Massively

The Guild Counsel: Are guild leaders a health hazard?

Karen Bryan — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Real life, Culture, Guilds, The Guild Counsel, Miscellaneous

Earlier this week, Massively reported on a poll conducted by Bigpoint concerning gamer stereotypes. The good news is that the results of the voluntary survey showed that gamers are not overweight shut-ins who live in their grandmother's basements. The bad news is that there's some skepticism on the validity of the results, since the poll was a voluntary survey and there's no way to prove that the participants were telling the truth.

However, there have been a number of in-depth studies over the years that have shown some surprising trends in who exactly plays MMOs and more importantly what their behavior is like in game. For this week's Guild Counsel, we're going to take a closer look at MMO players and touch on the role that guild leaders might play in steering player behavior in-game.

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The Guild Counsel: Are guild leaders a health hazard? originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Feb 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Three years of Massively: Celebrating the alumni

Shawn Schuster — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Interviews, MMO industry, Massively Meta

Over the past three years, we've seen plenty of faces come and go through the doors of Massively. I can honestly say that I'm proud of the current team and it's been a pleasure working with such a diverse crowd since I started.

Some former writers went on to work in the industry itself, either on the community or development side of things. We wanted to spotlight those Massively alumni with this article detailing their accomplishments. As an added bonus, a few of the former staffers answered some questions regarding their new gig. Follow along for more!

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Three years of Massively: Celebrating the alumni originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 02 Nov 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Massively Speaking Podcast Episode 50

Shawn Schuster — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:30:00 EST

Filed under: Podcasts, Culture, Massively Meta, Massively Speaking

Massively Speaking Episode 50 returns this week with Michael Zenke taking on the esteemed co-hosting position. Michael returns just for this week to chat with Shawn about all of the week's MMO news including WAR's patch 1.21, CoH's vast player-created content, Shadowbane's closing, the Free Realms beta and more!

Have a comment for the podcasters? Shoot us an email to podcast AT massively DOT com. Maybe we'll read your letter on the air!

Get the podcast:
[iTunes] Subscribe to Massively Speaking directly in iTunes.
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Listen here on the page:

Read below the cut for the full show notes.

Continue reading Massively Speaking Podcast Episode 50

Massively Speaking Podcast Episode 50 originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Meet the Team: Michael Zenke

Michael Zenke — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Massively Meta, Meet the Team

Once a week our writers will give you a glimpse into their lives, to let you get to know them and the characters they play a little better. Click here to read more Meet the Team.

What do you do for Massively.com?

I'm the Managing Editor for the site. That means that in addition to doing regular news blogging and the occasional feature, I help the contributing editors focus their coverage and writing. I try my best to connect the site with development houses and publishers, and generally work towards getting new and better content on the site every day. For the past year plus the site's been my life and fulltime work, and I'm really very fond of it.

That probably sounds weird, but that's the way it is.

Gallery: Meet the Team

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Meet the Team: Michael Zenke originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 02 Feb 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The WoW vs. WAR debate makes Top 10 list of video game rage

James Egan — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, MMO industry, Warhammer Online, Opinion, Humor

Alec Meer of Rock, Paper, Shotgun recently put a new twist on the 'top 10' lists that are cropping up at year's end -- a sort of top ten of gaming rage as expressed on the intertubes. Much of this list is focused on single-player titles and the industry itself, but Meer's 'Orc vs Orc' (#8 on the list) caught our attention.

Meer writes, "We've already talked today about the absurd, insane fanboy fallout from our own comparisons between Warhammer Online and World of Warcraft, but in truth it was a torrent of poison that briefly gripped MMO sites the world over. Notably, MUDfather Richard Bartle endured character assassination by a raft of WAR fansites after an interview in which he apparently stated the two games were very similar." That interview in question was actually Dr. Bartle's talk with our own (master) Michael Zenke back in June.

One of Azeroth's millions of citizens? Check out our ongoing coverage of the World of Warcraft, and be sure to touch base with our sister site WoW Insider for all your Lich King needs!

Continue reading The WoW vs. WAR debate makes Top 10 list of video game rage

The WoW vs. WAR debate makes Top 10 list of video game rage originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 19 Dec 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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More details on Dungeons and Dragons Online's Module 8

James Egan — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Expansions, Game mechanics, Interviews, MMO industry, Races

We're pretty well swept up in the Wrath of the Lich King launch today, but that doesn't mean we're not keeping an eye on the rest of the MMO world. Our most recent Massively Speaking podcast featured an interview with Turbine's Kate Paiz, Senior Producer for Dungeons and Dragons Online, conducted by our overlord Michael Zenke. The interview hits on some details of Turbine's plans for Dungeon and Dragons Online in Module 8 (namely 'hirelings') and beyond.

But there's more -- GameBanshee recently ran a Turbine interview detailing how DDO has changed in Module 8 over its previous iterations. The GameBanshee interview gives us some additional details on Module 8's hirelings, and focuses on the new Character Generation system, a story-based introduction to the game, and content for higher-level players.

More details on Dungeons and Dragons Online's Module 8 originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 13 Nov 2008 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One Shots: Loping into Freeport

Krystalle Voecks — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Screenshots, EverQuest II, One Shots

Many people have been enjoying the recent spate of different mounts from different games. We've shown off favorite faction ships from EVE Online, and today we have this dark and foreboding screenshot from Massively's very own Michael Zenke. In today's One Shots, he shows off a creepy mount he's picked up during his travels in EverQuest II. Michael tells us a bit more about this: This is my healer just after completing the Warg quests in Loping Plains, a late 50s chunk of content added back in the EverQuest II Faydwer expansion. Loping Plains is a fantastic zone, and the reward here is one of the cheapest high-speed mounts you can get. The backdrop is the evil city of Freeport, with the Overlord's ominous citadel floating on the horizon.

Sure, you can get from point-a to point-b in a variety of ways, but there's nothing quite as cool as the mount you earn, we think. If you've got a mount you've worked hard to earn (or maybe one you just think looks all kinds of awesome) we want to see it. Take a quick screenshot of your character on your mount, in your ship, etc. and send it to us here at oneshots AT massively DOT com along with your name and a quick description. Remember, One Shots is all about your adventures, so take a moment to send something in!

Gallery: One Shots

One Shots: Loping into Freeport originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 05 Nov 2008 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WRUP: A long week's weekend

Mike Schramm — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Massively Meta

Happy Friday! Maybe it's just because sickness set in at the beginning of this week, but for some reason the past five days have seemed unreasonably long, so the break of the weekend is a welcome sight today. Friday also happens to be the day where we ask: What aRe yoU Playing in this wide and wonderful world of MMOs?

Kyle Horner says he's been enjoying himself in Ikariam lately -- he says it's a free-to-play browser based game that's "kind of like Civ," which makes it a must-check out. Michael Zenke tells us he's got Mythos and WoW on the docket for this weekend, along with another super secret game that we can't quite tell you about yet. But our own Tateru Nino takes the cake. Here's what she says she has planned for this weekend: "Dark Messiah of Might and Magic, Half Life 2 (original recipe), Team Fortress 2, UFO: Afterlight, The Bard's Tale, Imperium Romanum, City of Heroes, LotRO, The Longest Journey (original game), Two Worlds, Bioshock, Dream of Mirror Online, Neverwinter Nights 2, plus time in SL." Yowza. That's a lot of gaming.

So what are you up to? Taking advantage of the extra XP in Pirates of the Carribbean Online? Trying to sign up to play Age of Conan? Or just desperately trying to finish up your taxes? Leave a comment below and let us know what's on your MMO plate this weekend.

Previously on WRUP...

WRUP: A long week's weekend originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 11 Apr 2008 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Find out why WoW conquered the world

Samuel Axon — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 23:30:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Culture, MMO industry, News items

Gamasutra has published an article titled "Why World of Warcraft Made It Big." The article was written by Michael Zenke, a member of the family here at Massively! Zenke argues that there's no one reason WoW was the game to explode into the mainstream in Western markets, instead of EverQuest II or City of Heroes. Accessibility, low system specs, polish, storytelling, fun factor, and yes, timing -- all of these had something to do with it. He also suggests that in the wake of The Burning Crusade, WoW is as strong today as it's ever been.

So, this begs the question -- and this is not one that's addressed in the post -- is there a game coming that will leave WoW in the dust just as WoW surpassed EverQuest? Or will Blizzard reign as kings throughout the foreseeable future? Maybe we'll see an industry like the one Corey Bridges of Multiverse described -- a place where democratization of the MMO development process creates hundreds or thousands of successful, user-generated experiences? As curious as we are, we're smart enough not to make blind predictions. So let's see what happens this year with the big releases like Age of Conan and Warhammer Online, as well as the democratizing experiments like MetaPlace.

Find out why WoW conquered the world originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 31 Mar 2008 23:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Grimwell gives one reason fantasy pwns sci-fi, we go "Huh?"

Kyle Horner — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Sci-fi, MMO industry, News items

Watch your head, you don't want it hit by return fire in the ever-present MMO blogosphere discussion of fantasy vs sci-fi. The most recent discussion started up with Massively's own Michael Zenke and his "Five Reasons Sci-Fi Pwns Fantasy" which prompted the return fire in question from Grimwell. Both of the posts are certainly worth reading, especially if you have any kind of lingering interest in the subject matter.

As far as we can see, there's truth to be had on both sides of the fence. However, we do have one point of contention to make with Grimwelll's argument. He states that the reason fantasy "pwns" sci-fi is that it's accessible, which is a constant argument on the matter. While we think he may have a point in that less people are inherently familiar with sci-fi, we very much disagree with his assessment that you need to be a math nerd to enjoy good sci-fi -- his example in this case being Star Trek and its now-infamous technobabble.

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Grimwell gives one reason fantasy pwns sci-fi, we go "Huh?" originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 05 Feb 2008 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Adventures from the Back Row: World of Warcraft priestly resources

Michael Zenke — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 19:15:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Classes, Forums, Game mechanics, Guides, PvP, Raiding, Endgame, Grouping, PvE, Opinion, Adventures from the Back Row, Education

It would be a shame for December to end with just one chance to talk about what it's like to put your heal down. My technical problems have put a temporary hold on my series on healing in Tabula Rasa, but there's no reason we can't turn to the web for succor.

I'm guessing a lot of you play World of Warcraft, right? Well, healing in WoW is just as hard as it is anywhere else. At the high end, the hoops you have to jump through ... well, you'd almost think that you'd need some sort of advanced strategy. Perhaps people could even make a hobby out of commenting on what it's like to play a priest?

What do you know, both of those things are out there? Today's Adventures from the Back Row will try to offer up a few reliable resources for channeling the Light (or Shadow) in Azeroth. I'm also going to point out some bloggers who make it their business to channel the divine. Whether they're professional or kwai, upbeat or uber-cynical, everyone who wears the halo in World of Warcraft has one thing in common: idiot groupmates delusions of grandeur not enough mana.

Continue reading Adventures from the Back Row: World of Warcraft priestly resources

Adventures from the Back Row: World of Warcraft priestly resources originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 31 Dec 2007 19:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The good, the bad, the ugly - MMOs in 2007

Chris Chester — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business models, Culture, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Opinion

The indelible Michael Zenke, who you might recognize as one of our more frequent writers and the winner of a Gnomey for his work on his personal site -- MMOG Nation, recently wrote a piece recounting the top 5 most significant moments in MMOs for this year over at Gamasutra. Among the things that Michael focuses on are the overwhelming success of free, simply coded games like Maple Story, the spectacular failure of a number of larger budget titles like Auto Assault, the way that World of Warcraft has blitzkrieged mainstream culture with the Mr. T commercial spots and South Park episode, the shift in the marketplace that is poised to see EA and Activision Blizzard take broadside shots at each other, and the battle over RMT price models.

It's about the right time for this sort of macro-analysis of the year that, unbelievably, has already passed us by. The editorial piece is a great overview of the industry as it's developed this past year, and Michael approaches the subject with the appropriate mix of skepticism and cautious optimism. He also posted a few follow-up notes over at MMOG Nation that are certainly worth looking at if the Gama article strikes your fancy. Definitely give it a look.

The good, the bad, the ugly - MMOs in 2007 originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 Dec 2007 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Putting "non-MMO" gameplay into an MMO game

Mike Schramm — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Game mechanics, MMO industry, Opinion, Casual

Massively's own Michael Zenke just doesn't seem to quit thinking about MMOs-- not only is he writing for us here, but he's also posting very intelligent stuff on other sites about MMOs, and even over the Christmas holiday, on his own blog, he's turning out insight about MMO design. His latest post is about a game I love, Viva Pinata for the Xbox 360, and how developers can use the lessons learned in both casual and more complicated "empire-building" or "garden growing" games like that to inform MMO gameplay.

The thing that Viva Pinata does best, in my opinion, is that it creates a living breathing world easily and with a relatively transparent interface. Create some worms (sorry, "whirlms"), give them a house, and all of a sudden you get birds. House the birds, and more animals appear-- there's the sense that you're not so much playing as interacting with a real world around you. And that is something that is very easily translatable to MMOs-- I feel like I keep bringing it up, but Pirates' concept of "stored labor" gives me that same sense of "waiting to push the button" that Zenke talks about. And he also mentions the achievements and the gift system that extend VP's gameplay, and it's definitely true that those kinds of things can push MMOs forward as well.

It's probably true that the next big MMO won't draw their influence from an MMO at all-- it'll be the kind of game that brings not only hacking and slashing to the massively multiplayer table, but these other kinds of deeper gameplay as well.

Putting "non-MMO" gameplay into an MMO game originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 27 Dec 2007 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rise of Kunark interview with Scott Hartsman

Mike Schramm — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 23:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, EverQuest II, Expansions, Interviews

We almost missed this one, but Massively's own Michael Zenke put together a terrific interview with Everquest II Senior Producer Scott Hartsman about Rise of Kunark, the upcoming expansion, which features lizard-men called Sarnaks. You know any game that features lizardmen already has a lot going for it, and from what we saw in Dan's walkthrough, lizardmen are just the beginning..

Zenke and Harsman talk about developing the game (this is the first expansion that's had almost a full year for development), and the ambitious schedule for all of EQ2's development-- Hartsman says that the advent of WoW was a kick in the pants for all MMO developers, and that it set the bar not just for competition, but for survival. They also cover what there is to find in Kunark-- Hartsman especially loves the storyline on the war between the Sarnak and the Spirroc (parrotmen, apparently-- what will they think of next?!), and the updated tradeskills, which should offer lots of interesting items for crafters and consumers alike.

Definitely a must-read if you're interested in the new expansion (or if you have fond memories of Kunark in the original Everquest).

Rise of Kunark interview with Scott Hartsman originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 07 Nov 2007 23:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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