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Twitter opens up polls to everyone
If you've been wondering which candy your Twitter followers prefer -- Red Vines or Twizzlers, -- the social networking company has your back. Starting today, the micro-blogging service is rolling out its poll feature to iOS, Android and on Twitter.com for desktop. Now users can embed two-question ballots into their tweets. Each poll is open for 24 hours and all votes are secret. So, no one will know about your secret love of Twizzlers when you live in a Red Vines family. When the poll does expire, everyone that participated could potentially receive a push notification of the results. The service looks at your current alerts and judges if poll alerts will overwhelm you. Those alerts could compel users to launch Twitter for something other than a 140-character tirade about the new Star Wars trailer and that's exactly what Twitter is looking for.
The most dangerous voting machines in America are retired
After more than a decade of use and dozens of reported security problems, the Virginia Board of Elections voted to decommission the last of the 3,000 WINVote touchscreen voting machines being used in the state. The machines have experienced issues including crashes and shutdowns, votes being eliminated for no reason, an unsecured WiFi network and unpatched software. And yet, despite persistent reports of problems over the past decade, and similar voting systems being banned from Pennsylvania in 2007 and Mississippi in 2013, Virginia only began examining the flaws in the system after Governor Terry McAuliffe experienced issues first-hand while attempting to use one last November.
New Hampshire judge makes 'ballot selfies' legal again
Voters in New Hampshire are once again free to take "ballot selfies" after a judge struck down one of the silliest laws ever enacted. Yes, folks actually take pictures of their ballots and share them on Facebook. But if you're proud of who you voted for or just the act of voting, what's the harm? That's not how legislators in New Hampshire see it at all, though. They figure that such people are surely selling their votes and using the photo as proof of the deed. To back it up, the state enacted a bill banning ballot photos last September, punishable by a fine of up to $1,000.
Facebook will urge every adult to vote in the General Election
If canvassers, flyers and TV debates weren't enough, Facebook is going to play its part in getting Brits to vote in this year's General Election. For tomorrow only, the social network will host the "largest ever voter registration campaign," its first in the UK, prompting eligible (read: adult) users to register to vote. Facebook is working with the Electoral Commission to place reminders in eligible users' Newsfeeds and will also add a new "Life Event" to profiles that will tell friends and family that they've registered. The thinking behind this is clear: Facebook welcomes 35 million people every month, which is more than the number of people who voted in the 2010 General Election, when 29 million votes were recorded. By motivating Facebook-loving adults, the Election Commission hopes it can spur voter turnouts or even just remind people that it's now possible to register to vote online. If you're one of millions who use Facebook's official mobile apps, expect to see the following notice in your Newsfeed tomorrow:
Choose My Adventure: We, the drowned
By now you're more than aware that Massively, WoW Insider, and Joystiq are not long for this world. Thanks to the type of organizational reshuffling we've so often covered on these very pages, AOL's enthusiast blogs have eaten the sharper end of an axe. We're upset. You're upset. But the core reality is that sometimes bad things happen. All we can do is pick ourselves up, steady our breathing, and leap into the void. I've been with Massively since 2011. I started as a streamer, evolved into a news/features writer, and finished as the steward of Choose My Adventure. Every moment has been a privilege. Every day exciting. And it's you I have to thank.
Leaderboard: When did you start reading Massively?
This site has been around a while. Not as long as some, but still a while. For today's Leaderboard, tell us how long you've been around Massively. Assuming it's more than a week or so, you already know that there's a poll just past the cut.
The Daily Grind: Will you play Elder Scrolls Online once it's B2P?
Yesterday's news that The Elder Scrolls Online is going buy-to-play in time for its console launch surprised... well, not many of Massively's readers. You pretty much saw it coming. Some folks around here said this move was a certainty even before launch and consequently refused to buy it, deciding that patience would pay off. (And it did!) But what about now? I admit I'm much more tempted by a game that isn't charging an unwarranted fee and isn't abusing a cash shop. B2P is a great model for gamers, especially when they avoid lockbox crap (yay!). How about you? If you didn't play ESO when it launched last April, will you give it a try in March when it's down to just a box fee, a mild cash shop, and more traditional DLC? 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!
Choose My Adventure: A bit of TERA sightseeing
There's no question that TERA is one of the most beautiful MMOs on the market. Its open world features gorgeous terrain, cool set pieces, and lots of variation for the screenshot-obsessed. So when Choose My Adventure's voters elected to send me exploring last week, I was more than happy to oblige. I wouldn't accomplish much Fate of Arun stuff, but at least I'd get to see some sights! I also, somehow, learned a bit more about the Warrior class and how to effectively deploy it in combat. It's been a long, hard crawl, but I think I'm finally starting to get the hang of my combo abilities and my evasion techniques. I'm definitely dying less and even occasionally having moments when I feel totally in control of the actions my character is taking and the reasoning behind them. I almost feel... good. Until the next BAM smacks me down, of course.
Leaderboard: Are you playing H1Z1 this week?
SOE's zombie-flavored sandbox comes to Steam early access tomorrow, and despite the under construction warnings of CEO John Smedley, I'm betting that lots of people are going to buy it. The question, though, is whether or not you have bought it. How about it, Massively readers? Are you playing H1Z1 this week? Ever wish that you could put to rest a long-standing MMO debate once and for all? Then welcome to the battle royal of Massively's Leaderboard, where two sides enter the pit o' judgment -- and only one leaves. Vote to make your opinion known, and see whether your choice tops the Leaderboard!
Choose My Adventure: Air travel is not very safe in TERA
Massively multiplayer online games are collections of interlocking systems. A character's skills allow her to interact with the world, interacting with the world gives her experience points, experience points give her levels, levels give her skills, and so on. Inventory, items, professions, quests, and social interactions are also systems, layered on top of the core combat and gameplay mechanics. When you have mastery over an MMO, you don't just have mastery over skill rotations; you have mastery over all of the systems underneath. By the time a normal person hits 60 in En Masse's TERA, for example, that person can probably tell the difference between good gear and bad gear, organize a character's inventory, and use the game's menus. This is the stuff you take for granted when you've been playing an MMO for weeks, months, or years. Leaping into expansion content with a near-max-level character but little core game experience is, thus, not very smart. But I did it anyway, charging into TERA's Fate of Arun with a brand-new-yet-level-60 Castanic Warrior for Choose My Adventure. It went okay.
Leaderboard: Do you use MMO mobile apps?
I got a new Android tablet for Christmas. It's a replacement for the old one that had the nerve to spin off the top of my speeding car and smack into the side of an errant mailbox, but whatever. I'm reloading all of my junk and I figured that this would be a good time to see if there are any must-have MMO-related apps. How about it, Massively readers? Any recommendations? Do you use MMO mobile apps? Vote after the cut! Ever wish that you could put to rest a long-standing MMO debate once and for all? Then welcome to the battle royal of Massively's Leaderboard, where two sides enter the pit o' judgment -- and only one leaves. Vote to make your opinion known, and see whether your choice tops the Leaderboard!
Choose My Adventure: TERA's Fate of Arun
As was mentioned many times during our end-of-year awards and the comments surrounding them, 2014 was a much better year for adding to existing properties than releasing new ones. Some of the biggest launches of the year came in the form of expansions like Rift's Nightmare Tide, Star Trek Online's Delta Rising, and Star Wars: The Old Republic's Shadow of Revan. Choose My Adventure even took the expansion route last month by investigating World of Warcraft's Warlords of Draenor. En Masse's TERA, too, received a huge update in 2014, though it launched with significantly less fanfare than some of the other major expansions of the year. Fate of Arun introduced new zones, added new dungeons, and raised the level cap (as expansions are wont to do). It also brought a new game mode in The Coliseum, a PvP/PvE hybrid arena-type thing. Perhaps most notably when compared to the other expansions of 2014, Fate of Arun is free to all TERA players. Since TERA so often flies under the radar with MMO fans, I thought it might be fun to dedicate this month's CMA to Fate of Arun. So get ready because it's time to start slaying some big-ass monsters.
Leaderboard: Are you following Bless or Black Desert?
I'm a big fan of Korean MMOs, and I always look forward to what's next from our friends in the Far East. Since Blade & Soul doesn't seem to be gaining any traction in Europe or North America, that arguably leaves Black Desert and Bless as the primary triple-A Korean titles on the horizon. Black Desert seems to have more of the sandbox features I want, but I'm sure I'll play Bless too at some point. What about you, Leaderboard readers? Are you looking forward to either of these games? Vote after the cut!
Choose My Adventure: World of Warcraft High
Blizzard Entertainment's World of Warcraft launched on November 23rd, 2004. For anyone having a hard time putting that date into context, consider this: My sister, who's now in college, was eight years old when WoW's gates first opened. Some of our readers with nice jobs and adorable children were still in middle school or high school. I've personally been playing WoW off and on since 2005, giving me about nine years of history with the game. This month's Choose My Adventure was two parts adventure and one part nostalgia. And as it turns out, sometimes the past really does belong in the past.
Choose My Adventure: On autopilot in World of Warcraft
Life as a shadow Priest in World of Warcraft is pretty mellow. Mostly you bounce around from quest to quest and enemy to enemy, ticking off objectives by murdering orcs with dark magic and scaring everyone with your spooky shadow face. It's not a career path I'd recommend for your average citizen, but if you're looking to become an instigator in the clan wars of Warlords of Draenor, there are worse paths to take. We accomplished quite a bit this week in Choose My Adventure. Our Blood Elf Priest gained a couple of levels, DPSed his very first Warlords of Draenor dungeon, and completed the Frostfire Ridge set of story quests. And while it's all been very, very good, I'm still having a hard time connecting to this latest World of Warcraft expansion.
Leaderboard: Are you playing Elite: Dangerous this week?
I'm vacationing from Massively this week, but I'm not vacationing from MMOs. Unless Elite: Dangerous isn't technically an MMO. Maybe it isn't, I dunno, because I haven't played long enough to form an opinion just yet. Anyway, Elite! Launched yesterday! Yay! Maybe after my vacation I'll manage to write something more in depth, but for now that will have to suffice. What about you, Massively readers? Are you playing Elite this week? If so, what do you think? Ever wish that you could put to rest a long-standing MMO debate once and for all? Then welcome to the battle royal of Massively's Leaderboard, where two sides enter the pit o' judgment -- and only one leaves. Vote to make your opinion known, and see whether your choice tops the Leaderboard!
Choose My Adventure: World of Warcraft and the shadowy priest
It's been one week since Choose My Adventure's voters sent me on the path of darkness in World of Warcraft, daring me to cast off my healing roots and adventure forward as a Priest who deals only in shadow. I've gained a couple of levels, tinkered with my garrison, and killed hundreds and hundreds of orcs. I've even managed to work out some of last week's confusion, finding a spell rotation that works for me and laying waste to any PvE enemies that cross my path. I've also completed about a million quests, Warlords of Draenor-style.
Leaderboard: Would B2P or a sub-only server bring you back to ArcheAge?
I've been thinking about ArcheAge a lot this month, and most of what I've been thinking about it is pretty negative. XL's fantasy sandpark has more problems than any single MMO should, but despite all of them I would still enjoy it if it weren't for that godawful cash shop. Yeah, the bugs are annoying as are some of the more pervasive exploits (flower dance griefing, really?), but underneath all that is a feature-rich virtual world I'd love to keep playing. At this point, though, the only thing that would bring me back is some sort of subscription-only server, or failing that, a buy-to-play-with-a-cosmetic-cash-shop server that doesn't sell labor potions, tax certificates, appraisals, and the like. What about you, Leaderboard readers and disgruntled ArcheAge expats? Would you come back for a subscription-only server or a less invasive cash shop? Vote after the cut! Ever wish that you could put to rest a long-standing MMO debate once and for all? Then welcome to the battle royal of Massively's Leaderboard, where two sides enter the pit o' judgment -- and only one leaves. Vote to make your opinion known, and see whether your choice tops the Leaderboard!
Choose My Adventure: I am so confused in World of Warcraft
Last week's Choose My Adventure polls for World of Warcraft set me on a very unexpected path. Male Blood Elf? Really? If you had asked me to predict the result of the class/race/gender/faction polls, I would have been extremely super-wrong. I thought for sure Massively's readership was full of carebear Alliance sympathizers who spend their WoW hours hosting hug parties in Darnassus. Anyway. This week saw me creating our new character, using the included-with-Warlords of Draenor instant level 90 character boost, and diving through the Dark Portal to experience the starting moments of Blizzard Entertainment's latest bundle of WoW content. It was... something.
Leaderboard: Are you playing Shadow of Revan this week?
Star Wars: The Old Republic's latest expansion debuts this week, and it brings with it quite a bit of new content. There are of course five additional levels and a few new skills to go along with all the discipline-based class changes. And there are two new planets (Rishi and Yavin IV) along with new story and leveling content. Is that enough to pique your interest? Are you playing Shadow of Revan this week? Vote after the cut, and let us know what you think either way!
