weekend-gaming
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WRUP: How is this not fully funded edition
For various terrible reasons, I only just found out about Panzer Pets (and yes, we did cover the announcement on Massively, but I still occasionally miss news we cover). Like many ambitious projects, it's on Kickstarter, but as of right now it's not even 10% funded, which raises the question of why we live in a world where a game that offers to let you build your own little robots and send them into battle was not funded about eight minutes after the page went live. I think this should be rectified. My only regret is not having the full sum to just fill up the funding by my lonesome. What's that? Oh, right, WRUP, in which the Massively staff members discuss what they'll be playing over the next two days. We also discuss our thoughts on open vs. instanced housing. Jump on past the break to see our weekend plans, and let us know what you're going to be doing in the comments!
WRUP: Shopping for furniture edition
With Ms. Lady and I solidly moved into our new apartment, we face a new problem. Specifically, we face the problem of having a substantial need for furniture and not nearly enough furniture to meet that need. So we've absconded to the almost adjacent Crate & Barrel, which is a lot like Ikea except made of something sturdier than corrugated cardboard. Maybe not much, but it's a game of degrees. But you didn't come here to read about my furniture shopping. Well, not just my furniture shopping, anyway. You came here for this week's installment of WRUP, wherein we of the Massively staff discuss our plans for the weekend. We also talk about whether or not we mourn the games that never saw widespread release, if any. So jump on down past the break to see what we're up to over the weekend, and let us know what you've got planned in the comments!
WRUP: Revenge of the boxes edition
I was worried, rather legitimately, that when I moved into my new apartment, I would be facing an internet-free existence despite having called to set up a transfer two weeks prior. That worst-case scenario didn't come to pass. However, I am still sitting among a nightmarish pile of boxes that form corridors and alleyways through my space. Somewhere in those boxes is every important item that contributes to comfortable living. But at least I can clean that up while looking at cat videos. Since I have the internet, I'm also able to type yet another inane introduction to WRUP, in which the Massively staff members discuss what they're up to over the next few days. We also give our impressions of the two most recent betas in five words -- or whatever other MMO-related topic strikes our fancy. So jump on down to see what we're up to for the weekend, and let us know your plans over the weekend in the comments!
WRUP: Yes, it's the beta weekend edition
Yes, it's true, you can finally log in and play Guild Wars 2 for a little while. You still can't play two of the five races, but you can sit down at your computer this evening and emerge two days later, a bleary-eyed shell of a human being. And then when you get the full game, you can get bored within an hour. So maybe this whole beta weekend thing is a double-edged sword after all. Or maybe not -- this is going to be the first I've played of it. As you can probably guess, this week's WRUP involves a lot of skirmishes being fought by organizations for the second time, and I'm not talking about Business Fisticuffs II: Fisticuff Harder. It also contains the other Massively staff activities for the weekend as well as our opinions on the definition of pay-to-win. So jump on past the break to let us know what you're doing, and leave your own plans in the comments.
WRUP: Pangolin edition
There are a few important things that you need to know about pangolins. First of all, they exist. Second, well, that first thing is hard enough to move past. Don't get me wrong; they're beyond adorable, but they have no right existing in the modern era. Look at that thing. It's covered in armor plating with a slow and snurfling gait. It's like a contemporary of mammoths and ground sloths. The fact that it exists in this time and place implies that evolution is very nostalgic on occasion. This week's WRUP isn't really about nostalgia. Sure, it's always about what the Massively staff is playing over the weekend, but our usual bonus question isn't nostalgic either. Instead, it's about what game mechanic we'd like to see excised for all time. So jump on past the break to see what we'll be up to over this fine weekend, and let us know your own plans down in the comments.
WRUP: In recollection of Yuri Gagarin edition
Thursday evening was Yuri's Night, an evening celebrating the flight of Yuri Gagarin, the first human being in space. Our younger readers may not realize this, but outer space is a dangerous place that people used to dream about, and human beings developed a great deal of technology to explore that dangerous frontier. Then someone realized that it was much easier to develop technology to show videos of cats jumping into boxes on portable phones. But as a big fan of the space program and humanity's efforts to expand beyond our planet, I like to honor Mr. Gagarin for his brave flight into the unknown. This week's WRUP, however, has nothing to do with the unknown. It does have a bit to do with space, depending on what games the Massively staffers are playing over the weekend. And it also talks about when a game is dying, which really doesn't have any ties to the header once again. Still, bravely venture past the break and let us know what you'll be up to in the comments.
WRUP: Ransom edition
PAX East is holding Eliot hostage! We've just learned that the infamous Boston gaming con is planning to force Eliot, Matt, Lis, and Karen to play video games for money indefinitely. But don't worry; I'm sure you guys can have Eliot and his Dadaist commentary back once I get those cookies. I mean, once PAX gets those cookies. Yeah. In the meantime, let's do this WRUP thing after the break! We'll talk about what we think of beta weekends and what we're playing, and then you can do the same using our brand-new comment system that so totally doesn't have any bugs (see, I can be absurd like Eliot!).
WRUP: How is it time for PAX edition
Holy anything, next weekend it's time for my annual trip up to Boston for PAX East. This strikes me as intensely strange, and not just because it's taking place later than usual this year. It's going to be absolutely insane. I also don't have any major events surrounding me for the first time, so I'll hopefully be able to relax a little more. Seriously, I'm still not mentally done with January; I'm not ready for it to be this late in the year already. This week's WRUP does not entirely focus on PAX, of course, mostly because that's not happening this weekend. But we do talk about our plans for the current weekend as well as our opinions on the pervasive shroud of muscled men that make up MMO beefcake. Take a look at what we'll be up to past the cut, and let us know what you're planning on playing over the weekend in the comments!
WRUP: Value this moment edition
I know that most weeks when I write up the header for WRUP, I'm talking about something ridiculous. This week, I don't have it in me. This week, I have only advice for you: Take the time and the energy to value the things that matter in your lives. Games, people, experiences, all of the above. Don't ignore these things, don't let them slip away, and don't ignore how many important and fragile pieces exist all around you. Take the time to do things you enjoy and see people you care about, and don't take any of that for granted. The rest of this week's installment is less somber, as we're discussing our usual weekend plans as well as whether or not we expect RP servers to be policed. Jump on past the break to see what we'll be up to, and then let us know your plans (and your opinions on the bonus question) in the comments.
WRUP: You'd better be wearing green edition
Happy Saint Patrick's Day! Normally I'd admonish people for taking a special day out of their busy schedules just to drink heavily (everyone knows you do that throughout the week), but in this case I'm just going to admonish people not for wearing green. If you aren't wearing green, you're missing the point. Also, you could stand to do that more often. I'm just happy to see people wearing green clothes; it doesn't have to be a holiday. Me? Half of my shirts are green. This week's WRUP does not actually involve any Saint Patrick's Day shenanigans. Instead, we've opted for our usual mixture of games and some assorted musings on what games we'd play if the games in question had alternate rulesets for some servers. So go ahead and spy on our weekend antics just past the cut, and let us know what you'll be doing in the comments!
WRUP: I've been waiting two years to do this edition
When I first started playing Mass Effect 2, I was waiting for a chance to start punching Cerberus operatives in the face. Now I'm playing Mass Effect 3, which gives me abundant opportunities to punch Cerberus operatives in the face. I mean, there are a lot of other things to like about the game, but nothing that gives me the satisfaction of being able to take down people who have clearly needed to be taken down for some time. It's... edifying. This week's installment of WRUP doesn't actually include much in the way of ME3 beyond this, however, but it does include what everyone on the Massively staff will be doing over the weekend. It also includes our individual stories about the last MMO that we each deleted off of our respective hard drives. So come look at our plans, and then let us know what you'll be doing down in the comments.
WRUP: Going ape edition
I hate when I know a major game release is just around the corner. Mass Effect 3 comes out next week, and I've got it quietly pre-loading on my machine right now. That's bad enough by itself, but I count four other games I'm enraptured by at the moment, leaving me to just completely wig out in trying to play everything at once. I could probably bring my desktop downstairs and play on the PlayStation 3 at the same time, but that still leaves me with a need to be playing three other games at once. I know. First-world problems. At any rate, it's time for this week's installment of WRUP, in which the entire Massively crew is all frenetic about playing many, many games. Well, some of us are, anyway. And we're all sharing our personal definition of a sandbox game, so that should be fun. So let us know what you're going to be up to in the comments, but only after you've passed through the wall of text beneath the cut!
WRUP: Are you going to eat that edition
Are you going to eat that? No, really. I mean, it's fine if you are; there's nothing wrong with it. It just looks tasty, is all. And you know, I'm kind of hungry. I mean, I don't want you to go hungry, so if you're going to eat it, go ahead. But if you aren't really in the mood to eat it, I wouldn't mind having a bite. Isn't it kind of fatty? Aren't you on that diet? Here, just let me have a taste. Oh, wow, this is great. Say, while I'm eating this, why don't you check out this week's installment of WRUP? It's all the plans of the Massively staff for the weekend, and we're also talking about what games we regret having left behind. So go ahead and read that, and then let us know what you'll be up to in the comments. I'll just finish this plate off.
WRUP: This is kind of a silly demo edition
I haven't played it yet, but the Mass Effect 3 demo strikes me as silly. For me, and I suspect pretty everyone else who played the first two games, this is not a game that had to do much to sell itself. BioWare could have just announced the title and done nothing else, and I would still have been getting out my wallet. All that playing the demo does is make you more anxious for a thing that's a while away and have probably already preordered. I'm not saying I can resist it, mind. But it seems a bit silly. In other news, it's time for this week's installment of WRUP, where the Massively staff members talk about what they plan to do over the weekend. This week, we're also discussing whether or not we'd fund an MMO project via Kickstarter. So storm on past the cut for our weekend plans, and let us know what you'll be up to in the comments!
WRUP: Larry will be staring at chest hair edition
Massively columnist Larry Everett has informed me that despite having sent in a different response for this week's WRUP, he will spend this weekend staring at chest hair. Why will he be staring at chest hair? I don't know, exactly. Perhaps he's captured by the primal energy it offers, the sense of a fundamental connection with mankind's somewhat savage roots. Perhaps he just really doesn't feel like logging into a game. Whatever the reason, he dared me to share this with the world, and now I'm doing precisely that. Where were we? Oh, right, WRUP. This week's edition is... well, like every other edition, with the Massively staffers letting you all know what they'll be up to over the weekend. We're also talking about the maximum fee we'd pay for a subscription to an MMO. So jump on past the break to check out our gaming plans, then let us know yours down in the comments!
WRUP: We'll miss you, Miss Rubi edition
It's official: After more than two years here at Massively, our beloved Community Manager Rubi Bayer is departing for, well, exactly the pastures we all expected. (It's nice to be able to actually discuss that, if you've been waiting to hear about that since Monday's column.) She's been a wonderful co-worker, a spectacular friend, and a sterling columnist through all of it. We are richer for having had her as long as we did, and we can only hope that she won't forget about us while knee-deep in community management for ArenaNet. She certainly deserves it. Beyond the bittersweet, this week's installment of WRUP is here, with the remaining Massively staffers discussing our plans over the weekend. We're also talking about whether or not we could make a great game with $30 million, albeit with the understanding that we're mostly working from speculation. Check out our weekend plans just after the break, and let us know what sort of trouble you'll be getting into down in the comments.
WRUP: Apropos of nothing, Star Trek Online edition
The last several weeks have pretty much had at least one or two major stories about a certain game that launched recently. So, apropos of nothing, here's a picture of Star Trek Online, which is not the game in question. It recently went free-to-play, also, which is pretty noteworthy if you haven't tried it despite wanting to see what it's like. As for me, I'm not playing it right now, but I did enjoy it when I tried! I know -- you'd expect random cute animals from me instead. I like to break expectations. Apropos for the end of the week, it's time for another installment of WRUP, in which we, the Massively staff members, talk about our plans for the weekend. We're also talking about what games have been out the longest before we played them. So jump on past the cut to see what we're up to over the weekend, and let us know your plans in the comments!
WRUP: What happens when you add sound to chat edition
So apparently the chatroom software that we use for business purposes (ostensibly) got a software upgrade this week that allows us to insert sound clips. Some people have used responsibly, meaning that they have not even looked up the cheat sheet for said sounds. Others, like yours truly, have turned the chatroom into a thing of horror that awakens any and all infants within a wide radius. Basically, give a bunch of adults a toy and they'll play with it until it breaks. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately depending on your views about such shenanigans, this week's WRUP does not include sounds. Instead, it just contains what the Massively staff members will be up to over the weekend, as well as whether or not they would pay money for a mobile app. So click on past the break to see our plans, and let us know what you'll be up to in the comments.
WRUP: Massively Core is the same as regular Massively edition
Sorry, guys. We had it all ready, the unveiling of a version of Massively on which you saw only our articles about games, ranging from game news to game columns to opinions about gaming. But then someone pointed out that that would be exactly the same thing as what we already have. On the upside, it's less coding work this way; on the downside, my epic series of articles on baking cookies while underwater is now never going to see print. Oh, what could have been. Anyway, despite these disappointments, another edition of WRUP has seen fit to grace everyone with news of what the Massively staff will be doing over the weekend. We're also talking about how much we have paid or would be willing to pay for a spiffy in-game ride. So click on past the break to see our weekend distractions, and let us know what you'll be up to in the comments!
WRUP: Remaining a horrible person edition
We are horrible people. Well, OK, not all of us are horrible people -- I'm pretty sure that Justin is a good egg, for instance. But I know for sure that I'm a terrible person, and most of my resolutions for the next year don't even touch on fixing any of that. It's another year of being morally and fiscally irresponsible, cursing in front of children, putting my foot in my mouth, and laughing at fart jokes for me. Stick with your strengths, right? Anyway, it's time for the first edition of WRUP for the new year, and clearly nothing has changed. After all, it's still a recounting of what the Massively staff will be up to over the weekend, complete with our own resolutions for the new year as they pertain to gaming. So jump on past the cut to see what we're up to, and let us know what you'll be doing on this first full weekend of the year in the comments.
