the-mmo-report
Latest
The MMO Report: Cybernetic Arm Replacement edition
Welcome to a very special PAX Prime 2011 edition of The MMO Report. Surely you've read all of Massively's PAX coverage (you have, haven't you?), but in case you somehow missed it, don't fear. The MMO Report is here to give you the skinny on the big MMO happenings at one of the country's largest gaming conventions. The show kicks things off with -- surprise! -- Guild Wars 2. Content Designer Mike Zadorojny talks about the new skill progression system and the removal of the energy mechanic, and also notes that closed beta is still on track to take place before the end of the year. Then it's on to Firefall, the new MMOFPS from Red 5 Studios. The open-world portion of the game was the newest addition to the game's PAX 2011 demo, though players also had the opportunity to try their hand at the game's competitive PvP. Funcom's The Secret World is up next with news on the game's large-scale persistent PvP. Small-scale PvP battlefields make an appearance as well in the form of Stonehenge, El Dorado, and Shambhala. Star Wars: The Old Republic rounds out the MMO selection with the game's Huttball and Alderaan PvP battlegrounds and the Eternity Vault endgame Operation. For the full video and all the juicy PAX 2011 MMO details, jump on past the cut.
The MMO Report: Gamescom wrap-up edition
This week on G4TV's The MMO Report, host Casey Schreiner talks about RIFT's half-year anniversary, Guild Wars 2's crafting videos, WildStar, and several other topics that act as a bit of a wrap-up from last week's Gamescom in Germany. In Uncle Casey's Mailbag, we get treated to Casey's opinion on the BioWare same-sex-marriage exclusion in Star Wars: The Old Republic and are warned about being put on the National Sex Offender Registry for comments that came in from last week's show. You sickos! Check out the video in its entirety after the cut.
The MMO Report: What is this I don't even edition
Welcome once again to Massively's coverage of The MMO report, where we get to imagine that this entire article is read by a 1930s radio announcer. The first order of business today is the record-breaking scam perpetrated in EVE Online, followed by the energy and weapon ability changes in the most recent test build of Guild Wars 2. Then we've got The Old Republic's first show of endgame content in the form of the Eternity Vault being showcased at Gamescom. Meanwhile, The Secret World announces a release date, slating the game for April 2012 with beta signups beginning on August 26th. LEGO Universe's transition to a free-to-play model rounds out the selections before a trip into Uncle Casey's Mailbag for some schmemes and other goodness. So jump on past the cut and check it out. Oh, and don't ask about the beginning. We don't know either.
The MMO Report: Higher credit rating edition
This week's MMO Report finds Casey Schreiner looking to exchange sexual favors for a higher credit rating. With that out of the way, he also finds time to talk up a few MMOs. Highlights include a mention of Blizzard's panda-flavored expansion rumors as well as a bit of commentary on BioWare's Jedi Consular class trailer for Star Wars: The Old Republic. Next up is a blurb about Guild Wars 2's Sylvari week, and in addition to hearing Schreiner utter the phrase "sentient tree-sprout," we get a recap of the recent blog post focused on the character designs. Bounty Hounds Online also gets a mention, and The MMO Report even has a few beta codes to hand out for the upcoming sci-fi MMO. This week's Massively mention (always the highlight of every MMO Report broadcast) is up next, and focuses on DC Universe Online's superserver merge. Finally, no MMO Report would be complete without Uncle Casey's mailbag, and you can find that -- as well as the rest of the show -- after the cut.
The MMO Report: The Force is with you edition
Casey Schreiner needs to play with his new laundry and wash his iPad -- or maybe it was the other way around -- so we must hurry through the description of this week's MMO Report! I'm not joking, he really has to leave quickly. Casey starts with quips about a bearded dragon in the new expansion for Lord of the Rings Online, which is ironic, coming from the Master of Beards himself. Following that, our man of MMO mystery discusses the vehicles, beta, and pre-order for Star Wars: The Old Republic. He says the very thing that is on the mind of every fan: "EA you're doing it wrong." First you announce release date, followed by pre-order, and then beta! On another topic, Casey begs the new VP at Disney Interactive Studios, Bill Roper, to actually release information regarding the Marvel MMO. And lastly, Sir Schreiner lets us in on PvP for Rusty Hearts and explains why America needs to be more like Russia. To catch all of this and dip into Uncle Casey's mailbag, jump past the break and get ready for all the sweetness of the MMO Report.
The MMO Report: The no-class edition
This week the MMO Report was shot at 12 o'clock Tyrian Standard Time, which most likely means that you were fast asleep or eating lunch. To help you catch up on what you may have missed, we will give you a quick overview of what Casey Schreiner had to say about this week's MMO news. First off, the host extraordinaire mentions Massively by name when regarding the new hide-outs in the Champions Online. It appears he is most fond of the Mother's Basement venue. However, the Moon Base may have caught his eye, too. Secondly, Casey reaffirms his love for EVE Online, or not... maybe it is just his enthralling voice that keeps us glued to our computer monitors as he discusses the trailer that tells us why we should love EVE. Next, our intrepid host stealthily guides us through all the non-American names associated with the surreal MMO Glitch. Lastly, he breezes over the new The Secret World trailer before reaching into his glorious mail bag and pulling out some memes. Jump past the cut to witness the full splendor of this week's MMO Report, and don't miss next week's Fan Faire edition that is all about SOE's event in Los Vegas.
The MMO Report: Oh come on can we please just drop it already edition
Welcome to this week's edition of The MMO Report. The first order of business on The MMO Report this week is Age of Conan: Unchained. Funcom's bloody MMO went free-to-play last week, and also released their new Blood and Glory PvP servers yesterday. Next up we have BioWare's latest class video for Star Wars: The Old Republic. It focuses on the Bounty Hunter class and details the progression options available to Boba Fett wannabes. And then it's... Oh, not again. Monocle-gate, okay? Do we really need to say anything else? Lastly, we come to the announcement that Blizzard's project Titan is going to be a casual MMO. Considering the fact that, as Casey puts it, many players consider World of Warcraft to be casual as it is, what this means for Titan is ambiguous at best. For the full MMO Report, including (for the first time in a while) Uncle Casey's Mailbag, jump on past the cut.
The MMO Report: Guild Wars 2 edition
In today's MMO Report, Casey Schreiner takes his viewers to Bellevue, Washington for a trip to ArenaNet's offices to preview Guild Wars 2. Casey talks to two members of ANet's team: Game Designer Jeff Grubb and Lead Content Designer Colin Johanson. Jeff spends most of his time filling Casey in on the lore of Guild Wars 2, detailing the story that leads to the alliance between the Humans and the Charr and the addition of the other three races of the game. He also discusses how the choices players make will influence their story experience. Colin, on the other hand, is more focused on the gameplay end of things. He talks about how the game's classes will function without the omnipresent holy trinity, explaining that classes can fill various roles, which can be swapped between in combat. Dungeons are another topic covered, and Colin explains the differences between the story mode dungeons (which are more casual, story-driven experiences) and the exploration mode dungeons (which are tailored for more hardcore players seeking a challenge.) For the full, info-packed video (plus an inside look at the swanky ArenaNet offices), click on past the cut!
The MMO Report: What's with the creepy guy edition
In this edition of the MMO Report, Casey Schreiner's epic beard is upstaged by the creepy guy kissing his desk. The desk is gorgeous, but I don't think the make-out session was consensual. No means no, creepy guy. As for MMO news, Casey is back from E3, and a bunch of games go free-to-play. There has to be a connection between those two events. Also, Casey cannot help but correlate the patch in his favorite bum-hugging jeans with the patches in RIFT and World of Warcraft. Understandably so, they both keep water rifts at bay, and at the same time, quench fiery lands. Lastly, the MMO Report shows us that the pen is mightier than even the laser sword, as Casey introduces us to last Friday's Star Wars: The Old Republic dev blog and displays the latest fan-created memes. Catch the full MMO Report after the break, and maybe you can tell us why that guy felt the need to profess his love for furniture at that moment.
The MMO Report: Nerd-flu edition
In this week's MMO Report, Casey comes to us directly from E3 2011, where he verbally spars with a variety of game developers while battling off hunger, fatigue, and nerd-flu. Watch Casey's stats slowly dwindle as he confronts the many dangers of E3, such as overstimulation and the dreaded natural light. The first stop on Casey's E3 journey is an interview with Square Enix's Frank Fonseca, with whom he discusses the upcoming tactical MMORPG Wakfu. He gets a few details on the political system and discovers how tactical combat plays out in an MMO space. Next, he gets some face-time in with Producer Thomas Farrer and Creative Director Torfi Frans Olafsson from CCP, who tell Casey all about how the interplay between EVE Online and upcoming DUST 514 will work and why DUST 514 is different from other console shooters. From there he scurries off to En Masse's booth to have a chat with TERA's North American Producer Chris Hager, who discusses TERA's big political system reveal as well as the name of his potential political party. Last stop on the Casey-train is BioWare's booth, where Casey parleys with Star Wars: The Old Republic's Senior Live Producer Blaine Christine. Blaine gives Casey the low-down on Tatooine, the newly introduced player vehicles, and what players can expect in regard to The Old Republic's much-hyped story. For the full video, sadly lacking in the Uncle Casey's mailbag department, jump on past the cut.
The MMO Report: Predictions of E3
This week's MMO Report is coming to viewers live from E3! Well, in theory, anyway. See, at the moment, our host Casey Schreiner is nowhere near the studio, being at E3 himself, which means that this week's installment is not about what's going on at E3. Rather, it's what Casey predicted would be going on today at E3. So you can amuse yourself where the predictions were entirely wrong and see if any of the wild guesses turned out right after all. Needless to say, predictions regarding Star Wars: The Old Republic run rampant, as does speculation about Guild Wars 2, TERA, and The Secret World. Of course, you've no doubt been following our E3 coverage here religiously, so when you click on past the break you can see for yourself what was on the money and what went completely off the rails, along with a completely true prediction about the next big hit in the MMO world.
The MMO Report: Casey says frak edition
This week's MMO Report is all about Casey's ego. Not one shred of MMO news bullied its way onto the show this week, unless you count a story about Battlestar Galactica Online reaching two million subscribers as news. OK, maybe you can count Age of Conan going free-to-play, or maybe the newest Minecraft update is technically news. Perhaps Perfect World Entertainment buying Cryptic Studios would be considered news, too. But let's not forget: The MMO Report is really about Uncle Casey's Mail Bag. So that is exactly what will fill the rest of this post. The Mail Bag this week is all about love, love, and memes. Fans share their love for each other, love for Casey, and love for Morgan Webb. Yes, she's been gone for two weeks, but apparently Casey's manly smell has not ousted the memory of the time Morgan hosted the MMO Report. One fan has not forgotten; he was so inspired that he created a meme about it just to show how much he cared. Jump past the break if you are interested in catching a glimpse of Casey Schreiner's ego. We have the full video ready to go. Maybe you will catch the news that we missed while staring at Casey's incredible beard.
The MMO Report: The throne of agony edition
This week on the MMO Report, our very own mountain man, Casey Schreiner, decided to grace us with his presence after taking off a week for his birthday. I mean, really... where is his loyalty? Thank goodness he returned because the internet would have exploded if we had to see another flawless MMO Report from Morgan Webb. The internet can't take that level of perfection. At any rate, this week we discover just how awesome Massively is as Schreiner reports on our report of the Bungie MMO rumors; then we find out that Second Life may be just as weird as we thought it was; next, the power of the Guild Wars 2 Engineer has inspired Casey to tackle the next level of greatness; and lastly, we find out what can no longer be contained in Casey's Mail Bag. Life is too short for you to miss a single episode of the MMO Report, so catch it after the break!
The MMO Report: Lineage shutdown, Lion's Arch, and Sith Inquisitor trailer
Today's MMO Report, sadly, suffers from a distinct lack of Casey Schreiner. But all is well, as G4's Morgan Webb has stepped up to the plate to cover for Casey as he celebrates his 30th birthday. The first order of business is the announcement that NCSoft will be shutting down the North American Lineage servers on June 29th. All inactive accounts for the 13-year-old game have been reactivated, and the game will be free-to-play until the servers go dark. Secondly, we move on to the much-anticipated Guild Wars 2 and the confirmation that Lion's Arch, a social hub featured in the first game, would be making its return in Guild Wars 2. Be sure to check out our coverage of the unveiling of the fly-through video and some analytical commentary from our own Rubi Bayer. Next up is some screen-time for Minecraft. While the game is not strictly an MMO, there's no doubt that the indie title has gained immense popularity in the gaming community. Morgan reports that Minecraft creator Notch is contemplating holding a Las Vegas launch party... err, convention tentatively dated for November 11th. Star Wars: The Old Republic's Sith Inquisitor made its trailer debut earlier this week. Being described by Morgan as "the one player character you really don't want to meet in a dark alley," the class incorporates elements of both spellcasters and stealth classes into one mean, Force-fueled combination. Lastly, we have a fly-through video of the starting zones of Perfect World Entertainment's Ether Saga Odyssey. The free-to-play MMO launched late last month. For the full Casey-and-mailbag-deprived video, scuttle on past the cut.
The MMO Report: Beerds!
Today on The MMO Report: World of Warcraft subscription numbers, RIFT's new advertising campaign, Star Wars: The Old Republic's (lack of) release date, Aion's latest patch, All Points Bulletin: Reloaded, and BEER WITH BEARDS! BEERDS! Ahem. Sorry, getting ahead of myself a bit. Today's MMO Report starts by talking about Blizzard's WoW subscription numbers, specifically that they are dwindling. But it's OK -- they'll be back. Next up, RIFT's new advertising campaign, the RIFTcast. Parodying morning news weather forecasters, the advertisements are short, clever, and effective at spreading the word. Massively gets another shout-out for our coverage of the Star Wars: The Old Republic release window, and Casey admits a bit of surprise at TOR's adoption of a subscription model, adding that regardless of pricing, "we'd still play this game if it required half a pint of blood on startup." Aion's patch 2.5 gets some coverage as Casey points out the improved graphics, the mentor system, new instances, and in-game events to celebrate the occasion. And to top it off, All Points Bulletin: Reloaded is entering open beta soon. I swear I'm forgetting something... OH YEAH! Beer with beards! Go check it out after the break!
The MMO Report: Bears and UFOs and explosions, oh my!
This week on The MMO report, Casey's lead story is about the absurdly adorable Cenarion Hatchling pet now for sale on the Blizzard Store. The wee bird-deer-thing costs $10 with 100% of the proceeds benefiting the Red Cross efforts in Japan, therefore making it, as Casey puts it, "good for something other than your own surreally twisted ego." Next up is RIFT's patch 1.2, The Spoils of War. Introducing myriad new features and content, the patch is one of RIFT's largest yet. He also gives Massively a shout-out for delivering information on the newly confirmed Marvel Universe Online. Details so far include the ability to play as iconic Marvel characters to face off against Doctor Doom with a story penned by none other than Brian Michael Bendis. Last up is BioWare's Sith Warrior progression trailer for Star Wars: The Old Republic, which compares the Sith Marauder -- described by Casey as "quick, agile, and a real bastard of a Rogue" -- and the Juggernaut, the Sith Warrior's tanking option. Hit the jump below for all this plus Uncle Casey's Mailbag and a decidedly awesome picture involving Casey, a bear, and flying saucers on The MMO Report.
The MMO Report: ASSUMING DIRECT CONTROL edition
Why is G4's Casey Schreiner hiding behind his notes in this week's MMO Report? Maybe it's that his insurance won't cover the liability of his stunning smile -- or that he simply forgot his contacts. Casey jumps on top of two of the most sensationalistic stories from the past week. The first is the saga of the World of Warcraft player who made it to max level without killing anything or completing any quests. Casey salutes her by saying, "If there was a Nobel Peace Prize for pointless dedication toward arbitrary obsessive-compulsive goals, you'd be a shoo-in. Grats." He's also intrigued about the possibility -- not probability -- of a Mass Effect MMO. "But you guys haven't still put out your first over-hyped MMO based an incredibly popular intellectual property. One disappointment at a time, gentlemen." The MMO Report also covers The Secret World's seven-year plan, The Old Republic's advanced class preview, Global Agenda's F2P move, and another dip into Uncle Casey's mailbag. You can watch Casey's mind unravel during six captivating minutes after the jump!
The MMO Report: Surprisingly Commando-free edition
It's the end of the week, and you know what that means! Not only do we get to ramp up to enjoy a weekend full of gaming, but it's also time for the latest edition of The MMO Report. This week Casey takes a moment to look at World of Warcraft's April Fools' Day prank and tackles the discussion of DPS players paying tanks to tag along so they can get into instance groups faster. On a more somber note, Casey notes the layoffs at Sony Online Entertainment, which resulted in the shuttering of three studios and cancellation of The Agency; he also mentions Square-Enix's games coming back online after the recent tsunami in Japan. Also noted is the upcoming Mortal Online: Dawn expansion, which should offer even more gritty, naked PvP fun for all. From there, it's all silliness in Uncle Casey's Mailbag -- complete with some RIFT vs. WoW snaps, yet another edition of strange Schreiner shoops, and more silliness. We're also treated to a quick aside that reveals Casey has awesome taste in music -- much like our own. As always, you can check out this week's episode of The MMO Report tucked behind the break for your sanitary protection or over on the G4TV site every Thursday.
The MMO Report: May the beard be with you edition
With great facial hair comes great responsibility, as Casey Schreiner knows. This week on The MMO Report, we're given not only a healthy serving of news and views on all things MMO but also a glimpse into past-Casey. We also learn of time-traveling-Casey, who apparently shares beard-care tips with the early Jedi. First up, it's a look into the news about Defiance, the upcoming sci-fi MMO from Trion Worlds and the Syfy Channel. That, in turn, leads us to ask: Does anyone else look at the channel name and want to pronounce it "siffy?" After that, we get a look at a shockingly Schreineresque Jedi in the Star Wars: The Old Republic newsbyte. Charging onwards, it's a note on the EVE Online/DUST 514 cinematic from Fanfest that CCP released to the drunken capsuleer masses -- and then the rest of us. Next up, it's time to look at the toad-ally awesome Guild Wars 2 Hylek, and finally we finish off with the standard sack silliness, including a bit of internet archaeology. Check out this week's episode behind the break -- and don't forget you can see it every Thursday on G4TV!
The MMO Report: Guilds, crafting, and craft beer edition
It's St. Patrick's day, and what better time to discuss craft beers on The MMO Report than today? Mind you, for those of you who don't imbibe frosty adult beverages, there's also a huge serving of corned MMO news, and the lilting smell of cabbage you're picking up... is probably coming from the mailbag. Shall we move on to the tasty news of the week? Let's! First up, Casey jumps straight on to the Guild Wars 2 news that many have been buzzing about this week: professions! Next up, it's Star Wars: The Old Republic's trailer made of completely delicious in-game footage, as well as the ongoing rush to get guilds set up before launch. Casey zooms straight into Jagex's partnership with Hasbro to create the upcoming Transformers MMO for the West, and he notes that Free Realms on PS3 will probably be just as popular as it is on PC. Casey also takes a moment to note the Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy XIV server downtime and asks anyone who can to please donate to help those in Japan. Moving on from there, it's a look into the ever-enlightening mailbag, where this week Casey is both praised and derided for his choice in beers and we are treated to another dose of photoshop magic. Finally, it is revealed that G4TV landed an exclusive fly-over of Perfect World International's new area, Dragon Mountain. As always, you can catch this week's episode behind the break, or every Thursday on G4TV.
