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[Global Chat: October 9-15, 2011]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/16/global-chat-october-9-15-2011/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/16/global-chat-october-9-15-2011/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/16/global-chat-october-9-15-2011/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Star Trek Online
Welcome to this week's Global Chat! 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!

While almost all of our news stories and columns are game-specific, the conversation that follows in the comments often expands beyond the game in question. Discussion turns to mechanics, development styles, and industry trends. Even if the game in the original story isn't your thing, you may find some interesting conversation, so follow along after the jump to see what some of our readers had to say last week.

Continue reading Global Chat: October 9-15, 2011

MassivelyGlobal Chat: October 9-15, 2011 originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 16 Oct 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This looked far creepier in real life. I promise.
Welcome to this week's Global Chat! 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!

This week's comments have proved to be all about decisions. Where do you want to go in a game that you purchased when you often have a broad variety of choices available? What game should you support in the hopes that it will succeed? Should you hope for another game to die so that your favorite one might live? Will you go down the creepy forest path or run back to the car?

OK, maybe that last one wasn't in the comments this week, but the rest of them were. Jump on past the break to see some of the choice comments from the past week's articles.

Continue reading Global Chat: Choosing your path edition

MassivelyGlobal Chat: Choosing your path edition originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 28 Aug 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>anetarenanetbiowareblizzardblizzard-activisioncolumncompetitionculturedirectionea-biowarefeaturedglobal-chatmmo-industryopinionstar-wars-the-old-republicswtortriontrion-worldsworld-of-warcraftwowSun, 28 Aug 2011 10:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Blizzard quashes speculation about a potential World of StarCraft]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/17/blizzard-quashes-speculation-about-a-potential-world-of-starcraf/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/17/blizzard-quashes-speculation-about-a-potential-world-of-starcraf/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/17/blizzard-quashes-speculation-about-a-potential-world-of-starcraf/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

As the kids say, headshot.
There's a very good reason why the now-infamous World of StarCraft mod had so many people so excited -- it seems like a pretty obvious project. After all, Blizzard has certainly made a big impression on the MMO world with World of Warcraft, so it seems like a no-brainer that their science fiction RTS might follow a similar path. Unfortunately, those of you waiting for just such an announcement have been told the exact opposite -- Blizzard currently has no plans to adapt the StarCraft setting to an MMO.

According to senior VP Frank Pearce, it's not so much a case of not liking the idea as not having available staff and time to pursue the angle, with the company's teams currently occupied by Diablo III, the mysterious Titan project, further sequels to StarCraft II, and of course World of Warcraft. While the title remains in Blizzard's trademark arsenal, it doesn't look as if the company will be using it for a game any time in the near future. It's good news for players who want the series to remain as an RTS, but bad news for the many fans hoping to make their own mark on the galaxy.

MassivelyBlizzard quashes speculation about a potential World of StarCraft originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 17 Aug 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>blizzardblizzard-activisionindustryopinionrumorsstarcraftstarcraft-2starcraft-iiworld-of-starcraftWed, 17 Aug 2011 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[The Daily Grind: Real ID disaster averted... or is it?]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/07/10/the-daily-grind-real-id-disaster-averted-or-is-it/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/07/10/the-daily-grind-real-id-disaster-averted-or-is-it/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/07/10/the-daily-grind-real-id-disaster-averted-or-is-it/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Well, it's all over after all. The evil dragon released by Blizzard has been slain by Blizzard again, after several days of people alternately cursing and staring slack-jawed in disbelieving horror. We can all go back to slaughtering Internet Dragons again, and the privacy issues are dealt with forever. Or if not forever, at least for now. Important lessons have been learned, lives have been ruined, and we can all go back to the way things were a couple days ago.

Or can we?

When your friend has a few drinks and smashes your entire living room to pieces but apologizes for it afterward, you usually aren't going to toss him a beer the next time he's at your house. Even though the unpopular decision has been reversed, it's understandable if your ire toward World of Warcraft hasn't cooled just yet... or if your trust in Blizzard isn't wholly restored. Are you willing to forgive and forget? Or is this the sort of thing you're going to remember for a long time?

MassivelyThe Daily Grind: Real ID disaster averted... or is it? originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 10 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>bad-choicesblizzardblizzard-activisionblizzard-entertainmentcliffhangerinternet-dragonopinionor-is-itpr-nightmareprivacyprivacy-issuesreal-idtdgthe-daily-grindtrustworld-of-warcraftwowSat, 10 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Bobby Kotick muses about a Call of Duty MMO]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/06/22/bobby-kotick-muses-about-a-call-of-duty-mmo/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/06/22/bobby-kotick-muses-about-a-call-of-duty-mmo/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/06/22/bobby-kotick-muses-about-a-call-of-duty-mmo/#commentsFiled under: ,

Activision Blizzard owns one of the most profitable gaming franchises in the world with Call of Duty, and Bobby Kotick knows it. In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, Kotick was open about his ambitions with the series, saying that he wishes that they would create an online subscriber version. It's not a new sentiment from Kotick, as he's been saying as such for years, although it certainly is pretty straight-forward.

Kotick threw a few logs onto the fire of speculation: "I would have Call of Duty be an online subscription service tomorrow. I think our audiences are clamouring for it. If you look at what they're playing on Xbox Live today, we've had 1.7 billion hours of multiplayer play on Live. I think we could do a lot more to really satisfy the interests of the customers. I think we could create so many things, and make the game even more fun to play."

No stranger to controversial statements, it's hard to tell if Activision Blizzard's CEO was just shooting the breeze or hinting at an upcoming title from the publisher. In any case, a Call of Duty MMO would be major news indeed if it happened, so we'll be sure to keep our eyes on Activision -- and our ears on Kotick for any possible confirmation.

[Via Eurogamer]

MassivelyBobby Kotick muses about a Call of Duty MMO originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 22 Jun 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>activisionblizzard-activisionbobby-kotickcall-of-dutycall-of-duty-mmoeurogamerwall-street-journalTue, 22 Jun 2010 11:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Blizzard unveils groundswell of new information on World of Warcraft: Cataclysm]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/blizzard-unveils-groundswell-of-new-information-on-world-of-warc/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/blizzard-unveils-groundswell-of-new-information-on-world-of-warc/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/blizzard-unveils-groundswell-of-new-information-on-world-of-warc/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

If you play MMOs, you have some relationship to World of Warcraft. You may not be actively playing it, but odds are good you're watching out of the corner of your eye, especially with a new expansion on the way that promises to severely change the face of the game. Blizzard recently took the opportunity to hold a small press event in which they revealed several pieces of lore and gameplay information, and a great deal of it is fairly far-reaching -- especially as much of what's been announced includes scrapped plans.

The "Path of the Titans" system? Scrapped, and replaced with an overhaul of the Inscription glyph system. Guild talents? Scrapped, with the benefits added automatically instead of allowing guild officers to specialize a given guild. Forcing 25-man progression to be locked together? Scrapped, after a fashion, as a raid lockout can be "split" into ten-person groups and can more easily be swapped. There's a lot of information, but we're not going to attempt to duplicate the excellent coverage of our sister site WoW.com -- instead, those curious should take a look at their roundup post, and the category with links to more in-depth analysis of each announcement.

MassivelyBlizzard unveils groundswell of new information on World of Warcraft: Cataclysm originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 13 Jun 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>announcementsblizzardblizzard-activisionblizzard-entertainmentcataclysmchangespress-updatesworld-of-warcraftworld-of-warcraft-cataclysmwowwow-cataclysmwow.comSun, 13 Jun 2010 09:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Second Life content creators face genuine dilemmas]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/02/04/second-life-content-creators-face-genuine-dilemmas/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/02/04/second-life-content-creators-face-genuine-dilemmas/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/02/04/second-life-content-creators-face-genuine-dilemmas/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

Content theft has always been something of an issue in Second Life, though there seems to be less of it going on in per capita terms than in the physical world. That said, it is interesting to see Second Life content creators increasingly moved towards positions maintained by music and movie publishers in the physical world.

"Why would anyone walk into a store and spend 400 or 500 Linden on a dress, if they can get a dress of similar quality for free or very cheap from a reseller," asks Ziggy Quirk.

Continue reading Second Life content creators face genuine dilemmas

MassivelySecond Life content creators face genuine dilemmas originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 04 Feb 2008 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We've talked quite a bit about the merger of Vivendi's games unit and the publisher Activision, and what the newly formed Blizzard/Activision behemoth might mean for the industry. A proxy statement for the deal unearthed by the Wall Street Journal reveals that not once but twice did the deal come close to collapsing. It also reveals that there was a pretty clear winner in the talks - and it may not be who you think.

The two close calls were all about business gamesmanship, the article notes. The first, in June of last year, came when talks apparently stalled over the issue of price. Activision's stocks were initially valued at $23.38 a share and at one point that summer Jean-Bernard Levy, Vivendi's CEO, phoned Activision CEO Robert Kotick to let him know "he did not think it made sense to continue discussions concerning a possible transaction". Then, in September, Levy phoned Kotick to say essentially the same thing. There were apparently a number of open issues still to discuss at that point, only two months before the official announcement went across the wire.

Both of these delays were nothing more than stalling tactics as obviously both companies were able to put aside their issues and come to an agreement. Still, the Journal notes, Activision came out ahead over the course of negotiations. Those $23 shares ballooned to $27.50 each, a price 31% above the stock price before the announcement. Additionally, Robert Kotick (formerly of Activision) gets to be the CEO of the new combined company. It's easy to get blinded by all that Blizzard gold sometimes, but Vivendi (in this case) looks like it just didn't have all the cards.

[Via FiringSquad]

MassivelyThe stormy courtship of Blizzard/Activision originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 01 Feb 2008 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>blizzardblizzard-activisionbusinessmergerrelationshipFri, 01 Feb 2008 13:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Video game giants awarded at CES 2008]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/01/08/video-game-giants-awarded-at-ces-2008/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/01/08/video-game-giants-awarded-at-ces-2008/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/01/08/video-game-giants-awarded-at-ces-2008/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,


Several video games and their respective creators were honored at the fifty-ninth Annual Technology and Engineering Emmy Awards at CES 2008 in Las Vegas. The awards spotlighted some of the most groundbreaking titles in development of massively multiplayer online graphical role playing games as well as user generated content or game mods.

The winners of the first category for development of MMORPGs were Sony Online Entertainment for Everquest (Laura Naviaux), Blizzard for World of Warcraft (Mike Morhaime) and AOL/Time Warner for Neverwinter Nights (Don Daglow).

And the winners of the second category for user generated content/game modification were EA for Pinball Construction (Bill Budge), Id Software for Quake (John Carmack) and Linden Lab for Second Life (Philip Rosedale).

Pictured from left to right: Daglow, Budge, Carmack, Naviaux, Rosedale, Morhaime

We really only have just one thing to mention. If you're the representative of a multi-billion-dollar international corporation like Activision Blizzard, shouldn't you consider something other than raiding your dad's closet for a 1970's brown polyester suit? Although, only really rich people can afford to look broke, because they buy good stuff and wear it forever. So when Mike got it, it was probably very chic... in the 70's.

MassivelyVideo game giants awarded at CES 2008 originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 08 Jan 2008 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>aolaol-time-warnerawardawardsbill-budgeblizzardblizzard-activisioncesdon-dagloweverquestid-sofwarejohn-carmacklaura-naviauxlinden-labmike-morhaimeneverwinter-nightsphilip-rosedalesecond-lifesoesony-online-entertainmentworld-of-warcraftTue, 08 Jan 2008 18:30:00 EST<![CDATA[BlizzCast cometh]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2007/12/26/blizzcast-cometh/http://massively.joystiq.com/2007/12/26/blizzcast-cometh/http://massively.joystiq.com/2007/12/26/blizzcast-cometh/#commentsFiled under: , , ,


Podcast, vidcast, streamed content, or just the show: whatever you want to call the "new media" uprising. I welcome any of our overlords that enter the leet infoz arena. Blizzard has finally acknowledged the need to get with the times by launching a video podcast. BlizzCast is set to kick off the first week in January and will be produced by Blizzard. Viewers can expect hullabaloo from various Starcraft 2 and WoW developers with some Q&A rounds thrown into the mix and will top it off with glorious prizes. We do prizes too. We know you love them. I guess Blizzard is testing the waters, and will be keeping a close eye on how the show is received. If it doesn't take off the show might fizzle into obscurity.

The first episode will see two developers yakking it up:

Continue reading BlizzCast cometh

MassivelyBlizzCast cometh originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 26 Dec 2007 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>blizzardblizzard-activisionblizzard-entertainmenteamythicmythicpodcastssoesony-online-entertainmentwarWed, 26 Dec 2007 11:00:00 EST<![CDATA[MMOG Podcast Roundup: Dec. 1st - Dec. 18th]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2007/12/18/mmog-podcast-roundup-dec-1st-dec-18th/http://massively.joystiq.com/2007/12/18/mmog-podcast-roundup-dec-1st-dec-18th/http://massively.joystiq.com/2007/12/18/mmog-podcast-roundup-dec-1st-dec-18th/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,


Every week, hardworking Massive gaming fans put their voices on the line to bring us news, opinions, and 'critiques' of their favorite games. Podcasts are a staple of many hobbies nowadays, and fans of online worlds are especially fortunate in this regard ... there are a ton out there.

As such, every so often we'll try to update you on the podcasting world. Keep your eyes on this space for links to your favorite MMO-commentary celebs. Good and bad, straight-man or blue-mouthed, they all have something to offer about this amazing style of gameplay.

This month more than ever the podcasters have spoken ... and spoken, and spoken. The huge update today is my fault, though. Thanks to a fairly spectacular PC failure last week my productivity has gone way down; some people have problems separating their gaming and work lives - I have a problem working if I can't game!

Today's highlighted 'casts both talk about Sony Online Entertainment games - one of the exclusively. The official SOE podcast is the only thing like it in the Massive gaming space. It's not as big budget as Bungie's offering, perhaps, but it's still a fascinating look behind the scenes at one of the biggest MMOG publishers out there. Episode 27 is all about the holiday events in SOE games from the dev team perspective; holiday appropriate and intersting to boot!

The other 'cast I want to highlight almost seemed like it had gone AWOL. EQ2-Daily has been a staple of the MMOG podcasting scene for some time - their 50th episode was back in October, and we haven't heard a peep out of them since Rise of Kunark launched. But rejoice, EQ2-Daily: Episode 51 was released just a few days ago. With news about the departure of EverQuest 2's senior producer and controversy about character transfers, their insights into the game are sure to be heartily appreciated.

Check out the casts' of December, and make sure to have a great Holiday.

Continue reading MMOG Podcast Roundup: Dec. 1st - Dec. 18th

MassivelyMMOG Podcast Roundup: Dec. 1st - Dec. 18th originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 18 Dec 2007 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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