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Star Trek Online starts its fifth anniversary celebration
It was five years ago February 2nd that Star Trek Online came mewing into the MMO world, bringing with it final frontiers, infinite diversity, and canon-approved lockboxes. Cryptic's so excited to share this milestone that it's starting the celebrations a little early with a daily giveaway from today through Thursday, beginning with a free research and development pack. The real special treat is more than just casual freebies, however. The team's introducing a brand-new featured episode, Dust to Dust, starring Garrett Wang as Harry Kim. Q is also returning with his annual events, although this time around he's adding an Omega Particle minigame to the mix. Completing both the featured episode and Q events will earn tokens to spend on various rewards (including a Kobali Samsar Cruiser) and fragments that can be assembled for an Omega upgrade kits.
Neverwinter throws Protector's Jubilee for first anniversary
Can you believe it: Neverwinter is one year old today! It's been a strong first year for this D&D title, and to celebrate the occasion the team is hosting a new event in the game called the Protector's Jubilee. The Protector's Jubilee will feature bright decorations in Protector's Enclave, covert missions, defensive skirmishes, and plenty of rewards including the jester attire. Players can grab keys during the event to a new area called the Protector's Garden that will remain in the game going forward. The festivities will go from today through June 25th. [Source: Perfect World press release]
Marvel Heroes celebrates its first anniversary
Marvel Heroes turns one year old today and it's throwing itself a fabulous birthday party. Don't worry: You're all invited as well. Gazillion is handing out an anniversary gift per day per account for players level 30 or higher who log in and talk to a special NPC. In addition, the team has toggled the server to boost XP, RIF, SIF, and cosmic chest rewards by 50%. Marvel Heroes has big plans coming up later this month, including achievements, login rewards, the Silver Surfer, and a special surprise.
Lord of the Rings Online turns seven
Happy birthday Lord of the Rings Online! Today marks the seventh anniversary for LotRO, and as such, Turbine is handing out presents. All players who log in today will get fireworks, with premium and VIP players receiving extra gifts. The new seven-year gifts include a new portrait frame, a shield-cloak, a loot box key, and a dancing emote for your monster play character. LotRO's in-game anniversary festival begins tomorrow, April 16th, and will continue through April 29th.
Moon Knight joins Marvel Heroes roster
The mysterious and mystical Moon Knight has surfaced in Marvel Heroes, joining the game's growing collection of superheroes. Moon Knight is a masked vigilante who was given a little supernatural assistance by an Egyptian God. Gazillion is selling the Moon Knight in a hero pack with two costumes and other assorted goodies. Marvel Heroes is also throwing a combined Carnival and Mardi Gras celebration in the game. Players will get a daily gift for logging in, discover themed drops, and have the chance to buy Halloween items and costumes on sale. [Thanks to Spacejesus3k for the tip!]
The Daily Grind: Do you celebrate game accomplishments in the real world?
After many, many attempts, my free company finally downed Titan in Final Fantasy XIV on Saturday. That meant a relic weapon for me (followed immediately by relic +1) and a trip out for ice cream and celebration for my wife. Yes, all it took to encourage us into outside celebration was beating up an irritating fat man made of rocks. On the one hand, this was silly. Titan is just a boss; beating him is the equivalent of the rats figuring out how to run the mazes in those maze-based experiments scientists love performing. On the other hand, it was a major challenge that I had been grappling with for quite some time, because darn, this is hard. So what about you, dear readers? Do you celebrate major game accomplishments in the real world? Have you and your friends hit the bar to commemorate your first major boss kills in Star Wars: The Old Republic? Or would you rather stick to in-game celebrations for in-game accomplishments, if indeed you even need that? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Pirate101 celebrates a birthday with headwear
It's been a year on the high seas for Pirate101, and the development team is in a celebratory mood. it's understandable considering how many games don't make it to a year or even out of beta. So from now until October 31st it's time to revel in all the birthday celebrations you want, starting with an entire game decked out in birthday regalia. Which will look a little odd next to the usual pumpkins, but whatever. The game is also offering two bits of accoutrement for players, veterans and novices alike. All players are eligible to receive a free birthday hat, and the game will also sell a birthday cake eyepatch in the cash shop for a limited time. (The eyepatch looks exactly like you would expect something with that name to look, if it was unclear.) So kick back and enjoy some piratical birthday bliss with a new hat.
Wings Over Atreia: Aion's anniversary marks four years
Hmmm? What's that you say -- another year has passed? Well I'll be... you're right! If you are anything like me, a large chunk of Aion's fourth year crawled by at an agonizingly slow pace as you waited through all the newsbytes and teasing for the big 4.0 expansion and its new classes. Then, once Dark Betrayal finally arrived, the last quarter of the year just zipped by with hardly a notice. And quite frankly, it doesn't really feel as if four years have passed since Atreia first opened up and welcomed eager Daevas, but it really has. So happy fourth birthday, Aion! As is customary here at Massively, on this auspicious anniversary day I'm going to dedicate this Wings Over Atreia to a reflection on the past year, looking at what has changed since our last stroll down memory lane and what has stayed the same. And you are cordially invited to join me for plenty of reminiscing... and of course, CAKE!
The Daily Grind: What was your most memorable launch day?
The day World of Warcraft launched its first expansion, my wife and I stayed up for the midnight launch. We rushed home, installed the game, made our characters, and slept for a few fitful hours before getting back up and playing until we could play no more. Pizza was ordered, soda was drunk, and the entire day was a celebration of The Burning Crusade. We don't play any longer, but all I need to do to bring a smile to both of our faces is to just mention that launch. Considering how important MMOs are to many of us, I'd bet it's almost certain that you've had a launch day that meant the world to you, a day when you broke from your normal routine and did something really neat and out of the box. So we want to know about it today. What was your most memorable launch day? And was it a game you still play or one you've left behind? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Guild Wars celebrates Wintersday in July
What is this? A winter celebration in the middle of summer? Guild Wars, you're so crazy! We love you, though. The classic Guild Wars is taking a break from reminding us that it still exists and is quite fun too by throwing an encore of its Wintersday celebration. Wintersday in July began yesterday and will continue until July 31st. There are plenty of activities to enjoy, including the snowball arena. The game will also drop plenty of cool rewards like fruitcake. OK, the game will also drop plenty of cool rewards except for fruitcake, which is nasty and evil to its sticky core. So egg nog it up with your fellow Tyrians for the next week because the hot weather is coming back!
The Perfect Ten: Why game holidays rock
It's as inevitable as the tides, political scandals, and new flavors of Pepsi. Whenever an MMO announces that it's introducing new holiday content into its game, the grumpies come out. "Wah!" they cry. "Why are developers wasting time on this! It's useless! Pointless! Just the mere notion of it makes baby kittens die worldwide!" What my poetic license is trying to say is that some folks are displeased and they make themselves well-heard because of it. I like to think that after posting angry comments, they then go around the rest of the day slamming doors, flipping chairs, and sulking noisily so that someone will ask them why they're in such a foul mood. The answer, if truthful, would be endlessly entertaining. Then again, I used to throw snit fits when I got sent to jail in Monopoly. If you haven't figured it out yet, I love in-game holidays. Love. Them. Beyond the novelty of what they do, there are plenty of reasons that even the most jaded holiday-hater should simmer down around this topic. I think I'll list 10 of them.
Winter holidays around the virtual world
Ho, ho, holy crap -- there are a lot of in-game events this time a year! It must be that people are in a celebrating mood or something. Well, we've survived a rocky and exciting 2012, and with any luck we'll make it through the apocalypse to open gifts and eat large dead animals with loved ones. Getting around to all of your favorite in-game festivities can be a full-time job, especially if you don't know what's new and when the events are wrapping up. We've tried to help you out with our annual holiday guide, so pack a snowball and leap with us into the thick of the excitement!
Guild Wars 2 welcomes Wintersday next month
While hardcore Guild Wars players probably knew to expect it, the news that Wintersday is coming to Guild Wars 2 is welcome nevertheless! ArenaNet has just announced that the game's second holiday will be arriving on December 14th and will continue until January 3rd. Modern Wintersday is a Tyrian holiday that binds several different celebrations together with the mutual love of toys. An Asuran Santa Claus, Toymaker Tixx, will be traveling to all of the major cities to hand out toys to the good little boys and girls. And yes, that means you, even though you've been flirting with the "naughty list" this year. The official Wintersday page is sparse as of yet, but keen-eyed visitors can spot some cool pieces of concept art, including one of Tixx's awesome airship.
Fiesta celebrates five years of operation with a cavalcade of events
Five years is a respectably long time for an MMO to be running, and Fiesta is hitting that milestone this month. That's especially notable as the free-to-play title launched in 2007, when the very concept of a free-to-play game was still in its infancy. But like many MMOs, the team behind the game at Outspark isn't just celebrating internally. Instead, players are going to be reaping the benefits of the game's long life through several events, both in-game and out. Players can start off by taking to the streets in the Birthday Grand Prix race and taking part in the new High Roller event, searching for dice across the game's zones for special prizes. Then there's the Anniversary Dance Event running across the servers at the end of the month, a chance to get together with old friends in the game and dance until you stop. You can also enter to wear a pair of JustBeats Monster Headphones by Dr. Dre on the official Facebook page. Whether you're an old veteran or a new player, if you're a fan of the game, be sure to take part in one of the events before the time runs out! [Source: Outspark press release]
The Road to Mordor: All hail the Farmer's Faire!
It's a crazy time for Lord of the Rings Online players. Not only is this the game's fifth anniversary, but there's a new expansion is on the horizon, and Turbine's sliding in its second new festival for the year (I'm counting the revamped anniversary festival because prior to that it was a sad, misshapen thing). Now where are those flying eagle mounts we back-ordered? This week marks the debut of the Farmer's Faire, the game's sixth festival. It's an incredibly odd duck of a celebration, marking neither real-world season nor game milestone. Instead, it's a fun-for-its-own-sake bash involving food, Hobbits, more food, more Hobbits, and acid mushrooms. The sheer number of times LotRO has made me drunk or stoned against my will is tantamount to drug abuse, I say. So let's sift the wheat from the chaff and figure out what parts of this festival are worthy of inclusion -- and what should've been left on the brainstorming table.
Star Trek Online celebrates the 25th anniversary of The Next Generation
The first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation launched 25 years ago. In honor of the anniversary of the blessed event, Star Trek Online players have the opportunity to unlock some nostalgic swag for free. From now until "around" 1:00 p.m. EDT on Tuesday the 24th, players can take a mini-mission that will send them off to speak with good ol' Worf. Completing that mission will unlock the free swag: Federation characters will receive a TNG Season 1 uniform, male Klingon and Federation characters with hair options will receive Worf's Season 1 short hair and goatee (sorry, no bearded ladies), and Klingon and Federation characters of both species will get access to Worf's Season 1 sash. This is a per-character unlock, so be sure to talk to Worf with every character that you'd like to boldly go with a little more panache.
RuneScape reaches 200 million users mark
You could say RuneScape has grown a bit since its launch way back when. In fact, Jagex has just announced that the popular free-to-play browser game has reached 200 million users! Hailing from over 150 different countries, RuneScape players could actually make their own country: The game's population is almost nine times that of Australia and over three times that of the United Kingdom. Jagex released other fun facts relating to the booming populace of RuneScape. For instance, players catch more than eight billion fish each year (enough to encircle the globe 20 times), amassed 58,000 times more gold than is held in Fort Knox, and have logged more than 443 billion minutes of game time since launch. Twenty-seven players meet their death every second. For the next three days, RuneScape is holding a celebration worthy of this achievement that includes a newly discovered demon with 200 million hitpoints! Join the festivities in-game and check out some screenshots, including a comparison shot of Druids Circle then vs. now, in the gallery below. [Source: Jagex press release]%Gallery-160724%
WildStar's holidays on display
With real-world summer festivities like Canada Day and the 4th of July fresh on the minds of many gamers, it seems like the right time for the folks at Carbine Studios to talk about WildStar's celebrations. CM David Bass lays out two such holidays for our perusal: Starfall and Foundation Day. Starfall is an Exile holiday that remembers the day that the wandering fleet crossed the galaxy to discover the Eldan planet. For the Exiles, Starfall marks the end of their journey and the beginning of a new home. It's a weeklong celebration that includes plenty of games, including Kiss the Matria (chances are that's a lot less sexy than it sounds). The festival is capped by an enormous fireworks display put on by the Alchemist's Guild. Foundation Day, on the other hand, remembers both the foundation of the Dominion Empire and the establishment of Nexus as its new homeworld. Contrasted with the rough-and-tumble celebration of Starfall, Foundation Day is far more regal and official. After all, speeches are way better than kissing Matrias, right? Both Starfall and Foundation Day come around about the same time each year, and depending on a player's allegiance, she might find herself engaging in a different celebration than her friends.
Anarchy Online celebrates its 11th birthday
Has it really been 11 years since Anarchy Online burst onto the scene with one of the smoothest launches of all time? It must be -- Funcom is throwing a birthday bash for its faithful players. There will be two birthday celebrations, one on the Atlantean server on Friday, June 22nd, at 1:00 p.m. EDT and one on Rimor on Monday, June 25th, at 1:00 p.m. EDT. Both in-game celebrations will be marked by spawning events, special mobs, and in-game items. If you're down with the party scene, the community will be throwing a monster rave to end all raves. Funcom hinted at a few of the surprises, including new costumes, action figures, vehicles, and the love of a duck and a cake. The studio will be handing out a free jet pack for all players who log in during the celebration.
Ragnarok Online celebrates its ninth anniversary in style
Celebrating the anniversary of Ragnarok Online isn't a new thing -- the team at Gravity Interactive has been doing it every year -- but to help ring in the MMO's ninth anniversary, the publisher is throwing what it calls "one of the biggest in-game celebrations to date for RO veterans!" The theme this year is "Where the Old Meets the New," thrown in celebration of the defeat of the Demon Satan Morroc and the discovery of the New World. Sound like fun to you? Then head over to the game's main site to sign up or visit the game's Facebook page to join the community. [Source: Gravity Interactive press release]
