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The Anvil of Crom: A four-month F2P report card

Jef Reahard — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Age of Conan, Business models, MMO industry, Opinion, Free-to-play, The Anvil of Crom

Greetings barbaric faithful, and welcome to another installment of the Anvil of Crom. In between bouts of getting frustrated with the Isle of the Iron Statues dungeon this week (I know, I know, it's sooooo easy, and how bad can I be if I have trouble with it?!), I've been giving a fair amount of thought to Age of Conan's free-to-play experiment.

It's been nearly four months since the devs rolled out the freemium Unchained patch, and that's ample time for me to have formed a few opinions (and to have revised a few others). Join me after the cut for some discussion on what works, what doesn't, and what I hope to see going forward.

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The Anvil of Crom: A four-month F2P report card originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 30 Oct 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This Week in MMO: Do you like pandas edition

Jef Reahard — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 19:30:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Sci-fi, Video, EVE Online, Lord of the Rings Online, Culture, MMO industry, News items, Opinion, Final Fantasy XIV

Gamebreaker.TV has put the finishing touches on episode 67 of This Week in MMO, and you get two guesses as to the primary topic. OK, it's not all about pandas, panda-induced fanboi raging, and much-publicized expansion packs.

Host Gary Gannon brings together ZAM's Mike B and Beckett Massive Online Gamer's Jason Winter for a lengthy jaunt through the week's MMO news, and the trio has a lot of ground to cover besides Mists of Pandaria.

Final Fantasy XIV's return to the realm of the subscription fee generates some discussion, as does CCP's downsizing spree. Warhammer 40K: Dark Millennium's far-future release date gets a mention, and did Turbine's Lord of the Rings Online forums get hacked? Head to Gamebreaker to see what the guys think.

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This Week in MMO: Do you like pandas edition originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Enter at Your Own Rift: One-point-four

Justin Olivetti — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 11:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Patches, Previews, RIFT, Enter at Your Own Rift

Last week, Karen provided an excellent analysis on Trion Worlds' broad, eight-page State of the Game address as the company outlined its plans for the game's long-term future. This week, we're still going to cast our eyes to the present. As we wrap up the final phase of RIFT's Waves of Madness (how much fun is water bladder throwing, huh?) and raid guilds bang their way through Hammerknell, it's the time to revel in a brand-new content update: patch 1.4.

Yes, another patch. I think people are still in disbelief that Trion is able to pump out updates as rapidly as it has, and the current naysayer theory is that the company is merely polishing up content it wanted to get for launch but had to hold back for whatever reason. There's probably a kernel of truth to that, but it doesn't hold up from what we know. We know that Trion has parallel teams -- up to six of them -- working on live development, which includes world events and content updates. We know that some of the features we've seen in previous patches were a direct result of post-launch player feedback, so it can't all be capping off unfinished projects.

Say what you will, but from where I'm standing, Trion's putting its actions where its mouth is by continuing a hot-and-heavy updating streak without showing any signs of slowing down. It's smart, too; by providing faster updates than most MMOs on the market and giving players incentive to stay, return, and try the game for the first time, Trion's firming up its position as an MMO that's here to stay -- not one that's going to fold up shop when future titles hit.

So let's take a peek through the highlights of patch 1.4 as I offer my award-winning commentary on each of the points!

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Enter at Your Own Rift: One-point-four originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 03 Aug 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DC Universe Online releases the commentary edition of the cinematic trailer

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, Trailers, Video, Previews, News items, DC Universe Online

DC Universe Online is entering a crowded field, but it's aiming to enter said field with both guns firing. The cinematic trailer alone is the sort of thing to make any long-time DC fan happy, showing a large-scale battle between heroes and villains in the vein of the best comic crossovers. In the new director's cut variant, however, Jim Lee and Tim Miller sit down to examine and discuss the trailer, from the large-scale goals of the video to the easter eggs that tie everything together.

It's clear from watching the trailer and the commentary that the people involved adore the work they're doing and the source material, with everything from an homage to Kingdom Come to Batman's role mirroring the end of The Dark Knight Returns. Click past the break to see the full trailer with commentary, which is certain to point out pieces that you missed. If, on the other hand, you haven't seen the original DC Universe Online trailer, it's available on the official site.

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DC Universe Online releases the commentary edition of the cinematic trailer originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 23 Sep 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Online Alliance PvP Tournament VI begins today

James Egan — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Events, in-game, MMO industry, PvP, News items

The sixth Alliance PvP Tournament in EVE Online kicked off today, with some of the game's most formidable player alliances going head to head in team-based combat. The first qualifying round takes place on January 24th and 25th, from 1500 - 2100 GMT. EVE Online dev CCP Mindstar explained earlier this week how players can tune in to the tournament. The two stages of qualifying rounds, this weekend and next, can be listened to in audio in a few different ways. Players can either listen in-game in the "Alliance Tournament" channel using EVE Voice, or tune in to what's happening via the web at EVE Radio, Split Infinity Radio, or New Eden Radio -- all of which are broadcasting tournament coverage.

This Alliance Tournament is the first where the qualifying rounds have been made available in audio, with commentators selected from among the game's top PvP'ers, notably Crovan and Verone -- both of whom have a well-deserved reputation for being knowledgeable about the combat side of the game.

A match schedule is also available for those who want to tune in to a particular battle. While the qualifying rounds of Alliance Tournament VI are audio-only, the finals of the tournament will be broadcast live in video, on February 7th and 8th. As an added bonus, that live video broadcast will feature some of the first footage shown from the upcoming Apocrypha expansion.

Update: While only the final rounds of the tournament will be streamed live, CCP Games is already making the qualifying rounds footage available on their YouTube page. The player-run EVE Network News is also following the matches, announcing the winners as they're declared, accompanied by audio commentary, and embedding video of the combat as it becomes available.

EVE Online Alliance PvP Tournament VI begins today originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 24 Jan 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mythic Entertainment's Mark Jacobs has started blogging

Michael Zenke — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, MMO industry, Warhammer Online, Opinion

When you think of Warhammer bloggers, folks like Syp, Keen, and the guys at the Greenskin probably come to mind first. Then you'd probably think of Josh Drescher and Paul Barnett, two of the WAR team heads who have longstanding blogs themselves. Just recently added to the ranks of Warhammer bloggers is none other than Mythic's head honcho himself, Mr. Mark Jacobs. Jacobs has hung out his shingle at a site entitled Online Games Are a Niche Market, a reference to a bad conversation he had with AOL execs back in the day. Hard to believe AOL could be shortsighted about anything.

He's already put up several interesting posts, which we think are well worth checking out. He reiterates and expands on some of the comments he made in his MTV article when discussing the role of WAR's success or failure in the market. He also directly answers questions from commenters in not one but two posts. It's great to see a busy guy like Mark getting into the trenches to address fan questions; perhaps you've got one for him as well?

Did you enjoy this? Make sure to check out all of our previous Warhammer Online features, and don't miss any of our ongoing coverage as Massively goes to WAR!

Mythic Entertainment's Mark Jacobs has started blogging originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 05 Sep 2008 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The intersection of Spore and MMOs

Mike Schramm — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 19:30:00 EST

Filed under: Real life, Culture, MMO industry, New titles, PvE, Opinion

Will Wright's surely-a-masterpiece Spore got a date earlier this week, and just last night the floodgates opened on press coverage of it, so we've got lots of new info to drool over in the weeks to come. But Mike, you say to me, Spore isn't an MMO-- why are you talking about it here on Massively?

You're right-- it's not an MMO, but it does have MMO qualities: creatures you create in Spore will show up on others' screens and vice versa, via the game's constant online connection. You'll never play a game against someone else, but your game will live in a huge, persistent online world, and your content will become others' as well. We're talking about Spore because it will intersect a lot with the MMO industry this year-- and even more than you may think.

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The intersection of Spore and MMOs originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 13 Feb 2008 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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TR mission designer elucidates Fault Lever instance

Chris Chester — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Interviews, Lore, Previews, Endgame, Tabula Rasa, Maps

Ever wish you could pick the brain of the guy who developed your favorite instance? Whether you hate his work or you love it, sometimes the rationale that goes into a level on the developer side is just completely lost on players. In the case of Tabula Rasa's new end-game instance Fault Lever, this is not a concern players will have to ponder for long. RPG Vault has a guide to the as-yet-unreleased instance replete with commentary by David Fargo, the World Builder who brought the whole kit and caboodle together. (What a cool job title, by the way. What does your boyfriend do? Oh, he builds worlds.)

After reading the thing over, it really seems like David had a good idea. He explains how the "story" of the instance is primarily in the details, and those are the things he likes to expound upon the most. In the case of Fault Lever, it's a Bane encampment under siege by the ground-dwelling Atta. The premise is that this base houses some of the Bane upper brass, in deeply hostile territory, only managing to keep the Atta at bay by blasting the ground with gigantic hammers. The player's role is to destroy the generators powering these hammers, and in so doing seal the fate of the Bane enemies within.

While I like the idea of an instance where your primary goal is to turn two of your enemies against each other, I can't help but cringe at the thought of another underground instance. Is it really too much to have more instances where I can see the bloody sky? I already miss out on it in real life because I'm at work all day, do I really want to come home and go spelunking in my fantasy worlds too?

TR mission designer elucidates Fault Lever instance originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 24 Jan 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Founding an old MMO on new ideas

Mike Schramm — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 17:05:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, EVE Online, Culture, New titles, Leveling, Making money

Rock Paper Shotgun has posted an interesting thought experiment: what if you took two of the world's biggest MMOs, EVE Online and World of Warcraft, and combined their best features into some kind of super, Frankenstein, monster MMO? I'm actually really interested in this, because I've been playing WoW for a long time, and have only recently come around to playing EVE. So what would World of EVECraft look like?

First of all, I completely agree with RPS-- the best new MMO feature in both games is EVE's skill system. Instead of killing X rats (rats both in the old standby MMO monsters, and in EVE's jargon for "Pirates") to level, you simply level. That's it. Choose a level, wait a certain amount of time (from a few minutes to a few days), and at the end of that time, even if you've logged out in between, you get that level. It is the perfect system for MMOs, because it really does make your character persistent-- they're leveling even when you're not.

And as RPS points out, it does away with the basic idea of "levels" anyway-- no longer must you wait until your friend reaches your level to join you, and no longer does a foe simply become insurmountable based on a number. The skilling idea also helps in PvP as well-- no matter what your skills are or how good you are, you'll get better over time.

So what can we take from World of Warcraft?

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Founding an old MMO on new ideas originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 22 Oct 2007 17:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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