Real life

So I was working on this week's Free for All last night when a buddy of mine asked me if I had seen a certain older Second Life documentary. I didn't think I had before, but it turns out that my usual record of consuming everything MMO still stands, and it was fun to re-watch the older documentary again for several reasons.

One of the most important things I noticed about the film was just how universal to MMO gaming the documentary was. The issues it brought up are still issues, the problems with virtual worlds are still problems, and the fact that any technology older than six months looks laughable on film is still true. It was also encouraging to see how well Second Life has aged since 2007, but it's slightly depressing to see just how horrible MMO documentaries can be at showing the entire picture.

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If you've been playing in the closed beta of Jagged Alliance Online thus far, the "Online" portion of that name has probably seemed to be something of a misnomer. Beta testers have been exploring the game mechanics from the point of set missions against AI opponents, but that's all about to change. Cliffhanger Productions and gamigo have just unveiled the game's new multiplayers modes, with three different modes and six different maps for players to take up arms against one another.

The three modes consist of Deathmatch (self-explanatory), Bounty Hunter (a race to fight to a target and be the first to kill said target), and Search and Destroy (destroy three targets while protecting your own). Players will be matched via a matchmaker system based upon levels and position in the overall rankings, preventing unfair matches (in theory) and giving good players more substantive rewards for success. If you've got a need for some online turn-based strategy, it might be well worth keeping an eye on these features at they develop.

[Source: gamigo press release]

Do you have questions about the Illuminati? Of course you do -- that's sort of their whole method of operation. But when it comes to The Secret World, some of those questions got answered via yesterday's community question-and-answer session on Facebook. While you'll have to Like the page in order to view all of the answers, you're rewarded for doing so with a breadth of facts about the secretive power-mongers and hoarders of secrets.

Among the first questions was the simple one of how the Illuminati aren't in control of everything in the game world if their operatives have infiltrated the highest level of government; as it happens, with the world exploding and lighting up with the supernatural, the Illuminati are too concerned with working overtime to keep things under wraps to try to take total control. The answers also reinforce the idea that the Illuminati crave power and competence above all, up to the organization's willingness to discard lesser members for valuable information. You can take a peek at the full set of answer on Facebook, but keep in mind that you're going to need to Like the page first.

Two business models entered Gods & Heroes' colosseum, but only one walked out alive. The crowds cheered their approval, and for a moment their bloodlust was sated. Subscriptions in the game would be no more.

Today, Heatwave Interactive announced that the subscription model wasn't working out for the underperforming Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising (perhaps it did not sell enough fancy helmets) and as of today subs are a thing of the past. Instead, players can enjoy the game without a fee while the team works on creating a true free-to-play plan.

In addition to making gameplay completely free, Heatwave has cleaved the price of the client in twain, reducing the cost to $9.99 for those who have yet to get it. If you've previously purchased the game, whether you were currently subbed to it or not, your account is now flagged for unlimited free play.

Unified engines for MMOs have long been a rarity, simply due to the time needed to develop a game and the number of different companies developing separate products. The Secret World manages to buck this trend, using the same core Dreamworld Engine as Funcom's Age of Conan. A recent interview with lead programmer Øystein Eftevaag discusses the way that the engine interacts with the newer game, how the unified engine helps both games, and what special features the game is using in a technical sense.

Eftevaag explains that the Dreamworld Engine benefits chiefly from cross-pollination; improvements made in terms of optimization for Age of Conan can be imported to the engine on The Secret World with minimal extra legwork. The engine also uses a series of dynamic equations to determine what player characters should be able to see, subsequently leaving obscured areas blank to save on processor cycles. It's an interesting look under the hood at the technical side of Funcom's upcoming conspiracy and horror title, even if this particular dream world is tilted toward a nightmare.

Calling all cars -- all three million of them, even. Yes, that's how many players APB: Reloaded now claims, which allows the game to crack into the top ten games being played on Steam and places it second on the list of free games. That's definitely a big impression, one that couples nicely with the game's recent release of a boxed retail copy with several bonus items for first-time or existing players.

According to Rahul Sandil, SVP of marketing and business development for GamersFirst, "[GamersFirst] recognized the potential for APB: Reloaded to be a true breakout hit in the Free2Play category all through beta testing." The game's new Fight Club gameplay mode hasn't hurt the game's popularity either, which is all pretty good for a game that originally set a record for its quick shutdown. The future of APB: Reloaded remains to be seen, but the present is certainly looking bright.

[Source: GamersFirst press release]

Wargaming.net has announced the official release of its seventh major update for World of Tanks. Crazily enough, it's called the 7.0 update, and it features a bundle of new content designed to make little tanker hearts go pitter-patter.

First up are two new game maps, the Swamp and the Fjords, and there's also a bit of tank customization in the offing thanks to new camouflage and various horn effects. Tank company levels are also being tweaked, as are the game's visual effects (including smoke, shots, and explosions that have been tuned to allow for lower system requirements).

If you've ever wanted to relive your multiplayer battles (and you don't have a copy of Fraps handy), you can now save and view replays at will. Finally, new technology will allow for users "to play on any cluster of the server group with same unified account." Head to the official site for more, and don't forget to fire up your patchers to start the update!

[Source: Wargaming.net press release]

Are you excited about the release of the APB: Reloaded retail box? Ambivalent about the release but fond of screenshots? Either way, there's a whole lot of new screenshots from the game to coincide with said release, showing off two of the new maps for the game's new Fight Club battle mode and new SWAT gear for Enforcer players who like to take down crime in style. And heavy armor, which seems practical.

There's also a new revelation about the retail pack itself, as it seems that GamersFirst has sweetened the pot slightly. In addition to all of the bonuses listed in our post on the release yesterday, GamersFirst has confirmed that there are extra weapons in the package for those who purchase the pack within the first 30 days. So if you're curious about what you could do on the streets and have the $30 to check it out, now might be the time to do so.

Would you buy a box set for a free-to-play game? It might seem like an odd question, but GamersFirst is hoping that the answer to that question is "yes" once you see what's being offered with the APB: Reloaded boxed edition. With a suggested retail price of $29.99, the box is set to go on sale starting tomorrow, December 9th, and will be sold at Best Buy, Target, GameStop, and Walmart.

And what do you get when you buy the game? Aside from an installation disc and manual, you get 30 days free of Premium account status and 500 G1 credits for use in the game's microtransaction store. You also get a faction-specific sports car and a special secondary weapon to help ensure that you're never without a holdout in a protracted firefight. Time will tell if this addition to the game's marketing proves profitable for the game under its current business model.

[Source: GamersFirst press release]

[Update: We've since been told that the retail launch of APB: Reloaded has been delayed. The team hopes to have an updated date by Friday, December 16th. We'll update you when we know more!]

Do you feel a need to get behind the wheel of a car and race through the city streets? Would you prefer to do so without being arrested or the risk of crashing into a building at 100 MPH? Need for Speed World fulfills that requirement, and as of today, Aeria Games is bringing the game to a worldwide audience. It's the second game that the publisher has handled from Electronic Arts following the work done on Battlefield Heroes earlier this year.

Like many other releases from Aeria Games, Need for Speed World's global release comes with several different localizations. The client is available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Polish, letting players of several different nationalities face off against one another on the mean streets of several fictional cities. And of course, the core racing mechanics of the game have remained intact so that players can enjoy the whole free-to-play racing game in whatever tongue is most comfortable.

I'm not the biggest tank fan in the world. Don't get me wrong; I'm a red-blooded American male who loves engines, horsepower, and most types of heavy machinery, but for whatever reason, I've never looked at a tank and come away particularly aroused.

Imagine the surprise, then, when I loaded up World of Tanks a couple of weeks ago and found myself having a jolly old time. Wargaming.net's free-to-play action title is a deceptively simple shooter with a lot of depth under the hood, and despite what some players refer to as pay-to-win shenanigans, I highly recommend it.

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If you've played a first-person shooter, watched a movie, or even turned on the History channel over the past decade, you're probably very familiar with the iconic image of the United States military forces storming the beaches of Normandy. It's an appropriate image to keep in your head today, as Battleground Europe (also known as World War II Online) has introduced the American forces to the game's mixture. The latest patch, 1.34, adds a variety of American vehicles and troops for players to access in the war between the Axis forces and the Allies.

Of course, the addition of the American forces isn't the only feature of the new patch. Several long-standing bugs have also been addressed, as well as several balance changes aimed at specific troop types. It should be a welcome patch for fans of the game, especially since it will finally be possible to take up the role of another nation in the fight.

Remember CrimeCraft? We do, and the tragically titled actioner is still alive and kicking (or shooting, perhaps).

We bring this up because Vogster is readying its second major expansion, GangWars, which is scheduled to launch on December 5th. The update adds more of a traditional MMO feel to what is otherwise a lobby-based game. New territory wars mechanics are the culprit, and they allow gangs to own and control sections of the game's persistent Sunrise City environment.

Curiously, Vogster is also implementing a new quickplay system which offers access to CrimeCraft's "core gameplay features through a simplified interface that lets you shortcut RPG gameplay and get right to the action." CrimeCraft boasts 20 unique maps and 11 gameplay modes. Learn more about the game, and sign up for free, at the official website. Before you go, though, check out the territory wars trailer after the break.

[Source: Vogster press release]

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It may be Veteran's Day here in the States, but GamersFirst is exhorting shooter fans to "be all you can't be" courtesy of a new APB: Reloaded trailer that mixes live action cinematography with in-game mayhem.

The clip is a three-and-a-half-minute exercise in gangsta wish fulfillment, and it features enough short skirts, big guns, and urban thug chic to fill several summers' worth of action films. The video release coincides with APB: Reloaded's new Facebook campaign, which is designed to spread the word about the free-to-play title and reward customers who get their friends to join in the fun. Check out the clip after the break, and head to the official website for more details.

[Source: GamersFirst press release]

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When we're young, we're usually told that we can be anything we want when we grow up. After the ensuing 20-minute discussion in which our parents explain that we cannot grow up to be a caterpillar, a race car, or James Bond, we quickly come to understand that our options are a bit more limited than we were told. And that's something that the newest trailer for APB: Reloaded understands, as evidenced in the first few moments with its declaration that the real world sucks.

The trailer's goal is to highlight some of the gameplay and customization possible within the engine, encouraging players to be more than is possible within the real world. (Well, to be fair, it's very possible to have shootouts with the police in the real world, but it's not something you can log off from.) Click on past the break to see the whole trailer in all its glory.

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