thanksgiving
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Final SWTOR beta weekend targeting November 25th - 28th
As it's Thanksgiving weekend in the US, it's fitting that BioWare is giving players something to be thankful for: one last, giant beta test of Star Wars: The Old Republic. So if you're interested in seeing if the hype matches the game, make sure you stay out of any turkey comas following Thursday! According to SWTOR's Twitter, the test has been scheduled for November 25th through the 28th. This represents the largest beta test for the soon-to-be-released title yet, with hundreds of thousands -- perhaps millions -- of players invited to stress-test the servers. The test might not technically be "open" beta, but it's pretty hard at this point not to get into it. Any player who registered for beta testing prior to November 11th is automatically included, and those that didn't can grab one of the thousands and thousands of keys floating out there -- including from us! If you have questions about the beta test, it might behoove you to check out SWTOR's FAQ on the event.
RuneScape sings, gobbles, and slays its way through November
RuneFest, Halloween, and Bot Nuking Day may be over, but the RuneScape team is far from taking time off for good behavior. If anything, the devs' eyes are as big as their stomachs as they detailed plans for the game leading up to Thanksgiving. Speaking of the holiday, a turkey invasion led by the fearsome Captain Turkerton is imminent and only the players will be able to negotiate a truce before the gobblepocalypse arrives. As incentive for participating in the event, RuneScape is planning to award Thanksgiving crests and turkey pets for the diplomatically savvy. Jagex has a lot more on its plate for November, including revamping elements of the interface, overhauling the website design, and introducing the Slayer-centric Polypore Dungeon. Additionally, the November quest, "One Piercing Note," is a first for the game: a fully voice-acted experience that will incorporate singing and dancing into the story! Following Bot Nuking Day and the resulting dip in population, Jagex has consolidated several servers into new multi-country European worlds. The team is also hard at work addressing some current issues with players having problems logging in and experiencing lag. A fix is scheduled for later today.
Apple giving employees extra paid time off this Thanksgiving for a job well done
Apple is on a roll. Mac sales are higher than ever, the iPad owns the tablet market, and the company just sold one million iPhones in 24 hours. In honor of all that Apple has achieved this year, the company is giving its employees some extra time off this upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. As first published by MacGeneration, Tim Cook sent the following email to all Apple employees this week: Team, I consider it an honor to come to work every day alongside the most innovative and most dedicated people on earth. This is an extraordinary time to be at Apple, and it's all made possible by your incredible efforts. We've had a record-setting year so far and we're heading into the holidays with the strongest product lineup in our history. Customers are absolutely in love with the iPad 2, and the amazing new iPhone 4S is off to the best start of any iPhone we've ever made. The Mac is soaring to new heights with OS X Lion, and on the eve of its 10th birthday, the iPod is still the world's most popular music player. In recognition of the hard work you've put in this year, we're going to take some extra time off for Thanksgiving. We will shut down with pay on November 21, 22 and 23 so our teams can spend the entire week with their families and friends. Of course, Retail and some other groups will need to work that week so we can continue to serve our customers. If you're in one of these groups, please check with your manager about taking time off at a later date. Our international teams will schedule their three-day shutdowns this quarter at a time that's best for them. Details will be available on AppleWeb. I hope everyone enjoys this much deserved break. Tim As noted in the email, retail workers will not get the same days off (they need to be in the stores to continue to sell products during the busy shopping season); however, they will all receive three extra days of paid time off after the holidays. Apple employees in other countries will also get an extra three days of paid time off. Contrary to some reports, this is actually not the first time Apple has done this. When I worked for the company, the same extra Thanksgiving time off was given twice during my stint. Also, for those of you wondering, "AppleWeb" isn't some new Apple Internet product. It's Apple's name for the company-wide intranet.
Plundering the free seas: Pirates of the Burning Sea dev talks about F2P
Curious about how a subscription-based MMO makes the transition to a free-to-play model? It's not as easy as one might assume, and Pirates of the Burning Sea was no exception. In a recent devlog, PotBS's Misha takes us behind the stage to look at the logistical details and hurdles that had to be taken for this jump between business models. While the team had been mulling over a microtransaction model from the beginning, it was only after a lot of discussion with SOE that the publisher showed the team a way this could be implemented. Following that, the team had to tackle several tricky issues, such as expired trial accounts, boxes still in the stores and all of the subscription types it had in place. Next, the team ran the system through quite a bit of testing to iron out the snags. "Those who helped us test F2P in the early days will recall pets on their own little boats in the midst of battle, trying desperately to help out. You could zoom in and see a pig or chicken standing in a commanding position overlooking their hardworking crews. This bug is one of my favorite ever, and I'm still a little sad that we fixed it." It wasn't just the software that needed to be tested but also the physical setup. At one point, Misha writes, "For whatever reason, we were suffering hardware failure after hardware failure." While the F2P transition was slated for Thanksgiving 2010, it failed to hit the date. "We hit a major issue on our side and SOE hit a major snag on their side. So, no Thanksgiving F2P. On the one hand, we were really discouraged that we hadn't met our target. On the other hand, we were incredibly glad we had tackled these issues before we went live," she writes. Eventually Pirates of the Burning Sea "soldiered through it all" and made it to the live servers, much to the team's delight. For a full rundown of this saga and the true tale of commanding pigs, head on over to Pirates of the Burning Sea.
The Anvil of Crom: All I want for Christmas
Buuurrrp. Ah. Begging your pardon, but you know how it goes this time of year, leftovers and all that. Seeing as how this is a Thanksgiving holiday weekend here in the States -- and the annual Christmas shopping orgy has begun -- it seems an appropriate time to indulge in a bit of list-making with regard to Age of Conan. I don't normally do lists here at The Anvil of Crom, as many seem to be the game journalist's equivalent of the oh-crap-I've-got-a-deadline-but-no-topic safety net. Occasionally, though, they serve a real purpose. In my case that purpose is bitching politely talking about what I'd like to see Funcom add to its AoC recipe. So, in honor of the pilgrims and their pilfering of North America (or the cold turkey sandwich you're no doubt stealing from your fridge at this very moment), I present to you three things Age of Conan should pillage from other MMORPGs. Join me after the cut for the rundown.
Arcane Brilliance: Things I'm thankful for
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Arcane Brilliance for arcane, fire and frost mages. This week, Arcane Brilliance is feeling especially festive. Pyroblasting a turkey will do that. So apparently it's the holiday season. I'm still burping up cranberries and stuffing, my wife has started forcing Christmas music upon me (and frankly, if it's not Mannheim Steamroller, I don't want to hear it), and I've reached the point in the year when -- for my own mental well-being -- I refuse to look at a bank statement until February. To those of you who survived yesterday's annual gladiatorial bloodletting and emerged victorious from the front doors of Walmart or Old Navy, hoisting your hard-won set of hand towels above your head like a trophy: I salute you. To those of you who, like me, stayed home and bought stuff on Steam and Xbox Live: I also salute you, only I do so from my chair, by typing in an emote. Because, really, we're all pretty lazy. But damned if I don't feel well rested. In deference to the spirit of the season, we here at Arcane Brilliance thought it might be nice to spend a column thinking about the things we're grateful right now. You'll find the mage-related stuff behind the jump, but here's my non-mage-related short list of awesome things: flatbread chicken sandwiches getting randomly tagged on Dragon Quest IX while walking through the airport Tuesday night troll druid cat form The Walking Dead Mumford and Sons discovering the brilliance of Arrested Development and Friday Night Lights on Netflix Taco Bell, Netflix, Square Enix, etc. ... feel free to make any and all endorsement checks out to Christian Belt, care of WoW Insider. Also, screw you, AMC, for canceling Rubicon. I was just starting to enjoy that one. And screw you double, FOX, for putting Fringe on Fridays, where all good FOX shows go to die.
Reminder: It came from the Blog Pilgrim's Bounty event tomorrow
Don't forget to join the <It came from the Blog> family of guilds for Pilgrim's Bounty tomorrow. We will be gathering in front of Silvermoon for the pre-event party early. Here are the details: When: Saturday, Nov. 27, at 12:30 p.m. EST (9:30 a.m. PST, 10:30 a.m. realm time) for the pre-event mixer and 1 p.m. EST for the actual event Where: The entrance to Silvermoon City on Zangarmarsh (US-PvE-H) Who: Any level Horde character is welcome. You may want to have some cash on your character for the purpose of purchasing souvenirs, cooking training or other event-related items. How: Ask Robinella or any member of <Blogling> for an invite if you are not already in one of our guilds What: Food fight! ... among other things. We will be traveling around to complete several achievements and quests together. Coordination will be done in a global event chat channel and also in the live stream. Please join us! Please join us on Zangarmarsh (US-PvE-H) in <It came from the Blog>. Guild ranks of Blog Lurker or above can invite, so /whisper Robiness or any online member. You are all welcome as long as you play by our simple rules -- basically, don't be a funsucker! Visit the guild FAQ for more details.
Black Friday 2010 deals roundup: ultimate mega edition (updated regularly)
<div style="text-align:center;"><a href="http://www.engadget.com/black-friday/2010"><img hspace="4" border="1" vspace="4" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2010/11/blackfriday2010-1290609824.jpg"/></a></div> Hey guys, have you ever heard of <a href="http://www.engadget.com/tag/BlackFriday/">Black Friday</a>? It's the day after Thanksgiving where everybody gets up at the crack of dawn to go stand in line at big box retailers so they can get the cheapest deals in town. Like it or not, it's one of the greatest things about living in the United States of America, where making a competitive sport out of purchasing Christmas gifts for your loved ones is only better in reality than it would be on reality television (producers, you know where to find us). Anyway, we're rounding up some of the best deals we can find, and we're going to put them all, right here, in this one, glorious post. We'll keep updating this bad boy as long as you're here to read about the delicious deals. Because, as you know, we love you. Feel free to suggest other sales in the comments, and join us after the break for all the deals.
Flying turkey quadrocopter celebrates Thanksgiving by dropping pies
It looks like the folks from Utah Aerials just can't let a holiday pass without taking to the skies. Following their flying ghost for Halloween, the team have now transformed an ordinary quadrocopter into a remarkably lifelike turkey capable of carrying and dropping pumpkin pies. Makes sense to us. Head on past the break for all the remote-controlled shenanigans, and happy Thanksgiving, everybody!
Breakfast Topic: Thankful
About this time every year, we Americans go into food coma lockdown mode, hop on board planes, trains and automobiles and head to family and friend gatherings. Thanksgiving is happening in the United States, and much food will be eaten, relatives will be awkward and some delicious pie will be baked. We also usually spill our guts about what we are thankful for. On the nerdy side of things, we lost a lot in World of Warcraft in the past few days. The Shattering took a lot of our old-world nostalgia and focus and replaced it with the beginnings of Cataclysm and a whole new experience. I'm pretty damn thankful to Blizzard for creating essentially World of Warcraft 2 without making us all switch over to some new world and splitting the playerbase. On the less nerdy side of things, here in the real world, I'm very thankful for the very fact that I get to type these words into this text editor and hit "post." I'm incredibly thankful that I have the opportunity to work with WoW Insider and talk to so many fans and WoW enthusiasts. Above all, I'm thankful for your comments and discussions and how incredibly wonderful you all make me feel with supportive emails and feedback. I'm thankful that you enjoy my writing and my ramblings on the WoW Insider Show. So thank you all. What are you guys thankful for this year? You don't have to be from the United States to get in on this sap train.
The Daily Grind: What are you thankful for in MMOs?
Today is Thanksgiving in the United States, a time for celebrating with the family, eating copious amounts of dead birds, and giving thanks to the blessings and bounties that have landed in our lives. In the spirit of the holiday, today we'd like to ask you what you're thankful for in MMOs. Put aside bitterness and frustration for a day to reflect on what makes you thankful to be an MMO gamer and what makes you enjoy the plethora of titles out there. Are you glad that you've found a good guild to hang with, or perhaps you've made one friendship in a game that's changed your life? Have you recently accomplished a major goal in your game that's filled you with contentment? Are you enjoying a wide variety of MMOs and can't imagine being bored? Are you flush with gold, have you six mounts in the garage, and do you lack for nothing? Does the supreme master wordsmithing of Massively keep you excited about games? Today, be thankful. Today, share with us what makes you thankful about MMOs right now. And please have some pie -- we really made too much. 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!
OnLive giving thanks to its Founding Members with free MicroConsoles
Have you been riding the OnLive bangwagon from the start? If so, you'll want to heed this little Thanksgiving note from the company, which is offering a free MicroConsole to its early cloud gaming service users -- whom it dubs Founding Members -- provided they've bought licenses for at least two games in their time. The diminutive TV adapter typically costs $99, but qualifying Members will be able to get it for free if they pre-order it now, though they will have to spring for covering delivery costs. As to the more timid among you who only ever bought the one PlayPass, OnLive will let you have a free Full PlayPass (equivalent to a free game) in the place of the hardware. So, whichever way you slice it, it's good to be first.
Redeem double XP in Red Dead Redemption this weekend
We really wanted to tie the double XP offer in Red Dead Redemption to Thanksgiving in a thematic way, but there's little in common between the two things. They celebrate different periods of American history, and shooting a bunch of banditos and varmints is pretty far away from ... not dying of starvation. Actually, there is one nice way to connect the two -- the "gluttony" theme, but Rockstar done already used it in its announcement of the event, which runs from Thursday through Sunday. "Stuff Yourself with 4 Days of Red Dead Redemption Double XP." So clever! That leaves us with, like, "this deal is no turkey!" We're going to go cry into a pecan pie now. Enjoy some RDR this weekend.
[Updated] Massively's big fat Black Friday roundup
Can you feel the love? The food comas? The day of sitting around napping while the kids sneak into the kitchen for another piece of pie? As you can see from the holiday e-card we've gotten, the gorging has already started in certain MMOs. However, for the rest of us who aren't virtual-demented-clown versions of Mr. Creosote, the promise of great deals looms once the turkey and pie are dispensed with. As we here at Massively are always on the lookout for a good deal, we've rounded up some MMO and hardware deals worth putting on your wish list. Join us behind the break for some of the best 100% frosting-covered-clown-free bargains we've found. Also, if you spot anything particularly tasty in terms of sale prices, be sure to let us all know in comments! [Updated] Switched the image out due to unintended offense, and adding more deals in as we find them!
It came from the Blog: Join us for Pilgrim's Bounty
Even though our world has been shattered, we still gotta eat, right? So it's time for the annual Pilgrim's Bounty party with the <It came from the Blog> family of guilds. When: Saturday, Nov. 27, at 12:30 p.m. EST (9:30 a.m. PST, 10:30 a.m. realm time) for the pre-event mixer and 1 p.m. EST for the actual event Where: The entrance to Silvermoon City on Zangarmarsh (US-PvE-H) Who: Any level Horde character is welcome. You may want to have some cash on your character for the purpose of purchasing souvenirs, cooking training or other event-related items. How: Ask any member of <Blogling> for an invite if you are not already in one of our guilds What: Food fight! ... among other things. As usual, I will be streaming the event. We'll have a separate event chat just for the occasion, and all except funsuckers are welcome to join us. Please join us on Zangarmarsh (US-PvE-H) in <It came from the Blog>. Guild ranks of Blog Lurker or above can invite, so /whisper Robiness or any online member. You are all welcome as long as you play by our simple rules -- basically, don't be a funsucker! Visit the guild FAQ for more details.
TUAW's Daily App: Chow Thanksgiving Dinner Coach
It's the day before Thanksgiving, and you've agreed to have the family over for dinner tomorrow, complete with a turkey and fixings and everything. But you just realized that you don't actually have any idea how to cook a turkey (and it probably won't fit in the microwave). Not to worry. CBS Interactive's Chow Thanksgiving Dinner Coach has you covered. This free iPhone app will run you through groceries and recipes for a few of Thanksgiving's most famous dishes, including that turkey, the stuffing, potatoes, and cranberries, all the way down to pumpkin pie. Not only does it have recipes and shopping lists, there's even a multi-day timeline to walk you through exactly how everything should be done. If you're old hand at serving Thanksgiving, you'll probably find this a little too simple; it really walks you through step by step. But if this is your first year hosting the party, and you're a little unsure of what to do without some constant guidance from your iPhone, the Chow app is a great (and free) place to start.
US Cellular: buy a smartphone this week, get $150 toward your future bills
Seems like Black Friday is nearly obsolete, doesn't it? You know how it goes on Thanksgiving week these days: there's no shortage of deals to be had from most of the wireless carriers in the country, but US Cellular's angle here is a little different. Rather than doing limited-time discounts or buy-one, get-one-free offers on particular models, they're going to flip you a $150 credit good toward your future bills when you add a line (or start a new individual plan) with a smartphone like the LG Apex, pictured, that just rolled out last week. After taxes and fees, that should give you roughly two months of free service if you pick the phone up alongside US Cellular's newish Primary Plus plan that includes 450 minutes, unlimited messaging, and 5GB of data -- enough to get you into 2011 without a bill. Should make enjoying your turkey just a little easier, we figure. The promo runs through next Monday, November 29; follow the break for the full press release.
Turkeys invade Kitsu Saga, gravy and stuffing to follow
Kitsu Saga's dance card is pretty darn full this month. Following its commercial release on October 28th, the free-to-play title has rolled out a series of intriguing events, including this past week's content update, called Hostile Territory. Hostile Territory brought the level cap up to 60, introduced second-tier mastery skills, and added five dungeons and four zones. As if that wasn't enough, a full-fledged invasion of turkeys is covering the land in Butterball fury, and nobody is safe from their wrath. In Aeria Games' own words, "Avian demons from another dimension have infiltrated a few of our dungeons seeking the flesh of those who have eaten them in the years past." You really can't top that. Avian demons hell-bent for revenge. There should be a movie. Players can protect the land from being (sorry) gobbled up by hunting the demons in Kitsu Saga from November 17th through December 1st. These brave turkey-slaying warriors will be rewarded with special Thanksgiving-themed items. You can read more about the Turkey Invasion at Kitsu Saga.
Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions on PC is Walmart exclusive for Thanksgiving weekend
Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions is getting a PC release right around Thanksgiving this year -- kind of. According to the game's official Facebook page, the North American PC version will only be available at Walmart over the Thanksgiving weekend, which means if you want it, you'll have to brave the unwashed crowds to get it (or just send the scariest member of your family). After that first weekend, it'll presumably go on sale elsewhere, so you can wait the extra week if you so choose. The rest of the world doesn't have to deal with any exclusivity agreements -- the PC version will be on sale in Australia and Asia on November 24, and in Europe on November 26. [Thanks, Steve]
iTunes Connect will be open over Thanksgiving weekend
A few weeks ago it was reported that iTunes Connect would be closed over Thanksgiving weekend and the Christmas holiday. While the closure wouldn't affect consumers who want to shop for apps, it would affect developers who wanted to submit new apps or change prices of their apps during that period. iTunes Connect had been closed for a number of days over Christmases past, but the Thanksgiving closure was one that irked a lot of devs as it came during Black Friday and Cyber Monday -- the four day weekend that is the traditional start off to the US holiday shopping season. To the relief of developers everywhere, Apple last night notified iOS devs that iTunes Connect will be closing for Christmas between December 23-28, but made no mention of a Thanksgiving weekend closure. This means that developers can still adjust prices of their apps on those days to entice holiday app shoppers, submit new apps, and don't have to worry about a Top Apps list freeze during the Thanksgiving weekend.
