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Neverwinter announces Rise of Tiamat module
Perfect World Entertainment has today announced Neverwinter: Rise of Tiamat, another chunk of the Tyranny of Dragons plotline that just so happens to coincide with the story in new Wizards of the Coast tabletop series of the same name. The module "brings a new paragon path for the recently released Scourge Warlock class" with both solo and group play. Highbies can hunt for artifact gear as they prep for the resurrection of the goddess Tiamat and the epic battle being so heavily foreshadowed. We've got screenies and the new trailer below.
The Daily Grind: What's the ideal MMO gold sink?
I realize that asking "what's your favorite gold sink" is a bit like asking "what's your favorite way to eat poop," but I'm confronting an MMO reality here: MMO economies generally spiral out of control when the currency poured into the game isn't drained out at the other end somehow, whether it's through decay costs or housing maintenance or people leaving the game forever and literally taking their gold piles with them. Obviously, this last one is not ideal. I was impressed at Neverwinter's recent move to auction rare companions off to the playerbase, a system that won't solve the inflation/duping problem in one pass but could, given time and repetition, drain money from player moguls voluntarily and reward them with prestigious but non-game-breaking and effectively worthless trinkets. That's my favorite kind of gold sink. What's yours? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
The Siege of Neverwinter begins next week [Updated]
Perfect World Entertainment has just announced a new in-game Tyranny of Dragons-themed event for Neverwinter: the Siege of Neverwinter. Apparently, Justin was right not to trust those dragons. Those guys are always up to no good, trying to kick your favorite fantasy city in the knees. Are you going to take that? Are you? No. I didn't think so. From September 18, 2014 until September 25, 2014, players are tasked with defending Neverwinter from encroaching foes in the new Siege Battlefield area. Two new Heroic Encounters will challenge players with a variety of different battle types and assaults from furious dragons. Additionally, a new profession will enable players to craft defensive supplies and work to protecting the brave warriors who venture past the safety of the walls. Neverwinter promises "new fashion items, enchantments, companions, and more" for participation in the event.
Perfect Ten: MMOs that deserve another chance
First impressions matter. First impressions count. First impressions are lasting. These commonly cited maxims are true, but I would like to add one more: "First impressions can be deceiving." Due to our nature of making snap judgments, experiencing something at the wrong time or being impatient, we can rush to a conclusion that could rob us of something we could truly love. There are few things that frustrate me more than seeing MMO gamers adopt the gospel of the first impressions and refuse to ever return to a game afterward. We keep treating MMOs as disposable, one-shot entertainment that must be plundered quickly right out of the gate instead of seeing them as reusable fun that gets better with time. So the next time you feel bored waiting for the next MMO to launch so that you can make a two-month first impression and then leave forever, why not give an older title a second try? In this week's countdown, I'm going to make a case for 10 MMOs that deserve another chance even if you wrote them off long ago.
Neverwinter auctioning off five Sergeant Knox companions
The famous Sergeant Knox, Neverwinter NPC questgiver extraordinaire, will be available as a special companion. For a short time, players can bid on one of these purple-quality companions through the auction house. The catch is that there will only be five such Sergeant Knox companions put up for auction during this event, which means that only five (or fewer) players in the game will own one, at least for the time being. As a gold sink, this will undoubtedly be quite effective to suck some of the excess money out of the economy. This special auction will take place from September 11th through the 14th.
Neverwinter's summer festival starts tomorrow
If it's Neverwinter, it must be summer, right? Now that you've stopped groaning, you might be interested to hear that the D&D MMO is kicking off its summer festival tomorrow. Cryptic is building on the previous year's festival by adding more content to the event. There will be a new summer-themed zone with daily quests, a water battle, new profession tasks, and a new dungeon for the web game Sword Coast Adventures. Players can try to grab a reward that they missed from last year or strive for one of the new prizes, such as the piñata or the Sunite Steed. The summer festival will run from Thursday, August 21st, through Thursday, September 11th.
The Daily Grind: What do you buy in MMOs?
Every so often I like to be nosy and pry into your personal finances. Wow, you blow through a lot of Candy Crush microtransactions, don't you? And your Pez eBay purchases have gotten out of control. But let's just pretend that I don't have unparalleled access to your checking account and ask you to share what you buy in MMOs with real money. Looking back, probably my biggest purchases from the past six months were a subscription to WildStar, various cosmetic outfits and minipets in Guild Wars 2, the new mission packs in The Secret World, and a ghost companion in Neverwinter. What do you buy? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Neverwinter expands artifact system
Cryptic is clearly in love with the artifact system in Neverwinter, having expanded it to include weapons and belts in the recent Tyranny of Dragons update. In a dev diary today, the team delivers additional details behind the new types of gear that will grow in power over time. Leveling up artifact equipment will take a lot of refinement, apparently: "These artifacts will use the familiar item refinement interface; however the primary difference being that other equipment is used to refine these artifacts rather than enchantments. Basically anything that can be equipped in the 12 slots on your character sheet can be used to empower these artifact." With Module 4 are six new level 60 artifact belts and 21 artifact weapons. The belts have a base attribute (such as strength) that can be increased from +1 all the way to +4, while artifact weapons have the potential for "the highest base damage numbers in the game." The studio said that it might expand the artifact system further if players show support for it.
Perfect World Entertainment continues to rake in money
Perfect World Entertainment continues its hot streak of revenue generation, posting gains both quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year. The company released its Q2 2014 financials this past week, and reported revenues of $149.6 million, of which $138.8 million come from PWE's online games. Gross profit was $109.4 million during the same quarter. PWE CEO Robert Xiao attributed the company's financial success to Swordsman's release, Dota2's launch in China, and several new mobile titles. Xiao said that the company was looking forward to releasing Legend of the Condor Heroes, as well as pushing Neverwinter into the Chinese market.
Neverwinter's Tyranny of Dragons expansion live today
Perfect World has officially launched Tyranny of Dragons, the latest expansion for Neverwinter. The update features a new class (the Scourge Warlock), new heroic encounters, a new dungeon, and a new skirmish. Don't forget to check out the gameplay clip after the cut! [Source: Perfect World press release]
Previewing Neverwinter's Tyranny of Dragons module
I'll give credit to the Neverwinter team for being straightforward and direct about its next module, Tyranny of Dragons: When the devs say "dragons," they aren't skimping on the premise whatsoever. Module 4 is dragons by the bucketful, shaping the tone and story of Neverwinter's present and future development. Earlier today, I sat down with Cryptic Art Director Matt Highison, who showed off Tyranny of Dragons' new content while talking about how dragons are just so, so cool. With other MMOs that I won't name creating expansions that are lacking in new races and classes, Neverwinter is bringing one of each to this update as well as a wealth of content for the players to explore. From randomized dungeons to the controversial pricing of the scaly Dragonborn, we hashed out the details behind August 14th's content release. Let's dive in!
Gameplay video tours Neverwinter: Tyranny of Dragons highlights
Those dragons, always being tyrannical, am I right? Neverwinter has my back on this, as Cryptic is already in overdrive to promote the upcoming fourth module, Tyranny of Dragons. Today the studio released a new gamplay video for the update, going through the major features of the patch. Cryptic talks about the DPS and cursing abilities of the spiffy Scourge Warlock class, gives a better look at the Dragonborn race, shows the several new heroic encounters for experienced adventurers, hints at the Cult of the Dragon storyline, and teases the additional level 60 skirmish and dungeon instances. Check it out after the break and let us know if Tyranny of the Dragons has you excited to play it!
Neverwinter exploit results in emergency maintenance, no rollback
Neverwinter's emergency maintenance this afternoon fueled speculation among players that another currency exploit was to blame and a rollback was imminent, but Perfect World Community Manager Akromatik says no rollback is planned. On the official forums, he wrote, Due to an exploit we had to bring down the servers for an emergency maintenance. The exploit was brought to our attention by our fantastic community. Your efforts, enabled us to find and implement a fix as soon as possible. Unfortunately the fix required downtime and will likely require additional maintenance following our investigation. While there is no rollback planned, we will be taking action against people who abused this exploit. Thank you for your patience, diligence and understanding. We will keep you updated as the situation develops. A serious currency exploit in May of 2013 after the game had soft-launched into "open beta" did in fact result in a rollback. [Thanks to Jeremiah for the tip!]
Neverwinter coming to Xbox One in 2015
Perfect World is porting Neverwinter to the Xbox One in China this year followed by a worldwide release in "the first half of 2015," according to IGN. The site interviewed lead producer Andy Velasquez who says that a consolized Neverwinter will boast "all the same races, all the same classes, [and] all the same maps. The content will be there with some minor exceptions." The Xbox One version of Neverwinter will not feature cross-play with the PC version, and Perfect World offered no comment on plans for other platforms.
Neverwinter unveils the Dragonborn Pack
Were you worried that Neverwinter's fourth major update, Tyranny of Dragons, would feature too few dragons? We're not sure how you could have been worried about that, but the good news is that you can bring even more dragon into your play experience by playing a Dragonborn. No, not that kind of Dragonborn; the kind that's literally half-dragon. Or all dragon, but... humanoid dragon. You get the idea. And you can play one. Buying the game's Dragonborn Legend Pack unlocks the new race as well as a set of cosmetic armor for your new man-dragon, the special Heart of the Red Dragon artifact, and a variety of other rewards including a race change token. The pack is on sale until August 18th, allowing players a chance to get in on the race at a discount. Whether you want to just one-up roleplayers claiming to be half-dragon or can't get enough lizards in your gameplay, you can pick up the pack now if it's your sort of fun.
Global Chat: Doom and WAAAGH!
It's time for our second edition of Global Chat, the column that scours the blogosphere (or blogorama if you prefer) for engaging insights, intelligent essays, and whoopie cushion goofiness. We had a good response to our first column, so I'm glad you all want to hear more about what bloggers are saying regarding MMOs! In this week's edition, we'll look at Warhammer Online's fatal flaw, adventure through Neverwinter's foundry missions, and speculate on the status of a certain Norrathian sandpark. Remember that it's not all doom and WAAAGH! in this community; it's excitement and cherished outings as well!
Neverwinter shows off the Scourge Warlock for Tyranny of Dragons
Do you want to fight some dragons? The next expansion to Neverwinter is all about fighting dragons, hence the title Tyranny of Dragons. Would you prefer to do so whilst conjuring up forbidden and evil magic from beyond to help smite your foes and empower your party? Then the Scourge Warlock is right up your alley. You can check the new class out in the trailer just past the break. Scourge Warlocks are casters who can summon a Soul Puppet from the beyond, using their magical prowess to leech health and empower allies while leaving enemies as shambling shells. They also have access to a new paragon path, Hellbringer, which... well, it doesn't summon bunnies and stomach rubs. Take a look at the official development blog for a clearer picture of what these casters are capable of, and watch the trailer to see the class in action before Tyranny of Dragons goes live on August 14th. [Source: Cryptic Studios press release]
The Daily Grind: Do you like ordering NPC minions around?
Buried among the announcement of RIFT: Nightmare Tides was the addition of collectible minions to the game. Players will supposedly be able to order minions around on various tasks to benefit their characters, which sounds pretty awesome to me. It also seems to be the latest entry in a growing movement of player-controlled NPC minions in MMOs. Star Trek Online has the duty officer system, Neverwinter has a cool web game that uses one's companions, SWTOR allows you to boss around crew members, and Warlords of Draenor looks to have something similar with its garrisons. Do you like this type of feature? Is it enjoyable to send your loyal subjects out to do your bidding even if you're not in the game? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Neverwinter's next new class is the Scourge Warlock
Perfect World Entertainment has just announced that the Scourge Warlock will join Neverwinter's class roster on August 14th when the previously revealed Tyranny of Dragons module launches. How does the new class with its special Curse mechanic work? The Scourge Warlock is a powerful magic user who plies dark magical abilities, communing with shadowy benefactors to destroy all who would dare stand in their way. A powerful striker who focuses on dealing heavy damage to both single and grouped foes, the Scourge Warlock wields a myriad of options to deal with adversaries using their powerful Warlock's Curse. The class will be available to all players. [Source: PWE press release]
Neverwinter throws Protector's Jubilee for first anniversary
Can you believe it: Neverwinter is one year old today! It's been a strong first year for this D&D title, and to celebrate the occasion the team is hosting a new event in the game called the Protector's Jubilee. The Protector's Jubilee will feature bright decorations in Protector's Enclave, covert missions, defensive skirmishes, and plenty of rewards including the jester attire. Players can grab keys during the event to a new area called the Protector's Garden that will remain in the game going forward. The festivities will go from today through June 25th. [Source: Perfect World press release]
