Monthly Archives: July 2010

Digimon Battle Preview: Fangasm to the Extreme!

Digimon Battle Preview: Fangasm to the Extreme!
By Vincent Haoson (Vincenthaoson), OnRPG Journalist

 

When I was still in High school I was a big fan of Pokemon and Digimon. The two were then in their first season and I was very into the whole monster craze. However, among the two, I was more of a Pokemon player because of the GBA Pokemon game versions and the Trading Card Games (I used to be a pure psychic Pokemon TCG player). The Digimon franchise only had very expensive Digivices which was a glorified Tamagotchi toy.

 

I still consider those toys up a hyped up version of Tamagotchi but that didn’t stop me from wanting them especially when tamers released their merchandize. Since then the only experience I’ve had with Digimon games comes from the PlayStation and PlayStation 2. Back then I didn’t have any notion of MMORPGs and online games so it never crossed my mind to make an online game about online pets.

 

Then somebody told me about Digimon Battle.

 

Digimon Tamers
Digimon Tamers

 

Be a Digidestined!

It took a few years (about 5 seasons of Digimon) to finally make someone think of creating a game about kids who were transported into the net and have their Digimons, or digital monsters fight for them. The series reeked of MMO potential but nobody actually took notice of it, till now.

 

Digimon Battle is in fact a game that is very much rooted into the whole Digimon concept. You have your avatar take care of a Digimon, raise it till it reaches certain levels to digivolve (the Digimon version of evolving to another form) and fight other Digimons (owned or wild). However, in the series, the digidestined (or the chosen children) are bound by duty and are required in one way or another to do it. In your case however, you are just thrust into the world of Digimon without any story to follow.

 

Digimon Tamer Information 
Digimon Tamer Profile

 

Jump right at it

Digimon Battle doesn’t go through the usual MMO rituals of stories or plots that give you a reason to play the game. You just create an account. Afterwards you get to choose a character as your avatar based from the four series mainstays, Takato, Henry, Rika and Jeri and get one from the current roster of in-training Digimons, Gigimon, Viximon and Gummymon. Then you are given a beginner’s quest to understand how the whole game system works and that’s it.

 

Without any goal set, the game is more of a grindfest and a Digimon nurturing MMO. Actually I think it really works well because that’s what Digimon really is. You partner yourself with your Digimon and make it stronger to beat down the bigger Digimons. The game system is kept simple, with the mythos behind the game being backed up by the series on which is was based (season 3, Digimon Tamers) it’s the familiarity of the Digimons, the avatars and the whole concept of finally being able to play against other people without the need of a real life Digivice is what the game is all about.

 

PvP goodness

The game is PvP-centered, the tamer and Digimon record system makes it sort of a “requirement” for players to keep their Digimons in tip-top shape. The game controls are easy to understand, and the gameplay is similar to Final Fantasy 7. This keeps you glued to your seat during battles. There’s a variation in the number of Digimons you face in each battle. There are times when you face only one but there are other times that you need to defeat five Digimons all at the same time.

 

Digimon PVP Battle 
Digimon PVP Battle

 

Gameplay

The camera angle is in the isometric perspective both in battles and during traveling so there will be moments where you may find it hard to travel. Keeping the right mouse button pushed keeps you from consistently clicking through the places where you want your avatar to go.

 

Leveling in Digimon Battle is a mix of stat allocation and basic stat growth. You are given 2 stat points to allocate on your Digimon’s four stat categories and at the same time the base stats of your Digimon grow as it levels. Digimons also have attributes that are separated into three classifications. The classification works like an elemental system in other MMOs where one classification works better against the other and the other one works on the third and so on.

 

The game also allows you to capture Digimons and use them in your battles. You can switch them through battles much like how you can switch Pokemon during Poke battles. This concept goes way out of the original Digimon concept but it works quite well with Digimon Battles. It provides you an ace or at least leverage when you are faced with a Digimon or tamer whose attribute are  strong against your Digimon.

 

Digimon Skins
Use different digimon in battle

 

Other Features

The game also incorporates crests and Digieggs that boost your Digimon’s stats. In the series, the crests are earned by the Digidestined when they show exemplary character in situations while Digieggs are either passed or were found by the Digidestined. However, in the game, these two are earned through crafting.

 

Also, instead of just helping the Digimons evolve, the crests and eggs serve as a stat booster for your Digimons. Each crest and egg has its own stat affinity and this serves as the “equipment” of your Digimon in the game.

 

There’s also the card system implemented in the game. Much like in Digimon Tamers, the cards have a corresponding use and you can only use them if you equipped them before a battle. The cards provide you with a variation of tactics you can use and this keeps you on your toes during PvP.

 

Digimon Information
Digimon info sheets

 

What the Game Lacks

Overall I don’t really have much to complain about with the game because it has stayed true to the essence of Digimon while adding some elements that make it more interesting. However, I have two gripes with the game.

 

My first gripe is that the game has little to no customization features in terms of how you look. As I mentioned earlier, the avatars you can choose in the game are the main characters of the game. I personally would’ve liked the idea that we were given the choice to create a character that we can connect ourselves to, but then the game is relying on the familiarity of the third season, Digimon Tamers as its base so that’s quite understandable.

 

My second gripe with the game is that it uses  very dated game graphics. Digimon Battle’s graphics reminds me of Fairyland Online. This was my first and biggest disappointment with the game because I expected it to have a very crisp game look. Sadly, I was sorely let down.

 

The game’s redeeming quality is that Digimon Battle satisfied my Digimon game craving that the console games seemed to never fill. The game feels exactly how a Digimon tamer should feel and that’s the reason why players stick to the game regardless of the dated graphics engine. That doesn’t stop me from trying to get my Terriermon to reach the champion stage, so why should it stop you?

The Free-2-Play Myth?

The Free-2-Play Myth?
Neil Kewn (Murxidon), OnRPG Journalist

 

Maybe it’s just me, but being a thirteen year old without a credit card was excruciating. MMORPGs were spewing out left right and centre and my inability to cough up the subscription charges left me out in the cold. Six years ago, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the exciting titles everyone seemed to be hyping. The MMO boom was well underway, and I vaguely remember posting a “free MMORPG alternatives” thread on the OnRPG boards. Unfortunately, I soon realised that despite the enticing F2P tagline, adventuring into an online world for free does carry a price.

 

I began my online gaming fascination with RuneScape, a browser based MMORPG by Jagex. It is now the most popular free MMORPG in the world, with approximately ten million active accounts. I couldn’t afford to pay £10 a month on video game subscriptions (not much has changed five years on), so I was pretty ecstatic when I discovered that I could play one of these new-fangled persistent world things without coughing up a dime.

 

Naturally, browser based games do have their limitations. After trudging along the murky polygon rapture for two years, I decided to make the transition to desktop-based 3D games that had a little more resemblance to the pay-2-play behemoths that I craved, at least in terms of graphical ability.

 

It’s just like WoW!

Knight Online was my first fully 3D MMORPG that didn’t involve a web browser. First impressions were good; it certainly looked like those P2P games I sought after. I click on an enemy, hit an action bar button, a few seconds later it comically fell to the ground. I could loot it, equip what had dropped and move onto the next unfortunate creature. I remember spending hours of my seemingly endless spare time on that game, levelling my Warrior to something respectable in the process.

 

Knight Online F2P Myth
Premium Power Ups – Better than a cash shop?

 

I never once questioned why I was getting a fully 3D fantasy world to meddle in without paying a price of admission. It was only until I returned to the game several months later that I noticed an option for “Premium Power Ups” on the game’s homepage. This service allowed players to use real money for certain in game advantages, including a 400% experience increase, a 100% increase in the amount of coin dropped, a discount on item repairs, preferred server access and special premium items.

 

The Item Shop

Free MMORPGs usually rely on some form of premium service to sustain an income. Whether it is the aforementioned “Power Ups” or the more commonly seen Item Stores, these virtual shopping malls allow players to spend real money on virtual items, as opposed to the traditional method of spending in game money on virtual items.

Item stores have one fundamental flaw, though. Players who don’t upgrade their items by forking out cash for the improved counterparts are left behind. Players may spend hours building up and improving their gear, but there will always be someone who has a significantly better headpiece or polearm because they paid for that privilege. Not only does it undermine the whole concept of grinding for items, it creates a two-tier community.  Is it this class system that will prevent free MMORPGs from surpassing Pay-2-Play ones in terms of popularity?

 

F2P Myth Item Shop
Tempting, I must admit

 

Free MMOs that implement item shops are hardly flat lining, but they’re not showing exponential growth either. I’ve known gamers to skip free MMOs altogether purely on the basis they don’t wish to deal with a cash shop, which isn’t a good sign considering a lot of them rely on the humble store as their primary source of income.

 

Of course, it would be foolish to believe that MMOs could survive without constant funding (there are some exceptions), but should MMO developers be looking at incorporating different money making strategies if they wish to encourage a stable player base?

 

Adopt a system that is proven to work

As an avid player of RuneScape, I watched the game explode in terms of size and popularity. In my eyes, it’s one of the few games I actually consider to be a free MMORPG. Not because they don’t offer an item shop or power ups, but because the premium experience is kept mostly separate from the free one.

 

The members feature, as it is known, multiplies the content and feature set of the game tenfold, but players will have no real handicap if they choose not to upgrade. The reason for this is the inclusion of a “barrier” that is kept between free and paying players. The servers in the game are split between the two player types. “Free worlds”” are open to all players, whilst “Member worlds” are restricted to paying clientele.  Members are allowed to visit specific free worlds and interact with free players, trade specific items and chat to them.

 

RuneScape World List
RuneScape’s World select screen – F2P and members are separated

 

Could splitting the game work in other MMORPGs, too? It’s no secret that gamers love a freebie, so giving them a sizable portion of the game with an incentive to upgrade (but not necessarily being detrimental if they choose not to) could bring balance to a cash shop MMO.

 

Making things work

Not all item shops are “bad”, though. Some games choose to offer items that do not improve players standing in game, instead providing aesthetic enhancements or small gameplay boosts that hold no long term affects. MapleStory was heavily criticised for introducing a cash shop to supplement income, but it has seemingly turned out well for publishers Nexon. Most purchases expire after a set number of days, reducing the overall impact on the game and keeping players relatively balanced.

 

This isn’t the case for every free MMORPG though. The constant battle to keep such a huge undertaking profitable may push the quality of the game down, and it is fair to say that the balance issues that come associated with many item shop funded games can upset game play mechanics by isolating players. The micro-transaction payment system has been touted as the future of gaming, but players have yet to adopt. Until then, keeping buy-2-use items that are superior to those found in game may keep revenue up, but will it eventually drive players numbers down?

Runes of Magic Introduces Formal Relationships

Runes of Magic Introduces Formal Relationships

In an Internet era where the number friends on your Facebook accounts determines how popular you are, with its next update Runes of Magic will introduce a relationship system that allows two players to commit into a partnership. Depending on the relationship, players will then be rewarded with special in-game bonuses.

Lovers are at the centre of this new feature: players can now get engaged by sending a Love Letter, and finally even marry one another. Frogster will provide the two lovebirds, whether they are straight, gay or lesbian, all the necessary decorum for such an important event.

The union of marriage can then be celebrated in a romantic new wedding chapel, where they are going to walk down the aisle in one of two new wedding suits and exchange rings in front of all their friends and guild members.

The union of marriage can then be celebrated in a romantic new wedding chapel

Besides love and married couples, update 3.0.3 will implement several other types of relationships, including Family or Friendship. Two players can declare themselves family members or best friends simply by exchanging a special object that can be bought in Varanas, the capital city of Runes of Magic. A character can then link up to 20 other avatars through these relationships with, of course, just one marriage.

Relationships grant players bonuses when they are together in a group which can for instance raise one of their statistics or the chance to get a rare object when defeating monsters. In addition, characters bound together will be granted a special bonus when their counterpart’s health drops under a certain level. Family members will respectively see the damage they inflict increased, when two Friends will see a part of their health restored. These bonuses get more and more efficient as the link between the two characters becomes deeper, as defeating foes together grants them relationship points and help them to go through the ten different levels of this system.

Obviously, and as sadly as in real life, all links between characters can be ended very simply just by removing them in the Friends interface of the game.

Combat Arms Body Count Rising

Combat Arms Body Count Rising

 

Combat Arms eclipses 4 million registered users in time for its second anniversary and offers exclusive items to celebrate.

Competition won’t be a problem for Combat Arms, which can celebrate its second anniversary this month with another major milestone. Nexon America announced it now has more than four million registered users, and those Soldiers of Fortune are unloading their clips at an alarming rate.

To celebrate the birthday, Combat Arms is giving away exclusive permanent items for soldiers who log in during the celebratory period, which runs Friday July 9 to Sunday July 11.

Combat Arms Sniper

 

Nexon also uncovered some incredible data from the ongoing virtual war zones.
– More than 8.6 billion soldiers killed in action.
– More than 1.7 billion of those casualties were caused by headshots
– More than 99 million Nutshots have been inflicted since it was added to the title in April 2009
– More than 1.7 billion terrorists have been eliminated on the Desert Thunder map of Fireteam mode
– More than 55 million flags have been captured
– More than 350,000 clans have been created
– More than 336 million Gear Points earned in-game on a daily basis
– More than 8.8 billion EXP earned in-game on a daily basis

In the past year, soldiers have hoofed across 10 new maps, played six new game modes, faced six new characters, fired more than 100 new weapons and used over 20 new pieces of gear.

The game has also added major upgrades to the Clan functionality, a new user interface, frequent updates to maintain game balance as well as the new Rec Rules server and the option to purchase permanent weapons.

4Story Introduces New Minigame

4Story Introduces New Minigame

The 4Story development team introduced a mini game to celebrate their 4story 2 year anniversary. Players can win unpredictable prices playing Rock Paper Scissors! Not just in-game coins but also lucrative items and mystery boxes can be won.

Rock, Paper, Scissors in 4Story

 

“4 different type Rock, Paper, Scissors game machines have been added at the each capital castle and starter village. You can bet the money written on the top of the each machine and start to play. After the betting, money is debited and, Rock, Paper, Scissors will be displayed letting players choose one of them. The machine shows win, draw or loss.. If you lose, the debited money will not be returned and you have to bet additional money for next try. You keep trying on draws without additional betting until either win or loss comes. Upon 15 consecutive wins, Tons of mystery boxes will be yours.” said the Chief Development team manager of ZEMI Interactive, Hyun-ho Sin.

Kingory Review: No Random Half Finished Browser Game

Kingory Review: No Random Half Finished Browser Game
By Kei Beneza (dividelife), OnRPG Journalist

 

Kingory is the international version of the famous flash based MMO RXSG. The game is well known and is played by people all over the world, or so the it claims. The game revolves around ancient China, with structures that resemble ancestral Chinese buildings and characters that look like war emperors and empresses. In this game, players strive hard to build their war-worthy empire and try to best other players in battle. The game sports a strategic concept of game play (will be discussed later ), with a massive micro-managing system that is said to surpass a majority of browser games.

 

It was said that Kingory sort of acts as the completed version of various games in terms of the traditional war based browser game system. Do other web games really lack so much compared to this game? Or is it just another claim that’s yet to be proven?

 

Kingory Select Lord
Select your lord

 

Please Select Your Lord!

Upon logging into the game, players are prompted to both choose and name their respective lords and select their desired prefecture. For those people who are too tired or confused to pick their own prefecture, you can always choose the random button to let the game decide your place on the map. The game is also gracious enough to give you extra resources upon starting the game (awwww… how nice). The tutorials are great and are essential for newbies. The tutorials sport a step-by-step definition of how the game is played, something most browser games fail to feature. As far I know, most browser games give you nothing but a page full of words, which takes 20 minutes of your time before you even start playing. The game even dims the other filler words and highlights the important part of each definition, which really helps the player cope with the game.

 

Quests

Once you’re done with the tutorials, the quests take over as your teacher, educating you on how to expand your territory while rewarding you in the process. Perhaps the best part about Kingory’s quests is that they come in packages. You no longer have to wait for one quest to finish since you can always do the other ones while waiting for this one to complete. Quests always lead you in the right direction, so keep doing them to avoid running out of resources.

 

Kingory Quest List
Kingory Quests

 

Real Time

Some buildings and upgrades may take hours to complete. Although the game gives a hefty waiting time, it does let you do a lot of things before giving you the mandatory break (while waiting for the buildings to finish). You can also speed up the building time by using items, just in case you’re not willing to take a break just yet.

 

Heroes: Those Greedy Bastards

If you really want keep winning wars then you should know that heroes play a big part in achieving that goal. Your troops will always have to face the sharp edge of the sword if you don’t have an epic dude backing them up. Heroes can be recruited in the tavern, and each is built with their own individual stats. Having a hero is essential for your success, but caring for them may be a pain. There’s always a price for greatness, so make sure you arm your heroes well. Heroes can wear equipment, with some matching their builds perfectly. Unlike other MMOs, Heroes charge you per hour of service. It’s not a big problem if you’re making a lot of money, but I sure wish they’d just fight for honor or something. Although the whole concept of salaries is harsh, it does add to the realism of the game, as no warlord would fight without a fee (unless you hold their families for ransom… damn why isn’t there an option for this?).

 

Kingory Greedy
Those greedy bastards

 

War Here We Come!

Simply clicking on your enemies and hoping on a random victory doesn’t do you much good in this game. The game really makes you eat dust if your army is not prepared. If you think that your army of newbies can even the odds, then you’re in for a big surprise… Always make sure to upgrade your units religiously to boost their performance in battle. Having a pimped up hero may increase your chances, but they’re also sitting ducks if you take your army for granted.

 

Graphics and Interface

Definitely one of the best I’ve seen, though it has an advantage over other browser games due to its flash base. The interface is easy to understand and provides enough interactivity to let players enjoy clicking from one place to another. The font used is easy on the eyes and allows players to effectively separate the important details from the filler words. The town looks great as well, and the background is just marvelous. The bar on the top left corner also indicates your building time, allowing you to see it no matter where you are or what you’re doing. Overall I don’t think I can find anything wrong with the game’s graphics. It managed to present an awesome set of elements that blended well with its surroundings.

 

Graphic Interface Kingory
Graphics and interface

 

Ze Item Mall

Yeah, what’s a free MMO without the traditional Item mall? One thing about the game’s item mall is that it’s HUGE (with more emphasis). There are tons of items to choose from, whether it’s for boosting your army’s performance or speeding up your building process. For those peeps who are willing to spend money on this game, you won’t be disappointed.

 

The Verdict

This game is one tough beast. They weren’t kidding when they said that this is one of the most expansive MMO Browser games of all time. There is tons of stuff to work on and definitely a lot of things to consider when it comes to overall game play. Whether it’s the hero system or simply just the building of structures, you’ll find that this game has a lot of things to offer. Definitely super. I’d give it a 9.5…

 

Pros:
– Excellent Graphics
– Hero System
– Lots of things to do
– Accessibility
– Eye Candy.

 

Cons:
– Hero salaries can be a pain.
– An hour of waiting can be pretty tedious.

Guild Wars 2 Looks At Healing And Death

Guild Wars 2 Looks At Healing And Death

 

 

After the success of their first game the Guild Wars team has been working on its successor, Guild Wars 2. This highly anticipated game seems to want to break with tradition, and innovate, rather than follow the masses.

Jon Peters, one of the game designers on Guild Wars 2 takes us into deeper into how death and resurrection will work in Guild Wars 2.

Defeat in Guild Wars 2 is intended to be an experience, not a punishment.

The first interesting quote from Jon is “Defeat in Guild Wars 2 is intended to be an experience, not a punishment.” He follows this up by adding “Let’s face it: dying never feels great, even without a death penalty. As weird as it might sound, we decided to look into what would make dying a more enjoyable and memorable play experience.”

The secret to how the Guild Wars 2 team will be addressing this pressing question is a new feature called ‘Downed mode’.

“Rather than being presented with immediate failure, when a player loses all of their health in Guild Wars 2, they are put into ‘downed mode’. In this mode, the player has a number of downed skills they can use to target enemies and fight for a chance to survive. A downed player can still be attacked, which will send them into a defeated state, leaving them to either wait for an ally to resurrect them or to resurrect at a waypoint.”

While down a player can still use special ‘Downed Skills’:
“Downed skills are less-powerful skills that a player can use in a last-ditch effort to turn the tide. A warrior might daze an enemy by throwing a rock. An elementalist might lock down their foe with Grasping Earth.”


Guild Wars 2 - Rejected Downed Skills

And it even adds the possibility to get back into the fight:
“While you are downed, if you manage to kill an enemy, you will rally, returning to life to fight again. When you rally, you are thrust right back in the action. This potential to rally from the edge of defeat adds greater drama to combat and gives a player some tactical control while in a state where they normally have none.”
Why should we debuff you, take away experience, or make you run around for five minutes as a ghost instead of letting you actually play the game?
And to make sure the act of dying isn’t an unpleasant one the death penalty in Guild Wars 2 has been diminished to almost nothing:
 “If no one revives you, you can spend a small amount of gold to come back at a waypoint. It’s as simple as that, and why not? Why should we debuff you, take away experience, or make you run around for five minutes as a ghost instead of letting you actually play the game? We couldn’t think of a reason. Well, we did actually think of a reason–it just wasn’t a good one. Death penalties make death in-game a more tense experience. It just isn’t fun. We want to get you back into the action (fun) as quickly as possible. Defeat is the penalty; we don’t have to penalize you a second time.”

Read more about this interesting new mechanic on this developers blog.

EpicDuel

EpicDuel is a player-versus-player MMO set in a sci-fi universe where players can choose between three fully-customizable character classes, the Tech Mage, Bounty Hunter, and Mercenary, and fight millions of other players with a variety of high-tech weaponry.

Developed by Artix, the EpicDuel planet is an ever-expanding space adventure filled with dangerous space creatures and a deep world ready to be explored. Survive by upgrading your character’s abilities by purchasing armor and weapons and fighting other players inhabiting EpicDuel!

Legendary Champions

Legendary Champions is an MMORPG that assembles some of the greatest figures from history, mythology, and popular culture, and pits them against each other on the battlefield.

– Transform into over 60 heroes including Dracula, King Arthur, Joan of Arc, Lu Bu, Beowulf and more.
– Choose your champion and engage in 5 vs 5 DotA inspired battlefields.
– Rise to fame by dominating rewarding and robust PvP combat.
– Team up with friends and take on powerful, massive monsters.

RealID On Blizzard Forums, A Good Idea?

 

RealID On Blizzard Forums, A Good Idea?
As we reported yesterday, Blizzard has announced that they will be introducing the use of real first and last names on their forums. That this has led to a huge outcry will not be a real surprise. Some of the events that took place since did shock us a bit.

Blizzard Poster Bashiok decided to answer the question “Will Blues also post with their real name” by saying: “Yessir. Micah Whipple, at your service.”

Micah Whipple, at your service.

The reactions at first were quite positive, as people were pleasantly surprised that a Blizzard employee would share their real name as well. There was some doubt that this was his real name however, and with a name such as Micah Whipple, how can we not doubt!

Puntable’s response on the second page of the thread is quite hilarious:
“I was going to report this because it ‘contains personal information about another player’as is against the TOS, but apparently you can’t report blues :)”

All still in good fun, but the shit started to hit the fan for Blizzard on page 3 when poster Issakk started getting personal with Bashiok:
“473 Avenue B, That part of your address? I also found the rest of the address and a phone number. That was just using google for like 3 minutes.”

Preview took it to a next level:
“So, does it bother you knowing that because your name is so uncommon, I just found your Address, age, race, whether you own or rent, a front door view of your home (since you live in a place that google did a street view), your income, the projected value of the homes around you and the number of people in your home?

THERE IS NO WAY you can be OK with that….right?”

On page 9 it goes a step up again when Giygas gets anonymous involved:
“So do we have his personal info on 4chan yet?”

Micah (as we can now call him) responds:
“My name has been out there for a while, I get friend requests all the time from random people. No, it does not bother me. I don’t add them.”

So, the community seems to think this level of privacy breaching is unacceptable but Micah seems to hold up pretty well all things considering. This is not the last chapter of this story yet, that is for sure!

Blogger Zeroday seems to think that this change may be pre-empting a lawchange in South Korea:”

 
“I’m going to make the suggestion that South Korea’s Real Name System. In 2009 South Korea’s government created a law that was meant to curb online defamation by insisting that all users who comment on sites with greater than 100,000 users per day must use their real name.

Given these facts it might not make sense why South Korea might enforce the Real Name system on Blizzard.”

Keep discussing this topic on the OnRPG forums!