MMO News Roundup - 3-3-09
Posted by HCG Dreadsorrow | Filed under MMO News Roundup, News
Dungeons and Dragons Online is rolling out some juicy new features to coincide with their third anniversary. Goodies like a shared bank tab, so players can easily transfer unbound items between characters on the same account. Enhancements to the chat and combat systems will be nice, but the really yummy part is the raising of the level cap to 20. Players of the original D&D know what that means. That’s right, a whole new batch of spells and abilities. Happy days, happy days, click here to read all about it.
OK, we have seen a lot of the goody-goody Federation stuff coming in Star Trek Online, but how about the franchise’s real bad-asses, the Klingons? Well, now we get a glimpse of one of their toys, a destroyer called the Raptor. I got a little bat’leth in my shorts reading over the stats on this one. I am filled with the spirit of Kahless at the thought of what the battlecruisers will be like. Click here and quake in fear, you whose heart is filled with peace, paTak.
So wtf is going on with Lord of the Rings Online? I pry myself away from downloading cheap home-made pr0n to read some MMO news, and there is this crap about characters getting self-resurrection? OMFSM Turbine, what in the name of all that is good and holy are you thinking? Why not just turn the game into something a lot more freakin’ lame? See! See! I am so upset, and can’t even come up with a suitably disgusting yet clever metaphor to describe my displeasure. Click here to read the details along with the rest of the patch notes for the upcoming pussification of my favorite MMO. Seriously, what’s next? Invincible mode for days when I feel sad?
The launch of new MMO Runes of Magic is growing ever closer, something something something…I don’t know. I’m kind of tired so I am just going to phone in this last one. It goes live on March 19th I think, I’m too lazy to change windows and check. OK, I did it anyway. Yep, March 19th. Anyway, there is a big interview put up on IGN, and it talks about a lot of stuff. Just go read it. I’m sorry, I’m sure the game will be lots of fun, but I have spent to much time MacGuyvering this post together while watching TV, and I am very tired right now. Just click here to go read it, the stuff, about Runes of Magic.
Tags: Dungeons and Dragons Online, Frogster Interactive, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO, MMO News Roundup, MMORPG, Runes of Magic, Star Trek Online, Turbine
MMO News Roundup - 2-9-09
Posted by HCG Dreadsorrow | Filed under MMO News Roundup, News
Next month, the vast galaxy that is EVE Online is about to get a whole lot bigger. The game already has more than 5000 star systems, and with this new expansion, CCP is going to add a whopping 2500 more. But like with everything in EVE Online, there is a catch. In fact, there are quite a few catches in this one. First, PVE players need not apply. That’s right, every single one of the new systems is unrestricted PVP. Second, the way to get to one of these new systems is through a random wormhole. Uh huh, there is absolutely no way to go to a specific system. You and your corp mates have to “colonize” a system, but good luck holding onto it when someone else comes along. I have nothing good to say about this game any longer, so I will end this segment with a link to a nice write-up on the expansion on massively.com. Click here to read it. Oh, and by the way linux users. CCP is dropping the linux client for the game, due to the low cost-benefit ratio of the tiny number of linux players. Click here to read that.
Speaking of the New York Comic-Con, I am filled with envy. Mostly due to the fact that the last comics convention that came to my home town was so pathetic that I got bored looking at yet another booth full of exactly the same crap as every other booth. I wandered away after less than an hour and went to browse at the bookstore a couple blocks away. So the New York Comic-Con is like fraking Xanadu by comparison. But how does this figure in with MMO News? Well, quite a bit actually. But for our purposes here, I will just report that there were several conferences profiling upcoming MMOs, and the featuring of premiers of game trailers. Click here for a butt-load of videos on Champions Online. Click here for a new trailer on Star Trek Online.
I missed this one a few days ago, but the LOTRO dev team held a developer chat with XFire to discuss the first free content update post Mines of Moria. Topics include “a new 12-man raid, the opening of Lorien to players, a new Lorien reputation system, new Minstrel Instruments, and insights into class creation and changes on the way”. Click here to read the transcript on mmorpg.com.
Tags: CCP, Champions Online, EVE Online, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO, MMO News Roundup, MMORPG, Star Trek Online, Warhammer Online
MMO News Roundup - 2-5-09
Posted by HCG Dreadsorrow | Filed under MMO News Roundup, News
Well, this one is big news if you play EVE. In case you just haven’t dropped by the official forums melting down with some epic threads, you should hop on over there. This is pretty huge. It seems the Band of Brothers alliance (BoB) has been disbanded! The biggest alliance in the game, comprised of thousands of players, has been broken up and all their sovereign systems reset. The rumor at this point is that the infamous GoonSwarm might have had something to do with it, which would require an infiltration, and a very long operation to get their operative in a key position needed to breakup the alliance. I would wait before congratulating the Goons however, since details are still sketchy. However the fact is, that there is now a MAJOR power vacuum in the EVE galaxy. The alliances that will now be rushing to fill the void will make for some interesting drama to see which emerges as the new headliner. Click here for one thread on the event. Click here for a thread dominated by smack-talking Goons.
IGN has a long and thorough article up, dealing with the coming MMOs to the console world. Yeah, I know there is that one MMO for the 360. I mean a real MMO that does not suck. The article goes into a lot more detail, but I will sum it up here in two sentences. MMO development for consoles has been a failure so far because of money. Developers continue to try to finish an MMO for consoles because of money. The development of an MMO is very expensive. Even the collective founded by mosquito-boy himself has caved on developing one for consoles. However, the potential payoff is so huge, that it makes even Blizzard accountants drool. You can bet your set of epic purples that the “unannounced” Blizzard MMO is going for a cross-platform release. Click here for the article.
Tags: EVE Online, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO, MMO News Roundup, MMORPG, SOE, Turbine, Vanguard Saga of Heroes
MMO News Roundup - 1-27-09
Posted by HCG Dreadsorrow | Filed under MMO News Roundup, News
This first one is certainly big enough to do a full post on itself alone, but I refuse to dignify it any longer with such consideration. A new devblog has been released giving a lot of details regarding the upcoming EVE Online expansion, Apocrypha. There is a whole new exploration system being introduced, and it is completely geared towards forcing people into PvP situations when they would otherwise prefer not to be. I have read the glorious details, and there is no doubt that casual players need not apply. I hope all you leet doodz feel all superior than the rest of us. Have fun with your wormhole camps, your gank squads, and your teeny tiny penises. Click here for the details.
MMORPG.com has posted the transcript from their recent chat with the devs from Masthead Studios. Naturally the discussion is in regards to the upcoming MMO Earthrise. Yet another open PvP MMO. YAWN! Click here for the transcript.
World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King has been nominated for three awards by the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences. The nominations are for ‘Computer Game of the Year’, ‘Massively Multiplayer Online Game of the Year’ and ‘Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition’. You can enjoy this music even if you don’t have the game, by buying it from iTunes. Jeez, Blizzard, still don’t have enough money? Even CCP gives away the music for EVE Online for free.
Speaking of the AIAS awards, here is the complete list of nominations. What I find most troubling about this list is the nominations for MMO of the year. EVE Online (yeah whatever), Pirates of the Burning Sea (enjoyed by both of its fans), PMOG (huh? Is this a joke?), Warhammer Online (snicker), and WoW:WOTLK. Notice what game isn’t there? Notice what MMO is not on the list for a single nomination in any category? If you guessed Lord of the Rings Online, then you are far too intelligent and well-informed to work for the AIAS. Think I am wrong? Check out a nominee for ‘Computer Game of the Year’, Spore. And PMOG is better than LOTRO? Are you f*****g serious? A goddamn f*****g browser game is better than LOTRO? You people lick the lint from my manbag wrinkles. EPIC FAIL
Tags: Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences, AIAS awards, Earthrise, EVE Online, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO, MMO News Roundup, MMORPG, Pirates of the Burning Sea, PMOG, Spore, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King
MMO News Roundup - 1-13-09
Posted by HCG Dreadsorrow | Filed under MMO News Roundup, News
Why is it that politicians always seem to be useless scumbags that spend all their time in office either running for re-election, dreaming up new laws to strip away our freedoms, or new ways to take our money to fund the previous two. Case in point: States and the Congress (opposite of progress) have been drooling over the possibility of taxing the gains that players make in online games. People are discussing this online, and most believe that it is aimed specifically at virtual worlds that actually incorporate RMTs (Real Money Transfers for you MMO uninitiated). Titles like Second Life do incorporate RMTs, while titles like World of Warcraft do not allow it. Now see, WoW’s EULA specifically forbids the real world trade of in-game items and currency, but the fact is that it represents an awful huge hunk of dough. So while many will insist that any online game taxing policies would be directed at titles like Second Life, what is to stop these same bureaucrats from including that epic set of armor as “earnings”, and demand game companies like Blizzard keep records of who had what in their inventory? I, and many of my fellow MMO players will be watching this, waiting for the snivelling politicians to destroy a burgeoning industry with infinite potential. So what else is new? Click here for details. Click here to read the official IRS report for yourself.
Tags: Age of Conan, Funcom, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO, MMO News Roundup, MMORPG, Real Money Transfer, SOE, Star Wars Galaxies, Turbine
Dreadsorrow’s 2008 Games Of The Year
Posted by HCG Dreadsorrow | Filed under Games of the Year, Reviews
I play mostly MMOs, but in recent weeks I have finally overcome my brainblocks to playing shooters on a console, and am enjoying them now immensely. However, I am still primarily an MMO player. I certainly hope that my favorite MMOs wind up on consoles someday, but I’m not holding my breath on that.
Anyway, I tried out a few new MMOs in 2008, but they were somewhat less than satisfying (e.g. Age of Conan). But with an MMO, expansions tend to add so much in terms of gameplay and content to the original game that I include MMO expansions among original releases when considering which is the best game released in any given year. So, without further fanfare or titillation…
GAME OF THE YEAR
Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria, nothing else is even close. LOTRO was already so epic in size, so true to Tolkien’s original vision, that I didn’t think it was possible to be any better.
WHY
The Mines of Moria expansion has added such an enormous amount of content that it boggles the mind. Everything was so well implemented, the launch so smooth, everything so bug-free, I had to really nitpick to find fault with the game. But most important, by playing this game, you get a real sense of how epic a virtual world can be, and how very small you can feel dwelling inside it. Turbine is not perfect, no game developer is. But their screw-ups are made insignificant by their successes.
Tags: 2008 games of the year, Gears of War, Gears of War 2, Left 4 Dead, Lord of the Rings Online, Mines of Moria, Reviews, Sins of a Solar Empire, Star Wars Force Unleashed
Turbine gets the first DUMBASS award of 2009
Posted by HCG Dreadsorrow | Filed under News, Rants
When you are operating not one, but several online games that require players to log in, what would be one of the most important things you must remember to do?
If you guessed make certain that you have a correct SSL certificate, then you can’t work at Turbine. Why you ask? Because that is exactly what they have done, by letting their SSL certificate expire for Lord of the Rings Online.
Players trying to log in to LOTRO found it necessary to reset their system clock to 2008 EVERY TIME they tried to log into the game. So to whoever at Turbine that was in charge of the SSL certificated renewal, as well as the QA department for making certain it was done, and the management because ultimately they are responsible, here’s your trophy folks.
Click here for some of the forum fallout.
The funny part about this, is that this same thing happened back in June.
Tags: Lord of the Rings Online, LOTRO, MMO, MMORPG, Turbine
Dreadsorrow’s Quickie: Mines of Moria
Posted by HCG Dreadsorrow | Filed under Quickies
I would like to do a proper review of this huge expansion to an already epic-sized MMO, but in all honesty I can’t. The reason, is because I have yet to step foot into Moria itself, which is a big part of the content added last week. Thus, I can only comment on the portions of the Mines of Moria expansion that I have personally experienced.
First let me touch on why I have not yet actually seen Moria itself. This also goes back to a huge bitch I have with MMOs in general. If you read my quickie of Wrath of the Lich King from several days ago, you will know that I play a MMO to experience the game, to enjoy the experience, and generally disdain grinding and the mad dash to max level and leet gear. I just play it to have fun, which is the whole point of video games in the first place.
Unfortunately, I am in the minority, eclipsed by players that seek only “end game content”. MMO developers by necessity, must cater to the desires of the largest portion of their player base. Therefor many add-on features and content for any ‘live’ MMO will be heavily slanted towards the high-level player base. This is sadly true with Turbine’s Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria.
Tags: Lord of the Rings Online, LOTRO, Mines of Moria, MMORPG, Turbine
Turbine to Create Social Networking Sites for MMOs
Posted by HCG Dreadsorrow | Filed under News
Speaking at the Tokyo Game Show, Jim Crowley, the honcho over at Turbine Games, announced that they will be creating social networking sites for their MMOs, Lord of the Rings Online, Asheron’s Call, and Dungeons and Dragons Online.
Users of Facebook will already be familiar with some of the functionality. Namely in the friends lists, the publishing of important news blurbs about what your friends are up to in game, as well as being able to upload screenshots and video from within the game. Profiles detailing your characters’ history and accomplishments will also be part of the deal.
Tags: Asheron's Call, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Lord of the Rings Online, LOTRO, News, social networking, Turbine
The Mines of Moria Opening November 18
Posted by HCG Dreadsorrow | Filed under News, Previews
Yes precious, we wants it.
The long-awaited expansion to Lord of the Rings Online will go live on 18 November. In fact, that’s going to be a heck of a week for MMOs, as the WoW expansion goes live a few days earlier.
Tags: Lord of the Rings Online, LOTRO, Mines of Moria, MMO, MMORPG, News, PC, Previews, Turbine
LOTRO - Venture Into the Frozen Northlands
Posted by HCG Dreadsorrow | Filed under News
Coming soon to a virtual Middle Earth near you: Lord of the Rings Online - Book 13: Doom of the Last-king!
This free content update will allow players to venture forth into the frozen land of Forochel. and lend aid to the Lossoth in their struggle against their ancient enemy in Angmar.
Check out some of the juicy details:
Book 13: Crafting the Content of Forochel
Massively.com interview with LOTRO’s Jeffrey Steefel
Forochel is not simply some land made up by the people at Turbine. Tolkien actually did write about the frozen lands, although it was only in passing. But those that are fans of Tolkien know that the shear amount of material he created for his fantastic realm is overwhelming, with the vast majority of it not actually taking place in the brief snapshot in time that was ‘The Hobbit’ and ‘The Lord of the Rings’. This should allow the developers of LOTRO to expand their realm for many years to come.
Tags: Book 13: Doom of Last King, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO, MMORPG, News
Turbine Announces Mines of Moria Expansion to The Lord of the Rings Online
Posted by HCG Dreadsorrow | Filed under News
Just when my nasty Hobbit was just hitting his stride pwning orcs in Angmar, along comes this revelation of MMO goodness.
Here is the official announcement:
BIRMINGHAM, UK - March 14, 2008 - Turbine, Inc. and Codemasters Online today unveiled Volume II of The Lord of the Rings OnlineTM, the first retail expansion for the award-winning massively multiplayer online roleplaying game (MMORPG). Announced in Birmingham, the childhood home of J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings OnlineTM: Mines of MoriaTM will expand the online world of Middle-earth to let players explore the ancient underground cities of the dwarves, battle epic characters in the depths, face off with the Watcher, be a part of the fateful release of Durin’s Bane and more! The Lord of the Rings Online expects to open Volume II of its epic story in the fall of 2008 with an increased level cap, two new classes and the introduction of a unique item advancement system.
Tags: Lord of the Rings Online, Mines of Moria Expansion, MMO, MMORPG, News, Turnine
