TERA

TERA has hit a few snags of late, including some woes with the whole system of getting pre-order beta access for appropriately pre-ordered customers. Luckily for some fans of the game, it looks like things are moving forward for players hoping to get into beta testing this weekend. An official announcement on the forums earlier today confirmed that GameStop has received valid beta codes and should be distributing said codes to customers via receipt or via phone.

Any players who preordered from Amazon or Best Buy and still haven't received a code are asked to send in a letter to the customer service staff before 9:00 a.m. PST on February 10th. Players are all warned that the game's download is currently clocking in at 17 GB, which means that you'll need plenty of time to get the client installed on your computer. A lengthy download is preferable to ambiguity as to whether or not you'll even get your beta access, though.

Ready for another TERA Europe beta test? You're in luck because Frogster is hosting one later today (at 2:00 p.m. EST, to be exact). The Velika server is being stress-tested, and Frogster is raising the player cap in order to see what happens when large numbers of people attempt to log in at once.

TERA Europe community manager Raven says that "you might experience lag or other issues" and that "this test is not intended to offer you a normal gameplay experience." If you're OK with that -- and you feel like volunteering your time -- head to the official forums to learn more (and set your alarms accordingly).

If you're wondering about TERA's American client, En Masse Entertainment sent word that last night's pre-test dress rehearsal "went swimmingly."

TERA's European client will undergo another round of testing today at 2:00 p.m. Central Europe time. According to a post on the official boards, this is another "special functional test of [TERA's] systems," much like the one that went awry over the weekend.

The testing period will run for approximately four hours, and it is open to everyone who has redeemed a sneak peek or pre-order key for the European client. TERA EU community manager Raven says that this test is actually a test, unlike the marketing beta events we've grown accustomed to in recent years. "Remember this is not a test to enjoy the game, but rather to test our server infrastructure," she writes.

Those of you who've been waiting to pull the trigger on a TERA pre-order because of the uncertainty over retail collector's edition versions of the game will have to wait a little longer. En Masse Entertainment's Evan "Scapes" Berman posted an official statement on the TERA website a short time ago that basically says the company is aware of the problem but has no time-table for fixing it.

In a nutshell, the En Masse website has been advertising physical collector's edition packages for the better part of a week, but when gamers go to the various retail partner websites listed on the page, the CEs are nowhere to be found. Some TERA fans are a bit anxious because pre-ordering guarantees a slot in the fast-approaching closed beta period, and the only alternative thus far is to buy a digital version of the game directly from En Masse.

Upcoming fantasy MMO TERA has been in the news recently for all the wrong reasons, from controversial IP blocking to NCSoft's ongoing lawsuit against developers En Masse Entertainment. Today we add another story to the growing list of problems plaguing TERA as its European sneak peek weekend has collapsed due to unknown technical issues. Though a limited number of preview keys were given out for the event, the game and login servers broke down shortly after the preview got underway.

The event that fans were looking forward to has now been canceled, with no date for a restart yet announced. The official TERA Europe Facebook page confirms that "The cancellation was not due to load problems caused by the large number of potential players," but was unable to shed any light on what caused the fault or when the sneak peek event would resume. With the game's US launch set for May 1st and its European launch shortly after on May 3rd, we can only hope that these problems are ironed out soon.

[Thanks for the tip, Phil!]

Casey Schreiner returns with this week's MMO Report, G4TV's weekly newscast about all things massively multiplayer. First up is a shout-out to the newly free-to-play EverQuest, though Ultima Online, Meridian 59, and The Realm players might dispute Casey's notion that EQ "started it all."

Funcom's new Blue Mountain trailer for The Secret World also gets a mention, as does the Family Research Council's facepalm-inducing reaction to the prospect of same-sex snogging in Star Wars: The Old Republic. TERA's legal troubles are next, and Uncle Casey's mailbag rounds out this week's show. Head past the break to watch it in full.

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It's time for This Week in MMO, kids, and no, you don't need to adjust your televisions monitors. That is not Gary Gannon behind the mic this week, but it is Mike Schaffnit, and he's joined by Mike B. and Jason Winter for the customary MMO news roundtable.

Tops on the agenda is TERA, which went from announcing its launch date to having a potentially launch-affecting lawsuit leveled at it by NCsoft. As the week wore on things got a bit better thanks to pre-order announcements (and the associated closed beta invites), but there's still a bit of a cloud hanging over En Masse's maiden title that our trio discusses at length.

Other newsy bits include The Secret World's new trailer, World of Planes namechange, and the overbearing nanny-state that is South Korea. Check out the full show after the break.

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Yesterday we told you about TERA's North American pre-order program and the associated closed beta dates. Today Frogster has released similar info for the European version of Arborea. Various Euro media outlets will be distributing beta keys over the next couple of days, and lucky fans will get a sneak peek at the game between 3:00 p.m. CET and midnight this Saturday and Sunday.

Euro closed beta tests begin on February 17th, and you can either take your chances by registering on the game's official website, or pre-order and get guaranteed access to all five events. Pre-ordering also gives you head-start access on May 3rd, name reservation privileges, and various special items depending on your retailer of choice.

The retail collector's edition features the game soundtrack, a world map, an art book, and more, and you can learn all about it at TERA's European website. Note that En Masse and Frogster are redirecting traffic based on your IP address, so if you're in America and you click on the links below, you'll be taken to the En Masse site. Before you go, click past the cut and have a look at the spiffy new pre-order trailer.

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TERA news is coming fast and furious lately, and luckily for En Masse, today's blurb is a good one. The game is officially available for pre-order, and as you would expect, there are all kinds of options relating to various gifts and gadgets depending on where (and what version) you purchase. There's also a bit of beta bribery in the form of automatic access to all five of the closed testing phases that begin this month and continue through April.

What about the editions?

Well, you can choose between standard, digital collector's, and physical collector's version, and the latter two come with an in-game mount and a couple of unique necklace items. The physical collector's edition justifies its $79.99 price point with a cloth map, a soundtrack CD, a handbook, a compass, and a letter of marque. En Masse is also offering a couple of exclusives for purchasing directly through its online store.

Yesterday we reported on En Masse Entertainment's policy when it comes to IP blocking and region-locks for its upcoming TERA MMORPG. While the company's decision to keep users from Asia, Africa, Russia, and the Middle East off its American servers isn't particularly unusual, it is curious in the wake of several previous statements to the contrary.

It turns out that En Masse said it wouldn't engage in foreign IP blocking four separate times via its TERA Twitter account before reversing course with its support post over the weekend.

Is the new policy going to prevent you from playing TERA? Tell us what you think!

[Thanks to Stilllove for the tip.]

[Update: En Masse has responded with an official explanation of the changes. We've included the full statement behind the break.]

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Lawsuits notwithstanding, TERA's North American debut is but a few short months away, and En Masse Entertainment probably has plenty of things on its pre-launch to-do list. One of those things is publicizing its policy on region-based IP blocking, and the firm did just that via a recent update to its support website.

The firm will block IP addresses based on region, and Asia, Africa, Russia, and the Middle East are currently included on the company's block list. "While we appreciate that there are players in these regions who would enjoy playing on En Masse servers, it's unfortunate that the vast majority of internet traffic we see from these regions is from cyber-criminals relating to account theft, gold-farming and other hacking behavior," the company says.

En Masse will not initially block proxies, but "a proxy or server host will be blocked if it becomes a popular tool for criminal behavior," according to the release.

[Thanks to Stilllove for the tip!]

[Update: En Masse has responded with an official explanation of the changes. We've included the full statement behind the break.]

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En Masse Entertainment has commented on a pending lawsuit by NCsoft that seeks to prevent the North American launch of TERA. As you would expect, there is virtually no detail on the proceedings, but En Masse publishing vice president Chris Lee does come out swinging, saying that the firm "outright rejects" NCsoft's position and will fight it to the last.

NCsoft has alleged that former employees stole Lineage 3 code and art assets that were used to make TERA, and the firm has already scored a legal victory in Korea that resulted in jail time for some of the ex-staffers.

How all of this affects TERA's U.S. release is unclear, though Lee says it's business as usual for En Masse and its fans. "This situation has no impact on our continuing efforts to realize the vision we have for our game. We are committed to making TERA awesome and delivering the game to you on time on May 1st," he writes.

It's been a long road to completion for En Masse Entertainment and its upcoming TERA MMO. If NCsoft has its way in court, it might be even longer. MMO Culture reports that NCsoft filed a lawsuit earlier this month stating that a group of its employees quit the company and went on to found Bluehole Studio (TERA's original Korean developer). In doing so, the former employees allegedly stole "copious amounts of confidential and proprietary NCsoft information, computer software, hardware, and artwork relating to Lineage 3" and used it to produce TERA.

The employees were convicted of stealing trade secrets by a Korean court in 2009, and the convictions were "mostly upheld by an appellate court." NCsoft filed a Korean civil complaint against Bluehole in 2010 and won damages and an injunction, both of which were subsequently overturned by an appellate court.

Despite the fact that both criminal and civil litigation is still pending, Bluehole launched the Korean version of TERA in early 2011. En Masse (Bluehole's American subsidiary) is scheduled to launch the U.S. version in May of 2012.

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The excitement surrounding TERA ramped up a few levels with the recent announcement of the title's May 1st release date. The action MMO from Korea's Bluehole Studio has been a long time in the making, and En Masse Entertainment has hinted at more details to come over the next couple of months.

Today the company has partnered with IGN to release a new gameplay video focused on the Castanic race. The clip runs for about a minute and a half, and features a smattering of action vignettes starring our favorite horned warriors. Check it out after the break.

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