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Shards Online teases second Kickstarter campaign
Shards Online isn't about to let a flopped crowdfunding campaign get it down, as the mod-heavy sandbox is preparing to launch a second Kickstarter run. According to a development roadmap posted earlier this summer, Shards Online is currently transitioning from pre-alpha to alpha testing, where it will reside for the bulk of 2015. As part of those preparations, Shards Online has released a quick half-minute video to promote the upcoming November fundraiser. Check it out after the break and see if it's enough to tempt you into coughing up some cash when Shards Online passes around the plate.
The Daily Grind: How do you feel about other genres invading your game?
One of the big controversies that I remember when World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade came out was the inclusion of "space goats" and their high-tech crystal starship into some people's sacred fantasy landscape. Personally, I had no problem with it (their Shaman totems looked way cool), especially considering that WoW already had a strong steampunk influence plus a zone with a werewolf theme. It wasn't a game that took its fantasy boundaries too seriously, in other words. But it made me realize that not everyone is comfortable with other genres invading their game. I guess the issue is one of breaking immersion and lore, and that as popular as these elements might be, they have no logical reason for being smashed together in an unholy Oreo of flavors. Have there been any genre invasions into your game that really irked, delighted, or puzzled you? How did you deal with it? 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!
Chaos Theory: Advantages of The Secret World's contemporary setting
One of the greatest aspects of The Secret World that I love is the fact that it's set in today's world. Well, OK, it's some parallel universe version of Earth where every conspiracy, cryptozoological creature, and bizarre myth is able to simultaneously exist without a majority of the population knowing, but it's still home. Contemporary settings in MMOs are few and very far between. Fantasy takes the top spot, of course, followed by science fiction, historical (think pirates and period pieces), and geek genre settings like steampunk and post-apocalyptic. But to play a game set in today's world? It's just not done, not really. Except in The Secret World. From where I'm sitting, this gives TSW several major advantages that it can and does wield over the competition. Just because the game world resembles our own (with a few more zombies and werewolves, natch) doesn't mean it is stripped of fascinating allure. Actually, it opens doors that just aren't present in your typical fantasy game and paves the way for pop culture references that -- for once -- aren't anachronistic.
