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MMObility: Perfect World's new mobile lineup
When I first heard that Perfect World was finally moving into the mobile space, I was excited and a bit worried. The gaming giant publishes a wide variety of games but tends to stick with classic, three-dimensional, client-based MMOs and has even rescued or bought out a few "Western" titles. If you want a publisher with a ton of different F2P games to play, Perfect World is a solid one. So how will it tackle the mobile world? Will it offer as much variety as it does with its other games? Will these mobile games be MMOs or pseudo-MMOs that are attached to social networks? I was able to snag some answers from Fabian Pierre Nicolas, General Manager of Mobile for Perfect World Entertainment.
MMObility: Motion Twin's Mush conjures delightfully paranoid gameplay
If you are a regular reader of mine (thank you if you are), then you know how much I enjoy Motion Twin, the studio behind one of my favorite games, Die2Nite. I fell in love with Die2Nite over the last year or two; the game has grown into an amazing and sometimes scary experience, and it does it all with very little imagery. Motion Twin is in fact a one-stop-shop for many unique games that come from many different genres. So when I heard about Mush, the latest multiplayer title from the same developer, I was naturally excited. For the record, Die2Nite and Mush are both pseudo-MMOs or MMO-like games; make no mistake. But as I have pointed out before, the gameplay is so intriguing and smart that MMO developers would be wise to pay attention to the designs. Take Die2Nite and set it in space, tweak it, and make it more immediate, and you might begin to understand how Mush plays. Let's look into it -- just remember that in space, no one can hear you scheme!
MMObility: Dragon Eternity's Sea Battles promise glory (if you get in)
Dragon Eternity is a unique multi-platform MMO that promises some epic content. It's epic, sure, but hard to get to as well. Even with a press account and a character that already had some decent gear and cash-shop funds on him, I found myself struggling to keep up with the grind of the game. The fact is that the game can easily be defined as a grinder, a game that pushes players through piles of monsters in the hope of killing even more monsters in the eventual hope of gaining a level or a new piece of loot. It's not as hopeless as it sounds. The game is actually quite fun and great to look at. I love its painted-scene-styled atmosphere. A player can zoom out and see that she is actually inside a painting that acts as a zone. Monsters and NPCs wander around the painting, and there are even clickable events and nodes for gathering. The music and sound are top-notch, and everything works across every platform I tried it on: iOS, Android, and browser.
MMObility: Ultima Forever is tons of fun, even with repairs
EA's new toy, Ultima Forever, is a fun mobile game that is loosely related to the first great MMO I ever played, Ultima Online. It's set in the same universe, 21 years after the events of Ultima IV, and it made me happy to see many of the same names and places that I remember from my yearly field trips back into the original, but the game still plays and feels differently from the classic. You'll have fun with the mobile version anyway, hacking and slashing your way through classic dungeon after dungeon. But is the effort worth it? Is EA just asking for veteran players to come along and torpedo this latest effort in the Ultima series? How will potentially curmudgeony old-school players adapt to a title that forces them to play on a tablet (or later, a browser)? Because after playing Ultima Forever for a while now, I can safely say that this is not a game made only for veterans.
MMObility: Zynga's Solstice Arena is a solid MOBA without a farm in sight
Let's say you're mucking around with your iPad and get the nagging feeling that you'd rather be owning other players in a game of strategical combat. What do you do? Well, one of the solutions is to pick up Zynga's new MOBA Solstice Arena and start hammering away. From what I can tell, the game really isn't showing us anything new and inventive, but it has taken the usual MOBA gameplay, toned it down, tightened it up, and made it a more satisfying mobile, fast-paced experience. I am no huge MOBA fan; I'll leave that up to the experts. But that's only because it's one of many genres that I haven't as much time for as I'd like. Solstice Arena has shown me that these jump-in games can be pretty cool, though your arm might get tired from holding up your iPad!
MMObility: Google's new Chromecast shows screen size does not matter
If you missed Google's latest press conference, go check it out here or spy on my own cute self as I attempt to explain what was covered during the event. Either way, it was a nice chance to see how dedicated Google is to the mobile lifestyle. I'd argue that this "mobile" lifestyle that I continue to love will not be referred as "mobile" soon as more and more people adopt portable computers as mainstay devices, but for now we'll keep the moniker. Despite the fantastic new Nexus 7, the real announcement for me was the unveiling of the Chromecast, a simple HDMI dongle that plugs into your television and allows the wireless broadcast of all sorts of web content. Why is this a cool idea, and how isn't it just something that we're already able to do? I'll give my take on it but would love to hear from my readers as well.
MMObility: RuneScape, HTML5, and plenty of bacon
RuneScape, as always, is moving forward with killer new content and additions to the game. I was so excited this week to get a chance to play through the Bringing Home the Bacon questline and scout out the open beta of the HTML5 version. I was initially eager to see just how much better the HTML5 version looked and played, but I didn't want to dive in until any issues had been worked out. Boy, does it impress. Sure, it might not seem like much to someone who is used to the graphics from games like Guild Wars 2, but this browser game that is over a decade old looks great not only for a browser game but for any type of game. It's still a bit of an acquired taste, but once you try it, you'll be smitten. I also had fun playing through the bacon-flavored quest line that is featured this month. I'll tell you about both... how's that?
MMObility: Press your way through Dawn of the Dragons
If you played along with me the last time I covered Dawn of the Dragons, you won't be surprised by what you will read in this column. It's still a pretty fun twist on RPGs and Mafia Wars-styled gaming, but now that it has come to Android devices, I couldn't be happier. The gameplay was nice in the browser, but I found it to be a bit clunky and distracting, especially with the ad-block at the top of the game's main window. Much of the game consists of making a decision and pressing a button or two to see what happens, so it begged for a touchscreen device. Now that has arrived. Does that mean the game is no longer a pay-to-win, very casual (or hardcore if you want it to be) race-to-the-top? It's still all of those. If you have moral objections to those game styles, then skip Dawn of the Dragons. But if you're like me and don't take games so personally, then you, like reader grutzmek, might find that is is "surprisingly addictive." He told me, "I don't normally enjoy these games, but something is very different about DotD." I have to agree with him.
MMObility: Tynon forces players to come to grips with automatic gameplay
It's been over a year since I last looked at Tynon, a browser-based pseudo-MMO that has been magically transformed into a much larger and more MMOish MMO. What a difference a year makes! Many of the key gameplay elements remain, meaning that you can still play the entire game (at least I have been able to so far) by clicking one or two buttons, over and over. So much of the game is played for you that it made me wonder -- as it did the first time around -- what the point was. Then it made me wonder just how much the gameplay in Tynon is like many of the more "standard" MMOs I have played, meaning that so many of them are the same one or two button chunks of gameplay, only wrapped in a three-dimensional exterior that features hotbars. I'm not making excuses for auto-play features, but I'm not making excuses for the mindless clicking that many MMOs feature, either. As with most things, the details matter the most. In Tynon, there are almost too many details to count.
MMObility: Puzzle Pirates is perfect on the iPad, but Fleck falls
It's been a week of ups and downs for me. The mobile MMO market is the often-ignored stepchild of the greater genre, so when a great new MMO comes along, I rejoice. And when a fun, older MMO closes down, I feel like weeping. As the mobile market begins to take over all of creation (and will probably make time travel possible as well), it's so good to see a game like Puzzle Pirates finally make its way to mobile devices. Sure, it's just iPads for now, but an Android version is marked for release this summer. This is a game that has been begging for a mobile release for some time now. Meanwhile, Fleck is an odd little MMO by Self Aware Games that I have covered in the past but that is soon closing down. I love the look and feel of it, but its real-world-based gameplay might be too odd for many to enjoy. Still, it had issues finding its footing. Let's talk about both in today's MMObility column.
MMObility: Bridging the gap between mobile and client-based MMOs
A mobile MMO is a great thing. A mobile app, one that acts as an extension of an existing game, can be an odd thing. Do players really use mobile apps to access information? Speaking for myself, I tend to use mobile apps to do particular things. I like to check up on PlanetSide 2 to see how the battles have gone while I've been away, for example. I can see a time when mobile apps play a much more important role in the world of client-based gaming, but what would those apps look like? A few developers seem to have the right idea. Instead of releasing apps that concentrate on imitating the core game, these developers have released an app that is a game in itself, one that results in loot or goods that are redeemable in the standard game. Let's take a look at some of those developers and apps, as well as look for an example of some designs that we might see in the future.
MMObility: The Chromebook 'All-In-One' project: More games
This will be my last week using the new Chromebook Pixel, at least here on Massively. I will continue to look at its techier side of things on my personal blog, just as I did with the original Chromebook All-In-One project. The shorter time frame for this series can be explained by the fact that Chromebooks do admittedly cut out a lot of the browser-based MMOs out there by not allowing the usage of Unity or other plugins. Flash is allowed, but Adobe and other companies' recent disapproval of the use of Flash for mobile platforms came with a reason: It's often hard to run. Once HTML5 becomes more standard thanks to publishers like Jagex, I'll be able to comment more on that. It's also important to note that the Pixel is really just a nicer Samsung model, so you can refer to the older posts as well. I want to encourage everyone who is interested in Chromebooks to check out the Samsung ARM-based Chromebook I talked about last time. It's very inexpensive and quite literally does everything that the Pixel does, albeit on a much smaller screen that is attached to a weaker device that has a much lower build quality. Still, my time with the Pixel has amazed me with a wonderful, touchable screen, but the Pixel has also convinced me that the Samsung should be the flagship device for Chromebook, hopefully kept at the same price range while slowly improving in quality. Now, let's talk about the games. I found a few that run much better on the Pixel's beefier stats, but please refer to my Samsung coverage for 30 MMOs that run on both machines. The following list is especially good for touchscreens.
MMObility: The Chromebook 'All In One' project - The Pixel
If you caught my first Chromebook All In One project, you'll be familiar with the details of the series. If not, allow me to fill you in. Essentially I took a wonderful little device, the Samsung Series 3 Chromebook, which utilizes an Exynos-based processor, and I used it for most of my work-related activities for weeks. It proved a capable device but couldn't play everything or do everything as easily as I would have liked. For $249 US, however, it's not a bad deal. I still use the light notebook every single day. It's easily my favorite device in the house alongside my Nexus 7 tablet. But now, it's time for an upgrade. This time I will be looking at the Google Pixel, a hotrod of a Chromebook that Google is using to show just how the OS can work on a premium build. It boasts a core i5 processor, 4 gigs of DDR3 RAM, a 32 or 64 gig SSD and an incredible screen. At 2560 x 1700, 239 PPI, 400 nit brightness, and 4.3 million pixels, it is the best-looking thing I've ever computed on. The touchscreen is great for some gaming, and the build quality is top-notch. So why does it matter? Why would an MMO fan want or need a device that cost at least $1,299.00 and that runs only the Chrome OS? I'll try to figure that out over the next few weeks. [Update: The loaner model is actually the 4G LTE model, not the $1299 US WiFi-only.]
MMObility: Why a tablet version of RuneScape is so important
If you have heard the news about RuneScape 3, you fall into one of two camps. You're either really excited and cannot wait for this new version of one of your favorite games or you really don't see what the fuss is all about. It's possible there is a third category for those who are interested but have played the game only once or twice. I easily fall into the first category, and I think the announcement of RuneScape 3 isn't important because it represents a new version of a long-running and very successful browser-based title; it's important because it will represent a massive shift in mobile technology and in how people perceive MMO gaming on a mobile device. So many people seem to think that tablet or smartphone gaming is different from gaming on any other device. It is different in the way we interact with the game, in the way that we actually hold the tablet or touch the screen, but the device itself is just a smaller version of the ever-familiar PC, the personal computer. RuneScape 3 could prove that a tablet or smartphone is just as good as any other delivery system -- and in many ways, it might be superior.
MMObility: What needs to happen to make the mobile market shine
I've recently written about what the MMO future might look like, but in case you haven't read that piece yet, I can sum it up for you. Essentially I see the new generation being so used to gaming and communicating on portable yet powerful devices that the sit-down keyboard and mouse setup might very well be doomed. Even major PC manufacturers and sellers are noticing the trend. Take a visit to your local Gamestop or equivalent game shop and you will notice that the chains have started to sell tablets as well. All of this tablet gaming might wound the current style of MMOs. I suspect that within the next decade or two it will all come full circle back to massive three-dimensional worlds on tech that becomes even more powerful and common, so we have to look at what the mobile market can do currently to keep MMOs in the lineup.
MMObility: Exploring a tiny universe in Pocket Galaxy
Pocket Galaxy, a new sci-fi mobile MMO, is relatively impressive at first. It's a nice looking game that feels like a cross between Dark Orbit, Asteroids, and EVE Online and seems to be pretty casual and cheap to play. These things make me happy. I've adopted a casual playstyle because of my need to be the guy who plays every single game he sees, and that has had the side effect of making casual gaming perfect for me. For example, a Pocket Galaxy player who wants to craft more ammo for one of her guns needs to create the items by waiting a certain amount of real time that can be shortened by using cash. Many players might see this as some sort of money-grab. I see it as a casual game with the option to speed up build times, but then again... I'm patient. %Gallery-187907%
MMObility: Vendetta Online on the iPad is a familiar experience
Vendetta Online has a long history. You can play the game across many platforms and access the same universe as all other players no matter which device you are on. That's right, you can jump on your Android device and kill a few enemies while on a lunch break and then go home to switch to the PC, for example. I looked at the game for Rise and Shiny last year, and we got our hands on it again at this year's GDC Online. It's always been an impressive enough experience for the most part, but the game is definitely aging. It's still not a newbie-friendly title, and the smaller playerbase makes the game seem like a ghost town a lot of the time. I have been poking around the game for a bit now only to encounter mostly the same experience I found before. That's not a bad thing, but it's not exactly a good thing, either, because if there is one thing I do not like, it's bumping into a rough newbie experience. Sure, there are tutorials and missions to help you get started, but once you make your way into the greater universe, you might find yourself a bit lost, or worse -- bored.
MMObility: Revisiting The Lost Titans
It's pretty impressive that The Lost Titans, a new browser-based MMO by ZQGame, launched in China and was supporting 600 servers within six months, but China is a unique, browser-eating beast. I've talked about the foreign browser market before and often marvel at how so many players in the West scoff at browser games. It's not as though "browser" is a genre; it's a delivery system. But here we are, getting ready to scroll through comments to read about how "browser games" suck. That's like saying, "MP3s are bad music." Still, I cannot deny that some browser-based games do indeed suck. In fact, the last time I played The Lost Titans live, I found myself so bored I almost could not finish the stream, but I thought I'd try again with a fresh perspective. Despite finding many of the same issues I had before, I was surprised at how much further the game has come. I sat down with ZQGame's Laura Stephens during this latest livestream to talk about the game.
MMObility: Hailan Rising is a lesson in confusion and miscommunication
I was excited to try out Hailan Rising, a new PvP-centric MMO being published by GamersFirst. It looks sort of primitive but has an old-school appeal that I thought would suit my tastes. For a long time I also thought it was a browser-based game, perhaps because it was being built in Unity, but at this point I'm confused about pretty much everything connected with the title. To make matters worse, the forums are filled with similarly confused players who just want some answers. Many of them cannot log in, but I was able to. But then all I found was an empty server, literally. I did some research and read up on some of the information we posted on this site as recently as February of this year. I checked the forums and mailed off an inquiry to GamersFirst that as of press time has not been answered. So what is Hailan Rising and what has happened to it?
MMObility: Dragon Eternity shines on the iPad
Dragon Eternity has always been a pretty neat browser-based game that drew me in more with its mechanics and UI design than with its actual gameplay. Frankly, the game is a grind. You'll be sent on quest after quest that is basically kill-ten-whatever, with the occasional gather quest thrown in for good measure. I wasn't terribly thrilled with it before, but I did find myself occasionally enjoying it. The artwork in the game is beautiful. That alone is a reason to poke my head into the title once in a while. Now that a new iPad version has been released, I just had to give it another go to see if it felt the same as before. I have to say, how you interface with a game can really make a difference. Sure, the grind is still there, and the quests are generally the same at higher levels as they are at level one, but the iPad works awesome. That's not all, however. I also participated in PvP combat for the first time and found out exactly where the game shines.
