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Chaos Theory: Why you should be excited for The Secret World's Issue #4
Dayum. I have to say that The Secret World's Issue #4 update looks pretty funking sweet. Despite the tough times endured by the title over the summer and after the subsequent Funcom layoffs, all signs point to growth for the game and its dedicated players going forward. Join me after the cut for a peek at why I'm excited about the game's immediate future.
Chaos Theory: Emergent futures for The Secret World
So the big news in the MMO industry this week is Sony Online Entertainment's philosophy shift toward emergent gameplay. It's kind of a crazy turn of events from my point of view. Sure, the company was responsible for the genre's premier sandbox (the dearly departed Star Wars Galaxies), but prior to that it was responsible for EverQuest, otherwise known as the granddaddy of the themepark. What does this have to do with The Secret World? Well, Funcom has also been making noises about emergent gameplay and paradigm shifts, and I'd like to speculate, prognosticate, and otherwise pontificate about that after the cut.
Chaos Theory: Hitting a wall in The Secret World
I've hit a wall in The Secret World. This has happened at one time or another in every MMO I've ever played save one. It's not quite burnout, but it's a relative once or twice removed. I've heard that some players hit a wall when they reach Blue Mountain, as it's the first zone that exposes poor builds and renders their users unable to progress through the waves of ak'abs and the quests that ramp up the challenge level from Kingsmouth or the Savage Coast. For whatever reason, though, I coasted through Blue Mountain. It's Egypt that has me wandering aimlessly about, scratching my head and wondering what now. It's not even Egypt itself. That's just the zone I happen to find myself in during this mid-game-life crisis. Join me as I attempt to use Chaos Theory to figure out what's wrong and what to do about it.
Chaos Theory: Reticles and roleplay in The Secret World
Funcom is a lot of things, but quitter isn't one of them. The company and its flagship The Secret World title have been through the proverbial poostorm in recent weeks, but the devs are doing their damnedest to come out swinging. What in tarnation am I talking about? Joel Bylos' state-of-the-game letter from yesterday, of course. The newly minted Game Director dumped a wall o' text on us that hinted at a couple of exciting developments in store for everyone's favorite horror/conspiracy MMO. Let's chat them up after the cut.
Chaos Theory: Four more essential Secret World tips
Welcome back to Chaos Theory, my anima-powered friends. I think it's time to dust off the pro tips portion of the column that we began a while back. As you're probably aware, The Secret World is a pretty deep game, and some of its niftier features and functionality aren't always apparent to the newb or the novice. Heck, one of my MMO veteran colleagues has been playing since launch and was recently surprised to learn of the ability to save builds via the gear manager! Read on for a few handy tips. Yes, even you, mister know-it-all smartypants.
Chaos Theory: Stuff The Secret World needs
Well, I think The Secret World has been out long enough for me to start listing some things the game needs. No, I haven't cleared Transylvania yet. In fact, I'm still happily lost in the latter portion of the game's Egyptian area, so this isn't a column full of complaints about endgame or the lack thereof. Good MMOs are virtual worlds, though, and Funcom's got plenty of options for expanding immersiveness and gameplay potential going forward. Oh, and fair warning: If you're one of those lulz-we-don't-need-no-stickin'-fluff types, this week's column isn't for you.
Chaos Theory: Why you shouldn't worry for The Secret World
These last few weeks have not been full of good news for fans of Funcom or its nifty modern-day horror-fantasy mashup called The Secret World. There were some layoffs. There was a content delay or three. There were hints of free-to-play (which, despite all the in-roads made over the past year, is still seen as something approaching failure by portions of the gaming populace). And let's not forget the requisite comment section naysaying that accompanies any MMO. Join me after the cut and I'll tell you why none of that stuff worries me.
Chaos Theory: Nine of The Secret World's best videos
What say you to the idea of a feature film based on The Secret World? It's a pretty cool thought, however unlikely, amirite? Yesterday, someone linked me to one of those mash-up YouTube fan trailers that purported to be a teaser for a Secret World movie, and it was so well done that I spent portions of the day collecting as many pro-quality TSW trailers as I could find. Most of these I'd seen already. Some are fairly obscure, though, and given the bad news swirling around the game these last few weeks, I figured that today's Chaos Theory ought to take a step back and celebrate some of the awesome that stems from the TSW's chewy narrative center.
Chaos Theory: The Secret World's bright (player-driven?) future
Apologies for not following through with part three of my crafting guide this week. I fully intended to do so, but a couple of interesting things happened over the past few days that merit some discussion. First off, Ragnar Tornquist published what can only be called a defiant state of the game letter. The Secret World's creative director engaged in some rabble-rousing penmanship that managed to inspire a metaphorical fist-pump from yours truly, even though I've been covering games long enough to cast a cynical eye toward similar rally-the-troops developer rhetoric. Tornquist admitted that TSW's competition is stiff, in particular new releases like Guild Wars 2 and Mists of Pandaria, but he didn't shy away from singing his game's praises. More importantly, he reiterated what early adopters have known for a while now: The Secret World is that increasingly rare MMO horse of a different color, and despite financial and personnel losses, Funcom knows it has a winner on its hands and is fighting to keep it.
Chaos Theory: Understanding The Secret World's crafting, part two
So last week we tested the waters of The Secret World's crafting system, and we learned the basics of material acquisition, how material quality level works, and how to assemble and disassemble basic items. This week we'll go into more detail on the assembly process. Whereas last time we stopped after creating a simple weapon, today we'll look at crafting talismans (TSW's answer to traditional MMO armor) and glyphs (which are basically talisman upgrades and the primary way to customize your gear).
Chaos Theory: Understanding The Secret World's crafting, part one
The Secret World's crafting system, much like the rest of the game, is deeper and more complex than it first appears. On the surface, it's a matter of arranging stacks of materials into Minecraft-like visual patterns and pushing your assemble button. Underneath that, though, there's an elaborate game-within-the-game that's one of the more enjoyable MMO tradeskill systems I've experienced to date. Is it strictly necessary? Well, no. The Secret World is not a pure sandbox, so players can simply use drops and auctioned items to equip their characters. Rune-, glyph-, signet-, and gear-crafting offers an absurd amount of customization, though, and those of you who want full control over your decks and your play experience will want to have a look through my two-part crafting guide.
Chaos Theory: The (F2P) future of The Secret World [Updated]
[Ed: Look for an official Funcom statement regarding the anon tipster email at the end of the article.] Scott Jennings ended a blog entry about The Secret World with a telling phrase this past week. "This is why we can't have nice things," he said. This was preceded by what can only be called a lament, as Jennings laid out how Funcom did something that most MMO developers are loath to do these days: It made an original game. And the reward for such was a dismal quarterly report and a round of layoffs. That The Secret World attempts to break from the putrid post-World of Warcraft MMO mold is not up for debate. What is debatable is whether breaking from said mold can be profitable.
Chaos Theory: How The Secret World has spoiled an MMO vet
Well ladies and gents, The Secret World has basically done the impossible: It's turned me into a one-game guy (for the moment, at least). I've been an unfaithful game-hopping MMO tourist for longer than I care to remember, and while F2P has made that gaming lifestyle more affordable than it used to be, it hasn't made it any more fun. Oh sure, I'll dabble in PlanetSide 2 and Guild Wars 2, but as far as my MMO home goes, it's The Secret World by a landslide (at least until ArcheAge heads west). Why is that? Well, plenty of reasons, more than I can relate in this week's column, in fact. I will say this, though: The Secret World's launch feature set has made me a bit pickier in terms of what I'll put up with in competing games.
Chaos Theory: The Secret World's one-month checkup
Huh, has it been a month already? Time flies when you're having fun, I guess, and yep, I'm still having quite a bit of it in The Secret World. Yesterday brought us the big 1.1 patch, the one patch to rule them all (thus far), and the first post-launch content drop. Funcom has famously promised updates like this on a monthly basis, and as first starts go, this was a good'un. We got seven new story missions (five of which were the meaty investigation variety), all of them chock-full of interesting stuff to do and interesting cutscenes to ogle. All of that said, the one-month mark is also when subscription MMOs find out whether they've got staying power or whether they're going to bleed, and if Funcom wants The Secret World to fall into the former category, it's still got a bit of work to do.
Chaos Theory: Four essential Secret World tips
So you've been playing The Secret World for a couple of weeks now, possibly longer. Maybe you're well into Blue Mountain, or heck, possibly even Transylvania if you're a really efficient type. On the other hand, maybe you just picked up the game last weekend and are overwhelmed with ability points, decks, and investigation missions. Whatever your comfort level with Funcom's new MMO, there's always room for a few off-the-wall tips, wouldn't you agree? Join me after a break for a few things I wish I'd known earlier.
Chaos Theory: The Secret World's single-server tech
Something went missing during this month's launch of The Secret World. Do you know what it was? No, snarkonauts, it wasn't "fun." The game is certainly an acquired taste, but it's nonetheless doing pretty well for itself in terms of word-of-mouth and happy early adopters. No, what was missing was a parade of lengthy launch-week queues (and QQs for that matter). I've been present for every AAA MMO kickoff since Star Wars Galaxies in 2003, and The Secret World marks the first time I've been able to log in when (and where) I wanted to log in on day one. RIFT, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Aion, Lord of the Rings Online -- all of these were "polished" launches by most accounts, and yet all of them featured horrendous launch queues that often stretched from minutes to hours. Why was The Secret World so different?
Chaos Theory: The Secret World was worth the wait
Folks, I have to be brutally honest: I'm old. I have a family, two jobs, and more time-consuming hobbies than one man should. And yet it pains me to log out of The Secret World. Last Saturday I slew demons (and Illuminati) in Funcom's new MMORPG for 10 hours straight. Actually, I took a 30-minute dinner break, so I guess it was more like nine-and-a-half. The point is that I looked up at my clock, said holy crap when it told me that the sun was about to rise, and scratched my head trying to remember the last time that happened. I've been playing MMOs since the late 1990s, and when I say that I've pretty much played them all, that's not hyperbole. Right now, TSW is running a close second to Star Wars Galaxies as the most enjoyable title I've experienced to date. And keep in mind that it's been live for two weeks.
Chaos Theory: Tornquist on The Secret World's launch, future
You know, this is probably obvious if you've read my coverage of The Secret World thus far, but I'll just go ahead and fess up: I dig the game, and watching Funcom knock the cover off the ball is gratifying in a strange sort of way. That's why I didn't get too upset when my opportunity to interview creative director Ragnar Tornquist was upstaged by the firm's huge news dump this afternoon. The company shocked gamers and industry watchers by promising monthly content updates and a whole bunch of other stuff, some of which I had asked about in a series of questions we sent Funcom earlier in the week. The resulting answers are still worth a read, though, particularly if you're pinching yourself over TSW's successful launch and its rosy future.
Chaos Theory: Early access to The Secret World
Dark days aren't just coming, folks -- they're already here. And they're glorious. As you've probably surmised, Chaos Theory is a new column all about The Secret World. What you might not realize, however, is that this addition to Massively's feature roster was a little bit last-minute. Don't get me wrong; I've been looking forward to this game for a number of years now (heck, I signed up on DarkDemonsCryGaia.com waaaaay back in May of 2007, before Massively even existed!). Up until very recently, though, we had no plans to cover the game on a recurring basis. That changed over the early release weekend as I spammed our editors with zomg-I'm-having-a-blast-and-you-should-totally-let-me-write-about-this emails. Sure, I played the press beta and largely enjoyed it for what it was, but now that I'm in the game proper, tooling around on my own characters and taking the time to soak up the stories, the lore, and the mechanics, well... let's just say that we'll have plenty to talk about for the foreseeable future.
