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Skyforge to premiere at Gamescom
Skyforge, the upcoming MMO from Obsidian Entertainment and the team that brought you Allods Online, will be making its debut at this year's Gamescom in Cologne, Germany. Along with World of Speed and Armored Warfare, Skyforge will be presented by My.com at its booth in the business hall and as a playable demo for press. This will be the first reveal of two of Skyforge's classes and brand new locations. Interested players can also sign up for the closed beta for all three games at the official websites linked below. [Source: My.com press release]
Skyforge defrosts the Cryomancer class
Obsidian and My.com have just revealed Skyforge's Cryomancer, the latest addition to the playable roster of this class-switching MMO. As you might have guessed from the name, the Cryomancer is an ice mage, a "lord of ice and snow," who slows, immobilizes, and shatters enemies. Enjoy the full reveal, including screenshots, a class trailer, a partial spell list, and even a bit of lore.
Skyforge previews its Lanber Forest zone
Obsidian and Mail.ru have just unveiled Lanber Forest, a key area in the companies' upcoming sci-fantasy MMO Skyforge. Lanber Forest was once "an oasis of pristine nature" distant from industry and politics but is now overrun with a dark evil awakened by a traitorous god, along with more mundane baddies like "looters, smugglers, [and] evil men, who have decided to cash in on the grief of others." That, of course, is where you come in. Read on for the complete lore description and a few screenshots of the (damn pretty) zone.
Skyforge abandons leveling in favor of a prestige system
The Skyforge development team has been on a streak of answering pressing community questions over on the game's Facebook page, with one question answered per day over the previous week. A few of the questions centered around how Skyforge has eschewed a traditional leveling format in favor of a "prestige" system. Prestige is like gearscore, a sum total of the stats from a player's equipment. As a player gains more prestige, more content, gear, and followers are unlocked. "Instances are tied to the amount of prestige your character has," the team explained. "The better your character[s are] developed, the higher their prestige is and the more adventures they can go on." Other questions concerned whether there will be a test server (there will be) or a global chat channel (there won't be). The team did indicate that there would be a multi-platform chat system on launch, however: "Our programmers wrote a special chat service that will allow players in the game to chat to friends that are reading messages from other devices. This means that you can chat with other players regardless of whether they are in the game or not." [Thanks to Dengar for the tip!]
Skyforge's Divine Observatory and rewards detailed
Skyforge has this thing called the Divine Observatory, which is a sort of global surveillance and warning system that monitors the pleas for help from Aelion's mortals and sends immortal player characters to their aid. Said players "will have access to more than 40 exciting solo and group PvE adventures, five different types of PvP competitions and 10 massive open world locations to explore," according to the latest My.com press release. "As players complete adventures, they will receive rewards including credits, the most common currency on Aelion, Gems of Insights, which are used to develop skills and talents, unlocking new classes and characteristics, and Exotic Currencies, which can be used to buy new outfits to customize the look of the characters," the firm says. Click past the cut to read the full spiel and don't forget to have a look at the screenshot gallery while you're at it.
Obsidian's Pillars of Eternity looks old, and that's good news
Pitched as a return to the days of games like Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale and Planescape: Torment – isometric RPGs developed on BioWare's Infinity Engine – Pillars of Eternity from Obsidian is decidedly old-school. Where other games may tout streamlined gameplay and accessibility, Pillars holds its stats-based and number-heavy head up high as it walks through environments befitting a medieval fantasy world. This isn't a revolution or new beginning for the genre, but a return to form.
E3 2014: Hands-on with Skyforge, World of Speed, and Armored Warfare
I won't lie: I went to an E3 meeting with publisher My.com thinking only of Skyforge. I'd heard about Armored Warfare and World of Speed, but I didn't expect much from either title. I'd seen tank games and racing games trying to move into the MMO sphere, and while they were sometimes interesting, I didn't pay a whole lot attention. And ultimately they weren't as interesting to me as Skyforge, but I did walk away thinking they are titles that will appreciated by a portion of the MMO audience.
E3 2014: Skyforge previews classes and customization in new video and images
Sci-fi MMORPG Skyforge has landed at E3 with a brand-new video and new screenshots. Allods Team and Obsidian Entertainment promise players "a glimpse of Skyforge's unique Ascension Atlas, the Sunken Temple location, and three new character classes: the weapons-centric Gunner, the ruthless Berserker, and the merciful Lightbinder." The atlas itself allows players to customize their characters in "billions of ways with adapted skills, talents and spells." We'll have more from our E3 Skyforge demo later this week, but for now, enjoy the previews! [Source: My.com, Allods Team and Obsidian Entertainment press release]
Skyforge's world trailer sure is pretty
There's a new Skyforge trailer making the rounds, and it's worth a look-see if you're interested in the new fantasy MMO from Obsidian and the Allods Team. There's a bit of lore, a bit of combat footage, and of course the high production values we've seen in previous clips. Click past the cut to see for yourself.
Armored Warfare accepting applications for closed beta testing
Guys, Armored Warfare is totally not a World of Tanks clone. Guys? Guys? C'mon, don't give me that look. It's not! Well, maybe it is a little bit. The question is, then, will it be better or worse than its competition? Armored Warfare is a "tanktical" (their words, not ours) shooter that features all sorts of heavy combat vehicles. One key difference between it and World of Tanks is that Armored Warfare's lineup is more current, ranging from the 1950s to present-era tanks and other armored trucks. Obsidian Entertainment is pushing Armored Warfare hard these days in preparation for its E3 showing. The title has begun to accept closed beta applications and has put out a new trailer that you can check after the break.
The Game Archaeologist: The persistent worlds of Neverwinter Nights 1 & 2
At the end of next month, dozens of online worlds will flicker and vanish with the flip of a switch. It's a online apocalypse the likes of which we have not seen in quite some time, although you might be forgiven for not having heard of it before now. When GameSpy Technology goes offline on May 31st, dozens of EA games that relied on the platform for multiplayer functionality will lose their online components by June 30th. Because of this, Neverwinter Nights and Neverwinter Nights 2 will find that their persistent player-made and -run worlds are in danger. For over a decade now, players have poured creative energies and roleplaying enthusiasm into these micro-MMOs. Could an era be about to end? Fortunately, players are already swinging into action to work around the shutdown, keeping their worlds alive and detached from GameSpy's umbilical cord. I see this event as a wake-up call for people like yours truly who are acquainted primarily with BioWare and Obsidian's single-player offerings and are ignorant of the larger Neverwinter Nights community out there. Let's take a look at this engrossing online realm and how it came to be.
The Daily Grind: Do huge dev teams give you pause?
We recently discovered that the Skyforge dev team numbers nearly 300 people. Star Citizen's team is over 200. Those are pretty crazy numbers, even for alleged AAA games and even for full-featured massively multiplayer online things. Taking into account that budgets vary wildly from project to project and company to company, do large numbers of devs on an MMO project give you pause? 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!
Nearly 300 people are working on Skyforge
MMO Culture has posted part three of a Q&A with Allods Team and Obsidian developers. The subject is Skyforge, an upcoming sci-fantasy MMORPG that lets players become gods. Interesting interview tidbits include the size of the dev team (nearly 300 people), the lack of trash loot ("every item that you can loot in the game has its impact upon your character's powers"), and the level-free progression system. "A leveling system is hard to manage, that is why we decided to get rid of it. Basic specification of Skyforge heroes can be compared to gear score," the team says.
Skyforge discusses PvP philosophy and world space
As promised earlier this month, the team behind Skyforge has answered another round of community questions on the official forums. The highlights? Expect no Oculus Rift or gamepad support at launch. The game will not force players to participate in PvE or PvP. In fact, "with both types of activity you gain the same resources for character development." The optional PvP will have a mild death penalty: "By MMO standards, it is practically non-existent." The gameworld is made up of both large open spaces and small instances. It is not seamless, but it will encourage exploration. At one point during development, "the total area exceeded 50 square kilometers." The team is planning large guild battles of "at least 100 players." Flying and crafting are both in. Housing is a maybe: The "gods have their own piece of 'property' and it's larger than a hut." Community Manager Freitag also mentions that the Allods Team and Obsidian Entertainment will be monitoring player opinion and metrics during the beta for feedback on planned systems.
Obsidian hopes to have next Kickstarter before end of year
Obsidian still needs to solidify its plans for another Kickstarter, but the RPG studio is gathering its armies for its next crowdfunding quest. "My hope is that we'll get one going before the end of the year," said Obsidian CEO Feargus Urquhart to CVG. "I think we've got a good idea. I'm not going to share anything, but a few times in my career I have these things where I say, 'hey, that's a cool idea!' and I've generally been right. So I think this one's going to be a cool thing." Obsidians' Project Eternity, now known Pillars of Eternity, collected $3.9 million in loot back in 2012. The game currently has a launch window of winter 2014, missing its intended April launch. It'll certainly be interesting to see if Obsidian can repeat its previous success or if backers have gained a +2 helmet of skepticism. [Image: Obsidian]
Skyforge posts Q&A on character development and more
The Skyforge team today selected and answered 10 community questions on the official forums ranging from "when's beta" (effective answer: no comment) to "how will names work" (answer: given name plus surname). Perhaps the most interesting tidbits focused on character development: The team confirmed that you can switch classes on the fly "whenever you like" and that because of this mechanic, you're unlikely to need alts. Moreover, says the team, "character progression in the game is not level based," and "players will always have ways to advance their characters further." The free-to-play sci-fantasy MMORPG's full Q&A is available on the official forums. The developers have promised to post more answers every two weeks. [Thanks to Paul for the tip!]
Obsidian gives your ears a taste of the Pillars of Eternity soundtrack
Just because we can't play old school-inspired, Kickstarter success Pillars of Eternity right now doesn't mean we can't experience it. Developer Obsidian has released a score from the game's soundtrack to give anxious adventurers a taste of what to expect when the game releases later this year. The music is an ambient background tune for the Dyrford Village area. Audio Director Justin Bell noted in a forum post that he looks to the Infinity Engine games (Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale) for inspiration, blending "tropes found in European folk and pre-Renaissance modal music" with modern techniques. Bell also wrote that he listens for inspiration during his daily commute to work, and that he reads Johann Sebastian Bach daily. Video games: classy stuff. [Image: Obsidian]
Skyforge shows off the Paladin class
After revealing the Cryomancer a few days ago, the Skyforge team is showing off the second class that was spotlighted during its GDC demo: the Paladin. In addition to the usual fighter abilities you'd find with a Paladin, Skyforge's holy warrior wields a powerful artifact that is used to both inspire allies and threaten enemies. "The Paladin is capable of performing devastating attacks and engage in prolonged battles with abilities such as the Righteous Blow, Seal of Light, Punishing Bolt and Celestial Shield," the forum announcement states. "The Paladin is one who not only inflicts damage on his enemies, but also protects his friends, making him an excellent brother in arms!" [Thanks to Dengar for the tip!]
Skyforge gives a glimpse into The Factory
Skyforge is looking better and better, as the team released a new set of pictures today for the upcoming MMO that focus on the title's industrial side. The three new pictures showcase the high-tech Factory, a large installation that's recently seen a riot by intelligent robots. Players will no doubt be asked to go in and quell in the microchip insurrection. "Cleaning up the plant is not an easy task," the devs teased. "Lives of the personnel are the price of a failure." You can take a peek at the Factory in the gallery below. [Thanks to Dengar for the tip!]
Skyforge releases new screenshots of Dankit Island
Skyforge: Is it sci-fi or fantasy? Who cares -- it's pretty. Obsidian and Allods Team have just released brand-new screenshots of the upcoming MMORPG; they feature a location named Dankit Island, which is so pretty that it's obviously home to evil, rat-like creatures called Virth. Naturally, players will be saving Dankit Island from said evil. That's just what players do. Enjoy the screens! [Thanks to Paul for the tip!]
