Call of Duty: Vanguard offers an unexpectedly strong advantage with the Perk “Forward Intel”. This Perk allows you to see exactly where your enemies spawn, providing the perfect opportunity to take them out without a fight. How this looks in the game, you can find out here on MeinMMO!
What kind of Perk is this? It is the Perk “Forward Intel” from the multiplayer mode of CoD Vanguard. On paper, this Perk doesn’t sound very spectacular. It increases the size of the displayed minimap and shows indicators for “enemy reinforcements”.
“Forward Intel” shows enemy spawns
What does this mean? At first glance, it doesn’t sound particularly exciting. But the Perk has a lot to offer. It shows exactly where an enemy has just spawned, with its own icon. With this Perk, you will no longer be surprised by freshly spawned enemies.
The spawn flip, the time when enemies spawn in different locations on the map during an ongoing game, can also be easily noticed.
How powerful is the Perk in the game? The famous CoD expert and streamer JGOD demonstrates how powerful the Perk and its advantages are in-game. He is known for his detailed analyses and statistics in CoD games, and he impressively shows in a video how powerful the Perk is in the hands of a top player.
Knowing the map very well, JGOD can almost predict where the freshly spawned enemies will run, determining their position in advance and easily eliminating them.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
The poor souls have no idea what is happening to them as JGOD takes them out from a distance or ambushes them at well-known chokepoints. For JGOD, the Perk is an absolute must and quite overpowered.
Especially since the Perk was not represented in this form in the Vanguard beta. There, it only showed a larger map.
But those who know the predecessor Cold War probably already know the powerful Perk, as it worked similarly there.
What do you think of the powerful Perk? Do you use it as effectively and lethally as JGOD? Or do you think the Perk is not that powerful and prefer to use other abilities in the game? Let us know in the comments.
If you also want to know about the OP weapon attachment, you can read about it in this article on MeinMMO.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The launch of New World was more than bumpy, with queues, bugs, exploits, and issues in the economy. While player numbers continue to decline, there have been many positive threads about the development of the MMO in recent days. Even the streamer shroud praises the latest update.
What’s going on with New World right now? New World hit over 910,000 players at launch weekend, but has since lost a large portion of that. On Sunday, November 7, the new MMO had nearly 307,000 concurrent players (via SteamDB).
Additionally, Amazon is still hesitating to release a roadmap for the future of New World. However, that would provide some certainty and an outlook on when and how things will progress. That’s why we at MeinMMO find such a roadmap so important:
Due to these events and the declining player numbers, many are already predicting the death of New World.
However, on reddit and Twitch, there is now a larger number of players advising skeptics to give New World (another) try. They especially praise the latest patch and the current communication from Amazon.
Start video
New World reveals a new cinematic trailer for gameplay
Patch 1.0.5 and the outlook for November create a positive atmosphere
Why should you “return” to New World? User Tummlerr created the thread “Come back to New World” over the weekend (via reddit). In it, he says:
The game is now much, much better than this sub would describe. Even those who complain the most about bugs have played more than 300 hours and written negative flame posts on one screen while killing mobs on the other.
The last patch was great. If you left the game, come back.
The thread received over 3,500 upvotes and thus remained high on the front page of the subreddit for a long time.
In the comments, many agree with the statements about the latest patch. With Update 1.0.5, important changes were made, including fixes for perks and passive effects, balance adjustments, and a reduction in the costs of gold and Azoth.
Also, the communication from Amazon, which has been evident in recent weeks, is well received by players. They have talked about bans, the first major patch in November, and player wishes like mounts.
I feel like they really turned the curve with the last patch. I mean, yes, it’s good. The updates are generally good. The November patch is going to be really good in a few weeks. It’s going to be incredible. […].
Once they finally fix all the bugs, they can start creating content.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitch that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Is everything really good now? No, there are still some issues. In the reddit thread, some criticize that New World still offers too little variety. Especially the areas from level 30 to 50 are considered very exhausting and monotonous. Amazon has not changed anything about that so far.
In addition, there are still numerous bugs, including the display error with “0 %,” issues with various AoE abilities, and houses and items in houses that simply disappear.
Furthermore, Amazon has not announced any new content, only bug fixes and “quality of life” changes. Therefore, some see no reason to return to New World.
What do you think about New World right now? Are you still actively playing or are you done with the MMO for the time being? Feel free to write it in the comments.
Finally, the developers have allowed an add-on for the minimap. This indirectly solved a problem that some players had with New World:
Also, the communication from Amazon, which has been evident in recent weeks, is well received by players. They have talked about bans, the first major patch in November, and player wishes like mounts.
I feel like they really turned the curve with the last patch. I mean, yes, it’s good. The updates are generally good. The November patch is going to be really good in a few weeks. It’s going to be incredible. […].
Once they finally fix all the bugs, they can start creating content.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitch that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Is everything really good now? No, there are still some issues. In the reddit thread, some criticize that New World still offers too little variety. Especially the areas from level 30 to 50 are considered very exhausting and monotonous. Amazon has not changed anything about that so far.
In addition, there are still numerous bugs, including the display error with “0 %,” issues with various AoE abilities, and houses and items in houses that simply disappear.
Furthermore, Amazon has not announced any new content, only bug fixes and “quality of life” changes. Therefore, some see no reason to return to New World.
What do you think about New World right now? Are you still actively playing or are you done with the MMO for the time being? Feel free to write it in the comments.
Finally, the developers have allowed an add-on for the minimap. This indirectly solved a problem that some players had with New World:
For FIFA 22, the TOTW 8 (Team of the Week) is scheduled for next Wednesday. At MeinMMO, you will find out which players might be included in the new Team of the Week. Neymar and Goretzka have good chances.
What is the Team of the Week? Every week, EA assembles a new TOTW. This team consists of 23 players who stood out with strong performances during the past football weekend.
For this, they receive a spot in the Team of the Week and improved Inform cards, which can be found for one week in packs .
These are TOTW Predictions: In the TOTW Predictions, we present forecasts for the new TOTW from the FUT community. The performances of the players are closely examined, and predictions are made.
However, it is important to note that the predictions do not guarantee the final Team of the Week 8.
Leon Goretzka already has a very strong Gold card and could receive an even better TOTW card this week. His strong performance in the 2-1 victory against SC Freiburg speaks for it.
In the 2-1 victory of RB Leipzig against Borussia Dortmund, Christopher Nkunku was clearly the Man of the Match. He had a really strong game and was able to score a goal and provide an assist. Good arguments for a place in the next TOTW.
What do you think of the predictions for TOTW 8? Which player should definitely be in the new Team of the Week? Let us know in the comments!
If you want to improve in FIFA 22 and are looking for some tips, then check this out:
Healers play an important role in New World once it comes to group content. You need healers for expeditions, world events, and of course in instanced PvP content. MeinMMO editor Alexander Leitsch shows you a PvE and a PvP build that will welcome you with open arms in any group.
What are these builds? The two healer builds we present here are mainly designed for group content. While you can level up in the open world with them, you will take significantly longer than if you focus directly on damage.
I myself have already played the healer variant in PvE and have been recommended the PvP build.
The completed skill trees that you see embedded as images come from the website nwdb.info, which already has a tool for creating builds.
Who is speaking here? Alexander Leitsch is the MMORPG expert on MeinMMO. He has invested thousands of hours into games like Guild Wars 2, Black Desert, and ESO. In New World, he has already reached over 800 hours of gameplay and has been able to spend several hours in-game after the release.
[toc]
Life Staff and Ice Gauntlet – PvE (and optionally PvP)
Why is this combo played? The Life Staff is considered the ultimate healing weapon. Both the abilities and the various passive effects emphasize healing yourself or allies. Ideal, therefore, if you want to play as a healer in a group.
The Ice Gauntlet, on the other hand, serves to increase your party’s damage, slow down enemies, or make you invulnerable. It is only a supplement, as your primary playstyle focuses on the Life Staff.
The great thing about this build is that it is playable in both PvE and PvP. However, in PvP, the focus of your playstyle is more on utilizing the Ice Gauntlet and freezing enemies to keep them at bay. In this guide, we primarily describe the PvE playstyle.
How do I distribute the attributes? The focus of the build is on healing, so you invest your points in focus. Remaining points go into constitution for a bit more defense.
Which skills do I use with the Life Staff?
Blessed Ground
Beacon
Embrace of Light
Your first skill point is invested in the healer tree in the passive Absolution, so you have no mana costs on attacks. After that, you go into the Protector tree. There, you unlock the abilities Beacon and Embrace of Light.
Generally, you heal with the Life Staff by attacking enemies. This happens through the passive of Touch of Bliss from the healer tree. It is also important that you and your allies stand in the ability Blessed Ground, as they receive additional healing from all sources there.
Moreover, the passive ability Divine Blessing at the very end of the healer tree is important. This allows you to heal allies who are below 50% health even more effectively.
Which skills do I use with the Ice Gauntlet?
Ice Storm
Ice Spike
Ice Tomb
The Ice Gauntlet primarily serves to increase the damage of you and your group, and also offers a “panic skill” with the Ice Tomb, through which you can make yourself invulnerable and regenerate mana.
Through the ability Ice Storm combined with the passive Weakening Gale, your group’s damage against targets increases, as well as with Ice Spike and the passive Icy Shower, which reduces enemies’ defenses.
What does the equipment look like? In PvE, you primarily go for light or medium gear. Important for you is the diamond gem in the Life Staff, which increases your damage and healing as long as you have full health.
In PvP, however, you should opt for medium or even heavy armor to withstand more damage from enemies.
What does the rotation of skills look like? In general, you should stand such that your allies are between you and the enemy. You start with the Life Staff, which you mainly use.
At the start, it is important that you utilize your passive ability Intensification. To do this, you need to execute 3 strong attacks, which noticeably increases your healing. To maintain the 3 stacks, you need to land a strong attack every 10 seconds. Also, through the dodge roll, you passively increase your healing, so you should use that from time to time.
After that, you apply the ability Blessed Ground on your tank or in your group and use the ability Beacon. From then on, Beacon can be used permanently on cooldown.
Through the passive Revitalization, your cooldowns are reduced whenever you execute a light attack. Since you heal with light attacks too, your primary task is to attack.
If the health of your allies is running low, use the ability Embrace of Light and definitely roll out beforehand to ensure you have maximum healing.
What about the Ice Gauntlet? You primarily use it when your group is so stable that healing is not needed, but rather more damage is required. Here, especially Ice Storm is useful, as it increases your damage and that of your group.
Additionally, you have the ability Ice Tomb, through which you can make yourself invulnerable in case of emergency and regenerate mana.
Life Staff and Sword+Shield – PvP (and optionally Open World)
Why is this combo played? Even in PvP, the Life Staff is the perfect weapon for healing allies.
However, you will be more often in focus here. Enemy players will specifically target healers, or you might suddenly land directly in several AoE fields or a trap. For this, the Sword+Shield works well to increase your defense and also to fend off in melee.
This build is primarily designed for PvP content, but can also be used in the Open World, for example for duels or world events. For dungeons, however, we recommend the build presented above.
How do I distribute the attributes? You also focus primarily on the value focus with this build. As a supplement, you take constitution to increase your health points.
Which skills do I use with the Life Staff?
Blessed Ground
Protection Sphere
Beacon
In general, this healer build also allows you to heal allies through attacks and your abilities. Compared to the upper build, however, your healing power is somewhat lower to instead ensure your survival.
Thus, you skill the passive Defensive Light, through which you gain mana when you successfully block. Additionally, this time you take the Haste from the ability Beacon.
With the abilities, you swap Embrace of Light for Protection Sphere. This brings a buff, providing less incoming damage preventively instead of the healing from Embrace of Light.
Which skills do I use with Sword+Shield?
Shield Bash
Shield Charge
Defensive Stance
With the sword, you focus entirely on the Defender tree. Here you skill the abilities Shield Charge, Shield Bash, and Defensive Stance. Passive abilities also play an important role here to ensure your survival.
Thus you skill Robust Shield, which passively gives you 15% more armor, Elemental Resistance, which reduces damage from magic by 10%, and Valor, which automatically grants you 10% additional health points when holding a sword.
Defensive Stance is your most defensive skill, as it reduces incoming damage.
You only skill one passive ability in the Swordmaster tree. With Achilles’ Heel, you can slow enemies down when you need to flee from them.
What does the equipment look like? You go entirely for heavy armor to survive in the midst of the fray.
What does the rotation of skills look like? This is generally harder to say in PvP. However, it still holds that you should generally stand such that allies are between you and the enemy. Then you heal them passively through attacks.
In this build, you should also again stack your Intensification through heavy attacks, and through the dodge roll increase your outgoing healing.
If you are besieged by enemies, you are now equipped for melee. With Shield Bash, you can stun an enemy and regain stamina, and you can jump away with Shield Charge. Defensive Stance reduces incoming damage and can secure your survival. Additionally, there is the buff Reinforcement when you successfully block.
All our guides to New World can be found in this overview:
Some players cannot start the campaign in CoD Vanguard or it is locked. We will show you how you might be able to fix the error.
What is it about? If you are among the people whose campaign in Call of Duty Vanguard is locked and does not start, we will show you a few quick tips here that could resolve the issue.
Update from November 8: We have updated the article with two additional solutions. Players have found a trick with language packs that has helped many in the community.
Campaign not working? Use these solutions on PC
Check this first: There are some basic settings and tests that you should ensure before delving into deeper troubleshooting.
Is your internet connection working?
If your PC does not have a proper connection to the Vanguard servers, problems can occur anywhere. So first, check if other games and programs that need the internet are functioning correctly.
Restart your Battle.net software
One of the easiest solutions is to restart the Battle.net app. Next to your Windows clock in the taskbar, you will find the blue Battle.net icon. Right-click on it and select “Exit” to close the software.
Restart your PC
Although it’s almost a meme, restarting the PC has solved many issues. It’s worth trying.
Use the troubleshooting feature in Battle.net
If none of this helps, you can try the Repair feature in Battle.net. For that, click on the Vanguard icon in the game overview. Next to the blue “Play” button, you will find a gear icon. Click on it and then select “Scan and Repair”.
If you select this feature, the Battle.net software will check your installation and re-download any missing or corrupted files.
Community solutions that help
Did none of this help? The topic of the locked campaign is big in the community, and players are discussing it in Blizzard forums.
“Is the campaign of Call of Duty: Vanguard locked? I cannot play it, and I have all the game content installed. Reinstalling the game does not fix the issue. I can play multiplayer and zombie mode, just not the campaign. […]” writes NKNOW in the Blizzard forums.
Two players also write about how they were able to solve the issue.
Modify installation: In the Battle.net launcher, you can also select the option “Modify Installation” from the gear icon shown at the top of the image. There, under “Game Content,” the entry “Campaign” should also be listed. If that is not the case, then select the modification option next to it and check the box for Campaign.
This is how the modification option for the campaign should look
The trick with the language change: As you can see in the screenshot, you can also change the language when modifying the installation. Many players report that changing the language unlocked the campaign. Download a new language pack and either play in the new language or switch back to the old language afterward. According to Blizzard forums, this trick helps some players.
More tips from the community:
“Yes, I had the same problem. For some reason, you can start the game when it is only 50% downloaded. You have to exit the game and download the rest. That helped me anyway,” writes bob in the Blizzard forums.
“It works for me now. I deleted the game and reinstalled it. But this time I let the game run in the background in the main menu while Campaign 1 and Campaign 2 were downloading. It took longer, but it worked for me,” explains TuNeMG in the Blizzard forums.
When installing, make sure not to immediately click “Play” as soon as the button appears, but while the game is still downloading. Then the files for the campaign may still be missing. Wait until the download is completely finished before starting the game.
In the fan festival stream, new information about the Endwalker expansion for Final Fantasy XIV was presented. We at MeinMMO will reveal everything about the release, the new jobs, and content to you.
Update from November 9: We have updated the article with new information from the 66th Producer’s Letter.
What does Endwalker offer? The new expansion is set to conclude the ongoing story of Final Fantasy XIV. However, the MMORPG will continue afterward, detached from Hydaelyn and Zodiark.
New content such as quests for collectors, NPC companions, and updates to housing
Male Viera as a new playable gender
New data centers in Oceania
Release of Endwalker
When does the expansion appear? The addon will be released on December 7, 2021. Pre-order players can play in early access starting December 3.
Initially, the expansion was supposed to be released on November 23. However, it was postponed by 2 weeks at short notice because director Yoshida wanted to ensure that the final quality checks were performed and everything was working properly. He issued an official statement with an apology:
PC players can test how well their PC is equipped for the Endwalker addon. In the official benchmark, you can try different settings, tweak the settings, and see how your PC performs under various conditions.
You also have the option to create a male Viera character. Male Viera are a novelty in Endwalker, as only the females have been playable so far.
Final Fantasy XIV has been available on PS5 since May 2021. It comes with various upgrades such as a 4K mode, faster loading times, and higher resolution of UI elements. Moreover, according to lead project manager Shoichi Matsuzawa, further graphical updates are planned for the future.
Players who already own the PS4 version receive a free upgrade. You can already play FFXIV on PS5, but only through backward compatibility.
This is the status of the Xbox version: The Xbox version of FFXIV was already confirmed by director Phil Spencer years ago. However, there has been no new information since then.
This is how you pre-order: The standard editions can already be pre-ordered. Pre-orders for the limited Collector’s Edition started on May 15 at 1:00 PM.
These are the pre-order bonuses:
Companion Palom
Menphina Earring
Early access to the Endwalker addon from November 19
These editions will be available: From Endwalker onwards, there will be no physical disks for FFXIV anymore, only digital downloads. So, you will not be able to buy a Blu-ray in the store. However, there will still be various editions. Here they are:
The Standard Edition includes the Endwalker addon
The Collector’s Box contains only the physical items from the Collector’s Edition. No in-game items, no in-game items. Players who buy Endwalker as a digital download and want the items from the physical Collector’s Edition can purchase this edition.
Digital Collector’s Edition includes the Endwalker addon and the in-game items Mount Arion, companion Porom, and Death Scythe
The pre-order bonuses are included with pre-ordering in all editions.
This is the Collector’s Edition: The contents of the CE of Endwalker are as follows:
With Endwalker, you will start your adventure in new areas. In the livestream, a number of areas have already been presented.
This is Thavnair: The city of Radz-at-Han is the capital on the island of Thavnair. This zone has a subtropical climate, and the job Dancer originally came from there. The areas are very colorful, and the architecture resembles that of India. As it is the home of the Dancers, there are statues depicting dancer heroes.
In the regions of Thavnair, you will encounter the wild tribe of the Arkasodara Matanga. These are elephant-like beings that live in Thavnair areas.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
This is Garlemald: The area of Garlemald is the capital of the empire that players have been fighting against since the release of FFXIV. The city is, however, completely destroyed and devastated. The player’s task is to find out what happened there and what Zenos and Fandaniel did to the inhabitants.
During the Endwalker press tour, MeinMMO author Irina Moritz was able to enter the area. As expected, total destruction reigned there. The area was overrun by monsters and non-beings, and only a few buildings and camps in the vicinity were not destroyed.
The city itself was completely devastated, and in its center, a huge red glowing tower rose high into the sky.
Screenshots of Garlemald from the Endwalker press tour.
This is Old Sharlayan: The city of scholars will be the new hub city, similar to the Crystarium in Shadowbringers. The members of the Scions of the Seventh Dawn are either originally from Sharlayan or were trained there.
One of the new areas of Old Sharlayan is called Labyrinthos, a mysterious place located underground. The sky inside is actually a dome illuminated by an artificial sun. You can have a look at it in the short trailer:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
This is Mare Lamentorum: This is an area on the moon that players will visit. Why there is gravity and oxygen on the moon, players will find out in the story. There, players will meet the new race of the Loporrits.
Although there is no specific information yet regarding the moon area Mare Lamentorum, director Yoshida revealed in an interview that players will not have to worry about oxygen or gravity there, as it will be the same as on the actual planet.
There is also a trailer for the area:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
This is the secret area: Additionally, the developers showed an artwork of a still secret new area. The name of this zone remains secret for now, as according to Yoshida it would be a significant spoiler.
It consists of several floating islands, where the ruins of a city are located. They are overgrown with plants and float far above the ground.
Some fans speculate that these are the ruins of the city of Amaurot, which could be admired in the Shadowbringers addon on the first shard world. The artwork would thus represent the actual remnants of the city on the source.
New Level Cap and Two New Jobs
The new expansion will raise the level cap from 80 to 90. At the same time, it will introduce two new jobs that you can utilize.
This is the Sage: The first will be the healer Sage:
He uses a new unique weapon called Noulith
With Endwalker, healers will be split into pure power healers and shield healers. The Sage will be a shield healer and will share this role with the Scholar
The starting level is 70
You do not need any class as a prerequisite
The starting quest that unlocks the job will be in the city of Limsa Lominsa
The core gameplay of the Sage is based on an interaction between healing and damage. When you attack, you can also heal at the same time, and when you give shields to your teammates, you gain the resource Addersting that you need for damage.
More detailed information about Sage gameplay and a dungeon run can be found in our preview from the Endwalker press tour:
This is the Reaper: The second job will be a melee fighter called Reaper.
He wields a scythe as a weapon
He is a melee fighter who draws his power from the world of darkness, the 13th shard of Hydaelyn
In battle, the Reaper can summon a non-being (avatar) to assist in combat
The starting level is 70
You do not need a class as a prerequisite
The Reaper is a classic melee fighter who, in addition to his normal base combo, also uses attacks from his avatar in combat. The highlight of the rotation is merging with the avatar during a brief burst phase, in which a lot of damage is dealt.
Detailed impressions and information about the gameplay of the Reaper can be found in our preview from the Endwalker press tour:
With Endwalker, there will be a number of new dungeons that are supposed to offer a mix of fantasy and sci-fi. There will be both leveling dungeons that lead up to level 90 and expert dungeons that can only be accessed starting from level 90.
In a trailer, you can get an impression of the look and feel of the new dungeons:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Additionally, the new high-end raid Pandaemonium was introduced. It is designed for 8 players and will be available in normal and epic mode.
The normal mode will be released on December 21
The epic mode will be released on January 4
The artwork associated with it features a character who is already dead. Lahabrea was the villain from A Realm Reborn.
Due to the name and the artwork, fans speculate that in the raid, players will visit the “Underworld” of FFXIV and see old familiar characters again who died during the course of the story as a kind of final farewell.
During a developer stream, director Yoshida gave a brief insight into the first area of the raid:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
What will change: With the release of patch 6.1 of Endwalker, there will be major changes in the PvP of FFXIV. Primarily, the competitive 4v4 mode FEAST will be abolished. In its place, the new 5v5 mode Crystal Conflict will be introduced.
In this mode, two teams compete for the Tactical Crystal located in the center of the arena. The objective is to transport the crystal to the opposing team’s base while defending against them and also the obstacles on the battlefield.
The mode will also not have the usual role restrictions of Tank, healer, and DPS. Players will receive special PvP abilities that allow them to heal themselves, for example. The matchmaking will be skill-based.
Illustration of the course of a “Crystal Conflict” match and various arenas.
The rewards for Crystal Conflict will be structured similarly to those in FEAST by seasons, with ranking rewards divided into individual placements and Tiers. The winners receive titles, achievements, and other honors as rewards.
This is how the reward system will be overhauled: In general, the rewards in PvP will undergo a significant overhaul. Square Enix will introduce a kind of battle pass for general rewards, similar to those found in shooters.
This type of system will initially be referred to as “Series,” which will run over a longer period (for example, between two major patches). During a Series, players can earn EXP through participation in all PvP activities and “level up” their Series.
By leveling up, they will unlock new rewards and earn currency, which they can then exchange for further rewards. This includes cool equipment, mounts, and other items. Once a Series is complete, the level of all players will reset to 1, and leveling will begin anew.
New Features for Collectors, Housing, and More
For those who are not only interested in new areas and battles, some new features outside of that have already been announced. The following contents have been announced:
New side quests for crafters and gatherers
The role quests will be expanded into 5 categories: Healers, tanks, melee fighters, ranged fighters, and mages
The popular character Estinien will come as a new NPC companion
There will be an update for the casino Gold Saucer
Additionally, in addition to World Travel, a Center Travel System will allow players to travel freely between different Data Centers and visit their friends in the USA, Europe, and Japan.
Currently, it is still unknown when this option will be available. Due to the shortage of semiconductors and travel restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic, it is difficult for the development team to work on data centers in other countries.
Therefore, Yoshida wants to focus first on ensuring stable servers at the launch of Endwalker.
This is Island Sanctuary: With “Island Sanctuary” a completely new type of content is planned. It seems to be a kind of personal housing for players, where you will be able to raise animals and grow vegetables. It sounds a lot like a “Stardew Valley” or “Harvest Moon” mode for FFXIV.
This content is designed for solo gameplay, but director Yoshida said in an interview that you can invite your friends to your island and also visit other islands. The developers want to invest a lot of effort into this content, which is why it might not be released right at the launch of Endwalker, according to Yoshida.
Over time, you will also be able to expand the area, and new content for it will continue to be produced throughout the course of the addon.
Island Sanctuary brings the farmer life to FFXIV.
Many Adjustments to the Combat System
With Endwalker, several changes to the combat system are also planned, which were also announced in the live stream:
Old abilities will be revised and new skills will be added
Overall, the values in the game will be reduced (de-powering) so that HP and damage numbers do not inflate.
The calculation formulas will not be changed, but the numbers used in those formulas
Players should not become weaker as a result
Yoshida explained in the live stream that these adjustments are necessary for the future of FFXIV. The game should be supported for many more years.
Most jobs will receive new abilities that complement their skill kit and further strengthen them. However, some others will receive a complete overhaul. These jobs include:
Summoner, which will feel like a real summoner starting in Endwalker
Monk, which will gain a new resource and can now perform combos in the style of FFVI
Astrologian, which alongside White Mage will become the second power healer. The Nocturnal Sect will be removed, and he will not distribute shields anymore like before.
This is what the story of Endwalker revolves around
What is Endwalker about? The new expansion is set to conclude the 10-year main storyline. Players are to prevent the end of the world for the second time. Zenos yae Galvus and the Ascian Fandaniel are attempting to bring about the end days that destroyed Amaurot thousands of years ago.
The artwork for the expansion already shows a ship flying to the moon. There the antagonist Zodiark is imprisoned. The journey to the moon was also confirmed in the livestream, and it was promised that all open questions regarding the conflict between Hydaelyn and Zodiark would be answered.
You can watch the launch trailer for the addon here, which teases the story and some dungeons.
What happens after Endwalker? Although the story is set to conclude all open questions, that is not the end for Final Fantasy XIV. The following storyline with patch 6.1 will be new and different.
It is also completely detached from Hydaelyn and Zodiark. Director Yoshida stated in several interviews that he cannot reveal anything yet about the story. He also cannot say whether it will be shorter than the previous saga or will span several addons as well.
The development team will observe the reactions of players to the new content and will decide dynamically how to proceed with the story based on that.
If you haven’t ventured into Final Fantasy XIV yet, but the information about the expansion has piqued your curiosity, then we reveal everything important about getting started in the MMORPG:
NPCs can now do more than players in World of Warcraft – as they keep spitting happily when they don’t like something. Players cannot do that.
Patch 9.1.5 not only brought many reasonable changes to World of Warcraft but also a whole bunch of controversial adjustments to game content. Representations of women were changed, problematic lines of text were removed, and emotes were deleted. Additionally, the /spit emote no longer functions as it used to. However, a few characters seem to have missed the memo – especially the city guards of the capitals.
What’s going on in WoW? With Patch 9.1.5, many emotes were deleted or modified that might have made players uncomfortable or harassed. Most notably, the /spit emote can no longer have a player as a target.
However, these new rules seem to apply only to players – and not to NPCs. Because they keep spitting joyfully, as much as they can. At least during the introductory quest of the Death Knights.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Reddit that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Why are the guards even spitting? This is due to the introductory quest of the Death Knights. After completing the Death Knight starting area, the undead “heroes” are sent to Orgrimmar or Stormwind to meet with the respective faction leader. Timing-wise, this takes place at the start of Wrath of the Lich King, where the inhabitants remember very well the suffering that Death Knights and the Scourge brought upon the races.
Accordingly, the city guards and various NPCs react hostile when visited. They throw food, scream for help, call the player a monster – and spit on him indeed. The questline is meant to make it clear: You are not welcome here.
This only changes after the respective leader has given a small speech and officially welcomes the Death Knights into the Horde and Alliance. Only then do the humiliations from the NPCs stop.
If you’re interested in more about World of Warcraftyou might also find this appealing:
Community reacts cynically: As expected, the WoW community immediately jumps on this topic and mocks it on the game’s subreddit.
‘Next up: The Stormwind guards will release an apology video on YouTube, vow to improve, and swear to listen to the community, as always.’
‘Blizzard has been spitting on players for years. They won’t stop just because they’ve taken away the ability for players to spit on each other.’
‘They’re throwing fruits, right? Maybe from a fruit bowl? They’re really ahead of their time.’
Whether Blizzard overlooked the spitting in this quest line or simply thinks that it is acceptable in the context of the quest, we do not know. We will find out soon enough, however, in the next WoW Patch with version 9.2, if the emote is still present.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The gaming streamer Matthew “Mizkif” Rinaudo (26) is actually a tough guy and likes to criticize other streamers on Twitch. But a deal worth €260,000 with an NFT site is too hot for him. He says he is giving up the money because he is afraid of what the commentators in the reddit forum Livestreamfails would say.
Today, Mizkif is mainly known for his streams of Nintendo games, but also for his scathing commentary on events on Twitch. Similar to xQc or HasanAbi, he spends a lot of time engaging with other streamers on the platform. He has, for instance, extensively dealt with the scandal surrounding YouTube streamer Valkyrae.
Mizkif says he has now received an offer of $300,000, he would just have to enter into an NFT deal. He has declined the offer.
Why should Mizkif receive €260,000? Mizkif explains that an unnamed company had offered him a promotional deal worth $300,000 to promote NFTs.
NFTs are a kind of digital artwork: they are limited pieces: NFTs can be images or GIFs that are traded online for sometimes absurd amounts. The streamer Indiefoxx sold NFTs after being banned from Twitch,
This is why Mizkif rejects the deal: Mizikif says:
I actually rejected an NFT sponsor deal worth $300,000. […] You know why? Because I didn’t want hate from Livestreamfails! […] Now I’m thinking: Hey, why am I such a wuss? Why does it bother me, why the hell don’t I just do what I want to do? What a waste. But no, I wanted to be the good boy.
Mizkif
What is he afraid of? The most famous subreddit that discusses things on Twitch is “livestreamfails”. The people there are known for jumping on streamers’ mistakes and commenting harshly.
Livestreamfails decides from the perspective of some streamers who is currently popular on Twitch and which clips go “viral”, generating several tens of thousands of views.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitch that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
This is how it is discussed on Livestreamfails: They are pretty proud of their moral performance. In the comments, they say:
“Hey, do you see this? Bullying works!”
“We should really start bullying Jeff Bezos more”
“Guess $300,000 wasn’t enough”
“It would have been better if he had taken the $300,000 and sponsored 10 random people.”
Another user explains that the NFT company had sponsored Mizkif with 50 subs because, by merely mentioning them, he would already have contributed to their popularity.
A streamer who saw the clip of Mizkif was annoyed about the huge sums involved. She told Mizkif where he could shove the offer. Most streamers would have to work at least 3 years to earn that much money:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitch that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Star Wars: The Old Republic brings a “new” trailer; a HD version of an old classic. And the fans are celebrating it.
No matter what you think about SWTOR, there is one aspect of the game that has consistently been praised by everyone: the stunning CGI trailers. Even at launch, there were a lot of them, showing the conflict between the Republic and the Empire and capturing particularly important events.
Now, 10 years after the original launch of the game, BioWare is simply bringing back the most famous trailer – in 4K Ultra HD.
What kind of trailer is this? It is the “Deceived” trailer, which was originally released on June 1, 2009. The trailer shows the attack on the Republic planet Coruscant, which is quickly taken over by the Empire and heavily damaged in a major assault. Now the trailer is available in 4K Ultra HD – and it looks better than ever:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Of course, this includes beautiful Twi’leks, bounty hunters, and a lightsaber duel where the better side wins (which is the Empire).
Also in focus here is Darth Malgus, who later rises to Emperor in the story and continues to play an important role in the latest expansions. He is one of the key characters of SWTOR.
The trailer is considered legendary: This trailer for SWTOR has also gained fame beyond the game’s boundaries. For many, it is more than just a trailer; like the other cinematics of the game, it’s a Star Wars short film. Accordingly, there is a lot of praise in the comments under the video on YouTube:
“These cinematics are the best Star Wars content ever.”
“I wish the people behind this video would make a whole movie. I’d pay to see it.”
“It’s somehow impressive that this old 5-minute trailer shows us a clearer and more complete story than the storyline of the sequel films.”
Additionally, it is also quite an informative trailer that shows more than just the story. Many of the actions in the cinematic during the battles are abilities that Jedi, Sith, and bounty hunters can also use in the game.
What’s the mood like in SWTOR right now? Besides that, the release of the new expansion “Legacy of the Sith” is approaching. The developers want to take new directions and remove random factors in many cases from the game. Whether the expansion can give the MMORPG another boost in attention and players remains to be seen.
Some hope that the developers will now release all trailers again in Ultra HD, almost as a “countdown” for the new expansion and a corresponding, completely new trailer.
How do you like the Ultra HD version of this trailer classic? Impressive or would you rather have seen something new by now?
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
With Patch 9.1.5 of World of Warcraft, the aim is to appease the player base. In some details, this has been remarkably successful.
Patch 9.1.5 has brought a lot of changes to World of Warcraft. However, there are a number of small improvements that are not so obvious and tend to be overlooked amidst all the chaos. We want to focus on 3 details that, while not completely transforming the game, provide significantly more comfort.
Collecting Souls in Torghast
A major setback for a new character is the necessity to farm Anima and collect souls in order to upgrade the Covenant Sanctum. Most players should have noticed by now that Anima can be transferred between characters.
But the collection of souls has also been massively improved. Not only can you complete the “Collect 20 souls in the Maw” quest multiple times – you can also accomplish it outside of the Maw!
When you free tormented souls during your visit to Torghast, they also count towards the “Collect 20 souls” quest. This way, you hit two birds with one stone. For example, if you collect Soul Ash and Soul Glimmer with your new character to craft a Legendary, you can also conveniently increase your supply of souls.
This makes Torghast feel twice as rewarding, and you no longer rush mindlessly through the Maw to smash Stone Jails.
A small but pretty cool change that makes Torghast better and the grind for the Covenant Sanctum much more enjoyable.
Glory – and souls. Both in Torghast.
Good Gear, Right from the Start
Already in Patch 9.1, there was the opportunity to convert Stygia into items with item level 200. The system has been improved, so now armor slots can also be targeted directly. Instead of just randomly receiving some item, you can now aim to obtain a chest piece, boots, or a weapon.
But there’s more. If you have particularly high Valor or Conquest Points from PvP and PvE, you can also purchase special chests that contain gear for Twinks! You can buy the items directly next to the Flight Master in Oribos and send them to your alt characters. However, keep in mind that a dungeon rating of 1,500 is necessary for this – it should also be correspondingly high for the PvP items.
As both Valor and Conquest Points are no longer subject to a cap, there’s also no guilty feeling about missing out on a potential upgrade for your main character. So during your weekly dungeon visits, you now always feel a sense of progress – even if it’s in the form of gear for a secondary character that you might not have created yet.
Good gear directly at level 60 – with the new chests, it’s possible.
More Follower XP – for the Entire Account
A third change involves the XP items that you can earn from table missions in Shadowlands. When you diligently send your followers on missions in the Covenant Sanctum, they bring home gold, Anima, mounts, and experience points to become stronger.
There are also items that can be directly converted into XP for your followers to level them up faster to the target level of 60.
Since Patch 9.1.5, these items are account-bound. You can send them to Twinks or transfer them from your Twinks to your main character.
This speeds up the leveling of companions significantly, allowing them to succeed in more missions and yield greater rewards.
Again, this is just a small detail – but one that noticeably improves this feature and makes it worthwhile to also engage with table missions using secondary characters.
More current news about World of Warcraft can be found here:
Overall, these are, of course, just three small changes from the multitude of improvements in Patch 9.1.5. However, they have significantly enhanced the quality of the game and impressively demonstrate how even small adjustments can contribute to a much better gameplay experience.
What is your favorite change from Patch 9.1.5? What detail has stood out to you and significantly improved the game for you?
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Do you want to get better at FIFA 22? We asked a professional for advice on how to achieve that. Here are his tips.
When starting a new FUT season, things often progress very well at first. You build your starter team, collect your first victories, and rank up in the Rivals Divisions. However, at some point, you may reach a kind of hurdle. A blockage that isn’t so easy to overcome.
Once this point is reached, frustration can quickly set in. Defeats accumulate, you miss the Weekend League qualification, and no outstanding rewards come in.
Then it’s time to take a close look at what you can improve in your own game to leave that hurdle behind. We spoke with a FIFA pro who recently made a leap forward himself.
Who is speaking? We interviewed e-sports player Levy Finn Rieck. The 19-year-old signed a contract with his favorite club Hansa Rostock this summer. He is not only a lifelong member there but is now also competing for his club in the virtual Bundesliga. You can follow that among other things on Twitch.
His first game in the series was FIFA 06 – since then Levy has been part of every release. It became clear over the past year that he could make it as a professional, he tells: “You become more involved. It was no longer just ‘turn on the PlayStation and play.’” Levy began to analyze the game more closely, studied pro players like world champion MoAuba – and is now one of the FIFA e-sports players himself.
We asked him: What tips does Levy have to get better in FUT?
[toc]
Tip 1: Use the Right Tricks
An important factor in FIFA 22 is, as in most previous FIFA games, the Skill Moves and special movements that players can perform. In FIFA 22, skills are not as crucial as they were in 21. Nevertheless, some should be memorized.
Levy relies on the following:
The first trick to learn is: “The simple Ball Roll. It sounds silly, but it frees you from a lot of situations – even against the pros,” says Levy. Just move the right stick to the side, depending on the direction of your run.
“The Shot Cancel is one of the most important tricks in the game,” he explains. With this trick, you load a shot, but then do not execute it, instead, you can surprise your opponent with another action. You perform it by pressing L2 and R2 before the shot is fired.
“Another trick is the McGeady Spin.” For this, flick the right stick in the running direction and then 90 degrees in the direction you want. This way, you turn the player into a new position. You can also cancel this trick with L2 & R2 to surprise your opponent.
“What is also extremely effective this year is the close L1 Dribbling,” explains Levy: “After that, you can explosively switch to sprinting with R2. This gives you an extreme sprint boost. Anyone can do this, no matter how many skill points they have.”
Another trick: “I use Player Lock a lot because you have so many options. You can pass the player or pull them in a direction to create space.” You activate Player Lock by pressing both sticks. Now your player is locked in, and you control him further – even when you pass the ball. This way, you can run free.
Basically, when it comes to tricks, it’s crucial not to just move the stick wildly but to use the right skills: “Most tricks look nice but don’t push you forward.”
In Defense: Levy also has a simple tip for defense: “Learn the player switch with the right stick. This allows you to switch much faster. Sometimes, in very tight situations, I switch with L1 – when I am sure I will get the next one.”
Otherwise, it’s worth using the right stick to directly select the desired player to save time. This may take some getting used to for some, but it’s worth it.
Basically, players should find the play style that suits them best. If you prefer to dribble rather than pass, you should focus on that – and vice versa.
How does the pro play? “When I play Pro against Pro, I play very controlled,” says Levy: “But in the Weekend League, I try to move forward quickly with relatively fast combinations.”
In FIFA 22, you have many options: “Last year was really about skill moves a lot. But this year it’s more about passing,” finds Levy: “There are so many ways to score goals.
There isn’t just ‘the one’ formation this year but many tactics that are effective.”
For casual players, he recommends starting with the 4-3-2-1 formation. This is good for combining – and is also included in our overview of the best formations.
You should always find the right formation for yourself
Tip 3: Sign the Right Players
Which values are important for players? Ultimately, players determine what styles of play you can bring to the pitch. Levy looks at values such as:
5-star skills, so as not to be limited in tricks.
The “Finesse” trait, for effective finesse shots from distance.
The 5-star weak foot, to avoid being easily predictable.
Of course, the best cards in the game are hard to acquire. When searching for players for your team, Levy recommends stars like these who are not overly expensive:
– Dembélé from Barcelona.
– Ben Yedder – Good every FIFA.
– I have faith in Rashford. He is tall, and you can throw a cross to him.
– At the back, I really like Koundé.
– Kimpembe shouldn’t be too expensive anymore.
– In midfield: Llorente. He has outstanding speed and can do just about everything.
“For casual gamers, that’s great. Many have very good teams. But you earn fewer coins from the packs. That’s the fine line. In the eSports area, it’s pay-to-win: If you want to keep up with the top teams, you basically have to invest money in the game.”
Levy also has a clear opinion on the money aspect: “If I only played casually, I wouldn’t put any money into FIFA. It’s ultimately like gambling.”
Those who want to advance in FIFA 22 must earn good rewards – through Division Rivals or the Weekend League. However, you have to play a lot of games to rank up. How much can you really play in succession?
“In the Elite Division, the level is very high. I play 3, 4 games and then take a break,” says Levy. When it comes to the 20 games of the Weekend League, you should assess yourself a bit: “I wouldn’t just say ‘now 5 games, later 5 games, then 5 games and so on’. Just see how it flows.”
However: “Never play all games in a row. At some point, your concentration just drops. After a maximum of 7 or 8 games, I would definitely take a break, even if I win them all.”
How do you approach Ultimate Team? Where are you trying to improve? Let us know in the comments!
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In Destiny 2 there is the exotic fusion rifle Telesto. The weapon works so strangely that it repeatedly causes problems: There have now been 38 incidents in which the weapon has been responsible for trouble. A website keeps track.
What is wrong with this weapon?
The Telesto is an exotic fusion rifle that was also present in Destiny 1. The weapon originally came with the 2015 expansion “The Taken King” in the online shooter.
The joke with Telesto is that it doesn’t fire normal bullets, but uses sticky projectiles that are objects in the game world, which stick somewhere and explode after a certain time.
Telesto has been breaking Destiny for over 5 years
How often has the weapon broken Destiny?? On the page “telesto-report” there is a list of 38 incidents in which Telesto was responsible for a bug in Destiny 1 or Destiny 2:
The earliest incident is from January 5, 2016 – at that time Telesto turned off the Nightfall modifier “Juggler”. Normally, special ammo should drop when the player held Telesto. But it didn’t.
There was a nice bug in June 2018: Telesto could simply crash another player’s game if too many Telesto projectiles were fired at them.
In May 2020, Titans could reset their melee charge with the Telesto.
In March 2021, players managed to go under the map with the Telesto and eliminate their opponents from there in a strike.
In October 2021, it was possible with Telesto to instantly regain melee and grenade.
Ten days ago, the last Telesto bug was revealed: Telesto projectiles simply remained active when an enemy was eliminated with a shot.
Simply ‘better than the resto’ – the Telesto.
How do players react to the weapon? By now, it has almost become a tradition to wait after an update to see how Telesto will break Destiny 2 this time.
There is even a poem that a user on light.gg wrote about Telesto:
Telesto, it’s the besto Shines above the resto Others may detesto But I will attesto It passes every testo Completes any questo
There’s no contesto Meanest gun in the westo Fits in your vesto How dare you suggesto I use anything but Telesto With it, I am at resto
How does Bungie combat it? Apparently not very successfully. The weapon has been repeatedly deactivated, repaired, and reactivated, just to cause problems again.
As the Forbes website knows, there have already been 9 incidents involving Telesto in the current season alone.
Apparently, Bungie simply cannot fully get a handle on the unusual mechanic that the weapon fires objects that remain in the world.
By now, the weapon even seems to actively refuse to be deactivated:
Just a week before the Early Access launch of Battlefield 2042, fans are discussing whether the online shooter offers enough content. The cause for this is a leak of the complete weapon list on Reddit: Fans feel there are too few “new weapons” in Battlefield 2042.
The Battlefield games traditionally stand out from the competition with larger dimensions of player experience: Bigger maps, more players, more weapons.
In Battlefield 2042, while there are actually even more players on even larger maps than before, leaks show that the selection of weapons has apparently shrunk significantly.
Leaks show few weapons at launch
This leads to disappointment: Reddit user aaronfrogger gained early access to the game earlier than EA and DICE had planned. This allowed him to take a screenshot of the supposed weapon collection of the game at launch, which he posted online. This list shows a total of 22 weapons, including only 4 assault rifles or submachine guns.
This screenshot supposedly shows all weapons from Battlefield 2042 at launch. Source: Reddit
Why do people feel this is disappointing? On the launch of Battlefield 4, players had access to over 70 weapons, including 11 assault rifles. Now there are only a total of 22 weapons.
Hope rests on Battlefield Portal and weapon attachments
How is the community reacting? Battlefield players love the variety that older games offered thanks to the number of weapons. Accordingly, fans are disappointed about the leaks:
“Is this all the weapons at launch? This is really, really bad.” (spookyhog via Reddit)
“Really ridiculous. I really hope this isn’t all there is.” (yfa17 via Reddit)
“This… is really a pathetic amount of weapons. I feel insulted.” (GenoshaOne7FIVE via Reddit)
Where do fans see hope? Not all fans are so upset about this news. Twitter user @PillzSufrie believes that many weapons in previous Battlefield games are just slightly different versions of other rifles.
With the new weapon attachment system the few existing weapons should therefore function so flexibly that they can replace many different rifles from the older games:
Will more come? According to industry insider Tom Henderson, there are supposedly 6 – 8 new weapons per mode with each season planned. However, this information also comes from a leak and is therefore not officially confirmed. EA or DICE has not yet made any concrete statements about the contents of the seasons or the battle pass.
What is your opinion on this? Are 22 weapons enough for the main game? Is the weapon attachment system and Battlefield Portal sufficient compensation? Or do you think that savings were made at the wrong end? Feel free to share your opinion in the comments.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The Spaniard Carlos “Ocelote” Rodriguez (32) is the head of the large European team G2, who are multiple champions in League of Legends. Currently, G2 is selling its bot laner Martin “Rekkles” Larsson (25). Ocelote makes it clear: Other teams in LoL are stingy because they don’t want to pay the modest sum that G2 is asking. Their fans are freaking crazy.
This is the situation at G2:
The G2 team (based in Berlin) has dominated European LoL for years, even coming close to becoming world champions in 2019. But before 2021, they gave their best player away to the USA, since then, everything has gone wrong. They couldn’t even qualify for Worlds.
Ocelote has now reached his breaking point. He is apparently bothered by rumors about how much money G2 is allegedly selling the bot laner for. Claims on reddit circulated that Rekkles would cost 10 million US dollars (via reddit).
You stupid assholes keep making up numbers and stories. The official sale price of Rekkles is 1.5 million euros – moreover, he can go to any team anywhere as long as they pay his price, which is already below market value.
Stop making up bullshit, you fucking idiots.
Just accept that your team is stingy and move on.
Carlos “Ocelote” Rodriguez
Undignified treatment of the player
How are the reactions to this: The player “Perkz,” who was sold by G2, is poking fun at his former boss Ocelote a bit. Just before his tweet, he posted on reddit that Rekkles costs 2 million US dollars.
Perkz’s logic is: If Ocelote lowers the price of Rekkles every 5 minutes like this, he will soon be available for free.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Within minutes, Ocelote lowered the price for Rekkles from 2 million $ to 1.5 million $.
The players Wunder and Mikyx, who are also for sale, are now demanding that Ocelote let them know their exact transfer fee.
Others complain that it is undignified how G2 is treating such a legendary player as Rekkles.
A Twitter user accuses Ocelote of being cynical. He would have signed Rekkles “for free”, saying that 1.5 million is below market value is bold. Basically, he got a player for free, now puts him on the bench and practically forces him to move to the USA.
For Rekkles, the last few years haven’t gone so well. Will 2022 be better?
G2 has extensively trained against the top teams during Worlds, even against the world champions EDward Gaming, who thanked G2. Ocelote believes he has already found his perfect team for 2022 in these training matches:
The game principle in Pokémon GO is basically quite simple. Nevertheless, both new and experienced trainers frequently make mistakes in the game. We at MeinMMO will show you what those mistakes are and why you should avoid them.
What is it about? Those who play Pokémon GO regularly know that the game mostly explains itself. However, there are one or two mistakes that both new and experienced players regularly make.
MeinMMO author Franzi Korittke has been playing Pokémon GO daily for over two years. She has participated in numerous events of the game and has made connections with other players. She has noticed time and again that sometimes certain things are overlooked while playing.
And she herself has made these mistakes as well. Therefore, below you see the most common 8 mistakes and why it makes sense to avoid them.
Error 1: Not clicking on and catching all Pokémon
This is the mistake: The easiest part of the game is probably clicking on and catching Pokémon. However, there are always monsters appearing on the map that you have already captured significantly or that do not help you in the game due to their poor stats. For this reason, many players no longer click on them at all.
Therefore, you should avoid this mistake: It is still worth clicking on and catching every Pokémon. For each catch, you will receive not only the corresponding candies, but also precious stardust and XP.
Moreover, behind this monster could be a shiny specimen. You should definitely not miss this chance. With a bit of luck, you might encounter a shiny that you still lack in your collection.
Shiny-Webarak
Error 2: Wasting trade actions
This is the mistake: Each player has a daily trade limit of 100 trade actions. Trainers often do not take advantage of this opportunity at all. However, you should change that in the future, as trading can be very beneficial for you.
Therefore, you should avoid this mistake: With a bit of luck, you can increase your chances of getting a lucky Pokémon through daily trade actions and get one or even several.
This is particularly true for monsters that frequently spawn in the wild during this time. Additionally, you are diligently working towards your Platinum medals “Gentleman” and “Pilot”.
Furthermore, trading can also allow you to evolve a Pokémon for free. You can find out which monsters they are in our overview:
This is the mistake: Many trainers try to keep some space in their Pokémon storage and therefore send away their bad monsters that have a 0, 1, or 2-star rating. However, this can be a big mistake that you should avoid in the future.
Therefore, you should avoid this mistake: Before you send a Pokémon to Professor Willow, you should evaluate it. That may sound totally simple and obvious. But trainers who occasionally or even regularly participate in the PvP league should take a closer look here.
While Pokémon with a 3 or even 4-star rating are excellent for use in raids, the evaluation in the PvP league behaves somewhat differently. Often, it has an optimal strength when the attack value is as low as possible.
Thus, the best candidates for the GO Battle League usually have a lower star rating. So those who want to actively participate in PvP battles should consider not only the total stars but also the individual values (attack, defense, and stamina).
Therefore, the attack value is so low for strong PvP attackers: The attack value plays a crucial role primarily for the selection in the Super and Hyper League. Here, the Pokémon you can use is limited to a certain CP value. In the Super League, it is a maximum of 1,500 CP. The Pokémon must not exceed this.
The CP value is calculated based on the attack, defense, stamina, and level of the respective monster. However, the attack value has the greatest influence on the calculation. So if the attack value is lower, the other values can be significantly higher.
Evaluation overview in Pokémon GO
Error 4: Leveling up Pokémon too quickly
This is the mistake: If you have caught a strong Pokémon, you obviously want to level it up immediately. However, this will cost you significant amounts of stardust and some candies. If you do not need the Pokémon immediately for use in a raid or PvP battle, you should prevent this mistake and wait a bit with the Power-Ups.
Therefore, you should avoid this mistake: Regularly, tasks arise in field research, special research, or timed quests that ask you to level up a Pokémon.
If you have already leveled up all your strong monsters, then you are wasting valuable stardust and candies on weaker Pokémon that you might end up sending away. So be a little patient.
Tip: Use the tagging feature in the game to have a quick overview of the strong monsters you want to push. This way, you can easily find them again when you have an appropriate task.
Melmetal at Level 50
Error 5: Not opening gifts
This is the mistake: Have you formed friendships with other trainers in the game? Then those players can send you packages, and you can send them too. However, these packages are often not (all) opened. You should definitely do this, as it brings you multiple benefits.
Therefore, you should avoid this mistake: During the day, you normally have the opportunity to open up to 20 gifts. However, that limit is regularly increased through events, allowing you to open more packages.
You should definitely take advantage of this opportunity because, on one hand, it increases your friendship level, and on the other, it rewards you with stardust. You receive this for each opened package. Additionally, there are lots of items awaiting you, such as balls, berries, and potions. This is how you find new friends worldwide for Pokémon GO.
Items from gifts
Due to the currently ongoing Light Festival, the limit for opening gifts has been increased to 45 per day. Additionally, you advance twice as fast in your friendship level.
Error 6: Not properly utilizing friendship level-ups
This is the mistake: Those who have regularly opened their friends’ gifts or interacted with them in other ways will eventually find themselves facing a friendship level-up. However, some trainers make this level-up without thinking, which can cost them some XP.
Therefore, you should avoid this mistake: Depending on which friendship level you are rising to, there are different XP amounts. However, you can also increase these by using a lucky egg. Once you set the egg, you will receive double XP for 30 minutes. So if you don’t set it, you are wasting this bonus.
The following XP await you per level-up:
Friendship Level
XP
XP with Lucky Egg
1 full heart
3,000
6,000
2 full hearts
10,000
20,000
3 full hearts
50,000
100,000
4 full hearts
100,000
200,000
You can see the current status of your friendship level by clicking on the heart bar for your respective friend. If you click on the last filling heart, it will show you how many days you still need to play together until the level-up.
Friendship level-up
Tip: To make it worthwhile, you should also wait for a Community Day and gather several friends for a level-up. To inform friends about this level-up in the game, many players rename their buddy Pokémon accordingly, e.g. “LvlupCD11CET”.
This designation would mean that the level-up takes place at 11 AM Central European Time on the next Community Day. This way, trainers can prepare for setting a lucky egg.
Error 7: Not playing Raids
This is the mistake: Every player receives one free raid pass daily. However, not every trainer redeems it. This is a mistake you should definitely avoid.
Therefore, you should avoid this mistake: If you do not use your free raid pass for two consecutive days, you will forfeit all subsequent free raid passes until you redeem it. This way, you miss not only a Pokémon but also valuable stardust, XP, and items such as golden razz berries or special candies.
For this reason, it pays to use the daily raid pass. Especially level-5 raids offer interesting legendary Pokémon for you. Many of them are now also available in their shiny variants in the game. You shouldn’t miss this chance, as with a bit of luck, you might encounter a shiny. Currently, you can find the raid bosses Cobalion, Virizion, and Terrakion there.
This is the mistake: Even when using berries, some trainers make mistakes. Especially the Nanab berries are often neglected in the bag. Once the item bag is full, these berries are often the first to be discarded. However, you should better change this in the future, as they can bring you great benefits.
Therefore, you should avoid this mistake: You should avoid this mistake and use your berries properly. The Nanab berries grant you double candies when catching a Pokémon. So, those who take their daily rounds should sometimes feed a Nanab berry to strong and rare monsters. This helps you to evolve or even level up the monsters faster.
These are the berries you should use
But berries are also perfect for regularly feeding Pokémon in gyms. Because even if you are not currently being attacked and are relatively safe in a gym, it is worthwhile to feed some berries to yourself or teammates.
For each feeding, you receive stardust or, with a bit of luck, a candy of the respective monster. This is especially worthwhile for rare Pokémon like Dratini. Additionally, this way you can get your gym to gold status a bit faster. And you also get a step closer to the “Berry Master” Platinum medal.
Before you dispose of the berries during your next full item bag to spin PokéStops and gyms again, you should better use them to feed your monsters.
Which mistakes have you already made in the past that you want to avoid in the future? Or do you know other mistakes that many players make? Feel free to share your opinion here on MeinMMO in the comments and exchange views with other trainers.
In multiplayer of CoD Vanguard, the MVPs are introduced with a video at the end of a match. This is meant to bring some proper glory to the chosen ones. However, a clip shows that the system is still in its infancy – and players love it.
What kind of system is this? You may know it from other games like Overwatch, where players are shown at the end of a round who performed exceptionally well in the match. A similar system is now also offered by the new Call of Duty: Vanguard.
However, players report funny glitches, such as an MVP who simply died in his clip and didn’t achieve anything else. In the Vanguard subreddit, a clip is going viral, where a player apparently transforms into a dog.
“He must have used the dog operator”
This is what the clip shows: Reddit user SneakyInkling shared the curious clip and writes “This guy got the Play of the Game and transformed into a dog after a kill.” And that’s exactly what happens. One can see after the initial pose a kill from the player, then the view glitches briefly and a wall shakes. Suddenly, a dog falls to the ground.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Reddit that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
How is the clip received? On reddit, the video gathered over 1,000 upvotes and 31 comments in a single day. Players report their experiences with the broken MVP system.
“Yesterday, the top Play of the Game was a guy who died. He didn’t even kill anyone. And I had a quad kill and wasn’t shown,” writes kamikaze123456
“Well, he transformed into a dog. If that’s not a Play of the Game, then I don’t know what is. But seriously, the MVP selection should only consider people who played the whole round. I saw a guy who went 30:8 and wasn’t even on the list. A guy was only there for five minutes and had a 5:1 KD. He was then the best player for Eliminations/Deaths. Oh no, no, no, this is just not right,” says chemicalxbonex
“The POTG is broken in the funniest way. My friend recently got the POTG and all that was shown was him climbing through a window,” writes highlander2189
“No, he just used the dog operator,” jokes Suitable_Film_436
Have you also had such crazy experiences with the Play of the Game in Vanguard? Share your experiences with us here on MeinMMO in the comments.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Our author Schuhmann has played the first hours of the new MMORPG Lost Ark (Steam). He says: From level 1, I felt like I was playing a vibrant, modern MMO. I had fun right away and didn’t have to earn it first. That’s exactly what I missed in Diablo 2 Resurrected.
I spent the first two hours with Lost Ark yesterday and I keep comparing them in my mind to my first minutes in Diablo II Resurrected. I found those rather disillusioning in August 2021. Back then, I looked at Diablo 2 again after 20 years and was quite disappointed after having been addicted to it in 2000.
Class Selection and Game Introduction
The differences are significant for me. Just how you start the game:
In Diablo II Resurrected, I dive straight in with my selected character – just like it used to be. It is the player’s job to inform themselves about what they are playing.
Lost Ark gives me time to decide on a subclass after I’ve made a rough direction with the class selection. In a test area, I can try out which of the 3 subclasses I want to play. Bosses and mobs can be spawned at the press of a button, serving as targets.
Start video
Lost Ark delivers intense action with 15 classes – See here in the video what they look like
Skill Selection in Early Levels
What bothered me about Diablo 2 Resurrected was that at the beginning of the game, you practically have no options to do anything. You rely on relatively slow auto-attacks and occasionally on a skill.
Diablo 2 Resurrected gives me the feeling: “First, earn your fun.”
In Lost Ark, I start the game as a Death Shooter right away with almost 10 skills, can switch between weapons, and have something to do immediately, with various options in each on how I want to act. I have a rotation, I have a gameplay loop, I don’t feel like I need to earn my fun in the game laboriously.
The Feeling of Power
This is closely related to the variety of skills. In Diablo 2, I start really “at the bottom,” having to bash some zombies in a dark cave with a stick. There, power fantasies are not fulfilled – they are only fulfilled 80 hours later when I am geared up and optimized, taking down Baal in seconds (if the servers hold).
In Lost Ark, I’m already backflipping around with level 1, tossing my spinning pistol around and throwing grenades. Hordes of enemies fall before me. I get my first mount after just a few hours.
In Diablo 2 Resurrected, I have to assign skills to the right mouse button via hotkey and then fire them. The inventory is instantly flooded with meaningless items without value, I have to go back to town to sell the stuff. My bag is cluttered with healing potions that need to be organized.
In Lost Ark, healing potions stack, I can execute skills at the press of a button, and the menus feel fresh and modern.
When I criticized Diablo 2 Resurrected, many said: That’s just how it is in the genre. It’s generally customary in hack and slashes to “first earn your fun.”
Only in the mid and end game, after investing countless hours into the game, does a hack ‘n slash really become fun:
The gameplay becomes varied
The items become exciting
You can really customize your character through items and builds
Until these options are unlocked, the game is gray and dull. It has to be that way, as the old-timers decided more than 20 years ago and it was like that for years. The player would be completely overwhelmed with the “complexity” of the game if they were allowed to start with more than one skill and auto-attack, or so the logic goes.
Lost Ark has shown that a modern game can function differently.
This is just an initial impression and shouldn’t mean that Lost Ark will become the best game of all time. That has to be proven in the mid and end game. But so far, 96% positive reviews on Steam show that many are excited about the early game of the MMORPG.
After Diablo 2 Resurrected, I had the feeling of playing a game with Lost Ark that wants to captivate me from the start and where I don’t have to earn my fun first.
For cleanliness in my gaming room, robotic vacuum cleaners have been working for 2 years. Here I will show you why the combination of a robot and a cordless handheld vacuum cleaner works so well for me as a gamer.
Have you already thought about buying a robotic vacuum cleaner or maybe even have one in your possession? After two years of use, I can tell you what is annoying and where the robot is worth it for me.
Spoiler: Loose cables are not liked by these devices at all. But in the end, you’ll have clean computers.
Which robotic vacuum cleaners have I tried?
My entry-level one: First of all, I bought a robotic vacuum cleaner from Medion, which was priced at around 70 €. However, I was so dissatisfied that I returned it the same day. It operated without a map and followed a chaotic principle. This means: It drives until it hits a wall, then turns around at a certain angle, and then drives until it hits the next wall. This left dirty spots behind and annoyed me just by watching.
I then read about robotic vacuum cleaners in forums, what to look for, which model is suitable for which budget, and watched YouTube videos on the topic. My first “real” entry-level model was the Tesvor X500 Pro.
My current one: Almost a year later, the model was no longer enough for me, and I switched to the Roborock S50 from Xiaomi. It has been accompanying me until September 2021. For a little over a month now, I’ve been using the Anker eufy RoboVac X8 Hybrid in combination with the eufy HomeVac H30.
Both eufy products were released by Anker in September and provided us for testing.
In this article, I will compare the products I have been able to test in different categories. As a hint, here is a price orientation with current prices:
Tesvor X500 Pro ~ 210 €
Xiaomi Roborock S5 ~ 400 €
Anker eufy X8 Hybrid ~ 550 €
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
One of the great advantages of robotic vacuum cleaners is that I just have to press a button and the three-wheeled turbine scooter drives out of its charging station and immediately starts its job. If I want and my daily routine allows it, I can also program fixed times for when the vacuum should do its job.
If I’m not in the rooms that are to be cleaned at a specific time each day and give the robot a clear path, then let it work in peace during that time, rather than having it navigate around me and my desk chair.
Since there are no fixed times for this, the X8 Hybrid cleans when I cook. Sometimes even twice a day when my dog is changing her fur.
The practical thing is: When I need to vacuum, I issue the command and do something else in the meantime, often something productive. This function is supported seamlessly by the Tesvor X500 Pro, the Roborock S5, and the eufy X8 Hybrid.
This obvious point also brings another advantage:
2. Less dust on the floor = Less dust in the PC
Less dust on the floor ensures that my PC sucks in less dust. I have a gaming PC with a side window. While this looks cool, it also clearly shows me when it’s dusty inside. Thanks to the robot, my floor gets vacuumed daily, thereby reducing the dust that my PC can draw into the case through the filters.
Because the less dust is on the floor, the less dust is stirred up when walking, resulting in less dust flying through the air that can be sucked in by the case fans.
Especially with pets and a fireplace, it is important for me to vacuum every day.
The eufy X8 Hybrid in action
In the long run, I clearly notice that I need to open my PC less often and clean it from dust. Because simply less dust comes into the case from the room. And when it does come to that, I now grab the cordless handheld vacuum:
(Bonus) A cordless handheld vacuum is great for cleaning cases
Usually, I would grab the corded vacuum when cleaning my PC. I would remove the long hose and then use the nozzle to vacuum the fan blades on the GPU and CPU fans (of course I held the fans firmly). The annoying part was that the vacuum cleaner itself takes up a lot of space, and the long hose is unwieldy.
A cordless vacuum like the eufy HomeVac H30 makes everything much more convenient. Because …
it has no cable that you need to pull through the room or search for an outlet
it is ready to use immediately
you can dismantle it to the point where you only hold the small, handy vacuum in your hand
Especially if your PC is under the desk and can only be awkwardly pulled out, a cordless vacuum is practical.
If you are considering the HomeVac H30, then you should know:
It costs 180 € (RRP)
Has good suction power with 80AW/16kpa
Weighs 808 grams and is quite light and comfortable to hold
Comes with various attachments that allow you to reach up to the ceiling but also clean small places like the inside of a PC
It is really loud, and that in high frequencies
3. Quiet enough to use Discord while vacuuming
The eufy X8 Hybrid can clearly distance itself from the loudness problems of handheld vacuums. Because modern robotic vacuum cleaners have different suction levels to regulate the performance. On my laminate, it usually doesn’t need to be vacuumed at a high level when the robot is in use daily.
The cool thing about it is that I can use the robot while I’m on Discord without disturbing the other participants. Even if I speak and my microphone is active, the vacuum is hardly audible.
As a technology enthusiast, I must highlight that calling a vacuum cleaner via app is genius. But the apps for the robots can do even more.
With the Tesvor X500 Pro, the Roborock S5, and the eufy X8 Hybrid, I can issue commands to start and stop or send them to specific points on the recorded map. I can specify no-go zones on the maps and say: please do not go there. During the vacuuming process, I can adjust the suction strength or remotely steer exactly where I want cleaning to take place.
What impressed me about the X8 Hybrid is the map storage for multiple floors. So there’s one map with restricted areas in my apartment and another when I take the robot upstairs for cleaning.
The software has many cool features like scheduling, precise navigation to a point in the apartment, a log of cleaning histories, a remote control function, and adjusting the map. That’s fun.
If you don’t want to deal with any of that, you can just press “Start” and let the robot do its job. It works too.
Robotic vacuum cleaners in gaming rooms – Yay or Nay?
What are the advantages? A major plus point is that your floor is cleaned satisfactorily without you having to do it yourself. For thicker plush carpets, it is indeed beneficial to use a handheld vacuum for targeted vacuuming. Wood, tiles, and low carpets are no problem for the robots.
Even if you’re not home, you can start the robots via app and let them vacuum the apartment or room.
Convenience is the main selling point of these robots. Especially the newer models that come with incredible suction power are an alternative to regular vacuum cleaners.
If you want to try these devices, you can do so for a low price of around 100 – 150 € and already have decent models at home. If you like it, you can spend more money and get even better suction performance, advanced apps, and new technologies like maps recorded by laser scanning.
The eufy X8 with dust container
With a dog in the household, the dust container looks like this after 2 days
What are the disadvantages? Your floor must be robot-safe. Loose cables, shoelaces, small animals, and similar things do not combine well with a robot. You must ensure before each start that no phone charging cable is lying on the floor in such a way that the vacuum can wind it up and pull your phone off the table.
Additionally, you should check furniture for ground clearance. Robots tend to operate under couches and can get stuck there. Such “traps” need to be discovered.
Furthermore, you should not expect too much from the mopping features.
Moreover, if you want a good robotic vacuum cleaner with the latest technology, you will have to put down some cash. This is a luxury that you indulge in.
Who is a robotic vacuum cleaner worth it for? For anyone who is into new technology and has no problem with letting a robot roam around their apartment. It is best suited for a robot if it doesn’t just clean a small room but has to vacuum a whole apartment or multiple rooms, as that’s what the battery life is designed for.
But you should be clear that this can quickly become an expensive hobby if you tend to always want the newest model.
If you are rather lazy and don’t like vacuuming, you should consider a purchase.
Oops, unfortunately this affiliate widget is no longer available.
The eufy X8 Hybrid in a brief test – Conclusion after one month
The technical details:
Price
550 €
Suction power
2,000 Pa x2
Navigation
iPath Laser Navigation
Mopping function
Available
Multiple floors
Possible
No-Go zones
Freely adjustable
Map recording
Yes
WLAN
Wi-Fi + Alexa + Google Assistant
Dust collector
400 ml
Water tank
250 ml
Runtime
Up to 180 minutes
How well does the X8 Hybrid vacuum? In my test in the gaming room, the X8 Hybrid copes very well. Under my desk, I was forced to manage cables well because as soon as a loose cable lies on the floor, the X8 Hybrid winds it up and gets tangled in it. But this is not a flaw of this model, but a general disadvantage of all robotic vacuum cleaners I have tested.
It is therefore crucial to clear the floors of cables before cleaning or secure them with clips or behind baseboards.
The suction power is impressive and makes the Tesvor X500 Pro and the Roborock S5 look hopelessly outclassed. On carpets and even laminate, the X8 makes a strong showing. The wide opening for the dust container is particularly important to me because it allows for the suction of many pet hairs without the opening quickly getting clogged.
The robot recognizes walls and edges well, so it doesn’t bump against everything at first but knows in advance with the laser: Here, it can’t go further.
However, the mopping is, as with all the hybrid robots that I have tested, at most “okay”. Since robotic vacuum cleaners do not weigh much, they pull the wiping cloth over the floor with little pressure, thus only resolving light spots at most. Sadly, it doesn’t do much more. Another disadvantage of the X8 Hybrid is that you cannot set how much water is used for the mopping function. Other models handle this better.
Overall, I am very satisfied with the X8 Hybrid as an automatic vacuum for my gaming room. However, I prefer to continue mopping by hand.
Pro
Good battery life, comfortably handles my 4-room apartment
Barely audible at lower suction power
Wide opening for dirt at the dust container
Overcomes higher carpets and does not see them as obstacles
Good cleaning (while vacuuming)
High suction power due to double turbine
Contra
Quite high price at 550 €
Mopping performance at most “sufficient”
Map sometimes has bugs
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
With Combat Pacing, Call of Duty: Vanguard introduced a mechanic that allows you to take control of the number of players in a match. However, the system tends to lead you to matches you may not want to play at all after the release.
The new Call of Duty: Vanguard offers a decent amount of innovations compared to its predecessor Black Ops Cold War:
Levelable Operators for many cosmetics
Destroyable objects on the map
Return of killstreaks
One of the most important changes is “Combat Pacing.” This allows you to set how many players you want to face in a match for each standard game mode. But after the release, this mechanic becomes very … compromiseable and sometimes sends you into matches that you don’t want to play.
Number of players varies despite Combat Pacing
What’s wrong with the mechanic? With Combat Pacing, you have the choice between 3 different game speeds:
Tactical
Assault
Blitz
With “Tactical” pacing, you are looking for a CoD experience like the one you know from previous titles. Here you want to start the regular 6vs6 matches that have formed the basis of multiplayer for years. If you are looking for more action, you choose “Assault” or “Blitz,” which brings more teammates and opponents into the match.
You can set whether you want to search for matches with all pacings or prefer a specific pacing. However, Vanguard treats this setting more as a “recommendation” and does not strictly search only for matches with the desired pacing. So if you only want to play tactical matches, the player search still throws you into larger matches.
Combat Pacing takes your selection more as a “recommendation”.
Why is this a problem? The number of players has a significant impact on the game. More players mean more combat, different tactics, and greater action. But not everyone wants that. If Vanguard assigns you the wrong pacing, you have 2 options:
Play a match you actually don’t want to
Leave the game and hope for the next matchmaking
Both options negatively affect the player experience for everyone involved. The Blitz match starts with too few players and therefore loses quality. If you are the player who leaves the match, your matchmaking takes longer because it needs to find a new match.
“Is this a bug?”
What do players say about this? Combat Pacing itself is actually quite well-received. Under a tweet from Call of Duty asking which map with which pacing players prefer, many positive comments appear. However, the issue with random team sizes often leads to frustration.
For instance, @Pure_Kuntry_707 tweeted: “Combat Pacing is trash. […] You should take it out of the game. Why do I select Tactical and then end up in Blitz?”.
Also, @mkelly5698 is upset (via Twitter): “Combat Pacing is the worst thing I’ve ever seen. Why can’t I just play 6vs6 like in the last 15 years?”.
For mkelly, it’s also a problem that he still plays matches with 10vs10 even with tactical pacing, like on the large map Red Star.
Others are somewhat irritated that they don’t get the Combat Pacing they chose and are asking whether it might be a bug.
@JoshuaUlloa10 tweeted: “I chose Assault or Blitz and keep getting Tactical. Any hints on why this isn’t working or is this a bug?”.
Some users even joke about it, like @Jose36896109 tweeted: “My favorite pacing is the one I choose and then matchmaking says: ‘I don’t care what you want’ and makes me play what matchmaking wants.”
Will this stay the same? Even in the beta phase of Vanguard, Combat Pacing was very compromiseable, and currently, it is unclear whether it is a bug or intended. A statement from the developers regarding this cannot currently be found.
However, since the effects can significantly impact the player experience, a statement could be expected in the near future if the problem escalates.
The new MMO New World announces its plan to merge the first servers. In the initial phase, many servers were launched online, and now that the rush has settled, they plan their first server merges. However, they want to proceed cautiously.
This is the announcement from Amazon: On Saturday afternoon, November 7, 2021, there was an official announcement from New World in a thread in the official forum, promoting server mergers (via forums.newworld). An Amazon employee stated:
“Server mergers are on the horizon, but we need further scale testing before we feel confident enough to apply the technology in live worlds. As you can imagine, we are now more cautious after the initial rocky weeks”
Kay, New World Developer
They announce that players should keep an eye on what Amazon has to say about it in the “near future”. An announcement from a community manager will likely follow.
In a “server merger”, the operator closes one server and transfers all characters and their possessions to another server. This is generally seen as a sign that an MMORPG has lost many players.
Trapped on a “dying server”
Why do people want server merges already? In the forum, a player states that his server in Europe now has a low population density and is shrinking. Some guilds are already planning a server transfer.
Some content in New World (like Outpost Rush) is designed to require a minimum number of players to operate. Players now feel “trapped on a dying server.”
Other players in the forum add: There is nothing happening on their server. No dungeons are being run anymore. There are too many servers for the people still playing New World.
This is an urgent problem: Playing New World on servers without many players is simply not fun.
Server structure of New World necessitates such measures
Here’s what’s behind it: This sounds more dramatic than it is. New World relies on a “classic server” model with many relatively small servers. This is actually unusual in 2021; most MMORPGs have flexible servers where you can switch channels (Black Desert), server clusters (WoW), or even mega-servers (The Elder Scrolls Online): With this structure, there’s no need to constantly increase or decrease the number of servers.
Once this initial rush is over, people complain that they are on “dead servers”, the operator has to merge servers, and the feeling emerges that “the game is dying now”
This will now automatically lead to “New World is already dead” postings, but this is indeed a problem that lies in the server structure of New World.