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DC Universe Online shows off major graphical upgrades
Sometimes all it takes is a graphical improvement to make a game feel new. DC Universe Online has to keep its graphics at a level the PlayStation 3 can use, but with the pending release of the PlayStation 4, the game is going to be able to offer better textures and lighting all around. You can check out a preview video past the break to see what the game will look like with the visual upgrades. But that's not the only thing coming along with the new patch; in order to ease new players on the PS4 into the game, the game's early leveling has been revamped and improved and several areas have had environmental details and quest flow updated as well. So experienced players can enjoy looking at a world in greater detail and new players will find it easier than ever to get into the game. That seems like a pretty solid update.
The Daily Grind: What older game deserves a graphical update?
It doesn't happen often, but when classic MMOs are treated to a graphical overhaul, it feels like a cause for celebration. A couple of weeks ago we heard that Anarchy Online's long-in-development new graphics engine had started beta testing, and not so long ago RuneScape jazzed up its looks with a new iteration. It remains to be seen whether a spiffy visual overhaul will extend the life of the game and/or draw more players into the game, but it's exciting no matter what. Fans of older MMOs always seem to be clamoring for improved graphics, so let's make that the topic for today's discussion. What older game deserves a graphical update? Would you go back and play it if it got one? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
First Impressions of RuneScape 3 from a returning player
Over a decade ago, two brothers working out of their parents' house in Nottingham set themselves the impossible task of building their own graphical multi-user dungeon, a genre that later evolved into the MMOs we know today. RuneScape launched to the public in 2001 as a low-res browser game with only a few hundred players and 2-D sprites for monsters, but several years later it boasted over a million paying monthly subscribers. The 2007 Sunday Times Rich List even estimated the Gower brothers' business empire to be worth over £113,000,000, due almost entirely to RuneScape. The secret behind RuneScape's success is that it's been continually updated throughout its lifetime, not just with regular infusions of new content but also with several major graphical and gameplay overhauls. The game was recently reincarnated as RuneScape 3, which is as far as it gets from the primitive game many of us grew up with. It now boasts a visually improved HTML 5 client with graphics acceleration, orchestral music, some voice-acted quests with cutscenes, and a fully customisable UI. This combines with last year's Evolution of Combat update and over a decade of new quests and zones to produce an MMO with more depth and character than many other AAA titles. In this hands-on opinion piece, I put RuneScape's three major versions side by side and look at how far RuneScape 3 has come since those early days of punching 2-D goblins and mining for fish.
Take a peek at graphical updates for SWTOR update 1.5
It's time to start getting excited for Star Wars: The Old Republic's upcoming 1.5 update. In order to whet your appetite for change, Senior Technical Artist Ben Cloward has graced fans with a glimpse of one of the big graphical changes that'll be coming in with the patch. Foliage is going to be a lot more beautiful and realistic. Instead of looking solid and therefore unnaturally dark when viewed against the sun, players with their Shader Complexity set to High will notice that leaves and grass will be moderately translucent, allowing sunlight to filter through them. While this may be but one small step for graphics, it's joined by "some even better improvements in the pipe," according to Cloward. Head on over to the official post to preview the change.
Anarchy Online feels the impact of Funcom layoffs, recommits to engine upgrade
Game Director Fia Tjernberg begins her monthly development update for Anarchy Online on a somber note, saying that the layoffs at Funcom have put a hold on the team's growth and a number of planned projects, such as the improved character creation system. Tjernberg did transition into a more upbeat tone as she emphasized that the team is still progressing with the graphical update: "Our Dreamworld engine upgrade is still one of our top priorities! We believe this is an important step in evolving AO and building for the future, and as this work is done in parallel to the rest of our commitments, we do not have to delay any other content because of this!" Other topics of the letter include a report from AO-Con, improvements to seasonal content, testing the new player experience, strengthening the community, and discussions revolving around the game's PvP.
Anarchy Online shows a glimpse of its future makeover
News of the much-anticipated Anarchy Online graphics revamp has been sparse, to say the least, so to see six brand-new screens of the updated engine is like a cold drink of water after an endless trek through IKEA. Seriously, it takes like two hours just to navigate through that store! Director/Producer Colin Cragg posted the six updated screenshots showing off the city of Tir on the Anarchy Online forums today. The screenies don't just have fans of the long-running MMO pumped, but the Anarchy Online team as well. "I have to keep shooing the rest of the team away from Parsed's desk...this is probably a good sign," Cragg writes. AO players have been waiting for the promised new graphic engine at least since 2009, so this is a good sign that Funcom is on track to update its oldest MMO with a 2011 veneer. You can check out all six screens in the gallery below. [Thanks to Kane Hart for the tip!] %Gallery-102015%
Aion patch 2.5 goes live, free trial program introduced
It's time to spread your wings and take to the skies once again as Aion's patch 2.5 (which we were fortunate enough to personally explore not long ago) goes live today. The new update from NCsoft introduces two new areas of content: the new Esoterrace instance and the Empyrean Crucible. Players will be conquering both of these new areas in style with the addition of stunning graphical updates and new character customization options. New skills and PvP gear will help players to triumph over their enemies with finesse, while the new mentor system allows low-level players to get a helping hand from their elders. If you're not a current Aion player but you're still dying to take these new features for a spin, then you're in luck -- NCsoft is celebrating the new update by introducing a free trial program. Players in the program will be able to jump into the world of Atreia for 10 days and experience 20 levels' worth of content, all for free. You can choose your side and join the battle at the Aion official site.
NCsoft aiming for Aion 2.5 test at the end of April
Aion's 2.5 update has been a long time coming. We first heard tell of the patch in early January and are happy to report that NCsoft is looking to take the wraps off the new content via the game's test servers in the next few weeks. In a new interview at the official UK Aion website, producer Sean Neil and brand manager Dominic Wai take turns answering player-generated questions relating to the new patch, which Neil says should be "on our player test servers (PTS) at the end of April or beginning of May." What, exactly, does 2.5 bring to the world of Atreia? Quite a lot, actually, and whether you're talking about the extensive graphical overhaul or the new Empyrean Crucible and Esoterrace dungeon instances, chances are there will be something interesting in the update for every daeva. Getting to endgame should be less of a chore as well, and while Aion still possesses one of the more daunting gear grinds in the genre, NCsoft is introducing a mentoring system in 2.5 that allows "new players [to] level up quicker with the help of a friend."
One Shots: Rogue force
When it comes to the Rogue Isles in City of Villains, the starting area isn't generally as densely populated as say, Atlas Park tends to be over on the Hero side. But with the most recent graphical update in City of Heroes and City of Villains that just went live, things may well be changing. Today, we have this screenshot of those first steps for Villains, courtesy of BetrayalFive who writes in: "[This was taken on] the first day of the graphical update to CoX. I have only been playing for not even a month, but I was more interested in the player count than the "update" which is why I took this picture. Of the few days I have played I have not seen this many people in the starting area. Yes it is not the greatest shot but it showcases the commitment of players to this game and how excited everyone was. On a side note, the graphical upgrades are nice!" If you're one of the inhabitants of Paragon City or the Rogue Isles, we'd love to see some more screenshots of the graphics update. Tales of your super-heroic or super-villainous deeds are welcome too! All you have to do to participate is to email your screenshots to us here at oneshots AT massively DOT com along with your name, the name of the game, and a description of the action. (Supergroups, server, etc. welcome as well!) We'll get it set up and share it out here on Massively. %Gallery-85937%
GodsWar gets graphical love, new mounts, and more
It seems like things are going great for the team working on Godswar Online. With update 2.0 now live on the servers, players are getting a chance to check out all the changes the team at IGG have been hard at work polishing up. This new update offers a nice graphical upgrade to armors, pets, and more offering even more kawaii than before. The level has been raised to 130, with the possibility of even more adventuring than before, as well as the addition of new class suits of armor and even mythical gear! There are even new mounts for Level 40 and higher players, to give your tired feet a rest. IGG has also opened up two new Godswar Online servers to help balance out populations: Heracles in the US, and Pisces in the EU. These new servers also carry with them some nice rewards for new players looking to check out the game in the form of super experience potions, some fireworks, and other goodies you'll need down the road -- although the special goodie bags are only available until March 18th. Be sure to head on over there and sign up before the goodies run out, if you're curious.
Updating player graphics
Well, Jaina got her upgrade already, and we've heard that other NPCs may be looking a little better very soon. But what about us players? Don't we get a cool, slick new look too? Vaneras has the answer: erm, maybe. As you may have noticed, our armor has been getting updated as we've gone along -- the Tier 10 armor is much clearer and more stylish (well, depending on who you talk to) than the original tier gear that dropped way back when. But as for the actual player models, Vaneras says it's something that Blizzard would like to do, but it's all a matter of time and priority. They'll get around to it, sure, but only when it makes sense for them to spend the time on it.Which is what we've heard before, really -- J. Allen Brack told us way back that things would be updated bit by bit rather than having a major patch be focused on updating everything you can see on screen. Still, Cataclysm, the expansion that redoes the old world and all of its old models, might be a good time to do exactly this and revamp players' looks as well. We can tell you for sure that the worgen and goblins are going to look very nice (not to mention the draenei and the blood elves, both with more detailed models than the launch races), so maybe it is time that the original races got smoother look of their own.
The Queue: Nobody expects the Druid Inquisition!
Welcome back to The Queue, WoW.com's daily Q&A column where the WoW.com team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Allison Robert will be your hostess today.Adam and Alex are busy packing for BlizzCon, so I've sneaked into the Queue offices to answer some questions this evening. There's no consistent theme here, folks; we're all over the map today with BlizzCon, lore, and player textures. If you don't see your question here, I still have a few in mind from the last post to answer tomorrow.Smapdor asks...There are 3 historical scenarios that can be found in Yogg-Saron's "brain room"...What is the Shadow Vault event? I would guess that it is something as important lore-wise as the (other) two, but I have no idea.It's widely believed that the Shadow Vault "memory" depicts a very recent and very unfortunate occurrence that took place (without player knowledge) after the Wrath Gate event. The NPCs in question are thought to be the souls/spirits/incorporeal whatsamajiggies of Saurfang the Younger and Bolvar Fordragon, who perished in the fight, victim to the Lich King and the Royal Apothecary Society respectively. The Wrath Gate cinematic implies that the Arthas has at least Saurfang's soul to toy with (which would explain the Orcish Turned Champion), but the identity of the Immolated Champion is less clear. Bolvar is by far the most likely possibility -- after all, the Immolated Champion is wearing the same armor Bolvar wore going to his death -- but nothing's been confirmed. Bottom line? Expect to see both Saurfang and Bolvar show up in the Icecrown Citadel raid in some capacity.
Fallen Earth shows off character model improvements
Icarus Studios has put out another Fallen Earth update, the post-apocalyptic MMOG set in the year 2156. Fallen Earth's graphics underwent a visual facelift back in March and we've been seeing the results from that in before and after images. It's about graphical details that will really set your MMOG apart because visuals, imagery, the user interface it all needs to gel well and look fantastic to make a positive first impression. The more graphical details the better as long as graphical boundaries aren't pushed to a point where gameplay or playability is sacrificed. The latest graphical revamp shows off how far the old Fallen Earth character models have progressed. The key differential is in faces, hair styles, and equipment. While the artistic style is still the same, the art team has updated clothing, weapons and armor enhancing and adding more depth to character models. A wide variety of customization options like tattoos and face paint are also available which will allow players to create a truly unique appearance for their characters.
Fallen Earth is feature complete and alpha ready
Fallen Earth, a post apocalyptic MMOG set in the year 2156, has officially hit the alpha milestone. A working foundation is up and running that consists of clans, raids, PvP, auction house, and in-game mail. Tons of improvements were made over the past six months to get to the alpha stage and the hard work is paying off. The art department made huge strides in the vehicular arena by creating an array of new vehicle models from muscle cars to motorcycles to all-terrain vehicles. The graphics engine showcases new and improved effects, textures, models, and more robust environment options. When it comes down to the bread and butter, over three thousand missions have been implemented, not a surprise since we reported earlier implemented content was already 75% complete. Hopefully, it won't be long now until we are running around Fallen Earth's Grand Canyon setting and throwing some Molotov cocktails around! Icarus Studios isn't accepting public beta or alpha applicants yet, but be sure to sign up to the Fallen Earth newsletter so you don't miss out when the application process does ramp up.[via Warcry]
RuneScape graphical update sooner than expected
Back on May 8th, free-to-play MMORPG RuneScape announced it had been keeping a big secret for the past year, namely a complete graphical rework. Initial screenshots proved promising, revealing far higher detail levels than before, and a welcome breath of life for a game that - to be fair - has been showing its age a bit. A new, optional detail mode will bring higher quality graphics, and a new fullscreen mode will become available. The only question has been when all this will happen.The date has now been clarified - sort of. RuneScape users can expect the new graphical goodies 'within a couple of months'. More details will be forthcoming in a new Development Diary. In the meantime, RuneScape players are being encouraged to send in their system specs, so that the upgrades can be accessible to as many players as possible.
Fallen Earth gets a visual facelift
Fallen Earth is a massively game that's been in development for some time now, although that's not entirely unheard of for the massively genre. When a game has been in development for as long as Fallen Earth has, sometimes the graphics it started with just don't seem to cut it anymore. Well, this problem is something the FE team is in the process of fixing. Not only have we been given some examples of these new improvements, but we've also gotten a bit of an informational update as well.
