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Compare two generations of gaming across four platforms with Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes
Like so many games launching at the end of 2013 and throughout 2014, Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes straddles both last generation (Xbox 360/PlayStation 3) and the current one we've just entered (Xbox One/PlayStation 4). Given Metal Gear's history of gorgeous visuals, the question asked itself: what will Ground Zeroes look like on aging game consoles compared to the new shiny ones? It turns out that Kojima Productions, the studio behind Ground Zeroes, has exactly the answer we were looking for in the form of a brand new comparison video. If anything, we're most shocked by how great it still looks on the older consoles! Of course, for those of you still fighting the console wars, there's the (negligible) difference between Xbox One and PlayStation 4 to analyze. Head below to take a look for yourself.
The Stream Team: Rockin' it out in Free Realms
Massively's Larry Everett and his son Zach want to get some time into Free Realms before it shuts down. Join them at 7:00 p.m. EST as they tour their favorite places and play their favorite minigames in SOE's kid-focused MMORPG. Hop in the game with them if you'd like; maybe they can get a full demolition derby team together! Game: Free Realms Host: Larry Everett Date: Tuesday, February 18th, 2014 Time: 7:00 p.m. EST Enjoy our Stream Team video below.
Massively's Valentine's Day roundup
When a mob hits your eye with a big sharpened spike... that's not really amore! In fact, it's downright painful. But it's February -- a time when love is in the air, hearts are aflutter everywhere, and pink and red festoon your favorite MMOs. So in the spirit of the season, go ahead and give that mob an extra-hard love tap, right from... er, to the heart! And don't forget to collect whatever treasures it had for you because we all know Valentine's Day isn't all about the love; no, it's about the loot! Want to know where to get your hands on something special for this holiday? There are plenty of celebrations throughout the MMOverse offering a plethora of events and goodies. Check out some of the various Valentine's events and specials going on now.
Necessary violence: The creators of The Last of Us defend its reliance on combat
PlayStation 3 exclusive The Last of Us was the most successful game of 2013. That's not just sales (it sold extremely well, to the tune of 3.4 million in its first three weeks), but also critical reception (an average Metacritic score of 95/100 and it swept game of the year awards across the game industry in 2013). Last week, The Last of Us earned development studio Naughty Dog a whopping 10 wins at the annual DICE awards show in Las Vegas -- considered the Oscars of gaming. With Naughty Dog's past creating hit franchises like Crash Bandicoot, Jak & Daxter and Uncharted, The Last of Us leads Neil Druckmann and Bruce Straley aren't strangers to success (these guys led development of Uncharted 2, another extremely successful game). Their latest work is a tremendous departure.
Former Free Realms lead outlines the dangers of metric-based design
GamesIndustry.biz has published an interesting think-piece featuring SOE's Laralyn McWilliams. McWilliams, former creative lead on Free Realms, says that free-to-play firms relying heavily on metrics to define their development roadmap may come up short. "There's no measuring spoon for love. You can't quantify it," McWilliams explained to a Casual Connect Europe audience. "Retention is not the same as happiness." She went to detail how metrics can contribute to an illusion of control and confidence on the part of developers when in reality, "the point is that it's a mix of logic and emotion that goes into our decisions as game designers. That's why we can never design by metrics."
Field Journal: Across the DC Universe
Funny story: DC Universe Online was the first superhero MMO I played to any meaningful extent. I briefly dabbled with Champions Online when it went free-to-play, but it didn't grab me enough to make me continue past the introductory area. A couple of months later I gave the still-fresh-from-launch DCUO a try. The game gripped me for the next four months, and though I would eventually find City of Heroes to be the crown jewel of capes-and-tights massively multiplayer games, DCUO is still one of my favorite MMOs. Why is that? There are several factors: the feel of combat, abundant collections that satiate my compulsions to find all the things, a costume system that lets me change any part on the fly, the inclusion of an achievement system that actually means something, and a vigorous update schedule including quite a lot of new power sets over time. Even little things contribute a lot, like how much of a badass I feel running at super speed up the side of a building and flinging myself from the apex for several blocks to land running up the side of another huge skyscraper. The biggest reason for me, though, has to be how well-realized the setting is in the game -- how Sony Online Entertainment has capitalized on the license to present a snapshot of the DC Universe at its best.
Jukebox Heroes: Free Realms' soundtrack
There's something about the announcement of a game's closure that draws tons of interest to that MMO, the type of interest that it frankly needed long before now, not a few minutes too late. Even so, I had Free Realms on my to do list for a while now and figured that spending an hour with its score was something that needed to be done. Free Realms had had a lot of fingers in its musical pie, including those belonging to Tracy W. Bush, Atli Örvarsson, David Raiklen, and Aaron Kaplan. As a score, it's very reminiscent of The Sims franchise's soundtracks: whimsical, childlike, and quite light on pounding percussion. The many minigames and themed zones probably demanded a good variety of motifs to be developed. It's a very good score overall although not as wide on variety as I would typically like. Let's give this game the musical send-off it deserves!
Grand Theft Auto 5 is the best-selling game of 2013
Between a $1 billion debut and rave reviews, it's probably not a huge shock to you that Grand Theft Auto 5 was the best-selling game of 2013. Regardless, Rockstar Games' parent company Take-Two Interactive confirmed suspicions today in its financial earnings release. "Grand Theft Auto V finished as the best-selling video game of 2013," the release states, attributing that claim to NPD. "To date, Grand Theft Auto V has sold-in more than 32.5 million units." Even with the game's mass popularity and somewhat staid approach to world-building, we can't help but commend Rockstar Games on the achievement -- we loved our time in GTA5's single-player and (occasionally troubled) online worlds. Now all we can do is hope for an even prettier version on these new game consoles (or PC, for that matter) in 2014, though we don't expect a repeat performance in the "best-selling game" category. Let's not get too crazy.
The Daily Grind: Which of the recent SOE shutdowns will prove the most influential?
SOE is putting down four of its MMOs this year, and while this has been discussed to death here and elsewhere over the past few days, one thing I haven't seen is any chatter about the legacies -- good or bad -- of Vanguard, Free Realms, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and Wizardry Online. So, let's talk about that now. Which of these four games do you think will prove the most influential in the long run? Why? 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!
DCUO begins the War of the Light in today's update
The first part of DC Universe Online's War of the Light DLC has gone live today, kicking off a multiple-update story arc involving the Lantern Corps, planet hopping, and a transformed Metropolis. Senior Creative Director Jens Andersen says that this update will get players to see the game from a whole new perspective: "Players are getting more than just a new storyline with this DLC. We transformed Metropolis for the War of the Light trilogy and created new, expandable environments and content -- separate from the original -- for players to explore." The DLC also includes the tanking rage powerset, more 4- and 8-player operations, plenty of Green Lantern gear, and the Legends PvP characters of Saint Walker and Atrocitus. The update is included with a subscription or can be purchased separately for $9.99. [Source: SOE press release]
SOE shuttering Vanguard, Clone Wars, Free Realms, and Wizardry [Updated]
SOE is closing down four of its MMOs. Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures and Free Realms will close on March 31st. Vanguard and Wizardry Online will bow out on July 31st. "At Sony Online Entertainment, we are always evaluating our portfolio to ensure we're providing players with the best gameplay experiences," the company said via press release. "At times, as part of this commitment, we have to make the difficult decision to sunset a game so we can refocus our resources on other areas in the best interest of our company and player community." SOE CEO John Smedley will be fielding questions on Reddit at 6:00 p.m. EST. We'll update you with the link when it's live. [Update]: Smedley's Reddit AMA
Choose My Adventure: Back in the saddle again edition
Yeeehaw! Now that Mike has finished his ride, they're lettin' me back in the saddle for another round of rootin' tootin' Choose My Adventure fun! And the opportunity has come not a moment too soon: I've had my spurs on and been raring to go for weeks now. As you know, this ain't my first CMA rodeo, and I'm sure as shootin' excited for this next wild romp through a new world. Of course, I won't be doing this alone. This ain't a one-woman show, and you ain't just spectators. I'm the rider all right, but y'all actually have a hold of the reins and will be leading me through the adventures. I'll wrangle up some options each week, and y'all will make the choices for what we do, where we go, and how we get there. Our first choice: which game we're going to tame! I've corralled a herd of titles that ain't seen their time in the spotlight yet (or at least, not for a long, long time). We've got an assortment of breeds to choose from -- some I've the barest hint of experience with; with others, I've none at all. Look 'em over, size 'em up, and then tag the one you want us to spend our next six weeks in. Y'all have until 11:59 p.m. EST on Saturday, January 25th, to make your selection. Then we rope the winner and get this ride started.
New DCUO trailer highlights Rage powers available today
The War of the Light has begun. This first installment of the multi-part DLC series is available to play today for subscribed members of DC Universe Online. War of the Light Part 1 introduces the crimson Red Light Rage powers set, the Blue Lantern Corps, new four-player operations, new Legends PvP characters, and the sentient planets Ranx and Mogo. Nonsubscribers can purchase War of the Light Part 1 starting January 28th, but everyone can get a preview of the Rage powers in action in the trailer below, and read up more on the DLC in Massively's interview with Creative Director Jens Andersen. [Source: SOE press release]
Alter Ego: Issue #6 - Gargoyles' Gaze
Last time in Massively's DC Universe Online comic, Batman tasked Kid Critical with finding out what Bane's thugs are doing in Gotham City's East End. As it turns out, the enforcers are offloading crates of the masked madman's venom at the Cape Carmine docks. Can The Kid stop them before Bane's strength-boosting street drug makes its way through Gotham's criminal underworld? Find out in Alter Ego: Issue #6 - Gargoyles' Gaze, after the break!
Armories arrive in DC Universe Online
So you're max level in DC Universe Online, and you have a lot of different options available to you. You have a setup you like to use for dealing damage, a setup for healing teammates, even a setup for when you absolutely need to get across an entire zone in less than three minutes. Swapping between those is a bit more taxing, though. Wouldn't it be nice if you could just instantly swap between a full loadout and appearance with just one click? Yes, that's exactly what Armories do: they allowing players to save an alternate build that can be accessed out of combat instantly. A free armory slot is given to every character following a quest, with additional slots (for additional builds) available in the marketplace for $6 (or less if bought in bulk). Each player base can hold four slots for a grand total of 16 Armory slots, giving you plenty of space to store all the alternate builds you could ever want.
Smedley expounds on benefits blunder and SOE's philosophy
When SOE first announced the membership changes coming to some of its titles, the company stirred up a storm that was completely unexpected, according to CEO John Smedley. After listening to the community, the studio reversed parts of the proposal and unveiled an extra benefit: a $14.99 All-Access pass. But even after a few extra posts explaining the changes and the reasoning behind them, there were still some unanswered questions and remnants of confusion from the quick succession of announcements. Why were some titles in SOE's arsenal listed part of the pass but others aren't? Which membership gift is actually the one going forward? When will these changes take place? And what about the European players? I sat down with Smedley to answer these questions and get some added clarity on these changes,
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: 2013 in review for superheroes
2013 was the first year in which City of Heroes didn't exist. The masses of hero fans cried out in anticipation of a new game but found nothing. All there was to be found was a deafening silence and three other games that scratched similar itches but didn't quite manage to hit the same heights. But we've talked about that as much as it can be discussed, and quite frankly I'm more interested in the now. We've got three titles that are still duking it out, trying to find their voices, and so forth. And then we have the header of Plan Z, which covers several different projects but at the same time serves as an interesting look at the community as a whole. So in the wake of a quiet December, let's look back at 2013 for the major titles and for the hopefuls. It was a year in which quite a bit happened, not all of it good, but it was still one that might have a big impact on the future of the superhero MMO field.
PlayStation Now actually works! (update: hands-on video)
You'll excuse us if we didn't expect PlayStation Now to work so well. It's a game-streaming service, and the history of game-streaming services is littered with dead bodies. When Sony spent an unbelievable $380 million on Gaikai, it seemed impossible that the service could ever live up to that incredible sum. While PlayStation Now may not live up to that massive payout, it does, in fact, work. And it works really well. We got our hands on PlayStation Now today at a CES 2014 PlayStation event, where we tried God of War: Ascension on a Bravia TV (without a PS3) and The Last of Us on a Vita. Both games played like there was a local PlayStation 3 (including the incredibly long initial load for The Last of Us) and ran without a hitch. There was zero perceptible lag in our (admittedly brief) playtime, and we suspect that the internet Sony's using is of the very strong variety.
Some Assembly Required: Virtual world roundup for 2014 and beyond
Just over two years ago there was a great disturbance, as if millions (or so) of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. Yes, something terrible had happened: a beloved virtual world was destroyed. And that left a number of sandbox refugees looking for a new place to call home. At that time, Some Assembly Required offered a roundup of the then available virtual worlds that could possibly offer accommodation, depending on what qualities players most desired in their games. But as things are wont to, they changed; a lot can happen in the MMOverse in 24 months, from additional features in existing games to new games to the loss of more worlds. So it's time to update this list of virtual worlds to reflect 2014 and beyond. Take a look and see what titles or titles-to-be have the sandbox features that best make a game a home for you.
Alter Ego: Issue #5 - Opportunity Knocks in DCUO
Previously in Massively's DC Universe Online comic, Kid Critical teamed up with Batwoman to rid Gotham of the Scarecrow and his hallucinogenic fear gas. Now, a new villain is filling the void, as the masked strongman Bane has set up shop in the city's East End and is terrorizing its citizens with an army of thugs powered by his rage-inducing venom. Can The Kid and the Bat family put a stop to his nefarious plans? Find out in Alter Ego: Issue #5, after the cut!
