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Final Fantasy XI laps the Year of the Sheep
Here's a fun Final Fantasy XI fact: When the game launched in the west in 2003, it was the Year of the Sheep on the Chinese zodiac calendar. Now it's 2015, and the Year of the Sheep has arrived once more, putting the team in an interesting position. "When we first created the new year's event, we never imagined that it would ever come full circle, and thus the festivities are especially moving for me," writes Producer Akihiko Matsui. To celebrate the new year, the team posted a short story on the site and is in the midst of a sheep-related new year's event. Players are encouraged to "consort and cavort" with sheep for prizes until the event ends on January 14th.
WildStar releases Voyage of the Nomad, plans story rollout
Carbine Studios has just announced new content for WildStar... well, for the WildStar website, anyway. Voyage of the Nomad, a short story that "recollects the tale of the Cassians' first steps into the vast world of deep-space exploration," will go live on the official site's story page today. And it won't be a lone entry. Carbine plans to publish 11 such tales starting today and running every other Tuesday until the plots are played out. "The stories will unfold chronologically, until they reach the events that players have already experienced in WildStar's main story," says the press release. Hey, at least the lore-fiends among the greater MMO playerbase will be happy!
World of Warcraft offers up the complete Tales of Pandaria
Do you feel that you got a sense of all the storytelling to be found in Mists of Pandaria? Probably so; you've had more than a year to get through everything, after all. But there's more to the lore than just what's found in World of Warcraft. The complete Tales of Pandaria series of short stories has been collected on the official site, complete with the option to download the stories for offline reading. None of them is essential for understanding what took place on Pandaria, of course, but each of them provides a larger context that questing can sometimes miss. Not really your thing? More interested in watching players beat one another up in-game? Then you can watch the World of Warcraft North American Arena Tournament this Sunday. Starting at 9:45 a.m. EDT, the live stream will cover the best-of-five matches between the current teams in the running, with the three best teams getting a shot at the championships at BlizzCon. If that's more interesting to you than fiction, get the full details on how to watch and who's in the running.
Another stretch goal hit for The Repopulation, another short story chapter posted
The second Kickstarter for The Repopulation is humming along at a decent clip at this point. It's already met its target goal, and now it's just a matter of smashing down stretch goals. The latest mark has funded the addition of calprate mounts to the game; they're the vaguely deer-goat-thing displayed in the header image, for the record. Except that one doesn't have a player-shaped bit of cargo on its back. Baby steps. In addition to looking forward future stretch goals, the team is also posting chapters of a short story to the official website. Chapter 4 of "Evening Star" is available to read now, detailing more of the world and feel of The Repopulation for existing backers and potential future backers. Or just people in need of a science fiction story to read on a Friday afternoon -- they're welcome as well.
The Elder Scrolls Online regales us with the history of a king
Pour a tall mug o' mead, my friends, and prepare to be entranced with the tales of The Elder Scrolls Online. ZeniMax's scribes have crafted a particularly cunning tale of Jorunn the Skald-King for you to enjoy. As Jorunn is one of the key figures in TESO, we figure it's a good thing to keep tabs on him and his history. The short story tells of his upbringing and ascension to the throne of the Ebonheart Pact. The team indicated that we should expect two more stories covering the other faction leaders. Give the short story a read and let us know whether this man is the type of fictional character that your fictional character will swear fealty to or not!
Quest for Pandaria concludes with part 4
The fourth and final installment of Sarah Pine's novella Quest for Pandaria was released yesterday on the official site. Part four of Chen and Li Li's journey takes them to the open seas, where they encounter a massive storm, and a tense face off between two ships, one Alliance and one Horde. While this is Chen and Li Li's adventure, the fourth part of this tale does a lot to highlight the feelings and tensions between the two factions in a meaningful way. And it also does a lot to clear up timelines. At the end of the tale, Chen and Li Li have witnessed the clearing of the mists surrounding the continent of Pandaria. This places the mist-clearing event somewhere just before the attack on Theramore Isle depicted in both scenario and the novel Tides of War. Unfortunately, the tale did little to clarify what exactly made the mists part in the first place ... which means this may be one of those important plot points we'll explore later in the expansion. Quest for Pandaria served as a an excellent introduction to Mists of Pandaria, and a wonderful bridge between the graphic novel Pearl of Pandaria and the new expansion. Part four is full of emotional moments and characters that you really don't want to miss. You can read part four, or the story in its entirety, in the Expanded Universe section of the official website.
Quest for Pandaria part 3 now available
You know, of all the things I mourned about Cataclysm, I think highest on the list would have to be the fate of the tol'vir. Despite being a fascinating race in their own right, one that was absolutely ripe for potential, their story was overshadowed by yet another jaunt with Harrison Jones. It was disappointing, particularly because the end of the tol'vir story arc was so open-ended. What happened after the war was completed? What of the tol'vir now? Quest for Pandaria attempts to answer a few of those questions in its latest installment as Chen Stormstout and his niece Li Li continue their search for the lost continent. Upon heading to the sandy deserts of Uldum, both Chen and Li Li come face to face with the aftermath of the tol'vir war -- and deal with the consequences of the fallout in their own way. It's another small glimpse of the elusive tol'vir race, this time illustrated through the eyes of complete strangers to tol'vir society. And it's also another well placed step towards rounding out Chen's character. I love Chen Stormstout, and I love the direction they're taking him. This is the third chapter to the four-part story written by Sarah Pine, and I think it's my favorite so far. You can take a look at the chapter in its entirety in the Expanded Universe section of Blizzard's official website.
Blizzard short story Quest for Pandaria now available
Part one of Quest for Pandaria, the newest addition to Blizzard's online collection of short stories, has been released on the official website. The events in Quests for Pandaria take place directly after the graphic novel Pearl of Pandaria. While Pearl of Pandaria's release date is still slated for the 25 of this month according to Amazon, some have been reporting that the graphic novel is already available in bookstores. As for Quest for Pandaria, the story continues where Pearl left off with Li Li Stormstout and her Uncle Chen safely home on Shen-zin Su. But while Uncle Chen seems to be happy and even content with his return to the island, Li Li finds herself growing more and more restless and discontent. Will her thirst for adventure lead to lands long thought lost? Or will she find herself dragged back home against her wishes? Today's release was just the first section of the four-part story, so some answers will have to wait. But it's a compelling tale that's beautifully written by Sarah Pine, author of Garrosh Hellscream: Heart of War, and the 2008 Global Writing Contest winner In the Shadow of the Sun. Please note that Quest for Pandaria does contain plot elements from Pearl of Pandaria. If you're planning on picking up the graphic novel, you may want to hold off on this short story until you've read the book. You can find Quest for Pandaria, along with all of Blizzard's other short stories, in the Expanded Universe section of the official website.
Know Your Lore: The fascinating implications of the WoW TCG
The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how, but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft. The Cataclysm expansion set out to do what prior expansions tried to do, and improve upon it in a significant way -- significantly inject lore into gameplay. And to some degree it worked; players found themselves working their way through zones both new and old by taking part in an interactive story. In between, we had short stories and novels that tied directly into that gameplay, weaving each part of the Warcraft franchise together into a solid storytelling tool. But it also had its flaws. Storytelling in zones was fantastic upon first playthrough, repetitive upon repeated play. The story of Cataclysm was so widespread that it didn't seem to have the kind of dramatic impact it was intended to have. And Cataclysm introduced so many loose threads of story that trying to pick a clear resolution out of the tale was difficult, to say the very least. And then we have the ending, signifying the dawning of the "Age of Mortals" with no clear definition as to what that really meant. We've got a little more definition now, and it's from an incredibly unlikely source, the last part of the franchise that didn't seem to have any significant lore tie-ins at all: the WoW Trading Card Game. Please note: Today's Know Your Lore contains some minor spoilers for Jaina Proudmoore: Tides of War. If you're looking to avoid all spoilers, you may want to come back when you're done with the book!
The Repopulation broadcasts its first public gameplay footage
Drips and drabs of information about the sci-fi sandbox The Repopulation have been coming in, but as with any title in early development, it's never enough to satiate the masses who want the whole scoop. So consider today's bounty of the first gameplay footage and a lore piece as an appetizer to tide you over until the main course. The gameplay video demonstrates one of the core features of The Repopulation: its city-building system. During the 12-and-a-half minutes the video runs, fans can check out how cities are put together piece by piece using a wide variety of tools and fellow player cooperation. The devs also take this opportunity to discuss the UI, controls, and how alliances work in the game. The team also posted a lore piece called Leesa's Story on the site. The vignette introduces the titular character, a cook who also happens to be a cook, and her misguided adventures going duck hunting. The Repopulation is currently accepting signups for its alpha testing, which begins in June. You can watch the full video after the break. [Thanks to J.C. for the tip!]
Tyrande Whisperwind leader story up on official site
The night elves have taken a beating in Cataclysm, even with their role in adding the worgen of Gilneas to the Alliance. The Horde has attacked them in Ashenvale, disasters have wiped out their settlements in Darkshore, Azshara is lost and Feralas in danger of being lost as well. What is Tyrande Whisperwind, high priestess of Elune and leader of the kaldorei, doing about all of this? Well, in Seeds of Faith, you'll get your chance to find out. Disaster after disaster besets the night elves. With news from all over their ancient lands coming back and the tides of war turning against them, can Tyrande afford to let her personal feelings overwhelm her leadership? And what of the fate of Shandris Feathermoon? These questions are answered in the short story by Valerie Waltrous, available now on the official site.
Read 'Naked Angel' from L.A. Noire: The Collected Stories
Known for his "Hap and Leonard" tales, Joe R. Lansdale is one of the crime novelists lending their skills with prose to the upcoming L.A. Noire: The Collected Stories eBook from Rockstar. Today you can read his contribution, "Naked Angel," in its entirety for the low, low price of free. Complex has posted Lansdale's short story, which is one of several that will comprise the full collection, due out June 6 as a digital-only release at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and the iTunes Store. That timing's just right for investigating more of the L.A. Noire universe after solving finishing the game.
Breakfast Topic: What's your story?
Blizzard has recently announced its short story contest, which has had several of us here at WoW.com pondering what we should enter. The choices themselves are fairly open with StarCraft, Warcraft and Diablo universes to choose from. StarCraft has military, covert ops, high technology, space silithids and galactic conquest. Diablo offers a darker fantasy realm than what we play in WoW, with stories of the occult, demons and undead, and heroes rising from hardship to overcome greater evils. The Warcraft universe itself has a myriad possibilities to borrow, from dinosaurs to steampunk, with the hard honor of the orcs to the nonsensical gadgets of the gnomes. The upcoming Cataclysm also brings forth a lot of story possibilities, as does any time of great change. Races are opening their doors to previously shunned concepts such as night elf mages, while others are rediscovering a lost heritage in the Darkspear tribe's druids. The Lich King's grasp on the world has been beaten back and veterans of the war in Northrend will be returning home to try and resume their previous lives as merchants and farmers. Races like the gnomes and dwarves have had their eyes opened to their origins in titan creation, which could rock the very foundation of their ideals and beliefs. So, I bring the question to you. What's the story you would write? Will you delve into StarCraft and Diablo or stick with WoW?
Blizzard manga giveaway from Lorehound
Lorehound.com once again continues to offer up all things good and manga-related by putting up a fun little contest. Look at your bookshelf. Is it barren of any Blizzard/Tokyopop manga titles? Does it weep silently in the night, wishing it could be graced by the volumes of Warcraft Legends and the Starcraft titles? Hope no more, dear bookshelf, for if you enter Lorehound's Incredibly Short Story contest, you have the potential to win every single Blizzard manga title in existance. Put on your robe and thinking cap and write a 150- to 300-word story on why you think you deserve the book collection. It can be anything: sob story, comedy, thoughtful introspective, a shopping list or whatever. Submit your story, and Lorehound will narrow down the runner-ups. From there, the community will vote on which one is the best. Considering this is nearly $70+ worth of manga, I'd say that's not a bad deal. Best of luck to all who enter!
One Shots: The ISK is good
Every so often we get a truly excellent bit of writing from one of our One Shots contributors to go along with a great screenshot. Today we have one such story-treat for you from Redwense, pulled from a day in the life of EVE Online. Since it's a bit too large to fit on the front page, we're going to get all the normal column stuff out of the way early. If you'd like to stretch your creative writing wings with a very short story about your screenshot, mail it in to us here at oneshots AT massively DOT com along with your name, and the name of the game. We'll post it out here and let everyone enjoy! Be sure to read behind the break for the rest of Redwense's story."Look at it, Ryl. Isn't it beautiful? The way it shimmers in the sun, the amount of ore waiting to be extracted..."%Gallery-9798%
Global Agenda fansite competition offers up more keys for next closed beta phase
With Global Agenda's current closed beta being all the buzz these days, getting in is no easy feat. Hi-Rez Studios is treating their testing phases as actual controlled testing -- with only around 1,000 people to start and mandatory feedback from the testers. If you're just looking for a free game to play for a few months, you might want to look elsewhere.Going hand in hand with that, many Global Agenda fansites are being offered a very small amount of beta keys to distribute to their readers. You may remember earlier in the month when we gave away 10 keys for AgendaSource.com, and now we're here to help another fansite give away their keys. Keep reading below for more information.
Write a Wrath of the Lich King story, win BlizzCon tickets
And here's another BlizzCon ticket contest (see, we told you there'd be more). Pixelated Executioner got his hands on an extra ticket (though he's taking the goodie bag, but beggars can't be choosers, we suppose), and he's offering it up in a story contest -- to enter, you've just got to punch out an original Wrath of the Lich King-related story, at least 700 words, and send it over to him on his blog.It's only for US residents, and you've got to find your own ride and hotel at BlizzCon -- you'll have to meet him at the gate to get in, and he apparently wants a picture (and to supposedly publish the story, so anyone who doesn't want to be in the spotlight can probably pass now). But after you say hi to him, the rest of the conference is yours -- if you're interested in hitting every chance to grab a BlizzCon ticket you get, better start writing.The entry is due by September 14th, and PE's email is on his blog. Good luck to everyone who enters, we can't wait to read the winning story.
EVE Online story chronicles a little violent oppression
Another Empyrean Age-themed EVE Online chronicle has emerged. This one relates to Tibus Heth, the head honcho of the Caldari faction. It's the fourth out of five in a series CCP has been adding to every single Monday. If you haven't read any of them, and you're an EVE player, you should check them out. The game's lore is one of its most underpraised assets.This chronicle tells the tale of Caldari materials tech who makes a wrong move and gets dragged into some violent consequences. We won't spoil anything beyond that; check it out if you're interested. Our favorite part was a clever Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan reference. See if you can spot it!
99 Tears Vs. 96 Tears
Remember that time you spent fifteen minutes on all fours on the kitchen floor, violently bawling your eyes out over the final, bitter departure of a loved one, or the sudden death of your dog in a road accident? Good times, right? Well, 99 no Namida (Tears of 99) will be aiming to replicate those surges of emotion throughout Japan from tomorrow, when the sob-inducing game gets released. It's intended to be for your own health, apparently.In case you somehow doubted the game's efficacy in making you blubber through one of its 200 short stories, Namco Bandai has attempted to scientifically prove just how much inner turmoil the title can generate. The pie charts above came about after the company conducted a survey of 500 people to highlight the effectiveness of 99 no Namida.And this is where it gets a bit obscure. We know that the white areas in the pie charts represent people who didn't cry, and the dark blue indicates those who cried heavily. We also know that the right chart depicts the proportion of people who cried while playing 99 no Namida, while the left chart displays how many cried when ... well, we're not actually sure, but the headline does reference 1960s rock and roll band Question Mark & The Mysterians and their song "96 Tears." Man, beats us.Whatever the first chart represents, the central message remains the same: 99 no Namida will make the majority of players cry big, salty tears. Now weep your sad selves into our gallery for six new shots.%Gallery-15389%
Cry 99 Tears over a glass of wine
In what seems like a very appropriate promotion, Namco Bandai will offer a specially-labeled wine to tie in with 99 no Namida, the game featuring short stories designed to elicit tears. Go ahead and start crying now unless you'll be in Tokyo between June 5 (the game's release date) and June 30, because the 99 no Namida wine will only be available in the Vinoteca wine bar located in the Tokyo Midtown area.Banamco also announced that soccer star Naohiro Takahara had contributed a story to the game based on his own experiences. Short story writer Yasushi Akimoto also revealed that he had written one of the game's tales. Is this the first original short fiction anthology video game?%Gallery-15389%
