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The Daily Grind: Is your character religious?
Maybe it's just me, but it seems like your character's choice of religion (or not) was far more of a feature of pen-and-paper RPGs than in most CRPGs and MMOs. I can't think of many MMOs where you're ever asked to assign a fictional religion or deity to your character, save perhaps for Neverwinter's cosmetic choice and a more beneficial (and optional) selection in EverQuest II. Oh, and I think that some of the Guild Wars 2 races ask you to pick a deity as part of your personal story, so there's that. But that doesn't mean that your character can't have a deity to worship, if only in your own mind. After all, combat prowess isn't the beginning, middle, and end of character development. Does your character adhere to one of the faiths in the game? Does he or she have a patron saint of the underdark that is prayed to on a regular basis? 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!
Your worship of EverQuest Next's deities will shape the world
The gods of Norrath are slated to return for EverQuest Next, and who players choose to worship will have a profound effect on the game itself. Lead Content Designer Steve Danuser penned a lore blog to introduce Veeshan and the Nor'I for the upcoming fantasy MMO. He said that the team is striving to stick to the "thematic core" of Veeshan for her reimagining: "Veeshan looms large in our story. It wouldn't be an EverQuest game without her!" And while Veeshan is well known by fans, the Nor'l is a new figure, the world spirit of Norrath. The Nor'l gives birth to mortals and flows through the entire world, communicating only through song. "Your actions in the world determine who controls territory and resources, and one of those key resources is the belief of Norrath's inhabitants," Danuser said. "How strong will Veeshan's influence grow after the Combine return to Antonica? Will the Nor'I be protected or exploited? These are questions that you'll get to decide through the choices you make in game."
DigiPen students launch multiplayer crossover bumper brawl, Ball-Stars
DigiPen Ball-Stars has a lot of DigiPen in it.DigiPen Institute of Technology students Corey Kay, Curtis McCoy, Jason Meisel, and Sean Reilly have banded together to release Barry's Magical Escape: DigiPen Ball-Stars Edition, a freeware indie crossover title for PC inspired by Mario Party's Bumper Balls minigame. (Unfortunately, Luigi isn't a playable character here, so you can't win by doing nothing.)Barry's Magical Escape offers a motley collection of characters and backdrops from many DigiPen standouts, including the survival racer Nitronic Rush, stealth-action game Deity and Portal's predecessor, Narbacular Drop. As in Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. series, random items drop throughout each battle, and each successful strike increases an enemy's bounce recoil, leading to some wildly chaotic possibilities. Be prepared to lose friendships over this one.Barry's Magical Escape supports up to eight simultaneous players in local and online multiplayer matches.%Gallery-186737%
This year's PAX 10: JS Joust, Offspring Fling!, Puzzlejuice and more
The PAX 10, an illustrious group of indie games chosen annually to be spotlighted during PAX Prime in Seattle, have been selected. This year's rarified group include the likes of Johann Sebastian Joust, Offspring Fling! – a game we highlighted in length on the Super Joystiq Podcast – and hypnotic iOS darling Puzzlejuice.Other lesser-known titles include the latest from Cipher Prime, the studio behind Auditorium and Fractal, a Steam title called Splice, and puzzle games Containment: The Zombie Puzzler and The Bridge. Puzzle-platformer The Swapper is also represented, along with DigiPen's stealth-action game Deity and Catch-22. Turtle Sandbox's action-strategy hybrid Cannon Brawl rounds out the list of ten.All PAX 10 titles will be featured in their own special area at this year's PAX Prime, which goes down August 31 through September 2 in downtown Seattle, WA.
One Shots: Don't fear the reaper
With the influx of new players in Lord of the Rings Online since the game's conversion to a free-to-play title, some have wondered just how well roleplaying groups would do. Well, according to the note attached to today's excellent One Shots from Deity, roleplay is still alive and well -- even in the depths of a dungeon! He writes in: "I'm from a long established, light-RP guild called Legends on the EU server Laurelin. We've fully embraced free-to-play and have welcomed many new players to our ranks. It was while running some new people through the Great Barrows that one of our more creative members, Cyph, took this screenshot. I think it really captures the essence of the Great Barrows and Lord of the Rings Online grouping. Plus, it's a great action shot! We took our time, did a bit of RPing along the way (and I don't mean standing around emoting), cleared the instances, and above all had some fun. What's even more amazing is that Cyph managed to do a great job playing while taking this picture and many others!" We love to hear what different guilds are doing out there. If you'd like to tell us of your group's latest adventures, just grab a screenshot of your group in action and email it in to us here at oneshots@massively.com. Be sure to include your name, the name of the game, and a description of what we're seeing in the image. Also please make sure your image is at least 1024 pixels wide and has no visible UI elements. Your screenshot could be the next one we feature here on One Shots! %Gallery-112285%
E308: Interview reveals name of new AoC dungeon
At E3, MMO bloggers Keen and Graev caught up with Funcom Product Manager and all-around Age of Conan-spinster Erling Ellingsen. The Vault Network-hosted interview covers a lot of the same ground that we went over in our own talk with Ellingson, but there was one extra bit that we thought was worth mentioning. We know you don't want to miss a thing, so here it is!Ellingsen mentioned that a new dungeon instance called "House of Crom." He didn't give any information about it apart from the name, although Keen's prose suggested that he was unusually excited about it. We'd like to think that this House of Crom is, in fact, the actual house of the deity Crom, atop a monstrous mountain.We also find it fun to imagine that the name of that dungeon is basically a curse phrase. Crom's name is rarely invoked except in cursing and swearing in Howard's Conan novels. You don't want to attract Crom's attention, you know. He might kick your pathetic mortal ass.
The Gaming Iconoclast: Deity not included
Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret.- Judy Bloom(Hey, just be glad you didn't get another Neitzsche quote*)The fantasy-based worlds our characters inhabit are, almost without exception, richly steeped in legend and brimming with lore. This is doubly true for those that have come to parturition after having existed outside of the digital realm. Frequently, the book or books upon which they are based feature the prominent (occasionally bordering on overwhelming) presence, if not direct and outright influence, of the God or Gods the characters worship... or at least call upon to save their bacon once in a while.Having been so much a part of the lives of the inhabitants of these universes, at least before they found themselves to be at our command, the relegation of these heretofore great cosmic forces to the essential position of role-playing wallpaper at best is puzzling, the occasional trimming of an Elder God's Toenail notwithstanding. In all these worlds full of powerful wizards channeling arcane energies and hurling bolts of numinous fire at their enemies, or healers using their connection to the divine to aid their allies -- some of whom are called Priests outright -- where are the Gods themselves? And, more to the point, where is the role of religion in the characters' lives?
