Massively

Guild Wars 2 wants you to play with your friends no matter what

Justin Olivetti — Tue, 08 May 2012 20:30:00 EST

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Game mechanics, Guilds, PvP, Guild Wars 2

"Whenever we design a new feature we always ask ourselves how it impacts our players' ability to play with their friends," ArenaNet's Eric Flannum stated about Guild Wars 2. In an interview focused on connecting players together, Flannum made it clear that the team was looking for every possible opportunity to pave the way for social hookups.

Flannum addressed the specifics of how Guild Wars 2's servers work in relation to transfers. While there is a traditional paid transfer service (which can be used only every seven days), all players will have the ability to hop over to friends' servers as a guest. Player team-ups are further made possible by the dynamic level-adjusting system that scales players down to the zone they're occupying.

This process is made easier by ArenaNet's decision to make friend lists and guilds account-wide instead of specific to a server. So while each guild has a home server, other chapters can exist elsewhere. Flannum also said that the team is carefully structuring its PvP system so that it will be free from potential abuse by server guesting.

Guild Wars 2 wants you to play with your friends no matter what originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 08 May 2012 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Making the 'jump' from Guild Wars to Guild Wars 2

Brianna Royce — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Betas, Guild Wars, Business models, Classes, Economy, Game mechanics, Guilds, Lore, Previews, PvP, Endgame, Guild Wars 2, Hands-on, Guides, Dungeons, Crafting

The second Guild Wars 2 press beta weekend has come and gone, and Massively was there every step of the way. Stay tuned throughout the day today for even more guides, impressions, videos, and Q&As to get you ready for the highly anticipated sequel to Guild Wars.

Guild Wars 2 is on the way (when it's ready), and classic Guild Wars players probably understand that soon they'll be competing with a younger sibling -- a smarter, more attractive one who's sure to get more of mom's attention. And while we're sure that some of the more stalwart Guild Wars 2 fans are also Guild Wars players, not all veterans of the first edition are dedicated to licking up every drop of sequel info squeezed out of blogs, conventions, and betas. Those veterans might just be wondering, what exactly can Guild Wars 2 offer them, other than Hall of Monuments tie-ins? What's changed? What's the same? What will they love, what will they hate, and what could possibly make them jump ship to the new hotness?

The first and most important thing you must know is that yes, you can jump in Guild Wars 2! Seriously, though, jumping is more than just a thing you do with your spacebar when you're bored; it's a symbol of boundlessness. Guild Wars 2 itself is trying to jump a lot higher than its elder brother, and probably the essential difference between the games is that feeling that the walls have come down and gravity is letting loose. That alone should urge classic players to take a peek, but if that's not enough for you, fire up your Jeremy Soule soundtracks (yes, he's onboard for an encore!) and read on...

Continue reading Making the 'jump' from Guild Wars to Guild Wars 2

Making the 'jump' from Guild Wars to Guild Wars 2 originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 26 Mar 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: Have you ever been a part of a regular group?

Justin Olivetti — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Miscellaneous

This week I'm trying an experiment: My friend and I are attempting to pull together a (semi-)regular adventuring group for Dungeons and Dragons Online. It's an iffy proposition, as I've been part of a couple of other regular groups before and they've never lasted long (I blame my loud, abusive rants over Vent). But the idea is infectious, and I'm not giving up on trying them out.

Regular groups -- if you can pull them off and stick with them -- can offer a singular experience in which friends bond over a continuous shared journey, one in which they become a fully functional team from the onset. Plus, being part of one means that no content is too big or too small, and one never need worry about having to troll the LFG channel or dungeon finders for strangers.

So I'm curious: How many of you have been a part of a regular MMO group? How do you make it work, and what did you take away from it?

Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!

The Daily Grind: Have you ever been a part of a regular group? originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 22 Feb 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WildStar's Troy Hewitt talks about the game's design philosophy

Eliot Lefebvre — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, Interviews, New titles, Previews, News items, WildStar

It's likely to be a while longer before anyone gets to lay hands on WildStar's beta, much less the finished game, but there's still a lot to look forward to. A recent interview with producer Troy Hewitt might help salve a bit of that anticipation as Hewitt discusses the game's design philosophy and content systems. As he explains, Carbine Studios embraced the idea that players should be allowed to play how they want, when they want, and with whomever they want.

This extends to the game's content at multiple levels; Hewitt explains that solo and group content shouldn't be at odds, that even people who prefer to level and play solo are still enjoying the fact that they experience a persistent world with other players. There's also a lot of talk about players crafting their own stories as they explore the game world, something augmented by the game's split between different player types. Take a look at the full interview if you're following the game avidly, as there are plenty of interesting tidbits -- even if you might have preferred a release date.

WildStar's Troy Hewitt talks about the game's design philosophy originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 13 Feb 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Get into a RIFT Instant Adventure faster than watching this promo video

Justin Olivetti — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Trailers, Video, Game mechanics, Previews, RIFT

"Players are in for good surprises," Trion Worlds' devs promise. "It's like nothing you've ever seen in an MMO before."

What's all this about? Why, it's the upcoming Instant Adventure feature for RIFT, where players can jump right into massive group content without having to sit in a queue or worrying about group composition. This "nonstop excitement" is hyped via a new video diary in which the feature is quickly demonstrated while the devs hit all the talking points in less than a minute.

Instant Adventures are designed to deliver quick group quests without having to pull together specific roles or wait for world events to occur. By clicking on the Instant Adventure button, players are brought to either Stillmoor or Shimmersand and a special encounter is launched that scales up and down with your group's size.

Give it a look and see if this is as good as the devs' word -- the adventures start (instantly) after the jump.

Continue reading Get into a RIFT Instant Adventure faster than watching this promo video

Get into a RIFT Instant Adventure faster than watching this promo video originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 07 Dec 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wings Over Atreia: And 2.6 came to pass...

MJ Guthrie — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, Patches, Opinion, Wings Over Atreia

Not as heralded as its companions that came before, Aion's patch 2.6 hit North American servers this past Wednesday. But just because it wasn't cool enough for its own name (like Assault on Balaurea or even Empyrean Calling) doesn't mean it is without some goodies of its own. Granted, the patch isn't an Atreia-shattering deluge of content, but as I have stated previously, adding small chunks of content more frequently is better for keeping players interested and engaged in the game. And besides, 2.6 is one step closer to 3.0!

This patch introduced a solo version of the Empyrean Crucible for your crucible-insignia-hording pleasure, a new auto-group feature, some UI changes, a new pet, skill tweaks, and other assorted tidbits. This past weekend I experienced as many aspects of the new patch as I could in order to bring you a peek at life after the patch.

Is Stormwing really easier to beat? Can you really get platinum medals from the pet? How challenging is the Challenge? For the answers to these and more, join me past the break.

Continue reading Wings Over Atreia: And 2.6 came to pass...

Wings Over Atreia: And 2.6 came to pass... originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 08 Aug 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Enter at Your Own Rift: 'Role' play

Justin Olivetti — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Classes, Opinion, RIFT, Enter at Your Own Rift

In retrospect, it was all my fault. I had gotten too used to just throwing RIFT dungeon groups together and assuming that with the flexible soul system we'd be able to provide everything necessary no matter what archetype mixup we had. I suppose it's a testament to Trion Worlds' design that an exact group composition wasn't a top concern -- the goal is just getting five willing players together for a fun run.

We were running Darkening Deeps, and I decided to start a group so that I could show off the dungeon to Rubi. We had two Rogues, two Mages and a Warrior, and I felt pretty confident going in that we would prevail. And while the Warrior stepped up and said he would tank -- taking the burden off of my Riftstalker build -- everyone else was curiously quiet when I asked if there was another healer who could back up my Bard heals for boss fights.

Nothing. Not a peep. The other Rogue didn't have a Bard spec, and the Mages were whistling innocently when I asked if they happened to have a Chloromancer role tucked in their back pocket. Oh crud. This was going to hurt. Six trash pulls into the dungeon later, I called it and said that we simply didn't have enough healing power to make it through the bosses. My bad, I said, thanks for playing!

Continue reading Enter at Your Own Rift: 'Role' play

Enter at Your Own Rift: 'Role' play originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 30 Mar 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A Mild-Mannered Reporter: In the case of Defenders

Eliot Lefebvre — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, City of Villains, Classes, Game mechanics, Opinion, A Mild-Mannered Reporter

So last week, my column went live on the same day that Paragon Studios assuaged pretty much every concern my article raised. I should be annoyed, I suppose -- these columns do not spring Athena-like from my forehead, after all -- but considering what the producer's letter means for City of Heroes, I can't be anything but happy. It shows that the problems that I can think of are getting brought up and addressed by the development team as well, and that means that there's a security buffer in place so that things never get bad.

And that segue leads us naturally into the next archetype up for discussion: Defenders. Probably the hardest archetype to cleanly fit to any pre-existing heroes, Defenders are still a vital part of the game and a lot of fun to play besides. They're the logical counterpart to the Tanker side of the equation. Whether you're new to City of Heroes as a whole or just new to the very idea of playing a Defender, click on past the break to take a look inside the most party-oriented archetype in the game (barring Kheldians, I suppose).

Continue reading A Mild-Mannered Reporter: In the case of Defenders

A Mild-Mannered Reporter: In the case of Defenders originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 16 Feb 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Incursion guide -- Combat strategies

Brendan Drain — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Game mechanics, PvE, Hands-on, EVE Evolved, Guides

With the final release of EVE Online's Incursion expansion, Sansha fleets began invading constellations across New Eden. Hell-bent on revenge against the empire nations that rejected him, Sansha's unholy army of borg-like cybernetic soldiers is united in a singular goal -- to bring his disturbing brand of order to the galaxy. The incursions have been running for several weeks now, and players are quickly adapting to EVE's latest group PvE challenge. In last week's EVE Evolved, I began a series of guides to tackling incursions with an article on fleet composition and group tanking strategies.

Even with a well-composed group, it's still possible to fail encounters if the fleet doesn't exercise good target-calling and combat strategies. With some Sansha ships fielding remote repairers and others throwing ECM, energy neutralisers, and massive torpedoes at players, taking on an encounter isn't just a matter of tanking it and flinging missiles in all directions. Fleet commanders must be able prioritise the enemy ships in order of the danger they present to the fleet. Clear target-calling will help a fleet to focus fire and get targets down quickly, and good prioritisation of targets can mean the difference between victory and defeat.

In this week's second part of the EVE Evolved guide to incursions, I explain two popular target-calling strategies and look into prioritising targets in order to minimise the risk to your fleet. I end with a list of high-priority NPCs with special abilities that you'll need to keep an eye on.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Incursion guide -- Combat strategies

EVE Evolved: Incursion guide -- Combat strategies originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 13 Feb 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Incursion guide -- Fleet setup and tanking

Brendan Drain — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Game mechanics, Professions, PvE, Hands-on, EVE Evolved, Guides

In last week's EVE Evolved, I gave my first impressions of EVE Online's newest group PvE activity based on a cautious first night spent at an incursion in Obray. The Sansha incursions have been running for over a week now, and players have come up with some clearly effective strategies for clearing the sites. Many groups are now tackling the incursions in relative safety, and yet every incursion still sees several ill-prepared fleets decimated at the hands of Sansha's ships.

Incursions throw some difficult challenges at players, with focus fire melting vulnerable targets, energy neutralisers and ECM disabling your support ships, and bomber frigates wreaking havoc on large hulls. In some encounters, Sansha's Nation will even use deployable remote repair platforms and other structures to its advantage and will call in random reinforcement waves if your group is too slow. With the right fleet composition and strategy, however, all of those challenges can be overcome with ease. It seems that what players need most right now is a solid guide to tackling incursions.

Over the next few editions of the EVE Evolved column, I'll be smashing my way through EVE's incursions to compile a comprehensive guide from the ground up. In this week's first part of the guide, we get the ball rolling with vital information on incursion fleet composition and tanking strategies. This part of the guide is aimed mainly at those interested in Vanguard-level sites, but the fleet setup and tanking strategies described are fundamental to all encounter sizes.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I tackle the fundamentals of incursion fleet design and tanking, which should be enough to help your group jump right into 10-man Vanguard encounters.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Incursion guide -- Fleet setup and tanking

EVE Evolved: Incursion guide -- Fleet setup and tanking originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 06 Feb 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sansha incursions have begun in EVE Online

Brendan Drain — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Trailers, Video, EVE Online, Events, in-game, Expansions, Lore, News items, PvE

The moment EVE Online players have been waiting for has finally arrived. Sansha's Nation has begun its plan of regular incursions into known space. Using terrifying advanced technology suspected to be of Sleeper or Jovian origin, the Nation has begun sending masses of troops through controlled wormholes into constellations across New Eden. The powerful new Sansha ships found in these sites are controlled by a borg-like hive mind composed of the millions of citizens abducted from planets during last year's Sansha raid events. The Sansha ships are even named after the system their crews were abducted from, an eerie reminder that we could do nothing to prevent the Sansha raids.

To find out where the nearest incursion to you is, open your mission journal and go to the incursions tab. If you can't see any incursions in the global report after refreshing it several times, you may need to clear your cache. To do this, press the escape key to open up the game options, go into the "Reset Settings" tab and click the button next to the text "clear all cache files." This will restart your game and the incursions will be visible. Once you arrive at a constellation that's under siege, a new chat channel will automatically open to help coordinate resistance efforts in that constellation. Players who are thinking of getting into the incursions are urged to proceed with caution and use only ships they would be willing to lose, as these upgraded Sansha ships are deceptively powerful for their size classes. If you'd like to take part in the incursions with other Massively readers, join the Massively channel in-game for instructions on how to get involved with the official Massively Mob corporation.

To give some background to the events taking place right now all over EVE, CCP has released a new video trailer putting the Sansha threat in context. Skip past the cut to watch the video, embedded in HD.

Continue reading Sansha incursions have begun in EVE Online

Sansha incursions have begun in EVE Online originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aika introduces scaling instances for players

Eliot Lefebvre — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 17:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Game mechanics, Patches, News items, Free-to-play, Aika

Irregular schedules are the bane of group content. When you can't know when you'll log in or how long you'll be online at a stretch, it's really hard to make plans that involve getting other people together, and that's assuming that the content in question isn't an hour of continuous play. So Aika's latest addition should be a welcome change to players -- the development team has changed all of the game's instances to scale according to group size.

Scaled-down dungeons operate under a few restrictions, none of which are terribly restrictive -- players will have a slightly lowered drop rate for items when in a smaller group, to compensate for the lowered difficulty. Although some comments in response allege that the difficulty is still tuned a bit high or low in certain spots, it's a welcome change that's been requested in several games over the years. So if you can't get a half-dozen people together in Aika for a simple run, you don't have to keep looking -- you can just go.

Aika introduces scaling instances for players originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 07 Jan 2011 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Preparing for Incursion

Brendan Drain — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Economy, Expansions, Game mechanics, PvP, PvE, EVE Evolved

Several months ago, pirate faction Sansha's Nation began invading the populated systems of New Eden in force and abducting colonists from the defenseless planets. Using a frightening new technology, Sansha's forces have been able to open controlled wormholes directly in orbit of their target planets. CONCORD and the local faction navies have been unable to defend against the incursions, leaving the fate of EVE Online's planets solely in the hands of capsuleers. EVE players immediately began to organise intelligence networks and corporations dedicated to detecting and fighting the Sansha threat.

In the upcoming Incursion expansion, Sansha's Nation will be stepping up its attacks to full-scale invasions of entire constellations. Having converted the millions of colonists they've abducted to mindless drones of the Nation and even having moved a conquered Jovian space station into their hidden wormhole home, Sansha's forces have never been stronger. When the Incursion expansion's main feature goes live in January of next year, players will find themselves on the front-lines of a war. We'll group up in fleets of 5-10, 10-20 or 20-40 players to tackle the various incursion sites and ultimately destroy each invasion wave's mothership. With the first Incursion release scheduled for this month and less than two months to go until the constellation-wide Sansha attacks begin, now is the perfect time to prepare for the expansion.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at some of the ways you can benefit from the upcoming expansion and what players can do to prepare for the war against Sansha's Nation.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Preparing for Incursion

EVE Evolved: Preparing for Incursion originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 21 Nov 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Details of EVE's upcoming Incursion expansion revealed

Brendan Drain — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 17:30:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Game mechanics, Endgame, News items, PvE, Dev Diaries

It's an ordinary day in EVE Online, with pilots going about their daily business of trading, blowing each other up and battling the pirate forces of New Eden. Everything is quiet -- perhaps a little too quiet. All of a sudden, alarms go off in the space stations as warning comes in of an incoming Sansha incursion. We've known for some time that the Incursion expansion would include dungeon-like military incursions by ruthless pirate faction Sansha's Nation. Until now, however, details on exactly how those encounters would take place have been kept secret. In a new EVE devblog, CCP Ytterbium has now revealed exactly what we can expect from the Incursion expansion's signature feature.

The Sansha incursions will begin with wormholes opening into every system in the target constellation. Sansha forces will form blockades at the stargates, replace the local NPCs in asteroid belts and begin to set up a series of military outposts. Sansha's Nation brings a frightening new technology to each incursion, capable of causing a number of debilitating effects on every pilot in the system. Ship resistances and damage output of all ships will drop, making it difficult to run missions or explore while the incursion is in progress. Similarly, cynosural fields will be blocked to prevent any capital ships entering the system.

Skip past the cut for a run-down of how we'll tackle the Sansha invasions coming with the Incursion expansion.

Continue reading Details of EVE's upcoming Incursion expansion revealed

Details of EVE's upcoming Incursion expansion revealed originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 10 Nov 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Soapbox: Playing alone together

Justin Olivetti — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Soapbox

Disclaimer: The Soapbox column is entirely the opinion of this week's writer and does not necessarily reflect that of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column.

It's sitting there in my quest log, frustrating me with its presence and quite possibly calling me names when I'm not around. "It" is a fellowship (group) quest for Lord of the Rings Online that I need to complete to continue Volume 2 of the epic storyline. This particular quest has been moldering in my log for over two weeks now, and I'm starting to think I'll never get it done.

I hate it. Oh, sure, I know that there's plenty of other things to do, I know that if I'm diligent I'll find a group sooner or later, and I know that eventually enough of my kinship will need to do it and we'll throw together a "help each other out" posse. But I absolutely, completely hate being dependent on others for my gaming, and it always grates when I hit a wall that cannot be passed unless I gather a few friends -- or, more likely, a motley crew of puggers -- to get around it all.

Yup, that's right, I'm a solo MMO player. I'm the very oxymoron of what some consider to be the quintessential MMO experience, which is to play an online game together with thousands of others. I like to do my own thing, go my own way, and 95% of the time, chew through content as a one-man act. I don't mind being with other people for fun and adventures, but I don't want to need them to progress.

And I'm part of a growing majority of MMO gamers.

Continue reading The Soapbox: Playing alone together

The Soapbox: Playing alone together originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 26 Oct 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Final Fantasy XIV expands details on the battle system

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 10:00:00 EST

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

While Final Fantasy XIV doesn't go out of its way to be massively accessible, Square-Enix is clearly making a conscious effort to avoid confusion wherever possible. The official player site has been steadily receiving updates about how game systems work and what's going on behind the scenes, with the newest update discussing Battle Regimens and incapacitating body parts in combat. The systems had never been discussed in-depth before, but they now offer players a chance to understand exactly what each system entails.

Battle Regimens are distantly similar in theory to the skillchains that ruled Final Fantasy XI's combat, but they have many differences in practice. Rather than being a chained deployment of specific skills, chains of general ability types will both buff the party and debuff the enemy party. Body parts, meanwhile, are targeted and damaged by certain weaponskills, with a helpful chart explaining what skills target what and which types of monsters can be affected. While it doesn't reveal the full details of Final Fantasy XIV's combat, it should provide players with an excellent place to start understanding the system.

Final Fantasy XIV expands details on the battle system originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 07 Oct 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Group PvE in EVE Online

Brendan Drain — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Game mechanics, Professions, Endgame, PvE, EVE Evolved

EVE Online is often thought of as a strongly PvP-based game, with player conflict and competition at the heart of practically every activity the game offers. Competition for resources, power, and notoriety routinely drive players to disintegrate each other's ships, but this effect isn't limited to just PvP. Miners compete with each other for ore on a daily basis, for example, and traders fight for market supremacy. EVE's competitive sandbox element is such a headline feature that PvE often takes a back seat in discussions about the game.

EVE's combat-based PvE comes in the form of repeatable agent missions, hidden exploration sites, and deadly Sleeper encounters. While most of these can be completed solo by experienced pilots with a well-designed ship, they're often much faster and more fun when done in groups. The lack of a limit to how many pilots can be brought on PvE expeditions even makes it feasible to take newer players along to tough missions, something that doesn't happen in most MMOs.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at why EVE's PvE is so inherently soloable, which types of PvE encounters are well suited to group play, and what the future holds for EVE's possibly neglected group PvE content.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Group PvE in EVE Online

EVE Evolved: Group PvE in EVE Online originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 03 Oct 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Massively's hands-on with Rift: Planes of Telara's dynamic content

Brianna Royce — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Trailers, Video, Classes, Events, real-world, Game mechanics, New titles, Previews, Opinion, Hands-on, Massively Hands-on, RIFT

Just a few weeks ago, I was invited to attend Trion Worlds' Gamer's Day in San Francisco to get some hands-on time with a couple of the company's upcoming titles, including Rift: Planes of Telara. If Rift seems to have come out of nowhere, that might be due both to the acquisition of EverQuest II veteran Scott Hartsman to head the project as executive producer, and to a clever name change meant to reflect the team's shift in development focus.

In fact, that shift in development focus is precisely what I was at Trion's studio to test -- I got to check out the Rifts themselves in all their glory, in the context of the greater dynamic content system that the developers are so excited about. Massively's writers have been able to play and report on character creation and the starting areas of Rift several times over the last year or so, including earlier this summer at E3. But until today's embargo lift (coinciding with the reveal at Gamescom), no one had quite seen the fabled planar invasions and takeovers in action.

Now we have.

Continue reading Massively's hands-on with Rift: Planes of Telara's dynamic content

Massively's hands-on with Rift: Planes of Telara's dynamic content originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 18 Aug 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: How important is the "multiplayer" part of MMO?

Rubi Bayer — Sun, 23 May 2010 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Daily Grind

The definition of "MMO" is changing at an increasing pace these days, to the point where many people argue that the very idea of defining an MMO is a thing of the past. However, a defining factor that has stayed consistent through all of that is the question of how many people can play together.

"The more the better" is the commonly held standard, but not everyone prefers to play that way. An increasing number of games offer quests created for solo play, the ability to create solo play skill sets, and even the ability to play through the majority of the game alone if you prefer. While grouping isn't obsolete by any stretch of the imagination, the solo player isn't left out in the cold either.

So what is your preference? Would you rather go it alone at your own pace, or are you there for the company of others as much as the gameplay?

The Daily Grind: How important is the "multiplayer" part of MMO? originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 23 May 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Digital Continuum: The trouble with sticking to MMOs

Kyle Horner — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Digital Continuum

I get to these points where not a single MMO will stick with me any longer than roughly one month -- sometimes less. That wasn't always the case, though. There was a time when I could play a single MMO nearly every day for three or four months before getting tired of it. And a lot of my friends are in the same boat, trying to regularly play an MMO but mostly faltering.

This isn't new to me. In fact, I've been here before and I know how to get out of the viciously boring cycle. This week's The Digital Continuum is all about renewing the luster to your MMO experience, and maybe a little more.

Continue reading The Digital Continuum: The trouble with sticking to MMOs

The Digital Continuum: The trouble with sticking to MMOs originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 30 Mar 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Medic ships, part 1: The healers of EVE

Brendan Drain — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Game mechanics, Guides, Tips and tricks, Grouping, PvE, Hands-on, EVE Evolved

The holy trinity of tank, healer and damage-dealer is present in every MMO, including EVE Online. While most MMOs dedicate these roles to specific classes, ships in EVE can do all three at the same time. When running missions solo, for example, a ship will need to tank incoming damage, repair it and deal damage themselves. Setting up a ship for solo PvE becomes a balancing act between the three roles. Too little tank and you'll find yourself in trouble, but too little damage and you'll take forever to kill NPCs.

As part of a gang, however, remote armour repair and shield transfer modules allow pilots to specialise into a traditional healer role. Rather than having each player repair their own damage, it can be much more effective to have a dedicated medic ship to repair anyone that gets shot at. There are even specialised ships for would-be healers in EVE, from entry-level cruisers to advanced Tech 2 Logistics ships and massive capital ships. Medic ships can be an effective part of any gang, whether you're tackling a tough level 4 or 5 mission or engaging in large-scale gang PvP.

In this first part of a two-part look into dedicated healers in EVE Online, I look at the more affordable ships and modules available and the best strategy for healing in PvE.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Medic ships, part 1: The healers of EVE

EVE Evolved: Medic ships, part 1: The healers of EVE originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 21 Mar 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Developer diary covers Siege of Mirkwood's new skirmish instances

Seraphina Brennan — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:30:00 EST

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

The newest expansion to Lord of the Rings Online, the Siege of Mirkwood, will be introducing a new type of storyline instance for players to play in -- skirmishes. Skirmishes bring a new style of gameplay to LotRO, giving players the ability to participate in small military conflicts between the Free Peoples and the forces of Sauron while also being able to participate in small bits of content and still be rewarded.

The first two parts, the overview and the instanced nature of skirmishes, go over what the new Skirmish system provides players, and how skirmishes put a twist on the old concept of instancing. Did you ever want to defend the Prancing Pony in Bree? How about fight along side Elrond's sons? Skirmishes will be opening up those options to players while still offering repeatable adventures for any group size.

But we shouldn't talk our faces off here! Go on over and read Brian "Zombie Columbus" Aloisio's developer diary on the whole matter. He can describe it better than we can!

Developer diary covers Siege of Mirkwood's new skirmish instances originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Finding the perfect corporation in five easy steps

Brendan Drain — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Culture, Forums, Guides, Guilds, PvP, Grouping, PvE, Politics, Virtual worlds, EVE Evolved

It's said that sandbox MMO EVE Online doesn't really begin to shine until you join a good player-run corporation. There's only so much a lone pilot can accomplish and a lot of the game's most rewarding experiences are based around groups and collaboration. Wormhole expeditions, PvP, territorial wars, politics and much of EVE's other emergent gameplay routes rely heavily on forming groups and friendships in-game. In fact, I think you'd be hard pressed to find an MMO which doesn't have its game experience improved by group activities and forming friendships. But just as choosing the right corporation for your play style can make the game a lot better, choosing the wrong one or not joining one at all can ruin a new player's experience of the game.

Over the past few weeks, I've had several emails from readers looking for advice on how to find a good corporation. In this article aimed at new and prospective EVE players, I introduce a simple five-step approach for finding that perfect corporation who can turn playing EVE from a potentially boring experience into a very rewarding one.
(UPDATE: I had accidentally disabled comments, comments are now enabled on page 2)

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Finding the perfect corporation in five easy steps

EVE Evolved: Finding the perfect corporation in five easy steps originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 02 Aug 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: Do you prefer leveling grouped or solo?

William Dobson — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Leveling, Grouping, The Daily Grind

While there are some MMOs that try to handle their progression differently, the bulk of them probably offer some form of combat-centric leveling. Killing large quantities of NPCs, doing quests and exploring dungeons is the norm. However, whether these things are done alone or with others is usually still left up to the player. These days games are very accommodating when it comes to classes having the ability to solo. Sure, some will be better than others, but for the most part soloing should at least be an option.

What we'd like to ask you today is how you approach this choice. Do you like to join up with a band of fellow adventurers and take on harder content to get your levels, or even just tackle solo content faster together? Perhaps you have a regular group that negates the need for the often-tiresome "Looking For Group" process. Alternatively, you might enjoy the ability to log on and get straight into leveling on your own, without relying on others. Maybe you've been scarred by too many bad groups! For some, leveling solo is just a time thing -- you have no time to wait around for LFGing and the group formation process, which can sometimes take longer than you were planning to be online. To these folks we ask: when you do have the time, do you make use of it to group, or are you happier just soloing anyway?

The Daily Grind: Do you prefer leveling grouped or solo? originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 28 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Meet the Sparkplay Media team: Part One

Seraphina Brennan — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Game mechanics, Lore, MMO industry, Free-to-play, Browser, Earth Eternal, Massively Interviews

Here at Massively we recently got the chance to sit down with a couple members of the Sparkplay Media team and pick their brains about their upcoming MMO, Earth Eternal. However, these guys had a lot to say to us! So much so that we couldn't fit it into one of our standard interviews!

So that's why we're bringing you "Meet the Sparkplay Media Team," a two part feature article with all of the info and answers that we've been exposed to. Today and tomorrow you're going to get to know the lead designer, a concept artist, lead writer (and moonlighting CEO), and one of the programmers behind Earth Eternal.

Today we're sitting down with Greg Chapman, the lead designer, and Alex Madrigal, one of the concept artists. If you wish to comment on today's interviews, please do so on page two of our interviews. Otherwise, hit that continue reading button and come on in!

Continue reading Meet the Sparkplay Media team: Part One

Meet the Sparkplay Media team: Part One originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 23 Jul 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Darkfall details their plans for the future and North American servers

Seraphina Brennan — Fri, 29 May 2009 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: At a glance, Fantasy, Darkfall, Business models, Game mechanics, Patches, PvP, News items, PvE

Developer Tasos Flambouras of the Darkfall team stopped by the official Darkfall forums again with a lengthy update concerning pretty much everything under the sun for Darkfall -- from cheating to future updates -- all in one large swoop.

One of the big notes of the post is the acknowledgement of a North American server coming down the pipes, but coming with restrictions to character transfers. Original plans detailed that characters from the European server could transfer off onto the American server (as North American players are certainly playing the European version right now) but this transfer will now be delayed by several months. So, if you're itching to get off of EU-1, looks like you might be waiting for a while unless you wish to create a new character on NA-1.

Past the new server, Tasos has outlined some of the priorities for the Darkfall team, including an enhanced newbie experience, improvements to the economy, upcoming improvements to the solo and group experience, and improvements to the game's PvE system to name a few. While exact details haven't been given, it's nice to know that things like this are on the developer's "to do" list for future updates.

The full post containing all of the juicy details can be read over at the official Darkfall forums.

[Via Hardcore Casual]

Darkfall details their plans for the future and North American servers originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 29 May 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: How often do you party?

Seraphina Brennan — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Grouping, Opinion, The Daily Grind

There's something really scary out there. Something so mean, so vicious, so terrifying that it will blow your socks from your feet. Things so horrible that people tell stories every day about them, and even devote entire websites to their needs. What are we talking about?

Your fellow MMO players.

Ok, ok, we're all not that bad, but it does raise a good question -- how often do you brave the structure of a group? Are you the type of person who groups for lots of quests, groups for dungeons only, or tries in vain to avoid the whole grouping process? Even better question, why do you like or not like groups?

Of course there are the old games, like EverQuest and Final Fantasy XI, which push people into groups to do their daily activities and leveling, but not all games are like that. So please, share with us your stories, your favorite moments, and even your tribulations of grouping in your favorite MMO.

The Daily Grind: How often do you party? originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Jan 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Why you should be playing Final Fantasy XI: Level sync

Seraphina Brennan — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Final Fantasy XI, Tips and tricks, Why You Should Be Playing

"Why you should be playing ..." is a free form column from Massively.com intended to inform you about our favorite parts of our favorite games. We want you to know why we play what we do!

This should be a story that any MMO player is intimately acquainted with. You've just picked up an awesome new MMO and have been flying through the levels. It's gripping you and you really want to share it with your friends. Then you realize the fatal problem that occurs with most MMOs -- you're too high level and you don't want to wait for your friends to catch up.

With Final Fantasy XI, this was the brutal nature of the game. Being one or two levels away from your party resulted in decreased exp for everyone involved. Being three levels or more meant the party just didn't work at all and experience was ruined for everyone. It was unbearably hard to get parties, because everyone had to be within 2 levels of one another. With the recent advent of level sync, however, those days are long gone.

Continue reading Why you should be playing Final Fantasy XI: Level sync

Why you should be playing Final Fantasy XI: Level sync originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 30 Dec 2008 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: Tank, DPS, Healer, or other?

Samuel Axon — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Classes, Opinion, The Daily Grind

The small group gameplay in many of today's MMORPGs is about the interplay of several archetypes that each offer something different to the dynamic -- tanks absorb damage so weaker classes don't have to, DPS classes dish out massive damage in short amounts of time, healers reverse or prevent damage done to party members altogether, and then there are a myriad of other classes that fill various other roles like crowd control.

Seems a lot of folks fall comfortably into one role or another -- some even stick to just one through multiple games, always playing healers, for example. Do you have a strong preference for one particular group role, or do you try to vary your play experience? In either case, which role is most comfortable for you, and why? We're always interested to learn more about the psychology behind these games, so we're eager to see what you've got!

The Daily Grind: Tank, DPS, Healer, or other? originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 30 Nov 2008 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ask Massively: How to avoid being 'that guy'

Kevin Stallard — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Opinion, Ask Massively

This week's Ask Massively is a radical departure from recent weeks' columns. I'm not going to criticize anybody, nor will I blame you, the player, for the ills of the MMO industry. It will be a difficult job, but that's why they pay me the big bucks. (I almost kept a straight face... honest!)

Dear Massively,

I'm considering giving a new game like Warhammer Online a try, but I have a guild of good people in World of Warcraft, and I'm a bit reluctant to start over in a new game to try and make friends that I can play with. Most of us know what not to do in an MMO, but is there a relatively easy way to 'Win Friends and Influence People'?

-Friendly Noob Gamer

Continue reading Ask Massively: How to avoid being 'that guy'

Ask Massively: How to avoid being 'that guy' originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: EVE Online PvP vs Age of Conan PvP

Brendan Drain — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Sci-fi, Age of Conan, EVE Online, Game mechanics, PvP, Opinion, EVE Evolved

Before I started playing Age of Conan, I had a very strict mindset on how a PvP MMO should and shouldn't work. From my experiences in EVE Online, I was convinced that good open world PvP was not possible with a level system or exotic gear. I was pleasantly surprised to find that although these games are worlds apart, their PvP styles both work and are both fun. In this article, I compare and contrast my PvP experiences so far in Age of Conan with those in EVE Online.

Open world PvP:
One of the main features of both EVE and Age of Conan is an open world PvP scheme that allows players to attack each other anywhere within reason. Age of Conan achieves this scheme by designating certain zones as PvP areas. These areas contain the monsters and quest targets required to level up, making players to put themselves at risk to reap the rewards of levelling up quickly. Towns and the areas around them are designated safe areas where PvP is physically impossible.

Read on as I discuss important PvP issues ranging from death penalty and group gameplay to equipment types and game server model.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: EVE Online PvP vs Age of Conan PvP

EVE Evolved: EVE Online PvP vs Age of Conan PvP originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 08 Jun 2008 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Player vs. Everything: The importance of morale

Cameron Sorden — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 16:30:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Game mechanics, Grouping, Opinion, Player vs. Everything

We've all been there. Any little thing can start it. Maybe the tank messes up and pulls two groups when he meant to pull one. Maybe the healer was distracted by his cat and some people die. Maybe the mage doesn't watch her aggro and the mobs take out the DPS. Something happens, and the group wipes. The seed of doubt is planted: Can this group really pull this dungeon off? Am I grouped with a bunch of idiots? How big is my repair bill going to be tonight?

It's like watching a chain of dominoes. Sometimes, the group can laugh off a wipe or two. But if a simple mistake turns into a pattern of someone screwing up, or if luck goes against you and you have a few simple mistakes in a row, people start losing their morale. Suddenly, people aren't using their consumables (why bother when you're just going to die again?). The tanks and healers get frustrated and start getting sloppy. The DPS gets angry and starts getting cocky. Everyone thinks everyone else is a moron, and each pull is a little less likely to succeed than the last. Each wipe spirals you further down. Finally, people start having mysterious "emergencies" and have to leave the group (do a /who check to see them farming somewhere in 30 minutes). You might not realize it, but your group's morale is hugely important to your success.

Continue reading Player vs. Everything: The importance of morale

Player vs. Everything: The importance of morale originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 29 Apr 2008 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Player vs. Everything: Playing with your friends

Cameron Sorden — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 16:30:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Guilds, Grouping, Opinion, Politics, Player vs. Everything

Players often venture into the wilderness of online games alone and friendless, seeking out allies in the worlds they inhabit and making friends as they go along. Some games are better at encouraging players to work together than others, too. You're not going to last very long playing by yourself in games like EverQuest or EVE Online, so you have to go looking for people to play with. On the other hand, in games like World of Warcraft you can start at the first level and get to level 70 without ever talking to another human being (it's even easier if you're a Hunter). Regardless of whether your particular game of choice forces you to find friends, many people like to have friends to play with anyway. Even if you don't need them, it's kind of the point of online games to play with other people. Right?

That's why some people roll into these games with a ready-made posse. Maybe it's a group of real-life friends that want to play together online, or maybe it's a guild composed of players that you met in a previous game and you'd all like to try something different together. Either way, it's pretty nice to be able to work with a group of people you already know, trust, and like. You don't have to hope that the fickle hand of fate will deliver good PuGs to you (we all know how rare those are), and you don't have to worry about trying to find a new group of people who you can relate to in a sea of anonymous faces (many of whom will have value systems, expectations, and maturity levels that will be different than yours). Is it possible you're missing out on something by bringing your own people in, though? If so, do you care?

Continue reading Player vs. Everything: Playing with your friends

Player vs. Everything: Playing with your friends originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 23 Apr 2008 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One Shots: Everyone say cheese!

Krystalle Voecks — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Screenshots, Lord of the Rings Online, One Shots

It seems like during the holidays or parties, people love to gather together and do a "photo" (screenshot) together. Our reader Jose found one such group, and being a bit of a game 'photographer' himself, snapped this excellent screenshot for us. With today being Easter Sunday, many folks will be gathering together in brightly-colored finery with friends and family. So we figured what better time to share this festive screen! Jose writes:

[This is] a line up for the "photographer" during a party. Funny things people do in LotRO.

We've seen screenshot lineups in many, many games, really. But half the fun of gaming is doing funny things with friends -- and occasionally snapping screenshots of them!

If you have any great, funny, interesting, off the wall, beautiful, exciting or (insert adjective here) screenshots, then let the world share in your moment! Grab those screens, pop them in a mail with a short blurb about what's in the scene, and send them to us at oneshots@massively.com! No game too old or niche, no screenshot too large.

Gallery: One Shots

One Shots: Everyone say cheese! originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 23 Mar 2008 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Perils of changing pets in World of Warcraft

Eloise Pasteur — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Tips and tricks, Opinion

As a hunter (well for my main character, in the few days before crunch time, my pet is a big part of the arsenal available to me. I'm quite happy, most of the time, with my bear. Extra armour and extra hit points a nice tank maketh, and if the damage is a little lower per second, that's cancelled out by some durability on those times when I make a mistake and send the poor beast in to a stickier situation than expected (like when I get hit by a load of big critters who all respawn on my head in the middle of an over-level fight).

But I was tempted by the thought of big scorpid venom after being hit by one, so I swapped pets, briefly. Ouch is the only description I can think of. The venom is great in PvP I'm sure, but not so useful vs. critters, especially critters with poison themselves. The absence of growl and the ability to attract and hold aggro meant I was suddenly in the midst of fighting all the time. The fact that, even after the scorpid levelled I couldn't teach it growl (or similar) was the final nail in the poor scorpion's coffin. For PvE play I want that tank bank and doing what tanks do best - holding aggro. If I, as I do, sometimes tip over the edge and pull them off him by mistake, so be it - for most things I'm fighting at around my level, it's half dead or more before it disengages. There is still time for a stun and an arcane shot for a bit more damage before contact. It leaves the daggers I use as a nice back up to kill the almost-dead critter as it arrives.

The moral of this tale - for both Hunters and Warlocks I guess - think about your pets/summons and what you use them for. Piling out extra damage is nice, but do you want a tank more? If you're hunting in a group, does that change? (How much would the group tank like a pet that slows the attacks on him from ancillary targets, I wonder?) Pets are an important part of your arsenal - one I use all the time and I'm sure most hunters and warlocks do too. Thinking about how to use them is surely smart?

Perils of changing pets in World of Warcraft originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 29 Jan 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MMOGology: Group dynamics

Marc Nottke — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Culture, Guides, Grouping, Opinion, MMOGology

Leading a group in a dungeon instance can often feel like herding cats, especially if you're playing with a pick-up-group (PUG). Unlike a guild group you don't have the luxury of knowing the strengths and weaknesses of the other players. PUGs also tend to have more members with less experience running the instance. Many instances I've run in World of Warcraft have involved at least one of the following situations: The huntard claims he must be the official puller and then won't shed the aggro to let the main tank do his job. The healer blows all his mana on the soft targets that shouldn't have aggro. The priest or warlock freaks out and fears off the mobs who flee to their comrades in waiting, join forces, and eat the reckless noobs stumbling through their dungeon.

No matter how good a player you are personally, you can't save a group from the four other morons that make up your party. Maybe once or twice you'll get off a group saving heal, or manage to get the aggro back onto yourself if you're a tank. Nine times out of ten, though, when the same craziness happens on the next pull, it's a wipe. So imagine my surprise when I joined up a with a group of total noobs to run the Blackrock Depths instance in WoW, and managed to finish most of my quests and take down nearly all the bosses with only one wipe. This was a group of extremely inexperienced players. Besides myself, only one other person there had even run the instance before. Because we were both on alts that hadn't seen this content in a long time, neither of us really remembered the details. So how can a group succeed when it doesn't have experience? How could this be possible when I'd run the same instance with veterans and higher level characters with less success?

Continue reading MMOGology: Group dynamics

MMOGology: Group dynamics originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 28 Jan 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: Your best wipe?

Krystalle Voecks — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Opinion, The Daily Grind, Humor

Pretty well anyone who has ever been in a party quest, or on a raid in an MMO has a story of this nature to share. In time they become the center of in-jokes in your group of friends, or guild. The truly spectacularly silly ones can even go on to become Internet history. Today, we'd like to hear about your funniest wipes! Just what went wrong? Or, for that matter, what went right when it came to making them so funny?

The Daily Grind: Your best wipe? originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 26 Jan 2008 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fellowships versus soloing in LotRO epic storylines

William Dobson — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Grouping, PvE

Many of you will have completed Lord of the Rings Online's latest epic storyline from Book 11 by now, and you may have found that you could accomplish this task all on your lonesome. This topic was raised on LotRO's official forums, and whilst the initial poster was against the idea of a solo-able epic quest, the overwhelming response of the thread was that of people who had finished soloing it and loved it, or those that didn't realize it could be done alone and were keen to log in and get started.

To date, most of the Books have been composed of a mix of solo and fellowship portions, and this was reinforced for future books later in the thread by a member of Turbine's LotRO team, MadeOfLions (fantastic name by the way), who said, "we're letting the needs of the story dictate the group sizes, rather than the other way around", and also that Book 12 should be a return to a more fellowship-oriented quest line.

It's nice to have a mix between the two formats, solo and grouped, because let's face it -- a fellowship isn't always available -- and with Book 11 giving my class of choice, the Minstrel, a little more solo-power, I enjoy having only one life bar to watch over for a change.

Fellowships versus soloing in LotRO epic storylines originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 09 Nov 2007 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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