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The MMO Report: Catackalysm special
First things first, to really understand this week's intro to The MMO Report, you need to do a wee bit of homework, assuming you don't already get the reference in the title anyway. Pop over here and watch this user-created video about the upcoming World of Warcraft expansion. We'll wait. OK, all caught up? Great. Off we go then! This week, Casey is joined by the lovely (and World of Warcraft-addicted) Morgan Webb, who sits down with Game Designer Tom "Kalgan" Chilton for a chat about the myriad things that have come in Cataclysm. Sure, it's chock-full of the normal things one would expect, like talk about things players both old and new will be experiencing in the expansion. Morgan also gets Tom to tell us more about some of his favorite quests in the revamped areas, as well as a bit more insight into Blizzard's development cycles for this expansion -- certainly a hot topic this week. In all, this will definitely be a treat for any World of Warcraft loving gamer. We've tucked the video behind the break for your enjoyment, or you can catch The MMO Report every Thursday on G4TV.
Frogster acquires unnamed Shanda Games MMORPG
Frogster's online gaming portfolio just got a bit bigger, though details are scarce as to the name and the nature of the company's newest acquisition. The German publishing giant, most famous for bringing Runes of Magic to the masses, announced that it has secured the rights to a new fantasy MMORPG from Shanda Games, a Chinese developer. The unnamed title will reportedly distinguish itself by featuring a setting developed expressly for Western audiences, and Frogster plans to launch the game using a free-to-play business model some time in 2012. "This deal with Shanda Games adds yet another prominent MMORPG to our portfolio. By licensing the game for North America and Europe, we have taken another step in establishing Frogster as one of the leading MMO game publishers in the world," said Andreas Weidenhaupt, a Frogster executive board member.
Gamer pays a buttload of cash to play an MMO on a huge screen
If you had $15,000.00, what would you do with it? Pay some bills? Maybe upgrade a few holiday gifts? Well, if you're the guy featured in this video from MMOsite, apparently the thing to do with all that spare cash is renting out the biggest honking video screen one can find and playing an MMO. Yes, indeed, for the low, low price of roughly 1,500 dollars a minute, you too can subject random passers-by to a raw display of your mad online skillz and leetness for a whopping 10 minutes. All joking aside, this guy has managed to pull off one crazy stunt -- being the first MMO gamer to get his game on across a gobsmackingly enormous freaking screen. (The second-longest LCD screen in the world, even.) As for the game of choice? If you guessed World of Warcraft, you'd be wrong. Apparently his online poison of choice is a game called Magic World Online 2. (Although after looking at the site, perhaps it's not that far off.) What's next? Well, we'll wait for the inevitable e-peenery of someone renting out the entirety of Fremont street's 1,500-foot long Las Vegas LCD skyscreen. For those who would like to see this particular display, the video is embedded behind the break.
[Updated] Massively's big fat Black Friday roundup
Can you feel the love? The food comas? The day of sitting around napping while the kids sneak into the kitchen for another piece of pie? As you can see from the holiday e-card we've gotten, the gorging has already started in certain MMOs. However, for the rest of us who aren't virtual-demented-clown versions of Mr. Creosote, the promise of great deals looms once the turkey and pie are dispensed with. As we here at Massively are always on the lookout for a good deal, we've rounded up some MMO and hardware deals worth putting on your wish list. Join us behind the break for some of the best 100% frosting-covered-clown-free bargains we've found. Also, if you spot anything particularly tasty in terms of sale prices, be sure to let us all know in comments! [Updated] Switched the image out due to unintended offense, and adding more deals in as we find them!
Chinese man plays MMO on titanic screen, pleads for higher pixel density (video)
Never mind your 103-inch plasmas or Guinness Word Record-holding stadium displays, real gamers do their thing on LCDs that span a cool seven thousand and five hundred square meters (translated into imperial measuring units, that's... a lot!). What you see above is a little glimpse of an MMO enthusiast with a big passion and no less sizable wallet. The gent in question was displeased by the fact a competing guildmaster in the Chinese MMO Magic World Online 2 got to play in an IMAX theater, and therefore decided to one-up him in the only way possible: by hiring Beijing's crazily oversized display (titled "All Beijing, look up!") for a little session of supersized gaming. Jump past the break to see it on video.
Virtual asteroid in a virtual universe sells for a frighteningly real $635,000 (video)
We're pretty sure there are better ways to spend your cash than virtual real estate in the Entropia Universe MMORPG. Then again, we didn't spend $100,000 on a virtual asteroid -- John "NeverDie" Jacobs did, in 2005. And here we are, some five years later, only to learn that he flipped the thing for a staggering $635K -- enough to pay the salaries of roughly a dozen American high school teachers for a year. Apparently, both purchases have earned places in the Guinness Book of World Records for something like "most expensive virtual item," but our favorite part of this post was finding a video for Mr. Die's tune "My Girl's A Gamer Chick." Check it out after the break.
Documentary filmmaker takes on MMORPGs
As popular as World of Warcraft has become, we almost take it for granted that everyone on the planet is familiar with (or has at least heard of) MMORPGs. Despite the fact that gaming has become relatively mainstream over the last few years, MMORPGs remain mysteriously inaccessible to portions of the populace, and filmmaker Ben Gonyo aims to change all that with a new documentary called Gamers. Gamers sees Gonyo immerse himself in MMO subculture for the better part of two years, and features interviews with over 100 gamers, designers, critics, psychologists, comedians, and celebrities -- including Curt Schilling and R.A. Salvatore. The film is currently airing on the Documentary Channel on both DISH and DirectTV, and you can check out various previews and trailers at the film's official website, as well as after the cut. Finally, be on the lookout for a Massively review in the near future.
Star Wars: The Old Republic's PvP 'Warzones' detailed in video
Though we're still confused how Star Wars: The Old Republic's non-lightsaber-swinging classes are supposed to best their lightsaber-swinging counterparts in combat, we're looking forward to checking out the objective-based, player vs. player "Warzones" previewed in the trailer posted below.
Star Trek Online to incorporate player-made missions
Cryptic Studios already enabled City of Heroes players to create their own missions from scratch successfully -- now it's planning on adding the feature to the rest of its MMO catalog. Star Trek Online players can now apply to beta test the "Foundry" toolset, which allows them to create entire Episodes, customizing mission objectives, characters and scenery, which other Captains will then be able to play through. There's no telling how powerful the Foundry will be until we get a chance to check them out, but we've got our fingers crossed that our Captain Riker/Tribbles slash-fic masterpiece will be able to be realized using these new tools.
Blockman Dash mod mixes Mega Man Legends and Minecraft
In Minecraft, you can pretty much build anything, so some fans set out to ease the tension of waiting for Mega Man Legends 3 Project by creating a Mega Man Legends-based mod called Blockman Dash. Check out a tour of Apple Market past the break!
Lego Universe is live for pre-orderers, full launch coming October 26
If you got on the Lego Universe bus early by pre-ordering the kid-friendly MMO from "Lego sales channels", you can now get busy with the bricklaying. NetDevil has launched the game for a special, two-week "Founders Release" for these early adopters, giving them access to the online DIY adventure before Lego Universe's proper October 26 U.S. launch. Perhaps even more newsworthy than the game's early debut and launch window is that its launch trailer, posted after the jump, is so super hot. Not only does it do a great job of setting up the Lego Universe ... universe, it features the vocal talents of Patrick Stewart, who's beginning to reach Nolan North-esque levels of video game ubiquitousness. (Not that we're complaining!)
Guest Post: Into the future with user-created content
This article has been brought to you by Seed, the Aol guest writer program that brings your words to WoW Insider's pages. One wonders how long World of Warcraft will remain viable. It is quite possible that my warlock will still be going strong decades down the line. Of one thing, however, I am certain: I will be playing some sort of MMORPG for as long as I'm able to tweak my spec. But will that game be WoW? My friends and I muse about what it would take to switch to another game. That game would have to build upon WoW's legacy and offer something new and amazing to boot. Speaking of boots, I'd wager my Prelate's Snowshoes that the new game will be some incarnation of WoW itself, as Blizzard has proven so willing and able to adapt and grow with its fan base. What makes WoW so popular and enduring? For starters, the game is so accommodating, with plenty to offer noobs and leets alike. Players can feel a sense of accomplishment from merely questing, while others can savor the challenge of working through multiple levels of high-end raid content. I can feel the delight of one-shotting a low-health rogue sneaking around the lumber mill or experience the soul-destroying chaos of getting quickly roasted in arena. And those of us with creaking, overworked CPUs are able to take part in the fun.
MMO industry sees increased market share, but less revenue per user
The online gaming industry analysts at Screen Digest recently shared some good news and bad news with Western MMO developers. The good? According to their report, the MMO market in Europe and the U.S. increased to $1.6 billion last year, up from $1.4 billion in 2008. However, the average revenue gained per MMO player declined 10 percent over the same time period, with recurring subscriptions pulling in around $13 million in 2009. (That's the bad news.) This decline, of course, is a result of new business models in the MMO space, such as microtransactions and free-to-play online titles. These new models appear to be shaking things up a bit -- but we suppose as long as that first number keeps going up, the second one can do whatever it likes.
Control Final Fantasy XIV officially with this PC controller
Sure, you could play Final Fantasy XIV on PS3, if you like waiting. Or you could play it on PC with a (third-party PC controller based on a) PlayStation controller as soon as September 30. Sunflex, a third-party peripherals company, is releasing an officially licensed Final Fantasy XIV controller on that date, in Europe and the US, under its Snakebyte brand. It bears a striking resemblance to the company's PS3 accessories, but in white -- and, more importantly, with the Final Fantasy XIV logo on it, so you know you're officially playing Final Fantasy XIV. Whether or not that officialness is an attractive enough quality to justify one of these is your call.
PSA: Lord of the Rings Online now free to play
Following in the footsteps of its fantasy MMO predecessor Dungeons and Dragons Online: Eberron Unlimited, developer Turbine Entertainment has flipped the free-to-play switch for its Tolkien-based RPG, Lord of the Rings Online. Potential players can download the client from the game's official site and get started at zero cost. Of course, a number of bonuses such as "quest packs" can be purchased piecemeal from the Turbine Store -- or, you can sign up for a paid VIP membership and have access to all of the game's premium offerings. Turbine will be promoting the game's new business model during this Sunday's episode of Family Guy using the trailer posted after the jump. We warn you: It may seem clever at first, but the vision of hairy ladyfeet might stick with you for longer than you'd like.
Free for All: So, what does "MMORPG" mean?
As a reader of Massively, you should have a pretty good idea what MMORPG means. Not just what it stands for, but what it feels like, looks like, and behaves like. The problem is, despite common definitions, the games keep coming in different shapes and sizes -- and from all over the world. While I receive many comments about the Western coverage that Massively features, I would only be doing half my job if I reported on only the latest half a dozen games to break the multi-million-dollar budget mark in America. The world is a smaller place, especially now. And across the world there are MMORPGs that are being played and enjoyed in many different ways. There are PvP games, games that place players into instance after instance with only a handful of other players, all while offering the potential to hang out with thousands of other people. Is an instanced combat game still an MMO? How about a game like Mabinogi, which maintains a persistent world, but is broken into several invisible channels for players to skip in to and out of? This is impossible, but I think I will try to define exactly what MMO means -- now, in this current market.
DragonCon 2010: MMO track listing
It's time once again for our yearly invasion of Dragon*Con in Atlanta, Georgia! While, yes, we will have several members of our team covering everything going on at PAX, Dragon*Con offers us a chance to get involved with the community and give back some of the love we get during the year. (Oh yes, and some of the snark too.) Of course, it doesn't hurt that Dragon*Con is also an enormous 4-day long party for just about everything any geek would ever be interested in! If you've been wondering what's going on this year with the MMO track, which we'll be back to help with for our fourth year straight, then join us after the break for this year's panel listing! Also, for those friends who haven't picked it up (or anyone curious), the online pocket guide to the overall con is available for download.
Final Fantasy XIV open beta postponed due to 'critical bugs'
No arrow, blade or strongest Firaga seems to be capable of ridding the online world of Final Fantasy XIV from its most daunting foes -- the dreaded "critical bugs." Square Enix announced earlier today that the game's open beta testing, which was scheduled to start later today, will be postponed in all regions due to the discovery of these vexing critters. No new timetable was placed on the open beta testing -- we suppose that depends on how long it takes Square to vanquish the errors that are apparently plaguing the client. We'll let you know as soon as there's more information. [Thanks, Nick]
Final Fantasy XIV open beta begins August 31
If you weren't one of the chosen few who managed to weasel their way into the game's closed beta test, your first chance to log a few hours into Final Fantasy XIV will come next week. Square Enix announced through the game's official forums that open beta servers will go live next Tuesday, August 31 at 7 p.m. PDT. Though the forum post explains that servers will be live 24 hours a day, only a set number of players will be able to log on at one time. This number will gradually increase as Square Enix tests out its server loads, but in the mean time, players who get turned away will be placed on a waiting list. Just think of it like you're waiting in line to gain access to a hip, happening night club, only ... um, it's the exact polar opposite.
Final Fantasy XIV delay on PS3 chalked up to 'memory'
While discussing the fate of Square Enix's upcoming crystal-centric MMO Final Fantasy XIV with VG247, producer Hiromichi Tanaka revealed the reason for the game's late arrival on the PS3: "The main reason was the memory," Tanaka explained via his translator. He added, "They are adjusting the memory size and customizing it; it took longer then we were expecting. But we're really working hard to bring it out as soon as possible." When asked if the size restriction in question was due to the Blu-ray or the HDD, Tanaka simply repeated the word "memory." While he's likely referring to the RAM issues that continue to plague MMO developers on the console, we can't help but wonder -- what if it doesn't have anything to do with the PS3's actual hardware? What if the game got delayed on the PS3 because Square Enix just ... forgot about it? Someone get them some extra-strength ginkgo, stat!
