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TERA weekly screens show more of Castanica [Updated]
En Masse Entertainment is back with the 17th installment of its TERA Screenshots of the Week featurette, and the series returns to the well-documented city of Castanica. Otherwise known as the Shrouded Rose, Castanica features flying buttresses and gothic-inspired architecture, in addition to the scantily clad female castanics that some gamers love to hate. "The center of castanic life and culture is at once earthy and mysterious, with secrets seeming to wait around every corner, while the iron and the rose aptly symbolize the contradictions inherent in the castanic spirit," says the teaser of the official TERA website. Check out the new shots in our gallery below, as well as on the official site. Editor's Note: We just got the trailer for Castanica! We've embedded it after the break, so check it out! %Gallery-96720%
PAX 2010: TERA's David Noonan talks story, endgame
You might think that BioWare has the market cornered when it comes to story in upcoming MMORPGs. As we found out at PAX Prime 2010, however, TERA is also focusing on delivering an interactive narrative experience to complement its action combat gameplay. Our own Rubi Bayer managed to corner En Masse Entertainment lead writer David Noonan for a little one-on-one time regarding TERA's extensive storyline. Noonan also dropped an interesting nugget or two regarding the state of the title's endgame. Read the full interview after the cut and be sure to check out our gallery below. %Gallery-101708%
TERA screens showcase the city of Kaiator
Another week, another set of TERA screens to whet our appetites for En Masse Entertainment's forthcoming action MMORPG. The Screenshots of the Week featurette turns sweet sixteen today, and while the shots are devoid of the eternally conversational skimpy armor, they nonetheless bear examining. This week's subject is the iron city of Kaiator, located in northern Shara and home to the honorable and ferocious Aman. Kaiator, like its builders, is all but impregnable, and a forthcoming lore update on the official TERA website will fill in even more details about the city known as the Unbreakable Iron Jewel. Check out the screens in our gallery below or on the official site. %Gallery-96720%
TERA's Patrick Wyatt talks lag, security, and an M-rating
TERA is shaping up to be a huge hit with international audiences, and nowhere is this more evident than in En Masse Entertainment's willingness to reach out to fan communities outside the U.S. The latest example comes courtesy of TERAHispano, as they recently sat down with En Masse COO Patrick Wyatt for a round of questions regarding everything from microtransactions, to account security, to lag. Wyatt has lots to say in the lengthy interview, and among the more interesting nuggets is the fact that En Masse expects TERA to ship with an M-rating. He also touches on performance issues, pointing to the Focus Group Tests as evidence that lag won't be an issue for the game's action combat system. "When we built the first Western servers for TERA, we selected a QA datacenter just a few miles from our offices in Seattle, which meant that European players who joined our Focus Group Tests were playing on servers over 5000 miles away. Based on the forum posts, polls, and informal surveys from those events, we didn't see lag problems," Wyatt says. Finally, he reiterates that TERA will not be a microtransaction-based title, and also discusses GameGuard and alternatives to the intrusive anti-cheat software.
TERA Community Manager: No IP blocks
Last month, the TERA developers made an announcement that caused a huge stir among potential players: Frogster had taken over publishing responsibilities for the EU version of the game. One of the main concerns was that European players would be "stuck" on Frogster's European servers thanks to IP blocks. Late last week, En Masse finally eliminated that concern with the announcement that IP blocks will not be a factor: "The answer is that En Masse and Frogster will not implement IP blocking or other territorial restrictions to prevent connections from outside of their respective service regions. This means that in Europe or North America, you will be able to freely select which territory you wish to play TERA." Players will still need to purchase the NA or EU version of the game, depending on which server they wish to play on, but the announcement of a choice is a relief to a large part of the TERA community.
TERA reveals high elf city of Allemantheia
Normally at this time every week we bring you some new TERA screenshots, and while we're happy to report that is still the case, we're also excited to point out a meaty new lore entry on the official TERA website. Both content updates center around the city of Allemantheia, otherwise known as The Desert Jewel. The majestic home of the high elves is located in the barren wastes of the Southern Shara desert and features soaring spires, water sculptures, and austere stonework that reflects the logic and sensibilities of its makers. You can read more about Allemantheia's history, as well as interesting blurbs about The Mysterium, at the official website. Also, don't forget to check out the new screenshots in our gallery below. %Gallery-96720%
A look at Gamescom 2010: Part two
As promised earlier this week, we present part two of our video series documenting Gamescom 2010 from the good people at Maverick Media. In this one, we have a look at Warhammer 40K: Dark Millennium Online, TERA, End of Nations, The Secret World's amazing booth and Ben before his morning coffee and makeup. If you enjoyed the tongue-in-cheek humor of the first video, you'll certainly love this second video found just after the jump. So check it out and let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
TERA fan video uncovers political system info
TERA's political system has been shrouded in mystery for some time now, despite allusions to it in various producer and community manager interviews that En Masse Entertainment has given out over the past few months. Thanks to a video interview captured at Gamescom by a member of the Glimpse Dog fan website, we now have a bit more of an idea as to how the feature will play out. The video is part four of a five-part series, and features live TERA gameplay interspersed with commentary by the reporter and an unnamed TERA employee who drops several nuggets of information about the political system. Among them are the fact that the system currently features lordships and kingships. TERA's world is divided into regions that will be able to elect a lord via citizen vote and also via an unspecified PvP mechanic. Details on citizenship and voting privileges were sketchy, and it seems the system is still under heavy development. Once a lordship is obtained, players may then apply for kingship, which also features an election mechanic and grants sovereignty over a particular city. Kings also control taxes and have an unspecified level of control over how monsters spawn in their part of the world. Check out the video after the cut or the full series at Glimpse Dog.
See TERA's scenic Ascension Valley
Welcome to the fourteenth installment of TERA's Screenshots of the Week featurette. Today, En Masse Entertainment takes us south of the previously visited city of Castanica to Ascension Valley, a lush locale situated near Ostgarath and a place where you can meet interesting and stimulating mobs of an ancient culture... and kill them. Alternatively, you can explore Azrael's Labyrinth, an ancient dungeon that holds multiple levels and multiple secrets, each of them poised to destroy (or at least severely maim) the heartiest of adventurers. View the new shots in our comprehensive Screenshot of the Week gallery below or at the official TERA website. %Gallery-96720%
Gamescom 2010: En Masse releases new TERA cinematic
Ready for two minutes of new TERA-related goodness? Look no further than the latest trailer from En Masse Entertainment, released today at Gamescom 2010. The video features a fair helping of combat gameplay, as well as a plethora of stylized action setups that are obvious homages to the trailers of big-budget action films. The trailer also highlights TERA's emphasis on fine combat control, concluding with the words "take aim, take control, and take action." We'll be more than happy to take a longer look at the game, and you can too via the video found just behind the cut. Alternatively, check it out over at IGN.
En Masse's response to microtransaction speculation: TERA is not a microtransaction game
In one of our recent TERA articles, we speculated that TERA may be going towards a microtransaction/subscription model thanks to the wording in a press release sent out by Digital River, TERA's online shop service. However, senior producer Brian Knox has sent us a statement that sets the facts straight: TERA is not a microtransaction game. "After a press release by Digital River announcing our e-commerce partnership a few players expressed concerns that TERA would be a micro-transaction game in addition to requiring a subscription fee; that is not the case," said Knox. "TERA is not a micro-transaction or cash-shop item game. The game is built and designed to function as a subscription-based game. We would have to make dramatic changes to the game's design to support micro-transactions and there is no intention of doing so."
TERA talks public transportation, releases new screens
Did you ever think you'd see a bus or a subway train in the fantasy world of TERA? Apparently some community members have, as a recent discussion translated from the game's Korean website makes clear. Aside from the pegasus flightpath system that takes players from cities to quest hubs in the current beta client, no information on mounts in En Masse Entertainment's upcoming action MMO has been released. That said, TERAfans has managed to dig up a posting by Korean community manager Tree in which he solicits community feedback on the types of mounts desired. In other news, En Masse has released its latest Screenshots of the Week featurette, this time taking us to the cities of Velika and Castanica. Check them out in our gallery below or on the official website. %Gallery-96720%
Massively exclusive: The lore of TERA's Castanics, Part II
While TERA is being developed overseas by Bluehole Studio, the western localization and lore is in the hands of the excellent team at En Masse Entertainment, whose members are busy crafting a deep and interesting backstory for the world. At this time, we know that there will be six different races players can choose from in the upcoming game. En Masse is making sure that each of the races is getting its own unique history, such as the lore developer blog we've been given for the fiercely independent Castanics! In this second installment of the story Fates Be Damned by R. K. MacPherson, we catch up with Havelock, Calastra, Zufikar, and other Castanics as they try to make sense of what happened in the last tale. Why did this moment of malicious betrayal change the future of an entire race and cause them to leave their homeland? Read on past the break to find out as we dive into part II of our exclusive TERA developer blog! %Gallery-98895%
Updated: En Masse signs agreement with e-commerce company Digital River
En Masse the company responsible for TERA, is going to be working with Digital River for the next few years as part of a global agreement. In the immortal words of Paul Vasquez, what does it mean? Well, we know that TERA will have a subscription-based business model, but Digital River's press release points to a bit more than that: "Digital River will manage in-game commerce and launch an online store to support North American sales of En Masse's soon-to-be-released flagship action MMO, TERA." It's almost standard these days for MMOs to offer microtransactions even on top of a subscription fee, so while nothing has been officially announced, the mention of in-game commerce looks like our first indication that TERA may be going in that direction. The agreement will run through 2014. [Edit: Senior Community Manager of En Masse Entertainment has responded to some of the player concerns: "A few folks have expressed concerns that TERA users are going to have to pay micro-transaction fees in order to play TERA; that's not the case. We'd like to clarify that TERA is a subscription-based game, not a micro-transaction-based game. As gamers ourselves, we believe that our fellow players shouldn't be required to pay micro-transaction fees in order to have a great gaming experience."]
Massively exclusive: The lore of TERA's Castanics
When it comes to upcoming MMOs with gorgeous graphics, TERA is definitely up at the top of many people's lists. However, as anyone who has been in the MMO scene for a while knows, graphics aren't everything. A really great MMO offers not only great looks, fun mechanics, and lots to do, but a believable world that people care about and want to learn more about. Thankfully, the team at En Masse Entertainment understand that adding in an interesting, well-designed story is equally as important as adding all the fancy graphics -- and are hard at work with Bluehole Studios, making the world of TERA come alive. To add to that, they've also sent us an exclusive two-part tale, which they say "describes a pivotal moment in Castanic history, namely the death of Balder at Lok's hand. This caused not only the arcane scars on the Castanics bodies (which persist to this day, sort of a Mark of Cain) but caused them to abandon their home in Shara and make their way to Arun (where we find them today)." Curious for more tasty lore? Then join us behind the jump for this first installment, titled Fates Be Damned. Also, be sure to check out the outpouring of TERA eyecandy in the gallery below! %Gallery-98895%
TERA releases new Screens of the Week, skill change info
We may not have much information on TERA's highly secret political system, nor do we have a ton of new gameplay details to report, but one thing we always have in abundance regarding the forthcoming action MMORPG is screenshots. Yes, En Masse has delivered the eleventh installment of their venerable Screenshots of the Week featurette, this time focusing on the Valley of Nihil. Situated on TERA's western continent, the valley is an arid wasteland of cracked plateaus and foreboding sandstone that you can view in our gallery below. En Masse was also kind enough to drop a few tidbits regarding skill tweaks earlier this week. In a brief news release, the TERA publisher details some of the feedback received from the Focus Group Test 2 that concluded earlier this spring, as well as some new skills that resulted from the feedback. Have a look at the skill descriptions as well as the in-game icons on the game's official website. %Gallery-96720%
SDCC 2010: TERA by the numbers
If looks were everything, then TERA would certainly place as a finalist in the Miss Upcoming MMO Universe pageant. Yet as visually sumptuous as it may be, we're more interested in its personality. Can the brains match the beauty? So far, it looks promising. We've been locked on to TERA's unique brand of fantasy play since this year's E3 (and before), and as such, it's great to check back in with the title, take it out for a quiet romantic dinner, and see how it's shaping up. We caught up with En Masse Entertainment at the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con and spent a half hour putting the game through its paces and chatting up with TERA's devs. While TERA's dev team is working with a more recent build of the game, our hands-on demo was the same build as the one we saw at E3. Even so, it's always worth spending a few more minutes with an upcoming MMO to see what new facts and impressions can be gleaned. Hit the jump to read more about classes, races and an idea about not getting hit that's so crazy, it just might work!
TERA's Jason Mical teases politics, group balancing
TERA's political system continues to be shrouded in mystery, and whether it's a proper MacGuffin or some sort of public-relations red herring designed to simultaneously titillate and obfuscate is unclear. One thing that is clear is the fact that En Masse Entertainment representatives are reluctant to do much beyond tease the fact that the system exists. The latest example comes via an interview with community director Jason "BrotherMagneto" Mical over at World of TERA. Mical talks briefly about the level of player freedom inherent in the system. "I suppose the level of freedom will in some part depend on who gets elected. Some leaders might be benevolent, while others might become outright tyrants. Some who start with the best of intentions will probably end up tyrants. In other words, it's going to be a bit like real politics," he says. He goes on to state that PvP will influence TERA's political system quite a bit, referencing Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton "on a much larger and more common scale."
Frogster responds to TERA fan backlash
The recent announcement by Bluehole Studios and Frogster Online Gaming that the latter had secured the European publishing rights to TERA brought about something akin to an outcry from portions of the forthcoming fantasy MMORPG's community. While it wasn't quite millions of voices crying out in terror (and then being suddenly silenced), there were a few indignant threads on the various TERA fan sites. Why the brouhaha? Apparently some fans have experienced everything from perceived shoddy customer service, to forum "censorship," to the wanton slaughter of helpless kittens in previous Frogster-published titles (the largest of which is free-to-play behemoth Runes of Magic). Frogster director of product management Daniel Ulrich has since extended an olive branch in the form of a post on the official TERA forums, laying out the first of what will be several rounds of Q&A posts over the next few days. Check out the thread for some answers to your burning TERA questions, including free-to-play vs. pay-to-play, support team specifics, and server hardware.
TERA shows off Azarel's Temple
Has it really been ten weeks already? Time flies when you're looking at great TERA screenshots, and En Masse Entertainment has recently released the tenth installment of its Screenshots of the Week featurette. This set, coming to us from the dark innards of Azarel's Temple, may be the most exciting yet (or it could be just the fact that we love grim dungeon interiors that remind us of Raiders of the Lost Ark). In any event, Azarel's Temple is hidden amidst the dense jungles of Southern Arun, and you can get a sneak preview of it by checking out the first three images in our gallery below, or by visiting the official TERA website. Just make sure you stay out of the light. %Gallery-96720%
