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The Elder Scrolls Online answers more fan questions about combat
How do you keep character skills interesting and relevant when you've only got six slots to equip them? According to the latest series of community answers for The Elder Scrolls Online, the key is what kind of abilities are relevant. The skills on those slots are meant to serve as utility rather than raw damage, with your main attacks serving as your primary means of doing damage. Although a few skills will have added damage under certain circumstances, that's not the overall goal. Beyond that, the answers also address the issue of charging attacks and moving, which is both allowed and encouraged. Crowd control can be reliably broken out of with Stamina, but if your Stamina bar is low you can be caught and held for a while. You can also rest easy knowing that there will be no ammunition in the game, freeing archers from the tedious process of acquiring arrows at the worst possible time. Check out all of these answers and more in the full rundown.
LOTRO confirms player skill trees, expansion in the works
While it didn't take much reading between the lines to realize that Turbine has an expansion in the works for Lord of the Rings Online this year, the team confirmed the terminology in a dev chat. The devs hinted that the full announcement would come around the game's sixth anniversary next month. Players had many questions regarding the promised but vaguely detailed revamp coming to characters. Turbine revealed a few more details in the chat: "Three trees per class. Some degree of blending at a higher cost than sticking with a pure build. Bonuses granted based on an early-level specialization choice that grows as points are spent. You can have multiple specs. You can respec." Other interesting nuggets to chew on from the Q&A session include the news that player housing will include crafting facilities, virtue acquisition may see a significant change, and that applications for the player council will begin tomorrow.
The Elder Scrolls Online serves up a stack of answers about combat
The Elder Scrolls Online is going to feature combat, which should come as a shock to precisely no one. But how is that combat going to work? How important will the holy trinity be in practice? How ornate will your attacks and counterattacks be? These and more are all excellent questions, and they're also questions that have been answered in the latest installment of community answers over on the official site. And that's only a small fraction of the information. At the moment, the trinity setup is not vital but is certainly helpful, as tester groups without a dedicated tank have managed to clear content (albeit with some difficulties). The soft lock system is based more around offense than defense, as healing abilities are not targeted. Players can also feel free to join in when they see other players fighting things, as all players who participate gain the rewards of fighting as in Guild Wars 2. For more information about the particulars of combat, check out the full set of answers.
You have questions about The Elder Scrolls Online, the development team has answers
Prospective players have a lot of questions about The Elder Scrolls Online. What will I need to do to be a tank? How will I heal other people? Will I be carrying around every wheel of goat cheese in the world for no reason? The development team has sat down and answered a variety of player questions in a new feature addressing several assorted topics. Players interested in tanking will be happy to know that while you will generally want to be in heavy armor, a properly designed character should be able to last for quite some time in light armor. Those who prefer playing a pure role will also be happy to note that while the developers have harped on hybridization a bit, being a "pure" role will be perfectly viable and possible. And lore fans will be happy to see a variety of lore questions answered, especially concerning organizations and races that are important in later games but aren't necessarily around in The Elder Scrolls Online. So odds are good that when you read through the answers, you'll be happy.
Dark Age of Camelot launches an update and answers player questions
If you've been playing Dark Age of Camelot for a while, odds are good that you've acquired a lot of things. You've got a set of Epic Armor, you've got tons of items clogging your bank, and you've got a pair of fuzzy bunny slippers that you don't remember buying but you now refuse to remove. The game's latest patch does not improve your slipper situation, but it does improve Epic Armor, add new Epic Weapons and Accessories, allow for remote bank access, and increase the stack limits on many items. So everything else gets better. Does that satisfy you? No? You want to know more about the future of the game? Well, then, you can feast your eyes on a new set of community answers from the development team addressing the future update plans for the game as well as which areas will not be seeing much improvement (throwing weapons, for instance, are pretty much up the creek). So there's plenty for DAoC fans to enjoy. However, no one enjoys those bunny slippers. Seriously. Wear armor like everyone else. [Thanks to Etaew for the tip!]
LotRO players pick devs' brains over upcoming changes
Lord of the Rings Online players had a third go-around with Turbine's staff in the latest dev chat series. Well over 50 questions were asked and answered during the Twitter event, many of which concerned the upcoming class changes, housing revamp, and player council. There was even talk of a new monster play class, although the devs were careful to cage answers in "maybes" and "we've discussed it." So what are some of the possibilities for housing? "Just ideas for this month but... more/better storage, better item placement rules, ways to display armor/weapons." The team also hinted that "rewarding choices" will be tantamount to class builds, getting away from the hybrid design that was prominent in the past. It's a long and perhaps rewarding read, so get thee to the transcript if LotRO is your bag!
Guild Wars 2 schedules community meet and greet
If you're a fan of Guild Wars 2 and in a position to make your way to Seattle on March 1st, then ArenaNet has an invitation for you. The studio is hosting a community meet and greet on Friday the 1st in the evening at the Tap House Grill. The developers and CM team will be out in force to talk with fans, host a Q&A panel, and raffle off several prizes. There will also be refreshments for those who show up, although the event is limited to the venue's capacity and those 21 and over.
Adafruit's Limor Fried takes on the Engadget Questionnaire
Every week, a new and interesting human being tackles our decidedly geeky take on the Proustian Q&A. This is the Engadget Questionnaire. In the inaugural appearance of our questionnaire on Engadget, Adafruit founder Limor Fried opens up about her love for her Metcal MX-500 soldering station and the joys of open-source build projects. Follow us after the break for more from Limor.
Fifth live FFXIV producer letter to air next week
If you are fluent in Japanese and happen to be awake early on February 22nd, you can watch Naoki Yoshida answer fans' questions about Final Fantasy XIV in the the fifth live letter from the producer. The broadcast begins at 6:00 a.m. EST. For those who can't tune in (or who don't know the language), all questions and answers will be posted as they are addressed on the official Twitter account, and a full summary will also be posted on the forums afterward. Folks who want to ask Yoshida questions about the game's beta and official release can submit them either ahead of time on the official thread or during the livestream via Twitter using #XIVLive.
The Queue: Patch 5.2's release date and heaps of dirty laundry
Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. Today's edition of The Queue is mostly WoW Insider questions and not so much WoW questions, but we'll get the biggest WoW question of them all out of the way up front: frankie asked: Patch 5.2: Live before February ends?
The Queue: Let's see some hustle out there, patch 5.2
Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. I've officially reached the point where I'm tired of messing around with patch 5.2 on the PTR and just want it to launch. That doesn't mean everybody has reached that point, but I certainly have. sergel92 asked: Are the Zandalari good trolls, bad trolls, or just your normal trolly trolls? They seem to show different levels of morality, but I'm wondering what direction they are heading in now with Mists. Also, do ou think we'll ever see their leader Rastakhan one day, or even know where he is?
The Road to Mordor: Digesting the LotRO dev chats
Apart from the nightmare of Twitter spam that the recent two Lord of the Rings Online dev chats have produced, I'm pretty happy that Turbine's being more interactive with the community and taking on some of these topics head-on. Of course, everyone has his own areas of interest that were probably not covered to satisfaction, but looking through these two chats (December 20th and January 24th), we can deduce a lot of useful information about where LotRO is headed in the future. Personally, I am pretty excited about 2013 for the game. It feels as if the team isn't slacking at all, and while there are always my wish list items that go unfulfilled, often the devs add cool changes (like the Bree update) that are equally welcome. So let's sift the wheat from the chaff and see what we come up with from these dev chats as well as the recent producer's letter!
LotRO devs talk Updates 10 and 11
If you had questions that weren't answered with Lord of the Rings Online's last dev chat, then maybe you'll be covered with Turbine's latest Q&A between players and the development team. Today's dev chat took place on Twitter as the team tackled 40 questions from the community. Chief among the topics was Update 10, of which the team spilled a host of details. The update will go to the test server next week, and promises to contain new armor sets, standardized power pools, the removal of dread on the landscape, a big change to Wardens, and the second half of the instance cluster. Turbine also said that while Update 10 won't have a new book in the epic story, Update 11 definitely will (and it'll be "super-sized"). Update 11 is also slated to add a whole new region to the game that includes mounted and standard combat. We've got the beefy Q&A transcript for you after the jump, so check it out!
WildStar Wednesday: The return of Tester Man
This week's edition of WildStar Wednesday wraps up the tester tell-all that started last week. The anonymous Friends and Family tester made a heroic effort to answer another round of questions. He states that Nexus feels like a place ("albeit a semi-hostile one") rather than simply a video game location. He said that while leveling, it's difficult to want to rush through things, given how engaging the story and environment are. "While you can ignore content and proceed through the zones," he says, "I would feel like I missed out on something if I did." With refreshing honesty, he said that not all of his expectations have been met ("YET") but that he's been pleased with how some features are "way better than [he] had even imagined." He also said that the level of communication between testers and developers is "unprecedented." Tester Man's favorite class and race were both redacted. To let him speak for himself, go ahead and read the full Q&A.
Star Trek Online transmits plans for next two seasons, mid-year event
Executive Producer Dan Stahl is hardly shy in tackling the myriad Ask Cryptic questions, and today's Star Trek Online queries proved to be no different for him. While there was a hodge-podge of questions from players, it seemed as though the focus for many was on the future of the game and Season 8 in specific. Stahl said that Season 8 is due in the first half of the year, possibly in May, although there will be some content arriving this month for the three-year anniversary of the game. He promises that Klingons will "get some love" in Season 8 and hints at the vast wealth of additions coming with the update: "[It] will focus on adding new missions and storyline to the game in the form of a new adventure zone, new episodes, and another big feature, which is yet to be revealed." Following Season 8, Cryptic will then roll out a mid-year event and Season 9. The mid-year event was compared to the game's current winter event, with the possibility of taking place on Risa. Stahl is quite pumped for the year in general: "Season 8 and Season 9 are both going to be BIG releases. I'm very much looking forward to them because they represent the first big releases we will have been able to do with the increase to our live team staff."
WildStar tester talks about his experiences
Don't worry, this isn't some hideous NDA breach -- it's this week's WildStar Wednesday! Way back in the long-lost time that was known as 2012, WildStar fans were asked to submit questions for Friends & Family testers. This week we've been treated to part one of the responses to those questions, courtesy of one intrepid tester. The anonymous tester says that his favorite part of the game so far has been "delving into the mystery that is Nexus," while his least enjoyable experience has been on the Settler path. He's finding the double jump feature challenging due to its general finickiness. According to this tester, while mobs' telegraphs will tell you where you need to not be standing, knowing the best response to telegraphs comes with fighting the creatures and getting to understand them. When asked about any one thing he would like to see improved, Tester Man called out the map interface. "In a world where space travel is possible, control on what and when you see things on a map should be a given."
The Elder Scrolls Online answers queries about the Daggerfall Covenant
The word "Daggerfall" has special significance to the Elder Scrolls community, which is perhaps why the Daggerfall Covenant has received considerable interest among those following the development of The Elder Scrolls Online. ZeniMax has a brand-new player Q&A that covers the lore and history of this faction. The Daggerfall Covenant encapsulates the Bretons, Redguard, and Orcs, and is symbolized by a lion. A significant question is why the Orcs would join forces with the other two races. The devs responded by saying that the race feels inferior to others and is trying to get established as an Imperial province, although it's "an alliance of convenience." The developers also talked about the variety that's going into the Alik'r Desert, a plague of werewolves that's a significant part of the game, what towns we'll be seeing in the region (Bergama, Camlorn, and Lainlyn), and how the alliance between the races overcomes their religious differences.
LotRO's team fields live dev chat
A gaggle of Turbine developers sat down this afternoon to field scores of Lord of the Rings Online questions from the community in a live dev chat. Among the topics discussed were mounted combat, earlier zone revamps, class updates, and PvMP options. One of the burning topics concerned possible player housing improvements. Turbine said that it needed to address the vacant neighborhoods first, but was moving in that direction: "All I can say is that we have a lot of devs interested in doing some serious home improvement." We have the full chat transcript for you after the jump, starring Senior Producer Aaron Campbell, Lead Systems Designer Matt Zimmitti, World Designer Matt Fahey, Senior Content Designer Lauren Salk, Senior Content Designer Joe Barry, and Community Manager Rick Heaton.
SWTOR dev talks expansion skills, planet, and gear
"Questions you have, hmm? Answers you seek? Go read a dev round-up, you will! Hmmm!" That's the advice that a certain green puppet told us after the Star Wars: The Old Republic: Rise of the Hutt Cartel announcement left a lot to be discovered. Fan site Darth Hater did its good deed of the day by hoovering up and redistributing important dev posts on the forums about the expansion about some of these missing details. Senior Community Coordinator Allison Berryman addressed some of the most common questions, such as the viability of current endgame gear (answer: very viable) and how big this new planet will be. "To give you all a better idea of Makeb's scope," she said, "it's a planet of equal size to our larger planets and it contains a variety of areas -- sprawling mesas, underground caverns, garden estates, and more." Berryman also says that character development is a big part of the expansion agenda: "As part of the new content, every skill tree will be expanding and you can expect significant updates. Players will earn a new skill point with each level, and new skills will be available in each skill tree. Additionally, a new active ability will be introduced for each advanced class."
Blizzard Customer Support live Q&A recap
Yesterday, between 5pm and 6pm Pacific, Blizzard's Customer Support Team took part in a live Q&A, using some new software to answer players' questions in real time. In attendance were CS Forum Representative Vrakthris, WoW Game Support Manager Marcus Maczynski, SC2 Game Support Manager Angelo Concepcion, D3 Game Support Manager Andreas Unger, Senior CS Information Specialist Charles Areson, and CS Social Media Manager Antonio Achucarro. With players asking the questions, there was fairly high traffic for the team to deal with, Zarhym told us they received over 1,500 questions in under an hour! Not all of them could be answered, but we've been busy pulling out the key questions and responses for your delectation. Comment From legracen Are there any plans to update/change the in-game ticketing system for World of Warcraft so that the wait times for tickets can be reduced? Marcus Maczynski: Hello Legracen! We're constantly evaluating how we receive CS requests from players. Right-Click-to-Report and self-service options (such as Item Restoration) are both examples of this building in this efficiency. Updating the in-game interface to prompt players for exactly the information we need to service their requests is definitely something we want to do.
