Massively

RIFT companion app brings chat, events, and loot to Android

Matt Daniel — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, MMO industry, News items, Mobile, RIFT

RIFT is stepping up its mobile connectivity game with the newly released RIFT mobile companion app, now for Android. The application contains what you might expect from a companion app, such as friend and guild chat, officer chat, and other guild capabilities, but it also features unique bits like zone event notifications, which can notify you when a zone event begins on your server. Of course, you can also filter which of these battles deserves a notification.

Perhaps most interestingly, you can also earn in-game loot by participating in what appears to be some kind of minigame. This game can reward players with crafting items, planar treasure, and artifacts, which are sent directly to their characters' mail-boxes. For the most part, it looks to be a pretty good tool for people who want to stay connected to the game even when they're not at their computers.

For the full details on the app, just click on through the link below. Meanwhile, if you want to skip the fluff and just grab the app, it's available for free on the iTunes store and now on the Android Market.

RIFT companion app brings chat, events, and loot to Android originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: Would you pay for an MMO's mobile app?

Brianna Royce — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business models, MMO industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Mobile, Miscellaneous

The rise of smartphone gaming has created a niche somewhere between mobile MMOs and regular MMOs: MMO apps. Games like World of Warcraft, EverQuest II, Fallen Earth, Lord of the Rings Online, the upcoming Guild Wars 2, and now RIFT all have (or will have) mobile apps that players can use to perform a variety of in-game or pseudo-in-game activities, like chat with guildies, relist auctions, reset crafting timers, or play lotteries.

The sticking point is that some of these games aren't giving the app away for free. World of Warcraft, for example, lets everyone download the Mobile Armory app for free but charges a $3 monthly subscription fee for premium services in the Remote app. That's $3 above and beyond the $15 subscription just to access guild chat and play the auction hall from your pocket.

Would you pay for a mobile app for your favorite MMO, and if so, how much? What's your limit?

Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!

The Daily Grind: Would you pay for an MMO's mobile app? originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 16 Jan 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MMObility: Simplifying design for the mobile market

Beau Hindman — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Screenshots, Business models, Game mechanics, Opinion, Free-to-play, Mobile, Casual, MMObility

Whenever I write up something about a smartphone MMO, one of the most common complaints I hear is this: "If I wanted to play a game for several hours, I would sit at my gaming desktop." While this is true for many players, it is also true that games like Star Legends and Pocket Legends by Spacetime Studios have met with a lot of success. The developers were surprised to find that players were more than willing to sit for several hours while playing the games on their tiny screens.

Still, there is a lot of truth to the complaints about smartphone MMOs. An MMO is typically something a player wants to get lost in. We commonly refer to it as "immersion," but really we're just talking about being sucked into the ideas and design of a title. If you have found yourself daydreaming about a game while at work, you were "immersed."

I would argue that this type of deep immersion is very possible on the smaller screens of smartphones and tablets. However, in order to achieve it more commonly, developers might have to adjust many of their designs and theories. Click past the cut and we'll discuss it!

Continue reading MMObility: Simplifying design for the mobile market

MMObility: Simplifying design for the mobile market originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 23 Dec 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Third-party development

Brendan Drain — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Business models, Culture, MMO industry, Opinion, Legal, EVE Evolved

When EVE Online was first released in 2003, it was a primitive beast from a small indie studio operating out of a tiny office in Reykjavik, Iceland. Although EVE has been expanded over the years, not all of that development has come from creator CCP Games. EVE players routinely step in to fill gaps in the game's functionality through the development of third-party applications, websites and tools. Early apps like the EVEMon skill planner were very limited in what information they could access about a player's character, but with the introduction of the EVE API system, a huge wealth of information became available.

Since then, we've seen a resurgence of third-party app and tool development, producing impressive apps like Capsuleer and Aura for the iPhone. We've also seen some incredibly useful websites like the ICSC jump planner suite, gambling site SOMER.blink and the Dotlan EVE maps with regularly updating statistics. Most app developers work on the projects in their spare time, and until now they've relied on donations or advertising revenue to keep up with server costs or keep development worth the time invested. As EVE is CCP's intellectual property, it's illegal for anyone to make money from it without the company's permission. This week, CCP released the first draft of a contract that would allow developers to monetise their apps, but the proposal was not received well by the EVE community.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at third-party app development and what's wrong with the proposed deal.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Third-party development

EVE Evolved: Third-party development originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 19 Jun 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Online introduces customisable APIs for apps

Brendan Drain — Thu, 26 May 2011 22:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Patches, News items

Player-made apps have always been a big part of EVE Online, with players stepping in to provide tools the game itself doesn't offer. Apps like the EVEMon skill planner originally required players to provide their usernames and passwords in order to get access to a character's skill sheet. Several years ago, CCP introduced the EVE API system to remove that requirement. Players can now instead give applications one of two API keys -- a limited key that gives access only to basic information like skills, or a full key that gives access to everything from market transactions to asset lists. Until now, no middle ground has existed that would allow app developers to access only specific things, and players are always wary as to whom they give their full API key.

In a new devblog, CCP Stillman explains the brand-new customisable API key feature that has just gone live for testing. Players may now select exactly what information will be shared, and a customised key will be generated that gives access to only those features. This means an app that reads your EVEmail, shows your recent kills, or logs market transactions doesn't need to be given access to any other information that you'd rather keep private. The key generation process does a good job of explaining exactly what information each section will give access to, and the key can even be given an expiry date to create temporary access keys. These new developments are sure to be useful for app developers, and we can look forward to the release of some useful new EVE mobile and web apps.

EVE Online introduces customisable APIs for apps originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 26 May 2011 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PAX East 2011: Massively interviews RIFT's Scott Hartsman

Karen Bryan — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Events, real-world, Interviews, Launches, MMO industry, Massively Interviews, Massively Event Coverage, RIFT

With the launch of RIFT still fresh, members of the Trion team packed their bags and flew to Boston to attend PAX East. Even though they didn't have a booth, their "We're not in Azeroth anymore" banner made their presence known. In addition, Community Manager Cindy "Abigale" Bowens hosted a party in Boston to celebrate the launch with players and fans. Massively had a chance to sit down and talk with Trion CCO and RIFT Executive Producer Scott Hartsman about launch day, security, plans for the future, and a whole lot more. Read on for the full interview!

Continue reading PAX East 2011: Massively interviews RIFT's Scott Hartsman

PAX East 2011: Massively interviews RIFT's Scott Hartsman originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 15 Mar 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SEGA's Kingdom Conquest hits iPhone and iPod Touch

Justin Olivetti — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Launches, New titles, War, Free-to-play

Game studios have been eying Apple's pocket prodigies as a platform for MMOs for some time now, so it's no surprise that SEGA has stepped up to deliver its own hybrid strategy/RPG MMO in hopes of gaining a foothold on this market. It's called Kingdom Conquest and should feel familiar enough to both the MMO dungeon crawling crowd and the Facebook strategy app fans.

Kingdom Conquest is split into two modes that work in synergy with each other. In the kingdom building mode, players will construct a city from the ground up, form alliances with other players, build armies and wage war to control territory. This is augmented by the action mode, in which anywhere from one to four players may group to tackle dungeons, which not rewards them with not only armor and weapons but items to use in their cities.

While it bills itself as a free-to-play title (and it is certainly free to download), Kingdom Conquest makes no bones about its reliance on microtransactions. Players looking to create an edge for their city and alliance can spend real money on buffs and shorter building queues to boost their progress ahead.

If you want to check it out, it's one quick trip to the iTunes App store away!

SEGA's Kingdom Conquest hits iPhone and iPod Touch originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 17 Nov 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Question chilled

Eliot Lefebvre — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, City of Villains, Classes, Game mechanics, Endgame, Opinion, A Mild-Mannered Reporter

We've had a fairly calm month since our last session, and really, I'm kind of relieved. I spent most of October expecting that City of Heroes was going to drop some sort of bomb along the lines of "game shutting down in December, releasing huge new game in January, have a pony." And I'm kind of glad that didn't happen, because I have nowhere to keep a pony in my home. With that awkward preamble out of the way, on with the questions!

Jeromai asked: But think, the enemy code [developed for Going Rogue] might later be used for smarter AI for enemies that Incarnates face. A higher-level challenge. Gee, doesn't that sound like endgame content?

Well, yes and no. Yes, it certainly sounds like a higher-level challenge, and if you ask a certain segment of the endgame population in any MMO, that's exactly what they want. But endgame content is frequently kept challenging solely through artificial barriers, and as bizarre as it sounds, we kind of want it that way, because the alternative is really, really annoying.

Continue reading A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Question chilled

A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Question chilled originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 03 Nov 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NCsoft releases Aion Exchange app for iOS

Jef Reahard — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, MMO industry, News items

NCsoft has taken the wraps off another portion of its mobile platform offensive as today marked the unveiling of the new Aion Exchange app for Apple's iPhone, iPad, and iOS devices. The app provides live access to the fantasy MMO's broker system, as well as options for viewing your character info, statistics, and equipment.

The broker feature includes an item search as well as price lists, a wish list, and push notifications that will alert you to sales without the need to log into the game or open the app. Finally, Aion Exchange features a comprehensive item listing that boasts info about each piece of equipment available in game. Chris Hager, NCsoft West producer, sees the app as the first step in extending the world of Atreia beyond the desktop. "We see this application as an extension of the game and we will continually support and update the service offering with future feature updates," he said.

NCsoft releases Aion Exchange app for iOS originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rise and Shiny recap: Pocket Legends

Beau Hindman — Sun, 17 Oct 2010 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Events, in-game, Reviews, PvE, Opinion, Free-to-play, Mobile, Hands-on, Casual, Massively Hands-on, Rise and Shiny

Over the last two weeks, I have been taking a look at Pocket Legends, a fully functioning MMO made for the mobile player. I did not publish a Rise and Shiny last week (I was busy writing up my GDCO coverage) but that is a good thing -- I had no real time to play the game anyway. I've jumped in and out, played through a few dungeons and scoured the cash shop. After hearing Cinco Barnes from Spacetime Studios -- the developer of Pocket Legends -- I really saw how well the company's design choices were working in practice.

What I found is a game that works and is stable. While that isn't the most glamorous description, you would be hard-pressed to find a game that has succeeded without either of those traits. The key here is that it runs while in the palm of your hand (or lap, in the case of the iPad). But let me take you through a bit more of the game before I pass judgment.

Continue reading Rise and Shiny recap: Pocket Legends

Rise and Shiny recap: Pocket Legends originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 17 Oct 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Capsuleer iPhone app for EVE ceases development, CCP responds

Brendan Drain — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Culture, MMO industry, News items

When it comes to useful apps for EVE Online players, Capsuleer is one of the most well-known and popular tools available. The app allows iPhone users to check their characters' skill training progress, the latest EVE news and other items of interest. Until now, Capsuleer has been developed as an entirely non-profit enterprise, with creators PyjamaSam and Roc Wieler running the servers for free and absorbing all of the development costs. At the 2008 EVE fanfest, EVE's developers CCP Games expressed great enthusiasm for the project. Executive Producer Nathan Richardsson even mentioned the app in his keynote speech, and several screenshots of it were shown off during a talk on mobile development.

Recognising that Capsuleer was reaching the point where free development was becoming infeasible, CCP flew the app's developers out to Iceland to discuss licensing arrangements. As EVE Online is CCP's intellectual property, the Capsuleer team would have needed to get a business license from CCP before charging for anything. The initial plan was to port Capsuleer to multiple platforms, including the Android OS and Windows Mobile. Features requiring access to a user's full API key, such as searching through assets or checking market orders, would be added to a new subscription service. A free version of the app would have allowed non-subscribed users to make use of limited API features, such as checking a character's skill training. With direct co-operation from CCP, additional features which are not currently possible with the app may also have been possible.

Continue reading Capsuleer iPhone app for EVE ceases development, CCP responds

Capsuleer iPhone app for EVE ceases development, CCP responds originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 08 Oct 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The countdown to Fallen Earth's one-year anniversary is on!

Justin Olivetti — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 11:30:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Fallen Earth, Events, real-world, Events, in-game, Giveaways, Post-Apocalyptic

One year ago, the post-apocalyptic wasteland entered this world a screaming, healthy baby MMO. It's been a year of highs and lows for Fallen Earth, as Icarus Studios weathered staff cuts while pumping out fixes, patches and a whole new zone. Also, monkeys. Lots and lots of monkeys.

To celebrate this momentous occasion, Fallen Earth is inviting players to spend the next week counting down to the launchiversary with eight days of events, giveaways and parties. This will all culminate in a huge in-game celebration, which Icarus Studios is asking players to screenshot the heck out of in exchange for prizes.

The company is also excited to announce two changes to its popular Fallen Earth mobile phone app. The basic app is now free of charge (available for iPhone, Blackberry and Android devices), but Icarus is also offering "premium services" for the one-time charge of $9.99. These special services include starting crafting projects, buying and selling on the auction house, and using the in-game mail system. You can read all of the details on the Mobile App FAQ.

The countdown to Fallen Earth's one-year anniversary is on! originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 15 Sep 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Massively talks with Raptr's Dennis Fong

Beau Hindman — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Interviews, MMO industry, Hands-on

Raptr is a pretty ambitious project, even if you think about what has been accomplished so far. Essentially, the service is connecting all of your gaming-related services under one profile, one messenger, and one new iPhone app. Think of it as your Trillian messenger for gamers. I have a short history with Raptr but never really warmed up to it until recently. I wanted a service that would allow all of my friends, across all of the different networks that I visit, to see what and how much I am playing.

Now that I have made a newer profile and have really started adding a few friends, I am sort of shocked at it's usefullness. Not only does it let me sign in to most of the major messaging services, game networks and social services like Facebook, but it allows me to see what my friends are doing as well, in some very specific ways.

I was excited to get a chance to talk to Raptr CEO Dennis Fong and was impressed by how such an ambitious idea has now turned into a real, working application.

Continue reading Massively talks with Raptr's Dennis Fong

Massively talks with Raptr's Dennis Fong originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Jul 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Spacetime's Pocket Legends hits Apple's app store

Justin Olivetti — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Launches, Free-to-play, Mac

While there have been many attempts at reproducing the MMORPG experience on Apple's incredibly popular iPhone and iTouch devices, the limitations in technology and connection speed have kept these applications from hitting the big time. Spacetime Studios hopes to change all that, as they just revealed a new MMO for the app store: Pocket Legends.

Boasting 3D graphics, three classes and accessibility across iPhone, iTouch and iPad devices, Pocket Legends might be considered an "MMO-lite," but it still contains all the necessary ingredients. Players can choose from one of three anthropomorphic animal classes -- a cat sorceress, a bird archer, and a bear tank -- and head off for a career full of dungeon running, chest looting, and stat leveling. Grouping is also possible (and encouraged!), with thousands of players connecting over a server. Spacetime promises that players can not only play Pocket Legends on almost all of Apple's portable devices (except the first edition of the iPhone), but the game can be accessed via WiFi, 3G and even EDGE networks.

Continue reading Spacetime's Pocket Legends hits Apple's app store

Spacetime's Pocket Legends hits Apple's app store originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 04 Apr 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Champions Online announces iPhone app: Champions Companion

Seraphina Brennan — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, News items, Champions Online

It seems like these past two days have been "everyone gets an iPhone app" days. Developers, we love you, but did you all have to release your apps at the same time?

Anyway, back to the original point, Champions Online is on your iPhone. Thanks to the Champions Companion app, you can take CO wherever you go. Much more than a simple "armory" application that lets you look at your character's stats and show your hero off to friends, the Companion lets you view the in-game news, view your friends list and friend activity streams, and even send and receive in-game e-mails. Companion is free for all account holders, so jump over to the iTunes store and grab yourself the app today.

So, next time you're out at the mall and your best friend logs into Champions, you can shoot them an e-mail while you're sitting in front of the Express and waiting for your girlfriend. Be super, wherever you go.

Champions Online announces iPhone app: Champions Companion originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 15 Dec 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CrimeCraft heading for Facebook and iPhones

Kyle Horner — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: New titles, News items, CrimeCraft

There's no doubt CrimeCraft has been seeing some tough times since its launch. Nevertheless, that's not stopping Vogster Entertainment from paving new development paths. They're currently working on CrimeCraft: Kingpin, which is essentially a way to interface with the game through Facebook or the iPhone application.

While details aren't clear at this point, Vogster is saying players will be able to complete missions, build gangs, buy weapons and equipment and develop rivalries in battles all while climbing up leaderboards. The top player will of course earn the rank of -- you guessed it -- Kingpin.

Integration into the PC game offers CrimeCraft: Kingpin an opportunity to stand out amongst the ever-growing crowd of Facebook and iPhone apps. Leveraging that advantage will go a long way to getting people interested in the newly free-to-play model of the game.

CrimeCraft heading for Facebook and iPhones originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Top five EVE Online apps

Brendan Drain — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: At a glance, Sci-fi, EVE Online, Culture, Tips and tricks, Opinion, EVE Evolved

Back in 2004, a friend introduced me to a relatively new space MMO called EVE Online, where the markets were run by the players and there were undiscovered frontiers to chart. A short time after, I became obsessed with pre-calculating everything in the game. I thought that if the game server can calculate everything we do, I must be able to replicate the process and come up with some interesting results. I wasn't alone, many other pilots had previously created simple spreadsheets and web-databases of EVE's items. Rather than the game's developers hoarding the information required for such an undertaking, they took an unusual stance and released large portions of their main database for player-study. Websites began popping up listing information from the data dumps and it wasn't long before the first pioneering apps came about in the form of handy spreadsheets and interactive web-pages, my own fairly popular tanking spreadsheet among them.

In this article, I look at how player-developed apps came about in EVE and give details on my top five EVE apps. Once you've tried these programs, you won't know how you lived without them.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Top five EVE Online apps

EVE Evolved: Top five EVE Online apps originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 09 Aug 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Track EVE skill training on your iPhone

James Egan — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, News items

Having a pared-down, mobile version of the EVE Online client has been on the wish list of many players, as well as the to-do list of the CCP Games developers. Unfortunately, EVE mobile doesn't yet exist. The closest thing to this currently offered are mobile applications that monitor skill training and the market. However, there seem to be more and more of them lately, perhaps largely driven by the popularity of the iPhone and iPod touch.

One of the shinier apps out there for the iPhone is EVE Tracker from Saggy Software, an application that also runs on the iPod touch. As its name implies, EVE Tracker can track a pilot's stats and training status; it displays your avatar and isk balance, in addition to your attributes and skillpoints. You can review your character's skill progression (skills previously trained) and flip through related info with a skill browser. EVE Tracker can handle multiple characters and multiple accounts, which could be handy for those who took advantage of EVE's Power of Two subscription offer a little while back.

Continue reading Track EVE skill training on your iPhone

Track EVE skill training on your iPhone originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 10 Sep 2008 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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