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'Pokémon Go' is making major changes to raids
Niantic has announced big changes to Pokémon Go raids, designed to even the playing field for trainers at all levels -- and pleasing Magikarp fans in the process. The raid system, particularly EX Raids, has faced criticism because of the way it seems to favor certain players and locations, but the changes -- a result of field-testing and feedback -- should rectify things.
Players show off Lord of the Rings Online's epic battles in Helm's Deep beta
The central feature of Lord of the Rings Online's upcoming expansion is battles of a truly astounding size. Battles large enough to truly earn the name of epic. With the drop of the NDA, players have taken it upon themselves to produce an equally epic assembly of footage for these epic battles. Narrators Andang, Ethelros, and Pineleaf have created five videos walking through all of the enormous battles, from smaller scale to the biggest possible encounters. As the videos show, success in these battles is not simply a matter of killing all of your enemies, focusing instead upon tactical management of the supporting NPCs while keeping an eye toward how many enemy forces are incoming. It also requires some amount of the calculation you'd expect, allowing some forces to fall so that your main force remains healthy. But you don't need to take our word for it -- click on past the break and start watching. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
Grand Voyage introduces 16th century maritime trade to your MMO dock
If you enjoy sea battles and merchant trading in your MMO, but aren't necessarily a fan of playing as a pirate, then you must be a ninja. Or maybe you might just enjoy the new Grand Voyage from NGames. Set in the historically accurate 16th Century Mediterranean coast region, Grand Voyage is described as a late-Renaissance maritime trading MMO that lets you grow from small-time captain to legendary voyager in control of your own fleet. Since all trade prices change dynamically based on player actions, the economy allows for a stock-style way to buy low and sell high. But rest assured, there is combat in Grand Voyage, and captains must keep their ships in top working condition while battling opponents across servers. Grand Voyage is on the Game321.com online games portal, and you can follow them on Facebook or Twitter to find out more. [Source: NGames press release]
Final Fantasy Tactics: War of the Lions updated, on sale for half price
Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions arrived on iOS a little while ago, and it's long been lauded as one of the best tactical strategy games out there. And there are two good reasons you should check it out right now if you haven't yet. First and foremost, the game just got updated. There are now better graphics in the game than ever before, all meant for higher resolution Retina Displays. The update also adds improvements to the game's animations, and iCloud integration has been improved as well. Square Enix says it's not quite working correctly on the iPhone just yet, but it should soon, and the iPad works just fine. And additionally, to celebrate the update, the series is also on sale (which is even more important when you consider how rarely Square Enix drops prices on its games). The iPhone version is down to $7.99, and the iPad version is only $8.99, both still pricey, but both half off of their usual costs. If you've been waiting to play this one, there's your chance to grab one or both.
New Japanese DmC trailer shows Dante whipping platforms into shape
Here's the latest trailer from Ninja Theory's Devil May Cry reboot, hot off Famitsu's YouTube channel. You can see a few of Dante's new navigational tricks around the confusing world of Limbo, as well as a boss battle against a creature known as Succubus. Ugly!
James Cameron to create sparks with Robogeddon on Discovery Channel
Fresh off his return from the briny deep, James Cameron is set to create a television show for the Discovery Channel called Robogeddon. Similar to BattleBots and Robot Wars, the program will feature a competitive death match of sorts, where robots tear each other to shreds in pursuit of being the last machine standing. In addition to Cameron's participation, the show will also feature the stamp of Mark Burnett -- famous for such reality television titles as Survivor, Shark Tank and The Voice. It's also said that Donald Hutson, the two-time Super Heavyweight Champion of BattleBots, will be among the show's competitors. No date is set for when we'll see the sparks fly, but if you want to get in on the ground floor, might we suggest hitting your local scrapyard?
PlanetSide 2 going for big continents, big battles
Sony Online Entertainment recently showed off the latest version of PlanetSide 2 to PC Gamer, and if you were worried about not having enough elbow room in the sequel to the popular MMO shooter, worry not. The game takes place on landmasses that can stretch out to eight virtual kilometers on either side, and battles can rage all across those areas, with some weapons firing up to an in-game kilometer. The continents also contain "facilities," which hold courtyards of action, some of which creative director Matt Higby says are "the size of a Modern Warfare level." The team also talked about another form of scale: How many players are involved in these massive battles. At times, they admit, it'll be around 200 people fighting against only 30, but they're attempting to design the game so that with the right tactics, "you can still have fun and enjoy yourself as a group of 20 people defending against an onslaught." Of course, it takes even more design acumen to figure out how to also make that fun for the 200 players, but we're hopeful SOE can figure out something smart.
TUAW's Daily iPhone App: Kard Combat
Kard Combat is a new universal iOS title from Hothead Games, the folks behind the Penny Arcade videogames, DeathSpank, and the iPhone's Bunny the Zombie Slayer. As you may have guessed from the name, Kard Combat is a Magic The Gathering-style card game, where you use a deck of cards that represent magic spells or creatures and fight them against each other. To be honest, Magic the Gathering isn't really my thing, so I can't compare the two super closely. But Kard Combat offers some innovation, I think, in the way the cards are laid out -- any cards summoned to your side first attack cards laid across from them, and then the health pool of your opponent, so there's some interesting positioning strategy involved. You also oversee a few different types of mana that grow over time or based on certain cards you have out, so that provides a lot of complexity to the gameplay. There's a lot of content to play through as well -- four decks, each with their own single player "Tower" campaigns, and then of course multiplayer gameplay. The game's business model is almost tougher to figure out than the actual strategy -- currently, the title is a free download with five single-player missions unlocked, though an in-app purchase of $2.99 will unlock everything. After that, there are more decks and cards to buy, of course, and more to come. In the end, Kard Combat is an excellent little turn-based title. It's definitely worth a free download, and then if you consume all the content there, you can see if you want to dive in deeper.
AIKA Global gearing up for nation merge, in-game events
AIKA's plans for global domination are ramping up in the month of May. The free-to-play fantasy title now features four major in-game events, and a new press release hints at "exciting new game and website updates" to be revealed. First up is the month-long Nation Wars II event in which AIKA's nation-states transform into all out war zones. Four players from each nation will represent their homelands on the Lord Marshall Alliance, and national armies will be able to march on enemy territory for fun and profit. Next up is the Legionaires of May event in which participants compete to level new characters from 10 to 50 as swiftly as possible. The first five legions to complete the requirements by May 31st will snag a prize pack. The final two events, A Friend in Need is a Friend Indeed and Auction House, span the entire month. Specifics for each will be given in-game during the lead-up to the event. Finally, AIKA Global is introducing an offline mailing system as well as a nation merge that will have a major impact on the game's political landscape. Head to the official AIKA website and read all about the coming changes.
Naoki Yoshida releases another producer's letter for Final Fantasy XIV
Naoki Yoshida has been making big changes to the structure of Final Fantasy XIV ever since he took over as the game's producer, but the recent patch 1.15a was only the beginning. In the latest producer's letter, Yoshida not only discusses the recent changes and the reaction to same but also lays out further plans for game updates, as well as opens up the second player poll for the game. This time, the poll is focused around changes to the battle system, including the addition of an auto-attack and the future of the dual rank/level system. The letter itself contains several interesting promises, including plans to introduce a wider variety of world quests, instanced dungeons, and a reduced overall party cap of eight players instead of the current 15. While several of the changes listed are further in the future, Yoshida stresses that the team is hard at work on every aspect of the game, with the battle systems next up for the biggest review. Final Fantasy XIV players should read the full letter and take part in the poll, which closes at the end of next week.
The Mog Log: Stare too long into the Abyssea
The first of two December version updates has hit the community, and as a result I'm torn. On the one hand, this means that Final Fantasy XI has seen another major upheaval in the form of more levels and new content, which is really significant... if you're up at those levels. I am not, and consequently a lot of what I can say about those high levels is pretty darn speculative. Most of the concrete information I have heard about the update seems to concern problems with console installations rather than substantive information. But I do feel fairly confident in talking about Abyssea. The second trilogy of mini-expansions has come to an end, with a very different focus than the previous unconnected addons. I'd say that it's been both a good and a bad thing for the game as a whole, both in the way that leveling has become tied to the new areas and in what it might mean for the game in the future. So with the whole setup out of the way, let's talk about what's been done and what might be coming as a result.
More looks inside of Final Fantasy XIV
It's a good time to be a Final Fantasy XIV fan, with testing now in full swing and information coming out an accelerated pace. While we'd been in the dark for some time, we're now moving into almost having an information glut. FFXIVCore has been hard at work translating everything released by Famitsu, and there's a lot to digest from there, ranging from confirmation of things we've already suspected to new information altogether. Aside from several screenshots of the game in action, we find out that characters will indeed have both first and last names on creation, in the style of Guild Wars and Dungeons and Dragons Online. The battle system will apparently use staggered sets of abilities rather than steady auto-attacks, something more akin to City of Heroes than Final Fantasy XI. Learned abilities can be used regardless of a character's class, allowing extensive mix-and-match play with each character. In addition to all of that, we also learn just how deep the character building is: levels allow you to improve your stats and skill levels allow access to new abilities, but almost everything is built on player choice. There's a lot for Final Fantasy XIV fans to digest, but the game is shaping up to be very different than its predecessor while retaining the same rich flavor.
Chaos Rings trailer looks awesome
Just yesterday, we heard about this new Square Enix RPG due to come to the iPhone this year, and today, not only do we have official confirmation, but a first official trailer as well. And boy does it look great -- over in the console world, Final Fantasy's creators have been saying that they can't make them like they used to, because the newer HD technology just makes old-school artisanship tough to do. But a platform like the iPhone, with its built-in limits on graphical fidelity, might be just the place for the old-school vibe to live and thrive. 3D characters on 2D backgrounds? What appear to be turn-based battles against bosses and summons? A story featuring emo-haired heroes and J-pop ballads? Boy are we in. The Japanese version says "Available soon on the App Store," but we'll keep an eye on the other stores as well and let you know when this drops.
Altis Gates brings in the Pet Corps
Altis Gates, the upcoming free-to-play title being published by IGG, is setting out to offer up some interesting mechanics for the f2p fans in the house. The game has 2 main classes with 12 subclasses, and offers players the chance to shape-shift into various different forms. To add to that, IGG is bringing in a new patch that will introduce a new type of game play called the Pet Corps to the game. Under the normal Altis Gates system, each player fights with one pet at his or her side. With the introduction of the Pet Corps pet training & battling system, the player will actually send a specially-picked formation of 5 pets into the battle to fight. Each formation calls on different elements to increase stats, while causing penalties -- thereby introducing quite a bit of strategy to each match. While players will not receive experience for these matches, the word is that pets will receive "incredible amounts" -- even if they lose. It makes this a great way for players to train up a number of pets in a shorter period of time, giving them a greater array of powerful pets to pick for regular battles. If you're curious about Altis Gates, we've embedded a video behind the break to show off some of the basic game play for you. IGG also let us know that the open beta for Altis Gates is coming on March 7th, so keep an eye on the official site if this looks like a game you'd enjoy!
Developer diary covers Siege of Mirkwood's new skirmish instances
The newest expansion to Lord of the Rings Online, the Siege of Mirkwood, will be introducing a new type of storyline instance for players to play in -- skirmishes. Skirmishes bring a new style of gameplay to LotRO, giving players the ability to participate in small military conflicts between the Free Peoples and the forces of Sauron while also being able to participate in small bits of content and still be rewarded.The first two parts, the overview and the instanced nature of skirmishes, go over what the new Skirmish system provides players, and how skirmishes put a twist on the old concept of instancing. Did you ever want to defend the Prancing Pony in Bree? How about fight along side Elrond's sons? Skirmishes will be opening up those options to players while still offering repeatable adventures for any group size.But we shouldn't talk our faces off here! Go on over and read Brian "Zombie Columbus" Aloisio's developer diary on the whole matter. He can describe it better than we can!
E3 2009: Global Agenda impressions, continued
My "Engineer" equipped, we ran over to the PvE mission master, grabbed a mission, and then got a cinematic of a dropship taking off and landing in the zone. After a little experimentation with the force fields and turrets (Robotics characters put down a marker which then needs to be repaired up to full strength with a special weapon), we dropped into the building, and were instantly confronted with some Star Wars-style droid robots. With the character at mid-level already, they were a little tougher than beginners will find, so at first, when we tried just a straightforward assault with the "flubber" gun, they got the better of us. But after a short delay (death brings just a few seconds' respawn time, and then you can respawn and warp back into the battle through a respawn beacon), we went back into the fray, and when we used our special skills (put up a one-way forcefield and created a turret and a robotic pet to help us fight), we finished off the robots (including a "worker," who served to bring in reinforcements and had to be taken down first, and a bigger ED209-esque boss robot). Next up, we tried jumping in to some PvP. Players in Global Agenda will be able to level up via either PvE or PvP -- PvE missions will accept 1-4 players, and while the enemies may be the same (though Harris said they were experimenting with putting players in at different spawn points or switching up enemy spawns a little bit to give the levels some more variety), they'll scale in difficulty depending how many friends you bring along. PvP missions are more common shooter settings (Attack and Defend, Capture the Flag, Escort), though sometimes with a special twist: The CTF maps are actually "capture the robot," where the flag is actually a giant mech that players need to jump in and return to their side to score. This time, we specced a medic together, and saw a few of the different ways you can play that class: you can make it very much like a TF2 medic with just a single target healing gun, or go with a chain-healing gun (that can hit multiple targets with the tradeoff of being weaker), or you can choose a "nanite" weapon, which hits with single shots rather than a channeling stream, and provides a heal over time when they hit. All weapons and abilities are governed by an energy stat, which works like mana in other MMOs -- there's no ammo, so if you have energy, you can fire, otherwise you'll have to seek cover and rest. Lower level guns can be fired indefinitely, but more powerful guns have a rate of fire just limited by how much energy you use with each shot. Turns out our medic did pretty well -- not only did we keep up some friendly players in the Attack and Defend map, but with the medic's boost ability (all classes also build up "boost" as they play, and when you fill that meter, you can use a special move that usually affects the whole team, very much like Call of Duty 4's perks), we laid down some great AoE healing that turned us into a pretty powerful force on our own, too. PvP was actually lots of fun -- given that the game is still in alpha, it wasn't completely balanced yet, but the feeling of a good shooter is there: we took attack points, Robotics turrets defended until they were overpowered, medics held up tanks through enemy assaults, and Recon characters snuck around with stealth and tried backstabbing with melee. But while the action is in a good place, the rest of the world still needs work. Harris says that outside of battle, there will be similarly instanced social areas to go through, but the places we saw were still pretty generic: you can visit mission givers, buy armor in an auction house, and buy dye to customize that armor, but otherwise the social areas were pretty lifeless. There were still people running around -- the game is currently in an alpha, and is starting up a closed beta this summer -- but there's no open world, no place to watch matches in action, and no real social mechanics to tie people together. At the highest levels of the game, the world depends on huge guilds working as a team: players will be competing for hundreds of different maps to try and advance their Global Agenda (see what we did there?). But while there will be a pickup matchmaking system in place, with no open world, it'll be interesting to see how players find each other. A little social boost might go a long way. But other than that, Global Agenda is shaping up well -- Hi Rez is doing a great job of mixing in some uncommon influences and combining them with the persistent MMO genre. We'll definitely be on the lookout for the beta later this year.
E3 2009: Realtime World's Dave Jones speaks on APB
The announcement of EA handling APB's marketing and distribution was a pretty big one for Realtime Worlds, and creative director Dave Jones was on hand at EA's press conference yesterday to speak with Gamasutra about the game, the company, and the developments of APB.Game wise, Dave has spoken a bit further on how the law vs. criminal battles will work out for the game. Criminals will be able to battle against criminals, but enforcers will never find themselves matched against one another. This will open up the possibility of multiple front wars with other criminal factions, rather than a simple two front game.Also, the game will feature large scale battles as well as "metagroups" where the game determines balancing for players who are doing exceptionally well. Dave's example was a group of 5 elite players might be matched against 15 normal ranking players, just to give the elite players a thrill and the 15 a chance against these 5.The full interview with Gamasutra goes into the company itself, partnering options, as well as more info on APB itself.
Massively's hands-on with Final Fantasy XI's April version update
Prophecy, valor, campaign, and item augmentation, oh my! This latest version update was packed with goodies for the Final Fantasy XI player base, making sure that something for everyone was included in the game. I recently got the chance to sit down with the Final Fantasy XI team and play through some of the content, experiencing what their newest mini-expansion, A Crystalline Prophecy, had to add to the game.Past that, I also had the chance to see the new Fields of Valor areas in action, aid the Mithras in defending Windurst from the beastmen during the Crystal War, and experience some of the hard tasks in the campaign missions first hand.So does the April update get a thumbs up? Is Crystalline Prophecy worth the ten bucks? Those questions and more will be answered within.
WoW Insider exclusive: PopCap releases Peggle for WoW
digg_url = 'http://wow.joystiq.com/2009/04/23/wow-insider-exclusive-popcap-releases-peggle-for-wow/'; Yes, when PopCap released their Bejeweled addon a while back, the first question on everyone's minds was: when are we getting Peggle? And here you go: as of this morning, you can download the brand new Peggle for WoW addon from PopCap's site.WoW Insider got a chance to play with the addon from its early beta on, and it's extremely impressive -- not only will you find the usual addictive peg-hitting gameplay that we've come to know from Peggle, but PopCap and creator Michael Fromwiller (whom we interviewed about Bejeweled, and who we're told is actually being hired on full-time at PopCap as soon as he finishes school this spring) have really added a new level to the game by tying it right into World of Warcraft. The game rewards you with "Talent points" that can change the gameplay itself, and you can challenge other players within World of Warcraft to duels and score battles. There's even a "Peggle loot" setting, which, when used as Master Looter, will let your guildies and friends with the addon actually take Peggle shots against each other to determine who gets loot drops.It's really wild. Read on for our early impressions of the addon, check out the gallery below for exactly what it looks like, and then go head on over to PopCap's site to download it for free yourself.%Gallery-50946%
D&DO Module 7: Bosses
The first fight we got to see was Suulomendes (unfortunately, that spelling might not be right -- the big winged guy wouldn't sit still long enough for us to ask his name), a winged devil who sits up on a big pedestal while he sends baddies out to finish the raid off, a wave a time. Every once in a while he deigns to get off the pedestal, and beat you up himself, but when he does, it's not pretty -- various curses fell down on our heads every time he showed up. It seemed like a fairly straightforward fight as we did it (defeat the minions, work over the boss for a while), but the devs told us there were quite a few wrinkles (and the fight would take a little longer) than what we saw. The other boss we got to check out was, in our opinion, a little more fun. There is a Lord of Darkness supposedly hanging out in the dungeon below the Marketplace wreckage, but when you show up to take him out, he's not actually home -- his guard dog, named Xy'zzy, is, and she is a real bitch. Literally. She has puppies and minions that you have to fight as well, and oh yeah, one more thing: you can't actually damage her by hitting her. We'll refrain from telling you exactly how to take her out (the devs didn't want us to spoil all the surprises), but we will say that when you figure it out, you'll get to see something really, really hilarious happen. And yes, if you're nerdy enough to recognize the dog's name, you'll realize that these DDO devs know their gaming history.Like many of the boss battles in DDO, both of these fights (and most of the quests we saw) were all about group coordination and cooperation. While a lot of the Three Barrel Cove quests are soloable, the devs at DDO seem committed to make sure that players find ways to coordinate and work together. They are still working on making sure the Monk has a role of his or her own to play in every group ("this is just the beginning of our development on this class," Paiz told us), but in almost all the quests we say, there were lots of ways for group members, no matter what classes or types of players they were, to make themselves useful.But the new content isn't all that's being added to the game -- we also saw a number of new UI updates, and we got to talk with Turbine's communications director about what they thought of the Age of Conan release and the future of this game.Click here to continue the preview...
