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This Week in MMO: Hey guys have you heard about Ilum? edition
Another week is drawing to a close, and that means it's time for yet another This Week in MMO. On this edition of the show, host Gary Gannon, along with guests Mike B and Mike Schaffnit, takes a more-than-adequate amount of time reminding players of the blistering failure that is Star Wars: The Old Republic's Ilum and ponders whether or not any corrective measures will be too little, too late. Meanwhile, En Masse Entertainment is gearing up for the impending beta test and subsequent release of its newly westernized action-focused MMO, TERA. Is the beta test going to be enough to eradicate the vaporware mindset many of the game's fans have gotten into, or will it take more than that to convince players that the game is going to see the light of day sometime in the next couple of millennia? We'll just have to wait and find out. For all this and more, hunker down and click past the cut for this week's installment of This Week in MMO.
This Week in MMO: Lawsuits edition
It's that time again, folks. Gary Gannon and guests Mike B. and Mike Schaffnit bring you this week's edition of This Week in MMO, and today the spotlight is set on the Bethesda-Interplay lawsuit, which was recently resolved in Bethesda's favor. Meanwhile, console gamers everywhere are surely pleased to hear that they won't be left out of Blizzard's upcoming Diablo III, as it was recently confirmed that the game will be making the jump to consoles as well as PC. And finally, to top it all off, the guys have a chat about SOE CEO John Smedley's thoughts on the free-to-play business model and PlanetSide 2's newest trailer. If you've got an hour to kill, just click on past the cut for the full episode.
MMO Community Spotlight: Gamebreaker's Gary Gannon
What would an MMO be without its community? Development is only a fraction of what makes an MMO successful; the passion of its players is what really makes or breaks any massively online game. So we're excited to spotlight those members of the MMO community who we think are particularly passionate about our favorite hobby. If you don't know the name Gary Gannon, you will soon enough. Gary has created or helped create everything from a successful MMO podcast to a social media site for gamers, but he's now looking to boost his Gamebreaker media network into the "CNN or ESPN of gaming" in the near future. Sound like a pipe dream from yet another in the sea of overly enthusiastic game-journalist wannabes? Not if that person has spent his entire adult career actually working for some of the largest news organizations in the U.S. We caught up with Gary to talk about his gaming roots, his passion for the community, and the future of his Gamebreaker network.
This Week in MMO: Ohmigod SWTOR is almost here edition
In this week's edition of This Week In MMO, Gary Gannon and Mike B. are all about Star Wars: The Old Republic. OK, well, maybe not all about it, but the game's head start begins in less than a week, so you can expect plenty of SWTOR commentary. The pair also take some time to talk about Funcom's newly announced zone for The Secret World, the Scorched Desert. The duo also spends some time ruminating on whether or not SWTOR may be the last subscription game we see as more and more games (such as Lineage II) go F2P. TERA's glyph system gets some air time as well, as does the announcement that Final Fantasy XIV is once again levying subscription fees from players. For the full video, click on past the cut.
Hyperspace Beacon: End of beta impressions
I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened. Oh no! Something did happen! Beta testing for Star Wars: The Old Republic ended. A full nine days without SWTOR -- I think our lives are over! (Hopefully, you noted the sarcasm in the last statement.) Yes, it's true that our favorite beta came to an end at 1:03 a.m. EST Monday morning. Appropriately, the last thing posted to general chat was "Keapen bids everyone farewell." We all know that this isn't actually the end; it's truly the beginning of the game. I count myself among the lucky people who were able to play in the beta for an extended period of time. I played through the origin world of all but two classes, and three times I leveled my characters past level 20. (I usually stopped about level 28 so that I would not ruin the ending of the story.) I wanted to get a good feel for all the class stories, so most of my characters got to about about level 15. Once I found out that the beta would end well before early access began, I decided to take in all the classes I could so that I could give you a well-rounded opinion. Follow me beyond the break as I navigate the asteroid field of SWTOR.
This Week In MMO: It's a Secret World to everyone edition
The game is still called The Secret World, but the newest installment of This Week in MMO is all about taking some of the secrecy out of the game. Gary Gannon, joined by Mike Schaffnit and Jason Winter, kicks the show off by talking about all the information found in the latest hands-on preview of the game and reacting to some of the more interesting decisions revealed therein. But as on a late-night television advertisement, just wait -- there's more. After all, Star Wars: The Old Republic just dropped its NDA, and since the show is already about removed bits of secrecy, it would be wrong not to talk about that. The show also digs in to the latest news out of MechWarrior Online; the cast debates whether or not the game will even deserve to maintain the "MMO" label without a persistent world. Click on past the break to see the full show in all its glory!
This Week in MMO: Really? Bigpoint? Edition
Welcome to another super-exciting edition of This Week in MMO. On this episode, host Gary Gannon and a pair of Mikes have a bit of fun with the announcement that Bigpoint will be taking the helm of an MMO based on the super-trendy A Game of Thrones. Meanwhile, is WildStar a theme-park or a sandbox? Well, we don't know, but the TWIMMO guys have a bit to say on the matter. DC Universe Online gets a wild playerbase boost after its transition to free-to-play, and speculation abounds as to whether the upcoming Warhammer 40: Dark Millenium Online MMO could be free to play. For the full show, just jump on past the cut.
This Week in MMO: MechWarrior edition
In this week's TWIMMO, Mike B aka Fony, Josh Allen, and Mike Schaffnit join host Gary Gannon for Gamebreaker.TV's weekly chat about recent MMO stories. They kick things off by pondering how a video stuffed with anti-gay slurs slipped by Blizzard Entertainment (and a lot of the folks in the live crowd, as well) at BlizzCon. They also gush like fanboys about the newly announced F2P MechWarrior Online MMO before spending some airtime on PlanetSide 2, World of Darkness, and RuneScape. Hit the break for the full show!
Hyperspace Beacon: Social gaming
As a roleplayer, I primarily do social things in MMOs. I take on a character, then via local chat, I communicate as if I were a smuggler attempting to swindle a gangster out of a few more credits. However, that's not the only kind of social gaming found in Star Wars: The Old Republic. Group activities of all sorts have sparked friendships that have lasted years. The people I adventure with mostly started in Star Wars Galaxies, then moved to City of Heroes, then went back to Galaxies, and now are headed to SWTOR. Because of the breadth of the internet, we have never met each other in person, but I still consider them close friends. The social dynamics have always been a byproduct of MMOs. However, few online games give direct rewards for being social. In fact, there was a time shortly after the Combat Upgrade when Star Wars Galaxies actually punished players for grouping up by giving less XP. Perhaps the reasoning was that the larger the group, the more mobs players could kill in the same amount of time, but at the time the solo XP far outweighed the loss in group XP. Thankfully, that was eventually fixed. In my recent venture into the SWTOR beta, I noticed several different social activities for which the game rewards players. Follow me past the cut and we will discuss them.
This Week In MMO: Night at the movies edition
This Week In MMO is all about movies: how some games compare to movies and which movies will be made into games. The BioWare doctors hinted at a Mass Effect MMO once again, but what does our panel of hosts think? Mike B, aka Fony of ZAM, believes that the Mass Effect intellectual property is very similar to the movie industry, such that Mass Effect can take a few years of downtime, then just like some movie remakes, bounce back even stronger as an MMO. What about movies becoming MMOs? Jasmine Hruschak, of Gamebreaker's The Sanctum, is scared of any movie becoming a game. Traditionally, these platform conversions are disastrous, according to IRLJasmine. However, Gary Gannon agrees with Avatar director James Cameron's sentiments and believes that the world of the Nav'i could one day be comparable to the world of World of Warcraft. Catch all this and more movie-to-MMO comparisons after the break on Gamebreaker.TV's This Week In MMO!
This Week In MMO: Conspiracy edition
It's a new week; It's a new theme song for This Week In MMO. As you know, every week, Gamebreaker.TV hosts a round-table discussion about the latest news in MMOs, inviting different hosts from different media outlets to share their opinions and speculation. This week, everyone's favorite host, Gary "Bing Bong" Gannon, is joined by Mike "the Chinhawk" B and Jason "Red Shirt" Winter. It would not be an episode of TWIMMO if everyone didn't get tinfoil-hat hair. Starting with speculation revolving around the Star Wars: The Old Republic release-date announcement, two of the panel members were convinced that it was directly related to the Diablo 3 2012-pushback announcement. But that's not the only pushback that had our panelists theorizing. According to Gannon, End of Nations may be feeling the SWTOR pressure, too. The Trion Worlds MMO RTS was recently pushed back to 2012 as well. Keep your aluminum brain-barrier intact because our hosts also believe it is possible that CCP's World of Darkness MMO may be going free-to-play. All of this, plus the biggest question on everyone's mind is answered: Could there be a Kim Kardashian MMO and would there be an oiler profession? Check out the full episode of This Week In MMO after the break!
This Week In MMO: Rated M for mature edition
It's another Thursday, and another week for Gamebreaker.TV's This Week in MMO. What's in store for this installment? Massively's very own Editor-in-Chief Shawn Schuster and Community Manager Rubi Bayer join regular host Gary Gannon in "mature" discussion about MMOs. First up, Gary, Shawn, and Rubi run through the topic of the mature rating in MMOs such as CCP's World of Darkness. Then our intrepid hosts guide us through the magical and technological starting zone for the Asura in Guild Wars 2. Also, saving Metropolis just became cheaper -- free, in fact! Shawn and Rubi discuss DC Universe Online's entry to the free-to-play market. Where is the future of MMO-subscription models going? Freemium? When Shawn spoke to SOE President John Smedley, Smed certainly favored it. Moving on to another action-based game, Rubi reveals TERA's PR speak within its endgame Q&A statements, and Shawn admits that the small raid size in The Secret World isn't quite big enough for him. Catch all that and more in the full Gamebreaker.TV video after the break!
Gamebreaker's This Week in MMO: John Madden edition
Video game enthusiasts, pay attention. Each week, Gary Gannon and the crew at Gamebreaker.TV bring you the latest MMO news with their weekly show called This Week In MMO. The show rotates through a panel of personalities to bring you the latest news and opinions from MMO gaming. Sometimes these panels include reporters from our very own website, like Editor-in-Chief Shawn Schuster and Community Manager Rubi Bayer; even EVE expert Brendan Drain and SWTOR columnist Larry Everett have made appearances on the show. This week, Gary is joined by ZAM's Mike B aka Fony and Hillary "Pokket" Nicole to talk about PlanetSide 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic, subscription models, WildStar, Lord of the Rings Online, Mortal Online, Astronaut the MMO, and why women don't like voiceover. First up: PlanetSide 2 will be free-to-play, and SWTOR may be the last subscription MMO. Is anyone surprised? The panel weighs in on whether WildStar mechanics are more of the same or maybe this game has something new. Mike B and Pokket discuss how LotRO is making Isengard appear more epic. We also find out why Mortal Online territorial control is not for the faint of heart. Lastly, is anyone interested in being an astronaut anymore? If you like intelligent, fun discussion about the latest in MMOs (in video format), you should check out the recorded version of This Week In MMO right after the cut, or live every Wednesday evening!
The Guild Counsel: Why The Raid is worth seeing
Over the weekend, Gary Gannon from Gamebreaker.TV hosted a unique event in the world of MMOs: a film premiere, complete with fancy suits and ties and even an afterparty (albeit in the form of a chat room). The film is The Raid, which followed the World of Warcraft guild Double Dragons as it worked through the raid content from Wrath of the Lich King. There has been a lot of feedback from those who saw the premiere, but it's been decidedly mixed so far. Furthermore, viewers had such strong reactions to certain parts of the documentary that director Kevin Michael Johnson made a post on the site to try to address some of the criticism. But is the mixed review simply the cynical gamer at his best, or is it legit? In this week's Guild Counsel, we'll take a closer look at The Raid, and I'll explain why I think it's definitely worth seeing.
Hyperspace Beacon: Podcast race
For a game that has yet to release, the number of people who closely follow Star Wars: The Old Republic astounds me still. If you follow the Twitter feed, you will practically see a new fan site pop up daily. Granted, a good chunk of these sites fizzle away as quickly they are built -- it's kind of the nature of the beast. Running a fansite takes a lot of work, and most people who set out to make a fan site are not ready to make that kind of commitment. Having run fan sites in the past, I can tell you that even when you think you're ready, you're not ready. Although it's not unique for a game to have a podcast revolving around it, Star Wars: The Old Republic is gifted with a very large audience, and with that an exorbitant number of fans willing to devote time to making a podcast. We have already mentioned the podcasts of Darth Hater, TOROcast, and Mos Eisley Radio in the past, but since then there has been slue of new podcast that are giving these other guys a run for their money. After the break, I will introduce you to some of the newer shows that I enjoy or maybe one of those those who I believe has really stepped up the game since the last time I've talked about them. Start up the holoprojector and follow me!
World of Warcraft's mad cow against the naked orcs
If you've played World of Warcraft for long enough, you know about Gamon. An NPC in Orgrimmar for a relatively standard rogue quest, Gamon's life became a perpetual cycle of death shortly after players found that he could be attacked even by his fellow Horde members. So for Cataclysm, Blizzard Entertainment proved its sense of humor borders on sociopathy by making Gamon a max-level elite who hits like a 747 in a nose dive if anyone is dumb enough to attack him. As it turns out, 300 naked orcs are precisely dumb enough to attack him. Again, if you've played World of Warcraft for long enough, watching huge player spectacles is not a new experience. But it's rare that you can get this many people to band together in an effort to kill an enemy whose death does not and has never offered any rewards beyond a death animation. Gary Gannon and the Gamebreaker TV crew did just that as part of their Legendary podcast Cataclysm launch party last week. Click on past the cut for something everyone can enjoy -- half-naked muscular green men stabbing at an enraged bipedal cow.
Massively.com and GameBreaker.TV: Coming to you live from GDC Online!
GDC Online (formerly GDC Austin) is rapidly approaching, and we here at Massively.com are making sure that we're on the front lines of coverage from the event. We have plenty of interviews lined up with a huge variety of companies, and we're teaming up with our friends at GameBreaker.TV to deliver live coverage of the event via GameBreaker's live show at the Vivox booth! To get you excited for the coming conference, we've provided the list of companies we're meeting with just after the break! The list isn't fully extensive, as we'll be covering a variety of panels as well, but it will give you an idea of whom we're meeting with. Plus, keep an eye out for a link to the live GameBreaker.TV broadcast on our right-hand sidebar! Their coverage of the event will be starting on Wednesday, October 6th at 12:00 p.m. EDT!
