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Neverwinter's next expansion heads to Icewind Dale
The name Icewind Dale conjures a lot of fond memories for fans of both the Forgotten Realms and turn-of-the-century RPGs. Fortunately for both groups, Cryptic and Perfect World are returning to the iconic locale in Neverwinter's next expansion. Module 3: Curse of Icewind Dale is slated to release "later this spring," according to a news blurb on Cryptic's Arc website. Players can expect "new PvE content," new features, and "completely different ways to PvP." The Neverwinter dev team has released a brief preview trailer for Module 3, and you'll find it behind the break.
MMO Mechanics: Predicting the future of MMO game mechanics
I've been thinking heavily about the future since our parent network's budget cuts were announced, so I decided it would be very apt to pen my last edition of MMO Mechanics with that same train of thought. The industry has changed remarkably over the last decade with trends like the free-to-play revolution and innovations in everything from loot distribution to quest design. In my previous article, I looked at the trend toward using procedural generation and what that might mean for the future of MMOs. In this article, I'd like to give a better overview of where I think the genre is headed in the coming years and what that means for game mechanics. My predictions are based on market patterns and technology developments, including the great indie revolution, the effects of declining subscriptions on investment, and upcoming virtual reality technology. Pie-in-the-sky fantasy or an accurate predictor of things to come? Let me know what you think.
Watch Neverwinter's PvP state of the game
It's no surprise that big PvP changes are coming to Neverwinter soon, and Cryptic Executive Producer Rob Overmeyer has a state of the game video to help sum up what's going down in this action MMO. Coming "early 2014," the PvP update will contain stat changes, a new stat called Tenacity, crowd control tweaks, and new armor sets. But as they say, seeing is believing, so check out the overview by Overmeyer after the break.
Jukebox Heroes: Top 40 MMO themes, #40-31
MMO main themes hold the potential to be some of the most powerful and magical pieces of music, partly because we associate them with particular games more than anything else. A great theme will dredge up intense memories or euphoria by the third note, and I see composers putting in their all with many of these themes. A long time ago I did an MMO theme countdown of 20 tracks, but since then I've heard a lot more and have wanted to do the list all over again. So this week in Jukebox Heroes, we're kicking off a countdown of the top 40 MMO themes -- in my opinion, of course. I listened to over 150 themes and spent hours ranking them to create this list. Because these choices are bound to be a little controversial and stir up debate (which is encouraged!), I set down a few rules that I wanted to share here. I limited myself to just one theme from a particular title, even if there were multiple themes in a game. Entries had to be a main theme or the closest equivalent of that; they had to be from MMOs, not from MOBAs; and I had to divorce my weighting of the track itself from the popularity of and my experience with that game. So no points added or subtracted based on the love of the game; I'm counting down the best music, period. Let's see what numbers 40 through 31 have in store for us!
Champions Online's rampage revamp goes live
Rampages are all the rage in Champions Online, as Cryptic has pushed live a patch to both revamp several old ones and add in a new rampage to the mix. The revamped rampages include the UNTIL Sky Command, Gravitar, and the Lemurian Invasion, while the new one is called Fire and Ice. Rampages rotate every three days, offering players a different challenging experience and a shot at Justice gear and costume pieces. With the patch, Champions Online also added in new private queues, a Magic Girl costume set, and the petal cloud aura. The latter two are available through the in-game store.
Neverwinter to penalize PvP cowards, launches in Brazil
Neverwinter's upcoming PvP patch is shaping up to be significant, as Cryptic Studios has said that it will add in a matchmaking system and penalize players who leave early. The matchmaking system will lump players together for domination matches based on their skill ratings. What's a skill rating? It's a fancy number that rises and lowers based on your wins and losses in comparison to others' rating. You better stick it out when you do queue up, however, because the game will block you from queuing up for any group content for a set amount of time. In other Neverwinter news, the game has launched in Brazil, fully localized for Portuguese. Perfect World has partnered with UOL BoaCompra to handle the local support, payment, and marketing for the title.
Captain's Log: There's no space in Star Trek Online
Being away from a game you love can be both a curse and a blessing. The past couple of weeks I've been cursed with a flu that made it virtually impossible to play any game, let alone Star Trek Online. I've been back for a day or two now, and I've had the opportunity to check out some of the tech that has been pushed into the game since I fell ill. One of the new efforts is the ship-swapping system recently implemented into Star Trek Online, and I have to say, it's a great tool that might be the victim of the game's number one problem: lack of inventory space. There's no space in space The newest system to be injected into STO is the ship-swapping system. The tool allows players to switch ships on the fly as long as they are in a public zone like sector space or spacedock region. Essentially the player brings up his character screen and clicks on the "Switch Starship" button and moves into one of his other ships.
Massively's Valentine's Day roundup
When a mob hits your eye with a big sharpened spike... that's not really amore! In fact, it's downright painful. But it's February -- a time when love is in the air, hearts are aflutter everywhere, and pink and red festoon your favorite MMOs. So in the spirit of the season, go ahead and give that mob an extra-hard love tap, right from... er, to the heart! And don't forget to collect whatever treasures it had for you because we all know Valentine's Day isn't all about the love; no, it's about the loot! Want to know where to get your hands on something special for this holiday? There are plenty of celebrations throughout the MMOverse offering a plethora of events and goodies. Check out some of the various Valentine's events and specials going on now.
MMO Mechanics: Three old mechanics I want back
My column has typically heralded modern MMOs as superior advancements of the genre we all adore, but in this week's MMO Mechanics I want to share a small list of some old mechanics I still mourn today. Many older MMOs featured gameplay that could simultaneously exasperate and impress players, especially when the mechanics in question supported a real sense of immersion or realism in otherwise virtual worlds. Recent titles have aimed to open up the in-game world by making it more accessible and much less infuriating, but this has put some of my favourite mechanics and little touches on the development chopping block. I'm particularly fond of game mechanics that make real-world sense. Real life would not reward you for falling off cliffs, running headlong into a crowded room of enemies, or stumbling off the well-beaten track into the untamed wilderness. Consequences in real life can feel rather scary, so I really enjoyed the fear factor of some older MMOs because this allowed for a much more thrilling -- and ultimately rewarding -- gaming experience. I am going to talk about just three older mechanics I particularly enjoy that have fallen out of fashion, but feel free to lengthen my list by adding your favourites in the comments below.
Neverwinter prepares population for PvP patch
Cryptic has a host of changes in store for Neverwinter's PvP game, including a brand-new stat and shiny gear. The team posted a developer blog to briefly discuss the upcoming patch. The biggest change is the addition of a Tenacity stat to PvP equipment. This stat will increase resistance to crowd control spells, stuns, critical hits, and (of course) damage. Cryptic sees Tenacity as being essential to those who want to mount a strong defense in PvP. Neverwinter will also be tweaking the prone effect so that it will be shorter and affected by control resist. The team also teased new PvP gear, although it said that details about the gear will have to wait for another day.
Massively exclusive: Champions Online gears up for a rampage
Are you ready to go on a rampage in Champions Online? Good, because there's a big Rampage revamp on its way to the game that should provide players with a lot of new things to do. Three missions are getting a full redo with rewards and challenges tweaked, and a brand-new Rampage is being added to the game, giving veteran players a chance to group up and pit themselves against the toughest opponents Millennium City and points related has to offer. The new Fire and Ice Rampage pits players against two villains originally designed by a player, and the title alone should give you some idea about what's coming. Meanwhile, the Gravitar, Lemurian Invasion, and Sky Carrier have been turned into proper Rampages with an updated set of items and costume pieces on offer. Check out the preview gallery, and click past the cut for all the details on this upcoming addition.
Captain's Log: Stepping between stars in Star Trek Online
There's one thing that Star Trek Online players crave: story-based missions. And when we get them, we devour them like starving locusts. After what can only be described as an incredibly frustrating first day, the new anniversary events are now live on Star Trek Online. Community Manager Brandon Felczer had his hands full during multiple game crashes last Thursday that were blamed on "network issues" as opposed to server overload. I was able to ride out the network issues long enough to play the most recent mission, which highlights the voice talents of actor Tim Russ as he reprises his role of Tuvok from Star Trek: Voyager. There are a lot of spoilers ahead; you've been warned! But I won't make any mention of the specific story choices that can be made during the mission. I want to leave some things a surprise.
Star Trek Online posts a four-year infographic
Space -- it's not really much of a frontier any longer. These are the voyages of a large number of different ships in Star Trek Online. Their continuing missions: To complete reputation projects. To seek out new ships and new duty officers. To boldly go where a lot of people have gone over the past four years -- specifically, 3.2 million captains -- but it's still worth exploring just the same! With the official four-year mark for the game just around the corner, Cryptic Studios has put out a new infographic detailing stuff like exactly how many captains are currently exploring the final not-so-much-a-frontier. It also contains a handy timeline of the game's major content releases over the past four years and all of the former Trek actors now providing voices to iconic characters in the game. If you want a quick look at the game's history for yourself, check out the infographic on the official site.
Perfect Ten: Lessons from three months in Neverwinter
Recently I decided to end a good run in Neverwinter, my second time back to the game that went well over three months. It was a strange period, no doubt, mostly because of the conversations I'd get into people about it. "You're playing Neverwinter? Are you, like, trying to be ironic?" they'd ask, with internet eyebrows all quizzical. "I know! I don't understand it either!" I'd invariably respond. "But... it's fun. It is!" That last bit always dribbled off my lips. Then our friendship would be terminated and I'd have to rely on my fallback companion, a pen pal from Austria who sends me notes in an archaic form of German. I guess Neverwinter isn't a super-serious MMO for super-serious players, but there's something very Pringles about it: Once you start playing, you can't stop. Well, at least not for three months. So since my time in it is through (for now), I thought I'd share with you 10 lessons I picked up in three months.
Star Trek Online celebrates its fourth anniversary with a look back at the previous year
This year, Star Trek Online turns four years old. So how do you celebrate four years of operation on a single game? Well, in this case, you start with a look back over the past year. The newest trailer from the team at Cryptic Studios, embedded just past the break, shows off the highlights of 2013 in Star Trek Online for players who've been away from the game or those who would just like a quick refresher. So what happened? Lots of stuff. The game launched its first full expansion with Legacy of Romulus, players took on the Voth and met up with Worf again, and a whole lot of seasonal fun was had with jetpacks and animated snowmen. But you don't need us to tell you about all of that, do you? The trailer's ready to show you all of that and offer a few glimpses into the future. Why not take a look?
Captain's Log: Gearing up for Star Trek Online's fourth anniversary
We're only a few days away from the release of Star Trek Online's fourth anniversary celebration, and a lot of information about upcoming events is rolling out. As the team prepares for the launch, several new blogs have popped up teasing players with information about upcoming content and changes including news that actor Tim Russ, who played Tuvok in Star Trek: Voyager, will reprise his role in Star Trek Online's Fourth Anniversary Featured Episode! It's only logical Last week's announcement that Tim Russ would be providing his voice for upcoming content certainly made a lot of Trekkies happy. Community Manager Brandon Felczer interviewed Russ for the game's video blog and asked a lot of great questions. It was also revealed during the interview that recordings of Russ' voice won't just be used in the upcoming Featured Episode (called A Step Between Stars); it will also be heard in "upcoming content" including "Season Nine and beyond."
One Shots: Sweaty navels
As we all well know, the navel -- or "belly button" in layman's parlance -- is the sweatiest organ of the body. So much so, in fact, that the navel must either be exposed to air at all time or be equipped with a specialized "tummy diaper." Here we see reader ThorHal getting it right with his character in TERA. "I was one to complain when One Shots vanished a while back, now here to contribute!" ThorHal exclaimed. "I was traveling along the roads, exploring and helping the local populace. Transitioning into this beautiful place called Heartwood left me stunned. This game keeps impressing me with its art, be it dry deserts, lush forests, or this magical place." Despite what you might assume, this week's collection of player-submitted screenshots isn't just about our "tickle dimples." It's a treat for the eyes and a balm for the soul, all after the jump!
Star Trek Online event system to feature more rewards, less frequency
Star Trek Online lead content designer Charles Gray says that Cryptic is revamping the sci-fi MMO's events system. "Very few of the hourly events are being played regularly," Gray explains, and Cryptic's solution is to "increase the rewards dramatically" and run the events less frequently. The announced changes are "the first step in a new system that we hope to add to," Gray says. "We will be taking a close look at how each of these events performs and community feedback -- we'll take both into account when making new events or updating existing ones."
Field Journal: Neverwinter gonna let you down
My original plan to talk about some of the better quests in Neverwinter's Foundry has been replaced with the burning need to rant about some of the common pitfalls in the less stellar entries. I'm not going to mention anything by name because I'm not here to shame anyone. I just need to explore some of the stupid design decisions that keep cropping up. I make no claim to great skill with the Foundry myself. I still haven't gotten around to much map decorating in my first adventure, though I did pull the trigger on publishing. (You can find it with the ID: NW-DNGJU57ID.) What I can claim is a critical eye and an understanding of what makes a good story with the tools Neverwinter gives you to tell them. There are plenty of good stories, so picking something from the featured pile will usually work out great, but when you go digging in the new and unrated adventures for hidden gems, you'll find far more rough than diamonds.
Captain's Log Supplemental: STO's Stephen D'Angelo speaks
Last week we reported on the announcement that Star Trek Online has a new Executive Producer. Daniel Stahl, who held the position for the past several years, has moved on to another "secret" project at Cryptic Studios. The game's new (and returning) EP, Stephen D'Angelo, has taken the chair once again and has already posted his first blog outlining a few of his desires for the future of Star Trek Online. We had the opportunity to interview D'Angelo and ask him a few more questions about the game and what direction he sees the ship heading. Massively: Congratulations on your new position as Executive Producer of Star Trek Online! Of course, this isn't your first time in the command chair. What's the first challenge you were faced with when you finally took the seat, and how is it different from the challenges you faced the last time you were at the helm? Stephen D'Angelo: Any time there is a change in leadership, there's a period of learning how the team operates. This time it was a pretty smooth transition, with no significant challenges. I've got a great working relationship with the team, and because there was nothing eminently shipping, I was able to ramp up at a reasonable pace. The last time was much more challenging. I was given the team without warning, and it was only weeks before converting the game to free-to-play. That was a pretty mad scramble.
