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The Summoner's Guidebook: Supports are ruling League of Legends

Patrick Mackey — Thu, 23 Jan 2014 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Classes, PvP, Opinion, Free-to-Play, Guides, MOBA, League of Legends, The Summoner's Guidebook

I think Season 4 of League of Legends has been dominated by support play. Some of this is because there have been a number of really inspiring star support players at the pro level, and their brilliance is shining down a bit on us plebians. Although I think that the Season 4 jungle is still really messed up, the support role has really solidified in a good way.

What do I mean by "good"? Supports still get less gold than other roles and don't generally rock huge K/D ratios. They're still the team's ward machines, as we talked a bit about last week. However, the support's overall game impact has increased dramatically. Supports get more gold than before; they are making plays, initiating fights, and making way more of an impact in those fights than they ever were before. There's no more need for a support who is an ult and ward bot; you can now tank, deal damage, or whatever mix of support you want.

Continue reading The Summoner's Guidebook: Supports are ruling League of Legends

The Summoner's Guidebook: Supports are ruling League of Legends originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 23 Jan 2014 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Captain's Log: Season Four launch recap

Brandon Felczer — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Expansions, Opinion, Star Trek Online, Captain's Log

Captain's Log, Stardate 65037.1...

Hello, computer (and players)! As I mentioned in last week's Captain's Log entry, Season Four: Crossfire is now alive and kicking on Star Trek Online's Holodeck server. Based on past experiences with major content and code pushes, I feel that this was the smoothest to date with virtually no server issues or overload. While there have been a few snags along the way with some bugs making it past Cryptic's "white-glove" QA process, the update was a success and players are having more fun than ever before.

As discussed in one of my past log entries, Season Four was to bring many updates to the game, including the acclaimed ground combat 2.0 system, which would make it an even better Trek experience -- in all honestly, Cryptic delivered. STO is more active than ever and the fleet that I am in is having multiple newbies sign up each day; it is an exciting time to be a player and your weekly columnist. What I would like to do this week is revisit what I let you know was coming to the game and let you know some of my thoughts on them now that I have been experiencing them for myself.

Ensign, warp 12! Oh yeah, we are taking this to a whole new level...

Continue reading Captain's Log: Season Four launch recap

Captain's Log: Season Four launch recap originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 14 Jul 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Newest Ask Cryptic for Star Trek Online available

Eliot Lefebvre — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, Patches, News Items, Star Trek Online

The upcoming launch of Season 4 brings with it a host of changes for Star Trek Online, but as always seems to be the case, players have more features still that they'd like to see in place. The newest Ask Cryptic has just recently been posted, and it answers the many requests for new features that players have clamored for. Better yet, many of those changes are incoming, albeit not quite as soon as players would hope.

Improvements to melee combat, for example, are not in Season 4 right out of the gate. However, the revisions to ground combat make for a perfect time to start implementing more and better melee weapons, with the development team starting in on the process of addressing the core melee issues. Similarly, new hairstyles are being tested with costumes, with the team still working on new arrangements that are visually pleasing for players -- but the new styles are in the works. Star Trek Online players are encouraged to look at the full post and start looking forward to both Season 4 and what's coming after. (And checking out this week's Captain's Log on the topic might not be remiss, either.)

Newest Ask Cryptic for Star Trek Online available originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 05 Jul 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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June's engineering report available for Star Trek Online

Eliot Lefebvre — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, Patches, News Items, Star Trek Online

Season 4 is approaching fast for Star Trek Online, with the newest patch's content available on the public test server for everyone to experiment with. But it's coming after a bit of a long dry spell for new content updates, something that the game's latest engineering report is seeking to assuage. While the patch isn't quite live, the report details just how massive the entire undertaking of Season 4 became and why the patch has been so long in coming.

Duty Officer Rosters are one of the features that's been in development for quite some time, with most of the code in place but the system itself not currently active on the test server. The newest report also goes into details about future improvements, including expansions to the KDF areas of the game and more detailed plans for the Duty Officer system down the road. Star Trek Online players should take a look at the full report to get a sense of what's on the plate for the game in the immediate and more distant future.

June's engineering report available for Star Trek Online originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 18 Jun 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Captain's Log: The Gospel of Tribble

Brandon Felczer — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Patches, Opinion, Star Trek Online, Captain's Log, Guides

Captain's Log, Stardate 64959.3...

Hello, compu... what the... shields up, red alert! Brace for impact! A giant Tribble is on the loose, and its name is Season Four. That's right -- the Star Trek Online public test server, Tribble, sometimes nicknamed the Trouble with Tribble, has finally reopened with the major update that we have all been waiting for. This build was first pushed last Friday but was taken down moments later due to a "major database error." The show-stopping kinks have been worked out now, so it is time to get to testing out all of the new content I have been writing about for the past couple of months.

If you have not seen the release notes for this build, there are dozens of updates that will be altering the way you have come to play the game. Not sure what to test? That is what I am here for. The goal of this week's Captain's Log is to provide you a checklist on what to hit up once you patch your game and get on your test toon. Also, if you have never installed the test server, now is a great time -- Cryptic will soon be announcing a Tribble Test Weekend, during which you can log in and receive an exclusive item on the live server just for helping test.

Ensign, warp 10! Let's share some text from the word of Tribble...

Continue reading Captain's Log: The Gospel of Tribble

Captain's Log: The Gospel of Tribble originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 16 Jun 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Newest Engineering Report previews Season 4 of Star Trek Online

Eliot Lefebvre — Mon, 16 May 2011 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, Patches, News Items, Star Trek Online

It's always exciting to be on the cusp of a new season, especially if you're a Star Trek Online fan. The latest Engineering Report has just gone live, bringing with it a promise that Season 4 will be up on the test server very soon, with a projected release in early July. That means a full revamp to ground combat, changing the game from the previous rather dull experience into a much more action-oriented affair. But the mechanics of fighting aren't the only thing that's changing -- enemies on the ground are also being overhauled, with HP scaling in a more tuned fashion.

There are also changes to Qo'nos for Klingon players, making the world feel more vibrant for starting characters. The update also sports the Duty Officer Roster for all captains to experience and a variety of other quality of life improvements. And as always, the report looks beyond the immediate future and into the distant future, taking aim at everything from changes to the outfit system to improved system maps for important regions of space. Star Trek Online players should take a look at the full report and check back in later this week as Captain's Log examines the changes in depth.

Newest Engineering Report previews Season 4 of Star Trek Online originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 16 May 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Another month, another round of answers for Star Trek Online

Eliot Lefebvre — Fri, 06 May 2011 22:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, News Items, Star Trek Online

About once a month, Star Trek Online has producer Dan Stahl sit down and answer the newest round of player questions regarding the game's future additions. It's May, of course, which means that it's time for the newest Ask Cryptic, covering the recent additions to the game's microtransaction store as well as plans for Season 4 and beyond. And as always, while there are more features being asked about than are planned for the next major update, there are very few elements not planned for eventual inclusion.

Further ship customization is discussed, with the implementation of Duty Officers in Season 4 promised to help add more differentiation between individual ships. There's also mention of the debate about bringing lower-tier ships up to par for use in endgame activities, which is currently not on the table but is still under heavy debate in both development and on the forums. Players of Star Trek Online are encouraged to check out the latest round of answers for more info.

Another month, another round of answers for Star Trek Online originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 06 May 2011 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Star Trek Online posts the latest Engineering Report

Eliot Lefebvre — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 22:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, Patches, News Items, Star Trek Online

Season 4 for Star Trek Online is still without an ETA, but it's getting closer with each passing day. As the latest Engineering Report states, it's being worked on by the development team with vigor along with several other projects for the game. And while the next major patch obviously contains the lion's share of big content additions, the recent launch of the Foundry has certainly helped matters. But there's more to be done, not just for player-generated content but for the game as a whole, and as in months past the report seeks to outline what's near release, being worked on, or being discussed.

Playable fighter craft are on the table for testing, along with more Gorn customization options and visitable planets within the Sol system. Further on down the line, the report lists plans for another ground combat revision including an over-the-shoulder mode as well as persistent zones for player tutorials. Star Trek Online players should take a gander at the full rundown of features in development, enough content and system adjustments to make anyone look forward to the future.

Star Trek Online posts the latest Engineering Report originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 15 Apr 2011 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Star Trek Online unveils plans for future improvements

Eliot Lefebvre — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, Previews, News Items, Star Trek Online

The problem of dealing with a universe as expansive as the one in Star Trek Online is the simple reality of fitting more than 30 years of fiction into a single game. Still, as the latest Ask Cryptic demonstrates, the development team is trying to fit everything possible into the game, from a wider variety of pets to the whale probe from Star Trek IV. The latest batch of player-generated questions runs the gamut as usual, discussing everything from non-featured episode content to the possibility of expanded PvP arenas, and as usual Dan Stahl is on hand to give players some idea of what's coming.

Among the more interesting news is how close the Foundry system is to implementation, with the current plan to release it not too long after the current featured series wraps up next week. Revised ship interiors are also potentially on the to-do list, as well as the promise of "storing" unneeded officers on a fleet-run starbase. Star Trek Online players have a number of things to look forward to with the latest round of questions, even if the answers are admittedly vague about a precise timetable.

Star Trek Online unveils plans for future improvements originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fourth season begins for 2 Out Rally baseball MMO

Jef Reahard — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Real-Life, Sports, News Items, Free-to-Play

Despite the scorn that sports MMOs receive in some quarters, there are a few of them out there. One of those rare beasts is 2 Out Rally, a free-to-play baseball sim that gives players the opportunity to micro-manage a team of major leaguers as both a top-ranked talent scout and a team owner. Gameplay involves creating, training, and developing ballplayers, as well as negotiating with other 2 Out Rally gamers to fill out your roster.

2 Out Rally's fourth season begins Friday, February 18th, and brings with it an increase in team ownership opportunities as well as higher levels of challenge. Season four will continue with a tradition established in season three by allowing players to write for The Scoop, the league's fictional newspaper that adds a layer of immersion and atmosphere to the game.

You can learn more about the game, and start planning your pursuit of the pennant, at the 2 Out Rally website.

Fourth season begins for 2 Out Rally baseball MMO originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Feb 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dan Stahl talks Star Trek Online's Season 4 and beyond

Eliot Lefebvre — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Culture, Events (In-Game), Game Mechanics, Interviews, News Items, Star Trek Online

Since taking over last year, Dan Stahl has made a point of being very accessible to players when it comes to the future of Star Trek Online and the team's overall plans. The United Federation of Planets, a fan forum celebrating the variety of games set within the universe, has conducted an interview with Stahl in the most recent issue of its magazine. As always, there's a large number of different projects behind the scenes as the team turns its focus toward Season 4 and beyond.

The overarching plan for the game's second year seems to be to improve and reinforce the game's elements to date, with Stahl mentioning that he hopes to put the Romulan faction into the game before the year is out. There are plans for another increase in level cap, possibly including Admiral-rank uniform variants as seen on the shows. And with Season 4 on its way, the team is hard at work trying to step up the storyline elements about the mysterious agenda of the Iconians, as well as the war between the KDF and Starfleet. The full interview begins on page 10 and should prove interesting to any Star Trek Online fan.

Dan Stahl talks Star Trek Online's Season 4 and beyond originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 12 Feb 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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STO's Dan Stahl fields 30 questions about the Enterprise, Tholians and more

Justin Olivetti — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 11:30:00 EST

Filed under: Betas, Sci-Fi, Patches, Star Trek Online, Community Q&A

As Star Trek Online grows ever-closer to its one-year anniversary in February 2011, fans of Cryptic's space saga have burning questions about the future of the game. In swoops Executive Producer Dan Stahl to keep the flames under control with a whopping 30 answers in the latest STO Q&A session.

As usual, there is no overriding theme to these questions, which range from whether we'll be seeing the 2009 Star Trek movie's Enterprise in the game (only if Paramount gives permission), whether Cryptic is working on more voice-overs for missions (yes), and when we'll be seeing the Tholians (probably not until after Season 4 releases). Stahl emphasizes that the STO team's prime directive is, simply, "More Like Trek," and the devs are working hard to infuse more of a Star Trek feel into every aspect of the game.

Meanwhile, the Foundry -- the player-created mission system -- briefly went into beta on the Tribble test server yesterday, but was quickly taken down due to issues with the infrastructure. Stahl has great hopes for it, however: "In all -- the Foundry will open up the ability for the community to create some great (and let's be honest -- not so great) missions that you'll be able to play just like any other mission in the game."

STO's Dan Stahl fields 30 questions about the Enterprise, Tholians and more originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 03 Dec 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cryptic answers the 29 most pressing STO questions

Justin Olivetti — Sat, 02 Oct 2010 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Interviews, Star Trek Online, Community Q&A

Star Trek Online's monthly Ask Cryptic features are always something for fans to look forward to reading, but this month even more so as executive producer Dan Stahl goes well beyond the normal handful of queries to accumulate 29 questions and answers to some of the hottest topics among the community.

Included in this Q&A session is a sneak peek at the work-in-progress Tholian race (above left), the revelation that Season 4 will primarily focus on retooling repeatable end game content, fleet starbases, passive bridge officer abilities, Season 3 item sets, Memory Alpha improvements, sector space expansion and much, much more. Stahl even explains why he picks the questions he does to answer -- basically, he likes to get into topics that aren't repeatedly touched upon in interviews.

Those hoping for a full-fledged STO expansion shouldn't start holding their breath, however: "It is unclear if we will ever produce a paid expansion as the market is leaning away from expansions and more towards smaller microtransactions. However, if we ever did release a paid expansion, it would be a significant update and add some new functionality to the game that would be deemed worth the price of the release."

Cryptic answers the 29 most pressing STO questions originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 02 Oct 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Global MU Online begins Season 4 beta testing with Webzen

Shawn Schuster — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, MU Online, MMO Industry, New Titles, Free-to-Play

Webzen has announced today that it will directly publish the fourth season of MU Online's global version, which already boasts 56 million registered users to date. "You can expect a better service since the company that has been developing the game for many years is now operating the global server," says ChangKeun Kim, CEO of Webzen Inc. "MU Online has a world-wide user base and we are planning on providing a stable global service for them. Our new global game portal webzen.com is going to be a communication link for our customers throughout the world."

Global MU Online had originally launched its servers on October 13, 2003, but in 2005, the global publishing rights were transferred from K2 Network following a signed license agreement. The Season 4 beta testing will run from April 28th through April 30th, and registered users will have the opportunity to use master level characters to try out the new content. For more information on this beta, head over to the Global MU Online website.

Global MU Online begins Season 4 beta testing with Webzen originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 20 Apr 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Season 3 in World of Warcraft grinds to a halt

Matt Warner — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:30:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Events (In-Game), PvP, News Items

Season 4 begins Tuesday, June 24th, leaving World of Warcraft players one last day before the ultimate PvP time-sink resets. What comes with it is a brand new ruleset that makes the grind for gear a lot more competitive and inaccessible to the battleground bots because many of the new battleground items that are purchasable with honor will require an Arena rating also.

As for the soon to be obsolete Season 1 gear, Gladiator's items will be moved to Sun Reach's Harbor on the Isle of Quel'Danas and will no longer be purchasable with honor but with Tier 4 tokens instead, ironically these are acquired by PvE raiding. The idea was recently introduced in the 2.4 patch and you can also turn in Tier 5 tokens for Season 2 gear. Speaking of Season 2, the Merciless-Gladiator's gear will be the new clearance epics purchasable with honor points and have no arena or personal rating requirement.

Continue reading Season 3 in World of Warcraft grinds to a halt

Season 3 in World of Warcraft grinds to a halt originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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World of Warcraft's Arena season four begins June 24th

Michael Zenke — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 17:30:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Events (In-Game), PvP

WoW Insider is carrying word, straight from the official World of Warcraft Forums, that PvP Arena Season Four is slated to begin on June 24th. Eyonix dropped in to pass on the word, noting that all Arena teams and individual players will have their ratings reset when the new season goes live. Arena points will carry over, of course, and if you've been saving up your hard-earned bennies you'll be able to grab a double handful of loot. Just as with last season, all the gear is shuffling downwards. Season 2 gear will now be available for honor points, and Season 3 gear will see costs reduced across the board. Season 1 gear is actually being phased out completely, so if you want to hold onto any distinctive looks you've got to get it while it lasts.

As always, the end of this World of Warcraft Arena Season will see the top teams earning their places in Battlegroup history. Titles, Armored Nether Drakes, and the adulation of the throngs all await the winners some thirteen days from now.

Looking for more Season 4 info? See the stats on Season 4 gear, and don't forget WoW Insider's weekly guide to improving your Arena game, Blood Sport.

World of Warcraft's Arena season four begins June 24th originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 11 Jun 2008 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WoW's new arena season delayed to hold off AoC?

Chris Chester — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 22:00:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Age of Conan, Business Models, MMO Industry, Patches, PvP

Timing the release of popular content to coincide with the release of competitors' products is a time-honored practice in the game industry. Hell, it's a time-honored practice in ANY industry. You steal some of their thunder in terms of headlines, community buzz, and most importantly, player dollars. In a recent blog post, Relmstein questions Blizzard's logic in delaying the start of World of Warcraft's PvP Season 4 for at least another patch. He speculates their they're doing this to coincide the start of Season 4 with the release of Age of Conan. The logic goes, because Age of Conan is such a PvP focused game, they have to do their best to retain the PvP players they already have with more content aimed in their direction.

As Relmstein points out however, this might be something of a folly on Blizzard's part. It makes it seem like they're just stringing out content to subsist players until the expansion. Such a narrow band of new content is hardly going to stop players from trying new games, especially ones as high-profile as Age of Conan (or even WAR, slightly further down the road). Of course, this is all assuming that we're wise to Blizzard's motives. As one astute commenter pointed out, if Season 4 follows the same scheduling as the last two, it would end in April or May anyway. So who really knows!

WoW's new arena season delayed to hold off AoC? originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 06 Mar 2008 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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