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MechWarrior Online discusses the fine details of advancement

Eliot Lefebvre — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 22:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, Previews, News items, Community Q&A, MechWarrior Online

MechWarrior Online continues its march along in development, but that's no reason for fans to just wait and see what happens. A new installment in the developer blog that answers community questions has just been unveiled, tackling a variety of different topics. The primary focus is on customizing your 'Mech and advancing your character skills, building off of the recent discussion regarding the means of advancement and how players can upgrade their skills.

As outlined by the questions, the experience system will in some ways be reminiscent of EVE Online's -- players won't be able to respec, but there will be no limitations on starting to put points in a new tree while retaining the benefits of previously spent points. It's also confirmed that your experience with a given chassis remains even if you move on from the 'Mech in question should you later choose to return. If you're worried about the fine details of self-improvement in the upcoming game, the latest answer should put most of your questions to rest.

MechWarrior Online discusses the fine details of advancement originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 15 Feb 2012 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MechWarrior Online previews BattleMech upgrades and pilot skill trees

Matt Daniel — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:30:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Previews, News items, Free-to-play, MechWarrior Online

A couple of days ago, Piranha Games -- the studio behind the upcoming MechWarrior Online -- gave us a look at the role-based warfare and character progression we can expect from the robot-fighting title. As we reported last week, players in MWO will fall into of four roles: scout, assault, defense, or command. Today's update on the game's official site gives us a closer look at the various ways that players can earn XP and on what they can spend it. For instance, every 'Mech will have an upgrade tree, which is divided into tiers. Players must spend experience in order to purchase all of the upgrades on a given tier before they are able to access the subsequent tier.

To get a look at the various abilities and skill trees through which players will be progressing when they finally find themselves in the cockpit, just click on through the link below to the official MechWarrior Online site.

MechWarrior Online previews BattleMech upgrades and pilot skill trees originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Go behind the scenes with RuneScape's August updates and upgrades

Matt Daniel — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Previews, News items, RuneScape, Free-to-play, Browser, Family

RuneScape players have a treat in store for them, as Jagex has released the August Behind the Scenes letter today. What do players have to look forward to in the coming month? Quite a bit, actually. Not content to rest on its laurels after the ambitious clan citadels update, Jagex is maintaining full speed with a variety of upgrades and updates to the world of RuneScape.

For starters, the Grand Exchange will be seeing an upgrade that will split it into four wings in order to disperse the crowds around the central exchange booth, thereby making the service easier to use. The game's audio will be seeing an overhaul as well, with all elemental, normal, and Ancient Magick spells receiving new sound effects. Agility users will also notice some spankin'-new sounds as they scamper around. Temple Trekking is getting completely reworked, with the Temple Trekking partners' AI getting a large improvement. The largest update this month comes in the form of Branches of Darkmeyer, which will pit players against legions of deadly vampires in pursuit of shiny new vampire-slaying equipment. For all of this and more that we just couldn't fit, check out the August Behind the Scenes letter over at the RuneScape website.

Go behind the scenes with RuneScape's August updates and upgrades originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 01 Aug 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dragon God Resurrection live on King of Kings 3

Eliot Lefebvre — Mon, 02 May 2011 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Classes, Expansions, Patches, News items, Free-to-play

King of Kings 3 is receiving its newest major expansion patch, giving players a wealth of new content and options for their characters. Titled Dragon God Resurrection, the expansion focuses around players searching for the seven Souls of Original Sin, artifacts that can be forged into powerful weapons and armor. But players who obtain the artifacts still aren't out of the woods -- other players will be notified that one of the Souls has been found, leading to large-scale PvP battles over control of the items.

Aside from that new addition, the expansion also features a boost in the level cap to 140 and a new set of specializations to bring the total number of classes to 27. Characters will also be able to adventure through 22 new areas, as well as undergo a transformation into a part-dragon status. King of Kings 3 players can begin enjoying the patch immediately, and we have a small selection of preview screenshots in our gallery below.

Gallery: King of Kings 3

Dragon God Resurrection live on King of Kings 3 originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 02 May 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Battlestar Galactica Online passes one million player milestone

Jef Reahard — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Business models, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Browser, Battlestar Galactica Online

Bigpoint's browser-based Battlestar Galactica Online is a certifiable hit according to a new press release touting the fact that the title recently surpassed one million registered players. The milestone comes a scant six weeks after the launch of BSGO's open beta period and dovetails nicely with the news that the game is getting an engine upgrade as well as new ship content.

"There is always a risk when you translate a well-known IP into another medium. We built what we believed was a recipe for success; a fantastic gaming experience inspired by an iconic show, with the added benefit of being a free-to-play title," explains Bigpoint CEO Heiko Hubertz.

Head to the official Battlestar Galactica Online website for more info on the game and the new upgrades.

Battlestar Galactica Online passes one million player milestone originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 15 Apr 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wings Over Atreia: Anticipaaaaaaaaaaaation

MJ Guthrie — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, Opinion, Wings Over Atreia

You know the feeling -- you learn about some upcoming goodness and you want it. Or do you crave it? You can fall anywhere along the spectrum of anticipation, provoked by things you just look forward to all the way to things that make you squeal in schoolgirl giddiness at the mere thought! It's a game in and of itself. Such is the way of Aion updates, which tantalize and tease players for quite some time before going live (and even longer if you can translate the original Korean patch notes yourself!). Not yet having a release date for updates is not dampening the anticipation of many Daevas but rather is fueling it instead.

So what brought about my musings on this topic? I squealed! More specifically, an announcement this week that put me right into the giddy mode: Winter is coming! George R.R. Martin's fifth book in the A Song of Ice and Fire series will release in July. Now, while my fangirliness in its supreme is reserved for this outstanding literature, I also have things that I am looking forward to in game. However, there are those who have a virtual heart attack when new goodies for Aion are announced; I have one legionmate who will only re-sub when update 2.5 rolls around and brings with it all the little bells and whistles he is pining for. It is quite interesting to listen as he randomly pops into Ventrilo to trumpet the greatness of this upcoming gaming salvation, then disappears again into the night.

So what about 2.5 has my legionmate so excitable... and excited? Skip-to-my-lou past the cut to take a look at some of the upcoming features.

Continue reading Wings Over Atreia: Anticipaaaaaaaaaaaation

Wings Over Atreia: Anticipaaaaaaaaaaaation originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 07 Mar 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wasteland Diaries: Terminal Woods

Edward Marshall — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Fallen Earth, Patches, Reviews, MMOFPS, Wasteland Diaries, Post-Apocalyptic

To say that the Fallen Earth 1.8 patch is going to have some massive changes coming along with it might be a bit of an understatement. It's going to come fully equipped with major skills, abilities and mutations re-writes. Much will be changed. So much so, in fact, that I don't think anyone's quite sure what to expect, the devs included. The game will still be recognizable, but the flow of combat will be different. After more than a year of adjusting to the gradual changes that have been made to the game mechanics, I had settled into my comfort zone only to be ousted by significant changes.

It still remains to be seen whether Fallen Earth's new changes will be good or bad. Of course, "good" and "bad" are subjective terms, and one person's good might be another's bad. The great thing about major changes like these is this: We get to test them out before they go live. This latest round of testing on the PTS comes complete with new content, including an entirely new area called Terminal Woods, which looks to be about the same size as Deadfall. So it's not quite a sector, but it's pretty big. The devs have put a bit of this area up on the test server for us to "test." Test it I did... if by testing you mean "exploring and shooting at stuff." After the cut, I'll discuss some of the new stuff I found while I was "testing." Consider that a spoiler alert.

Continue reading Wasteland Diaries: Terminal Woods

Wasteland Diaries: Terminal Woods originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 25 Feb 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Trial of the Magians expands in Final Fantasy XI

Eliot Lefebvre — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Final Fantasy XI, Game mechanics, Patches, Previews, News items, Consoles

It was a good plan for Final Fantasy XI to allow players to keep their relic and mythic weapons relevant even after the recent level cap increase. Trial of the Magians as a system has allowed players with the intensely rare weapons to continue upgrading them, or players without to acquire new weapons of impressive power levels. With the coming September version update, there will be a concurrent update to the quest system, allowing players to predictably improve weapons even further. But that's not the least of what will be added with the next version update -- armor is next on the block.

While there are no armor sets that require the time investment as top-end weapons, there will be new Abyssean armor introduced with the update that can be upgraded via trials. Although it's not explicitly referred to as Artifact Armor 3, it's mentioned as unique to each class, which makes it the most likely incarnation of the marquee sets. And, of course, weapons will also be getting a big boost for players who can brave further trials -- including unlocking new weapon skills. The high-end game of Final Fantasy XI is getting to be a very interesting place, so players should be happy to see they'll get the upgrades they need.

Trial of the Magians expands in Final Fantasy XI originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 21 Aug 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Star Trek Online bringing in old favorites and old unknowns

Eliot Lefebvre — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Culture, Patches, Previews, News items, Star Trek Online

The Star Trek Online team has gone through some shakeups recently, not to mention a touch of controversy regarding the most recent addition to the game's microtransaction store. But the newest Ask Cryptic should buy them a little bit of good will, considering that they've announced the upgraded ships for Vice Admirals -- specifically, a Galaxy-class that can separate, an Intrepid-class with ablative armor, and a Defiant-class with a cloaking device. It's the sort of stuff that any fan of the series would be hard-pressed not to grin about.

Most of the other questions are equally concerned with the upcoming Season 2, which promises to bring in the Federation Diplomatic Corps as well as the ancient enemies of the klingons, the fek'ihri. The latter hasn't been seen or mentioned prior, which suggests that there might be some very interesting story explanation for why the race has been absent if they share an old rivalry. Take a look at the full list of questions for more bits and pieces on Star Trek Online's future, up to and including Facebook integration. (Optional integration, that is. No one's about to start up the mess of the week again.)

Star Trek Online bringing in old favorites and old unknowns originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 11 Jul 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Final Fantasy XI expands Trial of the Magians

Eliot Lefebvre — Fri, 28 May 2010 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Final Fantasy XI, Game mechanics, Patches, News items, Consoles

So you have weapons that can take a good year or two to put together, and then the game's level cap and item strength goes up. What do you do? Final Fantasy XI answered this question via Trial of the Magians, allowing holders of Relic or Mythic weapons to upgrade their weapon appropriately -- and allowing everyone else to start a new weapon they can custom-tune. With the first level cap upgrade to the game coming in the June version update, it should come as no surprise that the Trial of the Magians system is getting a concurrent upgrade.

The fact that there will be new options to enhance and improve weapons almost goes without saying, as it lets players push their weaponry even further than before. There's also the promise of new trial varieties, and mention of being able to improve one's weapon skills themselves -- certainly an attractive proposition. If you're an adventurer on the go, you can also purchase a set of newly-added Magian Spectacles to check in on your trial status and progress along the upgrade path from anywhere. All told, the changes promise to improve on of the bigger new additions to Final Fantasy XI, whether you're swinging a Lumberjack or a Conqueror.

Final Fantasy XI expands Trial of the Magians originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 28 May 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Gonna be the future soon

Eliot Lefebvre — Wed, 12 May 2010 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, City of Villains, Expansions, Game mechanics, Opinion, A Mild-Mannered Reporter

This week's listening, if you by some chance didn't catch it, will be from the inimitable Mr. Jonathan Coulton. Not because the song is all that thematically appropriate (I did not leave a note on War Witch's desk, for starters), but because it's Jonathan Coulton. And it offsets the tone of this article, which is going to be... well... kind of negative.

Not negative in the sense that City of Heroes is dying, because it's not. The game is full of life, flush with energy and diverse ideas. Rumors of its death have been greatly exaggerated for well on a year or so now, and I personally couldn't be happier about the state of affairs. For every problem it has, it has five or six great points, and every time I'm cresting a hill on my enjoyment there's another hill of sliced, buttered awesome in front of me.

But City of Heroes is going to need to start taking steps to ensure its long-term sustainability. It needs to start realizing that their good fortune is not going to last. And so today will be a bit negative, as the long-forgotten second part of the anniversary column... where we look to the future, and see what needs to happen.

Continue reading A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Gonna be the future soon

A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Gonna be the future soon originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 12 May 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Sandstorm cometh to Global Agenda

Eliot Lefebvre — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Classes, Game mechanics, Patches, Previews, Global Agenda

What is the Sandstorm? Well, it's the name for the upcoming Patch 1.3 for Global Agenda, which follows in the footsteps of the most recent patches in two ways. The first is that it's coming fast, with the whole thing tentatively scheduled for April. The second is that it's going to be quite large, containing several sweeping upgrades to the way the game plays. Even more so than one might expect, in fact -- one of the major features of the patch as announced today is a plan for large, open areas for players to move through and perform missions.

If that sounds remarkably similar to outdoor environments in most MMOs, you're probably on to something. The zones planned are preliminarily going to include a PvE zone and a PvPvE area, allowing somewhere between 30-50 players concurrently in the map. There are also several new weapons and devices being added to facilitate the new "specialization" system. Each class will be able to select one of two specializations at level 30, opening up a range of new abilities and equipment. And that's only the tip of the iceberg, with several additions and upgrades being added to drops, crafting, and token rewards. Take a look at the full announcement for what's planned for patch 1.3, and get ready to experience even more of Global Agenda from a new perspective.

The Sandstorm cometh to Global Agenda originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 23 Mar 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Global Agenda 1.1 patch released on test

Eliot Lefebvre — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Patches, Crafting, Global Agenda

Global Agenda isn't necessarily for everyone, but there's no shortage of people it is for, and their reception to the game thus far has been positive. Still, like any new game there are kinks to work out and things not quite ready for launch time. Both are making a showing in the game's 1.1 patch, which has just hit the test servers in anticipation of hitting live servers next week. Among the larger changes are the implementation of a Friend/Ignore list, further queueing improvements, and a widespread overhaul to crafting and blueprints to make upgrades easier to work with.

The crafting overhaul is probably the biggest single gameplay-related change, with the randomness of crafting replaced with a more specific set of craftable items. Upgrades have also been streamlined and clarified to make it easier for players to identify what they want rather than manually searching through each item on a list. With a number of bugs also having been squashed, the patch is no doubt going to improve the lives of Global Agenda players significantly, so take a look at the full notes and expect for it to hit the live servers very soon.

Global Agenda 1.1 patch released on test originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 24 Feb 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The unbearable lightness of stat boosts

Eliot Lefebvre — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Lord of the Rings Online, Culture, Game mechanics, Opinion

There's nothing quite like spending two hours in a muck-filled dungeon, hacking and slashing your way through countless monsters and creatures best left to the realms of twisted imagination, to receive an ultimate reward: a sword which gives you an extra .25% chance to hit enemies in sunlight. Or an extra .2% damage to any monster you've killed more than four of in a given play session. Or you get an extra 1% health for five seconds every time you correctly spell "exalted." Ravious over on Kill Ten Rats recently posted his thoughts on precisely this phenomenon: the issue that you're looking at a lot of work for, ultimately, almost one percent of a reward.

While the post is specifically talking about Lord of the Rings Online, it can easily apply to many other games, and we can all think of rewards that were similarly important and yet less than overwhelming. Part of the reason behind this, of course, is that MMOs need to have a power curve ramp-up without granting everyone too much damage or health or what-have-you, as Ravious dutifully notes. However, there's a point where too much balance becomes too little meaningful impact -- it can be better, at times, to only have one bonus but make it a big one. It's ultimately up to the player which one they prefer, but most of us certainly do seem to prefer having each upgrade be a big one.

The unbearable lightness of stat boosts originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Massively Exclusive: 5 million accounts, vehicles & more in FusionFall

Krystalle Voecks — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Expansions, New titles, News items, Browser, FusionFall, Kids

This past January, Cartoon Network launched their first foray into the MMO space with the wildly successful FusionFall, offering families who like to game together a great deal at $9.95 a month for up to four separate MMO accounts. Since those exciting first days of launch, they've given away all manner of funky swag, racked up over 5 million accounts, and started a whole new generation of explorers down the road of MMO enjoyment. With this summer, however, they're planning on adding even more to their fantastic freemium game with their first major content patch since launch - Dexlabs Upgrade 1: Speed and Style!

This super souped-up update, slated to launch later this summer will bring vehicles to the lands of FusionFall. The first one will be a cool new limited-time availability promo vehicle which will be collectible by both paid and free members. After the first vehicle is launched, players will then be required to reach level 10 to start their collection of other vehicles. What types of nifty ways to get around will there be? Well, as you can see above, we have an exclusive first-ever look at FusionFall's Jetbike, Hoverboard, and a very special guest appearance by Kimchi from Chowder! We're not sure, but considering FusionFall still remains the only MMO where players can get around via flying monkeys, we'd bet that whatever they come up with will be cool.

Massively Exclusive: 5 million accounts, vehicles & more in FusionFall originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 23 Jun 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Weather comes to Vanguard

Michael Zenke — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 23:30:00 EST

Filed under: Events, in-game, Patches, Vanguard

Wired's Game|Life blog notes that the beleaguered SOE title Vanguard has a new feature: migrating weather patterns. This interesting addition to the game was originally slated for the game's launch; great to see it finally on live servers. They also link to a lengthy forum thread discussing the subject.

"The storms are indeed real. You can see them off in a distance, like that screenshot shows," said SOE designer Lenny Gullo, joining the thread to give confirmation. "The storm there is obviously a few chunks away. But it could, depending on the wind, head your direction." While real-time weather in MMOs has been done before, it's always nice to see Vanguard picking up attributes it was supposed to have at launch. At this rate we'll see a launch-complete version sometime around March 2009.

Weather comes to Vanguard originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Dec 2007 23:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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