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TERA Producer Chris Hager leaves En Masse
TERA Producer Chris Hager has left the fields of action combat and big-ass monsters, according to the studio. A PR rep released the following statement to Massively: "Yes, we can confirm Chris Hager is no longer with En Masse Entertainment. We wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors." Bluehole Studios' Harns Kim first made mention of Hager's departure on his Twitter feed. It is unclear whether Hager left of his own volition or was let go. Prior to working for En Masse, Hager was with NCsoft, developing titles like Guild Wars, Lineage II, and Aion. [Thanks to Maniac for the tip!]
TERA's Chris Hager explains server merges and game health
Like a lot of MMOs released in recent years, TERA launched with a bang and then dwindled, forcing En Masse to first lay off staff back in August and then lay off servers in preparation for yesterday's realm merges. And yet the studio seems determined to keep the game alive in the West, promising content updates and small-group, impromptu flash events run by event staff, the likes of which MMO players rarely see outside of old-school games like Ultima Online. Curious about what all these news bytes portend for the game's future, we sat down with En Masse Entertainment Producer Chris Hager to discuss the reasoning behind the server merges, the effect of the layoffs on the game, and whether TERA might just be the next title to go free-to-play.
TERA's staff planning on more events and more content updates
TERA has consolidated to three servers today, but the latest dispatch from producer Chris Hager doesn't dwell on that. No, this dispatch is all about what the game has in the pipeline, starting with more events for players to enjoy. Hager lays out plans the team has made for the fall, like new small-scale events run by the staff on a more regular basis alongside weekend events targeting larger groups of players. The update doesn't mention dates, but it does give several ideas of event types (random races or scavenger hunts as flash events, increased dungeon rewards for weekend events). Hager also stresses that the game is rolling out further content updates starting with the return of crafting quests and a large-scale Berserker update. There's another large patch due out this fall as well as significant changes to Enchanting, and there are undisclosed further projects being developed jointly by En Masse Entertainment and Bluehole Studios. Players looking for more details can glean a few from the official letter.
TERA producer's letter discusses new launcher, development progress
A new holiday edition producer's letter has been published on the official TERA site, and in it Chris Hager announces that he is currently using the studio's new launcher to log in to the game. Why is this such a big deal? Hager explains that it "represents a huge leap for us here at En Masse." He goes on to tell how, over the past year, the team has worked "directly and intimately with the Bluehole development team to... add features that appeal to western gamers." But why is the new launcher so important? Because it's one of the features that the studio built from the ground up. Hager also notes that the game has been in alpha for "about 4 months" and that this week is the last week of alpha testing. He says the team is also looking forward to "the next step in TERA's journey toward launch next spring." Here's to hoping that next step is a beta test. For the full letter, just click on over to the official TERA site.
TERA's Korean version influenced by Western feedback
While we're still impatiently drumming our fingers waiting for TERA to release in the West, it turns out that our feedback is causing real change in the game's live Korean edition. According to a forum post by Producer Chris Hager, Bluehole Studio has taken several suggestions passed along by En Masse and is incorporating them into the live version of the game. Hager says that this is "just a taste" of how the two developers are interacting and collaborating. On November 24th, the next big Korean update will hit the servers, and with it come the implemented suggestions from En Masse's fans. This update will include a dungeon finder system, rest XP, group XP bonuses, modified PvP rules, a guild battle system, and "more skill diversity through new master Glyphs." Oh, and there will be the ability to sit because roleplayers would be lost otherwise. "This is a very exciting time for us as we are starting to see what true collaboration looks like," Hager writes, "and it also shows that you guys do carry a voice with us. The best part is that there is more to come."
TERA podcast highlights convention news
Episode five of the official TERA podcast is in the can, and it's also available for your listening pleasure on the TERA website. The show finds En Masse community manager Evan "Scapes" Berman talking with producer Chris Hager and COO Patrick Wyatt for approximately 20 minutes. The subject? Convention season, of course, and the gang talks about everything from the TERA Gamescom demo to the preparation necessary to convey a certain message to members of the gaming media. The trio also mentions the challenges inherent in answering difficult questions on stage at a major convention, and Wyatt even chats briefly about his experiences working on Blizzard's seminal StarCraft RTS.
PAX 2011: TERA producers reveal server vs. server endgame content
This year's PAX Prime doesn't feature an En Masse Entertainment booth for TERA, but the company did host an informational shindig for journalists and fans at its offices in downtown Seattle over the weekend. Producers Chris Hager and Stefan Ramirez ran the show, and the presentation focused heavily on the action MMO aspects as well as the game's depth. The show started with a repeat of the recent Castanic healer video, and from there Hager and Ramirez set about profiling the game's mechanical aspects (including the combat, glyph, and crystal systems). The presentation was geared towards folks who haven't really kept up with TERA, as there wasn't much discussed that we haven't known about for a while. Aside from the action talking points, we also got bits about story, the details on the political and vanarch systems, and some info on the argons. En Masse also trotted out the first mention of its plans for server vs. server combat. The system is designed to provide additional endgame content via PvE and PvP. "It's going to have players from other servers coming to your territory, on your server, and invading your space," Hager explained. He went on to mention how guilds will need to ally with one another to repel the invaders, and if the alliance proves strong enough, take the fight back to the invaders' home turf. En Masse was very coy about the details on this new system, and we expect more information will be forthcoming as we move toward TERA's spring 2012 release date. Finally, we managed some quality hands-on time with the game during the event, so check in with us periodically this weekend and we'll bring you a detailed report. Massively's on the ground in Seattle during the weekend of August 26-28, bringing you all the best news from PAX Prime 2011. Whether you're dying to know more about SWTOR, Guild Wars 2, City of Heroes, or any MMO in between, you can bet we'll have it covered!
En Masse delaying TERA launch to 2012 [Updated]
En Masse Entertainment has finally broken its silence about TERA's launch window, and there's both good and bad news for fans of the upcoming fantasy game. The bad news is that there's still no definitive launch date. The good news is that the time window has been narrowed considerably. In a new press release issued this morning, En Masse said that TERA will release sometime in the spring of 2012. That should put to rest months of speculation as to whether the game will reach North American shores in 2011 (as well as whether it will be competing for launch customers with The Old Republic, which BioWare expects to release prior to the end of the year). En Masse publishing vice president Chris Lee commented on the launch delay, indicating that the extra time will result in a more polished product. "The game's action combat and depth has generated a lot of interest, and we are committed to making sure every aspect of the game lives up to our standard of quality," he said. [Update: Producer Chris Hager has penned a post on the official TERA website that offers a bit more info. In a nutshell, the North American client will enter alpha testing "later this year," with beta scheduled for early 2012.]
TERA E3 recap video explains political system
E3 2011 is a distant memory, but En Masse is still getting a bit of mileage out of the event thanks to a newly released TERA video compilation. The trailer shows off portions of the closed-doors media presentation from this month's trade show, and the footage is heavy on action combat and lush sequences featuring the game's gorgeous visuals. The clip also devotes a good portion of its running time to the recently announced political system, and producers Chris Hager and Stefan Ramirez fire off some pretty tantalizing soundbytes relating to player interaction and the possibility of affecting the game world. "That means getting votes, buying votes, smearing your opponent, taking out your competition, raising taxes, making tons of cash money, controlling your province, putting players in prison, running your own events, managing your own towns, and just doing whatever you want," Ramirez says. Staying in power to continue doing whatever you want is the trick, of course, and the video spends a good amount of time detailing ways to maintain control over your province. While it all sounds pretty spectacular, it also raises plenty of questions (like, how is all of that going to matter in an MMO that lacks serious consequences in terms of a death penalty or gear/stat loss?). Whatever the answers, we can't wait to learn more. Check out the full video after the cut.
The MMO Report: Nerd-flu edition
In this week's MMO Report, Casey comes to us directly from E3 2011, where he verbally spars with a variety of game developers while battling off hunger, fatigue, and nerd-flu. Watch Casey's stats slowly dwindle as he confronts the many dangers of E3, such as overstimulation and the dreaded natural light. The first stop on Casey's E3 journey is an interview with Square Enix's Frank Fonseca, with whom he discusses the upcoming tactical MMORPG Wakfu. He gets a few details on the political system and discovers how tactical combat plays out in an MMO space. Next, he gets some face-time in with Producer Thomas Farrer and Creative Director Torfi Frans Olafsson from CCP, who tell Casey all about how the interplay between EVE Online and upcoming DUST 514 will work and why DUST 514 is different from other console shooters. From there he scurries off to En Masse's booth to have a chat with TERA's North American Producer Chris Hager, who discusses TERA's big political system reveal as well as the name of his potential political party. Last stop on the Casey-train is BioWare's booth, where Casey parleys with Star Wars: The Old Republic's Senior Live Producer Blaine Christine. Blaine gives Casey the low-down on Tatooine, the newly introduced player vehicles, and what players can expect in regard to The Old Republic's much-hyped story. For the full video, sadly lacking in the Uncle Casey's mailbag department, jump on past the cut.
TERA producer: Getting to endgame doesn't take a lot of time
Episode three of the official TERA podcast is a wrap, and community director Jason "BrotherMagneto" Mical sits down with En Masse producers Brian Knox and Chris Hager to talk voice acting, E3 2011, and the recently concluded community play event. There's also a few interesting blurbs related to TERA's endgame, both in terms of reaching it and what it entails. Hager discusses the challenges of recording "greet and goodbye" dialogue snippets for quest-givers as well as more involved cinematic presentations that will occur throughout the TERA progression experience. Knox jumps right to fan concerns about TERA's leveling curve, saying that it doesn't have much in common with your typical grindfest. "We're putting a lot of focus on adding more content to the endgame and making sure there's lots to do at max level. Getting to max level in TERA, it doesn't take a lot of time. We've made sure that progress is fast and efficient," Knox explains. So what is there to do at endgame? Knox says that dungeons and boss fights will play a significant role, and En Masse will be tweaking the difficulty levels to continually challenge players.
Aion producer letter talks account security, transfers
Aion's been getting a decent amount of press this fall, first for September's Assault on Balaurea expansion and lately due to the uproar surrounding the 2.1 patch. Among other things, 2.1 substantially increased the game's loot drop rates, leading to huzzahs on one side of the aisle and raised eyebrows on the other. Not to be outdone, NCsoft producer Chris Hager recently posted an open letter on the official Aion website, summarizing both the aforementioned changes and hinting at a few things to come for the world of Atreia. Hager gives a heads up regarding the final day for the free character transfers that have been ongoing since the summer. January 5th is last call, so make sure you've got your Elyos or Asmo where you want him. Hager also mentions the fact that NCsoft is taking steps to increase account security, an issue that has plagued Aion since its launch in 2009. "We are stepping up our efforts and introducing a new secondary PIN system to Aion that will provide an additional layer of security to our players. This service will go live on December 1, 2010, and we will post a full FAQ in the coming days explaining exactly how it will work," he writes.
NCsoft to probe Aion players' thoughts on rifting
Aion's recent expansion, Assault on Balaurea, ushered in a host of welcome changes, ranging from new zones to frightfully cute pets. Rifting, on the other hand, suffered tremendously. But the folks at NCsoft want Aion players to know their cries have not fallen on deaf ears. In a nutshell, rifts are portals that randomly open between the homelands of the Asmodians and the Elyos, allowing members of each faction to venture into the other's territory for some PvP action. The original system allowed higher level players to pop into lower level enemy zones and gank the heck out of people. Patch 1.9 introduced some restrictions to prevent ganking, but Balaurea just about broke the system by debuffing rifters into oblivion. The developers know players are upset -- and they have a plan.
Aion: Assault on Balaurea zone trailer -- Gelkmaros
Last week, NCsoft gave us a peek at one of the new zones in Aion's upcoming Assault on Balaurea expansion; today, we tour the Asmodian occupied land -- Gelkmaros. With fissures ripped in the very land itself and areas devastated by ancient battles (including the ancient city of Maravas), the Asmodians will find their stronghold treacherous, but not without surprising new allies. Stranded in Balaurea since before the Cataclysm, the Reian tribe knew nothing of the war between the Asmodians and the Elyos until recently. These Daevas who stand watch over Subterranea, home of the evil Dragonbound, enter into a tentative alliance with their lost brothers and sisters from Asmodae. As hostile as the land and creatures may be, the Asmodians must be ever vigilant to defend both the Vorgaltem Citadel and Crimson Temple against the assaults of the Balaur and Elyos forces, lest they lose the ability to travel with in their enemy's stronghold. Once again, Massively asked Chris Hager, Producer of Aion, NCsoft West, a few questions about this new area. Fly past the cut and through a video tour of Gelkmaros, then check out Chris' answers.
Aion: Assault on Balaurea zone trailer -- Inggison
Today, NCsoft unveils a video tour of Inggison, a new zone introduced in Aion's upcoming expansion, Assault on Balaurea. No longer confined to Atreia on the interior of the planet, players will venture forth to the lands on the outside. Filled with a variety of new plant and wildlife, Inggison is the Elyos foothold in Balaurea. Even as they bask in direct sunlight (a treat not possible in the sundered lands of Asmodae and Elysea), Daevas in Aion will encounter new foes -- such as the Balaur-worshippers of Undirborg -- and fight old ones, as the Asmodians try to claim the Temple of Scales and Altar of Avarice Fortresses. After watching the video, Massively asked Chris Hager, Producer of Aion, NCsoft West, a few questions about this new area. Check out the video after the cut, as well as Chris' comments.
Release date announced for Aion 2.0: Assault on Balaurea
Aion's Assault on Balaurea has been a long time coming. We chatted with Lead Producer Chris "Kinslon" Hager back in May, and fans have been scouring the patch notes, but one big question has remained unanswered: When? We got our answer today. NCsoft has announced a September 7th release date for the free digital version of Assault on Balaurea. Boxed copies of the full game containing codes for exclusive in-game pets -- which carry some benefits for their owners -- are also available. Players can purchase those in North America on September 7th and in Europe on September 10th. Check out the Aion site for more details.
Aion producer addresses legion renaming
NCsoft producer Chris "Kinslon" Hager checks in to answer questions on the upcoming Aion server merges via this week's Eye on Community featurette. While NCSoft has explained both name change and item transfer policies in detail, it hadn't yet touched on how the server blending will affect legion names (legion being Aion's equivalent of a traditional MMORPG guild). "Because we have fewer legions than characters, we're able to be more hands-on with legion name collisions. Our customer service team is going through active and inactive legion names, and we will be changing names based on specific criteria (legion size, contribution points, and so on). Similar to how we are handling name changes, if your legion's name is changed, we will be adding a two-letter designation derived from the name of your original server to the end of the legion name and giving your brigade general a legion name change coupon. You'll notice changes to legion names over the next couple of days leading up to the merge," Hager explains. You can read the full feature on the official Aion website.
Aion devs talk 1.9 features in new podcast
If you're an Aion fan and are anxiously awaiting the forthcoming 1.9 patch (and honestly who isn't), you'll want to head over to the European website and check out the recently released patch-centric video podcast. NCsoft producers Chris Hager and Lani Blazier, as well as community manager Andrew Beegle, talk about everything from UI customization, to counter-stun mechanics, to reduced soul healing and travel costs. "We have drastically reduced the prices of soul healing, soul binding, and transportation, and I think players are going to find it's a big win. I know we do internally because it is really expensive to heal your soul, bind to a location, and fly places," Blazier says. The trio also discuss the new equipment rental system and drop hints about a large amount of new quests coming in the update. Check out the full podcast, and don't forget to peruse our exclusive interviews with Chris Hager about 2.0 as well as Aion in general.
Exclusive: Aion's Chris Hager talks 2.0
Aion news is coming fast and furious of late, as Massively brings you another exclusive interview with Lead Producer Chris "Kinslon" Hager. Last week we spoke about the 1.9 update, currently slated to hit the live servers in early June, as well as the general state of the game. This week we chat about the monstrous 2.0 patch due in the Fall, as well as take the wraps off the new teaser trailer direct from Korea. Finally, we've got some exclusive screenshots of the new content in action. Whew. Got all that? Good. Check out the screenshot gallery below, and fly on over to page two for the interview and video. %Gallery-93517% Page 2 of 3 >>
Exclusive Aion lead producer interview
Aion fans have been on a roller coaster ride of late, what with the recent announcement of the launch date for the highly anticipated 1.9 patch, as well as teasers regarding 2.0 potentially coming to America in the Fall. Tempering the good news was the announcement of pending server mergers, which are rarely regarded as a good thing in the player community. In light of all the goings on, we were able to sit down with NCsoft's Chris Hager, Lead Producer for the western version of Aion, for some frank questions about the game, the company behind it, and the future. Fly past the cut for the full interview.
