Yearly Archives: 2011

Legend of Martial Arts: You got ta’ Kung Fu Fight!

Legend of Martial Arts: You Got ta’ Kung Fu Fight!

by Vincent Haoson, OnRPG Journalist

 

 

Legend of Martial Arts is a “stylized anime” free to play MMORPG with a martial arts twist. The game plays around the concept of Demons and Humans co-existing in the world where Magic is real and learning martial arts is a way of life.

 

Legend of Martial Arts Review

 

You are pushed to this world as part of either the Humans or the Reavers, the demon race of the LoMA universe.

 

Starting Off

LoMA doesn’t go so much with fanfare for new players. My usual complaint when it comes to F2P MMO’s tutorial systems is that it seems to assume that the person they’re “teaching” is experiencing playing an MMO for the first time. Thus going through tutorials is pretty much a tedious process, HOWEVER, there are times when tutorials are necessary, especially if some of the game’s features are unique to the game or at least different from what is deemed as the “WoW cookie cutter format”

 

Legend of Martial Arts Review

 

However, LoMA took this advice to heart and removed the tutorial entirely. You are immediately thrust into the game without even a guide to tell you which NPC you should find. Under normal circumstances I like this idea since it pushes players to explore the game world; however in LoMA the sudden thrust into action is rather overwhelming.

 

Players who start off as a human are sure to be swamped with tons of NPCs saying hi or hello from the get-go because you are put smack dab in the middle of a town. Reavers on the other hand start off in a camp enclosure with NPCs strategically placed in such a way that it’s not providing you an NPC overload but helping you figure out what you need to do.

 

Legend of Martial Arts Review

 

This only means that you can’t just start off in LoMA without a sense of logic or you will experience the aforementioned “getting lost” feeling.

 

Gameplay

LoMA’s gameplay adheres to the most often used gameplay system found in MMORPGs. LoMA’s gameplay is vanilla F2P MMORPG. The big difference however in LoMA is not about the innovative gameplay system but the amount of gameplay features it has.

 

Legend of Martial Arts Review

 

The game features include: a skill combo system, a pet and mount system, a title system, and a specialized screenshot system to name the basics. The game even has a marriage system if you have the itch to get paired up in LoMA.

 

Also, LoMA uses the skill centric character growth system. As your character levels up you earn skill points instead of stat points thus emphasizing on the “inherent” skills of your character and your chosen profession.

 

Legend of Martial Arts Review

 

The game’s quest system on the other hand follows the usual quest categories such as, kill x amount of monsters or go to x named NPC and get your quest there to kill x amount of monsters.

 

Interface

The only thing LoMA has as a “competitive feature” is it’s stylized anime visuals. To be honest, I have come to expect grand visuals from a game created by the people who gave us Perfect World. Its visuals are stunning and the NPC details are breathtaking. However the stunning visuals (at least in an F2P’s level) could not hide the fact that the interface is cluttered and poorly designed.

 

Legend of Martial Arts Review

 

In your interface you will see texts going past the borders of the image that should contain said text. I’m not really surprised with this interface design since PW has consistently used this style in most games it creates and localizes. The trend continues here.

 

Item Mall

LoMA’s item mall contains mostly fashion items such as clothes and other character add-ons to further “beautify” your characters. The mall also contains exclusive cash shop mounts. The Item Mall offers utility items like exp boosts and even a video recorder.

 

Legend of Martial Arts Review

 

You can also find other “nifty” items such as a dragon ball radar, foe finder and even a dimensional door, all of which would hail from an anime or two.

 

Unlike some MMOs where investing money into the Item Mall would ensure that you have a beefed up character, LoMA’s cash shop caters more to the vanity and the laziness of players. Still this is a great improvement over some of Perfect World’s cash shop heavy games and I approve of the new direction. One problem though is that there is a quest where the game requires you to have the above mentioned dimensional door before you can accomplish it.

 

Conclusion

Overall, LoMA feels like a generic martial arts themed MMORPG. It’s not so much that LoMA is generic but rather it plays so much like perfect world but with a cuter take on the whole Martial Arts genre. Perhaps I am just being critical due to so many great MMORPGs being released in the last few months. What can I say, the standards of the genre are improving!

 

The game does however offer a tad more job options considering the limited nature of the martial arts genre. Comparing itself to Scions of Fate I must say the game is offers a more flexible option for a wider range of play styles.

 

While the item mall isn’t much of a balance breaker, its convenience in the later stages of the game should not be underestimated. Any experience boosting item is vital when dealing with the steep endgame experience curve. However with the ascension update coming up and the level cap being raised, leveling is only going to get harder. It goes without saying that LoMA is a grind fest so don’t be shocked when you hit the exponential experience wall late game.

 

Legend of Martial Arts Review

 

If you’re looking for a cute, martial-arts themed MMO to socialize and grind in, LoMA fits the bill. To this audience, Perfect World has hit a bulls-eye but left me desiring more out of my F2P.

 

Elements of War Enters Closed Beta

CLOSED BETA TESTING OF ELEMENTS OF WAR ONLINE HAS BEGUN

 

 

The call goes out now to all fans of strategy games from North America and Europe to join closed beta testing of gamigo’s free-to-play real-time strategy game Elements of War Online. On the tactical map, thousands of players can fight for control of 50 territories simultaneously. This results in a continual shift in the balance of power between the Russian and American forces.

 

Elements of War Online

 

A single player version of Elements of War was released in stores in April by Kalypso Media. Elements of War Online is very different from this version in a number of ways. The focus of beta testing will be on the localization of the game as well as community and multiplayer features. Since the units of each faction are different, balancing will also be a major focus of the tests.

 

Elements of War Online

 

One of the most important new additions to the online version is that troops gain experience in battle, thus becoming stronger and learning new skills. Players can see at any time on the dynamic map where any hot spots are so they can send their armies into the fray of the action.

 

 

Elements of War Online

 

Elements of War Online has given OnRPG a small number of guaranteed access keys for this closed beta. Get them while you can here.

Elements of War Online

Go head-to-head in battle against thousands of other players in strategic action-packed battles.

Elements of War Online offers epic real-time duels on American soil. The battle between the Russian and American armies stretches across the continent in an alternate reality set in a not too distant future. Set up your units strategically and wage war against up to eight different players on 16 different maps.

 

Features

Strategic map with 50 different battle zones

16 maps (forest, desert, town, plains, hills)

Elemental weapons (earthquakes, tornadoes, thunder, electro-magnetic pulses, storms)

2 playable factions (USA, Russia)

More than 30 unit types for each faction (infantry, vehicles, planes, helicopters)

Experimental units (such as battle suits and exoskeletons)

Up to 8 players on one map (4-on-4)

Units gather experience and gain ranks, can be equipped and learn skills

Destroyable environments

 

OnRPG Interviews HeroSmash Developer

OnRPG Interviews HeroSmash Dev, Galanoth

Interview by Nic van’t Schip (Nilax), OnRPG Journalist

 

We know Artix as the company behind the wildly popular Adventure Quest series and all its spinoffs. Covering the Fantasy and Sci-Fi genre very successfully, Artix is now breaking into the Super Hero genre with HeroSmash. We have been playing this cool browser game for a little while now during the beta and a couple of questions popped up. Good thing Artix are a cool bunch more than willing to answer them for us!

 

 

Nilax: Thanks for taking the time to talk to us! Could you start out by quickly introducing yourself to our readers please?

 

Galanoth: I’m Tony Deller (known as Galanoth the Dragonslayer to Artix players!), Games Manager for Artix Entertainment and Game Lead for HeroSmash, our newest MMO. I have also been Game Lead on the original Adventure Quest single-player RPG since 2004.

Thank you for having us, OnRPG!

 

 

Nilax: Before we talk about Hero Smash I want to congratulate you on your tremendous success in the past couple of years. Adventure Quest Worlds is HUGE! Did you expect that when you guys started building it and what lessons have you learned from its quick growth that can help you make HeroSmash even better?

 

Galanoth: Thank you very much. I have been with AE (Artix Entertainment) since the very beginning, and have run the original Adventure Quest for most of that time. While the original AQ, a single player RPG, is now considered a classic by many, approaching nine years online, the AQWorlds MMO is only a little over two years old and is still growing, with nearly a million new players joining every month!

 

We knew that our audience would enjoy engaging in an MMO based in our fantasy world of Lore, so we were fairly confident that AQWorlds would find solid footing. The steep learning curve we experienced going from single-player expertise to making MMOs was our biggest challenge. Fortunately, the team we assembled to create AQWorlds was more than up to the task. Also, our experience with community management was taken to a new level with the requirements of in-game moderation.

 

Hero Smash Interview

 

Nilax: After the great success of the Adventure Quest and MechQuest games what made you take the “jump” to the Super Hero Genre?

 

Galanoth: We really wanted to build a game in a “modern” world that was somewhat more relevant to our audience than our fantasy realm of Lore. After our success with EpicDuel, we knew that bringing the MMO and PVP elements together would continue to work well as we moved forward with new projects. So those reasons, plus the fact that half of our crew are HUGE comic book and superhero fans!

 

 

Nilax: What was the biggest challenge in the development of Hero Smash?

 

Galanoth: Because we had already built a sturdy MMO engine for AQWorlds, the biggest challenge when developing HeroSmash was (and is!) the creative side: Finding the right character and art design; Differentiating the game from AQWorlds visually and thematically; Devising new item types; Concocting super powers and how they would function.

 

The original art concept took a lot of thought by itself. Initially we tried many versions of more “realistic” comic book characters. Ultimately we had an “Aha!” moment when our lead artist created a sketch of small body/big head super-guy with a lot of attitude. The design made us all feel like it would be an awful lot of fun to BE that character in a game, running and flying around and laying the smackdown on giant robots and alien monsters. We nicknamed the character style “vinyl” because something about it just reminds you of a collectible toy.

 

Hero Smash Interview

 

Nilax: It’s great to see that you are giving players the chance to become a real part of the game by letting them become NPCs (most of the videos in the thread are awesome, go check them out)! Can you give our readers some inside tips on how to increase their chances of being chosen for this extreme honor?

 

Galanoth: We really wanted to engage our players in a new way, and came up with our “Who Wants to Be a Super NPC” contest to do just that. So far there are half a dozen players permanently inside HeroSmash as NPCs who deliver dialogue, offer items, or send players on missions. There are two ways you can be chosen: Either by uploading a video to YouTube in which you pretend to be the Hero or Villain you are in the game (don’t hurt yourself or others in the process!), or simply by playing the game to the best of your abilities and hoping we notice you. Some players who are picked to become NPCs will also have the chance to actually become part of a major storyline in HeroSmash, too. We’ll officially announce the contest in a matter of days!

 

Doing both (playing HeroSmash a lot AND entering a YouTube video) probably increases your odds a little because you have more chance of being spotted by one of the HeroSmash team members. It definitely DECREASES your odds a lot if you cheat, hack, or spam.

 

 

Nilax: We read that the Hero Smash team is roughly 12 people strong. That sounds like a small team for such an impressive game. How did you manage to make Hero Smash with only 12 people, and how long have you worked on it so far?

 

Galanoth: Actually, 12 people is a little misleading. Half of the team is part-time volunteer help, our treasured and dedicated Artist Assistants whose enthusiasm is unmatched. Luckily we had a strong engine to begin with, which cut down our lead time by quite a bit. In total, we developed HeroSmash for about 6 months before releasing our public Beta. The HeroSmash team is also very lucky to have on it some of the fastest and best programmers, artists and animators I have ever worked with!

 

Hero Smash Interview

 

Nilax: The new lightning powers and the new Sky God character are very obviously … eh … influenced by a recent movie about a certain … well Sky God. What are some of your favorite other heroes we may see this kind of inspiration from in the future?

 

Galanoth: We intend to honor most of our favorite comic book and super-characters in one way or another as HeroSmash goes on. When a big movie or other major event occurs that involves one of those team favorites, you can count on HeroSmash to have some fun with it. There is a certain character with a very peculiar RING that you might be reminded of in an upcoming HeroSmash release…

We will most definitely be putting most of our effort into building the world of HeroSmash with characters and creatures that are as original as we can manage. We have a lot of imagination to spare here.

 

 

Nilax: Are there any plans to move Hero Smash or any of your other browser based games into other platforms such as iOS in the future?

 

Galanoth: We are constantly considering other platforms, but there are no plans in motion yet for other browser formats. We have already set foot in the realm of smartphones and are going to continue developing some projects in that direction.

 

 

Nilax: After all these questions, is there anything you’d like to tell our readers that we haven’t asked about yet?

 

Galanoth: The Artix community is the one part of our games that we love the most. We are regularly listening to our audience, implementing suggestions, and holding contests of all kinds: art, writing, video, pumpkin carving (yes, really!), and even cookie-making. We want, and need, player input to keep going, so when you sign up for an AE game you are really joining a community that actually includes the developers themselves.

 

 

Nilax: Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to us!

 

Galanoth: Thank you, too. Smash On!

 

And as a final note, don’t forget that you only have this first month of Hero Smash to become a FOUNDER! Don’t hesitate to jump into the game today.

 

Atari Drops Cryptic Studios

Atari Drops Cryptic Studios

 

 

Publisher Atari is to divest itself of its interests in Star Trek Online developer Cryptic studio, with the developer listed as “discontinued operations” in Atari’s latest financial results.

 

Support for Star Trek Online and Champions Online will continue as normal, as well as development on Cryptic’s new Dungeons & Dragons Neverwinter title.

 

“In line with the previously stated strategy of fewer but more profitable releases and further expansion into casual online and mobile games, the Company has determined that external development creates more flexibility in the changing marketplace,” stated Atari in its full year financial results.

 

The divesture process is currently “underway”, with Atari assumed to be seeking a buyer for the Californian developer.

 

Cryptic Studios generated €15.9 million ($22.7m) in revenues over the last 12 months, but made a loss €5.3 million ($7.5m). However, this represents an improvement on the €12.6 million ($17.9m) loss of the previous year.

 

The developer was acquired by Atari in 2008, following work on City Of Heroes for Korean publisher NCsoft. At the time Atari made an initial $26.7 million cash payment for the company, with a maximum earn-out of around $27.5 million, to be made up of cash and Infogrames/Atari shares.

 

Early Access: Eden Eternal Closed Beta Preview

Early Access: Eden Eternal Pre-CB Series Part 1

By Darren Henderson (DizzyPW), OnRPG Editor-in-Chief

 

Howdy OnRPG readers! As was mentioned on our new OnRPG Blog, yesterday I was invited to Aeria Game’s HQ in Santa Clara, California along with only 3 other website managers to get an exclusive sneak peak of Eden Eternal.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

A little intro on this game. Eden Eternal is the third game produced by upcoming superstar developing studio, X-Legend, with their previous two titles being Grand Fantasia and Kitsu Saga. X-Legend is working unusually closely with Aeria Games to ensure that Eden Eternal is localized with the highest standards and a successful launch. Now if you are familiar with either of these games, you will feel right at home with the art style and direction Eden Eternal is set with. However don’t be fooled (as I was prior to this preview) that this game is another cute pet fighter game like Kitsu Saga, Eden Eternal is built with the next generation gamer in mind and delivers its promises.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

At the opening of closed beta, players will be only given access to the first of what seemed to be 4 continents and a rather large Australia-like 5th island present on the world map. Associate Producer Jeff assured me that these outside realms were not just map fluff but were actual locations of future content being prepared for post launch, with the first expansion estimated within a month of open beta’s start!

 

Skeptical MMO Connoisseur, Heed my Call

Before I begin my introduction of the game’s many unique and well developed features, I wanted to express my concern to the hardcore mmo players out there. This game’s trailers thus far have focused on the artwork and skill animations and completely left out the true meat and potatoes hidden within this game!

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Beyond its cute anime graphics lies an intense engine with breath taking special effects, diverse monsters that kept even a veteran like me guessing, and a character and guild customization system that I have only dreamed possible until this day. Do not make the mistake of writing this off as some 3D Maplestory clone. This game packs as many features as recent releases like Forsaken World and implements them in a bug free environment so seamless, it seems unreal to be in an alpha localization stage (Taiwan pre-release of Eden Eternal did wonders for it).

 

The Beginning: Character Customization and Classes

Now that my disclaimers are over and I have got your attention, it’s time to get down to the first of many features that separates Eden Eternal from the rest. You begin the game within the character creator. Here you are given the choice of sex with the option to customize your face, hair style, hair color, skin color, and eye color. Both male and female have 5 beginning faces, 11 hair styles, 15 hair colors, and 15 (wow!) eye colors. Although unconfirmed I would bet money that there will be even greater options in these categories within the cash shop upon the game’s release. They would not have put so much attention to detail into this game without a plan to market their character design after all.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

After the cosmetics are set, you can take a quick look at how your character might appear end-game. They have a preview for all 15 currently available classes here as well as 10 emotes and zoom/rotation options to give you a full idea of what you are going to look like before locking in. It is worth noting that there was an option for race but only human is currently available, and 4 slots remain hidden as question marks. Based on the back story and npcs ingame it is quite clear that after release you will eventually be able to create micemen, bearmen, frogmen, and even turtlemen (TMNT fans rejoice at the fact you will eventually be able to make a ninja turtle in this game).

 

Eden Eternal Preview

The TMNTs are getting on about 30 years old now. And they show their age.

 

The next step is choosing your starter class. There are 5 standard MMO archetypes available to you eventually, however at the beginning you are locked into mage or warrior. You can then select one of 10 “Heroic Traits” which will define you as unique among other players. These traits vary from increased hp and mp, to increased luck and crit rate and are all based on a % increase of your total stat, meaning that these traits will define your character from start to finish of the game. While some traits are clearly focused on aiding specific classes’ skill sets, others are more general and may provide a leader some general survivability in combat so they can better focus on commanding their allies.

 

Oh did I say you were locked into mage or warrior? Silly me, that isn’t entirely true. You can change your character’s class at any time in this game as long as you are out of combat. As a tank were you the sole survivor of a dungeon party wipe? Psh no problem, just roll cleric and revive your allies. Are you a bit too powerful for a dungeon and need to speed things up? Make a team of DPS characters and then reroll a tank for the final boss!

 

Eden Eternal Keeps it Classy

I know one of the first characteristics of a game I tend to judge is how unique and diverse the classes are ingame. After 10+ years of games following the WoW and Everquest standards set in ye olde age, it is refreshing to see some new faces on the block this year. Eden Eternal breaks the standard mold of classes by offering a huge number of them. Combine this with the ability to change and level each class’s skills individually on one character and your possibilities become near endless.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Though you only start with mage and warrior, you will eventually unlock the other classes by fulfilling specific requirements. For example, the Rouge Archetype Blade Dancer becomes available once you have a lvl 50 character with 45 mastery levels in Bard (a healer archetype class). This encourages and rewards players for learning the ins and outs of each class, rather than being a narrow minded ass warrior who cries “QQ Y No Healz noob?!” Here is a quick look at the 15 out of 17 total classes that will be available at some point during closed beta (side note: names are not final and may change for launch):

 

 

Tank Archetypes

Warrior: One of two starting classes. Relies on heavily fortified and upgraded heavy armor to absorb maximum damage in combat. An ideal class for players to become accustomed to Eden Eternal.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Knight: The knights motto is cliché but dangerous, the best defense is a good offense. They are specialists of dodging and blocking attacks while maintaining a relentless assault on their foe. This is a tank that will wreck all in his path if left unchecked.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Templar: A third tank class relies on faith in the gods to sustain him in battle. Not only do these tanks possess near endless stamina, they also unleash magical holy hell on their surroundings, making them a danger to heavy tanks and squishy casters alike.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Rouge Archetypes

Thief: The thief is a sharp dagger wielding poster child of melee DPS. They move quickly, attack even faster, and have enough utility such as stealth to live to strike the enemy’s backline a second time.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Martial Artist: The martial artist is second to none in hand to hand combat. Though not as wiley as a thief when it comes to escaping, the martial artist will devastate his or her foes faster than their foes can counteract the martial artist’s rampage.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Blade Dancer: The third option in the rouge line is very unlike the previous two. Carrying the background of a bard, the blade dancer plays a hybrid role of melee DPS and and party attack bonuses. Having one in a group is truly a deciding factor in the tides of battle.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Ranged DPS Archetypes

Hunter: The hunter puts the oomph into Ranged DPS. A skilled assassin, these champions of the bow mortally wound their opponent with unexpected opening attacks and leave their victims to die slowly as they futilely attempt to escape at the paws of the hunter’s pet tiger.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Engineer: These rocketmen have dedicated their keen sense of aim and skilled hands towards technology, allowing them to master explosive grenades while enhancing their capabilities beyond mere mortals by encasing themselves in iron suits. Power Ranger fans, your MMO has arrived.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Ranger: The ranger is the fast attacking, heavy crit focused version of the Hunter. They don’t rely as heavily on surprise opening attacks as they can cut down a fully aware opponent so long as they wield distance as their weapon.

 

Healer Archetypes

Cleric: Masters of party support. The Cleric is knowledgeable on the art of healing, removing debuffs, and preventing allies from taking damage in the first place. This high demand class also specializes in bringing fallen allies back to life and fortifying them with long duration stat bonuses.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Bard: The bard is a much more dynamic party support counterpart to the cleric. They can change their tune at a moment’s notice to provide what the party requires at vital turning points in battle.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Shaman: Shamans commune with spirits of the ancients, summoning them to grant their allies with immensely powerful protection charms. A true master of shamans may even be capable of creating an artificial casing to hold the power of these spirits in a physical form, towering over a battlefield and causing immense damage to all who oppose it.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Magical Archetypes

Magician: The magician is the second of the two starting classes. They are masters of every element. A truly wise magician will study the weaknesses of each monster and player and unleash the elemental power necessary to focus and destroy those weaknesses. Their powers allow for immense burst damage if left alone and reasonably strong damage over time skills for when the magician is forced to stay on the run.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Illusionist: The illusionist is similar to a bard, but much more offensive focused. These jesters of the battlefield confuse and weaken their enemies to the point of near immobilization, then swiftly maximize the power of their carry allies to finish said enemies off.

 

Eden Eternal Preview

 

Warlock: The warlock is a magician that has succumbed to the lure of dark magics. While these magics tend to be overwhelmingly powerful, they carry great personal risk to the warlock who attempts to harness them. Only a focused and clear mind can harness the power of the warlock without destroying themselves.

 

Well that’s all for this edition. I will return later this week for another discussion of Eden Eternal. Check out part 2 for detailed information on the features involved with building and customizing a class unique to you.

 

Meta’s Verse: Seven Years of Super

Meta’s Verse: Seven Years of Super

by Meticulous Meta, OnRPG Journalist

 

 

City of Heroes is celebrating seven years of being live in a big way. Two meet and greets, a live stream from Paragon Studios and announcements galore. And that was just on the first day! I took some time to see exactly what was going on and all about it so I could share that with you.

 

Vanguard Pack

Released on the anniversary of City of Heroes going live, this pack was given freely to every global account that stayed active during February and March of 2011. This pack gave access to armor pieces that were only available once you were at a higher level in your hero career. Now you can use them from the moment of creation. Easily the most adorable and contested part of the pack is the Mini Vanguard Assault Suit (MVAS). It is a noncombat pet, something which I’ve personally see people complain about. But really it is just so cute how can you say no to having one?

 

City of Heroes Vanguard

 

Global Server Access

Now everyone, no matter if you play the European version of the game or the North American version can play on any server. A lot of people have been really excited about this and since it went live I’ve seen a lot of crossover exploration and even done a bit of my own. The only real downside has come for the EU players who had to change their global names because there was a duplicate already on the North American servers.

 

Praetorian Invasion

Praetoria is invading the Primal world! Ongoing all May while there is a weakness in the barrier between our worlds. Warwalkers and Praetors have been seen wandering the streets of Paragon City and the Rogue Isles already. The event will end on May 27th with the invasion on Freedom where everyone is asked to participate between 4pm and 7pm Pacific time. Everyone who attends will be granted a global badge to celebrate their attendance and hopefully our victory over Cole and his army.

 

City of Heroes Vanguard

 

Producer’s Letter

Nate Burkholz released April’s edition of the Producer’s Letter. It explained plans to expand the incarnate system further, introducing a new trial every so often to keep things exciting. During all of May the next trial, Keyes Island Anti-Matter Reactor, will be in closed beta. They are also looking into ways for people to experience the incarnate system in smaller groups or even solo. There is mention of Issue 21 already which will feature a new zone and tie up some old plotlines. Overall it sounds like they have a lot more exciting things to come in the future.

 

 

Steampunk Booster

Ok, maybe this should go after the Dev live stream, after all that is where I heard about it from, but you know what? I’m just too darned excited about it! Yeah, you read that right, Steampunk Booster pack. It is not due until June, but that is really an easy wait for something so awesome. It will feature new costume pieces, a new aura and new weapons for customization. But, the most exciting part of it is what it will introduce to us, Backpacks. No, you can’t put stuff in them they’re just for show. But it is something the players have been asking for and finally the wait is over! It goes to show that the devs on high really are listening to our desires. Really the whole steampunk pack does this for me. I don’t want to say too much about it yet though! I’m just so excited I couldn’t wait to say something.

 

Anniversary Sale

During the month of May various boosters and services will be on sale. Including Rename tokens, extra character slots and the Wedding pack (in honor of a rather famous wedding you may have heard about a while ago). So far the days when they change what is on sale seem to be random, so the best I can suggest is to check the online store often.

Meet and Greet

There was a meet and greet with the devs on the test server which I was fortunate enough to attend. When I first arrived I was a little late and ended up being pushed into a second instance of Pocket D where the main event was being held. There were only a few of us there but we got to spend time chatting with Dark Watcher. Eventually after the few of us tried to wipe out some giant monsters left on the slopes we each made our way to the main instance of Pocket D. There Positron and Black Scorpion were answering questions on important things like, how the cake was and what they thought about the speculation of a romance between Positron and Numina. For me though the highlight of the night was getting the chance to chat privately with the newest member of the Paragon Studios crew, Freitag. We talked mostly about life in Europe as well as life in California. Oh and there was more talk of cake. My fault really, the cake looked tasty!

 

City of Heroes Vanguard

 

Eventually Positron and Black Scorpion decided it was time to go and Dr. Aeon came to hang out with us for a while. I asked him about the bouncy castle course they had in the parking lot which the day before he swore he would beat the champion at. He didn’t want to talk about it much. (Villains can be such sore losers!) After a little bit of chatting with everyone he let some giant monsters out to play on the dance floor. And when that proved to easy we got to try our hand at defeating the signature heroes and villains. A lot of fun was had and the mediport system got a good working.

 

I’ll be celebrating the super seven myself on Meta’s Verse with a top 10 list every week for the rest of May. Come back next week to see my top 10 list of City of Heroes Issues.

 

TERA Reveals Crafting and Customization

TERA Onilne Reveals Crafting and Customization Features

 

 

Our friends at Frogster, publisher for TERA Online‘s European Portal, were kind enough to unveil more of TERA’s rich crafting, enchantment and customization system to OnRPG today. With the sheer might of the game’s Big Ass Monsters, players will not only need to adapt their play style and skill set, but also customize their arsenal in ways that should please and excite even the most experienced of MMO players.

 

TERA Online Customization

 

Suit Up

While quick reflexes are the order of the day with TERA’s real time combat system, it never hurts to have a nice weapon in your hands for that little extra slice of devastation on the battlefield. Whether that is done with the battle-axe of a berserker, or an archer’s bow, TERA’s crafting system gives players the tools to build their own unique range of weapons and armor. For defensively minded players, the protection offered by the almost impenetrable hematescent kryplate armour is just the item you’ll need. Or, perhaps offense is more your style? Then, may we recommend the awesome might of the lustrum scepter, sure to give you all the bone shattering power you need in a tight spot. With more than a thousand items to create, use and sell this is just a minute selection of what will be on offer when players enter the world of TERA.

 

TERA Online Customization

Rewards are always better when you’ve earned them though, and that’s why TERA’s crafting system requires more than just a click of the mouse to create something truly awe-inspiring. Travelling across the world, players will need to collect rare blueprints and mythic elements before they can start working away in the forge of TERA’s many great cities.

 

Weapon of Choice

Customizing your weapons and armor in TERA provides more than just a basic boost to your item stats. Using magic crystals and enchantments correctly will change the way you approach battles, whether you’re fighting devas in Blightwood or ovoliths hidden away deep in the caverns of Arachnaea. Placing a crystal into a weapon could give you the ability to launch enemies off their feet, highlight a foe’s weakness or even poison your target. Conversely, using a crystal with armor may reward you with perpetual healing, guard against sneak attacks or bestow you with extra energy to launch powerful magic spells.

 

TERA Online Customization

While players scouring the world it’s inevitable you will collect loot that, on a mere cursory glance, will appear worthless. In TERA enchanting grants you the ability to remove the magic energy found on a weapon, that would otherwise have been cast aside, and transfer it to your own weapon of choice. Repeat the process enough times and the player will ‘unlock’ new abilities and powers for the item.

 

Deadly Combination

Customization isn’t only limited to players’ gear. With glyphs players can also customize the effectiveness of the various skills and spells in their arsenal. Combine the right glyph with a ranged arrow attack to bolster the deadly shower of arrows with a numbing bonus.

 

TERA Online Customization

 

Alternatively, combine a glyph with a melee attack to increase the speed of your blows and tip the tide of battle in your favor. As players progress through the game, the choices they make will define their character and their fighting style, meaning that no two players will ever be the same.