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Massively Exclusive: Make your nation proud with Wakfu's newest dev diary
Now that Ankama Games' tactical MMORPG Wakfu is live and operational, it's probably about time for players to start getting familiar with the World of Twelve. Thankfully, the fine folks over at Ankama have provided us with a brand-new dev diary to help players to wrap their heads around the nations and territories of Wakfu. For the uninitiated, the World of Twelve is the shared universe of Wakfu and its predecessor, Dofus. Lots has happened in the World of Twelve since the time of Dofus, however. Most importantly, a daft ogre by the name of Ogrest (presumably the older brother of Ogre and Ogrer) gathered the six primordial Dofus and used their overwhelming power to devastate the world, drowning all but seven major island nations beneath the sea. It's up to players to run these remaining nations and restore the World of Twelve to its former power. Of course, it can't all be sunshine and butterflies between the seven nations; we need a reason to kill each other! Aside from the seven main islands, there are also a number of smaller islands that contain valuable -- and sometimes exclusive -- resources. The seven nations, of course, all want to claim these precious goods for their own. Players will have to represent their nations in the battle for these minor, resource-rich islands in order to bring prosperity and bragging rights to their respective homelands. So there you have it, Wakfuians (that's totally a word, we promise). Now click past the cut for the full dev diary video, then get out there and make your countries proud!
GDC 2012: The Repopulation demonstrates world-building elements
GDC literally has a little of everything, from indie developers to major studios, from free-to-play games to shooters to arena battles to retro to family... there really is something for everyone. As a massive fan of sandboxes myself, I was pleased to get to spend so much time with Above and Beyond Technologies' lead dev and co-owner Josh Halls and artist Kevin Grove as they demonstrated some of the features in their upcoming title, The Repopulation. (And I would have even spent longer if I could have!) While I had a monopoly on the team's attention, I had the chance to see some of the customization available to characters, both in appearance and gear, as well as get the lowdown on the world building element. We actually walked through the building of a nation, a feature that will make many a sandbox fan giddy! Although Josh was quick to point out that only a few items were available at this point in development, there was certainly enough to get a feel for the system. And I am looking forward to it!
The Mog Log: Ul'dah on 15 gil a night
In a way, each of the cities in Final Fantasy XIV resembles a non-capital city from Final Fantasy XI. Gridania has shades of Kazham; Limsa Lominsa has shades of Norg. But Ul'dah has a clear line to Al Zahbi, center of Aht Urhgan. It's the jewel of the wasted, barren region of Thanalan, a bustling hub of commerce, a place where even the lowliest adventurer might find fortune and fame in the arenas or via careful self-promotion. Of course, it's also the most dangerous. Sure, there are spirits woven throughout Gridania and pirates in every corner in Limsa Lominsa, but Ul'dah is filled with those who'd smile to your face and then shiv your spine as soon as you turn around. Beneath a glittering facade lies a horrid hive of cruelty, and the journey to the top the city is rife with backstabbing and strife. If you're not a native, you might not realize just how bad the place really is -- or how far the city's powerful members are willing to go to ensure that Ul'dah remains at the center of trade.
Storyboard: Archetype discussion - the Partisan
Clarity of purpose is a wonderful thing, made all the more likable by its usual absence. The fact is that most of us have only the vaguest idea of what to do, and we're all making things up as we go. It's the central ripoff discovered when you become an adult. Moral clarity is a joke, and whether you try to save everyone or just focus on saving yourself, it's a morass without any clear purpose for most of us. The partisan puts the lie to that. He might follow a religion, he might follow a nation, he might follow an individual -- but whatever his leader might be, the partisan follows it without fail. He has his moral clarity at all times, even if keeping it might mean sacrificing his own judgment. And it's his view -- his vision of what is right -- that tells him exactly what he wants. So let's look at the partisan, in all of his one-true-path glory.
Jumpgate Evolution updates lore surrounding the spiritual Quantar faction
The writers on the Jumpgate Evolution team have released a lore update that focuses on the mystic Quantar nation. In Jumpgate Evolution's setting, the Quantar are a people who follow many different religious paths, but are "united by the fundamental belief that human destiny lies among the stars." Their spiritual beliefs are reflected in their technology, centered around the concept of a pilot and ship striving to become a single being, which explains their prowess in combat. NetDevil's lore update to Jumpgate Evolution chronicles the history of Quantar culture and society, but they also released new info on sectors of Quantar space accompanied by some gorgeous images. There's now quite a bit of material centering on the Quantar nation which should be good news to fans of Jumpgate Evolution's lore.
United States of Piracy? FreeNation Foundation wants sovereignty
"We pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of Piracy, and to the torrent files for which it stands, one Nation under grog, barely visible, with free movies and music for aarrrr." Sound crazy? Well this may be the very vow that children of a future island nation recite in unison every morning, if an organization called the FreeNation Foundation achieves its ultimate goal of statehood. Originally established as sort of a political wing for Swedish torrent tracker The Pirate Bay during its brief attempt to purchase the micronation of Sealand, the FNF has branched off to become an independent body bent on founding "a new society based on the ideals of freedom, equality and sustainable growth." Although the Sealand takeover plan quickly went south due to a lack of interest by its current owners and the fact that it is "too small and aesthetically displeasing to support such a goal," the FNF membership's taste for a country to call their own remained. It all sounds very romantic and American Revolution-esque, but what really seems to be going on here is that a group of disaffected netizens want to create their own socialist state wherein laws of intellectual property protection don't apply -- a digital utopia for some, a potential nightmare for others. According to the site Zeropaid, the most likely candidate for purchase at the moment is an island called Ile de Caille off the northern coast of Grenada, whose 400 tropical acres would presumably provide a safe haven for proponents of communal property. To their credit, the founding members of FNF do seem to be concerned with more than just the ability to download "Baby Geniuses 2" without repercussions; in fact, forums have been set up to discuss every aspect of building a real nation-state, from law to politics to economic policies. All well and good, and we're glad that these people have more on their minds than just watching Entourage day in and day out, but it seems that this whole effort is somewhat of a waste of time; after all -- as we saw earlier today -- there's already at least one pirate-friendly country in existence which is quite proud of the fact that its burgeoning IT industry was built on a foundation of bootleg floppies and Windows 95 CD's.Read- Zeropaid [Via Digg]Read- FNF website
