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[The Game Archaeologist and the What Ifs: True Fantasy Live Online]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/14/the-game-archaeologist-and-the-what-ifs-true-fantasy-live-onlin/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/14/the-game-archaeologist-and-the-what-ifs-true-fantasy-live-onlin/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/06/14/the-game-archaeologist-and-the-what-ifs-true-fantasy-live-onlin/#commentsFiled under: , ,

As an extremely amateur historian -- and an extremely attractive archaeologist -- I've always been fascinated with the "what ifs" of gaming's timeline. What if Blizzard had pulled the plug on World of Warcraft during development as it did for Warcraft Adventures? What if Hellgate: London had a lot more time and resources before it launched? What if North America had embraced the free-to-play model much earlier instead of the subscription model? What if Shawn came to his senses before he hired me?

Life would've been a lot better. Or worse. That's the problem with counterfactual history: We can make educated guesses, but we'll never really know. While it's sad to see MMOs shut down due to underperformance, it's especially maddening to contemplate MMOs canceled before they even made it to the starting gate. In a new periodic series here at The Game Archaeologist, I'm going to look at a few of the "what ifs" of prematurely terminated MMORPGs.

And to kick us off, I'm tackling probably one of the most frustrating, painful subjects that still linger amongst potential fans. I'm talking, of course, of True Fantasy Live Online, the game that could've shown the true potential of console MMOs. Or, y'know, not.

Continue reading The Game Archaeologist and the What Ifs: True Fantasy Live Online

MassivelyThe Game Archaeologist and the What Ifs: True Fantasy Live Online originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 14 Jun 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Akihiro-Hinoblizzardcel-shadedcounterfactual-historydreamcastdust-514eqeverquestevolutionfablefeaturedffxifinal-fantasy-viifinal-fantasy-xigamespothellgate-londonkiller-appkiller-applicationlevel-5microsoftmountsnesplayer-evolutionplayer-housingplaystationprofessor-laytonsegasuper-mario-brostflothe-game-archaeologisttokyo-game-showtrue-fantasy-live-onlineundead-labsvoice-chatvoice-communicationwarcraft-adventureswhat-ifwhat-ifsworld-of-warcraftwowxboxxbox-360xbox-liveTue, 14 Jun 2011 19:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Phantasy Star Online 2 announced at the Tokyo Game Show]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/09/16/phantasy-star-online-2-announced-at-the-tokyo-game-show/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/09/16/phantasy-star-online-2-announced-at-the-tokyo-game-show/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/09/16/phantasy-star-online-2-announced-at-the-tokyo-game-show/#commentsFiled under: ,

Phantasy Star Online is dead -- long live Phantasy Star Online 2! Sega just announced the sequel to the hit MMO during a livestream event at the Tokyo Game Show. Slated for release in 2011, PSO2's unveiling was a surprise to just about everyone.

Phantasy Star Online released for the Sega Dreamcast 10 years ago, and launched a series of updates, iterations and sequels (including Phantasy Star Universe). While Sega was reluctant to show any gameplay or release any other details, the mere existence of the above title screen should send fans into a happy frenzy.

You can read the announcement at PSOWorld and watch the livestream video below.

Continue reading Phantasy Star Online 2 announced at the Tokyo Game Show

MassivelyPhantasy Star Online 2 announced at the Tokyo Game Show originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 16 Sep 2010 13:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>breakingdreamcastlivestreamnew-titlephantasy-starphantasy-star-onlinephantasy-star-online-2phantasy-star-universepsopso2revealsegatgs-2010tokyo-game-showThu, 16 Sep 2010 13:45:00 EST<![CDATA[The Daily Grind: Are you looking forward to any gaming conventions?]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/08/01/the-daily-grind-are-you-looking-forward-to-any-gaming-conventio/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/08/01/the-daily-grind-are-you-looking-forward-to-any-gaming-conventio/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/08/01/the-daily-grind-are-you-looking-forward-to-any-gaming-conventio/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,


August and September are notoriously known as the months of gaming conventions, and ultimately, two months where we're pretty busy reporting announcements and general event coverage. We have both GamesCom and GamesCon (yes, confusing), GenCon, BlizzCon, GDC Austin, PAX, Tokyo Game Show and Dragon*Con to think about. Plus, there are countless smaller cons all around the world celebrating the gaming and general geek culture.

So which conventions are you most looking forward to in the coming months? Since we already have plans to attend a few of these conventions, we're curious to know which ones our readers see as the most important to them. Let us know your annual favorites that you usually attend, plan to attend for the first time or simply want to hear more about.

MassivelyThe Daily Grind: Are you looking forward to any gaming conventions? originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 01 Aug 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>blizzconconventionsdragoncon-2009gamescom-09gamesconventiongdc-austin-2009genconopinionpaxthe-daily-grindtokyo-game-showSat, 01 Aug 2009 08:00:00 EST