Oh god my eyes! So bright! Memories of Guild Wars are coming back to me!
But, on the serious side, I agree with Tanek. For the sake of browsing, the white is really too much. I'd like the tan and black just so my eyes don't cry when reading the news.
What you guys are missing is that EBANK hasn't toppled due to someone scamming the bank -- it's toppling because of mismanagement and poor business practices.
The money that was taken by Ridic was only a portion of their finances. If it had just been that, then they probably could have continued with ease. However, a player had defaulted on a 275 billion loan (more than the amount Ridic stole alone) and multiple other players had defaulted to bring that number up to 380 billion. That's just a mismanagement of financial risk -- a far cry from someone coming in and stealing all of the money.
This is no "attack" on the bank or no attempt for the group to fold from someone else's wishes. This is not espionage or anything like that. This is just mismanagement at its finest.
As someone with a B.S. in Psychology, you are correct in saying that research shows intimacy flourishes when contact is involved. However, there is anecdotal evidence that shows that long-distance relationships work with the right mixture of individual personalities and dedication to the relationship.
Research is good, but a good psychologist knows that for every "proven finding" there's another study around the corner that can refute it. The miracle of human adaptivity. It all comes down to taking all of the research on the subject, both positive and negative, and understanding the whole picture, rather than harping on just a section of it.
The good news about AC2's closing is that AC is still around and doing quite well. It's really funny when the original game outlasts the sequel that has more races and a better graphics engine.
But, really, AC was always the better one. Especially with the experimental magic system... one that I wish would be brought back because it was so innovative and made magic so awe-inspiring.
While I can't speak officially or anything, from being in the beta for a while and seeing how everything works, the user has alot of functionality in hiding their information and deleting it off of the servers.
While PMOG tracks your browsing history in the database, you can elect to wipe your own database at any time by hitting "delete browsing history" in your profile options. Then, if GameLayers should have to give up the database to anyone else, like you pointed out, you will be given the heads up so you can delete your browsing history.
Secondly, you can also choose at any point to delete your entire account from the server, if you feel you are not satisified with the game. This wipes everything, including game stats and stuff. It can't be undone, but it's a nice way to torch everything if you're paranoid.
Lastly, you can set your profile to hidden so other players can't even see it. This is sadly messing up the St. Nick weapon, as you can't St. Nick anyone unless you can see their profile, as that's where the link to St. Nick someone is. So a person with a private profile bombs you, you can't lay down a St. Nick to watch yourself. But, hey, it hides all of your information. *shrugs*
So don't worry too much on the privacy thing. GameLayers has it pretty well figured out.
There's an easy answer to this one: balance it. And I actually have proof to back this up.
Lineage II has two uber-powerful items that are one of a kind - Demon Sword Zariche and Blood Swords Akamanah. These swords can drop off of anything in the environment and are beastly, beastly swords. Even as they're held and keep killing, they keep getting more powerful.
Do they break Lineage II's system to pieces? No, not at all. These two swords may be "god's gift to players", especially in terms of PvP, when they can send you right into PvP, skipping over your buffer life (CP), but they have ALOT of drawbacks.
For one, the second you find it the sword instantly flies to your hands. You can't drop it and you can't let it go. It's your weapon, even if you don't want it to be.
Two, the second you find it, the world goes dark, the sky goes black, and the ground itself shakes. A system message notifies everyone logged in that someone has the weapon, and your location becomes marked on the map for all players to note.
Three, you're instantly sent into chaotic mode. Even your own guild-mates and alliance-mates can attack you. If you find the sword during a siege, anyone in the siege can attack you, even your own side. You become everyone's enemy. Because you're chaotic, if you die you have a chance to drop alot of your items and money. So whoever kills you gets nice bonuses.
Four, the sword has a time limit that grows shorter as you keep the bloodshed up. The system notifies the holder how much time they have left with the sword, but the good news is that the sword's stats improve as you keep killing other players. When that time expires, the sword disappears even if you're not logged in.
And five, if you die while holding one of these swords, the sword either drops immediately to the next person or it disappears completely and goes back to lie in wait for the next sucker.
So, these swords may be unique and may give you ultimate power, but they make you a walking target and give you severe penalities if you die. Simply put, these items are now properly balanced and do not detract from the world or the rest of the game. :)
To answer your question, yes. I totally would play a game that would focus away from combat as a main means to progress in the game. As a matter of fact, we've already been privy to a few examples of this style of gameplay.
First game that comes to my mind would be Myst Online: Uru Live, which focused specifically on forming social connections and puzzles. Sadly GameTap pulled the plug on that due to interest issues, but it shows that there's already a large fanbase who would love this style of gameplay.
Secondly, and probably more importantly, the original version of Star Wars Galaxies offered many different job classes that didn't focus specifically on combat. How many times have we heard people missing the old version of SWG? Too many in my opinion, because that style of gameplay had alot going for it. If they had tweaked a few things here and there and put more work into it, the game would have been pretty darn amazing. But now, all we're left with is Knights of the Old Republic Online.
Conclusion: If someone made a game that focused away from combat... I'd certainly want to play it. It's one of the main reasons I'm looking forward to Mabinogi.
Don't panic -- Massively's getting a makeover! [Update #5]
Nov 23rd 2010 11:37PM (Massively)Oh god my eyes! So bright! Memories of Guild Wars are coming back to me!
But, on the serious side, I agree with Tanek. For the sake of browsing, the white is really too much. I'd like the tan and black just so my eyes don't cry when reading the news.
EVE Online player run bank 1.2 trillion ISK in the red, freezes all accounts
Aug 26th 2009 11:10AM (Massively)The money that was taken by Ridic was only a portion of their finances. If it had just been that, then they probably could have continued with ease. However, a player had defaulted on a 275 billion loan (more than the amount Ridic stole alone) and multiple other players had defaulted to bring that number up to 380 billion. That's just a mismanagement of financial risk -- a far cry from someone coming in and stealing all of the money.
This is no "attack" on the bank or no attempt for the group to fold from someone else's wishes. This is not espionage or anything like that. This is just mismanagement at its finest.
The distance of romance: Is online romance possible?
Apr 16th 2009 1:17PM (Massively)Research is good, but a good psychologist knows that for every "proven finding" there's another study around the corner that can refute it. The miracle of human adaptivity. It all comes down to taking all of the research on the subject, both positive and negative, and understanding the whole picture, rather than harping on just a section of it.
Massively's Visual History of MMORPGs, Part I
Apr 1st 2008 12:13AM (Massively)Take-Two contemplating BioShock MMO?
Mar 26th 2008 7:09PM (Massively)The Daily Grind: Will your MMO still be here in 2009?
Mar 13th 2008 1:18PM (Massively)But, really, AC was always the better one. Especially with the experimental magic system... one that I wish would be brought back because it was so innovative and made magic so awe-inspiring.
WAR's must-have expansion races: Skaven
Mar 13th 2008 1:13PM (Massively)That's all I have to say about expansion races. XD
PMOG beta opens up for passively multiplayer fun
Mar 12th 2008 4:58PM (Massively)While PMOG tracks your browsing history in the database, you can elect to wipe your own database at any time by hitting "delete browsing history" in your profile options. Then, if GameLayers should have to give up the database to anyone else, like you pointed out, you will be given the heads up so you can delete your browsing history.
Secondly, you can also choose at any point to delete your entire account from the server, if you feel you are not satisified with the game. This wipes everything, including game stats and stuff. It can't be undone, but it's a nice way to torch everything if you're paranoid.
Lastly, you can set your profile to hidden so other players can't even see it. This is sadly messing up the St. Nick weapon, as you can't St. Nick anyone unless you can see their profile, as that's where the link to St. Nick someone is. So a person with a private profile bombs you, you can't lay down a St. Nick to watch yourself. But, hey, it hides all of your information. *shrugs*
So don't worry too much on the privacy thing. GameLayers has it pretty well figured out.
The Daily Grind: Would truly unique items help or hurt an MMO?
Mar 12th 2008 4:51PM (Massively)Lineage II has two uber-powerful items that are one of a kind - Demon Sword Zariche and Blood Swords Akamanah. These swords can drop off of anything in the environment and are beastly, beastly swords. Even as they're held and keep killing, they keep getting more powerful.
Do they break Lineage II's system to pieces? No, not at all. These two swords may be "god's gift to players", especially in terms of PvP, when they can send you right into PvP, skipping over your buffer life (CP), but they have ALOT of drawbacks.
For one, the second you find it the sword instantly flies to your hands. You can't drop it and you can't let it go. It's your weapon, even if you don't want it to be.
Two, the second you find it, the world goes dark, the sky goes black, and the ground itself shakes. A system message notifies everyone logged in that someone has the weapon, and your location becomes marked on the map for all players to note.
Three, you're instantly sent into chaotic mode. Even your own guild-mates and alliance-mates can attack you. If you find the sword during a siege, anyone in the siege can attack you, even your own side. You become everyone's enemy. Because you're chaotic, if you die you have a chance to drop alot of your items and money. So whoever kills you gets nice bonuses.
Four, the sword has a time limit that grows shorter as you keep the bloodshed up. The system notifies the holder how much time they have left with the sword, but the good news is that the sword's stats improve as you keep killing other players. When that time expires, the sword disappears even if you're not logged in.
And five, if you die while holding one of these swords, the sword either drops immediately to the next person or it disappears completely and goes back to lie in wait for the next sucker.
So, these swords may be unique and may give you ultimate power, but they make you a walking target and give you severe penalities if you die. Simply put, these items are now properly balanced and do not detract from the world or the rest of the game. :)
The Daily Grind: Is combat necessary?
Mar 1st 2008 12:18PM (Massively)First game that comes to my mind would be Myst Online: Uru Live, which focused specifically on forming social connections and puzzles. Sadly GameTap pulled the plug on that due to interest issues, but it shows that there's already a large fanbase who would love this style of gameplay.
Secondly, and probably more importantly, the original version of Star Wars Galaxies offered many different job classes that didn't focus specifically on combat. How many times have we heard people missing the old version of SWG? Too many in my opinion, because that style of gameplay had alot going for it. If they had tweaked a few things here and there and put more work into it, the game would have been pretty darn amazing. But now, all we're left with is Knights of the Old Republic Online.
Conclusion: If someone made a game that focused away from combat... I'd certainly want to play it. It's one of the main reasons I'm looking forward to Mabinogi.