Massively http://massively.joystiq.com Massively http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://massively.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Massively http://massively.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Not So Massively: So much beta information your head will explode]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/08/not-so-massively-so-much-beta-information-your-head-will-explod/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/08/not-so-massively-so-much-beta-information-your-head-will-explod/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/08/not-so-massively-so-much-beta-information-your-head-will-explod/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

Not So Massively header image with Diablo III's Tyrael
Welcome to Not So Massively, our weekly roundup of the top news from popular multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBAs) and other multiplayer online games that aren't quite MMOs. Published every Monday, the column covers games such as League of Legends, Heroes of Newerth, Rise of Immortals, Bloodline Champions and more.

Last week, I gave my first impressions of competitive multiplayer Facebook game Dungeon Overlord, and we had a chat with its creators about the future of the game. League of Legends announced some impressive figures, now boasting over 15 million registered accounts and a peak concurrency of 500,000 players. The big news stories of last week included Heroes of Newerth finally going free-to-play, and the controversial Diablo III cash auction house announcement.

In this week's Not So Massively, everyone seems to have beta-testing fever. Diablo III and FireFall both give us details of how to get involved in their upcoming closed betas, and Realm of the Titans launches its closed beta contests. Rise of Immortals also celebrates its upcoming support of NVidia's 3D Vision technology with a contest to win one of two massive 3D monitor and graphics card packages.

The latest Heroes of Newerth competitive tournament went live this week, pitting a massive 1024 teams against each other in a bid to win a slice of $5,000 US. League of Legends also announced the impending end of Season One and released a champion spotlight on Tryndamere following his massive overhaul.

Continue reading Not So Massively: So much beta information your head will explode

MassivelyNot So Massively: So much beta information your head will explode originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 08 Aug 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>betabeta-testingbetasDiablodiablo-3diablo-iiiesportsfeaturedfirefallheroes-of-newerthhonleague-of-legendslolnot-so-massivelypvprealm-of-the-titansred-5-studiosrise-of-immortalsroiseason-onetournamentvideoMon, 08 Aug 2011 20:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Make love not war: STO's Craig Zinkievich shows off the Federation Diplomatic Corps]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/06/24/make-love-not-war-stos-craig-zinkievich-shows-off-the-federati/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/06/24/make-love-not-war-stos-craig-zinkievich-shows-off-the-federati/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/06/24/make-love-not-war-stos-craig-zinkievich-shows-off-the-federati/#commentsFiled under: , ,

As everyone knows in the television business, the second season of a show is usually tons better than the first (unless it's Heroes, for some reason). Considering how well Star Trek Online's Season One update was received across the community, the STO team has a lot of work to do to meet and exceed that standard with the upcoming Season Two. Cryptic plans to roll out one of these bigger updates every three months, which puts Season Two smack in the middle of July.

ZAM caught executive producer Craig Zinkievich on the way to his ready room for a chat about Season Two. The big discussion revolves around the launch of the Federation Diplomatic Corps, an effort to provide an additional emphasis on exploration, diplomacy and anthropology that STO's combat-centric gameplay has so far been lacking. Apparently, players will have to rise through the diplomatic ranks almost like a separate leveling system as they engage in first contacts and the like. We'll just have to wait and see if they introduce a "lengthy patronizing Picard-style speech" as one of the skills.

Zinkievich also pontificated on ship interiors and the new Dabo minigame, both of which are much-requested features to help Star Trek Online feel more, well, Trekky. You can get your captain on by reading the full interview over at ZAM.

MassivelyMake love not war: STO's Craig Zinkievich shows off the Federation Diplomatic Corps originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>craig-zinkievichcryptiicdabofederation-diplomatic-corpsinterviewpicard-just-keeps-talking-and-talkingseason-oneseason-twoship-interiorsstar-trek-onlinestozamThu, 24 Jun 2010 19:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Star Trek Online's Season One gets a booster shot]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/30/star-trek-onlines-season-one-gets-a-booster-shot/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/30/star-trek-onlines-season-one-gets-a-booster-shot/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/30/star-trek-onlines-season-one-gets-a-booster-shot/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

It's been three months since the launch of Star Trek Online, and the developers haven't been sitting on their hands in the interim. With the large Season 1 patch still fresh in player's minds, the team has made a quick turnaround on the followup Season 1.1 patch. While not boasting the wide-reaching expansions that the prior patch did, this patch addresses several quality of life issues, including death penalties, mission difficulty, and the dreaded "commodity missions" receiving an overhaul.

Players will have three difficulty options for battles -- Normal, Advanced, and Elite. Normal is unchanged from the present, while Advanced and Elite get progressively harder, incorporating the game's death penalties and strengthening enemies in exchange for more drops of higher quality. As a boon to players who prefer the current difficulty, Normal challenges are still free of any penalties for death.

There are also improved spoils from badge vendors, and a buff to the reward and procedures of missions asking you to ferry supplies. With an extensive list of bug fixes, balance tweaks, and small improvements, any Star Trek Online player is sure to get some benefits out of the latest patch.

MassivelyStar Trek Online's Season One gets a booster shot originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 30 Apr 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>balancebug-fixescrypticcryptic-star-trekcryptic-studiosdeath-penaltydifficultypatchpatchesseason-1.1season-oneseason-one-common-groundst-onlinestar-trek-mmostar-trek-onlinestotrek-onlineupdatesFri, 30 Apr 2010 10:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Video shows DS9 Under Siege in Star Trek Online]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/26/video-shows-ds9-under-siege-in-star-trek-online/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/26/video-shows-ds9-under-siege-in-star-trek-online/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/26/video-shows-ds9-under-siege-in-star-trek-online/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

While DS9 may well be one of many people's favorite spots in Star Trek Online, things have heated up since the release of Season One, the recent free addition to the game. Part of this new batch of things to do, DS9 Under Siege, lands players in the middle of an attack on DS9 from an interesting quadrant, and is relatively certain to hook you up if you're in the mood for one hell of a battle.

For those of you who may not have checked out this new content as yet, we've snagged a shiny HD video of this new fleet action for you from our sister site, Joystiq. With more Cardassians and what appear to be Jem'Hadar ships than you can shake a tricorder at, this seems like an addition to Star Trek Online that players are enjoying.

So set your phasers on "cool" and check beyond the break for the shiny DS9 Under Siege trailer -- or let us know how you're liking this particular bit of Season One content in the comments below.

Continue reading Video shows DS9 Under Siege in Star Trek Online

MassivelyVideo shows DS9 Under Siege in Star Trek Online originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 26 Apr 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>cardassiancrypticcryptic-studiosdeep-space-nineds9ds9-under-siegefleet-actionseason-onestar-trek-onlinestosto-season-onetrailervideoMon, 26 Apr 2010 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Captain's Log: The advisory council and fan service in Star Trek Online]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/08/captains-log-the-advisory-council-and-fan-service-in-star-trek/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/08/captains-log-the-advisory-council-and-fan-service-in-star-trek/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/08/captains-log-the-advisory-council-and-fan-service-in-star-trek/#commentsFiled under: , , ,


Hard to port! Disruptors on full! Fire the tachyon beam! Oh, hello again. Welcome back to Captain's Log, Massively's weekly -- y'know what, hang on. These Cardassians are being a real pain in the toukas. Yes, Ensign, some torpedoes would be fabulous right about now. And you wonder why I haven't promoted you.

Sorry about that. This is Captain's Log, where I administer your weekly dose of Star Trek Online news, analysis and meaningless conjecture every Thursday. At least until the Massively overlords relegate me to the spice mines of Kessel. Oh, wait...

After discussing Season One and the joy of Fleet Actions, I have two items on this week's agenda. First, I thought I'd introduce myself! It's silly to read the Captain's Log without knowing who the captain is, right? After that I'll discuss STO's hot topic du jour, the Advisory Council, and whether fan service will kill or save Cryptic's spacefaring MMO.

Continue reading Captain's Log: The advisory council and fan service in Star Trek Online

MassivelyCaptain's Log: The advisory council and fan service in Star Trek Online originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 08 Apr 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>advisory-councilcraig-Zinkievichcrypticcryptic-advisory-councilcryptic-star-trekcryptic-studiosdeep-space-nineds9featuredFederationfleet-actionklingonseason-onest-onlineStar-Trek-MMOstar-trek-onlinestar-trek-online-season-onestar-trek-online-season-one-common-groundsto-advisory-councilsto-season-onesto-season-one-common-groundtrek-onlinetrekkerWarhammer-OnlinezinkievichThu, 08 Apr 2010 13:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Captain's Log: Fleet actions, the Crystalline Entity and you]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/01/captains-log-fleet-actions-draft/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/01/captains-log-fleet-actions-draft/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/01/captains-log-fleet-actions-draft/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

Ahoy, ensigns and admirals! Welcome back to Captain's Log, our weekly dose of Star Trek Online news, tips and unfounded personal opinions straight from the final frontier. After Friday's look at the ups and downs of Season One, today's Captain's Log assumes its regular Thursday stardate. At least until his masters at Massively make good on their threat to reassign your humble captain to Q-tip quality control. On Ferenginar.

This week, let's take a look at Fleet Actions. Some are a rewarding change of pace from the often solitary grind of patrol and exploration. And some -- well, okay, just one -- is the bane of Starfleet's existence. We'll get to that in a minute.

Continue reading Captain's Log: Fleet actions, the Crystalline Entity and you

MassivelyCaptain's Log: Fleet actions, the Crystalline Entity and you originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 01 Apr 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hailing frequencies open. Testing. Is this thing on? Yes, Lieutenant, I'm pushing the-- ah! Greetings and salutations, fellow Starfleet officers! And a hearty nuqneH to all you Klingons out there. Welcome back to Captain's Log, the weekly Star Trek Online column here at Massively. After a few weeks of tuning down in Engineering, Captain's Log is back, shinier than ever, with a new captain at the helm. Now let's set sail before the admirals at Massively reassign me to replicator cleanup duty. You've never seen a mess until you've seen someone order haggis and Ferengi snail juice.

Federation and Klingon captains all over the galaxy have reason to rejoice. Thursday saw the release of Season One: Common Ground, one of the first really huge content patches for Star Trek Online. The patch introduces a bevy of features, including new fleet actions, a new task-force mission and more stuff for Klingons to do.

Continue reading Captain's Log: Pros and cons of Season One

MassivelyCaptain's Log: Pros and cons of Season One originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>battle-cruiserbig-digborgcommon-groundcraig-Zinkievichcrypticcryptic-star-trekcryptic-studioscrystalline-entitycustomizationdeep-space-ninedrozanads9Federationground-assaultklingonktanconausicaanokretpatchpvepvpqonosragenraidisoderespecseason-oneseason-one-common-groundshanty-townspecial-task-force-missionsspecial-task-forcesst-onlineStar-Trek-MMOstar-trek-onlinestar-trek-online-season-onestar-trek-season-onestosto-common-groundsto-season-onesto-season-one-common-groundtask-forcethe-curetrek-onlineFri, 26 Mar 2010 20:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Star Trek Online launches massive Season One patch]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/03/25/star-trek-online-launches-massive-season-one-patch/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/03/25/star-trek-online-launches-massive-season-one-patch/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/03/25/star-trek-online-launches-massive-season-one-patch/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Cryptic has announced via press release that the major Season One content patch is launching for Star Trek Online today. This patch brings all kinds of new free content to the game, causing much of the community to count the days until it finally landed in the game proper.

The list of updates is impressively long and several of them address player griefs with areas like Klingon ship customization and mission variety. This is also the first patch bringing some PvE missions for Klingon players, which was a sticking point with many at launch. But Season One also brings captain respecs as well for players unhappy with their skill load-out -- an essential feature that's been sorely missed by many.

Find the whole lowdown on this laundry list of new content after the break.

Gallery: Star Trek Online: Special Task Force Missions

Continue reading Star Trek Online launches massive Season One patch

MassivelyStar Trek Online launches massive Season One patch originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 25 Mar 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>battle-cruiserborgbreakingcrypticcryptic-star-trekcryptic-studioscustomizationdeep-space-nineds9ground-assaultklingonktancoraidisoderaidsseason-oneshanty-townst-onlinestar-trek-mmostar-trek-onlinestotrek-onlineThu, 25 Mar 2010 16:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Tribble weekend event courts STO players]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/03/19/tribble-weekend-event-courts-sto-players/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/03/19/tribble-weekend-event-courts-sto-players/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/03/19/tribble-weekend-event-courts-sto-players/#commentsFiled under: , ,

For most Star Trek Online players, the chance to test drive the first major content update, Season One: Common Ground, would be a treat enough. However, Cryptic wants to sweeten the deal during its Tribble Weekend Event by rewarding testers with two virtual goodies: a special in-game "Assimilated Tribble" (which acts sort of like Borg-repellent) and an awesome title, Crash Test Tribble.

These rewards are pretty easy to attain, too. STO players only need to log on to the Tribble test server for at least an hour between Friday afternoon (March 19) and Monday morning (March 23), and the goodies will be handed out when the patch goes live.

Season One: Common Ground promises to roll out PvP improvements, additional customization options, more ships and missions, and even respecs for the growing MMO.

MassivelyTribble weekend event courts STO players originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 19 Mar 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>crypticcryptic-studioseventseason-onestar-trek-onlinestotribbleFri, 19 Mar 2010 12:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Star Trek Online locks phasers on Season One: Common Ground]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/03/12/star-trek-online-locks-phasers-on-season-one-common-ground/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/03/12/star-trek-online-locks-phasers-on-season-one-common-ground/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/03/12/star-trek-online-locks-phasers-on-season-one-common-ground/#commentsFiled under: , ,

On March 18, it's do or die for the Federation, as Cryptic's first major content patch -- Season One: Common Ground -- promises to hit Star Trek Online's live servers. Love 'em or hate 'em, the STO dev team looks to live up to their word on "walking the talk" by pumping out more content that players crave.

We didn't think there could be any news more exciting than a brand-new faction coming to STO, but Season One might just top it with a heap of new goodies. In addition, Cryptic's Craig Zinkievich released a new State of the Game report to address player concerns and the course STO is heading for over the next few months. There's even a new video entitled "Expanding Universe, Part I" that gives players a sneak peek into this brave new patch.

Engage thrusters, mister, and we'll break it down for you after the jump.

Continue reading Star Trek Online locks phasers on Season One: Common Ground

MassivelyStar Trek Online locks phasers on Season One: Common Ground originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 12 Mar 2010 23:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>battle-cruiserBreakingbridge-combatcommon-groundcraig-Zinkievichoff-duty-clothingpakledrespecrigelianseason-oneshanty-township-interiorsstar-trek-onlinestotellaritetier-5-shipstier-five-shiptribbleFri, 12 Mar 2010 23:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Pre-orders now available for The Guild DVD]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/07/14/pre-orders-now-available-for-the-guild-dvd/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/07/14/pre-orders-now-available-for-the-guild-dvd/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/07/14/pre-orders-now-available-for-the-guild-dvd/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

If you enjoyed the first season of The Guild as much as we did, then you may want to head over to the show's official site and place a pre-order for the upcoming DVD. When it ships out on the 1st of August, the DVD will include all of season one's episodes, gag reels, interviews, and commentary tracks, and comes at a price of $20 with free shipping for pre-orders.

The anticipated second season of The Guild is in the process of being written by Felicia Day, and shooting should start a little later on this year.

[Via WoW Insider]

MassivelyPre-orders now available for The Guild DVD originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 14 Jul 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>dvdfelicia-daypre-orderseason-oneseason-twothe-guildwow-insiderMon, 14 Jul 2008 10:00:00 EST