Virtual World News
Filed under: Fantasy, Sci-fi, Events, real-world, Interviews, New titles, Opinion, Free-to-play, Massively Interviews, Massively Event Coverage
Sadly, E3 was having internet issues at the time of my interview, so while I couldn't play the game, Anthony was able to answer some questions for me.
Continue reading E3 2012: Gamigo shows off Grimlands and Otherlands
E3 2012: Gamigo shows off Grimlands and Otherlands originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 06 Jun 2012 12:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Fantasy, EverQuest II, Events, real-world, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Roleplaying, EverQuest Next
SOEmote is one of those things that you'll either love or hate. In a nutshell, it's facial scanning technology that takes webcam input and outputs it to your avatar. EQII's toons already boasted some of the most visually expressive animations in the genre, complete with a laundry list of /emote commands that's longer than this article.
SOEmote takes that to the next level (and it also adds voice-modulating capabilities, though these weren't exactly listenable due to the din of noise that is the E3 demo floor). The tech is scheduled to hit the game's live servers toward the end of this month, and it'll be met with both huzzahs (from the roleplayers and the immersion enthusiasts) and WTFs (from the raiders and progression fiends).
Continue reading E3 2012: Hands-on with SOEmote
E3 2012: Hands-on with SOEmote originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 06 Jun 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Fantasy, Polls, Classes, Game mechanics, Opinion, Races, Choose My Adventure, TERA
I'm hard-pressed to think of a game that I've had a more back-and-forth relationship with than TERA. When I first heard about the game, it didn't make an impression on me. Then I started seeing the screenshots, and I was interested. Then I saw more, and I was suddenly less interested... and then I started hearing about the game's actual gameplay, and I swung back around in the other direction. It's a polarizing game for a lot of people, but it's a game that deserves a little more love past those elements.
Continue reading Choose My Adventure: Preparing for TERA
Choose My Adventure: Preparing for TERA originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 06 Jun 2012 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Fantasy, Business models, Culture, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Diablo III
Would you believe that all of the box copies of D3 sold on day one would stretch from the earth to the international space station and back if stacked end to end? Did you know that D3's $210 million first-day take is enough to give every Blizzard employee a cool $42,000?
These and other absurd facts are yours for the viewing courtesy of the graphic design wizards at Video Game Design Schools. We've also embedded the infographic for you after the cut.
Continue reading Infographic shows the numbers behind Diablo III's opening day
Infographic shows the numbers behind Diablo III's opening day originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 06 Jun 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
- Source: Video Game Design Schools
- Via: Forbes
Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, News items, Guild Wars 2, Community Q&A
Join ArenaNet president Mike O'Brien and other members of the ArenaNet staff who will be on-hand to answer your pressing Guild Wars 2 questions. As we've seen in the previous AMAs with Jon Peters and Mike Ferguson, these events tend to get hectic quickly, so if you've got something you want answered, get yourself over to /r/gaming and prepare your interrogation.
ArenaNet president Mike O'Brien heading to Reddit for AMA originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 06 Jun 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
- Source: ArenaNet official blog
We’re pleased to announce our second annual App Conference will take place at the Santa Clara Convention Center on October 18-19, 2012. The conference unites major brands, media, social networking, mobile, consumer electronic, and software platforms and the worldwide developer community to addresses the broad implications of app development, marketing and distribution. Interested [...]
Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, PvP, News items, PvE, Massively Interviews, Massively Event Coverage, Star Wars: The Old Republic
Continue reading E3 2012: SWTOR's Allies patch aims to give back to the players
E3 2012: SWTOR's Allies patch aims to give back to the players originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 06 Jun 2012 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Video, Interviews, Massively Event Coverage, The Elder Scrolls Online
Konkle dives into what will make TESO its own unique creature. One of the mechanics he explained was the game's hotbar. The first two buttons are dedicated to whatever weapon you're wielding, the next three are chosen abilities from your class, and the last button is an ultimate skill derived from your class. "In addition to those six things, everyone has these skills that are always available: sprinting, ducking, and blocking," he said.
What is ZeniMax doing to ease those familiar with the lore but not MMOs into the game? "From the very beginning, we didn't set out to make a really big, standard MMO," Konkle said. "Nor did we set out to make a Skyrim clone and just put it online. We set out to make a great game. So we don't just have the standard MMO controls, abilities, and rotations like you're used to."
You can watch the 11-minute interview after the jump for more information on TESO's combat and social systems.
Continue reading E3 2012: Talking with Nick Konkle about The Elder Scrolls Online's design
E3 2012: Talking with Nick Konkle about The Elder Scrolls Online's design originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 06 Jun 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
- Source: Joystiq
Filed under: Sci-fi, Classes, Patches, Star Wars: The Old Republic
The most notable and requested change grants all tank stances 100% threat generation. "We've received a lot of feedback from tanks regarding how easy or difficult it is to hold threat on various encounters," Peckenpaugh explains. Then he clarifies by saying that single-target taunting will generally remain unchanged, but because of "smart" AOEs that avoid crowd-controlled enemies, AOE-threat generation should improve significantly.
Secondly, BioWare is well aware of the population issues on a large portion of servers. That is why on June 12th, the team will begin the free character transfer service. In a soft server merge system similar to the one implemented by Star Wars Galaxies, BioWare will open up specific servers as origin servers and others as destination servers. To help BioWare maintain a bit of control over the situation, the transfer precess will be "gradual and staged," according the developer blog post.
The specific details regarding which servers will be affected have not be released yet, but rest assured that Massively will let you in on the latest details when they become available.
[Update: Community Manager Joveth Gonzalez gave more detail on the official forums about how the origin and destination servers will work: "In order to ensure an optimal playing experience for every server, we'll be offering direct transfers from one origin server to a pre-selected destination server."]
SWTOR upgrades classes and starts merging servers [Update] originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 06 Jun 2012 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Video, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Expansions, News items, Free-to-play
Drow, of course, are a given. Players can look forward to squaring off against the race's nefarious priestesses and mutated dryders while they explore the city of Sschindylryn below the King's Forest of Cormyr. A number of deadly creatures await curious adventurers, including a new dragon for players to hunt. For the full details on what to expect from the Underdark, just check out the gallery below and then click past the cut for the full video.
[Source: Turbine press release]
Continue reading Dungeons and Dragons Online unveils new Menace of the Underdark screens and video
Dungeons and Dragons Online unveils new Menace of the Underdark screens and video originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 06 Jun 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.