Mobile

Last week I started working with Dave Toulouse, indie developer of Golemizer and Star Corsairs, to build our very own mobile MMO. For the sake of completing the project within the month of February, we kept our game designs simple and easy for anyone to play. The idea was not to create a state-of-the-art video game but instead to build a working framework that illustrated some of the basics of MMO design.

Ironically, my first column on the subject was received rather coolly when I consider my normal column response, but last week's responses taught me a valuable lesson about design: Players often want to talk about what is not possible rather than what is. Dave told me how his players often told him what they wished his games would achieve, without ever considering just how difficult it is to make a game.

Still, there were several great ideas in the comments section. I'm going to use those ideas to break down this week's update.

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Perhaps most interestingly, you can also earn in-game loot by participating in what appears to be some kind of minigame. This game can reward players with crafting items, planar treasure, and artifacts, which are sent directly to their characters' mail-boxes. For the most part, it looks to be a pretty good tool for people who want to stay connected to the game even when they're not at their computers.

For the full details on the app, just click on through the link below. Meanwhile, if you want to skip the fluff and just grab the app, it's available for free on the iTunes store and now on the Android Market.

We've reported previously on Spacetime Studios' new Dark Legends vampire MMO, but today we've got a launch window for you. The game will be available in the first quarter of 2012, and it represents the latest entry in the company's mobile Legends series which includes Pocket Legends and Star Legends.

Dark Legends features new gameplay tweaks, including more action via charge attacks and the ability to drain foes. There's also more of a focus on narrative thanks to something Spacetime calls an "interactive storybook" made from both missions and cutscenes. More info will be released at this year's Game Developer's Conference in early March.

[Source: Spacetime Studios press release]

DUST 514 is somewhat revolutionary in that it's attempting to tie together two separate games (on two separate platforms) that take place in the same fictional universe. CCP is also innovating on the backend according to a new article at Develop.

The upcoming EVE Online MMOFPS tie-in will establish universal PlayStation Network microtransaction rules according to CCP CEO Hilmar Petursson. Petursson told Develop that the ongoing CCP/Sony negotiations will ultimately result in the establishment of price tiers for virtual items as well as the revenue split between Sony and third-party devs.

CCP is also exploring retail options for DUST 514, despite early reports that the title would only be available as a digital download. Finally, Petursson tells Develop that the PlayStation Vita version of DUST will "give people access to more asynchronous parts of the game." While he doesn't commit one way or the other, it's possible that the portable version of the game will connect to both the PlayStation 3 and PC versions via EVE's universal ISK currency.

If you know MMOs, odds are good you know what Nexon is -- one of the biggest free-to-play publishers in South Korea with a stable of several games that have been quite successful in the US as well. You may not know of Unity Technologies, however. That may well change, as Nexon has just signed a license agreement with Unity Technologies to allow the company the rights to utilize the Unity development platform for further projects.

The Unity platform is meant to allow easier deployment of applications to alternative platforms, with the platform being in place for browsers, iOS, Android, and other systems. Nexon's agreement with Unity allows them full rights to the software for any and all subsidiaries, as well as the right to modify and alter the source code as necessary. Which projects Nexon has in the pipeline that might utilize this technology are unknown at this time, but it seems that the company is dedicated to branching out into alternative platforms.

[Source: Nexon/Unity Technologies press release]

Based on the long-running space-themed RPG, Traveller AR is coming soon to the iOS platform. The "AR" there stands for "augmented reality," as the title will use the much-ballyhooed AR feature to allow you to mingle the real and virtual world into one.

Just as in EVE Online, players in Traveller AR will hop in a ship and fly out into the cosmos looking to make their fame and fortune. There will be three races and three classes (Scout, Spacer, Trader) to choose from at the start and well over 40,000 unique solar systems to explore and plunder.

According to the game's trailer, Traveller AR space cadets can choose their own path to glory, including trading, missions, combat, and exploration. It looks like a crossbreed of a board game with a rudimentary space combat simulator, and the trailer gives a good overview of the UI and functionality in store for us.

Hop past the break to see the future... today!

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The rise of smartphone gaming has created a niche somewhere between mobile MMOs and regular MMOs: MMO apps. Games like World of Warcraft, EverQuest II, Fallen Earth, Lord of the Rings Online, the upcoming Guild Wars 2, and now RIFT all have (or will have) mobile apps that players can use to perform a variety of in-game or pseudo-in-game activities, like chat with guildies, relist auctions, reset crafting timers, or play lotteries.

The sticking point is that some of these games aren't giving the app away for free. World of Warcraft, for example, lets everyone download the Mobile Armory app for free but charges a $3 monthly subscription fee for premium services in the Remote app. That's $3 above and beyond the $15 subscription just to access guild chat and play the auction hall from your pocket.

Would you pay for a mobile app for your favorite MMO, and if so, how much? What's your limit?

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!

It's been a pretty exciting time in mobile gaming this week. Not only am I finding more reasons to love minimal specs and portable gaming, but I see even more applications coming down the pike that will make mobile gaming even more exciting and possible. I envision a future in which cloud computing, storage and high-speed internet make devices thinner, lighter, and faster. Of course, this all depends on several factors from developers who might wish to take advantage of the technologies to companies that will provide the pipeline to us all.

In my opinion, it's not a matter of if but when this switch to portable, cloud-based gaming happens. It just makes sense when you look at all of the ways we have switched to a more cloud-based world. I write these articles through the cloud; I do my banking on a website that is hosted somewhere far, far away. If you've ever bought a product online, you have trusted the internet in more ways than one.

So let's take a look at some of the exciting new mobile goodies I discovered this week!

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On the surface, things have been relatively quiet in RIFT. The Fae Yule Event moved along merrily, but there hasn't been much revealed about update 1.7 yet. Fans are so used to the rapid pace of updates that they've made a minigame out of guessing what's coming and when it will arrive.

But if you're wondering whether the team took the holidays off and left behind its work, fear not! Just a few days ago, Trion Worlds revealed a new iPhone app called RIFT Mobile and held its first developer Q&A with the community, during which it provided lots of new tidbits of information for RIFT fans to look forward to. In this week's Enter at Your Own Rift, we'll look at the highlights.

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With little fanfare, Trion Worlds has released an iPhone mobile app this past weekend for RIFT that should make staying in touch with guildies and in-game events far easier for the on-the-go set.

The app is called RIFT Mobile and is currently available for the low, low price of "free." The app allows RIFT players to talk to friends and guildies whether they're in-game or also using the app -- and yes, there are push notifications if you so desire. The app also supports guild and officer chat, guild messages of the day, zone event notifications, and the guild wall.

Probably the most intriguing feature of the RIFT Mobile app is something called "Lootables" -- ways to earn actual in-game loot while using the app. The app is available in English, French and German languages and can be used only by current players of the game. A community rep on the official forums has confirmed that it's "an early release/beta" and that more official info is on the way.

[Thanks to Valotith for the tip!]

What a year, huh? We gamers have seen a lot of changes, but especially in the mobile market. New devices came and went, technologies spread out even further in the world, and MMO gaming established itself on the smallest screens possible. Of course, the mobile market is not as large as the standard MMO market, but it is definitely growing. As more devices appear, more players come to fill up the games.

Our phones are not what they used to be, even five years ago. They are now truly tiny and powerful computing devices that are always connected. A player can literally live all of his digital life on one small device. If we look at the laptop and netbook market, we see even more growth and power. All of these devices need games to play on them, and MMOs fit perfectly into the mobile lifestyle.

Click past the cut and I'll recap many of the best stories from Massively's mobile coverage!

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If you're looking for some new mobile MMO content to fill out your holiday week, Spacetime Studios has added a new campaign to its Star Legends title. The Crusade of Chaos, Part I will send you adventuring to the planet Volaria in search of its missing governor. The update features new legendary gear, new bosses, and a bonus capture-the-flag map. Crusade of Chaos is intended for players between level 35 and 40.

Star Legends' Winter Festival is also ongoing, and it boasts "holiday trees, snowflakes, a robo reindeer, and a new dungeon with some icy cool loot," according to the latest Spacetime email blast. Sound good? Then take a look at the Winter Festival preview video that we've embedded for you after the break.

[Source: Spacetime press release]

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Whenever I write up something about a smartphone MMO, one of the most common complaints I hear is this: "If I wanted to play a game for several hours, I would sit at my gaming desktop." While this is true for many players, it is also true that games like Star Legends and Pocket Legends by Spacetime Studios have met with a lot of success. The developers were surprised to find that players were more than willing to sit for several hours while playing the games on their tiny screens.

Still, there is a lot of truth to the complaints about smartphone MMOs. An MMO is typically something a player wants to get lost in. We commonly refer to it as "immersion," but really we're just talking about being sucked into the ideas and design of a title. If you have found yourself daydreaming about a game while at work, you were "immersed."

I would argue that this type of deep immersion is very possible on the smaller screens of smartphones and tablets. However, in order to achieve it more commonly, developers might have to adjust many of their designs and theories. Click past the cut and we'll discuss it!

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If you or your children are fond of Nickelodeon's Monkey Quest, you may have run into the unavoidable problem that the game requires you to be home. Like many other games, however, Monkey Quest is hopping on the mobile bandwagon with Monkey Quest: Thunderbow. Available now for the iPhone and iPad, the game stars a specific monkey from the world of Ook, the eponymous Thunderbow, as he seeks to dethrone the evil cat king Zotan.

Gameplay is managed in a similar style as the popular Angry Birds games, with the caveat being that Angry Birds doesn't allow you to earn special items and equipment for use in the main Monkey Quest game. Regular updates are planned for the game to help keep players engaged and interested as Thunderbow continues his quest. So if you've got one of the portable devices and your child can't get enough monkey business, it's worth a look.

[Source: Nickelodeon press release]