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Major features cut from Warhammer Online
The world of Warhammer just got a bit smaller. In an interview with with MMORPG.com, Mythic Entertainment VP and General Manager Mark Jacobs (not to be confused with fashion designer Marc Jacobs) has revealed some big cuts for the Warhammer Online's launch. Namely, the capital cities for the Dark Elf, High Elf, Orc, and Dwarf factions are gone. That leaves two capital cities, Altdorf and the Chaos Inevitable City.Additionally, four classes have been cut: Choppa (Greenskin), Hammerer (Dwarf), Blackguard (Dark Elf) and Knight of the Blazing Sun (Empire). Jacobs explained the cuts were made for quality reasons and expressed dismay over having to nix the classes. Also, to seemingly curtail any conspiracy theories, he said, "This has nothing to do with EA ... they had zero input in this ... They don't even know about it. It's not a discussion we would have with them."The MMO-obsessed at Massively have provided explanations for the ramifications of these cuts. No indication on if any of these features will return in an update or expansion pack. [Via Massively]
New MMO Forged by Chaos to use CryEngine 2
Panzar Studio has announced its development of Forged by Chaos, which will use the popular CryEngine 2 engine, which powered the PC game Crysis. From the looks of the character concept art, it needs all that power. CEO Vladimir Valkov says "For such a game as this we were searching for a modern graphics engine that was capable of utilizing DirectX 10 technology ... We were also impressed by their handy Sandbox 2 editor, which was designed to work with very expansive and highly detailed locations, their modern dynamic lighting model, and their character animation systems, including inverse kinematics and dynamics."There is currently no information on actual game mechanics or release date, but there is some lore on the site, as well as some concept art. We'll keep an eye on this title and provide more news as it develops. Doesn't some of this look like the Warhammer aesthetic? Tons of doodads and gewgaws dangling from every available surface? This is the true definition of fantasy warfare.
Who's Jay Wilson?
Jay Wilson is on stage at WWI right now, showing off Blizzard's new game, the very hot-looking Diablo 3. But just who is Jay Wilson, and why is he in charge of the new Diablo game? Wilson's worked with Blizzard on World of Warcraft, and he's even got a character named after him.Previously, he'd worked for a company called Relic Entertainment, and was the lead designer on Dawn of War, a Warhammer 40000 (Warhammer, but in the future, kind of like Starcraft to our Warcraft)-based RTS game. The good news is that the game was fairly well reviewed, but of course Diablo 3 isn't an RTS game, it's a hack-and-slash, so we're not sure how Wilson will do on that front yet.In this interview, Wilson was known to be at Blizzard and supposedly working on Starcraft II but of course now we know better. This new Diablo could be the chance for this developer new to Blizzard to claim his place in history.UPDATE: Our very own Joystiq caught up with Jay Wilson at the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational. Find out what Diablo 3's lead designer has to say about porting to consoles, the next Deckard Cain rap and the notorious dupe exploits of previous games.
Running down Warhammer Online's open beta with WAAAGH!
There's MMOs to play, plenty of activities and events are happening in World of Warcraft, EverQuest, EverQuest II, and Guild Wars. Even the space cases in EVE Online are tearing each other up in the Empyrean Age expansion. But there isn't always something for everyone, many of us yearn for a new creation not touched before, and the million boxes Age of Conan shipped attests to that. Right now Warhammer: Age of Reckoning is looking like the only real new option on the dinner table, and it may be time to be taking a leap into Warhammer's open beta. Over on the Warhammer Online blog WAAAGH! Syp has gathered and laid out all the facts and the rumors regarding the open beta. If you didn't know you can pre-order the Warhammer Online Collector's edition to guarantee a spot in the beta to beat the launch pandemonium. As for an estimate on when the open beta will start the latest WAR newsletter revealed that the guild beta will be starting in early July. This phase of testing will at least last for a month and it will be the last closed beta phase. Making it more than likely that WAR's open beta phase at the very least wont start until mid-August, if that, making the rest of summer pretty bleak MMO wise if you aren't planning on playing anything until WAR comes out.
WAR: June beta review plus more news from the front
Hail, fellow onlookers! (IE: Those of us not in Warhammer Online beta). Last month's news about the Advance on Altdorf has kept our breath at bay. You can breathe easy, there will be no peace. In this latest dispatch concerning the Aegis of the Oathbearers and Bloody Sun Boyz it indicates that the Greenskins and Dwarfs took up arms against one another clashing for the first time in over half a year. Further tasty lore bits and new images from the beta can be seen over on the Warhammer Herald. It's hinted that the next focus test will involve guilds. This is exciting news, and maybe some guilds that won invites last April will finally reap their better later than never reward. For older but still damn good Warhammer news, and I mean a metric ton of exclusive Warhammer information, check out our Massively goes to WAR coverage. A detailed list on what the latest round of beta testing focused on resides after the jump.
Riccitiello: Warhammer won't rival World of Warcraft
Serving as the CEO for a high-profile game publisher means having responsibilities beyond just attending the occasional meeting or PR function. Many gaming industry executives also find themselves moonlighting as Flavor Flav-esque hype men (and women) for their company's blockbuster releases. Then again, some leaders take a different approaching to promoting their big titles, replacing boisterous claims with cautious, realistic optimism. Then there's a third group of leaders, who etch their upcoming games into their flesh.Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello fits neatly into group number two, as his comments to a group of investors concerning EA Mythic's upcoming Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning demonstrates. Riccitiello plainly stated that "Warhammer Online [will be] a strong entry in the MMORPG space," but will not "rival WoW." We appreciate Riccitiello's candor, but with Warhammer out of the running, we're beginning to wonder what it will take for a title to knock Blizzard's billion-dollar baby from its position atop the crest of the MMO dogpile.
Let's Pilates cheaply, thanks to Amazon (and more!)
If Let's Pilates is as good as Let's Yoga, then it's a real steal at Amazon today at under $15. Looking for something a little less active? No problem -- tons of games are on sale, and accessories, too. We're not guaranteeing they're all great, but they do have one thing in common: they're cheap as hell. Let's Pilates -- $14.28 Magical Starsign -- $14.18 Warhammer 40k: Squad Command -- $9.45 Avatar: Burning Earth -- $9.45 Brain Boost: Gamma Wave -- $9.45 The Golden Compass -- $9.45 Interactive Storybook DS -- $9.45 Elements of Destruction -- $9.45
"Cliffs Notes" version of the June PC Gamer WAR coverage
Over at the Waaagh! Warhammer Online blog, Syp has reported back from his recent time spent with a copy of June's PC Gamer at a doctor's waiting room (and we agree with him, coolest doctor ever). The June issue featured a whole mess of Warhammer related content, including WAR coverage, and Syp has been good enough to condense this down into note form or us to peruse.The result is a quick but worthwhile read, and might give you an idea of whether you'd like to pick up the mag to check out the articles in full. Some of the topics covered are: the original RvR system versus what is in game now, the guild UI, a races "role call", and some information about Warhammer in general.
[1. Local]: This week in WoW Insider comments
[1.Local] serves up a smattering of reader comments from the past week, from the sublime to the ridiculous. We start off this week's look at reader comments with a handful of theories, notions and opinions on a variety of topics: why Warhammer won't rival WoW, what could be behind the upcoming universal spellpower change, and the root of the whole Horde vs. Alliance struggle. Readers had high praise for the most recent installment of our informative Tank Talk column, before adding their two copper to the last installment of Thrall's story in Know Your Lore. And finally, readers had a lot to say about cross-faction camaraderie among fishers, more kudos for a tote bag that'll leave you in Stitches, and some off-color ideas about the influence of team colors on PvP success. Be sure to dive into the comments area of each thread (not this one!) and add your own thoughts – unlike your mama, we like us some hot, fresh backtalk.
EA CEO: Warhammer won't rival WoW
There's been quite a bit of buzz around that whole little Warhammer game that's coming out soon, and while we're not a Warhammer blog or anything, we've at least covered the questions that keep arising over how it stack up to WoW. Will Warhammer Online be the game to beat WoW? Is Blizzard stealing Ideas from them? Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitello put his two cents into the kitty recently at an investor's meeting. Next Generation reports that he said the following: "Warhammer Online [will be] a strong entry in the MMORPG space," Riccitiello said at the William Blair & Company's investor meeting Tuesday. "No, I don't think it's going to rival WoW, but no one would ever predict that. But it is a strong game that will ... get our returns for us. We're proud of it."
Glimpse some Dawn of War II gameplay footage
Cleanse the heretics and long live the Emperor! The latest Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War II video gives us an amuse bouche of in-game footage to check out until we (cross-fingers) get to see at lot more at E3 next month. With the series back in the hands of Relic studios, hopefully the game will help THQ's bottom line when it releases early next year. For those who missed out on the original Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War series (which is three games -- four, if you count Soulstorm), it still holds up well and can be found in a boxed Platinum Set, and on Steam, for around $30. For the sake of DoW II's sales, we hope Starcraft II isn't released anywhere close to the same time.
Massively.com's exhaustive coverage of Warhammer Online
All week long, Massively.com has been offering up feature after feature on EA Mythic's in-development MMO, Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. The Massively goes to WAR feature series takes you front to back through almost every moment of our time at Mythic's Virginia headquarters. To wrap it all up, we've got a handy-dandy clickable guide to the series. Whether you're into hardcore PvP, dungeon delving, crafting, or are a total MMO newb, we've got you covered. Click on through, and explore the world of Warhammer. Gallery: Warhammer Online Screenshot Gallery
Massively goes to WAR: Everything you need to know about guilds pt. 2
<-- Jump back to part 1We note there is a website and an email address down there at the bottom of the tab? What are those? Christian Bales: That's just my web, that's test for now, but that's when the guild leader wants to set the actual guild's email address and the guild website.) Josh Drescher: You can set that to be whatever you want, so ... Obviously, one of the cool things that you really want from a guild is a sense of belonging, the team jersey, you go and dress up in your Redskins jerseys or wherever you're from. It'll have the guild heraldry. The heraldry is a customized, unique sort of heraldry for your specific guild. So a symbol on it, specific color scheme, shape, patterns and so forth that's applicable only to your guild, that your guild will have the ability to place on various things. Christian: On your standards and on your guild cloaks.
Massively goes to WAR: How to conquer a capital city
The keep and siege gameplay of Warhammer Online all leads up to just one thing: sacking the opposing race's capital. Weeks, perhaps months of gameplay all leads up to one final confrontation between the forces of Order and the forces of Destruction. But what happens once the final Fortress falls? How to players bring the capital to its knees, the better to chop off its head? Join us as we explore the final, ultimate state of Warhammer Online's RvR combat.
Massively goes to WAR: Exploring Warhammer's capital cities pt. 2
Bonus Trivia: Calendar events will see new and interesting elements added to the city all the time. The designers have a tool just for this, which will allow them to add short-term content to capital cities and areas throughout the Warhammer world. With that last image seared into our mind's eye, we move on to the Chaos-haunted streets of the Inevitable city. Instead of white marble and smartly paved roads, the home of Tchar'zanek is all black stone, spikes, and horror. The sky is a roiling terror of black clouds and energy , and everything seems to be a grim mockery of the nobility seen in the human city. The analog to the Altdorf's market square, for example, is called the soul forge. It is the main tavern and bank area, just as the square plays that role in Imperial lands. The nearby tavern known as the Feasthall offers a glimpse into Inevitable City life; down below the rude stone of the hall a pair of pit fighters kill to keep their lives. We're promised that failure at the wrong quest can end up with your character as the evening's dinner entertainment. The square itself is dominated by the Apex, a ziggurrat attended by grim acolytes. A never-ending parade of doomed creatures scales the structure's steps, only to throw themselves into the ever-burning flame shooting from the top. Across the dark stone is the soul bank, the main banking location in the city's center. Unlike the simple tellers behind bars in the city Karl Franz built, the soul bank is an enormous structure filled with howling souls and staffed by macabre creatures floating in pillars of light. From a design point of view, that pillar of light serves a purpose. Just as the city designers placed taverns and banks in all areas, here they made sure that bank couldn't be obscured by griefing players. Bonus Trivia: Surrounding the soul forge are carts full of prisoners. Invading Empire players can free these men to aid with the conquest of the city.
Massively goes to WAR: Insights into Warhammer's crafting system
Many of the systems developed for Warhammer Online focus around the art of war itself. Realm vs. Realm combat, Keeps, sieges ... the bread and butter of the game is combat, adventuring, and excitement. Which is not to say that a few moments of quiet time aren't appropriate even in the harsh world of WAR. The most recent newsletter unveiled a new production video from none other than Mark Jacobs himself, talking all about crafting.During our visit to EA Mythic last week, we had the chance to talk with one of the folks that's turned concept into reality. Justin Webb is a Senior Design Manager with the company, and sat with us to clarify some of the particulars Mr. Jacobs set out in the production video. Join us as we explore the world of potions, lotions, fungi, and butchering: Warhammer Online's crafting system.
Massively goes to WAR: Insights into Warhammer's crafting system Pt. 2
So not only do the gathering skills work with the crafting skills, but they also overlap with each other? Yeah - there's a little bit of overlap all over the place. Like earlier on, when I was saying Scavenging mostly helps you out with Talisman-making; there are edge conditions and all sorts of weirdness that we put in. Hopefully players will find it interesting, particularly like killing someone and finding they had a leech on them. Then you loot the leech and you say "Oh, this can be used to make healing potions, because it's a leech!" Stuff like that. So apothecary is a potion-making system. As a skill level one player I learn this skill from a trainer, and then I go to this guy here and he can give me some stuff. First thing I need to do is put it in a container, and then put in my main ingredient, and then there's a little thing that tells me whether the mixture is stable or not. So it's completely stable with these new additives. I press 'Brew', and we get a potion out at the end. It's real quick to make something as an Apothecary. Now the really cool thing about the system is we have a main ingredient which goes in that slot, which basically can determine what kind of potion we're making. In this case, you can check on the tooltip and know that this guy always makes intelligence potions. However the problem with the main ingredients is that they're very, very unstable. So as soon as you put them into a container, you are going to have a battle to make sure the overall stability of the concoction is positive. So, to do that, I've just used the three basic ingredients that I know have good stability. Other ingredients can also do other things, like the two basic other types which I'm going to show you today can increase the length of an effect on a potion, and increase the number made. It's a little bit difficult to be designing potions early on. Once you get into the swing of it, and you are starting to find more gatherables and you also have more money, you can buy stuff and you can can trade from players. It enables you to start designing the sort of potions that you want. Mark used a really good example in his podcast where he said "I'm going to make some potions for my guildmates ...
UK Games Expo 2008 announces new artist for charity event
If you've been following NCsoft Europe around lately, you'll notice they've been attending a ton of conferences and keeping fairly busy with charitable events as well. This coming weekend is no exception, as they'll be participating in the UK Games Expo 2008 event in Birmingham, after just returning from Bristol's Comicexpo. Also, with them once again are the artists from Draw the World Together, a charity formed to help children in developing third-world countries.During this coming event, NCsoft will be joined by Games Workshop artist Karl Kopinski. You may have seen Karl's amazing work if you're a Warhammer fan, or if you've checked out his personal site itself. He will be appearing at the UK Games Expo 2008 on Saturday only, so if you'd like to have your character drawn by him, you better get there early!
Vigil Games details Warhammer 40K MMO
While what we know about the game is barely knee-high to a gretchin, PC Gamer magazine recently had the opportunity to speak with a pair of folks behind Vigil Games' upcoming Warhammer 40,000 MMO, specifically general manager David Adams and studio creative director Joe Madureira. Both shed a few details on what we can expect while we wait patiently to kill rats aboard space hulks for the emperor. Says Adams, the game will be "much more intense" and combat-focused than the traditional fantasy MMOs upon which we've cut our teeth, giving us all the more reason to want to trade up our broadsword for a storm bolter. However, the dev notes that the MMO "will be an RPG," adding that "Relic has the RTS angle covered with the awesome Dawn of War series - we are making an RPG." Other interesting tidbits from the article include note that the game will include all of the tabletop game's "important" races, customizable characters, a variety of solo, party-based, and PvP missions, and the possibility of in-game vehicles as well. We can't wait to see how the tabletop war game makes the leap to MMO, but as it stands, in the grim darkness of the far future ... there is only waiting.[Via Massively]
Warhammer Online's High Elf Swordmaster Class
Hey everyone, remember Warhammer Online? That one MMO that's supposed to come out later this year? Okay, step away from the Conan beta and listen up, because we have some news on the Warhammer front concerning the Swordmaster. According to a recent MMORPG.com interview with EA Mythic's Adam Gershowitz, the Swordmaster of Hoeth is the High Elf's entry into the tanking profession. It uses a flurry of swordplay to deflect the blows of its enemies as opposed to simply using heavy armor, like most tanks. As with the other classes in WAR, the Swordmaster has three mastery paths that are variations of differing playstyles: Path of Vaul - Includes combos that draw aggro while still increasing your defense. This path caters to situations with multiple foes. Path of Khaine - This path is for your area attack combos, introducing more of an offensive twist for the more aggressive tanks. Path of Hoeth - This is the tank path that utilizes magical abilities to aid in both defense and offense.
