Monthly Archives: March 2013

MEAD: RiftÂ’s Dead Simon on the Past, Future, and More

MEAD: Rift’s Dead Simon on the Past, Future, and More

Questions by Shannon Doyle (Leliah)

Answers by Simon Ffinch, Senior Design Director

 

 

 

As Rift celebrates it’s second anniversary I had the opportunity to ask Simon “Dead Simon” Ffinch, the Senior Design Director about the past, the future, and get a little bit of insight into what it’s like working on Rift.

 

How did the second year compare to the first?

 

We learned a huge amount in our first year, about what we could do with our tools and technology, about what our players responded too best and about how fast our team could create content. But most important of all we really narrowed down what we felt was the heart of RIFT, and that is the flexibility of the Soul system and the dynamic content. This allowed us to really do some amazing things in our second year. While we were delivering huge patches to entertain our players (and ourselves), we were also working on Storm Legion our first big expansion. And so over the second year RIFT became much, much bigger, both in land mass to explore and variety of things to do. The list of stuff we added is truly huge as the team really hit its stride in what we could accomplish. The second year was even more fun than the first and I look forward to the third.

 

 

 

Can you tell us a bit about what you have planned for this year?

 

Well I don’t want to give away too much right now so I will keep this a little vague. We do have updates planned out for RIFT well into next year with some really exciting and much requested things for the players to experience. We will be expanding on all the features we have in the game right now and exploring a host of new ones. With the death of the dragons things will be changing around Telara. Players will discover that the denizens of the plane of life are not so bad after all with the corruption of Greenscale removed, although they can be a little mischievous. I will just say that nature abhors a vacuum and the Dragons have left a very large vacuum and of course the true meaning and power of the infinity gate is still to be revealed.

 

 

What can we look forward to in Dendrome when it comes out with 2.3?

 

In the immediate future players can look forward to the world event that will lead to the opening of The Dendrome. Small cracks in the barrier between Ashora and the Dendrome can be widened by players, the better they do the easier the access to the Dendrome will become. As well as a large amount of area to explore this zone will add a really radical new type of dynamic content called Strongholds, plus a whole lot more that will be revealed over the coming weeks. The players will also get to learn a lot more about the Architects and their history and place in Telara.

 

 

What is life like in Telara after the dragons?

 

Telara itself will actually enjoy a period of peace and tranquility  but the Ascended will be needed more than ever… uh… elsewhere, to make sure it remains this way. I will just leave it at that. 🙂

 

 

If you could pick a plane to visit, in game or not, which one?

 

Everyone here has their favourites and I know our players are itching to take the fight into the planes. I am not ready to confirm or deny any plans to go, or which one first though.

 

What comes after Tier 3 of Planar Attunement?

 

Well I know that personally the unlocking of Tier 3 is going to keep me busy for a while and many of our players as well. Character development is one of our passions though, and the flexibility of our systems is something we are very proud of, so we have plans in the works but are not ready to talk about them yet.

 

 

How did you find three faction pvp internally? Is it something that is wanted to be expanded on?

 

It is certainly an interesting addition to RIFT. It fills a different niche than our warfronts do, and it can be really fun. We do plan to build on it in the future, but we won’t reveal just how or when that will be just yet. We have a lot of things to juggle right now and a list of thing we would like to add that will keep us busy for a very long time, the next iteration of Conquest is certainly on that list. It is just a matter of priorities. 🙂

 

 

Do you prefer to do releases slowly and in smaller sizes like Ember Isle or huge expansions like Storm Legion?

 

Both have their pros and cons and to be honest I don’t really have a preference. I just love working with a passionate group of developers and continuing to put out content and systems to make RIFT an ever changing and fun experience for us and our players. We have some ambitious plans for the future and we will decide on how it is best to deliver them as time goes on.

 

 

And so, there you have it! I would like to say an extra special thank you to Simon Ffinch for taking time out of his busy schedule to answer these questions. I can’t wait to see what year number three has in store for Rift.

Age of Wushu’s Unusual Offline System

Age of Wushu’s Unusual Offline System

 

 

Age of Wushu bucks the trends set by traditional MMOS in a variety of ways. No classes, but rather an expansive customization system to build your own personal Martial Artist. There are no levels for the character, but rather leveling up skills that you want to level up. There is another addition that Age of Wushu offers, not seen in many other titles. When you log off after a long day of playing, your character continues to work for you and collecting experience and more until you return. The Offline System is a unique reward for those that need to disconnect for a few hours or days, but it also adds a new adventure for those online too.

 

 

When walking into a town or an outpost, there are a lot of NPCs to interact with; Bankers, Blacksmiths, Café owners, etc. In addition, you will see occasional street performers dancing and breathing fire in a square, maybe a servant sweeping the steps of a tavern, or even another patrolman walking the streets. These are not your typical NPCs, they are your friends or enemies offline. The “occupation” you take on, while you are off, depends upon the location you sign-out. In a Town you can become one of the previously mentioned roles above, if you log out on school grounds you become a disciple working to teach or protect that temple. Different scenes offer a variety of different positions.

 

 

Being offline isn’t just having your character do “stuff.” You will be compensated a salary for the job your role performs while you are away. When you log back in, the money that you have earned from the tasks and the amount of time you performed that duty will be available for collection. Some players will also have the option to open stalls and sell goods they manufactured while they were online. There is even an opportunity to cultivate offline and train skills while you are away. Some of the interactions that you make offline can lead to the valuable Random Encounters when you log back in.

 

 

The rewards are many for an offline role to collect, but so are the risks. Offline characters are susceptible to kidnappings by vengeful or otherwise evil online players seeking to make a little profit by selling you into an employment you cannot take benefit from. The money that you would have made offline is no longer yours as you are a “forced” employee for certain stores and outfits. The stalls and cultivation you may have started end as well and you do not reap any of those benefits.

 

 

While offline at your school, you can benefit in patrolling the school as an Intelligence Disciple. During Spying events, other players now have to compete tasks against your character, with the strength and levels that you have cultivated. This can prove a lot more difficult than trying to spy around normal NPCs. Successfully chasing off spies while offline yield their own rewards and bonuses when you log back in.

 

 

Offline in Age of Wushu offers a richer gameplay than other games that let you sign out and forget about your character. You can see the results of the role you have cultivated when you log back in with the rewards and money that they have earned. Log out and leave a comment on the forums, or peruse some of our other articles, then log in and see what you’ve done.

OnRPG Shotgun News 3/12: Everquest, Everlight, TERA, and Defiance

OnRPG Shotgun News 3/12: Everquest, Everlight, TERA, and Defiance

By Shannon Doyle (Leliah), OnRPG Elder Scribe

 

 

Everquest Vet Returns 12 Years Later

One of the original designers of Everquest has come back after a 12 year absence. Brad McQuaid left SOE 12 years ago and in that time founded Sigil Games Online, the developers of Vanguard: Saga of Heroes. Now, Sigil Games Online is owned by SOE and when Brad McQuaid had the opportunity to go back to the Everquest team he jumped on it. Welcome back Brad!

 

 

Tera Challenges Players in “No Sleep ‘til 60”

A new challenge has been issued to TERA players. Anyone who gets to levels 30, 40, 50, or 60 between today and March 25th will receive items for their highest level character. It ranges from 5 strong box keys, a 7 day 50% XP Boost, and mirrored shades for level 30s. Level 60 gets 5 strongbox keys, 10 semi-enigmatic scrolls, and mirrored shades. These all will be rewarded at the end of the event.

 

 

GAME Offers Early Hands-on with Defiance

Trion, Namco Bandai, and GAME have teamed up in the UKto bring a sneak peek of Defiance which is due for release on April 2nd. March 17-21 several GAME shops around the UK will have lock-in events for over 18s to try out the game. To take part in the events which are being held in Sheffield, Manchester, Birmingham, Peterborough, and London head in to your local store or send them a tweet.

 

Everlight Open Beta Announced

After a closed beta with over 10,000 participants KoramGame has announced that the first open beta server for Everlight will go live on March 14th. The official facebook page will have giveaways and more information as open beta progresses.

Kings Road – Get Ready for an Adventure!

Kings Road – Get Ready for an Adventure!

By Jordan Hall (ApocaRUFF), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

Kings Road is an action RPG brought to us by Rumble Entertainment. Set in a realm plunged into darkness and mayhem. Of course, you are the only one that can bring peace and prosperity to this world! Quest in a world filled with many unique characters and monsters. Cooperate with your friends to achieve great things in this amazing adventure!

 

 

 

Features

Epic story. The land is in turmoil and only you can set it right.

Equip yourself. Collect armor and weapons by completing quest and killing monster. Don’t forget to smash every barrel and crate you find!

Co-op. You can party with up to two friends and go out adventuring together.

Quirky Characters. No two characters are the same, each has its own personality.

Casual Gameplay. Play whenever you want.

 

 

Kings Road is not a big game. This means there are not many features. By far not a bad thing, as it helps keep the casual experience just that. I did not find myself wishing the game had anything more than what I was presented with. You get a lot of fun with what is available.

 

 

Customization

There is not much of it in this game. You do not design a character or anything. You pick a name and then you are thrown in. At the time I first checked the game out I was stuck with one class, the knight, but since then they have also added a Wizard and Archer to offer a bit more diversity. The Knight class offered two skill trees to go down for some customization options. You can pick and choose what gear you wear for different looks, but honestly you will probably just wear whatever armor gives you the best stats. This is ok, in my opinion, due to the game’s laid back nature. Despite having few customization features, I realized this was not KingsRoad’s focus and still had a great time.

 

 

Graphics

They are good for a browser game. Surprisingly, they are on par with many client based games. The animations worked perfectly, especially in combat. It was satisfying swinging my sword and seeing gore go flying from the enemy. The user interface was perfect. It shows you everything you need while taking little room with its sleek design.

 

 

Controls

Combat and movement are done with the mouse. You can click on the ground where you want to go, or just hold down the left mouse button to move whichever direction your mouse pointer is located. Everything can be done with the mouse, while using keyboard keys is still an option. The Q, W, E, R keys are reserved to be used for consumable items such as potions and food. Almost everything worked great. There was one problem I did encounter. When you right click, a menu for flash settings pop-up, which not only blocks a portion of the screen, but also messes up your controls. I have yet to find a reliable method to get this pop-up to close reliably and it is just a matter of luck of when it will.

 

 

Community

The community is what you make it. You are not forced to play with, communicate with, or even see anyone you do not want to. Because the game is on facebook, you can quickly and easily play with your friends. You can also choose to play with random players if you like. Overall this made for a good experience.

 

 

 

Gameplay

This is a pick-up-and-go game. You can get in and play whenever you like. The combat is fast and easy to learn – you simply have to left click on an enemy. The gameplay is very similar to other action RPGs, such as Titan Quest. The game basically requires that you constantly chug potions to survive the hordes of enemies they throw at you.

 

 

There are town hubs where you accept quests, sell and buy items, identify your loot to see their stats, and other things. It is from these hubs that you will leave to go on adventures. These adventures consist of a level, that is usually short, where you need to hack n’ slash your way through countless enemies. In these levels, you can loot gear and money from your fallen foes. Once you have completed a level, you are scored and shown your statistics. You then receive a reward, which usually consist of gold and maybe a gem – which are used to revive, among other things – and then you get teleported back to the hub town.

 

 

 

Final Verdict

Kings Road is a great time-passer that you can play with your friends. With its epic music and constant action, you will have a lot of fun. Thanks to the short levels, you will be able to play whenever you have a spare five minutes or are a bit bored during a lunch break. I think it is wonderful for what it is and I truly enjoyed my time playing. Remember! Keep tradition alive. Kill all barrels and crates on sight!

 

 

 

Graphics: 3/5

Controls: 4/5

Customization: 2/5

Community: 5/5

Features: 3/5

 

Overall: 4/5

KingsRoad

Grab your sword and shield, then travel the KingsRoad to uncover and defeat this threat. Your adventures will take you from Edgewood Forest to the snowy peaks of Deveral and beyond. You’ll meet true companions, treacherous turncoats,bloodthirsty foes, and one stubborn princess.Find your courage, Knight: Uncover the truth of the Shroud and you’ll forge a legend that will endure forever in the songs of the realm.

Features

Three Dynamic Classes: Master the ways of the Knight, Archer, or Wizard.

Drop-in, Drop-out Multiplayer: Have your friends join you in your quest, and log out whenever they want in fast connection browser-based MMO action.

 

Stunning World: Experience a beautiful and impressively animated 3D world far above most browser titles on the market.

 

Wargaming Sets New Guinness Record

Wargaming Sets New Guinness Record

 

World of Tanks

 

Wargaming, the award-winning videogame developer and publisher, is delighted to announce that its MMO action game World of Tanks set a new Guinness World Record for Most Players Online Simultaneously on One MMO Server. The number of gamers logged on to one of the five servers of the Russian gaming cluster reached the triple-figure mark of 190,541 players on January 21, 2013.

 

 

With more than 50 million gamers worldwide and peak concurrent user count of 815,000 players in Russia alone, the company is on the leading edge of the online games market.

 

 

“It’s an important and exciting milestone for the company”, said Andrei Yarantsau, VP of Global Operations at Wargaming. “It inspires us to greater efforts in polishing and refining all aspects of our present and future projects. If World of Tanks keeps growing at the rate it is, the game will soon top the current total and secure another world record.”

 

 

The tank MMO action game has entered the book for the second time by demolishing its previous record of 91,311 players set in January 2011.

RaiderZ Reveals First Details of Broken Silence

RaiderZ Reveals First Details of Broken Silence

 

 

Perfect World is excited to share the first details on RaiderZ: Broken Silence, the first expansion for the award-winning monster hunting MMORPG. Players can look forward to an increased level cap, new areas to explore, bosses, gear, features, and much more.

 

“We’re raising the level cap, we’re adding new zones, new gear, and of course, more epic boss fights for hunters to discover and master,” said Senior Producer Mark Hill. “These are all additions that our players have been clamoring for, and we’re happy to give it to them!”

 

 

In addition, RaiderZ: Broken Silence will introduce a new PvP Battle Arena, a new ‘Wave System’ mechanic that finds individuals and groups hunting down large packs of deadly monsters, and an improved party matchmaking system, making it easier than ever to hunt together.

OnRPG Shotgun News 3/11: GW2, Champions Online, and Zynga

OnRPG Shotgun News 3/11: GW2, Champions Online, and Zynga

By Shannon Doyle (Leliah), OnRPG Elder Scribe

 

 

GW2 Sale Item of the Day 3/11: Cow Finisher

 

Champions Online Concludes Lemurian Invasion

A new multi-week event has begun to conclude the story of the Lemurian Invasion in Champions Online. Players level 35 and above will face some of the most terrifying and horrible foes to ever come to MillenniumCity. And some lucky players may even be able to recover a Lemurian Hovertank. The event is ongoing until in concludes on March 27th.

 

 

Zynga Executive Admits to Copying Games?

Something is always going on at Zynga. This time it’s VP Dan Porter who has reportedly said that Zynga copies games by other developers….and then backtracked. A recent news report on Yahoo news quoted Porter saying; “Zynga is often accused of copying games, which is mostly true.” The quote allegedly comes from a panel discussion hosted by online clothes retailer Frank & Oak. Now he’s saying it was a misrepresentation of what he said during the panel.