Earthrise

When Earthrise closed down in early 2012, many MMO fans chalked it up to another failure in a growing heap of MMO ideas. German publisher SilentFuture snatched the IP and assets up a few months later and are happily chugging along with the game's alpha as we speak. But this still left many of us skeptical about the potential success of something that's already failed once.

Earlier today, the devs released two alpha-footage videos showing off the Earthrise: First Impact's improved character creator and a bit of running around in the game world. You can see both videos after the jump below and be sure to head on over to the game's Facebook page to let the devs know what you think of the footage.

[Thanks to David for the tip!]

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SilentFuture wants you to know that you can spend a little money on its Earthrise MMO shooter if you like. The company has updated its website with a founder page, and buying one of the package deals apparently grants you instant beta access.

The original incarnation of Earthrise was developed by Masthead and closed its doors in February of 2012. SilentFuture picked up the pieces and announced that it was retooling the game a few months later. The game's founder FAQ says that it should release "late this year." In the meantime, the "alpha/beta is running mostly 24/7."

So Earthrise is officially a thing. Again. The sci-fi sandbox initially launched early in 2011, and at the time, we thought it needed quite a bit of work.

Two years later, quite a bit of work has apparently happened, as the game's new publisher is gearing up for a reboot and stage one of its alpha test. SilentFuture says that it focused on fundamentals while retooling the game. Specifically, "a new network layer was implemented," and the original Flash-based GUI was replaced with a customizable HTML5 version.

The firm is also "focusing [on] the RPG factor with third-person fast-paced action combat" that is "more cooperative and shooter-like." Finally, the business model is now fully free-to-play and funded by microtransactions that allow for personalization without "affecting the gameplay."

There's no launch date yet, but you can sign up for an alpha/beta tester position at the game's official website.

[Source: SilentFuture press release]

Earthrise might have gone down hard in February of this year, but a last-minute play by German studio SilentFuture kept it from becoming a permanent addition to the MMO graveyard. Ever since learning that this post-apocalyptic sandbox would be resurrected in a new form, we've kept an eye out for a sign that Earthrise would be, er, rising once more.

That day is today. Just in case you were wondering.

SilentFuture is taking test applications for what it's now calling Earthrise: First Impact. The site notes that just applying does not guarantee entry into the alpha or beta tests. The studio announced that the alpha will begin soon, although there is a technical issue preventing players from downloading the client.

[Thanks to Marc for the tip!]

Massively Speaking Episode 201 gets into all of your dirty little secrets -- not to mention Funcom's, as well! We're joined by Jef, who gives us the full scoop on The Secret World now that the NDA's come tumbling down. Will this be another Failcom or possibly a Fabulouscom? Only Jef knows, and he's highly resistant to torture and bribery.

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Remember Earthrise, the post-apocalyptic sci-fi sandbox from Masthead Studios? The fledgling title shut down last February after a tumultuous year that included a rough launch and lukewarm (or worse) reviews.

Masthead originally intended to convert the subscription-based game to a free-to-play business model but opted to pull the plug entirely due to a lack of investor interest. As of today, though, there's a countdown timer on the official Earthrise website (as well as a new background graphic that shows off the game's sci-fi battle action).

Has Masthead found an investor after all, and is Earthrise making a comeback? We'll see in a little over five days, but feel free to speculate in the comments!

[Thanks to IMN for the tip!]

Massively Speaking Episode 186 is the episode that fans will forever decry as the one that jumped the shark. In our defense, the shark was just sitting there in the Massively office parking lot and we were looking for an excuse to try out our new dirt bike anyway.

This week we're joined by Jeremy Stratton, who provides expert analysis on the perks and pitfalls of free-to-play. He was also the first to clear the shark without major blood loss, so bully for him!

Have a comment for the podcasters? Shoot an email to podcast@massively.com. We may just read your email on the air!

Get the podcast:
[iTunes] Subscribe to Massively Speaking directly in iTunes.
[RSS] Add Massively Speaking to your RSS aggregator.
[MP3] Download the MP3 directly.
Listen here on the page:



Read below the cut for the full show notes.

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Bulgarian developer Masthead Studios has announced that it's shutting down the servers for its post-apocalyptic sandbox MMO, Earthrise. Said Atanas Atanasov, Director of Masthead Studios:

"One year after the launch of the game, we have decided to stop the Earthrise servers. Earthrise was released too early and did not meet the expectations of its fans. We did our best to revive the game in 2011, but the time was not enough to keep up with the user requirements. There is a huge interest in high quality open world sandbox MMORPGs, unfortunately the big publishers do not show any interest in the genre. It is unfortunate that low budget companies like ours are trying to bring innovativeness in the already saturated MMO market. I hope that one day an independent studio will be able to release the long anticipated open world sandbox MMO, which everyone is talking about, but no one is making. We tried, but did not succeed. We would like to apologize to those who were disappointed from Earthrise and to thank everyone who supported us during the years."

The studio does mention that the planned free-to-play version for this year may still launch if any investor interest is shown, but there has been no word on this yet.

[Source: Masthead Studios press release]

The struggling sci-fi sandbox Earthrise is no longer interested in competing in the subscription market, and is instead veering toward a free-to-play model in 2012. As of December 1st, all players will be able to experience the game without a monthly charge as Masthead Studios prepares for a F2P version.

Masthead CEO Atanas Atanasov says that the move is an effort to retain customer trust while the developers shore up the game's weaknesses: "We decided to let all our players unlimited gaming experience until we all are satisfied with the experience in our game. At the moment Earthrise features one of the best visuals, content, and gameplay of all sci-fi MMOs on the market. However, it is missing polish and has annoyances that spoil the fun in the game. We are learning from our experience and that is why we will remove monthly charges until we bring the game to a quality state that is satisfactory to us and our players."

Once the title is brought up to par, Masthead will transition it to a true F2P model, although Atanasov assures players that it will not incorporate pay-to-win purchases. Until Earthrise goes F2P, new accounts will be invitation-only as Masthead restricts the number of incoming players. All current subscribers will be able to invite a few of their friends during the transition, however.

[Source: Masthead Studios press release]

Masthead Studios has just informed us of the latest patch for Earthrise. There's good news for former players too, as the company is re-upping all inactive accounts for a free 14-day trial period.

The patch itself includes new vehicles that can be obtained via quest lines, player crafters, or in-game vendors. The mounts are called hoovers, and when coupled with Earthrise's physics model, they allow players to perform drifts, jumps, and various stunts. Speed is a major factor as well, and Masthead says that explorers will appreciate the new vehicles when checking out the various nooks and crannies across the world of Enterra.

Finally, the patch includes "large numbers of strong monsters" designed to provide more of a challenge for PvE players as well as provide greater loot rewards. You can learn more about Earthrise at the game's official website. Also, don't forget to check out the new vehicle concept art in our gallery.


[Source: Masthead press release]

Earthrise is center stage for today's One Shots with a screenshot of a pretty impressive group effort. Earthrise players aren't limited to large structures, though. Knar, the reader character in the foreground, is also sporting some player-created items:

This is the first base built in Earthrise since the Territory War feature was implemented. All structures and walls in the base are player made, as well as the armor and weapon my character has equipped. It has a such a nice view of the mutated wasteland!

Now it's your turn to show off your items. This week's theme is Some Assembly Required -- a little nod to the newest addition to our column lineup. Some Assembly Required covers player-created content, so we want to see the best of what you've created.

Whether you've built a farm or village in Wurm Online, a particularly impressive ride in Fallen Earth, or something even bigger and better in any MMO, we want to see! Grab a screenshot, tell us a bit about what it is, and send it to oneshots@massively.com. We'll be featuring the best of these all week.

Today marks a significant milestone for Earthrise, the indie sci-fi sandbox from Masthead Studios. A rather large patch has made its way to the live servers, and the changes are so numerous that Masthead's press release labels the update as Earthrise's first expansion.

The big kahuna in terms of new content is the Territorial Wars functionality, and the patch notes mention new zones with bases ripe for the capturing as well as the ability for guilds to construct various economic and military structures. Speaking of guilds, leaders can now make use of a new ranking and permission system, and Earthrise now sports both friend and ignore lists in addition to improved client performance.

The patch also brings a laundry list of weapon effect changes, combat re-balancing, and bug fixes, all of which are viewable via the patch notes on the official Earthrise forums. If all that's not enough to whet your appetite, consider that Masthead has reduced the initial client cost by 40% as well as gifted all previous account holders with 10 days of free play.