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Star Wars: The Old Republic early access starts today
It's time to put your regimented dragon-killing schedule on hold for a while, replacing it completely with an all new Jedi-killing routine -- early access for Star Wars: The Old Republic opens up today. If you pre-ordered the game through a traditional retailer or virtually through Origin, you'll be able to hop into the game today; assuming you're lucky enough to be a part of one of the waves of entrants BioWare is letting in, periodically, until the game's official December 20 launch. The game can't allow everyone in all at once, probably because it would crush the servers like the windpipe of a Death Star insubordinate. Persistence should win you your prize, though. Well, persistence, and a pre-order code, and a monthly subscription.
EverQuest 2 going free-to-play (again)
No, you and you internet browser haven't slipped backwards through time -- though EverQuest 2 already went free-to-play last year (with the somewhat confusing, browser-based EverQuest 2: Extended), the game is going really free-to-play starting December 6. A post on the game's official site clears things up: The offerings of Extended will be folded into the rest of the title, and membership will be broken down into three tiers: Free, Silver and Gold. Free members get a handful of races, classes, character slots and other utilities, while Silver members ($5.00 or 500 Station Points per month) get ... well, a handful more. These two tiers also have the option to purchase some items (like races and classes) piecemeal. Gold members ($14.99/mo.) get unrestricted access to everything. Check out this handy rubric if you're still confused by all these precious, precious metals.
WoW Patch 4.3 'Hour of Twilight' launches today
If you've built up a thick layer of hatred for Deathwing every time his grim visage appears on the login screen for World of Warcraft, your hour of retribution has come. Or rather, your "Hour of Twilight" has come -- that's the name of WoW Patch 4.3, which launches today. The update, and last major addition for WoW: Cataclysm, adds three new dungeons and a new raid to the title which see your hero traveling through time in an attempt to gather the tools required to take Deathwing down. There are also new, oft-requested features like Armor Transmogrification and Void Storage. Check out the trailer above for a taste of the action, and turn an eye towards WoW Insider for all the juicy patch notes therein.
Mad Catz goes massively multiplayer with Cyborg M.M.O.7
Remember that intense Albino Rat Mouse from Mad Catz that we took for a spin and ripped apart way back in August? Meet its cousin, the Cyborg M.M.O.7. As you've likely already gathered, this rather intense gaming peripheral is all about the MMO world, featuring a staggering 78 definable commands thanks to 13 programmable buttons, a two-position MMO shift button and a three-position MMO mode switch. It's also one size fits all, thanks to adjustable palm and thumb rests. World of Warcraft fans will likely find a lot to like in the ability to assign spells to the mouse's buttons by dragging and dropping. The Cyborg M.M.O.7 is coming next month -- no word on pricing just yet.%Gallery-138861%
The Old Republic 'Smuggler' trailer shows us the class we'll be playing as
We're sorry to break the news to such honorable professions as Jedi, Bounty Hunter and Trooper in such a public forum, but we will not be playing as you when Star Wars: The Old Republic launches. We will be playing as a Smuggler, because the trailer above makes that class seem hot like fire.
Ask Massively: Stir-crazy edition
With no power, no real Internet access, no running water, and no access to just about anything, I was getting a little bit stir-crazy. Fortunately, I've made use of my training as a Boy Scout and assembled a crude pastiche of elements to bring some of my favorite electronic online games into the offline space. Success has been mixed. Sitting in dowtown and periodically shouting that a level 34 Dragoon was looking for a party produced exactly the right reaction to simulate logging in to Final Fantasy XI, but my attempt at "logging in" to City of Heroes resulted in a lengthy discussion with police regarding the appropriateness of waving a Nerf sword at teenagers. My makeshift attempts at answering this week's lineup for Ask Massively, however, have proved pretty fruitful all around. Skip on past the break for discussions about some very meta considerations, not the least of which being a potential subdivision of the site. As always, leaving a question in the comments or mailing it to ask@massively.com will quite possibly get it included in a future edition of the column. Sometimes even if the question is ridiculous.
WildStar preview: Have it your way
If I were to ask you how you like to play your MMORPGs, you'd probably describe a perplexing predilection for one of the genre's cookie-cutter classes: "Oh, I'm a Mage-guy, definitely." Though NCSoft and Carbine's recently announced MMO Wildstar will allow you to fill that (or any other) professional archetype, they're taking a broader look at that question, not asking what type of character you prefer to be in-game but what type of player you prefer to be. The PAX Prime demo of Wildstar showed off some interesting innovations on the MMO formula, like fast-paced combat and an active dodge system that rewards you with bonus XP for your deft avoidance. The most promising aspect of the game, however, is that very core tenet: Wildstar rewards you for playing the game how you choose to play it. %Gallery-130856%
Guild Wars 2 preview: Common sense
Of the many -- so, so many -- MMOs represented on the PAX Prime 2011 show floor, ArenaNet's long-in-development Guild Wars 2 easily presents the most outside-the-box thinking. Where other entries in the genre tend to look at their contemporaries and attempt to iteratively repair their rough edges, Guild Wars 2 throws out baby, bathwater and tub, starting with a base that's altogether unprecedented. Take, for instance, this core conceit: Why do other MMOs require you to stand still to use most of your character's abilities? Why not allow them to fire off powers while ducking and dodging through salvos of enemy attacks? Why not let heroes use their powers, regardless of whether or not they're targeting an enemy? Why not put some action in your MMO, or vice versa? ArenaNet seems to have noticed most developers' proclivity for sacrificing streamlined gameplay for staple MMO characteristics, and repeatedly asked that very question: Why?
The Old Republic gets a somewhat lighthearted 'Huttball' Warzone
If you ever feel like taking a break from cutting through folks with laserswords, Star Wars: The Old Republic will include a somewhat wackier game mode that should suit your needs. It's called "Huttball" -- a neutral Player vs. Player Warzone which is likely the closest thing the MMO will have to an official sport. Unless, of course, they invent ligthsaber baseball, which seems unlikely for several obvious reasons. The game tasks two teams with securing a neutral ball and running it into the opposing teams endzone. Just like football! Only with more Force-choking. Check out the trailer above to get a taste of space sports.
Star Wars: The Old Republic supply artificially limited at launch
In an attempt to prevent its servers from collapsing under the weight of a million Force-hungry MMO-players, EA will artificially limit the number of copies -- both digital and retail -- of Star Wars: The Old Republic available at launch. An EA representative reportedly revealed the strategy at a Gamescom demo, but didn't divulge any details such as how many copies would be available, or how long it would take for more copies to be released once the quota is met. We suppose this strategy makes sense, though we can't help but imagine the excuses BioWare and EA are going to have to come up with to explain why their downloads are sold out. "Bits? You want bits? Sorry friend. We're fresh out of those. Bytes too! Sorry about that. The drought's hitting us awful hard. The ... the technodrought."
The Secret World's progression system doesn't subscribe to labels, man
Though most other MMOs allow their players to use level ranking and class like some kind of shorthand calling card ("Oh, me? I'm a Lv. 43 Powermime!"), Funcom's The Secret World will ditch that system for a more versatile approach, according to a recent Rock, Paper, Shotgun preview. Instead of levels and classes, players will be able to pick and choose from 500 skills that they'll be able to swap between at certain points during a mission, making strategy and foresight far more powerful tools than patience and grinding. Players will be able to specialize as one of the MMORPG genre's many archetypes, though this broad system won't lock them out of other job types should their interests shift. We appreciate any MMO that allows us to reenact our collegiate career, during which we double-majored in Animal Husbandry and Astronomy with a minor in Healthcare Management and another minor in Racquetball.
Capcom reveals Ixion Saga, plans limited alpha in Japan next month
According to Famitsu, Capcom has announced a new title called Ixion Saga, a PC-only multiplayer combat game where three classes (Strikers, Casters and Blasters) will do battle in eight versus eight online matches. There's also a PvE element, so players will be able to form "unions" with other players and take on other creatures. There will be a limited alpha on July 28 in Japan, and the game is due for release there sometime next summer. Capcom has had some success with online titles already, releasing a Monster Hunter MMO in Japan, but this is the first we've heard of an original MMO IP.
Rift client temporarily marked down to $5
Rift appears to be one of the only recent title to take a modicum of wind out of World of Warcraft's sails. It makes sense, then, that Trion would respond to WoW's new free-to-play mode with an offer of its own: namely, the temporary markdown on the Rift client to a measly $4.99.
World of Warcraft Starter Edition lets you reach lvl 20 for free, Night Elf Mohawk still only available to Mr. T
If there was one thing, one thing, keeping humanity safe from total enslavement to the grind of World of Warcraft, it was the fact that you have to pay to play the game for longer than a couple of weeks. Well, now we're all doomed. Blizzard is replacing its 14-day WoW trial with a so-called Starter Edition of the massively multiplayer life usurper, which lets you reach level 20 without shelling out a penny. Of course, like any good gateway drug, this freebie is capped at the thoroughly insufficient 20 number and is sure to agitate folks into buying the full product. One small step for a software company, one giant leap forward for global obesity rates.
World of Warcraft goes free-to-play until characters hit level 20
We respect the tenacity of every human being left on the planet who hasn't played Blizzard's mind-bogglingly gripping MMORPG World of Warcraft -- but unfortunately, your teetotaling has come to an end. In the game's latest update, titled "Rage of the Firelands," WoW's free 14-day trial has been extended, allowing Azerothian adventurers to grind to their heart's content -- but their levels will remain capped at 20 until they upgrade to the full version. It's a clever ploy that Blizzard's calling the World of Warcraft Starter Edition, which even includes some of the content from the game's first expansion, The Burning Crusade -- for instance, free players can create Draenei and Blood Elf characters, two races added in said expansion. Should you decide to upgrade, you can get the core game and Burning Crusade for a cool $19.99 as part of the digital World of Warcraft Battle Chest -- though you'll first have to wait for the site to stop getting Zerg rushed by newcomers. (Apologies for mixing our Blizzard metaphors.) Already a hardened WoW veteran? There's plenty more in the update to slake your thirst -- check out WoW Insider's handy FAQ for a rundown.
Star Wars: The Old Republic video visits Alderaan, fights lots of dudes
We were pretty upset when we saw Alderaan get totally blown to smithereens in A New Hope, but now that the Star Wars: The Old Republic trailer posted after the jump has shown us what type of unsavory characters lived there, we're not sure it's actually that great of a loss.
City of Heroes going free-to-play later this year
Paragon Studios' superpowered flagship MMO City of Heroes is surfing the ever-growing trendwave of paid online titles moving into the free-to-play market. The developer has announced City of Heroes Freedom, a free version of the seven-year-old game which will launch later this year. The MMO will follow an increasingly popular model, giving free players access to a partial list of areas and features available to paid subscribers -- however, in an unusual twist, free users will be able to pick and choose exactly which features and areas they want to access. Premium subscribers get access to the whole kit and caboodle, as well as special rewards they'll be able to choose from every month. These include new costumes, consumables and power sets, almost ensuring their supernatural superiority over their free-to-play counterparts. Basically, they'll be the Justice League to the free players' Alpha Flight.
Guild Wars 2 to avoid standalone MMO expansion model [update]
MMORPG developer ArenaNet is no stranger to implementing standalone additions to its subscription-free title Guild Wars, but it sounds like the studio won't follow the same strategy for the game's long-developed sequel. Speaking to Gamerzines, Guild Wars 2 lead designer Eric Flannum explained, "At this time we don't plan to continue with the standalone expansion model," adding that such add-ons "split our player base unnecessarily and also caused us to focus development effort on things that were redundant with the original release of the game such as tutorial areas and duplicates of already existing skills." Update: An earlier version of this post misunderstood Flannum's message, which does not count out the possibility of traditional expansions -- only standalone add-ons which do not require the base game, such as Guild Wars: Factions and Nightfall. We apologize for the confusion, and thank the commenters who pointed out the error.
Dungeons and Dragons: Neverwinter preview: The NeverEnding Story
Cryptic and Atari's upcoming relaunch of the Neverwinter Nights franchise is a multiplayer online game with infinite content. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around what this means -- and I think its creators are, too. The infinite-ness is provided by the Foundry system, a returning (and far more refined) feature which Cryptic implemented in one of its other flagship MMOs, Star Trek Online. Rather than patching in the campaign-crafting tools after launch, however, Cryptic is making the Foundry the keystone of the Neverwinter experience -- an appropriate callback to Nights' UGC-centric success.
Star Wars: The Old Republic intro cinematic is more like it
We may have spoken too soon when we posted this morning's decidedly un-cinematic Star Wars: The Old Republic trailer. BioWare has once again released what's sure to be one of E3's most striking promo videos: The MMORPG's opening cinematic, which you'll find posted after the jump.
