broken
Latest
Addon Spotlight: 4.2 champions and troublemakers
Each week, WoW Insider brings you a fresh look at reader-submitted UIs as well as Addon Spotlight, which focuses on the backbone of the WoW gameplay experience: the user interface. Everything from bags to bars, buttons to DPS meters and beyond -- your addons folder will never be the same. Patch day for 4.2, Rage of the Firelands, has come and gone. The world, surprisingly, did not end -- well, end again, I guess, since the cataclysm and all. Patch 4.2 went surprisingly well, with only a few issues with a couple addons, highlighting the fact that the changes made to the WoW interface did not catch most addon authors off guard and many addons didn't even need an update to stay solid. So today, we're going to look at the champions and troublemakers from patch 4.2, Rage of the Firelands. Most addons stood the test of patch day, easily being integrated back into our UIs with the simple click of the "load out of date addons" button. We had a few troublemakers, but nothing that prevented the fall of raiding civilization like the patch 4.1 changes to scrolling combat text and damage parsers ... although there were a few snafus.
The Soapbox: Why we grief - a therapy session
Disclaimer: The Soapbox column is entirely the opinion of this week's writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column. Welcome to the Massively Psychiatric Center for Gamers, Griefers, and Greater Internet F-wads (link NSFW). I'm Dr. Reahard, and while I'm most definitely an armchair psychologist, psychiatrist, and MMOlogist, pay no attention to any of that. I'm more than qualified to help you determine whether or not you're a bleep (sorry, a griefer). So please, have a seat, make yourself comfortable, and let's talk about you. Tell me about yourself. Do you relish that feeling of power you get when messing with another human being? Is there a certain sense of being alive, a rush if you will, that only comes around when you bleep with another person? Does said bleeping happen exclusively in video games where your actions carry no perceivable repercussions? Are you secretly frustrated with a banal and disturbingly meaningless white-collar existence? Does releasing your inner bleep in a (theoretically) anonymous online environment scratch the itches made manifest by a minivan, 2.3 kids, and the otherwise inescapable confines of suburbia?
The Soapbox: Somebody should do something about all the problems!
Disclaimer: The Soapbox column is entirely the opinion of this week's writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column. Bugs. They are the scourge of gaming, crawling and chittering their way through lines of code, turning what would have been a sure win into failure, making otherwise useful abilities worthless, crippling quests and destroying playtime. And so the clarion call goes out every time a new bug emerges that the developers should fix it -- a reasonable request, given that we are paying these people every month. (Or, on several occasions, we would be paying if the game weren't such a mess of bugs that they should be paying us.) Yet months roll by, and despite countless lovingly assembled bug reports, these issues do not get fixed. And it's not just bugs, either -- balance issues go untweaked, content goes unfinished, features get rolled back or sometimes removed altogether. What the heck are we paying for? Why in the world doesn't the development team just fix these problems?
Lost Pages of Taborea: Balancing vs. viable vs. fun
Thoughts of class-balancing, class-viability and triple-class combinations have been swimming in my head lately. In the wake of RIFT's open beta, Frogster announced that Runes of Magic will be moving to a triple-class system in early April. Along with a lot of speculation on how this will change RoM, there's talk of how badly three-class combos will upset class-balancing where some already feel classes are skewed. Viable and balanced are pretty subjective terms in the MMO genre that make it hard for any two players to be on the same page. I find it even more confusing when some make it sound like there's a mass exodus to RIFT because of -- in part -- the idea that RoM's classes are more out of tune than yours truly trying to sing Zombie. These ideas are highly speculative. I'd like to throw my own opinions in about what makes a class in RoM viable, what not to look for when trying to find balance, and why we may not want to squeeze every possible class combination into the holy trinity of healer, DPS and tank.
Macworld Expo 2011: iFixit wields their magic in person
On stage at Macworld 2011, two of our friends from iFixit, Kyle Weins and Luke Soules, attempted to fix broken Apple stuff right in front of an audience. The session was moderated by Chris Breen, who asked the audience to bring up their broken gear in the hope that it could be fixed right on the spot. iFixit, for those that don't know, is a firm that not only posts teardowns of popular Apple products, but strongly believes in empowering users with the ability to fix their own Apple equipment, and sells replacement parts and tool kits to allow people to do it. As Luke attempted repairs, Kyle described exactly what was going on. Unfortunately, they weren't successful at any repairs during the session, but they were working under some impossible conditions. People in the audience had a lot of different broken things, and iFixit was only able to bring in two boxes of parts, which limited them dramatically.
Uncharted, Killzone, Resistance, LBP ... and Little Deviants among 'NGP' games in development
Sony's bringing out its biggest guns for its new little game machine, the device currently known as "NGP." A slide revealed franchises currently in development for the newly announced handheld, including familiar names like Hot Shots Golf, LittleBigPlanet, WipEout, Killzone, Resistance, and PS3 showpiece Uncharted. Sony's Shuhei Yoshida showed off the Uncharted game, and revealed some controls new to the series: you can touch the screen (or press X) to jump, swing the NGP back and forth to swing on vines, and climb using the device's rear touch panel "as if you're climbing a vine with both hands."The new IPs sound a bit more, um, eclectic: Gravity Daze, Reality Fighters (an augmented reality title), Smart As, Broken, and the delightful-sounding Little Deviants. Update: PlayStation Blog confirms the complete list of game franchises noted at PlayStation Meeting 2011 with NGP iterations in development: Call of Duty Broken Gravity Daze Hot Shots Golf Hustle Kings Killzone LittleBigPlanet Little Deviants Reality Fighters Resistance Smart As Uncharted WipEout
The Daily Grind: Are you a chat Luddite?
So DC Universe Online's voice chat is broken, according to many of the commenters on this and other MMO-centric websites. Ironically, even if the game had no voice chat at all, it would be less broken than the abject disaster that serves as the superhero title's text chat interface. While the game is enjoyable enough in most respects, I scratch my head as to how a development firm with SOE's considerable expertise could scrimp on something as vital as in-game text chat. The cynic in me says that it's because the PS3 version takes priority, but whatever the reason, DCUO's social tools (at least on the PC) are in dire need of someone who cares. That brings up an interesting point regarding voice chat vs. text chat. While third-party programs such as Mumble and Ventrilo have been the norm for "serious" MMO guilds for years now, it's only recently that games have started incorporating voice chat (and players have started expecting it). Sure, voice can be vital for raids, PvP, and challenging endgame content, but is it really necessary (or desirable) for most of the things we do on our way to the level cap? Today's Daily Grind is all about your stance in the voice vs. text chat debate. Are you a chat Luddite? Do you refuse to play a game without voice chat? Inquiring Massively minds want to know. 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!
Hackers obtain PS3 private cryptography key due to epic programming fail? (update)
The 27th annual Chaos Communication Conference already hacked encrypted GSM calls with a $15 cellphone, but there was a second surprise in store this morn -- the souls who unlocked the Nintendo Wii's homebrew potential (and defended it time and again) claim to have broken into the PlayStation 3 as well. Last we left the black monolith, Sony had won a round, forcing the community to downgrade their firmware for any hope at hacking into the console. Well, the newly formed fail0verflow hacking squad says that won't be a problem any longer, because they've found a way to get the PS3 to reveal its own private cryptography key -- the magic password that could let the community sign its very own code. So far, the team hasn't provided any proof that the deed's been done, but they have provided quite an extensive explanation of how they managed the feat: apparently, Sony didn't bother generating any random numbers to secure the blasted thing. (We don't really know how it works, but we have it on good authority that dead cryptography professors are rapidly spinning in their graves.) The group intends to generate a proof-of-concept video tomorrow, and release the tools sometime next month, which they claim should eventually enable the installation of Linux on every PS3 ever sold. Catch the whole presentation after the break in video form, or skip to 33:00 for the good stuff. Update: The proof-of-concept vid is a bit underwhelming -- fail0verflow had to SSH into a PS3 over ethernet -- but it's here nonetheless. See it after the break, and find the team's full set of presentation slides at our more coverage link. [Thanks, Paolo S.]
Apple announces firmware update to relieve those nagging MacBook Air display issues
Looks like relief is in sight for new school MacBook Air owners suffering from display issues: you know, with the faulty logic boards, and the flickerin' and the freezin', and so on and so forth. MacBook Air EFI firmware update 2.0 comes highly recommended by Apple itself for all 2010 MacBook Air owners, with the company saying it will "resolves a rare issue where MacBook Air boots or wakes to a black screen or becomes unresponsive." Sounds like a no-brainer to us! Hit up the source link to download this bad boy for yourself.
Nokia says 'very small' number of N8s aren't turning on, warranty will cover it
We've been getting a few tips this week -- and seeing a few things on Twitter -- saying that N8s are failing in noticeable quantities, but we wanted to hold off until we'd figured out what was really going on. Well, Nokia's own Niklas Savander is commenting on the situation now -- so we'd say it's definitely real -- though he's insisting the number of affected units is "very small" and that the company's normal warranty rules apply, so owners of dead units should contact their local support number. That's all well and good, but getting service on a paperweight is still a bummer, especially when said phone is your primary means of communication -- so let's hope these guys turn around serviced devices in a hurry. What do you call a dead N8, by the way? N8 owner: A tragedy iPhone owner: DOA Android owner: About as useful as any other N8 N900 owner: A missed opportunity Store sales rep: Dummy unit Symbian Foundation employee: Justice Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo: Karma A goat: Dinner [Thanks, John]
Apple's dead pixel policy leaks out, up to 15 anomalies 'acceptable' on 22-inch and above screens?
There's nothing quite like coming home with a shiny new laptop only to find tiny black and white dots peppering your LCD, especially when the screen's manufacturer tells you that you're plumb out of luck. If you buy Apple, that scenario might honestly play out just the same, but the chart above could save you an embarrassing argument at your local Genius Bar. According to the allegedly leaked internal document, Apple has a set of precise charts that determine whether or not it will replace your LCD -- a single dead pixel will save an iPod or iPhone, for instance, and Apple will tolerate only two on an iPad IPS screen. We're sorry to say it's not the same if you buy Mac, as you could have a staggering fifteen dead pixels on that pricey Cinema Display and still have to pick up the tab. Hang on to those receipts, folks.
2010 MacBook Air owners reporting logic board and display issues
Early adopters typically run into weird issues when putting their first generation gadgetry to use, and owners of the new MacBook Air models are no exception. Indeed, on the day of its release Apple had to push out a software update to stop the system from locking up while in iMovie -- but that wasn't the end of the woes. Thanks to a YouTube video, we've seen for ourselves evidence of a display flickering in a most unappealing manner, and we're hearing tales of other display issues, kernel errors that occur when the machines are trying to come out of sleep mode, and more. There's not been an official response from Apple yet, we're not sure how widespread the problems are, and we haven't experienced these issues first hand on our devices -- but we'll let you know as soon as we hear something. Promise. In the meantime, it looks like some of you might have a date with the Genius Bar. Video after the break. Photo credit: Cult of Mac
Newsday iPad commercial proves there's not an app for everything
If you're a newspaper, how do you most effectively promote your digital and print outlets at the same time? With this commercial, after the break. Update: In what smacks of a bit of funny business, the original video's been pulled. You know what? We've got another copy right after the break, so it's all good.
BioWare fixes 'Shadow Broken' Mass Effect 2 DLC for PC [update]
PC players eager to penetrate the "Lair of the Shadow Broker" in today's Mass Effect 2 DLC release have hit a snag. The new content is apparently incompatible with Windows 7 64-bit systems (update: all systems), as reported by Big Download. "I haven't said anything as we are working on the issue," noted BioWare community coordinator Chris Priestly in response to countless complaints (no really, countless complaints) on the official forums. "I understand you are all irritated by this, but we want you all to play, so we are working hard to determine and fix whatever is causing this." Update: Priestly has created a new thread tracking the issue. Apparently, the original download was corrupt and prevented "all" PC users from playing the new content. That file has since been removed from BioWare's download section (though it's harmless if you did download it). "We are working on a fix for the issue and will get a working file up for PC users ASAP," Priestly assures, without knowledge of a more specific ETA. Update 2: Priestly delivers the good news: "Lair of the Shadowbroker should now be fixed for the PC and should be able to be downloaded now for both the PC and Xbox 360." %Gallery-100178% [Thanks, Killer rin & Daniel]
iPhone 4 drop test yields results (video)
There's been a lot of fuss about the iPhone 4's Gorilla Glass "custom glass" comparable in strength to sapphire crystal but 30 times harder than plastic. Sounds incredible, right? But make no mistake, that front glass panel will still break if dropped. Ok, it took four deliberate attempts to accomplish what you see above but it still happened. Bottom line: like any cellphone, you'll have to worry about more than just scratches. See the destruction after the break.
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Architectural concerns
The big news for City of Heroes over the past week (at least at the time of writing) was the rather borked Mission Architect fix that went live. Well-intentioned, sure, but still borked beyond all comprehension. There's nothing like losing out on experience gained because of rescuing hostages to make players feel like they're welcomed to try out player-created content. But let's not kid ourselves: this is not exactly a unique occurrence. We've been having problems involving some combination of Mission Architect and farming more or less since it launched, and that was back on Issue 14. A year out, you would kind of expect that they'd fix the basic problem of people trying to get something for nothing... but here we are, and the team is still rocking back and forth on the feature. If you're one of the players who prefer the farming style, nowadays it likely feels like more trouble than it's worth. So naturally, I decided to take a look at Mission Architect and what it means for City of Heroes today. Specifically, both why it's important that the team does their best to keep it balanced, and why said balancing is pointless and a waste of time. (I love arguing self-defeating premises.)
Amazon's frustration-free packaging is anything but for hard drives
It's all well and good to cut corners when you're ridding durable, miniature electronics of their brittle plastic clamshells -- but this time, Amazon's "Frustration-Free Packaging" initiative has gone too far. The company's shipping computer hard drives in the stuff. According to dozens of irate customers, Western Digital hard drives shipped by the e-tailer over the past several months have arrived in damaged cardboard containers, thin layers of bubble wrap, or even loose in a simple electrostatic discharge bag without an ounce of padding to keep them from harm. And while some buyers shipped them back immediately when they saw what had happened, many who tried them anyhow found their magnetic storage dead on arrival. While we're not certain whether Western Digital or Amazon was at fault for placing the drives on the "frustration-free" list in the first place (Seagate drive buyers haven't reported similar issues), Gadget Lab reports that Amazon is aware of the problem, and already working to ensure future (lack of) packaging avoids causing more frustration than it's worth. Read the horror stories with pics at our source links below.
Sony: 'Don't use your PS3' until internal clock bug is fixed
digg_url = 'http://digg.com/playstation/Sony_Don_t_use_your_PS3_until_internal_clock_bug_is_fixed'; After a night of radio silence, Sony has finally spoken up about the game-crashing issues currently plaguing non-Slim PS3 models. A post on PlayStation Blog has confirmed that the problems are "being caused by a bug in the clock functionality incorporated in the system." The statement puts a loose timeframe on a fix for the issues, saying, "we hope to resolve this problem within the next 24 hours." Additionally, the PlayStation Blog post includes a word of warning to PS3 Phat owners: "if you have a model other than the new slim PS3, we advise that you do not use your PS3 system, as doing so may result in errors in some functionality, such as recording obtained Trophies, and not being able to restore certain data." (Read Sony's full statement after the break.) We know you're curious to see what the console apocalypse looks like, but trust us -- it's just not worth it. We'll let you know when it's safe to turn your system back on. Update: The issue has been resolved.
OU professor submerses laptop in liquid nitrogen, smashes it to prove a point (video)
Hey, students -- pay attention. Not to us, mind you, but to the syllabus provided by your professor. Kieran Mullen, a physics professor at the University of Oklahoma, has a fairly strict rule about gadgets in class: there won't be any, ever, under any circumstances. Balk all you want (understandable given his own clipped-on cellie), but if you sign up for this guy's class, you'll be flipping your phone to "off" and leaving your laptop in the dormitory. And if you try to blaze your own path and slip that netbook into the back row, you might leave bitterly disappointed. As you'll see clearly in the video past the break, Mr. Mullen sought to make a visual point that laptops weren't allowed in class (he calls them "a distraction"), and while it seems that the whole stunt was premeditated, most students acknowledged that his point was driven home. In short, he took a defunct machine, submerged it in liquid nitrogen, and proceeded to make the following statement: "This is just liquid nitrogen, so it alone won't hurt the computer. But this will." Find out exactly what "this" was by hitting that 'Read More' button there on the lower left. [Thanks, studentatOU]
Issues with Mobile Authenticator get it pulled from the App Store
Blizzard's mobile authenticator updated recently, and as soon as it did, we started getting tips on the tipline saying there was a major issue. Apparently the update reset the code associated with your authenticator, which meant that if you applied the authenticator update (and had the authenticator connected to your account), there was no way to actually get a code to login to your account. In short, if you apply the mobile authenticator update, you won't be able to log in to your account until you take the authenticator off completely (I'd assume you can then reinstall and reuse the authenticator, though people will probably be a little more trigger-shy about that one). There are instructions for how to do all of this over on the forums.Of course it's a major issue, and in response, Blizzard has acknowledged the problem and apparently pulled the Authenticator from the App Store. So if (like me) you haven't updated yet, you won't need to worry about it, and hopefully the next version will fix the issue. But yes, if you have updated, you'll need to go through the steps above to remove the app from your iPhone and account, or just call Blizzard customer service at 1-949-955-1382 and they should be able to help you with the issue.Update: So far we've only heard about problems with the iPhone version, and of course the issue is when you go from the old to the new version. If you use another phone, or have only used the new version, you shouldn't have any issues.
