launch-delays
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No launch torch for Marvel Heroes, but plenty of Steam
When Marvel Heroes announced that Squirrel Girl, Emma Frost, Nova, and Luke Cage would be delayed until after the game had launched, it was bad news, depriving the game of three popular heroes and Nova until later. Now another hero has joined the ranks of the not-in-launch crowd. The Human Torch will be delayed until after release, although players who have pre-purchased launch packs will still have full access to all of the Torch's add-ons when he does go live. Despite this loss, the game has obviously generated enough heat to make its way on to Steam for its final open beta weekend. Players who already have the game installed don't need to worry, but Steam users can install the game directly from the Steam client. Launch packs purchased prior to the Steam integration should work seamlessly, and you can also purchase launch packs directly from Steam if the final beta weekend inspires you to do so.
Vindictus gets a European launch window at long last
If you're a European player eager to get some time in Vindictus, you've unfortunately been the victim of a long and seemingly fruitless wait. But Nexon's Source-based action MMO looks to be finally headed to European shores later this year. According to Electronic Theatre, the game is currently slated to be released at long last sometime in Q4 of 2011, significantly after its release in both Korea and North American territories. While no reasons are cited for the delay, Sun Jin Kim, CEO of Nexon EU, apologized for the delay and promised to have the game localized in at least one additional language by the time of its release. More details are said to be forthcoming at E3 and GamesCom in the near future. European Vindictus fans are doubtlessly a little bit suspicious about finally hearing word after such a long silence, but if all goes well, the hacking and slashing should soon commence for the region.
Rumor: Will Final Fantasy XIV be delayed until 2011?
For those of us looking forward to new releases this year, Final Fantasy XIV is one of the few hopes we have that doesn't involve expansions. Unfortunately, a nasty little rumor has been spreading around: that it's not going to be coming out this year after all. The run of login issues that the alpha test has been experiencing has prompted more than a few people to believe that the game is having some serious problems, and we've received a few tips from our readers, as well as a tip-off from an industry insider. Here's the thing: if it's being delayed, Yoichi Wada certainly doesn't know anything about it. And as the CEO, he's the sort of person who gets kept in the loop. The fine system folks at the Order of the Blue Gartr did an excellent job rounding up much of the information, explaining that the login issues were caused by staff underestimations, not system problems. Wada confirmed elsewhere that the game was on track, both on a Japanese Final Fantasy XIV fan site and via his own tweets. While we don't have an exact date for release just yet, it seems that the game is still on track for this year... for the moment.
Mortal Online newsletter announces launch delays, holiday discounts
We all know that launch dates for an MMO are loose targets at best and long shots in the darkness at worst. While it's disappointing when a game doesn't hit the target date, by and large players are used to it and all but expect it to happen -- it's part of the cycle. But it's still more than a little depressing to see that Mortal Online, the upcoming game from Star Vault, is going to be delayed by a month. That's the word in the latest newsletter for the game's fans, which is a bit of a depressing way to lead into the holidays, to say the least. The Limited Editions of the boxed game will also be seeing a slight delay, due to production issues with the artbook included. To compensate purchasers of the Limited Edition, an extra week of free playtime is being added to make up for the delayed ship. And to help take the sting off the entire sad process of delaying the game, Star Vault is offering discounts on both digital downloads and the last boxed editions of the game. Mortal Online's fans and beta testers are still likely to be sad about the delay, of course, but a few little bonuses never fail to take the edge off.
The perils of MMO tourism
MMOs are a big business these days. This hasn't always been the case -- Ultima Online might have been the first real game of the genre, but it didn't make everyone want to build a competitor. It was the success of World of Warcraft that really opened up the idea that there was a huge amount of money to be made from the genre, and that in turn has brought almost everyone to the table in a rush to build a game, find a method that works, and try to hook as many subscribers as possible. The only problem is that we might find ourselves with an industry drifting toward what MMOSH refers to, quite fairly, as The Bad Place. We've all found ourselves buying new games, playing them only until the trial is up, and then never picking them up again. Sometimes we don't even give them the full month. And some developers seem to be adopting this mentality as well -- there are rumors here and there about the future of Champions Online after its first month, and both publishers and players are treating it as if the first month is everything. (Their recent free trial seems to tie into this -- you could argue that where MMOs once got new players by word of mouth, they seem to be in love with constant trial offers to entice players now.) And that's just the tip of the problem, really -- the post goes into further detail about the cycle of hype, release, and abandonment. As it says, gone are the days when we should stick with the game that we had and wait for it to improve -- and that might ultimately be far more harmful than whatever holes in the game lead us to leave so quickly.
