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R.A. Salvatore: Project Copernicus would "blow you away"

Matt Daniel — Fri, 25 May 2012 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, MMO industry, News items

The future isn't looking particularly bright for 38 Studios and its in-development MMO Project Copernicus, but the game's writer, esteemed fantasy author R.A. Salvatore, took to the comments on a post on Daily Kos to tell everyone how great the game would have been.

Salvatore claims that the game is "much further along than is being reported," and that he wishes he could show us some of it (though sadly, he cannot). He goes on to state that the developers behind Copernicus were "an amazing team of [developers]... pushing the envelope in their respective fields," and that "the environments, the animations, and the game-play would blow you away." Unfortunately, it's looking like we'll never get to judge the veracity of Salvatore's words for ourselves, but the statements do help to shed a bit of light on what might have been.

R.A. Salvatore: Project Copernicus would "blow you away" originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 25 May 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DDO's Menace of the Underdark releasing June 25th, opens up pre-orders

Justin Olivetti — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 08:15:00 EST

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Classes, Expansions, Previews, Free-to-play, Promotions

Speaking of Guinness World Records for video games, I wonder whether Dungeons and Dragons Online would be eligible for "Longest time between game release and launch of its first expansion?" Six years may just be the longest we've ever witnessed, as DDO released in 2006, and it wasn't until 2012 that Menace of the Underdark was revealed. The good news is that come June 25th, the drought will be over.

We asked Turbine why now seemed like a good time for an expansion. The devs said that Atari had made some noise back in the day about one, but it never came to fruition. With the success of free-to-play, Turbine wanted to see whether the expansion model was still viable, so Lord of the Rings Online was chosen as a test subject. When Rise of Isengard became the best-selling expansion for the company, the company felt secure letting DDO have a chance, although there was quite a lot of wrangling with Wizards of the Coast about the details and permissions.

Record or no, it's an exciting event for DDO players, and the today, Turbine has announced the two biggest details for the expansion's schedule. The first is that Menace of the Underdark has a release date, and the second is the opening of pre-orders. Read on to get all of the juicy infos.

Continue reading DDO's Menace of the Underdark releasing June 25th, opens up pre-orders

DDO's Menace of the Underdark releasing June 25th, opens up pre-orders originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 27 Feb 2012 08:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Creating a new world: 38 Studios discusses the formation of Amalur's IP

Justin Olivetti — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Interviews, MMO industry

As MMO fans, we're keeping a close eye on 38 Studios for its development of Project Copernicus, the MMO that will serve as the follow-up to next month's Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. The risk factor of not only developing two major intertwined projects in parallel but to have the additional task of creating a brand-new IP in which to put them must be a pressing one, which is why CVG sat down with Reckoning Lead Designer Ian Frazier to talk about challenges the studio has been tackling.

Frazier outlines the balance the studio's struck between its three big-name creators -- Todd McFarlane (art), R.A. Salvatore (story), and Ken Rolston (design) -- not to mention the ideas that pour in from founder Curt Schilling. Fortunately, Frazier says that these larger-than-life personalities mesh well together: "The nice thing that's worked out is, I think if we'd got three famous game designers, it would have been a disaster: big egos, they're all on the same plane, it wouldn't have worked out. What makes this work is they're all different."

Even though Rolston previously worked on The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, Frazier said the designer wanted to try his hand at something fresh with a better combat system. "They're all great games," Frazier said of the Elder Scrolls series, "and I think they're progressively better, but they're all the same game. It's not like they're radically changing with time."

Frazier said Reckoning has been compared to a "single-player WoW" as well as Dragon Age and Fable, but he insists that the world and ideas the team's been creating will take it far past those basic comparisons.

You can take your first peek into the world of Amalur with the Reckoning demo -- and let us know what you think in the comments!

Creating a new world: 38 Studios discusses the formation of Amalur's IP originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jan 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Perfect Ten: The upcoming contenders

Justin Olivetti — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Opinion, Guild Wars 2, Marvel Heroes, The Secret World, Warhammer 40k, DUST 514, TERA, EverQuest Next, Perfect Ten, Miscellaneous, ArcheAge, WildStar

While I'm on board the Star Wars: The Old Republic train (at least until SOE's Star Wars: The New Republic comes out in 2014 and forces SWTOR to shut down), I can certainly sympathize with the frustration that non-fans are feeling right about now. There are few things more annoying than not being into the latest craze -- or hating it outright -- and yet being unable to escape it.

So I'm here to say to you today that, like World of Warcraft, SWTOR isn't the be-all, end-all of the MMO field. It's a part of it, but just one part, and there are many, many others in the works as we speak. Mama always told me never to put all your eggs in one basket anyway, so I'm spreading my eggcitement across many cyber-nests.

This is the bone I'm throwing to all of you this week: a list of 10 Midichlorian-free MMOs that have me -- and should have you -- extremely buzzed about their development. In putting together this list, I realized that there are so many promising prospects that I divided them into two groups. This week I'm presenting the strongest contenders that should make it to launch with a solid product, while next time I'll list promising prospects that may be more of a long shot. I'm 47% confident that I will not forget your most-anticipated title.

Continue reading The Perfect Ten: The upcoming contenders

The Perfect Ten: The upcoming contenders originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 01 Dec 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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38 Studios opens a website portal to Project Copernicus' world

Justin Olivetti — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 12:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Lore, Previews

While 38 Studios' top-secret Project Copernicus MMO lacks a proper title or most of its details, at least we can now visit the world that it and its single-player RPG brother, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, inhabits.

The studio launched a pair of websites devoted to the game world and its first game today. Over on Amalur, 38 Studios has unleashed its loremasters to share with you the stories, features, histories, and settings of this fantasy landscape. And while Reckoning is just a prequel to the eventual MMO, its website contains quite a few lore snippets as well as a world map to pour over while you're planning your future conquests.

As part of the twin projects, R.A. Salvatore has created over 10,000 years of fictional history for the world of Amalur, stretching from The Deep Gloam to the Age of Heroes. Reckoning takes place during the Age of Arcana, with Copernicus happening some time thereafter.

38 Studios opens a website portal to Project Copernicus' world originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 08 Nov 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Documentary filmmaker takes on MMORPGs

Jef Reahard — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 12:30:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, MMO industry, News items, Opinion

As popular as World of Warcraft has become, we almost take it for granted that everyone on the planet is familiar with (or has at least heard of) MMORPGs. Despite the fact that gaming has become relatively mainstream over the last few years, MMORPGs remain mysteriously inaccessible to portions of the populace, and filmmaker Ben Gonyo aims to change all that with a new documentary called Gamers.

Gamers sees Gonyo immerse himself in MMO subculture for the better part of two years, and features interviews with over 100 gamers, designers, critics, psychologists, comedians, and celebrities -- including Curt Schilling and R.A. Salvatore. The film is currently airing on the Documentary Channel on both DISH and DirectTV, and you can check out various previews and trailers at the film's official website, as well as after the cut. Finally, be on the lookout for a Massively review in the near future.

Continue reading Documentary filmmaker takes on MMORPGs

Documentary filmmaker takes on MMORPGs originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 09 Nov 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GenCon 2010: Fantasy fencing with 38 Studios

Justin Olivetti — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Events, real-world, Interviews, Previews, Massively Interviews, Massively Event Coverage

One thing is for certain: When you are sitting in the crosshairs of Curt Schilling and R.A. Salvatore during an interview, it's easy to become bowled over by their collective intensity and passion, especially when it comes to their interest in games and fantasy worlds.

While GenCon Indy lacked its usual MMORPG presence this year, Massively was able to grab a few minutes of face time with 38 Studios' founder and lead writer as they passed through the convention. It was a bit of an odd interview, however, as two of the biggest topics -- 38 Studios' move to Rhode Island and any solid details about their top-secret MMO -- were off the table for discussion. Do not fret, as that certainly didn't stop us from trying to pry for a few hints along the way. Schilling and Salvatore were obviously eager to spill the beans about Copernicus, but they are still biding their time until the right moment.

Happily, the duo didn't mind us fencing with them for facts, and were quite open about their single-player RPG lead-up to Copernicus, their general philosophy of designing the MMO, and why they've waited so long to unveil it to the public. Read on, gentle gamers, for a few ripostes, parries and lunges with two of the biggest figures in the industry right now.

Continue reading GenCon 2010: Fantasy fencing with 38 Studios

GenCon 2010: Fantasy fencing with 38 Studios originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 09 Aug 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Schilling teases possible Copernicus concept art

Jef Reahard — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, New titles, News items

Details have been sketchy regarding Copernicus, the code-name of the forthcoming MMORPG from Curt Schilling's 38 Studios. Other than the fact that the storyline is being written by noted fantasy author R. A. Salvatore, we haven't heard any concrete information on the game since GDC2010.

Now, Schilling has unleashed a cryptic tweet challenging fans to find the Copernicus concept art among the images attached to a new interview with 38 Studios Senior Environment Artist Joe Mirabello. Schilling (under the Twitter handle of gehrig38) drops no hints as to which of the images might be the Copernicus art, but it's probably a safe assumption that it is one of the landscape pieces, given Mirabello's job title.

Check out the interview as well as Schilling's tweet.

[Thanks Karen!]

Schilling teases possible Copernicus concept art originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 08 Jul 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GDC10: R.A. Salvatore talks Copernicus

Jef Reahard — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Events, real-world, Interviews, MMO industry, New titles, News items

One of the great joys of game journalism is the opportunity to talk with a large cross-section of creative minds, all of whom share a passion for the art form. It's even more fun when you get to talk to something of a living legend, as Massively did today when we had the chance to interview multi-million selling author R.A. Salvatore at GDC 2010.

For the three of you who've been living under a rock since the late 1980s, Salvatore is the creative force behind 22 New York Times bestsellers, including the The DemonWars Saga, Star Wars: The New Jedi Order - Vector Prime, and the Dark Elf series, whose protagonist Drizzt Do'Urden is one of the more celebrated fantasy characters in the genre's history.

We sat down to talk with Salvatore about his role at 38 Studios, and how he's bringing his unique storytelling abilities to their top secret Copernicus project, an MMORPG sharing the same universe as the Project Mercury single-player RPG announced yesterday at the Game Developer's Conference. Hit the jump below for the full interview.

Continue reading GDC10: R.A. Salvatore talks Copernicus

GDC10: R.A. Salvatore talks Copernicus originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Mar 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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38 Studios LFM, PST!

Krystalle Voecks — Sun, 03 May 2009 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, MMO industry, News items

Have artistic talent? Code talent? More properly, do you have that, some industry experience, and the desire to build an awesome MMO? If you can answer yes to those questions and the idea of working with people like Curt Schilling, R.A. Salvatore, Todd McFarlane and other really cool people like Ryan Shwayder from Nerfbat makes you happy, then you'll want to check out the job postings over on the 38 Studios site. It appears they're looking for some more people to join them on their MMO dream team!

Currently, the spots open are:

Hopefully once all the positions are filled up we'll start hearing more about 38's upcoming super-secret MMO project, codenamed 'Copernicus.' Good luck to anyone who applies, and if you get hired, be sure to tell them to keep us in mind for that eventual Copernicus alpha test. We'd appreciate it!

38 Studios LFM, PST! originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 03 May 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Daily Grind: Star-studded studios

Krystalle Voecks — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind

Maybe it's just us, but it seems more and more that it's cool for Hollywood, sports, and music stars to openly admit their love of gaming. 10 years ago? Not too many people talking about it. Now? It's everywhere. To add to this, we now have gaming companies started by the rich and famous. There's 38 Studios, owned by Curt Schilling, who has gathered Todd McFarlane and R. A. Salvatore and a hugely talented team to help build Copernicus, the code-name for their very-under-wraps MMO. Added to that, we have the news yesterday that Vin Diesel's company, Tigon Studios is saying that their previously-claimed RTS will actually be an MMO entry. (Or perhaps a true MMORTS as those are fairly rare.) It's definitely interesting to see.

This morning we thought we'd ask you a fairly simple question about these two - will their star status, or star lineup, make you more interested in trying their respective games out when they hit the shelves? Does star status matter to you at all? Does it make you less interested in trying them out? Or do you just not care one way or the other about who makes a game, and will only really bother trying it if people you trust say it's fun/it has a free trial/etc?

The Daily Grind: Star-studded studios originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 14 Mar 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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38 Studios acquires MMO newsletter tailored to player characters

James Egan — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 19:10:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Classes, Events, real-world, MMO industry, New titles, Opinion, Races

As time moves on, we're slowly getting more information about MMO developer 38 Studios and their plans. 38 Studios, which brings together Red Sox pitcher (and MMO fan) Curt Schilling, comic book creator Todd McFarlane, and author R.A. Salvatore, is known to be developing a fantasy-MMO codenamed "Copernicus."

When it comes to news regarding this game studio, we're primarily interested in Copernicus here at Massively, but our sister site WoW Insider turned up something else interesting involving 38 Studios. It turns out that they've acquired Mentor Media, creators of a custom World of Warcraft newsletter called Azeroth Advisor, which offers personalized information about WoW as it pertains to your own character. Could this be a sign of what's to come with Copernicus, and would you appreciate a customized newsletter offered in tandem with your MMO of choice?

38 Studios acquires MMO newsletter tailored to player characters originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 03 Oct 2008 19:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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38 Studios welcomes Thom Ang as Director of Art

Samuel Axon — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 22:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO industry, New titles, News items

Noted industry artist Thom Ang has started work at 38 Studios as Director of Art, according to a press release from the company. He has joined company founder and pro baseball player Curt Schilling, comic book artist Todd McFarlane, and fantasy author R.A. Salvatore to work on Copernicus, a secretive MMO project.

Ang has previously been employed by THQ, where he worked on several titles including Disney adaptations, and Electronic Arts, where he worked on the Medal of Honor series. He's just another of many samples of veteran blood the studio has attracted.

Details about Copernicus are hush-hush. We know 38 Studios is using the BigWorld and Unreal engine technologies. There have been hints in interviews about the direction the project is taking. That's about it, though.

38 Studios welcomes Thom Ang as Director of Art originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 Jun 2008 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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38 Studios continues its world domination

Shawn Schuster — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 07:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business models, Events, real-world, Interviews

The motto of 38 Studios is quite ironic: "World Domination Through Gaming". This from the company that employs Curt Schilling, Todd McFarlane, R.A. Salvatore and every SOE employee they can get their hands on. We think they're getting the hang of the whole world-domination thing, but what about the direction of the company and their MMO project itself?

In a recent interview at New York Comic Con, Scott Cuthbertson, Jeff Murchie, Steve Danuser and Rich Gallup described themselves as "right on track". They discuss some recent developments, such as their licensing of the Unreal and Big World Engines for use in their game. They also mention the fact that with McFarlane and Salvatore on board, it would be no surprise to see toys, comics, and novels about the world and its characters. As we stated in the most recent episode of the Massively Speaking podcast, let's hope all this hype behind the company and game can really hit it out of the park. Yes, I went there.

38 Studios continues its world domination originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 25 Apr 2008 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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38 Studios goes Unreal

Eli Shayotovich — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 19:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, News items

Gamasutra is reporting that 38 Studios has decided to go with the Epic's Unreal Engine 3 to power their upcoming MMO (codenamed "Copernicus"). A few weeks ago 38 Studios picked BigWorld's technology suite for the back-end of things, so it's no surprise that they would grab the best graphic engine currently available. Whatever MMO "Copernicus" turns out to be (most recent game description says: "an original IP made up of fantastical elements, settings, characters, creatures, rules, and experiences") should at least look really, really good.

38 Studios goes Unreal originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 05 Mar 2008 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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38 Studios using BigWorld to make its big world

Samuel Axon — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Interviews, MMO industry, New titles, News items

What do you get when you get when you combine a major league baseball player (Curt Schilling), a famed fantasy author (R.A. Salvatore), and a great comic book guru (Todd McFarlane)? You get 38 Studios, and 38 Studios is working on a new MMO codenamed "Copernicus."

Now the studio has licensed the BigWorld engine for Copernicus. Since the game is at a very early stage of development, we know very little about it at this point, except that its prestigious managers are optimistic about its future. Reps from both 38 Studios and BigWorld made nondescript statements saying things like, "BigWorld provides the most proven, robust, and technically solid game engine available," and "we are thrilled to be working with such a professional and talented group of game developers." Good for them!

Brett Close described the rationale behind the choice in greater detail in an interview with Ten Ton Hammer. Excellent server-side tech and tools that will help the team get the game to market as fast as possible were the given reasons.

38 Studios using BigWorld to make its big world originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 27 Feb 2008 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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38 Studios reveals: Copernicus

Eli Shayotovich — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Real life, Interviews, New titles, News items

w00t Studios is reporting that Curt Schilling of 38 Studios has released the title for their upcoming MMO. In an interview with Gametap at the Consumer Electronics Show going on in Vegas, Schilling said that Copernicus is a "working title" but revealed no other information regarding the game.

Given what very little we've seen from a previous news clip - possibly a knight atop a running horse - shown late last year, we can surmise that the game is going to be set in some ancient medieval era. 38 Studios' game Copernicus may or may not be associated with the Nicolaus Copernicus who lived from 1473 to 1543. Copernicus was the first astronomer to postulate that the sun was the center of the solar system and not the Earth, which had been the belief for centuries. His book, On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres, is regarded as the work that started modern astronomy and was pivotal to the beginning of the Scientific Revolution.

Or it might have absolutely nothing to do with the famous scientist at all. It's common knowledge that Schilling is a huge Everquest and WoW player, and during the Gametap interview the famed Red Sox pitcher admitted that he's been playing a lot of my current favorite, Tabula Rasa. So... what do you all think?

38 Studios reveals: Copernicus originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 09 Jan 2008 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A glimpse of things to come from 38 Studios

Eli Shayotovich — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 16:30:00 EST

Filed under: Sports, Video, Interviews, New titles, Comics

The keen eyes of Cyndre from the Kill Ten Rats blog has spotted rare images from 38 Studios top secret, as-yet-to-be-named MMO. On Friday, December 14, the Boston news channel NECN did a video interview (see above clip) with Curt Schilling (he, along with R.A. Salvatore and Todd McFarlane comprise the new gaming company 38 Studios) regarding the announcement of their 1st Annual Game Design Challenge. Which is a very cool endeavor in and of itself.

According to Cyndre, right around the 1:16 mark of the three minute video interview you'll see images from their game. This has possibly been corroborated on the blog since someone purporting to be Curt Schilling left a comment saying that the animation shown was from pre-production, the phase they are in now.

Curt Schilling (famous professional baseball player) is an avid MMO player. Combined with supremely talented R.A. Salvatore (famous fantasy author) and Todd McFarlane (famous comic book artist and writer), the expectations for a spectacular gaming experience is very high indeed. Catching even a quick glimpse of what these guys have in store for gamers is news worthy.

A glimpse of things to come from 38 Studios originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 17 Dec 2007 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Allakhazam grills Curt Schilling on game habits, new MMO studio

Chris Chester — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 14:32:00 EST

Filed under: Interviews, MMO industry

A lot of the time, when you read about celebrities playing games or see them with a controller at some glitzy press event hosted by EA or Microsoft, it's hard to take them seriously. Most look completely out of place playing or talking about games, and more often then not, they have a look of barely restrained condescension on their faces. That's why it's always refreshing to see an interview like the one Allakhazam posted recently with Curt Schilling, the veteran ace pitcher from the World Series champion Boston Red Sox.

The interview is light-hearted and jovial, but it fairly well establishes Schilling's gamer cred. This is no fair-weather fan here, Schilling talks in some depth about days long past in EQ doing late night corpse runs with guildmates, why he took so strongly to EQ2, and his approach to balancing games and real life. Perhaps most exciting of all is when he talks about 38 Studios, the MMO development house that he started up with Todd McFarlane and R.A. Salvatore. He doesn't slip us any specifics about the game they have in the works, but he does go into detail about their development philosophy (it's done when it's done), and the advantages of being independently owned. Even if you're not a baseball fan (or if you are and hate the Red Sox), you'll probably find something to like in the interview. Definitely check it out.

Allakhazam grills Curt Schilling on game habits, new MMO studio originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 09 Nov 2007 14:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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