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The Daily Grind: Do you roll on the test server?
Ah test servers. They run the gamut from not-ready-for-prime-time mess to "hey cool, content previews." Test shards feature everything from stand-up fights to bug hunts and quite a lot of shenanigans in between. Just about every MMORPG has one, and many game developers publicize the venerable PTS in order to sweet-talk players into providing free testing services for upcoming patches, expansions, and fixes. A few test servers change the game experience quite radically (Aion's double XP PTS springs to mind), while others are replicas of the live shards and even allow you to port over your existing avatars. For today's Daily Grind, we'd like to know your feelings on test servers, and specifically, why you do or don't use them. Do you do it to help out? Are you more interested in getting a leg up on the next patch? Do you avoid them altogether or do you roll on test servers? 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!
Fallen Earth 1.8 patch on PTS, extensive ability changes incoming
The Fallen Earth public test server (PTS) is the place to be for sneak peeks at upcoming content, and as of right now, said new content is the 1.8 patch. Icarus Studios' Carlin has posted the version notes on the Fallen Earth forums, and a quick glance at them indicates that 1.8 is quite the meaty update. The biggest change is the forthcoming ability revamp. According to the notes, "almost all abilities have been changed, with the goal of increasing the number and viability of different player roles and play-styles. Some abilities have been removed, and some new abilities have been added." Patch 1.8 also introduces new NPCs and missions in various parts of the wasteland, UI tweaks (including new chat channels), and an adjustment to the rate at which random AP is gained. If you've never tried the PTS on for size, you can download the client and also pay a visit to the forums to get your bearings.
City of Heroes offering a sneak peek of Issue 20 content
The team at Paragon Studios is talking a pretty big game for Issue 20 of City of Heroes. We've already seen a preview of one of the major additions of content, which will also herald several new features to the game, including an auto-team queueing function. Not sure how it will be implemented? Then jump on in for the special sneak preview event on Wednesday, starting at 7:00 p.m. EST, when players on the test server will get to try out the upcoming Behavioral Adjustment Facility for themselves. As this event is taking place on the test servers, the usual caveats that content may change significantly before release do apply. That being said, it's an opportunity to put the major new systems into play, giving players a chance to test out the queue system as well as the League setup, and of course, the Incarnate trial. If that's not incitement enough, the development team will be on-hand to answer questions and take part in the experience. City of Heroes players with a bit of free time on Wednesday are encouraged to head over and adjust some behaviors with extreme prejudice.
The Road to Mordor: Just around the bend
It's been a few months since the November Update in Lord of the Rings Online, and the natives are restless -- as usual. Some folks are despairing the long wait until Rise of Isengard while others are itching for more challenges to their currently level-capped characters. Then there are the players who are hopelessly lost in Moria and would give their eye teeth for a flashlight. Happily, a new update is just around the bend, code-named Echoes of the Dead. The actual name is Echoes of the Dead too, so I guess that's not such a great code. Over the past couple of weeks, we've started to get a feel for just how large this update is, and after reading through the Bullroarer test notes on Wednesday, I think we're in for a tsunami of a patch. Of course, these patch notes come in the middle of Turbine's carefully spaced dev diaries dealing with each major change or addition, which means that we're a little in the dark as to the specifics of half of this update. That's not going to stop me -- or any of you -- from analyzing, speculating and gesturing excitedly to no one in particular. So let's dig in to this hearty meal of mushrooms and patch notes to see just how deep LotRO's rabbit hole goes!
Double-plus good: Luna Online expansion heading to test servers December 24th
And now for a public service announcement from your friends at Massively. Are you suffering from a severe cute deficiency in your MMO diet? Then you may want to consider Luna Online, which has 400% of the recommended daily allowance of big eyes, oversized heads and giggly animals. To make your Luna Online life even better, gPotato has announced that the new expansion for the game, Luna Plus, is hitting the public test servers from December 24th through January 7th. Testers will be able to preview all of the new content and zones, including a 30-level increase (to the new level 150 cap), an additional race, a castle siege and seven previously unexplored areas. If that's not enough, Luna Plus will feature eight-person mounts, such as a giant snail. We just hope you and your party don't want to get anywhere in a pressing hurry. Luna Online players have a lot to look forward to with this first expansion, especially with the ability to get their hands on it even earlier. For more information, ask your local librarian or head over to Luna Online. The more you know -- and knowing is half the battle.
Wasteland Diaries: Tester-day
I spent an entire day on the Fallen Earth Public Test Server (PTS). I have to admit, I was pretty impressed with what I saw. The development team over at Fallen Earth, LLC is making some sweeping changes to the game. I wasn't just impressed by the new artwork and the smoother game mechanics; I was also impressed with the amount of communication the Fallen Earth dev team is giving to its testers. And why not? We pay the devs to test their product. While there is a lot of new stuff to check out, I spent the majority of a day trying to digest as much of this new content as I possibly could, and I didn't really even scratch the surface. I spent a good eight hours on the server, though about four of those hours were devoted to testing the combat system. I did a few bug reports, but aside from grenades being totally broken, most everything seemed to be in order. After the break I'll give you some first-hand accounts of what I've discovered. You could just read the patch notes, but it just isn't the same.
STO's Dan Stahl fields 30 questions about the Enterprise, Tholians and more
As Star Trek Online grows ever-closer to its one-year anniversary in February 2011, fans of Cryptic's space saga have burning questions about the future of the game. In swoops Executive Producer Dan Stahl to keep the flames under control with a whopping 30 answers in the latest STO Q&A session. As usual, there is no overriding theme to these questions, which range from whether we'll be seeing the 2009 Star Trek movie's Enterprise in the game (only if Paramount gives permission), whether Cryptic is working on more voice-overs for missions (yes), and when we'll be seeing the Tholians (probably not until after Season 4 releases). Stahl emphasizes that the STO team's prime directive is, simply, "More Like Trek," and the devs are working hard to infuse more of a Star Trek feel into every aspect of the game. Meanwhile, the Foundry -- the player-created mission system -- briefly went into beta on the Tribble test server yesterday, but was quickly taken down due to issues with the infrastructure. Stahl has great hopes for it, however: "In all -- the Foundry will open up the ability for the community to create some great (and let's be honest -- not so great) missions that you'll be able to play just like any other mission in the game."
Icarus publishes latest Fallen Earth State of the Game
Fallen Earth fans have had a rough couple of weeks (to say nothing of the staff at Icarus Studios). The post-apocalyptic sci-fi MMORPG was recently hit with a round of layoffs that impacted several key people and likely left subscribers wondering as to the future of everyone's favorite digital wasteland. Happily, Icarus senior game designer Marie Croall is here with a lengthy State of the Game letter that puts a few of our fears to rest and outlines a path forward. Though Croall doesn't directly address the recent layoffs, preferring instead to focus on the upcoming development schedule, it's clear that there are a lot of improvements incoming, which bodes well for Fallen Earth's fans and future. Croall talks about Sector 4, a level cap increase, and new gear, consumables, and recipes that will soon see the light of day. Graphical upgrades and physical combat changes are also on the way, with the latter being pushed to the test server before the end of the month. The Fallen Earth team will also be improving high-end group content, tweaking the serendipity system, and continuing to balance Progress Towns throughout December. Finally, look for long-awaited additional character slots to be available in the Fallen Earth store as early as next week. Check out the full letter on the official forums, and also look for the Fallen Earth devs on next week's Massively Speaking podcast with Shawn and Rubi.
LotRO barters, gallops and tasks with advance patch notes
Those who assumed that Turbine would be taking it easy for its next Lord of the Rings Online patch may want to sit down, buckle up and prepare to be thrust into a wall of patch notes. The list of changes and additions for LotRO's November update have been posted, and players may check them out on the Bullroarer test server. While the notes are "subject to change," they contain an impressive list of additions we've known were coming (such as expanding the free-to-play coverage to include the expansions all the way up through level 65) as well as a few surprises. Among the surprises are a new barter wallet to hold inventory-clogging skirmish and anniversary tokens, the ability for former subscribers to use swift travel routes, upgrades to reputation mounts, new ingredient packs for crafters and an overhaul of the Dwarf and Elf starting area. The notes also give us a peek at the mysterious "Task" system. According to Turbine, this system will add 250 repeatable quests to the game, be accessible by all tiers of players, and will require current trophy drops. Tasks will also come with a new set of deeds and rewards, hopefully adding to the amount of free Turbine Points that players can accrue. You can read the test server patch notes on the LotRO forums.
Wasteland Diaries: What's next?
There isn't yet a known release date for the next Fallen Earth patch. The 1.7.1 patch will make some fundamental changes to the combat system. These changes will be far-reaching, but they will not alter gameplay drastically. Mainly, we will see an increase in damage dealt across the board. This will make combat in Fallen Earth seem a bit more dangerous than it is now. PvE just doesn't quicken my pulse like it did when I was a new player in Sector 1. The patch will also address this. It will also add the faction control points. The main focus of the patch is the combat re-vamp and the control points. The Armor Use skill and the Dodge skill have been redesigned, and the way that damage mitigation works is a bit different in version 1.7.1. The faction control points will give the clones a reason to fight, and the victorious faction will reap far-reaching rewards. I'll go into more detail about these tidbits and more after the break, so without any further ado, let's move on.
Form and function in Fallen Earth's latest state of the game
There's been a lot of excitement in the Fallen Earth community over the upcoming combat changes, and in producer Dave "Archangel" Haydysch's latest state of the game address, he assures everyone that the anticipation is worth it. "As I mentioned," Haydysch writes, "this is the FIRST iteration... we will use your feedback to make further adjustments and improvements to the system until we feel the system is ready to go live." He urges players to participate on the public test server, where numerous systems are being tested, including these combat upgrades and the upcoming Faction Control Points, which should add spice to the PvP play in the game. Looking at future patches, Haydysch reports that the team will be revamping combat skills and mutations relating to each of Fallen Earth's six factions. The team is also working hard on bringing additional visual improvements to the wasteland, which "will improve the look and feel of the world as a whole." These improvements are scheduled to hit the game at the same time as the next live event, which is so far a mysterious mystery shrouded in mysteriousness. Finally, Haydysch acknowledges additional selections will become available in the Rewards Store, including (drum roll please) more space for inventory-starved adventurers. You can read the full state of the game report over at Fallen Earth.
Wasteland Diaries: Combat overhaul
Merging a roleplaying game (RPG) and a first-person shooter/third-person shooter FPS/TPS seamlessly can be difficult to say the least. I can only think of a few examples of games that have been done well in this manner. But none of the examples I can think of is an MMO. Granted I haven't played every game in existence, so this is by no means a definitive assertion. I'll call Fallen Earth an MMO/FPS in this post, for the sake of simplicity, even though it's an MMORPGFPS/TPS, but that's a mouthful and it looks like something an Enigma machine spit out. The Fallen Earth combat system is a mix of two very different game types: an MMORPG and a shooter. Some of my detractors insist that Fallen Earth is an MMORPG with "manual targeting," but I respectfully disagree and consider it as much of a shooter as games that run on the Quake 3 engine. Just because it doesn't have "bullet-drop" physics doesn't mean it's not a shooter. There is a combat revamp headed our way this month, so I thought I would do an in-depth analysis of the FE combat system. After the break I intend to pop the hood on the combat system and take a close look at its mechanics, then try to surmise what changes might be incoming (even though I've seen some of them).
New EVE character creation videos prove CCP can make pretty humans too
While some may not care for the sandbox play and politics of EVE Online, we often hear from people about how graphically gorgeous they think the game is. Well, with the new character creator that's been released to the Singularity test server, CCP is showing that it's ready to rock a whole new way -- Incarna! These two videos preview the shiny new creator in testing, showing off a Caldari Achura female and a Minmatar Brutor male character. We'd also note that CCP has made it clear that the character creator is a work in progress and as such is missing some options currently. Of course, we'd be lying if we didn't point out that this character creator preview video also makes us squee for CCP's other title under development: World of Darkness. The character creator for that game will have to be able to balance the ethereal beauty of the Toreador clan with the twistedly horrific looks of the Nosferatu clan all in one -- and we'd say this one shows the promise of having that kind of power. Check out the full videos after the break! [Thanks, CrazyKinux!]
Warhammer Online brings open RvR modifications to test server
Warhammer Online recently turned two years old, and while it's been an occasionally rocky two years, the development team has been focusing in on making the core of the game the best it can be. That's been the motivation behind the plethora of RvR updates that have been pushed live over the past year, culminating in recent news regarding the much-anticipated RvR pack. There's a lot more to come, however, and the team is giving players a chance to try out some of the coming changes early, with the updates to open RvR scheduled for public testing. The first massed public test of the new mechanics will be taking place on Wednesday, October 6th, at 8:00 p.m. EDT on the Warpstone test server. Tier 3 combat is on the menu, with templates provided for players who don't happen to have a character that fits the criteria. No word on whether or not participants will be eligible for prizes, but considering past test realm events, rewards for players seem like a distinct possibility. Warhammer Online players are encouraged to set some time aside for the Wednesday event and should prepare themselves for Warpstone access ahead of time. [Editor's note: We've corrected the error in the original post. Thanks to those readers who alerted us to the mistake!]
Aion's Assault on Balaurea expansion coming to public test server
OK, Aion public test server (PTS) fans: would you like the good news first or the bad news? Never mind, here's the bad news: the PTS has been brought down and its database wiped (i.e., your characters and legions are now digital rubble under the NCsoft wrecking ball). The good news is that all of the destruction, terror, and mayhem is in service to the forthcoming Assault on Balaurea expansion and its eminent appearance on the testing shard. Beginning on August 18th, you can be among the first to experience the new content, in addition to sampling it with the significant XP and drop-rate boosts exclusive to the PTS. The expansion hits the live servers on September 7th, so be sure and read up on how to access the PTS client if you'd like an early start.
Patch 1.3.6 available on Warhammer Online's Warpstone server
It's been a quiet month for Warhammer Online players, unless you've been part of the transition of management over in Europe, but change appears to be on the horizon. Patch 1.3.6 has been in development for a little while now, and the players are getting to take it for a spin this weekend, as it's just been launched onto the Warpstone public test server. As usual, the development team is hosting a Q&A session as well as a stress test during the test phase, and while the official announcement doesn't mention any giveaways, history would seem to imply they'll be there. Of course, all of the testing is well and good, but what does the patch actually contain? Fear not, as the full patch notes are available to read, with the major highlights covering item sets and RvR balance -- the latter addressed via the new "Against All Odds" system that gives a bonus to the underdog in RvR lakes. Items will now be customizable via appearance slots, and the Sovereign armor sets have been split into two potential sets for different playstyles. Take a look at the patch notes, and be sure to head on to Warpstone for a preview of the latest and greatest addition to Warhammer Online.
EverQuest II due for a major UI overhaul
The UI is simultaneously one of the most transparent and important parts of a game. EverQuest II doesn't have a bad one by any means, but the designers apparently aren't content with the current setup. They're already promising major changes to hit the test server in just over a week -- to coincide with game update 57 -- and among the many mechanical changes going along with the update will be a major UI overhaul. A post earlier today by lead programmer Greg "Rothgar" Spence confirmed that the team is re-skinning the default interface, as well as modifying several windows alongside it. While he's scant on providing exact details, he promises that players will get a chance to experience everything on the test servers very shortly. Although there are some concerns in the the thread regarding what the changes might mean for existing custom UIs, most seem cautiously optimistic. EverQuest II players should be ready for the test server in just over a week, with the patch likely not too far in the future past that. [via Zam]
EQII class changes now live on test server
Sony Online Entertainment's Dave Georgeson, senior producer on EverQuest II, weighs in on the game's official forums with some interesting information regarding upcoming class tweaks. As he indicated in a recent interview, changes are in the offing for the venerable fantasy sequel, and if this teaser is any indication, they're likely to be considerable. "The skill progression for the lower levels was a) drowning new players in skills that they didn't understand, and b) often giving players certain skills way before they needed them. Also, some classes just simply weren't getting enough useful skills in order to have fun. So we've shuffled things around," he writes. Highlights of said shuffling include the oft-neglected Dispel Magic mage skill being changed to Absorb Magic (which consequently drains the target of mana), a new level 6 priest damage ability called Wrath which scales with your character's level, and the removal of the fighter's Intercept skill since you'll rarely be grouping at low levels. Check out the full list of tweaks on the official forums.
New Star Trek Online patch structure looks forward
While you can fault the team behind Star Trek Online for some things, failure to plan is certainly not one of them. The development team has been very public about their plans for testing and release, which made a few people rather curious when Season 1.2 launched in early June rather than late May. What would that mean for Season 1.3 and the following Season 2 patch? The most recent Engineering Report on the official forums tackles precisely that, explaining that the team has adjusted their schedule slightly and will roll 1.3 straight into the Season 2 patch. That leaves us with an enormous list of features for Season 2, which is aimed at July. Ship interiors and a raise in level cap to 51 are the two most obvious changes, with the former offering a choice from several layouts and the latter promoting a player to the rank of Vice Admiral or Lieutenant General. There's also the addition of minigames, weekly episodes, officer trading, new episodes for the high-level band, a new fleet action, and a general surfeit of improvements to the game. Star Trek Online players are encouraged to check out the official thread and offer any feedback to the proposed changes.
Fallen Earth pushes fast travel, Serendipity to PTS
Fallen Earth's public test server (PTS) has some new content for intrepid wasteland bug-hunters. The updates take the form of fast travel, Blood Sports Assault, and a new system called Serendipity. Serendipity is designed to add a bit more variety to the game's PvE and loot tables. It will be "introducing rare spawns throughout the world. Upon their demise you will have the chance to receive new gear never seen in the game before, so be on the lookout -- you don't know what you will find," says producer Dave Haydysch. The fast travel is pretty self-explanatory, while Assault is a new Blood Sport PvP game type that features two teams of up to eight players as well as attack and defense objectives. Check out the full press release over at the official website.
