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The Daily Grind: Which zones are you happy to see destroyed?

Eliot Lefebvre — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Events, in-game, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Virtual worlds, Miscellaneous

When City of Heroes announced that the game's new starting experience will include the wholesale destruction of Galaxy City, there were some players who were sad. There were many more who were happy at the thought of Galaxy City being smashed into rubble and twisted metal, and there were even a few volunteers to help wreck it before the update hits. There are zones that we like in any game, yes, but there are also zones that seemingly nobody enjoys.

Fortunately, the nature of MMOs ensures that the zone you hate today could be getting an extensive makeover via demolition tomorrow. So what zones do you think deserve a big dose of a cosmic wrecking ball? Are they zones that have already been destroyed, such as World of Warcraft's long-loathed Darkshore, or zones you just can't wait to see destroyed (such as Galaxy City)? Or are there even zones that show no sign of going anywhere that you'd just like to see wrecked?

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: Which zones are you happy to see destroyed? originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 01 Jul 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Atlantica Online removes Stamina, allows unlimited play

Eliot Lefebvre — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Game mechanics, News items, Free-to-play, Atlantica Online

Nobody likes to be told how to play. Even if you have a good reason to try to limit player activities, players want to have the freedom to play an MMO however they want and whenever they want. It's a lesson that Atlantica Online has taken to heart with its latest mechanical change overhauling the Stamina system. Specifically, the overhaul consists of removing the system in its entirety as of today, allowing players unfettered access to the game's content.

Previously, the system was in place to prevent players from taking too many actions during a given period of time, which fatigued characters and locked down further progress. The removal allows players to continue playing for as long as they wish. Atlantica Online's players will no doubt be happy to hear that there's no clock in the background any longer, which is undeniably good unless you needed to be reminded to get up from the computer once in a while.

Atlantica Online removes Stamina, allows unlimited play originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 23 Feb 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quest Online responds to David Allen lawsuit

Eliot Lefebvre — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, News items, Free-to-play, Legal, Alganon

Lawsuits aren't necessarily a fact of life in the world of video games, but they seem to be a bit favored over words when two parties just can't seem to get along. David Allen, the gentleman formerly in charge of Alganon's development, has opted for legal action in the matter of his removal from the company, which was followed by Derek Smart taking his position. While Smart has responded to Allen on his personal blog, Quest Online has taken the opportunity to attempt to put the record straight in a more official capacity.

According to the official statement, "the company's members, forced to make a decision between David Allen and Derek Smart, unanimously voted to remove Mr. Allen as managing member thereby leaving Derek Smart as President of the company." Those who have been following the debate since the beginning will note that this matches Smart's depiction of events. The company states that it will defend itself against untrue allegations by Mr. Allen, and that they are confident the courts will see that there were no unfair actions taken on their part. The unfolding legal drama certainly has succeeded in stirring up more interest in Alganon, but only time will tell how the legal side will play out.

Quest Online responds to David Allen lawsuit originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 26 Apr 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Warhammer Online brings 1.3.5 to be tested

Eliot Lefebvre — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Events, in-game, Patches, PvP, Warhammer Online, News items

With all of the billing nightmares apparently resolved, complete with the peacemaking gifts, Warhammer Online is ready to move back to its core focus. The development team has been talking about the improvements set to come with patch 1.3.5, continuing the game's process of strengthening the Realm vs. Realm gameplay by adding fully PvP-focused city sieges. On top of the improvements to Scenarios and the addition of PvP-bought weaponry, the game is playing to its greatest assets. How successful it's been will soon be in the hands of the players, as 1.3.5 is going to the public test server.

The obvious large-scale changes can take some of the flash away from smaller changes, such as allowing Marauders the option to properly dual-wield and improved AFK flagging in scenarios. Numerous bugfixes, changes to NPC locations, and revisions to the Open RvR currency are also present in the patch. And that's not even talking about inventory space... all in all, it promises much for players to be happy about, and little to be disappointed with. Warhammer Online's players can take a hop to the test server Warpstone to take a look at all the changes, and those who'd prefer to abstain can take heart that the changes will likely be going live soon.

Warhammer Online brings 1.3.5 to be tested originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 22 Apr 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Diamond trade gets destroyed in Runes of Magic

Eliot Lefebvre — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 22:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Exploits, Patches, News items, Free-to-play, Runes of Magic

There's an understandable problem with selling game currency in subscription games, where it's generally considered verboten for good reason. While some subscription games will sell you things in addition to the monthly fee, there's a general sense that you should earn your advantages. But in free-to-play games that have a cash shop allowing players to purchase items directly... well, the very idea of gold selling seems kind of silly. But it can happen, and Runes of Magic has experienced a bit of a problem of late with the trade of Diamonds (their cash shop currency) for gold.

The game has traditionally treated the currencies as interchangeable insofar as players with lots of Diamonds and not enough gold could sell their excess to other players. Unfortunately, the current spate of RMT activities have called for draconian measures: they've taken away the ability to trade Diamonds for gold. They've also temporarily removed the ability to send gold through the mail. The official announcement stresses that this is a temporary measure to combat unacceptable behavior. While less gold spam is a good thing, fewer features are a negative, so this new is a mixed bag for Runes of Magic players.

The Diamond trade gets destroyed in Runes of Magic originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 20 Apr 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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