Yearly Archives: 2012

MEAD: RIFT Gaiscioch

MEAD: RIFT Gaiscioch

By Shannon Doyle (Leliah), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

With roots stretching back to 2001 in Dark Age of Camelot, the guild called Gaiscioch is so much more than just your average guild. This gaming community has had large numbers in several large MMOs through the years and will be expanding to Guild Wars 2 when it opens. They have a long, rich history and are an important part of life if you play on Faeblight, the shard they’re on in RIFT.

 

 

They formed in November of 2001 in Dark Age of Camelot as a roleplay group bringing classic Irish fairytales to life. By the time they left DAoC in 2006 they had 500 members and had an alliance with 32 guilds. It was at this time the group fell apart. Financial issues meant players had to focus on real life or even free games. But in 2008 they came back with 8 of the original members to form a more casual group in Warhammer Online. By the end of their first year in Warhammer they had 1,200 members and at their peak they were up to 1,700. It was then they began searching for a new game to make their home so they wouldn’t see the loss they did when they left DAoC. That was when they found RIFT.

 

 

The group has had a close relationship not only with the community but also with the development team. Often working with Trion to test out patches and working with staff to identify issues. And now they are gearing up to play Guild Wars 2, though they have no intention of leaving RIFT to do so. They plan to open 6 branches of Gaiscioch in Guild Wars 2 each with its own focus. In the lead up to Guild Wars 2 they have started their own weekly webcast called “The Legend of Guild Wars” which airs on Youtube every Monday. There is also an unexpected branch of Gaiscioch. An athletic branch that plays football. The team started in San Jose, California where founder Benjamin Foley lived at the time until he moved to Eugene, Oregon. In 2010 the football program moved to Portland, Oregon where it is currently located.

 

 

Gaiscioch has a huge involvement in charity events. In March of 2012 they ran their very first charity event. The charity event gave over 400 stuffed animals to 5 charities in the Portland, Oregon area. During last year’s Extra Life charity event benefiting children’s hospitals they were the 11th highest in raising money with more than $8,000. And during the 24 hour gaming marathon they had a huge presence in RIFT.

 

 

If you’re on Faeblight or in its pvp group then you know every other person is a member of either the main group Guardian side or the smaller group Defiant side. In the early months of RIFT they were so big I considered petitioning to rename the shard to Gaiscioch. This success came from being a large community from the start and hosting amazingly successful events early on. They host raids, crafting RIFT raids and many other events every day of the week. I’ve joined them several times while doing crafting RIFTs. With the hype of Guild Wars 2 and the desire to join more hardcore raiding groups the Defiant group has seen a small decline in recent months. As a result there will be less focus on that group and more on their Guardian side and other projects which are upcoming.

 

 

Anyone is welcome to join this extremely friendly group. They have an extensive website that joins all the branches of their extended family together. The average age of members is 35 with the oldest being 69. Most of the members live in California but they are spread all through the world including two who live in Ireland. Where the myth they’re based on comes from. They have leadership boards within their own group, badges, sweatshirts, forums and a massive family tree that has all 3,400 members on it.

 

 

This group has done amazing things for RIFT with community events, taking part in charity and sending the devs cookies. Who doesn’t love cookies? They provide awesome services to players and the community on a whole. RIFT wouldn’t be the same without them.

OnRPG Shotgun News 7/23: Pockie Ninja II and Champions Online

OnRPG Shotgun News 7/23: Pockie Ninja II and Champions Online

By Shannon Doyle (Leliah), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

Pockie Ninja II Open Beta

Just a couple of weeks ago I brought news of the Pockie Ninja II closed beta. Now I am pleased to announce the start of open beta on July 25th, that’s Wednesday. Head over to the Pockie Ninja website to sign up for the open beta.

 

 

Champions Online Goes Red with Magic

 

There has been a recent spate of arcane activity on the West Side. It has the citizens fleeing the streets in terror. Reports from the area lay the blame in the hands of the Cult of the Red Banner. Elsewhere the destructive fashion diva Gravitar has been causing property damage all over the major metropolitan areas. Citizens are advised to exercise extreme caution and all heroes are being called in.

OnRPG Shotgun News 7/20: Rusty Hearts, The WarZ, End of Nations, and More!

OnRPG Shotgun News 7/20: Rusty Hearts, The WarZ, End of Nations, and More!

By Shannon Doyle (Leliah), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

Beta and Alpha Weekend for Several Games

 

This weekend is a busy one for MMO fans. Trion’s End of Nations, Gravity Interactive’s Maestia and NCSoft’s Guild Wars 2 will be in beta this weekend. While City of Steam hosts their first Alpha weekend.

 

 

ATLUS ONLINE Teams up with Level Up!

Expanding on a partnership between Atlus and Level Up which currently offers registration and downloads of Atlus’ hit title Pandora Saga will be expanding to include BattleSpace and Knights of the Sky.

 

 

New Zombie Apocalypse MMO The War Z Announced

 

Arktos Entertainment Group and Hammerpoint Interactive have announced their debut title The War Z. This session based MMO takes place during a zombie infestation on a apocalyptic scale. The War Z is currently in Alpha with a closed beta planned for the near future. And a potential release date sometime in fall of 2012.

 

 

Rusty Hearts: Reborn Details

As the launch of the first major expansion of Rusty Hearts. Major features include a PvP ladder, new pets, hidden dungeons, a master-apprentice system and a training dungeon. This expansion is expected to go live on July 24th. OnRPG snagged an exclusive interview with Senior Product Manager Mark Hill with more details.

 

 

Dragon Saga Launches Dragonkin Update

 

The latest part of Dragon Saga’s massive expansion through the year has been released. The new Dragonkin Combo Skill update brings new combo skills to the fighters and shaman classes. To celebrate this latest update Dragon Saga will be introducing the Sunflower event which starts today.

 

 

World of Tanks Championship Details

Wargaming, the developer-publisher of World of Tanks announces that registration for the upcoming International Ural Steel Championship 2012 has opened and will continue to the end of July. The tournament will take place in Moscow, Russia and is being organized in partnership with UralVagonZavod, one of the largest scientific and industrial complexes in Russia.

 

 

RuneScape Sees Huge Numbers

 

The hugely popular, award winning free to play MMO RuneScape has announced that it has made history with having over 200 million registered player accounts. They have clocked in over 7 billion hours of gaming over the last 10 years.

Nexon’s Vindictus Adds New Mercenary, Kai

Nexon’s Vindictus Adds New Mercenary, Kai

 

Vindictus

 

Nexon America has released new content into its high-intensity, real-physics based MMORPG, Vindictus. The new content features the mercenary Kai, who brings ranged weapons and skills to the game.

 

 

The Kai character comes armed with a high-powered bow, allowing teams to have ranged attack support while taking down the hordes of fierce monsters inhabiting Vindictus’ dungeons. Kai has versitile archer skills that allow attacks up close as well as at a distance. Skills include the Ricochet Shot that defies physics as it bounces of multiple targets; the Arrow Storm that drops a shower of arrows on groups of enemies; and the Chain Link that ties and smashes two enemies together with explosive damage.

 

Vindictus

 

Kai also comes with a wide variety of customization options that are available in the Avatar Shop. The shop features Kai-specific costume items including hair, armor and other decorative items.

 

 

To celebrate the arrival of Kai to Vindictus, Nexon is providing all players who create a Kai character from now through June 23 the “Kai Support Box.” The box contains the powerful Kobold Bow, a seven-day unlimited inner armor pass, a seven-day hair pass and five “Kai’s Buying” character enhancements. Also be sure to check Kai out in action in a newly released trailer!

Heroes of Newerth Announces “All Heroes Free” Game Model

Heroes of Newerth Announces “All Heroes Free” Game Model

 

 

Starting tomorrow, every player will have immediate access to the entire released hero pool for the award-winning MOBA title Heroes of Newerth (HoN), developed and published by S2 Games. Making Heroes of Newerth a truly free-to-own game, the All Heroes Free game model will level the HoN playing field by allowing any user to own all of the heroes and play any game mode at zero cost. A new promotional trailer was released driving the point home.

 

“We are very excited to announce All Heroes Free, which gives every player access to our ever-growing hero pool,” said S2 Games co-founder and CEO Marc DeForest. “After months of internal discussions and monitoring community feedback, it’s clear that All Heroes Free is the perfect next step for HoN.”

 

Prior to this new game model, players could take advantage of a weekly rotating free pool of 16 heroes with the option to purchase individual heroes with in-game or real world currency. Heroes of Newerth’s new All Heroes Free model will launch on Friday, July 20th, giving players immediate access to all 107 released heroes. Early Access heroes will still be available for purchase under a four-week trial period, but with free access to the entire hero pool, players will be able to enjoy the game in its entirety without limitation. HoN is a game of options and variety, where no two games are alike, and offers an experience almost completely player driven. The All Heroes Free model makes HoN more welcoming for new players and friends of current players, as everyone gains access to any hero of their choosing.

 

“As gamers, we all know that games are more fun to play with friends, and All Heroes Free will make it easier for players to bring their friends to the game,” said Heroes of Newerth Director Pu Liu. “This new model will also level the eSports playing field, as all players will be able to build their skills and advance their strategies with any hero they choose.”

 

With the launch of All Heroes Free, any player who purchased a released hero with in-game or real world currency within fifteen days before July 20th will receive a refund. Plus, any player who has ever purchased a hero with real world currency will receive the new and exclusive Mecha Gemini avatar for free, including Legacy players. Mecha Gemini is the super robot avatar of the popular HoN hero Gemini, who will be prowling the lanes of Newerth waiting for the right moment to strike.

 

In addition to the avatar, all Legacy players will begin earning more rewards for each match played. Added DeForest: “Legacy players are the backbone of HoN, and there’s no way we would be where we are today without them. Their early commitment to the game is irreplaceable, and as HoN continues to evolve, we are always looking for new ways to show our appreciation.”

 

S2 Games is also working on rolling out a much-anticipated new game mode, with the working title “Gated Mode”, which will offer new players a more controlled environment in which to learn HoN. “With All Heroes Free and the upcoming Gated Mode, we’re really focusing on our new player experience and helping our current players bring their friends into the game,” added Liu. “Gated Mode will allow new players to get into the game faster and easier by pairing them with a smaller group of carefully selected heroes and thereby lessening the initial burden of knowledge.”

OnRPG Shotgun news 7/19: Mechwarrior, Sevencore, Elsword, and More!

OnRPG Shotgun News 7/19: MechWarrior Online, Audition, Sevencore, Elsword, and More!

By Shannon Doyle (Leliah), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

MechWarrior Online Fan Event Registration Live

 

Registration for the MechWarrior Online Community Day happening in Santa Clara, California has officially opened. It will take place at 5 pm on July 27th. Anyone lucky enough to attend will get beer, pizza and playing MechWarrior Online with the dev team. To win your chance at this once in a lifetime event email in 100 words or less why you deserve to take part. Submissions should be sent to mechwarrior@geforce.com. You must be over 21, able to travel to the NVIDIA campus and be invited. If you are lucky enough to be selected you will have 48 hours to confirm your spot.

 

 

Audition Gets Green Thumbs

Free to play dancing and partying game Audition has released a new feature to get people off the dancefloor and into the garden. It is called Couple Garden and these gardens really are only for married couples in the virtual world. Special seeds can be purchased from the new Couple Garden shop using the in game currency DEN.

 

 

Ragnarok Exapands in Europe

Gravity Europe has released Ragnarok Online Renewal, Ragnarok Violet and Angel Poring to the European audience. The first is the latest expansion to hit MMO Ragnarok Online while the other two are iOS titles which are available via itunes.

 

 

Sevencore Closed Beta Registration

Registration for Sevencore’s closed beta is now open. The highly anticipated beta will begin on August 9th. Those who join the closed beta get the chance to win rewards like a closed beta cloak and a specially designed Wolf mount. What’s more, OnRPG will have keys going up on the site for a giveaway shortly!

 

 

Elsword Unveils New Levels and Level Cap Increase

 

Manga inspired MMO Elsword has announced the level cap has been increased to 56 and with it comes new gear and new levels. In addition by playing Elsword at least an hour day for all of July players will be in to win prizes like an Elsword themed iPad and Amazon Gift Cards.

 

 

Forge of Empires Announces Colonial Age

InnoGames announced today a new age coming to strategy browser game Forge of Empires. The Colonial Age comes with additional military units and buildings. The update with Colonial Age is planned to go live within the next month.