Massively week in Review

The Digital Continuum: Rock Band, the MMO
I've actually entertained the idea for a long time now, only to shove it aside as a crazy notion. But the thing kept popping back into the forefront of my mind so often that I couldn't discount it as happenstance. I've become enamored with the idea, because let's face it; a Rock Band MMO has the potential to ooze- no, to gush pure liquid awesome.

Massively's exclusive Mines of Moria dev tour
Earlier last month, Massively was invited to get a hands-on look at Mines of Moria, the first-ever expansion for Lord of the Rings Online with Turbine's Adam Mersky and Moria Producer Mike Jablonn. During this special dev tour, we were treated to many of the features of the new environments, new creatures, certain landmarks and the Legendary Item system.

Is LotRO coming to the console?
According to a job posting on Turbine's website, they're looking to hire a Senior User Interface Engineer who "may be refactoring existing user interfaces or implementing completely new user interfaces for systems such as combat, skills, inventory, treasure, and social systems." Does this mean LotRO?

MMO industry heavyweights outed on political affiliations
The Gamepolitics site is a never-ending font of fascinating information. A recent post on donations from games industry notables touches heavily on the MMO industry, with several big names popping off the list. Both sides of the political fence are represented, according to the publicly available records searchable on the Newsmeat.com website.

Lego Universe could eventually include Star Wars, Indiana Jones
Join us as we talk to Seabury and Hansen about the background behind the project, and what kind of worlds we'll be seeing. From Castle to Racers and everything in between, it sounds like whatever kind of kid you are at heart there'll be something there to enjoy. And, of course, the exciting news is that it's definitely possible we'll one day see Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and the other licensed Lego products inside of Lego Universe.

MMOGology: WoW on easy mode
When Blizzard announced their Recruit-a-Friend program a tiny seed was planted in the back of his mind. A seed that slowly germinated, wrapping its diminutive roots around his cerebral cortex until every thought in his head screamed, "MUST HAVE TRIPLE XP." And so, after a very small amount of convincing, I joined him to level up yet another alt. Our new goal was to level a couple of spacegoat shammies.

The Best of Massively: Our most helpful guides
In just over one month, Massively will celebrate its first birthday! Last week we started a countdown to the event by kicking off a series of features highlighting the best stuff from the site so far. We started with our ten most important interviews. Today, we're continuing the weekly countdown by listing some of your (and our) favorite guides!

Massively talks with NCsoft about CoH changes, Austin studio shakeup
We've got all the details you want about the NCsoft Austin shakeup, the future of Tabula Rasa, the City of Heroes Issue 13 changeup and the microtransaction initiative the NC NorCal team is ramping up. Check out this roundup of NCsoft posts for everything you need on one of the bigs MMO publishers around.

Altdorf is burning (Warhammer city siege endgame begun)
Despite hopes by the developers that Warhammer's city siege endgame wouldn't begin for at least a month, it appears the siege has already begun. Just a week and a half after the launch of the title Altdorf is burning on the EU server Karak Eight Peaks.

Warhammer Tier 2 Scenario Guides
By now, people who picked up Warhammer Online at launch should have had a chance to play a bit, and many of them will be in Tier 2. This unfortunately means leaving the Tier 1 scenarios behind, but it also means that a whole new set of scenarios is unlocked. As in Tier 1, there is one scenario per racial pairing in Tier 2, totaling three new battlegrounds to visit.

Massively's WAR Camp: How to get the Tracker set gear
This week we're taking a look at the Tracker armor, which is a 3-piece set for Tier 2 players, and offers bonuses if you wear more than one piece. The set is obtained through quests that get you to kill other players, as well as Hero mobs, mixing a bit of PvE and RvR together.

Massively's complete LotRO Fall Harvest Festival guide
The Lord of the Rings Online Fall Harvest festivities are now in full swing, and as promised, we at Massively have created an in-depth guide to help you make the most of your holiday time. This year's event sees the return of many of last year's goodies, plus some new and exciting favorites!

AoC Game Director declares server merge, previews coming changes
Age of Conan players have been curious to see what new Game Director Craig Morrison will bring to the table. He's already proven willing to wade in to the forums and give players clear answers to their questions, and today he's provided a lengthy and frank letter about what will be coming to AoC in the future. There's a lot of information to digest.

Urban exploration in Age of Conan
Free running and urban exploration in virtual worlds have both taken off significantly in recent years. Players can be seen clambering around buildings and jumping between the rooftops in games from World of Warcraft to Everquest 2 and Funcom's Age of Conan is no different.

The making of EVE Online
EVE Online's development path from concept to release has followed a very different path to the MMO norm. Starting from its humble beginnings as one man's dream to build an online space game, EVE has developed into the massively popular game it is today.

Free server transfers coming to Star Wars Galaxies
Another producer's letter from Christopher "Dotanuki" Field brings amazing news to the Star Wars Galaxies faithful: free server transfers are coming!