Monthly Archives: December 2012

AlphaBeta Soup 12/7: End of Nations, DinoStorm, FireFall, and More!

 

Wow! It has been a crazy week in our little soup pot. There has been huge news from End of Nations, DinoStorm has launched itself into the wild and tons of new betas have been announced! OnRPG has keys for Absolute Force Online, City of Steam, the Firefall stress test which now includes an EU server, and GUNS and ROBOTS. Ragnarok Online 2 will be entering Closed Beta for English speakers today. Wurm Online and Ace of Spades will both be opening next week on 12/12/12. Path of Exile has pushed Open Beta once again to the end of January. Plus Arctic Combat, BoomSky, and World of Dragons all entered Open Beta this week. The War Z, Kings and Legends, RF Online EU, and CosmicBreak EU all started closed beta. Links can be found below to all of these games and many others in the Alpha or Beta phases!

 

As ever any new additions are highlighted below in orange.

 

OnRPG Giveaways

These are all the beta giveaways currently running on OnRPG. There’s no guarantee that we won’t run out so grab them quick.

Absolute Force Online Closed Beta Key Giveaway
City of Steam Closed Beta Giveaway
FireFall Stress Test Weekends Beta Keys
GUNS and ROBOTS Closed Beta Key Giveaway

 

Dates Announced

Below are the MMOs who have announced upcoming beta events that haven’t started yet.

 

WorldAlpha: Closed Beta December 6-9, 20-23
FireFall Stress Test Weekend Beta December 7-9
Ragnarok Online 2 December 7-12
Wurm Online Launch on 12/12/12
Ace of Spades Launch on 12/12/12
Path of Exile: Open Beta January 23, 2013
ArcheAge Chinese Beta starting May 2013
Age of Wulin: EU Closed Beta 2013

 

 

Alpha

These games are currently in Alpha. Signups are available via the link.

 

Dragon Nest EU November 23-December 2
Final Fantasy XIV A Realm Reborn
The Repopulation
Xulu

 

 

Closed Beta

MMOs which are in closed beta require application and often require approval before access can be gained.

 

Absolute Force Online
Age of Wulin(EU, Asia) EU in Early 2013
Age of Wushu(US) Ends November 25, Round 2 Begins December 20th
Ascension: Arenas of War
Black Prophecy Tactics: Nexus Conflict
Born To Fire
Bounty Hounds Online
Chrono Tales Closed Beta Coming Soon, Registration Going On Now
City of Steam December 14-18, December 23-28
CosmicBreak EU
DK Online
Dust 514
Hawken Open Beta December 12
Firefall
Forge
Grimlands
GUNS and ROBOTS
JollyGrim
Legend of Edda Vengeance
Marvel Heroes
Patterns
Pirate101
RF Online EU
Salem
SMITE
Strategoria
Transformers Universe Now accepting applications.
UFO Online
The War Z
World of Warplanes

 

 

Open Beta

Games in open beta require an application but often it is little more than signing up for an account.

 

Arctic Combat
BoomSky
Cyber Monster
End of Nations Open Beta delayed until further notice, refunds have been issued.
Kings and Legends
MechWarrior Online
Oversoul
SmashMuck Champions
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Online (Russian)
Universal Monsters Online
World of Dragons (Russian)

 

 

Expansions

These are the beta events for games which are already live. These are for new content which is going to be added to the game at a later date. Access is limited to the current playerbase and often requires special permissions to take part.

 

Lord of the Rings Online Mac

OnRPG Shotgun News 12/7: Planetside 2, End of Nations, Absolute Force Online, and Much More!

OnRPG Shotgun News 12/7: Planetside 2, End of Nations, Absolute Force Online, and Much More!

By Shannon Doyle (Leliah), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

League of Legends Champion Spotlight on Nami, the Tidecaller

 

Riot Games has released yet another champion spotlight on Nami the Tidecaller. The 5 minute long shows off skin and play style options. Including the impressive Tidal Wave ability. The video then goes on to talk about techniques for early game play and builds. You can check it all out for yourself below.

 

 

 

Trion Takes Over Development of End of Nations

In the latest news from a series of announcements this past week it has been announced that Trion would be taking over development of End of Nations. The announcement was made to the fans on the End of Nations forums and has left more questions in it’s wake.

 

 

MapleStory Introduces New Playable Character

As part two of a four part series of releases called Tempest update MapleStory has introduced a new playable hero called Luminous. He has control over both light and dark powers giving him a diverse selection of abilities to pick from for any event. In addition MapleStory’s Christmas themed Happyville has made a return once more.

 

 

 

Absolute Force Online Chief Designer Answers Players Questions

Yazhong Wang, Chief Designer of Absolute Force Online at NetDragon has answered a series of questions from players. Questions range from NetDragon’s choice to go into FPS games to future development plans for Absolute Force. And they’re looking for more questions for developers! So if you’ve ever wanted to ask a question about Absolute Force Online head over to their official forums or their Facebook page.

 

 

PlanetSide 2 Thanks Fans With Double XP Weekend

As a thank you for sticking through all the launch week jitters PlanetSide 2 is having a Double XP weekend! It will apply even if you have the 10% boost applied.

 

 

District: 187 Sin Streets Teams With FraggedNation for PvP Tournament

CJ Games Global has announced that they are partnering with FraggedNation to host a competitive, team based tournament for District 187: Sin Streets. Clans can register now to take part in the event which will be December 15-16. Prizes are all paid in ingame gold as well as Premium packs for the top three.

Winter Weekends from RuneScape

Winter Weekends from RuneScape

 

RuneScape

 

As part of RuneScape’s on-going winter celebrations, this weekend will be another Winter Weekend!

 

 

This weekend’s promotion is all about the Minigames, each of the following games will give out double the rewards  when played over the weekend:

Castle Wars – Awards double the usual points at the end of a game.

Soul Wars – Awards double the usual zeal at the end of a game

Trawler – Awards double the usual numbers of fish, and thus double the XP that would normally be gained for catching these fish.

Pest Control – Awards double the usual points at the end of a game.

Big Chinchompa – Awards double the usual Competence Points.

Evil Tree – Awards double the usual item rewards.

Shooting Star – Awards double the usual item rewards.

 

RuneScape

 

So whether you’re a RuneScape veteran looking to take advantage of the double rewards, or someone fresh to RuneScape looking for something new to get your teeth into, this weekend is a perfectly opportunity to try something a little different!

 

 

This weekend of minigame madness runs from Saturday 8th December 00:00 GMT until Sunday 9th December 23:59 GMT.

 

 

If you’re after more festive fun, don’t forget that anyone who’s a member during December will get the Festive Aura, which grants a +50% XP boost for 30 minutes a day!

Chrono Tales

Chrono Tales is a free 3D browser-based MMORPG. The new generation engine provides players with anime-styled 3D graphics via browsers, without client download. Traveling through the time rift, players can explore in the fantasy world of Chrono Tales and save the realm from the resurgent evil. You can challenge immersive quest, forge legendary gear, tame mythological pets and experience much more mainstream MMO features in Chrono Tales.

 

Features:

Character Customization: 5 job classes (Warrior, Assassin, Scholar, Mage, and Priest), plus 3 craft professions catering to different player preferences. Aesthetic customization options allow you to visually differentiate yourself as well.

 

Innovative Pet System: Experience real-time combat while unleashing 3 pets in battle at once. Players can also take the battle to their enemies on land and air based mounts.

 

PvP: Whether you’re looking for random encounters in the open world, small arenas, or organized guild siege battles, Chrono Tales has an option for its more blood thirsty players.

 

Immersive Story-Driven Questing: Follow a cohesive tale as you venture through dangerous dungeons and join with others to face powerful world bosses.

Mortal Online: A Review by an Experienced Player Pt 1

Mortal Online: A Review by an Experienced Player Pt 1

By Jordan Hall (ApocaRUFF), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

Editor’s Note: This review was actually completed 2 weeks prior to the announcement that Mortal Online was going F2P. As such there is no mention of it.

 

 

Mortal Online is a first-person, fantasy sandbox game attempting to recreate the freedom of Ultima Online and hopefully surpass it. As a sandbox, the tools and mechanics within the game are designed to give you as much freedom as you possibly can. At its core, Mortal Online is a MMORPG where you decide what you can and cannot do. It not only offers exciting combat, but also an in-depth crafting system with many professions that can use an untold number of combinations to create a plethora of items.

 

 

It is an ambitious game developed by a small Swedish company named StarVault. Due to the size of the company, development is not as fast as AAA developers such as Blizzard or SOE. Bugs are not squished as fast as they should because of the limited resources available to the team, and it takes a lot longer for new content to be added in. Despite this, Mortal Online has a following of hardcore fans who love the game. Sometimes this is manifested as tough love, but love none-the-less.

 

 

Lore

Mortal Online takes place on the planet Nave. Nave is a place similar to our own world, with many fantasy elements such as magick and mythical monsters added in. The land is full of dungeons to explore, ancient ruined cities and fantastical creatures to fight, tame, or dominate. You won’t just find mythical monsters, either. You will come across animals quite similar to the ones we find on Earth – such as springboks, wisents and weasels.

 

 

You come in to Nave as the remnants of the once-great Tindremic Empire are slowing falling apart. It is a time of shifting power, where new empires are born and bandits roam free. It is the perfect time to begin your own story in this world. Will you be a murderer, out for the thrill of the kill, or maybe a knight in a mighty kingdom? Perhaps you will be a master weapon smith, renowned for your high quality swords? In Nave, it is up to you to decide.

 

 

Graphics

The graphics in Mortal Online are definitely amazing. The world is stunning and offers a lot of stuff to see. Using Unreal Engine 3, Grome and Speedtree, StarVault was able to achieve admirable things. Beautiful cities and towns dot the landscape of Myrland. I won’t go so far as to say the graphics are perfect – a few places in Nave could definitely use a touch-up.

 

 

Currently Myrland is the only continent released in Mortal Online, a 64km2 continent. It offers deserts, snowy mountains, dense jungles and open plains. You will find the keeps and homes of players all around the map. Unfortunately, Mortal is quite restrictive in what type of housing you can have. You are stuck with two styles for houses – A log house, or a stone Tindremic house.

 

 

As I mentioned, Mortal Online has a few areas that are not up to par with the rest of it, at least in terms of graphics. This is mostly in the area of textures. Finding areas where textures are stretched, or are just low quality, is not uncommon. Broken or thrown together models that just look shabby when up-close can be found. While these problems are not everywhere, I noticed that they were mostly within the walls of Tindrem. When you do come across one, it can kill the immersion. All together – despite a few downfalls, Myrland is a wonderful place to explore.

 

 

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Controls

For the most part, the controls in Mortal Online are perfect. When you are on foot almost everything is fine. One area I felt they really needed to work on was how well the horses control. I just could not get over how bad the horses handled. It was a near constant headache trying to get them to go where I wanted. That is probably the only thing keeping Mortal from getting a good score in the area of controls.

 

 

Other than the above, Mortal has your usual MMORPG control scheme. WASD movement, P for character, K for skills and I for inventory. The Z key will release your mouse so you can interact with the user interface. Directional attacking and blocking is done by combining one of the movement keys with either the left or right mouse button. Left for attack, right for block. Sometimes these can feel a bit unresponsive but they are usually smooth. I actually enjoy the combat controls quite a lot.

 

 

Features

No one can claim that Mortal Online has a shortage of features. Dozens of them currently in and dozens more planned for the future. In this area, I feel that StarVault has gone above-and-beyond and I have got to congratulate them on giving their players so much to do, no matter how buggy most of it can be.

 

 

Plenty of Races. Mortal Online offers ten races to choose from. You are also given the ability to mix bloodlines to create hybrid races. Perhaps you will blend the strength of a Thursar with the agility of a Khurite?

 

Full Loot FFA PvP. The world is a harsh place and death – while not the end – is unforgiving. You drop everything you have on you when you die and you won’t find protection anywhere except guarded towns – and even then you are not completely safe.

 

First-Person Real-Time Combat. If you want to do the most damage, aim your swings for the areas your enemy is least protected. That might be the head, or it could be their feet. Player skill determines how good you are at combat.

 

No Classes. Mortal is a skill-based game. Though a skill cap exists, there are no restrictions on what skills you can learn and train. Skills grow in power either passively – by reading skill books, or actively – by actually using the skill you are training.

 

Open World. Nave is big, and the only thing restricting you from seeing it all is your own will. You can see as far as the weather will allow, and you can get anywhere if you set your mind to it. No instancing exists within Mortal Online. It is all one big open world.

 

Near Limitless Crafting Possibilities. From mining the ore, to refining it to a metal, and then crafting it into a weapon or anything else, your imagination is the limit. You can pick herbs and plants, mine ores and minerals, and cut wood. Beyond just harvesting there are plenty of processing skills required to bring those raw materials to full fruition, whether for yourself or to sell to others.

 

Territory Control. If your guild manages to build a keep and break in to the game of war and politics called Territory Control, you can take control of areas of the world and set taxes and outlaw enemy players and guilds from your towns.

 

Mortal Online Offers an in-depth Hunger System. While starving your character will be at a serious disadvantage to a well-fed warrior. Food does not just give you an extra buff but it necessary to keep up with your fellow players.

 

Morality System. All players have a PvP Flag. Good players are marked with an alignment flag. Those who have recently committed a crime are marked as gray, and murderers are marked with red.

 

The list Goes On. I do not have enough room to talk about all the features, so I will briefly mention them here. Taming, dominating, fishing, siege warfare, player housing, magic, archery, melee, thieving, alchemy, a ghost realm, and more promised to come in the future.

 

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Customization

As you might expect, Mortal Online takes customization to heart. When you go to make a new character, you start by choosing the race you want to be. You can mix the bloodlines, so you are not restricted to just the basic races. From there, you can choose looks, age, height, etc. You can then name your character with both a first and surname. Finally, you choose what city you want to start your adventures in.

 

 

The races you can choose from are as follows: Thursar, Tindremene, Khurite, Sidoian, Kallard, Sarducaan, Veela, Sheevra, Blainn, and Huergar. These races range from your average human, to elves, and dwarf-like. Each race has its own specialties and strengths. Unfortunately, certain races have dominated areas of game due to being leaps and bounds over other races at certain things. This is bad because it causes other races to be forgotten and takes away from your choices while making a character if you plan to keep up with everyone else.

 

 

Skills in Mortal Online play a big role in how you customize your character. Lots of skills are available to learn and more are planned to be added in the future. If you want to be a weapon smith, your skills and knowledge will be centered around the weapons you make and the materials you use. If you want to be a fighter, you will want to make sure your character knows how to run efficiently and how to use his weapon. Specialization is a big part of Mortal – the old saying, “A Jack of all trades, but a master of none, often better than a master of one.” does not apply here. Luckily, you can have three characters per account.

 

 

Community

The community is a big part of the Mortal experience, as it is a very social game. You won’t be able to do everything yourself, so you will be relying on other people often. For the most part, the community of Mortal is decent. Definitely a bit of bitterness mixed in, though. And griefers do exist. Despite being in constant conflict, most people are friendly to each other and are welcoming of new players. If you are new, it is likely that you will receive free gear from veterans.

 

 

The people that play Mortal, while not the largest group, love their game. Sometimes they can be harsh towards the developers, or very critical of the game, but that is because they love them both and want them to succeed. The community of Mortal Online has stuck with it through thick and thin and deserve a bit of respect.

 

 

The community is pretty diverse. You have hard-core explorers, who thrive on discovery. You also have the PvP fanatics – split in to two groups: Random Player Killers and Anti-Random Player Killers. You also have the crafters who spend countless hours providing the citizens of Myrland with armor, weapons, potions, foods and everything else that can be made. Chances are, no matter your play style, you can find people who you fit with.

 

 

 

This is the end of PART 1 of the Mortal Online review. Please check out OnRPG tomorrow for the conclusion including gameplay, the new Mortal Online expansion – Awakening, and my final verdict on the game .

Fiesta Online Reveals Thrilling Holiday Mounts

Fiesta Online Reveals Thrilling Holiday Mounts

 

 

Fiesta Online surprised their massive community today with a highly sought after upgrade for the game’s wildly popular mount system. For the first time ever, Fiesta players will be able to take friends for a ride anywhere they want to go in the vast open world of Isya. With the super stylish two-person Buddy Bike, one now never needs to go solo again. Spontaneous road trips, exotic honeymoons, the possibilities for adventure are endless. The update also includes a Zip Board that’s sure to impress as it hovers and speeds around town doing tricks and flips. Available in a wide range of colors to match each player’s mood.

 

 

“As one of the premiere party MMOs, we’re really psyched to be offering Fiesta fans these super fun ways to enjoy the holidays this season. This upgrade to the mount system has been one of the most requested items for months now and player feedback since launch has been incredibly strong!” said Philip Yun, CEO, Outspark.

 

 

The Buddy Bike and Zip Board will be available this weekend and players are being invited to try the new mounts for FREE at GM-led preview events all this week. Event details here