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This week in Massively news
It's been an interesting news week with Flagship Studios' properties being bounced around like ping-pong balls, news about Warhammer Online starting to come faster and faster, and the unveiling of Star Trek Online as a definite Cryptic property. If you missed out on anything, have no fear -- we've got the highlights of the last week right here for you! News Cryptic officially announces Star Trek Online Blizzard: Yes, some players left for AoC Mythic's stance on monetizing cut WAR content The hidden art of Star Trek Online Age of Conan rep talks Kingship, new zones, and more Microsoft's Shane Kim on Xbox 360's MMO failures ArenaNet will not show Guild Wars 2 at PAX Warhammer Online minimum system specs revealed City of Heroes respecs now available for purchase with real cash WAR Creative Director on avoiding the 'corrupting' influence of WoW Discussion Comic-Con 08: Hands-on with DC Universe Online Comic-Con 08: Hands-on with Warhammer Online A World of Warcraft player's guide to Guild Wars The Digital Continuum: On WAR comparisons The Daily Grind: Name your MMO dream team
The Daily Recap
The hidden art of Star Trek OnlineThere is much buzz in the MMOG universe this morning about the upcoming title Star Trek Online. Being absolute fanboys and fangirls of Star Trek ourselves (much like our friends at STO Zone who had the same idea) we wanted to show you a couple of nuggets of interesting art that we've extracted. Age of Conan rep talks Kingship, new zones, and moreThe folks at Ten Ton Hammer met with Funcom Product Manager Erling Ellingsen at Comic Con over the weekend. Ellingsen described many of the planned updates to Age of Conan. Official Asheron's Call blog is nostalgicAsheron's Call's 100th update is imminent, and to celebrate, Turbine has started a "Nostalgia Blog" in which old designers of the game reminisce about their experiences of elation and tribulation. Microsoft's Shane Kim on Xbox 360's MMO failuresEDGE spoke with Microsoft Game Studios corporate VP Shane Kim about the MMO genre's failure to come to fruition on the Xbox 360 game console. Two MMOs that were planned for the platform -- Marvel Universe Online (an in-house project) and ... Comic-Con 08: Hands-on with Warhammer OnlineLast week at Comic-Con in San Diego, I sat down with Warhammer Online producer Jeff Skalski and got my hands on the beta for the first time. I could go in-depth on all the new features and functions of the game, but ...
Massively Week in Review: E3 edition
As the Massively crew has been at E3 along with the Joystiq crew, our update this week comes a little late. (Those of you who were at last night's meetup can understand the epicBut for those of you who are curious as to what's going on in the wide world of MMOGs both at E3 and in general, here's a quick and dirty overview of the week's events! News How to beat game piracy according to David Perry Pre-orders now available for The Guild DVD Exclusive first look at Star Wars Galaxies TCG loot cards Blizzard victorious in WoW Glider case Mythic offers FAQs for Warhammer's loss of cities, classes E308: Jagex teases sci-fi successor to Runescape, Mechscape E308: Disney Interactive Studios shows off Club Penguin on the DS E308: Erling Ellingsen talks patch timeframes for Age of Conan E308: DC Universe Online already 'released' inside SOE KOTOR MMO confirmed by Electronic Arts Discussion Ask Massively: You make the call The Digital Continuum: Diet WAR MMOGology: Will mobile MMOGs evolve genre expectations? Nitpicking WoW to death The tyranny of skill training Behind the Curtain: Gone for good?
The Daily Recap [Updated]
E308: Warhammer Online is pretty much doneWe had a chance to chat today with Josh Drescher and Adam Gershowitz, two of the leading lights behind EA Mythic's Warhammer Online. Even just two months after our huge Massively goes to WAR series Society system planned in 100th Asheron's Call content updateEarly Asheron's Call adopters are quite accustomed to the epic storylines that unfolded in the world. Some endless sojourns taken through Asheron's Call are still legendary among players. Behind the Curtain: Gone for good?I've been thinking recently about loss. Having been incredibly lucky with my own brush with the possibility of losing my World of Warcraft characters, I got to thinking. Not-in-the-notes for AoC's 17th July patch: invisible hotfix editionYesterday's Age of Conan patch was one of the better ones we've seen in recent times, but it did bring back an old tradition: a longish list of changes that were not mentioned in the official patch notes. Aeria adds Diablo-like Cronous to its libraryMMO portal Aeria Games has acquired a new game called Cronous, which was originally developed by Lizard Interactive. Cronous' gameplay is similar to that of Diablo, Mythos, or Dungeon Runners. [Updated] Our apologies. This is what happens when you try to post while hung over after attending the Joystiq party. The offending lead has been taken out back and summarily flogged with wet-naps from D3's E3 booth.
Massively Week in Review: June 11-17
It's been a mixed bag in the MMOG world this week, with wide-ranging news from Age of Conan, Lord of the Rings Online, the huge DCMA takedown by Linden Lab (and the folks who got screwed) and more. Perhaps one of the biggest highlights in the Massively staff week was getting to jump into SOE's PlanetSide MMOFPS. We were able to take on regular players (and die quite a bit when large numbers of them figured out where we were) as the evil "Black Ops" faction in a wildly fun GM-run event. If you missed out on any of the headlines (or the fun) have no fear; we've got the scoop for you! News Are female characters really penalized in Age of Conan? First glimpse of Age of Conan PvP gear! AoC grinds out the fixes Linden Lab's big content takedown New Final Fantasy XI update drops big changes into Vana'diel AT&T says internet data caps and overage fees 'inevitable' Is Cryptic hinting at Star Trek Online The Agency under the scope, RMT not a part Dredging up the past - the Star Wars Galaxies NGE re-examined Discussion Player vs. Everything: The quirks of D&D Online Cinemassively: AoC vs. WoW Anti-Aliased: It will all be fine in ten minutes Why exactly is Hellgate:London so bad? Behind the Curtain: Why bother? Should EA Mythic offer an all-in-one pass for its games? Player Consequences: Pervasive Map Features MMOS X: How the MMOs and the iPhone can meet. The Digital Continuum: Live event adulation
Massively Week in Review: June 4-10
It has been an exciting week for fans of EVE Online -- and for fans of Sci-fi MMOGs in general. First, the Sci-fi channel dropped the word that they're working on an MMO that will be combined with an unnamed-as-yet series. Now all the hungry EVE fans are finally getting to sink their teeth into new fierce Factional Warfare in the free expansion released today, The Empyrean Age. Miss out on any of the other goings on? Set your phasers on "awesome" and read on for all the latest from Massively! News Massively interviews Jon Van Caneghem about the Sci-fi Channel MMO G4 claims the Trion/Sci-Fi project revolves around Stargate [UPDATED] Horse goes homicidal in Age of Conan EVE Online blazes into The Empyrean Age Massively goes to WAR: Every Warhammer class explained Massively goes to WAR: Wrap-up EVE Online meets Half-Life 2 in machinima masterpiece Zon: the MMO that teaches you to speak Chinese Rumor: Dungeons and Dragons Online coming to consoles Come frag Massively in PlanetSide! Discussion Anti-Aliased: There's other people there too, ya know. Porn addiction more accepted than WoW? Why aren't there more console MMOs? MMOGology: There's no place like Azeroth EVE Evolved: EVE Online PvP vs Age of Conan PvP Massively goes to WAR: What worries us about Warhammer
Massively Week in Review: May 28-June 3
This week Massively's own co-lead Michael Zenke headed out to EA/Mythic headquarters to get the inside scoop on Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. From guilds to crafting to conquering other cities, we've got all kinds of hot new information for this exciting upcoming title. Read on for the highlights of a news-packed week from Massively! News Massively goes to WAR: Your Warhammer questions answered Age of Conan update re-adds Traders, fixes another leveling exploit June 10th marks the dawn of EVE's Empyrean Age White Lion confirmed as final High Elf career The top 20 most influential people in the MMO industry Age of Conan: Senior CSR responds to the recent mass banning Grimwell on fearing the silence of the majority Discussion The Gaming Iconoclast: Old (Un?)-Faithful Player vs. Everything: Why won't you just take a break? Anti-Aliased: Crime and punishment in MMOs The death penalty and you The Digital Continuum: Crafting conundrum Player vs. Everything: Online Games and Sex Maybe one has to be immature to enjoy mature content
Massively Week in Review: May 6-12, 2008
This week has seen news across the MMOGosphere -- Age of Conan information, lots of City of Heroes and City of Villains information on upcoming Issue 12, the skinny on APB, and exclusives in Vanguard. Of course, added to this was the not-so-small media blitz by Blizzard with both Wrath of the Lich King information as well as the news that there will indeed be a Blizzcon '08 in October. If you missed any of it, don't worry; Massively has got you covered! News Exclusive Vanguard Game Update 5 mounts video Blizzard unleashes a storm of Lich King information Exclusive Vanguard Game Update 5 interview with Lenny "Tiraslee" Gullo CoX Issue 12: Journey to Cimerora The top five subscription MMOs in the US Massive PvP battle to end the Age of Conan Open Beta Funcom addresses Age of Conan beta concerns BlizzCon 2008 announced Discussion Anti-Aliased: Don't worry, no one will read it anyway... EVE Evolved: EVE's skill system demystified Ask Massively: The Alpha and the...um... Beta? of MMORPGs Have Clone, Will Travel: Ambulation in the EVE tutorial Player vs. Everything: Pointless mini-zones Behind the Curtain: Are you frightened? MMO MMOnkey: MMOs as conditioned learning engines Player vs. Everything: Putting raiding on your resume
Massively Week in Review: March 18-24, 2008
It was a mixed bag in the MMO world this last week. We saw drama break out as the admin of EQ2Flames leveled a series of accusations at SOE, and then we heard even more rumblings about it later in the week. Elsewhere on Planet Earth, we picked up an awesome video tour of Blizzard's swank new digs. With Holidays and bad guys and even a player council in EVE, there's a little something for everyone this time. News Losing influence with SOE: EQ2 Flames admin "LFG" tells all Online shooters have discovered MMOs' secret formula Blizzard studio tour makes jaws detach from faces Elections for EVE's player council begin in May Preview WAR's Elven starting areas Smedley: PS3 has "massive advantage over PC" for MMOs German WAR box confirms CE and preorder info Jack Emmert emphasizes story in Champions Online Massively surveys MMO Easter events Discussion The Daily Grind: Devs behaving badly TurpsterVision: Battle of the Beards More games that shouldn't be MMOs: Classic Edition Behind the Curtain: How nice are you? How EQ3 could change Norrath forever The Digital Continuum: MMO features in the year 2013 Interesting idea: Your very own crafting supplies NPC WAR's must-have expansion races: Lizardmen
Massively Week in Review: March 4-10, 2008
This week saw a glut of news on Funcom's upcoming title Age of Conan. Meanwhile from the EA/Mythic side of the house, we heard that their Q2 release, Warhammer Online has a release date that is "set in mud." (We wonder if aliens haven't taken over EA. It doesn't sound like them.) For those who have been wondering which would reign supreme, this certainly makes the race a bit more interesting. From there, we touched on everything from the legality of actions in Virtual Worlds to the potentiality of a Grand Theft Auto MMO. (Have they not seen the sexiness above that is APB?) News NTU study on MMO gender selection to be published SXSW08: How gamers are adopting the wiki way RUMOR: Some Age of Conan pre-orders to get early access WAR's Q2 release date "set in mud" Activision exec discusses Call of Duty MMO Second Life tool suspended, author blames Linden Lab's DMCA procedures, mentor piracy Age of Conan trailer is up, and it's bloody Rockstar founder calls GTA MMO "the Holy Grail" Age of Conan FAQ reveals system requirements Blizzard takes third in comprehensive best developer of 2007 list Discussion The Daily Grind: Which game has the best admins? TurpsterVision: An Episode of Great Impotence Ask Massively: A column by any other name... Under The Hood: Strategy on a Massive Scale Behind the Curtain: Rehashing an old argument? Tabula Rasa + Vista SP1 = what exactly? The Digital Continuum: A fork in the road for WAR What do you want play more: The Agency or Warhammer Online? The Sky News debate: Do real world rules apply in virtual worlds? MMOGology: Identity crisis
Massively Week in Review: Feb 26 - Mar 3, 2008
This week saw some fairly interesting developments in the clash between current and upcoming free-to play titles -- especially those aimed at the tween/teen generations. We've seen updates on Disney's plans to release a series of youth-targeted MMOs, Cartoon Network gave Massively's own Akela Talamasca the scoop on their upcoming title Fusion Fall, and we saw some other primarily Asian MMOs branching into the Western market. (More cel-shaded games than you can shake a stick at, really!) We also landed a hot Legends of Norrath scoop, dug up even more Champions Online news, and got the word on several upcoming events. Check it out! News The Sims Online closes, relaunches as EA-Land GDC08: Cartoon Network's FusionFall 38 Studios using BigWorld to make its big world Exclusive look at LoN: Inquisitor's loot cards The future of Disney Online: An interview with SVP Steve Parkis Warrior Epic now in closed beta; accepting applications Pong creator Nolan Bushnell to enter MMO space NCsoft Europe's Ultimate Heroic Weekend! Come back to DDO for the price of free Champions Online developer post roundup Discussion Practical Marketing: The new media, the old messages and you TurpsterVision: Lord of the Dings Microtransactions, an Asian perspective Ask Massively: And now for something completely different... The Digital Continuum: Cops & robbers Investment of $1 billion+ wouldn't dethrone WoW, exec says Games that shouldn't be MMOs Choosing your race in Middle-earth: Dwarf and Hobbit Behind the Curtain: Should raiders get special treatment? The Daily Grind: Does WoW really need to be 'beaten'?
Massively Week in Review: Feb 19 - 25, 2008
What a crazy week it was! As you already know, last week was the Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco, where Massively landed their share of fantastic stories as well. If you're hungry for more GDC goodness beyond all the great things you saw here on Joystiq this week, be sure to check out the full Massively GDC 08 coverage for even more news and views. And who can forget the mid-week bombshell about Cryptic's new title, Champions Online, based on the Champions tabletop RPG! News GDC 08: Entertainment content convergence in online worlds LOTS more LotRO to come; Turbine extends LotR license Molyneux laments the state of PC gaming, blames WoW and The Sims GDC08: EVE Online's space stations Champions Online and Cryptic Studios information bonanza Peter Moore talks smack about Activision-Blizzard Criminal profiling is coming to a MMOG near you GDC08: The how, what, and why of LEGO Universe The PC Gaming Alliance is here to save the day GDC08: An evening with Will Wright minus friends (video) Discussion Lessons in online gaming circa 1997 hold true today The top 5 free MMOs TurpsterVision: London is HELL! The war of words for Sony's PlayStation Home and Second Life users begins The Digital Continuum: Superhero standoff The Daily Grind: When will you be done with WoW? Outdoing WoW at its own game Behind the Curtain: How far is too far? Movies that could make good MMOs: Highlander Marvel Universe Online: how would it have worked?
Massively Week in Review: Feb 12-18, 2008
It's been a somewhat quiet week in the MMO world with many companies and devs ramping up for GDC. What news there was, we found it -- even when it involved seeing some things we really don't think were meant for most eyes. We've heard conflicting reports on NCsoft's take on Tabula Rasa and the Austin offices, we've gotten the scoop on the new Legends of Norrath online crack TCG too. And for those of you who enjoyed pen & paper RPGs, we even got word that Cryptic is creating a superhero MMO based on the Champions system! Add in all the great new exclusive Massively features like TurpsterVision, and we'd say it wasn't bad for a quiet week! This week we've got several people on the ground at GDC along with the Joystiq crew, so be sure to check in with us at Massively! News Twofish to make microtransaction economies easier with middleware Upbeat Age of Conan state of the game letter notes cut features NCsoft's first console game to be announced this year Second Life on an iPhone Blizzard founder talks about WoW mobile PS3 vs. PC action unlikely for The Agency Cryptic announces Champions Online, their new superhero MMO Hello Kitty Online: I have no mouth, and I must scream Blizz announces WoW arena tourney with $75,000 grand prize TR guilds say game over to the endgame Sony Online Entertainment is looking for interns Did you give the gift of a hacked account this Christmas? Metaverse U conversation: Raph Koster, Cory Ondrejka, Howard Rheingold Tabula Rasa down in the dumps? with follow-up Tabula Rasa not in the dumps after all? GDC08: Leigh Alexander introduces us to Worlds in Motion GDC08: Age of Conan Preview GDC08: Exercise - the MMO? GDC08: What if your mana bar was green? Discussion TurpsterVision : Dancing in the Endless Forest The intersection of Spore and MMOs Getting around in LotRO: a transportation guide First Impressions: Sword of the New World Jumpgate's evolution(ary) inspiration Lawyers representing gold farmers threaten Lum the Mad Under The Hood: Player Economics 101 David Perry posits 70 Million player massive game Practical Marketing: Keeping your PR out of the trash MMOGology: Control yourself! Wrath of the Lich King could be very very sneaky
Massively Week in Review: Feb 5 - 11, 2008
This week was a mixed bag of news from the MMO front. We finally were notified of some forward movement on the Warhammer 40K MMO (not to be confused with Warhammer Online) and there was a rumor that filtered out that Bioware's new MMO is not a Star Wars MMO. And in even more awesome news, we're looking for MMOre to join in the fun of being a blogger for Massively! On the bad news side, Marvel Universe Online is definitely vaporware. Sorry Spidey, looks like it's back to the comic books with you -- but hey, at least they ret-conned your world back to normal! News Massively is Looking for More Rumor: Age of Conan in bad shape Age of Conan ratings for all territories revealed EQ2 GU42 goes live today with extra video goodness Collision detection in WAR's PvP Rumor: New Star Wars MMO isn't from BioWare? Second Life: Money for lies. Again. IBM disses virtual worlds WAR designer says they could ship without all classes Marvel MMO officially put to rest WoW: The Burning Crusade wins MMO of the year from the AIAS Crafter epic cloaks obtained, screenshotted and guides written Promotion code grants 20% off ticket price for Connect '08 Update on the Warhammer 40k MMO Comic Watch: Full Frontal Nerdity rings in the LotRO references Discussion Are MMOs killing the single-player game? Star Wars the only IP that can challenge World of Warcraft? Grimwell gives one reason fantasy pwns sci-fi, we go "Huh?" Behind the Curtain: A new take on quests? Ask Massively: Putting the "emo" in em-em-o The Daily Grind: How many MMO subscriptions do you have? WRUP: Find the logos edition The Digital Continuum: Statistical Anxiety Separation First Impressions of Dragonrealms Why mainstream media hates the Internet, games, MMOs and you There and back again... A writer's return to Lord of the Rings Online
Massively Week in Review: January 28 - Feb 4, 2008
Looks like a fairly standard news-week for us at Massively. We had a bit of rumor, some good (and bad) news, and covered a few events. We also threw our two cents in on pretty well everything -- but that's the fun part of the job! If you missed out on anything good, click on through for the top news and views from Massively. News PC titles only 14% of game sales in 2007, WoW leading the way WHA tellz you grots bout da' WAAAGH! The Secret World inspired by 'The Ring' Mabinogi hacked by a 16-year-old for $325K of virtual currency CES 2008: What the heck is Free Realms? Shadowbane resets with Patch 22, on test servers today Rumor: Warhammer Online collector's edition details leaked? Second Life: BBC documentary about virtual adultery IGE founders in legal battle Rumor: New Blizzard MMO to be Starcraft Online? Ladies and gentlemen: Flexiboobs Dungeon Runners releases characters in XML Liveblogged: Metaplace live developer chat today Blizzard defeats Peons4Hire gold farmers in court Sid Meier mentions possibility of a Civilization MMO Myst Online: Uru Live Tap-ped out again Discussion MMOGology: Group dynamics Penny Arcade digs on DDO, encapsulates modern MMO industry Building a better MMOusetrap: The age old debate 8 things NASA needs to get right Ask Massively: No really, ask us! Behind the Curtain: Something Unexpected Games that could be MMOs: Spore The Digital Continuum: Comparing core concepts of WAR and WoW Space for a new style of MMO? Dragonlance: A property ripe for the pillaging
The weekend recap
How would a Starcraft MMO work?Would you play as a Terran or a Protoss? Would the Zerg be character-playable, or would they be kept as NPCs? Just how exactly would Blizzard be able to pull off a Starcraft MMO -- and would it be a good business decision to even try? Orange feels the squeeze While Orange has many excellent events going on in Second Life, such as the recent Geekend event -- some of their subscribers in the UK are reporting outages and inability to connect to the grid. Our very own Tateru Nino goes digging for answers. Rumor: Blizzard working on a cell application for World of Warcraft?By now we've all seen the job openings for mobile designers, but just what precisely does that mean? We've rounded up some of the rumors out there and made a couple of guesses ourselves on just what this may mean for the future of a cellular Blizzard. Building a better MMOusetrap: To topple the king!Is there any such thing as a WoW Killer? Will time be the only thing to unseat the current "king" of MMOs? How do the chances stack up for the upcoming MMO landscape -- with titles such as Age of Conan and Warhammer Online. Dave Moss takes a good look. Auran wants to make you their bitchAuran, makers of the colossal flop FURY, are trying a new tactic to entice back people who had previously tried FURY out -- by insulting them and calling them "losers." We can't speak for anyone else here, but that'd make many of us more inclined to throw that particular retail box straight into the round file. Check out the full-text of their "invitation" and see what you think about this particular "marketing" tactic.
Yesterday on Massively: January 16, 2008
World of Warcraft: Shifting gears in WotLKAhhh, Wrath, how we await your presence -- well, okay, some do. Others just hope that it comes and goes away quietly. But for the rest of us, that means trading in purples for greens once again -- or does it? Is it time to get your Joystick on?A space MMO you can play with a joystick? Sign us up! Eli takes a good look at Jumpgate Evolution and brings us the scoop on some of the things in store for this upcoming MMO title. Building a Better MMOusetrap: PPOrnography in gamesWith games like Age of Conan coming soon, we wonder when developers are going to clue into the fact that a large portion of their audience is over 18. Where are our adult MMOs, and how do they differ from the Virtual World landscape? My loots, let me show you them Sick and tired of having people ninja items, or losing loot rolls to other people? How would you like it if everyone got their own individual loot window? Check out this story to find out what MMO innovations are being dreamed up even now to tackle this problem! Drawing the line between personal privacy and character information How much character information available outside of game is too much? With things like WoW's Armory, Xfire, and the like, it seems like nothing is really off the radar anymore. Is this a good or bad thing? We buzz around the blogosphere and see what the community at large has to say.
Yesterday on Massively: January 15, 2008
Avatar rights: A person chooses, a tool obeysJust what kind of digital rights does your avatar have when it comes to being a "resident" of Second Life? Does your avatar enjoy freedoms that you do not? Or is your avatar just a thing, with no rights at all, save the ones granted to you as the end user. Join the debate! New Age of Conan developer blog on MMORPGThe time is counting down, and the information is starting to flow more freely about Funcom's upcoming MMO, Age of Conan. Perfect for those of you who (like us) are still waiting on beta keys. Bring on the carnage already, Funcom! (Or some beta keys!) Become a professional MetaPlace guruEver thought about quitting your boring day job and going for a spot in the games industry? Ralph Koster (Of UO & SWG fame) is looking for some coders for MetaPlace. You never know until you try. Good luck to everyone who applies! The Escapist spends a day in the life of a WoW addict Yes, there are still people out there who haven't tried WoW, surprisingly enough. The Escapist found one such brave soul, and sent her into Azeroth. Did she love it? Has she become staunchly anti-WoW? Read on and find out. Cutting down the noise in online situations Do you think that it's feasible to expect game devs to keep the signal to noise ratio down? Inspired by XKCD, we pose the question of if cleaning up Barrens chat really would make more people have intelligent communication in game, or would it just mean less communication overall?
Yesterday on Massively: January 14, 2008
A CES Interview with SOE CEO John Smedley (pt. 1)A CES Interview with SOE CEO John Smedley (pt. 2)Michael Zenke got a chance to sit down with John Smedley during CES and get the scoop on the direction SOE is headed in. Be sure to check out all the details in this Massively exclusive interview! MMOGology: Leaving homeMarc Nottke returns this week to take a good long look at the worlds we spend so much time in. Are you one of the folks who don't get attached, or is it just as hard for you to move on? What makes the worlds so engaging? Linden Lab: No stated plans to improve verification outside USATateru takes a long hard look at the Age Verification process, and unfortunately is thwarted in getting any explanation by LL's PR team. We wonder if they'll ever get this worked out, or if it will remain like so many other things in Second Life -- half-broken and annoying. Star Trek Online is under new managementRumor: New STO developers being Cryptic A one-two punch when it came to Star Trek Online yesterday. First we got the news that Perpetual Entertainment had passed the IP for STO along to an unnamed bay-area developer, then we got word later in the evening from the folks at w00tstudios as to just who that mystery developer was. Curious? Read on! Calling all Exobiologists: Developer feedback wanted There was a veritable flood of great Tabula Rasa information yesterday. Just as one of the many, the TR devs want your help with the Exobiologist class! Isn't it nice when a dev actually reads the constructive criticism you write?
This Weekend on Massively: January 11-13, 2008
In Development: Square-Enix's Concerto GateThere's a new Square-Enix MMO named Concerto Gate out in Asia. Will it be hitting our shores anytime soon? Check out this story for all the details! NCsoft drops Spacetime Studios: development on Blackstar continuesDespite setbacks with NCsoft and layoffs, Blackstar's development continues. We certainly wish Spacetime Studios the best with their work, and look forward to seeing them get some investor attention. We love those sci-fi MMOs! Opinion: User-operated banksTateru Nino gives us an excellent op-ed piece on why unregulated banking in SL is a bad idea. For those who make their living via the grid -- or would like to -- this is a must-read story. Age of Conan Friday update with new screenshots Looking for an Age of Conan fix while you're waiting for your beta key? We are too! Luckily for us, Funcom has brought out another of their wildly popular Friday updates with new screenshots to keep you going. Another rumor regarding Blizzard's love affair with consoles There's no end to the speculation that World of Warcraft will come out for consoles. Of course, as soon as someone mentions it, Blizzard is quick to squash the suggestion by repeating their stance. With networking on next-gen consoles, we wonder why not? Archipelis' SL exporter allows 3d model importing into SL For those of you who have been too intimdated to build, or those who just want to enjoy more freedom in your building, this is a fantastic tool for you. Check out our writeup of the model importing capabilities! The Digital Continuum: Solo(ly) killing social As more developers try to make sure that their games are solo-friendly, are they risking killing off the entire reason for playing an MMO in the first place -- community? Is the solo game killing the social game, or is it just a case of Chicken Little? WAR, you and another interview Can't wait to get your WAAAAAGH on in Warhammer Online? Chomping at the bit for something new? Have no fear! We have a great writeup of the recent interview for you to check out. Exciting stuff!
