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 Daily Grind: Are social media connections in MMOs useless?]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/05/18/the-daily-grind-are-social-media-connections-in-mmos-useless/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/05/18/the-daily-grind-are-social-media-connections-in-mmos-useless/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/05/18/the-daily-grind-are-social-media-connections-in-mmos-useless/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

I first started to notice it in Champions Online. Cryptic gave us the ability to broadcast our achievements in the game over Twitter: "CapnCrunch has reached level 10!" At the time, it felt like a silly idea that wouldn't catch on, but for some reason, it has. More and more we're seeing studios working hard to integrate popular social networks into their MMOs, and more and more I'm wondering... why?

RIFT has been big on doing this, implementing the ability not only to set your account to automatically tweet achievements ("Hey guys, I jumped off a bridge and didn't die!") but also to post them in Facebook. The game also allows you to record video and take screenshots to post online, which seems to me to be more useful but still probably not as captivating to a potential personal audience as one might hope.

So my question today concerns these social media connections in MMOs -- are they useless? Are they just a fad that few people use? Do the ones who do use them end up annoying their followers with a stream of spam messages? Or do people actually enjoy the ability to have their games tie in with their social networks and see how their friends are progressing?

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!

MassivelyThe Daily Grind: Are social media connections in MMOs useless? originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 18 May 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>achievementschampionschampions-onlinefacebookmyspaceopinionriftscreenshotssocial-mediasocial-networksocial-networkingsocial-networkstdgthe-daily-grindtumblrtweettweetstwittervideoyoutubeWed, 18 May 2011 08:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Earth Eternal still alive, reborn as Ikimonogatari]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/04/11/earth-eternal-still-alive-reborn-as-ikimonogatari/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/04/11/earth-eternal-still-alive-reborn-as-ikimonogatari/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/04/11/earth-eternal-still-alive-reborn-as-ikimonogatari/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

Earth Eternal has been in a strange sort of limbo since last summer when Sparkplay Media all but folded. The company closed down both the game and the website and also laid off all but two employees as of August 2010. The first of the year brought a glimmer of hope in the form of the title's acquisition by Sankando as well as a fresh round of fan discussion.

Since then, it's been all quiet on the Earth Eternal front, but the silence was broken a few hours ago via the game's Twitter feed. While the amount of information is far from overwhelming (the tweet acknowledges that Earth Eternal has been reborn as Ikimonogatari and links to the new website), it's good to see that the game may yet return in some form or fashion.

MassivelyEarth Eternal still alive, reborn as Ikimonogatari originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 11 Apr 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>browserbrowser-basedearth-eternalearth-eternal-rebornf2pfantasyfree-to-playikimonogatarilimbotweettwitterMon, 11 Apr 2011 12:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Phase 2 arrives tonight for Final Fantasy XIV's testers]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/07/28/phase-2-arrives-tonight-for-final-fantasy-xivs-testers/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/07/28/phase-2-arrives-tonight-for-final-fantasy-xivs-testers/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/07/28/phase-2-arrives-tonight-for-final-fantasy-xivs-testers/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Whether you're playing to find potentially game-breaking bugs or just to get a sense of the game before it launches, betas are a magical time for all involved. Specifically, the magic of Final Fantasy XIV's beta has been the sort of magic that ends the world every so often. But luckily for everyone involved in the testing, tonight is the start of phase 2 of the testing, and that marks an important change in the nature of the tests.

Prior to this point, testing was only available when the servers were up, which was not constant. Starting tonight at 7:00 PM PDT (or 10:00 PM EDT), the servers will be up at all times for the second phase of testing. That's according to an official tweet on the game's Twitter feed, which is good news for any and all testers of Final Fantasy XIV. No word yet on whether or not phase 3 involves profit, but the increased availability should be profitable to the players.

MassivelyPhase 2 arrives tonight for Final Fantasy XIV's testers originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 28 Jul 2010 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>betabeta-phase-2beta-testffff14ffxivfinal-fantasyfinal-fantasy-14final-fantasy-xivphase-2server-availabilityserver-uptimeserverssquaresquare-enixtestingtweettwitterupdatesWed, 28 Jul 2010 21:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Schilling teases possible Copernicus concept art]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/07/08/schilling-teases-possible-copernicus-concept-art/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/07/08/schilling-teases-possible-copernicus-concept-art/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/07/08/schilling-teases-possible-copernicus-concept-art/#commentsFiled under: , ,

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!]

MassivelySchilling 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.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>38-studiosconcept-artcopernicuscopernicus-mmocurt-schillingjoe-mirabellora-salvatoretweettwitterThu, 08 Jul 2010 15:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Tweet for your nation, win real life rings]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/06/15/tweet-for-your-nation-win-real-life-rings/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/06/15/tweet-for-your-nation-win-real-life-rings/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/06/15/tweet-for-your-nation-win-real-life-rings/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,


Readers of Massively, ask not what your Final Fantasy XI nation can do for you, but how you can best tweet for your nation! Oh, and did we mention that there's fabulous prizes?

FFXIclopedia and Square-Enix have teamed up for a fun Twitter oriented contest, giving away three real life replicas of the nation rings in Final Fantasy XI. These nation rings aren't just cheap replicas either, as each ring is made of silver and retails for 115 bucks!

All you have to do is simply follow @ffxiclopedia and tweet why you support #windurst, #bastok, or #san d'oria in the form of a sentence. The contest will run until July 4th, and winners will be chosen on July 5th. The three winners, one from each nation's supporters, will win a replica of their nation's ring -- so choose your support wisely!

MassivelyTweet for your nation, win real life rings originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 15 Jun 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>bastokffxiffxiclopediafinal-fantasy-xinationsan-doriasquare-enixtweettwitterwindurstMon, 15 Jun 2009 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[MapleStory joins the wild world of Twitter]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/05/29/maplestory-joins-the-wild-world-of-twitter/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/05/29/maplestory-joins-the-wild-world-of-twitter/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/05/29/maplestory-joins-the-wild-world-of-twitter/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,


Twitter needs to be classified as an addictive drug, we think. We seem to be using it, and we just can't stop ourselves anymore. We keep telling ourselves that it's just a simple RSS feed where we're limited in what we can type out to others, yet we keep going back to that internet street corner, begging for just one more tweet...

But hey, we've gotten company recently! MapleStory has created their own Twitter page as well, joining the rest of the world in answering the question "what are you doing right now?" If you're interested in the 2D MMO, just drop by their page and sign up for their tweets to stay atop of in-game news. Right now, they seem to be flaunting their recent gold farmer bannings (remind us to never get on MapleStory's badside), as well as talking to some of their fans regarding their MapleStory achievements.

Now, if you could excuse us, we feel we need to tweet again.

MassivelyMapleStory joins the wild world of Twitter originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 29 May 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>2d2d-mmobanningsgold-farmersmaplestorynexontweettwitterFri, 29 May 2009 16:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Cryptic Studios tweeting from New York Comic Con]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/02/04/cryptic-studios-tweeting-from-new-york-comic-con/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/02/04/cryptic-studios-tweeting-from-new-york-comic-con/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/02/04/cryptic-studios-tweeting-from-new-york-comic-con/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,


Among the MMO developers who will be at this year's New York Comic Con is Cryptic Studios, who are producing the much-anticipated titles Champions Online and Star Trek Online. Their studio's site announced that they'll be using Twitter at NYCC, so those of you out there who can't make the trip to New York (or simply aren't willing to deal with the East Coast winter) can follow what they're doing or announcing at their booth, and of course during the panels. The main twitters coming from Cryptic Studios are through http://twitter.com/CrypticStudios, but other members of the studio's team can be obsessively monitored as well:

  • CrypticZinc
  • Cryptic_chrono
  • CrypticAwen
  • CrypticFireCait
Remotely stalking your favorite devs has never been easier! But if you're in town, you can check out the Cryptic Meet and Greet at NYCC on Saturday, February 7th, between 1pm and 2pm EST.

MassivelyCryptic Studios tweeting from New York Comic Con originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 04 Feb 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>champions-onlinecrypticcryptic-studiosmmo-industrynew-york-comic-connyccsci-fistar-trek-onlinesuper-herotweettwitterWed, 04 Feb 2009 14:30:00 EST