That’s right! Sign up for the Fallout MMO beta!
Photo courtesy of Interplay EntertainmentHow about some non-E3 news for a change.
Today Interplay launched their beta sign-up and teaser website today for their upcoming Fallout Online MMORPG, or Project V13 if you want to keep calling it that.
Via MMOCrunch
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TERA already won my love with their gorgeous concept art. (A larger version of the picture above is my laptop’s wallpaper — and that’s saying something, considering I get new game assets in the mail every day) I’m really excited to see their new MMO at E3
En Masse Entertainment, a new breed of game publisher focused on delivering highly anticipated online video games to Western audiences, announced today that it will present the first hands-on demo of its flagship Action MMO title, TERA™, at the upcoming Electronic Entertainment Expo 2010 in Los Angeles. The hands-on demo will focus on TERA’s groundbreaking action combat system, which allows players to step into a world where their actions, teamwork, and combat expertise—not statistics—give them a chance to become true heroes in the face of danger.
“At E3, people will have the chance to experience firsthand what makes TERA‘s gameplay so exciting,” said En Masse CEO Dr. Jae-Heon Yang. “Select media will form a party with varied roles and venture forth to experience their first battle using our innovative action/adventure style combat system. During the show, players will see how TERA is changing the rules of MMO combat.”
TERA is an innovative Action MMORPG with rich graphics and animations where players fully control their characters through the game’s dynamic battle system. Player actions in TERA can change the balance of power in a world threatened by dark powers as six allied races work together to protect their world. The game, which is currently in development for PC, will launch in North America and Europe in 2011.
Popularity: 1% [?]
Tags: action, Adventure, ds, e3, EA, En Masse Entertainment, game, games, media, mmo, MMORPG, pc, RPG, Tera, Tera online, video, video game, video games
Go back to school with the upcoming Facebook game Fantasy University! Discover exciting career options like Dodgebrawler, Emomancer, Slackninja, Cheermonger or Mathemagician! (Player classes based on everyone’s favorite RPG stereotypes, crossed with everyone’s favorite college stereotypes.)
You can sign up for the beta here, or check out Fantasy University’s Facebook info page, or Professor Lackpants’ online lectures to learn more. Edit: You can also read a preview of FU here.
I’m just waiting for my FU school pride sweatshirt to arrive.
ELANTHIA (a seriously non-fictitious place) Fantasy University, the country’s finest Adventuring College, announces the opening of its new term slated for July.
The University, notorious for its financial troubles, was deemed “too big to fail” by the Elanthian Education Department and was subsequently bailed out with a generous, albeit undisclosed, endowment.
“We’re delighted, simply delighted!” said Thaddeus Lackpants VIII, a professor at the school, at the press conference held earlier today. “The entire faculty and I are committed to our students receiving the finest Adventuring Education that delicious government funding can provide!” he added, a pile of Fubars tumbling out of his beard onto the floor.
The University justifies its new financial stability by touting its record of producing Class-A Adventurers. Many of its alumni have gone on to long, spectacular deaths, such as Dodgebrawler extraordinaire Randy McDandy, who put up a valiant effort against the fabled Badgerdragon before being summarily consumed and digested.
Opponents of the school, however, call the bailout “an affront to common decency,” and refer to F.U. by its initials with a bit more fervor than is socially acceptable.
Press release via VerticalWire, screenshots are my own.
Popularity: 1% [?]
Tags: Adventure, Beta, Cheermonger, Dodgebrawler, ds, EA, Emomancer, facebook, fantasy, Fantasy University, game, Mathemagician, mmo, pc, Press release, raw, RPG, screenshots, Slackninja, twitter
Hull, UK / TQ Digital have confirmed that their anticipated MMO, Heroes of Might and Magic Online, licensed by renowned publishers Ubisoft, will be entering it’s Asia area closed beta on May 7th.Fans of Heroes of Might & Magic, one of the most loved PC-franchises of the last 15 years, can finally take their adventure to the MMO space on May 7th with Heroes of Might and Magic Online, developed under the careful study of established china-based online games developer, TQ Digital.With millions of players already habiting their other titles, including such well known names as Eudemons Online and Conqueror Online, TQ Digital have had a wealth of expertise to call on while crafting a playing experience based around the wants and needs of the series’ loyal fans.
Licensed by Ubisoft – who boast a host of mega-franchises, including The Settlers and Assassins Creed – Heroes of Might and Magic (HoMM) Online will take players back to the classic gameplay elements of HoMM III, mixing it with the stunning updated graphics of HoMM V in a 2.5D turn-based massively multiplayer environment.
Though Ubisoft introduced a new universe to the series for HoMM V, their first title after acquiring the franchise from 3DO Company, TQ Digital are finally bringing the popular fantasy setting of Erathia back, which debuted in 1999 releases, HoMM III and Might and Magic VII: For Blood and Honor.
Gameplay in Heroes of Might and Magic Online is as varied as it is beautiful, with gorgeous graphics complementing your epic quest to prove your valiant leadership.
Chose from a variety of 8 unique factions, develop elaborate castles that dominate the skyline of bustling metropolis Harmondale – epicenter of trade in the sweeping Antagarichean continent – plunder resources in exhilarating missions and fortify your armies against the inevitable wars of domination that lie ahead as you carve out your own legacy like the legions of plucky adventurers before you.
Experience magic based on an innovative in-game star system. Cast a new spell to increase your proficiency or perfect spells through a dynamic online training center.
Randomly generated combat maps, designed with strategic gameplay in mind, ensure you will need to think studiously about unit formations and tactics, while the hundreds of unique campaigns, each with deep storylines and goals, including 10 chapters of battlefield missions, are guaranteed to keep play refreshing throughout.
Develop towns of different races with the unique Town Prestige System, form guilds, gather resources, and prove your worth in the bloody-thirsty Challenging Arena. TQ Digital will be hosting a slew of PK events with HoMM Online: Team PK and Extreme PK are only the tip of the iceberg, with these events providing opportunities to gain priceless honor points and increase faction reputation.
Summary of HoMM Online game features:
• First Persistent World Turn-Based Strategy MMO
• 8 towns, 16 classes and 56 creatures
• Hundreds of campaigns with epic storylines
• Unique Anima and Dragon Scale Forge System
• Glorious Guild Building & Exciting Guild Wars
• Challenging Arena and PK Tournaments
• Heroes can build towns of different factionsThe Asia area closed beta for HoMM Online launches on May 7th. For more information on the game and a chance to register for beta access, visit the game’s official website today: http://homm.91.com/
Popularity: 1% [?]
Tags: 3d, action, Adventure, Beta, China, ds, EA, epic, fantasy, game, games, Heroes of Might and Magic, Heroes of Might and Magic Online, HoMM Online, mmo, multiplayer, online games, pc, RoM, TQ Digital, Ubisoft, video, war
A press release for Evony landed in my mailbox today. My previous experience with Evony involves wondering why there are bra advertisements on gaming sites. I put on my magic BS-reducing journalist glasses to read it, and here’s what it said:
Evony, the free-to-play gaming sensation, today announced its official one year anniversary, inviting the 19 million people who clicked the boobie ads looking for softcore to join in the celebration. First launched in May 2009 with Evony: Age I, Evony has enjoyed a warm reception from its growing fan base, especially those who haven’t got girlfriends or live in areas without Victoria’s Secret catalogs. The game’s unexplainable success is expected to continue with the April launch of Evony: Age II, the expansion that boasts a suite of new features and enhancements, and even more intrusive boobie advertising on all your favorite gaming sites.
In May of 2009, what started with only two servers and a clever vision to create a browser game designed to be played secretly while pretending to work, has evolved into a MMO phenomenon that’s anything but subtle.
“This is an amazing moment for the Evony team, all made possible by a community of game sites and games bloggers running Google Adsense, and a community of potential game players who are easily distracted by boobs,” said the Vice President of Operations at Regan Mercantile, LLC. “Our goal with the Evony franchise is to make sure we don’t accidentally attract any female players or mature adults by mistake.”
The recently launched Evony: Age II features new quests involving historical heroes and cities, a redesigned graphical interface and innovative panty photos for the upcoming advertising campaign.
Popularity: 1% [?]
Sign up before May17th to get into the Land of Chaos beta! From the press release:
burda:ic, a leading publisher of online games worldwide, today announced the start of registration for the Closed Beta Test of strategic action MMO LOCO – Land of Chaos Online. Interested players have until Monday, May 17 to sign up for their chance to participate in the CBT, and full registration details can be found at: www.loco.alaplaya.net/closedbeta
The Closed Beta Test will feature 12 heroes from LOCO’s 30-character roster, including Octavian, Atin, Foxlady, RandyRozz, and more. Three maps will be available for use in both the Annihilation and Battle Modes: the “Forest of Chaos,” the “Crimson Plains,” and the “Lair of the Ancient Dragons.” The CBT will also feature a first look at LOCO’s Guild and Enchantment systems, so sign up today if you want to be one of the first players to explore the Land of Chaos!
To leaf through the Book of Heroes and learn more about the warriors from LOCO’s two factions, the Army of Hell and the Forces of Nature, visit http://loco.alaplaya.net/chronicles
For more information about Land of Chaos Online and the upcoming Closed Beta Test, head to http://www.loco.alaplaya.net
Popularity: 1% [?]
New MMO Fallen Earth is opening up a beta for Mac users. I’ve been playing for a while now (yes, I was in the PC beta), and keep meaning to polish my notes into a proper review on this game, but I keep getting sucked back into playing instead. Anyway, now even fans of the one-button mouse can play Fallen Earth!
1. What is the Mac/Wine Beta client?
The Fallen Earth Beta Client for Mac is a chance for players to give us feedback on our OS X version of the Fallen Earth client. The client is powered by Wine and the wrapper is built using the Wineskin project.
2. Who may participate in the Fallen Earth Mac/Wine Beta?
The Fallen Earth Mac/Wine Beta is open to anyone interested in participating. If you do not have a current Fallen Earth account, you may sign up for a free 10-day trial. Current players may also download the Mac/Wine Beta Client directly.
Via Mac/Wine Client Beta | Fallen Earth
Popularity: 1% [?]
Tags: Beta, beta opp, ds, EA, Fallen Earth, free, game, Icarus Studios, mac, mac versions, mmo, pc
Zodiac Online is a new free-to-play, turn-based MMORPG opening an open beta test. Zodiac Online adds turn-based battles to the usual F2P fantasy MMORPG, making combat simpler, with less of a learning curve, hoping to cater to players new to MMO combat.
Zodiac Online offers an environment inspired by Chinese mythology. The twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac feature prominently, as does the mythical Jade Emperors. Players take on the role of a “zodiac envoy,” helping in an epic battle between humans and demons. Sign up here!
Popularity: 1% [?]
Guest author Lexton “Lunarhound” Collins discusses the upcoming Guild Wars 2, believable NPC drama, heroic errand-running, and shares his perspective on what makes a good MMO great.
Most gamers, both fans and detractors, would agree that MMO’s need shaking up. It’s happened before, when City of Heroes and, shortly afterward, World of Warcraft made camp grinding a thing of the past and brought quest-based advancement to the mainstream. Suddenly, characters had purpose-driven lives. Other games followed suit, and life was good in cyberland.
Now, several years later, gamers are growing weary of the new grind. It’s tough to ensure that every single one of the hundreds of quests necessary to keep an MMO going are interesting, and players are growing weary of the endless variations on “kill ten rats and bring me their tails”. Mini dramas acted out by NPC’s cease to feel immersive when sticking around for a minute afterward lets you watch the world reset before your eyes so that the next players in line can ride. Collecting exclamation marks and running errands for people too lazy to deliver their own letters or fight their own battles feels less like an adventure and more like checking off a list of chores. Few want to go back to the way things were, but developers, and many players, seem to be finding it difficult to see a way forward.
There have been efforts to do something different but they’ve gone largely unnoticed. Guild Wars came hot on the heels of World of Warcraft, and attempted to remedy many of the ‘theme park’ issues that came with a static world that had to reset each quest for the next player by making heavy use of instancing. Players see each other in towns, but once outside, you and your party had your own private copy of the world. This allowed them to change things permanently based on your actions. Unfortunately, this lead to many players not considering it a real MMO and, despite its commercial success, it didn’t inspire many imitators. Additional problems came from the fact that players could not jump, climb or swim and the world was full of invisible walls that forced strict adherence to the current mission path. Dungeons & Dragons Online came along a few years later with a similar world structure coupled with much better implementation of the mission-based game play and a great new action combat system, but the facts that it couldn’t (at the time) effectively be played solo and it required a monthly fee, it also ended up being relegated to niche status.
Now, Guild Wars has a sequel on the way. ArenaNet was very secretive about it for quite some time after its announcement, and even now information is limited, but what is beginning to emerge paints an interesting picture of a title that is trying to shake up the genre all over again. With the inclusion of open world areas and much greater mobility (players will be able to jump, swim and climb as they can in most other MMO’s), as well as new attitudes toward creative use of instancing, they might actually succeed this time.
In a preview at Eurogamer, back in August, lead designer Eric Flannum states that “I think I can safely say that you won’t see a single exclamation mark floating above a character’s head in Guild Wars 2.” This one little sentence makes for a pretty bold statement considering the direction of MMO’s for the past few years and, luckily, he elaborates:
“We actually don’t have a traditional RPG/MMO quest system… Instead what we’ve got are Events. Think of them as group-orientated activities. This is one of the many things that will encourage the player to explore the world – you can wander through and never quite know what you’re going to see. You might come across a fortress that’s being attacked by centaurs, or it might be that the centaurs attacked half an hour before you got there and they hold it now. You might start walking along a road you’ve walked a hundred times and suddenly there’s a caravan traveling along that road that you may not have seen, and you can go help that caravan out.”
Supposedly, these events will form a complex web within any given public area, spawning new ones and phasing out old ones based on cause and effect. An older example given is that of a dragon attacking a bridge. Players can band together to defeat the dragon, which might open up a new chain of events that can be participated in. Alternately, they might fail, choose not to help, or simply not be there when the dragon attacks, which would result in the bridge being destroyed and a completely different chain of events opening up, revolving around repairing the bridge. The difference between this and something like Warhammer Online’s public quests is that they will not simply reset repeatedly so that players can do them over again. The assertion that there will not be a traditional quest system seems to indicate that public areas will consist of countless such events and, rather than wandering around looking for someone with an exclamation mark to tell them what to do, players will spend their time looking for something actually happening. The potential of such a system to change the way questing is seen in online games is staggering.
That isn’t to say that all adventuring will be completely directionless. Each player will have a personal quest chain to play through that reflects his or her own character. From an interview with MMORPG.com in December:
“When a player creates a character in Guild Wars 2, they will be able to answer many questions about their personal character history. These answers will help determine your personal story in the game. As many fans have theorized, one of the first things you choose is a ‘subdivision’ of your race, which provides a more personal feel to your character’s history. For the humans, that means their ancestry–Elonan, Krytan, Ascalonian and Canthan–and also their social status as gentry or commoners of the city of Divinity’s Reach. For charr, it primarily means their legion, whether Blood, Ash, or Iron. The asura choose between the three most respected colleges of learning; Synergetics, Dynamics, and Statics. The sylvari follow the path of their seasonal cycle, or the time of day in which they awakened, being Dawn, Day, Twilight or Night. The norn choose their personal totem, and may choose to walk in the path of bear, snow leopard, raven or wolf. From these and other initial determinations, a wealth of personalized storylines develop, so that each player in the game experiences a story that is individually tailored to their character.”
According to ArenaNet, these choices, though part of character creation, will not affect class or power in any way. Their sole impact is on the player’s own personal narrative. This sounds tantalizingly like the Origins system in Dragon Age: Origins, and is an exciting thought when considered in the context of an MMORPG.
There’s no telling, of course, how much of an impact any of this will have or how well it will be received until the game is available to the public in some form. And if these claims were being made by a smaller developer without the experience or budget to back them up, they might be only a faint cause for hope at best. But ArenaNet has the budget and the talent to back up its big ideas, and it has already proven with one successful series that it knows what it’s doing.
Most seem to believe that the ultimate feat for an MMORPG would be to topple World of Warcraft. I’m not so sure. I think the ultimate measure of success is moving the genre as a whole forward. With a new approach to quest content, a strong focus on providing the player with a personal storyline, and the lack of any sort of monthly fee, Guild Wars 2 stands poised to do exactly that. Will it topple World of Warcraft? I doubt it. But it may force Blizzard to change in order to compete, which would almost certainly lead to other games following suit. Now that would be an accomplishment.
Popularity: 1% [?]
In 2009, I reviewed indie games like Funky Farm 2, A Case Of The Crabs, Rotoadventures Momo’sQuest, Slayer of Dragon, Democracy 2, Electric Box, Faerie Solitaire, and CyberWord. I plan to keep focusing on creative, indie games next year. I also played major mainstream titles, like Cartoon Network’s new MMO Fusionfall, and James Patterson’s Women’s Murder Club: Games of Passion for the DS. ThumbGods reviewed the match-3 Atlantis, Totem Tribe, National Geographic’s Mystery of Cleopatra, Tales of Monkey Island: Launch of the Screaming Narwhal, Sims 2 on the DS, and Nancy Drew Dossier: Resorting To Danger! Major misses this year were My Boyfriend, Create-a-Mall, the disappointing Build-a-lot 3, and Jack in Lost in Blue 2. (Not all of LiB2. Just Jack.)
I tried to branch out a bit from reviews, and started writing some hints, including a guide to solving MyTribe mysteries and hints for Nancy Drew Dossier: Resorting To Danger! I’ll probably keep doing this whenever I’m really proud of solving a puzzle and want to help out.
Thumb Gods had a great guest post when when Lexton Collins reviewed Runes Of Magic. I guest posted reviews of Cake Mania 3 and Ciao Bella, over on Casual Gamer Chick, Crayon Physics Deluxe review on Angry Gamers, Travians: Asterix Meets The Sims on SeeJaneGame, and contributed to several issues of Indie Game Mag.
Popularity: 1% [?]
Tags: A case of the crabs, Adventure, Angry Gamers, Atlantis, Big Fish Games, Build-a-lot, Buildalot, cake mania, cartoon network, casual, casual gamer chick, Casual games, casualgamerchick, ciao bella, Crayon physics, Create-a-mall, cyberword, Democracy, democracy 2, ds, EA, Electric Box, Faerie Solitaire, Funky Farm, Funky Farm 2, fusionfall, game, games, hints, indie, Indie game mag, indie games, IndieGameMag, james patterson, launch of the screaming narwhal, lexton collins, lost in blue, Lost in blue 2, misses, mmo, MMOGs/MMORPGs, momo, Monkey Island, my boyfriend, Mystery of Cleopatra, MyTribe, MyTribe mysteries, nancy drew, nancy drew dossier, national geographic, Nintendo DS, online gaming, resorting to danger, reviews, RoM, rotoadventures, Runes of Magic, sims, Slayer of Dragon, solitaire, The Sims, Totem Tribe, travians
The Secret World is a new, dark modern-day MMO, where all players are members of secret factions. Beta sign-up is a creepy and fun test to see which faction you’d belong to in TSW’s dark future. This is an interesting and fun beta sign-up. After all the secrecy and paranoia, the application sets you up to share your results on Facebook.
Via D A R K D A Y S A R E C O M I N G.
Popularity: 12% [?]
Sign up for the North American closed beta of Hello Kitty Online!
Or watch the trailer here:
Popularity: 15% [?]
Tags: 3d, Beta, game, games, hello kitty, hello kitty online, mmo, MMOGs/MMORPGs, MMORPG, RPG, trailer
Sign up for the upcoming closed beta of Dungeons & Dragons Online! DDO is a free-to-play MMO launching later this summer.
Popularity: 19% [?]
Tags: 3d, Beta, beta opp, D&D, ds, Dungeons & Dragons, EA, free, free to play, mmo, MMOGs/MMORPGs, MMORPG, pc, RPG, storm
If you’re a a FilePlanet member (and you probably already are), you’re able to sign up for the closed beta of the new Huxley game:
In a post-apocalyptic world where humanity has divided into three mutually hostile species, a battle for survival rages through the ruins of a ravaged Earth.
Huxley is an “MMOFPS,” a game that combines the white-knuckle action and player vs. player combat of your favorite first-person shooters with the social interactions, large-scale battles, character growth and persistent gameplay of your favorite online RPGs.
Sign up for the beta here: Huxley Beta on FilePlanet.
Popularity: 17% [?]
Burda:ic, a leading publisher of online games worldwide, have announced that war is about to break out between the Royal Army and the Pirates of popular free-to-play MMORPG Florensia! Two existing in-game maps will be converted from standard adventuring areas into new player vs. player (PvP) War Zones for level 40 and above: the Hidden Port in the Pirates of the Black Dragon Base and the Rainbow Highland on Chester Island. Additionally, an all-new War Zone map, the Lava Plateau, will be added on Magnel Island.
Buccaneers beware, you’ll need a keen eye and fast fingers upon arrival to these new areas, as players are free to attack anything that moves… even if that happens to be a fellow adventurer. It’s every man, soldier, and pirate for himself on these battlegrounds, and it’s up to each player to decide his or her own fate. Help the Royal Army clear the areas of monsters and earn a boost in the ranks. Kill other players, and the Pirates are sure to take notice.
A war is brewing on the high seas of Florensia, and these new PvP War Zones are just a taste of the seafaring adventure and mayhem on the horizon!
For more information about the War Zones, scheduled to be added early next week, visit http://www.florensia-online.com/.
Popularity: 14% [?]
An upcoming MMOPRG from NDOORS:
NDOORS Interactive today officially announced their newest title, WonderKing. Planned for release in the second half of 2009, WonderKing is an unconventional MMORPG from the developer Ryu & Soft that is designed for gamers of all skill level. The beta is scheduled to launch early this summer.
“With the success of Atlantica Online and Luminary: Rise of the GoonZu in the US, we feel the market is eager for a variety of MMO games,” said Peter Kang, CEO of NDOORS Interactive. “WonderKing’s introduction to the North American market will offer a truly encapsulating experience for gamers of every taste and preference.”
WonderKing is a 2D, side-scrolling MMORPG that takes players on an adventurous journey with story-by-story quests, much like a fantasy novel. Along the way, players will travel from beautiful beaches to murky marshlands and frigid snowfields as they battle to save the world. Don’t let the lack of a third dimension fool you, as this game is a highly developed MMORPG, including features such as:
• Home Town System: Players can personally decorate a private room where they can rest and store items and trophies.
• Pet System: Adorable, loyal AI animals will aid in hunting, item collecting, and other tasks.
• Class Change: The game allows players to focus their character’s abilities and change between classes to learn powerful techniques (mage, swordsman, thief, and scout).
• Mounts and Vehicles: Get moving with a variety of vehicles to ride and animals to mount, providing boosts to attack and defense.
• Castle Battles: Engage in PvP battles using siege warfare across castles.
• Crafting and Cooking: Weapons, food, and potions can be made to give players an edge in battle.Designed for gamers of all ages, WonderKing is set in a vibrantly colorful world and features some of the most uniquely creative character designs and gorgeous graphics in any game. As with all of NDOORS’ titles, the game is 100% free-to-play.
I’m not sure what makes it an “unconventional MMORPG”, it looks like a standard anime adventure game to me. (Not really complaining, I like that genre, but I don’t see what makes it unique) Watch the trailer and decide for yourself, or sign for the beta here.
Popularity: 17% [?]
Magic World Online, a new free-to-play MMORPG will officially launch on April 18th.
After months of open beta, MWO finally comes to a new era. On April 18th, 2009 the official launch will begin.
In the past few months, we have fixed a lot of bugs in the game and also we have improved this game in a lot of aspects upon the opinions of players. Thanks to all the MWO players! It is you who help us to make this game a great one!
Via Magic World Online.
Popularity: 13% [?]
Tags: Beta, e3, EA, free, free games, free to play, game, Magic World Online, mmo, MMOGs/MMORPGs, MMORPG, open beta, Past, RPG
BioWare – the company behind the upcoming Star Wars: The Old Republic, Neverwinter Nights, and others,promises a sequel to the popular sci-fi game Mass Effect.
Guildford, UK– March 17, 2009– Leading video game developer BioWare™, a division of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS), today officially announced the development of Mass Effect™ 2, the highly anticipated sequel to the multi award-winning 2007 hit, Mass Effect. The Mass Effect trilogy is a masterful science-fiction adventure set in a vast universe filled with dangerous alien life forms and mysterious uncharted planets. In this dark second chapter, Saren’s evil army of Geth soldiers has just been defeated, and humans, still struggling to make their mark on the galactic stage, are now faced with an even greater peril…
“We’re going to surpass the extraordinary gaming experience we brought our fans in Mass Effect by delivering intensified combat and expanded weapon options as well as increased depth of planet exploration, all while delivering a powerful, emotionally engaging story,” said Dr. Ray Muzyka, General Manager and CEO, BioWare and General Manager and Vice President, EA.“Mass Effect 2 is shaping up to be an unforgettable RPG-shooter experience, taking players on a non-stop roller-coaster ride filled with stunning plot twists and no-holds-barred action.”
Mass Effect 2 is coming to PC and the Xbox 360 video game system in Early 2010. To see the exclusive new Mass Effect 2 teaser trailer check out the website here: www.masseffect.com
Popularity: 10% [?]
Ys Online is ready for sign-ups for their closed beta of The Call of Solum. You’ll need to make an account on the site first, and then request a beta key, and then hope you’re chosen! The fantasy / anime graphics look great, check out the gallery.
Via Ys Online Europe – Call of Solum | Free MMO.
Popularity: 12% [?]
Tags: Beta, Call of Solum, EA, fantasy, free, mmo, MMOGs/MMORPGs, YS online
Do you play WoW? Want to shop for upgrades and playtime without leaving the house? Instead of having a monthly fee debited from a bank account, some World of WarCraft players are using WoW game cards. These game cards offer 60 days of online playtime, and they can be sent as a code to your email for instant access, so you can buy World of WarCraft playtime immediately. While shopping online, you could also upgrade your basic WoW game with Burning Crusade and/or Wrath of the Lich King by buying a WoW battle chest. Gaming without leaving the house. That’s gamer convenience!
Popularity: 12% [?]
Tags: Blizzard Entertainment, ds, EA, game, media, mmo, MMOGs/MMORPGs, MMORPG, online games, RoM, war, WarCraft, World of Warcraft, WoW
It’s not often when my interests in China and gaming collide. Nate, of the China blog Orientation, recently posted on Chinese gaming habits, particularly the huge numbers of MMO gamers in wang ba, or net cafes.
China contains an undulating 59 million online gamers. Despite the fact that 47m of them play free-to-play games, this is a massive amount. To put that into perspective, the 2007 estimate of England’s population was 51,092,000 while the 2008 census quoted America as having 306,068,000 million people. Imagine the entire country of England plunking down and playing a game everyday. Keep in mind that these are only online PC games.
The majority of Chinese gamers, though, seem to play in net cafes and not on personal computers. (Although this may be changing, I saw plenty of Beijing teens with their body weight in personal electronics, and laptops can’t be far behind). Playing in net cafes instead of at home changes the gamer culture quite a bit. No more jokes about nocturnal gamers living in their basements, although there are plenty of 24-hour wang ba for late-night gaming sessions.
Also, fewer games rely on the purchase of software (I’ll save the discussion of China and software piracy for a different post!), since one copy will be installed in the cafe and anyone who comes by will use it. Instead, games have an in-game cash shop or an hourly fee. While talking about Runes Of Magic, Lexton Collins credits the Asian game community for bringing us the free-to-play MMO model.
I also wrote on Chinese net cafes and gaming culture over on Wang Ba: Gaming In A Strange Land on CNReviews. (It feels a bit odd to quote myself, but it’s better than re-writing my description):
Chinese net bars sell computer time by the hour, and most also sell juice, soda, candy, snacks, and instant noodles, the Chinese equivalent of a Hot Pocket. You can also buy cigarettes, smoking isn’t just permitted in net bars, at times I think it’s mandatory.
The library-like silence of an American net cafe is gone, replaced with the usual thousand-decibel cellphone conversations, Tudou or Youtube videos, and shouts from the boys playing CounterStrike. It might not be the most conductive environment for working, especially when compared with the headphones-wearing crowd back home, but the cheery shouts of videogame victory don’t need translation.
Another thing Nate noticed was the divide between guys playing combat-heavy games and girls spending their internet time using QQ, China’s answer to AIM. Chinese girls do play games but it’s more likely to be something cute on a handheld game or on their mobile phones than hardcore PC games.
I’m sure Chinese netizens and Old China Hands will see this as a very surface analysis, but it’s very interesting to me, to see how the gaming sub-culture translates into other countries! Share your thoughts in the comments!
Related: Travel in China is like a Fantasy Novel, Living In China Is Like an RPG.
Popularity: 18% [?]
Tags: 3d, Asian games, Beijing, Blizzard Entertainment, China, chinese, cross-cultural gaming, ds, EA, fantasy, free, Frogstar, game, games, kotaku, lexton collins, mmo, MMOGs/MMORPGs, MMORPG, net cafe, online games, pc, PC Games, reviews, RoM, RPG, Runes of Magic, Unity, video, war, WarCraft, World of Warcraft, WoW
New content for Golemizer, a browser-based steampunk MMO:
Blainville, Canada – March 30, 2009 — Dave Toulouse, an independent game developer, announced the first free content expansion, Diluculo Island, for the free web MMORPG Golemizer. A free 2D steampunk MMORPG, Golemizer requires no download or plug-in to play and features a rich sandbox environment.
Following the path of a mysterious scientist named Dr. Grant, players will discover an island where strange creatures, the bymizins, are living. Are they friendly? Are they hostile? Players will have to find out for themselves while facing the many dangers of the island like giant spiders, zombie velociraptors and the terrifying X-Rex (a steam powered dinosaur).
Along a storyline of 100 new quests, the Diluculo Island expansion features:
- Over 200 new zones to explore
- 3 new golems that players can create (zombie velociraptor, mecha repair-o-tron and even the X-Rex)
- 10 new skills available to all characters
- New island themed items that players can buy to customize their cities and dungeons
- The first vehicle in Golemizer, a blimp that can be built by players!To meet the requirements of the constantly growing number of players and NPCs (over 10 000), Golemizer has recently been moved to a new server to provide the best gaming experience possible.
Since its release in September 2008, more than 19 000 players have roamed the creative world of Golemizer. In their journey, they have created 1 200 quests using the player quests creation system, crafted over 800 000 items and created more than 5 000 new zones using the player dungeon system.
I know I already have a long list of games to play… but the combination of crafting and steampunk makes me want to check this one out.
Popularity: 27% [?]
Even decades later, Pac-Man is still a fun classic game. It doesn’t rely on cutting-edge graphics. if you see Pac-Man next to a blue rectangle, and the blue rectangle turns white bit by bit, that’s Pac-Man drinking a glass of water. You’d never think it looks fake.
Have you noticed that as games get prettier, complaints about things “looking so fake” are more common? When playing a game with detailed graphics, something on the Unreal Tournament engine or similar, any awkward animation stands out. We notice a character’s arms held at a weird angle or the omnipresent mitten hands, and it seems like a glaring error when it’s in a pretty game.
The Sims 2 did a great job by keeping things cartoonish so it was easier to accept odd moments of animation (And some of the toddler animations were amazingly true to life!), but more importantly the game was also engaging and entertaining on other levels and didn’t rely entirely on pretty graphics. I guess game graphics are just like movie special effects. I won’t be turned off a solid, entertaining game just because the graphics aren’t cutting edge, and I’ll lose interest in a gorgeous game if it’s nothing but pretty.
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The new free-to-play MMO RunesofMagic has their first cinematic trailer up! It’s called Rise of the Demon Lord! I know “free-to-play MMORPG” and “cinematic trailor” don’t usually go together, but as guest auther Lex said in our recent review of the Runes Of Magic beta, RoM offers more than the usual free MMO
Don’t forget, Runes of Magic officially launched on March 19th. If you’re playing the beta, rumor has it that all servers are going offline on March 18th to get everything ready for the official launch.
Via Runes Of Magic Official Cinematic Trailer Released! WATCH IT! – Runes of Magic – Curse.
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I’m not a big fan of Second Life. Usually when I say that, people react like told them I hate kittens or sunshine. But to me, Second Life embodies all the annoying things about chatrooms, plus the clipping errors of MMOs, plus the look-but-don’t-touch aspect of the cash shop business model.
Did not enjoy it.
In an article on User-Generated Content, See Jane Game describes her first foray into Second Life.
Here’s how my experience with Second Life went:
I logged in, created my character, and suddenly found myself in the middle of what could only be called a virtual and frightening sex land, filled with in-game pornographic conversations, men (yes, men) dressed in slutty cheerleading uniforms lying on top of each other (I kid you not) and saying things I shall not repeat here, virtual stores selling nothing but bodies complete with breasts and life-like v-jay jays, and to my dismay, a male character (meaning, another human being) showing me his virtual private parts and asking me if I was “new” there, and really, do I need to continue? To sum it up, it was like this: internet porn came into my personal life and exploded in my face. (Obscene metaphor not intentional!) It was not at all what I expected, little ole innocent me. And I left Second Life feeling disturbed and man-handled.
Via User-Generated Content: A Gaming Revolution – PART I | See Jane Game.
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