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Massively Week in Review: March 4-10, 2008
This week saw a glut of news on Funcom's upcoming title Age of Conan. Meanwhile from the EA/Mythic side of the house, we heard that their Q2 release, Warhammer Online has a release date that is "set in mud." (We wonder if aliens haven't taken over EA. It doesn't sound like them.) For those who have been wondering which would reign supreme, this certainly makes the race a bit more interesting. From there, we touched on everything from the legality of actions in Virtual Worlds to the potentiality of a Grand Theft Auto MMO. (Have they not seen the sexiness above that is APB?) News NTU study on MMO gender selection to be published SXSW08: How gamers are adopting the wiki way RUMOR: Some Age of Conan pre-orders to get early access WAR's Q2 release date "set in mud" Activision exec discusses Call of Duty MMO Second Life tool suspended, author blames Linden Lab's DMCA procedures, mentor piracy Age of Conan trailer is up, and it's bloody Rockstar founder calls GTA MMO "the Holy Grail" Age of Conan FAQ reveals system requirements Blizzard takes third in comprehensive best developer of 2007 list Discussion The Daily Grind: Which game has the best admins? TurpsterVision: An Episode of Great Impotence Ask Massively: A column by any other name... Under The Hood: Strategy on a Massive Scale Behind the Curtain: Rehashing an old argument? Tabula Rasa + Vista SP1 = what exactly? The Digital Continuum: A fork in the road for WAR What do you want play more: The Agency or Warhammer Online? The Sky News debate: Do real world rules apply in virtual worlds? MMOGology: Identity crisis
Massively Week in Review: Feb 26 - Mar 3, 2008
This week saw some fairly interesting developments in the clash between current and upcoming free-to play titles -- especially those aimed at the tween/teen generations. We've seen updates on Disney's plans to release a series of youth-targeted MMOs, Cartoon Network gave Massively's own Akela Talamasca the scoop on their upcoming title Fusion Fall, and we saw some other primarily Asian MMOs branching into the Western market. (More cel-shaded games than you can shake a stick at, really!) We also landed a hot Legends of Norrath scoop, dug up even more Champions Online news, and got the word on several upcoming events. Check it out! News The Sims Online closes, relaunches as EA-Land GDC08: Cartoon Network's FusionFall 38 Studios using BigWorld to make its big world Exclusive look at LoN: Inquisitor's loot cards The future of Disney Online: An interview with SVP Steve Parkis Warrior Epic now in closed beta; accepting applications Pong creator Nolan Bushnell to enter MMO space NCsoft Europe's Ultimate Heroic Weekend! Come back to DDO for the price of free Champions Online developer post roundup Discussion Practical Marketing: The new media, the old messages and you TurpsterVision: Lord of the Dings Microtransactions, an Asian perspective Ask Massively: And now for something completely different... The Digital Continuum: Cops & robbers Investment of $1 billion+ wouldn't dethrone WoW, exec says Games that shouldn't be MMOs Choosing your race in Middle-earth: Dwarf and Hobbit Behind the Curtain: Should raiders get special treatment? The Daily Grind: Does WoW really need to be 'beaten'?
Massively Week in Review: Feb 19 - 25, 2008
What a crazy week it was! As you already know, last week was the Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco, where Massively landed their share of fantastic stories as well. If you're hungry for more GDC goodness beyond all the great things you saw here on Joystiq this week, be sure to check out the full Massively GDC 08 coverage for even more news and views. And who can forget the mid-week bombshell about Cryptic's new title, Champions Online, based on the Champions tabletop RPG! News GDC 08: Entertainment content convergence in online worlds LOTS more LotRO to come; Turbine extends LotR license Molyneux laments the state of PC gaming, blames WoW and The Sims GDC08: EVE Online's space stations Champions Online and Cryptic Studios information bonanza Peter Moore talks smack about Activision-Blizzard Criminal profiling is coming to a MMOG near you GDC08: The how, what, and why of LEGO Universe The PC Gaming Alliance is here to save the day GDC08: An evening with Will Wright minus friends (video) Discussion Lessons in online gaming circa 1997 hold true today The top 5 free MMOs TurpsterVision: London is HELL! The war of words for Sony's PlayStation Home and Second Life users begins The Digital Continuum: Superhero standoff The Daily Grind: When will you be done with WoW? Outdoing WoW at its own game Behind the Curtain: How far is too far? Movies that could make good MMOs: Highlander Marvel Universe Online: how would it have worked?
Massively Week in Review: Feb 12-18, 2008
It's been a somewhat quiet week in the MMO world with many companies and devs ramping up for GDC. What news there was, we found it -- even when it involved seeing some things we really don't think were meant for most eyes. We've heard conflicting reports on NCsoft's take on Tabula Rasa and the Austin offices, we've gotten the scoop on the new Legends of Norrath online crack TCG too. And for those of you who enjoyed pen & paper RPGs, we even got word that Cryptic is creating a superhero MMO based on the Champions system! Add in all the great new exclusive Massively features like TurpsterVision, and we'd say it wasn't bad for a quiet week! This week we've got several people on the ground at GDC along with the Joystiq crew, so be sure to check in with us at Massively! News Twofish to make microtransaction economies easier with middleware Upbeat Age of Conan state of the game letter notes cut features NCsoft's first console game to be announced this year Second Life on an iPhone Blizzard founder talks about WoW mobile PS3 vs. PC action unlikely for The Agency Cryptic announces Champions Online, their new superhero MMO Hello Kitty Online: I have no mouth, and I must scream Blizz announces WoW arena tourney with $75,000 grand prize TR guilds say game over to the endgame Sony Online Entertainment is looking for interns Did you give the gift of a hacked account this Christmas? Metaverse U conversation: Raph Koster, Cory Ondrejka, Howard Rheingold Tabula Rasa down in the dumps? with follow-up Tabula Rasa not in the dumps after all? GDC08: Leigh Alexander introduces us to Worlds in Motion GDC08: Age of Conan Preview GDC08: Exercise - the MMO? GDC08: What if your mana bar was green? Discussion TurpsterVision : Dancing in the Endless Forest The intersection of Spore and MMOs Getting around in LotRO: a transportation guide First Impressions: Sword of the New World Jumpgate's evolution(ary) inspiration Lawyers representing gold farmers threaten Lum the Mad Under The Hood: Player Economics 101 David Perry posits 70 Million player massive game Practical Marketing: Keeping your PR out of the trash MMOGology: Control yourself! Wrath of the Lich King could be very very sneaky
Massively Week in Review: Feb 5 - 11, 2008
This week was a mixed bag of news from the MMO front. We finally were notified of some forward movement on the Warhammer 40K MMO (not to be confused with Warhammer Online) and there was a rumor that filtered out that Bioware's new MMO is not a Star Wars MMO. And in even more awesome news, we're looking for MMOre to join in the fun of being a blogger for Massively! On the bad news side, Marvel Universe Online is definitely vaporware. Sorry Spidey, looks like it's back to the comic books with you -- but hey, at least they ret-conned your world back to normal! News Massively is Looking for More Rumor: Age of Conan in bad shape Age of Conan ratings for all territories revealed EQ2 GU42 goes live today with extra video goodness Collision detection in WAR's PvP Rumor: New Star Wars MMO isn't from BioWare? Second Life: Money for lies. Again. IBM disses virtual worlds WAR designer says they could ship without all classes Marvel MMO officially put to rest WoW: The Burning Crusade wins MMO of the year from the AIAS Crafter epic cloaks obtained, screenshotted and guides written Promotion code grants 20% off ticket price for Connect '08 Update on the Warhammer 40k MMO Comic Watch: Full Frontal Nerdity rings in the LotRO references Discussion Are MMOs killing the single-player game? Star Wars the only IP that can challenge World of Warcraft? Grimwell gives one reason fantasy pwns sci-fi, we go "Huh?" Behind the Curtain: A new take on quests? Ask Massively: Putting the "emo" in em-em-o The Daily Grind: How many MMO subscriptions do you have? WRUP: Find the logos edition The Digital Continuum: Statistical Anxiety Separation First Impressions of Dragonrealms Why mainstream media hates the Internet, games, MMOs and you There and back again... A writer's return to Lord of the Rings Online
Massively Week in Review: January 28 - Feb 4, 2008
Looks like a fairly standard news-week for us at Massively. We had a bit of rumor, some good (and bad) news, and covered a few events. We also threw our two cents in on pretty well everything -- but that's the fun part of the job! If you missed out on anything good, click on through for the top news and views from Massively. News PC titles only 14% of game sales in 2007, WoW leading the way WHA tellz you grots bout da' WAAAGH! The Secret World inspired by 'The Ring' Mabinogi hacked by a 16-year-old for $325K of virtual currency CES 2008: What the heck is Free Realms? Shadowbane resets with Patch 22, on test servers today Rumor: Warhammer Online collector's edition details leaked? Second Life: BBC documentary about virtual adultery IGE founders in legal battle Rumor: New Blizzard MMO to be Starcraft Online? Ladies and gentlemen: Flexiboobs Dungeon Runners releases characters in XML Liveblogged: Metaplace live developer chat today Blizzard defeats Peons4Hire gold farmers in court Sid Meier mentions possibility of a Civilization MMO Myst Online: Uru Live Tap-ped out again Discussion MMOGology: Group dynamics Penny Arcade digs on DDO, encapsulates modern MMO industry Building a better MMOusetrap: The age old debate 8 things NASA needs to get right Ask Massively: No really, ask us! Behind the Curtain: Something Unexpected Games that could be MMOs: Spore The Digital Continuum: Comparing core concepts of WAR and WoW Space for a new style of MMO? Dragonlance: A property ripe for the pillaging
Massively Week in Review: January 21 - 27, 2008
It's definitely been an interesting week in the MMO news world. Massively landed the inside scoop on SOE's upcoming title The Agency while at CES, Funcom decided to push back the release of Age of Conan, Blizzard's World of Warcraft hit the 10 million subscriber mark and Valve and CCP entered into a partnership making CCP's PvP-heavy MMO EVE Online part of the Steam network. In case you missed any of the larger headlines (or great discussions) from the world of MMO gaming, we've rounded them up for you. Enjoy! News FunCom decides Age of Conan needs more time, aka delay Massively Exclusive: CES 2008: A covert intel briefing on The Agency World of Warcraft hits 10 million players EVE Online heads to Valve's Steam platform Massively goes Hands-on with DDO and the Shroud Cartoon Network to enjoy huge TurnOut Post-apocalyptic MMO Earthrise announced Switchblade adding support for Hellgate: London and Half-Life 2 Star Trek Online follow-up: Kohnke drops its lawsuit against Perpetual Rumor: Blizzard working on a cell application for World of Warcraft? Auran wants to make you their bitch Discussion MMOGology: Thieving hearts Could MMOs be a subsitute for high school spanish class? An argument for random battles Why Fantasy, and not Science Fiction, Part Eleventy-Billion The Daily Grind: Should crafting be risky? Ask Massively: Old games, Blizzard's next MMO and bugs How would a Starcraft MMO work? The Digital Continuum: This year, PvPing is the new raiding
The Weekend Recap
Breaking news: SL's Nexus Prime devastated [Updated x2]One of the most impressive builds in Second Life was harmed when one of the designers decided to pull his prims out of the project. Many new people are left wondering why this is such an important place, while many older SLers are wondering just why it was done. The Digital Continuum: A Cryptic futureFirst they were rumored to be taking on the Star Trek Online IP, then it came out that they were just recruiting from the ranks of Perpetual Entertainment's recently laid-off staff. With their blog offline and information scarce, Kyle Horner looks at Cryptic's place in the market. Blackstar's prophecy revealedNot all studios who have lost their primary backing have folded, however. Spacetime Studios, the designers of Blackstar, continue work on their beloved project despite setbacks. If you've been waiting to hear about a great sci-fi MMO, this may just be the project for you. (Especially if you're an investor!) The WoW starts now Our very own Eloise Pasteur, a long-time Second Life resident, decides to dip her toes into Azeroth and figure out what the rest of us are generally on about. With her trusty pet bear, Eloise wanders the land and gives us her travelogue and thoughts as a virtual world veteran. Internet payment plan based on usage to be tested in TexasWe take a look at the plans by Time Warner cable to test out a new model that charges for bandwidth usage as opposed to a flat-fee for access. While this is normal in many other countries, it is largely unheard of in the U.S. Will this mean problems for all online gamers, or is this targeted to stop the torrenters in their tracks?
Massively Week in Review: January 1 - 7, 2008
While it's been a relatively quiet week news-wise, the news is starting to pick up steam again with yesterday's announcement of the pre-order boarding party for Pirates of the Burning Sea opening up. You just can't beat those large-scale naval PvP battles with friends -- or answering the question of just where the rum did in fact, go. Arr! News CES 2008: discussion panel on virtual worlds and the "MMO explosion" Indian computer hardware sales driven with MMOs as "killer app" TR demolitionist shows how a novelty build goes boom The myth of the bloody Webkinz murders Cinemassively: Illegal Danish - Escape from Orgrimmar Disney investing a cool $100M in virtual worlds Tradeskill developer for EQII Emily "Domino" Taylor chats about her role Hernandez drops HK IGE - Florida Economic Crimes Office investigates Ragnarok developer waking up to a Bloodymare Stargate Worlds Trailer plus further details on classes, story, and more Blizzard developers excited about WotLK PvP-only zone Linden Lab responds on fraudulent funds griefing Vana'diel and its RMT Special Task Force Discussion Ask Massively: The beginning Predicting the MMO landscape in 2008 The 'high fidelity' nature of MMOs As the Worlds Turn: Learning from the past Building a better MMOusetrap: Starting over Our 2008 Tabula Rasa wish list - it's sci-fi-tastic! MMOGology: Keep it simple, stupid
Random PSN recap: Trials of Topoq, Mesmerize, more
A lot of PSN games came out in the past few weeks, and we've been so busy playing that it's been hard to get impressions up on the site. We decided that, at the very least, we should give you a few lines of impressions for each of these games for those of you that are on the fence about spending your hard-earned gaming dollar. Trials of Topoq - $4.99This Eye game has you, once again, looking like a fool, as you try to navigate an orb to the exit. While the presentation is solid, the controls feel far less intuitive than a similar game, Operation Creature Feature. There are a lot of levels in Trials of Topoq, but if you really need an Eye-enabled game, we say you should get Creature Feature instead. Mesmerize: Distort - $1.99 Of all the Eye-enabled "screensaver" experiences so far, this is our favorite. The different effects are varied and engaging, and some even use the built-in microphone to great effect. The program is great at tracking your arms, and in one of the modes, you really feel like you're casting magic. With so little "gameplay" though, we do think this is a bit overpriced. However, if you're feeling experimental, go for it.
The Creamy GUI Center: Sick on the 4th edition
Each week Matthew Porter contributes The Creamy GUI Center, a column aimed at helping you enhance your WoW experience by offering an in depth guide to addons, macros and other tools we use to play WoW, along with commentary on issues that affect how we all play.Howdy addon and UI fanatics. To our American readers I hope you all had a great and safe 4th of July. Mine was spent on the couch with a bottle of Nyquil and jug of Gatorade as I've come down with a dreadful summer cold. My day was spent re-watching the Die Hard and Harry Potter DVDs while clouded in a sneezing and Nyquil haze. Right as John McClane is about to finally get Voldemort (as I remember it), I suddenly sat up and exclaimed "oh crap, this week's column!" For those of you coming here to read my review of MazzleUI as I mentioned last week, I apologize. As with my 4th of July plans, so too did my plans for this week's article take an unexpected turn due to my cold. The review of MazzleUI will have to wait till next week, as under my current condition I don't feel I could do it justice. After using it for a few days the MazzleUI compilation demands I be at my best so I can fully articulate what this UI package has to offer. So instead, I'm present you a week in review of addon and interface news.
Best of the rest: Ross' picks
Lumines Live! (XBLA) On a big screen with surround sound, Q Entertainment's Lumines Live was easily the most-played game in my library (if you stretch the definition of library to digitally distributed titles). Although I railed against how microtransactions were implemented in this title and still think the extent to which they disclosed the dearth of features was misleading, both the Basic and Advanced Pack got more than enough play time, as did the multiplayer. It is the best Xbox Live Arcade title since Geometry Wars.
Best of the rest: Kevin's picks
Saint's Row (Xbox 360)Sure it's a ripoff of Grand Theft Auto, but the graphics, gameplay, and plotlines are loads better. Plus you get to throw Mila Kunis out a window. What other game offers you that? It wasn't a feature in the recent Family Guy game.
Your Week in Nintendo - 11/20/06 - 11/26/06
Every week we provide Your Week in Nintendo, a feature that revisits the top 5 stories of the week. Top stories are chosen based on relevance and reader support. For the first week beginning Monday, November 20th and ending Sunday, November 26th, a week of contests and gifts both great and small, we give you: 5) Some people aren't fit to own a DSElite Beat Agents is so hardcore, it drives people to acts of random destruction. Well, one person, at least. And it may not have driven him so much as it was already there when he arrived at crazytown. Judge for yourself. 4) Big gifts for Animal CrossingIt was a good week to be playing Animal Crossing -- the release of the Wii brought all sorts of quirky gifts to towns everywhere. 3) DS jam bands imminentOne intrepid homebrew artist is working to turn the DS into an interactive MIDI maker that can play nice with anything on a wireless connection. We ooh and ahh at the appropriate moments. 2) Game night successThe first DS Fanboy Game Night featured the confused trading of friend codes and the lamentations of those who didn't own Mario Kart, but despite obstacles, tracks were raced upon, fun was had, and the staff took a beating. All is right with the world. 1) Snag free DS and GBA swagMutilate a picture of Tony Hawk and win a free copy of his Downhill Jam. Even if you lose, you win -- because what's more fun than putting Tony Hawk into a bowl of mashed potatoes? There's still time to get in on the action.
Your Week in Nintendo - 11/6/06 - 11/12/06
Welcome to a new feature at DS Fanboy -- where we recap the stories you don't want to miss. Top stories are chosen based on relevance and reader support. For the week beginning Monday, November 6th and ending Sunday, November 12th, Your Week in Nintendo brings you: 5) Elite Beat Agents arrivesAt last, the Elite Beat Agents are here to set things right. It's been one of the year's most anticipated titles, and now we can barely take time away from playing it ... unless, of course, we're talking about it. 4) Two great tastes Just in time for the Wii launch, Nintendo drops a gift from Twilight Princess into Animal Crossing: Wild World, though it won't be revealed until the 17th. 3) The debate rages onThis time, it's not the fanboys arguing about the merits of the DS and the PSP -- it's Sony's Dave Karraker comparing the media hub that is the PSP to Nintendo's handheld gaming system. Who knew being about the games could be so wrong?2) Things are looking good on the DSNew footage from Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker had fans stumped -- it looks so good, some mistook it for a Wii title! It's good to be reminded that it's not all about stylus-based fun with the DS. Nintendo's innovate handheld is powerful, too. 1) Apple v. Nintendo -- fight! Our favorite handheld dukes it out with the MacBook Pro for the title of Time magazine's Gadget of the Year.
Holidays with Joystiq: Memorial Day Weekend
We are not sure how most people celebrated Memorial Day, but we bet it involved a lot of gaming. The courts protect bloggers, PSP gets some Myst lovin', and we remember Apple's Pippin ... not so fondly. Here are the highlights for today:JoystiqueryWeekly Webcomic Wrapup: May 21 - 27, 2006Poll: Will the PS3 price affect your console combo?Games shipping this weekPower to bloggersNewsBFME2 high-def trailer for Xbox 360Indy returns in indie adventure game, Fountain of YouthAtari halts NWN1 support, in financial ruinPSP Myst coming soonTekken PSP packs a new PSP D-pad in JapanLink gets some lovin' from Out magazine"Wii-bashing is over" claims Nintendo UK bossCultureA look at how the PS3 got to be $600SA's Photoshop Phriday: Grandma doesn't get video gamesWhy there are no indie games (and why there should be)PC World says Apple's Pippin is the "worst"R.I.P. Nickster, gone but not forgottenMachinima commercials for virtual products
Joystiq @ E3: May 8, 2006
This is our second day covering E3 2006 in Los Angeles, and it has been a helluva hectic Monday. Our coverage on the Sony coverage has been huge, and we have officially launched the "E3 everything page" located here. Thanks again to Scott Johnson for his wonderful E3 Joystiq logos. While we consider taking a second job to pay for our PlayStation 3, here is our E3 coverage for the day:Joystiq's E3 everything pageLast call: E3 predictionsConferencesSquare Enix conferenceSony's PlayStation 3 event pre-game coverage!Engadget & Joystiq's live coverage of Sony's PlayStation 3 E3 eventAnnouncementsDesperate times call for desperate measuresFinal Fantasy XIII announced for PS3MS releases E3 content on XBLM The real PlayStation 3 controller revealed E3: PS3 launch details PlayStation 3 in its final formRandom JoystiqueryThe Gears of War mural, day 2Rogue building boasts PlayStation symbols?Nintendo's E3 booth in the makingClash of the Consoles: a sneak peek!
