Massively

Cyclops joins Marvel Heroes' roster

Justin Olivetti — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, Galleries, Screenshots, Classes, Previews, Free-to-play, Marvel Heroes

Cyclops, aka Scott Summers, will be leaping off the comic book pages and into MMOs when Marvel Heroes eventually comes out. Until then, we'll have to content ourselves with scoping out his chiseled, spandex'd body and secretly wishing that we had his death ray eyes the next time we get stuck behind some jerk in traffic.

Gazillion is happy to announce that Cyclops will be a playable character in Marvel Heroes. What he lacks in overall charisma and flying abilities, he makes up for with a facial cannon capable of ruining your day. Cyclops is the on-again, off-again leader of the X-Men, a group of heroes that is also confirmed to be a part of the game.

You can check out a larger picture of Cyclops along with all the other revealed playable characters in Marvel Heroes in our new gallery below!

Gallery: Marvel Heroes

Cyclops joins Marvel Heroes' roster originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 16 Feb 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Gazillion shutting down Fortune Online

Jef Reahard — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Browser, Casual

Gazillion's new Fortune Online title is headed for the scrap heap, according to our friends at Joystiq. The Diablo-style browser MMO was born of a desire to simplify dungeon crawling for casual gamers, but apparently it's taking too much time (and too many resources) away from Gazillion's Marvel projects.

"We will continue delivering and refining content for Super Hero Squad Online, along with building and developing the Marvel Heroes game," a Gazillion spokesman told Joystiq. The firm also denied speculation that it is preparing for a Disney acquisition, and it declined to announce a timetable or job losses resulting from the Fortune closure.

[Thanks to Space Cobra for the tip!]

Gazillion shutting down Fortune Online originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 14 Feb 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Marvel Heroes to use Unreal 3 engine

Jef Reahard — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Free-to-play, Marvel Heroes

Gazillion Entertainment has announced that it is licensing Epic's Unreal 3 game engine to power the upcoming Marvel Heroes MMO.

The game, informally known as Marvel Universe Online, allows players to step into the shoes of Captain America, Iron Man, and Spider-man (among others). Gazillion says the third-party toolset will enable its developers to focus on delivering a high-quality game experience. "We [...] love the flexibility we get from the actor components, which have empowered us to make all kinds of customizations without sacrificing the built-in features of the engine," says Jeff Lind, head of Gazillion's Secret Identity Studios.

Gazillion hasn't mentioned a timeframe for the game's release (heck, there's no official website yet, either), but we'll keep you informed as we hear more.

[Source: Gazillion press release]

Marvel Heroes to use Unreal 3 engine originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Marvel Universe Online reveals the art for Thor

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 18:30:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, Previews, News items, Free-to-play, Marvel Heroes

Hark, gentle readers! Today is indeed a most fortuitous day for those watching the development of yon massively multiplayer online game that is known as Marvel Universe Online, for the stalwart writers of code and crafters of art have provided fans with the newest piece of character art. And lest ye fear that the newest addition will in some way disappoint, fear not, for the newest piece of character art is no less than a god!

Yes, the mighty Thor is the latest of the heroes to be previewed, with vestments that speak of both his classic appearance and his recent successful film. If you are a follower of this noble and forthright god of thunder, you will no doubt be pleased to know that his likeness will be seen within Marvel Universe Online, and you should make haste to view the full artwork in a much higher resolution.

Marvel Universe Online reveals the art for Thor originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Nov 2011 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

The MMO Report: The Force is with you edition

Larry Everett — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Video, Lord of the Rings Online, News items, Humor, Star Wars: The Old Republic, The MMO Report

Casey Schreiner needs to play with his new laundry and wash his iPad -- or maybe it was the other way around -- so we must hurry through the description of this week's MMO Report! I'm not joking, he really has to leave quickly.

Casey starts with quips about a bearded dragon in the new expansion for Lord of the Rings Online, which is ironic, coming from the Master of Beards himself. Following that, our man of MMO mystery discusses the vehicles, beta, and pre-order for Star Wars: The Old Republic. He says the very thing that is on the mind of every fan: "EA you're doing it wrong." First you announce release date, followed by pre-order, and then beta!

On another topic, Casey begs the new VP at Disney Interactive Studios, Bill Roper, to actually release information regarding the Marvel MMO. And lastly, Sir Schreiner lets us in on PvP for Rusty Hearts and explains why America needs to be more like Russia.

To catch all of this and dip into Uncle Casey's mailbag, jump past the break and get ready for all the sweetness of the MMO Report.

Continue reading The MMO Report: The Force is with you edition

The MMO Report: The Force is with you edition originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 29 Jul 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Marvel MMO announcing its writer this Thursday

Jef Reahard — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 20:30:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, Events, real-world, MMO industry, New titles, News items

Wakey wakey, Marvel MMO fans: Your favorite company has a big announcement lined up for later this week. It's so big, apparently, that today the legendary comic book publisher released an announcement about its upcoming announcement.

On Thursday, April 28th, Marvel will be unveiling... drumroll please... the writer of its upcoming comic book-flavored MMORPG. Who could it possibly be? Is Marvel going to talk about the actual game at some point? Inquiring minds want to know the answers to these and other burning questions, and a blurb on the company's website promises some dialogue after the big info drop. "We'll be taking your questions via Twitter, Facebook and the liveblog below once the action has begun," says the site. There's also a brief preview video featuring Marvel.com's editorial director, which will be replaced by a live video stream of Thursday's event.

Check in with Massively later this week as our own Bree Royce reports from the Marvel shindig in San Francisco.

Marvel MMO announcing its writer this Thursday originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 25 Apr 2011 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

It's clobberin' time: Whomp other Super Hero Squad players at PAX

Justin Olivetti — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, Events, real-world, PvP, Trading card games, Family, Super Hero Squad Online

We've got two quick questions for you: Are you a Marvel fan, and are you going to PAX this weekend? If you leaped up from your chair screaming, "YES! YES! A THOUSAND TIMES YES!" then cut back on your caffeine intake and get thee to Gazillion's booth (#3433) in the exhibition hall for a special treat. Not only will the company be showing off Super Hero Squad Online, but it'll be hosting a special PvP tournament for awesome prizes.

At the tournament, players will get their hands on the collectible card battle system, where they can build their own customized decks and strike out at lesser heroes who stand in their way. In SHSO, these cards can be earned through quests and mini-games, or purchased via microtransactions. Gazillion has three Alienware prize packages for the winners of the tournament, including keyboards, headsets and a monitor.

This unique PvP system could be an effort to recall the joy of collecting toys and cards. Visitors to Gazillion's booth will also be able to play other aspects of the Marvel MMO, sign up for the beta, and shake hands with the developers.

It's clobberin' time: Whomp other Super Hero Squad players at PAX originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Marvel Universe MMO will release in 2012

Krystalle Voecks — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, Launches, New titles, News items, Marvel Heroes

If you've been concerned about the potential supersaturation of superhero titles in the MMO space, it looks like you've got just a wee bit less to worry about. According to a recent interview with MTV's comic site, Splashpage, Simon Phillips, Marvel's president of worldwide consumer products, said that the Marvel Universe MMO won't release until 2012. The idea is to time the release of the MMO to better align with the one-two punch of the Captain America movie in 2011 and the Avengers movie in 2012. So, we're looking at approximately three more years before we can put our hands on the finished Marvel MMO, and geek out by swinging along with Spidey.

Stepping back, it's also an interesting move strictly from a tactical standpoint. City of Heroes will be 8 years old, Champions Online will be 3 years old, and even DC Universe Online will be at least a year or so old, depending on the final release date. Computer hardware will most likely have moved ahead by then. So is it crazy to push it out so far into the future? Or crazy like a fox? Only time will tell in this superheroic battle of titles.

Marvel Universe MMO will release in 2012 originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 02 Apr 2009 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

NetDevil acquired by Gazillion Entertainment... last July

Kyle Horner — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Jumpgate Evolution, New titles, News items, LEGO Universe

We've got good news that also happens to be a bit strange. Remember that new publisher that's now bringing us the Marvel MMO? Well, it turns out that NetDevil was actually acquired in July 2008 by the newly revealed Gazillion Entertainment. NetDevil's Scott "Scorch" Brown says in his post on the official Jumpgate Evolution forums that the choice was made due to Gazillion's shared view on game development. Specifically, the two companies value lots of focus testing, vertical slice development, iterating until things are great and only releasing games when they are ready.

The strange part is of course the announcement of an acquisition that occured over half a year ago. We're assuming the delay was due to Gazillion wanting to make a big announcement splash, but it's dark business magic like this that make us scratch our heads sometimes.

Is this news and that of Codemaster's chief operating officer unexpectedly departing from the company connected? It's hard to say, but at this point it's anybody's guess as to what's really going on.

NetDevil acquired by Gazillion Entertainment... last July originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 18 Mar 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments