Massively

Ask Massively: Trailers, emulators, and 'skill caps'

Brianna Royce — Thu, 09 May 2013 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Legal, Humor, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous, Crowdfunding, Player-Generated Content

It's time for a grab bag edition of Ask Massively! A reader named Nicholas is up first:

I was wondering if you could help me remember a game studio that was developing a new Korean action- MMORPG game engine (and it wasn't Bless, Blade and Soul, or ArcheAge). In the tech demo, no environment was being shown; it focused on the combat aspect of the engine. All the combat took place against a white background, and it was combo-based and reactive to hits. I remember a slow motion scene with an NPC being punched in the face and the face distorting. At the time, there were no announced games using the engine; the video was just showing what tech the game studio had developed. If it helps any, I remember the comments saying that the engine was just going to be vaporware.

I think we might! Massively's Lis pegged it as NetEase's Dragon Sword trailer. +1 to Lis.

Continue reading Ask Massively: Trailers, emulators, and 'skill caps'

Ask Massively: Trailers, emulators, and 'skill caps' originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 May 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: A new era of soft launches

Brianna Royce — Thu, 02 May 2013 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Business Models, MMO Industry, Opinion, Free-to-Play, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Events (Massively's Coverage), Miscellaneous, Neverwinter

Neverwinter soft launched this week. What's a soft launch? It's when a game really shouldn't be launching yet and knows it and yet has to launch anyway for reasons probably involving money. Soft launches are incredibly confusing to old school gamers who are used to a certain kind of testing and release cycle, the uncomplicated kind that involves, you know, some testing and a release. Soft launches make games writers uncomfortable too. Why won't your weird special snowflake of a game launch fit into our perfectly planned box?

Massively reader zmeul expressed his annoyance with us thusly: "I can't understand why some games get this 'soft launch' from you and others do not, even if the criteria are met."

It's a brave new world out there, zmeul!

Continue reading Ask Massively: A new era of soft launches

Ask Massively: A new era of soft launches originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 02 May 2013 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Why we cover what we do, part two

Brianna Royce — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business Models, Events (Real-World), MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Events (Massively's Coverage), Miscellaneous

Last week, I promised you a second round of questions and answers regarding the types of calls Massively makes on which games and stories it will cover and why. Let's get to it.

Mike9 wrote, "I will play [State of Decay] because it looks awesome, but I never understand why Massively covers it; it is a single-player game, not an MMO by even the loosest of definitions, not unless Super Mario World is also considered an MMO now (well, I guess that did allow two players)."

I assume you're looking for a better answer than braaaaaiiiiinnnnsssssss!

Continue reading Ask Massively: Why we cover what we do, part two

Ask Massively: Why we cover what we do, part two originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 25 Apr 2013 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Why we cover what we do, part one

Brianna Royce — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

Welcome back to Ask Massively. We're all aboard the yacht this week, answering your questions while dressed like characters in Scarlet Blade. Because that's pretty much what the characters in Scarlet Blade should be doing rather than, you know, mortal combat in a thong.

Yes, today we're talking Scarlet Blade. In between all the crazed commenter ranting, several of you guys posed legit questions about why we covered it in the first place. Let me try to answer you without turning this into a debate about sexism. Why? Because it's not really about any one specific -ism.

Continue reading Ask Massively: Why we cover what we do, part one

Ask Massively: Why we cover what we do, part one originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Apr 2013 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Feeds and faceplustweets

Brianna Royce — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

Google Reader might be on its way out, but old-school RSS is here to stay. If you haven't jumped to Feedly or some other RSS platform yet, July 1st is your doomsday. How is this relevant to your interests and why am I telling you this in Ask Massively? Well, many of you readers probably don't camp our front page, and if you're not into social media and the latest faceplustweet craze, RSS can help you keep up with the parts of Massively you want to read (and avoid the ones you don't).

Continue reading Ask Massively: Feeds and faceplustweets

Ask Massively: Feeds and faceplustweets originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 04 Apr 2013 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Whitebackgroundgate, image captions, and sockpuppets

Brianna Royce — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Bugs, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

OK, AndyMonahan. You win. You broke me. This Ask Massively is for you.

AndyMonahan asked (approximately eight million times): It doesn't matter what games you cover as I can't spend more than five minutes on the site before my eyes bleed. Any news on a choice of background colour?

Do you really think you're going to like the only answer you know I can give?!

Continue reading Ask Massively: Whitebackgroundgate, image captions, and sockpuppets

Ask Massively: Whitebackgroundgate, image captions, and sockpuppets originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 28 Mar 2013 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: The moving goalposts of MMO reviews

Brianna Royce — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Events (Real-World), MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Events (Massively's Coverage), Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

Last week, Massively streamteamer Richie Procopio sat down to play Elder Scrolls Online at a press demo. Like most such "all-day" media events, the press demo was approximately four hours long -- four hours for Richie to see as much as he could and take notes to transform into articles worth reading.

"It must be so hard to write an MMO article based on four hours of gameplay," remarked a reader named Dularr.

It is and it isn't. Four hours is more than enough time to grok the basics. Of course, if you're expecting a detailed endgame critique after four hours, you're in for disappointment.

Continue reading Ask Massively: The moving goalposts of MMO reviews

Ask Massively: The moving goalposts of MMO reviews originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 21 Mar 2013 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Ruining the internet

Brianna Royce — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business Models, Culture, MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Livestream, Miscellaneous, The Stream Team

Last week, Massively's Larry Everett finished off a miniseries of articles designed to help interested readers learn to livestream. Streaming has become a major part of Massively's purview; we stream about 20 hours a week. So why not use our expertise to help friends and potential future colleagues learn how to play for fun and profit?

Not everyone shares our idealism, apparently. In fact, one commenter told us we are ruining the internet.

Continue reading Ask Massively: Ruining the internet

Ask Massively: Ruining the internet originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 14 Mar 2013 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: How I mine for games journos

Brianna Royce — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

In the last few months, the Ask Massively inbox has received several letters about breaking into the games journalism industry and employment at Massively specifically. This first one came from a reader named Vernon:

I rarely see current journalists write or blog about their own experiences of getting into the industry. I always told myself I would try to figure out how to make a go of writing about games if the opera thing did not work out. So, how did you get there (Editor in Chief), and how do you get there now?

Short answer: the two skillsets rule.

Continue reading Ask Massively: How I mine for games journos

Ask Massively: How I mine for games journos originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 07 Mar 2013 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: We bake bread to crush

Brianna Royce — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, MMO Industry, Opinion, Ask Massively, Champions Online, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

I have a dirty little secret: A few weeks ago when I was really sick and laid up on the sofa, I got addicted to Pawn Stars. It's a cheesy little History Channel reality show that tracks the exploits of a Las Vegas pawn shop and the shop owners' good, bad, and history-related deals. (I know, I know. I'm bad and I should feel bad.)

One lesson the boss repeats to his employees and the viewers over and over is that being rare isn't enough to make something valuable and that many valuable things aren't particularly rare at all.

This is not a lesson MMO players have learned.

Continue reading Ask Massively: We bake bread to crush

Ask Massively: We bake bread to crush originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 28 Feb 2013 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: With thanks to the tipsters

Brianna Royce — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Rumors, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

Massively's tipsters are awesome. You've probably seen acknowledgements of their contributions in posts like these. Without them, we'd be limited to just the research our fairly small staff can drum up on a moment's notice. The tipsters broaden our view and bring us news from games that might otherwise have gone overlooked. We love you guys.

We do get tips we won't or can't report on, though. And it's not because we hate you. I promise.

Continue reading Ask Massively: With thanks to the tipsters

Ask Massively: With thanks to the tipsters originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 14 Feb 2013 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Choice paralysis and the perfect MMO

Brianna Royce — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous, Sandbox

Welcome back to Ask Massively! Today's readers don't want much. They just want to know all the things about all the games and then be told what to play. To wit, reader Lord Baron Xooper wrote in with the following request:

Hello, Massively people! I need your help; I have nowhere else to turn. I need a new MMO. I'm tired of World of Warcraft and Guild Wars 2 and Champions Online. I'm curious whether you could help me find a sandbox MMO with a heavy RPing community. Thank you! Love, Lord Baron Xooper

No pressure or anything, yeah? Thing is, Xoops wasn't the only one with this question. We get it a lot. Maybe once a week.

Continue reading Ask Massively: Choice paralysis and the perfect MMO

Ask Massively: Choice paralysis and the perfect MMO originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 07 Feb 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Developers, players, and respect

Brianna Royce — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

Welcome back to Ask Massively We're pleased you could join us on the deck of the Massively yacht for today's edition. You should really try a mojito. It's the best.

In between drinks today, we're talking about respect -- the earned kind, not the given kind. Don't worry; I'm not talking about respect you have for us or even for each other. (We all know that's non-existent.) I'm talking about the respect game studios have (and don't have) for MMO gamers in general.

Continue reading Ask Massively: Developers, players, and respect

Ask Massively: Developers, players, and respect originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 31 Jan 2013 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: We don't need another hero

Brianna Royce — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, Culture, Events (Real-World), MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A

Welcome back to Ask Massively. This week, I'd like to address a common gripe about Massively's coverage of sunsetted games -- specifically, City of Heroes. Even before the game closed down, some commenters were expressing annoyance that we were daring to cover the closure. Now that it's gone, these same commenters are irate at the fact that we didn't seal up the coffin and pretend that the whole thing never happened.

That's just not how it works.

Continue reading Ask Massively: We don't need another hero

Ask Massively: We don't need another hero originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 24 Jan 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Counting the hits

Brianna Royce — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Lore, Opinion, Massively Meta, Humor, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

At the end of December, the Massively staff laid out its predictions for 2013 in a tidy post, after which a reader named flatline4400 graciously complimented our wild conjecture:

I think Bree and Patrick are right on in a number of points. (Bree also did very well in last year's predictions too!)

We are pretty awesome, aren't we? Well, except for the part where I also predicted City of Heroes 2. Soooooo maybe not so awesome after all.

In today's Ask Massively, let's take a peek back at our staff predictions from last year, the ones we made in 2011 for 2012. And let's count the hits and the misses. Did we get as much right as we got wrong? Come on -- it'll be fun(ny).

Continue reading Ask Massively: Counting the hits

Ask Massively: Counting the hits originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Jan 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Why we write about only the games you hate

Brianna Royce — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

Welcome back to Ask Massively because why not? You're here; I'm here.

We've previously discussed defining MMOs and how we select the games and the news Massively covers. This week, let's talk about column selection and perception of story frequency.

tomrobbins asked, "Why do you guys cover [WildStar] so intensely yet other MMOs you barely mention? This game can't do a thing with out getting an article written about it here, yet it's not even out. Other MMOs barely get mentioned. This site seems only about WildStar, EverQuest II, Star Wars: The Old Republic, and Star Trek Online lately."

Does it sometimes feel as if we're reading different sites entirely?

Continue reading Ask Massively: Why we write about only the games you hate

Ask Massively: Why we write about only the games you hate originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Jan 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Defining MMOs

Brianna Royce — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

Welcome back to Ask Massively, gamely answering your wacky questions since 1738.

spacejesus3k wrote, "'MMO' is a watered-down term that means nothing more than 'online game' now. But why report on something like World of Tanks and not Call of Duty? They really aren't that different. Even games like World of Warcraft aren't that different in what they offer. They all have 'lobby like' co-op and PvP content; the only real difference is the single-player campaigns vs. the leveling world (which is often soloed). So here is a good question for Ask Massively: How do you pick and choose what online games you report on? Is there a set of criteria they must meet?"

Yes, but I warn you: This is not a scientific process.

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Ask Massively: Defining MMOs originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 03 Jan 2013 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: The one where we talk about our 2012 awards

Brianna Royce — Thu, 27 Dec 2012 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

Welcome back to Ask Massively. Here's your present: an edit button! What? You say you didn't get us anything? Awww. Well, let's get back to the important things, like your telling us how wrong our opinions are.

thatchefdude (and zaithnoc and cbv1020) asked: How can Guild Wars 2 be your game of the year and also runner-up for biggest disappointment of the year? I understand no game is perfect, but I would expect game of the year to not have enough disappointments in it to warrant it a place as runner-up for disappointment of the year.

Because voting.

OK, also because of a few other things.

Continue reading Ask Massively: The one where we talk about our 2012 awards

Ask Massively: The one where we talk about our 2012 awards originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Dec 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Yes, we have heard of your game

Brianna Royce — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 10:30:00 EST

Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

Welcome back to Ask Massively, the place where Bree dispenses random thoughts about the sitemeta because you guys are cheaper than a shrink.

About 20 people asked: Hey have you guys heard about Pathfinder Online and also why aren't you writing more about Pathfinder Online. P.S. Your coverage of Pathfinder Online is inadequate to my needs. And have you heard about Pathfinder Online??

Yes, we have heard of your game.

Continue reading Ask Massively: Yes, we have heard of your game

Ask Massively: Yes, we have heard of your game originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 20 Dec 2012 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Why isn't this news?

Brianna Royce — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

Welcome back to Ask Massively, the part of Massively where you ask us random things, we give you answers, and you yell incomprehensibly at us.

natecantbefound asked: Why are you guys reporting this crap [a League of Legends video] when Darkfall has a new video out?

Short answer: Perspective.

Continue reading Ask Massively: Why isn't this news?

Ask Massively: Why isn't this news? originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 13 Dec 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: The mobile site and trolly trollersons

Brianna Royce — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 16:30:00 EST

Filed under: Opinion, Massively Meta, Mobile, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

Welcome back to Ask Massively, that corner of the site where we take a stab at answering random questions you deposit in our inboxes and comments. Hey guys, we have a cave troll, checkit.

soundersfc.tid wrote: I have a question or two about the commenting system. Do you think there will ever be a way to flag offensive comments through the mobile version of the site? And speaking of offensive comments, what metric does Massively use when considering permanent bans on commenters?

Long-time mobile viewers will know that our mobile site is... well, it's a thing. A thing that doesn't get a whole lot of love from the technical staff, unfortunately. We were thrilled that the new comment system works so well on mobile, but you're right: It has some deficiencies, which is a bummer because according to our site analytics, a lot of you surf from your favorite hand-held gadgets.

Continue reading Ask Massively: The mobile site and trolly trollersons

Ask Massively: The mobile site and trolly trollersons originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 06 Dec 2012 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Why tpyos matter

Brianna Royce — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

Whenever you sit down to read an article -- let's say it's an article about MMOs on your favorite MMO blog -- the author has a hidden persuasive advantage. Readers are inclined to believe what they read unless they have a compelling reason not to because believing is easier than not believing. In fact, humans have a hard time mentally readjusting if they hear a lie about a topic before they hear the truth, especially when the lie confirms comforting pre-existing beliefs. And like it or not, we grant a measure of authority to published articles, to what we see in print from people we presume are professionals.

But even a lowly games writer squanders that "authoritativeness bonus" when he can't even be arsed to press the darn spellcheck button.

Continue reading Ask Massively: Why tpyos matter

Ask Massively: Why tpyos matter originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 29 Nov 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Site redesigns, editorials, and sandbox coverage

Brianna Royce — Thu, 22 Nov 2012 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

For those of you hiding out from family or working your brains instead of your stomachs on this sacred holiday on which we celebrate food or something, this edition of Ask Massively will mop up a few little questions and demands made in the comment section recently. We're addressing a potential site redesign, whether editorial articles really need a gigantic sign declaring the obvious, and whether the Massively writers are fake sandbox fans.

Put down that turkey leg and let's get to it!

Continue reading Ask Massively: Site redesigns, editorials, and sandbox coverage

Ask Massively: Site redesigns, editorials, and sandbox coverage originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 22 Nov 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Reviewing and re-reviewing MMOs

Brianna Royce — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO Industry, Reviews, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

Back in September, Star Trek Online Producer Daniel Stahl gave an interview that proposed to tell game journalists how to do their jobs. That's only fair; we're always telling developers how to do their jobs, right? Stahl told [a]listdaily,

"The whole game rating business doesn't necessarily do a great justice to MMOs. MMOs are designed to grow over time and get better with every major release. It might be better if sites like Metacritic could find a way to rate MMOs by releases instead of just the initial day one . . . There are plenty of MMOs that have made huge strides since day one and some that have even gotten worse. Until then, we will continue to offer the game for free and ask for people to try it out and decide for themselves."

Quipped Massively reader Matthew12, "If only there were MMO gaming blogs and websites that keep up to date with the MMOs and their updates... oh wait; there are."

Continue reading Ask Massively: Reviewing and re-reviewing MMOs

Ask Massively: Reviewing and re-reviewing MMOs originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 15 Nov 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Missives from the Massively yacht

Brianna Royce — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Events (Real-World), MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

So here we are, lounging on the deck of our yacht, sipping cool drinks out of fake coconuts while lifeguard cosplayers -- they're cosplayers, right guys? -- gently wave palm leaves at us. Later, of course, we'll dock somewhere and whip out our laptops and dash off some posts about video games before we get back to enjoying the titillating payoffs we earn as members of the gaming journalism front lines.

Hopefully you've guessed that Massively doesn't have a yacht. We don't even have an office. The Massively yacht is a mythical destination, a running joke that's only mildly funny and then only to the people who work here, since only we know what we're paid, how insanely strict the Joystiq network is about accepting items on the spectrum between gifts and bribes, and how that strictness both hurts and helps us and you.

That's something worth talking about in light of the Eurogamer debacle.

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Ask Massively: Missives from the Massively yacht originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 08 Nov 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Every six weeks

Brianna Royce — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Events (Real-World), MMO Industry, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Allods Online, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

Every six weeks, another Massively writer takes over Choose My Adventure, a column that asks readers to vote in polls to determine what the writer will play and do within the reader-selected game. The columnist bravely plunges into the role you design, even when you sadistically vote that he or she play a naked blue Gnome who fights in melee with guns and is forbidden to leave PvP battlegrounds except to craft cookie dough. That doesn't usually make for the best showcase of a game, which you're quick to tell us when the writer has a scattershot experience at your bidding.

Today's Ask Massively is all about the Choose My Adventure series and finding order in its chaos.

Continue reading Ask Massively: Every six weeks

Ask Massively: Every six weeks originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 25 Oct 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Rules, sources, and buy-to-play MMOs

Brianna Royce — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Business Models, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

There are 4,001 words in the Massively style guide. The abbreviated version of the style guide. And that's without counting a few hundred emails detailing other rules that our writers must follow, plus English grammar and syntax, plus hand-me-downs from Captain Joystiq and peevish precepts imposed by a mean ol' editor-in-chief. Rules help us deliver a consistent product to you, the readership, and when we don't, you notice.

Gamers follow a set of rules, too, when it comes to judging games. Indie games are judged less harshly than blockbuster developers. Overhyped games are held to a higher standard. Games with subs are cut less slack than freemium titles. You might not have codified all these little rules into a 4,001-word document, but they're rattling around your brain making decisions for you all the same.

So let's talk about rules and how they apply to Massively's sources and buy-to-play MMOs like Guild Wars 2.

Continue reading Ask Massively: Rules, sources, and buy-to-play MMOs

Ask Massively: Rules, sources, and buy-to-play MMOs originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Oct 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Forums, edit buttons, and staff change-ups

Brianna Royce — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Events (Real-World), MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

Last week, we announced that we are closing down Massively's forums. What forums, you ask? Yeah, unfortunately, that was exactly the point. The forums were always a bit too adjacent to the site, and in the wake of the success of our newfangled comment system, we'd prefer to focus on publishing articles and engaging readers right here in the comments on the site, rather than on a neglected off-site portal. I'm genuinely sorry, but I hope the few remaining, stalwart forumgoers will migrate over and help make our comments an even more interesting place to be. In return, we'll try to crack down harder on the comment trolls who are hell-bent on killing the buzz. Believe me, they annoy us as much as they annoy you, especially when we're babysitting them on a Friday night.

But this is Ask Massively, the meta column where you ask us weird questions and we give you weird answers. So what else did you wonder about this week?

Continue reading Ask Massively: Forums, edit buttons, and staff change-ups

Ask Massively: Forums, edit buttons, and staff change-ups originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: How awesome is your game?

Brianna Royce — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Interviews, MMO Industry, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Community Q&A, Miscellaneous

Welcome to the rebirth of Ask Massively! Rather than try to out-meta former author Eliot (cannot be done; he is the champion), I hope to turn Ask Massively into your place to talk directly to the editors of your favorite MMO blog. If you want to hear what we think about industry topics or ask something specific about the way Massively operates, send your letters to the editor and we might just address your questions using a really loud megaphone so we don't have to whisper answers down in the comments over and over and over...

Today's topic is inspired by the comments of our recent Soapbox column: fluffy interviews.

Continue reading Ask Massively: How awesome is your game?

Ask Massively: How awesome is your game? originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 04 Oct 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: There are better things to complain about than pandas edition

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 16 Aug 2012 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Launches, Opinion, Humor, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

I'm going to go right ahead and say that I really don't like the Pandaren in World of Warcraft at all. But it's not because they're pandas. It's because they're the definition of an in-joke taken to ridiculous levels, like an entire race dedicated to Steve Carrell saying, "I love lamp." If you want to be upset about Mists of Pandaria, please, do so about the things that are actually worth being upset over. The existence of ailuropoda melanoleuca is not on that list.

You want a list of what is worth being upset over? Sorry, but this week's installment of Ask Massively isn't about that; it's about the onrushing specter of the Guild Wars 2 launch and the continual scourge of the comment system bugs. If you've got a question you'd like to see in a future installment of the column, send it along to ask@massively.com or leave it in the comments below. Questions may be edited slightly for clarity and/or brevity.

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Ask Massively: I do not yet have my copy of Persona 4 Arena edition

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Guilds, Opinion, Massively Meta, Humor, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

The idea of a traditional 2-D fighting game in the Persona franchise seemed like it was too good to be true, but Persona 4 Arena is an actual thing that exists. Unfortunately, I don't currently have my copy, as I didn't feel like shelling out the extra money for super high-speed shipping on release day. So I'll probably have it soon, but not today. Until then, I can still be happy that Kanji's ultimate attack involves his fist-bumping his Persona. Oh, and Mitsuru's playable.

Ask Massively, as a whole, does not cover fighting games. Instead, it covers your questions about MMOs or about meta-MMO issues. For example, this week's question is about Massively guilds in games. If you've got a question you would like to see answered in a future installment of the column, mail it to ask@massively.com or leave it in the comments below. Questions may be edited slightly for clarity and/or brevity.

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Ask Massively: Welcome to here edition

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO Industry, News Items, Opinion, Humor, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

If you follow MMO news at all, you probably caught the fact that Star Wars: The Old Republic is going free-to-play this fall. This is news only in the most abstract sense of the word. Seriously, it's been three years since Dungeons & Dragons Online made the switch. Basically every title in the world has now converted over and found out that F2P is more or less a license to print money. Free-to-play is not the future of MMOs; free-to-play is the right now and has been for a while.

This week's installment of Ask Massively does not cover free-to-play conversions, but as you all know, I've never been a fan of strongly linking the opener to the rest of the article. No, this week we're talking about Blade & Soul. If you've got a question for a future installment of the column, leave it in the comments below or mail it to ask@massively.com. Questions may be edited slightly for clarity and/or brevity.

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Ask Massively: Safe for work edition

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Launches, New Titles, Opinion, Humor, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

I'm happy to announce that this installment of Ask Massively is entirely safe for work. You can click past the link assured that an embedded video will not start autoplaying a rap video with explicit lyrics that have been banned in seven countries. There are no pictures or descriptions of acts between two consenting adults that would result in jail time or possible lingering infections within one's armpits. No, you can show what's past the break to your boss!

Assuming that your boss is totally OK with your spending company time browsing MMO sites instead of doing your job. So in that sense, it's not all that safe.

In any event, this week we're looking at the transfer of names between your favorite Guild Wars characters and their new counterparts in Guild Wars 2. If you've got a question you'd like to see answered in a future installment of the column, mail it to ask@massively.com or leave it in the comments below. Questions may be edited slightly for clarity and/or brevity.

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Ask Massively: Owls, the bears of the sky edition

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business Models, Culture, MMO Industry, Opinion, Humor, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

It is important in these troubling times that we understand what things are in relation to other things. Dogs, for example, are very clearly the sea lions of the land. Volcanoes are the ulcers of the earth, camels are the ships of the desert, and hoodies are the kangaroo costumes of the non-Australian. But what are owls? Owls are the bears of the sky, my friend. Inversely, bears are the owls of the land. I hope this makes your day-to-day life significantly easier.

Now that I've gotten one of your major questions out of the way, I guess I can move on to finish up with the rest of Ask Massively, which discusses free-to-play profits versus sub profits and more about our comment system. (For the record, our comment system is the smoke signal of the site, if smoke signals also involved smiley faces and memes.) If you've got a question you'd like to see answered in a future installment of the column, mail it along to ask@massively.com or leave it in the comments below. Questions may be edited slightly for clarity and/or brevity.

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Ask Massively: All deckbuilders, all the time edition

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, MMO Industry, News Items, Opinion, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

Lately I've basically been unable to get enough of board games. I am sadly at the point that all I need to get excited about a game is the promise of cards and possibly some sort of combat. I'm going to blame Matt Daniel for introducing me to Thunderstone Advance because that introduced me to deckbuilders as a whole, and now I'm sitting here seriously considering buying a Japanese card game about assembling a maid harem. This is not a position I needed to be in.

And now for something completely different: this week's Ask Massively. This time around, we're tackling the curious issue of Phantasy Star Online 2's slow process of translation, one that could be described as "glacial." If you've got a question you'd like to see answered in a future installment of the column, leave it in the comments below or mail it to ask@massively.com. Questions may be edited slightly for brevity and/or clarity.

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Ask Massively: I hope you enjoyed your explosions edition

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 05 Jul 2012 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business Models, MMO Industry, News Items, Opinion, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

For Americans, yesterday was July 4th, also known as the one time of the year when it is considered perfectly acceptable to detonate small explosives in your yard. Why is that how we celebrate the birthday of our nation? I don't know. I just know that explosions are pretty fun, and so I look forward to the annual detonation of cheap boxes filled with gunpowder and other chemicals, creating a visually pleasing shower of sparks and flames.

I'm also not clear on why we dress up like movie characters to celebrate the end of October, for the record.

Whether or not you enjoyed yesterday's round of explosions, it's time for this week's installment of Ask Massively, in which we tackle the big questions. Specifically, we tackle two big questions about the pace of major news releases and the boxed retail model for MMOs. If you've got a question you'd like to see answered in a future installment of the column, leave it in the comments below or mail it to ask@massively.com. Questions may be edited slightly for brevity and/or clarity.

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Ask Massively: I would like to play WildStar now please OK edition

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 28 Jun 2012 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Lore, Opinion, Massively Meta, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

At Massively, we all have our pet games, games that we follow with interest and that we want to do well. Some of mine are quite obvious, but if you weren't aware that WildStar is on that list, well, now you know. Come on, it's like Walt Disney's Firefly as an MMO and man everything I see about it just makes me want to start playing yesterday. This is kind of related to the fact that we had two separate interviews about it this week, if you hadn't guessed.

It's also somewhat related to this week's Ask Massively questions, seeing as how one of those questions is about the games that we hate. Yes, I know, I did a topical introduction; I'm very ashamed of myself. I also answer a question about fantasy worlds in the distant future. If you've got a question you'd like to see in a future installment of the column, send it along to ask@massively.com or leave it in the comments below. Questions may be edited slightly for clarity and/or brevity.

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Ask Massively: You guys have strong opinions on gaming laptops edition

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Events (Real-World), MMO Industry, Opinion, Humor, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

I really didn't expect the sheer volume of comments last week about getting or not getting a gaming laptop. That's my own fault for using a picture of a laptop as the header, I suppose. For the record, I bought a laptop, an Asus X54C as pictured above, to replace my netbook. Any games that I can run on that machine are essentially a bonus. I'm looking to replace my desktop, which is my preferred platform for gaming for several reasons. But I do appreciate all of the feedback!

That was then, this is now, and now is all about a new set of answers in Ask Massively. This week, we're talking about the old standby of internet games, the games that were viral before "viral" was a thing: ARGs. If you've got a question for a future installment of the column, mail it to ask@massively.com or leave it in the comments below. Questions may be edited slightly for clarity and/or brevity.

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Ask Massively: Shopping for new computers edition

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Humor, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

I'm not having a great year for computers. Back in January, my much-loved netbook passed. I'd been having trouble with my desktop for quite some time after I bought it, and I'm pretty sure the processor is the root of the problems, but at this point it's just going to need a replacement. The plus side is that means that I have a large enough budget to afford a much better machine than I could when I bought this one, so it's almost a blessing in disguise.

Of course, I'm writing this installment of Ask Massively on a computer, so clearly I'm capable of using such a device for important duties. Important duties like explaining why Final Fantasy XIV isn't offering players a free trial and why our comment system is experiencing a truly humbling bug. If you've got a question for a future installment, leave it in the comments below or mail it along to ask@massively.com. Questions may be edited slightly for clarity and/or brevity.

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Ask Massively: Shopping for new computers edition originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 14 Jun 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: Squee edition

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Humor, Ask Massively, Miscellaneous

Part of me could be nervous about what's coming next for Final Fantasy XIV, since it'll mean a lot of big changes for the game and it may no longer be quite the same place I now call home. But most of me is looking at new screenshots and squeeing. Literally squeeing. I mean that I am shaking my fists, beaming with joy, and making a high-pitched noise resembling that of a boiling teakettle. It won't excite everyone, but boy does it excite me.

Seeing as I'm being a bit self-indulgent with this week's Ask Massively opener -- which happens about half of the time, I know -- you might not be surprised that this week's question is a little more indulgent, discussing what's expected of MMOs. If you've got a question you'd like to see answered in a future installment of the column, leave it in the comments below or mail it to ask@massively.com. Questions may be edited slightly for clarity and/or brevity.

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Ask Massively: Squee edition originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 07 Jun 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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