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Fallen Earth recruiting for high-level arena testing
Calling all high-level Fallen Earth players! GamersFirst is looking for some level 55 wastelanders to help alpha-test the new Dome arena. The Dome is a PvE challenge that was previewed in the March State of the Game, and it's now ready for the next step of development with your help. If you're interested, send your forum name, typical hours of play, build, and PvE vs. PvP ratio to DeconLead@gamersfirst.com for review. Take note that involvement in this test doesn't mean you're in the elite Decon testing team, as this is more of a one-off event. Check out the Fallen Earth May State of the Game for more details.
The Daily Grind: What's the funniest MMO?
Humor is in the funnybone of the owner, so today's topic will most likely lead to a wide range of responses. That's cool. Some of us like slapstick, some like horrible puns, some get a kick out of corny pop culture references, and some enjoy a smattering of witty dialogue. In the end, it comes down to what lightens our hearts and makes us laugh, doesn't it? So what's the funniest MMO out there? I'm going to cast my vote for, oddly enough, Fallen Earth. There's a bizarre streak of black humor that you only seem to get with a post-apocalyptic setting. The massively ugly mutated prairie chickens always make me smile, as does the weird-as-crap quotes that the wasteland inhabitants spout. But my opinion doesn't stand alone; I want to hear yours! What MMO makes with the funny the best? 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!
Fallen Earth rolls out the '13 Vandal
April Fools in the wasteland of Fallen Earth is just like our holiday, except that pranks tend to be a lot more radioactive and fatal than ours. But just as funny, y'know? What isn't a joke is the new Fallen Earth state of the game post, in which the team unveils the latest car coming to the game: the Vandal. The Vandal is a decked-out car with as much style as it has armor. While the model on display was a uniformly plain gray vehicle, the devs promise that there will be several different paint jobs available when it rolls off the assembly line. The team is also working on resolving issues with Blood Sports; it says that these issues should be resolved soon if they aren't already.
Fallen Earth prepares new Deathtoll weapons and the perilous Dome
It's March! Spring is in the air, bringing with it the lilting cries of embattled players and their screams of horrific agony floating on the breeze. March is bringing its springtime magic to Fallen Earth in the form of new Deathtoll weapons, a new two-player PvE gauntlet, and the long-awaited AP Augmentation system. Players will soon be able to snatch up the Jet Engine Hammer and the sawn-off Murder of Crows Shotgun for their arsenal. These Deathtoll weapons will be some of the first to use AP Augmentation. We don't have a lot of details on this new customization system yet, but we do know that "weapons will have various stats that players can put AP in that will enhance aspects of the weapon." The system will be introduced with weapons for max level characters and expand to armor later. The Dome is an abandoned football stadium that's been repurposed as a deathtrap for level 55 players. When it goes live, you'll be able to queue as a pair or get matched up through solo queue before heading in to face 10 deadly bosses. Each boss you defeat will ramp up the difficulty and rewards for your next encounter. One of the key rewards from this experience will be recipes and components for the new Augmentation system.
The Perfect Ten: Creative MMO minigames
Few people are without opinions on minigames in MMOs. Some love 'em, some hate 'em, and some just ignore 'em. Some even despise that I won't type "th." Takes all types, really. Personally, I'm all for including new types of enjoyable systems that can be repeated, particularly if it benefits my character in some way. There's also this perception that minigames are just for kids. It's true that more kid-centric titles like Free Realms and Clone Wars Adventures thrive on minigames like you thrive on deep-fried butter balls, but these little diversions exist all over the place in "grownup" titles too. Holidays are a favorite time to trot them out, although there are plenty that exist year-round. Today we're going to look at 10 creative minigames that have tickled my fancy over the year. Yes, I used the word "fancy." Whatcha gonna do about it?
Fallen Earth introduces new coresuit armor, free respecs
Reloaded Productions has thrown a bone to Fallen Earth players who have been getting rolled by PvPers with powerful G.O.R.E. weapons. There's some new player-crafted armor in town called a Stage 3 Coresuit which uses procs to increase survivability in both PvP and PvE. Fallen Earth's latest patch also features revamped Gamma radiation-powered mutation skill lines as well as two free character respecs for everyone. [Source: Reloaded Productions press release]
Fallen Earth devs prepping two-man Dome PvE content
The Fallen Earth dev team has posted a brief state-of-the-game letter for February. In it, we're treated to a preview of something called the Dome, a two-man PvE arena concept that is currently in pre-production. The Dome stems from a desire to provide "more ways for PvEers to distinguish themselves and provide a competitive outlet to test their mettle outside of PvP." Players will trigger a series of consecutive skirmishes that get tougher as a team gets farther, and of course the rewards will scale accordingly.
Fallen Earth devs explain how schedules are made
As January is fairly quiet for the devs working on Fallen Earth, they've used the monthly state of the game post to share a behind-the-scenes look into the production process. The team begins by making a list of all of the ideas it wants for the game, and then reviews this list quarterly. Out of the list comes the schedule to bring these ideas to reality. Schedules are almost impossible to stick to 100%, however. Issues and limitations pop up, requiring the team to be flexible. "This is actually where the strength of the team comes into play," Napalm posted. "They're very adaptable and adept at changing direction or coming up with 11th hour solutions. And despite the best laid designs there are ALWAYS 11th hour solutions." The state of the game does mention that the team is cleaning up some bugs relating to farming and has hopes that the new system will be more integrated in the future. There's also a sneak-peek at the sector 3 coresuit, which is currently being modeled.
GamersFirst offers exclusive deals to cafe owners and resellers
GamersFirst is looking to make headway in two important markets: internet resellers and gaming cafés. To do so, the company set up a merchant center to offer a partnership with business owners to help promote and sell goods for APB and Fallen Earth. Café owners are tempted to feature these titles more prominently in exchange for a premium service. This service may, but not necessarily has to, include exclusive items, 20% more XP earned, 20% more loot earned, and login preference. Internet resellers also have good incentive to pimp GamersFirst products, especially as the company makes the point that they can set their price once game codes are purchased. Some of the things that can be sold include monthly subscriptions, in-game items, exclusive items, player currency, and exclusive packages. [Thanks to Hutch for the tip!]
Fallen Earth farming to go live tomorrow
Tomorrow's update 2.6 for Fallen Earth will bring the long-awaited farming feature to the post-apocalyptic MMO after enjoying a few weeks on the game's public test server. As stated in a previous exclusive on Massively, these farms will allow players to create 3-, 6-, and 9-plot farms with crops you can grow, livestock you can raise, and western-themed gear you can wear. Rare and valuable materials can be harvested from these farms and the higher-end farm houses even have space for indoor seating, vaults, and more. If you'd like to see these farms in action, be sure to watch my livestream this Thursday at 8:00 p.m. EST where I'll show off the farm buildings and give my impressions on how it all works. [Source: GamersFirst press release]%Gallery-48606%
Fallen Earth readies the land for farms
Fallen Earth's latest state of the game is as country as one can get. The title is currently testing out farms, which should go live in the game sometime in December. Farms are a branch of the construction crafting set, which can grow plants and animals. That's right: Through the magic of cloning, livestock can be cloned right there on the farm. Players can build one of these farms anywhere with enough space and no landscape conflicts. They come with a farmhouse and several amenities and last for four hours before disappearing. Of course, don't take the state of the game for it; read our in-depth interview of the new farming system from last month! The state of the game also said that the next stage of the Coresuit will be coming in the new year, player housing is still being investigated on the technical front, and a certain mount will be getting an update this holiday season.
MMO Blender: Beyond Shawn's Thunderdome
If there's one thing I've noticed about these MMO Blender articles, it's that the Massively staff members seem to really like their sandboxes. Maybe it's not even so much a staff preference as it is a statement about where we all are as MMO players. Themeparks have been done and have been perfected, but many of us want to stretch the limitations of a truly persistent and open online world. At least that's what I'd like to think. It's an ideal situation I can dream about, but do we all really want a truly open world with limitless possibilities? What would we do with so few rules? My perfect MMO has what I'd consider to be the best of all worlds. The trick is, of course, getting it all to work in one game.
Farming in Fallen Earth: An exclusive interview with the devs
Late last week, Reloaded Games and GamersFirst announced that farming was coming to the post-apocalyptic sandbox Fallen Earth. The initial dev blog gave us some information on how farming will be implemented, but not much more beyond that. We took that as an invitation to pick the dev team's collective brain, and pick we did. Read on after the cut to learn more on how farming will work in Fallen Earth and how close it will be to FarmVille -- plus you can point your eyes at two exclusive screenshots of the farms themselves.
Fallen Earth to introduce farming
Fallen Earth's upcoming content includes new stage 3 coresuits, skill and mutation adjustments, and farming. Yes, farming is coming to Fallen Earth! According to the most recent dev blog, post-apocalyptic farming will be a crafting skill that will allow a player to build a three-, six-, or nine-plot farm where organic resources can be grown through seed planting, and animals can be raised. Additionally, harvesting will give a player the chance to get a common, uncommon, or rare component. Farming in PvP zones will increase the resource yield. Be sure to read the entire dev blog for more information on what's coming to the PTS with the next content patch.
Fallen Earth and APB: Reloaded go trick-or-treating
GamersFirst is bringing scary back to two of its biggest titles for Halloween. The publisher announced special events and seasonal sales for APB: Reloaded and Fallen Earth, some of which are happening at this very moment. Players in APB can get a preview of the upcoming Asylum District as they go there to compete in the Fright Club. A costume contest is scheduled for October 31st as well, and GMs will be present to lead a grand parade through the streets. Finally, the pumpkin-happy devs are throwing another Pumpkin Head Customization Contest with even better prizes than last year. In the vast wasteland of Fallen Earth, survivors are encouraged to go trick-or-treating with the devs for exclusive items. The location of said trick-or-treating will be hinted at in chat. Fallen Earth is also selling its cosmetic gear for half off starting tomorrow.
Choose My Adventure: You decide the MMO and how I play it
It's finally time for my second round of Choose My Adventure. The last time I helmed CMA, Lineage II was top pick, and I had a lot of fun with it. I took tons of screenshots and video to keep you in the loop as to my progress, and you can expect the same, whichever game is chosen this time. MJ's turn with The Secret World was a lot of fun to read and follow. She even livestreamed some of her shenanigans... I mean, adventures. You can bet I'll be playing with one finger over the PrtScn button and livestreaming some of my adventures as well. I hope to make this a multimedia extravaganza of epic proportions. Take a look through your choices and vote, vote, vote. And make sure to get those votes in by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday the 21st!
One Shots: Wings
Resident Massively Aion columnist MJ Guthrie could sum up the best reason to play her favorite MMO in just one word: wings! That's something reader Leandra plainly echoes in today's featured One Shots submission. She sent us this image of her character soaring through Aion along with this note: I've been toying around with Aion a bit and took my baby Chanter, Elanyne, for her first flight through the Abyss. I kept an eye out for Elyos, but thankfully (though somewhat disappointingly), I was able to quest in peace. I guess I'll have to level up more and then go looking to pick some fights! You red, you dead -- that's what I always say! Leandra's flight and a few other reader screenies are tucked beyond the break.
The Game Archaeologist: Happy birthday, Warhammer Online and Fallen Earth!
September is a special month for me because it was around this time that two MMOs personally meaningful to me launched. Four years ago, Warhammer Online came into being amid a flurry of hype, insane expectations, and fan frenzy. It's the game that excited me enough to start my journey as a blogger, eventually landing me a spot here on Massively. And three years ago, Fallen Earth opened my eyes to how much fun an MMO about the end of the world and crafting could be. Despite the fact that neither of these titles qualifies for the title of "success" these days, I still bear a soft spot in my heart for them. I spent well over a year in each game, racking up several memories and useful lessons that I'd carry with me going forward. And I don't regret a single day playing them. Since this month is the fourth anniversary of WAR and the third of Fallen Earth, I wanted to offer a hearty "congrats!" and take a minute to see what's been moving and shaking in these games during this past year.
The Perfect Ten: Ways MMOs explain infinite resurrection
Why? Why do we die in MMOs and receive an infinite number of resurrections? Are we in a type of hell defined by endless combat and suffering, doomed to never escape the cycle? Is this a cruel experiment being performed by supreme alien beings from afar? Does that make us the living undead, immortal Highlanders, or something even more significant? If you're looking at me with that look you have in your eye right now, I'd like to remind you that asking these questions is more in line with the core of RPGs than just mashing the 1-2-3 buttons. The rules that make up and dictate our virtual lives should have both meaning and sense, yet so many of these games expect us to just blithely accept that we can come back from the dead over and over without nary an explanation. Well, I like explanations. Even if it's just polite nonsense, a thought-out reason as to why our characters are death-proof tells me that the devs treat their game with a higher degree of integrity than others. So here are 10 MMOs in which the endless cycle of death and resurrection gets at least a backhanded explanation instead of "shut up, just accept it."
Fallen Earth unveils new weapons and bosses in time for its third anniversary [Updated]
Anniversary gifts require careful thought, but Fallen Earth seems to know just what its players want. So patch 2.5 adds three powerful new weapons for players to use across the wastelands as well as three new bosses that carry required components for those weapons. It's not really the traditional gift for a three-year anniversary, but some traditions are going to go out the window when the entire world is a ravaged wasteland dominated by crazed survivalists. The three G.O.R.E weapons each have three tiers and can be upgraded, although the process is greatly enhanced by players who find G.O.R.E. enhancements. Not coincidentally, these can be found on the three new bosses added with the patch. The full patch notes also include a few art fixes and minor quality-of-life improvements, the sort of things that go very nicely with your new anniversary guns. [Update: The team has updated the patch notes to clarify that not all of the new weapon components can be purchased through the cash shop. Specifically, "all components that are required to build the weapons are earned in-game using resource harvesters, killing boss mobs, and from high-level merchants (for in-game currency only)." Players may purchase optional G.O.R.E. enhancements and new boss baits through the cash shop, although both of these drop from monsters as well.] %Gallery-48606%
