Monthly Archives: October 2012

Dragon Nest Previews Lotus Marsh Update

Dragon Nest Previews Lotus Marsh Update

 

 

By the end of this month Nexon is touting a major update to their hit Anime styled Action MMORPG, Dragon Nest. Based on the concept art shown so far we can assume a few things.

 

 

There will be a new hub town involved!

 

 

New monster types are on the way and they seem to be mechanical in nature.

 

 

The marsh is home to a type of Human Animal hybrid race not seen in the game before. Meow!

 

 

We’ll have plenty more on this update as it becomes available.

WoW Wednesday – Levelling in Mists of Pandaria

WoW Wednesday – Levelling in Mists of Pandaria

By Meredith Watson, OnRPG WoW Reporter

 

 

 

If you have read any of my previous articles concerning the talent changes in Mists of Pandaria then you, like my guild, friends and family will know that I am not a fan of the changes.  Now, before you go thinking I am just going to go on a hate filled diatribe about Mists of Pandaria, think again. I love Mists of Pandaria (with the exception of the talent changes but we will get to that in a bit).  Mists of Pandaria is easily my favourite expansion since The Burning Crusade. As one tweet put it “If you’re not playing MoP because you’re all hipster about Pandas, you’re missing out on some of the best stuff WoW’s ever done”(@instanceshow). And that is true. The content is really very entertaining from interesting quests to beautiful zones (Kun-Lai Summit is obviously Tibetan inspired). There is even a nod to Skyrim in one of the panda’s dialogue in which he talks about taking an arrow to the knee. How great is that? Blizzard has always been known to incorporated popular culture into WoW.

 

 

I, like everyone else, have been levelling through the new content and the most notable absence is, as I suspected, the lack of talent points to spend when levelling. Every time I ding I hit the N key looking for my talent.  I am not alone. Others are missing it too. Instead nothing happens. We still get the iconic levelling sound and animation and maybe a notification that we now have access to a new dungeon but that is about it. It isn’t enough.

 

 

The current talent system was meant so that we as the players would have to make hard choices. In fact, the only decision you get to make now is which of the three choices you like the best every fifteen levels. It isn’t quite the game making decision process they were hoping for. Most I have talked to about it find it too simple and a hit to anyone looking to make those personalized decisions in the building of their character.  For example, my guild leader plays a discipline priest and he used to spec out of smite healing as he didn’t like it and would take the holy spell of Inspiration instead as it suited his play style. He can no longer do that.

 

 

The prospect of levelling a character with this new system sounded daunting to me from the start. I am curious as to how a new player to WoW would react to the talent system especially if they were an experienced gamer. While I am not a new WoW player but a very experienced one, I decided to give it a go and created a human monk.  Obviously, there is the novelty of playing a new class to consider. That could be incentive enough if one was really into the way that Blizzard has done the monk. Personally, I am not a fan. For me, EverQuest II does the best monk with its clever spells and animations. Diablo III’s monk is also a lot of fun. Essentially, while levelling up to level ten you have three spells. At level ten now, which used to be a major milestone, you choose your path and get one extra spell. Who doesn’t remember getting to level ten and having to make the tough decision of where they were going to spend that first point and looking further down the tree as to where they wanted to spend the next? The next spell doesn’t come until 14 and of course the first talent point isn’t spent until 15 with the current system.

 

 

Long gone are the days of getting a new spell or talent point every level which made the player feel as if they were actually building their character-as if they had a say in the matter.  I would rather put a stick in my eye than level another character with this current talent system.  It feels like it would be a very tedious affair.

 

 

As stated previously, I miss the old talent tree as I am levelling high level characters through Mists of Pandaria.  Because I already have the vast majority of my spells it hasn’t affected the way I play or the enjoyment factor though I still expect to get my little reward of a talent point every other level and am disappointed when I don’t. Luckily, that disappointment doesn’t last too long as there is so much to see and do in Mists of Pandaria.

 

 

I am having a wonderful time playing through Mists of Pandaria and from what I read and hear the rest of the community seems to be enjoying themselves as well. If there is a major downside to this expansion it is the revamped talent system, and I can only hope Blizzard has a good long look at it especially since other games out there have more in depth systems. Blizzard really shouldn’t be resting on its laurels just now even if it is still the biggest game out there. Though for how long it remains the biggest game is anyone’s guess as Mists of Pandaria has not sold as well as expected.

OnRPG Shotgun News 10/3: City of Heroes, Planetside 2, World of Tanks, and Global Agenda 2!

OnRPG Shotgun News 10/3: City of Heroes, Planetside 2, World of Tanks, and Global Agenda 2!

By Shannon Doyle (Leliah), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

World of Tanks Sets Records

 

World of Tanks is celebrating having broken a record and managed an incredible achievement. On the Russian server over 500,000 people were logged in at the same time which is a record. The game also recently celebrated having 40 million registered users world wide. Which is double the amount they had last year.

 

 

Global Agenda 2 In The Works

A member of the HiRez studio team announced that the studio is currently working on Global Agenda 2. It will be PvP focused and use many of the Global Agenda assets already available but on the newest platform they have. Beta testing is expected to begin sometime in the middle of 2013.

 

 

NCSoft Addresses City of Heroes Fans

 

After more than a month of campaigning the Save City of Heroes group has finally been addressed by NCSoft. In it they that they have heard the voices of the fans but ultimately they have exhausted all options which includes selling the studio and City of Heroes intellectual property. To say the fans are crushed is somewhat of an understatement. Many have stated that they’ve entered a second phase of mourning for the community. Others have said they would never buy another NCSoft game and yet others still hold out hope that something good will come out of this.

 

 

Planetside 2 Revises Membership Plan

After getting some not too positive feedback about the membership plans for Planetside 2 it has been given a look at and remade listening to fans suggestions. This includes increased XP gain, increased resource gain, priority login queues, early access to cosmetic items in the store and 500 StationCash each month.

MetaÂ’s Verse: City of Heroes’ Lost Updates

Meta’s Verse: City of Heroes’s Lost Updates

By Meticulous Meta, OnRPG Paragon Reporter

 

 

 

Because City of Heroes’ end was announced so abruptly there was a lot left in production limbo. Some of it, like Issue 24 was in beta, nearly ready to go live. Some of it includes plans from way off into the future. Paragon Studio had plans reaching all the way to Issue 28, and perhaps even beyond. I’m going to take a look at everything we officially know, things that were found out in less than appropriate ways and even a bit of wishful thinking.

 

 

Issue 24

At the time of the announcement Issue 24 had been in beta for some time, we had seen weeks, maybe even months worth of reveals for it. Power pools were getting revised, new powers were being added, others being tweaked slightly. Power pools, epic powers and patron powers were all getting color customization at last! And this next one, people joke is the reason City of Heroes is getting closed; No nuke crash for Blasters. What few people realized when they joked that though is that the real reason for City of Heroes is…well, I’ll tell you later on in the article. These are just some of the things we knew were coming with I24. Issue 24 is still accessible on beta if you have VIP status. I highly recommend it to everyone who has access.

 

 

The Coming Storm: Battalion

Ok, so that was a bit of a spoiler for anyone who hasn’t been paying close attention. Prometheus, that tall blue guy in Ouroboros, reveals that The Coming Storm is The Battalion. They play a part in Rikti lore as a force that the Rikti had come up against before. In the Lore Ask Me Anything it was stated that the Rikti would come to the aid of the Earth in the fight against The Battalion which lead to speculation that perhaps Rikti epic archetypes would be in the works as well. It was also stated that the next four Issues would revolve around the Battalion who in the end may or may not have burned all the Kheldians for fuel.

 

 

Powersets:

So, here is where things start getting lengthy and complicated. Issue 24 had two powersets that were going to be released with it, Martial Combat and Martial Assault. We actually got to see these in action during live streams with Zwillinger. We also knew about Bio armor, another we saw during a coffee talk stream and Radiation armor which was designed at the last player summit. But there were a few that we weren’t supposed to know about as well. Information that was obtained through pigg diving, which is a very big no no.

 

 

Psionic Melee which included psi blades, and a PBAoE tier 9 ability called Mass Levitate. Most of the attacks were categorized as Psi/Lethal or Psi/Smash and did –Rech. There was also to be something called Insight which improved most of the Psionic Melee powers while it was active. Insight could be gained from most of the attacks in the set.

 

Savage Melee used animalistic attacks to cause lethal damage and damage over time. Attacking created Blood Frenzy which stacked to create a damage buff and cut endurance costs. Blood Frenzy could also be consumed to give powers additional benefits. But doing so would leave you exhausted and unable to build more Blood Frenzy for a short time.

 

And finally, my favorite, Wind Control. This powerset was to be available for controllers and dominators. It involved building pressure to be consumed by other powers. And the tier 9 was a Vortex pet. If you took both Vacuum and Vortex you would receive an additional power called clear skies.

 

 

Power Pools

So earlier I mentioned that in I24 we would have been able to color customize our power pools. Well there were also plans in the works to introduce new power pools. The earliest one we heard about was Sorcery which was accidently put on beta during a testing phase. It didn’t take long before the mistake was noticed and removed. But by the time they did everyone knew about it and was excited at the opportunities it represented. So I’ll go power by power through everything we know about the pools that we could have had.

 

 

Sorcery

 

Spirit Ward – +Absorb over time. You encompass an ally in a mystical spirit ward which causes them to gain a small amount of damage absorption every few seconds for a short time.

 

Arcane Bolt – Ranged, Moderate DMG(Energy), Foe Knockdown. You channel arcane energies into a concentrated blast and release them upon your target dealing moderate energy damage and possibly knocking them down.

 

Mystic Flight – Self Fly, Special. Using powerful magic you are able to lift yourself from the ground and fly. While this powers’ speed isn’t as fast as some other forms of flight, you do gain access to the Translocation power. While Mystic Flight is active you can use Translocation to teleport to a distant location.

 

Enflame – Ranged Friend/Foe, Special. This ritual allows you to imbue an ally or curse a foe with a fiery spell. If Enflame is cast on an ally or a foe they will leave a fiery trail behind them that will damage foes.

 

Rune of Protection – Self, +Res(All dmg, Hold, Sleep, Immob, Knockdown, Disorient). You cast a rune of protection upon yourself granting you protection from Hold, Sleep, Immob, Knockdown. Rune of Protection will drain a portion of your endurance and prevent you from recovering endurance for a short time.

 

 

Experimentation

 

Sadly information on Experimentation isn’t as complete as the other power pools. We do know the names of the powers and can get a basic idea of what they were going to do based on their icons.

 

Experimental Injection – A heal.

 

Toxic Dart – Firing toxic darts at enemies

 

Speed of Sound – Some sort of fast travel similar to super speed.

 

 

Corrosive Vial – Another attack which likely involved you throwing a vial of corrosive liquid or gas in a targeted area.

 

Adrenal Booster – Self, +To Hit, +Recharge, +Damage. You inject yourself with a concentrated serum that boosts your damage, recharge, and chance to hit by a large amount for a short time.

 

 

And you know what, that is all we have time for today. But we’ve barely started to scratch the surface. We still have more power pools to talk about, zones, those things I wish we were going to have and so much more. So come back again next week when I finish off the reveal of things that will never come to City of Heroes. And don’t forget that this weekend is the start of the sunset events with a Summer Blockbuster weekend. For the last time players will have access to the summer movie event which was so popular earlier in the year.

Uncharted Waters Online Celebrates Second Anniversary

Uncharted Waters Online Celebrates Second Anniversary

 

Uncharted Waters Online

 

A new tide is rolling in today as Uncharted Waters Online, the historical massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG) for the PC, celebrates its second anniversary. To commemorate the milestone, publisher CJ Games Global is kicking off a month of in-game and out-of-game activities for new and current players alike. Everyone is invited to don a captain’s hat and join in the celebration by registering to play for free on the official Uncharted Waters Online site.

 

 

Anniversary festivities begin today and continue throughout October, and include:

 

Premium Ticket Blast: All players who are logged into the game on Saturday, Oct. 6 at 4 p.m. PDT / 7 p.m. EDT will receive a Premium Ticket simply for being in the game at this special time. The Premium Ticket rewards the player with one of 15 possible covetous items, such as premium ships, weapons, armor and more. For the full list of possible rewards, please visit: http://uwo.netmarble.com/item/itemDetail.asp?idx=69

 

Pumpkin Carving Contest: No celebration in October would be complete without a community pumpkin carving contest. Players are invited to submit a photo of their best seafaring-themed pumpkin on the Uncharted Waters Online website until Sunday, Oct. 14. Everyone is a winner: all participants will receive 5,000 NC (premium currency) and the most popular entries, as voted on by the community, will receive UWO sweatshirts and Special Packages.

 

Battle Campaign Madness Event: Players who live for massive naval battles can now seize their moment of glory. Starting on Monday, Oct. 15 and continuing through Saturday, Oct. 27, Uncharted Waters Online will feature massive multiplayer player-versus-player naval battles of more than 200 ships, with special rewards for the victors.

 

Weekly Boosts: Until Tuesday, Oct. 23, players will receive double the regular EXP, Skill and Quest Rewards.

 

Massive New Expansion, El Oriente: One of the biggest expansions to Uncharted Waters Online is scheduled to launch on Oct. 16, and will open up several East Asian countries to explore for the first time, including China, Taiwan, Japan and Korea.

 

Uncharted Waters Online

 

“Over the past two years, Uncharted Waters Online has grown into the leading historical MMORPG, and it’s now our pleasure to give back to the community with a series of anniversary celebrations all month long,” said Jina Song, COO, CJ Games Global. “From its roots as a console game in the early 1990’s, Uncharted Waters has a history of satisfying players who crave adventure, riches and conflict on the high seas, and we’re proud to continue that tradition.”

 

 

“It’s an exciting time right now for all players of Uncharted Waters Online given the anniversary celebrations kicking off today,” said Takeda Tomokazu, Director of Production, TECMO KOEI GAMES. “I would like to express my deepest appreciation to all of the players who have helped make Uncharted Waters Online such a success over the past two years, and with the El Oriente expansion on the horizon, there are even greater things ahead.”

Citadel of Sorcery

Citadel of Sorcery is the work of the indie development team at MMOMagic, a group of industry professionals that have become jaded with the limitations of what investment money is pushing in MMORPGs and wants to take gaming back to its routes, dynamic worlds with innovative storytelling and decisions that not only impact yourself, but those around you. So begins the tale of Citadel of Sorcery, made by gamers for gamers.

 

 

Features:

Rich Lore, Diverse Original Races: Story telling is at the heart of Citadel of Sorcery and it all begins with their varied racial options. Choose between the sneaky beast-like Tyven, the awkward trickster Jenemos, the naturally attuned Verduren, the fearless demon hunting Gargoyles, the amphibious Waerian, and the hardy superstitious humans.

 

Player Driven Story, Game Driven World: Players will embark on epic quest lines featuring dozens of hours of gameplay, with impacts that can be felt by other players as proof that their adventure took place. In addition the world evolves dynamically, meaning things can change drastically whether you are online of off.


Unique Combat: Designed from a perspective that too many titles push tab targeted ‘whack-a-mole’ that benefits macro users and button spammers, Citadel of Sorcery instead opts for a system of parrying, blocking, and timing to reward the thinking player that can react to ever changing conditions.

 

Classless System: You are not bound down any set route. Instead you must set out to seek tomes to learn the various abilities in the game. As you level you gain study points that can be spent to unlock the knowledge of these tomes and increase your overall power.

 

Realistic AI: From mounts refusing to cross dangerous terrain to enemy AI that learn from and react to your tactics, expect a whole new level of MMORPG NPCs.

OnRPG Shotgun News 10/2: GW2, Marvel Heroes, DCUO, and Much More!

OnRPG Shotgun News 10/2: GW2, Marvel Heroes, DCUO, and Much More!

By Shannon Doyle (Leliah), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

Guild Wars 2 Joins in the Pink Day Festivities

On October 20th across a few servers of Guild Wars 2 players will be putting on pink armor and having fun in Lion’s Arch, just as it was done over 200 years ago, or last year if you’re living in the real world. The event is held to raise breast cancer awareness and donations for the Canadian Cancer Society. It will also be taking place in Guild Wars at the same time.

 

 

Marvel Heroes Starts Closed Beta Registration

Closed Beta registration is now taking place for Marvel Heroes. Currently you can only sign up via the official website but other options will be made available in the future.

 

 

Guild Wars 2 Announces Part 1 of Halloween Festivities

 

For Halloween this year Guild Wars 2 has something special in mind. And while they haven’t shared all the details yet an art project has been announced. Players are being invited to take part in a diorama competition. Prizes include GW2 branded items, an NVIDIA graphics card and more. The only requirements (so far) are that it brings GW2 and Halloween together. Details on how to enter and other specifics like that are coming at a later date.

 

 

OGame Celebrates 10 Years

The scifi free to play strategy game OGame is celebrating 10 years of being active. To celebrate the occasion 10 weeks of events are going to be held in game. The details of each event will be held back right up until the last minute to keep the suspense. Happy Birthday OGame!

 

 

Tis The Witching Hour in DCUO

 

A new Halloween event called The Witching Hour will be introduced as part of Update 19 which is expected to go live sometime in early October. In the event Klarion the Witch Boy is stealing powers from Heroes and Villains and using them to cause all sorts of mischief. In addition he’s forcing citizens to take part in a masquerade. But it wouldn’t be Halloween without the treats as well. There are new trinkets, a new pet and new Halloween themed styles to enjoy.

 

Knight Age Hosts Halloween Fan Art Contest

To kick start the Halloween festivities in Knight Age they’re holding a Halloween themed fan art contest! Entries are being accepted up until October 25th when ten will be chosen for the players to vote on. The top three winners will receive in game prizes which include cash items. The top winner may even be chosen to be used as the official Knight Age Facebook cover photo.

 

 

Lagoonia Launches Revamp

Lagoonia may look and feel a little different these days having undergone a big story revamp with an enhanced storyline as well as some tweaks to gameplay and performance. For existing players to take part in the new storyline a reset button has been implemented.

 

 

The Repopulation Tackles Housing, Grouping and More

In the end of September update the makers of Repopulation have laid out an impressively huge list of accomplishments. This includes player housing, setting up auto grouping, escort missions and improved pet pathing. The complete list can be found on the official website.

Invasion of Ghost Khan Ends In Khan Wars 5.0

Invasion of Ghost Khan Ends In Khan Wars 5.0

 

Khan Wars

 

The Invasion of the Ghost Khan has come to an end in Khan Wars. With the lands freed from his tyranny the players can now focus on their enemies and the fight over territory and castles. The battle has never been so intense and the stakes have never been so high – rewriting medieval history!

 

 

Players can now construct Castles in their cities. Castles can be built in each city and upgraded until they reach level 10. These massive buildings grant bonuses to several very important aspects of the gameplay:

 

Resources – the more the Castle structure is upgraded, the more resources will mines, lumber mills and farms provide. The extra resources always come in handy when building, training, upgrading or helping your clan mates.

Training speed – training units faster is crucial to your war efforts. Being able to assemble a big army before your opponents do so gives you the upper hand and brings up a number strategic opportunities in front of you.

Prestige – Knights appointed to govern your city will receive a prestige bonus for every mission and every battle they take part of.

Clan points – With the Ghost Khan gone the Castle building will award clan points as a symbol of control over the land. Winning the round with your clan was never as challenging as it will be now! It will require defeating countless players and leaving their nations lie in ruin.

 

 

In the absence of the Ghost Khan people once again turn towards colonizing the land – players can create new cities by ordering the Noblemen to start settle marches to custom coordinates.