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ArcheAge brings two new head start servers online
ArcheAge responded to "burgeoning" player populations during the head start period by releasing a pair of new servers today. North America gets the Inoch server while Europe is graced with Aier. Since everyone is in a mad scramble to secure housing plots right now, a fresh server might be your ticket to a primo location. [Thanks to Stephen for the tip!]
PAX Prime 2014: ArcheAge is a go for launch!
The packed ballroom at Trion's PAX Prime party erupted into giddy cheers last night when the team announced that ArcheAge's launch is merely a couple of weeks away. This gorgeous fantasy sandbox blew up the alpha test population and is poised to be a huge coup for Trion as the studio adds another title to its growing portfolio. While the official launch date is September 16th, there will be an open beta from September 4th through the 8th, followed by a headstart launch on the 12th for founders. The team expressed confidence in the alpha testing and the back-and-forth communication with developer XLGAMES. If XLGAMES is the proud mom and dad of ArcheAge, I was told, then Trion is the proud auntie and uncle. A lot of work has gone into straightening out regional differences for the western audience as well. For example, in Korea it's quite common to play an MMO with the intent of selling your character for actual money, which places a different value and emphasis on what you accumulate and do. Since such sales aren't often legal here, adjustments had to be made for the localized version. There was also a special cape item that Korean players could use to identify botters, which was used responsibly in that country but has apparently been wielded as a griefing tool in the west. ArcheAge won't be budging on its commitment to an open PvP world; it's simply how the game is constructed. Players who want to avoid getting ganked will need to keep an eye on war zones that move throughout the world and accept the inherent risk that comes with attempting trade in those regions. The team hopes that there will be enough space on the servers for all subscribers to grab an open world housing plot if desired. Coming some time after launch will be castles, which are larger structures that guilds can build, maintain, and defend together. Trion said that server transfers won't be in for release but are being worked on for the future.
Guild Wars 2 begins Chinese open beta
Guild Wars 2 has made in-roads with a significant MMO audience this week, as it has kicked off its open beta in China. While local publisher KongZhong is calling this a launch, it's technically the beginning of a two-week head start period before the full open beta commences in the region on May 15th. Guild Wars 2 is the first major MMO to use a buy-to-play business model in China, selling 500,000 copies during its pre-order period. Interestingly, the official press release admits to regional "doubts" as to the effectiveness of this model. All pre-order players are now able to check out the game during this head start period, with any future purchasers required to wait until the 15th to try it out.
Elder Scrolls early access starts this Sunday at the crack of dawn
If you're looking to log into The Elder Scrolls Online's early access period as soon as humanly possibly, prepare to get up at the crack of dawn this Sunday. A Reddit user has posted ZeniMax's schedule for the five-day jump (beginning at 7:00 a.m. EDT on Sunday, March 30th), the three-day head start (7:00 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, April 1st), and the wide release (7:00 p.m. EDT on Thursday, April 3rd). Note that these dates and times are for PC players. ESO's console versions will launch in June.
The Daily Grind: Are head starts worth the hassle?
We're getting into the spring launch season, what with Age of Wushu, Defiance, and Neverwinter (not to mention expansions and whatnot). It's an exciting time of year, kind of the groundhog coming out of his digital hole to break the cold dry spell of winter. As with any launch, there's usually the question of early access and how much you're willing to jump through hoops to get in a couple days before the rest of the crowd. As a player who's done anything he can to get in there on the pre-launch day, I can attest that it's pretty important for me. I like knowing I'm in there right at the start, that I can reserve my names, and that I don't have to twiddle my thumbs while knowing that other players are enjoying the game. But that's just me. What about you? Are head starts worth the extra effort and money to join? Do those extra few days matter in any significant way? 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!
Battle for the high skies: Hands-on with Pirate101
Her name is Reckless Roslyn Ramsey, and she is a pirate. She sails a ship, loots treasure, hangs out in seedy bars, and fights anyone who stands between her and the fame and fortune she so rightly deserves. You wouldn't be lying to say that young Ms. Ramsey has swashed a fair few buckles in her time, and the pink and white, panda and crossbones flag under which she and her crew sail is feared the world over. Such is life in Pirate101, a family-oriented MMO created by KingsIsle Entertainment and due to launch today. Placing you in the role of a young pirate at the beginning of his or her quest for glory, Pirate101 asks you to carve your own path, gather cunning crewmembers, and discover the hidden mysteries of The Spiral (a fantasy world the game shares with smash hit Wizard101). I hopped in on the Pirate101 head-start over the weekend to get an idea of what this colorful MMO has to offer and to see whether its kid-friendly design hinders its ability to be fun for those of us jaded gamers who expect a little blood with our sword slashes. What I found was an accessible game with a clear slant toward younger players as well as a robust and fun MMO with plenty to offer grown-ups seeking to step away from the grim, dark worlds of more traditional fare.
Pirate101 early access has lifted anchor
After giving everyone a chance to sample Pirate101 during the sneak peek last week, KingsIsle Entertainment restricted access to beta members. Today, the game leaves beta and opens for its head start period before the official launch next Monday. The week-long head start is open to everyone who participated in closed testing, purchased a Boochbeard or Gandry Bundle, is a member of Pirate101, or redeemed a gift certificate for a prepaid membership. Want to get in on the early access, but don't fit in one of these categories? You still can! Folks can start playing right now by either becoming a Pirate101 member or making one of the aforementioned purchases.
Leaderboard: Launch strategies
With the community facing the reality of a Guild Wars 2 launch this next week and plenty of other releases this fall, launches are on my mind. How we deal with launches, wouldn't you agree, is just as important as how we deal with life? Or botched Braveheart quotes? So when it comes down to a game that you are looking to play, there are really three strategies for launch. There are those who will do anything and everything to get into a head start/early access type of situation, even if it means paying for a premium product or turning their Facebook timelines into a giant ad for the game. Then you have the folks who are OK with just being there on launch day, even though it's really like launch plus three days at that point. Finally, there are the "wait and see-ers" who prefer to let the initial crush of the stampede pass so that they can enjoy the game at their leisure. Which are you? Vote after the jump and let the world know of your idiosyncrasies!
Funcom extends grace period for pre-order customers
There's nothing quite like the real world for gumming up the operations of the fantastical one. Some players of The Secret World pre-ordered the game and haven't yet received their retail copy, which is important because the grace period for playing without entering a retail key isn't a very big window of time and players were beginning to get antsy. In response to those concerns, Funcom announced that the grace period for pre-order key entry has been extended by 24 hours, allowing more people to slide in under the deadline. It's not an unusual step to take because launch-time distribution is known to be totally sucky. In a similar vein, some of the pre-order benefits -- the Egyptian Cat in-game pet, an exclusive in-game t-shirt, and an in-game ring -- are also extended to customers who enter their retail or digital game keys up until the end of today, July 6th. While that may not thrill true pre-order customers who liked being special snowflakes, that cat is darn adorable and everyone should get one.
TERA announces open beta and head start schedules
TERA's May 1st launch date is just around the corner, and we all know what that means: open beta testing and head start events ahoy! En Masse Entertainment has released a full schedule for the events leading up to the game's launch, so players can go ahead and plan when to call in sick to work. Players who have pre-ordered the game will be able to log in between April 13th and April 17th in order to create their first characters, thereby ensuring that they get the names they want. The game's open beta test will begin shortly after, and pre-order customers will once again get a one-day jump on the competition as they will be able to log in beginning on April 19th. On April 20th, the beta will open to the public, and it will run for three days until April 23rd. And finally, pre-order customers will get one final head start on April 28th, allowing them three days to explore the world of Arborea before the floodgates open to everyone on May 1st. So hone your blades, string your bows, and ready your spells, Arboreans. We'll see you on the other side.
The Daily Grind: What would make you cancel a pre-order?
These days, MMO pre-orders are commonplace. They're used to allow early access to the game so you can grab that Legolas or Lord Stark name before anyone else. Throwing your money down is a risk we must take in order to secure that early status, and the developers usually mix in some extra goodies to sweeten the deal. But sometimes we get word of a before-the-bell game mechanic or design implementation that ruins the game for us and makes us cancel the pre-order on the spot without giving the game a chance to speak for itself when we've finally gotten our hands on it. So let's get specific here. What could a game developer do to ruin a game for you before it launches? And have you ever canceled a pre-order? Why or why not? 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!
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.
BioWare announces SWTOR grace period, scheduled maintenance windows
Put down your torches and pitchforks, Star Wars: The Old Republic early access players. Greg Zeschuk stopped by the official SWTOR forums today in order to announce that the team has listened to the cries for a grace period from those who may not have access to their boxed copies of the game come launch day. In response, BioWare has granted players a two-day grace period from launch. What this means is that players have from the beginning of launch on December 20th until 12:01 a.m. EST on December 22nd to enter their game registration codes. It's also worth noting that the team has announced three scheduled maintenance windows spanning from tomorrow until December 22nd. The first maintenance period will take place on Friday, December 16th, beginning at 3:00 a.m. EST, and it is "expected to take no more than two hours." The second window will begin at 7:00 p.m. EST on December 19th and will mark the end of early access. The final scheduled maintenance window will take place on December 22nd at 3:00 a.m. EST. So keep that in mind, TOR players, as you plan your play times. For the full details, head on over to the SWTOR official site.
BioWare updates fans on staggered SWTOR launch
If you're still not in Star Wars: The Old Republic's early access phase, you're not alone. In fact, BioWare's Stephen Reid took to the forums today to update impatient fans on just how the staggered pre-launch will continue to roll out over the next few days: Today, we invited people who had pre-ordered up to the very beginning of October (roughly). Tomorrow, we're going to be inviting the same number of people again; that will take us up to the last week or so of November. On Friday, we'll be inviting even more, and we'll give you an update on that tomorrow. You'll see more servers coming online tomorrow, and almost certainly there will be some queuing. That was always expected. As a reminder, our plan here is to maintain healthy server populations post launch, and during the excitement of launch that will mean queues. That said, we'll be working hard to keep those queues reasonable. That's good news for those who pre-ordered late and who otherwise might have thought they'd have a much longer wait.
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.
Lock and (re)load: BioWare preps us for The Old Republic's launch
With 15 days to go before Star Wars: The Old Republic's launch, it doesn't seem like there's much time to get everything stocked and ready before the year's biggest release happens. Fortunately, BioWare's helping us to run down the preparation list with a series of informative forum posts. First on the list is to make sure that SWTOR players have the latest version of the client installed on their computers. BioWare says that if you played the game prior to November 25th, you'll probably need to install a completely new client; if you played since, you should be good. There are instructions on the forums as to how you can check which version you have. Pre-orders are wondering about early access, which BioWare says is the same between the three editions of the game -- it only matters when you added your pre-order code, not which edition you purchased. More information about the early access program is coming later this week. Finally, BioWare is preparing to make major changes to SWTOR's forums following a December 10th outage, during which all posts and PMs will be erased (as will infractions!). New forums, including those covering crew skills, story, lore and PvP, will be added, and guild forums will be expanded significantly. Those just starting to learn about the game will appreciate the new player help forum and community blog that's coming with the update.
The Old Republic pre-order head start 'up to five days' [Updated]
As The Old Republic's release date draws ever closer, fans are starting to dig into the nitty-gritty of what they can expect from the game's launch. Well, one intrepid investigator over on the official forums has dug up this nugget from the official pre-order page: CUSTOMERS WHO PRE-ORDER STAR WARS: THE OLD REPUBLIC WILL BE ABLE TO PLAY THE GAME BEFORE THE OFFICIAL LAUNCH. EARLY GAME ACCESS IS THE PERIOD OF TIME BEFORE THE OFFICIAL GAME LAUNCH WHEN PRE-ORDER CUSTOMERS MAY ACCESS THE GAME. EARLY GAME ACCESS MAY BE UP TO 5 DAYS. THE LENGTH OF YOUR EARLY GAME ACCESS DEPENDS ON THE DATE AND ORDER IN WHICH YOU REDEEMED YOUR PRE-ORDER CODE AT THE CODE REDEMPTION CENTER. SEE PRE-ORDER FAQ FOR MORE DETAILS. So there you have it, folks. You can expect anywhere up to a five-day headstart with your pre-order. Of course, we expect we'll have confirmation on the matter from BioWare soon enough. [Updated: The official site has updated to confirm the speculation, and we've tucked the full text behind the break. BioWare has also issued an official FAQ and chart to outline which pre-order benefits come with each edition.]
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Surviving a headstart
Last week, I promised more villains. And I really did plan on doing just that, before it became clear that the headstart program for City of Heroes Freedom was kicking off... well, yesterday. That's one of those pieces of news that's just a bit bigger than chatting about villain groups, so it takes priority. Sure, it's not quite the opening of the gates and the acceptance of free accounts just yet, but it's enough to get players exploring the new content before the non-VIP side of the screen gets to experience the hybrid setup. As those of you with astute memories or a good sense of pattern recognition have probably already surmised, this is a bit problematic from my point of view, as I'm writing this column before the headstart has actually happened, but we're going to be live right after it starts. As a result, I can't tell you with certainty what the launch has brought thus far. But I can certainly speculate on the world being overrun by players flush with new powersets and the new starting areas, not to mention some new costume pieces to help spice up the deal. So what are my survival tips for the first moments of the headstart program?
City of Heroes Freedom announces VIP head start, Level Pact changes
City of Heroes Freedom is on the horizon, and it will allow players to get a taste of the super-powered fun without paying a dime. However, Paragon Studios has promised that its VIP subscribers would continue to reap benefits for their loyalty to the game. The first of these benefits is a head start on the official launch of City of Heroes Freedom. While the studio hasn't yet given a start date for the head start, VIP subscribers can rest assured that their loyalty will not go unrewarded. In addition to this news, Paragon has also announced that Level Pacts will be seeing some changes "in order to have them work within the constraints of the upcoming systems." During the VIP head start, Level Pacts will remain active. However, at the end of the event, Level Pacts will be disabled until the team has the opportunity to revisit and redesign them. So, as Paragon sums it up, Level Pacts created before or during the VIP head start will continue to work, but after the game's launch, new Level Pacts will not be available. So get your pacts up and running now if you want to take advantage of them at the launch of City of Heroes Freedom.
