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Age of Wushu previews new school abilities after server merge
The fifth inner skills for each of the eight schools are arriving in the next Age of Wushu update, and if you're a player, you'd probably like to know what they do, wouldn't you? I mean, one of them might instantly kill everything in a seven-meter radius, and the other might summon a moderate quantity of breadsticks and marinara sauce. That seems unlikely, though, as the preview of these new abilities mentions neither sort of talent. They do include attack buffs, HP drains, and major defensive buffs, though, so that's good. You'll be able to show these skills off to a wider range of players after the game's server merges from yesterday. The Golden Kirin and White Tiger servers have been merged into the Blue Dragon server; players whose names will need to change should receive name changing scrolls within the next few days. If you weren't able to log in yesterday and aren't sure about how the merge went down, you can double-check the quick guide to the process.
Age of Wushu: Transcendence coming on January 14th
Is one of your new year's resolutions to become a martial arts master? Then you'll want to take advantage of the unveiled teachings of Age of Wushu: Transcendence when the patch lands on January 14th. The content update will unlock the fifth level of inner skill and make high-level manuals available, transforming players into formidable fighters. Players can use these new abilities to tackle the three additional forbidden instances coming to the game: Hell King's Dungeon, the Jinling Incident, and the Qiandeng Crisis.
Age of Wulin officially releases in Europe alongside a major update
It's a big day for Age of Wulin, as the martial arts sandbox is both officially releasing in Europe and pushing out a new content patch. The update, Chapter 3: Wisdom is a Journey, marks the end of open beta for EU's counterpart to Age of Wushu. Wisdom is a Journey includes a new internal skill, a higher skill cap, team activities, titles for divorced characters, and PvP tournaments. For those who crave the game's open world PvP setting, there is now the option to become a "Jianghu treasure assassin" and kill all rivals who are out for the same glorious rewards. You can read up on the patch notes for Chapter 3 as well as get an overview of the update's features on the official site.
Black Gold's water-themed Bloodied Tides DLC arrives next week
Snail Games has today announced that a huge new update will land in Black Gold on November 24th. Bloodied Tides, the steampunk MMO's second DLC since its soft launch last summer, will up the level cap as well as add Aurek Brute and Upyrian Vampire races, a brawler class, a new 4v4 arena, tweaks to the time vial system, and a weapon engraving system. There's also a ton of water-themed content in the form of underwater dungeons, underwater maps, naval warfare, and aquatic battle carriers, which had better be as cool in practice as they sound, darnit. We've got the update's teaser video embedded for you below.
Blizzard fights Snail Games over panda design
Fresh off of a win with its Hearthstone lawsuit, Blizzard is jumping right back in to the legal waters with a fight against Snail Games. What did Snail do to anger the glacial giant so? Apparently, the developer is coming out with a mobile game named Taichi Panda that features a panda, and you can already see where this is going. Blizzard and its Chinese partner NetEase claims that Snail's panda design is far too similar to those seen in World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria. NetEase also has an issue with Shaman and Goblin art styles in the mobile game. NetEase is requesting that Apple take down the mobile app, while Snail is defending its design choices.
Snail Games sued by former director of development on Age of Wushu
Breaking up is hard to do, especially when you're dealing with an international corporation and it's less a matter of "breaking up" and more a matter of "being terminated, then filing a lawsuit." David Runyan, former director of game development at Snail Games USA during Age of Wushu's development, is suing the company's founder and CEO Shi Hai on the grounds of unfair termination and racist practices during his year with the company. Runyan claims that Shi Hai made frequent and capricious change to the staff of Snail Games USA, spoke in racist terms about the Americans he was working with, and then ultimately fired Runyan due to a medically approved period when he was working from his home. Snail Games has yet to make any comment in response to the lawsuit. Offers to settle this matter via an honorable duel in Age of Wushu were apparently not entertained.
Age of Wulin to finally release in Europe
Age of Wulin, aka "the European version of Age of Wushu," is preparing to leave the kiddie pool of open beta for the adult swim of an official launch. Webzen announced that Age of Wulin will be officially launching in EU on November 25th. This launch will coincide with a major game update, Chapter 3: Wisdom is a Journey. In the update, characters will get additional class skills and a level increase for several current skills. Players will also be invited to tackle current dungeons on a harder mode and fight in two new PvP tournaments. [Source: Webzen press release]
New King of Wushu video showcases graphics, awesome hair
Snail Games wants you to know that its MOBA, King of Wushu, is not some chucked-together, low-poly, button-mashing spectacle -- it's a Cryengine 3 game with style. It's got Dynamic Flowing Hair and Cloth, people. At last week's Nvidia Game Festival, the developer revealed a new trailer to show off its graphics, and we think you'll agree that the character's lush mane is totally dynamic and flowing. And hey, the martial arts play is pretty spiffy too. Revealed last June, King of Wushu is based on Snail's MMORPG Age of Wushu. The MOBA is destined for a 2015 launch. Check out the video below.
Age of Wushu: Winds of Destiny releases on October 15th
It's happening, just like the headline says: Age of Wushu's next major update is launching next week, giving you just a few more days to prepare for everything that's coming. That means new areas, new gameplay, and a whole host of new challenges for experienced masters and relative novices alike. The update looks to build player bonds and alliances with the new Companion system, which allows players to establish a mutually beneficial partnership via the game's existing offline occupation system. There are also new areas to explore, like Delightful Isle and Lingxiao City. You won't have to wait long to go through all of this for yourself, though; it's just a little over a week until the patch goes live.
Age of Wushu features Lingxiao City and a new game event
Trying to take a vacation in Age of Wushu must be a daunting prospect. So you think you've finally found a nice place to just take a load off and relax up in the mountains? A quaint city surrounded by snow? Nope, turns out that Lingxiao City is controlled by a power-hungry elder and there are a bunch of groups trying to overthrow him, like the people of Snow Valley, a group of hermit mages, and an eccentric band of monks... groups with which players will need to ally once they arrive, naturally. And you came up to this mountain to get away from all of that work, too. Even more relevant, there's a new event taking place in the area with the Path of the Departed. Players take a side with one of the four factions fighting for control of Lingxiao City and fight it out among themselves, but they can also take the role of the spy, secretly sabotaging one groups efforts. All of this makes the city a hotspot of activity, and probably a very weak vacation destination.
Age of Wushu shows off the Silver Hook and Delightful Island
How would you like to go somewhere delightful in Age of Wushu? Odds are good that Delightful Island will fulfill that goal. Or possibly not; Delightful Island is a locale where literally anything goes, with no criminal ratings or pesky laws to restrict your behavior. There are also plenty of missions to be done and treasures to be found on the lawless island, so if any of that sounds like a delight to you, well, you've found your destination. Of course, first you have to get to the island, and to do that you'll need to board the hidden boat the Silver Hook, a gambling ship replete with intrigue and conspiracy. This special Forbidden Instance will test player abilities to cut through schemes and conspiracies while hopefully avoiding becoming a pawn of those same schemers. Jump past the break for a trailer, and look forward to taking your own delightful trip very soon.
Age of Wushu: Winds of Destiny coming in October
Never feel lonely in Age of Wushu again! As of next month, a new content update for the sandbox martial arts MMO will feature a companion system that allows offline players to continue assisting their friends as NPCs. "Players going offline can allow themselves to be available as companions for those clever and committed enough to earn their loyalty," Snail posted. "While offline, these players can receive special rewards from their online brothers in arms, and in exchange are available to be summoned to their aid during a fight." Age of Wushu: Winds of Destiny is the sixth so-called "expansion" for the game. In addition to companions, there will be a new zone called Delightful Island, a special Flower Prince Contest, a Path of the Departed adventure, and a dungeon called the Silver Hook. The update will be free for all players.
Black Gold's Campaign of Ashes arriving a week early
Earlier this week Snail announced that Black Gold's first major update would debut on September 10th. As of this morning the firm has changed its mind, according to a press release that says Campaign of Ashes will instead release a week prior on September 3rd. The update features a new skill surge system, new high-level gear, new battle carriers, and more.
Black Gold Online announces its first major content update
The first major update to Black Gold Online is going live on September 10th, and it's not going to be all sunshine and lollipops. The name alone kind of makes that obvious; a title like the Campaign of Ashes doesn't bring to mind pleasant undertakings. It brings to mind a new region of the game, plenty of new open PvP, and new missions and quests for players. Which, as it turns out, is exactly what the update will provide. Of course, that's not the extent of what the update is offering to players, who can look forward to a higher level cap, a new "Skill Surge" system, more equipment, and more content across the board. The update also ushers in an improved interface and a variety of performance upgrades, making the game run more smoothly while being that much easier to play. It's only a couple of weeks until the update goes live, so active players should get ready now.
Snail's King of Wushu MOBA gets a new trailer
Snail Games' newly announced King of Wushu MOBA is still something of a mystery, but the company has unveiled a new trailer at this week's ChinaJoy 2014. The clip features six playable heroes and some pretty visuals. King of Wushu is powered by CryEngine 3 and currently slated for the Xbox One and PC platforms. Click past the cut to view the vid!
Age of Wushu expansion Warrior's Ascension releases today
Snail has released Warrior's Ascension, the "summer expansion" for its Age of Wushu martial arts MMO. The update includes a beta of the Sky Ladder, which is a new PvP tournament system wherein players will fight random opponents "who match their level." Warrior's Ascension also enables players to acquire new level six gear upon completion of the "Before the Final Battle" chapter that has been added to the Age of Wushu records. [Source: Snail Games press release]
Black Gold bumping level cap, adding cross-server PvP and more
Black Gold is entering its second month of open beta, and Snail Games wants you to know that significant changes are on the way. Said changes include a level cap bump to 45, a new tier of skill upgrades, cross-server PvP functionality, and more. How much more? Well, you'll just have to click past the cut and read the full press release, won't ya? [Source: Snail Games press release]
Age of Wushu Warrior's Ascension expansion coming July 31
Snail has announced that Age of Wushu will be getting its "next major expansion" on July 31. The new content is called Warrior's Ascension and it includes a cross-server PvP tournament system called the Sky Ladder as well as new level six gear. The firm hasn't gone into a lot of detail just yet, but you can check out the full verbiage as well as a couple of images on the official announcement page.
Snail Games reveals King of Wushu MOBA based on Age of Wushu
Snail Games has unveiled the website for its upcoming martial arts MOBA King of Wushu. As you could probably guess, King of Wushu is based on Snail's Age of Wushu MMO, and is said to feature both RPG and TPS elements. This new teaser site already includes forums and a point system for interested players. According to gaming site 2P.com, King of Wushu is likely to be shown at ChinaJoy 2014 in Shanghai later this year.
Black Gold Online enters open beta today
Snail Games is opening up the coppery patina doors to open beta for its steampunk MMO Black Gold Online today. Interested players can hop in at 5 p.m. EDT (2 p.m. PDT) for a chance to win exclusive in-game items. You can choose to play as either the mechanized Kingdom of Isenhorst or the magic-based Erlandir Union in a war to gain control of a crystallized energy known as Black Gold. "The open beta lets anyone join who is eager to explore and battle throughout our unique bilateral land of steampunk and fantasy," says Jim Tsai, VP of Snail Games USA. "The open beta's massive activity data and player feedback will be leveraged to put the final touches on one of this year's most anticipated MMORPGs prior to its launch later this year." You can find out more about the open beta events and in-game items on the official site. [Source: Snail Games press release]
