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MMObility: The best Glitch apps and websites

Beau Hindman — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Betas, Culture, Free-to-play, Browser, Hands-on, Casual, Miscellaneous, MMObility, Sandbox, Crafting

Glitch is a wonderful game, but it can be a bit confusing. The sheer number of items, places, and ingredients can make navigating the world of Ur difficult. I decided I needed some assistance living in the world of the giants. It took but one post on the forums before the helpful community overwhelmed me with choices. The developer of Glitch, Tiny Speck, made sure that players and third-party developers can have a go at making applications or websites that connect to the game's information and characters. I had no idea how many people had created some sort of app or website so far!

I started to try them all out, and as of the time of this writing, I have barely scratched the surface. There are apps or websites for almost anything you can think of. I have already found some that I really like, and I wanted to share them with you. Feel free to let me know which ones you like, and why, in the comments section.

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MMObility: The best Glitch apps and websites originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:30:00 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!

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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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Monkey Quest goes portable

Eliot Lefebvre — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: New titles, News items, Free-to-play, Mobile, Kids

If you or your children are fond of Nickelodeon's Monkey Quest, you may have run into the unavoidable problem that the game requires you to be home. Like many other games, however, Monkey Quest is hopping on the mobile bandwagon with Monkey Quest: Thunderbow. Available now for the iPhone and iPad, the game stars a specific monkey from the world of Ook, the eponymous Thunderbow, as he seeks to dethrone the evil cat king Zotan.

Gameplay is managed in a similar style as the popular Angry Birds games, with the caveat being that Angry Birds doesn't allow you to earn special items and equipment for use in the main Monkey Quest game. Regular updates are planned for the game to help keep players engaged and interested as Thunderbow continues his quest. So if you've got one of the portable devices and your child can't get enough monkey business, it's worth a look.

[Source: Nickelodeon press release]

Monkey Quest goes portable originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 16 Dec 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wargaming.net dangling World of Warplanes alpha tester carrots

Jef Reahard — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 17:30:00 EST

Filed under: Historical, Real life, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, News items, War, Free-to-play, Miscellaneous, World of Warplanes

Think you've got the right stuff to be a World of Warplanes alpha tester? Well, you may have it, but you'll also need to have a strong stomach when it comes to installing third-party apps on your computer.

Wargaming.net has thrown open the application process for its upcoming World War II aviation MMO, and would-be testers will need to install both Overwolf and Xfire on their gaming rigs. A news blurb on the official World of Tanks website spills the beans, and Wargaming.net says that the aim of the test is to "discover how functional and comfortable these programs are for you."

In addition to the alpha tester position, the devs are also dangling some sort of "special award" carrot. We're not sure whether it's an in-game title, ability, or other perk, but we do know that simply signing up doesn't guarantee you access to the testing phase. There's also a questionnaire that needs filling out, and "those of you who [...] provide [the] most detailed and descriptive answers will be awarded with the chance to become alpha testers [for] World of Warplanes!"

Wargaming.net dangling World of Warplanes alpha tester carrots originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 09 Sep 2011 17:30:00 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.

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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!

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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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GDCO 2010: UTV True Games wows with three new titles

Beau Hindman — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 11:30:00 EST

Filed under: Historical, Interviews, MMO industry, New titles, Previews, PvP, PvE, Free-to-play, Browser, Massively Interviews, Massively Hands-on, Massively Event Coverage

One of the most thrilling aspects of this job is visiting game studios. It's essentially like stepping into a toy factory, complete with strange noises and funny personalities. Nerf guns are a staple, and each desk or station is decorated with all types of toys, posters, and other trophies from Nerd-dom. UTV True Games is no different, so when we were asked to sit down with three (count 'em, three) different teams to preview some new titles, we knew we were in for a good time.

Of course, our professionalism prevented us from actually clapping and going "sqqquuueeeee!" every time a new product was shown, but it's very possible that the teams would not have cared anyway. So what did we see? What do we have to look forward to from the same people that brought us Mytheon? Well, click past the cut and let's take a look!

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GDCO 2010: UTV True Games wows with three new titles originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 11 Oct 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Extended Experience of Guild Wars 2: Taking Tyria outside of your PC

Rubi Bayer — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, News items, Guild Wars 2

A new profession may not have been revealed a few weeks ago at PAX, but ArenaNet had a different surprise up its sleeve: the Guild Wars 2 "Extended Experience."

At our demo interview with Colin Johanson, he unveiled a few details about the Extended Experience Team at ArenaNet and told us that the members were working on Guild Wars 2 apps for smartphones and the iPad. Fans have been clamoring to know more since then, and today, our questions have been answered thanks to the newest ArenaNet blog entry.

Follow along after the jump to see all the new details about "Gaming Outside the Game."

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The Extended Experience of Guild Wars 2: Taking Tyria outside of your PC originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 21 Sep 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: A community guide to EVE Online

Brendan Drain — Sun, 02 May 2010 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Culture, Hands-on, EVE Evolved, Guides

Some time ago, Massively started up a whole slew of new weekly columns, each covering a specific MMO. Each week, they bring guides, editorials, interviews and community news in a similar way to what I've been doing with EVE Evolved over the past two years. Each of the new columns started with a definitive community guide showcasing handy links to useful websites, blogs and tools. This week it's my turn to give EVE Online the community guide treatment. This article will be updated periodically with new links as they make themselves known. If you have a useful EVE link you think would belong in the community guide, leave a comment with it.

Skip past the cut for a breakdown of some of EVE's most important community links.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: A community guide to EVE Online

EVE Evolved: A community guide to EVE Online originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 02 May 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: A sneak peak at EVE Gate

Brendan Drain — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: At a glance, Sci-fi, EVE Online, Culture, Expansions, Previews, Opinion, Hands-on, EVE Evolved

Some time ago, CCP announced their unusual plans to develop their own EVE Online social networking website. Their plan was to tie it into the game, giving players a site they could visit to stay in touch with their EVE contacts and corporation while not logged in. It was expected to be ready by Winter 2009 but never materialised when the Dominion expansion was released. Now named EVE Gate, the website has been rescheduled for the upcoming Tyrannis expansion on May 18th. Recently, CCP released an early alpha version of the EVE Gate website and have begun the slow process of adding features and working out bugs. Some of the features are not active and the site is not yet tied into the active EVE server. Nevertheless, the current alpha build shows what we can expect from the site when it launches.

In this article, I give a run-down of what features we can expect from EVE Gate at launch and what we can expect from it in future iterations.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: A sneak peak at EVE Gate

EVE Evolved: A sneak peak at EVE Gate originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 11 Apr 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Final Fantasy XI players get a little help from their iPhone

Eliot Lefebvre — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Final Fantasy XI, Game mechanics, News items, Consoles

There's a lot of information to keep track of in Final Fantasy XI, much of it not covered by the in-game interface. There's no easy way to access the all-important airship schedules or the often-loathed Race Specific Equipment quest eligibility. Since the game has been out for several years, there are naturally more than a few applications to track these events... but due to the game's issues with alt-tabbing, they require a bit of a workaround for the player. Now there's another option available to anyone with an iPhone or an iPod Touch -- a new app from Duodyne Studios.

Although not officially affiliated with Square-Enix, the application is aimed at giving players easy access to the most commonly needed timers. That includes a recast timer feature that allows players to simply tap the ability when they use it, followed by an alert on the phone when it becomes ready again. It's not as useful as simple macro checks for short abilities like Provoke, but longer abilities will benefit from having the timer feature. At $0.99 for players in the US and comparable prices for other markets, Final Fantasy XI players might want to take a look.

Final Fantasy XI players get a little help from their iPhone originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 30 Mar 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Fringe: Farming games

Robin Torres — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Guides, Free-to-play, Browser, Casual, The Fringe

Welcome to The Fringe, where we totter on the edge of MMOs with a guide for playing Facebook games. If you aren't one of the millions playing games on Facebook and aren't interested in joining the throng, that's ok. We won't judge you. But we'd appreciate you returning the favor.

In before all the "you got Facebook in my Massively again!" complaints: GDC was full of Facebook game announcements and with all the money being made by Zynga and others, we have a long future of Facebook MMOing ahead of us. With massive amounts of people playing and interacting in these online games, it's time to take off the blinders and check out what's going on in your peripheral gaming vision. Or not. That's fine. If you don't want to read about Facebook games, you can skip to all of the other great content here on Massively. But unlike my last column, where I let the haters vent their frustrations in the comments, only constructive criticism will be allowed from now on.

I was going to write up a guide to Country Life next, but it has been going through much development over the past few weeks. So even if illness hadn't delayed my writing about it, the information would have been obsolete soon after. There are many farming games to choose from, varying in features and popularity. So this week I'll be covering how to choose a Facebook farming game by giving an overview of three notable ones.

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The Fringe: Farming games originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 22 Mar 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: Apps and MMOs

Lesley Smith — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Sci-fi, Age of Conan, EVE Online, Lord of the Rings Online, Culture, Economy, Game mechanics, The Daily Grind

These days, without descending into total geek fan girl mode, phones are all about apps. Whether you have a Pre, an iPhone, a Google Android handset or one of the new, shiny Nokia phones, apps (short for applications) are usually an important part of how phones work. Even more so now your humble mobile phone is becoming more like a mini computer. But I digress. This week Blizzard released their second app for the iPhone, which allows you to access the World of Warcraft Armory without needing a PC and, it is, quite simply, awesome.

It got me thinking though, if one MMO can make use of apps, why not all of the big boys? EVE, LotRO and Age of Conan have a huge following and surely there's the potential for some kind of apps, perhaps ones which will let you check in-game mail or sell gear and mats without actually logging into the game. So, readers, I ask you: what kind of apps would you like to see for your favourite MMOs? Do you think there should be apps for different phones, not just the most popular model (which currently seems to be the iPhone)? What kind of apps do you think would be useful and beneficial to your MMO gaming time?

The Daily Grind: Apps and MMOs originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 19 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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