pics-or-it-didnt-happen
Latest
One Shots: Laser light shows
Ancient civilizations always seem to have the flair for the dramatic, especially if they were sitting on suspiciously advanced technology. We begin our trip through One Shots today with a look at Star Wars: The Old Republic's newest PvP warzone and its so-called "ancient" artifacts. Reader John was captivated by the look of this machine: "It would be fair to say that much of SWTOR looks like either the traditional fantasy MMOs we've all played before or a series of corridors. With Ancient Hypergates, however, BioWare has delivered an incredible-looking area that feels perhaps like a cross between Mass Effect and Halo, though of course the lightsaber battles that take place across this arena add the necessary 'Star Wars' touch." Carry on, my wayward sons and daughters, and join us as we dive further into the visuals of MMOs than any who have come before.
One Shots: The hills have eyes
Do you ever get the feeling you're being watched? It's because you are, fool. Everything has its eyes on you, even the mountains themselves. Case in point: this screenshot from reader Chris, who found himself amazed at the artistry of Guild Wars 2 and the slight creepiness of mountains with facial features. "In a quest during Guild Wars 2 around level 60," Chris writes, "you are asked to go up a big hill into the face of the mountain (literally) and shutdown the machine. I took the screenshot at the start of the quest because the world is so beautiful." If our games are going to look at us, we might as well return the favor! Hit the jump for more excellent screenshot submissions.
One Shots: Battlefield oasis
Even in the midst of bloody war, the resplendent may persist. Even though our MMOs are endless battlefields that have seen no end to death and corpse desecration, they also can be places of stunning sights. Reader Connor, fresh off a tour in PlanetSide 2, found that a particular location made him pause and reach for the screenshot button. "I saw this while maneuvering my Sunderer into position. Beauty on the battlefield!" Check out Connor's oasis as well as plenty of other gorgeous war-torn locales after the jump!
One Shots: Dearly departed
Today's One Shots will be a more somber one, as we strive to honor two MMOs that are passing into history. First up is the dearly departed City of Heroes, which Reader Michelle apparently loved quite a bit. She sent us in several screenshots, including one of her supergroup, Part Time Heroes. "Here's a group of my friends during the Mortimer Kal Strike Force," Michelle writes. "My character is Astral Black, a Warshade who should be my last level 50. She's the one in the purple and black crop top." Head onward for more personal dedications, but be warned: You may be misty-eyed by the end.
One Shots: This is the end, my friend
What do you imagine the end of the world looking like? I'm willing to bet it's nothing like the following technicolor nightmare ripped straight from the finale of the first version of Final Fantasy XIV. Reader Focant delivers this haunting image with a description of the videopocalypse: "The Garlean forces held nothing back in their battle against us, and attacked with their most destructive weaponry. The most powerful enemy we saw on the battlefield that night was the level 100 (the player cap is 50) Imperial Juggernaut, an enemy that is only seen one other time in game. I made sure to include a player character in the shot as well for size comparison. These things are massive!" And with that we're off to another wild and wooly edition of One Shots! Please put your tray tables in their full upright and locked position.
One Shots: Out in the cold
Closing down a game like Glitch is like beating up the big-eyed orphan from down the street for his last two cents; it just feels wrong to anyone with a soul. Massively's One Shots department did its best to counter the situation by taking an angry protest nap, but nothing doing. The next best solution is to ask all of you with great Glitch screenshots to send them our way. Reader Jeremy submitted this haunting picture that works on a couple of different levels in light of the recent announcement. "Kids," he warns, "this is a warning of the harmful effects of No-No Powder. One day, you're sitting in your pleasant home street, admiring the view. Next, you're waking up naked in a tundra with nothing but your quickly diminishing dignity." Let's go on a cold, naked adventure together through the rest of this week's player-submitted pictures!
One Shots: It all comes out pink
As Justin is out of town this weekend, I have hacked into the One Shots email account and replaced all user submissions with screenshots of Tabula Rasa! Shh, no one tell him. But I am happy to take control of this regular feature for the week and show off a few of the shots you lovely readers have sent in. This first one is a testament to the amazing artwork we can expect from PlanetSide 2 when it launches on November 20th. As reader Lovelycarrot explains, "In this image, I'm all alone in a frozen wasteland in PlanetSide 2, pondering the next base to capture." Check out the full image and more submissions just after the cut.
One Shots: A fool's game
That's one big chicken, Scott. A big chicken indeed. Why do you need a chicken that big? Should we alert the authorities about animal abuse? Is this a Scandinavian Thanksgiving ritual? Are you attempting to prove the Rooster Road Theorem? Perhaps I should let Scott explain: "I was recently informed you guys brought back One Shots. Well, here I am bringing you three one of my escapades in Guild Wars 2. Here, Nerrath's found dinner! You guys may or may not remember the several screenshots from Champions Online's Legion of Laughter that made it into the previous iteration of One Shots. Well, we're still going strong on the Crystal Desert server as the Order of the Fool!" Feast your eyes on Scott's chicken and more after the break.
One Shots: Where the demons dwell
In ancient times, hundreds of years before the dawn of history, lived a strange race of people, the Druids. No one knows who they were or what they were doing. That is, except for One Shots contributor Brokenwing, who sends us this gorgeous shot of Stonehenge after he completed a mission in The Secret World. "In all Halloween missions in TSW, cats are involved," Brokenwing writes, "and you need to defeat an Incognito -- the cat god himself. In Stonehenge! At night! It's so much fun and it looks beautiful." Welcome to a very One Shots Halloween, sponsored by The Great Pumpkin, Inc.!
One Shots: Don't go chasing waterfalls
The wisdom of TLC flows down through the ages in many forms, but perhaps the group's greatest lesson was this: Don't go chasing waterfalls; please stick to the rivers and the lakes that you're used to. In other words, if you go exploring in MMOs, you're only inviting destruction to rain down on your head, so just stay home. Wait a minute, that's not a good lesson at all. Forget it. Right now. Welcome back to One Shots, the column that you brought back and is now extremely lonely because only faithful reader Eric sent us in something from this past week! Admire Eric's pursuit of Guild Wars 2 waterfalls after the break, and be more like Eric by sending us in your favorite MMO screenshots with descriptions.
One Shots: My preciousss
A must-stop on the Lord of the Rings Online tour is the former home of one of Middle-earth's most infamous inhabitants. In a recent journey, One Shots submitter Carolina stopped to take a picture of the finger-painting Gollum left behind: Here is a warning picture I encountered while exploring Goblin Town in Lord of the Rings Online. Proceeding deep into the cave shows you this sign that something terrible lies ahead. Personally, I think Gollum could have had a great career doing his own portraits. Check out this and several other terrific entries after the break.
One Shots: Beautiful balloon
Massively logically selects for readers who aren't necessarily playing World of Warcraft -- if you were, you'd probably be reading our sister site WoW Insider, not this column. But I am still a WoW fan, as is this week's One Shots submitter, William. He sent in a freshly snapped pic from Mists of Pandaria with this note: This screenshot is a little bit of a spoiler, so I won't actually say much about what's in it, but needless to say, this is one of my favourite scenes from the Pandaren starting area. The art design is fantastic in Blizzard's new expansion! Also, panda in a balloon! William's color image is tucked after the break along with a few more of your One Shots-worthy images.
One Shots: Angry red moon
Final Fantasy XIV is due for a cataclysmic revamp and reboot in just a few short months, so what better time to feature it than now? Massively reader Cyndair emailed One Shots this image from the doomed current version of the game: Here's a shot of the angry red moon, Dalamud, overlooking the Rivenroad battlefield, site of the final confrontation with FFXIV 1.x's main protagonist, Nael Van Darnus. Truly breathtaking shot, Cyndair. It's behind the break with a few more reader submissions!
One Shots: Wings
Resident Massively Aion columnist MJ Guthrie could sum up the best reason to play her favorite MMO in just one word: wings! That's something reader Leandra plainly echoes in today's featured One Shots submission. She sent us this image of her character soaring through Aion along with this note: I've been toying around with Aion a bit and took my baby Chanter, Elanyne, for her first flight through the Abyss. I kept an eye out for Elyos, but thankfully (though somewhat disappointingly), I was able to quest in peace. I guess I'll have to level up more and then go looking to pick some fights! You red, you dead -- that's what I always say! Leandra's flight and a few other reader screenies are tucked beyond the break.
One Shots: Go directly to jail
You have to love a culture that thinks jail should be a breathtaking experience for the prisoner... literally! Today's One Shots from reader Lovander (Tarnished Coast represent!) shows how Guild Wars 2's Sylvari race mixes glowing sparkles with deadly detention cells. Lovander wrote, I came upon this jail in the Sylvari capital, The Grove. Every cell is a Venus Fly Trap. Loved the design! Follow on for the color screenie plus a few more One Shots beyond the break.
One Shots: Still got it
Runes of Magic was a F2P game before the cool kids joined the F2P party, but it's been a little neglected by MMO players. Massively reader Andrew wants us to know that it's got some spark left in it: While Runes of Magic may be three years old, the graphics are still looking great. There's some awesome vistas in RoM that appear when you take the time to control+z your interface and look around. This shot is from Southern Janost Forest. In fact, Andrew sent us two pics, and they're both behind the break along with a few more of your One Shots!
One Shots: Abyss
Who doesn't know Nietzsche's famous quote about the abyss? When you look into an abyss, the abyss entices you to buy some stuff in the cash shop. It was something like that, anyway. Today's breathtaking featured screenshot of a character meditating before an abyss originated in none other than The Secret World. Submitter Aedesius wrote to One Shots, I've really been enjoying TSW; it's like a breath of fresh air and such a beautiful-looking game. Enjoy this screenshot of one of many amazing vistas in TSW. Let's go do that! Aedesius' pic and a few others are just a leap into infinity past the break.
One Shots: Tyrian field trip
Guild Wars 2's headstart kicked off this weekend, and the official launch is this week, so you know what that means! Yep, One Shots is going to feature the most visually appealing game of all time: Ultima Online! Just kidding. It's Guild Wars 2 day, and we've got an extra-long eyecandy edition of One Shots to celebrate. Who gets to headline today's column? A generous reader named Vazzaroth, who graciously opened up his entire vault of Guild Wars 2 screenshots to Massively. We're including two of our favorites here, but feel free to crash his site pawing through the rest! They're just past the break, alongside a bundle of our favorite Guild Wars 2 submissions received since April.
One Shots: Counting blessings
Massively reader Ralph "The Wonder Llama" (don't look at me!) delivered this spectacular TERA image to headline this week's One Shots. He wrote in: This is my Amani Berzerker, Sequoia. She's seen here showing off her brand-new crafted level 40 plate armor (proving once again that you don't have to show a lot of skin to look totally hot!). We took some time out from our busy schedule of monster slaying in TERA to admire the scenery in Blessing Basin, a beautiful forested zone full of strange and exotic creatures, most of whom want to kill you. This particular shot was taken at the Fountain of Shara, where Mystel, the goddess of fate, determines whether intrepid adventurers are are worthy of her assistance. I'm pleased to report that Sequoia passed the test with flying colors! Ralph's screenshots and a few others worthy of highlighting are tucked beyond the break.
One Shots: Set yourself free
This week's One Shots honors Vanguard: Saga of Heroes, which quietly went free-to-play a few days early. Massively reader John sent in our featured image with this note: I'm sure that many of your pictures will be of Vanguard, but here's an awesome one overlooking the Qalian sunset. It captures the beauty of a massive, open world that's devoid of linear levelling or closed instances. Just looking at this picture reminds me of the possibilities. Do I gather a group for a trip to the Coterie, perched upon a distant mountain? Do I sail down endless rivers or fly above vast plains? The choice is mine. Vanguard's motto is "Set yourself free," and this picture proves it. Do you go beyond the break to drool over John's screenshot and a few others? That choice is also yours!
