level-cap
Latest
World of Warcraft player hits 100th level 100
Do you like playing World of Warcraft? Would you like to play a thousand levels of World of Warcraft? Because the player known as Watola did just that. Watola has 100 characters at level 100, a project that started during the exceptionally long twilight of Mists of Pandaria. With 20 characters already at the level cap back then, another 80 apparently seemed like a doable project, which started a cycle of very efficient leveling and copious use of recruit-a-friend tricks. The method outlined on the the forums involves essentially rotating through full rest state on various characters and having a set plan of attack, along with using tank characters via recruit-a-friend to ensure that queues for dungeons are more straightforward. If you'd like to do the same, it's still perfectly functional now, although you'll have to do so knowing full well that you can never have a world-first level 1,000. (That seems a fair nod for the achievement.)
TERA: Fate of Arun goes live today
Ready to travel to unfamiliar lands, level past the existing level cap, and fight against new villains in TERA? Of course you are. You know what expansions are all about. Not coincidentally, that's the whole basis for Fate of Arun, the game's first expansion, which sends characters to Northern Arun for the first time. And wouldn't you know it, we have a shiny new trailer for this update just past the break. The expansion also includes quality-of-life improvements like a simplified enchanting system and a new Coliseum mode, which throws two teams of players in a race to clear through groups of enemies. You can check all of this out now on the live servers, although you might want to view the trailer first. Tradition's sake and all. [Source: En Masse Entertainment press release]
Captain's Log: Why Star Trek Online is kind of a mess right now
I haven't had nearly as much time to play Star Trek Online lately as I would have liked; I've had other projects to work on, other games to play, and a lot of holiday stuff going on. So my main captain, who's been trekkin' around since launch, is still woefully underleveled. I accept entirely that this is my own fault, but I haven't been stressing out over it; I have no need to rush up to the cap. That attitude is helped substantially by the fact that the people who are rushing up to the cap or already did rush up are awash with complaints. The speed of leveling. The speed of upgrade mechanics. How the Tier 5 and Tier 6 ships interact. The price of items. The amount of mission content. Gaining new specialization points at the cap. Sure, some of it is pretty normal complaining, but there's a general sense of discontent with the game at the moment. And I'm honestly not surprised because this problem was always going to crop up, and it could have been managed so much better.
Guns of Icarus Online overhauls progression and matching
The latest patch for Guns of Icarus Online is going to make it a great deal easier for characters to get better. The game's progression system has been completely overhauled, with level now tied to experience earned via matches rather than to achievements. This is accompanied by a reorganization of stats and traits and a bump in the level cap to 45, which will also bump existing characters and give them more levels to play around with. Said patch also improves the game's matchmaking system, which helps get players into the action more quickly while also providing a more balanced system for everyone. A new tutorial to introduce new players to the game and a spectator system that makes it easier to watch games unfold have also been added, giving players new and old alike plenty to enjoy. Check out the full patch notes or just steal a glance at the video showing off these new features past the break.
Destiny logs first level 30 character
Guardian "BGTV N3AC3Y" is the first Destiny player in the world to hit level 30 after more than 100 hours of playtime, Destiny DB reports. BGTV N3AC3Y racked up 107 hours, 15 minutes, and 22 seconds with Destiny in the weeks after its launch, spending around 25 percent of their playthrough in the multiplayer Crucible mode. The world's top Guardian also spent 13 hours, 6 minutes, and 40 seconds trekking through the recently introduced Vault of Glass raid, dying 251 times in the process. Man. Look at all that purple gear. No, I'm not jealous. Not one bit. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to return to my post at the cave of wonders. [Image: Bungie]
Swordsman announces Gilded Wasteland expansion
Perfect World Entertainment has just announced an expansion for its still-new F2P martial arts MMO Swordsman. Dubbed Gilded Wasteland, the update will boost the level cap to 94 and introduce new desert regions (Ping Liang, Tunhuang, and the Shadow Mountain Plains) and dungeons to the game. PWE also says it will improve the leveling curve, weapon-crafting, and PvP. The expansion arrives later this fall. We've included new concept art below.
Captain's Log: Star Trek Online's expansion and communication
So we finally know what the next expansion is going to be for Star Trek Online, and my speculation regarding the Xindi and points related turned out to be way off. Nope, we're heading into the Delta Quadrant, which is less interesting to me than the Gamma Quadrant, but I suspect the powers that be are exploring all the angles of existing content first. It's coming with a level cap increase, a new tier of ships, a bunch of new tricks, and apparently some bonus communication misses. Delta Rising is really on track to be a pretty divisive expansion anyway. It was inevitable, really; raising the level cap now was going to lead to problems no matter how it was handled. Unfortunately, Cryptic Studios hasn't done a great job communicating what's in the works for players, nor have the first few things that we've heard exactly countered some early suspicions. It was a minefield that's thus far been navigated largely with a push and a blindfold.
Star Trek Online lays out the path to level 60 with stellar rewards
One of the selling points (so to speak) of Star Trek Online: Delta Rising is the game's first-ever level cap increase. Ever since player captains heard that they'll be able to level up to 60, they've wondered what that might entail. Fortunately, today Cryptic posted a dev blog that gives a good idea of what to expect as players progress to become Fleet Admiral or Dahar Master. "The level cap increase is meant to be a simple solution to rank progression and yet the resulting change to the endgame play will be very noticeable," the team said. The big change with these new levels is that skill points will be used for specialization trees, the details of which are still forthcoming. Players can keep earning specialization points after hitting 60 until they max out these trees. Cryptic also has several rewards planned along the way, including a duty officer pack, upgrades to abilities, and a new bridge officer.
The Daily Grind: Do you want round number level caps?
Archlord 2 is bumping its level cap to 46. For some reason this bothers me. I don't play Archlord 2, but still. Why 46? Why not 45 or 50? OK, so probably not 45 because the cap was already 45, but why not structure the content in such a way as to invite a nice round number like 50 for the next increase? What about you, Massively readers? Am I alone here or does silly stuff like that give you an eye twitch? Do you want round number level caps? 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!
Star Trek Online expansion details emerge from Las Vegas convention [Updated]
Star Trek Online fans at the recent Star Trek Las Vegas convention were treated to a special developer panel on Saturday, and information is starting to trickle out about what was discussed during the panel. And wouldn't you know it? It was expansion information. Fans on Reddit have compiled the available information, although there's been no official reveal on the forums or through other media regarding what will be coming (so far). According to fan notes, the expansion will be dubbed Delta Rising and will take place in the eponymous Delta Quadrant, introducing species such as the Talaxians, the Ocampa, the Kazon, and the Malon to the game's lineup. Captains will be able to hit level 60, with a new method of alternative advancement and a new set of Tier 6 ships to be unlocked and flown. New Voyager interiors and Intrepid models will be available, along with voiceovers by Tim Russ and Garret Wang (Lt. Commander Tuvok and Ensign Harry Kim, respectively). If it's all true, all we're waiting on are pictures -- and of course, news about the new ships. [Thanks to Anon E. Moose for the tip!] [Update: Tipster Anthony let us know that TrekMovie.com has more information and photographs from the event at which the expansion was announced.]
LotRO Update 14 is now live
Today marks the official release of Lord of the Rings Online's Update 14, and with it comes the highly anticipated West Gondor content, as well as Epic Story Volume IV, the new Essence System, the level 100 cap, inventory tweaks, class balancing, bug fixes, and more. While none of this is a surprise to players, what did come as a surprise was some changes mentioned in executive producer Aaron "Rowan" Campbell's letter in the forums. First off, there will be no more level cap increases for this year to allow players to take their time and explore the new content. In addition, a new advancement system is being added to legendary items allowing them to grow with you without deconstruction for a new item at level cap. And lastly, the upcoming Beorning class will start at level 1 and include its own starting experience through Eriador. Be sure to check out the complete Update 14 patch notes as well as Rowan's Producer's Letter in the official forums.
TERA's level cap to hit 65, new continent on its way
Bluehole Studio and En Masse Entertainment have announced today that their fantasy MMO TERA will be receiving a level cap increase and expand into a new continent later this year. The level cap will increase to 65, adding new skills and glyphs in the process. Along with this will come the Northern Arun continent and the world's fourth largest city, new instance dungeons, quest guide, enchanting system improvements, and more. Mention of a special competition for seasonal guild housing is also in the notes, and players are speculating in the forum thread about what this might mean. While Korea will get this new content in late July, En Masse says that the goal is to make it available for North American players by the end of the year. [Thanks to Leiloni for the tip!]
LotRO's update 14 opens West Gondor, raises level cap to 100
Turbine has just released preliminary patch notes for Lord of the Rings Online's update 14 on the Bullroarer test server. Here are the highlights: The level cap has been raised to the nice shiny and round number of 100. Three new regions -- free for VIPs -- have been added. "Explore and enjoy West Gondor!" says the team. Volume IV of the epic story has been implemented. It's free for all players. The Essence system is functional. "New gear found throughout the world can be upgraded and enhanced by placing Essences into available slots. These Essences are currently earned as drops." The game now has a new global chat channel, accessible through /world or /wd commands. There's much more to the notes, including trait tweaks for the classes, on the official forums.
The Daily Grind: What's the ideal level cap for an MMO?
Massively commenters recently debated whether a game without levels is the same as a game without a leveling cap thanks to Black Desert's proposed character advancement system, an increasingly common lateral advancement system that allows players to build their characters more sideways than up. But outside of such sandboxes, most themepark games stake their mechanics on levels, for good or bad. And that got me thinking about the ideal level cap for an MMO. Even if two games require roughly the same amount of time to cap, a bigger number can seem so much more intimidating. Asheron's Call's 150 levels and Anarchy Online's 205 320 always seemed unreachable to me, and wasn't it cute back when World of Warcraft expected but 60 levels out of you? What do you think -- what's the ideal level cap for an MMO with levels? 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!
World of Warcraft releases new class primer videos
So you've bought your World of Warcraft expansion and you boosted a character to the level cap. That's good. You also have no idea how to play that class at level 90, which is bad. A new series of videos from Blizzard is designed to address that problem, however, offering a quick two-minute guide to how to play each of the classes at level 90 as a selected DPS spec and walking you through the basic play patterns. Yes, all of these guides are for DPS; you'll find no detailed tanking walkthroughs here. And each guide just picks a particular spec, so if you were hoping for insight into playing an Enhancement Shaman, you're out of luck. But if you've boosted a character and totally can't figure out what you're supposed to be doing now, it's a good crash course on playing well enough to fake it in LFR.
Forsaken World: Blood Harvest adding new class and region next week
Forsaken World has a new content update coming out next week called Blood Harvest that looks to expand the title in several directions. Blood Harvest will introduce the Blood Reaper class, bump up the level cap to 90, and add in the Freedom Islands zone. As with the rest of this game, the update will be free for players to enjoy. Blood Harvest is scheduled to arrive on May 21st. [Source: Perfect World press release]
WildStar's elder gem system to get post-launch love
What you see is only half of what you get, at least in regard to the elder gem system in WildStar. Carbine Studios Product Director Mike Donatelli churned out a good-sized post on the forums this morning concerning WildStar's elder gem system and what the studio has planned for it after the game's launch. He said that what's currently in-game is "only half of the intended final system," and while the team can't get in the full deal by release, the rest will be included in the first major post-launch patch. Elder gems are a type of currency that players will earn with XP once they hit the level cap. There's a weekly limit to the number of gems that can earned, and players can use these gems to buy gear and items from special vendors. Future plans for the system include the ability to buy amp and ability tier points that haven't been procured elsewhere and weekly and daily quests to earn more gems.
The Soapbox: Old content should stay relevant
The archetypal themepark MMO model, as popularised by World of Warcraft, is a race to the level cap in order to unlock the best content on offer. New content is tacked onto the endgame regularly, accompanied by improved gear and perhaps a higher level cap. It's a system that's designed to keep people playing by keeping them on a progression climb that's constantly getting steeper. As a consequence, endgame activities render older content obsolete since these outdated activities carry little real benefit for fully leveled characters. Exploring old content for the sake of experiencing it is not enough of a motivator for many players since this content simply cannot present the same challenge as it once did. Although you can technically go back and play through old dungeons, they will never be as fulfilling when tactics become optional and you can solo once-formidable opponents. In this week's Soapbox, I will mourn the loss of fantastic older content that was rendered obsolete through vertical progression, using WoW as a key example. I'll go on to suggest a solution that I think might allow for both old and new content to exist together in relevancy without significantly compromising the themepark MMO's existing progression mechanics.
Breakfast Topic: Where did you hit level 90?
Getting to level 90 may seem like old hat this late in the expansion cycle, but I bet you all remember just when and where you first (or last) hit the level cap. For my part, after skipping out of WoW for all of Cataclysm, I decided to play all the way through each Cataclysm zone with my monk before moving on to Pandaria. The result? I hit level 90 pretty early in Valley of the Four Winds, before even getting around to doing any of Hemet Nessingwary's grind-tastic -- and experience-tastic -- quests. Though after that, I wound up jumping over the wall into the Vale in order to train flying because I'd not yet done the gate opening quests... so it's probably not a leveling experience I'll repeat. Now that I've shared my level 90 story, how about yours? When and where did you hit level 90?
Massively exclusive: Take a desert trip in Elsword
Do you want to take a vacation in the middle of the desert? Probably not in the real world, since the desert is generally known for being a place people try to avoid rather than a vacation destination. But Elsword isn't expecting you to go just for the screaming heat and lack of water. No, it's offering a whole pile of desert-based fun that revolves around smashing enemies, exploring new fields, and taking on dungeons. The region shown off in the new trailer gives a sneak peek at two new dungeons, Barren Sander and the Garpai Rocky Zone. There's also a level cap increase up to 64, giving you a variety of new tools for smashing the crap out of your foes in side-scrolling action. If that sounds like your sort of party, then by all means, check out the trailer just past the break and get ready to enjoy a desert vacation far more than you'd expect otherwise. [Source: KOG Games press release]
