Virtual World® is your one stop resource for all things virtual, in and around the MMO gaming and online 3D communities. In-depth virtual world and MMO game play reviews, discussion forums and the latest news from around the world. VirtualWorld.com

Virtual World News

MMO Week in Review: BlizzCon 2011
October 23, 2011

Filed under: , ,

WoW art. Woot pandas! Ahem... sorry.
At the end of every week, we round up the best and most popular news stories, exclusive features, and insightful columns published on Massively and then present them all in one convenient place. Miss a big MMO or WoW Insider story last week? You've come to the right post.

BlizzCon owned the week with details of World of Warcraft's upcoming expansion Mists of Pandaria, Diablo III teasers, and the re-reveal of Blizzard DOTA (with which we even got a hands-on). We know Massively's often a haven for people who want to play something other than WoW, but some of us can't help but be excited anyway. Pandaren! New character models! Monks! Pandaren! New zones and dungeons! Pet battles! Pandaren! Scenarios! New talent systems (again)! Pandaren! Now all Blizzard has to do is release it before we're old and grey.

Check out the best stuff from the con along with this week's other top stories just past the cut.

Continue reading MMO Week in Review: BlizzCon 2011

MassivelyMMO Week in Review: BlizzCon 2011 originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 23 Oct 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

    The Daily Grind: How should free-to-play games restrict content?
    October 22, 2011

    Filed under: , , , ,

    To be fair, docking fees at a planet aren't without precedent.
    It's the perpetual trouble of free-to-play games. The development team wants to give players access to as much as possible (so that the players enjoy the game and keep playing), but it also wants to give players incentive to pay (so that the development team can enjoy dinner and keep paying the rent). So there has to be some sort of throttle on what you can get for free, since otherwise the game is no longer operating as a business and has begun working as a charity.

    With the exception of games such as Guild Wars which require a box purchase, every free-to-play game has to place some restrictions on players who pay nothing. But what restrictions are the most fair? Giving out a baseline amount of content and classes for free, and then offering more content or classes for pay? Slowing experience gains without spending money? Or is there another system that you've seen in play that works better?

    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: How should free-to-play games restrict content? originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 22 Oct 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

      Star Trek Online strengthening the fight against the Borg
      October 22, 2011

      Filed under: , , , , , ,

      RESISTANCE IS PROBABLY NOT A REALLY GOOD IDEA, WAIT LET ME TRY THAT AGAIN.
      Since launch, Star Trek Online has always used the Borg as a major threat. This is evidenced by the Borg's position in several of the game's Strategic Task Forces, top-end challenges for the best of the best in the Federation and the KDF. The conversion to free-to-play will include improvements and updates for these STFs, starting with a change explained in the latest installment of the Path to F2P blog series.

      The first change is the shift to two separate difficulty modes, Normal and Elite. STFs are also being added to the PvE queue feature so that players can more easily assemble a group. Last but not least, the missions will feature special rewards that can be traded for a variety of anti-Borg equipment, allowing successful players the chance to better tune their ships for future runs. These updates won't reduce the threat level of the Borg, but they should help more players face off against one of the game's marquee opponents.

      MassivelyStar Trek Online strengthening the fight against the Borg originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 22 Oct 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

      Permalink | Email this | Comments

      WRUP: Mists of what edition
      October 22, 2011

      Filed under: ,

      A respectful treatment of foreign cultures.
      I'm going to bet dollars to donuts every single person expected to see a panda up there after recent announcements, so yeah, there you go. I hope that the people still playing the game are chuffed about it; I'm not really in a position to say, as I haven't been playing for several months and have no desire whatsoever to go back to the game. For what it's worth, my reaction was the exact opposite of "oh, that's neat."

      Anyway, it's time for this week's installment of WRUP, which does not feature anything remotely related to pandas. Instead, it features the Massively staff members talking about their plans for the weekend as well as whether they prefer to level in a group or by their lonesome. So check on past the break to see what we'll be up to for the next couple of days, and let us know your plans in the comments.

      Continue reading WRUP: Mists of what edition

      MassivelyWRUP: Mists of what edition originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 22 Oct 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

      Permalink | Email this | Comments

        The Road to Mordor: Believing in Isengard
        October 22, 2011

        Filed under: , , , , ,

        Road to Mordor
        I find it's always awkward, to say the least, when someone tells you outright he dislikes something and then asks you to convince him otherwise. "I hate marmalade, it's so sticky! Why should I think it's awesome?" "Uh... you sound like you've made up your mind already."

        However, if the person in question isn't being an outright marmalade troll, I'll do my best to answer him because usually contained in that bizarre request is a frustrated non-understanding of what he wants to like, what others seem to like, but what he cannot quite grasp. Sometimes a better perspective helps us appreciate something we may have formerly disliked, so there's no reason not to engage such queries.

        This past week, a Massively forum poster expressed disatisfaction over Rise of Isengard, citing an abundance of kill 10 rats quests and a lackluster storyline. He finished by throwing down a challenge: "If anyone has some good things to say about Lord of the Rings Online that could convince me I am wrong, I would love to hear them."

        Now, I'm not here to say that he's wrong; that's a matter of opinion and taste. But I'll gladly step up to the plate and share why I don't think this is the worst expansion yet -- far from it, actually. Without presenting a full post-mortem on Rise of Isengard, I can tell you what I do think is worth a player's investment of money or TP in this expansion. Hit the jump and the Road to Mordor will take you there!

        Continue reading The Road to Mordor: Believing in Isengard

        MassivelyThe Road to Mordor: Believing in Isengard originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 22 Oct 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

        Permalink | Email this | Comments

          The Mummy Online's beta is under wraps
          October 22, 2011

          Filed under: , , ,

          The Mummy Online
          Seeing as how Halloween is right around the corner, it seems like a perfect time to tap into your inner monster and unleash the spooky spirit of the holiday. And what better way to do so than to wrap yourself in gauze, drain your bodily fluids, be buried alive, and brew a vengeful spirit over the next two thousand years?

          Or, you know, you could just play The Mummy Online, which has recently gone into closed beta. Bigpoint's online version of Universal Studios' classic horror franchise looks to retain the best of the recent films as it mashes scares and high adventure thrills together. The game is free-to-play in your browser, and is presented in a top-down, isometric format.

          Applications for the closed beta are currently being accepted. You can get a closer look at The Mummy Online in the gallery below, but beware! Opening this gallery will unleash an ancient curse upon your spleen!

          MassivelyThe Mummy Online's beta is under wraps originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 22 Oct 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

          Permalink | Email this | Comments

            Undead Labs Q&A touches on health bars, death mechanics
            October 22, 2011

            Filed under: , , , , ,

            Class 3 - ugly zombie dudes
            Undead Labs has posted another question-and-answer session with fans of its upcoming Class 3 zombie MMO. The firm fielded a bunch of queries relating to healing, death, health bars, and assorted other topics.

            "You'll have a health bar so you won't have to guess how much health you have, but zombies won't. While we could have opted to have no health bar for you too, we wanted to emphasize the survival aspect of the game by having the damage you take stick with you until you can heal up," the dev team says.

            The Q&A also features some interesting tidbits about weight, fatigue and stamina, and the fact that zombies will respond to the noise generated by building survival structures (translation: Bring your duct tape). Read all about it at the official Undead Labs blog.

            MassivelyUndead Labs Q&A touches on health bars, death mechanics originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 22 Oct 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

            Permalink | Email this | Comments

            The Tattered Notebook: Beastlord prep 101
            October 22, 2011

            Filed under: , , , , ,

            EQII beastlord
            EverQuest II's most recent update brought two new additions: the dungeon finder and the prelude event for the new Beastlord class that will arrive with the release of Age of Discovery. I was going to look at the dungeon finder this week, but it's had its share of problems, and with the team still working on tweaks to make it more useful, I figured I'd table it until some of the changes get patched.

            That means this week's Tattered Notebook is focused on the Beastlord. Closed beta is beginning, and while it's hard to believe, the expansion is due to launch in late November. There's no doubt that many of us will be rolling up Beastlords, so this is a perfect time to start making preparations in advance of launch day. Read on for a look at some tips to make your first few days as a Beastlord fun and enjoyable.

            Continue reading The Tattered Notebook: Beastlord prep 101

            MassivelyThe Tattered Notebook: Beastlord prep 101 originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 22 Oct 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

            Permalink | Email this | Comments

              The Mog Log: Non-reactive
              October 22, 2011

              Filed under: , , , , , ,

              The Mog Log header image by A. Fienemann
              As pretty much everyone reading this column knows, there was a big bombshell dropped on the community on Friday of last week. As at least a few people reading this column also know, this column is written on Thursday. This isn't the first time that this has been relevant to the discussion, but what might seem a bit unusual is that last week's column did not discuss 2.0 or the billing cycle at all. It just continued on with my impressions of 1.19. To be quite honest, my actual Friday was spent at the local casino for dinner and some shopping.

              I could have, of course, written a new column for last week by virtue of that breaking news. Certainly it was big. But as it stands, I looked at it, considered it, and realized that I didn't actually have a strong reaction to what had been announced. I was vaguely excited about 2.0, of course, but for the most part all of the big sweeping announcements about the future of Final Fantasy XIV didn't make nearly the impression that one might think. And there's a good reason for that, I believe -- it's because these announcements weren't as sudden or shocking as they look at face value.

              Continue reading The Mog Log: Non-reactive

              MassivelyThe Mog Log: Non-reactive originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 22 Oct 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

              Permalink | Email this | Comments

                Not So Massively Extra: Our impressions of Path of Exile
                October 22, 2011

                Filed under: , , , , , , , ,

                Path of Exile title image
                Path of Exile is an upcoming online action RPG by relatively new developer Grinding Gear Games. The game boasts a dark and gritty game world with randomly generated levels and dozens of different skills, all the things that old-school fans of the Diablo series loved. The game is currently in the closed beta stages, but the developers say it will be free-to-play when released and will feature an online world able to support hundreds of thousands of players. The game servers will use the Guild Wars model of communal town districts leading to instanced combat areas, making the game potentially more MMO than online action RPG.

                Grinding Gear Games was kind enough to give Massively a few beta keys and permission to livestream the game in its current beta state. The livestream was a huge success, with over 200 people tuning in to check out the game and have a chance of winning a beta key. In this article, Massively's Patrick Mackey and I deliver our first impressions of the Path of Exile beta based on last week's livestream and further play time.

                Skip past the cut for Massively's first impressions of the Path of Exile beta.

                Continue reading Not So Massively Extra: Our impressions of Path of Exile

                MassivelyNot So Massively Extra: Our impressions of Path of Exile originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 22 Oct 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

                Permalink | Email this | Comments