Massively

Let's get physical, physical: Brian Knox fields dozens of TERA questions

Justin Olivetti — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, PvP, Community Q&A, TERA

With that newfangled Twitter that's all the rage these days, TERA proves that developer chats can be even more accessible -- and within a 140-character limit! Recently, Senior Producer Brian Knox fielded a grab bag of questions about this upcoming action MMO, although he put a kibosh on queries related to the release date and events.

PvP, obviously, was a huge topic of discussion, with questions ranging from death penalties (same as PvE) to open world conflict (starts at level 12 and requires the purchase of special items) to guild vs. guild battles (still in the works).

TERA's famed political system was another subject for inquiry -- would it be in the game at the start or will we have to wait for it? "Day 1. It is up and working now and will be available at launch," Knox assured fans.

Raids are something else that future players has been asking for, and apparently the TERA team is at least exploring the possibility of implementing them: "We know how badly the community wants raids! We are looking very hard at this and is one of the reasons we have focused on five-man content."

You can read the full dev diary over at TERA's official site.

Let's get physical, physical: Brian Knox fields dozens of TERA questions originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 21 Jun 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Live chat on Ustream with the Gods & Heroes developers

Eliot Lefebvre — Mon, 23 May 2011 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: Historical, Events, real-world, News items, Miscellaneous

One of the big upsides to the communication venues available online is that players of MMOs can connect with developers like never before. Gods & Heroes fans will have a chance to connect with the development team tomorrow via Ustream chat, giving hopeful players a chance to ask almost anything they could want about the decidedly Roman game. Starting at 7:00 p.m. EDT, the chat is open to any players via the development team's regular live streaming channel.

If you can't make the event itself or you just want to try to get a question in early, the team is ready for that as well. Questions may be submitted early via Twitter, Facebook, or the game's official forums; the team is planning to round up the best questions and answer them on the air. If Gods & Heroes is on your radar for future play, you might want to take the time tomorrow night to get involved in the live broadcast.

Live chat on Ustream with the Gods & Heroes developers originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 23 May 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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City of Heroes first ever livestream developer chat

Larry Everett — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 17:30:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, City of Villains, Events, real-world, News items, Livestream

When speaking to this reporter outside the City of Heroes panel at PAX East, producer Nate Birkholz could not emphasize the importance of the community enough. In fact, according to a post back in January, the whole team has upped developer communication to the fans. The players of CoH really help steer this mighty superhero MMO, and the development team wishes to have as many opportunities to speak to its committed community members as possible. Next Thursday, John "Protean" Hegner and Tim "Black Scorpion" Sweeney of the development team and Andy "Zwillinger" Belford and André "Beastyle" Carlos of Paragon's community team will be on UStream to help promote the upcoming Issue 20 and answer viewer questions.

For the first time ever, Paragon Studios is opening its doors to video livestream. As an intrepid fan, you will have to watch every minute on the edge of your desk chair. On March 31st from 9:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. EDT, tune in to the official City of Heroes UStream channel to catch all the latest news from Paragon City.

City of Heroes first ever livestream developer chat originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 25 Mar 2011 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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[Updated] Gods & Heroes developers preparing for another live chat!

Rubi Bayer — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Livestream

[UPDATE: The Heatwave team has learned that the Ustream site is down for maintenance and may not be up in time for the live chat, so it's been postponed until next Tuesday, the 22nd, at 1:00 p.m. EDT]

We've been hearing more from the Gods & Heroes team as development progresses, and now that the NDA has lifted, the devs are feeling chatty.

Massively will be co-hosting a live chat with the developers on their Ustream channel, a chat similar to the one we did back in December. This time they'll have lots more to talk about, but they want to hear from you too! You can submit questions today through the Gods & Heroes Facebook page, through Twitter, or in the game forums, and the team will answer them during the live chat.

Not sure what to ask? The developers will be talking about GDC, expectations for estates, social media features, and much more -- so use those topics to get some ideas and send your questions in today!

The live chat begins tomorrow, the 15th, at 1:00 p.m. EDT on the Gods & Heroes Ustream channel. We'll see you there!

[Updated] Gods & Heroes developers preparing for another live chat! originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 14 Mar 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SOE teases The Penguin's appearance in DCUO Update 2

Krystalle Voecks — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 23:00:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, New titles, Patches, News items, DC Universe Online

Now that the first monthly patch is live in DC Universe Online, it's a good time for the development team to take a moment to reflect on what was good and not so hot in this first update -- as well as let us know what's planned for the next step. Game Director Chris Cao and Art Director Mark Anderson sat down to talk with fans about just that through SOE's Stickam account earlier today and did just that.

In next month's update, which is being called Update 2, players will have the chance to face off against The Penguin as the DC Universe Online team continues the gang war storyline that is currently in game. Along with The Penguin are a series of penguin henchmen players will battle, including robot penguins! Two-Face will also show up in game to take part in the ongoing gang war and to become a new Legends character for players to unlock.

Knowing SOE, we'll likely see a reveal of more information on Update 2 and The Penguin sometime in the coming weeks. We'll be certain to keep an eye out for any umbrellagrams and bring you news as it develops!

SOE teases The Penguin's appearance in DCUO Update 2 originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 09 Mar 2011 23:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gods & Heroes lead designer and art team hosting live community chat

Jef Reahard — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, New titles, News items, Livestream, Miscellaneous

Normally, pre-release fan communities are overflowing with questions for a game's developers. Whether they're specifics on combat, crafting, or any of the traditional ingredients that make up our favorite genre, queries and concerns abound during the information void that usually accompanies an MMO's beta stages.

Gods & Heroes is looking to rectify this situation with a live Q&A event featuring the game's lead developer and members of the art team. Heatwave Interactive is hosting a USTREAM chat today at 6:00 p.m. CST, and the devs will be fielding live questions from the streaming audience as well as those submitted prior to the broadcast.

Get in on all the action by visiting the Gods & Heroes USTREAM channel, and don't forget to submit your questions ahead of time via the game's forum, Facebook, and Twitter pages to increase your chances of being heard.

Gods & Heroes lead designer and art team hosting live community chat originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE live developer chat tonight to discuss Incursion game design [Updated]

Brendan Drain — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Events, in-game, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items

In years gone by, EVE Online developers CCP Games interacted with the game's playerbase very directly through the forums and live audio developer blogs. As EVE's subscriber-base has grown, developers began to take a more hands-off approach to forum discussions and the live dev blogs gave way to solely written blogs. Back in July, reactions to the June CSM summit highlighted problems with CCP's approach to communicating with players and the way feedback was collected. Since then, CCP has been making an absolutely colossal effort to communicate more with players through focused technical devblogs and a recent series of video blogs.

Tonight, CCP is kicking that communication up another notch with the first of a new monthly live audio developer chat series. The first live dev blog will begin in just two hours at 22:00 EVE time (GMT/UTC). The discussion will focus on game design in the Incursion expansion, with EVE's lead game designer CCP Hammer being joined by senior game designer CCP Flying Scotsman and game designer CCP Omen. During a question an answer segment, players will have an opportunity to ask specific questions on the new character creator, Incursion game design goals and improvements to the planetary interaction feature. To join in, just log into EVE and join the chat channel "Live Dev Blog" and join EVE Voice.

[Update: CCP has contacted us to tell us that it's received far more questions via the forum than the devs can answer in today's Q&A session, so the team will be unable to take additional questions from the live chat channel.]

EVE live developer chat tonight to discuss Incursion game design [Updated] originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 24 Jan 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gods & Heroes USTREAM: Your chance to chat with the devs! [Updated]

Brianna Royce — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Historical, Events, real-world, Massively Meta, Livestream

Are you curious about the current state of Heatwave's Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising MMO? Are you desperate for a new MMO world devoid of pointy-eared elves and blobby aliens from another dimension? Are you a classical civilizations anthropologist hoping to see your field of study desecrated in a glorious union of hack and slash? Then join Massively tonight from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. EST as we help host Heatwave's USTREAM chat about the game! We'll be moderating live and forwarding your burning questions to the devs... burning questions like, did Heatwave's Anthony Castoro really shave his head last weekend in response to G&H's stress-test turnout?

Log in to the G&H USTREAM page at 7 p.m. EST tonight to find out! And if you have any last-minute questions, add them right here in the comments so we can pass them along!

[Updated: The live chat is over, but you can still watch the show after the cut!]

Continue reading Gods & Heroes USTREAM: Your chance to chat with the devs! [Updated]

Gods & Heroes USTREAM: Your chance to chat with the devs! [Updated] originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 21 Dec 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Massively's hosting a live chat with Gods & Heroes developers

Larry Everett — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Events, real-world, New titles, Livestream

Gods & Heroes is the MMORPG based on Roman mythology being developed by Heatwave Interactive. This exciting MMO pits you against the Telchine gods, who have started a heavenly war with the Olympic gods. While defending Rome against this crushing fallout, you attempt to gain favor with the gods of Olympus.

Highlight Tuesday, December 21st at 7 p.m. EST on your calendar. Massively is helping to host a developers chat on Ustream. Key members of the Gods & Heroes development team will be there to answer your questions. They only have an hour to talk, so we would like to give you an opportunity to submit your question ahead of time. There are a few ways to get your question in early so it is more likely to get answered: post on the forums, send a tweet via Twitter, comment on the G&H Facebook page, or simply comment below.

For more information on the game itself or to sign up for beta testing opportunities, be sure to visit the official website, and we will see you on Tuesday!

Massively's hosting a live chat with Gods & Heroes developers originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 15 Dec 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LotRO's radiance to be run over by a train and other future tidbits revealed

Justin Olivetti — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Interviews, Patches, Previews, Free-to-play

"We took Radiance outside, tied it up to some railroad tracks, and...well...I think you saw the end of this in Red Dead Redemption. Look for this in the future -‐ we will be removing Radiance from LotRO." Thus sayeth Turbine's Jen "Jalessa" Gordy, who confirmed that the controversial gear gating system is headed for a messy death.

In the same WarCry developer chat, the team fielded a number of questions about where LotRO is headed after this week's mega-update. Some of the features in the works for Tolkien's digital offspring include a new raid, class changes for monster play, a barter item wallet, PvMP skirmishes, Isengard, additional minigames and -- yes -- vanity pets for all. The devs also admitted to slipping in a few pop culture mentions into the game, such as Firefly and Futurama references.

And will there ever be any other hobbies than fishing in LotRO? Kate Paiz mused: "All of us devs really want to make golf next, but it's a tricky undertaking, so we don't have a timeline yet, but feel free to start practicing your backswings!"

You can read the full transcript at A Casual Stroll to Mordor.

LotRO's radiance to be run over by a train and other future tidbits revealed originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 07 Sep 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Join us in the Massively.com IRC chat room for our live Q&A session with gPotato!

Seraphina Brennan — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Events, in-game, Interviews, Free-to-play, Allods Online, Community Q&A

Interested in asking gPotato some questions on Allods Online? Want to ask the team questions on the latest patch, the Revelations of Gipat? Want to chat with your fellow Allods players? Well then, look no further than the Massively.com chat tonight!

Join us by pointing your chat client to irc.quakenet.org, #massively, or use the web client located at http://webchat.quakenet.org, and put in #massively as your chat room. The Q&A session will start sharply at 7 PM ET (4 PM PT) and will last for approximately an hour and 30 minutes.

The chat room will be moderated for the duration of the chat, so you won't be able to talk, but you will be able to send the questions you want to ask the dev team to the chat room moderator, Sephare. Just type /msg Sephare once you're in the chat room, and follow up the command with your question. If your question is chosen, it will be sent to the gPotato team to answer live!

Can't make the event? No worries, as we'll have a transcript available on Monday! If you wish to ask the team a question, leave it here in the comments, and our moderators will choose the best ones to send to the team!

Join us in the Massively.com IRC chat room for our live Q&A session with gPotato! originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Waging WAR: Patch 1.3.6 and the proverbial DPS-Healer

Greg Waller — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Classes, Game mechanics, Patches, Warhammer Online, Opinion, Waging WAR

There aren't very many companies that open up planned patch changes to their players and fans for discussion; however, Mythic is one that does. This week, Waging WAR focuses on the suggested career balance changes for the Zealot and Runepriest coming in patch 1.3.6 for Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. We'll cover the issue as well as the proposed solution for these careers. We'll also discuss the impact that these changes might have on the affected careers and on the community in general. There's also a part where Greg throws some drama at the fan and rants about "DPS-Healers."

Let's start by clarifying the main issue and the proposed change. Currently, the other healing careers (Archmage, Shaman, Warrior Priest and Disciple of Khaine) have their mastery paths organized by the role which they might play (i.e. damage focus, healing focus, etc.); whereas, the Zealot and Runepriest don't. Their mastery paths are organized by the delivery method of their healing (i.e. over time, direct, or area). The problem is, after deciding whether to specialize offensively or defensively and gearing to that role (a freedom of choice that they should be given), the Zealot and Runepriest are left with only one-half of an effective skill-set -- the other half of their skills being rendered ineffective by role choice and gear itemization. To bring these careers in line with their archetypical cousins, a new mechanism is proposed which gives Zealots and Runepriests a chance to retain some effectiveness in skills that are outside their chosen role.

Continue reading Waging WAR: Patch 1.3.6 and the proverbial DPS-Healer

Waging WAR: Patch 1.3.6 and the proverbial DPS-Healer originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 19 Jun 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Your Battle of the Immortals questions answered: Our developer chat with Clifton Chu

Seraphina Brennan — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Events, real-world, Interviews, Free-to-play, Community Q&A, Battle of the Immortals

Didn't get to come to our developer chat last night with Clifton "Kantorek" Chu from Battle of the Immortals? Don't worry, as we've got you covered with this transcript of last night's question and answer session!

Clifton fielded many, many questions in one hour and 30 minutes, covering everything from BoI's player-killing system to future updates and new skills. We even got a behind-the-scenes sneak peak at the game's Westernization, covering some of the many changes Perfect World Entertainment made to the game in order to make it "fit" better for Western audiences.

So, without anymore time wasted, let's take a time warp back to last night, and see what questions you had to ask Clifton!

Continue reading Your Battle of the Immortals questions answered: Our developer chat with Clifton Chu

Your Battle of the Immortals questions answered: Our developer chat with Clifton Chu originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 11 Jun 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Talk with DC Universe Online's team this Sunday

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, Events, real-world, Interviews, News items, DC Universe Online

If you're a fan of the upcoming DC Universe Online and wish there were ways to be more directly heard by the developers -- or to hear more directly from the developers -- your ship has just come in. This Sunday, the developers are holding a special live chat via Facebook, allowing fans the opportunity to talk with them and get updates on the status of the game straight from the source. Game director Chris Cao, senior producer Wes Yanagi, creative director Jens Andersen, and art director Mark Anderson will all be available for questions or speculation.

The best part? All you have to do is become a fan on the official DC Universe Online fan page (again, on Facebook) to take part in the chat. Running from 6 PM to 9 PM EST (3 PM to 6 PM PST), it should be a great opportunity to chat with developers about the state of the game and how it's coming along. So mark the spot down on your calendars, and keep your eyes on the fan page for more details on connecting as the event arrives.

Talk with DC Universe Online's team this Sunday originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 15 Apr 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Global Agenda to hold another developer chat

Rubi Bayer — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, News items, Global Agenda

It's been about a month since Global Agenda launched, and overall player feedback is pretty positive. Hi-Rez wants to continue the open communication between the developer side and the player side, however, so they'll be holding another developer chat thanks to Vivox Voice chat for Facebook.

The chat is scheduled for this Wednesday, March 3, at 9pm US Eastern, 6pm US Pacific (02:00 GMT on Thursday, March 4), and Hi-Rez has a few tips for fans to get the most out of the event. First of all, there are 100 seats available, so if you decide to wander in five minutes after it starts to see what's going on, it's probably not going to happen for you. This isn't an invitation to go all Black Friday and start camping the room right this minute, but you do want to get there a bit early. If the room does fill up and you can't get in, never fear. The session will be recorded and posted as a podcast.

If you've got a question you want addressed, submit it in advance. To prevent general chaos and confusion, only the Global Agenda team will have access to the microphone during the event, so to speak. They'll only be answering questions submitted ahead of time.

Check out all the details on the event here, and enjoy the chat!

Global Agenda to hold another developer chat originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 01 Mar 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New developer chat transcript for Lord of the Rings Online

Eliot Lefebvre — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, Game mechanics, Interviews

There's only a little time left until Lord of the Rings Online launches its next expansion, Siege of Mirkwood, but the players still have questions and the developers are thankfully quite happy to answer them. Not so long ago, WarCry had their first developer chat transcript up for fans of the game to digest. A fair bit of new information has come out since then, and so a new chat transcript is available with more information for the playerbase to mull over for the next week. Unfortunately, it's rather negative, since there are an awful lot of questions whose answers just so happen to be "no."

In no particular order: there are no current plans for expanding the housing system, there are no plans to convert Lorien tokens to Mirkwood, no player-created content systems in the works, no way to send mail with more than one attachment. On the other hand, there's more discussion of the Skirmish mechanics and their comparison with Dungeons and Dragons Online's difficulty-tunable instances, talk about how levels and items will be affected, and the expansive amount of content promised within Mirkwood itself. The full transcript is going to be a bit of a read, but it should tide over anticipation for the fast-approaching launch date.

New developer chat transcript for Lord of the Rings Online originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lord of the Rings Online developer chat transcript available

Eliot Lefebvre — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Classes, Expansions, Game mechanics

There's a lot of interesting material coming with the Siege of Mirkwood expansion for Lord of the Rings Online, not to mention a large number of player questions and curiosity about where the game is headed. Luckily for the playerbase, WarCry was recently lucky enough to get a chance to chat with the developers, with a full transcript now available for all who missed the live chat. As is par for the course for developer chats, there's the occasional question that seems rather out-of-place or unnecessary, but on the whole it's full of tidbits that should excite the game's fans.

The discussion ranges from the tangible issues with the upcoming expansion such as class upgrades (each class will get one new skill upgrade at level 62), meta-issues (there will be a Skirmish sneak peek coming soon to let players try the new format), and some wholly random bits (the developers will not add your farm on Facebook as a neighbor). It's a weighty and lengthy chat that can't be summarized easily, so it's best to take a look, digest, and start thinking about the first thing you want to do in Lord of the Rings Online when the expansion goes live.

Lord of the Rings Online developer chat transcript available originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Massively Exclusive: Fallen Earth dev event transcript (and another party!)

Krystalle Voecks — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fallen Earth, Events, in-game, Interviews, New titles, Massively Meta, Massively Interviews

This weekend we had the chance to hang out with a bunch of rough-and-tumble types in the wastelands of Fallen Earth. No, we weren't just doing our typical weekend gaming! We were lucky enough to get to spend some time in-game, hanging out with Marie "Arosei" Croall, Content Team Lead for Fallen Earth. During the evening, we asked her some of the great player submitted questions we solicited last week. She also tossed out a couple of interesting asides to the huge crowd that amassed to take part in the event - and to get some of the free goodies we were handing out!

For those of you who may not have been able to make it - or would just like to check it out without all the cross-chatter - we've transcribed the interview (and some interesting asides) behind the break. Also, remember that we have another Massively Fallen Earth event happening this Wednesday night at the Embry Satellite, starting at 9:00 PM Eastern. This time our very own Shawn Schuster will be dropping by to hold a Massively Reader Meet-up, with - you guessed it - more free stuff, and a special Halloween-themed show on Post Apoc Radio.

Continue reading Massively Exclusive: Fallen Earth dev event transcript (and another party!)

Massively Exclusive: Fallen Earth dev event transcript (and another party!) originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Upcoming Champions Online dev chat to focus on the Hero Games

William Dobson — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:30:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, Events, real-world, Game mechanics, PvP, News items, Opinion, Champions Online

We do a lot of talking on this site (readers included) about things that could be changed or improved in the games we play, and Champions Online has been the subject of these discussions perhaps more than any other title in recent times. While some of our collective feedback must get back to the Cryptic Studios developers, one of the best ways to get through to them is by participating in their dev chats. There is one coming up at 4PM PDT this Thursday, October 8th, and the topic du jour will be the "Hero Games" PvP arenas.

The main way that the devs will be taking questions is through this forum thread. They plan to go through as many of the questions posted there as they can, but the audience will get a chance to ask some follow-ups or extra questions at the end too. The IRC channel is #championsonline at irc.coldfront.net, or if you don't want to use an IRC client, there is a Java chat client available as well.

So, if you think the Hero Games in Champions Online could be improved somehow, get a few questions ready (remember, the questions thread on the forums gives the highest chance of them being answered) and let your voice be heard this Thursday.

Upcoming Champions Online dev chat to focus on the Hero Games originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Upcoming chat with the Fallen Earth devs

Krystalle Voecks — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Fallen Earth, Events, real-world, New titles, News items

There's one thing you really can't deny - the MMO genre has sorely needed some shiny new post-apocalyptic titles for some time now. Thankfully it looks like Fallen Earth's development is proceeding at a solid pace. With any luck we'll be able to jump in and get our post-apocalyptic warfare on before too long.

As a way of working with the community to ensure that Fallen Earth is as solid they can possibly make it, the developers from Icarus Studios have been scheduling play-dates with the beta testers, followed by an open chat on Stratics for everyone who is curious - tester and non-tester alike. This month's chat, going on tomorrow at 9:00 PM EDT, should prove to be highly interesting, as not only will there be several developers on hand, but there's been talk of some swag (and beta keys) to be handed out as well! You can get all the details over on the Fallen Earth forums if you're interested in checking out more on this upcoming MMO.

[via WarCry]

Upcoming chat with the Fallen Earth devs originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 11 Mar 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: Do you attend developer chats?

Krystalle Voecks — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Events, real-world, Events, in-game, MMO industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind

Developer chats. For some, it's a great way to reach out into the community and see what the pulse of things is at that given moment. For others, it's just a chance to spread the word on what's going on in their games - or with their upcoming game. The question is really, how far do they reach? Are they as broadly appealing as some feel they are?

This morning, we thought we'd take a representative sampling of gamers by asking you - do you attend developer chats - either online or in person? Will you only attend them if, say, you're already attending a convention like BlizzCon? Are you a hardcore developer chat junkie, and can tell people what's coming up on Stratics well into the future? Are you kind of middle of the road - you'll catch them here and there, but only when it's your absolute favorite game, and again, only when it's at a convenient time for you? Or are you wondering what the heck we're going on about, what a 'dev chat' is, and would instead prefer that we get the hell off your lawn?

The Daily Grind: Do you attend developer chats? originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 11 Mar 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Join the Jumpgate Evolution developer chat this Tuesday, February 24th

Kyle Horner — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Jumpgate Evolution, New titles, News items

If you happen to have some Jumpgate Evolution questions burning in your brain, then next Tuesday on February 24th we recommend that you join in a developer chat over on Stratics. The actual chat will be held via IRC, which you can find a handy-dandy guide to right here in case you're not overly familiar with the application. For everyone else, here's a list of equally handy, as well as dandy, servers to join:

irc.glowfish.de EU - Germany 6667 6668
stratics.frws.com USA - Colorado 6667 6668 7000
stratics.afraidyet.net USA - Texas 6667 6668
irc.gamers-irc.org USA - Colorado 6667 6668 7000

We'll be following up on any transcipts that hit the net afterwords, so if for some reason you're unable to make it (or IRC boggles your mind) you can still partake in new Jumpgate Evolution information as you see fit.

Join the Jumpgate Evolution developer chat this Tuesday, February 24th originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 19 Feb 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Earthrise dev chat discusses beta and first in-game video dates

Kyle Horner — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, New titles, News items, Earthrise

For anyone who missed it, the guys over at MMORPG.com have posted the transcript from last Saturday's Earthrise dev chat. The two big pieces of information to come out of the talks were beta start and in-game video dates -- both of which seem to be happening around GDC09 or sometime shortly after the end of March. Although other topics were discussed, such as weapon customization and the issue of having no friendly-fire in PvP combat.

In fact, that last question came up twice during the chat, with players wondering how PvP zerg tactics were going to be dealt with by the developer. The general answer was that it will be looked into during the beta testing phase and dealt with then. If there's one thing we've learned from past experiences, it's that players will go to immense lengths to break a balanced system. To that end, we wish developer Masthead Studios the best of luck in balancing this particular issue, as they're probably going to need it.

Earthrise dev chat discusses beta and first in-game video dates originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 27 Jan 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Be heard this week with EQII and PotBS IRC chats

William Dobson — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Historical, EverQuest II, Events, real-world, MMO industry

Stratics is going to play host to some more "House of Commons" IRC chats later in the week, for both EverQuest II and Pirates of the Burning Sea, giving fans a chance to pose some questions to the teams behind these two games. On Wednesday the 18th at 5PM PDT/8PM EDT, the PotBS chat will take place, and will feature producer Joe Ludwig, lead game designer Kevin Maginn, lead world designer Cory Herndon, community relations director Troy Hewitt and community specialist Tom Atkinson-Edwards. Full details on how to join in on this chat can be found here.

The EQII chat will take place a day later, on Thursday the 19th at the same time slot of 5PM PDT/8PM EDT. Representing the game in the chat will be Josh Kriegshauser and Greg Spence from EQII Engineering; Kyle Vallee, designer of "Runneye: The Gathering"; Nathan McCall, designer of the Void Storm quest series; and Tiffany Spence and Aaron Bisnett from the community relations team. You can find out how to join this chat at this page, and don't forget that we here at Massively will be speaking to the EQII team this week as well, so you can also drop any questions you might have in today's Daily Grind for us to bring to them.

Be heard this week with EQII and PotBS IRC chats originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 17 Jun 2008 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Transcript available from March LotRO EU dev chat

William Dobson — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Patches

The latest Lord of the Rings Online European developer chat has concluded, and the chat log is now available for viewing. Before any questions were asked, it was established that nothing about Book 14 or the Mines of Moria expansion could be answered, so everything we found out is either general stuff or related to Book 13. However, this didn't stop the fans from coming up with quite a few interesting questions to pose.

One of the things that the developers were able to confirm with certainty is that an upcoming Book will address issues with inventory space. We were told that bag space will not be increased, but other methods will be used to help improve the situation. Also, with the game's first anniversary coming up next month, the devs hinted that there will be some celebrations, and even competitions, to mark the occasion. Take a look at the transcript for more of the questions that the players managed to get through. The devs also reminded everyone that the Spring Festival will be ending on the 31st of this month, and if you haven't gotten involved yet, our guide to the event is a good place to start.

Transcript available from March LotRO EU dev chat originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 Mar 2008 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lord of the Rings Online developer chat tonight

Kyle Horner — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Events, real-world, News items

If you're a Lord of the Rings Online player, then be sure to check this one out if you've got the free time. Later today at 5pm Pacific (8pm Eastern) Allakhazam will be holding a developer chat with the LotRO team (in the #lotro channel) on their own IRC. The discussion will be focused on general topics, so we're not really sure what you can expect to get out of the dev-chat this time around. If you can't make it to the chat, there is bound to be a chat log released sometime afterwards. You can find more details on how to connect at the Allakhazam post over on their site.

Lord of the Rings Online developer chat tonight originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Mar 2008 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vanguard live dev chat scheduled for March 12th

William Dobson — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Events, real-world, Patches, News items, Vanguard

Excited for Vanguard's Game Update 4? Then consider attending the upcoming developer chat which will take place at 8pm EST this Tuesday, the 12th of March, and will focus on this major update. MMORPG.com will play host to the event, and they invite anyone to come along with a question for the Vanguard devs about the upcoming patch, or the future of the game in general.

You can join in the chat by visiting MMORPG.com's live chat room, or by using an IRC client to go to the irc.coldfront.net server, and join the channel #mmorpg.

Vanguard live dev chat scheduled for March 12th originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 07 Mar 2008 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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European LotRO dev chat moves to Wednesday, changes host

William Dobson — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 20:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Events, real-world, News items

The Lord of the Rings Online Europe team have announced that they will be switching up the host of their regular developer chats, and moving the day to the last Wednesday of each month. The QuakeNET IRC servers that they have used until now have given them issues in the past, so the decision was made to move to the Stratics IRC channel, which already plays host to the US LotRO dev chats.

The first chat on Stratics IRC will take place this Wednesday, 27th February, from 8PM until 9PM GMT. If you've never used IRC before, Stratics has an FAQ to help you get started, or for those who just need the new details:

irc.glowfish.de EU - Germany 6667 6668
stratics.frws.com USA - Colorado 6667 6668 7000
stratics.afraidyet.net USA - Texas 6667 6668
irc.gamers-irc.org USA - Colorado 6667 6668 7000

The room the LOTRO chat will take place in is #straticshoc

European LotRO dev chat moves to Wednesday, changes host originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 26 Feb 2008 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EQII developer chat coming this Thursday

William Dobson — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 07:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, EverQuest II, Events, real-world, Interviews, MMO industry

The next EverQuest II developer chat has been scheduled for Thursday, 28th of February at 4:30PM PST, and will give players a chance to have their questions answered by members of the Developer and Community teams that work with EQII. The session is being hosted by Allakhazam in their IRC channel, and details on joining the channel can be found here.

There are two ways of getting your questions answered by the EQII team. The first is to join the IRC channel at the specified time and have your questions ready to ask personally. The other way is to send a private message to an EQII Allakhazam Administrator (as per this thread), and they will be able to bring the questions to the chat. We'll report back when the chat is over with any juicy details that the team feel like feeding us.

EQII developer chat coming this Thursday originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 24 Feb 2008 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LotRO developer chat talks Kinship additions

Kyle Horner — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 20:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, News items

Last Monday there was a scheduled Lord of the Rings Online developer chat over at Stratics. Quite a lot was discussed, but there are some key things we took away from the Q&A session. The mention of a "Month of the Kinship" has us most excited, as that means that sometime in the (hopefully near) future LotRO will be receiving a book update to its guild features.

Right now players and Kinships can purchase their own housing, but kinship housing doesn't serve any functional purpose beyond a gathering place that can be decorated. We would love to see these housings become a place where members could come to store items or keep up to date with a schedule board.

Other subjects that were touched on during the dev chat were traits getting a review, including racial traits and a heavier focus on 12 man raids instead of the 24 man style. Unsurprisingly, the 12 man raids have been more popular with players. It's always easier to gather and maintain control over less people and 12 just seems to be the sweet spot for most LotRO players.

LotRO developer chat talks Kinship additions originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 12 Feb 2008 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Next Monday is "Ask a LotRO dev a question day"

Kyle Horner — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Lord of the Rings Online, News items

If you're a Lord of the Rings Online player interested in asking the developers as many questions as you can think up, then this should interest you greatly. An open topic developer chat is scheduled for this coming Monday, February 11th at 5pm Pacific (or 8pm Eastern). We're sure that there are plenty of you out there looking to fire your hot, molten questions at the LotRO developers. Information on how to get into the chat can be found over at Stratics -- where the chat is being hosted.

Usually when players are unleashed upon developers, many questions about future updates and content are asked. Maybe we'll get a juicy hint or two at possible things to expect from the next patch after Book 12. You never know, sometimes developers can be swayed by hordes of adoring players.

Next Monday is "Ask a LotRO dev a question day" originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 09 Feb 2008 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Metaplace live developer chat today

Kyle Horner — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: News items, MetaPlace, Virtual worlds

Raph Koster -- known for being the lead designer on Ultima Online and Star Wars Galaxies -- and his development studio Areae are the masterminds behind a little piece of software you may or may not know as Metaplace. Some also know Raph as that guy who did the MMO thing on Penny Arcade a while back.

Today at 5pm PST, a live developer Q&A is scheduled over at the Metaplace site. We're not entirely sure what to expect from it considering that Areae has said it won't be taking place in IRC, but you can be certain that we're going to be there to report on it for anyone interested.

Metaplace is planned to be a platform which will allow users to create their own online space -- be it a massively chat room or a 32-person puzzle game server -- and then connect all of these games together like the internet. The software itself is not locked to any one platform and is planned to be accessible by anything with an internet connection. The whole idea is to let users create the kind of game they want, in the kind of way they want and in the easiest possible way.

Join us after the jump for coverage of the whole event, live blog style!

Continue reading Metaplace live developer chat today

Metaplace live developer chat today originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 31 Jan 2008 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jumpgate devs to chat in Stratics HOC tomorrow night

Eli Shayotovich — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Jumpgate Evolution, Forums, Interviews

A big chunk of the Jumpgate Evolution team will be participating in a Stratics Central House of Commons chat this Wednesday, January 30th (that's tomorrow) at 5pm Pacific/8pm Eastern. In attendance will be Steve "Istvan" Hartmeyer, Hermann "Drakerr" Peterscheck, Michael "Zzeno" Rowland (from Codemasters), Nicole "Awen" Hamlett, and Grace "Binkies" Wong. The team will be answering questions about the game as well as the recently announced partnership with Codemasters Online.

The chat will take place in the #StraticsHoC channel on Stratics IRC. If you've never IRCed before, check out Stratics download page to start the fun.

Jumpgate devs to chat in Stratics HOC tomorrow night originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 29 Jan 2008 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Your chance for a live chat with Hellgate developers on Halloween

William Dobson — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 20:44:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Events, real-world, Interviews, Launches, New titles, Hellgate: London

If you're anticipating Hellgate: London amidst its recent controversy, and want to find out more about the game, why not just ask the developers? 1UP.com has posted news that Xfire is hosting a live chat with a team from Hellgate developer Flagship Studios. Listed on the Xfire site, the developers participating in the event will be:

Bill Roper, CEO Flagship Studios
Aletheia Simonson, Art Producer
Bill Manegold, Game Programmer
Amir Ebrahimi, Graphics Programmer
Guy Somberg, Audio and Gameplay Programmer

To be in with a chance to talk to them, visit Xfire's website and enter your email address. If you're lucky enough to be selected, you'll receive an email from Xfire giving you the details of the chat. It is scheduled for 6pm EDT on October 31st, which as 1UP notes, is the actual release date of Hellgate: London, so chances are if you're a die-hard fan, you will have already been playing the game all day. Oh, and I guess October 31st is Halloween too.

Your chance for a live chat with Hellgate developers on Halloween originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 29 Oct 2007 20:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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