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Analyst claims SWTOR could already have 1.5 million players
It's not exactly a secret that big things are expected of BioWare's recent entry to the MMO market, Star Wars: The Old Republic. Cowen & Company analyst Doug Creutz speculates that the game could have up to 1.5 million players already, even though the game doesn't officially launch for another day. This conclusion comes about based on the fact that EA had 140 servers running by last Saturday. If that's the population right now, we can assuredly expect that the game's official launch will see big numbers indeed. We'll just have to wait one more day to find out.
SWTOR brings up six new servers to match demand
As more players flood through the gates of Star Wars: The Old Republic, the team is keeping busy behind the scenes. On the game's Facebook page, BioWare has announced that it has brought up another six servers to accommodate the new players. The new servers are all PvE, and three cater to the East coast, while the other three cover the West coast. For those interested in rolling on a new server, the servers are Kathol Rift, The Constant, and Krayiss Obelisk on the East coast and Wall of Light, Darth Sion, and Kaiburr Crystal for the West coast. Good luck, and may the Force be with you.
This Week in MMO: Ohmigod SWTOR is almost here edition
In this week's edition of This Week In MMO, Gary Gannon and Mike B. are all about Star Wars: The Old Republic. OK, well, maybe not all about it, but the game's head start begins in less than a week, so you can expect plenty of SWTOR commentary. The pair also take some time to talk about Funcom's newly announced zone for The Secret World, the Scorched Desert. The duo also spends some time ruminating on whether or not SWTOR may be the last subscription game we see as more and more games (such as Lineage II) go F2P. TERA's glyph system gets some air time as well, as does the announcement that Final Fantasy XIV is once again levying subscription fees from players. For the full video, click on past the cut.
Vindictus open beta off to an early start
Looking to get a head start on some F2P dungeon-crawling, vampire staking, and goblin smashing? It's your lucky night, as Nexon America has let us know that the Vindictus open beta has left the terminal a bit ahead of schedule. The festivities include the game's newly accessible third episode, the aforementioned new mobs, and a new dungeon (Ainle), which you can enter from boat dock three. Inside, you'll encounter a town overrun with fireball-flinging undead and assorted underworld minions, many of which can be picked up and used as thrown weapons thanks to the game's Source Engine physics. In addition to the new content, early access beta players will be able to retain their characters, rank, and loot when Vindictus officially launches later this month. Check out more of our Vindictus coverage, including video of the game's grappling moves, or head over to the official web site for more info.
Captain's Log: The great skill cap debate
There's a lot of unrest over on the official forums concerning Cryptic's choice to add a skill cap to Star Trek Online. As of this writing the thread containing the meat of this discussion is well over 6,000 replies and 111,000 views. As I look through this arguably epic thread, the primary question that continually crosses my mind is: Really, this much upset over such a minor piece of news? Yes, I said minor.
Wes Platt sheds some light on Fallen Earth
Recently we found out that the team at Fallen Earth LLC have decided to push the game's release date back to the 22nd to allow for a bit more polishing before the final launch. Currently, those who pre-ordered through Direct2Drive or the Fallen Earth website are enjoying a headstart in the strangely altered lands around the Grand Canyon. Still others are biding their time, seeing just how the game develops after release and keeping an eye out for news from this small independent studio. Werit had a chance to sit down with Wes Platt, Content Design Team Lead for Fallen Earth and ask some questions about a few different aspects of the game, as well as where Wes thinks the team will be in a few years. If you're interested in this crafting-heavy story-driven sci-fi MMO, then you'll definitely want to head over there and give the interview a read. Personally, we can't wait until we can build a muscle car that's bristling with weaponry and drive it around with our friends, hopefully. That sounds like an apocalypse we can get into!
The Daily Grind: Early starts, yay or nay?
Today marks the first day of Champions Online's Early Start program for special pre-order customers. That's not to say the rest of you aren't special, you're just... special in a different way. But the early start isn't a new concept, and has been going on for a while now. Warhammer Online did it last year, actually. What we'd like to know are your thoughts on the subject. Do you love, hate or just feel generally uneasy about early starts? For that matter, do you even care about them one way or another?It doesn't seem like the concept is going away any time soon, and you can bet your computer chair that Star Trek Online will have one as well. But who knows, it could just be a phase. Like that time in college when you thought The Cure were the only band in the entire world worth listening to.
