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Here is the current Shards Online dev roadmap
Shards Online's Kickstarter may be over, but Citadel Studios looks to be even more determined to finish building its player-driven MMORPG sandbox. The firm has posted a new development roadmap on the game's official website, and Citadel co-founder Derek Brinkmann explains how the team is tightening its dev plan "to get to an alpha state as soon as possible." Brinkmann also mentions that one of Citadel's goals is to "have enough replayable content on our first map to keep players engaged while we continue development." Click past the cut to view the full roadmap.
The Firing Line: Five reasons to love Tribes: Ascend
Oh, Tribes: Ascend, if only you were an MMO. Actually, wait a minute. When I think on it, if Hi-Rez Studios' new free-to-play sci-fi shooter were an MMO, I probably wouldn't like it as much. There's something to be said for frequent updates and instant gameplay gratification, and Tribes provides those things (and more) in spades.
Guild Wars 2 to provide private server functionality? [Updated]
One of the more interesting reveals to come out of the post-PAX news glut is a blurb about player-created PvP servers in Guild Wars 2. Yeah, we did a double-take as well, and the post over on MMORPG.com is pretty light on the actual details while promising more info later in the week. Apparently, ArenaNet's Colin Johanson and Eric Flannum let slip that GW2 will allow players to "create and host their own servers or games with specific rule-sets as well." The thread title mentions PvP servers, but the "specific rule-sets" bit above seems to indicate that the mechanic could cater to roleplayers, PvEers, or any number of other specialized groups who desire a customizable play experience apart from the meddling masses. Is Guild Wars 2 following the trail that Neverwinter Nights blazed a decade ago? Is it all a misunderstanding? It looks like we'll find out later this week. [Update: ANet has clarified this topic by posting the following: "In the interview {Eric} mentioned that we are considering allowing players to 'create' their own PvP servers, it is not for certain. And we never mentioned anything about 'private PvE server' -- that is something we will definitely not do."]
The Anvil of Crom: Server merges, separation, and why both are potentially swell
Last week I mentioned that the Age of Conan Unrated announcement has given us a lot to talk about. There's the 800-lb. free-to-try elephant in the room, there's a bunch of new content that's both coming soon and already here, and there's also an endlessly fascinating quote from Funcom game director Craig "Silirrion" Morrison that is, well, endlessly fascinating. This last bit got lost in the big announcement blitzkrieg, and because it was buried in the depths of a thread about roleplay on the EU boards, it's safe to assume that 99.99% of Age of Conan players didn't read it. Regardless, it may well be one of the more interesting and exciting developments in Age of Conan's short history. What was it about? Well, it involves servers, server merges, and new technology that could change the way we think about MMORPGs and server populations.
The Lawbringer: A primer on private servers
Pop law abounds in The Lawbringer, your weekly dose of WoW, the law, video games and the MMO genre. Running parallel to the games we love and enjoy is a world full of rules, regulations, pitfalls and traps. How about you hang out with us as we discuss some of the more esoteric aspects of the games we love to play? The history of private MMO servers goes back to the heyday of the massively multiplayer, when the concepts of these virtual worlds were still in their formative stages. World of Warcraft private servers, also called emulated servers, boast numbers in the thousands, usually running off donations and providing a limited amount of the full WoW experience due to the nature of the reverse server engineering and implementation needed to run the game. One thing is for certain, though: Using the game client to connect to an emulated server is against the World of Warcraft EULA and cuts into Blizzard's profits.
The Daily Grind: Should MMOs live forever?
As we learned in the 1990s, just as Full House had an unholy beginning, so too it had to have an unholy finish. Life begets death, launches beget cancellations, and official MMO forums beget the end of a civilized community. So while we play our MMOs under the illusion that these persistent worlds will, well, persist forever, the truth is that one day the curtain will come down and our characters' journeys will come to a screeching halt. Generally, MMOs will continue as long as the companies running them find them profitable -- running online games isn't a charity, after all. Sometimes a flagging title will receive new life through a F2P transition, via a makeover, or by being lumped in with a group discount package. Our question today is a rather broad one: Should MMOs live forever, and if so, how do you propose they keep on running when the subscriber base no longer generates enough income to cover the costs? Are you OK with MMOs bowing out of the market once their numbers dip below a certain point, or should companies do everything they can to keep them afloat, including handing the title off to private server operators? 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!
Blizzard awarded $88M from WoW private server lawsuit
Tweet var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Blizzard_awarded_88M_from_WoW_private_server_lawsuit'; Private game servers are a controversial, often hushed topic in gaming circles. Some gamers enjoy the fee-free nature of private servers, while others use these forbidden realms to experience the MMO in a different state than the live game (for example, playing on a "classic" private server that doesn't allow for expansion packs). No matter what the reason, game companies tend to frown on such activities. Last week, Blizzard frowned at a particular private server and was awarded $88,000,000 for the effort. In October 2009, Blizzard filed a suit against Alyson Reeves, owner of Scapegaming and a private World of Warcraft server. Reeves was making a profit from the enterprise, using microtransactions on the server. The judge ruled that this was indeed copyright infringement against Blizzard, and ordered Scapegaming to pay $85.5M in statutory damages, $3M in inappropriate profits, and $63,600 in attorney fees. Reeves may appeal the suit at this point. As with the bnetd case, Blizzard is sending a clear message to people trying to mess with their code: don't. Scapegaming's Facebook page isn't exactly overflowing with support for the company, and we can imagine that many private server operators are thinking long and hard about whether the risk is worth it this week.
Private server company forced to pay Blizzard $88 million
A judge in the California Central District Court ruled Thursday that Scapegaming, also known as Alyson Reeves, has lost its lawsuit against Blizzard. Scapegaming had set up private Blizzard servers that included a microtransactions market. Blizzard sued them in October 2009 for copyright infringement. As we've covered here before, private servers are a violation of license limitations of the EULA. Blizzard considers any violation of those license limitations to be copyright infringement and sues people for such. Furthermore, Blizzard established in the "Bnetd" case that crafting software to set up a private server is a copyright infringement all on its own. The total reward of $88,594,589 comes from $3,053,339 of inappropriate profits, $63,600 of attorney's fees, and $85,478,600 of statutory damages. Statutory damages are damages required by law that are increased for willful and commercially based infringement. Scapegaming may appeal the amount.
The Daily Grind: What game would you like to see go open source?
For a game long known for its emphasis on player-created content, mods, and even skills, the big Ryzom announcement perhaps should have been expected. But the revelation that the game was going into the murky waters of open source, albeit with a few omissions such as height maps and sound files, is a far-reaching one for almost any game not wholly built around user generation (a la Second Life). And it naturally leads to the question: what other games would be nice to have access to from the source code up. It opens a huge number of doors, everything from private servers to full-on rewrites of the game as a single-player experience. For knowledgable coders, it turns every single patch and design decision into something that can be modified by the players. The breadth of options is almost overwhelming. Of course, Ryzom is a niche title with a strong emphasis on these kinds of innovations, so in a way it's to be expected. But it's the closest we've seen to a mainstream game going this route -- so what would you like to see? An older game that could benefit from the publicity? A newer game you feel could be improved? Or a sadly-cancelled game whose source code could be used as a resurrection?
Blizzard files lawsuit against private server
We've talked about private servers on the site here before, but in case you haven't heard the term: they're unofficial servers, very much against WoW's Terms of Use, that are run by companies other than Blizzard. They're shady as get out -- some make you pay (and these are not people you'd ever want to give any credit card information to), some will delete or change characters on a regular basis, and many times they're created just so whoever's running them can mess around with GM powers, and cheat with any items they want. So you can see why Blizzard would want them shut down, and that's exactly what they're trying to do with this lawsuit filed in the California Central District Court against a company called "Scapegaming" that runs at least one private WoW server (and they've apparently been running microtransactions in-game -- selling in-game items for "donations" of money). The law firm working for Blizzard, Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, also worked on the "Bnetd" case, which was another piece of unofficial server software that allowed players to play off of Blizzard's Battle.net setup. The complaint lists copyright infringement as the cause, which means they're probably using the same argument targeted at other private servers in the past. We'll keep an eye on this, but it's very likely Blizzard will win this one unopposed, and Scapegaming (or at least just their WoW server) will get shut down for good. Thanks, Phenom!
15 Minutes of Fame: Members only
15 Minutes of Fame is WoW.com's look at World of Warcraft players of all shapes and sizes -- from the renowned to the relatively anonymous, the remarkable to the player next door. Tip us off to players you'd like to hear more about.As Blizzard re-imagines old Azeroth, sweeps tired systems out the door and injects new ways for players to connect and work together, we can't imagine why anyone would not want to take advantage of what this top-notch MMO and company have to offer. There are players, however, who choose a different path. These players game on private servers, where conditions range from near-original mirrors to god-mode gameplay with super-GM abilities.We don't condone private server play, which is clearly against Blizzard's Terms of Service and EULA. Still, there are plenty of players who believe differently, and we were curious why they've chosen the private server route. We visited with a player who plays on a relatively tame private server featuring near-"normal" game play. What can he do that we can't? And what do we have that he doesn't?
Private MapleStory servers targeted for shutdown
In news that should surprise precisely nobody at all, AsiaSoft, an Eastern distributor of Nexon's MapleStory, has started targeting private MapleStory servers for shutdown. According to Asiaone Digital, it seems that one such person named Sean Lee is now under scrutiny by AsiaSoft for running a fairly popular server in Singapore. What started as a server run out of his bedroom for a handful of friends has blossomed into a server supporting 32,000 MapleStory players just a few short months later. Sure, it may not sound like much - until you realize that of the people polled for the story, half said they play on private servers. When faced with potentially as much as 50% of your userbase playing on private servers, you're talking about a very significant loss of revenue for AsiaSoft, and in turn, Nexon. That said, Sean is awaiting a formal take-down from AsiaSoft, even knowing he's currently being targeted along with several others for running illicit MapleStory servers. He stated that he's continuing to run it for the players because "If [he shuts] it down, [he] will be letting them down." Additionally, his parents allow him to run the server with full knowledge of what he's doing, so long as he agrees to take it down when AsiaSoft asks him to. Perhaps it's just us, but if we knew we were about to get a visit from men in nice suits who had legal documents that talked about things like "seeking financial damages", we'd be out of the pirated game server business quickly. Still, it's an interesting read, so be sure to check out the full story. [Via Kotaku]
[1. Local]: He broke out the mad baby pic
Reader comments – ahh, yes, the juicy goodness following a meaty post. [1.Local] ducks past the swinging doors to see what readers have been chatting about in the back room over the past week. Be sure to dive into the comments area of each thread (not this one!) and add your own thoughts – unlike your mama, we like us some hot, fresh backtalk. The great Hunter nerf of 2008We knew this week was off to a rousing start when our mailbox began filling up with "ZOMG!!11! Hunter nerf!!1!" e-mails. Just how big a nerf it was began to sink in when Adam Holisky capped his post on the topic with the image of a face that has launched a thousand QQs. "Oh boy, you guys broke out the mad baby pic!" exclaimed InsaneAssault. "This is serious business. Haven't seen that guy since the honor carryover article." Even those who weren't familiar with Mad Baby realized the gravity of his presence. "Where is the mad baby picture from originally? Does anyone know what happened to that kid?" wondered Frijona. Who nerfed that poor Mad Baby? Readers suggested a few theories – but we'll leave it to you to dig those theories out of the comments for yourself.
Breakfast Topic: Are private servers really that bad?
Blizzard has a very clear line on private servers: they are against the rules. If you have one or play on one you're going to get in trouble. Your account will get shut down and you'll likely face some legal issues if you don't capitulate to their demands.However is their stance right? Are private servers really that big of a deal?There are two ways that I look at the issue. One way is to view the issue through the lens of morality and legalese. In this respect Blizzard is on solid ground. They own Warcraft and all the associated games, and they own the servers we play on. When we buy the game we're not buying the property. We're buying the right to use the property as long as we keep paying a monthly fee, and as long as we operate within their guidelines (the terms of service).Some might contend that there is an innate right to privacy in the fact that after we've purchased the game (and its associated data), Blizzard has no right to tell us what to do with it or to find out how we're using it. I'm not a lawyer, but some are, and there's an interesting debate to be had here.
Blizzard legal targets private servers
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Blizzard_legal_targets_private_servers'; Privately run WoW servers have been dropping like flies in the last day or so after receiving letters from Blizzard's lawyers under the DMCA. They've been shut down so quickly and rapidly that it's being heralded as "the end of private servers" by quite a few people. The biggest and most well known servers such as Toxic WoW and Ani-WoW are more or less all gone already, and it seems that it's only a matter of time before the smaller ones go down as well. Supposedly, this letter has a pretty long list of sites and servers that are to be taken down.Some of these sites have just called it a day, shut down their servers and will move on with their lives, but a few others are already talking about starting them back up elsewhere, 'underground.' It's the internet, and at this point, that just seems silly. Blizzard is watching, and it seems this issue has moved up a notch on their priority list. My advice? Don't tempt fate.
Preview of the Motorbike vehicle in Grizzly Hills
Did you doubt that engineers would be the coolest players in the expansion? This little demo of the motorbike coming (supposedly) to engineers in Wrath of the Lich King is, as our own Dan O'Halloran said when he saw it, the first movie of WoW where the death metal actually belong. The thing tools around Grizzly Hills at top speed. Maybe it's just the way it's been implemented on the private server, but if those jumps are possible on the live realms (physics? in WoW?), then vehicles in Wrath are going to be awesome.Of course, this doesn't exactly signal the return to swords and sorcery that players were hoping for in Northrend -- what does it mean if we've replaced the spaceships of the last expansion with tanks? But WoW has always had a steampunk feel, and this does seem like a natural extension. Ladies and Orcs, start your engines![Thanks, Akussa!]
Jail time given to Chinese pirate server operators
In the continuing war against pirate servers, three Chinese men have been given jail sentences for running a ZT Online server.Chen Jian, the main builder of the server, has been sentenced to one year in jail, while his accomplices, Shi Zunkai and Sun Jun, were given ten months and nine months respectively. Also included in the final sentence was a fine of 60,000 RMB to be paid to Giant Interactive as damages for the activities of the server.
WoW Moviewatch: The BurningWoW Staircase Event
This video has been around since Spring, but I'm pretty sure we haven't spotlighted it. It's a creative way to use a WoW private server. Instead of lining up raid bosses and making them do the Macarena, these players created an event.They built a staircase in Azeroth a couple of miles high, allowed other players on to their private server, then had a race to the top. Let's just say not everyone made it to the top without falling. A very long way. Check it out for a fun event that should be in the game.Previously on Moviewatch...EDIT: I should add that while videos created on Private Servers are great fun to watch, playing or creating a Private Server is frowned on by Blizzard. And we don't recommend doing anything that might affect your game account with them.
Might as well face it, you're addicted to WoW
A tipster sent in a link to this post about World of Warcraft, specifically, how to force yourself to stop playing it.I don't know why this made me laugh as hard as it did. For starters, some of the advice is good... I'd encourage you to read a book or take a martial arts class whether or not you're going to play WoW any longer. Books are fun. I sometimes read a book while I play WoW, but I suppose that wouldn't really be what the article is going for.Part of the problem would be that I don't want to dismiss the article out of hand. After all, "Psychological dependence does not have to be limited only to substances; even activities and behavioral patterns can be considered addictions, if they are harmful, e.g. gambling, Internet use, usage of computers, sex / pornography, eating, self-harm, vandalism or work" according to Wikipedia's article on the subject. I suppose for me it's the 'if they're harmful' qualified that gets me. So far, WoW has given me and some friends some fun times and a chance to do something as a group when we can't all get together in one place, it's allows me to make new friends who live well outside my range, and it's allowed me to work out some frustrations that would otherwise go without venting. So for me at least WoW is a game that I play and a source of fun. Clearly, for some people WoW has become a big part of their social lives. And anything you care about can become an obsession or an addiction.But still, I cannot help but laugh when I see advice like "burn yourself out by finding ways to cheat...Find a private server to play on" or my personal favorite, "Sabotage your WoW future". I'm kind of surprised the original author didn't feel the need to add "Seal yourself in a lightless vault with only tins of tomato soup for sustenance" or "hire an angry man to break your thumbs if you go near a keyboard'". It just seems so hyperbolic and reactionary that I can't help but be amused by it. The funniest part is when he advises people to play on private servers, warms them that this may get their account banned as it is a violation of Blizzard's ToS, and then later advises people to violate Blizzard's ToS to get their accounts banned. I don't think most players have to go to these extremes, I know I don't play so much that I feel this kind of fear over it.Have you already begun to construct your WoW-proof bunker?
