Monthly Archives: September 2014

The Repopulation: End of August Report and Testing Update

The Repopulation

The Repopulation team has released their monthly report, along with a testing update. All players who have previously participated in testing with a one or two weekend pass, have now been given permanent 24/7 testing access. Next week we will grant access to every remaining Round 1 backer, with a looser timeline that will see all backers gain access by the end of the year.

The report also touches on the major additions this month which include: Open World PvE Housing, Minigames, and Player Created Tournaments, along with a complete build log for the month.

You can read the full article at the following link: https://therepopulation.com/index.php/news/171-end-of-august-2014-report

Jagged Alliance: Flashback – Official Launch Date Announced

Jagged Alliance

Today Full Control announced the official launch date for Jagged Alliance: Flashback as October 21st, 2014. This news comes bundled with the new Tactical Overload update for the game in Early Access, which enhances the game’s tactical combat. Currently in Early Access on Steam, Jagged Alliance: Flashback is the newest game to be released in the popular Jagged Alliance franchise and features deep turn-based tactics with role-playing elements and squad management. Visit http://store.steampowered.com/app/256010 to enjoy the new ‘Tactical Overload’ features and content today!

Jagged Alliance: Flashback Tactical Overload update features:

  • Melee Combat
  • Stealth & Hearing System
  • Quickslots
  • Interrupts & View Cones
  • UI Overhaul
  • New Mercenaries & new Sectors

For more info, visit http://www.jaggedallianceflashback.com

Redwater Hills: New Post-Apocalyptic Zombie-Slaying MMO Available

Redwater Hills

The Undead have risen to stalk the world, and publisher of free-to-play games GameSpree unveils its brand new Post-Apocalyptic strategy MMO “Redwater Hills”.

By 2030, humanity had embraced technological implants and cyber-enhancements as a natural step of its evolution. Strength-servos, memory-disks, translators and sight-enhancing cyber-eyes are commonplace; humans have transformed themselves thanks to a new wave of technology.

But all this came at a huge price! Redwater Hills takes place 3 years after ‘Zombification Day’, a technological disaster in 2031. A cataclysmic computer-virus reprograms most humans into shambling corpses driven by some inhuman hatred.

Only small groups of Survivors remain, each one with a colorful and interesting backstory to explain how they avoided the ‘Fall’. Your task is to establish a safe-enclave and recruit these crazy characters. Build a base of scavenged materials and manage your Survivors whilst fending off the shambling hordes and rival players!

Redwater Hills is unique in its approach to troop-management. Recruit from a large variety of unique Survivors, each with their own fighting-style and weaponry. Assign roles and juggle the risk of sending out a strong-raiding party at the expense of a weakly-defended base. Raiding and attacking brings more than resource rewards…find materials that can be crafted into dozens of weapons or armor to improve your Survivors effectiveness in battle.

Redwater Hills is a dangerous and dynamic world. Action takes place on a large world map where players can raid rival camps and colonize and defend abandoned farms and factories to provide a boost to their resource production. Every few days a new Round begins and the strongest players pack up Camp and move slightly closer to the safe-haven ‘Redwater Hills’, ensuring competition remains intense and fair as players are grouped by their Power score.

To find out more about the game and play, visit: redwaterhills.gamespree.com

Wakfu: Available on Steam September 18th

ANKAMA today announced that the tactical MMORPG WAKFU is coming to Steam on Sept. 18 in select countries*, including the U.S.

The current closed beta for WAKFU will end on Sept. 16. Beta players will keep their progression and items acquired throughout the testing phase; there will be no server wipe. To thank the closed beta players, a special item inspired by the Valve universe will be available.

To start the WAKFU adventure on Steam, a limited number of closed beta keys are available at:

http://steamcommunity.com/app/215080/discussions/1/34096318671760505/

Players can redeem the code on Steam and start playing now, but once the codes are gone, they’ll have to wait until the official launch on Sept. 18.

More information about WAKFU can be found on the official website: www.WAKFU.com

Rappelz: Masquerade Expansion Now Available

Rappelz

WEBZEN, a global developer and publisher of online games, announces the release of Rappelz newest expansion, “Epic 9.1: Masquerade” on European and American markets. The expansion, named by the Rappelz community, welcomes a new dungeon, new equipment, increased character level and many improvements.

Starting today, players with a WEBZEN account will have the opportunity to download the Epic 9.1: Masquerade update and delve into the Pitch-Black Woods to take on the enemies of the Circus of Red Spiders.

Characters from level 160 and above will face the new creatures of the somber circus, before encountering the three new bosses: Lillis, Mephisto and the Soul of Lunacy. The adventurers can challenge themselves as the dungeon contains four levels of difficulty and offers new equipment, accessories boss cards and ten types of Soul Creatures to be tamed for the successful players.

Masquerade includes as well character level increase to 180, job level increase to 60, nine new daily quests rewarding players with coins, allowing them to buy exclusive costumes for their characters. Along with the new content, many improvements have been applied in this expansion: class skills and job balancing and interface enhancement to name a few.

For more info, visit http://rappelz.webzen.com/

Runescape: Fan secures all expenses paid trip to annual convention

Runescape

Jagex, makers of the multi-award winning fantasy MMORPG, RuneScape, is delighted to report on the continued success of RuneScape Bonds, one year after the game introduced the ‘pay through play’ initiative. Since their launch, Bonds have allowed players to access premium membership content, exchange them with other community members for in-game items and wealth, and gift them to friends anywhere in the world.

This year, trading Bonds for real-world benefits has been greatly expanded upon; Aaron James and one of his friends from Missouri, United States, are the first RuneScape players to use Bonds to fund every aspect of their transatlantic trip to this year’s RuneFest fan convention, which takes place on Saturday 11th October at London’s Tobacco Dock. The two exchanged their Bonds for flights to and from the UK, a hotel room, a RuneFest ticket each, and spending money – Crystal Coins – for the event itself, all without spending a single cent of real world money!

“I cannot describe the relief and realisation that our dream of coming to the UK and to RuneFest is going to happen. Without being able to buy the flight, hotel, and crystal coins with Bonds, this was never going to be realistic for us because it would be too expensive,” said Aaron James, from Missouri, United States. “We’re just tremendously excited, and looking forward to meeting the J-Mods and some of our fellow RuneScape players next month.”

Since their September 2013 debut, around 2.3 million Bonds have been purchased; more than 80 percent of those Bonds have been redeemed for membership, with 27.6 million membership days obtained to date. The introduction of Bonds also had a swift and dramatic effect on the levels of gold-farming in the game, which plummeted by 81 percent within weeks, and also helped bring a more stable in-game economy for players. Over the past year, more than 316.5 billion in-game gold pieces have been sunk into Bond trades by the community.

“Our community responded fantastically to the introduction of Bonds a year ago, which resulted in many millions of Bonds being purchased and redeemed. A year later, nearly 20% of RuneScape players pay for their membership subscription through their in-game efforts and half of the premium RuneCoin currency comes from bond redemptions”, said Phil Mansell, vice president of RuneScape. “This has also helped bring greater stability to the game economy, and has reduced incidents of gold farming and botting to an all-time low.”

For more info, visit www.RuneScape.com

Magicka: Wizard Wars – New Map and Referral Program Available

Magicka

Paradox Interactive and Paradox North today announced that Magicka: Wizard Wars, the online spellcasting action player-vs-player (PvP) game where robed lunatics toy with nature, has introduced a third map to its rotating arsenal of 4v4 battlegrounds. Displacement Ridge offers sizzling spellcasters a new area to immolate opponents (and sometimes teammates) but there’s something special about this particular place—it is home to multiple teleporters that can zip players across the map. Wizards will need to formulate creative strategies to win in this forested arena lest they become one with the Earth.

Wizard Wars is now providing exclusive rewards to Wizards who recruit unwary new players into the Magicka fray. Now currently enjoyed by over half a million players, Magicka: Wizard Wars is encouraging those players to invite their friends to come and experience their first “accidental” electro-immolation, and earn delightful new robes in the process.

Players can start referring to themselves as referrers here: https://www.wizardwars.com/refer-a-friend

Alongside the referral program, Wizard Wars has recently introduced Daily Treasure Chests which grant Wizards new rewards every single day. When opening a chest, players have the chance to nab additional coins for in-game purchases, crystals to unlock new Magicks, or even the rare chance to win a new, random robe. On top of all this, Wizard Wars in the last couple months has added a plethora of in-game items, including new staffs and weapons, so log into Wizard Wars daily and get cool stuff!

For more details on the rewards, or for information on Magicka: Wizard Wars, visit wizardwars.com.

Star Conflict Launches on PC and Oculus Rift (DK2)

Star Conflict

Today Star Gem, Inc and Gaijin Entertainment announced the release of Star Conflict 1.0 with its highly anticipated ‘Invasion Mode’. To celebrate this occasion, all players are invited to join the launch event which, for one week, tasks players to join the battle to defend their home bases against an alien onslaught. The more alien spaceships vanquished the bigger the reward for all, so don’t hold back and start kicking some alien butt! Star Conflict is also now playable with Oculus Rift DK2, so the owners of this device can enjoy space battles in breathtaking stereoscopic 3D and with positional tracking.

Now publicly available, the new “Invasion Mode” features an underlying story in which an alien race invades human-controlled space. Star Conflict players must team up in parties of four to explore the new ‘Open Space’ areas and combine forces as they take on new quests and engage in PvP and PvE battles. With materials salvaged during exploration, gamers will be able to craft unique armor, guns and even whole new spaceships.

“We are proud to launch Star Conflict 1.0 today and want to thank our players for their support and feedback. Anyone who participated in Open Beta will get a special achievement. But release of 1.0 version is just the beginning of a lot more content to come”, said Stanislav Skorb, Director of Star Gem. “Coming soon are dreadnoughts – large corporate battleships that the community have been clamoring for – as well as PvE raids, conquest of sectors in open space, new events and locations for exploration and session-based portions of the game and much more”.

Find out more about Star Conflict here: http://star-conflict.com

PAX Prime 2014 Day 2 Recap

By Darren Henderson (DizzyPW), PAX Pox Victim

 

AurinWildStarPAXPrime2014

Day 2 of the show saw some of worst weather I’ve encountered in five years of working PAX. Cosplayers were tramping each other running for cover to protect their flimsier props from deteriorating as the convention center broke every fire ordinance imaginable with record numbers of attendees shuffling from booth to booth only to be disappointed by one “line at capacity” sign after another. It was clearly time to take to the streets to dodge the insanity of PAX, and at the nearby Grand Hyatt hotel we stumbled onto a gem that just may be our game of the show.

PAXPrime2014Cosplay

 

Contents

Shadow Realms

ZMR -Threshold Defense

Riot Games – League of Legends

2k Games – Civilization: Beyond Earth

Wargaming – World of Warships PvE Mode Preview

Cosplay and Bonus Pictures Round 2

Don’t miss out on our Day 1 coverage of PAX for more cosplay and coverage!

PAX Prime 2014 Day 1 Recap

By Darren Henderson (DizzyPW), Cranky Old Man

 

SwimsuitAhriPax

I’ve been doing this for far too long I tell you. Year after year you get more empty promises from developers and more poorly planned press meetings than you can shake your cane at. If not for the beautiful cosplayers I might have given up already. So clearly I flew into Seattle on Wednesday with dread in my heart. Yet as much as try to suppress it, I still get butterflies in my stomach. Hard to deny hope sometimes. That this year just might be the one to break the MMO industry wide open. That the Indie Megabooth would be coming in at full force with some great titles. Well if our first day of coverage is any indicator, the next two years of gaming won’t have the quantity of titles that the golden ages of free to play gaming had, but it sure will have some serious quality! So begins the yearly tale of recapping DizzyPW’s adventures in PAX Prime.

 

Day1RecapPAXPrime

Trion Worlds – ArcheAge

Motiga – Gigantic

Trion Worlds – RIFT: The Nightmare Tide

Carbine – WildStar: The Defile

Bonus Page: Cosplay & More

Don’t miss Day 2 of our Coverage, now live!