Sidekicks
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Ayaneo Slide, the Sidekick of gaming handhelds, is coming soon
You can sign up for early bird pricing on its Indiegogo page.
5 things I'm amazed WoW still doesn't have
World of Warcraft's tenth anniversary is this year, and with that milestone we've seen a lot of changes, additions, and growth -- the game now spans 90 levels (soon to be 100) and sprawls across the original two continents, Outland, Northrend, Pandaria and places like Deepholm. We'll be traveling to an alternate dimension soon. The game has auction houses, flying mounts, the Brawler's Guild, Proving Grounds, dungeons, raids, scenarios, transmogrification ... a lot has been changed and added over the years. Yet there are some things WoW never did that I admit, I expected it to do before now. With the level 90 boost incoming, they added one I was wondering about (and which our own Adam Holisky basically predicted based on what other games were doing) but there are still features other games have had over the years that WoW doesn't. Some have seemed like real no-brainers, while others might just be based on my own weird ideas. None of these are things I necessary want or think are good ideas, they're just things I expected. 1 - User Generated Content When I read up on Neverwinter's user generated content, I immediately found myself wondering why World of Warcraft hadn't taken a bite out of that. The Warcraft RTS was so infamous for player created maps that it spawned a whole sub-genre of games (if you play League of Legends now, that game wouldn't exist without the original Defense of the Ancients mod to Warcraft III) and yet, we've never really seen anything like that in WoW. I understand why Blizzard might want tight control over the game's story and content, but even something where players could submit generated content to be evaluated has never manifested, and I'm kind of astonished. To be honest, after Neverwinter announced its Foundry, I expected something like it for WoW, but I was wrong.
Champions Online shares new video of robot companion in hopes players will enjoy
Haven't you ever wanted your very own personal robot sidekick? A combination lackey and best friend, someone to hold your hand, listen to your problems, and help you violently assault several henchmen of a given criminal organization? If so, you might have some slight rage issues, but more importantly your needs will be catered to via the newest sidekick available in Champions Online. But if you need a little more convincing to let an uncanny valley sidekick into your heart (and wallet), the development team has put together a new trailer showing off the robot. Like any good robot accomplice, R.O.D. (Reprogrammed Onslaught Drone) is programmed for a single function, that being unloading a great deal of firepower at anything you tell him to aim for. That includes lasers, chainguns, missiles, and a variety of other attacks for the discerning robot-owner. Champions Online players might want to take a look at the trailer, because it's really all about sharing and enjoying.
Dungeon Fighter Online Act VIII coming April 13th
The world of Arad is coming under fire beginning on April 13th as monsters from across the realm will unite to lay waste to various cities and towns in Dungeon Fighter Online's Act VIII: Under Siege update. Every Thursday and Saturday from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. PDT, Dungeon Fighter Online players will need to team up to repel the hordes bent on wreaking havoc and destroying all in their path. DFO heroes will be handsomely rewarded for successfully driving off the beasties, while failure in the city defense initiative means that NPCs will deny trade and repair opportunities for a time. Additionally, Act VIII brings the ability for max-level players to choose professions (which in turn grants access to skills such as alchemy, enchanting, disassembly, and animation). Players will also be able to increase reputation and status via a new system that involves gifting NPCs with various items to build friendship and trust. Check out the DFO website for further details.
Hands on with Spider: Bryce Manor HD
On Thursday, iOS developer Tiger Style will release Spider: Bryce Manor HD in App Store. TUAW was lucky enough to get an early peek at this application. Spider was one of the most popular iPhone games of last year, and offers an interactive puzzle where you explore an abandoned mansion as a tiny arachnid, building webs to trap insects. I gave Spider a hands-on try and, as you can see in the video, I am neither nimble nor quick. I found the game mildly entertaining but a little frustrating -- I think most users who are a little better coordinated will have more fun building their webs and catching their insects but klutzes like myself might not have as much fun. First released on the iPhone, the game has been redesigned thoroughly for the iPad. Developer David Kalina tells us, "We took a lot of care making the game really sing on the iPad, [adding] an iPad exclusive single device multiplayer game mode called 'Sidekicks' -- it's the sort of experience that you can really only have on the iPad." I appreciated the graphics and music design, where clearly a lot of time has been invested. The game should be available on the iPad this Thursday for $4.99. If you missed this title last year, the iPad's bigger screen might be just the place to try it out for yourself.
Cryptic's Bill Roper on balancing powers in Champions Online
When news came in of the Champions Online launch being delayed to September, a few of the writers at Massively were despondent. It's always better for a game to launch once it's solid rather than release in a buggy state, though. While we wait for the re-scheduled September 1st launch, we're keeping up with the news and interviews surrounding the upcoming superhero title. In fact, we've just come across an MMOCrunch interview with Bill Roper, executive producer of Champions Online you might be interested in. Roper gets into how some of the game mechanics in Champions Online will play out, and explains a bit about how travel powers like flight and teleportation can be countered by those without such capabilities. (For example, how does a ground-based melee character engage a kiting opponent in flight?) He also touches upon the game's sidekick system, which will allow newer players to temporarily boost their powers to keep up with higher level friends. Alternately, the sidekick system will give advanced characters the ability to tone their powers down to the level of their appallingly weak lower level buddies.
MMO features that haven't made it into Warhammer Online
Among the legions of fortunate Warhammer Online fans that have played through beta and the preview weekend is Syp from the Waaagh! blog. He's always entertaining and it's clear he's passionate about Warhammer Online. So when he writes about features in other MMOs that he'd like to see in WAR, you know he's not bashing a game that's not even out of the gate yet. Rather, he's genuinely looking at ways the game could be better. Syp puts forth his ideal WAR feature set, which includes capturable and trainable pets similar to World of Warcraft's system and the player-created content and sidekicks of City of Heroes. Syp would also like to see WAR include an in-game music player like EVE Online, and other features drawn from Everquest 2 and Lord of the Rings Online. Have a look at the Waaagh! "10 features" post and see if you agree with him on what could make Warhammer Online a better title. Did you enjoy this? Make sure to check out all of our previous Warhammer Online features, and don't miss any of our ongoing coverage as Massively goes to WAR!
