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Massively Exclusive: How WildStar has the power to move you
Movement does not normally seem like a complicated topic in MMOs. You press forward; your character goes forward. Backward? Same deal. You can turn, and you can strafe, and you can turn and strafe and run forward if you're some kind of rebel or you want to give yourself motion sickness. But WildStar makes movement a bigger deal than normal because with a greater emphasis on action comes a greater emphasis on moving out of the path of danger. The latest official video covers all the basics of movement, from dashing to sprinting to pining for the presumably nonexistent quadruple jump. But we had a chance to sit down with lead combat systems designer Chris Lynch and lead class designer Hugh Shelton to talk about more of the specifics, starting with the obvious question: What beast must we slay to unlock the all-powerful quadruple jump? Wait, that wasn't it. It was about chaining movement tricks together in an endless cycle of airborne dashes.
Patch 3.3: Teleporting in and out of instances
The most recent patch notes answered something I've been wondering about the "summon-from-anywhere" LFG system since I first heard about it: what happens if you get summoned into an instance and then you leave? The answer, apparently, is that you go not to the instance's entry portal, but instead you get sent right back out from whence you came. That's a bummer and a benefit -- unfortunately, you won't be able to use the feature to do any cross-world teleporting (leaving Violet Hold, for example, won't work as an extra hearthstone to Dalaran), but on the other hand, you won't have to stop what you're doing wherever you are. In fact, porting in and out of any instances you run may change your positioning in the game completely. Nibuca doesn't see any need any more to leave a hearthstone in Dalaran -- that was previously the most central location for collecting daily dungeon quests and flying out to meeting stones, but with neither of those things necessary any more, you can park your stone anywhere you want. It'll be very interesting to see how movement patterns change after the new system goes live. I doubt Dalaran will be a ghost town (if nothing else, there will be plenty of people there sitting in LFG chat), but certainly the LFG is mixing up the reasons that a lot of people are hanging around there. Patch 3.3 is the last major patch of Wrath of the Lich King. With the new Icecrown Citadel 5-man dungeons and 10/25-man raid arriving soon, patch 3.3 will deal the final blow to the Arthas. WoW.com's Guide to Patch 3.3 will keep you updated with all the latest patch news.
Wii Warm Up: Horizontal, or vertical?
This might be a dumb question, but how do you have your Wii set up? Sure, when we look at the many contents of the Wii console's packaging, we see that Nintendo provided ample materials so that you may set our console up in the fashion you see above: vertical. Standing tall and proud like Mufasa on the edge of Pride Rock, the Wii commands a presence in any person's A/V set-up.But, just because Nintendo made it easy, doesn't mean that you chose that path, right? Maybe you travel with your Wii a lot and when it is resting at home, you lay it down on its side horizontally? Maybe the console stand isn't in line with your house's decor or you think the rubber feet on the Wii itself is suitable enough for its placement on some wooden table or, dare we say, carpet?Either way, it seems like such a small question, but one which would provide an insightful answer. To us, anyway.
The ins and outs of totem placement
I love playing a Shaman, and one of the main reasons is the unique gameplay of totem buffs. Paladins can buff just as well as we can (if not better-- those blessings are very nice, I'll admit), but no other class can just slam down a totem into the landscape, and either buff a group or damage mobs instantly. There's a whole other strategy, as kayholder is finding out, to totem placement, and it's different from almost everything else in the game.To answer her question, I don't lay all my totems every fight, but there are a few totems-- as a Resto/Ele Shaman, I try to have Wrath of Air and Mana Spring out-- whenever possible. At the highest levels, totem buffs are really powerful-- most melee people love Windfury, but Strength of Earth is a real boost to DPS as well as block for tanks. Her shaman is playing along with a Shadow Priest, so the Mana totem will be a big help, and Wrath of Air will boost both his shocks and her spells. As for placement, the comments on LJ are right-- she should have him lay totems down, and then pull mobs in one area to that place, in order to get the most use from them.But even in larger situations, I love how totems work-- I love coordinating with my group what totems will be dropped, and I really enjoy paying attention to where my group members are in order to place the totems correctly. If I'm in the MT group, I run up with him to get Strength and Windfury down near him, and then move back to the caster group to put Mana down. When I drop Mana Tide (which I have, since I'm Resto), I always do a shout out to the casters in my group that "Mana is going down near me," so they can move in to get the bonus (the new animation helps a bit for that). Totems are definitely a unique way of laying down buffs, and I really enjoy the extra element of gameplay they add.
