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MechWarrior Online shows off its pretty new baby
Would you call your multi-ton death machine a pretty baby? If you're playing MechWarrior Online you just might, especially since that's the name of the newest hero 'Mech introduced to the game. Considering the machine is loaded with an LRM 15, a PPC, two lasers, and a high top speed for a 80-ton 'Mech, we can see why you might coo affectionately that it's your pretty little darling yes it is. But maybe your existing 'Mech is already the apple of your eye. That's all right, there's still plenty to like in February. The team at Piranha Games is working on a UI overhaul for the MechLab to allow players a clearer picture of what happens when upgrades are slotted in. There's also the third phase of matchmaking, new patterns for decorating your machine of choice, and performance improvements for all computers. But if you're still excited at the thought of a pretty new machine to pilot, you can check out a trailer for the prettiest of all babies past the cut. [Source: Piranha Games press release]
Lineage II looks back at 2012 and forward to 2013
Lineage II went free-to-play last year, and according to the newest state of the game letter, that conversion went very well indeed. The letter points out that more than one and a half million new accounts were created in 2012 alone, an impressive number for any game and doubly so for a game approaching its ninth anniversary. Over 800,000 store items have been sold, solidifying the game's performance and moneymaking capabilities. In other words, if you were worried the game wasn't doing well, you can stop worrying. But what about the future? Well, there's another major installment of the Goddess of Destruction series due out. The development team is also looking into a variety of improvements for players including tradeable shop items, methods of gifting microtransaction currency, and more options to pay for your cash shop purchases. There's also discussion of more events and tournaments for everyone to enjoy, showing that the title is aging but still has quite a lot of life left.
Runes of Magic shows off the new Champion and Warlock
New classes are always exciting. In a game with an established set of abilities and character options, the chance to take a different option helps keep the game engaging and surprising. That's no doubt part of the rationale behind Runes of Magic's two new classes, the Champion and the Warlock. But they're also meant to show off the ingenuity and cleverness of the Dwarves, and in a new preview of these two classes, it becomes clear just how much both will bring to the table. The Warlock is an arcane caster who has delved into the knowledge of the Shadowforge Dwarves, allowing him to act as either a damage dealer or a support character as the situation warrants. Champions are masters of pseudo-mystical forge techniques, with the Champion ultimately being capable of transforming into a special Runic Robot form for increased damage and durability. There are only a few more weeks until the game's next major update, and then players will get to try out the new hybrid classes for themselves.
Newest Final Fantasy XIV producer's letter talks patch 1.21 release
It's been a little quiet on the Final Fantasy XIV front since the new year, but the team behind the game has been hard at work preparing the launch of patch 1.21. And it's going to be quite a massive patch, as outlined in Naoki Yoshida's most recent producer's letter for the fans. Not only does it contain the addition of the long-awaited Job system, but it also includes UI improvements, housing, two new instanced raids, a food and medicine overhaul, and a variety of smaller changes. While the team had originally aimed for a launch in the second week of February, Yoshida notes that the patch will likely be delayed two weeks due to the sheer amount of content going in. He also discusses what he calls temporary server merges prior to the launch of 2.0 in November; as he puts it, the main concern is allowing players, especially from European regions, to have an ample playerbase to adventure with. It's a bit of unpleasant news for Final Fantasy XIV players, but it's packed in amidst many things to look forward to.
DC Universe Online developers having a chat with fans tomorrow
Are you enjoying DC Universe Online? Would you be enjoying it even more if you had a chance to speak with the developers about what's on deck for the near future and what issues will be getting addressed soon? If so, you're in luck (and you have some strangely focused sources of happiness, but that's not really germane to anything). The team announced earlier today on the game's Facebook page that this Wednesday will see the first post-launch virtual chat with development. Jens Andersen, Chris Cao, and Mark Anderson will all be on hand for this chat, starting at 8 p.m. EST (5 p.m. PST) on Facebook. The chief focus of the discussion will be on the game's recent February update, covering what went right, what needs more work, and what the team has learned from the first patch in what's sure to be an ongoing update cycle. So if you're a DC Universe Online fan, with or without the oddly specific criteria, you might want to clear out some time tomorrow evening to catch up with the development team.
Champions Online looks back and ahead
After the anniversary earlier this month, it's been fairly quiet within Champions Online. Shannon Posniewski, the game's executive producer, recently sat down to talk a little bit about the game's past and future. It includes some interesting tidbits about the game, such as Posniewski saying that the game wasn't quite ready for launch a year ago, and he would have preferred for the game to be either delayed or to cut out some features and polish more vital elements. Moving beyond the past, however, he outlines some of the plans the team has for the game as a whole moving in to the next year, which includes a general re-evaluation of all powers and an ongoing expansion to lower-level content. Coupled with the continued focus on adventure packs that can be played at any level, it looks as if Champions Online players will have plenty of things to enjoy over the next year of service.
Final Fantasy XI expands the job update preview
Our first tease of the coming excellence in Final Fantasy XI's September version update hinted at many exciting job abilities, but unfortunately, the language we were given was very vague. That alone was enough to get players excited, but more details are welcomed, and the development team has happily obliged. While the list of new abilities is likely not comprehensive, it gives several jobs a good idea of what they can look forward to with the next major patch. Several of the new abilities granted boosts to existing abilities in previous unused aspects -- red mages can enhance their debuffing skills for a short time, while blue mages can gain extra TP when using physical magic. In addition, there are two new rolls for corsairs, including a party-wide haste effect, and several job traits that will be welcomed by their recipients (including dual wield for thieves). Considering the fast-approaching target date of Final Fantasy XI's next update, players would do well to familiarize themselves with the full rundown of updates.
Illuminating answers about the upcoming patch for Champions Online
The first adventure pack for Champions Online is due out this month, although we don't know quite when just yet. But there are a lot of things coming along with the new pack, such as the promised return of Blood Moon and the addition of a difficulty slider. If you're curious about what all of this means from a gameplay perspective, you're coming to it at the right time, as the most recent Ask Cryptic has just been released, covering most of what players might be wondering about. The difficulty slider will be responsible for improved drops, but costume pieces are likely to remain just as frequent (or infrequent) as they currently are. Players who have watched the development of Star Trek Online might be saddened to know that the resistance bonuses and such coming with the Accolade system in that game will not be copied for Champions Online's Perks system. But there's also the prospect of expanding smaller regions into full-sized explorable zones, and some details on the next few adventure packs heading down the pipeline. It should be good news for the game's players, and it certainly helps keep the interest stoked for the coming release of Serpent Lantern.
