troy
Latest
Alt1 Games shutting down Troy Online
After only three months of commercial operation, Troy Online is going to be discontinuing operations as of November 30th. According to the official notice, within the short span of time that the game has been available, Alt1 Games has noticed a level of bugs and errors that the developers considered unacceptable, leading to the decision to shut down service at the end of the month and re-launch the game at a later date. The obvious question for players, of course, becomes "what about the stuff that I bought out of the cash shop?" If you still have remaining coins for the in-game store or unused cash shop items in your character's inventory, you are eligible for a refund by contacting the customer support center by November 22nd, with refunds being credited between the 23rd and the 24th. It's a sad whimper for the game's operation to end on, but at least players won't be left out in the cold with any unused money.
New war system coming to Troy Online this week
A new "large-scale" war system is coming to Troy Online this week, and the October 15th update is the biggest yet for ALT1 Games' free-to-play fantasy title. The latest company PR blast touts the Invasion War system, which allow players to sack an opponent's capital city. The new mechanics include the ability for "all users to join the war at the time through the Island of Dispute," and players may then attack various holy relics stored in the opposing capital. The victors will receive both increased experience buffs and improved item drop rates. ALT1 intends to release new Troy content updates on a weekly basis, and the company says that this latest patch will enable players to "enjoy a truly brutal MMORPG" experience. [ALT1 Games press release]
Troy Online opens new battlefield, announces another big update
Significant changes are coming to Troy Online over the next few weeks, and a new press release from ALT1Games has the details. A "big scale update will include a balance optimization [...] and new content for higher level users on October 13th," according to the news blurb. Prior to that, a new battlefield will open up and bring with it a number of tweaks relative to the existing battlefields. First and foremost, any player of any level can participate. The victors will receive a reward buff that affects their entire faction; conquering the battlefield involves holding the capture point for five minutes if you're on the attacking team. The defenders, on the other hand, have to stand their ground for 20 minutes. ALT1 remains mum on the new October content for now, but the battlefield updates went live yesterday. We'll keep you updated with fresh information as it's released. [Source: ALT1Games press release]
Troy Online launching tomorrow
ALT1Games has just issued a press release regarding Troy Online's official release date (it's tomorrow, August 19th, if you're curious). The free-to-play fantasy MMO has been in open beta testing since August 12th, and aside from a little login server switcheroo, players will be getting the same game experience when they join at release. The devs have simplified the registration process in an attempt to make the game accessible to more users, and you can now connect and play without signing up for a full membership. All it takes is your registration on the Troy Online homepage and you'll be free to enjoy the wholesale fantasy bloodletting on display as well as the title's traditional MMO classes and mythology-inspired setting. ALT1Games is also running a few "final test events," and more information on these -- as well as how to sign up and download the game -- is available at the official Troy Online website.
Troy Online releases official open beta schedule
A few weeks ago we brought you Troy Online's open beta announcement. Today ALT1 Games has released the free-to-play fantasy title's official beta schedule, and new players can get their hands on the game for the first time on August 12th at 11:00 a.m. PDT. The testing period will last for one week, culminating in Troy's launch on August 19th. If you're an existing beta tester, you'll need to download the new open beta client due to the substantial graphical tweaks as well as changes to class balance and PvP battlefields. Troy is based on traditional Trojan War mythology, with some creative license involving the god Apollo and a second round of conflict thrown into the mix. The official Troy website is your gateway to acquiring the game client, and you might also want to stop by the beta announcement page as well as the technical forum (particularly if you're a previous tester looking for manual uninstall info).
Troy Online announces open beta
We may be smack dab in the middle of the dog days of summer, but there's plenty of cool stuff to do inside if you're into MMORPGs. The latest diversion takes the form of Troy Online's open beta. While there's a conspicuous absence of Brad Pitt and Orlando Bloom, there are three traditional fantasy classes, 49 levels, and plenty of excuses to engage in free-to-play PvE and PvP. ALT1 Games is kicking off Troy's open beta phase on August 12th, and the testing period will be used primarily to finalize features, balance, and latency issues. The open beta will also see all quests and quest arcs, the maximum level cap, and all available zones introduced to the live game in order to get ready for the impending commercial release. You can read more about Troy, as well as register for an account and a beta slot, at the game's official website.
Venturer's UK-bound SHD7001 to come with seven free flicks
Just about every other high-definition disc player out there is attached to some "free movie" promotion, so it's not all that shocking to hear that Venturer's UK-bound SHD7001 won't be any different. Aside from hearing that the still unpriced player will indeed be available initially in the UK through QVC on December 29th, those with this atop their must-have list can also look forward to quite a few extras. Reportedly, the package will include HD DVD titles Hulk and Troy, a free HDMI cable and a voucher that allows buyers to receive five additional movies gratis courtesy of the European HD DVD Promotional Group. It's noted that customers will have until January 31, 2008 to select their flicks from a predetermined list, but we suppose we'll have to wait until a price tag gets attached to this thing before figuring out if it's worth picking up.[Via Pocket-Lint, thanks HD4ME]
Blu-ray movie releases for the week of Sept. 16th
It looks like Sony and the rest of the Blu-ray crew are ensuring our feelings aren't still hurt from that fiasco a few weeks ago as we're getting 13 titles to choose from this week. Troy: Director's Cut Smallville: The Complete Sixth Season Alexander Revisted: The Final Cut A Few Good Men The Condemned We Are Marshall Deliverance House of 1000 Corpses Viva Las Vegas The Best of Blu-ray, Vol. 1 The Best of Blu-ray, Vol. 2 The Best of Blu-ray, Vol. 3 Jailhouse Rock Not only does this week's releases feature a great assortment of movies any guy would love, it also includes three volumes of The Best of Blu-ray, which feature four classic movies in each set. What really makes these collections great, though, is the incredible savings you get. Each set is currently on sale at $58 at Amazon - that's like getting two movies free!
Omniscient webcam to deter distance education cheating
We're fairly sure that none of you angels out there enrolled in distance education courses have ever considered sneaking a peek in the textbook or seeing what Google had to say about a perplexing mid-term question, but for Troy University students, a new device is being deployed to make absolutely certain. The webcam-based unit was crafted by Software Secure, and simultaneously freezes the test taker's computer so he / she can only access the test module and records both audio and video whilst flagging "questionable" movements that the instructor can review for unpropitious behavior. Thankfully for those of us not enrolled at Troy, it doesn't look like any other institutions have hopped on board just yet, but if you've grown reliant on computer assistance to get you those As Cs, we wouldn't put off graduating for much longer.
