Massively http://massively.joystiq.com Massively http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://massively.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Massively http://massively.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[EVE Evolved: Risk vs. reward in lowsec]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/05/13/eve-evolved-risk-vs-reward-in-lowsec/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/05/13/eve-evolved-risk-vs-reward-in-lowsec/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/05/13/eve-evolved-risk-vs-reward-in-lowsec/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

EVE Evolved title image
In EVE Online's early years, one of its core design philosophies was adherence to a strict risk vs. reward balance scheme. There were riches out there to be found, but to get them, you had to put yourself in the firing line. Police ships patrolled high-security space to keep players safe from piracy, but the only resources available there were low-bounty frigate NPCs and inexpensive ores like Veldspar, Scordite and Omber. In the lawless far-reaches of nullsec, huge NPC bounties and rare ores containing Megacyte and Zydrine tempted hundreds of pilots to head out and make their fortunes.

Nullsec offered absolutely no protection against player attacks, and the only safety to be found was in sheer military force. The biggest and best corporations hoarded these gold mines for themselves, locking down the few entrances into the regions and patrolling the skies for unwanted visitors. Low-security space offered a middle-ground between these two extremes, a place where the everyday pilot could enjoy increased income and pirates were easier to spot. At some time in the past nine years, lowsec lost its place in the game and became simply not worth the effort. But how did that happen, and what can be done to fix it?

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at why lowsec systems are now ghost towns and suggest an alternative design philosophy that I think could revitalise these under-used areas.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Risk vs. reward in lowsec

MassivelyEVE Evolved: Risk vs. reward in lowsec originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 13 May 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balanceblast-miningbooster-manufacturingboostersccpccp-gamesconcordcriminalcriminalitydrug-manufacturingdrugseveeve-evolvedeve-onlinefeaturedhighsecillegallowsecmission-runningmissionsnullsecopinionrewardriskrisk-vs-rewardsandboxsci-fismugglersmugglingSun, 13 May 2012 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[MapleStory proclaims Alliance Eternal this week]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/04/23/maplestory-proclaims-alliance-eternal-this-week/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/04/23/maplestory-proclaims-alliance-eternal-this-week/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/04/23/maplestory-proclaims-alliance-eternal-this-week/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

MapleStory
With this week's Alliance Eternal patch in MapleStory, Nexon has returned the balance of the classes to where it should be. The final update in the Alliance trilogy focuses on Cygnus Knights and Explorer classes, retuning them and bringing their power levels back up to par with the classes that received developer love with the previous updates.

Alliance Eternal has a few other fun surprises for players. Level 120 characters can hop through a Dimensional Schism and take on the sinister-sounding Arkarium, while Cygnus Knights level 110 or above have new quest chains to investigate.

Nexon's also looking forward to the coming months. MapleStory will hit its seven-year anniversary in May, and players should expect a big bash when that happens. The devs also teased a "big summer content release" on the horizon with two new characters including the Phantom hero.

MassivelyMapleStory proclaims Alliance Eternal this week originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 23 Apr 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>alliance-eternalalliance-eternal-patchalliance-eternal-updatebalanceCygnus-Knightexplorerf2pfantasyfree-to-playmaplestorynexonnexon-americanexon-koreapatchrebalancingupdateMon, 23 Apr 2012 16:00:00 EST<![CDATA[EVE Evolved: Rebalancing EVE's ships]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/03/18/eve-evolved-rebalancing-eves-ships/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/03/18/eve-evolved-rebalancing-eves-ships/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/03/18/eve-evolved-rebalancing-eves-ships/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,

EVE Evolved title image
Recently we heard the glorious news that CCP will be overhauling EVE Online's entire roster of tech 1 ships as part of the Inferno expansion. The overhaul will start with changes to the skill requirements for destroyers and battlecruisers and culminate in the complete removal of ship tiers and the introduction of new structured ship lines. Countless new ship types have been released since EVE launched in 2003, but there has never really been a unifying design policy on ship skills and combat roles. Now, eight years down the line, adding new ships has become a struggle in avoiding making older ones obsolete. Drastic change is needed, and when the Inferno expansion hits, that's exactly what we'll get.

When a new EVE player is ready to get into something larger than a frigate, he's currently faced with the choice of training for a destroyer or skipping it and heading straight to cruisers. Similarly, players often skip from cruisers straight to slow, bulky battleships even though battlecruisers are probably the most effective ship class for new pilots. A new system is on the way this summer, one that aims to fix this problem by introducing new racial versions of the destroyer and battlecruiser skills that must be trained on the way to bigger ships. This change should make training progression much clearer for new pilots and is just the tip of the iceberg of awesome plans in the works for the summer expansion.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I examine EVE Online's upcoming ship revamp and tell you how you may be able to get free skillpoints when the patch goes live.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Rebalancing EVE's ships

MassivelyEVE Evolved: Rebalancing EVE's ships originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 18 Mar 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancebalancingbattlecruiserbattlecruisersbuffccpccp-gamesdestroyerdestroyerseveeve-evolvedeve-onlineexpansionfeaturedinfernonerfopinionrebalancingsandboxsci-fiSun, 18 Mar 2012 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[EVE Online talks about bringing ship trees to ship shape]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/03/06/eve-online-talks-about-bringing-ship-trees-to-ship-shape/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/03/06/eve-online-talks-about-bringing-ship-trees-to-ship-shape/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/03/06/eve-online-talks-about-bringing-ship-trees-to-ship-shape/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

Because you can never have enough internet spaceships, right?
Every MMO has to face an issue of complexity creep, and EVE Online is no exception. The current trees for ship progression and skill advancement are the result of numerous patches, additions, and alterations to a core system that's left an enormous mess behind. As a result, the whole system is in need of an overhaul, one that the most recent development blog discusses in detail.

The first changes involve cleaning up and streamlining the progression system so that ships such as Destroyers and Battlecruisers are a part of the standard path rather than unusual deviations. There's also a removal of some of the more labyrinthine requirements for tech 2 ships. The other major focus is a removal of the current system of ship tiers, with the developers trying to specialize ships based on roles and make each hull useful in its own fashion. EVE Online players are going to be seeing a big upheaval in the way that ships work in the future, so it's probably a good idea to get a feel for where the changes are arriving sooner rather than later.

MassivelyEVE Online talks about bringing ship trees to ship shape originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 06 Mar 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balanceccpccp-gameseveeve-onlineeve-shipsgame-mechanicsgame-systemsinternet-spaceshipsmechanical-balancemechanicssandboxsci-fiship-tiersshipsspreadsheets-onlinesystemsTue, 06 Mar 2012 21:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Champions Online rolling out Role and Stat changes]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/24/champions-online-rolling-out-role-and-stat-changes-stat/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/24/champions-online-rolling-out-role-and-stat-changes-stat/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/24/champions-online-rolling-out-role-and-stat-changes-stat/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

Balance isn't a stat. It's just a good idea.
Like many MMOs, Champions Online is at its heart a game of numbers. Your character type focuses on certain stats, and you want to make those stats go higher. But sometimes the way those stats work together is a bit less than intuitive in the live game, hence some recent changes to Super Stats and regular stats on the test servers. The biggest change assigns one primary and two secondary, rather than two Super Stats, to players, which alleviates the current problems with Super Stats (certain pairs of Super Stats work poorly together and are poorly represented in itemization).

Individual stats have also seen some tweaks: Strength is no longer hard-capped for melee damage, Presence has had its threat component removed and a soft-cap introduced, Ego is now solely a ranged stat, and Dexterity has seen improvements to its critical benefits. Roles are also being balanced differently, giving more consistent stat benefits that are more in line with what players in a given role will actually need to do. It's a pretty sweeping set of changes, but the end goal is to give Champions Online players a more straightforward numbers game to play.

MassivelyChampions Online rolling out Role and Stat changes originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 24 Feb 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>abilitiesbalancebalance-changeschampions-onlinecharacter-buildscocrypticcryptic-studiosf2pfree-to-playgame-mechanicsgame-systemsmechanicsnewsperfect-world-entertainmentpwestatisticsstatssystemstestFri, 24 Feb 2012 21:00:00 EST<![CDATA[The Soapbox: The illusion of balance]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/21/the-soapbox-the-illusion-of-balance/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/21/the-soapbox-the-illusion-of-balance/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/21/the-soapbox-the-illusion-of-balance/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

It's a nice idea, at least.
Disclaimer: The Soapbox column is entirely the opinion of this week's writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column.

Somewhere, on a lone computer in a lonely room, sits the archetype for a balanced MMO, one in which every set of abilities in a skill-based MMO is just as useful as every other set of abilities and every class in a class-based game is just as potent as every other class. There are no disparities in terms of power level, no massive gaps in gearing, and no issues with the specific fights. It is an entirely balanced machine.

And as long as we're creating a myth with no place in reality, let's assume that it's being guarded by unicorns. That's the problem with balance -- it's an idea that doesn't actually work in a real environment. We talk a lot about wanting games to have balanced systems, and there are players devoted to declaring with great fervor that classes aren't balanced against one another, but balance is such a hazy concept that no matter how much you want a balanced game, it doesn't really exist.

Continue reading The Soapbox: The illusion of balance

MassivelyThe Soapbox: The illusion of balance originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 21 Feb 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ability-balancebalancebalance-issuesbalanced-systemsbalancingclass-balancefairfair-fightfarinessfeaturedopinionskill-balancesoapboxthe-soapboxunbalancedTue, 21 Feb 2012 20:00:00 EST<![CDATA[League of Legends reveals Nautilus, announces Sona nerf]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/12/league-of-legends-reveals-nautilus-announces-sona-nerf/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/12/league-of-legends-reveals-nautilus-announces-sona-nerf/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/12/league-of-legends-reveals-nautilus-announces-sona-nerf/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

League of Legends title image
Riot Games adds a new champion to League of Legends' growing roster every few weeks to keep the game fresh, and this week Riot revealed the game's next champion Nautilus, the Titan of the Depths. Nautilus is a tank with a unique initiation ability: He throws his massive anchor toward a target, and then drags himself toward the anchor. His abilities encourage spreading damage around during team fights, with his passive adding bonus damage to his first attack against a champion every twelve seconds and immobilising them slightly. A shield ability and area-effect damage spells make Nautilus a dangerous tank to be near during team fights.

A number of gameplay and balance changes will be coming in the Nautilus patch. Shen is getting a complete ability set retuning to make him scale better to late game, and let him function better as as tank. It's been a long time coming, but unsurprisingly LoL's dominant support champion Sona is due for a few nerfs in the upcoming patch. The mana regenerated by Soraka's Infuse will be increased but she'll no longer be able to cast it on herself to essentially have limitless mana. Nerfs are also on the way for Vladimir, aimed at decreasing his early game presence without disrupting his fun gameplay. Check out the full patch preview video after the cut for more details.

Continue reading League of Legends reveals Nautilus, announces Sona nerf

MassivelyLeague of Legends reveals Nautilus, announces Sona nerf originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 12 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancedotae-sportesportsf2pfantasyfree-to-playleague-of-legendslolmobanautilusnerfnewspatchriotriot-gamessonasorakatankvideovladimirSun, 12 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Anarchy Online's new game director details early 2012 plans]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/31/anarchy-onlines-new-game-director-details-early-2012-plans/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/31/anarchy-onlines-new-game-director-details-early-2012-plans/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/31/anarchy-onlines-new-game-director-details-early-2012-plans/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Screenshot -- Anarchy Online
We haven't heard a whole lot from Funcom's old-school sci-fi MMO Anarchy Online since mid-December when the game's producer bowed out. Today, however, the new game director, Fia "Lindelu" Tjernberg, stopped by the game's official forums to give players a bit of an update on what they can expect from the first months of the new year.

For starters, Tjernberg gives players a progress report on the game's upcoming shiny new graphics engine. She goes on to explain that "[Funcom's] artists have been preparing a couple of playfields to a standard that is very close to what we're aiming for," and adds that the first video of the new engine should hit sometime in February. Another large priority for the team for early 2012 is the new player experience, but perhaps most importantly of all is the "balancing act," as Tjernberg puts it, which (predictably) aims to bring the game's professions into balance "a little bit at a time."

For the full details on Anarchy Online's plans for the next couple of months, just click on through the link below.

MassivelyAnarchy Online's new game director details early 2012 plans originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 31 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>anarchyanarchy-onlineaobalancebalancingbalancing-actenginef2pfia-tjernbergfree-to-playfuncomgraphic-enginegraphics-enginelindelunew-player-experiencenew-playersupdateupdatesTue, 31 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Flameseeker Chronicles: ArenaNet talks PvE vs. PvP]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/09/flameseeker-chronicles-arenanet-talks-pve-vs-pve/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/09/flameseeker-chronicles-arenanet-talks-pve-vs-pve/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/09/flameseeker-chronicles-arenanet-talks-pve-vs-pve/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

Ascalon Catacombs GW2 dungeon
"I don't care for PvP, so Guild Wars 2 doesn't really interest me."

This is something that I've heard with some regularity over the past year or two, and every time I sort of shake my head in confusion. How could anyone perceive Guild Wars 2 as a PvP-only game? Really, just take a look at what we've seen from the development team and how PvE-centric it is and it seems that you'd get the impression that if anything, there's more of a PvE focus.

Of course, I can see where this perception comes from -- Guild Wars 1 holds the same perception for a lot of people, so it carries over. As a huge fan of both games and a pure PvE player, I thought it would be fun to take this week and clear things up. Eric Flannum and John Stumme were kind enough to help, stepping in to answer a few questions about the balance of things both past and present. Curious about what they have to say? Click past the cut and take a look!

Continue reading Flameseeker Chronicles: ArenaNet talks PvE vs. PvP

MassivelyFlameseeker Chronicles: ArenaNet talks PvE vs. PvP originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 09 Jan 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>anetarenanetbalanceeric-flannumfeaturedflameseeker-chroniclesguild-warsguild-wars-2gwgw2interviewinterviewsjohn-stummencsoftpvepvpMon, 09 Jan 2012 10:00:00 EST<![CDATA[BioWare's James Ohlen: Bug fixes coming weekly]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/04/biowares-james-ohlen-bug-fixes-coming-weekly/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/04/biowares-james-ohlen-bug-fixes-coming-weekly/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/04/biowares-james-ohlen-bug-fixes-coming-weekly/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Screenshot -- Star Wars: The Old Republic
Any new MMO, even big-budget behemoths like BioWare's Star Wars: The Old Republic, is often fraught with bugs and exploits that can keep the game from living up to its full potential. The Old Republic's game director, James Ohlen, recognizes this and has stopped by the official forums to let players know how the company will be handling the game's bugs, glitches, and exploits.

Ohlen states that "almost every week [BioWare] will be releasing a new patch." These pseudo-weekly patches will be focused almost entirely on fixing bugs, exploits, and glaring balance issues within the game. Ohlen does remind players, however, that bug-fixing is not always a simple task. "There are issues that we will fix immediately," he says, with the caveat that "these are rare and not every issue can be fixed in this manner. We usually reserve these 'emergency fixes' for bugs that are stopping players from playing the game or to exploits that could unbalance the entire game if not corrected." I'm sure players have a few things in mind to which an emergency fix could be applied, but we'll just have to wait for the next patch to see what the devs have cooked up.

MassivelyBioWare's James Ohlen: Bug fixes coming weekly originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 04 Jan 2012 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Leaderboard's Hybrid entry
We love hearing what you have to say at Massively, and we love it even more when we can share the best comments with all of our readers. Massively staffers will be contributing some of their favorite comments every week, so keep an eye out every Sunday for more Global Chat!

Merry Christmas, Massively readers! We're enjoying some time with our loved ones today here at Massively, and we hope you're doing the same. We've prepared a few things for you to read in your downtime today, though. One of them is this week's Global Chat, so follow along after the break for the best of what our readers had to say last week!

Continue reading Global Chat: December 18-24, 2011

MassivelyGlobal Chat: December 18-24, 2011 originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 25 Dec 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balanceclassesehraf2pfeaturedfree-to-playgaming-definitionsmechwarrior-onlinemmonot-an-mmoopinionopinionsryansam-not-spamSun, 25 Dec 2011 10:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Behind the Mask: What does unbalanced even mean?]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12/08/behind-the-mask-what-does-unbalanced-even-mean/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12/08/behind-the-mask-what-does-unbalanced-even-mean/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12/08/behind-the-mask-what-does-unbalanced-even-mean/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

One of the major criticisms of Champions Online is a lack of game balance. People claim that the phrase "your own hero, your own story" doesn't cover the fact that your hero might be a gimp compared to someone else's. Although archetypes have their own balance issues (even among themselves), this complaint most commonly leveled at the freeform game where there are millions of possible characters.

However, I think that most armchair game theorists have a terrible understanding of what "balance" even means. Decades of competitive gaming (yeah, I'm that old) have given me a comprehensive understanding of what the term means, and I think it's worth looking at how CO stacks up.

Continue reading Behind the Mask: What does unbalanced even mean?

MassivelyBehind the Mask: What does unbalanced even mean? originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 08 Dec 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balanceBehind-the-Maskchampions-onlinecocrypticcryptic-champions-onlinecryptic-cocryptic-studiosf2pfeaturedfree-to-playgame-balanceimbalanceopoverpoweredperfect-world-entertainmentpvp-balancepwestreet-fighter-2-came-out-a-long-time-agosuper-herounbalancedThu, 08 Dec 2011 14:00:00 EST<![CDATA[EVE Evolved: Everything there is to know about Crucible]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12/04/eve-evolved-everything-there-is-to-know-about-crucible/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12/04/eve-evolved-everything-there-is-to-know-about-crucible/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12/04/eve-evolved-everything-there-is-to-know-about-crucible/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

EVE Evolved title image
This summer's lackluster Incarna expansion and the ensuing microtransaction drama took a massive toll on EVE Online's player community and development staff. Players were quitting in droves, and CCP eventually had to lay off 20% of its staff worldwide. Two years of half-implemented expansions, broken features, and "first steps" that were never iterated on left players begging for a content-heavy expansion like Apocrypha or those released in EVE's early years. EVE is known for being practically a new game every six months, but since the blockbuster Apocrypha expansion, daily life in New Eden hasn't changed much at all.

To pull things back from the brink, CCP refocused development on EVE Online and gave developers a free pass to work on hundreds of small features and improvements. The company began flooding us with details on new ships, graphical updates, new gameplay mechanics, and desperately needed balance tweaks, and we loved every bit of it. Although it's mostly small features and gameplay tweaks, the Crucible expansion feels like a genuine rebirth for EVE Online. The types of changes made show that CCP knows exactly what players want from EVE and that the company is now willing to deliver it. With CCP's renewed focus on internet spaceships, the Crucible expansion feels like the start of a new era in the sandbox.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I pull together everything there is to know about the Crucible expansion that went live this week, from its turbulent origins to the awesome features and PvP updates it contains.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Everything there is to know about Crucible

MassivelyEVE Evolved: Everything there is to know about Crucible originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 04 Dec 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancebattlecruiserbattleshipblasterscapital-shipcapital-shipsccpccp-eveccp-gamesccp-pannceocruciblecustoms-officedev-diarydevblogdubstepengine-trailseveeve-ccpeve-evolvedeve-mmorpgeve-onlineexpansionfeaturedgdc-2011graphicshilmarhybridhybrid-weaponslayoffsnaganebulanebulaenerfnewsoracleplayer-owned-starbaseplayer-owned-stationpvproundupship-spinningstarbasesupercapital-nerfsupercapitalstalostime-dilationtornadotrailervideowubwubwubwubpewpewpewSun, 04 Dec 2011 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[The MMO Report: Schreinercraft edition]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12/01/the-mmo-report-schreinercraft-edition/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12/01/the-mmo-report-schreinercraft-edition/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12/01/the-mmo-report-schreinercraft-edition/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

The MMO Report
This week on The MMO Report, Casey covers South Korea's Cinderella Law, Firefall's attempts at class balance, and World of Warcraft's 4.3 patch. He also suggests that "it's beginning to look a lot like riftmas" in RIFT (groan) before announcing that in honor of Minecon and Minecraft's 240 million logins per month, he will soon begin work on "Schreinercraft, a graphically minimalist, open-source game where players build, create, and customize virtual beards for their avatars." He notes that he doesn't "have any programming experience, start-up capital, or a business plan," but he "love[s] money and would enjoy having more of it." Don't we all!

Finally, he dives into Uncle Casey's Mailbag and asks readers to mail him the story of their first MMO experience for possible inclusion in a future show.

All this and more in the full HD video behind the break!

Continue reading The MMO Report: Schreinercraft edition

MassivelyThe MMO Report: Schreinercraft edition originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 01 Dec 2011 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balanceBlizzardBlizzard-Entertainmentcaseycasey-schreinercinderella-lawfirefallmineconminecraftmmo-reportnewsred-5red-5-studiosriftschreinercraftsouth-koreathe-mmo-reporttriontrion-worldsuncle-caseys-mailbagvideovideosWorld-of-WarcraftwowThu, 01 Dec 2011 22:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Firefall video diary talks Medics, Assaults, and that dreaded balance word]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/22/firefall-video-diary-talks-medics-assaults-and-that-dreaded-ba/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/22/firefall-video-diary-talks-medics-assaults-and-that-dreaded-ba/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/22/firefall-video-diary-talks-medics-assaults-and-that-dreaded-ba/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

Firefall - Assault battleframe
Mmm, Firefall.

Red 5 Studios is starting the Thanksgiving week off right with a delicious helping of video. The entree consists of David Williams talking a bit about class design and the balance challenges inherent in the title's battleframes (for the uninitiated, battleframes are the suits of power armor worn by Firefall's soldiers, and in gameplay terms they determine your class and combat role).

When it comes to the dreaded "B" word, Williams uses the game's Medic class as an example, and he says that Red 5 wants combat docs to be able to deal damage and fulfill the primary support role. This poses a problem, of course, because other classes (like the Assault) aren't able to do both. The Medic "needed to be fun, it needed to be threatening, but it also needed to be just below the offensive capabilities of an Assault," Williams explains.

See what else he has to say, and get a good look at Firefall in action, via the video after the break.

Continue reading Firefall video diary talks Medics, Assaults, and that dreaded balance word

MassivelyFirefall video diary talks Medics, Assaults, and that dreaded balance word originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 22 Nov 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>assaultbalancebattleframesclass-balanceclassesdavid-williamsdev-diaryf2pfirefallfree-to-playmedicmmo-shooterred-5red-5-studiossci-fishootertrailervideovideo-diaryTue, 22 Nov 2011 17:00:00 EST<![CDATA[EVE Evolved: Returning EVE to the Crucible]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/20/eve-evolved-returning-eve-to-the-crucible/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/20/eve-evolved-returning-eve-to-the-crucible/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/20/eve-evolved-returning-eve-to-the-crucible/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

EVE Evolved title image
When EVE Online launched in 2003, it was a barren game without many of the comforts we enjoy today. The user interface was abysmally worse than today's (if you can imagine such a thing), players with cruisers were top dog, and practically the only activities were mining or blowing up miners. The culmination of years of hard work by a small indie studio, EVE Online sold almost entirely on its future potential. When I was introduced to the game by an excited friend in early 2004 during the Castor expansion, he encouraged me to get in on the ground floor because he believed the game was going to be huge. Years later, I find myself introducing the game to thousands of readers on the same premise.

EVE's continual success over the years transformed a fresh-faced CCP Games into a multinational game development giant. And yet, for all that growth and all the updates to EVE over the years, the fact that the game sells largely on future potential is still firmly embedded in both players and developers. Players subscribe not only because they like the game but because they want to support development to reach EVE's true potential. Two years with very little iteration on existing features sent the message that developers weren't trying to reach that potential, but it seems that trend is soon to be completely reversed. With the newly announced Crucible expansion, CCP will be adding countless small features, graphical updates and iterations that put EVE firmly back on the path to reaching its full potential.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at CCP's plans to return EVE to the crucible and reforge it into something awesome. Those waiting for the third part of my look at the new player experience can catch that in next week's column, as Kajatta is enjoying his final week in EVE before delivering his verdict.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Returning EVE to the Crucible

MassivelyEVE Evolved: Returning EVE to the Crucible originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 20 Nov 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancebomb-launcher-iibubbleccpccp-eveccp-gamesccp-soundwavecommand-shipcrucibledreadnoughteveeve-ccpeve-evolvedeve-mmorpgeve-onlineexpansionfeaturedfleetfleet-warfarefuel-blocksgraphicsmothershipnebulanebulaenewsnyphurpatchpvpsiegesiege-modulesiege-module-iistarbasestarbasesstealth-bomberssupercapitalsupercapital-nerfsupercapitalssupercarriersupercarrierstech-2tech-3tech-iitech-iiititantriagetriage-module-iiwarfarewarfare-linkswarp-disruption-field-generator-iiwinterSun, 20 Nov 2011 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Addicted gamer shares his struggle to find balance between the real world and the virtual world]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/14/addicted-gamer-shares-his-struggle-to-find-balance-between-the-r/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/14/addicted-gamer-shares-his-struggle-to-find-balance-between-the-r/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/14/addicted-gamer-shares-his-struggle-to-find-balance-between-the-r/#commentsFiled under: , ,

KVOA
While Tucson's KVOA may not be so well-versed in MMOs as to distinguish between Gears of War and Dark Age of Camelot, the local news station put together an interesting little piece on online game addiction nevertheless.

The brief report highlights the story of Elijah Oster, a father and husband who got so pulled into MMOs that he began to neglect his family and suffer from insomnia. He admits that he failed to "budget enough time" for his loved ones, and would grow irritable when his wife interrupted his play sessions.

Behavioral health counselor Jeffrey Friedman was brought in to comment on game addiction, which he says is similar to most forms of addition in that people's actions are dictated by what will cause them the least emotional pain. In this case, it's becoming overly dependent on an online world instead of the real one. Friedman works at the Cottonwood Tucson center.

The report concludes with Oster sharing what he realized after treatment: "I started understanding the concept of balance."

MassivelyAddicted gamer shares his struggle to find balance between the real world and the virtual world originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 14 Nov 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>addictionbalancebehavioral-healthcottonwood-tucsonElijah-Ostergame-addictionJeffrey-Friedmankvoammo-addictiononline-addictiontucsonvideo-game-addictionMon, 14 Nov 2011 12:30:00 EST<![CDATA[EVE Evolved: Gallente and hybrid balance]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/06/eve-evolved-gallente-and-hybrid-balance/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/06/eve-evolved-gallente-and-hybrid-balance/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/06/eve-evolved-gallente-and-hybrid-balance/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

EVE Evolved title image
It's been another week filled with announcements and positive news for EVE Online, with CCP showing off EVE's new nebulae and revealing the Amarr and Caldari tier 3 battlecruisers. For Gallente pilots, no news was celebrated more than the rebalancing of hybrid weapons and ships that specialise in their use. Short-range blasters can technically deliver the highest damage output of any turret, but their extremely short optimal range means they deal a smaller fraction of their maximum damage in most fights than other ships. Blaster ships have to spend valuable travel time closing into weapons range, and once up close, targets are hard to track.

Although railguns were designed by the Caldari, they're hybrid weapons just like blasters, and so they are the long-range weapon of choice for Gallente sniping and mission-running ships. They have good range and tracking speed but have always suffered from slightly worse damage output and alpha strike than beam lasers and artillery cannons of the same size. Countless suggestions for fixes to blasters and railguns have appeared on the forum over the years, but until now they've remained unchanged. As a Gallente pilot and avid Thorax and Dominix fan, I'm very excited by the hybrid balance changes coming this winter.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I take a break from the new player experience experiment to take a look at the impact of the upcoming hybrid balance patch and why the announced changes are needed.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Gallente and hybrid balance

MassivelyEVE Evolved: Gallente and hybrid balance originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 06 Nov 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancebalancingblasterblasterscaldaricaldari-nagaccpccp-eveccp-gamesdominixeveeve-ccpeve-evolvedeve-mmorpgeve-onlineexpansionfeaturedgallentegallente-taloshybridhybrid-weaponsmegathronnagapatchpvepvprailgunrailgunsrokhsnipersnipingspreadsheets-in-spacetalosthoraxSun, 06 Nov 2011 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Latest EVE dev video talks ship balance and features coming this winter]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/05/latest-eve-dev-video-talks-ship-balance-and-features-coming-this/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/05/latest-eve-dev-video-talks-ship-balance-and-features-coming-this/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/05/latest-eve-dev-video-talks-ship-balance-and-features-coming-this/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

Stoffer yeoooo
Several weeks ago, EVE Online developer CCP Games restructured its company and announced a new laser focus on in-space features for EVE Online. Since then we've seen an absolute deluge of news updates and devblogs on features due for release in the winter expansion. In the first two of CCP's new In Development video series, CCP Guard explored the art department and showed off the new nebula effects, EVE's sharpened shadows and the new tier 3 battlecruisers.

In the latest In Development video, Guard talks to the EVE feature teams about the absolutely massive list of balance changes and features coming with the winter expansion. CCP Soundwave admits that developers have "probably done more rebalancing in the past month than we have in the past two years," before rattling off an impressive list of changes and new features.

Skip past the cut for a brief summary of the changes and to watch the video in HD.

Continue reading Latest EVE dev video talks ship balance and features coming this winter

MassivelyLatest EVE dev video talks ship balance and features coming this winter originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 05 Nov 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>anomalybalancebalancingbattlecruiserbookmarkscapitalcapital-ship-rebalancecapital-shipsccp-soundwaveccp-tallestccp-ytterbiumcorp-bookmarksdestroyersdev-diarydramielexpansionfuel-pelletlogisticsnerfnewspatchposstarbasesupercapital-nerfsupercapitalsvideowormholewormhole-explorationwormholesSat, 05 Nov 2011 11:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Captain's Log: A two-minute read could save you 15% or more on nerdrage insurance]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/03/captains-log-a-two-minute-read-could-save-you-15-or-more-on-n/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/03/captains-log-a-two-minute-read-could-save-you-15-or-more-on-n/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/03/captains-log-a-two-minute-read-could-save-you-15-or-more-on-n/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Screenshot - Star Trek Online
Captain's Log, Stardate 65340.3...

Hello, computer (and players)! Welcome to this week's edition of Captain's Log, brought to you by "Geko" Insurance. (And let's just say, you may want to purchase a policy). If you are a Star Trek Online player who watches Cryptic's official forums, you know that the game experienced an Occupy movement of its own this past weekend. Even if you don't frequent the forums, you may have seen some of the concerns raised through the #STO Twitter feed.

Over the weekend, players lashed out against some of the recent changes that have made their way to the Tribble test server. It may be surprising to some of you reading this, but the commotion was not related to the economy changes. The main concern is that some of the items for purchase in the C-Store are going to be changing from account-wide unlocks to per-character transactions. While I was a little perturbed at the thought too, I was happy to see that some of the misconceptions were cleared up once we got an official statement from one of the devs. But since there is a lot more to the story, let's take a look.

Ensign, warp 10! And don't forget to buckle your seatbelt...

Continue reading Captain's Log: A two-minute read could save you 15% or more on nerdrage insurance

MassivelyCaptain's Log: A two-minute read could save you 15% or more on nerdrage insurance originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 03 Nov 2011 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>al-riverabalanceboycottc-storec-store-pointscaptain-gekocaptains-logconsumablescraftingcrypticcryptic-pointscryptic-star-trekcryptic-studiosdoffduty-officerduty-officer-systemExchangef2pfeaturedfeedbackforumsfree-to-playhereticlivestreammarketingpatch-notesperfect-worldperfect-world-entertainmentst-onlinestar-trek-mmostar-trek-onlinestarshipsstotrek-onlinetribbletribble-test-servertwitterunlock-statusThu, 03 Nov 2011 18:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Details of EVE's long-awaited hybrid balance patch revealed]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/01/details-of-eves-long-awaited-hybrid-balance-patch-revealed/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/01/details-of-eves-long-awaited-hybrid-balance-patch-revealed/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/11/01/details-of-eves-long-awaited-hybrid-balance-patch-revealed/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

EVE Online title image
Balancing combat in a PvP-centric game like EVE Online is a tricky business. In a sandbox universe that pits fleets of hundreds of ships against each other in a struggle for territorial dominance, balance changes can alter the PvP landscape. Unfortunately, hybrid weapons have always received the short end of the stick in balancing efforts, leaving Gallente turret ships like the Deimos and Megathron behind their Amarr and Minmatar counterparts.

In a new devblog, CCP Tallest adds a major Hybrid weapon rework to the growing list of long-awaited features finally making an appearance in EVE's coming winter expansion. Blasters will be receiving some much-needed CPU and powergrid reductions, a 30% reduction on capacitor usage and a huge 20% bonus to tracking speed. Railguns receive the same CPU, powergrid and capacitor reduction as blasters, in addition to a straight 10% damage increase. All ships typically fit with blasters will also be getting speed bonuses to help them get into blaster range, and tech II ammo for all turrets is due for an update.

MassivelyDetails of EVE's long-awaited hybrid balance patch revealed originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 01 Nov 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balanceblasterblastersccpccp-eveccp-gamesccp-tallestdeimosdev-diarydevelopmentdominixeveeve-ccpeve-mmorpgeve-onlineexpansiongallentehybridhybridsmegathronrailgunrailgunsthoraxturretvexorwinterTue, 01 Nov 2011 11:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Star Trek Online strengthening the fight against the Borg]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/22/star-trek-online-strengthening-the-fight-against-the-borg/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/22/star-trek-online-strengthening-the-fight-against-the-borg/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/22/star-trek-online-strengthening-the-fight-against-the-borg/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

RESISTANCE IS PROBABLY NOT A REALLY GOOD IDEA, WAIT LET ME TRY THAT AGAIN.
Since launch, Star Trek Online has always used the Borg as a major threat. This is evidenced by the Borg's position in several of the game's Strategic Task Forces, top-end challenges for the best of the best in the Federation and the KDF. The conversion to free-to-play will include improvements and updates for these STFs, starting with a change explained in the latest installment of the Path to F2P blog series.

The first change is the shift to two separate difficulty modes, Normal and Elite. STFs are also being added to the PvE queue feature so that players can more easily assemble a group. Last but not least, the missions will feature special rewards that can be traded for a variety of anti-Borg equipment, allowing successful players the chance to better tune their ships for future runs. These updates won't reduce the threat level of the Borg, but they should help more players face off against one of the game's marquee opponents.

MassivelyStar Trek Online strengthening the fight against the Borg originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 22 Oct 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancecontentcrypticcryptic-star-trekcryptic-studiosf2pfree-to-playfuture-patcheslootpatchespath-to-f2ppve-queuequeuequeue-systemrewardsst-onlinestar-trek-mmostar-trek-onlinestfstostrategic-task-forcetrek-onlineupdatesSat, 22 Oct 2011 09:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Our interview with Final Fantasy XIV's Naoki Yoshida]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/21/our-interview-with-final-fantasy-xivs-naoki-yoshida/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/21/our-interview-with-final-fantasy-xivs-naoki-yoshida/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/21/our-interview-with-final-fantasy-xivs-naoki-yoshida/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

Spot all the references! The one on the left may evade you.
There are big changes on the horizon for Final Fantasy XIV, as revealed last Friday. After a year of free play, the game is bringing its extended free trial to a close and setting the stage for further large-scale improvements, culminating in the preview of "version 2.0" that will change the face of the world and the game forever. It promises to be a year filled with new content, time-limited events, and plenty for players to enjoy as the new version approaches.

We were fortunate to have a chance to talk with the man at the head of all the changes, Naoki Yoshida, about the changes already put into place and the ones on the horizon. Past the break are Yoshida's opening remarks regarding the state of the game and the community as well as our questions, which covered everything from class balance to the end of the very extended free trial period.

Continue reading Our interview with Final Fantasy XIV's Naoki Yoshida

MassivelyOur interview with Final Fantasy XIV's Naoki Yoshida originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 21 Oct 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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League of Legends title image
Last week, Riot Games gave League of Legends players a sneak peek at upcoming ranged damage-dealing champion Graves. In a new patch preview video this week, Riot explains all of the balance changes and updates that will be released alongside the new champion. Skarner's crystal slash ability is having its mana costs reduced to ensure it remains a viable attack in late game, his autoattack speed will be increased and his ultimate will now last longer. Champion Corki's gatling gun is also being redesigned to give it more consistent damage output.

A series of changes are heading our way for LoL's new Dominion game mode. Popular item Hextech Gunblade turned out to be far too powerful in Dominion games, and is due for a nerf. In addition to tweaking the item's stats, Riot is removing the ability to stack several of the item to multiply its spell vamp. The personal score system is being modified to better reward players for team-based accomplishments rather than just kills, assists and attacking points. Due to the popularity of late-game carries in Dominion, developers are adjusting the rate of XP gain to make late-game dominance of those champions less inevitable. Skip past the cut to check out the video and find out the full details of all the changes coming to League of Legends in the next patch.

Continue reading League of Legends patch preview describes Dominion balance changes

MassivelyLeague of Legends patch preview describes Dominion balance changes originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 16 Oct 2011 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancebalance-changesbalancingcorkidevelopmentf2pfree-to-playgraveshextech-gunbladeleague-of-legendsleague-of-legends-dominionlolmobanewspatchpatch-previewpreviewskarnervideoSun, 16 Oct 2011 22:00:00 EST<![CDATA[EVE Evolved: Looking forward to the winter expansion]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/09/eve-evolved-looking-forward-to-the-winter-expansion/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/09/eve-evolved-looking-forward-to-the-winter-expansion/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/09/eve-evolved-looking-forward-to-the-winter-expansion/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

EVE Evolved title image
Since EVE Online's release in 2003, CCP Games has been the center of one of the most interesting success stories in the games industry. Produced by a tiny indie development studio on a frozen volcanic rock, EVE was the perfect example of how to do things right. The game's publishing deal with Simon & Schuster allowed CCP to buy back the rights to the game several months after its initial release. With no publisher taking a cut of the profits, CCP ploughed subscriptions back into the game's development and grew the development team organically. As a one-game company, CCP worked closely with players to make EVE the best game possible for its loyal playerbase.

In a recent letter to the players, CCP CEO Hilmar laments that somewhere along the line, things changed for the worse. The CCP of today bears little resemblance to the "little indie studio that could" of 2003, not just housing over 600 employees in offices around the world but also developing upcoming MMOs DUST 514 and World of Darkness. Resources are spread thin, and EVE Online has suffered for it. Last month I looked back at the blockbuster Apocrypha expansion and asked why every expansion since then has cut down on the in-space development players want. Hilmar's letter and its accompanying devblog answered that question this week with a solid plan for iteration on flying in space features during the winter development period.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look forward to the winter expansion and explain why each of the issues being tackled in the coming expansion is a big deal to players.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Looking forward to the winter expansion

MassivelyEVE Evolved: Looking forward to the winter expansion originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 09 Oct 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>assault-shipsbalanceblastersCaptains-quartersccpccp-eveccp-gamesestablishmentseveeve-ccpeve-evolvedeve-mmorpgeve-onlineexpansionfaction-warfarefactional-warfarefeaturedfonthilmarincarnalagmmo-industrymothershipmothershipsnerfnullsecomg-a-new-fontopinionpvepvpship-spinningsovereigntysupercapital-nerfsupercarriersupercarrierstime-dilationtitantitanswarfarewinteryaySun, 09 Oct 2011 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Fallen Earth's newest patch aimed at improving a life of crafting]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/09/30/fallen-earths-newest-patch-aimed-at-improving-a-life-of-craftin/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/09/30/fallen-earths-newest-patch-aimed-at-improving-a-life-of-craftin/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/09/30/fallen-earths-newest-patch-aimed-at-improving-a-life-of-craftin/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

Craft zombies are scary at first, but when they catch you they just steal your random junk and try to use it to assemble an assault rifle.
Crafting has always been one of the major elements of Fallen Earth, and with good cause, really: you're in a post-apocalyptic wasteland and you can't just buy all your supplies down at the S-Mart. But that doesn't mean crafting is all roses and happy thoughts; some items are far rarer than necessary and others present in useless abundance. It's ripe for some revisions, and that's exactly what the game's newest patch, set for release on October 4th, is meant to address.

Several recipes have been streamlined, with unnecessary parts removed from the equation to make a crafter's life easier. At the same time, craftable items are being removed from merchant inventories, encouraging players to seek out other players or assemble the items themselves. If you're feeling a bit leery of the changes, though, fret not -- you still have a couple of days left to stock up on materials.

MassivelyFallen Earth's newest patch aimed at improving a life of crafting originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 30 Sep 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancecrafterscraftingdrop-ratesdropsf2pfallen-earthfefree-to-playgamersfirstitemsmerchantspatchpatchesquality-of-lifeupdatesvendorsFri, 30 Sep 2011 21:00:00 EST<![CDATA[The Soapbox: Why MMO combat sucks, and how BioWare could've made it suck less]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/09/13/the-soapbox-why-mmo-combat-sucks-and-how-bioware-couldve-made/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/09/13/the-soapbox-why-mmo-combat-sucks-and-how-bioware-couldve-made/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/09/13/the-soapbox-why-mmo-combat-sucks-and-how-bioware-couldve-made/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

Disclaimer: The Soapbox column is entirely the opinion of this week's writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column.

I hate MMORPG combat.

It's not because I'm a carebear. It's not because I'm bad at it. It's not because I dislike parsing, being a min/maxer, or solving equations and comparing spreadsheets when I'm supposed to be having fun. OK, maybe it is because of those last four things. Mainly, though, it's because MMORPG combat completely and unequivocally sucks. MMORPG combat is not combat. It's high school math.

And it's the same in every damn MMORPG. Twenty years into the genre here, guys, aren't we ready to grow up even a little bit?

Continue reading The Soapbox: Why MMO combat sucks, and how BioWare could've made it suck less

MassivelyThe Soapbox: Why MMO combat sucks, and how BioWare could've made it suck less originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Mog Log header image by A. Fienemann
Physical levels are leaving Final Fantasy XIV. We've all known that for a while, to the point that I even wrote a column speculating, in part, about what will happen to the whole bonus point system once that change goes live. As it turns out, what will happen for the time being is that it will be abandoned altogether, with character development going automated until at least 1.20. No more allocation of points to attributes any longer, and no word on what this will mean for the many traits designed to muck about with attribute distribution.

This is going to result in a bit of a downgrade for some players (if you're physical 40 and leveling something at rank 10, for instance), but by and large it's also going to help correct a longstanding issue that the game has had. We've got a lot more options for playing around with attributes and abilities when it comes to FFXIV than we did in Final Fantasy XI, but the downside of the breadth has been the simple problem that no one knows what the attrbute values actually mean. You know the number, but the number itself is pretty much meaningless.

Continue reading The Mog Log: Point by point

MassivelyThe Mog Log: Point by point originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 10 Sep 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Torchlight meets Firefly, or late 90s Disney meets Firefly? You decide.
It remains to be seen what's going to come of it in the future, but WildStar certainly made an impressive showing during its debut at Gamescom 2011. Of course, outside of a trailer and some very early gameplay, potential players still know very little about the meat of how the game plays. But there are nuggets to be found in the wrap-up posts, a few interesting answers that should pique further interest in the upcoming title.

The fact that the game will include PvP is almost a no-brainer, but the endgame has been stated to be diverse for all players. If you don't enjoy raiding, the game will still have a world story for players to explore and get engaged by. The world will feature both open areas and instances, as well, with a definite spread of different ways to ensure that players can experience the game with their friends. Last but not least, classes will be versatile and armor will be heavily customizable -- the game is being shaped to be something where each player can make his or her mark and have a unique look.

If the game interests you, our own staffers will be getting a hands-on experience with WildStar on Friday.

MassivelyGamescom wrapups for WildStar tease a few more nuggets of information originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 22 Aug 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancecarbinecarbine-studioscontentendgamegamescomgamescom-2011ncsoftnew-titlespreviewspvpraidingupcoming-titleswildstarwsMon, 22 Aug 2011 19:00:00 EST<![CDATA[The Daily Grind: Do you like optimizing your character?]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/19/the-daily-grind-do-you-like-optimizing-your-character/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/19/the-daily-grind-do-you-like-optimizing-your-character/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/19/the-daily-grind-do-you-like-optimizing-your-character/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

See, it's an engine. Maybe it's been tuned. I don't know much about cars.
In some ways, a character in an MMO is like a car. Some people are going to have one that's just plain bad, because they don't care about it and just want the bare minimum of functionality. Others will take care of it to an extent, helping it blend into the great sea of average. But just like with cars, there are people who will spend days and weeks tuning a character to the absolute limits of performance, working hours on end just to eke out another fraction of a percent of stat bonuses. Either way, you're pushing the limits of what the engine can manage.

Of course, to some people, optimizing your character is the only way to play. To others, it's searingly tedious when all you want is to just log in and have fun. So what do you think? Do you like trying to tune your character to be the best? Or would you much prefer to just play the game and take a more casual approach? Are there certain things you have to be the best at and others you don't care about?

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!

MassivelyThe Daily Grind: Do you like optimizing your character? originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 19 Aug 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancecharactercharacter-performancegame-enginegame-mechanicsopinionstat-bonusestdgthe-daily-grindtuningFri, 19 Aug 2011 08:00:00 EST<![CDATA[A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Whose side is time on, anyway?]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/17/a-mild-mannered-reporter-whose-side-is-time-on-anyway/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/17/a-mild-mannered-reporter-whose-side-is-time-on-anyway/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/17/a-mild-mannered-reporter-whose-side-is-time-on-anyway/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

Mild-Mannered Reporter header by A. Fienemann
So last week I promised our next little enemy spotlight, but that was before I realized that this past weekend was that delayed double-experience extravaganza in City of Heroes. (I could have checked a calendar, sure, but I assume they're a form of witchcraft.) Based on past experience, this week should be a recounting of my time in the magical land of double or nothing, right?

Well, not so much. Due to a perfect storm of circumstances, I didn't get any significant leveling in, and this weekend is also coming before a dump of several new powers rather than just after. So unlike last time, this time I mostly just took part in other activities. (If you really have to know what I was doing, tune back in on Saturday.) So instead, I'm going to take the time to talk a little bit about Temporal Manipulation, partly because I'd like a bit of a do-over for the past weekend, and partly because I'm not sure if I like it just from reading about it. It strikes me as a set that could be very good, but in its own way that might be kind of a bad thing.

Continue reading A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Whose side is time on, anyway?

MassivelyA Mild-Mannered Reporter: Whose side is time on, anyway? originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 17 Aug 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>a-mild-mannered-reporterbalancecity-of-heroescity-of-villainscohcolumncool-factorcovcoxdesignfeaturedncsoftparagonparagon-studiospatchespowerspowersetstemporal-manipulationupdatesWed, 17 Aug 2011 20:00:00 EST<![CDATA[The Anvil of Crom Extra: Silirrion on Turan, open-world PvP, and those pesky Funcom points]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/13/the-anvil-of-crom-extra-silirrion-on-turan-open-world-pvp-and/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/13/the-anvil-of-crom-extra-silirrion-on-turan-open-world-pvp-and/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/13/the-anvil-of-crom-extra-silirrion-on-turan-open-world-pvp-and/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

Anvil of Crom - Interview special
It's almost time for another Age of Conan content drop, and that means it's also time to catch up with game director Craig "Silirrion" Morrison to chat about it. This weekend I interviewed the Funcom executive producer about a range of topics, including all that's new and shiny with AoC's forthcoming Savage Coast of Turan adventure pack.

As we told you earlier, the pack features a boatload of new material, from new solo dungeons to a new raid to 50 new quests and a large outdoor playfield. While that's quite a bit of stuff, Funcom isn't done yet, as the devs are also hard at work implementing the bullet points Morrison covered in his latest dev update. Join me after the cut as we explore Turan, combo-skipping fixes, the riskiness of AoC's new open-world PvP content, and the question of whether subscribers are getting a good deal in terms of point rewards.

Continue reading The Anvil of Crom Extra: Silirrion on Turan, open-world PvP, and those pesky Funcom points

MassivelyThe Anvil of Crom Extra: Silirrion on Turan, open-world PvP, and those pesky Funcom points originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 13 Aug 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>age-of-conanage-of-conan-unchainedanvil-of-cromanvil-of-crom-interviewsaocaoc-unchainedbalancebusiness-modelscombo-moldingcombo-skippingcraig-morrisondev-updatef2pfantasyfeaturedfree-to-playfuncomfuncom-pointsgame-mechanicsinterviewopinionsavage-coast-of-turansilirrionsubscriber-pointsthe-anvil-of-cromturanworld-bossesSat, 13 Aug 2011 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Final Fantasy XIV's newest producer letter addresses balance and changes]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/07/27/final-fantasy-xivs-newest-producer-letter-addresses-balance-and/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/07/27/final-fantasy-xivs-newest-producer-letter-addresses-balance-and/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/07/27/final-fantasy-xivs-newest-producer-letter-addresses-balance-and/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

Final Fantasy XIV underwent some major changes last week with the release of the 1.18 patch, ranging from mechanical changes to combat to the introduction of new mechanics with the Grand Companies. It's enough for players to feel just a little overwhelmed by everything, and so executive producer Naoki Yoshida has taken his most recent producer's letter to talk a little bit about the overhauls from the patch. He's proud of what it accomplished, but in his own words, it might have been a bit much to drop at once.

The biggest topic of discussion of late has been class balance, as 1.18 also ushered in some minor drops to the power of spellcasters and Archers. Despite this, however, Yoshida is happy to see how people have received the upgrades to combat and the introduction to the game's instanced raids, both of which require a higher portion of strategy from the playerbase. He also finishes off by noting that the game's summer event will be rolling out in August, giving everyone a chance to earn the swimsuits previewed in the previous letter.

MassivelyFinal Fantasy XIV's newest producer letter addresses balance and changes originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 27 Jul 2011 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balanceclass-balanceclassesffff14ffxivffxiv-patch-1.18final-fantasyfinal-fantasy-14final-fantasy-xivgame-balancemajor-patchesnaoki-yoshidapatchessquaresquare-enixupdatesWed, 27 Jul 2011 19:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Ask Massively: We do in fact have rules edition]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/07/21/ask-massively-we-do-in-fact-have-rules-edition/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/07/21/ask-massively-we-do-in-fact-have-rules-edition/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/07/21/ask-massively-we-do-in-fact-have-rules-edition/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

I feel that right now would be an excellent time to refer everyone to a bit of supplemental reading that should be really fun -- our Code of Conduct! Yes, we have a set of rules that we expect everyone to follow, and no, we are not stupid. If you spend months trying to skirt those rules very carefully, we will be watching hawk-like for the moment you step out of line. And when that happens? There is cake.

Moving right along, it's time for another edition of Ask Massively. This time, we're discussing issues of balance and overall character depth as brought on by recent developments within the world of Darkfall. If you'd like to have a question answered in a future edition of the column, send it along to ask@massively.com or leave it in the comments afterward. Or use the comments to discuss something else; that does seem equally likely.

Continue reading Ask Massively: We do in fact have rules edition

MassivelyAsk Massively: We do in fact have rules edition originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 21 Jul 2011 21:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ask-massivelyaventurinebalancebehaviorcode-of-conductdarkfalldffeaturedgame-mechanicsmassively-metaopen-skillsopinionskill-systemsskillsThu, 21 Jul 2011 21:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Choose My Adventure: I da popular ork]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/07/06/choose-my-adventure-i-da-popular-ork/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/07/06/choose-my-adventure-i-da-popular-ork/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/07/06/choose-my-adventure-i-da-popular-ork/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,

Klurgind may not be the smartest ork in Warhammer Online nor the strongest one, but he's certainly a popular greenskin. What is it about him? That beady, penetrating stare? The way he eulogizes Squig Herders on the fields of Nordland? His sharply alluring green-blue skin and bright orange tattoos? Or just the fact that everyone knew he was my character, thus ensuring that every regular reader went out of the way to shower him with praise, advice, and adulation?

I don't know. But I do know that special thanks go out to Tsavonglah for some excellent in-game advice and a veritable wall of information in the comments, Daswagga for a large pile of Strength talismans, and the many people who gave me a wave or cheer for bring a touch of Massively WAAAAGH to the game. So read on past the break for talk about my adventures in the twilight of Tier 1, the dawn of Tier 2, scenarios, open RvR, and the general stages of the Choppocalypse.

Continue reading Choose My Adventure: I da popular ork

MassivelyChoose My Adventure: I da popular ork originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 06 Jul 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancebioware-mythicchoose-my-adventurechoppaclassescmacolumneaea-mythicfeaturedmythicmythic-entertainmentopinionpollpollstier-1waaghwarwarhammerwarhammer-age-of-reckoningwarhammer-onlineWed, 06 Jul 2011 15:00:00 EST<![CDATA[New Gamasutra feature looks to define fairness in MMOs]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/07/05/new-gamasutra-feature-looks-to-define-fairness-in-mmos/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/07/05/new-gamasutra-feature-looks-to-define-fairness-in-mmos/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/07/05/new-gamasutra-feature-looks-to-define-fairness-in-mmos/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Buying power! Class Balance! Easy mode! We'd be willing to bet that those pharses invoke some pretty strong feelings in many of you. When it comes to MMORPGs -- especially those of the free-to-play variety -- fairness is often a huge concern. Whether it's in the form of class balance, content tuning, or buying to win, equality is a delicate subject.

Mr. Simon Ludgate over at Gamasutra realizes this, and has put together an incredibly in-depth feature discussing the philosophy of fairness in MMORPGs. The feature is packed with star-power, with commentary from En Masse's Brian Knox, Trion Worlds' Scott Hartsman, Richard Garriott, and more. For the full, in-depth, and interesting feature, head on over to Gamasutra.

MassivelyNew Gamasutra feature looks to define fairness in MMOs originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 05 Jul 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancebuying-powerclass-balancedefining-fairnessequalityfairnessgamasutrasimon-ludgateTue, 05 Jul 2011 14:30:00 EST<![CDATA[New Final Fantasy XIV producer's letter covers balance changes, guildleves]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/27/new-final-fantasy-xiv-producers-letter-covers-balance-changes/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/27/new-final-fantasy-xiv-producers-letter-covers-balance-changes/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/27/new-final-fantasy-xiv-producers-letter-covers-balance-changes/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Square Enix's Naoki Yoshida popped by the Final Fantasy XIV forums today to present the community with the latest Final Fantasy XIV Producer's Letter. The post deals with the game's upcoming patch 1.18 and the changes that it will bring.

In particular, the letter addresses upcoming balance reforms, which will see Final Fantasy XIV's "shift from being a grind-centric game to one that offers enjoyment for all playing styles and circumstances with its ever-expanding variety of content." Yoshida also discusses the changes coming to guildleves, noting that at the game's launch, "it was stated... that guildleves [would] form the heart of the game." That claim has now been retracted, as Yoshida notes that central content "isn't a static thing" and that it's "new content that we continually develop for our fans' enjoyment, with no one item indefinitely bathing in the spotlight." All-in-all, the letter seems promising for the ongoing adjustments to the game. For the full text, head on over to the Final Fantasy XIV forums.

MassivelyNew Final Fantasy XIV producer's letter covers balance changes, guildleves originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 27 Jun 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancebalance-adjustmentsbalance-changesff-14ff-xivff14ffxivfinal-fantasy-14final-fantasy-xivguildleveguildlevesnaoki-yoshidaproducers-lettersquaresquare-enixMon, 27 Jun 2011 13:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Faxion Online gets its wings... and some combat overhauls]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/23/faxion-online-gets-its-wings-and-some-combat-overhauls/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/23/faxion-online-gets-its-wings-and-some-combat-overhauls/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/23/faxion-online-gets-its-wings-and-some-combat-overhauls/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

Faxion Online has only been out a short while, but the staff at UTV True Games is hard at work trying to make the game better from the start. The newest patch for the game, 1.58, has just gone live, bringing with it a variety of improvements and the addition of two brand-new wing styles. But those aren't the centerpiece of the patch, which is instead focused (pun unintended) around a rebalancing of the Focus stat and some large-scale combat changes.

The short version is that Focus was doing too much and has had some of its functions as a stat moved elsewhere. The long version goes into detail about how values will affect characters differently in the post-1.58 world. Faxion Online players can take a peek at the full list of patch notes right here, or they can just log on and start picking up some fallen angel wings post-haste.

MassivelyFaxion Online gets its wings... and some combat overhauls originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 23 Jun 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancecombat-mechanicsf2pfaxionfaxion-onlinefree-to-playgame-mechanicspatchpatchesstat-balancingstatsupdatesutvutv-true-gamesThu, 23 Jun 2011 12:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Enter at Your Own Rift: Talking 1.3 with Hal Hanlin]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/22/enter-at-your-own-rift-talking-1-3-with-hal-hanlin/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/22/enter-at-your-own-rift-talking-1-3-with-hal-hanlin/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/22/enter-at-your-own-rift-talking-1-3-with-hal-hanlin/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

Today we're on the verge of RIFT's third major update's going live. It's a doozy of a patch, too, with a little something for everyone: a raid for endgame players, guild banks for... well, guilds, character transfers for the antsy, and RIFT's second world event for one and all.

With Patch 1.3, Trion Worlds puts its money where its mouth is by continuing with its streak of sizable, regular updates. It's a critical patch for some, as it seeks to answer the growing call for more endgame content while an increasing number of players hit 50. Fans of RIFT will most likely welcome the spread of the patch, but detractors will undoubtedly criticize why X was done instead of Y (and don't even get into Z; that letter is nothing but trouble). And above the noise, Trion sails on with apparent confidence and dedication.

Even though we got to speak with Trion at E3, I got the opportunity for another pre-1.3 interview with Design Producer Hal Hanlin (which, by the way, is a superhero fake identity if I ever heard one). In this no-holds-barred discussion, we covered the selling points of 1.3, the accusation that RIFT is "dying," and the philosophy behind Trion's rapid stream of content.

Continue reading Enter at Your Own Rift: Talking 1.3 with Hal Hanlin

MassivelyEnter at Your Own Rift: Talking 1.3 with Hal Hanlin originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 22 Jun 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>20-man-raid20-person-raidbalancebind-to-accountcharacter-transferscollectionscontentdesign-teamdesignerse3e3-2011enter-at-your-own-riftfeaturedguild-bankhal-hanlinhammerknelllfg-systemMurdantixMurdantix-mountpatch-1.3patch-1.4pvppvp-daily-questsraidred-sliversriftrift-planes-of-telarariver-of-soulsscott-hartsmantriontrion-worldswaves-of-madnessworld-eventWed, 22 Jun 2011 14:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Darkfall dev blog talks armor system updates, roles, and PvP viability]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/11/darkfall-dev-blog-talks-armor-system-updates-roles-and-pvp-via/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/11/darkfall-dev-blog-talks-armor-system-updates-roles-and-pvp-via/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/11/darkfall-dev-blog-talks-armor-system-updates-roles-and-pvp-via/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

The latest Darkfall dev blog update has an interesting new Q&A session dealing with the game's armor system (and ongoing attempts to balance it). Aventurine devs collected a sampling of related questions from users on the sandbox title's official forum, and Tasos Flambouras has a pretty lengthy list of answers that should be of interest to Agonian veterans and newbs alike.

Aventurine's goals for the upcoming revamp are threefold: more diversity in terms of the number of combat roles available to the player, a reduction of the time it takes to become viable in PvP, and retaining the ability for players to freely select, combine, and change roles at any time.

Flambouras also spends a bit of time explaining Aventurine's stance on Darkfall physics, particularly bunny-hopping. "It's a fun way of using physics," he says, "but we never intended for players on foot to be able to keep up with mounts." Head to the official Darkfall website to see the changes coming to Agon in the near future.

MassivelyDarkfall dev blog talks armor system updates, roles, and PvP viability originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 11 Jun 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>agonarmorarmor-systemaventurineaventurine-sabalancebunny-hoppingcombat-rolescommunity-questionsdarkfalldarkfall-epic-blogdev-blogdev-diaryfantasypvpquestion-and-answersandboxviabilitySat, 11 Jun 2011 13:00:00 EST