By Craig Pearson on February 10th, 2012.
You’re probably in trouble if Richard Cobbett hasn’t heard of you. When I mentioned to him that Earthrise, a sci-fi based MMO, had closed its servers, he responded with a dismissive shrug, trying to casually hide his missing knowledge in a stance of indifference. But I spotted a bead of sweat forming on his forehead, and knew that Masthead‘s MMO’s failure to make an impact with him had truly damned it.
The servers were shut off yesterday after a year online.
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By Craig Pearson on February 1st, 2012.
What do you give the man who owns everything but is missing the first 20 levels of Rift? Trion Worlds the makers of the rather good MMO Rift, have the answer for you: Rift Lite gives you unrestricted access to the game’s first 20 levels for free. I actually do own everything, so I’m now furious that they’ve undermined my achievement.
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By Craig Pearson on January 31st, 2012.
MMO Tera is a bit less massive after the publisher have stated they’ll be blocking IPs from Asia, Africa, Russia and The Middle East from connecting to the North America servers. The ironically named En Masse said in an FAQ: “While we appreciate that there are players in these regions who would enjoy playing on En Masse servers, it’s unfortunate that the vast majority of Internet traffic we see from these regions are from cyber-criminals relating to account theft, gold-farming and other hacking behavior.” Blimey.
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By Alec Meer on January 31st, 2012.
I can’t help but wonder how many of today’s crop of MMOs will manage to last 13 years. Running expenses are surely so much higher than they were in dear old EverQuest’s day. The major precursor to the dark age of grinding and number keys that we know so well has indeed managed a baker’s dozen-sized lifespan, and while its days as a subscription game are not yet numbered, it now also wears a free to play coat on its aged frame.
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NCsoft Vs Bluehole
By John Walker on January 26th, 2012.
Why can’t we all just learn to get along? With MMO TERA finally having a release date set for May this year, and the pre-release hype building up, NCsoft have leapt in and thrown a court at the proceedings. As MMO Culture reports, a dispute over the ownership of software and artwork means that the release could be scuppered as it sinks in the mire of a legal bog. I’ve taken a look at the legal filing, and explained the details of the claims.
By Alec Meer on January 23rd, 2012.
As every complete tool in the world has already tediously blared several dozen times, 2012 is the year we’re all going to die. I think John Cusack’s going to strangle us all or something? Hopefully we’ll get a chance to finally play the 88 billion years in the making Guild Wars 2 before then, though. NCSoft have just revealed that it’s definitely down for a 2012 release, and that there’ll be an open beta in March or April. ‘Select press’ will be allowed in at some point in February, so expect previews to land around about then. Can I be a select press, please? Also it’s my birthday in February. Also the Mayans famously prophesised that I would be allowed onto the beta of a highly-anticipated MMO sequel, and I’m almost certain they weren’t talking about Asheron’s Call III.
By Alec Meer on January 16th, 2012.
Funny thing, The Old Republic – while I’m still not entirely sure whether I like it or not (here I am wrestling with its inherent single/multiplayer duality over on Eurogamer, incidentally), what it has successfully done is restore my appetite for MMOs. I thought that urge was dead in me since the great binge of 2006-2008, but no, there the old hunger for virtual globe-trotting is again. So, hellooooooo Secret World. I had barely a lick of interest in you a few weeks ago, having plonked you square in the “oh, another one” bracket, but now I hopefully wonder if you can meet my dark needs as well as doing something new’n'smart. Let’s take a peek at your gruff British Illuminati and see how I feel.
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They were making this game a long time ago.
By John Walker on January 12th, 2012.
James Ohlen is a senior creative director at BioWare, and has spent the last six years working on Star Wars: The Old Republic. We spoke to him to find out how he thinks the launch has gone, how the game is being received, and what we can expect to see in the first update, due next week.
By John Walker on January 12th, 2012.
Next week’s update for Star Wars: The Old Republic is to be called Rise Of The Rakghouls, and plans to add some major new content to the game, focusing on story-heavy features. Senior Creative Director James Ohlen explained to us in an interview we’re posting very soon that along with “a lot of bug fixes and modifications”, there would be the titular new story-focused flashpoint, as well as expanding Karagga’s Palace to have five times as many bosses (five). And this is just the first of many updates they’re already working on. March promises a new planet, warzone, operation, guild banks… And then there’s the updates they’re already working on for next year. You can see the accompanying trailer below.
By Adam Smith on January 12th, 2012.
TERA is an “action MMO” with a relatively complex political system, which allows players to gain control of resources through democracy or violent monster-bashing. It’s an accepted but little spoken truth that our own Nick Clegg only elevated himself to the position he fails to enjoy today by grinding rats for hours on end. Forget all that though and ask yourself one simple question: do you want the chance to join TERA’s upcoming closed beta? Applications are now open and anyone registering before 11:30 CET, 13th January will have a chance to be one of the first 1,000 entrants. That’s 10:30 in Blightlyland by my reckoning. More passes will be given out as the beta progresses. Europeans, sign up here. Americans here. Video below.
By Craig Pearson on January 12th, 2012.
Help an indie out. Miner Wars MMO, the promising looking space-based sandbox mining sim, has decided to go for the pre-order dollar. Twenty of them, to be precise. That down payment will help them kickstart the multiplayer version of their rock grinder, and pay for two years of access to the game.
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