age-of-reckoning
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Warhammer sticking with its subscription model
Those of you holding out for a freemium conversion for Warhammer Online may as well resign yourselves to waiting on the upcoming Wrath of Heroes MOBA. In a new piece at PC Gamer, BioWare-Mythic vice president Eugene Evans says there are still no plans to give away the game aside from the ongoing endless trial that covers the title's newb tier content. "Right now, we're focused on Wrath of Heroes as our free-to-play offering in the Warhammer universe," Evans said at this week's GDC. "We believe in the community of players who are playing Age of Reckoning. Yes, we could have attracted a lot of players to it [via F2P], but it's unclear how long you'll keep them. We wanted to support our game as it currently exists."
Choose My Adventure: Nuttin' happened, boss!
Ever thrown a birthday party and had no one attend? I haven't, but I experienced a similar sensation on Saturday, probably due more or less to my own poor planning. But it wasn't just events that didn't go according to plan this past week. Virtually nothing did, mostly due to real life intruding into my play time in frequently unpleasant fashion (not to mention a nicely bizarre computer problem that took several weeks of research and effort to finally identify and fix). So, awesome all around! So this week featured distinctly less choppin' than usual. But there are still interesting anecdotes to relate, even if I've got a bit less material about Warhammer Online than usual. Click on past the break for this week's exploits, the latest round of polls (a bit different than the predecessors), and the usual randomly assembled letters that form words which hopefully entertain the audience.
Choose My Adventure: Cue da ork-estra
It took me some hunting to find a copy of Warhammer Online on shelves. I could have just bought one online, yeah, but I will admit to being a fan of sentimental clutter like retail boxes. Once I finally nabbed one -- an adventure in and of itself involving a trip around Farmington, CT in a dismally overcast evening -- I installed it and got busy making a character. Or at least, I would have, if not for the fact that one of the polls was a dead heat from start to finish. See, while my faction and class were apparently pretty easy to assign by consensus, getting my ork-or-goblin's class decided proved quite an ordeal. By the time the class poll closed, ranged DPS and melee DPS were in a dead heat. Well, I had to have a little executive initiative, right? Klurgind the Choppa was born on Gorfang and given the oldest and most intelligent ork face I could find. (I would have gone with Grignr, but it was sadly taken.) So jump on past the cut to see what I got up to during my first foray into Warhammer Online and to let me know where I'm going next.
Choose My Adventure: Marching off to WAR
The readers have spoken! More specifically, the fans of Warhammer Online have spoken, and so the game is my destination for the next several weeks. And what a surprising speech it was, especially given that I, my editor, and my co-workers all assumed that with RIFT on the ballot we might as well just close up the voting after half a day. But the forum thread on the official boards kept people coming over and voting, and thus I'm heading over into the world of Order and Chaos. I'm glad to see Warhammer Online as the selection, as it's long been a game and setting that I've found interesting even though it's never quite made it on my list of things to play next. The game has certainly seen its fair share of hardship over the past several years, so it's going to be interesting to take a look at the game as it exists now. So click on past the break to start me down the path that leads me into the game and check out my usual disconnected ramblings.
New chapter in Warhammer Online's "A Fistful of Choppas" now available
What betta' than one orc choppa? Two orc choppas! Waggghhhhhhhh!Of course, what's better than one chapter of a story? The second chapter, of course! Warhammer Online just added the second chapter to "A Fistful of Choppas" onto their website, so you can continue following the adventures of Ghurlak and his battles against the dwarves. This time around Ghurlak's fighting skills are noticed by the Dark Elves and they formulate a plan for Ghurlak and his bretheren... if they can perfect the word of Mork first.The chapter is a good piece for lore for anyone who's interested in the Warhammer universe, especially in how the orcs begin to be involved in the Age of Reckoning. If you haven't gotten to chapter one yet, check that out first, then jump on over to chapter two.
WAR to invade Russia
Okay, that's a pretty sensational headline, so we're not going to waste any time at all here. WARHAMMER ONLINE. Yep, a computer game. Not the bad kind of war. The people of Russia will get to enjoy a new game -- we're not in the business of reporting on emerging world conflicts. A fully localized version of WAR will be released in Russia on the 5th of February in three versions: a barebones jewel case package that includes the game and a key for an account with 14 days play-time; a limited edition pack with metal casing, a Russian user manual and 30 days play-time; and a collector's edition that has the perks we've seen in other regions, and is limited to 5100 copies.Brand new servers will be opened up for the incoming Russian players. Better yet, they will be locally based, and so will the region's customer support. Apart from that, there's not really much more to say here -- in fact, we're going to call it right now before the temptation to use the "In Soviet Russia..." line takes over. Welcome to the WAR, comrades.
Play Warhammer Online for free!
With today's retail launch of Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning, what could possibly make your game experience any better? How about if you played it absolutely free for 60 days? The good folks at gamerDNA have announced a contest that will give you the chance to do just that. From Friday, September 19th through Sunday, September 28th, you can enter to win one of five 60 day Warhammer Online prepaid time cards.To play, you simply need to create a profile on the gamerDNA site and add any WAR-related information to your profile, post a WAR experience or play WAR. Then on Wednesday, October 1st, they'll announce the lucky winners drawn randomly. Be sure to check out the complete rules on the site, and good luck!
Massively's WAR Camp: Tier 1 Scenario Guides
WAR is finally upon us, and as the gates open and players flood the servers hungry for blood, their first Realm versus Realm experience is most likely going to come from "scenarios". Scenarios are instanced battlegrounds that you can join by clicking a button near your minimap, and will differ depending on which part of the world you're in. Once you get into one, there will be a number of objectives to fight for, all the while holding off players from the opposing realm. Each racial pairing has its own scenario, totalling three unique battlegrounds per tier. We've braved the frontlines in each of the Tier 1 scenarios in order to give you a preview of the landscape and objectives that are the backdrop for the RvR mayhem. First up, we'll take a look at the High Elf vs. Dark Elf pairing, then Dwarf vs. Greenskin, and finally Empire vs. Chaos. Join us after the break to view our gallery guide for the Elf pairing scenario, Khaine's Embrace, and for guides to the other two scenarios as well! 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!
Massively's WAR Camp: Tier 1 Scenario Guides pt. 3
The last stop on our tour of the Tier 1 scenarios is Nordenwatch. This scenario can be reached from the Nordland and Norsca zones, and is the home turf for the Empire and Chaos races. Similar to the Gates of Ekrund, there is one central objective that both teams will meet up at for an epic clash, almost every time. Our last gallery guide of this series features a closer look at what you can expect to find in Nordenwatch. Do you have a favorite scenario? Is there one that you can't stand and refuse to queue for? Tell us about it in the comments below. To Nordenwatch << Previous page %Gallery-34148%
First novel releases for WAR: Age of Reckoning
While you sit and wait patiently for the September 18th retail release of Warhammer Online to unfold, take comfort in the fact that the Age of Reckoning lore is building up all around you. The first novel set in Warhammer: Age of Reckoning, Empire in Chaos, has been released just in time for the game's launch.Written by Anthony Reynolds, formerly of Games Workshop's UK Design Studio, this book covers the lore set in place for the WAR MMO. According to the book's description, "In the Empire, mutants and brigands run riot, and a ghastly plague breaks out. Is this illness a natural occurrence, or does it herald a far greater evil? As the apocalypse draws ever closer, can our heroes rally the defenders of the Empire to face the most terrible of all enemies – the hordes of Chaos?"
Mythic's Road to WAR website launched
Anticipation is a beautiful thing. Anticipation without news leads to dangerous speculation, yet anticipation combined with tons of news and activity websites can seal the deal for your launch-date purchase of a game. This seems to be the plan with Warhammer Online's Road to WAR website launched last week by Mythic Entertainment.On this site you can claim your allegiance to the Order or Destruction Realm, recruit friends and gather gold for the fight. What fight, you might ask? Each week until launch, you can participate in a battle for yourself, your state and your Realm. Plus, if having your name on the Leaderboard isn't enough incentive to win, there are plenty of valuable prizes at stake, including a Never Ending Bowl of Custard and a special in-game title. Head on over to the official website to get yourself registered and learn more.
Warhammer Online launches Sept 23, says EA website
We already knew Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning was pretty much done, but now the Electronic Arts website has updated with a release date. The day of reckoning? September 23. There's been no official press release from EA or developer Mythic, so someone has either jumped the gun on updating the site or this won't be the official launch. In the meantime, check out Massively's extensive WAR coverage.[Via Massively]
Matt Daniels talks about his role as WAR's lead writer
Writing a compelling game story is no easy feat. Now imagine being responsible for the innumerable and layered storylines in an MMO, constantly evolving and needing to fit with everything else -- sounds like a nightmare, doesn't it? Lead writer for Warhammer Online Matt Daniels would beg to differ. He has penned a new developer diary, in which he goes over his role in bringing the Warhammer setting to life, and it sounds like it's nothing but fun. A big challenge, but still fun.It seems we somehow missed the previous developer diary as well, which features content director Destin Bales talking about the roughly-ten-thousand pages of documentation that the content team has come up with for WAR. This covers a huge range of things, from the basic premise of the game, to very detailed content information. You'll even get to read an example of the work found in the content documents, with a full description of the "Mount Bloodthorn" zone pasted at the bottom of the article. Check out both Daniels' and Bales' dev diaries, and we'll be sure to keep our eyes out for the next one.
IGN and Gamespy preview WAR's Elven starting areas
Partners-in-crime IGN and Gamespy recently visited Mythic to get some hands-on time with a couple of the starting areas in Warhammer Online. IGN ended up with the High Elves, taking Swordmaster as their class, and Gamespy chose the Dark Elves and picked Sorceress. One of the things that Gamespy commented on was the close proximity of the High Elf and Dark Elf starting areas to each other. They also noted that some of the newbie quests deliberately brought the two races together, within striking distance, giving players the choice to either scowl menacingly, or jump straight into PvP. There was unfortunately no mention of a meet-up and subsequent rumble with their noble High Elven counterparts though. Both teams ended their playtime by participating in a public quest, and you can read all about it from either IGN's or Gamespy's perspective.
Warhammer video shows real PvP
Remember the WAR 'this is glory' video from a few weeks back? It was a scripted pile of crap, but anyone with some common sense knew it didn't actually portray WAR's RvR realistically. What is realistic? Chaotic bedlam! This new video ganked from Gamespot showcases how PvP plays out on a smaller and more nubish scale. Classes in on the action: Witch Hunter, Chaos Chosen, and the Witch Elf. Paul Barnett appears, surprise, and dials down the hyperbole explaining in calmer terms the hobby experience that will make WAR a free-time friendly fun MMO to play. That way WAR players can still go to the bar wearing Warhammer shirts, and bring along some Warhammer figurines to impress the svelte ladies or the burly gents. While I really enjoy the hobby versus immersion outlook, there will always be hardcores that take it to the immersive extreme and play until someone in a bio-hazard suit shows up with the eviction notice. It's nice that there are some MMO developers that want to make sure their players stay safe and function as normal law-abiding citizens that can afford their subscriptions and buy all sorts of WAR loots. I still have a bad feeling WAR will be an immersive soul-sucking experience. I better get to work on fire-proofing whatever I can. If you still hunger for more footage, and like me you're stuck back in the line for a beta invite, there are more gameplay videos to watch. If you want to join the line, be sure to register for the Warhammer Online beta. [via Keen and Graev] [Video Source]
Warhammer dev chat next week
Warhammer Online, which is probably (as is often claimed) the most anticipated MMO of 2008, will be having a developer chat next Wednesday, January 30th, at 8pm EST at Warcry. Details about this game are still a bit thinner than I would like, so any information we can get on it is nice to have. To connect, join #WarCouncil on irc.chatspike.net:6667 (#warcry for discussion), or use one of the web clients available on Warcry's page.Personally, I'm not that interested in the game, since it seems quite PvP (sorry, RvR) heavy, and I'm more of a PvE guy. It is, however, still the strongest competition I can see on the horizon for WoW, at least until Blizzard announces their own "next-gen MMO" that they keep trying to hire folks for.
Warhammer Online player-mounts displayed in concept art gallery
A recent newsletter for Warhammer Online gave us a glimpse at the concept art for some of the player mounts that the game will have, and TenTonHammer has posted these up in a handy gallery. Featured are mounts for the Greenskin, Dwarf, High Elf, Chaos, and Empire armies. For some races, we see a Light, Heavy and Medium version of the mounts, and the Greenskins have two different kinds of mount shown, boars and wolves.The newsletter that these images came from gave us a few scraps of information on some mount mechanics. There will be temporary mounts for rent, aimed at lower level characters, and riding into water will throw you off your mount. Similarly, you can be shot off your mount if you ride into battle (though no word yet on whether mounted combat will at all be possible). Missing from any of the concept art shown was a mount for the Dark Elves. The newsletter promises more details soon on mounts in general, and perhaps we will learn about their mode of transportation at that time.
EA Mythic picks up a new Director of Community Relations
EA Mythic has filled the top-spot in their community ranks by inviting Robert Mull to lead the way as their new Community Relations Director. Mull's new duties revolve around everything community, especially overseeing the Community Coordinators for Warhammer Online, Dark Age of Camelot, and the recently absorbed Ultima Online. What grates on my nerves are community personnel that don't really play MMOs, which isn't as uncommon as one might think, any player can definitely tell when that big-head community rep replies on the forums doesn't even bother responding to important posts because they don't know jack about the game, and is instead jollying around in off-topic talking about the latest CSI episode. Well, according to his personal welcoming address on the Warhammer Herald, Mull is a long-time MMOG player and his past roots include working for Wizards of the Coast supporting Avalon Hill, Axis & Allies, Dreamblade, Duel Masters, and other products. Nice, roots. We here at Massively, would like to extend a welcoming hand to our new EA Mythic community overlords. (I am attempting to gain faction for beta invites for our readers when the time comes – if it comes!) If you have been out of the Warhammer loop for the past week, please be sure to check out all our recent Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning coverage.
Massively's Massive Giveaways: Warhammer Online
If you were with us earlier, you know that today is Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning day! Of course, as Mythic has been doing a good job of keeping information pretty tightly controlled, all we have for certain on it is what's on the official site. (We're working on talking to them, though.) The only things we can say with absolute certainty are that this is a hot, highly anticipated game with a great gaming property behind it, and that we're probably going to get our collective faces melted in PvP. After all, tabletop is where it came from, and there's nothing quite as much fun as quoting Summoner Geeks at your weekly gaming group while you enjoy getting your game on. (There again, maybe we're just showing our age...)But nostalgia aside; for this giveaway we're offering up another hot Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard. While this may help you fling Magic Missile (or the Warhammer equivalent) it sadly will not get you a Mountain Dew. All you have to do to win it, however, is to leave a comment below before 5:00 PM Eastern tomorrow (11/12), be at least 18+, a U.S. resident, and otherwise eligible under the official rules.What are you waiting on? Get to commenting!
EA Mythic general manager Mark Jacobs on Warhammer Online delay
In case you missed it, Warhammer Online's October State of the Game, released the other day, dropped the fact that the game had been pushed back to a Q2 2008 launch. Since that announcement, Gamespot had an opportunity to talk with developer EA Mythic's VP and general manager, Mark Jacobs, to allow him to elaborate on the decision to delay the highly anticipated title.Jacobs goes into a lot of detail with his responses to Gamespot's questions, but the main message he would like to get across is that his studio would not have been satisfied with the game's state, at release, if confined to their previous schedule. They have received a lot of helpful feedback, both positive and negative, from people in their beta testing program, and now wish to take the time to better the game based on that -- although, Jacobs emphasizes that the beta was not brought down solely to address issues in the negative feedback, but that the shutdown had been in their plans all along.
