Monthly Archives: September 2013

Microvolts Surge Kai Pack Giveaway

OnRPG is partnering with Rock Hippo to celebrate the release of Microvolts‘ newest character, Kai, along with an intensive update offering new gameplay and new character upgrades across the board! Grab a code to unlock a full outfit set today!

MicroVolts Surge is a free-to-play online multiplayer third-person shooter. A unique gaming experience awaits action gamers, with its dynamic cartoon style graphics and intense fast-paced gameplay. Players can create their own custom character, swap between 7 weapon types on the fly, and battle it out in over 20 exciting locations. With events and tournaments hosted every week and strong community involvement through social media channels and forums, there’s something for both social and competitive gamers

 

To get your key you have to follow these instructions:

  • If you are not yet a member of OnRPG please sign up here.
  • Enter your OnRPG username and password below to get your key.
  • The key will appear at the bottom of the page. Copy & paste it to a safe place as you may not be able to retrieve it once closing your browser!

To Redeem your Key:

  • Visit the redemption page for Microvolts HERE
  • Log-in to your account or register when prompted. Download and get into the game!
  • Enter your code on the redemption page.
  • Wait for the confirmation and enjoy your Kai Pack!

Alteil Horizons Reveals More Backstory

Alteil Horizons Update 18

Alteil Horizon’s story is a key component: it sets the backdrop for single player content, the flavor text for each card, and the story that emerges when cards are on the field. Written by Takuji Asanuma (Star Ocean, Valkyrie Profile), Alteil’s story lays out the player’s role and the kingdoms that they choose to represent. Today, Logress takes a look at the story of Alteil Horizons in the latest Kickstarter update.

MechWarrior Online Launch Review – Mechtastic Combat

By Jordan Hall (ApocaRUFF)

 

Introduction

MechWarrior Online is a Mech-based MMO that has just left Open Beta and is now fully released. It’s been developed by Piranha Games using the CryENGINE 3 and is published by Infinite Game Publishing. The game offers a wide variety of gameplay modes, from team death match, to capture-the-point, and a map domination campaign between the different factions in the MechWarrior/BattleTech universe. Utilizing the capabilities of the CryENGINE, Piranha has managed to create an impressive Mech Experience in a deeply loved franchise.

 

 

Customization

MechWarrior Online has just the kind of customization you would expect in a Mech MMO. You can customize your individual mechs with components bought with c-bills that you’ve gained through battle. You’re also able to choose a faction, or join a player-run Merc Corp and fight for the highest bidder. Heck, you can even put some dash ornaments in your cockpit to give it a personal touch. But, lets be honest, the only thing a true mech fan will care about is the ability to customize the components, which is something MechWarrior Online offers and does quite well.

 

MWO Review Hangar

Graphics

Pretty stunning. By far one of the best looking mech games ever made, surpassed only by Hawken as far as I am aware. At full quality, everything looks superb, at least outside of the cockpit. Some of the stuff in the cockpit has high quality textures, but there is one thing that totally ruined the cockpit immersion for me every time I saw it – the jumpsuit your ‘pilot’ wears is some of the most horrible, pixelated clothing I’ve seen in a long time. Excluding the horrible jump suit (that I hope will be improved SOON), I completely loved the level of detail put into MechWarrior Online.

 

MWO Review Graphics

Controls

Controlling a mech can be hard. There are a lot of variables you need to pay attention to, such as someone trying to shoot you with lasers. Fortunately, Piranha seems to be doing their best to make it as easy as possible. WASD along with mouse will be used for your movement and aiming. By default, movement is done in a traditional FPS/TPS fashion, where you need to hold W to keep going forward. However, this is not the way a mech was meant to be piloted, and it is often suggested that you turn off this feature in favor of the “increment” system where you can set your speed and not have to worry about holding down W to maintain it.

 

One thing that a lot of people who haven’t played a MechWarrior game in the past will have trouble getting used to is the difference between torso rotation and leg rotation. Where your torso is aimed won’t always be where your legs are facing. If you’ve played games like World of Tanks, you’ll be more used to this concept. Other than that, the only thing you will probably have a lot of difficulty with is weapon grouping, where you set weapons up in groups so you don’t immediately cause a meltdown when you fire them all at once. Heat management is important and setting up efficient groupings of weapons for individual fire can help a great deal – I suggest you get a mouse with more than two buttons.

 

MWO Review Weapon Groups

Community

A majority of the MechWarrior Online community are MechWarrior enthusiast who have been playing these games since the beginning. They love mechs and have spent hundreds, if not thousands, of hours with them in one form or another. Luckily, a lot of them are extremely friendly and helpful, which means you’ve got access to all their knowledge to help you learn the game. I was completely surprised at how great and friendly this community was and I am happy I got to be a part of it. Out of all the matches I played, I’ve only run into a handful of bad apples and they were quickly put down by the others in the match and we all got a laugh from it.

 

 

Gameplay

Epic mech versus mech action. That’s what MechWarrior Online is all about, and that’s what it delivers. I’m borderline fanboying at this point, but the game (at least in concept) deserves it. I’ll be one of those that has to admit that Piranha has had a couple of screw ups, and features aren’t coming out as fast as people (such as myself) would like. However, the fact that you get to play in the MechWarrior universe with thousands of other people (in arena-type matches, mind you), battling it out in massive robots that contain immense destructive power is fantastic.

 

MWO Review Fight

 

Currently there are two types of matches, one where each team has a base and the goal is to capture the enemy base while protecting your own or destroying all enemies. The other is a capture the point type game where there are multiple bases around the map and the goal is to hold them and accumulate points to win the match. There are eight or so maps, some with alternatives such as night time or snowy, to play these matches on. The end goal is to create a map conquest campaign where you play these matches for a chance to take control of territory for whatever faction you’re a part of, or whichever faction has hired you or your merc corp to fight for them. That is the feature I’m looking most forward to.

 

MWO Review CTP Map

 

As I mentioned in the pro’s, it’s possible to disable or destroy individual parts of a mech. For example, you can destroy an enemy mech’s leg and slow them down immensely, possibly blowing up some ammo in the process as it’s a popular place to store ammo on some mechs. If you destroy a part of a mech, whatever other components are on that part of the mech are also gone, be it weapons, ammo, heatsinks or jumpjets. This is great as it makes combat a lot more tactical and intense, while you try to destroy a specific part of the enemy to take them out as quickly as possible, while at the same time you’re doing your best to reduce your damage. While being shot at, you might try twitching your torso in different directions to spread out the damage instead of having it all concentrated in one spot, or maybe you want it to be concentrated in one area that has thicker armor than other parts of your mech.

 

MWO Review Destroyed Component

Nothing like blowing the arm off of a mech that is double your size, crippling his damage out-put.

 

Conclusion

MechWarrior Online has almost everything I’ve been looking for in a mech game. Ever since I played ChromeHounds back on the original xbox I’ve been searching for a similar game. The epic battles that can be found in MWO fit the bill almost perfectly. Things are looking up in terms of development, too. If you need a new mech game and Hawken isn’t doing it for you, be sure to check this out.

 

Features: 3/5 – What’s there is fun, but more can be done.

Customization: 5/5 – They didn’t skimp on giving us customization options and it’s great.

Graphics: 4/5 – Simply stunning, though there are a couple of places that need improvement.

Controls: 5/5 – Perfect and exactly what I expect from previous experiences with MW games.

Community: 5/5 – A great community that is quite mature.

 

Overall: 4/5 – Piranha pulled off a lot with MWO, and it’s been a very fun experience.

 

Shotgun News 9/30: The Phoenix Project and EA Studio Closure

By Shannon Doyle, OnRPG News Editor

City of Heroes Spiritual Successor Announces New Name and Kickstarter Event

Missing Worlds Media announced today that The Phoenix Project will officially be called City of Titans. Development on City of Titans began December of 2012 with a completely volunteer studio. The Kickstarter for the project had originally been planned for September but was delayed so a gameplay video could be created. The launch date of the Kickstarter event is now set for Wednesday October 2nd.

 

EA Closes North Carolina Studio

It has been reported that EA has closed a small studio in North Carolina that focused on casual free to play and mobile games. The studio’s last game was Monopoly Hotels for iOS. Most of the studio has been offered a job elsewhere in EA.

MicroVolts Surge Expansion Now Live

MicroVolts Group Image

Rock Hippo Productions has announced the biggest update yet for MicroVolts, the free-to-play cartoon-style third-person shooter, now available and free to download. MicroVolts Surge brings several important changes and tons of highly anticipated new features, bringing the game to a whole new level in terms of community and competition. Many of these features were implemented as a direct result of player feedback going back to the initial launch of MicroVolts. Going above and beyond what the community expected was the main goal of this project, and now you can see for yourself the fruit of that labour at www.MicroVolts.com.

The first thing players will notice is a brand new user interface that is more intuitive to navigate and better displays game information. Controls are now even more customisable, allowing players to perform at their best.

MV-Surge-Screenshots17

The cornerstone of MicroVolts Surge is a new in-game community area. The Plaza is a safe haven for players to recharge their batteries and make new allies. Here, communication is all about body language with the introduction of an emote feature. And there are many other surprises around every corner of The Plaza, so it would be wise to explore it thoroughly.

Kai, the first new character to be introduced since the game’s launch brings a much needed fresh face to the scene. His first set of rare parts includes the law enforcing Sheriff and the proud warrior Ronin outfits.

Probably the most common request from the player community was to rework the game balance to increase the skill level required for competitive play. MicroVolts Surge makes a huge leap in terms of game balance with across the board weapon adjustments, defensive stats, new features, and system overhauls.

MV-Surge-Screenshots03

Of course, competition is much more satisfying when you play against opponents that can provide a genuine challenge, and even more so when fighting alongside your friends. This is what the new matchmaking and party grouping features bring to MicroVolts players. Daily Missions are also now a part of the MicroVolts Surge experience as dedicated players are provided with new challenges every single day.

Last but not least, is an update to the weapon upgrade system which allows weapons to reach a new max level of 9. This is an energy intensive process, so players will need to collect as many batteries as possible during their battles. These powerful upgrades also come with new visual effects to better show off their levels.

Marvel Heroes Gets Legendary with Game Update 1.3

Luke Cage Classic

Today, Marvel Heroes is getting legendary with one of its largest updates yet in Game Update 1.3. This latest game update includes a tremendous amount of content including a new Hero, Prestige Mode, the Hero Synergy System, Legendary Quests and much more:

  • Luke Cage – Players can now jump into the action as the near invulnerable Luke Cage. With super strength, unbreakable skin, and the ability to summon Heroes for Hire teammates, Luke Cage brings an all new play style.
  • Prestige Mode – Players can now prove that they are the very best with Prestige Mode. After reaching the max level of 60, players have the option to restart at level 1 for the bragging rights of being a Prestige hero. Prestige heroes will be clearly visible to others with an exclusive color used in their name.
  • Hero Synergy System – Each hero now unlocks account-wide synergy bonuses at levels 25 and 50 that can be equipped on any hero.  Since every hero can equip up to ten synergy bonuses, including Hulk’s health bonus and Spider-Man’s increased chance to dodge, players now have access to more hero customization than ever before!
  • Legendary Quests – Odin himself, All-Father of Asgard, is tasking heroes with new legendary quests! Completing these quests not only rewards the best experience in the game but also allows players to craft Legendary Blessings for their artifacts and more!

A full list of new updates can be found here. Along with these major updates, the new enhanced costume, Lady Deadpool, is also now available for purchase at the in-game store.

Comic ConQuest

Comic ConQuest is a party-based tactical RPG designed for web, iOS, and Android with a planned early 2014 release. Players have found themselves in a comic con gone wrong: costumed fans attending a local con are trapped inside the convention center, transformed into the characters they’re cosplaying as by a mysterious villain known as The Hoarder. Their cotton capes, cardboard swords and plastic plasma rifles have all become real, along with a host of super (or not-so-super) powers.

Features:

Amazing Comic-Style Art: Emmy-award winner and well-known comic artist Jeff Matsuda brings his distinctive style to the game!

Extensive Customization: Change up your costume, tweak your abilities, and upgrade your booth to provide your character with special powers!

Monthly Content Updates: New maps, exclusive items, celebrity villains, and a whole lot more!

In-Game Trivia and Previews: Outwit your opponents with your vast knowledge of all things geeky, or take a break and watch the latest trailers and exclusive content in this virtual con.

Arena of Heroes Preview

By W.B. Wemyss (Tagspeech)

Arena Of Heroes Preview 1

Arena of Heroes is now in open beta, and is essentially a turn-based DOTA game that pits players against one another through matchmaking. With the recent announcement that PWE would be picking up the title as one of our mobile line launch games, I was given the assignment to check how ready Sneaky Games was for the big time. Individuals are expected to use the game’s premium currency to unlock new skins and new characters, much like League of Legends and similar titles.  The big difference here is, once again, that the game is both turn-based and squad-based – individual matches feel more like a game of wacky chess than anything else.

 

The character roster is colorful, but initially limited.  Players are able to increase levels and earn rewards through gaining fame, which is awarded after victories.  The game fortunately allows for a lengthy tutorial and plenty of practice matches, but some players may find the game’s slow-pace and unusual approach to competition a bit off-putting.  This is certainly going to be a niche title.  And fans of anthropomorphic animal people wearing human clothes will certainly enjoy the game, because there’s plenty of that.  There’s even a mole person with beefy forearms who smashes things, has terrifyingly bushy armpit hair, and wears John Lennon glasses.  Truly, there’s something for everyone in Arena of Heroes.

Arena Of Heroes Preview 2

More on that: it’s just difficult for me to imagine who this game is targeted to.  If it’s targeting the turn-based strategy fans, then why use such a limited system?  As it stands, the game feels like someone took an RTS strategy game and shoehorned in a turn-based element.  I don’t know who would enjoy that.  As a big fan of squad-based strategy games like XCOM, on paper I should like this kind of thing, but the lack of a coherent grid for planning movement and attacks feels strange.  There simply needs to be more to it than this, like actual cover mechanics or using terrain to one’s advantage.

 

It’s difficult to do that when attack ranges are so limited.  Normally I’d be the kind of person to play a more patient, defensive game when it comes to turn-based strategy, but even my “sniper” couldn’t attack beyond a stone’s throw distance.  He had an overwatch mode (allowing him to attack the first enemy that comes into his attack range) but again, limited range, and limited only to that character.  All in all, the game just feels plodding and confused, like it just doesn’t know what it’s trying to accomplish with itself.

Arena Of Heroes Preview 3

Why not just create yet another active, MOBA/DOTA style of game wherein players select their favored hero, jump into an arena, and go nuts?  This one vs. one squad-based stuff is for a real niche of patient, older gamers who are more likely to actually play something like chess, Civilization, or another cerebral strategy game in their spare time.  Therefore, the question has to be asked, why don’t those players just go off and play those games instead of Arena of Heroes?  Why exactly, in this era of extreme competition, would I want to play Arena of Heroes?  Perhaps these questions will never be answered.

 

The simple fact of the matter is, a turn-based game is generally the approach you take when you want your combat system and gameplay to have a great deal of realism or complexity.  But the whimsical nature of the characters, setting, and combat in this game seems like it was designed for a more active, action-y title than what Arena of Heroes currently is.  There’s just so much clashing and confusion.  You may be wondering, “Tagspeech, I’m hearing a lot of complaints.  Didn’t you enjoy anything in the open beta of this game?”

Arena of Heroes Preview 4

To that, my answer is this:  No.  But I’m just one person.  Sure, I may not be the kind of person who obsessively enjoys matchmaking PVP strategy games, but I know plenty of people do.  And sure, maybe I’m not the biggest fan of whimsical, goofy characters; but plenty of people are.  I can’t speak for the entirety of the gaming community, but that still leaves the fact that I am struggling to figure out who this game is for.

 

So, it’s too early to tell exactly how successful the game is going to be upon official release, it has been garnering a bit of attention from tired DOTA and LoL fans who are looking for a change of pace.  The whimsical character roster (a hillbilly rabbit with a minigun, anyone?) and easy-to-use matchmaking system are its best points, but so far it seems that the game needs a little extra ‘oomph’ in the combat to make it more engaging for a wide audience.  If they want it to be a niche title, then they’re going to have to make the combat a lot more complex and tactical.  Either way, serious decisions need to be made by the game’s developers, or Arena of Heroes won’t attract (and keep) enough attention to stay afloat.

 

Tagspeech is the alias of author W.B. Wemyss, who was responsible for the bizarre cyberpunk fever dream called Children of Athena