In addition to that, we’ll cover some recent news from DC Universe, as well as updates on the F2P conversions of City of Heroes and Fallen Earth.

Before that however, I’d like to share some potentially upsetting news about the immediate future of SWTOR:

SWTOR – Release Delay Imminent?

Beta Weekends Cancelled: LINK
Official Statement
Release Date Might Slip

Anyone following the beta news closely may have already heard that Bioware recently chose to cancel a couple of their beta test weekends, after the first round of them went in a few unexpected directions. They’ve spun this as being in the best interest of potential players and testers – and honestly, I believe that assessment to be true – but it’s still another potential red flag that Bioware may not be completely ready to be in charge of a top-shelf MMORPG such as this. I hope they DO take their time with this beta process, and work out all the kinks prior to launch. But at the same time, too many hiccups similar to this one may begin to erode consumer confidence in the eventual launch of the title.

And, as if this beta cancellation wasn’t enough bad news for the game’s supporters, it recently slipped out during an internal conference call that EA already has contingency plans in place just in case the launch of TOR may slip from Q4 of 2011 to Q1 of 2012. Could a launch delay be imminent? I can trust that’d be in the game’s best interest if so, but I’m hoping that it’s smooth sailing for this title from here on out, simply due to the amount of attention the title is receiving in both MMO communities, and gaming communities in general. As I mentioned a few episodes back, this game has enough hype behind it that any potential missteps by Bioware through this process have the potential to further reinforce the poor reputation that MMOs have for launching in a buggy, unplayable manner. Please Bioware… get your act together, for all our sakes!

Secret World

PAX Info from Funcom

Based on the gameplay footage I’ve seen of this game so far, I’ll admit that I’m not all that impressed with the game as a whole. My primary complaint being that this is supposed to be a SECRET world of conspiracy and intrigue, and everything we’ve seen so far shows hordes of magic-wielding superheros doing combat with monstrous zombies and cthulu-esque creatures that stand 2–4 stories tall. Not so secret looking, if you ask me.

Then there’s the development process itself, which has been suffering from repeated delays and mixed messages. Despite already having publicized a launch date of March 24th, the game is not even in Closed Beta yet. This, to me, feels like jumping the gun in a very big way, despite that launch date being more than 6 months from now.

But, my personal gripes with a few of the game’s details do not diminish the innovations that are taking place in regards to a few specific mechanics within the game. Some of them are inventive enough that I’ve decided to take the time to showcase them in a brief preview.

• Environmental Interactions
  • Ambient critters will react to environmental stimulii. The examples we’ve so far seen are car alarms getting zombies’ attention (and spawning extra baddies), and light sources attracting the attention of baddies in the dark.
  • This added layer of complexity assists in keeping the game in the Real World.
  • This light source mechanic can also be utilized in PvP, where some maps will be too dark to see clearly in, but using a light source will attract the attention of enemy players. Meaning you have to choose between being seen, and being able to see.
• PvP outfits
  • When entering a PvP match, players will have their appearance automatically altered to match their “role” based on the powers they have chosen. Healers will end up looking like healers, stealthy melee types will look like thiefs, etc.
  • While this diminishes the players’ ability to show off their custom avatar in PvP, it also makes it easier to be able to pick targets in a match. So your allies will know who to protect and synergize skills with, while the enemy will know who to focus their attacks on.
• 3-faction gameplay
  • This is something that Funcom is not talking much about, but that I feel the need to draw attention to.
  • The only prior game that I know of with a 3-faction PvP gameplay mechanic, was Dark Age of Camelot, which is still considered by many one of the best PvP experiences that has ever been available online.
  • The strength of 3-faction PvP comes in the form of a socially-driven balance. It is exceedingly difficult for any single faction to gain dominance over the remaining two at any point, because which ever faction gains such a strong foothold will inevitably be targeted by the other two.
• Skill System, No Respecs
  • Over 500 unique skills (not just improved ranks of other stuff, but unique effects)
  • You earn more and unlock them as you adventure, but start with a full suite of abilities.
  • Much like Guild Wars, you can freely respec at any time. Swapping out a full set of 7 actives and 7 passives, for any other skills you have so far learned.
  • Funcom claims that the difficulty of this game is based on players’ skill, and not the abilities in the game scaling up. That even “starter” abilities are viable later in a players’ life, and will scale up based on your equipment, and not any set of stats or level.
• ARG – Investigation Missions
  • Scattered throughout TSW will be missions that inspire the player to investigate strange leads OUTSIDE OF THE GAME.
  • This is perhaps the most importantly unique aspect of TSW, as it allows players to feel like a real part of their world, rather than playing in some fantasy realm. It adds an extra level of instinctual immersion when visiting iconic cities like NYC and London, when you are also asked to research the history and myth of these locations in a real-world scenario.
  • One example given, is a locked crate in the wreckage of a shipping barge. Using the internet, you can look up the ship’s manifest online and cross-reference the crate number printed on the side of the shipping container in-game. Following these clues will lead you to the access codes to the crate.
  • Some are FAR more complicated than this, requiring players to actually research occult references in general, drawing the player further into the game’s mythos.
  • The downside here is that, unless Funcom is able to author a full suite of these missions anew every few months, players will quickly solve them all and post the solutions online for anyone to find without having to follow the clues.

• There will also be events that take advantage of this mechanic, and are cross-faction competitive. Whichever of the 3 factions solve it first, gets a boost of some sort as a reward that affects the entire faction.

Subscription Model
Monthly Subs + Cash Shop
We’re TOLD it will be “cosmetics and conveniences only” … but we’ve been told the same thing in other games, and it never quite works out that way. So, time will tell if they can stick to their guns on this.
Really, though, this is GOING to upset players. Subscribers are left asking why, exactly, it is that their monthly subscription fee doesn’t get them the entirety of all this game has to offer, when it does in other competitor MMOs. Why should they be asked to pay extra to have a specific look?
To quench those fears, Funcom needs to make these same cosmetic items available in-game in some manner. In fact, offering a way for players to acquire those items in-game may even drive additional cash shop sales of those same items. I know it seems backwards, but MMO players are generally more likely to buy the CONVENIENCE of being able to bypass a time investment, than they are to simply buy an item that they cannot otherwise obtain.

Fight for the Light – FREE!

https://massively.joystiq.com/2011/09/06/dcuos-fight-for-the-light-pack-available-today/

Many of you may recall that I covered SOE’s big PR blunder a few weeks back, regarding their decision to charge subscribers for the “Fight for the Light” mini-expansion to DCUO. I was not alone in my outrage over this decision, especially considering their prior promises that future content would be delivered free of charge.

Well, I have a bit of good news for anyone still following this subject… SOE has mended their ways, and decided to offer the Fight for the Light expansion free of charge to all subscribers.

In my opinion… this is too little, too late.

The damage to their reputation over this violation of trust has already been done. I don’t foresee them digging themselves out of this particular blunder simply by going back on a bad decision. The decision was still made, and they took too long to recognize their mistake. It’s nice of them to have eventually come around, but I believe the damage has already been done.

Additionally, with their competitors in the Superhero MMO genre both now offering their game under a F2P subscription model, I don’t foresee a bright future for DCUO. Which is a shame. I had high hopes for this title for many reasons, not the least of which its action-oriented combat which I’d like to see more frequently in the MMO arena. It would be a real waste to see an innovative set of mechanics like this be buried by poor management decisions on behalf of SOE.

Free-To-Play Conversion Updates

Fallen Earth – F2P launching Oct 12th
Link directly to matrix of subscription levels

Before I sign off for this week, I’d like to do a quick update regarding the impending F2P conversion of City of Heroes and Fallen Earth.

First off, we now have an official launch date and subscription matrix available for Fallen Earth, which will undergo its F2P conversion on October 12th.

Based on my review of the matrix, it looks like they’re doing a good job of incentivizing the subscription options available. Even the cheap-o $10/mo one looks nice. But the $30/mo subscription looks to have very little benefit for players going into the game alone, as its primary benefit is in the form of an aura that bestows “premium” boosts similar to a $15/mo sub, on anyone grouped with the $30/mo player. I could see that being handy, but the value is questionable in my opinion.

It’s nice to see the trend of offering stipends to subscribers is continuing, however.

City of Heroes – VIP access starts this week!

And City of Heroes undergoes a launch to existing subscribers on Sept 13th… in fact, by the time you’re seeing this episode, VIP members (those with active subscriptions) will already begin playing the game with the new set of features.

They still haven’t announced a solid launch date for when Freebies will be able to join the rank and file of Paragon City’s superheroes and villains. I’m taking that indication to mean that this is a sort of beta period rather than a head start. So subscribers get to be the guinea pigs before the unwashed masses are let back in. Now that’s what I call a subscriber benefit!

Wait… what?

Next Week:

Age of Conan – Unchained

The post Secret World | MMOrgue 16 first appeared on Jupiter Broadcasting.

https://original.jupiterbroadcasting.net/11522/gamescom-2011-mmorgue-14/ Fri, 26 Aug 2011 20:52:02 +0000 https://original.jupiterbroadcasting.net/?p=11522 This week focuses on the biggest MMO stories that filtered out of GamesCom 2011. We start with the most impressive showing, which came from Guild Wars 2!

The post GamesCom 2011 | MMOrgue 14 first appeared on Jupiter Broadcasting.

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This week’s episode focuses on the biggest MMO stories that filtered out of GamesCom 2011.

The most impressive showing came from Guild Wars 2, which featured new playable demos showing off their dynamic event system, character customization, new playable races and classes, crafting, and PvP battlegrounds.

Besides GW2 however, also came Star Wars: The Old Republic, showing off a brand new twist on PvP battlegrounds, in the form of a bloodsport called Huttball.

Before we review either of those exciting new features however, we pull the lid off NCSoft and Carbine Studios’ newly announced MMORPG – Wildstar. We’ll tell you why this one is worth keeping an eye on, and why Carbine has a big job ahead of them to compete in the modern MMO market.

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Show Notes:

Welcome back to the MMOrgue!

Where we take gaming to the next… LEVEL… see what I did there?

/T-Shirt:/ “Pwn Depot”
Available at
Glitch Gaming Apparel

Last week’s Best of MMO Music episode has been receiving some great responses so far. If you haven’t had a chance to check it out, I like to think it’s worth a watch. Also be sure to check that episode’s show notes for so much more music!

GamesCom hit the industry like a massive tidal wave of awesome this past week. The convention itself saw record attendance of more than 275,000 gamers, and even exceeded the location’s maximum safety capacity at least once, causing the main entrances to be temporarily closed off. Rest assured that next year’s will be even bigger, but GamesCom organizers are already talking about finding a bigger/better location to hold it.

Now, let’s talk a little bit about the games that were shown off at the convention…

The Old Republic was, obviously, present at GamesCom, although their presence was underwhelming compared to their showing at ComicCon. Their big announcement came in the form of a new PvP gameplay experience known as Huttball, which I’ll spend some time discussing later in today’s episode.

As far as the MMO world is concerned, Guild Wars 2 has walked away as the big “winner” of the floor at this year’s GamesCom. The sheer volume of awesome videos, gameplay, feature walkthrus and other newsy bits that’ve come out of ArenaNet over the past week has been astounding, and I’ll be dedicating an entire segment of today’s show to some of those juicy tidbits.

Today’s topics are by no means going to make up the entirety of all of the incredible MMO news that filtered out of GamesCom over the past several days, but I simply don’t have enough time in this episode to cover everything that was shared with us, or announced. Check our show notes for a extra round-up of other newsworthy links and coverage, including:

• Release details for Secret World, TERA and Age of Empires Online
• More information and visuals from the SyFy/Trion team-up project, Defiance
• A new aerial assault game from the makers of World of Tanks
• Dust 514 microtransaction clarifications
• Torchlight II gameplay footage
• … and a new trailer and game explanation for End of Nations

The reveal that has garnered the most attention from MMO gamers over the past week seems to be WildStar – the new MMORPG from Carbine Studios that was recently teased in the “announcement of an announcement” by NCSoft that I spoke of a few episodes back. Although the game is still very much in its infancy, Carbine already had a complete gameplay experience ready to put into the hands of gamers, and we’ll be digging into some of those details a bit later on.

Wildstar

Carbine Studio’s new MMO offering landed on the scene in a big way, offering not just an announcement and trailer, but actual hands-on demo time for con-goers at GamesCom.
In light of the hype currently built around other upcoming titles like TOR and GW2, this was an absolute necessity in order to get any sort of coverage or attention right out of the gate.

As you may recall, Carbine’s original announcement of this game included the fact that this game is designed to “learn” from players’ choices, and adapt to how they want to play the game. In the demo offered at GamesCom, we began to see the first of what we’re told will be many layers, of just how this works. And it comes down to story.

The game is a blend of sci-fi and fantasy elements, showing off technology and magic living in harmony with one another, while the art style and animations are vaguely reminiscient of Titan AE and classic-era Disney, with touches of modern anime and stylistic flourishes everywhere. Despite being visually appealing, I have to admit that compared to other modern offerings like GW2 and Secret World, it looks dated. Not much better than the graphics offered by World of Warcraft or Forsaken World. That said, graphics aren’t everything, and this game’s devils are in the details.

When first introduced to Wildstar, you have crash-landed on a strange alien world. When creating your character, you get to not only choose your race and class from a selection that includes humans, rock monsters and bunny-people, but you are also asked why it is that you are on the planet to begin with. Were you exploring? Conquering? Studying? Colonizing? These choices will lead the game to offer a different advancement path and plotline, compared to the choices that another player may make, and successive choices are said to further specialize the game content as you continue to progress.

Already, folks are throwing around comparisons to Tabula Rasa, for a few obvious reasons. The most obvious comparison is the blend of tech and magic in the world, but perhaps more telling is that Carbine Studios’ developers are what many in the business would term a “dream team.” As some of you may recall, the same claim was made of the Tabula Rasa team back in the day, and turned out to be one of the major downfalls of that title’s development cycle. Too many “chefs” and not enough “cooks.” Carbine’s staff includes the former lead developer of WoW, the co-founder of Troika Games, and the co-founder of Turbine, as well as several other experienced and respected names in MMO gaming. This SOUNDS like it’s a very good thing for a game, but remember that Tabula Rasa (which was also under the direction of NCSoft, same as this title) ended up having to be redesigned from the ground-up several years into the development cycle because of creative disagreements among high-profile “rockstar” developers. Let’s hope that Wildstar doesn’t suffer from the same speed bumps.

I’ll be getting my own hands-on demo of Wildstar at PAX, so look for more to come on this potentially innovative gameplay experience.

Links:

• Formation of Carbine, ca. 2007
• The Big Reveal of WildStar
• Hands-on Demo Impressions
• Races and Classes Revealed
• Gameplay Video without UI

Old Republic: HUTTBALL

I get the impression that The Old Republic has reached critical mass. Over the past month or so, we’ve seen very little announced in the way of new features, and most of the gameplay now available around the web is starting to feel a bit same-ey in terms of visuals. That’s not say I don’t wanna get my grubby little hands all OVER this hot mess, just that there seems to be very little else that Bioware can release that’s going to get me even MORE excited.

At least, that’s how I felt until I saw Huttball.
Introducing… HUTTBALL

So, at it’s core, it’s really just a variant on Capture the Flag, with a little football thrown in the mix for good measure. As well as some acid pits and flaming death traps. All good fun until somebody loses a limb, and then it’s HILARIOUS.

They’ve told us already that the teams will not follow the strict Republic vs. Empire party lines, and if the announcer from the trailer makes it into the game, you can bet there will be as many laughs as frags on the Huttball courts.

The concept of a steady stream of repeatable sports games is much more palatable to me personally, than an endless stream of “battleground” PvP matches, in terms of overall game lore. I mean, how did running a flag back and forth across Warsong Gultch really help the Horde’s war efforts against the Night Elves? At least in Huttball, we’re seeing something that can actually fit into the environment of the game, and make sense to a larger narrative. Even if the sense it makes is that it can be completely ignored and discarded by anyone not wishing to participate.

As with any feature announcement, there’s been a small amount of hubbub raised on TOR’s internal forums about whether or not it suits the game world, and a not-tiny contingent of pro-Jedi gamers have voiced their concern about having their favorite neon-swinging zen masters participate in what amounts to a bloodsport.

To them, I’d like to say first – Maybe the Jedi are simply out to prevent the Sith from gaining a positive public image as sports celebrities? I mean, think of the impact such celebrity status could’ve had for Darth Maul. Commercials, Wheaties boxes, merchandising contracts. These could lead to impressionable minds being swayed to the Dark Side!

Secondly, and more importantly – lighten up a little, guys. It’s a game, and Huttball looks like a ridiculous amount of fun that is likely to get even stalwart non-fans of PvP like myself, involved in the bloody game of bashing in my fellow players’ heads in a whole new way.

Guild Wars 2

Character Customization:

What is currently in the game, I find underwhelming. Compared to other “next-gen” character customization, as seen in APB and Eve, the customization in GW2 is fairly lacking. For the most part, it consists of choosing from presets of existing choices, plus a few tweaks available for individual pieces.

Given the amount of focus that ArenaNet places on art assets and visual impressiveness, what we’ve seen so far of customization is sorely lacking. It doesn’t live up to their established reputation as makers of beautiful games, or makers of innovative games.

We’re quite a ways from launch, though. This could easily improve dramatically between now and then.

Crafting System:

It’s rare in the MMO industry for a crafting system to get me excited, but GW2 has a few unique things going for it that have me looking forward to staring at a crafting UI for hours on end…

2 at a time, but can max them all
Must be a cost for swapping, or no point in limiting to 2
When you swap, you are back at the level you left off at, with all your discoveries intact

Discovery system allows you to learn new recipes through experimentation (or reading them from a wiki online, you lazy gamer you.)
It looks as though discovering a recipe rewards you with more xp than crafting it alone, leading to crafters using this system on a regular basis (even after all recipes are discovered and catalogued on wiki sites).

The look of crafted items will generally be more distinct than the loot that drops in the world.

Skill gains are steady and xp-based, happen regardless of what you’re crafting. No guesswork in leveling up.

• Videos like crazy!
• Crafting Demo
• Guild vs. Guild PvP details?
• More info on GvG

Guild Wars Battle of Kyhlo

• https://www.arena.net/blog/making-the-battle-of-kyhlo
• https://www.arena.net/blog/the-battle-of-khylo-jonathan-sharp-on-pvp

The post GamesCom 2011 | MMOrgue 14 first appeared on Jupiter Broadcasting.

]]> https://original.jupiterbroadcasting.net/10792/swtor-backlash-mmorgue-11/ Sat, 30 Jul 2011 14:56:42 +0000 https://original.jupiterbroadcasting.net/?p=10792 A recap of the Comic Con drama from a limited supply of pre-orders, overseas distribution errors, lack of communication, and general panic!

The post SWTOR Backlash | MMOrgue 11 first appeared on Jupiter Broadcasting.

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In this week’s MMOrgue, we cover the biggest MMO news to have scurried out from beneath the latex masks of San Diego Comic Con. Of course, the only real news on everyone’s mind has been the release of Star Wars: The Old Republic’s pre-orders, and the resulting DRAMA that unfolded from various distribution issues and a lack of product availability.

Before we get into the meat of that subject, we’ll also briefly cover NCSoft’s presence at SDCC, and DCUO’s Green Lantern “Power Ring” powerset announcements.

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Show Notes:

T-Shirt: Available at ThinkGeek!

Amazon Link: “Chaotic Evil” T-shirt

Thank for MMO music submissions! Added some to personal playlists. Keep ‘em coming!

Today was going to be SDCC recap, but only ONE story: SWTOR

Before we dive into that, let me tell you about a few others.

NCSoft held court, showing off Guild Wars 2 a bit.
But most of GW2 stuff will probably come out when ArenaNet attends PAX Prime this year.

NCSoft primarily focused on hyping up COH’s impending metamorphosis into a F2P game
New Trailer, new powersets!

Not to be outdone by their superpowered rivals
SOE announced the release of DCUO’s Green Lantern themed power sets
Nothing to say on powers, but the announcement deserves a minute

DCUO – Fight for the Light

First – this announcement missed the window of launching alongside the movie
Critically-panned, but blockbuster success nonetheless
DCUO has a history of missing real-world tie-ins…
Valentine’s Day almost a full month late, St. Patrick’s Day several weeks late.
If you cannot launch on time, don’t plan your content around RL events
It comes across as broken promises, and no fan will forgive you forever

Themed content isn’t sole failing point.
Prior to launch, promised monthly patches. To date, no two patches have come within <4 weeks of eachother.
Also promised free content, since the game is subscription based.

Well, how much does it feel like getting the big FINGER, when SOE announced that this new content patch will cost subscribers a fee of $10 to download and use?
They even had the BALLS to call it a DLC. A DLC! FOR AN MMO!
What are those monthly subscriptions going toward, if they won’t fuel the continued development and content release for the game?!

Expansions, OK… but THIS?!
It is so big a fail, I don’t really know how to quantify it.
I guess it’s just more fail on top of the pile that SOE continues to prove themselves to be.
Every time I start to feel like they’re redeeming themselves, they go and mismanage yet another project.

I guess there’s always hope for PlanetsideNEXT, right? hahaha

TORqued: The Pre-Order Saga

The biggest news from SDCC in the world of gaming, was easily Star Wars Old Republic’s pre-order availability, and the subsequent drama that unfolded over the few days following.

In this segment I’ll be walking you thru the events that unfolded and sharing my commentary along each step of this unfortunate series of events, as well as generally looking at the game’s future.

When the pre-orders were announced, this was the first time we heard the pricing of the Collector’s Edition… a whopping $150! Considering the fact that prior CEs of MMOs typically run for only between $80 and $100, this is a pretty significant leap in monetary investment. I’ve heard people saying you could potentially auction off the figurine on eBay if you wanted to recoup some of the cost, but let’s face it – that ain’t happening. The type of person that’ll buy a CE will keep that figurine and display it proudly, so the argument is moot.

But as it turns out, so, too, was the cost. You see, within 12 hours or so of opening pre-orders to the public, almost every major online retailer had completely SOLD OUT. A Q&A with Bioware at SDCC claimed they were NOT sold out, but retailers were singing a different tune. More units were eventually released for purchase the next morning, but by that time the damage was already done – Bioware’s precious hype had just suffered one of its first instances of public backlash, as angry fans found themselves unable to spend their money on the product Bioware had gotten them so excited about.

And unfortunately, it didn’t stop there. You see, the limited supply of pre-orders was only a factor here in the States. In the rest of the world, matters were even more complicated… In addition to only being available from an extremely limited number of retailers, some of those retailers (notably GAME.co.uk) are delaying the release of pre-order registration keys to customers that purchased the game. This isn’t usually a big deal with an MMO since a registration key is pretty much have one, or don’t. But with TOR’s launch, they are employing a tiered release schedule. Details are scarce, but it involves offering pre-launch access on a first-come/first-serve basis, based solely on the order in which your pre-order keys are registered. In other words, these retailers’ inability to supply those precious pre-order keys will prevent those customers from being among the first to enjoy the game, despite being among the first to PAY for it.

And it only adds insult to injury that some international markets actually do not have pre-orders available at all. Australia most notably. And although Bioware has confirmed that there will be no IP blocks based on region, allowing players in those regions to purchase a copy from overseas, playing on an overseas server is almost guaranteed to be a lag-infested experience. Particularly on launch day when so many people will be attempting to access the same pipelines and backbones.

All of this – the limited supply of pre-orders, the international delays, unavailability of units in certain regions – has only been made even worse by the sore lack of information coming out on the subject. Sure, Bioware devs have posted responses reassuring us that it’ll all be OK, but these issues are beyond their control. This is an EA issue – this is a publisher issue. The distribution of retail units, availability of pre-order keys, even the box cost itself. These are all items way above the pay grade of the folks creating the game that everybody is so eager to get their hands on.

And it fuels a very real, larger concern I have for the game in general.

The launch of SWTOR could potentially be the biggest MMO launch, ever. Bigger than WOW, bigger than AOC or WARhammer. By current estimations, we’re looking at millions of day-one adopters. EA and Bioware are NOT MMO companies, yet. And despite being able to learn quite a bit thru observation and second-hand accounts, there really is no substitute for hands-on experience. And I think this pre-order fiasco is proof of that matter.

It worries me. And not because I’m a fan of TOR, but because this game is going to become a benchmark for the industry. It’s broken the hype barrier and managed to become what most MMO enthusiasts are coming to refer to as the “Next Big Thing.” But not like AoC or RIFT were… this time it could be real, because there are professional reputations, huge budgets and ground-breaking development revolutions at play here. If anything marrs the launch of this game, it could leave a mark on the industry as a whole for years to come. MMOs already have the unfortunate reputation for launching as buggy, unplayable messes, and it is the big launches of the past that have given it that reputation. The more hype that preceeds a particular game’s launch, the more keenly those day-one disappointments are felt, and the louder the resonate throughout the media and gamer communities across the world. And let’s face it, there has never been another MMO with this level of hype steamrolling it onward. Every speed bump, every unexplained outage, every lag spike, exploit or imbalancing “I win” button… these will initially be complained about TOR’s communities, but the sheer volume of their negativity could quickly spill over to the rest of the MMO industry, and even into gaming in general.

We’re all in this together, and I don’t think that EA or Bioware understand that. Because they are not MMO companies. Yet.

And there WILL be issues. No matter how incredibly skilled Bioware’s QA department may be, there will be situations that only arise when you get tens or hundreds of thousands of players or more, are all accessing the same servers from locations all around the world, at the same time.

So what can be done at this point? Sadly, not much. As I said previously, TOR has broken the hype barrier… it’s a beast with a life of its own, and nothing at this point will reduce the fevered pitch of anticipation that’s been built into MMO gamers around the world.

My fears may be unfounded, and I’m hoping that they are. TOR will begin beta testing weekends in September, and I’m hopeful that these are stress tests. That Bioware will really run their servers thru the wringers and weed out every last glitch and bug before it’s opened up to the general public later this year. But even then, there’s no way you can prepare yourself for MILLIONS of players to hammer on your front door the day the game finally goes live.

Can You Run It?

SDCC Videos for SWTOR:

• Day 1: 2011 Comic-Con – Star Wars The Old Republic Q&A Session – 7.21.11
• 1st Day: SWTOR Comic-con 2011 Dev Q&A @July 21 (Full)
• Day 3: 2011 Comic-Con – Star Wars The Old Republic Q&A Session – 7.23.11
• Star Wars: The Old Republic Comic-Con 2011 Full Panel – 54 Minutes
• SDCC Comic-Con 2011 Live Floor – Interview (Stephen Reid) and Gameplay
• Star Wars: The Old Republic Comic-Con 2011 Panel – Details on Mounts and Companions
• Star Wars: The Old Republic – Space Combat [HD]

TEASE OF THE WEEK

More of a follow-up to a previous story…

Several episodes ago, I mentioned that XLGames and 2KGames had partnered up to create an MMO based on one of 2kGames successful franchises.

Well, we now have a confirmation, and unfortunately it’s not the Borderlands MMOFPS that I was hoping for…

XLGames announced Civilization Online

I think… I just stopped caring.

I’m sorry, I SHOULD be excited about another strategy game entering the MMO market, but I’ve just been so underwhelmed to date. Age of Empires Online was yawnworthy, and I’m hearing reviews of End of Nations sit squarely between “meh” and “BARF.” I just don’t know that this subgenre is destined for success in the MMO market. And now a traditionally turn-based strategy game is attempting to break into the market? Color me skeptical.

The post SWTOR Backlash | MMOrgue 11 first appeared on Jupiter Broadcasting.

]]> https://original.jupiterbroadcasting.net/9061/rift-2kgames-mass-effect-mmorgue-4/ Sat, 04 Jun 2011 07:33:12 +0000 https://original.jupiterbroadcasting.net/?p=9061 We take an editorial look at the beginning of the life of Trion Worlds’ flagship MMO, Rift. Plus a look at two new MMO franchises.

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This week, we finally get around to taking an editorial look at the beginning of the life of Trion Worlds’ flagship MMO, Rift. How are the initial impressions and population trends for this game? What’s the long-term outlook for this game’s future success?

After that, we’re taking a look at two new franchises that may soon be landing on the MMO landscape, from developers at 2KGames and BioWare. What are we in store for, from these top-name game shops? Tune in to find out, and speculate along with us!

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Show Notes:

First, an update on a previous story…

It was announced this morning that “Perfect World” has penned a deal to purchase Cryptic Studios for $50mil.

• I’m going to save the majority of my commentary for this week’s episode of STOked, which will film live on Saturday, June 4th @ 11am PDT. Tune in to hear all about it, or catch it after it is published on Tuesday, June 7th.
  • But, I will say that this quote makes me happy: More importantly, Cryptic Studios’ highly reputable development team and its technology platform will further strengthen our well-established R&D capabilities.
    • The emphasis on technology and R&D are what has made Cryptic a studio worth considering a player in the MMO industry as a whole, and it’s nice to see their new owners appreciate that fact.

RIFT

Inevitably… comparisons to WoW

• Talents = Souls (some even exactly the same, just renamed)
• Abundance of Kill, Click, Fetch and Deliver quests
• UI elements (hotbars, extra hotbars)
• “Whack-a-mole” combat mechanics – slave to cooldowns

Where it doesn’t live up to this:

• Content (vastly inferior quantity)
• The argument that “WoW has had 7 years to add content!” does not hold water. You have to compete with what’s on the market, not what was on the market 7 years ago.
• Many “smaller” features, like guild banks
  • Added a LFG tool within first 2 months… took WoW several years to make one!
• Balance — “Trion Worlds has thrown up their hands due to the complexity of their soul system.”

Where it breaks the mold:

• Rift events
  • On one hand, fun change of pace
  • On the other, interrupts otherwise mindless and easy to execute gameplay (grinding)
• Soul construction, and ease of switching roles while adventuring
  • At a glance, similar to Talents … until you realize the amount of options available to you.
  • Can swap any of your 3 active souls, to any others you have unlocked (within your archetype).
  • Individual souls are capable of doing things you can’t do in WoW: Tanking priests, healing rogues, Warriors with pets, etc.

Population consistency:
https://www.riftstatus.net/graph/Hammerlord/history/7d#!/graph/Briarcliff/history/30d

• Most popular servers (which by default appear at the top of the list) are seeing growth, while smaller ones are shrinking or going stagnant.
• Indicates that the trend is overall good for population.
• Initial 30-day period definitely saw a drop, but not a monstrous one.
• The response among active players seems to be “good riddance” for most of the folks that left. Community strengthened by it.
• How many people? Under 1000 per server at “prime time”, but 58 different servers in the US, and another 41 in Europe (whoa!) Avg 500 per = almost 50,000 concurrent
  • Implies a serious lack of content.

Overall…

RIFT is a success, for a very specific type of player.
– Likes WoW’s mechanics, but hates its age and lack of “outside the box” class structure.
– Likes WoW’s interface, but doesn’t want to rely on UI add-ons to customize their experience.
– Likes smaller communities, smaller population servers.
– New to MMOs

The future of RIFT…
Sadly, despite the success it is experiencing right now, I don’t see it remaining a top player in the MMO world after the launch of SWTOR and/or GW2. Even another WOW expansion pack would take a significant bite out of RIFT’s population. It feels to me like a game that a lot of people are playing while they bide their time waiting for something better to come along.

Why? LACK OF INNOVATION.
Almost every single aspect of RIFT has been done elsewhere, first. Admittedly, Trion Worlds has done many of those same things BETTER in RIFT (like active, dynamic events, which we’ve seen since Anarchy Online and Warhammer), but they are still not anything NEW.

2K Games Enters the MMO arena!
https://massively.joystiq.com/2011/05/23/take-two-signs-with-xlgames-to-make-existing-property-into-an-mm/
https://phx.corporate-ir.net/preview/phoenix.zhtml?c=86428&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1568889

Lineage creator Jake Song (and his company, XLGames) signed into partnership deal with 2K Games to “develop and publish a massively multiplayer online game for the Asian market based upon one of 2K Games’ top-selling franchise.”

Let the speculation begin!

• Since this is specifically in reference to 2KGames, and not its parent company Take Two Interactive, you can probably rule out IPs that aren’t directly owned by 2K. Including:
  • – GTA
  • – Red Dead Redemption
  • – LA Noire
• This leaves a fairly short list when you’re talking about “top-selling” franchises:
  • – Bioshock
  • – XCom
  • – Borderlands
  • – Dungeon Siege
  • – Civilization
  • – Pirates!
  • I wanna see an innovative MMO Shooter.
  • The one most likely to get adapted would be Dungeon Siege, imho. Though a part of me would love to see either a Borderlands or Bioshock MMO.
    • I don’t honestly know how popular or appealing any of these IPs would be to a Korean gaming market.

What about XLGames’ “ArcheAge?”

• Now undergoing its third beta phase, all reviews coming out of the game have been favorable. In fact, I’m honestly hoping to see an English version of the client available some time this year, as many of the sandboxey features of this game have definitely caught my interest.
• Since this deal is a “partnership” and not a buyout, it’s likely that the future development and support of ArcheAge will not be affected in any way.

BioWare Talks Mass Effect MMO:

I’ll be honest, this is kind of a non-news item at this point, since it’s primarily based off a single quote. There’s not much to go on, but I’ll give you this:

https://www.vg247.com/2011/04/11/bioware-mass-effect-mmo-makes-sense/

“A lot of people say that they want to see an MMO, I think that kind of makes sense for this universe. […] If you get rid of the Reapers and win that, wouldn’t it be amazing to just live on the Citadel or just take a ship to Omega? That makes sense.”

That quote is from Casey Hudson, Executive Producer of the Mass Effect franchise.
Not just “some guy” musing about the future of Mass Effect… he is “the guy” that could make it happen.

That quote is also from more than a month ago, and nothing has been said since…
Bioware is waiting to see how SWTOR does on the market, before moving forward with other online projects.

• They’re not a small-fry company: They take BIG risks, and expect BIG payoffs.
• If SWTOR doesn’t show a viable payoff for some reason, we may not see further MMOs from Bioware.

Reasons it could work:

• Mass Effect has a rich galaxy, filled with political intrigue and TONS of stories to explore.
• “Magical” technology (Biotics) allows for limitless imagination and flashy gameplay.
• Psuedo-realistic astronomy would be unique in current space genres, if allowed to explore.
• Plenty of armor, weapons, ships, etc, already established.

Reasons it could FAIL:

• If you destroy the Reapers in ME3, why is it worth tooling around in this universe? What are you saving?
• It would HAVE to be a cover-shooter, to live up to Mass Effect. And developing the maps, cover mechanics, bullet physics, class balance, and everything else… PvP would be a nightmare in this setting.
• Your crew… people? No, I want well-scripted, well-acted companions that I can get to know, converse with, maybe even romance. If I wanted to talk to people, I wouldn’t be playing video games!
• You’re not Shepard. This IS the Mass Effect franchise. Without Shepard, is it really ME?

Nintendo recently applied for ESRB ratings on a game titled “Zelda Universe.” No other news. But it’s POSSIBLE that Nintendo is looking to enter the MMO space.
– Interactive website?

NEXT WEEK:

I will be exploring the concept of MMO shooters. Why did PlanetSide not find success? Will SOE fix those mistakes in PlanetSide Next? Will FireFall be the next big thing in online shooters? How could Duke Nukem influence the future of this market?

Download & Comment:

The post Rift, 2KGames, Mass Effect | MMOrgue 4 first appeared on Jupiter Broadcasting.

]]> https://original.jupiterbroadcasting.net/8156/gw2-and-swtor-mmorgue-1/ Sat, 14 May 2011 19:39:23 +0000 https://original.jupiterbroadcasting.net/?p=8156 A few upcoming titles go under the microscope to see if they stand up to scrutiny, and whether or not the hype being generated for GW 2 and SWTOR is warranted!

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Welcome to The MMOrgue!

In our inaugural episode, your host – Jeremy – will walk through thru the specifics of just what the heck this show is all about, as well as offer some insight as to the future content it will portray.

After that business is out of the way, we’ll be putting a few upcoming titles under the microscope to see if they stand up to scrutiny, and whether or not the hype being generated around Guild Wars 2 and Star Wars: The Old Republic is warranted.

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Show Notes:

What is The MMOrgue?

I am not an industry professional, but I play one on the internet.
– I have been playing and testing MMOs since 1997.
– Since that time, I have participated in over 30 closed and open betas, and subscribed to more than 20 different MMOs.
– Besides just playing the game, I also take an active role in the community whenever possible. Have also worked as a volunteer CSR on three different active MMOs.
– I have been every genre stereotype, from Trollish Griefer, to No-Nonsense Raid Leader, to Friendly Roleplayer, to Casual Part-timer. I have a good understanding of what motivates different portions of the MMO playerbase.
– As a co-host of a successful MMO-focused podcast (STOked), I have gained a significant amount of insight into the development process of MMOs, as well as numerous industry contacts.
Every story covered on this show will have an angle that addresses the industry in its entirity.
* How a certain feature/attitude (from players and/or developers) will impact the future evolution of the industry.
* What a game’s success or failure indicates about the current state of the industry.

* How lessons of the past are being learned from, or ignored.
WILLS and WILL NOTS:
* WILL:
– Focus on innovation and evolution within the MMO market
– Occasionally include developer interviews and commentary, whenever appropriate
– Maintain a focus on how certain game mechanics or developer attitudes impact their communities.
– Contain exclusively editorial content. Although news and announcements will be shared, they are only here to drive the opinions portrayed.
* WILL NOT:
– Cover every feature announcement and press release for every game in development
– Make a habit of dwelling on the minutiae of game mechnics, except where a thorough explanation becomes necessary in order to explain the larger impact of an innovation
– Play favoritism towards any particular developer or sub-genre.

That last point leads me to my next topic…
ArenaNet

I won’t mince words, I’m a HUGE fan. But, you should be, too. Let me tell you why…

Guild Wars 2: Why You Should Care

There is a video floating around the internet, made by ArenaNet. They call it their MMO manifesto, and within this short video they outline a number of reasons that their next product – Guild Wars 2 – is going to revolutionize the way that MMOs are perceived, and played.

RETHINK EVERYTHING: INNOVATION GALORE
“ArenaNet was founded to innovate.” – Mike O’Brien, President
– Awesome.
– But change for change’s sake is dangerous:
* Auto Assault, Fallen Earth, PlanetSide, even EVE to a certain extent.
* While many people want something new, MILLIONS still play only what is recognizable and easy to understand.
— (RIFT’s similarity to WoW has bred success, while still offering something new)
* ArenaNet is being changed in deliberate ways, to drive community interaction and gameplay immersion. Every innovation is being thoroughly examined for impact.

BE THE HERO: A PERSONAL STORYLINE
– From the moment of character creation, you have a personal story.
* WHO you are, not WHAT you are.
* Branching objectives, evolving story.
* Replayability for alts is incredibly high.
— Social aspects of shared knowledge may suffer.
— Lack of uniform player experiences may cause a rift among players that have grown accustomed to being able to share the same game experience with their friends/guildmates. (Look at sites like WoWHead as an example)

EXPERIENCE A LIVING WORLD: DYNAMIC EVENTS (NO QUESTS)
– Completely removed traditional questing, replaced with Dynamic Event Chains
* You will never be asked to kill 10 wolves, or collect 5 rare flowers.
* You will notice something in the distance, get closer and examine the situation, then choose whether or not to be involved.
— With this change, Exploration has become the POINT of the game, and not an extra pass-time or something that just happens along the way.
* Dynamic Events will have branching objectives – won’t always end the same.
* Scaling AI smart enough to adapt to all different types of involvement, not just population levels.

MAKE A FRIEND: SOCIAL INNOVATIONS
– Concept of the “golden triad” of classes has been eliminated.
* Every class can tank, heal, dps, control. Roles switch based on weaponsets and ability choices.- Automatic sidekicking, driven by environment instead of group mechanics
* No high-level griefers in low-level areas.
* No scaling issues with dynamic events.
* Allows high-level characters to seamlessly enjoy low level content if they choose to.
– Social mini-games in non-combat areas.
* Scorekeeping and leaderboards to encourage friendly competition.
– Mobile apps to keep you connected when not in-game.
* THIS IS HUGE, and an absolute NECESSITY for the next generation of MMOs.
WATCH THE ACTION: ACTIVE COMBAT SYSTEM
– Simplified hotbars, 10 buttons max.
– Cooldowns frequently controlled by fatigue system, which also ties to movement.
* Combat is balanced so that spamming a move is possible, but not recommended. If you use your Fatigue too quickly then you can’t move/dodge and will take more damage. Meaning that standing in place and swinging repeatedly is a recipe for failure.

– Heavy emphasis on movement and positioning.
– Power interactions and environmental effects (fire + arrows)
– Line of sight and collision mechanics

POSTSCRIPT: MMORTICIAN’s THOUGHTS
– If they deliver HALF of this HALF as well as they intend to, it will send ripples through the industry as player expectations will shift dramatically.
– The class system is likely going to undergo many, many tweaks during Beta. I find it unlikely that every class can truly tank, heal and DPS as well as every other, and some may shine in certain areas.
* It is the wont of MMO gamers to min/max in every scenario. If one class excels at a certain thing, then that IS THEIR ROLE, regardless of their ability to perform in other areas.
—————–

https://www.swtor.com/community/showthread.php?t=188836

The concept of evolving storylines is not unique to Guild Wars 2. In fact, it is a cornerstone of one of the most highly-anticipated MMORPGs of the current world: SW:TOR

IMMERSIVE STORYTELLING: The “Fourth Pillar”
Progression, Exploration, Combat, and STORY
– Every class (16 total, so far) will have their own storyline, complete with branching objectives allowing for your individual choices to drive the content that you will experience.
* Each of these stories is said to be as large and fully-featured as a single game.
* Unlike a singleplayer game, there’s no Save/Reload to allow you to explore alternative choices. Experiencing something other than what you choose will require an alt character, or hearing about it second-hand from another player.
YOU ARE NOT ALONE: Companion Characters
– Companions have factored into every BioWare game. And are also a part of Star Wars (Chewbacca, R2D2, etc).
– Each companion will have their own stories and interests. Players can choose to help, or corrupt them. Companions may even turn on you in some outcomes.
– Companions also act as the crew of your ship, and assist you in crafting items and obtaining resources.

HEAR AND SPEAK: Voice acting
– More lines of voice-acted dialogue than every other BioWare game PUT TOGETHER
– Including YOUR character! Hooray for no more mute leaders.
– This level of voice acting simply cannot happen in any genre other than an MMO. Even in PC Gaming, developers are urged to keep resource usage low, and if they intend to sell a console port then it becomes an absolute NECESSITY to keep resources to a single disc.
* Look at Dragon Age II and the re-use of the same 20 maps over and over. This was done because of voice acting, and limited console resources.

* Since this type of feature can only effectively happen in an MMO, it is my opinion that ALL “Triple-A” class MMOs must strive to include it in the future. It can become a defining characteristic of a genre that frequently lacks a unified identity.
Bioware’s efforts on SWTOR are already catching the eye of prominent players in the MMO industry, including Mike Morhaime – CEO of Blizzard Entertainment. His published point of view is that a successful high budget title under the Star Wars IP can only mean good things for the population level of the MMO industry across-the-board.
While I agree, I doubt he’d be saying the same thing if Bioware was publishing a fantasy RPG that was in direct competition with World of Warcraft.

Download:

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