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DCUO sells base item packs
If you're the type of person who would rather hop on the express lane to interior decorating in a superhero setting, then DC Universe Online is rolling out the welcome mat for you. The MMO is now selling theme base item packs in its marketplace. These packs all contain housing items that can be obtained in the game, so it's a trade-off between spending time and effort to get them or to pay for the privilege of snatching them up all at once. Two of the item packs revealed are the Dynasty Starter and Greek Statues collections. [Thanks to Demonxaphan for the tip!]
NCsoft might allow players to resurrect the City of Heroes IP
There's good news for City of Heroes fans to celebrate now, even if it's not a finished thing yet. Nate Downes, President of Missing Worlds Media, has posted about a project wholly unrelated to City of Titans and yet entirely tied to it: the quest to resurrect the City of Heroes IP. He explains a story that began in September of last year, starting with a few contacts within NCsoft who led to the ultimate goal of resurrecting the last version of the game as well as licensing out the IP to its spiritual successors. The proposal currently on the table before NCsoft would allow the game's spiritual successors to drop the "spiritual" portion of their title, enable a restoration of the game's servers for the last update (albeit with no saved character data), and create the potential for a "transition" server between the original game and its successors. While it's far from a done deal, it's the best news that the former residents of Paragon City have heard since the lights went dark -- there may be brightness on the horizon.
PAX Prime 2014: Marvel Heroes is the industry's surprise success story
Meeting with Marvel Heroes' David Brevik at PAX Prime confirmed what I have been observing over the past year or so: This game has quietly and steadily become one of the bigger success stories in the online gaming industry. Brevik told me that the Marvel Heroes playerbase continues to grow, boasting four times as many players as it had nine months ago. What did Brevik attribute to the game's meteoric rise? The promotions and sheer mountain of new content that the team's been adding certainly helped, but he said that it really came down to terrific community relations. Brevik streams the game four nights a week and talks to the community members as though they were part of his family.
Get a glimpse of Rogue in Marvel Heroes' video preview
Few are the superhero fans who don't like Rogue, the saucy southern villain-turned-hero, and Marvel Heroes will soon be adding this powerful X-Man to its lineup. With her unique power-absorbing abilities, how will Rogue work in the game? Devs hosted a lengthy livestream to introduce the hero and show off her versatility. Of Rogue's three power sets, only one is pre-defined -- the Miss Marvel set with flight, strength, etc. The other two are customizable based on the powers players actually steal from friends! If you missed the stream, you can get full details on stealing powers (as well as forgetting them to learn others), in the hour-and-twenty-minute video right here. There's also some talk about Jean Grey and Ghostrider, who get a Dark Phoenix power and more single-target attacks, respectively. Fans can also discuss Rogue in her special forums on the official site. Rogue is available currently for pre-order.
Marvel Heroes now featuring Operation Omega
Operation Omega is going on right now in Marvel Heroes. In fact, it's a week-long event that started yesterday, so it will be going on for some time. It features 24 percent server-wide boosts to XP, SIF, and RIF as well as harder enemies and more loot. Oh, and don't forget to collect those Omega access files and trade them in to Dum Dum Dugan for exclusive items and artifacts!
SOE Live 2014: DCUO's Legends PvE and a la carte DLCs
A superhero game deserves a super announcement at SOE Live, and DC Universe Online delivered. Creative Director Jens Andersen and Assistant Creative Director SJ Mueller shared details about many upcoming updates, from the second installments of the various trilogy story arcs to new movements and powers to a whole new way to purchase the DLC themselves. Oh, and we can't forget one of the biggest announcements: Legends play is coming to PvE!
Players allegedly negotiating with NCsoft to buy City of Heroes
Instead of spending gobs of volunteer development time and money on City of Heroes knock-offs, wouldn't it be better to simply acquire the real deal? That's the thought behind a fan effort to purchase the rights to the superhero MMO from NCsoft, while proving to the publisher that the team has the talent and capability to handle the property. According to a poster named Ironwolf on the Titan Network message boards, progress is being made on this front. Ironwolf wrote the following on August 13th: "I did contact the team yesterday and got this reply back: Things are moving along. We should have things worth showing fairly soon, made a great leap forward yesterday." The efforts to purchase City of Heroes started in early March, according to a timeline on the same thread. On March 12th, Ironwolf noted, "Got letter back from [former NCsoft executive] Chris Chung -- it showed that is WAS possible to buy the game." On April 5th, he wrote that the general range of the price is "very doable." [Thanks to Duane for the tip!]
SOE Live 2014 in pictures: H1Z1's Zombie Prom, a costume contest, and attendees galore
Every year there seems to be something different at SOE Live. IN 2013, there was the big reveal of the new EverQuest Next and the surprise announcement of Landmark, complete with sand art and champagne. This year, one popular festivity focused on another new title in development: H1Z1. Attendees got all dolled up and put on their best undead faces for a night of dancing at the Zombie Prom (those who preferred the living enjoyed a pool party). It was quite the evening, complete with a wedding proposal! But even as some things change, some stay the same. Friends and guildies meet up (or just plain meet!), games are played, tournaments are won, costumes are shown off, swag is collected, and folks have a good time geeking out with devs. There were also plenty of heart-warming moments, from stories of players helping players to actual weddings. If you weren't able to attend the festivities, or you just want a little pick-me-up as you come down from your convention high, here's a quick look at the weekend in pictures.
Champions Online brings the Steel Crusade on September 4th
If you've been sitting around in Champions Online and cooling your cape for a while, you'll be happy to know that a new update is dropping in September, and it's a big one. Partly because players will be facing off against Mechanon, and he's pretty large to begin with. But it's also an update that introduces several new areas, a new mission arc, and a new experience for players who have hit the level cap and want something new to do. Steel Crusade is a two-part update that starts with players finding people bursting into flames across Millennium City in an adventure that leads inside the bodies of the victims to identify the source of this affliction. Ultimately, the arc culminates in a direct attack on Mechanon's orbital station... followed by an anniversary event that pits players against Mechanon himself in a world boss encounter. It also introduces something that City of Heroes veterans will find familiar in the form of the Reawakened Automaton: a new archetype available to experienced players with unique perks.
Marvel Heroes unleashes Cosmic Chaos Week
Bad things to unleash include krakens, tempers, and the hounds. Good things to unleash include puppy parades and Marvel Heroes' new Cosmic Chaos Week. This soon-to-be monthly event features a week full of double boss loot drops, double prestige earned, and cosmic doops as far as the eye can see. There will also be opportunities to save up for special rewards and to buy certain galactic-themed heroes for a discounted price. The event is currently live and will go until the patch next week.
DC Universe Online unleashes the Halls of Power
It's been years since DC Universe Online launched, and yet players have spent all of that time without nearly enough material on the New Gods. But that's changing now; the Halls of Power part I DLC has just been released, and that includes exactly what you'd expect if you know who the New Gods are. Darkseid's son Kalibak and the villainous Mantis are seeking out relics beneath the surface of Apokolips and New Genesis, leading Mister Miracle and Big Barda to recruit heroic forces to stop their malevolent designs. The DLC contains two new Raids and one new Operation for eight players, along with an Alert and an Operation for four players. It also offers six new Skill Points, new styles and gear, new feats, and all of the other widgets like base items that you'd expect. This content is available now for players on both consoles and PCs, so even if you're not versed enough in DC lore to understand what's going on, you can still take part and start smashing (or helping) the villains. [Source: Sony Online Entertainment press release]
DC Universe Online DLC is 75% off right now
Not everyone is as rich as Bruce Wayne, so for those of you who have been pinching your pennies instead of splurging on DC Universe Online content, here's where your thriftiness pays off. Steam is holding a 75% off sale for much of DCUO right now. This includes 10 DLC packs for $2.49 apiece and the Ultimate Edition bundle for $7.49. In fact, you could buy the whole kit and kaboodle (that's a superhero term) for only $32.39 $22.50. That's less than the cost of many box games these days right there, so what are you waiting for? [Thanks to Balsbigbrother for the tip and to greaterdivinity for the math!]
Marvel Heroes celebrates Guardians of the Galaxy
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy film hits theaters on August 1st, and Marvel Heroes is counting down with its 10 Days of Guardians of the Galaxy in-game event. Players can complete three shared quests once per day to max out their allotment of Planet X Bark, which can then be redeemed for loot boxes with varying levels of unique rewards. There's also a daily login reward, so head to the official Marvel Heroes website to read all about it!
Touring DC Universe Online's league halls and Halls of Power
It was a couple of years ago that we got our first in-depth look at DC Universe Online's personal housing system, dubbed lairs. Since then, heroes and villains alike have been looking forward to the league version. Thanks to the announcement earlier this month, we knew that the wait for league halls was almost over; guild-level housing was to hit this summer. Surprise! GU39 and league halls launched today! And thanks to a special tour with Creative Director Jens Andersen and Community Manager Ted Stone (AKA Mepps), I got a good look at the league hall system and how it all works in the Halls of Power Part 1 DLC due later this summer.
DC Universe Online dev weighs pros and cons of recent update
Lead Content Designer Donovan Kennedy has a new dev blog up on Gamasutra in which he breaks down the challenges the team faced with DC Universe Online's recent Amazon Fury Part 1 DLC pack. He first identified three "strengths" of the DLC: helpful early internal feedback, cool story missions, and the opportunity to visit familiar locations. "These missions were right on target and players have given overwhelmingly positive feedback-not just on the cool game mechanics, but also for Wonder Woman and Circe's personalities really supporting their personal objectives and how they interact with the other Amazons," Kennedy wrote. On the flip side, Kennedy said that the studio over-planned the map, needed more internal playtesting, and got pushback from players not always happy that they had to learn new combat mechanics for a couple of the missions. He was especially apologetic about pushing out an update that wasn't fully polished: "When Amazon Fury was pushed out to our public test server, there were a few glaring bugs that came back to bite us (after they were found by players -- ouch!)."
Super Hero Squad Online revamps cash shop, posts Recharged trailer
Kid-friendly Super Hero Squad Online is today touting its recent Recharged patch, the game's biggest ever release. Recharged brings new starter heroes, new gear, new achievements, and new missions to the game. Players and parents will want to know that the cash shop has been revamped and prices on buyables like heroes have been reduced. Currency acquisition has also been redesigned and simplified; the game's currencies have been merged into one currency called fractals, which are now obtainable in larger quantities and through more activities. Gazillion boasts that its active playerbase has more than doubled in size since the update. Enjoy the game's fresh trailer below.
SOE Live player panels include support for military gamers
SOE Live posted its list of player panels today for its convention, with topics ranging from supporting military gamers to fansite management. The full list is as follows: Friday, August 15 11:00 am - 12:00 pm -– EQ2U & Dragon's Armory 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm –- Live Together, Die Alone: Surviving H1Z1 as a Group 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm –- Inter-Outfit Operations in PS2 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm –- Become Your Character: Tricks and Tips for Cosplay 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm –- Military Gamers: Taking Care of Each Other Saturday, August 16 10:00 am - 11:00 am -– Social Media/Steaming & Fansites 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm -– Effective Guild and League Management 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm –- Improving Your EverQuest 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm –- DCUO – Advanced Raid Tactics 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm –- The New Conglomerate 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm -– Hardcore Decorating in EQII 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm –- EQII Game Macros, ACT Triggers, and You!
City of Titans shows off engine progress for July 4th
Everyone celebrates the 4th of July in different ways. City of Titans celebrated with fireworks. That might not seem like much until you watch the video and understand that it's the first video wherein every single shot is focused on things that the design team made. The fireworks, the physics effects governing them, most of the buildings -- all designed by the team at Missing Worlds Media. Previous videos of the game have relied heavily upon off-the-shelf assets and resources that other people had made, but this video is a look at a landscape moving from "designed by others" to "designed just for this game." Obviously there's a long way to go, but if you're looking forward to seeing what the team at Missing Worlds Media can do in the future, this is a good place to start. [Thanks to Byron for the tip!]
Marvel Heroes has great plans for you this Fourth of July weekend
Do you have a few days off this weekend for superhero action? Marvel Heroes has a trio of events lined up for players this weekend who have an abundance of time on their hands. The main event this weekend is a "Red, White, and Loot" boost to rotating game modes. Marvel Heroes will increase loot drops between four game modes depending on the time of day. There will also be BBQ-themed drops all over the game (because HULK LOVE HOT DOG!) and an extended Soccer Showdown event that neatly coincides with the World Cup.
DC Universe Online adding League Halls this summer
Just because reruns dominate the TV during the summer doesn't mean that geeks need to submit to rehashed entertainment during these months. Why, DCUO has canceled the annual family road trip to pump out a new DLC that's coming later this summer, just to keep everyone happy. The game's 11th DLC is called Halls of Power Part 1, and it will send player heroes into a new saga looking back at the ancient past in the Fourth World. The DCUO dev team is creating five additional raids, alerts, and operations to go with the update, and players will have six new skill points to earn. However, the crown jewel of Halls of Power Part 1 is the implementation of League Halls, which looks to be DCUO's answer to guild housing. League Halls will be added shortly before the DLC for free to all players. [Source: SOE press release]
