Massively http://massively.joystiq.com Massively http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://massively.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Massively http://massively.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[WildStar to support and encourage addons]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/05/03/wildstar-to-support-and-encourage-addons/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/05/03/wildstar-to-support-and-encourage-addons/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/05/03/wildstar-to-support-and-encourage-addons/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

WildStar
While some fledgling MMOs may act coy or hesitant about including user-created addons for their game, WildStar is going the opposite route and embracing them full-on. Lead Client Engineer Jon Wiesman penned a dev blog explaining why Carbine is enthusiastically supporting addons for the game from launch.

Wiesman previously worked at EverQuest's Verant and is currently the driving force behind WildStar's UI engine. He reports that not only will players be able to change the look and layout of the UI from the get-go, but WildStar will support Lua to allow for addons and mods.

He assures potential players that creating such addons won't be a frustrating experience devoid of proper instruction and support: "If you can program at all, I promise you'll be able to make an addon for our game. Our commitment is to make sure the process is documented, clear, and accessible. Promise."

[Thanks to Bill for the tip!]

MassivelyWildStar to support and encourage addons originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 03 May 2012 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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When I first started playing Runes of Magic and other MMOs, I never used addons because they broke my perceived immersion. Fast forward to today and I have well over a dozen different addons to enhance my user interface and interaction with Taborea. There are quite a few addons that I'd now highly recommend. The collection has both evolved and stayed basically the same over the months. The collection does grow, but a lot of the new addons that come along don't see any love once uploaded. Some of the great classics -- like Advanced AuctionHouse -- are constantly being updated and are very useful. Many others that come along are variations on older popular addons or they aren't popular because they are small fluff addons. Basically, there's a core of great addons that are still being updated, but good new addons are coming at a slow pace.

One new addon in particular is the Do-It-Yourself Combat Engine. DIYCE is a robust combat engine that can allow players to pre-script entire combat encounters with the push of a button. There are some ethical questions about the ability to easily program what some would call a cheat code. Is this going too far and skirting the boundaries of hacking? Let's take a closer look at the pros and cons for this program.

Continue reading Lost Pages of Taborea: Do-It-Yourself Combat Engine

MassivelyLost Pages of Taborea: Do-It-Yourself Combat Engine originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Jan 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>addonaddonscombat-enginediycedo-it-yourself-combat-enginefeaturedfrogsterfrogster-americafrogster-interactivejeremy-strattonlost-pages-of-taborealuamacrosromrunes-of-magicrunewakerrunewaker-entertainmentscriptinguberflex-autocombat-systemMon, 10 Jan 2011 19:00:00 EST<![CDATA[The Road to Mordor: Pippin's top five plugins]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/09/17/the-road-to-mordor-pippins-top-five-plugins/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/09/17/the-road-to-mordor-pippins-top-five-plugins/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/09/17/the-road-to-mordor-pippins-top-five-plugins/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

This past week in LotRO's been a bit like riding river rapids: There's been a lot of rapid ups-and-downs, violent lurches to avoid dangerous objects, and a whole lot of noise that's drowning out the calmer waters ahead. For every piece of good news and positive word-of-mouth, there's been a lot of unfortunate bumps, such as server queues, dynamic layers, mouthy trolls and Codemaster's launch delay. However, I believe it's all going to settle down in a couple more weeks, and LotRO will emerge the better for it.

So if this is your first week in Lord of the Rings Online, welcome! Find a great kinship, take time to smell the flowers, and hunt some orc for me.

Today I'd like to take a look at one of the unsung heroes of the recent content patch -- the ability to create and use plugins (also called mods and addons) to enhance your user interface. While the system is still in beta and has a rough-around-the-edges feel to it, it's already shown great potential, particularly though the creativity that mod designers are pouring into it. While there are only a small number of plugins available as of right now and Turbine has yet to expand the scope of these Lua scripts beyond constrained limits, it's not too early to beef up your UI with these spiffy additions. Read on, free peoples of Middle-internet!

Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Pippin's top five plugins

MassivelyThe Road to Mordor: Pippin's top five plugins originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 17 Sep 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>addonaddonsbevy-o-barsbuffbuff-barscodemastersdebuffdebuffalo-billdynamic-layersemoemotesf2pfeaturedforumsfree-to-playhotbarhudlord-of-the-rings-onlinelotrolotro-uilotrointerfacelotroplugins.comlualua-scriptmiddle-internetmodmodspalantirpluginplugin-managerpluginsquickbarquickslotserver-queuestonicbarstrollsturbineTurbine-Entertainmentuiworld-of-warcraftFri, 17 Sep 2010 13:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Redefining MMOs: Player developers!]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/07/23/redefining-mmos-player-developers/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/07/23/redefining-mmos-player-developers/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/07/23/redefining-mmos-player-developers/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

A few weeks ago, we at Massively started the weekly "Redefining MMOs" series, a collection of articles examining how the MMO genre has been redefined during the current generation of games and where it's headed in the next. So far, we've looked at the terminology we use to refer to MMOs, how the art of storytelling has changed over the years, and the rise of the "massively singleplayer" online game. In this week's article, I examine what happens when players are given the reigns of an MMO or have a hand in part of its development. If you have something important to say on the topic, feel free to post a comment on page 3 or even write your own "Redefining MMOs" blog post and leave a comment with the URL.

Traditionally, all content for an MMO is designed by the game's development studio and players have no direct influence on its creation. The idea of handing the reigns of an MMO to its players is considered heresy and we shudder to think of what horrible quests and areas players would construct if given a chance. But is our aversion justified or is it something developers should strive to overcome? Certainly Second Life has successfully capitalised on letting players develop almost every aspect of its virtual world but could successful mainstream MMOs make use of it too? City of Heroes, EVE Online and even World of Warcraft are prime examples which suggest they can. All three of these games have handed at least some part of the game's development over to players, with incredibly promising results.

In this article, I look at these three successful examples of players being allowed to develop aspects of an MMO. I then go on to explain why this works and how the next generation of MMOs could learn from these pioneering feats.

Continue reading Redefining MMOs: Player developers!

MassivelyRedefining MMOs: Player developers! originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 23 Jul 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Moogles. A rich, noble race that's been around for ages. Sure, their contributions to society are overlooked -- such as their dedication to keeping your house clean, changing your jobs, and acting like a save point in oh so many Final Fantasy worlds. But that doesn't mean that this race has many more things to share with society.

Things like haunted mog houses, engagement rings, and... um... mogfia bosses? What's going on here?

It's a Moogle Kupo d'Etat, the next add-on expansion pack for Final Fantasy XI! Just like the first pack, A Crystalline Prophecy, this expansion will once again provide a short storyline and an augmentable item at the end, all for the low price of 10 bucks.

This time around, it's the headpiece for the sets! The Champion's Galea, Anwig Salade, and Selenian Cap are all up for grabs once the mini-expansion is completed.

The add-on pack will be available for pre-order on July 5th, and will most likely roll out with the next version update later in July. Check out our gallery of some of the scenes from the upcoming pack, as well as our look at the new items!

Gallery: A Moogle Kupo d'Etat

Selenian CapAnwig SaladeChampion's Galea

MassivelyMore moogles than you can shake a chocobo at in the upcoming Final Fantasy add-on originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 29 Jun 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As if we needed an excuse to spend more time in our favorite MMOs, PlayXpert has now integrated yet another insanely awesome tool into their "in-game operating system" - Twitter! That's right, now you can browse the web; chat; monitor your PC's system usage; halt annoying memory-leeching processes and tweet. Of course, you can also use Google, check Wowhead, pop out to EQ2 Players, use free Vivox voice chat, and noodle around on Facebook - but we know some of you are just as thrilled about the Twitter widget as we are.

If you haven't had a chance to check out PlayXpert, you can pick up a free copy of the software over on their site. Twitter, Wowhead, etc. are all done via widgets, also freely available on the site. At the current time, this program is PC only, so the Mac crowd will have to fire up Boot Camp to use it. Of course, while you're adding Twitter to your in-game mods, we're sure you'll want to follow the Massively twitter account too!

MassivelyPlayxpert brings Twitter, web & more into your favorite MMOs originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 02 May 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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