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The Killzone 2 FAQ
Killzone 2 is a remarkably divisive game, as noted in the fierce comments to our last hands-on post. Killzone 2 is one of the few games that can get overzealous PS3 fans, insecure 360 fanboys, and downright-confused Wii owners in one place and start a verbal riot. With so much fervor surrounding the title, we decided to simply break down the game and answer some of your more burning questions.When is it coming out?Killzone 2 will be available in North America on February 27, 2009. Expect a "similar timeframe" for European countries.What are the controls like?The controls are much slower than most other FPS games on the market. Instead of running and gunning, you'll be taking cover and aiming down your sights. When behind a wall or object, you'll have to hold the cover button. Releasing it will allow you to peek out and fire your gun. It takes some time to get used to fully first person cover, but it's meant to keep the experience immersive. If you play like the guys at G4, you will die. A lot. (According to G4, that was a developer playing. Whoops!)%Gallery-4719%
Massively's Unofficial Station Cash FAQ
We mentioned yesterday that our chat with SOE CEO John Smedley went very well, and he offers up a number of insights into the 'why' behind the decision to roll out Station Cash to EverQuest and EverQuest II. Sometimes, though, you don't really care about the why, you just want to know the what. The official Station Cash FAQ touches on a number of issues, but we uncovered some helpful pieces of information we wanted to present front and center for your edification. As we reported on Thursday, Station Cash will not be coming to Vanguard, Star Wars Galaxies, The Matrix Online, or Planetside. It will be playing a prominent role in Free Realms, but there will also be a subscription option for that game if players want to make that choice. Large portions of it, of course, will also be free-to-play. SOE will soon have Station Cash 'cards' in retail stores, much as companies like Nexon already offer. Many of the services SOE wants to offer with Station Cash include off-line products. Purchasing a guild photo, a t-shirt with your character on it, or even a full-sized character poster are all things SOE wants to offer. (See the interview for full details on those plans.) The Agency is likely to be the only game where the company sells 'gamplay altering' items. IE: we may see them selling special guns that offer a slight benefit to the player's skill. This is consistent with the FPS microtransactional model popular in South Korea, and seen in Nexon's Combat Arms here in the states. Any future EverQuest titles, if there are any, will not be solely microtransaction-based. The company views the sale of XP potions as a big combatant to the paid leveling services. One of their direct goals is to supplant the third-party goldselling and leveling services. The extra money brought in by microtransactions will, to some extent, be pushed right back to the team to fund extra content they might not have otherwise been able to offer. Be sure to check out our full interview with John Smedley for details on all of this information. If you have strong opinions on this topic, this morning we offered up a discussion thread focused entirely on microtransactions that you might want to check out as well.%Gallery-38919%
WAR's latest Grab Bag explores Zone Control
Aside from answering a variety of user questions and reporting on the latest tidbits of Warhammer Online news in the usual Grab Bag style, this week's regular feature focuses on the basics of Zone Control.If you've ever made the mistake of assuming that your realm has captured a zone by controlling all Battlefield objectives and Keeps, you'd be wrong. That's exactly what this Grab Bag feature aims to do: help the players understand what exactly is involved in controlling your Zone. Check out the entire article for more on Zone control and the answers to a few important player questions.
EVE's new Weapon Grouping feature explained
Weapon Grouping is one of the new features coming to EVE Online, via the multi-staged release of the Quantum Rise expansion. Players spotted and have been giving updates on what they've seen on the Singularity test server, but now EVE dev CCP Ytterbium has posted a dev blog that explains this new feature in great detail, right down to screengrabs of Weapon Grouping in action. If you've been waiting to hear more about this, you'll want to check out CCP Ytterbium's dev blog, 'Weapon Grouping', for his visual explanation of how you'll soon be able to consolidate your weapons into a single icon, and reload all of them at once. He also lays out the scenarios when you wouldn't want to take advantage of this feature, like when attacking multiple targets (although there's a solution to that built into the feature). Additionally, he's written a lengthy FAQ that should help dispel some of the confusion surrounding Weapon Grouping.
Apprentice Scribe: An Inscription FAQ
Inscription was just added to the game two days ago, but many people have it at 350+ already. Understandably, there are a lot of questions. In this post I will attempt to answer some of them. This post is aimed at people who are scribes, or are interested in becoming scribes. If you're just interested in how to use glyphs to enhance your skills, but not in making them, you may want to look into the glyph FAQ. So what's this Inscription all about, then? Inscription is a new primary profession to make glyphs (permanent enhancements to spells), mostly. Scribes can also make scrolls, and for themselves, shoulder enchants and caster-oriented offhands. What goes into making a glyph? Herbs, primarily. Lots of herbs. You mill them into pigments, turn the pigments into ink, and put the ink down on parchment to make glyphs. What's the difference between a major and a minor glyph? Major glyphs make big changes to spells, minor glyphs make small ones. We have slots for both; you can't put a major glyph in a minor glyph slot, nor vice-versa. At level 70, we have two major slots, and three minor. At level 80, we'll have three of each.
A brief introduction to glyphs
Inscription is here (if your server is up, that is). And Inscription's primary goal in life is to make glyphs. For you. I say this because many people seem to have questions about what glyphs are, how they work, and where to get them. In this post I hope to answer those questions. Glyphs are made by players who have learned the new profession of Inscription (AKA scribes). The primary reagent for Inscription is herbs, which are milled to make pigments, which are turned into inks, which are then combined with parchments (which are bought from vendors) to make glyphs. Whew. Scribes can sell/trade/give glyphs to players, who then use them to enhance their spells. Each Glyph enhances a particular spell for a particular class.
Why are the servers down and other questions
For many of us, realms excitedly went up for a few minutes but quickly came crashing down. Reader Venorize was kind enough to send us a link to an F.A.Q answering all the pertinent questions about our realms... and why they're currently borked. Important questions like why our loading screens take forever to load (answer -- thousands and thousands of other people are logging in at the same time) and why our screen is cluttered with all sorts of incomprehensible gibberish and weird images (hint -- turn off your AddOns first).If you're having trouble logging in, experiencing difficulty in playing the game, or simply can't access of play World of Warcraft post Patch 3.0.2, head over to the F.A.Q., there are a lot of good answers to important questions. Even those not answered by our very own F.A.Q. assembled by Eliah. If you've got a question that isn't addressed here at WoW Insider or there, that's probably when you can head on over to the forums and bug Blizzard. Or... you can try and see if your realm's back on. A little patience goes a long way.
Don't Panic: Frequently asked questions in 3.0.2
Most realms should be up and running patch 3.0.2 by now soon, and there are a lot of questions floating around, many that we're seeing asked repeatedly. Fortunately, we're here with all the answers. I right-clicked my mount/vanity pet and it disappeared! Where did it go? Mounts and vanity pets get their own tab in the interface now. They will now be learned as spells, and will no longer take up bag space. Where are my Badges of Justice/BG marks/other tokens? Like mounts and pets, they too have their own place out of your bags, in the "currency" tab on your character sheet (default binding "K"). Free bag spaces! It's inventory Christmas. Where's the harbor? Stormwind Harbor is in Stormwind. You can't get to Northrend yet for obvious reasons, but there is a boat to take you to Auberdine. Stormwind city guards will help you get to the harbor, or just head for the tunnel between the park and the Cathedral district.
Death Knight character creation FAQ preps players for Wrath
Planning on creating a Death Knight when Wrath of the Lich King comes out next month? Blizzard posted a Death Knight creation FAQ at the EU World of Warcraft forums in an effort to reduce the number of question and answer threads popping up. It's short but sweet.It's so short, in fact, that we can give you most of the info right here. You'll be able to create a Death Knight on any realm on which you already have an level 55 or higher character. Eventually, you'll be able to create one on a different server, but for now the only way to get a Death Knight to a totally new realm is to create it on your current realm and then do a paid transfer.Don't worry -- there's good news too! If your level 55 is Horde, you'll be able to start up an Alliance Death Knight and vice versa, so long as you're not playing on a PvP realm. You're only allowed one Death Knight per realm though.[Via WoW Insider]
Blizz posts DK creation FAQ
38 days from now, Wrath of the Lich King will be released, and hundreds of thousands of people will be chomping at the bit to roll Death Knights, WoW's first new class. Blizzard knows this as well as anyone, so they've posted a FAQ on DK character creation. If you've been following the news for months, there is little new here, but it's good as a recap, because these questions are, indeed, very frequently asked. So go on and brush up if you have questions about what races can be DKs (all of them), or whether you can make it the opposite faction of your existing characters (yes, unless you're on a PvP server). There is, though, one bit of news in this post. When Wrath launches, you will only be able to create a DK on a realm on which you have an existing character of level 55 or higher. Wryxian, that maverick crocolisk CM, promises that in the future, the option will be opened up to create a DK on any realm, provided you have at least one 55-or-higher character somewhere. The previous plan was to make this the rule at launch (55+ = DK on any realm). The only reason I can think of that they would make this change is that they were having difficulties from a technical standpoint; maybe it's non-trivial when trying to create a character on one realm to check that account's characters on other realms. Anyway, I doubt this will affect anyone too much. I for one am certainly going to make a DK on my main realm before I branch out to realms that I don't have any high-level characters on.
Base mana for dummies
In Wrath of the Lich King, all spells are being reworked so that their cost, rather than being a static mana value, is a percentage of your base mana pool (this is largely to prevent downranking). For instance, in the current, live game, Levitate costs 100 mana. In the Wrath beta, Levitate costs 3% of base mana But what is base mana? It's the amount of mana you have before talents, buffs, and stats (like intellect and +mana) are factored in, and before base intellect from your race is taken into account. In other words, it's the amount of mana you would have if you were naked, unbuffed, and un-talented, and had no Intellect. Thus, it is a static value for each character of a given class/level combination. Getting more Int from gear will not raise the cost of spells, because it does not raise your base mana pool (it raises total mana pool). [Thanks for the correction, Breck and Improbable.] So to the person who wrote in asking "what's the point of getting more Int if it will just make spell costs go up," I hope that answers your question: more Int does not affect your base mana pool. Ultimately we should see little difference from this base-mana-pool spell cost change, aside from the death of downranking.
Star Trek Online FAQ describes PvP rules
Even more Star Trek Online information has beamed in. This time, it's in the FAQ page just published by Cryptic Studios. The FAQ is a good place to catch up on the highlights from the recent revelations, but there's new stuff too.The most substantial revelation is that there won't be PvP, PvE, or RP server types as in World of Warcraft and other games. There will only be one server type. There will be far-flung regions of space in which open PvP will be possible. In the nuetral zone (the border between factions), consensual PvP engagements will occur. It's implied that PvP will not be possible deep within Federation or Klingon space.Oh, and the FAQ includes some grim news for certain would-be players. It turns out that you'll actually need an internet connection to play Star Trek Online! Oh man! Say it ain't so! That's unacceptable, right? Maybe we should start a petition.
Mythic publishes Warhammer Online pre-order FAQ
Mythic has created the beginnings of a FAQ intended to help would-be-customers sort out all the details about pre-ordering Warhammer Online. Info included in the FAQ: how to pre-order in Canada, who to poke to get pre-order codes when you place your order through an online store, and details and definitions on the beta testing phases, among other things.Mythic promises that the FAQ will be updated with new information in the future, but doesn't say what kind of information it'll be.The FAQ has some helpful information if you have those specific questions, of course. If you want a more in-depth and badass guide to pre-ordering WAR, though, check out our WAR collector's edition pre-order guide. Which retailer distributes codes in the most helpful way? Which one gives you the best extra goodies? It's all there!
Wrath of the Lich King Beta weekend coverage roundup
Good Monday morning everyone! It's time for most of us to head back to work and school today, which means it's also a perfect time to catch up on any news you missed over the weekend -- after you're done with your work, of course. I'm sure you checked in at least once during the weekend and saw the big news. It's not just a rumor, the Wrath of the Lich King Beta is indeed live. I'm sure you were out barbequing, or camping, or whatever else all you people who had the weekend off were doing. We here at WoW Insider, of course, were working on rounding up and analyzing all the new information coming out from the newly NDA free Alpha and Beta. So if you missed the coverage, or if you just want to look it over again, read on. Also, keep an eye on our Wrath news page that we'll keep updated with the latest expansion news as it happens. General Information: First of all, you're probably going to want to read and bookmark our Wrath of the Lich King directory page. It will be updated every day with all the latest articles and information on the expansion. Check out the first iteration of the Wrath Beta patch notes. If you haven't signed up for a chance at a Beta key yet, be sure to visit Blizzard's official opt-in page. If you have signed up for a chance at a Beta key, keep an eye on your in-box. Netheara says that invites should be going out -- just watch out for the scams, of course. If you're still unsure about some aspect of the Beta, be sure to check the official Beta FAQ. Even if you're not in the Beta, you can still browse the official forums and see what testers are discussing -- and how the devs are answering them. Keep reading after the break for more on class changes, talents, tradeskills, and more.
Wrath of the Lich King Beta FAQ
Blizzard has posted the official word that the Wrath of the Lich King beta invites are going out via email even as we speak. I'll be checking my mailbox compulsively. They have posted an official Beta FAQ on the website. The entire text of the FAQ is posted after the break, but here's the short version: You can still opt in for the Wrath of the Lich King neta Beta testers will need to create a temporary Blizzard account You can copy up to 4 characters to beta, or make a new one (Death Knight) Beta play has no impact on the live realm status of your character You are expected to report bugs and leave feedback There is no non-disclosure agreement for the beta
Richard Garriott and special guest join TR's Friday Night Fights
In the past, we've reported on some excited bouts in Tabula Rasa's Friday Night Fights, but nothing compares to what they have in store for you now. Next Friday, July 25th, Richard Garriott will be facing up against two time featherweight boxing champ Jesus Chavez in the C.E.L.L.A.R. Arena. This will be held on the TR Test Server starting at 6pm Central time. They will be in C.E.L.L.A.R. 3, which can be accessed via teleporter from the barracks in Alia Das.If you're new to Friday Night Fights and aren't sure how it all works, TR's Community Coordinator Amy "Critters" Crider has assembled a handy Q&A which you can see right after the cut, as well as a hilarious promotional video created especially for this event. We hope to see you there!
Mythic offers FAQs for Warhammer's loss of cities, classes
The removal of four classes and four capital cities from Warhammer Online last week continues to reverberate through the fan community. In an attempt to answer prospective player questions in a highly visible place, FAQs have been posted to the official website. They tackle both questions related to the four classes and questions related to the removal of the cities. Essentially, the game's Realm vs. Realm combat works exactly the same. Players will now work through the tiers of content to reach the fortress outside of the three capital cities. To open up access to attack the opposing faction's city, two of these three fortresses must be sieged and captured. The document crows "it works out even better than we had originally designed."The classes FAQ is a also hopeful, noting that the developers will use the extra time freed up by removing these classes to good effect. Literally. Smoother visual effects will be added, as well as additional animations to smooth out the 'feel' of combat. The classes still in the game will receive additional polish as well, with new abilities and class-specific gear the result. Be sure to read both selections to gain more clarity on this somewhat-confusing topic.
Beta opt-in F.A.Q.
More beta news for everyone to enjoy tonight. Bornakk has posted what Nethaera promised earlier in the day, a Wrath of the Lich King beta opt-in F.A.Q. The complete F.A.Q. is republished here for your convenience, and is definitely something everyone should read and re-read. Some of the key things to come out of the F.A.Q.: You are not guaranteed to get into the WotLK beta if you have a BlizzCon or WWI beta keys. These keys might go to another beta (like Diablo III). You can opt-in on multiple accounts, but each account can only opt-in once. If you get a key with one account, you can use it on another account of your choosing. However the key can only be used once. Opting in early does not necessarily mean you will get a beta slot early. Everything is random (as we previous reported). If you get a beta key from another source and are selected via the opt-in process, you can give your key to a friend or family member. Full F.A.Q. after the break.
iPhone 101: Eight 3G iPhone Plan Pricing Details You Need to Know
Thinking about signing up for iPhone 3G service? Here are some pricing details you'll want to know about. 1. You have to pay $18 or $36. A one time $36 activation fee still applies to 3G plans, the way it did for the first generation iPhone. If you're a current AT&T subscriber, this fee is only $18. 2. Data costs more. On the original iPhone plans, unlimited data cost $20/month. The new iPhone 3G plans cost $30/month. 3. Exchange costs $15/month more beyond that. The normal 3G iPhone data plan costs $30/month. Enterprise data costs $45/month. This buys you access to all the standard Exchange features. If you need to get Exchange mail, or access data inside your firewall, you're an enterprise user. AT&T isn't saying they'll disable ActiveSync and Exchange on normal iPhone plans for non-corporate users so we're unsure how they'll police this policy. Our Christina speculates that the enterprise plan sets up the server to accept exchange support; you could do IMAP from your exchange account but if you want non-MobileMe push, you gotta be on the enterprise tier plan.Follow the jumps for more plan pricing details.
Eric Lempel answers your frequently asked 2.40 questions
Funny thing about huge updates: They come with lots of potential niggles and details that need to be clarified. Eric Lempel over at the PlayStation.Blog has done his best to address a number of the most frequently asked questions about firmware 2.40. In particular, there's clarification that the web browser will not work during gameplay. Nor will voice chat, changing display settings and the PlayStation Store. The FAQ also reveals that Sony is working with publishers to "ensure that trophies are supported across the board in the future," which is a great sign. We have a feeling we're going to want to get our hands on as many trophies as we can once the update hits. Trophy stat info is held server-side, so you will be able to view the trophies of your friends even if they're offline (as Eric did in the second video). Sadly, unlocking a trophy does not "currently" make a noise (we're crossing our fingers for 2.41!) and Eric's favorite cheese is Mozzarella. An interesting choice.Check out the post over at the PlayStation Blog for the full FAQ. We think that pretty much covers everything, unless you can think of something else that's still uncertain?
