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The Daily Grind: Soured on Allods Online?
Last Monday, everyone was looking forward to the soft launch of Allods Online on the 16th. This Monday, many of those same people are scowling and making their fair share of unhappy grumbling noises. What happened? Well, while no one expected that the anticipated free-to-play would lack an item shop, almost no one expected that the prices would be... well... for lack of a better term let's say "ruinous." No small portion of the blogosphere has piped up in rage, and the official response from the company succeeded in further angering players and potential players. Oh, and there's a bit of discontent about how this ties into the next patch, as well. As we survey the game's quick reputation shift, it's well worth asking where people stand on the issue. Has the entire brouhaha and ill-received response soured your opinion of Allods Online irrevocably? Would you be willing to try it if the prices were lowered, or are you now refusing to play the game solely based upon principle? Or are you willing to roll with the changes and write the entire thing off as a misunderstanding?
Allods Online responds to player concern over cash shop
As we reported earlier this morning, the Allods Online item shop went live during open beta today, but the player feedback wasn't exactly positive. The main issue here being what fans felt were unusually high prices for in-game items. Tonight, gPotato officially responded to the outrage, literally apologizing for the communication breakdown that happened today. "We made a mistake by not letting you, our most passionate players know when the item shop was going to go live and we didn't make the effort to learn more about how all of you feel regarding the contents of the item shop." Later in the statement, they've clarified a major concern on the minds of those interested in making Allods their main MMO: "You can still enjoy the entire game without ever having to spend a single cent." When asked for a comment, Associate Producer Darren Allarde said to Massively, "We really appreciate the support from Massively.com and its readers. Again, we read every piece of feedback, so if there are comments anyone would like to make regarding Allods Online, please send it our way!" Be sure to take a look at the entire official response for more on how the Allods team hopes to rectify the situation, and how you can contact them with any concerns you may have.
Allods opens cash shop, prices drive players insane
The Allods Online's community isn't happy with the game's cash shop prices. Currently, the cost of increasing your bag slots from 18 to 24 is $20, which is considerably higher than pretty much every other free-to-play game on the market. It's not entirely clear whether this is some kind of back-end mistake on gPotato's part or an actual pricing change. And looking at the general section of Allods Online's official forums reveals that, in fact, a lot of players are pretty upset over the whole fiasco. Some are proclaiming rage-quits while others are considering boycotts but nobody is happy about the news. Of course, some more level-headed community members are attempting to communicate with gPotato in order to get the prices changed to more reasonable prices -- something which is apparently true of the Russian version of the game. We'll keep you updated as the story progresses.
One Shots: Off into the wild blue yonder
As you're reading this, the servers for Allods Online are coming online for the 'soft' launch of the game. In terms of free-to-play MMOs, this Russian game developed by Astrum Nival and being released by gPotato has been gathering a lot of interest from players looking for something casual and fun that still has some depth and a more traditional Western feel. For today, we have this great screenshot and a huge note from Leonard E. who played Allods Online during closed beta and wanted to share his thoughts. As such, we'll turn it over to him after reminding you to send in your MMO screenshots to us here at oneshots AT massively DOT com along with your name, the name of the game, and a brief description. For now, on with Leonard's note; be sure to read the rest of it behind the break! I've been playing since CB3. and my character's name is Aselin. This is myself waiting for the ship to come by, and what caught my eye is how vast Allods space is. It gives that same feeling I had when I first played EVE Online. You can get an immediate sense on how much more you can do in this game. %Gallery-85937%%Gallery-9798%
Allods Online launches into open beta
The time for Gibberling butt-kicking fun is upon us! Today, Allods Online launches into open beta in both the US and the EU, bringing with it the glad news that there will be no more character wipes before launch. Players using the American servers who were in closed beta will need to download a small patch for their launchers to make them compatible with the open beta client. Those playing on the EU servers can just load the closed beta launcher and patch straight away. The servers are set to open up at 11 AM Pacific time (2 PM Eastern) today. In addition to that, players in the EU from closed beta whose characters reached at least level 17 will have first dibs on their CB names, and EU guilds of 24+ members will similarly have their names held for the first part of open beta. With that said, any names that are unclaimed by March 17th will be released back into the naming pool. No word currently on whether or not the naming nod will be carried across to the US servers as well. So if you've been on the fence about checking out Allods Online because you didn't want to put time and effort into a character that would be wiped, now is a great time to jump in and get your free-to-play on!
Allods Online set to enter open beta on February 16th
Allods Online surprised us last November, seeming to come out of nowhere and offering an extensive, polished game even in beta. The game has been cycling through several rounds of closed beta since then, adding more content with each round and allowing beta testers to further explore their world. Fans of the game who didn't manage to score a closed beta key during that time have something to be happy about today: open beta for Allods Online in Europe and North America will begin next Tuesday, February 16th. Not only that, but all characters created during the open beta will not be deleted. If you're curious about the game, check out our previous coverage and prepare yourself for the awesomeness the right way. [Thanks Kane!]
Community Q&A: Ask Allods Online
Allods Online has just announced an extension to its fourth closed beta testing, with an open beta looming on the horizon. We've been giving the game some healthy coverage since it entered the early beta stages, and we're always excited to interact with the developers and publishers whenever we can. But now it's your turn! As with our previous Community Q&As, we want to hear from our readers on the pressing questions you have for the developers. Whether you've been enjoying your time in the game or not, we want to know what you'd like answered. So if you'd like your question considered, simply leave a question as a comment on this post by Monday, February 8th at 8am EST. Or, if you'd feel more comfortable with email, send one off to me at shawn at massively dot com. We'll gather up the questions and send the best off to the Allods team for the answers. Once we get the answers back, we'll post them here for all to see. Please remember to keep your questions respectful and your criticisms constructive. Beyond that, have at it!
Being in it for the money
We might fight a lot of enemies in our MMOs, but a number of players will agree that there's one enemy that is bigger than anything else: the company that makes the game. Blizzard, Square-Enix, Funcom, Bioware -- according to this branch of the playerbase, they don't care at all about the people playing their game. All they're concerned about is making money. They just want to get your money by any means necessary. However, the people who claim that say that like it's a bad thing. Nobody ever smiles and says "boy, I'm sure glad Sony Online Entertainment is in this for the money." Oddly enough, when you start to think about it, the fact of the matter is that it's not only transparent that these companies are in it for the money, it's a good thing. We should be happy that most of these companies are there to get our money by any means necessary.
Allods Online Closed Beta Test 4 key giveaway
Today marks the start of something very special for fans and players of Allods Online: Closed Beta Test 4. This stage of beta brings a raised level cap to 40, seven new contested zones, new instances, raids, Goblinball and Astral Ships. This all begins today at 11am PDT and runs until February 3, 2010. But the best part is, we have 5,000 keys for you! To grab one for yourself, head on over to our giveaway page, click the key claim button at the bottom and copy your key. From there you'll head over to the official Allods Online website to redeem your key and download the client. While your client is downloading, check out our pre-release developer tour of the new zones and Astral Ships, including a comprehensive video. Please note that if you've already acquired a key in previous stages of beta, you will not need one now. Good luck!
Exclusive Allods Online dev tour: Astral Ships and the end game explained
Earlier this week, the team at Allods Online were kind enough to sit down and walk me through some of the highest-level areas in the game. Knowing that I'm already an avid fan of the game, it was exciting for us both to "talk shop" for a bit. It was especially exciting to see some features of the end game that not too many North American players have seen up to this point. Of course, I'm talking about Astral Ships and the end game. With Closed Beta Test 4 arriving this coming Tuesday, January 19th, high-level players will finally be able to see real Astral Ship combat and how it all works. This article is meant to prepare you for the awesomeness and hopefully answer some questions you may have next week and into launch. Follow along after the jump for our complete write-up, a gallery of screenshots we took during the tour and a video to fully capture the epic win.%Gallery-83082%
An interview with Allods Online: CBT4 and beyond
Allods Online has certainly gained some interest in the last few months since their closed beta began. Even if you've never played the game, you can't help but drool over the screenshots and videos we've been posting. So what's the secret to their preliminary success? We contacted Darren Allarde, Associate Producer for Gala-Net Inc., and asked him a few questions. Okay, so we asked him more than a few, but we can't help it if we're excited to learn more about this amazing game! We learn why there is no mini-map, when mounts will be implemented, what Closed Beta Test 4 will bring and much more. Part one of this interview can be found after the jump below, with a second part coming soon.
One Shots: A visit to the capitol
One of the names we keep hearing in terms of community buzz amongst the free-to-play titles heading for the market is Allods Online. People are comparing it to World of Warcraft, and with screenshots like the one above, we can understand why. The art, while not exact, is certainly very similar. The developers of Allods Online, Astrum Nival, have apparently taken the "if you can't beat them, join them" approach. We'll have to wait and see if it works. For now, we have this screenshot to enjoy, along with a note sent in to us from Pedro R. who writes in: [This is a] view of the main plaza from the League capital city. This game really has amazing graphics and [a] great storyline.Are you really enjoying a new title, particularly one we perhaps haven't had a chance to see as yet? Why not take a screenshot of something interesting and send it in to us? You can reach us at oneshots AT massively DOT com -- and be sure to send along your name, the name of the game, and a quick description. We'll post it out here and give you the credit! %Gallery-9798%
Top 10 tips for Allods Online
Saylah from the Mystic Worlds blog is one of the many enthusiastic closed beta testers for Allods Online, and is making the most of her experience by learning as much about the game as she can. She's on her eighth character, having rerolled several times to learn the classes, and has provided a great rundown of the game so far, including the extremely useful "Top Tips for Playing Allods." Her list of ways to better enjoy your time in Allods runs the gamut from very general (take time to smell the roses -- explore the world) to the very specific (what gear kits to buy and where to buy them.) If you are a current closed beta participant and have not read through this list yet, you definitely want to. Even if you aren't in the game yet, Saylah's post is a nice starting point for anyone considering playing -- it gives a good feel for the game overall and is worth bookmarking for the day you venture into Allods.
Exploring PvP in Allods Online
Allods Online, the upcoming game from gPotato has turned out to be wildly popular, hitting the ground running even in Closed Beta Test 1. They're now into Closed Beta Test 3, and while there is still lots of progress to be made (that's kind of the point of beta testing), most beta test players are having a great time exploring and learning. Keen from Keen and Graev's Gaming Blog has been enjoying his beta experiences, and this week he got a taste of PvP in the Holy Lands. The first blog entry, posted Friday, shares some coverage of his PvP playtime. It's a great read, explaining how the PvE and PvP experiences intermingle, with the PvE quests taking you into the fully PvP Holy Lands as well as sharing some new thoughts on stats. Saturday's entry continued the adventure as Keen got the lay of the land a bit, scoring his first significant PvP win. The short version is this: The Holy Lands are hard. You're going to get smacked around, mostly by other players. If you are up for a challenge you need to check this area out, but not without reading through Keen's blog entries first.
One Shots: Necrosteampunkanomicon
digg_url = 'http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/12/31/one-shots-necrosteampunkanomicon/'; While many feel that Allods Online is teetering close to World of Warcraft in the art department, we'd like to note that while glowy green stuff was definitely present in the hometown of the Forsaken, you didn't really find characters that looked like the guy above. To our eyes, he looks rather like some weird undead steampunk Terminator thing -- kind of a scary idea in and of itself! Today's Allods Online image comes to us from Jason B. who writes in: Gotta love mechanized undead. Here's my Arisen Occultist from the Allods Online beta hanging out in the Imperial Square in Nezebgrad. Long live the Empire! Screenshots from large MMOs to small -- we want them all! Just email those snaps in to us here at oneshots AT massively DOT com along with your name, the name of the game, and a quick description. Please make sure your images are at least 1024px across, and have largely no UI elements visible. We'll post them out here and give you the credit for mailing them in! %Gallery-9798%
Allods Online gears up for Closed Beta Test 3 with preview articles
The third closed beta for Allods Online starts tomorrow, which might seem like quite a ways off if you're one of the many people anticipating the game (or one of the winners of our recent beta key giveaway). Even if you weren't lucky enough to get into the beta testing, you can still be excited about the game and hungry for more information. As part of the ramp-up for this test, Astrum Nival and gPotato have posted a series of previews of the look and lore of some of the areas in the game. Starting with the dusty wasteland of the Orcish homeland (complete with Goblinball field) and the elven land of Tenebra, the preview moves on to contested territories and dungeons. Asee-Teph, one of the first contested areas, seems to have more than a few factional artillery pieces in place across this jungle-like area. Following that is Eljune, which seems to be the border between forest and tundra, as well as home to demons and ruins. The previews also include a handful of dungeons: the dark and forbidding Castle Blight, the industrial Lab Thirteen overrun with giant insects, and the ethereally gothic Darkblood Citadel. Allods Online has been generating some impressed reactions, and these previews help show why, even if it's only showing the impressive visuals.
Massively's third closed beta key giveaway for Allods Online
Allods Online's third closed beta test is about to start, and we want to make sure you're prepared. With 5,000 keys to give out this time, more Massively readers will get their chance to see what the buzz is all about. This stage of closed beta will run from December 29th to January 11th and open up the level cap to 30. New content includes World PvP, four new zones, four new instances and approximately 500 new quests. Of course this is all in addition to all the content we've enjoyed in the first two closed beta tests. If you'd like to grab a key for yourself, head over to our giveaway page and follow the directions there. Since this giveaway is for the North American version of the game, you'll need to head over to allods.gpotato.com to redeem your key and download the game. Again, this beta won't open up until December 29th, but this will give you plenty of time to prepare! If you have a key from a previous beta stage, you don't need to grab another one this time; you're already set.
One Shots: Totemic
When it comes to free-to-play games it seems like every other day you turn around and there's another one. Even with that said, Allods Online has been steadily gaining interest from the MMO blogosphere. While its gameplay is by no means reinventing the wheel, it does appear that the cute graphics and the refinement on extant mechanics is turning heads. If you haven't seen some of the ridiculously cute things in the game, today's One Shots from Jacob J. will give you an idea. He writes in: Because I'm liking Allods Online so much; here's the obligatory "Gibberlings showing off by the waterfall" screenshot.If your MMO travels have taken you to a world we don't often see -- or one new to the scene altogether -- why not send in some screenshots and share your journeys! Email them to oneshots AT massively DOT com along with your name, the name of the game, and a brief description. We'll post them here and give you the credit. %Gallery-9798%
Allods Online opens French and German servers for closed beta tests
Allods Online is enjoying a pretty significant amount of popularity, given the fact that it's still only in the closed beta phase, and they announced today that they are expanding to accommodate the demand. The next round of closed beta testing begins today with the launch of French and German servers in addition to Isa, the current European English language server. The French localized server is Airin, named for the homeland of the Elven race in Allods Online. Aro is the name of the new shard for the German community, and is named for the homeland of the Kanians. As well as expanding to include more languages, Allods Online has increased the level cap to 20 for this beta test, and will continue increasing it gradually as testing proceeds. While a character wipe will take place now as well, it will be the last one until release, so plan to enjoy your new characters for a while if you're in the beta!
Allods Online extends closed beta and we have more keys!
That's right. The upcoming game that is just beginning to catch the eye of the MMO blog-o-sphere (and we loved first -- just sayin') has extended their second North American closed beta by another week (December 21st), and we have 2,000 more keys to get you in. This stage of their beta features six new zones: two new zones for the League, three new zones for the Empire, plus an exclusive zone only available to the Warden archetype. There will also be a new diverse set of enemies (Massive Drakes, Harpies, Scorpions, and Arctic Yetis), and a level cap to Level 20. To get your key, head on over to our giveaway page and follow the directions there. If our other Allods Online key giveaways are any indication, these will most certainly go fast. Best of luck!
