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WRUP: Our bucket list
Every week, just at the start of the weekend, we catch up with the WoW.com staff and ask them, "What are you playing this week?" (Otherwise known as: WRUP!) Join us to see what we're up to in and out of game -- and catch us in the comments to let us know what you're playing, too! Cataclysm hasn't arrived yet, and in the meanwhile, the WoW.com team is musing over what they need to get done before it does. And for once, there's something we (mostly) agree on: before Cataclysm comes, take a tour of the Plaguelands. Do the quests and run the dungeons, because there are some fantastic stories there that we'll never see again. But for what everyone's playing this weekend -- and the occasional non-Plagueland suggestions for your pre-Cataclysm to-do list, read on.
WRUP: Microtransaction edition
It's time again for another WRUP, and we're in a spending mood this week! First and foremost, of course, it's all about what we're playing in here at Massively. But as we play, often we find ourselves drawn in by all the shiny microtransaction goodies that are available. Item malls, cash shops, relevant-developer's-name-store, call it what you want, but microtransactions are everywhere. For this week's bonus question, in light of the recent study suggesting that most gamers have bought online goods, have you ever microtransacted? ("That's not a verb," I hear you saying -- but it is now.) If or if not, what's your favorite microtransaction loot? Follow along after the jump to see what the Massively staff had to say, then hit that handy comment button and tell us your answer!
WRUP: Eternal summer edition
As one week must end, so another will begin. But between the weeks we have two luxurious days of weekend in which we can enjoy all of our favorite things -- and as you might imagine, video games rank fairly highly amongst the Massively staff's list of favorite things. At any rate, it's far too hot to venture out of doors, so we may as well enjoy our favorite games in the meantime. So read on to find out what we're playing this weekend -- and, of course, to let us know what you're playing in the comments.
WRUP: Cake or pie edition
Every week, just at the start of the weekend, we catch up with the WoW.com staff and ask them, "What are you playing this week?" (Otherwise known as: WRUP!) Join us to see what we're up to in and out of game -- and catch us in the comments to let us know what you're playing, too! This week in addition to the eternal question of what everyone is playing this weekend, we've asked the staff the almost-as-eternal question of cake or pie or death? It's been a battle royale in The Queue this week with Anne declaring her love for pie and Adam followed up with a cake versus pie poll in which cake maintains a solid lead. So today, we ask our writers. Their thoughts on the best bakery confections along with what they're playing for the weekend after the break.
WRUP: Drama dodgers edition
Every week, just at the start of the weekend, we catch up with the WoW.com staff and ask them, "What are you playing this week?" (Otherwise known as: WRUP!) Join us to see what we're up to in and out of game -- and catch us in the comments to let us know what you're playing, too! There's been a hot-topic issue or two this week, and for today's WRUP we're going to skip the drama and ask everyone a simple question that has no wrong answers: %Poll-49324% Answers from the team -- and what they're playing this weekend -- after the break.
WRUP: Another week, another weekend
Another weekend means it's time for another edition of WRUP! For those of you playing at home, we'll refresh you on the rules of our little game: every weekend, we ask our contributors what they're playing this weekend (i.e. what are you playing, i.e. WRUP). Their responses go into a post very much like this one and readers are encouraged to join in and geek out about their favored game of the hour. Want to know what sort of trouble the Massively crew is getting into this weekend? The answers are here -- just read on to find out!
WRUP: Post-E3 edition
Here at Massively we're just about recovered from the information avalanche that WAS E3 2010. We had a great time, picked up every piece of information we could, and shared all the best MMO news with you guys. Now we've all had some time to process it and we're ready to relax and jump back into some gaming of our own! We'll be PC gaming, console gaming, and doing the RL thing. But first, this week's WRUP question: "What was your favorite E3 announcement?" We had some answers to that question, and we're hoping you do too. Follow along after the break to see what we had to say, then it's your turn!
WRUP: Post 3.3.5 edition
Every week, just at the start of the weekend, we catch up with the WoW.com staff and ask them, "What are you playing this week?" (Otherwise known as WRUP.) Join us to see what we're up to in and out of game -- and catch us in the comments to let us know what you're playing, too! This week is all about stalking our co-workers Real ID. We knew what Real ID was before the patch hit, of course, but who among us could have been prepared for the flood of email it would bring to our virtual doorsteps? I do hope Blizzard is still working to improve their Real ID feature, but in the meanwhile, remember that you don't have to use it if you don't want to. Though anyone opting out isn't going to see me around after Diablo 3 is released ... But on to the subject at hand: keep reading for a round-up of what the WoW.com staff is up to this weekend, in game and otherwise. A smattering of them even answered this week's bonus question and tell us about their favorite patch feature.
WRUP: Cannot has edition
Every week, just at the start of the weekend, we catch up with the WoW.com staff and ask them, "What are you playing this week?" (Otherwise known as: WRUP!) Join us to see what we're up to in and out of game -- and catch us in the comments to let us know what you're playing, too! Since Liz is at E3 this week, Adam offered to organize this week's WRUP, asking everyone to submit their favorite lolcat from our lolcat wars in team chat. Unfortunately (or is it fortunately?), almost no one did. So you cannot has lolcats. What you can has is a rundown of what the team's up to this weekend. They're not entirely dissimilar; just replace "I" with "Alex" and "cheezburger" with "Borderlands," and the effect is pretty much the same. Alex Ziebart (@alexziebart): I'm still enjoying Borderlands. I haven't been playing it a lot, just getting a level here and a level there, so it's been a good time waster. This weekend is also the festival from my old grade school up the block from where I live, so I'll probably spend a lot of time there with some old friends. If I can fit it in between those things, I'll probaBZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzZZZZzzzzBZZZZZZT Allison Robert (@AllisonRobert): Sleep. House-painting. More house-painting. More sleep. It will be glorious. Anne Stickney (@Shadesogrey): ICC25 - we downed Deathwhisper on HM, so now it's just Putricide, Sindragosa and LK. ... I am not looking forward to Sindragosa. Amy Schley (@wowlawbringer): More bar prep, as always. I'll also be at the local Shakespeare in the Park festival. Nothing like Richard III's "Now is the winter of our discontent" while we're sweating in 85 degree heat. Daniel Whitcomb (@danielwhitcomb): I'm actually plugging along much as normal. I should have Shadowmoon Valley's quest achievement done this weekend, then I'll move on to Netherstorm, so as long as Cataclysm doesn't drop tomorrow, I'm hopeful I'll just be able to take it slow and steady toward Loremaster. I also may run the Mass Effect 2 Overlord DLC on my Renegade Shepard to get the Data Hound achievement I missed on my Paragon Shepard and to look at some of the conversation trees I missed or skipped.
WRUP: All work and no play...
You might think that going to E3, testing out half a billion games, conducting inaudible interviews in a roaring crowd of thousands, and then trying to deliver the goods to your staff over a crappy wifi connection would imply some glamorous existence. You might think that the writers who spent day and night transforming all of the interviews and trailers and screenshots into something that you, the reader, wanted to *squee* about, would be just like the reporters in some adrenaline-fueled news room in a grainy black-and-white film. Well, you'd be right, more or less, minus the sound of creaky old typewriters clicking furiously -- but that doesn't mean we're not completely exhausted after a week this crazy! Hopefully you all enjoyed our coverage of the MMOs shown at E3. For now, we're going to kick back and relax before we wander too much into Jack Torrance territory. Hit the break and see which games we'll be using to recharge our play meters!
WRUP: Welcoming another weekend
Every week, just at the start of the weekend, we catch up with the WoW.com staff and ask them, "What are you playing this week?" (Otherwise known as: WRUP!) Join us to see what we're up to in and out of game -- and catch us in the comments to let us know what you're playing, too! The weekend has arrived! With the pre-Cataclysm doldrums in full swing, we seem to have a lot of people out of WoW this week. Though I suspect recent releases like Alan Wake and Red Dead Redemption would lure us away regardless of what WoW had to offer. (Though ideally we'd have one game that combined all three.) But throughout Azeroth, there are still dungeons to be raided, achievements to be gotten, alts to be leveled. Join us after the jump to see what the WoW.com team is playing this weekend -- and let us know what you're playing this weekend
WRUP: Not playing Split/Second edition
As is the case every week, the Massively staff is taking the opportunity to play a wide variety of video games this weekend, which does not include the racing game Split/Second. Whether or not staff members own it, not a single one is planning on firing up the game for even a single course. Neither power plays nor route changes await us. Thus, for the remainder of the article after this introductory paragraph, there will not be a single further mention made of the game, because we are not playing it. So what are we playing? Many other games, ranging from old favorites to recently-launched titles, all of them with their own points of interest. Some of us are shooting cowboys, some of us are returning to a land where several guilds are engaged in some sort of fracas, and some are simply taking the opportunity to farm. Click on past the break for the specifics of this weekend's gaming itinerary.
Team Fortress 2 out for Mac Steam
Valve has released Team Fortress 2 for the Mac, along with a funny little video trailer highlighting the old PC vs. Mac fanboy wars (and a great comic featuring the TF2 characters' first visit to the Apple Store). If you've never played TF2, you're in for a treat -- it's a multiplayer team-based shooter with a beautiful art style, excellent balance, and a great sense of humor. If you're a shooter fan, it's definitely a must-play, and even if you're only into the top tier of shooters, it's worth checking out. And Valve is hoping you'll do just that -- the game is half-off right now, and this weekend, they're offering up a free weekend of play, so you can download the game on the Steam client, and give it a go through Sunday for absolutely free. It's not like the Portal deal, where you'll get to keep it forever, but if you like it this weekend, the full game is a steal at US$10, or you can get it with the whole Orange Box (which includes Half-Life and its two episodic releases) for $30 total. TF2 on the Mac? These are wondrous days we live in.
WRUP: Wedding bells edition
Every week, just at the start of the weekend, we catch up with the WoW.com staff and ask them, "What are you playing this week?" (Otherwise known as: WRUP!) Join us to see what we're up to in and out of game -- and catch us in the comments to let us know what you're playing, too! I'll just let Chase launch us off with what he's playing and his favorite in-game reference: Chase Christian (@madsushi): I actually won't be playing anything this weekend; my wedding is on Sunday and I'd like to keep it that way. My favorite in-game reference is definitely the LOST hatch in Sholazar. All of our weekends seem pretty dull by comparison, and the rest of this week's WRUP is mostly a chain of variously formatted grats of the sort you expect whenever someone dings. However, I think Matthew Rossi said it most eloquently: Hey, grats to Chase! For a dirty rogue and a stinky paladin you're all right. Best of luck to you both. But, no, seriously, all of WoW.com sends their best wishes to Chase and his soon-to-be spouse. Despite the fact that most of us have terribly boring weekend plans in comparison, you're welcome to read on for what the rest of the team is playing this weekend -- and what our favorite in-game references are. And as always, we look forward to hearing what you're up to in the comments.
iPad traffic spikes on the weekends
This wild little graph was derived from recent data that was provided by Net Applications (the same data that provided those iPhone stats earlier today). The iPad's Internet traffic has been growing by leaps and bounds on the weekends. As you can see above, over weekend periods since launch, iPad traffic almost doubles, and then it drops back down again during the week. Last weekend was the international release, which resulted in that last big jump. However, I wouldn't be surprised to see traffic drop back down, even if not as much, this coming week. That's one of the weirdest usage patterns I've seen, but it makes sense; people are coming home on the weekends and using their iPads while away from their usual work and home computers. When they go out on the weekend to relax, they're taking the iPad with them, and most interestingly, they're "learning" to use the iPad; you can see steady growth in usage during the week and more usage on the weekends. That's a fascinating little packet of data about a fascinating new kind of computer. [via Fortune]
WRUP: Garlic, Duck Tales, and oh yeah, console games edition
It's been another fun week here at the Massively virtual headquarters as we gather up our new writers and put them through the hazing training process. These super-secret rituals involve lots of things like cookies, garlic (not at the same time mind you), wistful meanderings on Duck Tales, and more. Obviously we can't tell you all our super-secrets, or we'd have to unleash the quacken on you. Suffice it to say, if you think we're fun in-game or in IRC, you should see the official inter-office memos that fly around here! Anyway, to get rolling on this week's WRUP, we've bundled up everyone's replies along with a bonus question this week, courtesy of reader kidsneedtoswear, who wanted to know: If you could have a MMORPG version of any console game, what would it be? Curious as to the answers? Don't really care and just want to tell us what you're up to? All this and more will be revealed beyond the break!
WRUP: The answer is always 42 edition
Among this weekend's distractions from WoW are recent releases Red Dead Redemption and Alan Wake, and although not new, the browser-based Echo Bazaar has stolen some of our souls away to ... well, wherever in Fallen London it is that they keep souls. There's probably a lost warehouse of souls somewhere in game that I hope to find eventually. But some of us, still, are spending an hour here and there in Azeroth. Though this week's edition of What Are You Playing didn't come with a bonus question, some of the staff did come up with bonus answers: Gregg My bonus answer is, as always, 42. Mat There was no bonus question, but my answer to any question is probably "cherry." Rich My bonus answer is my new favorite show: Dhani Tackles the Globe. Combines travel, culture, food, and sport, plus the host Dhani Jones is very entertaining. Zach My bonus answer to the question is, "I solve them all." And if you'd like to see what the team is playing -- or just talk about what you're playing -- read on!
WRUP: Seeing signs edition
If someone collected the data from many weeks of WRUP and charted what everyone played week in and week out there's certain to be some sort of hidden message, isn't there? Perhaps this random assortment of games, old and new, every week is only seemingly random, disguising an intricate pattern that will tell us the future... Hmm! But, pattern or not, Team Massively's gaming habits are all over the map this weekend -- just read on to see for yourself! This week we've also asked everyone a bonus question which comes again from commenter Blah?, who asked: If you could develop your own MMO, what would the setting be? For our answers and yours, follow the cut!
WRUP: Newbie woes edition
Being the newbie editor at Massively is tough. I'm stuck in cloth armor. All I've got is a rusty sword. I'm supposed to slay the dragon eventually, but my skillbar is looking pretty weak. And I just know everyone is laughing at me in general chat. Fortunately, we're only newbies at anything once. This week in WRUP, the Massively staff admit that yes, we were newbies once, too, in answering commenter Blah?'s question: "What was your first MMO?" As usual, we also discuss our more immediate gaming plans, now that those wide-eyed days are far behind us. Join us after the break to see what the Massively team is plotting for the weekend!
WRUP: Let them eat cake edition
The weekend is upon us which means it's time for yet another addition of WRUP. For those of you in the audience who wonder how this whole WRUPing thing works, we'll tell you: getting the introduction right is the hardest part. Here's the story behind today's introduction: Elizabeth: WRUP is done save an intro... hmm... this is always the hardest part. Krystalle: /sings in Tom Petty style "the innnntro, is the hardest part" Eliot: But the intro is the hardest part -- no one reads the piece if you don't know how to start. You try to crack a joke, you try to keep it smart, the intro is the hardest part. And now that the post has been properly (or improperly) introduced, let's take a trip with Tom Petty into the wonderful world of what we're playing this weekend.
