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Some Assembly Required: Virtual world roundup for 2014 and beyond
Just over two years ago there was a great disturbance, as if millions (or so) of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. Yes, something terrible had happened: a beloved virtual world was destroyed. And that left a number of sandbox refugees looking for a new place to call home. At that time, Some Assembly Required offered a roundup of the then available virtual worlds that could possibly offer accommodation, depending on what qualities players most desired in their games. But as things are wont to, they changed; a lot can happen in the MMOverse in 24 months, from additional features in existing games to new games to the loss of more worlds. So it's time to update this list of virtual worlds to reflect 2014 and beyond. Take a look and see what titles or titles-to-be have the sandbox features that best make a game a home for you.
Jukebox Heroes: Eleven MMO soundtracks you can get for free
Collecting MMO soundtracks is a scattered, scavenger-like experience. Releasing video game soundtracks isn't exactly high up on studio and publisher to-do lists (although we're seeing more love from digital stores), so whether or not a title will get a music release is really a crapshoot. What does get released is never in the same place twice: Some game soundtracks are released as special editions only, some only as CDs, some as full MP3 album releases, some directly from the composer, some are buried on websites, and so on. So I'm constantly looking everywhere trying to beef up my MMO soundtrack library, and as a result I've uncovered several scores that the studios are giving away for free. I'm all over free (legal) music, especially when it's in my area of interest! If you've been looking to start an MMO soundtrack collection or are looking to add to what you have, I've put together a list of 11 MMO scores that you can get today free of charge. Sound good? It does to me!
MMO Blender: Eliot's rock odyssey
I'm upset with bards in MMOs. Don't get me wrong, I like the fact that they exist. But every single game that features bards uses them wrong. The bard is always a back-line character, someone who sits in the back and heals people through gently strumming on a lute. And that depresses me, because I want to see some bards that actually rock. I want to see some music used offensively. I want to have the option of making my bard kill things through careful use of sweet riffs. You can say it sounds ridiculous, but tell me that it's somehow more ridiculous than having a bard heal you via magical singing and I will call you a liar. So let's go for it. Let's dedicate an entire MMO to bards who aren't about muzak and nurturing new age songs, but bards that are going to defeat things through the unmitigated power of rock. My only regret is that this is a week too late for Rocktober.
Free for All: Ryzom - when a server merge feels right
I wonder what you readers thought when you read about Ryzom's latest issues. If you've been playing for a long time, you'll feel a sense of deja vu as yet another server merge or account tweak is being forced on the playerbase. If you're not familiar with the game (why haven't you tried it yet?), then it's likely the recent announcement of server merges and character wipes was a sure sign of failure. Ah, failure: the go-to word for those who don't want to investigate the normal goings-on in the MMO world. MMOs, especially indies, can leap from owner to owner and server to server quite easily. It's not unusual to say the least. Ryzom has been through more of these changes than I care to recall, but the core game and long list of veteran characters have remained -- that is, until the developer announced that, along with the merge, characters would be wiped. Players flipped out. The forums were filled with intense conversations, and even non-players were astonished. Consider the Darkfall announcement by contrast. Some Darkfall players are apparently looking forward to the character wipe. But Ryzom is not a FFA PvP title. Roleplayers are very happy in Ryzom; I am one of them. Luckily the developers tweaked the decision, and now I have been playing on my old character, back in the world of Atys. Was the decision a good one? I think so.
Ryzom allowing players to keep subbed characters
Folks upset by the announced changes in Ryzom that included complete character wipes will be happy to know that Winchgate has heard your pleas. Players with active subscriptions at the closing of the current servers will be allowed to keep their characters! This includes name, appearance, levels, and skill bricks for all characters on the account. Players who prefer a fresh start instead will also be able to do so. To facilitate this change and give players more time to win starter packs, the server merge has been postponed for a week and will now occur on Saturday, September 29th at 6:00 p.m. EDT. You can read more about the server merges in Massively's exclusive interview.
Exclusive Ryzom interview details player wipes and server merges
If you have been a Ryzom fan as long as I have, you know that the road to Atys has been long and bumpy. Unfortunately, the bumps haven't stopped. Winchgate has just announced that it's planning to merge existing servers and wipe existing characters. That means if you have built characters over these last several years, they will no longer be as they were Massively interviewed Vianney Lecroart, Ryzom's CTO, to ask about what this means for the game and community, so read on for first the official announcement and then Lecroart's comments.
Free for All: Why the unlimited trials of RIFT, WoW, and Ryzom are perfect for me
I think there are some pretty basic but complicated concepts going on behind MMO gaming. There always have been. There's some sort of driving force that makes many of us want to reach that max level or grab every last achievement or (in my case) get to a comfortable level and stay there. I did it in Vanguard: Saga of Heroes: I reached level 32, cast a spell to stop my character from gaining anymore experience, and continued playing and exploring the game. Not only was I tired of leveling, but I knew that if I continued to level, I would probably continue to try to level. Like I said, it's a basic driving force. We all have them inspiring us to play in different ways. I don't want to reach max level. Not really, anyway. I want to have a unique character, one who is fragile in some ways and strong in others. When I do reach higher levels, I start to feel generic and a bit too powerful. I want to have some force stop my character, to give him his own maximum level while others reach the true maximum level. Unlimited free trials have shown me just how fun it is to have a sort-of-max-level character within a game filled with other max levels. It's like playing a different race or class, something unique.
Free for All: Ryzom might still be the most original MMO there is
It seems, even to me, that I tend to dislike more games than I like these days. Not only do I think there's a lack of really good "AAA" titles, but I also find a lot of yucky gameplay in titles from all sizes of developers from all over the world. Yes, I dislike as many indie MMOs, if not more, than AAAs. But the latest title I give the snooty stinkeye to has to be The Secret World. I'm half-kidding and will be reserving much of my opinion for later on after I have played it for longer, but right now, I'm just not blown away by it. I'm not immersed or sucked in as much as I would like to be. That could change, of course. Then I log back in to a game like Ryzom and see just how far things have come. That is to say, not very far. After all, if you really look at what Ryzom does (and you have no excuse; it's free to play to half max-level now), it will sort of depress you that no other games are being made like it nowadays. At least, not exactly.
The Soapbox: This fantasy is far from fantastic
Disclaimer: The Soapbox column is entirely the opinion of this week's writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column. "More innovation!" is the common rallying cry of the disgruntled MMO player. Push forward the genre, build awe-inspiring giant statues instead of sixth grade art projects, do that one magic thing that nobody can agree on to make this genre as fresh and great and interesting as it was. You know, as it was when you first got into these games, that is. For all of the "more innovation!" speeches that I've seen, I never see the one that touches on the most irksome areas of stagnation in the industry, and that is how incredibly lame most MMO fantasy worlds are. Cut 'n' paste, mix and match elements between any two fantasy MMOs, and I guarantee you that nobody would really notice. The truth is that for all their desire to be seen as unique and special, most of these games feature a world carbon copied from each other with minor Mad Lib deviations. Case in point: Have you ever realized just how many of these MMO worlds share almost the same name? Start with T, usually end with A, there you go. Telara. Telon. Tyria. Atreia. Taborea. It doesn't stop there, but it really should. MMO designers need to realize that fantasy is more than just D&D and Tolkien derivations and explore the unlimited scope of what the genre could be.
One Shots: Before and after
Massively reader Drannos earns the One Shots spotlight today, having sent in not one but two Lord of the Rings Online screenshots: a before and after shot of Orthanc, the spire at the center of Isengard that's home to Saruman the White in the game's time period. Drannos writes in, Though I've yet to see the inside of Orthanc, I've been, shall we say, a guest. An involuntary guest. From a distance, it's very impressive, but up close, it's suitably intimidating as well! Having seen it both before and after Saruman's fall, I have to say that it also has an appropriate air of tragedy and despair. Both shots and two more from other MMOs await behind the break!
