tribes-ascend
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Smite enters beta arena on Xbox One early next year
Hi-Rez Studios plans to kick off its closed beta for Smite on Xbox One in early 2015. The developer revealed plans for its console beta at PAX Australia, as discussed by co-founder and COO Todd Harris in a recap video found after the break. The studio intends on launching the Xbox One beta in the first half of next year. The MOBA first arrived on PC in March, and has since reached over five million registered players. Smite was among a lengthy list of independent games confirmed for Xbox One during Microsoft's Gamescom press event in August. It will be the first console game from the developer, whose other PC efforts include Tribes: Ascend and Global Agenda. [Image: Hi-Rez Studios]
Global Agenda 2's closed beta expected 'before the end of the year if all goes well'
When last we heard about Global Agenda 2, we learned the promised sequel to 2010's Global Agenda was in line behind profitable MOBA SMITE for attention, and that announcement was made while its developers were admitting Tribes: Ascend was unlikely to ever get more love. But Hi-Rez Studios CEO Erez Goren broke radio silence on GA2 with a slew of spoilers on Reddit yesterday (apparently before he was shadowbanned for "vote manipulation" by angry Tribes players). The highlights? It is in fact a "spiritual" successor to GA. It'll have objective-based, 5v5 PvP with stats leveling during matches. E-sports will be supported, as will spectator mode. Viewpoint is first- and third-person. "Shooting is from first person mostly." There are "no strict classes." There is "no dedicated healer class." You just "select the way you want to play and join the queue." A "dome city area" might serve as a gathering point for players. He rattles off a whole list of weapons and off-hand items. Clever Redditors surmise that the game might actually be named Global Assault. Closed beta is expected "before the end of the year if all goes well." [With many thanks to Sorenthaz for the great tip!]
Game Music Bundle 7: Journey, Broken Age, Luftrausers
Who needs AC/DC and Aerosmith for their gym workouts when you could listen to smooth grooves of video game soundtracks? The Game Music Bundle 7 from Loudr offers 17 albums of audio delights, including tunes from Austin Wintory (Journey, The Banner Saga), Peter McConnell (Broken Age, Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft), and Disasterpeace (The Floor is Jelly, Fez). The Game Music Bundle has been running for more than two years now, but if you're just now learning about it, here's how it works: for $1, you'll receive the soundtracks for The Banner Saga, Device 6, Broken Age, The Floor is Jelly and Luftrausers. By paying $10, you'll unlock 12 more albums, including a new solo piano arrangement of music from Journey. To see all 17 albums being offered and scoop up your copy of the bundle, check out the official site. Just don't wait too long, as this particular collection will only be available until May 1. [Image: Loudr]
Jukebox Heroes: 14 MMO soundtracks you can check out on SoundCloud
I'm a pretty slow adopter of new technology and services, so I've only recently really started paying attention to the music-sharing service that is SoundCloud because I've started to see more and more MMO composers plopping down their work onto the site for the world to enjoy. Now that I've spent some time with SoundCloud, I've got to say just how impressed I am with what it can offer to the soundtrack community. Composers and studios can put their soundtracks up on the site for people to listen through without that annoying arbitrary 30-second limit that certain digital distribution platforms use. In addition to providing music for the ears, musicians have the option to show where these albums can be purchased -- and in some cases, offer the tracks as a free download. In return, listeners can tag portions of the songs and have back-and-forth discussions with the composers. I've done a lot of digging and have discovered quite a few MMO soundtracks that are available on SoundCloud, including some that you can legally download and enjoy today. Here are 14 to get you started, but if you see any more, please let us all know in the comments!
Hi-Rez CEO: Without SMITE, Tribes would have 'closed down'
Hi-Rez co-founder and CEO Erez Goren took to Reddit yesterday to deliver a message about his studio's history and its plans for the future. Discussed in the post were challenges of making a profitable game (Global Agenda, for example, lost money throughout its lifespan) and some of the reasoning behind recent decisions made by Hi-Rez about its biggest titles. On the subject of Tribes Ascend, Goren explained that the decision to go free-to-play was made in an effort to give fans easy access to the game. Goren noted that the game broke even "at best," though some financial concerns may have been the result of poor monetization strategies. According to Goren, Tribes Ascend launched to good reviews and a positive community response, but nothing Hi-Rez did could stop players from leaving the game over time. Goren also answered calls for mod tools and accusations that Tribes development was shuttered due to the success of the studio's new MOBA, SMITE. Goren explained that Hi-Rez's development platform does not support modding and that developing the feature set would represent a massive cost to the company, and noted that without the successful development of SMITE, Tribes likely would have been shut down along with the studio itself. According to Goren, the success of SMITE is "very unusual" but has allowed Hi-Rez to expand its team and to find financial stability. Hi-Rez feels as though the future of SMITE is bright, and is dedicated to making it "the best MOBA game in the world" through continued development and partnerships with publishers like TenCent.
The Daily Grind: Should MMO studios outsource their communities?
If you played MMOs at the dawn of the genre, you'll recall that player forums were not considered a mandatory feature of a studio's infrastructure. Many communities resorted to wild, offensive, private forums in an attempt to avoid heavily moderated official boards that looked more like advertisements than conversations by the time the mods were done with them. (Anyone else remember Crossroads of Britannia? Good times.) Since then, MMO studios have figured out that forums (and their annoying cousins, social media) are highly useful tools for getting information to and feedback from their playerbases. But sometimes it's gone too far; we've criticized studios for posting updates only to social media outlets at the expense of their own native forums. Well, move over, ArenaNet, because Hi-Rez has topped you: Earlier this week, Hi-Rez decided to shut down its games' official forums and move forum discussion and support to Reddit, which upset not only those people whose skin crawls at the idea of participating on Reddit but also Redditors themselves, who proposed (unsuccessfully) that Hi-Rez employees be banned, essentially, for mooching. So what do you think -- should MMO studios outsource or crowdsource their forums, communities, and support to unofficial and potentially toxic private social media venues? Does it signal an industry shift, an insensitive budgetary decision from Hi-Rez, or a genuine desire to go where the perceived population density is highest? 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!
Hi-Rez's Todd Harris argues Tribes: Ascend is a 'complete' and 'content-rich' experience
We reported earlier this week that Hi-Rez decided to stop updating Tribes Ascend in favor of user mapmaking tools because the studio feels that the Tribes experience is "complete" as-is. In a follow-up interview with Rock, Paper, Shotgun, Hi-Rez's Todd Harris has now discussed the development hiatus in more detail and answers some tough questions on extant issues with game balance. He argues that not only is the game complete, but it's already feature-rich and a bargain for the price. Since launch, we added 54 new weapons. We added a new game mode, a new leveling system, custom servers, server browser, shielded base assets, 29 new maps – all free – and all that in a brief period of time. We also added an option for people to pay one price and get all the weapons. I don't know of any other free-to-play game, other than our own SMITE, that has that option. It's free-to-play, but it does have a twist. You can get all the gameplay elements for the price of a normal game. It's fairly complete in its content. Harris also tells RPS that a new tutorial would be only a "modest improvement as far as new people sticking with the game"; instead, he says, he hopes to facilitate community resources. But mostly, he appears to believe the game has already found its audience. "The days of major changes in the game are behind us," he says. What about insinuations that the studio bit off more than it could chew? Harris explains that the studio has three small teams working on multiple games and has learned "learned the value of focus." According to Harris, Tribes has supported itself commercially and profits were always returned to the game's development. Even so, the studio is focused on the MOBA space: "SMITE is doing well enough that it's justifying a large amount of resources on it . . . we see the biggest studio opportunity on SMITE."
Hi-Rez exploring Tribes: Ascend user mapmaking tools
Tribes: Ascend may be on Hi-Rez Studios' back burner, but that doesn't mean the game is dead. Rock, Paper, Shotgun recently interviewed CEO Todd Harris, who said that Ascend will be getting user-generated mapmaking tools at some point. "The one thing we're going to be working on next is a path for users to basically add their own maps," Harris explained. "We just feel like it's at a good point to have users maintain it. We feel that it's a complete experience, and we want to give users the tools to add their own maps vs., say, us adding more guns that wouldn't benefit [the experience]." When can we expect the tools, then, and what form will they take? "There's actually some community work toward an SDK [software development kit] that's been started, and I expect more details from us in the next month. It's not anything that has a date yet or a full feature set, but that's the only real feature that we have in the works -- aside from some small bug fixes," Harris said. The mapmaking tool proper is a "fresh concept" that lacks a firm release date, but Harris said that six months is the current target.
Tribes: Ascend to make way for user-made maps
Tribes: Ascend hasn't had its spacewings clipped yet, despite developer Hi-Rez Studios claiming no major updates would drop for at least the next six months while it finishes SMITE. CEO Todd Harris said Hi-Rez has plans to add custom map support to the free-to-play shooter. "The one thing we're going to be working on next is a path for users to basically add their own maps," Hi-Rez CEO Todd Harris told RPS. "We just feel like it's at a good point to have users maintain it. We feel that it's a complete experience, and we want to give users the tools to add their own maps – versus, say, us adding more guns that wouldn't benefit [the experience]." Unfortunately, Harris didn't say when these custom maps would land on the verdant slopes of Tribes: Ascend. "There's actually some community work toward an SDK that's been started, and I expect more details from us in the next month. It's not anything that has a date yet or a full feature set, but that's the only real feature that we have in the works – aside from some small bug fixes." Tribes: Ascend made its debut back in April 2012 and amassed 1.2 million downloads in little over its first month of availability. A GOTY version, which includes all unlocks, was introduced earlier this year for $30.
Todd Harris confirms no more development on Tribes: Ascend
If you've been a fan of Tribes: Ascend, we hope you're happy with the current state of the game -- or that you like SMITE just as much. In response to a user inquiry, Hi-Rez Studios head Todd Harris announced that there are no major updates planned for the game within the next six months. The studio's current resources are devoted first to SMITE, then to Global Agenda 2, and beyond that a full-on sequel to Tribes: Ascend is more likely than a major content patch. While Harris goes on to mention that there are additional maps being worked on, he states there is no definite date for release, if indeed these maps are ever released. While support for servers and the existing game is not in question, the long-term health of the community without further content is questionable. And with no developers working on a sequel, even that seems rather unlikely at this point.
Hi-Rez halts Tribes: Ascend updates for six months, may never come back to it
Developer Hi-Rez Studios has confirmed no major updates are inbound for Tribes: Ascend, for at least the next six months. Responding to a complaint on Reddit about a lack of developer updates on the game, Hi-Rez head honcho Todd Harris said on Reddit and in the Hi-Rez forums that the studio is currently hard at work on its upcoming MOBA, Smite. And even after that, it's unlikely the developer will come back to Tribes: Ascend. Harris elaborated that beyond Smite, the goal is to finish Global Agenda 2, a sequel to Hi-Rez's Unreal Engine 3-powered MMORPG. One team member has been working on new maps for Tribes: Ascend, Harris revealed, and these maps could be released eventually alongside some bug fixes – but it's not something the studio can place a timetable on right now. In fact, Harris concluded that it'd be more likely for Hi-Rez to pursue development on a sequel to Tribes: Ascend than to initiate work on a substantial update.
The Firing Line: On Destiny, Tribes GOTY, and Ghost in the Shell
It's been a pretty eventful week for online shooter news, and The Firing Line is back to help you catch up on all the tidbits you might've missed. Since we've got so much to cover, what say we skip the usual game journo intro puns and get right to it?
Tribes: Ascend GOTY Edition takes off Feb. 15, includes all unlocks
You might be wondering how a free-to-play game like Tribes: Ascend could even have a Game of the Year Edition. The answer, it turns out, is quite simple: Just unlock every class, weapon and perk for one price. Come February 15, players will be able to plunk down $30 to unlock everything Tribes: Ascend has to offer. Alternatively, current Tribes: Ascend VIPs will be able to pick up the package for $20. Even more alternatively, you can still play the game for free, choosing to purchase bits and pieces or simply unlocking things the old-fashioned way.Finally, a patch will be released alongside the GOTY Edition, featuring six maps, a new Shocklance weapon and some new skins.
Steam Holiday Sale begins; MMO deals make gamers fear for their wallets
All right gamers, it's time to make a choice: Either lock up your wallet and throw away the key or bust it out and prepare to blow some money because the Steam Holiday Sale is now on, and there are quite a few tasty MMO deals to be had. Steam's free-to-play category is particularly ripe for the picking: DC Universe Online's The Last Laugh DLC is currently 50% off (for $4.99 US), and Lord of the Rings Online's Steely Dawn Starter Pack is 50% (for $9.99 US). On top of that, starter packs for virtually every F2P MMO under the sun are on sale as well. Tribes Ascend's raider and starter packs are 70% off, bringing them down to $4.49 and $5.99 US, respectively. If you're more the shooty type, Blacklight Retribution starter packs are 50% off for $9.99. If you're craving a more action-flavored fix, Rusty Hearts and Continent of the Ninth Seal starter packs are available for $4.99 US and $20.99 US, respectively. To browse all of the delicious sales (which include even more games such as Star Trek Online, Fallen Earth, and then some), just head on over to Steam's store page, or alternatively just boot up Steam and say a little prayer for your bank account.
Previously on MV TV: The week of September 1st
This week I have quite the selection of tasty video tidbits for you to enjoy. What better way to spend the weekend than staying inside away from the nasty pollen and wasps, watching amazing gameplay videos hosted by yours truly and his band of fellow pixel-heads? That's right! You don't even have to buy MMOs anymore! By simply clicking on the "continue reading" link below, you step into an expansive world of MMO exploration, teeming with sights and sounds unlike you have ever seen or installed before! Why should you go through the trouble of standing in line, purchasing a box, spending two days installing it on your massive PC, pulling up that huge plastic chair, waiting for the game to patch, and attempting to make a character who doesn't look like a 17 year-old pop-punk band member only to find that you suck at PvP? The simple answer to your problem is to watch us play ALL OF THE GAMES! Which games, you might ask? Well, this week I have some Piggy action as he streams Fallen Earth, followed by Richie with some Guild Wars 2, Mike with some more EVE Online, World of Tanks and Tribes: Ascend. And I follow it all up with a trip through Wurm Online to view the mystery behind the Puzzles deed and then chat with Illyriad CEO James Niesewand about his game's new patch! Check it out!
The next Tribes update adds 'Blitz' mode, re-energizes Tech class
This month's update to Tribes: Ascend lavishes the Tech class with a new weapon, a new (super neat) belt item, an additional skin, an extra turret, while everyone gets a new game mode: "Blitz." In Blitz, flag objectives move around the map based on captures, becoming progressively more difficult as the match goes on.LIke always, the update is free. And if you're already playing Tribes: Ascend, we commend you.
The Firing Line: PlanetSide 2, Tribes, and Heroes & Generals updates
Not a bad week for shooter news, wouldn't you agree? Let's see, we had PlanetSide 2's heart-pounding Death is No Excuse CG trailer. We also had a huge Tribes: Ascend update. While those two juggernauts get plenty of press coverage, one shooter that's still operating relatively under the radar is Heroes & Generals. If you've read The Firing Line before, though, you know I'm a big fan of Reto-Moto's browser-based World War II title. Follow me past the break for the latest updates on that and more.
Tribes: Ascend adds a double disc launcher in latest patch
Excellent free-to-play shooter Tribes: Ascend gets extra content (also for free) in its most recent update. Players gain access to new maps, new voice packs and, most importantly, a deadly double disc launcher. [Disclosure: Since we work under AOL, we are extra proficient at launching discs at people. - Ed.]
Tribes: Ascend slides its way to Steam, still free
At least 1.2 million people have been enjoying Tribes: Ascend directly from Hi-Rez Studios (including us), but now it's available to Steam's audience of more than 40 million, still for free. Tribes: Ascend is a sci-fi, fast-paced, free-to-play PC shooter featuring jetpacks, skiing and multiple classes. It's almost like the Winter Olympics' biathlon competition, but with more guns and flying.The game itself is free, but it does have weapons and upgrades for sale, of course. Steam is offering a 50 percent discount on the Starter Pack, which includes a lifetime 50 percent XP boost, two special classes and 12 weapon unlocks, four perk unlocks and 800 Tribes Gold, all for $10 through July 4 at 10 a.m. PT.
Tribes Ascend's July update reinvents 'Stonehenge' map, invents 'Miasma'
Continuing its promise of monthly new content, Hi-Rez Studios unveiled its latest Tribes: Ascend update video this morning. The update is a biggun for both new players and vets, as two new maps are set to be deployed: a remake of Tribes 1's "Stonehenge" map, and the brand new "Miasma." Now all we need is something borrowed and something blue, and we'll be all set to wed this game.
