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Forsaken World unveils the trailer for Storms of War
Forsaken World is on the cusp of a storm. Specifically, it's on the cusp of Storms of War, a new expansion to be launched in the near future. And as Perfect World Entertainment's announcements frequently do, this announcement brings with it a trailer showing off just a small sample of what players can expect from the expansion. Specifically, they can expect war. Quite a bit of it, in fact. Clocking in at just under a minute, the trailer admittedly doesn't offer players promises of dynamic new game systems or wholesale upheaval of what the game already provides. What it does promise are new explorable areas filled with new creatures to kill, several of which look appropriately otherworldly and menacing. So if you want to see what you'll be facing off against in Forsaken World in the near future, jump on past the cut to view the trailer in its entirety.
Forsaken World pits players against the Gaze of Larex
Perfect World Entertainment announced today that the newest addition coming to its free-to-play MMORPG Forsaken World will be titled Gaze of Larex. Larex -- some sort of ancient, eldritch monster -- has taken root in catacombs within the Sleeping Jungle, spreading corruption to the nearby inhabitants. Product Manager Clifton Chu explains, "Since launch, Forsaken World players have been busy reuniting the five races of Eyrda. With the emergence of Larex, players will be able to test their newly forged alliance against an enemy that not only threatens to take over the Sleeping Jungle, but also the entire world." Coinciding with this announcement is the release of a brand-new CG trailer for the game, which features many of the game's classes dramatically preparing for battle and even skirmishing amongst themselves before banding together to confront a greater threat. Click on past the cut to see the trailer, and if you feel compelled to join the fight to defeat Larex and secure the safety of Eyrda, then head over to the official site to join the fray.
Forsaken World closed beta opens up to all
Perfect World Entertainment's upcoming fantasy vampire MMO, Forsaken World, has decided to throw the definition of closed beta out the window and do its own thing. Phase 4 of the game's "closed" beta officially opens the doors to anyone who is curious to try the game out, whether or not he has a beta code -- or even signed up to test before. The new phase 4 portion of the beta test also marks Forsaken World's addition of two brand-new PvE servers, Storm and Legion. Also included in this newest phase is an auction house system, enabling a player-driven economy and greater availability of tradeskill materials to those who enjoy crafting. Along with this, the level cap has raised to 60, and there are 10 realms per server for players to wander through. Those curious can check out the phase 4 patch notes or sign up for an account and download the game from the Forsaken World site.
Spotlight on the Forsaken World occupation system
Forsaken World, the upcoming free-to-play title from Perfect World Entertainment, has been seeing a pretty big publicity push of late. The most recent official spotlight puts the focus on the game's occupation system, which is somewhat akin to a crafting system while at the same time being quite a bit broader. Yes, the system includes the option for players to craft their own equipment as well as contains side professions such as alchemy -- but it also includes more unusual options, such as becoming a socialite to unlock hidden quests or predicting the future with astrology. According to the spotlight, some occupations are obtained automatically via leveling. Others must be unlocked by spending Job Points, which are earned as players progress along the game's main storyline. While characters have a wide variety of different potential specialties, there's no way to take part in every single occupation, thus forcing players to pick and choose what would work best for each character. If you're looking forward to Forsaken World, take a closer look at the preview, which promises to add another level of variety onto the gameplay.
Forsaken World offers a look at the Stoneman Protector
There's always that moment when starting to play a new game -- just what are you going to choose as a character? Will a neat racial choice capture your eye? Perhaps you're so fond of playing a particular class that no matter what the race is, that will definitely be your choice? Maybe you just love the idea of creating a character that is completely different from who you are in the real world. Well, today we have a short video in which Forsaken World's Project Manager, Shoko Bogen, tells us her reasons for wanting to play a Stoneman Protector. Along with this peek into Forsaken World's enormous tank class, we've also gathered up a bunch of new screens that show off various aspects of the game. From large-scale battles to laid back fishing shots, you'll find lots of new eye candy in the gallery below. Or, for those who prefer sound and animation with their eye candy, you can catch the preview video behind the break. %Gallery-107517%
Sonnet FireWire dongle gives your MacBook Pro the gift of FW400
When Steve Jobs announced the new MacBook Pros, Apple received a lot of criticism for excluding a FireWire 400 port, despite the addition of FireWire 800. While most people were sitting around and griping, one company actually did something to reconcile the situation. Sonnet has created a dongle that allows you to use FireWire 400 devices in your MacBook Pro's FireWire 800 port. The Sonnet Simply Fast dongle works with standard 6-pin male FW400 cables. This dongle can be bought from the Sonnet online store, or from other retailers (i.e. Amazon) for around $14.24US. You can visit the Sonnet website for more information about the FireWire adapter. If you are looking for solutions to this FW 400/800 mystery then you might also want to check out FireWire 800 to 400 cables which are very plentiful, and might be slightly cheaper.
Sony VAIO hands-on extravaganza
Sony really bumped out a whole lot of laptop today, but we got a chance to handle each and every one, and came away impressed -- perhaps not blown away, but Sony certainly doesn't seem to be planning on letting the likes of Lenovo run away with the PC laptop design crown. None of the laptops felt astounding light, but they did all feel rather solid to handle, as if crafted out of a single element, instead of cobbled together -- particularly the magnesium alloy-built BZ. We'll have to get some more time with the keyboard to get a real read on them, but we like the shape of the keys and the depth of the action. Something that sort of flew under the radar in Sony's announcement is a new sort of OS X-esque dock at the bottom of the screen, with a row of icons that can be clicked on, or activated by a row of hard buttons above the SR's keyboard. The worst thing we can say about the whole lineup is how particularly chunky the Z looks in profile, despite its 1-inch thickness, but that's just because we've been spoiled by the likes of Lenovo, Apple and Voodoo, and all those ultralights aren't packing near what the Z is. Oh, and let it be known: the glowing power button thing is pretty sexy.%Gallery-27615%
Sony's new VAIO Z, FW, SR and BZ laptops go official
Leaks, rumors and teasers have told us just about everything we'd ever need to know about Sony's new VAIO lineup before we ever laid eyes on it, but Sony has finally confirmed its new VAIO Z, FW, SR and BZ laptops. They share a common design language, Centrino 2 processors, configuration options and setup software to remove that icky trial ware, and a whole lot of Blu-ray between them. Of particular note is the VAIO Z, which packs a Blu-ray drive and HDMI into a 1-inch thick, 3.4 pound, 13.1-inch 16:9 form factor, and even discreet NVIDIA 9300M graphics and a full size hard drive bay, with an option for dual SSD in a RAID configuration (which is just rubbing it in, if you ask us). The Z, FW and SR keyboards are all of the isolated, raised key variety, which might remind people of the MacBook keyboard, but is actually a design Sony has been toying with for a while now. The 13.3-inch VAIO SR is Sony's bid at bringing its ultraportable line "mainstream" with supposedly aggressive price points, multiple color options, and a four pound form factor which leaves room for discreet graphics, but sadly no Blu-ray. The 16.4-inch VAIO FW, on the other hand, has room for it all, with a 16:9 aspect ratio screen well suited to playing back Blu-ray movies. Finally, the VAIO BZ skips over the home theater fanciness and shows a growing commitment from Sony in the business laptop space. There's a 15.4-inch screen, magnesium alloy case, spill-resistant keyboard, vPRO and all that other fancy security-related business stuff, though no HDMI or Blu-ray to speak of. The BZ and FW start at $1,000, the SR at $1,400, the FW premium at $1,750, and the Z will hit at $1,800, with an SSD option for $2,300. All should be available in the late July / August time frame.%Gallery-27612%
Sony Vaio FW and SR series show up on Circuit City
We'd already heard the Vaio FW and SR series were due in short order, but they've since apparently shown up on Circuit City's site. The pages are down now, but the shots of the 16-inch FW (which looks pretty reminiscent of the old school Vaio Z-series) and 13.3-inch SR are still live, indicating model designations VGN-FW140EH and VGN-SR140EB. We'll keep you in the know.[Via Notebook Review]%Gallery-26410%
Montevina-Based Sony VAIO FW, Z, SR, BZ laptops around the bend?
We'll start this by suggesting you take everything from here on out with a healthy dose of salt, but given that Sony has a history of updating its VAIO laptop line in one fell swoop, there's enough credibility here to pass it along. With everyone that hopes to remain relevant in the laptop sector going to Montevina as soon as feasibly possible, it's no shock to hear that Sony's VAIO FW, Z, SR and BZ series units will be making the same leap this summer. Currently, there aren't a whole lot of specifications floating about, but we do know the VGN-FW line will sport an atypical 16.4-inch display while both the VGN-Z and VGN-SR lines check in as subnotes. For a wee bit more on the supposedly forthcoming crew, surf southwest to the read link.[Via Laptoping]
