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Star Trek Online producer previews the new Enterprise-F
Star Trek Online producer Daniel Stahl has penned a new dev diary about the recent fan-driven Enterprise design contest. The piece appears on the official Star Trek website and offers a bit of insight on both the winning entry (submitted by STO fan Adam Ilhe) as well as the lore behind the revamped Enterprise-F. "In the Star Trek Online timeline of 2409, the galaxy is embroiled in war with numerous threats to peace and stability. This Enterprise is designed to carry a message of peace, as well as to show the strength of resolve that forms the foundation of the Federation," Stahl explains. Ilhe's ship design will be revealed to players in a forthcoming STO feature episode, and players will get to meet the ship's crew as well as earn their own Odyssey-class vessel. Warp to the official Star Trek website for further details.
Congratulations to the winner of Massively's Twitter contest!
Massively's contest celebrating our 10,000th Twitter follower turned out to be a big hit! We watched the number of followers reach -- and surpass -- our goal, and finally got the pleasure of choosing a winner! Several game development studios pitched in prizes, and Massively reader Arbitrary Genius is the recipient of an exciting MMO prize package: Three months of Fallen Earth game time along with a Skull and Starburst cowboy hat and Flame Rider motorcycle for her character. $25 worth of G1 credits for APB:Reloaded. 4,000 Station Cash from Sony Online Entertainment. 5,000 Turbine Points for Dungeons and Dragons Online or Lord of the Rings Online. Congratulations to our winner, thank you to all of our readers who entered, and a special thank you to those developers who contributed prizes. Keep your eye on Massively's Twitter feed for more contests and all the latest news!
Atlantica Online unveils new vampire countess mercenary
Ndoors Interactive recently introduced a new mercenary to Atlantica Online and, just in time for Halloween, the latest addition is a sultry vampire countess named Carmilla. Players can make use of Carmilla's tactical advantages as well as spells that can be used in multiple ways. These include Dark Harmony (a healing spell), Dusk Elegy (which deals AoE damage), and Vampiric Thirst (which deals damage and leeches health). Ndoors has also updated the in-game store to feature an array of Carmilla-centric items including skill books, a coffin, a summoning rose, and a jewel box. Atlantica's newest mercenary is also noteworthy for being fan-created. Symban from the Macedon server was the winner of the Mercenary Madness Contest that resulted in Carmilla's design and inclusion in the live game.
Sony Online Entertainment announces winner of G.I.R.L. contest
It's almost taken for granted that game design is still a field that's largely oriented toward a male audience. That's changing over time, and the MMO genre has attracted a huge number of female gamers, but there's still a great deal of room for improvement. That's why Sony Online Entertainment has sponsored the G.I.R.L. program, a $10,000 scholarship for women majoring in creative and applied arts with an ultimate eye toward game design. And the 2010 winner of the scholarship has just been announced: Sylvia Liu, an entertainment design student attending Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. The G.I.R.L. program (the acronym standing for Gamer In Real Life) has been running for three years now, with Liu as one of over 200 applicants in this year's contest. Each participant was tasked with creating original concept art for a new creature and area in either EverQuest II or Free Realms, as well as submitting an essay about women in the video game industry. Our congratulations go out to Ms. Liu for her winning submissions. Those interested can take a look at the official site for G.I.R.L., which has her concept art on display as well as a short interview.
Joyswag: win an Astro Gaming A30 headset for your games, music, phonecalls
How many of you right now are playing games and using your plain-jane television speakers to blast the sound out? With so much focus on high-definition visuals, gamers tend to treat sound as an afterthought. Especially if you have several systems, which means a tangle of spaghetti wires held together with spit and baling wire. Transitioning from your PC over to your PS3? It ain't that easy. Jumping from your Xbox to your iPhone? Ditch your headset, find your earbuds, unplug, plug, repeat. Thankfully, Astro Gaming realizes that gamers are constantly on the go, and they've just announced the A30 Headset that works with your PC, your console, your mobile phone, your music player, your portable gaming system, and anything else with a headphone jack. It features both a removable boom mic and an in-line microphone with a control button, meaning you can get your frag on with some buddies, then jack into your phone and call your mother. She loves hearing from you. We're giving away one Astro Gaming A30 Sound System, available in white or black, along with the Astro MixAmp and an optical cable, which you'll need to connect your system to your consoles. The headset includes all of the necessary connectors, the boom mic, the in-line mic, and a carrying case to keep everything organized. And if you're one of those people who geek out about opening gadget packaging, theirs is pure porn. Follow the instructions below to enter, and crank it up. How many different ways could you use these? Leave a comment telling us what game (including the platform), song, and caller you'd rock with these on your dome. You must be 18 years or older and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec -- it has to do with Pierre Duchesne and he knows why). Limit 1 entry per person per day. This entry period ends at 6PM PT on Friday, March 19. At that time, we'll randomly select one winner to receive an Astro Gaming A30 Audio System, with the A30 Headset (in black or white) and a MixAmp (ARV: $229.95), along with a TOSLink optical cable. (ARV: $19.95) For a list of complete rules, click here. What is Joyswag? Since we don't keep the games and merchandise we receive for review or promotional purposes, it becomes "Joyswag," which is passed along to our readers. Please note that Joyswag may be in "used" condition. For more info on our policy, click here. %Gallery-88287%
Patch 10.6 for Planet Calypso brings item enhancements and a new critter
The hybrid virtual world / MMORPG Planet Calypso has recently leveled up to version 10.6 and has introduced the brand new system of item enhancement to the game as well as the winner of a community contest.Item enhancement is very much like it sounds -- a way to upgrade and customize your weapons and armors -- but it works more like an item leveling system than a crafting component. As players use items, they will now rank up into tiers. Tiers upgrade the item itself, but they also unlock spaces on the weapon called sockets. Players can add connectors onto the sockets to further customize the item's statistics, but be careful! Connectors can break during the use of an item, but they can be stacked to minimize damage.Also, the large Proteron has made an appearance on the planet! The creature is the result of the community "Create-A-Critter" contest, so congratulations are in order for Apsara Sofia Rozenkreutz! Congratulations!For all of the patch note goodness, check it out on the main site.
