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The Soapbox: Everybody wins
I make no bones about the fact that despite working in this industry for three years, I know there are parts about MMOs and the culture around them that I just do not get. For example, I still have no idea what possesses someone to think that "toon" is a good term for characters. But on a slightly more serious note, I have no idea what makes people cheer for a game to fail. You see it everywhere. World of Warcraft subscription numbers drop; people cheer. Something bad happens to EVE Online's community; people cheer. A game goes free-to-play; people announce the game's impending demise and begin cheering prematurely. A game closes down; people cheer. I don't get this. All right, I get it on the most basic level, inasmuch as this is a game you don't like and you're willing to publicly crow about your schadenfreude. The thing is that this is never a good thing. Cheering for a game you dislike to do badly does not result in anything good.
The Soapbox: Remembering that games are games
I think it's safe to assume that we all love games. If we didn't, I wouldn't be in this crowded, noisy coffee shop writing this and you wouldn't be blowing off some sort of important responsibility reading it. We're all here together, engaged in this somewhat-anonymous internet back-and-forth, because games have touched our lives. It sounds corny, but it's true. For many of us, games have a deeply personal and specific meaning. We like the games we like not so much for their craftsmanship or content but for the way they engage our minds and spirits. Games create incredible, irreplaceable moments infused with emotional resonance, and it's only natural we would feel some sort of personal connection when a piece of digital entertainment syncs just right. It is precisely this personal connection that leads many of us to act like total morons.
Halo 4 gets tough on sexist players
343 Industries wants to make it clear: It will brook no further discrimination of any kind in Halo 4. Executive producer Kiki Wolfkill and studio head Bonnie Ross say that sexist discrimination of any kind will be met with a lifetime ban from both the game and the Xbox Live network.Ross says that "most people look at a franchise like Halo, and automatically assume it's run by a guy," but this particular franchise is run by a few ladies, and they're not having any discriminatory nonsense in their latest sequel.We agree with the sentiment, and hope that the harsh penalties make sure that the losers who make sexist and other offensive comments get shown the door for good. The ideal should be to make sure all forms of this offensive discrimination are squashed as far and wide as possible, no matter who's running the show.
Ask Massively: Every six weeks
Every six weeks, another Massively writer takes over Choose My Adventure, a column that asks readers to vote in polls to determine what the writer will play and do within the reader-selected game. The columnist bravely plunges into the role you design, even when you sadistically vote that he or she play a naked blue Gnome who fights in melee with guns and is forbidden to leave PvP battlegrounds except to craft cookie dough. That doesn't usually make for the best showcase of a game, which you're quick to tell us when the writer has a scattershot experience at your bidding. Today's Ask Massively is all about the Choose My Adventure series and finding order in its chaos.
The Daily Grind: Do you buy in to the MMO hype and hate cycle?
If you listened only to the more heated debates in Massively's comments and around the blogosphere, it'd be easy to get lost amid polarizing hyperbole and scathing vitriol about MMOs and the drama enveloping them. The way some people tell it, a game like Guild Wars 2 is either the second coming or a complete failure even before it's launched. World of Warcraft is tanking with "only" nine million subscriptions. Star Wars: The Old Republic's path to free-to-play is the last gasp of a dying game, never mind that it surpassed expectations for profitability long ago. It's a challenge indeed to find a nuanced middle ground and understand how real players (not just vocal commenters) perceive the games. So does a game have to be the best or worst ever to be worthy of discussion? Can't a game just be decent or good enough? How do you avoid being swept away by the latest MMO storm surge of hype and hate? 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!
Instagram adds Photo Page to web: new colors, user comments, not much else
Instagram's been moving along briskly with its Android and iOS apps, but the hipster-tinter-photo-sharing-Facebook acquisition's web presence has been lagging behind in comparison. But there's good news now if you're desk-bound thanks to the new "Photo Page," which lets you log in, change your profile and add comments or likes to images. The other tweak is a fresh look for the site, matching the app with a blue, dare we say, Facebook-esque theme and larger images, no doubt to show off those mega-megapixel smartphone cameras. It's likely a first step in unifying its web offering and apps, and with a name like Photo Page, no one can accuse it of wasting that Facebook booty on marketing whizzes.
Facebook rolls out comment editing, embraces your change of heart
Facebook has long betrayed you by forwarding your drunken wall ramblings in an email for posterity. Previously, though, the only way to limit further public shame was to try to delete the comment altogether. Now, it looks like the loose fingered have been given a reprieve, as the social giant is rolling out the ability to edit your ill-thought missives long after the fact. Even better, this seems to extend back to those written in the past. Don't think you can be sneaky though, as an "edited" link will appear below, letting everyone see the thread history. So even if you change your opinion, that indecision remains for all to see.
Facebook for Windows Phone rolls in threaded messaging, tagging, kitchen sink
Some have called Microsoft's Facebook app for Windows Phone a red-headed stepchild to the Android and iOS darlings, but it's making up for lost time in good fashion with a 2.5 update. Those who live a Metro life now get full Facebook conversation threads with group support, so they're not left out of the loop when a friend mentions the pub he wanted to visit two days ago. Along with this more conversational addition, it's now possible to tag a friend or a place in a post using plain "with" and "at" statements, and the seemingly inescapable Like button has reached comments for Windows Phone owners. There's more control over posts and active post links in the mix as well, so you'll find a surfeit of social mingling when you update at the Windows Phone Marketplace link below.
Mortal Online's CEO has high hopes for the game's subscriptions
A game company's CEO should always promote the company's games and be enthusiastic. There is such a thing as too much enthusiasm, however. Case in point: StarVault CEO Henrik Nystrom's comments during an IRC chat with fans. The chat was meant to cover the game's next major update, Awakening, but it included fan questions for future updates as well. It also included Nystrom telling a fan that he sees Mortal Online having roughly as many players as EVE Online in five years. By way of elaboration, EVE Online currently has roughly 450,000 players. Mortal Online's subscription numbers have never been revealed, but estimates place it under 10,000 players. An impossible goal? Definitely not, but certainly one that might be a bit overly ambitious. Fans of the game can still take a look at the chat for other interesting tidbits, however, including plans to add drugs and improve the new player experience in the future. [Thanks to Sandboxer for the tip!]
Ask Massively: I approve of more staves edition
You know what we need more of? Staves used as melee weapons instead of a caster's Set of Stats in a Stick. Usually, what we get is closer to a cane than an actual staff, so it makes sense that a curvy stick with a lawn ornament on one end isn't much for actual combat. But come on, folks. You can do some serious damage with a metal pole and a few witless mooks. City of Heroes is ahead of the curve here. This week's installment of Ask Massively has nothing to do with staves, however. It has to do with a few more lingering questions about the comment system and some wide-ranging "best of" topics. If you've got a question you'd like to see answered in a future installment of the column, you can leave it in the comments or mail it to ask@massively.com. Questions may be edited slightly for clarity and/or brevity.
Ask Massively: These are not Firefall beta impressions edition
So near as I can tell from my limited time in the beta thus far, Firefall is a game in which you play a character with remarkably poor conceptions about the function of armor, especially if your character is a girl. I log in, jump around with a pair of rocket boots, and shoot things, and then my computer crashes for some reason after about 20 straight minutes of playing, so I haven't formed many other opinions. The parts I've played have been pretty satisfying, though. But as this week's headline for Ask Massively explains, these are not actually beta impressions. Instead, this is a column covering a couple of the weird issues with our new comment system, something that I have absolutely no doubt will come up again later. If you'd like to have a question answered in a future installment of the column, send it along to ask@massively.com or leave it in the comments below. Questions may be edited slightly for clarity and/or brevity.
How to use WoW Insider's new comment system
So, we have this bright and shiny new comment system. It's pretty hot, isn't it? We told you it was coming. Not only is it a very pretty system, but it's also fairly simple to use. That being said, here's what you need to know about using our system. How do I log in? Just type your comment and press Reply. You can choose from a handful of options to decide how you're leaving a comment. Most of the login options are common social networks like Facebook or Twitter. If you want a more anonymous option, choose Open ID. Twitter can work for that, too -- you don't need to use your real first and last name when registering there. Don't forget you can choose to post your comment directly to Facebook or Twitter as well just by checking those buttons next to Comment. How do I set my avatar? Since you use your social network account to leave a comment now, the comment system uses the avatar associated with that account. So if you want to change your avatar, change it with the network option you choose. For example, if you leave a Twitter comment, then change your Twitter avatar. How do I sort comments? Look in the upper left corner of the comment box and choose to sort by Newest or Oldest. The system is really simple and quick to use. We're pretty happy with it. So far, it looks like you good folks like it, too.
What's this? A new commenting system on Massively? Is this real life? [Updated]
We've augmented the post-post punditry on the Joystiq network with a new conversation platform called Livefyre. You'll see it at the bottom of this post and every news story, review and feature following it. There are a couple of major differences between this new vector for your opinions, and the ancient, rickety thing we optimistically called a commenting system: It's not the worst thing ever! It allows for real-time updates and lets you create and follow nested conversations. You can sign in with any one of six different social network accounts, including Twitter, Facebook and Gmail (just click "Sign in" at the top left of the Livefyre window to get started). You can blast your wittiest comments back out to your friends on Twitter and Facebook, even if they don't read Massively. Feel free to flag comments for being off-topic or inappropriate. You can be more granular with your grievances now, as opposed to the generic "report" function we had before. This will make it much easier for us to ban the true trolls! On-screen bubbles notify you when a new comment has been made above or below the point you're currently reading. By clicking on "Settings" on the upper-right corner of the Livefyre window, you can adjust your personal information and when you'd like to receive email notifications (if any). If you've been a reader for a very long time, you may be irked to learn that we are not importing your old comments into Livefyre. Rather than delay the upgrade in order to preserve so much content of questionable relevance, we opted to start everything anew. Provided you're already part of the supported social networks, signing in will be a cinch, and we hope the reduced anonymity will make for friendlier conversation. (Protip: Choose a unique handle and/or a clean Twitter account if you don't wish your posts here to link to your real personae.) We'll be ironing out some bugs too, so let us know if you see anything weird and upsetting throughout the night. With your help, we'll get this new comment system up and running little by little, and you won't even need to deal with the word "Unverified" anywhere.
Introducing comments by Livefyre on TUAW
We've gone through a few permutations in our commenting systems over the years, but I'm rather pleased to announce our latest partnership with Livefyre, which I consider to be one of the best commenting platforms out there. Livefyre's features include the ability to sign in using a variety of social logins, and to easily comment on other's comments and share them across social networks. The idea is to enhance and promote our discussions on articles and allow you to share those discussions wherever you like. There are also enhanced moderation tools for the TUAW staff, which means better, more relevant conversations. And yes, we will be moderating comments, but not by default. In fact, Livefyre has a spiffy realtime commenting platform that is really quite nice to interact with on hot news items. As usual: be nice, stay relevant and don't say anything you wouldn't say to someone in person. One note: If you see an authorization window mention Engadget, don't fret that our systems have co-mingled and your comment is lost. That's just what it reads until we change it. A big thanks to Rick, Brett, Paul and Joe at AOL Tech, and everyone at Livefyre for making this happen. If you're having issues, let us know in the comments or via our feedback form.
Facebook gets chatty, brings Comments Box plugin to mobile media sites
Chiming in on your favorite posts is about to get a little bit easier, now that Facebook has brought its Comments Box mobile plugin to media websites. Today's announcement comes just about a month after the social network introduced its Subscribe button, marking its latest efforts to enhance user engagement on mobile web platforms. According to Facebook, the new feature will use "social signals" to automatically detect the highest quality comments for each individual, with each thread ordered to show the most relevant and popular comments from a user's friends. There's also an integrated moderation function so, you know, play nice. Developers interested in getting in on the action can find more details at the coverage link below.
Global Chat: January 1-7, 2012
We love hearing what the Massively community has to say. What better way to salute the smartest reader opinions and posts than by sharing them in a weekly column? Join us every Sunday morning for Global Chat, where we do just that! This week we've got a poke at the lighter side of game bugs, some thoughts on development costs and how they affect us in the end, and some compliments (we always love those). Ready to see what they are? Click past the cut and let's get started!
Global Chat: December 25-31, 2011
We love hearing what you have to say at Massively, and we love it even more when we can share the best comments with all of our readers. Massively staffers will be contributing some of their favorite comments every week, so keep an eye out every Sunday for more Global Chat! Welcome to the first Global Chat of 2012! This week is all about some of your responses to our MMO predictions for 2012. You all chipped in plenty of great thoughts, so follow along after the break for the best of what our readers had to say last week!
Global Chat: December 11-17, 2011
Welcome to this week's Global Chat! We love hearing what you have to say at Massively, and we love it even more when we can share the best comments with all of our readers. Massively staffers will be contributing some of their favorite comments every week, so keep an eye out every Sunday for more Global Chat! It was a crazy busy week with so much to talk about, and while we could go all over the map with reader comments, we're going to focus on one last goodbye today. Follow along after the break for our readers' fondest farewells to Star Wars Galaxies.
YouTube launches education-only site, won't teach evolution of dance (video)
The bandages are barely off after a recent nip-tuck and the internet's biggest time sink is going under the knife again with its new YouTube EDU initiative. Imagine your favorite video site with all the fun stuff stripped off -- it's essentially that. Gone are comments and related videos, and all the non brain-enhancing stuff, leaving just what's good for the grey matter. Why? Well, in the VHS era teachers had control, but now it's a minefield. With its wealth of knowledge, YouTube is an obvious choice for educators, but with so many ways to get RickRolled, or catch-up on the latest keyboard cat, pupils' attention can be lost in seconds. The project has content provided by over 600 educational outlets such as TED and the Smithsonian, with subjects broken down into more than 300 teacher-friendly playlists. We're not sure if "national constitutions"is going to be one of them, but hit the promo video after the break to find out more.
Global Chat: December 4-10, 2011
Welcome to this week's Global Chat! We love hearing what you have to say at Massively, and we love it even more when we can share the best comments with all of our readers. Massively staffers will be contributing some of their favorite comments every week, so keep an eye out every Sunday for more Global Chat! Our readers have been giving plenty of attention to the impending launch of Star Wars: The Old Republic and the impending shutdown of Star Wars Galaxies, but that doesn't mean they had blinders on. This week's Global Chat features some great insight into other topics from the MMO world, so follow along after the break and let's see what our readers had to say this week.
