Yearly Archives: 2012

Meta’s Verse: CoH Anniversary Interviews Pt 2

Meta’s Verse: CoH Anniversary Interviews Pt 2

By Meticulous Meta, OnRPG’s Paragon Reporter
Answers by: TwoFlower, CoH OldTimer and Beta Player

 

 

Welcome back to the second week of interviews with old timers. We’re leading up to the 8th anniversary of City of Heroes by interviewing players. This week I had the opportunity to interview @Twoflower, a player who has been with City of Heroes since beta. This was a fantastic interview that made me laugh. It was great to hear the thoughts of someone who has been in the game so much longer than I have.

 

 

What is your name, age and location in the world?

Stefan Gagne, mid thirties, in Midatlantic Suburban Hell.

 

 

What MMO experience do you have?

Honestly, not a ton. The only game I’ve played for a reasonable length of time was City of Heroes. I’d poked and prodded at a few games before that, but none of them took my fancy.

 

I’ve played a few games since then — DCUO, Old Republic, some other stuff — but too much emphasis on constantly replacing your gear and having a dozen icon trays full of frequently used skills is not my style. I am looking forward to Guild Wars 2, though, which takes some good pages from CoH (recolor your armor anytime, sidekicking so you can play with your friends, scaling missions suitable solo or on teams, etc.)

 

 

When did you start playing CoH?

Beta. Well, prepurchase beta, I wasn’t in before that. And I’ve been locked in as a subscriber ever since.

 

 

What was it that made you want to try CoH?

CoH’s modernized setting and personal costuming grabbed me more than putting a generic sword through a generic orc’s head while wearing generic platemail ever did.

 

It was the first MMO set in a modern day city, something I can more easily connect with than the rolling countrysides of “Not Europe.” I like games that offer something different, something beyond the expectations of genre — and at the time, MMORPGs were stuck in a rut, trying to recreate Lord of the Rings.

Being able to personalize yourself and never having to wear some horrible spiky yellow shoulderpads just to get the best stat bonus for your class was also a huge upside — it helps you connect to your character, see them as YOUR creation, rather than just a combination of race and class and build. As time went on, this only got deeper and deeper, to the point where you can recolor powers to make them something other than what the developers say they are. (Dark colored thermal shields look like living shadows, not fire, for instance.)

 

 

What server(s) do you play on?

Virtue. And… well, just Virtue. Thank goodness the game offers VIPs a lot of character slots. It started out as the unofficial RP server, and I like to RP, so there you go. Although I don’t RP outside of a group of my friends; I don’t hang out in Pocket D, for instance.

 

 

Which AT is your favorite? What is your playstyle?

I prefer ranged classes. I have trouble scrambling around in melee, trying to figure out what’s the best guy to be punching in the head at any given moment — being downwind of the fight lets me pick and choose targets easier.

CoH has a bit of a loose rule though that “Ranged = Fragile,” so if you aren’t right in the enemy’s face all the time, you will likely die horribly the second something looks at you funny. Defenders, Blasters, Dominators, etc. have little personal mitigation. Over the years that’s improved, thanks to IO set bonuses, Arachnos ATs, and other tricks you can pull to make yourself a bit more survivable — but it’s no surprise there’s so many Brutes running around when they can solo like a god AND contribute well to teams, compared to a fragile ranger.

 

 

What/Who is your main?

I don’t really have a main. I’ve had alt after alt after alt over the years, retiring once I feel I’ve played them enough, moving on to the next concept. I like to keep my play experience fresh, not repeating use of powersets, trying out new ATs and combos, etc. So at any given moment my “main” can change drastically.

 

I guess the closest I get is Overlord Magnus, my “What if Reed Richards successfully goaded Dr. Doom into trying to take over the world through legitimate means?” character. He’s a hero who’s trying very hard to conquer the world by popular vote rather than terror, genuine social change rather than facism — all to find a stable future for all of mankind.

 

He started out Traps / Dual Pistols, until I got to 50 and Incarnated him the heck out and… well, then what do you do? Run more trials? Eh. So, I’ve rerolled him, and now he’s a Beam Rifle / Radiation. Like I said… I like to mix things up a lot and stay fresh, even if I keep the same “character.”

 

 

What feature in the game is your favorite?

Mission Architect.

 

It’s had its ups and downs, it’s got too many fire farms in the Hall of Fame, it’s been used and misused… but the core idea is sound. Let the players write their own stories, and play them for normal game rewards. For all those who enjoy MA for what it’s supposed to be, a storytelling tool, much love to you. I’ve written a LOT of story arcs for you and I hope you enjoy them.

I think with more development and features, MA really can be something completely amazing, a core part of the CoH experience. Right now it’s languishing a little due to inattention, but even now there’s a lot of terrific content out there to play and the tools to make it with are quite powerful. I recommend anybody check it out — scope out the MA forums to see what stories are new, play a few, and have fun with it.

 

 

What is your favorite TF/Trial?

Tricky. I’m not a huge fan of raid content — I like the rewards, but doing it with random people is an exercise in madness, and I only get one solid chunk of time a week to do them with my own friends. Plus, typically they’re incredibly gimmicky and chaotic, which takes me out of the relaxing fighty time game mood I enjoy about CoH.

I’d say of all of them, the one I can run without being too bored or annoyed is probably the Imperious Task Force. And that’s because my friends and I are very, VERY good at it. It’s like tossing field mice into a wood chipper, I swear — a constant rampage of murder and XP that doesn’t end until WE decide it ends.

 

 

Are you in a SG? What kind of group are they?

My group’s DFB Crew, named such because our first SG was “Death From Below Crew,” a street-level themed hero team (like Luke Cage). But we’ve long, LONG since outgrown having a single SG or a single theme, so instead we focus on a global channel containing the 10 or so of us, while our many alts are spread out across many SGs.

Because we’re also spread out over many time zones, we get together every Saturday for a few rampages, and sometimes meet up a few times during the week. It’s very casual and fun and I like being able to play with them more than playing with random dudes.

 

 

What is your favorite thing that has come out on the market?

Auras, capes, and costume slots.

“But wait,” you say, after tapping me on the shoulder. “Can’t you just run a quick mission and unlock those things after you hit level 20?”

“Yeah, but I can’t be arsed,” I say. “I want to be able to make my characters look the way they should look from level 1 onward, and maybe even have alternate forms in the other slots.

 

It’s a lot easier to pay a reasonably small fee ONCE and get account-wide costume access. Also, who are you and how did you get into my house?”

“Um, OH MY GOD WHAT’S THAT” you say before running for it. And then I call the police.

 

 

What would you like to see CoH come out with?

Powersets — Self-Duplication. It’s always been one of my favorite rare comic book powers; the Multiple Man / DupliKate style character who comes at you with an army of selves. Guild Wars 2 is doing something similar with their Mesmer class. I don’t know if CoH tech can handle it, though, given how difficult they’re finding it to be to give us customizable minions for Mastermind.

Otherwise — Mission Architect upgrades. Community vetting of content, to ensure true stories and not just fire farms rise to the top. NPC Dialogue chats, even if they aren’t branching. Better and more specific placement of mission goals. Things like that.

 

 

Do you have a favorite dev? Why are they your favorite?

Dr. Aeon is the man. He’s taken on MA and keeps it going through weekly plays and nominees for Dev Choice awards. It’s a bit of a red headed stepchild of the game and I applaud him for stepping up and embracing it.

 

 

Do you use any of the community run resources?

Paragon Wiki and the Mids hero planner. One unfortunate reality of this game is that it’s got so much arcane mechanics that it’s rough on starting players — getting past “SO” level builds and into something that can work past the limits of the archetypes involves a LOT of fiddly little technical know-how. The planner and the wiki together really help, even when you’re a veteran.

 

 

What is your favorite location in CoH? Why?

My SG base. I established an SG for Overlord Magnus to fit his “villain gone legit” backstory, the Futurist Society. It’s a very small, very focused base which specializes in stocking tier 2 crafting salvage in spades. Any time I need to make an IO, I just have to log in an alt in that SG, hit the base, drop the finished work in the bin or mail it to myself, etc. It’s SO handy having one stop shopping for all my build needs. Sadly, I can’t use the auction house from within the base, but you can’t have everything.

 

 

What has kept you interested in CoH for all this time?

My friends, first and foremost. Without them, the game can be a very rough road solo unless you enjoy punching things in melee or going REALLY nuts with your build.

 

Beyond that… well, everything above. Truly personal character customization. Story authoring. A modern setting. Doing things differently from other MMO’s on the market. CoH is a very unusual animal in that regard and it’s one I approve of completely.

 

 

Where do you see CoH going in the future?

At this point, they seem to have nailed down the game mechanics – now it’s all about content. More powersets to sell, more Incarnate zones and trials, things like that.

If anything I’m a bit worried that they’ll be content to crank out more-of-the-same, since it’s working fine as-is. Why do anything really new or radical with an eight year old codebase that could explode if you push it too hard? Fortunately the level they’re at now compared to the level they were at at launch, in terms of depth and sophistication of that content, means that even keeping on par would be a good experience.

 

 

I would like to say a huge thank you to @Twoflower for taking the time to answer my questions. Another big thank you to Melissa “War Witch” Bianco for being with City of Heroes for an amazing ten years! And finally give you all a bit of news that came out just recently about the anniversary event which has been kept under tight wraps. A free respect will be handed out to all characters! It may seem like a pretty minor announcement but remember that freespecs do not stack. So if you have one already use it before you lose it. I can’t wait to see what they have in store for us.

Star Supremacy Enters Commercial Launch

Star Supremacy Enters Commercial Launch

 

 

LeKool Games is delighted to announce the Official launch of Star Supremacy. Experience the next generation of browser based gaming with this Space war themed game. The battle for supremacy is about to begin in space.

 

Star Supremacy is a revolutionary strategic space simulation game in which players fight to dominate the universe with their intergalactic empire. Following a unique storyline for each faction, you build a empire to conquer planets, while building new facilities and combat units to form battle squadrons that can take over planets and mine resources.

 

The player builds up an industrial infrastructure, constructs weapons factories and strong defensive fortifications, to get a strong offensive capability. Build a guild and conquer the universe together. The game offers unlimited possibilities for combination for weapons and ships, so the battles are never dull. Engage in amazing PvP and NPC battles and prove your supremacy.

 

Features:

Animated Battles

PvP, PvE & Arena Battles

Guild Quests & Upgrades

Total warship customization option, so 2 warships are never same

Team up with other players from around the globe

Different race with different storyline progression

 

 

For more information on Star Supremacy be sure to check out our full review at OnRPG!

Champions Online Launches “On Alert” Update

Champions Online Launches On Alert Update

 

 

 

Champions Online, the epic super hero MMORPG by Cryptic Studios, has recently launched the “On Alert” update featuring a series of new systems and updates. Check out the new Teaser Trailer here!

 

Features

 

Systems Update – We’ve updated the way most Statistics, Roles, and Super Stats work to improve the way statistics work together and provide for better game balance in the future. Additionally, we’ve re-itemized the entire game, improving the rewards available from levels 1-40, providing not only increased power, but also more meaningful rewards from both world drops and quests.

 

 

Specializations – These new specializations allow for even greater customization for your Champions Online character – players can become even stronger than before! Unlocked at level 10, Specializations give you all you need to make an even more unique hero.

 

 

Alerts – Focused on classic super villain confrontations, the new Alerts system allows players to come face to face with an array of old and new super villains, stopping them cold in their tracks! You might catch them in the middle of a robbery, kidnapping, wreaking havoc, or taking advantage of an unlikely situation to bring them even more power! Keep an eye out for your Nemesis and some new teams of Villains as well!

 

 

Recognition – Champions will now be able to build up Recognition with various heroic factions in the Champions Universe and can use their newly found clout to purchase various rewards, including special costume pieces, travel powers, and powerful new gear.

 

 

Questionite – A new time-based currency, players will earn Questionite for completing missions in game, daily quests, and other activities. Players may then use their Questionite to purchase in-game items through the Questionite Store, or trade it to other players for Cryptic Points!

 

 

Modifications & Fusion – Our new Modifications and Fusion Systems further enhance the customizability of Champions Online. Through this new system, players will be able to modify their gear, customizing it with new modifications to provide more of the statistics they want, as well as fuse modifications together to create even more powerful mods.

Silkroad-R Welcomes New Players with New Fellows

Silkroad-R Welcomes New Players with New Fellows

 

Silkroad R

 

Joymax, leading online game developer and publisher, announced today a bevy of events for their sister titles Silkroad Online and Silkroad-R. Contests galore begin today alongside a special gift package and much, much more!

 

Silkroad-R: New Players’ Gift Basket, Design A Pet

Welcome to your new home in Silkroad-R! Awaiting your auspicious arrival is a four part gift package that will help you on your way. Prizes include the New Saint Knight Outfit (given to all new players at level 1), the Fairy Outfit (earned by reaching level 30), and an extra, secret item that players will receive after their first Silk purchase. Veterans are not left out, as the “Design your fellow” contest begins today. Entries will be accepted today until May 16th, when a community vote will take place. If your creative idea is one of the three chosen, your pet will be added to the game!

 

Silkroad R

 

Silkroad-R: Design a Fellow

Fellows are functional companions that help out players for better attack/defense, they always stay next to players. Their role in the game is understated but vital to the success of any player, and now is the perfect time to create the companion of your dreams! Design and submit a Fellow via the Silkroad-R Facebook from now until 15th of May. Once all the submissions have been examined, players will vote for their top 3 favorites from a list of 10, which will become available in the game shortly afterwards! Each designer will also be gifted their own Fellow. Join Now!

 

Silkroad: Design a Fellow

Players of the legacy title aren’t being left out of the fun either! Designs will also be accepted for a new Silkroad Fellow to be showcased in Silkroad Online. Players will be challenged to ensure their designs fall within specific rules, such as being focused on either attack or defense. Once all the submissions have been received from the Silkroad Online forums and the official Facebook, players will have the opportunity to vote for their new companions. Three lucky winners’ designs will be given to the Silkroad team and turned into a real Fellow inside the game for all players to enjoy, and winners will receive their design as a special thank you gift. Join Now!

Allods Online: A Whole Different Beast

Allods Online: A Whole Different Beast

By Remko Molenaar (Proxzor), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

Allods Online is a free-to-play 3D fantasy MMORPG developed by the Russian company mail.ru. This free online game has been published by multiple publishers all over the world and has had a successful career since launch. I have played this game before when it was in the closed beta phase a few years ago, and heard this beautiful F2P title had undergone some major changes so went in on assignment to give them game a second look.

 

 

Luckily the friendly crew at gPotato gave me two high level characters so I could get a feel for the changes to both low and high end content. What I did not know before I logged into the account is that I was given a really expensive character. Since I had played the game before and know the basic mechanics, I got started by asking around to see what the community thought about the game. The community of Allods Online is really one of the best I have ever seen, and the high level players were more than willing to show me around and get me into some of the end-game content. They immediately recognized I was sporting some near GM level gear and invited me to the arena to see if I could put it to good use. Since I always have been a big fan of PvP I decided to go along and join my new friends and hone my character’s skill combos.

 

 

Beyond my gear, I soon realized that even the runes I was provided with were outlandishly strong. Some of the runes weren’t even released publicly yet so I felt almost like a walking advertisement for gPotato’s upcoming content as players stared, perplexed by my armor/rune combo. I was often mistaken for a GM and asked tons of complex questions that I had no way of answering.

 

After entering into the arena I was forced to quickly learn my role. I was playing on a high level Skald that specialized in ranged magic strikes. The first person I faced was no match for me at all, and I easily one shot him surprising the big crowd that gathered around the arena. Many others tried to go in but  were no match in 1 on 1 combat. Soon they all had a taste of the sand, even despite their furious combos. This caught even more eyes and before I knew it I was inundated with whispers inviting me to test my power in a skirmish. I have to give gPotato props for killing two birds with one stone by offering OnRPG a chance to review their title while simultaneously using me as a mini-event to entertain their playerbase.

 

 

Skirmishes are the battlegrounds in Allods Online and feature large faction vs faction team battles. To win the Skirmish the player has to do various objectives and currently there are three Skirmishes in the game the player is able to participate in. The other faction I was matched up against was in for a shock as I cut down their team in a fury of magic strikes before they could reorganize and retaliate. The general consensus among my foes was to make distance until they could figure out a proper tactic to overcome my OP character. To my surprise my invincible Skald has an Achilles’s Heel.. my complete lack of Willpower. Stuns were absolutely crippling to me and combined with strong magic spike damage, I could slowly be brought down with a coordinated attack. I soon discovered that even the best gear in the game is no match when faced with 20 coordinated CC strikes at once!

 

 

After finishing the skirmishes my group of loyal followers decided it was time to strike back against our foes in a more meaningful way. I boarded one of their zeppelin blimps and we set sail to the enemy faction’s capital city to wreak some havoc! Before I continue with that though I have to say the air ship traveling system is pretty wild. You really feel like a crew of sailors as you traverse the unknown taking on huge monsters along the way. Players steer the ship, man cannons, and all sorts of fun mini-games to keep things afloat and on course. I hear you can even have PvP battles aboard these vessels and wish I had the chance to experience such an event.

 

Like sky vikings raiding an unsuspecting city, we quickly cut down a large group of unsuspecting players as soon as we docked. Unfortunate this was about the total extent of our city raiding plan and we soon found ourselves facing the wrath of the entire city as 50+ players gave chase to our merry band of thugs. In an attempt to lose them, we snuck into a secret passage in the hope that we could emerge elsewhere and unleash more chaos throughout town.  Unfortunately the secret passage wasn’t as secret as we thought and again we got chased by a lot of players. After a while we decided to return back to our lands and try something else. On our way back some people from the other Faction logged into new characters and started to whisper me welcoming me in the game. The community in this game is really really friendly and no one seemed too angry over PvP as they tend to be in games like this.

 

 

Since I had a lot of fun fighting against other players I decided to check out some of the PVE content. The player is able to group up with other players from the same faction to run various dungeons. Dungeons are the typical fair in which players team up to take on a series of instanced monsters and various types of bosses. The game seems to follow the trend of running dungeons in a set level bracket to obtain stronger gear so you stand a chance against the next tier of dungeons.  There are multiple dungeons all over the world for everyone and all sorts of levels, as expected since Allods has had plenty of time to implement additional content since launch. While the loot may be the primary reward, with a community as great as this I found the player bonding to be the real treat.

 

 

Graphics

Allods Online has a different style of art than many other MMORPGs and it looks drawn from some perspective. I am really fond of the graphics in general and the environment and character animations flow together flawlessly. To play this beautiful game you will need the following computer specifications:

 

Minimum Requirements:

Windows XP, Windows2000, DirectX 9.0
? Intel Pentium III 1.5 GHz
? 512 MB RAM
? NVIDIA GeForceFX 5200 64 MB / ATI Radeon 9600 64 MB
? Screen with resolution 800×600
? Graphics card requires Pixel Shading of 2.0 or higher
? DirectX-compatible audio card
? Mouse
? 4 GB HDD
? ADSL 56k

 

Recommended Requirements:

Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows XP, Windows2000, DirectX 11.0
? 2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo / AMD Athlon X2
? 1024 MB RAM
? NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GS 256 MB / ATI Radeon X1600 256 MB
? A display supporting resolution of 1024×768
? Graphics card requires Pixel Shading of 2.0 or higher
? DirectX-compatible audio card (support for 5.1 with 64 channels)
? Mouse
? 4 GB HDD space
? ADSL 56k Internet Access or faster
? Equipment for voice communication (microphone, headphones)

 

 

Conclusion

Allods Online is actually a lot of fun, and feels fun straight out of the gate rather than forcing you to work for it. Players of any level can always find something exciting to do, whether it be dungeon running, exploring the world in air ships, or PvP battles. Of course it ties all of this together in a world so beautiful that it makes you wonder how it could be F2P. The initial complaints of Allods cash shop being over bearing has mostly been resolved thanks to gPotato closely monitoring community feedback since launch. While the current cash shop is in no way necessary, I’d feel obligated to spend just as thanks for providing its player-base with such a fun experience. If you are a big fan of MMORPGs but especially a sucker for graphics and well developed content, then check out Allods Online. It’s definitely a top pick among the current MMORPG Fantasy titles on the market.

Tribal Wars Speed Championship goes into Knockout Phase

Tribal Wars: Speed Championship goes into Knockout Phase

 

Tribal Wars

 

 

Today InnoGames’classic online game Tribal Wars started a Knockout Phase for its International Speed Championship 2012. Sixteen National Teams of 20 players face off in speed matches, fighting to reach the quarter finals. The German team is set to face Denmark; USA will fight the Czech Republic for a space in the final eight.

 

 

The Speed Championship 2012 is an international tournament between players from all Tribal Wars language versions. The Teams compete in various matches, until the 2012 Ultimate Speed Champions is revealed. The browser game, normally set for sessions that can last several months or even years, will be increased to 300-400 times the normal speed, allowing for matches to be settled within hours. In order to keep updated about fight schedules and game rules, players can go to the Speed Championship homepage.

Dota 2 First Impressions: Valve Never Disappoints

Dota 2 First Impressions: Valve Never Disappoints

By Mohammad Abubakr, OnRPG Journalist

 

 

I have always been a big fan of MOBA games. I have tried and switched between many that are available and have just come to love Dota 2. The game is still in its early stages so there are areas that can be improve but being backed by a company like Valve, I know the game will be great.

 

 

Valve has brought us many great games over the years including Team Fortress 2,  Counter Strike and Portal 2. Unlike most game developers and publishers, they do not feel the need to release their games quickly because they have other sources of income allowing them to take their time. Knowing this, it is hard to know when Dota 2 will officially be released or what its payment structure will look like, but I do know that it will be a great game.

 

 

Community members have found signs of micro transitions in the game files hinting towards a model similar to Team Fortress 2. A free to play model would be most profitable and is the model I am predicting. I hope that hero unlocking is not part of the game. In a MOBA game this leads to many balance issues and offers many advantages to paying players. We can be certain of one thing, the shop will sell hats.

 

 

The game play is basically the same as Defense of the Ancients. In a traditional game, two teams of five fight in three lanes in hope of destroying the enemy ancient. These ancients are defended by three towers in each lane. Once any of the tier three towers have been destroyed, the two towers protecting the ancient become vulnerable. After destroying these final towers, the ancient may be destroyed.

 

 

Sounds simple enough, right? Well, behind such a simple goal there are many mechanics and play styles to be discovered and mastered. There is no way to beat Dota 2; you are only working towards getting better.

 

Amazing art style!

Even in the early stages of the game, bugs are almost nonexistent. Sometimes the servers crash but after getting matched up with opponents I have never encountered any bugs. However, some bugs and glitches do exist but that is to be expected in a beta. My brother has occasionally gotten texture bugs but a quick restart or verification of files solves this issue. Players have also claimed to have missed skill shots because of bugs but that is debatable.

 

 

One by one the existing heroes in Dota are being ported over to Dota 2. The heroes are almost identical to the original heroes but some balance changes are occasionally made. There is not much to say about the hero design as they are simply ports from Dota, but I am looking forward to new Dota 2 heroes. Valve is a creative company with many talented developers so I am sure they will not disappoint.

 

 

The game is also surprisingly balanced. I say surprisingly because it seems impossible to be able to balance such a large number of heroes. This was possible because of years of tweaks from DOTA by the community and IceFrog.

 

 

The user interface is currently my favourite UI out of all the available MOBA games. It is easy on the eyes and simple to use. It is the little additions such as quick buy and labels for mana cost which serve as the tie breaker against other MOBA game UIs.

 

 

However, I feel that the shop can be improved. In its default configuration, purchasing items feels like a slow process. The number hotkeys do not help as it can be quite troublesome to reach for the number seven when trying to quickly purchase an item. Thankfully this configuration can be changed to display many items with smaller icons once players are familiar with all the items. In order to quickly purchase items it is essential to use the quick buy feature.

 

This is a very useful feature that allows an item to be displayed with its individual components right above your inventory screen allowing for easy purchases. You can either buy the item one by one or bind a key to purchase items in your quick buy with the press of a button.

You can watch games while you are in queue!

Transitioning to Dota 2 was a bit hard in the beginning. Coming from a faster paced MOBA game the slow response times and turn rates took a bit getting used. At first I did not like the slower paced game play but it grew on me and now Dota 2 is being played exclusively. If you are turned off by the responsiveness of Dota 2, keep playing. You will eventually get used to it. Every MOBA game has its own feel which you must get accustomed to.

 

 

My favourite part about Dota 2 are the little additions that are not game changing or very noticeable. Heroes react to what is going on around them with a variety of lines. They will comment on any big item pickups, missed skill shots and kills. The kill lines even go as far as featuring specific lines for all hero match-ups. Hero animations also change depending on their state such as limping while at low health. There are many of these little additions throughout Dota 2 that help to make it a great game.

 

 

Dota 2 is the only MOBA game which I like to play with the music enabled. In a recent update, all of the music is dynamic and changes based on what is going on. If you are simply farming creeps in a lane the game will play calm and relaxing music but changes to more epic music in situations such as fighting Roshan, the boss in Dota 2.

 

 

Being a big fan of eSports I am very happy about the competitive scene in Dota 2. Even now it offers many more opportunities for professional players than games that have been released for quite some time. The International gave a huge boost towards Dota 2’s competitive scene with its 1.6 million dollar prize pool! This tournament was not just a one-time advertising gambit for Valve as they plan to host it again soon. I wonder what the prize pool will be this time?

 

 

Dota TV has great potential in contributing towards the competitive scene. Even in its early stages Dota TV offers features on par or even surpassing those in fully released MOBA games. You can watch any games live, obviously with some delay, with hundreds of other spectators. When this feature has been fully implemented you can use it to watch live competitive games with commentary and camera views from the casters also viewing the game.

 

 

The only problem with Dota TV is knowing if tournaments will actually utilize its features. Too many spectators can cause the game to lag for everyone, including the players, but this will most likely be fixed in the future. Aside from the chance of lagging your game, tournaments will lose a lot of ad revenue if spectators can simply watch the game without opening the streams. Therefore, I think that the full Dota TV will only be used by official Valve tournaments unless Valve offers incentives to streamers and casters.

The profile displays just the right amount of information.

As in most MOBA games, the community is very hostile during matches. This is unavoidable because it is a team game where one player’s bad move can cost the entire team the match. However, I have had very good experiences in all of my matches so far. It may just be because of the game being in closed beta but I am very surprised with the community’s maturity.

 

 

Outside of the game, Dota 2 is backed by an amazing community. I have seen the release of many articles, casts and art work which goes to show the love the community has on this game. Valve recognizing these community releases makes it even better. If this community continues to do what is it doing I can see this game going very far.

 

 

To conclude, I recommend Dota 2 to any gamer. The game is still in closed beta and is already on par with the top MOBA games on the market. Backed by Valve, my favourite gaming company, the game can only improve over time. Without a doubt Dota 2 is my favourite MOBA game.

 

 

Be on the lookout for a full review after Dota 2 is in a later stage of development.

Aika Dev Blog: The Spirit of Aika

Aika Dev Blog: The Spirit of Aika

By GM Paragon, gPotato Representative

 

 

The Spirit of Aika is conflict carried out through PvP.  A good fight makes this world go ‘round, and in this dev diary we’ll be discussing three of Aika’s most challenging PvP events.

 

 

PvP is the core element to everything you do in Aika.  Aika is built around a large scale player vs player model, in which players form guilds, guilds form alliances, and alliances form nations that do battle against each other.  There are three PvP events that can change an entire nation’s political landscape: Castle Siege, the Relic War, and the Altar War.

 

PvP

 

Castle Siege pits comrades against each other over the right to power.  In each nation there is a bastion of power called the Lakian Fortress.  Each week, a new rebellion arises as guilds rally to take the castle from the ruling alliance and their Lord Marshal, who have been controlling the nation and its resources.  Once this castle is taken, the leader of the victorious alliance becomes the new Lord Marshal and inherits the ability to control the nation’s taxes, Relic upgrades, alliances with other nations, and more.  The players within the Lord Marshal’s guild receive special privileges as well, such as immunity from the penalty for killing those within their own country (great for players who like open world PvP).

 

 

Relic War takes the conflict to an international level as nations raid each other’s temples to seize control over powerful holy Relics.  These Relics confer amazing benefits (such as attack and experience boosts) upon any who reside inside the nation controlling them, generating constant struggles to obtain and keep these powerful objects.  Relics are invaluable weapons against any foe that may strike at your nation, and it is always advantageous to have numerous and better Relics.  It is imperative that all nations be constantly on guard against others trying to steal their Relics as well as ready to attack when the opportunity arises to rob another nation.

 

Altar

 

Each nation also has an Altar.  These Altars are vaults of great wealth and resources gathered and donated by their respective nation.  To attack these Altars takes great coordination, determination, courage and strategy, but a successful assault brings massive awards.  Raiding an Altar requires as much timing as it does strategy and strength.  They are protected by four Guardian Stones, three of which are scattered around the continent and one which is at the Altar itself.  These stones are protected by guards and the stones only spawn two hours each day.  Only once the three guardian stones outside the Altar are destroyed will the fourth appear in front of the Altar, surrounded by its own guards and turrets.  If the fourth stone crumbles, the Altar is left defenseless and can be robbed by anyone, regardless of nationality.

 

 

When an Altar is robbed, the goddess Aika’s wrath falls on the nation who failed in defending the Altar entrusted to their care.  Monster attacks will increase and items dropped by monsters will decrease for a short time.  The nation will also have lost a massive amount of gold, items, and pride.  This is often enough encouragement to make sure it never happens again.

 

 

Within Lakia, the way of life is a struggle for power and this conflict impacts everything.  The stakes are high and remain high and the victors reap extremely desirable spoils.  So, until next time, gear up, man your defenses or arm yourselves for the attack and may the mighty be victorious!