site and shoot your besties some email invitations. Also available: a recruitment link for social media.

As is customary, bringing friends to Defiance comes with special rewards. Your first friend lands you a Tier I lock box, your first five get you a unique title, and your first ten give you two additional inventory slots. If one of those friends actually buys the game, you'll get a new outfit. Five purchases gets you a flame-emblazoned truck, and every purchase after that results in a Tier III lock box.

Defiance broke my heart around this time last year. E3 2012 was the first and last time we saw players from Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC all playing the same game together. I personally haven't played the game since then, but I've kept up with the game news, except for the show. No spoilers in the comments, people! Now that I've gotten my hands on the new DLC that's incoming for the game, I know I'll be catching up with the series. During my Defiance appointment at E3, I had a nice little chat, saw some cute features, tested a new weapon and new vehicle, and killed some new enemies... you know, the usual ark hunter stuff.

But before covering the DLC, I had to ask what exactly happened last year with Microsoft and why PlayStation players can't play with their PC mates. I mean, just because one person wanted to duck out shouldn't mean everyone is punished, right? Well, apparently, Trion doesn't agree. Even though PC players can use a controller to play the game, having PS3 and PC on the same world might bring up the dreaded "keyboard vs. controller" argument. I know some of us still want to be friends with consolers, but I guess having one server for Microsoft and one server for everyone else does sound a bit odd.

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I couldn't just sit back and let Justin Olivetti have all the fun, could I? When he published The Perfect Ten: My gaming pet peeves, I swept my fist to the sky and screamed "Sypsterrrr!" Literally a week earlier I had jotted down an idea for a similar column. I mean jotted down because I keep yellow pads around the house for late-night ideas or dog-walk eurekas.

Of course his will probably end up the superior article as he is the better writer (and has a good bit of facial hair), but I'm going to present mine anyway. In fact I'll do one better by listing 11 of my MMO pet peeves because, well, I jotted down 11.

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It's been one week since Defiance came down with a nasty cold, which means there's (theoretically) only one week remaining to jump in on some of the game's contagious festivities. Trion Worlds reminded players today that beginning at 3 p.m. EDT (12 p.m. PDT), the second week of Defiance's The Plague event will be live.

Players of Defiance will find a new mission, new siege events, a new pursuit, and a bunch of emergencies to handle as they wander through the bombed-out ruins of the Bay. There are also data recorders to collect and special rewards for players who complete plague-related challenges.

No specific end date has been offered, but the Defiance television show will address The Plague event on June 17th. If you play Defiance and haven't had a chance to check out The Plague, it's probably best to get in soon, just in case.

Last week, players were warned of a plague that was en route to Defiance. This latest cross-over event between the shooter and the television show involves a mysterious illness that is sweeping San Francisco; players must clear out the infected and find a cure to before it spreads to the town of Defiance in the show. And that race to the cure starts today! Want to see what you are up against? Then check out the plague trailer after the cut.

Also available in today's Defiance update are a new data recorder, eight new emergencies, two new pursuits, and an all-new game mode. A limited-time mission series will also be available from June 10th to 17th.

[Source: Trion Worlds press release]

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We're going to give it to you straight: Defiance has a fever, and the only prescription is... um... well, that's actually a good question. Nobody is sure. The entire focus of the new in-game event is trying to figure out how this fever can be treated. Presumably attempts involving bottles of Sprite and bed rest were inconclusive, and now you're going to have to go shoot some things to try to find the cure.

This mini-event offers characters a new Pursuit, which can be cleared to improve your EGO rating, with players seeking out three data recorders to help assemble a cure to the sickness sweeping the Bay area. Triage centers have been established in both Top Notch and Shandu's Consulate. Avid players should get in on this event while it lasts -- there have been no dates given, but it seems this disease will either burn out or get worse fairly quickly.

[Update: This event starts on June 3 and the corresponding TV episode runs on June 17.]

Defiance is a curious beast. One part television show and one part video game, it is as much an experiment in building a brand as it is an MMO. The game half of Defiance, developed by Trion Worlds, is a third-person action shooter with dynamic events, a persistent open world, and dozens of nasty enemy types. The television half is, well, a television show that takes place in the same universe (and occasionally, with the same characters).

It has been almost two months since Defiance (the game) first hit digital shelves. In that time, it has amassed over one million registered players. The only real question, of course, is how long those players will stick around once the novelty of the "TV/game hybrid" thing wears off. In other words, beyond the concept and the experiment, is Defiance really a game worth playing?

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In spite of its recent layoffs (or maybe because of them), Trion Worlds is plunging ahead with its Defiance promotions. Not only will Syfy be showing a six-episode Defiance-the-show marathon and recap special on Monday (that's May 27th from 4 to 11 p.m.), but Defiance-the-game will be on sale on Steam and available freely from today through Sunday to brand-new players. Players will also nab a second crack at the game's early episodic content, which starred the series' lead characters. Quoth the press release,

Gamers who have yet to explore the open world shooter can try it on PC for free on Steam from May 23rd at 10:00 a.m. PDT [1:00 p.m. EDT] to May 26th at 1:00 p.m. PDT [4:00 p.m. EDT]. [See below for update on times.] Steam is also offering a weekend long sale on Defiance for those whose thirst for alien technology and open world action isn't satisfied by the trial. Both the Standard Edition and Digital Deluxe Edition will be 30% off. In addition, Steam will also be running a sale on "Bits," the in-game currency for Defiance, during which customers will get more "Bits" for their money.

The studio notes that other retailers will feature independent sales but did not specifically say which ones.

[Source: Trion press release]

[Update #1: Readers are reporting that the free weekend on Steam is still not active. The times quoted here are exactly what the press release said, and they have come and gone. We've contacted Trion for clarification and will keep you posted when we actually know more.]
[Update #2: Trion's PR says it's aware of the problem on Steam and is trying to get to the bottom of it now.]
[Update #3: Trion says the new go-live time is now 4 p.m. PDT (7 p.m. EDT) Thursday.]
[Update #4: Happy Friday, peeps. Trion has just posted an official page for the Steam promotion complete with details on how to get signed up as a freebie player for the weekend.]

Were you waiting for Trion to drop Defiance's $59.99 launch price point before taking a look? That day has arrived, as the B2P shooter MMO is now available for $29.99 for some users. The promotion runs through Sunday, May 19th, and it applies to the PC version of the sci-fi title.

Defiance is also available on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3, but as of press time the console versions still feature launch-day pricing. You can learn more about the PC version via our launch week diary series and our livestream channel.

[Thanks fueldbygin!]

[Updated: We have clarified that the promotion is available only for those whose accounts have been flagged for it by Trion. A second sale on Steam should help those who aren't eligible for this sale.]

First of all, I wish my first name were a cool animal. Bear McCreary has that on me, so it seems unfair that he's also a geek icon for his work on several beloved TV series (Battlestar Galactica, Eureka, The Walking Dead). And now the guy is composing the soundtrack of one of this spring's hottest MMOs? Where did I go wrong with my life?

Before I go and change my name to Sugar Glider Olivetti, I guess it's only fair that I put a lid on my hurt ego to give Defiance's score a fair listen. McCreary was tapped to create the music for both the MMO and the TV series, giving the crossover project a unified sound.

"I had to make sure that players could hang out in one area for long stretches of time without getting bored by repetitive music," McCreary wrote on his blog. "As a result, melody plays less of a role throughout many of these cues. The real stars of this music are the texture and colors."

Music has texture and colors? If Bear says it, then it must be. Let's dive in!

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I've been waiting a long time to type "transmedia synergy" in a news post again, and that day is finally here! Yes, Defiance has patched, says FPS General, and the update is known unofficially as the TV tie-in patch. And you what that means, folks. Say it with me.

Traaaaaansmedia syyyyyyyyyynergy!

The content centers on an Irathient named Rynn who crosses over from TV show to MMO according to producer Nathan Richardsson's latest dev letter. Players should seek out lawman Jon Cooper and complete the new Episode mission called The Vagabond to reveal Rynn's motives and "unlock more missions and rewards."

Even with Syfy doing a happy dance over Defiance's premiere numbers, there's been a cloud of doubt hovering over the show's survival. Because, well, this is Syfy. We've never quite forgiven the channel for canceling Farscape in favor of Octosharkasaurus vs. Mecha-Piranhadon. But it looks as though the MMO's sibling has received an extension of life, as Syfy renewed it for a second season.

Syfy President of Original Content Mark Stern had these words of encouragement at the news: "Bringing the rich world of Defiance to life has been an incredible team effort. We couldn't ask for better partners than Kevin Murphy, his amazing cast and crew, and Trion Worlds. We can't wait to see where they take us in the second season."

The press release says that the demographics for the show have remained impressive for the network, that over a million registered players have enjoyed the multi-platform MMO, and that the Trion-Syfy collaboration will continue into the second season.

Now that Defiance is live and has gone through the usual slew of launch-day messes, it's time for the developers to start thinking about the future. That means DLC. The latest development blog explains both what the team is doing to address the game's issues and how DLC will be released in a tiered system, with every major DLC update containing upgrades to the cash shop, a paid DLC component, and a free update for everyone.

The first DLC is already en route, and its $10 paid component allows players to make a Castithan character, access a unique storyline, and gain some special vehicles and outfits. Even if you don't pay for the DLC, you'll have access to new Castithan Blades, and a new open world game mode called Siege, and can earn new Charge Weapons. The game's store, meanwhile, will allow you to tint your Castithan Blades, buy new lockboxes or vehicles, and re-customize your character. There's a little something for everyone playing the game, and that's the ultimate goal.

Defiance, the game half of the TV/MMO entertainment hybrid, has surpassed one million registered user accounts. The game launched a month ago today, and Trion Worlds seems pleased to announce this milestone.

How about some nifty statistics to commemorate the joyous occasion? Players have collectively killed more than 500,000,000 hellbugs so far. They've driven their ATVs for more than 50,000,000 miles and triggered 1,000,000 Arkfalls.

Mazel tov, Ark Hunters.

[Source: Trion Worlds press release]

Adventurers of Telara, you've kind of got a good news/bad news situation taking place here. The bad news is that RIFT is getting invaded, which was already the case. The worse news is that it's now being invaded by the Hellbugs from Defiance, which usually require a great deal of automatic weapons fire to be put down. The good news is that if you can somehow manage to overcome the distinct lack of any firearms and put down the invasion, you can keep a Hellbug around to ride! Wait, that might still be bad news.

Yes, Trion Worlds is kicking off a cross-promotional event with new fire rifts that give players a chance at Defiance-related rewards, most notably the chance to pick up a Hellbug mount. The event is open to all players, even if you're just trying out the game's Lite version. No word on how long the event will last, but it's probably best to assume that it won't be forever -- which is also sort of a good news/bad news situation, unless you wanted to see the game overrun by Hellbugs.