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The Daily Grind: Do you play any mobile MMOs?
A guildie of mine and I were discussing phones this week, and we came to the joint conclusion that for us, mobile gaming, especially the mobile MMO market, is no draw at all when it comes to our phone selection. Unlike Beau, who writes Massively's mobile gaming column, MMObility, I don't relish the thought of playing any serious MMO while peering at a tiny screen or trying to make a character run around with an awkward swipe of my finger. I'll play a little single-player time-waster to, well, waste time, but deep gaming is reserved for a big comfy chair and a jumbo-sized screen. I certainly wouldn't tailor a phone or slate purchase around gaming. And yet the mobile gaming market is exploding, so someone out there must be playing these wee little MMOs, like Pocket Legends, shown in tablet form in the above screenshot. In fact, these games might just be the perfect snack while you're trying to surreptitiously get your game on at family holiday events or while waiting in an endless shopping line. So are you a mobile MMO gamer? And if so, what mobile MMOs do you play? 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!
MMObility: What makes a good mobile game to me
Over the time I have been exploring mobile gaming, especially since I have been writing this column, I've discovered exactly what I like and dislike about the genre. Mobile MMOs are the tiniest niche within the greater world of MMOs. Some would say that MMOs are even a tiny corner of gaming in general. While I don't quite agree, I would say that explaining my column to random game shop employees or curious friends is quite the challenge. "You write about games... on your phone?" "Yes, massively multiplayer games." "Huh?" Luckily there are many new ones that offer a much more robust gaming experience. I can proudly show people examples of games like Order and Chaos Online, Star Legends or Illyriad. Of course, I sift through many poor examples before I get to the good ones. So let's take this opportunity to discuss what I think makes for a good game. Click past the cut and feel free to add your ideas in the comments section!
Apple releases Star Legends: The Blackstar Chronicles to the app store
It's been a long time winding its way through the Apple approving process, but Star Legends: The Blackstar Chronicles is now available for iOS devices. The game, which is free with optional microtransaction purchases, is a universal app, so it will play on the iPod Touch, iPhone and iPad. Apple users have had to wait significantly longer to get their hands on Star Legends than Android players, as the Android version was released much earlier this month. Spacetime Studios promises gamers that a "majority" of the content of the game is completely free-to-play, and characters can reach the level cap without having to pay a dime. If you're interested in our impressions of this sci-fi blastathon, check out our Rise and Shiny Recap of Star Legends! %Gallery-23010%
Sci-fi MMO Star Legends launches on the Android OS
Spacetime Studios, creator of the mobile MMO Pocket Legends, stepped into the science fiction realm with the launch of its latest MMO Star Legends: The Blackstar Chronicles. Feeding off the frenzy of the mobile platform, Star Legends debuted on the Android OS first and can be downloaded at the Android Market or VCAST. Chief Vision Officer Cinco Barnes commented on why the publisher chose to launch on Android first in a recent press release: "When we launched Pocket Legends on Android we were blown away by the response from the community. Android has since become the leading revenue driver and our primary focus. It is so easy to publish apps on their Market that it became a no-brainer for us to flip the standard mobile game strategy on its head and launch on Android before any other OS." Star Legends boasts hours of gameplay -- via wi-fi, Edge, 3G, or 4G connections on Android 2.0 and above mobile devices -- with three customizable classes, character progression, guilds, and chat. These items, Spacetime says, are usually reserved for PC MMOs. Screenshots of this innovative game are displayed below, and the brief trailer for the game is tucked behind the break! %Gallery-23010%
Warspear Online update features new currency, numerous gameplay tweaks
If you've never heard of Warspear Online, now's a great time to broaden your horizons. The mobile MMO from AIGRIND has just released its Legacy of Berengar update which brings "many changes and improvements" to the fantasy title. Chief among these changes are the miracle shop and miracle coins, the latter of which serve as a new currency available for real-world money. Also noteworthy is the addition of a friends list, a minimap, two-handed weapons and heavy armor, and new rune and crystal special items that players may slot in their equipment to enhance its characteristics. Warspear has also transitioned from a ranking system to a leveling system, and there are various tweaks and bug fixes in the update as well. The official Warspear forums feature a post with all of the details, so be sure to head over and give it a look-see.
Star Legends launches beta on Verizon's V CAST
If you're a mobile gamer who also happens to be a Verizon user, it seems that you're in luck. Spacetime Studios -- maker of the immensely popular Pocket Legends -- announced today that its new mobile MMO, Star Legends: The Blackstar Chronicles has begun beta testing exclusively on Verizon's V CAST. Fear not, because we have a spiffy trailer to help players get their space-legs. The game takes place in the far-off 41st century, and puts players in the space-faring shoes of one of three classes: Commando, Engineer, or Operative. Players then "quest for adventure, fame and fortune," but it won't be simple, as "players must battle harsh, alien environments, monstrous, unthinking aliens, and the greed and ambition of their rivals." Star Legends is free-to-play with microtransactions. If it sounds like your idea of a good time -- and if you have an Android phone on the Verizon network -- you can give the game a go on Verizon's V CAST, or check out more information at the official site. And don't forget to check out the trailer past the cut! %Gallery-23010%
Rise and Shiny recap: Order and Chaos Online
I'd like to start this article off by giving Gameloft, publisher of Order and Chaos Online, a lot of respect. Tons of respect. Oodles of respect. It seems to be a company that gets an idea (or borrows one) and just does it. While so many people are talking about designing and creating for the mobile gaming world, Gameloft has busily cranked out scores of high-quality titles. Yes, many of those titles bear remarkable resemblance to other non-mobile titles, but let's be really honest here: Modern MMO design is not really chock-full of original ideas. In fact, the lack of of daring design is what drove me to the indie and mobile markets. Both of those markets are new enough, or small enough, that they take chances. Gameloft's games generally work, as well. Its shooters might be slightly on rails, and its RPGs might be pretty linear, but all of its attempts at hitting the mark add up to a lot of profit and a lot of successful shots. The company has more good games than bad. Anyway, if the major publishers aren't going to take the time to make a decent mobile port or morph of their best titles, Gameloft has shown that it is more than willing to. I generally like that. Not surprisingly, the company did a fantastic job of making a portable, enjoyable World of Warcraft with Order and Chaos Online. Click past the cut and I'll tell you what I thought about it.
Wargaming.net forms partnership to expand into mobile gaming
World of Tanks on an iPhone? Perhaps, perhaps not, but something similar might be a possibility as Wargaming.net announced that it's teamed up with mobile game developer DAVA Consulting. The two companies have formed a "strategic partnership" for a long-term plan to take the highly successful World of Tanks team into the realm of mobile gaming. The partnership will allow Wargaming.net to start exploring gaming possibilities on mobile platforms, including iOS devices. DAVA is located in Eastern Europe and provides a wide variety of services from bottom-up application development, consulting, handling ports, and game testing. Wargaming.net CEO Victor Kislyi apparently wants to make as big of a splash on the iPhone as the company did with the PC: "Having known the DAVA team for some time, we are thrilled to have them spearhead our efforts in the mobile games and applications development. We are looking forward to establishing a strong presence on the mobile market and DAVA is the best partner to assist us."
The Daily Grind: What payment model should mobile MMOs adopt?
Right now, two of the biggest mobile MMOs cling to radically different payment plans. Pocket Legends offers up the core gameplay for free with a heavy reliance on microtransactions, while Order & Chaos Online charges a (small) monthly fee to play. The problem is that gamers who might be OK with either subscriptions or microtransactions when it comes to MMOs on the big screen balk at treating these little screen versions the same way. The question is whether gamers will be more comfortable getting the first taste for free and paying small charges on top of that or signing up for a monthly fee and expecting subscription-level service thereafter. What do you think? If MMO studios are to make any money off the mobile market, how should they go about doing it? What would you be comfortable paying for a reasonably good game, assuming that you'd play a mobile title? 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!
Pocket Legends teams up with Sony for Xperia PLAY event
Spacetime Studios and Sony recently teamed up to put on a unique event inside Spacetime's Pocket Legends mobile MMO. A new press release touts the "world's first in-game mobile flash mob," which happened during this month's E3 convention in Los Angeles. Pocket Legends players took part in a "Find the Droid" competition in which an Android mascot would make its way through the game world while enterprising players gave chase. The promotion was designed to draw attention to the new Sony Xperia PLAY platform, and Spacetime gave away more than 11,000 themed vanity items during the course of the event. Pocket Legends, the world's largest mobile MMO in terms of downloads (4 million and counting), will be expanding to the Android-powered Xperia PLAY later this summer.
E3 2011: Spacetime Studios on the Legends franchise
Blackstar has a new name to capitalize on the Legends brand -- it's now known as Star Legends: The Blackstar Chronicles. At this year's E3, we caught up with Spacetime Studios' Fernando Blanco to see how the revived project (as well as the company's hit Pocket Legends) is coming along. Star Legends is only a month away from launch, and Spacetime hopes that the Pocket Legends fever will spread to its sci-fi brother. The name's been changed to communicate the studio's intent to provide an ongoing story rather than a one-shot experience. The game will launch with the first 20 levels of content, but Spacetime has grand plans to expand this much further. Blanco gave us some of the backstory to the game: In the far future, humans are exploring the cosmos and have stumbled upon a resource-rich area. Corporations, as they are wont to do, have swooped in to exert their dominance but have come across hostile aliens in the process. War breaks out, invasions start popping up all over the place, and you're called in to clean up the mess -- and make a quick buck in the process. Hit the jump to hear more about Star Legends' classes and gameplay!
MMObility: As I pack these devices for E3
As I sit here waiting for a fresh reinstall of Windows Vista on one of my desktop PCs, I decided to take stock of all of the equipment currently in my nerd life. It's funny that when you have access to more devices, habits start to form around those devices. My morning ritual is typically to get up, start up the laptop, and prepare breakfast while it readies. Then I sit down and poke around on Twitter, check email, or catch up on different blog sites. Sometimes I will make a cup of tea and sit in the stoop of the backdoor with my iPad, waiting for my wife to get up. Over time I have discovered that some devices work better for certain tasks than others. For example, I prefer to write my articles on my basic laptop, but I prefer to finalize them with photos and re-editing on my desktop. I now would rather check my email and Twitter on my iPad (I got my wife's old one when she moved up to an iPad 2) and would rather use my iPhone for music than my HTC: Inspire. It's odd, what a mix of devices I have now... but how inconvenient. So I wanted to go over a few comparisons between all of the devices and talk about what I might find at E3 next week. Click past the cut!
Spacetime adds Sandstone Caves to Pocket Legends, extends free content offer
Free stuff is the rallying cry of Spacetime Studios, developer of the renowned Pocket Legends mobile MMORPG. Last month we told you about the game's anniversary promotion, which featured free access to a boat-load of content zones including Balefort Castle, the Fathom Crypts, and the Alien Oasis Trilogy. Today we're happy to report that Spacetime has donned its generosity hat and is making these (and a few other) areas free forever. But wait, there's more! Spacetime is also introducing a brand-new Pocket Legends zone called the Sandstone Caves. The caves are "littered with precious stones -- and the broken bones of the foolish who have tried to take them." If that's not a dare, we don't know what is, and you'll want to level your character up a bit to ensure she's fit to challenge the 20 - 25 zone. You can learn more about the Sandstone Caves, free content, and Pocket Legends itself at the game's official website.
Order & Chaos Online available in Canadian App Store [Updated]
We took a brief look at Order & Chaos Online last month courtesy of a trailer on the game's Facebook page. Now, it looks as if the mobile World of Warcraft knockoff could be coming to an iOS device near you in the very near future. Touch Arcade is reporting that Gameloft has released the pocket MMORPG to the Canadian App Store, a move the publication says is "standard operating procedure for a wide-scale beta of sorts." Apparently other mobile dev outfits have used the Canadian market as a barometer both for how their games will be received and as a testbed for necessary tweaks. Gameloft has set Order & Chaos' price point at $6.99, which includes three months' worth of subscription time. You read that right: It's a sub-based mobile game, with single-month rates of $.99 while three-month and six-month packages go for $1.99 and $2.99 respectively. Head to Touch Arcade for more details. [Update: The game is now available in the U.S. market as well!]
Yslandia hits player milestone, goes free-to-play
As mobile MMOs are taking off in popularity, Yslandia is proving that a smaller platform doesn't necessarily mean a smaller playerbase. The pocket-sized MMO just announced its 100,000th player, and to celebrate the milestone, Moving Player is making the game free-to-play with in-game store purchases. Since its release last fall, Yslandia has grown to include four island zones, 300 quests, and 18 classes. Players on iOS devices can log in and play solo or with friends across this cute world. The game has a customizable UI and features spirited PvP battles as players wage war for territory. Previously, Yslandia was a $0.99 purchase from the Apple App Store. Check out what our own Beau Hindman had to say about this title in a recent edition of Free for All!
iOS MMO commercials draw attention
As our own Beau Hindman knows well, mobile MMOs are on the verge of taking off in a big way, and now they have the commercials to prove it. Pocket Legends, the hit iOS and Android MMO from last year, may be the first mobile online RPG to release a nation-wide commercial. The ad, which features a high-schooler with a not-so-embarrassing secret in his pocket, will air on G4, Cartoon Network and Comedy Central, to name just a few venues. As Pocket Legends is often described as "World of Warcraft in your hand," it's kind of ironic that developer Gameloft is also making pretty much that. Gameloft is renowned for releasing thinly disguised copies of hit games, so it stands to reason that it would take a crack at the reigning champion. The studio just released an online teaser for Order & Chaos Online on its Facebook page, and it's hard not to see the inspiration-slash-knockoff. You can check out both commercials after the jump!
Pocket Legends adds in all new content
Having met the challenge of packing a whole bunch of fun into a pocket-sized portable experience, the team at Spacetime Studios has turned to stuffing even more fun into its mobile MMO, Pocket Legends. The newest patch has been released and offers much-needed fixes and updates to the game as well as an exciting new area for players to adventure through. In patch 1.7, players are treated to a new area called Oasis Towne. This area offers up a host of new quests for players to do including all new daily quests, fun new areas to roam in like a museum, and all-new armor sets for players. For more details, head over to the Pocket Legends site, read up on the patch notes, and join the discussion.
iPhone MMO Shadow Cities raises $2.5 million in investments
As smartphones become increasingly ubiquitous, it's inevitable that we'll start seeing unique uses of the technology involved -- something we're already seeing with Shadow Cities. The iPhone MMO is rather unique, tracking your location and putting you into an active battle with creatures placed on the GPS-enabled map. It's an innovative concept, a sort of game-oriented FourSquare, and one that's apparently intrigued investors enough to pony up big money to the tune of $2.5 million. This infusion of funding ties into plans to release the game in the US soon, as developer Grey Area has currently only released the game in its native Finland. Players will focus on taking dominion over the streets and completing quests, with the game itself following the free-to-play model complete with cash shop. Shadow Cities is certainly a novel product, and we'll be taking the time to chat with the studio about the game's development and future at GDC next week.
Spacetime Studios gearing up to release new Blackstar mobile MMO
Spacetime Studios, makers of the famed Pocket Legends mobile MMORPG, has officially announced the impending release of its long-in-development Blackstar, a story-intensive sci-fi yarn previously set to be published by NCsoft. The game has survived a number of hiccups including developer layoffs and a period of limbo prior to Spacetime's acquisition of the IP, and is now being prepped for a Q2 2011 release on both Android and iOS devices. Blackstar tells the story of a far-future conflict between a coalition of aliens (and their necro-cyborg allies) and the futuristic humans of the United Colonies Defense Force. The title features a 3D, real-time, persistent MMO world with three character classes, customizable skills and thousands of items to collect and equip. The game is powered by the Spacetime Engine, and looks to bring mobile MMO polish and production design to a new level. "We were able to nurture the IP to its maximum potential through years of development -- a luxury never before seen in mobile gaming. If you ever dreamed of a fully-featured sci-fi MMO that you can take anywhere, look for the first chapter of the Blackstar saga soon," says Spacetime CEO Gary Gattis. Have a look at the game's official website for more info, and also check out some pre-production video footage after the cut.
iPhone MMORPG Empire Online comes to North America
When it comes to the iPhone and other mobile platforms, MMOs are thin on the ground. Technical limitations make developing an MMO for a mobile platform difficult at best, but with titles like Pocket Legends doing so well, there's still an obvious demand for massively mobile games. Mobile game development studio Lakoo announced today that that its popular Asian iPhone MMO Empire Online would be released in the North American app store later this week on Saturday, January 15th. Empire Online supports PvE with parties of up to five players at a time and five-versus-five PvP battles. Features include turn-based combat and an open skill-based character advancement system. Lakoo is hopeful that the game does well in North America, suggesting that over five million players have already registered in China, Taiwan and Australia. Skip past the cut to watch the Empire Online trailer.
