Tug-of-war
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PlanetSide 2 releases huge beta update with metagame content
In less than two weeks, Sony Online Entertainment's new MMOFPS PlanetSide 2 is launching. And with that November 20th date fast approaching, the development team is cranked into high gear, deploying frequent patches to both add content and squash various bugs. Last week, the patch included the final continent for launch. This week, the dev team will release another huge update focusing on metagame. Some of the highlights of this update include continent domination benefits, special facility benefits, and a map functionality to help players find a fight easier. This patch is also changing the way bases are captured, resulting in less attacker and defender dead time; instead of the ticket race, base ownership will be decided by a Tug-of-war system. For full details on these changes and more, check out the official patch notes.
PlanetSide 2 devs run through a hypothetical battle scenario
The gulf between sparse previews of an MMO and actually getting your hands on it is wide indeed, but the makers of PlanetSide 2 have an idea. If they can't allow you in the game yet or show you a hands-on, why not describe how a battle scenario might go from start to finish? Creative Director Matt Higby did just that for fans, conjuring up an imaginary skirmish between two forces over the fate of a base, and in doing so highlighted how such PvP fights might occur in the game. In this scenario, he envisions a base being attacked; that attack is then repulsed by its defenders. The former defenders proceed to launch aircraft to continue the rout until the attackers have retreated into their own base. Attack aircraft and air transports, he says, will be the first responders on the scene, as they're the quickest to get anywhere. From that point, he imagines the attackers rallying support to go on the offensive once more, with vehicles leading the way and ground troops following, swarming the base and capturing it for good. Higby says that the tug-of-war between bases will be anything but dull and simple: "Now, distracting that tug of war is all the other regions that are all around here... There's lots of little strategic decisions and options that you can do in there that radically change the balance of the big battle that's happening."
Warhammer Online's 100% RvR city siege outlined in development notes
Since its inception, Warhammer Online's greatest strength and selling point has been its Realm vs. Realm (RvR) gameplay between the forces of Order and Destruction. With the upcoming 1.3.5 patch, RvR is poised to claim its rightful birthright with 100% RvR city sieges (in the past, city sieges have been a mix of RvR and PvE). Yesterday, Mythic posted a slew of "In Development" notes pertaining to 1.3.5, specifically outlining their plans for the new edition of city sieges. WAR's new city sieges now have a maximum battle time of two hours, feature a respectable 24v24 population, and offer plenty of rewards, including a PQ-style chest roll for the winners. Once a player joins the fray, they'll be automatically put into a warband and pointed toward the battle. City sieges take place over three stages, each with specific objectives and a time limit. In stage one, the invaders will attempt to breach the palace gates while the defenders try to stave them off. This is accomplished on both sides by waging war over linked control points that function as a tug-of-war between the forces. Moving on to the second stage, each side has the win condition of either escorting their warlord to the palace gate or defeating the enemy warlord. Depending on how stage two ends, stage three will take place either in the palace or at the city's gates, and involves killing the enemy's king. One of the neatest parts of this final stage is that four players on each side will be chosen to be "Champions" -- highly buffed characters with a special new ability. The new city sieges sound streamlined, dynamic and -- dare we say it? -- a bloody good time for all. You can check out the proposed development notes for this patch on WAR's forums.
