upcoming-updates
Latest
The Mog Log: Final Fantasy XIV's latest Live Letter
As of this writing, the Letter from the Producer LIVE took place yesterday, and that means we have a whole bunch of Final Fantasy XIV news to discuss! It's a happy time for people like me, because it's at least a couple weeks of very chewable information to discuss. And at just the right time, too, we were in the middle of a serious drought there. Not that all of the information is good, mind you. Every time I think about Atma my hands instinctively ball into fists. Still, there's stuff to chat about, there's good stuff in with the bad, and perhaps most importantly there's enough to fuel some speculation and some off-the-cuff reaction before we dive into the meat of E3 and we learn even more about the future of the game. So let's get right into it, starting with the bit of news that I already foreshadowed in the intro.
Lineage II looks back at 2012 and forward to 2013
Lineage II went free-to-play last year, and according to the newest state of the game letter, that conversion went very well indeed. The letter points out that more than one and a half million new accounts were created in 2012 alone, an impressive number for any game and doubly so for a game approaching its ninth anniversary. Over 800,000 store items have been sold, solidifying the game's performance and moneymaking capabilities. In other words, if you were worried the game wasn't doing well, you can stop worrying. But what about the future? Well, there's another major installment of the Goddess of Destruction series due out. The development team is also looking into a variety of improvements for players including tradeable shop items, methods of gifting microtransaction currency, and more options to pay for your cash shop purchases. There's also discussion of more events and tournaments for everyone to enjoy, showing that the title is aging but still has quite a lot of life left.
Champions Online provides players with vital news reports
Villainy is afoot in Champions Online. That alone isn't noteworthy; the game is sort of based on the premise of villainy always being afoot somewhere. But there are new faces organizing the villainy, and these individuals are the subject of a new post dedicated to the news of the world. The Cult of the Red Banner has been stealing seemingly valueless heirlooms, Gravitar has been apparently promoting herself via local property damage, and CEO Franklin Stone appears to be murdering his enemies quietly... all issues that heroes will no doubt be called upon to resolve. Do you want your previews with more substance and less fluff? Then you may want to jump on over to the latest UNTIL Field Report, which lists several of the features the development team is currently testing or designing. That includes vehicles, repurposing instanced crafting areas, and the option to "gift" XP to other characters on your account. So even if you don't want to read the news, you've got something to catch up on.
Perpetuum rolling out Gamma Frontier tomorrow
Home is where you hang your hat, but in Perpetuum, home is also where you ensure that your mining operations remain stable with the aid of several high-powered turrets. The next major update to the game, Gamma Frontier, is all about making sure that your home is the best it can be. Player corporations will be able to make use of the game's new Modular Private Colony system, setting up static buildings and defenses for large-scale industrial operations, helped by the addition of 24 new teraformable islands. Obviously, player-run structures are a pretty big deal all by themselves, but the update also includes a new rendering engine for land and sky textures. There's also a new public test server available so that players can take the measure of future updates before they go live. If you're a longtime fan of the mech-based game, you can tide yourself over a little longer by taking a look through the several new screenshots of the update below. [Source: Avatar Creations press release] %Gallery-156617%
Newest letter from Naoki Yoshida outlines the plans for Final Fantasy XIV's next patch
Patch 1.21 has just gone live, but many fans of Final Fantasy XIV are already looking ahead to patch 1.22. And it's understandable -- the game is kicking into the final stretch before the major relaunch, and that means new conflicts and new quests as the era draws to a close. Producer Naoki Yoshida recently released a new producer's letter detailing the list of features slated for inclusion with this next update, including the hamlet defense feature that was trimmed from patch 1.21. This penultimate patch before version 2.0 will also see the conflict between Eorzea and the Empire escalate further, illustrated by the presence of a new Imperial stronghold for players to assault. There will be new Imperial weapons as a result, along with new quests and new Grand Company ranks. Currently slated for the end of April, this patch can be expected to deliver a number of improvements to the game, even if it may wind up being delayed a bit in the end.
Star Wars: The Old Republic answers questions on 1.2 and priorities
With patch 1.2 on the horizon, most Star Wars: The Old Republic players have questions, which makes it a good thing that the game is still hosting a weekly community question-and-answer session to give players answers to those questions. This week, we've been granted a confirmation that more character slots are being planned, an assertion that new crafted items will still use existing high-end materials, and the promise that a "barber shop"-style feature is in the planning stages (even if it's not in 1.2). That last answer leads into a discussion of how the development team prioritizes updates, the pace of those updates, and what players can expect as each update goes live. As outlined in the answer, the big question is how much work any given feature is expected to take, which has to be juggled so that big features are coming out regularly without forcing development to stagnate. That means that some features have to wait for future updates -- but it seems like the team is still well aware of these issues just the same.
Volume III, Book 5 diary available for Lord of the Rings Online
One of the challenges facing the storyline in Lord of the Rings Online is that it has a very definite deadline to contend with. While the story runs in parallel to the events in the books, it also has to line up in terms of what's taking place, which is why players will be parting company with the Grey Company starting in the next installment. Instead, as outlined in a new developer diary, Book 5 of Volume III will see players working with Prince Théodred, heir to Rohan, as he works to organize the defense of his country's borders. The diary also gives a firm date to mark story progress by; according to the book's timeline, Frodo should reach Mount Doom in about a month. Players will find this book to be a bit shorter than the previous installment, but it should still be a vital component as the game approaches the climax of the trilogy. They'll also receive a cosmetic set of equipment at the beginning of Book 5 to help them look like a Ranger, which is appropriate considering the story progress up to this point.
PAX East 2011: Shipping up to Boston with City of Heroes
It's only fitting that PAX East 2011 would see another panel for City of Heroes, as last year's convention was the first time the team from Paragon Studios had been to the east coast. While this year's panel didn't see the many announcements and surprising new reveals of last year, it's good to see the team making the trek out to Boston once again in what fans can only hope will be a regular event. As always, the line to get into the panel was gargantuan, with players lining up an hour before the panel doors opened for a seat in the relatively small theater. Once players had filed in and the room had settled down, it was time for a look at the past year or so for City of Heroes and at what players could expect for the near future, as well as the usual lively question-and-answer session.
Final Fantasy XIV gets a version update and another developer dispatch
The bad news about the most recent version update for Final Fantasy XIV is that, despite player hopes, it does not yet contain the heavily awaited first revision to the market wards. That's planned for next week, according to the patch notes themselves. The good news is that it does contain a number of bugfixes and helps clean up several chat oddities. Accompanying the notes on the main page is another dispatch from the developers about how the game works, this one on the topic of character creation and disciplines, and while the developers give some vague answers, they also offer some useful, concrete information. For example, while there are no game differences at the moment based upon a character's birthday or guardian deity, both are in the works -- and if the benefits that are ultimately awarded for your chosen deity disappoint you, Square-Enix will be giving players the chance to change their guardians. The new dispatch also provides a full listing of where to get tools and weapons for every discipline at the start, allowing players from any nation to change class right from the beginning. Final Fantasy XIV players are encouraged to check both the patch notes and the latest update and to keep their eyes peeled for what promises to be a large update next week.
Wizard101 celebrates its second anniversary
It's easy to dismiss Wizard101 as nothing more than a cute MMO for kids, but the game has proven that it has quite a bit of depth and staying power. And September is the milestone to mark it by, since the game launched in September of 2008. With the arrival of the two-year anniversary for the game, the production staff for KingsIsle Entertainment has posted a short letter to commemorate the achievement and discuss the game's future in brief. Obviously, one of the big points of the future is the release of Celestia, which is currently slated for early fall. The new area and concurrent free expansion will raise the level cap and offer players a variety of new abilities, in addition to the eponymous underwater zone. To help kick off the pending launch, the development team is promising a quest later this month featuring "one of the hottest teen icons on the planet." It's been a busy two years for Wizard101, and it looks like the team is looking forward to many more.
Final Fantasy XI expands the job update preview
Our first tease of the coming excellence in Final Fantasy XI's September version update hinted at many exciting job abilities, but unfortunately, the language we were given was very vague. That alone was enough to get players excited, but more details are welcomed, and the development team has happily obliged. While the list of new abilities is likely not comprehensive, it gives several jobs a good idea of what they can look forward to with the next major patch. Several of the new abilities granted boosts to existing abilities in previous unused aspects -- red mages can enhance their debuffing skills for a short time, while blue mages can gain extra TP when using physical magic. In addition, there are two new rolls for corsairs, including a party-wide haste effect, and several job traits that will be welcomed by their recipients (including dual wield for thieves). Considering the fast-approaching target date of Final Fantasy XI's next update, players would do well to familiarize themselves with the full rundown of updates.
