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One Shots: A light to guide the way
Because of the changes recently made to the death penalty in Allods Online, some players are giving this interesting MMO that we don't often see on One Shots another chance. Today's sunny Allods Online screenshot comes to us from Hazael, who captured a great shot of the sunlight beaming through the city. Hazael writes in to tell us a bit more about the picturesque setting: "It is sunset in the Empire city of Nezebgrad. Sometimes I just like to stare off at the environment; it is so soothing and beautiful." Next week we'll be introducing theme weeks to One Shots, kicking things off in the most logical place: starting zones! If you'd like to help us out with One Shots, then send a screenshot of what you think is the best starting zone in any game to us here at oneshots@massively.com along with your name, the name of the game, and a description of what we're seeing. We'll post it out here for everyone to enjoy and give you the thanks! %Gallery-112285%
Allods Online launching April 26th
We'll forgive you if you did a double-take at the headline proclaiming an impending Allods Online launch, because frankly we did the same thing. While it seems like the free-to-play sci-fi/fantasy hybrid has been around forever, it has in fact been in an open beta period since February of 2010. All that is about to change on April 26th, as Gala-Net has announced the title's official release coinciding with the 2.0.02: Astral Odyssey patch. So while the game has been in the public eye long enough to provoke a controversy, resolve another one, and generally make itself at home amidst the collective free-to-play psyche, it's all been something of a gigantic warm-up. The Astral Odyssey update is bringing a lot of new content to the table, including a level cap increase (47), two high-level zones (Kirah and the Isle of Revelation), and two new gear systems (refining and draconic relics). Six new allods are coming as well, and you can read all about the officially official release patch at the game's website. [Update: The EU version will be launching May 11th]
Rune the day: Allods Online previews the Isle of Revelation and a revamped rune system
As Allods Online continues to march toward its humongous release patch, it is pushing previews out before the update like a train's cowcatcher throwing out bovines. GPotato is proud to reveal another new zone for Patch 2.0.02 called the Isle of Revelation as well as a much improved rune system for the game. Allods Online's Isle of Revelation is a level 45+ area that's been ruined almost beyond repair, although a resourceful player may discover its mysteries even so. The blasted landscape is also home to the Citadel, an endgame city for members of both factions that has all of the merchants and services that you may require. The devs are also reworking rune mechanics to make them easier to use. Instead of fiddling with runes in equipment slots, players will now find runes in their own special window. By detaching runes from gear, players can swap armor and weapons without having to worry about moving the runes too. Patch 2.0.02 is scheduled for sometime this spring and includes several additional zones, customizable mounts and a new minimap feature.
Ask Massively: Discuss this picture edition
After picking a number of ridiculous title images over the past several months to lead off Ask Massively, I've noticed an interesting trend. In spite of whatever is discussed in the text of the post itself, at least half of the comments will wind up discussing the picture or the intro text instead. So I figured I might as well make use of this fact by leading off with John Singer Sargent's "Claude Monet Painting by the Edge of a Wood." If we're going to have to talk about the picture, we might as well get some culture out of the deal. If you absolutely must read about MMOs as opposed to fine art -- which would sort of make sense; our coverage of impressionists is out of date and not terribly robust -- this week we've got questions about the state of the overarching MMO model as well as the dreaded "double dipping" of cash shops and subscription fees. If you've got a question for next week, mail it to ask@massively.com or just leave it in the comments!
One Shots: Flying high again
When it comes to fun ways of getting around, the astral ships in Allods Online are pretty cool. How many ships do you know that travel by floating via magic? Today's deck-side scene from an Allods Online astral ship comes to us from Dreadblood, who can't wait to get started on his next adventure. He writes in: "The brave yet very jittery Orc Paladin preps up for a world of hurt, pain, and a whole lot of ganking, as my character heads out to the unknown in dangerous Holy Lands. VERY EXCITED!" One Shots is all about featuring the things that players are doing -- but we need you to send in your screenshots! Otherwise, we get stuck digging through our own screenshot folders. If you'd like to help us out, snap a screenshot while you're gaming this weekend and email it in to us here at oneshots@massively.com. Be sure to include your name, the name of the game, and a description of what we're seeing. We'll post the image out here and give you the credit for sending it in. %Gallery-112285%
GDC 2011: Allods Online orders a mega-patch with a launch on the side
It's utterly bizarre to consider that Allods Online, for as long as it's been out and playable by the masses, has yet to leave the boundaries of open beta. As we mentioned yesterday, this is about to change, as gPotato announced that the next patch would finally bring the title to an official release. And what a patch this is! Allods players will feast upon a gourmet meal with all the fixins, including a rise in the level cap from 42 to 47. This means that the talent grids are getting bigger as a result, so expect new skills and abilities across the board. Players will receive a talent point reset to let them rebuild their characters if so desired. Check out 16 brand-new screenshots of the patch below, and hit the jump for an in-depth look at Allods' growth and illuminating videos! %Gallery-91331%
GDC 2011: Allods Online backs off on death penalties
Big news from our GDC 2011 team! gPotato has confirmed that it is working furiously toward finally launching Allods Online out of the perpetual beta state that so many free-to-play games seem to be stuck in. It's due to fully launch at some point this spring. However, that's not all. Apparently, the devs have been listening to the community's ongoing complaints about the death penalties and are taking a major step: They're making holy charms completely free in the cash shop, as of just a little while ago. Furthermore, the word is that the change is going to be permanent! While this only affects the gPotato version of the game, we're certain the community will find this an incredibly welcome change. The idea of having to purchase items from the cash shop to defray the costs of death has never sat particularly well with Western gamers. Allods Online may be a highly polished and fun free-to-play game, but when any game nudges you to spend money just to remove curses applied as a result of your inevitable in-game death, it quickly loses its charm. Whether or not we'll see any additional items drop in price before launch, we don't know. Still, this is a great day for Allods Online players -- as well as for those who wanted to play the game but left because the "death penalty=cash shop purchase" concept was distasteful. Look for more from our talk with gPotato at GDC 2011 soon!
Massively's guide to Valentine's Day festivities
Ah spring! 'Tis the time when young men and women's thoughts turn to love -- or at least scoring some nifty holiday-themed loot! This year there's quite a bit going on. Some events are old familiar ones that have stood the test of time. Others offer new twists and things to do for those who have been there, done that. If you aren't feeling the love bug biting, there's even the odd anti-Valentine's-type event, perfect for those who would rather rain destruction down on the head of anyone foolish enough to approach him with anything heart-shaped or pink. Curious as to what's going on? Check out our listing below -- and feel free to chime in if you know of a fun event others should check out! Rip out your Fallen Earth character's heart for Valentine's Day (February 11th-13th) What's better than surviving a nuclear holocaust and wandering your way across a blasted brown landscape rife with societal collapse? Why, sharing said wanderings with someone you love, of course (or at least, someone you lust after in that we've-got-to-do-this-for-the-future-of-mankind sort of way). In a novel spin on the traditional mid-February holiday, Icarus Studios is presenting Fallen Earth's Valentine's Day Massacre event, and clones everywhere can literally offer their hearts as a sign of affection (and a +3 stamina buff). Vindictus spreads the love with new update and holiday (February 1st-15th) Quirky events have quickly become one of Vindictus' staples. Right now players can participate in V-Day events for special rewards. If fishing and chocolate hunting isn't your bag, you can simply purchase a Valentine's Package at the Supply Depot for "sexy Valentine's themed Inner Armor." Cute undies, in other words. Valentine's events will end after the 15th, so players are encouraged to partake sooner rather than regret it later. Time for love in Final Fantasy XI (February 1st-15th) Valentine's Day is almost here, that special time of year when you attempt to distill the essence of a romantic relationship into chocolate form. And if you were hoping to escape from the day within Vana'diel, your efforts are rather misdirected -- Valentione's Day coincides nicely with the holiday in the real world, with just as much saccharine summation of liaisons in Final Fantasy XI.
The Perfect Ten: The evolution of /dance
I recall when I was a wee... teenager and C+C Music Factory would blast through our Walkmans to demand that everybody (1) dance and (2) dance now. It was commanding, enthralling and extremely dorky, but the dance could not be denied. Dancing is in the soles of our souls as humans; we simply must boogie to a good beat. I'm not quite sure when or where dancing in MMOs became all the craze, but these days it seems as though every game (except the dour ones with bears, bears, bears) prides itself on a good set of /dance emotes. For some players, it's the perfect way to unwind after a long raid or chew up a bit of time while one waits for SgtCuddlyMonkey to return from his refreshing bio break. For others, it's a legitimate career path with a long and distinguished history of gyrating on top of mailboxes while annoyed postal recipients long for a day when a pelvis will not be gesturing at eye level. So this week, let's loosen up, let our hair down, and samba across the ballroom floor as we count down (up?) 10 incredible MMO dances.
MMO Roundup: RIFT open beta, SWTOR profitability, and more
Sometimes you'd like to know that there are other MMOs out there, right? It's not all WoW, all the time! Our sister site Massively can provide you with everything you need to know about all of the other MMOs around -- past, present and future. RIFT's open beta starts Feb. 15 If you've wanted to try out RIFT but haven't been able to get into the closed beta, mark Feb. 15 on your calendar. In addition to the open beta, any dungeon boss that dies by your hand grants you a chance to win a Nvidia graphics card as well as an in-game prize pack. EA aims at a half-million subscribers to make SWTOR profitable "It's a big bet, but it's the right kind of bet to make for EA." These are the words of BioWare's Ray Muzyka, responding to a conference call to EA investors in which the company admitted that Star Wars: The Old Republic will need to pull in at least 500,000 subscribers to become profitable. This is substantially less than the 2 million subscriber mark that industry analysts previously predicted. Five mobile MMOs that are not Pocket Legends When looking for an MMO to play on the go, the first one you'll find is Pocket Legends. It's the most recognizable for certain, but what if you're looking for something else? What other options are available? Massively Speaking episode 133 Massively Speaking returns this week with Beau Hindman joining Shawn Schuster and Rubi Bayer for some discussion of the week's news. Topics include the newly announced Guild Wars 2 Guardian profession, RIFT's sixth beta event, Vanguard's fourth anniversary and more! Massively's streaming schedule Have you ever wished you could see a game in motion before you decide to try it yourself? Do you enjoy watching WoW Insider's weekly live streams? All week long, Massively streams the hottest MMOs around. This week you can see DC Universe Online, Allods Online, Runes of Magic, and more. Massively's Week in Review: Spite or cynicism? Don't let WoW Insider do all of the talking when it comes to Massively's best content of the week. The Massively staff themselves have picked out what they think is the best content their site has to offer in their own weekly roundup.
MV Guide: February 7 - 14, 2011
MV Guide is a weekly rundown of the MMO gaming events planned on Massively's Livestream channel. Every week the Massively staff logs in to play various MMOs live and in person, and we'd love for you to drop by the channel and visit. We have a combination of regular weekly games and new surprises, so you'll find a variety of games to take a look at. During Livestream events, you can participate in the live chat to learn about the game, ask questions, and spend some time with Massively staff and readers. Did you miss out on something from last week's events? Take heart -- most of them were captured on our on-demand channel for you to watch at your leisure. Shawn logged some time in Earthrise, Beau treated us to a double feature with both Perfect World and Ragnarok Online, Larry continued his crime-fighting agenda in DC Universe Online, and Karen had some fun with her EverQuest II guildies.
MV Guide: January 31 - February 7, 2011
MV Guide is a weekly rundown of the MMO gaming events planned on Massively's Livestream channel. Every week the Massively staff logs in to play various MMOs live and in person, and we'd love for you to drop by the channel and visit. We have a combination of regular weekly games and new surprises, so you'll find a variety of games to take a look at. During Livestream events, you can participate in the live chat to learn about the game, ask questions, and spend some time with Massively staff and readers. If you missed out some of our Livestream events from last week, check out our on-demand videos to catch up at your leisure. We had a busy week! Karen and her guild did some raiding in EverQuest II, Rubi and the Massively Overpowered guild did some damage in Guild Wars' Factions campaign, Larry played some DCUO, Krystalle took to the skies in Black Prophecy, Beau treated us to some Asheron's Call, and Shawn explored some of the awesome features of Champions Online. Do you have a game you'd love to see on our Livestream channel? Let us know in the comments section. For now, if you're looking to check out some new games or see your favorite game from a new perspective, follow along after the cut for this week's installment of MV Guide!
The Perfect Ten: Best non-traditional MMO fantasy races
Elves. Dwarves. Humans. Halflings. Gnomes. Hobbits. Dark elves. High elves. Half-elves. Wood elves. Keebler elves. Elvish impersonators. Are you as tired as I am of the endless regurgitation of stock fantasy races in our MMOs? It seems inconceivable (I do not think that means what you think it means) for a new fantasy title to come out without most of the above races infesting the character creation screen with moldy unoriginality, putrescent stank, and dusty boredom. That's why today I'm standing up to praise 10 MMOs that dare to go above and beyond the stale by offering mostly unique and different races than the rest of the market. Hopefully future games will learn from their example and throw off the yokes of generic oppression to give us something bold and refreshing!
Free for All: Is free to play turning our kids into Vegas pirates?
I think it's the hair. In fact, I know it. The constant flicking -- it drives me nuts. How in the world did wearing your hair like 60-year-old businessmen become such a fad? I've now had my groceries bagged by 16-year-old kids with eyeliner on and dual piercings in their lips. When did looking like a Vegas pirate become so popular? The flicking of their hair -- it does something to them. Justin Bieber, in a recent interview, said that he was crazy. He insisted on it. Of course, his agent wanted to push this tiny public cry for help off as some sign of genius, but we all know what Bieber meant: "This hair is *flick* driving me *flick* flat-out bonkers." What also seems to be an issue with the youngins these days is an unfiltered access to the internet. I'm not kidding -- next time you're at the mall, ask the kid with the 30 Seconds to Mars t-shirt on who the vice president is. Then ask him to spell "lose." See, on the internet and inside any number of free games, he doesn't need to know this information. After all, the only time he might be worried about "loosing" anything is when he is busy PvPing. I might be onto something. Get the hair out of your eyes, join me after the cut, and we'll discuss it further.
The top indie and free-to-play stories of 2010
I have to admit to feeling slightly amazed when I read that someone thought of 2010 as a bad year for MMORPG fans. Then, when I think about it, I realize that he was talking about the year in "AAA" subscription gaming -- something almost alien to me. I just don't get turned on by huge-budget subscription games like I did seven or eight years ago. Well, it might be better to say that I am always suspicious of big-budget gaming. Gaming is a lot like movies, and look at how bad most blockbusters are. They are often silly, over-the-top, special-effects-laden bores. If those movies were the only ones I watched, I might be a little depressed about Hollywood as well. If you pay attention only to what the major publishers are pushing out, you are simply going to have a narrow view of MMO gaming. You will miss too much. The year 2010 offered more than any year before it, and 2011 will top that. Thanks to mobile technologies and the always-dropping price of computers, you will find that smaller or unknown games have much more of a chance of grabbing a gamer's eye than ever before. So, what were some of the high and low points in free-to-play and indie gaming this year? Click past the cut and let's take a look!
Massively's holiday guide to cash shop prices
I've been asked by readers, many times, to put together a comparison of cash-shop prices. I have always avoided the topic for one glaring reason: There is no constant. Sure, I can tell you how much you get for a dollar, but a wonderful mount in one game might not even be recognized as a mount in another! Quality is subjective, so how would I attempt to measure that? Also, if we wanted to compare the hundreds of cash-shop games out there, we would simply not have enough room. Yes, there are hundreds -- with more coming all the time. Let's be really conservative, though. I broke it down into 10 games that Massively readers will probably recognize or care about. Not all Massively readers, granted, but many, I am sure. It would do me no good to compare some tiny, indie game to Lord of the Rings Online, simply because I would be met with the equivalent of a blank stare. Such is the unfortunate state of gaming right now. After I marked up the list of 10, I lost two straightaway because -- while they have a cash shop in the technical sense -- those cash shops aren't something that can be put up against the others, or they have many items that just wouldn't make much sense. For example, I can tell you how much you can get for 10 dollars in Mabinogi and that you can sell some of those items to possibly purchase a house, but then we have to discuss the variable cost of the house, the upkeep -- on and on. I will definitely have to do a much larger list at some point. Anyway, read on, and I will put notes where needed. Let this serve one main purpose: to prove that there is no constant in cash shops and no generalities -- it's all up to the individual to decide on the quality and value of the items.
The Perfect Ten: Most controversial MMO stories of 2010
Well, this is it, folks. The end of the year. A time of reflection, of massive weight gain and of lists. Man, we like our lists, do we not? Fortunately, at Perfect Ten Industries, we've been excelling in lists for months now. Frankly, we're just getting warmed up! While 2010 may not have been much to write home about in terms of newly launched MMOs, there was more than enough controversy to keep the discussion brewing for months. MMOs are big business, and when every move you make is closely scrutinized by millions of gamers, there's no room to slip up unless you like forum hyenas pouncing all over you, snapping and snarling at your faulty flesh. So let's take a jaunt down our top 10 list of the most controversial stories of 2010 on Massively, keeping in mind that it was devilishly hard just to keep this list to 10 at all. What's a week without being riled up about pixels and polygons, after all?
Allods teases us with videos and a launch date for its new expansion
Last week, gPotato announced its newest expansion to the free-to-play MMO Allods Online. Volume 3: The Fury of War focuses on content for high-level players, such as the PvP instances of Melting Isle and the Junes Catacombs. The Melting Isle is a free-for-all PvP arena with no ties to faction. Junes Catacombs also ignores factions as teams of players make their way through a maze, hounded by three angry boss NPCs. This next hefty expansion also includes new guild rewards for leveling and the ability to contest and take ownership of specially designed allods and astral sectors, so be prepared to gather all your friends. Who doesn't want to own an astral plane? Keeping in tune with the F2P theme, Allods is offering Volume 3 without additional charge to players. The Fury of War will go live during the evening of December 14th for all servers. After the cut, we have a video sneak peek of the two new instances, and for more information on how you can be a part of the action, check out the Allods Online official site.
Volume 3: The Fury of War coming to Allods Online this December
The free-to-play developer gPotato has announced a third volume for its popular F2P fantasy title Allods Online. The Fury of War follows in the footsteps of the second volume, Rise of Gorluxor, by offering more free options, items, and content. However, this volume will focus more on guilds and high-level content. Two completely new zones will open up for players: the level 40 PvP areas (Melting Isle and the Junes Catacombs) and a level 40 allod called the Lost Isle. The Melting Isle is a faction-forgotten free-for-all PvP arena with a greater chest guaranteed to spawn if there are more than 20 participants. The Junes Catacombs also ignores factional alignments in this PvP maze, but as an added challenge, there are three bosses, including an ultimate boss, that groups must defeat in order to claim the instance rewards. Each time you enter this maze, it changes. After the launch of Volume 3, guilds in Allods can claim ownership of specific allods or entire astral sectors by a new guild-leveling mechanic. This new addition will pit guild against guild for control -- if you claim ownership, you must be able to defend it. Other guilds will want what you have. The Fury of War will launch before Christmas. For more information, visit the Allods official website, where you can download the game and try it out for yourself. %Gallery-108673%
Allods Online "more free-to-play than ever" with new patch
How free is free-to-play? That depends on the game, and in the case of Allods Online, free just got a bit freer. gPotato Europe announced in a press release this morning that today's patch, an update to Volume 2: Rise of Gorluxor, will make the game "more free-to-play than ever." Players may now complete daily quests that offer selected premium rewards including double XP over time bonuses, items that negate death penalties, and buff trinkets that grant up to 24 hours of increased character power. Additionally, every Allods character will receive a free gift, so check your in-game mailbox within the next 30 days. Volume 2: Rise of the Gorluxor features a lengthy list of improvements including the Dream Factory (a new level 20 zone) as well as class tweaks and bug fixes. Be sure and take a look at the full patch notes on the official site.
