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LEGO Universe builds community via community building

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, News items, LEGO Universe, Kids, Family

The fun of playing with LEGO sets is only half in the assembly -- a lot of the enjoyment comes with showing off what you've created to others, no matter your age. It's an element that LEGO Universe has taken to heart, as a recent release talks about the community events the game has run thus far and the plans for more events in the future.

Each month of the game's operation has been based around a core theme for community events and challenges, giving players unified goals to work toward. March is the Battle Month, with the final event taking place this weekend in the Battle for Nimbus Station. Players who successfully face off against 29 waves of enemies will be in the running to win a variety of in-game prizes as well as some real-world LEGO sets.

The Creation Lab has also been a major area of development, allowing user-generated content to come front and center in the community. Even if you're not currently playing LEGO Universe, you can take part in some of the contests and get your own buildings in the game -- sharing what you've built with everyone even if it's not made out of plastic bricks.

LEGO Universe builds community via community building originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 24 Mar 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Final Fantasy XIV gets a version update and another developer dispatch

Eliot Lefebvre — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Classes, Game mechanics, Patches, News items, Consoles, Final Fantasy XIV

The bad news about the most recent version update for Final Fantasy XIV is that, despite player hopes, it does not yet contain the heavily awaited first revision to the market wards. That's planned for next week, according to the patch notes themselves. The good news is that it does contain a number of bugfixes and helps clean up several chat oddities. Accompanying the notes on the main page is another dispatch from the developers about how the game works, this one on the topic of character creation and disciplines, and while the developers give some vague answers, they also offer some useful, concrete information.

For example, while there are no game differences at the moment based upon a character's birthday or guardian deity, both are in the works -- and if the benefits that are ultimately awarded for your chosen deity disappoint you, Square-Enix will be giving players the chance to change their guardians. The new dispatch also provides a full listing of where to get tools and weapons for every discipline at the start, allowing players from any nation to change class right from the beginning. Final Fantasy XIV players are encouraged to check both the patch notes and the latest update and to keep their eyes peeled for what promises to be a large update next week.

Final Fantasy XIV gets a version update and another developer dispatch originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 08 Oct 2010 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Storyboard: A man of many talents

Eliot Lefebvre — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Classes, Culture, Professions, Opinion, Roleplaying, Storyboard

Rejoice! After the columns of the last two weeks, the specter of relationships has been forever vanquished! (We're using "forever" in the same sense you'd see it in a comic book here. In other words, give it a month.) Diving back into the haphazard series on character creation, today we'll be taking a look at generating a character based solidly upon their abilities -- a method that seems a bit odd at first glance and almost ridiculously simple upon further consideration.

Think about it for a moment. If someone asks you to describe yourself, odds are excellent that you don't start with a recounting of your personality or your history unless you're on a date. Most times, you start with what you do -- hobbies, profession, and any other pertinent diversions on the road toward the grave. It's not a real cognitive leap from being accountants, clerks, and waiters to being warriors, mages, and rogues. The big question is extrapolating backward from the ability to figure out the sort of person who would go into the profession in the first place. Because it's such a broad field, in fact, I'm going to take a look at it from three different angles.

Continue reading Storyboard: A man of many talents

Storyboard: A man of many talents originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 16 Jul 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The making of the Warhammer Online cinematic

Shawn Schuster — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Video, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Warhammer Online, Academic, Education

Just before Warhammer Online launched, we were treated to a gorgeous new cinematic to give us just a taste of what to expect in the game. This teaser launched right about the same time as World of Warcraft's Wrath of the Lich King trailer, making for several heated forum debates on which video was more amazing. No matter which side of that fence you're on, the fact is that Mythic gave Blizzard a run for their money in the cinematic department, there's no doubt.

Now the actual creators of that cinematic, Blur Studio, have compiled a two-hour video depicting the making of that Warhammer teaser. It's broken down into four parts, so you can pace yourself, but it's certainly worth a watch if you're into the whole CGI scene. You'll learn about the concept stages, how Blur took liberties with actually creating new content before it was designed for the game, how the Orcs were made as an army and much more. Check out Blur's website for their impressive CGI portfolio which includes the Tabula Rasa cinematic as well.

The making of the Warhammer Online cinematic originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 28 Dec 2008 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MMOGology: Build your own adventure

Marc Nottke — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Game mechanics, New titles, Crafting, Professions, Opinion, MMOGology, LEGO Universe

I hope all of you got to check out Elizabeth Harper's great preview of the upcoming LEGO Universe MMOG by NetDevil. I'm personally a huge fan of LEGO and proudly admit to playing with those little, plastic blocks well beyond the recommended age rating. There's just something great about a product that gives you the tools to create without limiting the possibilities of your imagination. When it comes down to it, LEGO is simply another medium like clay or paint. It's up to the artist/designer to manipulate the medium into something unique and meaningful. NetDevil's product will allow us to partake in that enjoyment in a digital fashion, although, unlike creation in Second Life, it appears as though artists and designers will not have free reign over content creation.

In the context of an all ages game, the choice to place limits on creativity seems like a valid one. Allowing users to create anything they wanted with LEGO obviously opens up a Pandora's Box of offensive possibilities. I'll take the high road for now and refrain from mentioning the many examples of naughty things you could create in LEGO. But beyond potentially offensive things, creating absolutely anything you wanted in a game could potentially destroy the game from a design and gameplay perspective. User-created content brings up a variety of questions. To what extent can users shape their worlds without breaking them? To what extent can they expand and add to the content without altering the original vision of the developers? What role can user-generated content play in the future?

Continue reading MMOGology: Build your own adventure

MMOGology: Build your own adventure originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 25 Feb 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Twelve handy links for EVE Online newbies

William Dobson — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Guides, Leveling, Tips and tricks

CrazyKinux has decided to help all those struggling to get a foothold in the complex EVE Online, by providing a list of links which will get you on your way. Originally there were 10 websites linked to, but the list has grown to 12.

The featured sites range from the official player guide at EVE's homepage, to help with character creation, to various information-packed wikis, and even an EVE Online humor site. It can be extremely daunting to start up in EVE Online, as it is quite far removed from the standard MMO fare and also unforgiving of mistakes, so if you are thinking of trying the game then follow the link below and get bookmarking.

Twelve handy links for EVE Online newbies originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 26 Oct 2007 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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