Massively

One Shots: Goodnight, sweet prince

Krystalle Voecks — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Screenshots, Dungeon Runners, Free-to-play, One Shots

With the change in the new year, we bid a fond farewell to Dungeon Runners, which shuffled off the Internets last night. It's always sad to see an MMO go, especially a wacky, fun, free-to-play title. Thankfully, Massively reader Ripper McGee was on-hand last night to capture this screenshot from the final moments. We'll turn it over to Ripper to explain:

Dungeon Runners was shut down for good at midnight last night/this morning. Here [is a shot] from yesterday. [This] is me on my main character next to the bomb Steve Nichols planted in the middle of Townston. All of the players assumed the bomb would go off at midnight, but it was actually just decoration. At midnight, we were all simply disconnected from the server.... Prior to that, though, the server population was completely full (first time in a long time)!

If you have any screenshots from the end of Dungeon Runners -- or indeed any sunsetted MMO -- we'd be glad to feature them here. All you have to do is to email them to us here at oneshots AT massively DOT com along with your name, the name of the game, and a quick description. We'll post it out here and give you the credit!

Gallery: One Shots

One Shots: Goodnight, sweet prince originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 01 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Dungeon Runners shutting down in January

Shawn Schuster — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeon Runners, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play

In the No-Surpise-to-Anyone category, we have news that NCsoft's Dungeon Runners will be closing its doors on January 1, 2010. We only say no surprise because of the fact that the game has been running on a handful of devs for quite a long time now, which is a shame, because Dungeon Runners is actually a fun little game.

Staying true to their wonderful sense of humor, Stephen Nichols, DR's Producer and Lead Programmer, released a statement yesterday detailing the closure. He certainly doesn't butter it up at all as he explains that the game just isn't turning a profit, regardless of their efforts over the last year. They're now down to a 3-man team, which is near impossible for any studio to use in maintaining a game.

Luckily, for those currently subscribed to the game, some treats are coming your way, including free City of Heroes Architect Edition and Guild Wars Chapter 1: Prophecies. So if you've never played Dungeon Runners before, you have a little over three months to jump in for free and check it out before the game shuts down for good.

Dungeon Runners shutting down in January originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Sep 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Dungeon Runners announces guilds and player blogs

Shawn Schuster — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeon Runners, Game mechanics, Patches

Dungeon Runners has just released its newest patch which introduces players to some exciting new features to this free-to-play NCsoft title. Build 147 (Chunk 4) has added posses to the game, which act much like a guild in other games. It's basically described as a persistent group of friends in-game who have their own entry on the social window and their own chat channels. Although this build will officially add this feature to the game, it won't be active for another week or so.

This build also adds a brand new player blog system that tracks events via RSS. These events include login, logout, level up, quest completion, deaths, pvp match results and more. This certainly isn't the end of the new additions though as we get treated to a new dungeon, a wishing well feature, bug fixes, upgrades and even a free trial period for the Bling Gnome. Check out the complete patch notes for more details on this mega-patch.

Dungeon Runners announces guilds and player blogs originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 24 Sep 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Rumor: NCsoft Austin, Dungeon Runners to be shut down

Michael Zenke — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 17:15:00 EST

Filed under: Dungeon Runners, MMO industry, Tabula Rasa, Rumors

Massively and Joystiq have learned that serious shakeups may be in the future for the Austin game development scene. The closure of Midway's Austin studio came as something of a surprise earlier this week, but we've now learned that the MMO industry may be set to experience turmoil as well. NCsoft Austin, home to the Richard Garriott-lead title Tabula Rasa and the free-to-play romp Dungeon Runners, may be in a precarious position today. In fact, industry insiders have indicated that the NCsoft home offices may be considering closing the Austin studio. Massively has followed the numerous troubles faced by Tabula Rasa, in the face of disappointing sales and subscriber figures and apparent frustration from the company's Korean HQ.

A well-placed source with the company reported the studio's position to Joystiq, confirming similar information provided to Massively by a trustworthy third party. According to our sources, any or all of the following may be in the works:

NCsoft Austin will be closed, with work on Tabula Rasa to be moved to the West coast. Dungeon Runners is apparently to be closed. Los Angeles is home to the development-in-the-dark Carbine Studios effort, while the San Francisco area is home to the City of Heroes development team. Seattle, of course, plays host to Arena.net and Joystiq reports that's where TR will be headed.
This shakeup is only affecting Austin; the City of Heroes and Guild Wars teams are unaffected, as are the teams based out of the Korean offices.
Future collaborations between NCsoft and the Garriott brothers will be very limited in scope, a sign of the frustrations between the Korean executives and the sibling-lead NCsoft North American office.
Tabula Rasa may see closure by this time next year, if the team fails to turn the tide of subscribers and expectations.

We freely admit that this is not confirmed information; we attempted to get a response from NCsoft representatives early today, but so far have not received word back. Massively and Joystiq will keep you posted as this story develops, and in the meantime our well wishes go out to the artists, developers, and designers affected by this news.

Rumor: NCsoft Austin, Dungeon Runners to be shut down originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 12 Aug 2008 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Dungeon Runners retail box now available through Amazon

Matt Warner — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 20:30:00 EST

Filed under: Dungeon Runners, Launches, News items, Free-to-play, Casual, Humor

The Bling Gnome is ready to scarf down items, poop-out gold and help you fight crime in the hood. Say what? There's no other reason to purchase the retail edition of Dungeon Runner's, a cardboard box stuffed with the digital delights. Well okay, we forgot the main reason. Dungeon Runners is the most raucous MMOG ever that is filled with hilarious jokes, witty banter, and pop culture references that will bust any gut with a hearty guffaw.

The retail version also comes packed with a barf o'rama bounty inside by including a six month membership to the game that gives players loads of chunky perks over the free-to-play counterparts. The difference is worth every penny. More, more, more! Members earn more experience; plunder more gold; horde more items; are luckier at finding rare items; and the annoying adverts will disappear and put more foam peanuts on the developer's dinner tables.

Continue reading Dungeon Runners retail box now available through Amazon

Dungeon Runners retail box now available through Amazon originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 29 Jun 2008 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Massively's Dungeon Runner/Bling Gnome giveaway

Michael Zenke — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 07:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeon Runners, Contests, Launches, Free-to-play

We know you want bling! We've seen you skulking in the shadows, MMO players. Here at Massively.com, we're here to help you. So we have a dozen Bling Gnomes ready and raring to go - all set to pick up gold, scarf magic items and poop out powerful weapons at your command. They're contained within the twelve copies of the Dungeon Runners box (each worth about $20) we have on hand, and will now give away to you. Check out the game's page at Amazon for the full detail on what a box nets you.

Entering to win these things is darn easy. By now I bet you even know the drill. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post telling us why *you* want a Bling Gnome before 7:00 AM EST Thursday, June 19th. You can only enter once per person, and when the contest closes we'll ship out these diminutive firecrackers to twelve randomly selected participants. To win you must be age 18 or up and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec). For full eligibility details, we suggest you read our official rules. Good luck!

Massively's Dungeon Runner/Bling Gnome giveaway originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 18 Jun 2008 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Dungeon Runners announces an EU server

Shawn Schuster — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeon Runners, PvP, Free-to-play

For over a year now we've enjoyed Dungeon Runners without a specific European server. This means that Europeans had to put up with Americans for all that time! We're not sure how they did it either, but NCsoft has announced that their newest server -- World 8 -- is optimized for European players. This doesn't mean anyone else from around the world can't play on it, but they might not enjoy the low ping rates as they've had on the American servers, if they are American.

This eighth world is a PvP world, making it the second such PvP server in addition to World 5. For PvE players, you have several server choices for free players, plus World 2, which is only open to those who pay the $5 monthly membership fee. One of the beautiful parts of the Dungeon Runners server system is the fact that your characters are available on any of the servers, so you can feel free to check out the new-server smell at the European server any time you'd like.

Dungeon Runners announces an EU server originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 15 Jun 2008 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Under The Hood: Colored Segregation

James Murff — Sat, 24 May 2008 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: Economy, Game mechanics, Under the Hood

There are a lot of different game mechanics, ranging from the downright simple to the ethereal and hard-to-explain. I've talked a lot about the more subjective stuff, such as lore and paradigms and this and that, but only a few times have I hit the nitty gritty. So this week, I'm taking things to a controversial (not really) place. Judging items based on their color and how fantasy MMOs follow the same color patterns for identification, at least to a certain point.

Continue reading Under The Hood: Colored Segregation

Under The Hood: Colored Segregation originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 24 May 2008 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Dungeon Runners' retail box unveiled

Chris Chester — Thu, 22 May 2008 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeon Runners, Business models, Events, real-world, Launches

Will all the hubbub these days about digital delivery and early access programs, game-makers are really starting to deemphasize the importance of boxed products occupying shelves in a retailer environment. Still, you have to imagine that it's something of a thrill for a smaller developer to see their free product occupy the same shelf as the big boys, and look splendid doing it.

That's why we were happy to see the boys behind Dungeon Runners were finally releasing a retail version of their eminently amusing free MMO just a year after its release. The boxed version comes with 6 months of membership access for the discounted rate of $19.99, the exclusive and oft-talked about Bling Gnome, and an offer to try out Exteel, if you're so inclined. Not a bad deal, all told, and hopefully it'll expand their audience.

Dungeon Runners' retail box unveiled originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 22 May 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Dungeon Runners Chunk 3 goes live!

Michael Zenke — Mon, 19 May 2008 16:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeon Runners, Patches, Free-to-play

The folks at NCsoft have dropped another sloppy chunk of content onto the table, with the release of Chunk 3 for Dungeon Runners. We've pretty exhaustively talked about the features in this newest addition - the bling gnome, the quest xp buff, the pvp tweaks. NCsoft wants to make sure that you know about their new membership privileges, and has an entire piece rounding out the details of the plan.

Previously, your $4.99 netted you a nicer server, more potions, a bigger bank, and access to some of the best high end weapons. And, of course, no ads. Now pay customers will actually be leveling faster than their non-paying brethren. They'll get more gold too, and discounts on items to boot. Your dollar goes a lot further after Chunk 3, as DR continues to redefine what the free-to-play concept means.

Dungeon Runners Chunk 3 goes live! originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 19 May 2008 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Dungeon Runners heaves its next patch into testing

Michael Zenke — Thu, 01 May 2008 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeon Runners, Patches, Free-to-play

Dungeon Runners "Big Boss Man" Stephen Nichols dropped into the official forums to lay out some detailed patch notes for Build 118, the next "heave" coming to the game. See, big updates are "chunks" and ... right. This title, which at first glance seems so off-the-rack, immediately stands out with witticisms and humor - right there in the patch notes.

Highlights include:

The Bling Gnome, which we've previously discussed here on the site. We already knew that the gold-loving companion will only be available to folks who buy the retail box. Nichols let it slip that the package will be hitting shelves in late June. Your gnomish ally will put his bowels to work for you, apparently, 'pooping out' a powerful item every once in a while.
Several new skills, including Barf-o-Rama (a poison ability) and I'm Rubber, You're Screwed (a knockdown power).
Bonus experience from completing quests. A modifier labeled "15% More Cowbell" will hit your character for 5 minutes after turning in a quest. This modifier increases the experience you gain from killing monsters by 15%, and can stack up to five times after multiple turn-ins.
A number of different changes to Dungeon Runners membership privileges, some of which are likely to be highly unpopular with free players. Members now gain experience faster than free players, but this is purely at a cost to free players. In other words, free players have been nerfed out of a percentage of their xp. Members also find gold faster, pay less when buying items, and have a much higher percentage rate of finding valuable loot when it drops.
Numerous other changes, including tweaks to PvP, new chat channel options, new quests, skill balancing, adjustments to the way ads are displayed, and more.

The new changes are already on the public test server, and Nichols indicates they plan to have this out on the live servers within a week.

Dungeon Runners heaves its next patch into testing originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 01 May 2008 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Anti-Aliased: I wear funny hats and I'm proud of it

Seraphina Brennan — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Roleplaying, Anti-Aliased

Since when did role-playing become a dirty word? Apparently even mentioning the initials of the dreaded "RP" is enough to make people want to prove John Gabriel's Greater Internet Dickwad Theory as loudly as possible. Players go out of their way to make others feel uncomfortable and to ruin any sort of fun some people may have. Is it because it's the internet? Or have we forgotten the history of the role-playing game?

Because I can't exactly spend a whole column talking about the horrors of the internet (NSFW) I'm going to be focusing on the place of role-playing and how it got interjected into these online games of ours.

Continue reading Anti-Aliased: I wear funny hats and I'm proud of it

Anti-Aliased: I wear funny hats and I'm proud of it originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 29 Apr 2008 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Bling Gnome coming with Dungeon Runners retail box

Chris Chester — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeon Runners, Business models, Game mechanics, Patches, Making money, Free-to-play

In the latest update to their blog, the Dungeon Runners team has thrown up some new details that we can expect to see in the next Heave, the twisted DR version of a patch. One of the more interesting details (and honestly, when isn't there an interesting detail in a Dungeon Runners update?) to emerge was the announcement of a so-called "Bling Gnome." Having been rumored to be in the works since late last year, the Bling Gnome is a passive ability that grants you a little gnome buddy who runs around and picks up all your gold for you. Unfortunately, he is selective about his company, and will only hang out with people who pick up the retail box, which will be available some time early this summer.

Some of the other changes they're throwing in to get you to pick up the paid version of the game are a decrease in free player experience gains, an increase in the gold found by paid players, a decrease in the amount of gold necessary to buy new items for paid players, and a decrease in the chances that a free player will find rare drops. They seem to be striking the right balance between giving players incentives to pay, and not creating some sort of byzantine player hierarchy, a la Hellgate: London.

Bling Gnome coming with Dungeon Runners retail box originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 08 Apr 2008 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

NCsoft heaves out new Dungeon Runners content

Eli Shayotovich — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeon Runners, Expansions, Patches, Quests, News items, Free-to-play, Humor

Oh those wild and wacky guys at NCsoft. Over the last few weeks we've mentioned that new content was coming for the snarky Dungeon Runners MMO. Well... someone heaved up their breakfast and walla - bits of new content have magically appeared. With Chill Bill and his unsavory "friend" Shivery, a new dungeon called Balzack's Burrow is now available for player levels 55 and up.

Content updates for DR are normally referred to as "Chunks," but since this is not as big an update, the gang at NCsoft refers to this one as a "Heave." HA! Balzack's Burrow is rife with sweet loot, some ugly monsters (see above) and a final boss-battle that will require you to use some of that gelatinous stuff you have in your cranium normally called a "brain." This particular "Heave" also includes 51 new quests, two new fighter armor sets, new mythic items, a two-handed rifle (for rangers) and improvements to the user interface and the waypoints system. For all the details (that are fit to print that is), check out the DR patch notes. Enjoy!

NCsoft heaves out new Dungeon Runners content originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Mar 2008 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Shivery the Incorrigible Snowman

Eli Shayotovich — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 17:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeon Runners, Expansions, Interviews, Free-to-play, Humor

Over on the Dungeon Runners' official blog (called "The Blog"), there is a tongue-in-cheek Q&A with their newest star, Chet Tliyelidr. Or, as he's known in-game -- Shivery the Incorrigible Snowman. In case you're wondering, according to Chet his last name is Eskimo for "snow that has been marked by Dungeon Runners." As I said... tongue firmly in check.

Chet is incorrigible, sarcastic, and feisty. He incessantly (and hilariously) berates the interviewer with gems such as telling him that his brain is the size of a lump of coal, and rhetorically asks if he's fresh out of Blog Correspondence School. Chet also seems to melt a bit under the scarf when asked about one Chill Bill (soon to be every player's favorite pet snowman).Good stuff., and gives you just a small glimpse into the hilarity that permeates this wonderfully fun (and free) game.

Shivery the Incorrigible Snowman originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 03 Mar 2008 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

NCsoft bombards Facebook

Eli Shayotovich — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Dungeon Runners, Business models, Culture, Forums, Launches, Tabula Rasa, Exteel, Free-to-play

The social networking site Facebook is the MySpace for older folks like yours truly. NCsoft has apparently come to realize that these social networking sites are really just an extension of Massive Multiplayer Online Games and as such sees them as a viable means to spread the love and promote a few of their games. Currently they have individual pages for Richard Garriott's Tabula Rasa, Dungeon Runners and Exteel.

As of this writing the TR page has 107 fans, the DR page has 112, and Exteel has 72. What I want to know is... where's the CoX love? Clickety-click on over and start connecting with fellow gamers. Ya never know who you might run into.

NCsoft bombards Facebook originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 20 Feb 2008 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Chill Bill cometh

Eli Shayotovich — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Screenshots, Dungeon Runners, Expansions, News items, Free-to-play

As we mentioned a few weeks back, Dungeon Runners will be getting a fresh batch of content soon. Included in the update will be the ability to "Build a Snowman" named Chill Bill (seen above) who will aid players in a host of helpful and funny ways.

Ten Ton Hammer has posted 6 exclusive screen shots of ole Chill Bill for your perusing pleasure. Check 'em out and see what's in store for you and your fellow Runners. I sense... SNOWBALL FIGHTS!

Chill Bill cometh originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 12 Feb 2008 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Want to work for NCsoft?

Eli Shayotovich — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO industry, Professions, Making money, News items, Virtual worlds

As we mentioned a few days ago, the gang at Dungeon Runners is looking for a few good dungeon builders. Turns out, NCsoft in general is looking for some new blood in their Austin (TX) office as well as their two offices in California.

Aside from the DR jobs in Austin, there's an interesting hybrid position NCsoft calls the Minigame Designer-Programmer now open. they also need an Associate Community Coordinator for Lineage II, and a Web Production Manager. The QA department needs an experienced tester and some folks in Tech Support.

The brand new NorCal studio in Mountain View is where City of Heroes has been moved to. They are looking to hire "a ton of people" in the near future:

Art: Animators, Character Artists, Concept/2D Artists, Technical Artists, User Interface Artists and VFX Artists.
Engineering: Game Engineers, Junior Software Engineers, Server Engineers and Software Engineers.
Design: Missions, Powers, Systems and Worlds.

Aliso Viejo is down in SoCal (Orange County to be exact) are working on "a top, top secret project." They need qualified peeps for a Lead Quest Designer and a Lead Level Designer.

If you're interested (and qualified), view all of their openings at the NCsoft Job List. Good luck!

Want to work for NCsoft? originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 29 Jan 2008 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Dungeon Runners chunk 2 preview

Michael Zenke — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 17:45:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeon Runners, Game mechanics, Patches, Previews, Free-to-play

Warcry has up a preview of the second big update to NCsoft's Dungeon Runners. The free-to-play fantasy game will be getting another heaping helping of content (which they call a 'chunk') sometime in the near future. The update is interesting, because there is some good news and some bad news.

The Good News: Non-members (freebie players) will be gaining access to a bunch of features that are currently Members-only. Things like bank pages, stackable potions, and Rare/Unique items will now all be part of the free-to-play package. Members are getting some bennies too, with three bank pages instead of one, and the continuation of certain benefits like Mythic items and priority logins.

The Bad News: These non-member benefits are coming at a price - they're finally adding the in-game ads that have been promised since the game launched. Warcry's Razor explains: These won't be "in-game" ads in the classic sense, but more "around-the-game" in nature. The most noticeable of these will be a banner ad at the top of the play screen ... Non-Members will also see static ads on load screens occasionally when switching zones. Video ads will play during login and logout.

Both types of players will also gain access to a secure trading system they're calling 'Bartering', which can allow for item transfers between characters anywhere in the game world. A mixed, but exciting, bag for DR players.

Dungeon Runners chunk 2 preview originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 26 Nov 2007 17:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments