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Firefall update 1.2 goes live today, makes facial customizations free for all
Firefall fans are eagerly anticipating the release of new content patch Together Toward Victory later today. Along with more open-world encounters and improvements to the Broken Peninsula PvP continent, this free update includes the shooter's first five-man instance, Operation: Miru. Set in a molten cavern, the operation tasks players with putting a stop to the Chosen's plan to release a colossal monstrosity on the Accord. The open world encounters include battling to protect the supply lines at Accord Skydock and repelling multi-stage enemy assaults on the watchtowers. Broken Peninsula now offers missions via the new job boards so players can contribute to their faction. Need something to help set the mood for battle? Check out the propaganda-style clip below. What's more, Red 5 Studios is changing up basic cosmetics by making all hair, facial hair, and head cosmetic choices available to all players for free. And that's permanently, folks, not just for a limited time. Anyone who's bought any of those cosmetics within the last three months will receive a full Red Bean refund for the purchase price. In addition to all this, players will be able to try out the Rhino Dreadnaught frame -- with its increased mobility and firepower -- for free from Friday, November 21st, at 7:00 p.m. EST until Monday, November 24th, at the same time.
The Daily Grind: Do you use Steam for your MMOs?
I've been feeling the urge to play World of Warplanes lately, and it surprised me to learn that Wargaming's F2P actioner isn't on Steam. Not only that, but neither is the firm's outrageously successful World of Tanks. I guess it makes sense, though, since WG has made a mint without Steam and there would seem to be little point in renting a storefront from Valve. Still, Steam has become my defacto PC game cataloging app, and it kind of rankles when a title I want to play isn't supported. What about you, Massively readers? Do you do all your MMO gaming or PC gaming in general via Steam? 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!
World of Warplanes celebrates a birthday
One year ago this week, Wargaming launched World of Warplanes. Now, the company is celebrating the game's first anniversary by giving you a free premium plane, special anniversary missions, and discounted premium bundles that include all manner of digital goodies.
Firefall is offering bonus rep this weekend
Firefall's offering up a reputation bonus weekend starting Friday, November 14th at 7:00 p.m. EST. The promotion runs through Monday, November 17th at 7:00 p.m. EST and includes a 25 percent boost to all collected rep vouchers. Visit the official Firefall website for more details.
World of Tanks' 9.4 adds Stalingrad map, tweaks strongholds and more
World of Tanks' 9.4 update is now live, assuming you're playing from North America or Europe. If you're in Asia, well, you'll have to wait until tomorrow. The patch reworks WoT's team battles mode, adds a new historical map (Stalingrad), and improves strongholds. "Strongholds and the structures that produce reserves for a clan have been extended to level 10," Wargaming says. "In addition, clans now have the ability to seek out and attack other clan strongholds and each clan is able to designate specific times where they are available to defend opposing clan attacks." Click past the cut to watch the strongholds trailer. [Source: Wargaming press release]
Firefall teases update 1.2
An update is coming to Firefall, and it promises to be a big one. A brief overview of the game's next major update has been posted on the official site to show off some of what players can expect, starting with the new Operation: Miru. This is endgame instanced content designed for five players at level 40, featuring a combination of mechanics and gunfights that heretofore have not been present in the game. The update will also feature a new piece of open-world content via the Accord Skydock, a new form of watchtower content, and a new live event. Broken Peninsula has also received updates to make it less broken from a mechanical standpoint rather than a geographical one. You can read up on all the sketchy details here, and keep your eyes peeled for more hard information as it becomes available.
You'll want an aircraft carrier in World of Warships
Wargaming released a new World of Warships dev diary video this week. It's focused on aircraft carriers, which the firm calls "the most unique type of vessel" in the game. Carriers are speedy, excellent at spotting enemy ships, and of course pack a tremendous punch. Once a carrier has launched its aircraft, they can traverse the entire map and attack from unexpected angles, according to the video. Have a look for yourself just past the break.
World of Tanks 360 edition gets French tech tree
If you're an Xbox 360 World of Tanks player, you'll be glad to know that today's update adds the French tech tree, 28 new tanks, and two new maps to the game. The new content is technically free to download, but it does require an Xbox Live Gold subscription. We've embedded a new six-minute dev diary including French tank footage just past the break.
World of Warplanes rolls out MiGs in update 1.6
Ready to fly some of the most iconic Soviet airplanes in history? World of Warplanes update 1.6 introduces the Soviety MiG line at Tier V and above, allowing players to take the controls of these historic crafts and use them in mid-air dogfights with other planes. There are also five new premium aircraft available in the game, offering another way to take to the skies with this patch. Aside from new vehicles, the patch also adds in a new multirole classification, placing some planes between fighters and heavy fighters. The net effect is creating planes that can use a more varied loadout and switch roles in battle more effectively. Map boundaries for the El Halluf location have also been extended, giving the update plenty of features for players to enjoy.
Eternal Crusade shows off space marine model updates
Are you a Warhammer 40K: Eternal Crusade fan? Would you like to see some updated models for the Space Marine and Chaos Space Marine? You're in luck, because Behaviour has released a two-minute pre-alpha video showing just that, along with some earlier footage for a point of reference. Click past the cut to have a look.
Firefall's having another devs-vs.-players event this weekend
Firefall's having another devs-vs.-players live event this weekend, with the former controlling bosses in the sci-fi shooter and the latter getting a shot at various in-game prizes including titles, currency, glider wings, and more. The official Firefall website has all the details including a list of rewards. Just past the cut we've got the full press release and a dev-produced Q&A with Scott Rudi, Red 5's director of design.
Think tank taps Black Ops 2 director for future war insight
To prepare for the wars of the future, political think tank The Atlantic Council has asked Dave Anthony, writer and director of Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, to lend his creative abilities. According to Anthony, he'll be contributing to the "Art of Future Warfare" project, a mass brainstorming session where talented creative types come up with new, never-before-seen ways that America's enemies might attack. As a game developer, Anthony's been doing exactly that for years on the Call of Duty franchise, so it just makes sense that the government would seek his talents in imagining even vaguely plausible attacks. "Writers, directors and producers and other artists bring to bear observations derived from wholly different experiences in the creative world," the Atlantic Council said in a statement to the Associated Press. "They can ask different kinds of questions that will challenge assumptions and status quo ways of tackling some of today's toughest national security problems." [Image: Activision]
Think tank hires 'Call of Duty' game director to predict the future of war
If you felt that Call of Duty: Black Ops II presented an eerily plausible vision of war in the years ahead, you're not alone. The Atlantic Council, a political think tank, has asked Black Ops II director Dave Anthony to contribute to an "Art of Future Warfare" project that looks at fiction as a possible insight into next-generation conflicts. As he explains, the next big threat to the US probably doesn't fit into conventional definitions of war -- a game developer can imagine fantastic scenarios that might just come true, such as Black Ops II's drone assault on a G20 meeting. This isn't the same as directly guiding US policy, so Anthony's effect will likely be limited. However, it won't be surprising if the country is eventually better prepared for high-tech terrorists and other dangers that it otherwise wouldn't have anticipated.
Mark Kern starts new studio, raises $1M for VR MMO
Ex-Red 5 CEO Mark Kern has been a busy little bee since his departure from Firefall. Kern established a new studio called MEK Entertainment with associates from Red 5 and Blizzard, raising $1 million in seed funding for his next project. While it doesn't have a name, this project is reportedly an MMO designed for the Oculus Rift. It will use retro-style pixel art and depend heavily on "creative contributions" from the game's community. "We can't build it alone," Kern said. "I've been looking for a way to let more gamers and modders realize their own virtual worlds, and I think we found it." Kern cited inspiration from other titles such as the SNES, Terraria, Starbound, and (of course) Minecraft. You can watch a teaser for the MMO after the break.
Tank racing coming to World of Tanks on September 29
Wargaming is adding racing to its ubiquitous World of Tanks battler. Tank Rally mode will "pit players against each other on a racing track full of destruction and explosive action," according to a new press release. The catch is that it's only playable from September 29th through October 12th, so you'll have a limited amount of time to perfect your tactics. Teams of three tankers will compete to capture a control point, destroy each other, and race across a track filled with ramps and explosives. Participants will be limited to the new M24 Chaffee sport tank which will be given to all registered players for free. [Source: Wargaming press release]
The Daily Grind: What game are you sorta but not really following?
Every time I see or write something about World of Warships, a little voice inside my head goes, "hmm, that actually looks pretty good and you should follow it." And then something happens and I forget about it until the next time I see a blurb or whatever. The point is, I'm kinda sorta interested in WoWS but it's still somewhat on the periphery of my gaming vision. What about you, Massively readers? Is there a game that you're semi-anticipating but not really following? Or am I just crazy? 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!
World of Warships dev diary vid explains class mechanics
Heads up, World of Warships fans. Wargaming has released a new developer diary video designed to talk you through ship types (i.e., classes). More specifically, today's nine-minute clip is about Destroyers and Battleships. Wargaming explains why it opted to simplify real-world fleet logistics like fuel and aircraft management. It currently takes 30 seconds for a six-plane squadron to refit on the deck of a carrier, and once a flight has expended its ammunition, the video says it will immediately return to the mothership rather than continue to fly about. Those are just a couple of the gameplay and balance considerations illuminated in today's diary. Click past the cut if you'd like to watch the whole thing.
Global Chat: Blaugust triumphant
Last month, Tales of the Aggronaut issued a community-wide challenge for MMO bloggers to commit to posting (at least) once a day for all 31 days. This challenge was called Blaugust, and it caused a tidal wave of additional posts, top 10 lists, and random cat pictures as writers struggled to keep up with the rate of output. While not everyone who signed up succeeded in sticking out the entire month, it certainly injected some life into summer doldrums and got people talking. The 2014 Blaugust Wrap-up does a great job giving an overview of the challenge and a list of all of the blogs involved. If you're looking for outspoken opinions put forth at a prodigious rate, I'd suggest checking these out. Speaking of outspoken opinions, we've also got plenty of them in the form of the most interesting posts from the past two weeks! Global Chat... away!
Firefall patch 1.1 brings elemental destruction
A major new update has gone live for Firefall, bringing with it new types of weapons and weapon damage types. As the name suggests, Patch 1.1: Elemental Destruction is all about ways to unleash different elements upon enemies to bring about their ruin. The update's newest weapons are the plasma flak cannon and bio injector, however even older weapons can get new modifiers to change their damage type. The additional weapon modifiers include thermal, flaming thermal, bioactive, virulent bioactive, electrical, charged electrical, beam, laser beam, microplasma, and emissive microplasma. Even grenade launchers have gotten love with new ways to throw out explosives in a spread or cluster. Patch 1.1 also adds five dynamic encounters, two new ARES job boards, and a hardcore version of Kanaloa the Destroyer. Check out Massively's previous in-depth look at the new weapon types of Patch 1.1.
Exclusive: The weapons of Firefall's Elemental Destruction
In the wake of Firefall's announcement of its September 16th Elemental Destruction launch date, Red 5's RudiKazootie returns with another dev diary about the update, this one focusing on the new elemental weapons, new weapon modifiers, and new primary archetype weapons arriving next week. Enjoy!
