These 3 AAA MMORPGs have brutally failed despite the hype

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 9 minutes

For years, players in Europe and North America have been waiting for great, new PvE MMORPGs that bring back the allure of the past. Thus, the hype is huge when a new online role-playing game is released. We take a look at 3 MMORPGs from recent years that many were looking forward to but that have brutally failed.

Hardly any fanbase is currently longing for a “new game” as much as fans of classic theme park MMORPGs. Well, maybe fans of Diablo.

Today we want to look at three online role-playing games that players were incredibly excited about at the time, but that ultimately failed miserably.

What do the games have in common?

  • All three MMORPGs are characterized by being developed with a “high budget” over a long period and by large teams, thus they were considered AAA titles – however, the exact development costs are rarely known
  • all three games were eagerly anticipated and generated high expectations
  • all games are considered to have failed dramatically – not “it was actually going quite well and then slowly declined”, but rather games that had a loud and hard crash
WildStar Mech

WildStar

What WildStar wanted to be: The SF MMORPG WildStar wanted to be the better World of Warcraft, a WoW like it used to be before Blizzard “caved in to the casuals” and made everything so easy.

The clear statement from Carbine president, Jeremy Gaffney, in May 2014 was: We want the former World of Warcraft players.

Thus, the studio Carbine made it their mission to be a “hardcore MMORPG.” It was supposed to be developed closely with the fanbase and provide a fascinating gaming experience at launch.

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After videos like this one, MMORPG fans were incredibly excited for WildStar.

Why was the hype so big? The team said all the right things in advance. The videos were humorous, well-produced, and just wonderfully made.

The plans sounded fantastic:

  • The team wanted to work on multiple content patches simultaneously to ensure that new content was always coming. This was intended to compensate for the major weakness of WoW.
  • The Housing system of WildStar was also really good – WoW still doesn’t offer housing to this day
  • the combat system active and interesting – unlike the usual tab-targeting in the genre
  • the world of WildStar displayed a quirky and bizarre SF look – not in the classic fantasy guise

All features that were supposed to clearly distinguish WildStar from WoW and similar games to bring fresh wind into the stagnant MMORPG genre.

Additionally, there was an extensive beta for WildStar, during which players could test and play everything for months.

The plans paid off – the hype at launch was tremendous. In Germany alone, two major fan sites had emerged to accompany “the next big thing” from the very beginning.

WildStar Chua War
Just for the Chua, one had to love WildStar.

This is how the launch went: WildStar had a relatively good and smooth launch. The game sold very well.

The atmosphere in the first weeks was positive – although many players already knew the game up to the endgame due to the beta. But more would be coming soon.

However, it quickly became apparent that the “hardcore” aspect was too strenuous for many, as one had to qualify laboriously for the raid.

WildStar F2P Review
In the beginning, there was still good grinning, but problems piled up in the background.

What went wrong? The good mood faded after a few weeks. WildStar relied on a subscription model, and many evidently did not renew their subscriptions.

The promised constant content updates did not materialize. Difficulties arose:

  • Suddenly, the loot didn’t feel that interesting
  • the PvP was hardly used
  • there were construction sites and bugs that were not repaired.

Disappointment quickly set in: Carbine gradually retracted its promises.

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WildStar: The tricky first year – An MMO grits its teeth
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What ultimately caused WildStar’s failure? The lofty plans of WildStar collapsed after the launch. Carbine apparently never managed to transition from a team developing an MMORPG to a team supporting a live MMORPG.

The charismatic developers like Stephen Forst, with whom players had formed a connection before the release, quickly disappeared after the launch.

WildStar - Stephan Frost
The departure of Stephan Frost, the figurehead of WildStar, was a major blow.

Later, it was rumored: The plan to work on multiple patches simultaneously turned out to be a catastrophic mistake for Carbine. It significantly blocked the further development of WildStar.

In hindsight, much dirty laundry was aired publicly, the management was blamed, it was said by supposed former developers who anonymously posted their complaints.

WildStar never really had a chance, it was alleged, that it had been doomed from the start, said one who claimed to be a former developer.

Anyway: WildStar never managed to find its footing. After the good start, the MMORPG ran out of steam. A switch to free-to-play a year after the launch couldn’t bring a resurgence, and ultimately, NCSoft pulled the plug in 2018 after many years.

But actually, the end of WildStar and Carbine had already become apparent back in March 2016, when almost half the studio was laid off and a planned China release was canceled.

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The shift to free-to-play came late and couldn’t bring a turnaround.

Where does WildStar stand now? The MMORPG ended in November 2018. The Carbine studio was also closed after new projects were canceled.

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Many memories remain, and some truly loved the world of WildStar.

On page 2, we continue with an MMORPG, that was released the same year as ArcheAge.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Pages: 1 2 3

We played Borderlands 3 for 180 minutes – This is our impression

Leya Jankowski Leya Jankowski Reading time 4 minutes

Gearbox showcased gameplay of Borderlands 3 for the first time at an event. Our author Leya was able to play Gearbox’s new loot shooter for a total of 3 hours. She thinks: It’s Borderlands 2, just more extreme and better.

What kind of event is this? Gearbox invited various media representatives to Los Angeles on April 30 to test Borderlands 3 for the first time. Along with us were Maurice Weber for our sister site GameStar.de and myself, Leya for MeinMMO.

When is the release? Borderlands 3 will be released on September 13, 2019.

How long and what could we play? I played for a total of 3 hours. We had two characters to choose from for testing: Amara and Zane.

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In the demo, we were able to play a part of one of the first quests and were a bit further into the beginning. The first skills could be unlocked, and we already had good equipment available to start shooting right away.

Our first impression in the video with gameplay

What is this video about? The GameStar video editor Christian Fritz Schneider interviewed Maurice and me right after we played Borderlands 3.

We describe our first impression, and you will get to see freshly recorded gameplay material. The game was played on PC with an Xbox controller.

Below the video, you will find a personal conclusion.

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It feels like Borderlands 2 – But more extreme

This is my connection to Borderlands: The franchise is one of my favorites. I played every Borderlands title and spent quite a few hundred hours in Borderlands 2.

I feel at home in Pandora, and Borderlands 3 was able to give me that feeling too. The heart of Borderlands has remained, and Gearbox does not change anything drastically about the formula.

Borderlands 3 retains, as usual:

  • the dark, absurd humor
  • the absurdity
  • the MMO shooter feeling through co-op focus and fun loot grind spiral
  • the lovingly crafted characters and game world
  • guns, guns, and more guns
The green enemy being shot here is one of the stronger ones and certainly gave me a hard time!

This makes Borderlands 3 more extreme than its predecessors: The game overall will be bigger, more colorful, and even bloodier. The entire atmosphere now leans towards a stronger cyberpunk direction, and much is bathed in vibrant neon colors.

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It might be that Borderlands 3 feels bloodier to me because the graphics have improved significantly. I can now observe in detail how heads explode or how an NPC crawls out of an animal carcass, dragging a huge puddle of blood with them.

  • There are multiple planets that we travel to in a spaceship, which is also our home base. For the first time, we are leaving Pandora.
  • There are many more weapons and bosses to fight against. How many specifically has not been revealed yet.
  • The weapons can receive individual upgrades.
  • The bosses are now two in number and have a complete cult under them: The Calypso twins Tyreen and Troy. Tyreen directly absorbs life energy from her opponents and wants to do the same with vault monsters.
No Borderlands without psychos as enemies!

This is what I particularly liked: While playing, I often had to laugh and was just happy that the dark and absurd humor has made its way back to Borderlands 3.

It’s the little moments when one of the NPCs sends me on a super important mission to get their coffee because otherwise, they would be too grumpy to fight. When I arrive with the coffee, a robot with a mustache and an ideology about ecological coffee, which an authentically hipster bartender could not convey better, is already waiting for me. In such moments, I love Borderlands 3 right away, because there is so much love in these details.

This robot knows what he is talking about when it comes to ecologically grown coffee. His mustache already reveals it.

The gameplay feels fantastic! It’s simply fun to run around with the Brawler Siren Amara and beat enemies with her strong arms. Blood is spraying, everything explodes in a spectacular fireworks display, it’s just great fun.

This still worries me: It’s cool that there are now more planets to explore. However, I wonder what that will look like in detail. Is there a line to follow, or does everything split too much across the planets? What about loading screens? From spaceship to planet and back? Other testers I spoke with shared this concern, as it’s not clear-cut.

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The first boss I fought, a flying brain, was a bit bland. There are smaller enemies in the demo that have more exciting mechanics than Gigamind, the boss enemy. Unfortunately, we have not been told much about further bosses yet, and this is one of the first opponents. I’m waiting patiently here.

FL4K remains just as much a mystery as the later bosses in Borderlands 3 – He could not be played.

The outlook is good: So far, I am confident that Borderlands 3 could be a hit, attracting both fans and newcomers alike. The loot shooter genre has been well established and popular, especially since Destiny 1 – even if Borderlands is actually the mother of it.

  • the story looks promising
  • there are lovable NPCs in it
  • the gameplay with characters and weapons is fun
  • it looks good if you like the shading cell style
  • 4 DLCs are already planned, which speaks to longevity
  • the comfort improvements and modernizations are well thought out
  • In the release window (September 13), there are no other major releases.
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This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

The event in Fortnite was as intense as expected – Players choose Tommy Gun back

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 3 minutes

On Fortnite , a live event took place on Saturday, May 4th, starting at 9 PM. It delivered what was promised, says our author Schuhmann. Players have brought the Tommy Gun, the drum gun, back to Fortnite. Additionally, the volcano erupted, significantly changing the map: Fortnite has a new map after the event.

For weeks, speculation has been running about how the season end for Fortnite’s 8th season would play out – and indeed, all speculations and datamining findings turned out to be true. It was a grand spectacle.

This is how the event began: The event took place in the “Open Vault” mode. This was a team battle, with the eye of the storm brewing over Loot Lake.

However, at 8:59 PM, the mode was switched to “pacifist”, meaning no attacking was allowed and the weapons fell silent.

Above the Loot Lake, the countdown ticked down to 0 at 9:00 PM and the vault opened.

Players could enter a sort of other dimension: a room with 6 pillars, each symbolizing an item that was once in Fortnite but was then removed from the game.

Fortnite-Secret-Room
This is what the room looked like that players entered – 6 pillars rose from the ground, each representing an item.

Fortnite introduces democracy

This is how the ingame voting went: Players hit the pillar with the item they wished to bring back with their pickaxes.

In my instance and likely in most others, the “drum gun” was the clear favorite, and here the pillar steadily rose.

Hardly anyone hit the planes, the Infinity Blade, or the Grappler.

As it became apparent that the Tommy Gun was the favorite of the masses, more and more switched to the weapon’s pillar to boost the progress.

The voting lasted only a few moments.

Fortnite-Bar-Fills
Quickly, most players gathered around the drum gun and hacked at it.

When the pillar was “full”, this phase of the event ended, and the players were launched into the air.

Volcano erupts, destroys Tilted Towers, brings a new Fortnite map

This is how the event continued: In the air, players were able to observe the eruption of the gigantic volcano in the northeastern part of the Fortnite map. It threw at least three large debris pieces into the air.

Fortnite-Volcano
The volcano erupts.

I have already seen that Tilted Towers was almost completely destroyed.

https://twitter.com/dakotaz/status/1124752937660628993
Content Creator Dakotaz shows the impact of the volcanic debris.

According to further reports, the volcanic parts likely also hit Retail Row – and one part is said to have struck in Polar Peaks.

After this one round, the “Open Vault” mode was no longer selectable.

Tilted-Towers-Fortnite
This is what Tilted Towers looked like a few minutes after the volcanic eruption.

Drum Gun returns to Fortnite

How does the event impact the game? Epic has already posted on Twitter that the Drum Gun is now back in Fortnite. The drum gun is out of the vault.

However, the weapon will not be used during this weekend’s Fortnite World Cup qualifiers.

Additionally, there are likely major changes to the map, the spots Tilted Towers and Retail Row were destroyed.

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What can the Drum Gun do in Fortnite? The Drum Gun is an assault rifle with 26/27 damage and a magazine size of 50. (via fortnite.gamepedia)

The drum gun is considered a good weapon for mid and close range. It originally appeared with patch 4.5 in July 2018 and was removed with update 5.40 in September 2018.

Did everything go smoothly during the event? No, there were problems. Some could not see the event. Epic has already responded to this and is giving players the “Arcana Glider” as compensation.

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Where can you watch the event? Here are some first images of the event from the perspective of streamer Tyler “Ninja” Blevins.

https://twitter.com/Ninja/status/1124757543086166016

We will keep you updated on the event and its impact on MeinMMO.

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Fortnite: Big Live Event starts today on 4.5. in Open Vault mode
von Schuhmann

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Fortnite: Big Live Event starts today on 4.5. in Open Vault mode

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 3 minutes

In Fortnite , a live event will start tonight, on May 4th. We will see when the event begins and what we know about it. A lot could change tonight.

Update 8:43 PM: It’s now just before the event and as expected, most modes in Fortnite are disabled. A new mode is now available: “Open Vault.”

This suggests that the leaks about the “Nexus Event” are true – there could be a vote on which of 6 items will return.

This is what the menu looks like in Fortnite at 8:43 PM.

Original report:

What kind of event is this? This is the event marking the end of Season 8 in Fortnite, which has been hinted at for weeks through runes.

Meanwhile, a countdown has appeared in Fortnite which is counting down. This countdown is located above Loot Lake.

It is clear that something big is happening tonight, Saturday, May 4th.

fortnite-vulkan-bunker-screens-02

When is the Live Event in Fortnite today?

When does the countdown end? The countdown ends on Saturday, May 4th, at 9:00 PM our time.

Then the Fortnite event should start today.

What happens when the countdown ends? We do not fully know yet, but there are hints about what is likely to happen:

  • All game modes will likely be disabled again, except for one option, similar to the Marshmello event. Anyone wanting to play Fortnite will have to do so in this event mode.
Marshmello-Fortnite-Event

How might the map change?

fortnite-vulkan-bunker-screens-04

This might still change in Fortnite: What data miners have also found is a large event at Loot Lake, where the countdown is also taking place. This is called “the Nexus event.”

Under Loot Lake, there is said to be an “alien structure” underground. Apparently, Epic is planning an event where players can vote on which of 6 items that once were in Fortnite but got removed will come back to the game.

These are the 6 items:

Currently, one should be more cautious near Loot Lake than usual, as Epic has already warned on Twitter. Otherwise, one could end up like Tfue in this clip (via dexerto):

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We will be reporting on the event in Fortnite tonight at MeinMMO.

So bleibt Ihr bei Fortnite auf dem Laufenden: Mehr Infos und News zum Spiel findet Ihr auch auf unserer Fortnite-Seite auf Facebook. Wenn Ihr noch Mitspieler für ein paar Runden sucht, schaut doch in unserer Fortnite-Gruppe vorbei.

The title image comes from Fortniteinsider.

Update 9:46 PM: The event has now happened, here you can read our summary of the impacts.

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von Schuhmann
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. Fortniteinsider
  2. Forbes

For Honor is still popular 3 years after release and even growing – But why?

Tarek Zehrer Tarek Zehrer Reading time 3 minutes

Even over 3 years after release, For Honor still has some loyal players – recently, the number of players even increased again. What is the reason for this?

This is what has happened with For Honor so far: Since its announcement in 2015, For Honor has had a turbulent history.

  • The hype before and after the release on February 14, 2017, was huge. Even the beta registrations set records.
  • Then For Honor revealed some glaring issues and drew much criticism. Numerous bugs and glitches occurred, players complained about steel prices, and there were many other weaknesses.
  • The hype quickly faded, and For Honor was predicted to have a short lifespan. No one was interested in the content of the second season.
  • On Steam, the player count reached an all-time low in October with an average of 1180 players active that day.
for-honor-zenturio

How did For Honor manage to stay afloat?

Although the stars did not align well for For Honor in 2017, Ubisoft continued to support the developers.

Many other publishers would likely have simply let the game “die.” The developers have made efforts in recent years to address the game’s weaknesses.

Furthermore, starting in 2018, there were regular new, motivating content like new fighters, events, and the “Marching Fire” expansion.

The numbers say: On Steam, the numbers of the last months remained stable. Rarely did the peak number of players online in a day drop below 8000 players.

The other platforms like Ubisoft’s Uplay service or the console versions are not even included here. Ubisoft does not provide any more precise numbers.

Nevertheless, the data shows that For Honor is managing to retain a solid player base.

Source: Steam Charts

Season 2 starts and attracts players

What does it look like now? Thousands of players are playing For Honor on Steam every day. Recently, the trend has been increasing again. In the last 30 days, the average number of players has risen again.

Although only minimally by about 5%, For Honor is still managing to attract players after over 3 years.

What’s in Season 2: The start of the new season is also responsible for this. It started on May 2 and ends in July and brings:

  • another new fighter, the samurai Hitokiri and the female variant Sakura.
  • a new map
  • a new seasonal event
  • further changes (balance optimizations, steel prices)

What comes next?

The roadmap for this year only includes the upcoming seasons so far.

  • The third season begins in August and ends in October. You will get access to another character from the Vikings
  • This yet unnamed season will introduce another hero for the Wu Lin. The season is scheduled to take place from November to possibly January 2020

Whether For Honor can continue to keep its players engaged remains to be seen. So far, no major add-on has been announced.

Do you actively play For Honor? What do you think about it?

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. kotaku.com

SWTOR players remember the late Chewbacca actor

Benedict Grothaus Benedict Grothaus Reading time 2 minutes

The actor who portrayed Chewbacca, Peter Mayhew, passed away on April 30. In the spirit of the new Star Wars motto “No one is ever really gone,” many players from the MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic are honoring the actor with huge memorial celebrations.

This is how fans are honoring the actor: After Peter Mayhew passed away at the age of 74 in his home in Texas, some Star Wars fans in The Old Republic organized a sort of requiem for the actor.

The players gathered in the “Slippery Slopes Cantina” to pay tribute to Mayhew. Some players even held a moment of silence in a large circle.

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On reddit, there were also posts commemorating Mayhew with a quote from the current Star Wars trailer. It says: “No one is ever really gone.”

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Elsewhere, the players also celebrated with a party. There were particularly many Wookiees present. A small tribute to Peter Mayhew’s role as Chewbacca, Han Solo’s Wookiee companion.

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Fans in Star Wars Galaxies are also mourning

Even in the now-closed Star Wars Galaxies, players gathered to mourn the passing of the actor.

On the server “Star Wars Galaxies Legends,” a private server that continued to operate after the shutdown of Star Wars Galaxies, fans gathered for a sort of prayer.

Images of this were provided by the polish website mmorpg.org.pl.

Star Wars Galaxies Requiem for Peter Mayhew
Image source: mmorpg.org.pl

Players in SWTOR and Star Trek Online have honored many before

Mayhew is not the first actor from the Star Wars universe that SWTOR players have mourned. When the actress who played Leia, Carrie Fisher passed away in December 2016, players also gathered for memorial celebrations.

Shortly thereafter, in January 2017, a tribute video was even released. Some fans compiled images from memorials and of the character Leia Organa as a tribute to Fisher.

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Tributes have also been paid to the deceased in other games. For instance, memorials were held for the passing of Leonard Nimoy, the actor who portrayed Spock, to honor both fans and developers.

A memorial was even set up for Nimoy in Star Trek Online.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. mmorpg.org.pl

Borderlands 3 calls an enemy type differently to be more politically correct

Jürgen Horn Jürgen Horn Reading time 3 minutes

The upcoming loot shooter Borderlands 3 will refrain from using a certain term for an enemy type, as it aims to avoid discriminating against little people.

Which term is being referred to? In all Borderlands games, there is a small variant of the usual bandit enemies. These adversaries have shrunk to smaller villains due to mutation.

In Borderlands 1 and 2, they were named “Midget.” This is a derogatory term for little people in English and can be translated roughly as “little one” or “dwarf.” In fact, the enemies were called “Zwerge” in the German version.

What are the enemies called now? In an interview with PCGamesN, producer Chris Brock stated that the small enemies will return in Borderlands 3. However, they will be given a different name. Instead of being called Midgets, they will be referred to as “Tinks.”

boderlands-midget
This is what the little ones look like. Source: Borderlands Wiki

The reasons for the renaming

Why did Gearbox change the name? The reason given was that “Midget” is not a particularly nice term for little people. Moreover, the usefulness of the term is not a major issue in the game; the little ones are just called that.

Therefore, it is not a big deal to rename them and thus be politically correct towards little people. The old term is simply “not super-sensitive,” Brock said.

Whether the small enemies will continue to be called “Zwerge” in the German version (as they were previously translated) or will also be renamed to “Tinks” is still unclear.

Borderlands-3-Psycho

How are players reacting? Various fans of Borderlands find in comments and on Reddit that the decision to rename the dwarves is not particularly well-received. In fact, some are wondering if the term “Tink” might be even worse and could potentially become a new insult for little people in real life.

Moreover, “Tink” is already an insulting term for a particular form of traveling people in England and Ireland, which is referred to as “Tinker” (tinsmith) or simply “Tinks” in short form. And especially the last term is not meant to be nice.

Borderlands-3-Monster

Is Borderlands getting softened? According to Chris Brock, Borderlands 3 is still not a politically correct game for the whole family, despite the changed term for Midgets. There are still plenty of coarse terms in the game, including the insane psychos, who will still be called that.

He also noted that the time for Midgets has long passed. Even in the Pre-Sequel, the last Borderlands game from Gearbox, the small enemies were no longer called Midgets. Instead, “Lil” was added to the regular name of the enemy when it was a mini-version.

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This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
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Anthem: Is anyone still playing this? This is how 2000 of our readers see the online shooter

Micha Deckert Micha Deckert Reading time 3 minutes

In a survey, we wanted to know from you what you think of the action RPG Anthem nearly two months after its release. We are now revealing our survey results and showing you how you and our other readers responded to topics such as playtime, group configurations, and overall ratings.

Is anyone still playing this? Again and again the question arises, whether there are still players wandering around in Anthem or if most freelancers have already left the ship. It is said that currently the players are missing to form a group for activities through matchmaking.

That is why our first and probably most exciting question for you was whether you are still playing BioWare’s sci-fi shooter. Other questions concerned group size and wishes for the future.

This was our survey: At Easter, we published our survey to capture the opinion of MeinMMO readers on Anthem. We want to reveal your opinion on the current state of Anthem in this article. Your responses regarding the future of Anthem will follow in a second article.

Anthem Stronghold The Sunken
Recently added to Anthem: The new stronghold “The Sunken Cell”

This is what MeinMMO readers currently think of Anthem

On average, nearly 2100 of our readers participated in the Anthem survey. We reveal what you currently think of the action RPG.

Are you still playing Anthem?

2071 of our MeinMMO readers answered the question of whether they are still playing Anthem. The responses were as follows:

  • “I still play Anthem daily” responded 9% of participants
  • 19% of you still play several times a week
  • 22% of our readers check in on Anthem several times a month
  • 46% of participants no longer play Anthem
  • 4% of the responses referred to “I have never played Anthem”
Anthem Survey Are You Still Playing

Have you played other “Loot-Shooters” (Destiny, Borderlands, The Division…) before Anthem?

Many of you have wandered around in other games about loot hunting before Anthem. Here are the 2091 responses to the question of whether you played other “Loot-Shooters” before Anthem:

  • “Yes, many” responded a solid 43% of you
  • Some loot games have been played by 37% of you
  • 14% of participants were familiar with a few loot games
  • No “Loot-Shooters” were played by 6% of participants before Anthem
Destiny-2-Gambit-Badass
Many of you have already roamed in other “Loot-Shooters” before Anthem, such as in Destiny 2.

How many hours have you spent in Anthem?

Anthem was released back in February. Naturally, we wanted to know how much time you have already spent in the world of Bastion. 2097 readers participated in this question.

  • 6% of you spent 1-10 hours in Anthem
  • 7% of participants played the game for 10-20 hours
  • 17% of our readers roamed around in Bastion for 20-40 hours
  • 29% of participants revealed that they have played Anthem for 40-80 hours
  • 23% of participants have spent 80-150 hours in Anthem
  • More than 150 hours was the case for 9% of readers
  • Also, 9% have spent more than 200 hours in Anthem

In what group configuration do you play Anthem?

Anthem can be played solo, but especially in a group. Besides playing with friends there is matchmaking for all activities. We wanted to know how you play or have played Anthem.

  • 21% of participants play solo
  • 18% of our readers chose “in a fixed group”
  • 25% of MeinMMO readers play Anthem with changing friends
  • 36% play with unknown players through Anthem’s matchmaking

How would you describe your experience with Anthem so far?

In our last question, we wanted to know how you would describe your experience with Anthem so far. You could rate your answer on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being the best result:

Anthem Survey Rating
  • 5% of readers rated Anthem as “1 – Very Bad”
  • 25% of participants gave a “5 – Average”
  • Only 1% of participants in our survey rated the game as “10 – Excellent”

What our readers wish for the future of Anthem has been compiled for you in this article:

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von Micha Deckert
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Why the next expansion of SWTOR is so important for fans

Benedict Grothaus Benedict Grothaus Reading time 4 minutes

For the MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic, the expansion Onslaught was announced in April. Many fans were more than pleased with the upcoming content. For them, the new expansion is truly important.

What kind of expansion is this? In April 2019, EA announced the expansion “Onslaught” for The Old Republic. The expansion is supposed to be free for subscribers and adds numerous new content to the game:

  • a new story with new missions
  • two new planets
  • a new playable species: Nautolans
  • a new raid
  • new equipment and a higher level cap (level 75)

“Onslaught” is only dated for September 2019. So it will be a while before the new expansion is released. You can find details about SWTOR: Onslaught in our announcement report.

SWTOR Onslaught Meksha
Pirates and smugglers rule in the hollowed-out asteroid of Mek-Sha.

What “Onslaught” means for fans

This is how the development has gone so far: As it looks with the currently announced features, Onslaught will be one of the biggest expansions of SWTOR, perhaps even the biggest. Any previous expansion mostly brought roughly:

  • the increase of the maximum level
  • stories
  • new missions
  • new companions
  • small group dungeons (Flashpoints)

The content of the last two expansions, Knights of the Fallen Empire and Knights of the Eternal Throne, received mixed to positive reviews from critics. However, they often fall to the back places in player rankings. This has increased the hunger for a good expansion even more than before.

SWTOR Knights of the fallen Empire Keyart

Players have been waiting for new content for so long: Onslaught is the seventh expansion of Star Wars: The Old Republic and will be released nearly three years after the last expansion.

Knights of the Eternal Throne, the predecessor, was released in December 2016. Fans of the MMORPG had to do without major content updates for almost three years.

Previously, updates were released annually from 2013 to 2016, almost always at the end of the year, in October or December. As early as spring 2018, during the announcement of a new roadmap, calls for a new expansion were made.

SWTOR Onslaught Farm
A farm on Dantooine in Onslaught.

This was the concern: Because this cycle was broken and no updates came for so long, fans feared that the developers at BioWare had simply stopped working on SWTOR.

Also, in autumn 2018, the “Cantina Tour” event of SWTOR was canceled. The tours are community events in various cities. Due to the cancellation, fans already labeled SWTOR as a “dying game. “

In addition, many developers from SWTOR were pulled away for the development of Anthem in order to finish Anthem. According to an insider, it was even said that BioWare wanted SWTOR to die in favor of Anthem.

Anthem-Interceptor-Rennt
Anthem was said to be responsible for the impending death of SWTOR.

Many fans blamed the publisher EA, which has belonged to BioWare since 2007 and is among the 5 most hated companies in America. There was a belief that EA only cares about money and thus simply writes off fan favorites like SWTOR.

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According to reports from former developers, however, the opposite was true. It was said that EA did not kill BioWare, but saved it.

Electronic Arts Logo
BioWare allegedly owes its life to EA.

This is why fans are happy now: After the announcement of Onslaught, a certain relief spread among the fans. Many had feared that the servers of their beloved game would be shut down, that SWTOR would simply be ended.

However, since Onslaught will be a large expansion with its many features, fans now hope that SWTOR will last for several more years. They are not only happy that content is coming at all, but also about what specifically is supposed to come.

The new items are expected the most, which are supposed to lead to more individual customization of the classes through the “Spoils of War” system. But the date also seems cleverly chosen by the fans. Since Onslaught is released in September, the team then has a lot of time to fix any bugs. December will have several weeks of holidays in between.

SWTOR Onslaught Duel of two people with lightsabers

What will happen next?

In the coming weeks and months, Onslaught will first be developed. Articles on the official SWTOR site will appear that will elaborate on some features such as:

  • planets
  • Nautolans
  • classes
  • “Spoils of War”
  • the story

At the moment, many players are still thinking on reddit about how some of the new features like the “Tactical Items” will work.

By the way: Anyone who logs into SWTOR until May 6 will receive a free M4-Y8 astromech droid.

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How long do you think SWTOR will last with Onslaught?

According to BioWare, not only large expansions are necessary for the maintenance of the game:

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von Andreas Bertits


This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

ESO: Here is how the content will arrive that you will soon experience in Elsweyr

Jürgen Horn Jürgen Horn Reading time 4 minutes

Elsweyr, the upcoming addon for The Elder Scrolls Online, has been on the ESO test server since April 16. It’s time to check the community’s feedback. Read here how the next chapter is received by the fans.

In the following paragraphs, the collected opinions of the community on Elsweyr will be presented.

The Area of Elsweyr

This is how the new zone is received: Elsweyr is set in the realm of the feline Khajiit. This region is largely unknown. Only the outskirts like the Reaper’s March were present in the base game.

Eso_Elsweyr_Trailer7

Therefore, some players were concerned about whether the new region has enough of its own flair. However, these concerns seem to be unfounded, as in the ESO forum, fans praise the new area:

  • “The world is beautiful, really different from the previous zones. I was already afraid it would be ‘Reapers March 2: Electric Boogaloo’ or a mashup of Alik’r and Grahtwood, so it’s nice that the region has its own style.”
  • “The zone looks wonderful! Another 10 out of 10 points for the art team and design team!”
  • “The zone is much larger than it appears on the map.”
  • Some players are excited about the various Khajiit types, including the Alfiq housecat Khajiit and the extremely large Rath versions of the usual cat-like beings. Various players have spent a lot of time searching for the different Khajiit subspecies.
Eso_Elsweyr_Trailer2

However, there is also criticism:

  • “I am very disappointed that Orcrest is a public dungeon. This is the second time that an important city in the lore and zone has been turned into a public dungeon where you only go once and never again.”
  • “There are way too many Alits (lizard creatures) in the zone. Please replace them with more interesting opponents.”
  • “I think there should be more houses you can break into.”
  • Additionally, several players report that the world bosses are too easy to defeat.
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This is how the dragons are received: Many players have positive things to report about the dragons. The large dragons appear as world events and require a group to be defeated.

Eso_Elsweyr_Drache

The players in the ESO forum mostly found them good. But the loot could be better. Also, they feel quite static, as they remain fixed in their locations.

There is a desire for them to move more and to fly around during combat like in Monster Hunter World and change their position.

The New Class

This is what players say about the Necromancer: Most testers in the ESO forum are excited so far. The class of the Necromancer is well thought out, plays completely differently from the other 5 hero types, and has a cool style:

  • “I find the class very well designed. The mini-game to use the corpses is fun and dynamic.”
  • “It feels powerful even before you have figured out the optimal rotation.”
  • “It’s really fresh and new, that there are so many stamina options for ranged attacks and the corpse mechanics make the Necro really unique compared to the other classes.”
TESO Nekro2

However, some players also found points of criticism:

  • “The corpses disappear too quickly, which makes the gameplay less fun.”
  • “The scythe [which appears in a certain skill] is oddly scaled and looks way too big for me.”
  • “I would love it if you could disable the mechanic that rates Necro skills as criminal acts, because it’s annoying.”

The Raid

This is how the new raid is rated: Sunspire is the new raid (trials in ESO) from Elsweyr. This instance is designed for 12 players and fulfills many long-standing wishes of the community according to ESO forum.

ESO Elsweyr SunspireTrial

Many criticized that the last raid from Summerset was just a series of short fights. This time it is again a “real raid” with proper length:

  • “I’m really happy that we’re getting a real raid again after the previous mini-raid.”
  • “It’s wonderful, great job!”
  • “It’s the best raid ever in ESO!”
  • “Sunspire is really the raid you’ve been waiting for for years. […] It’s not an arena raid; it’s bigger, has more story relevance, and is ultimately more satisfying because you fight dragons!”
eso-elsweyr-quest-titel-01

Less well received were the following aspects:

  • “Please bring in portals; it’s really annoying when you get kicked out of the game and have to run back.”
  • “The hitboxes of the dragons are a bit strange. I can’t hit them correctly with the Necro skill Mystic Siphon.”
  • “If you want to attract WoW or even FF14 players to raiding, you need to increase the difficulty.”

Conclusion: Elsweyr rocks!

All these positive statements in the forum show that Elsweyr is likely well received by fans. Above all, the new zone, the necromancer, and the raid Sunspire seem to be well received across the board and enrich the game.

ESO-Elsweyr-Dragon

Once again, ESO shows that it doesn’t need to reinvent itself to be successful. Fans want good, new content, and they seem to be getting it according to the overwhelmingly positive feedback in Elsweyr.

If you want to optimally prepare for Elsweyr, you should follow these tips:

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This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Allegedly, huge MMO company wants to be bought by Disney – But they don’t want to

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

The Korean MMO giant Nexon (Maple Story) is for sale. Allegedly, the founder has high hopes for Disney and has contacted them to arrange a sale. It’s about more than 13 billion US dollars. But Disney has reportedly turned down the offer.

This company is the focus: Nexon is one of the largest MMO companies in the world. They are primarily active in Asia, serving the PC market and the mobile market with online games for many years.

One of Nexon’s most famous MMORPGs is Maple Story – in Korea, they also distribute titles like Final Fantasy XIV, Counter Strike Online, or Dungeon Fighter Online, the most lucrative PC game in the world.

The latest hit is the mobile game “Traha.”

traha naiad city
This is Traha, the latest mobile game from Nexon.

Why is the company for sale? The CEO and founder of the company, Jung-ju Kim, and his wife control a large portion of the shares of Nexon. But apparently, Kim is tired and wants to retire from the business.

After a legal dispute, in which he was accused of corruption, he is now said to be planning the sale of all shares. This has been known for months.

Potential buyers include:

  • Korean competitors such as Netmarble or Kakao, the publisher of Black Desert
  • Western corporations like EA and Amazon
  • as well as investors
  • the Chinese giant Tencent is also said to be involved

But from all companies, there has only been the message for months: No comment.

MapleStory 2 Art
MapleStory – an important game for Nexon

What is the deal with Disney? As the Korean news site “The Central Times” reports (translation via Korean Herald), the head of Nexon has now personally contacted a senior Disney executive to discuss the sale of the shares.

As a source, “International Banking Industry” is cited.

The purchase price is around 13.2 billion US dollars. Further details are not known.

However, Kim Jung-ju had spoken positively about Disney in 2015. He said at that time:

“What I envy most about Disney is that they do not squeeze money out of children … customers pay happily for Disney. Nexon still has a long way to go to get there. Some people hate Nexon to death.”

What’s clear: Nexon is for sale and whoever acquires it will overnight become one of the biggest players in online gaming.

Who ultimately buys it seems to be open at the moment.

Disney reportedly has no interest

Update 4.5.: According to the latest reports from South Korea, Disney has rejected. They were indeed approached by the Nexon CEO. He wanted to offer them Nexon.

But Disney reportedly turned down Kim Jung-ju. They are not interested and have no intention of buying Nexon.

This is reported by a major South Korean daily newspaper (via comicbook.com).

More on the topic
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von Schuhmann
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. Korean Herald
  2. Game Informer

Sounds more and more like Call of Duty 2019 is going in the direction of MMO light

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 3 minutes

The new Call of Duty 2019 seems to be Modern Warfare 4. We don’t know much about the game yet, but it sounds more and more like it is heading towards “Games as a service”, a kind of light-MMO like GTA 5 Online or Destiny. Perhaps even with an open world?

These are the new statements about Call of Duty 2019: During the quarterly report from Activision Blizzard, there were further hints about the new Call of Duty 2019, which will probably be Modern Warfare 4.

The Chief Operating Officer and President of Activision Blizzard, Coddy Johnson, commented on the new game:

  • The big goal is to retain the core player base throughout the launch quarter – progress has already been made with Black Ops 4, which has been played significantly longer than WWII a year prior
  • New content, modes, and events will continue to be released for the new Call of Duty – but they aim to do even more than with Black Ops 4
  • The Call of Duty team is hard at work for the big fall release
  • Enthusiasm is exceptionally high across all of Activision Blizzard for the game
  • They believe that the launch and post-launch content of the new Call of Duty will be a “Game Changing experience” for the players

The game is expected to be officially revealed by June 2019. Then everyone should be able to understand why Activision Blizzard holds the new game from Infinity Ward in such high regard.

call-of-duty-infinite

This is the big question: The question is what Activision Blizzard plans as a big bang that should convince people immediately.

The focus of the statement is that Activision Blizzard wants to bring more and more new content to Call of Duty 2019.

Clearly, they want to deliver more than “content, modes, and events”: The question arises, what will be left?

Especially since rumors have emerged that Call of Duty 2019 is coming without a Battle Royale mode and without Zombies.

So what is the big surprise supposed to be?

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What we still know: These new statements coincide with an announcement from February 2019, stating that they wanted to provide a “large and expansive multiplayer world.”

What exactly is meant by this large world seems to be open at the moment. Discussions have already occurred on reddit that it could be heading towards “Open World.”

This supports the Games-as-a-service idea: If a “large multiplayer world” ties in with the announcement to support the game even more actively after launch, we are already touching on the foundational ideas behind games like GTA 5 Online, Destiny, or The Division 2.

A large world that is continuously supplied with more content and expanded. Such a “mode” would be a big deal for Call of Duty and worthy of the fuss that Activision Blizzard is already making.

It would also explain why they are talking about Call of Duty 2019 as such an ambitious game.

Another possibility would be a major mode that is significantly changed and modified over time, but is rather a XXL version of an existing mode.

Call of duty black ops 4 beta 2

The expectations for the new Call of Duty seem to be rising, in any case.

After Activision Blizzard lost a franchise in the “Games as a service” area with Destiny, they might be tempted to push into this gap.

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This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
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Streamers can earn over $8000 if they play 1 hour of LoL on Twitch

Benedict Grothaus Benedict Grothaus Reading time 2 minutes

On Twitch, streamers can currently earn several thousand dollars for just one hour of streaming. Streamer Reckful has now shown how it works and claims it’s child’s play.

How do streamers earn so much money? Streamer Byron “Reckful” Bernstein provided a small glimpse behind the scenes of his stream. He showed a short clip of his account overview.

There was the so-called “Bounty Board.” The top task listed there was: “Stream League of Legends for one hour.” This was rewarded with $8412. (approximately €7500) However, there was also a deadline for completing this task.

In addition to this highly paid task, there were also others like:

  • Watch 30 minutes of Street Fighter League: Pro-US 2019
  • Stream for one hour Final Fantasy XIV

According to Reckful, this is like “built-in partnerships,” making it easy for streamers to earn “tons of money.”

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What is the “Twitch Bounty Board”? Some time ago, Twitch introduced the so-called “Bounty Board.” Here, Twitch offers “Bounties” in collaboration with various companies that streamers can pursue.

Which Bounties are available depends on the streamer and their community. However, more specific details regarding which factors play a role have not yet been provided. Nevertheless, some rules exist:

  • each bounty has its own requirements that must be met
  • if the required viewership is not reached, only a partial payout is given
  • criticism is allowed, but not just “bashing”
  • it must be clear in the stream that the streamer is pursuing bounties
  • a bounty must be initiated and independently completed by the streamer to count

Streamers represent both themselves and the brand whose bounty they are currently fulfilling during a bounty. This provides an entry into the streaming business before reaching the level of a new Twitch star like Shroud.

apexc-shroud-octane-titel-01
Even streamers who are not Shroud can earn that much money

Can I also join? In principle, yes. However, not every streamer gets direct access to these bounties. As a first step, you must start streaming on Twitch yourself.

Then you must participate in a short survey issued by Twitch itself. Currently, only streamers from the USA, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, and France can participate.

Ninja Twitch Titel Genervt

If you are selected, your bounty options will depend on your channel. You can find more information about the bounties on Twitch’s info page.

In the EU, streamers may soon find it very difficult:

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Is the announcement for Ghost Recon Wildlands 2 coming on May 9th?

Tarek Zehrer Tarek Zehrer Reading time 2 minutes

Many suspect due to an Easter egg from the new update for Ghost Recon Wildlands that Ubisoft will soon announce a Tom Clancy game.

Update May 6: On Twitter, Ubisoft has now announced that this is a new Ghost Recon installment. The official presentation is on May 9 at 8:30 PM.

That’s why fans suspect an announcement: Since May 2, the update Operation Oracle has been available in Ghost Recon Wildlands.

It may contain a teaser for the announcement of a new Tom Clancy game. Perhaps a Ghost Recon Wildlands 2?

Source: vg247.com

Is Skell Con inviting to an announcement?

Here’s what it’s about: In Operation Oracles, there is a sequence that invites players to a conference. This is supposed to take place on May 9 at 8:30 PM.

Meanwhile, there is also a mysterious website announcing the event. There is also a trailer on YouTube for Skell Technology that showcases the company’s products:

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What game could be announced? Currently, there are many speculations. The invitation comes from Skell Technology, which narrows down the selection.

This company has already been mentioned in Ghost Recon Wildlands and Rainbow Six Siege. Both are games in the Tom Clancy universe.

The announcement is most likely to be a spin-off from these two franchises. A new Splinter Cell could also be possible.

Perhaps it is not a new game at all and Ubisoft is stoking the hype for something else. We will know more on May 9.

By the way: You can currently play Ghost Recon Wildlands for free on Xbox One, PS4, and PC. The promotion runs until tomorrow, May 5.

What do you think is behind the invitation?

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von Andreas Bertits
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
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  2. gamerant.com

Halo Master Chief Collection: Is there savegame transfer and crossplay with PC? This is what the developers say

Tarek Zehrer Tarek Zehrer Reading time 2 minutes

The Halo Master Chief Collection is coming to PC. The developers have now discussed transferring save data and crossplay between Xbox One and PC.

What exactly did the developers talk about? The Master Chief Collection was only announced for PC in March. It is a collection of Halo titles.

There hasn’t been a PC version since Halo 2, which is why many fans were excited about the announcement. However, many questions remained unanswered at first. For example, it was unclear whether players could transfer their save data between Xbox One and PC.

Many also wondered if there would be crossplay between the two platforms. Developer 343 Industries has now answered these questions.

Save data can be transferred freely

What the creators say about transferring save data: On Twitter, community manager Brian Jarrard informed a fan that everything including

  • progress,
  • unlocks
  • statistics
  • and save data

can be freely transferred between both platforms.

So if you are playing on both PC and Xbox One, you can switch anytime as you like.

Crossplay not available at launch, but possible later

What the creators say about crossplay: However, the situation looks different with a crossplay feature.

Crossplay is not planned for the launch of the Master Chief Collection. However, it is something “the team is responsible for, and they will evaluate it over time.”

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When is the collection supposed to be released? There is no specific date yet. They plan to release all games included in the collection gradually.

According to a rough plan, all games should be released by the end of the year.

The first one to be released is Halo: Reach. A beta test was supposed to start in April but was postponed.

These games are included in the collection:

  • Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary
  • Halo 2 Anniversary
  • Halo 3
  • Halo 3: ODST
  • Halo: Reach
  • Halo 4

The only Halo title not included is the latest installment, Halo 5: Guardians.

More info on the Master Chief Collection:

  • The games will support ultra-wide resolutions, HDR, and a FOV slider; they will not be pure console ports.
  • It will be released on both Steam and the Windows Store.
  • According to the Steam page, no Windows 10 is required.

The Master Chief Collection is not the only Halo installment currently in development. The next part, Halo: Infinite, has been in development for a long time:

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This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
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Why Diablo Immortal is so important for the future of Activision Blizzard

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 6 minutes

It has caused a lot of confusion that the title “Diablo Immortal” was shown so prominently at Blizzcon 2018. The mobile title is incredibly important for the future of Activision Blizzard and for gaming in the West, says our author Schuhmann.

This is the problem: Even well-informed players find it increasingly difficult to understand what the major publishers are actually up to.

Activision Blizzard currently has no major game in the pipeline. Nothing has been announced or is in the works, even though the publisher is one of the largest gaming companies out there.

Sure, 2019 is supposed to see a Call of Duty release and Diablo Immortal has been announced, but otherwise, not much is widely known.

As a result, there are disappointed reactions from players to the publishers’ announcements, and increasingly often shitstorms and conflicts.

Diablo-Immortal-Memes
The announcement of Diablo Immortal brought Blizzard a lot of trouble. Image source: YouTube

The peak of irritation was Blizzcon 2018, when Blizzard presented “Diablo Immortal” as the highlight of the convention, a mobile game in front of a crowd of PC fans who were expecting Diablo 4.

This led to a lot of negative reactions.

The gap between what publishers do and what fans expect from them seems to be growing:

  • But why is Diablo Immortal so important for Activision Blizzard?
  • And why do we understand less and less about what lies behind the publishers’ actions?
DIablo Immortal Monk Intro Title

Who Will Conquer the Mobile Market?

The situation of mobile games: Publishers have been grappling with a question for years that core gamers hardly consider: Who will conquer the mobile market in the West?

Publishers have identified the mobile market as the major area that offers growth potential and money. In Asia, massive amounts are already being generated, and the mobile market in the West is also growing rapidly.

Newzoo-Mobile-Markt-2018
These are figures from April 2018 from NewZoo that describe the booming mobile market.

However, there is a significant discrepancy here:

  • In the West, mobile games are primarily “casual games” like Candy Crush – which has belonged to Activision Blizzard since November 2015. These games target new audiences rather than typical core gamers.
  • In Asia, the top mobile games are actually core games – games with considerable depth and more complex mechanics and RPG elements. They also attract new audiences, but they also cater to gamers.
Fate Grand Order Saber
Fate/Grand Order: A massive hit in Japan.

These mobile games are successful in Asia: In Asia, several “typical” game formulas or models have established themselves:

SuperData March 2019

These and similar models earn a lot of money in Asia, while here we mainly chase Pokémon or Mario jumps around.

The latest Asian hit from March 2019 was “Perfect World”, a 14-year-old MMORPG that is now shining anew with its Chinese mobile launch.

Perfect-World
Perfect World – the latest hit from Asia.

Behind these hits in Asia are often “classical gaming publishers” like Tencent (LoL), NetEase, Nexon, or NCSoft (Lineage).

Companies that used to only develop for PC and made the leap into the new mobile age.

Additionally, new companies like Netmarble are emerging, focusing specifically on mobile.

Source: Gameswirtschaft (via NewZoo – as of April 2019)

In terms of stock values, some of these Asian companies that have successfully made the mobile transition have now exceeded the value of classic Western publishers.

It is clear: Western publishers also want to make this leap. They want to become companies that can also make money in mobile.

And they need to hurry.

traha naiad castle
Traha, a new mobile game from Nexon

The Asians Are Coming

This is what has recently happened: In 2017 and 2018, major Asian publishers tried to make their core mobile games successful in the West.

With significant PR efforts, games like Lineage 2 Revolution and Arena of Valor (Honor of Kings) were brought to the West. They enlisted celebrities like Conan O’Brien or Hearthstone streamers.

However, the major success was lacking.

lineage-2-revolution-Conan-O-Brien-Advertising
Lineage 2 Revolution launched in the West with Conan O’Brien.

However, the Western market has come into focus for Asians: Because “Western surprise hits” like “Clash of Clans” or “Clash Royale” come from Finland. The company behind them, Supercell, has already partnered with the Asian giant Tencent in the summer of 2016.

Also, the great success of Fortnite on mobile devices benefits Tencent, as they have a strong stake in Epic.

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This is happening right now: In 2019, the established “Western” publishers are now ready and want to make inroads into the core gamer market in the West with their brands:

The idea is apparently to use their “strong brands” as a gateway to engage players.

Activision-Financial-Report-Free2Play
An important part of Activision Blizzard’s strategy: Mobile

Activision Blizzard’s goal is clear: They want to lead in the mobile sector in the West. Activision Blizzard aims to achieve this by bringing their established core franchises to mobile.

For years, Activision Blizzard has been promulgating the slogan of porting core franchises to mobile:

  • Hearthstone can be seen as a first attempt, even if it only came to smartphones a year after the PC release.
  • With Diablo Immortal, the first “big attempt” is probably coming soon.
  • Afterward, Warcraft is likely to follow, probably as a strategy game.
  • Call of Duty Mobile is currently being launched.

Depending on whether this attempt succeeds or not, it could significantly influence the future of gaming here in the West.

In any case, it explains why there has been so little news from Activision Blizzard lately: They are currently working on their mobile offensive.

This is why it is exciting: However, it seems that the West is resisting mobile much more than was the case in Asia. This may already be related to culture. Gaming has evolved differently in both cultural circles since moving away from traditional arcades with gaming machines:

  • Many players here in the West have their own consoles with a large TV and setup or high-end gaming PCs.
  • In Asia, many people played in public, in PC cafés, on “foreign PCs”.

The “core gamers” here in the West have so far shown resistance to the attempts of Western publishers to forcibly introduce them to mobile. Core gamers in the West often reject the usual payment models on mobile: Many common models appear to them as pay-to-win.

The Elder Scrolls Blades Featured
Controversial current game: Elder Scrolls Blades.

This rejection has been felt one after another by the Western publishers:

It will be interesting to see how this battle for the Western mobile market plays out. Therefore, Blizzard seems to hesitate with the release of Diablo Immortal.

When Diablo Immortal arrives, it should please core gamers and offer little potential for attack. Because Diablo Immortal will become a key game for Activision Blizzard.

More on the topic
NetEase says: Diablo Immortal is almost finished – But Blizzard disagrees
von Andreas Bertits
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Our 5 Best Build Locations in Conan Exiles and What You Can Find There

Benedict Grothaus Benedict Grothaus Reading time 7 minutes

Conan Exiles allows you to build your own bases, castles, and even cities. To survive in the land of the exiled, safe havens are very useful. We show you our 5 best locations for building bases with pros and cons.

[toc]

What are bases useful for? The world of Conan Exiles is dangerous. Most creatures and even the world itself want to kill you. That’s why it’s useful to have a place where you are somewhat safe. Bases provide you with protection, as well as:

Some journey steps, through which you can explore the game’s story and level up quicker, require you to build your own home and survive a purge. Purges occur only if you own a base.

More on the topic
Tips and Tricks for Leveling Up Quickly in Conan Exiles
von Benedict Grothaus

These locations are particularly good for building

For beginners and also advanced players, we have selected five locations where you can build your base with maximum advantages.

1. For beginners: By the river in the middle of the desert

Where is the location? The first of our potential building spots is located in the middle of the desert, just before the center of the desert. (Map square: I5)

What is the location suitable for? This spot is best suited for fresh characters and new players who need to become familiar with Conan Exiles. It is close to the beginning, relatively easy to reach, and largely safe.

Conan Exiles best building locations guide desert location

The advantages of the location:

  • a spider cave nearby for silk, chitin, and sulfur
  • light humanoid enemies for early slaves and for training and leveling
  • access to all necessary resources to get started
  • water nearby for drinking and fishing
  • the Black Galleon is a bit north and a good spot for various slaves
  • lots of space for building

The disadvantages of the location:

  • there are many types of resources nearby, but none in large abundance
  • the enemies become too easy after just a few hours of gameplay
  • far from many important points like dungeons and the north, where the “endgame” takes place
  • not a good location for the later course of the game
  • the sandstorm can be particularly problematic at the beginning

Tip: If you are completely new, build here and take your time exploring everything.

Conan Exiles best building locations guide desert

2. For beginners and advanced players: The swamp border

Where is the location? The second good building spot is located by the river between the desert and the jungle swamp. On a small hill, you have a good building ground for a small fortress. (Map square: border between K6 and L6)

What is this spot suitable for? This building location is also suitable for new players, but is a bit more challenging than the desert. However, those wanting to stay in one place longer, preferring jungle over sand and snow, and who enjoy a tougher start will find it suitable.

Conan Exiles best building locations guide swamp base location

The advantages of the location:

  • good accessibility from the desert and swamp
  • no sandstorms
  • the palace of the witch queen, the sand-lashed ruins, and a giant spider are nearby and serve as boss fights
  • there are numerous camps around the river with humanoid enemies as slaves
  • there is plenty of wood, stone, and water
  • the hill offers good visibility

The disadvantages of the location:

  • iron, coal, and sulfur are relatively hard to find
  • the building ground is somewhat small. Elevators and platforms might be necessary for larger projects
  • the path to the north and the volcano is extremely long

Tip: Experienced players can start here and then move north when they are strong enough.

Conan Exiles best building locations guide swamp base

3. For advanced players: The border to the tundra

Where is the location? Our third location is slightly north of the center of the map, behind the wall to the tundra and behind the desert. It is located in the middle of the forest and below the watchtowers. (Map square: D9)

What is this spot suitable for? Here you have good access to all biomes, except the jungle. The spot is not necessarily suitable for beginners but at least for new characters, if played cautiously enough.

Conan Exiles best building locations guide tundra location

These are the advantages:

  • close to the desert, where easier enemies can also be found
  • many wild boars nearby that are not aggressive and thus pose no threat
  • access to all resources including coal in the desert and sulfur
  • plenty of building ground and natural protection from the wall and mountains
  • close to the north, to still serve as a base in the endgame
  • easier slaves in the desert and tougher ones in the north near the watchtowers

These are the disadvantages:

  • water is farther away. The path to the river takes a while
  • very hard and dangerous to reach, especially as a newbie. The easiest way to reach it is by climbing naked over the wall
  • very dangerous enemies like undead and Cimmerians just a little west
  • it is cold there, and you will likely need warm clothing to avoid freezing
  • you need to scout safe routes to some resources, as bears and wolves are nearby

Tip: This location is best suited for more experienced players who have no problem with a tougher start but just want to set up a camp. From here you have relatively good access to every important location in Conan Exiles.

Conan Exiles best building locations guide tundra

4. For advanced players and pros: The Relic Watcher Hill in the desert

Where is the location? The fourth ideal building location is at the edge of the desert, north of the city of Sepermeru and northwest of the unnamed city. The Relic Watcher Hill is located on a plateau above Klael’s fortress. (Map square: border between B7 and B8)

What is this spot suitable for? The Relic Watcher Hill is the ideal place to start the foundations for an expedition and also serves as a base for groups. Across from the hill, there is another plateau that can also be built on and offers even more space.

Conan Exiles best building locations guide Relic Watcher Hill location

These are the advantages:

  • all resources are nearby, including sulfur from the sulfur lakes
  • good access to Sepermeru and the unnamed city, where you can find the archivist and the recipes for the map room
  • only a short way to the north
  • very close to the child of Jhebbal-Sag to enter the dungeon “Midnight Grove”
  • huge building ground on an elevation, providing a lot of space while being secure
  • a tavern with dancers is in Sepermeru. It saves you the cost of entertainers to get rid of corruption

These are the disadvantages:

  • there are hardly any useful slaves nearby unless you want to raid the friendly city of Sepermeru
  • expeditions into the sulfur lakes require a gas mask
  • many very dangerous enemies and bosses nearby. Hardly anything you can defeat alone early in the game
  • an elevator or at least stairs are required if you want to access the hill easily

Tip: The hill is an excellent spot for clans and players looking to start expeditions into the swamp and north from here. Those wanting a solid base with some outer camps should build here.

Conan Exiles best building locations guide Relic Watcher Hill

5. For pros: The Godclaw Path at the border to the north

Where is the location? Our last location is in the tundra in the north, right at the border to the icy north. The landmark where the building site is located is called “Godclaw Path”. (Map square: E10)

What is this spot suitable for? Only players with experience in Conan Exiles and many hours of gameplay should settle here. Those starting here are choosing one of the most difficult spots overall.

Conan Exiles best building locations guide Godclaw Path location

These are the advantages:

  • extremely abundant iron, stone, and wood
  • few enemies in the immediate vicinity, allowing for peaceful building
  • New-Asagarth and the watchtowers are nearby and provide good slaves
  • directly at the border to the north, where you can find and mine star metal
  • plants nearby to brew alcohol and survive in the cold

These are the disadvantages:

  • all enemies in the vicinity are extremely difficult to defeat early in the game
  • the way to Godclaw Path is dangerous and takes a very long time from the start
  • limited building ground as the hill is small and the surroundings block a lot
  • hardly any access to coal, sulfur, and silk

Tip: The Godclaw Path is best suited as a base camp for players wanting to explore the north from the south. Here they can rest, change gear, or craft items. It’s best to set up individual, small safe camps around the “claws”.

Conan Exiles best building locations guide Godclaw Path

More guides for building in Conan Exiles

We have some other guides for you that may be useful if you want to build a camp:

There are of course more ideal building locations. With our 5, however, you have solid foundations to explore the land of the exiles yourself.

Where do you prefer to camp?

Once you have settled in, you can explore the various secrets of Conan Exiles – or find really strange things:

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These are the 3 strangest items in Conan Exiles
von Benedict Grothaus


This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Fortnite apparently extends Season 9 for the Fortnite World Cup

Jürgen Horn Jürgen Horn Reading time 2 minutes

In Fortnite: Battle Royale you can probably have more fun in Season 9 than in previous seasons. Epic is likely to hold the big World Cup in Season 9, and for that reason, it seems that Season 8 or 9 will be longer.

Why do the seasons need to be longer? Traditionally, seasons in Fortnite last 10 weeks. That would mean Season 8 would end on May 8, and Season 9 would probably end around July 17. The big World Cup final, which runs from July 26 to 28, would then be shortly after the start of Season 10.

However, this has been explicitly ruled out by Epic. According to an employee, the World Cup finals will still take place in Season 9. This means that Season 8, Season 9, or both seasons would have to last longer than the usual 10 weeks.

Which season will be extended? Officially, Epic has not announced which season is going to be longer. However, it is unlikely to be Season 8, because if you look at the extension challenges, it says that they end on May 9, 2019. This date is also listed as the end in the Battle Pass for Season 8.

Unless Epic surprises us with a new extension next Thursday, Season 8 will likely end and Season 9 will begin.

So we can probably look forward to an extra-long Season 9.

Pros will be pleased

Why do the seasons have to be longer at all? The extension of Season 9 until the World Cup finals has a solid reason. For professionals, there is nothing worse than when a lot of new places on the map and new features in the gameplay suddenly appear right before a major tournament – and the World Cup is the biggest one so far.

With all these things, you can always expect changes at the beginning of a new season. That’s why the tournament in Katowice was a debacle for many players because it took place shortly after the start of Season 8 and there were still unresolved bugs.

However, if the tournament takes place at the end of a season, the meta is solidified, and Epic usually doesn’t introduce sweeping changes just before the season ends. Therefore, it is a big advantage for professionals if the tournament is held in Season 9.

However, there are still issues with the qualification rounds. They could be affected by a bug with shadow bombs.

More on the topic
Fortnite: Glitch makes players invisible killers – And that just before the World Cup qualifiers
von Jürgen Horn
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. Dotesports

Guardian Puzzle: Will another weapon exotic return in Destiny 2 Season 6?

Sven Galitzki Sven Galitzki Reading time 4 minutes

Some entries in the game data of Destiny 2 are currently causing discussions in the community. Some Guardians believe that another exotic weapon could come in Season 6.

When the Spring event “The Revelry” ends on May 7, the ongoing Season 6 will have exhausted its content. Officially, there is not much more on the agenda until the new season. Or is there?

This is currently being speculated: Some Guardians believe that another weapon exotic could arrive in the current season. Or that at least the quest for it could start, transitioning into Season 7.

However, keep in mind: apart from the discovered data, none of these theories are confirmed. Therefore, you should take this information with an appropriate degree of caution and skepticism.

d2 revelry ornaments
Recently added to the game – the Arbalest

How do the Guardians come to this conclusion? Recently, a new placeholder for an unknown exotic weapon was discovered in the Destiny 2 data.

d2 kinetic exos
Source: destinysets.com

However, it is neither the Thorn nor the Arbalest, both of which were added in the current Season 6.

A new quest line, consisting of several steps, was also found in the data. It states, among other things: “Thwart a heist alongside a new ally” (possibly Uldren?). In addition, data was found some time ago suggesting that Guardians might once again return to the ruins of the old, destroyed Tower. This quest or quest step has not gone live yet and might be related to it in the eyes of some Guardians.

destiny-uldren
Prince Uldren

Fans speculate that this could be the actual exotic quest that is supposed to be freely available to all players in Season 6.

Because the Arbalest was tied to an event and was essentially for sale. Thus, this weapon was not tied to a real quest.

Furthermore, such quest lines have been used to bring back exotic weapons from Destiny 1. However, the Arbalest is a completely new weapon.

destiny-2-shadow-dorn
The first exotic weapon of Season 6 – the Thorn

What also speaks in the eyes of some fans is not only the recent appearance of this data. The fact that Destiny 2 has a long content drought until Season 7, which could be bridged with a new quest, makes the assumption plausible.

What weapon could it be? In the eyes of the fans, there are several possibilities, but a specific weapon is considered to have higher chances.

Currently, it is known that the still secret weapon is a kinetic firearm. From Destiny 1, several guns come to mind in this case: Universal Remote, Monte Carlo, or No Land Beyond – just to name a few. However, fans consider the pulse rifle Bad Juju to be the most likely.

Bad-Juju-Destiny
The pulse rifle Bad Juju

On one hand, Destiny 2 only currently has two exotic pulse rifles. So, another one would be quite conceivable and has been requested by fans for some time now.

On the other hand, one of the new perks, which has not yet been found on any other weapon, could be a revised perk from Bad Juju. The parallels are hardly to be denied:

  • The Destiny 2 perk Hailstorm causes kills with a weapon to increase its damage and the magazine constantly reloads from reserves until you stop shooting.
  • The perk Curse of the Fallen on Bad Juju works very similarly. It reloads the weapon immediately after each kill and temporarily causes more damage. Additionally, kills with this weapon charge the super.
destiny-bad-juju-ornament
An ornament of Bad Juju from Destiny 1

When could it be? The found details do not provide clarity on this. However, there are still some opportunities before the end of Season 6 (June 4) where another weapon could come into play.

For instance, on May 7, the new update 2.2.2 could start a new quest. On May 14, you can pay another visit to Queen Mara Sov to complete the lore book “Truth to Power”. It is possible that the new quest will start with her. Additionally, fans believe that the quest could be related to the successful mastering of the last invitation of the Nine, leading Guardians through several steps into Season 7.

In his video, the well-known Destiny YouTuber Houndish discusses these theories (from 2:23):

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What do you think? Will there be another exotic weapon in Season 6? Would you be excited about a return of Bad Juju?

More on the topic
Destiny 2: Fans want more content like the Broken Throne – Here’s what Bungie says
von Sven Galitzki
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. Reddit
  2. Reddit

The Division 2: Vendor Reset on May 4th – The best deals

Tarek Zehrer Tarek Zehrer Reading time 3 minutes

Today, on May 4th, the big vendor reset (Vendor Reset) of The Division 2 takes place. These are the best deals this week.

What’s happening in The Division 2 right now:

The vendor reset always takes place overnight from Friday to Saturday. We present you the best items at World Tier 5.

pestilenz division 2

The best weapons from the vendors

  • DZ West – MG5 (LMG)
    • Sadist (Deal +20% weapon damage to enemies with bleeding wounds)
    • Extra (+20% magazine capacity)
    • Wily (When this weapon is in the holster, you can withstand “stick” attacks. This can occur every 60 seconds)
    • The MG5 is a powerful LMG with the highest fire rate in its class. Replace Sadist with talents like Out of the Way or Ranger.
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The best armor pieces on offer

  • DZ West – Backpack from Alps Summit Armaments
    • Technical Support (Kills by active skills grant +25% skill damage for 10 seconds)
    • Destructive (+20% explosive damage)
    • Stats: Crit Chance (+11%) and Skill Power (203)
  • DZ South – Knee pads from China Light Industries Corporation
    • Destructive (+20% explosive damage)
    • Stats: Skill Power (286)
  • Theater – Knee pads from Murakami Industries with
    • Self-Regulating (+20% armor regeneration)
    • Stats: Bonus Armor (+9123)

You can find the bonuses of the brand sets in our guide.

Cassie Mandoza can be found all over D.C.

Cassie Mandoza – Offer

The secret merchant Cassie frequently changes her location.

This week, Cassie has the following:

  • Gloves from Providence Defense
    • Stats: Shotgun damage (+5%) and Marksman rifle damage (+5%)
  • MG5 (LMG)
    • Spike (Headshot kills grant +25% skill damage for 10 seconds)
    • Stable (+15% stability)
    • Rooted (While in cover, skill damage and healing increase by +25% for 10 seconds. Can repeat every 25 seconds)
  • The Virginian – 1886 (Rifle)
    • Boomerang (On critical hits, there’s a 50% chance that the round returns to the magazine. When a round returns to the magazine, the next shot deals +20% increased damage)
    • Extra (+20% magazine capacity)
    • Transfer (When the weapon is in the holster, shock status effects transfer from the agent to enemies within 10 m. This can occur every 60 seconds)
  • Commando – Paratrooper SVD (Marksman rifle)
    • Bare (Headshot damage is increased by 50% when you have no armor equipped)
    • Precise (+15% precision)
    • Stop, Drop, Roll (When this weapon is equipped, rolling removes fire, bleeding, and poison status effects. Can repeat every 60 seconds)
division-2-agenten-sonne

To find Cassie, you first need to find the informant. This map shows some possible locations for the informant, but it is not a complete list.

You can find the entire vendor offer on this page from rubenalamina.

What do you think of the offer? Do you have your own recommendations?

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The Division 2: All information currently known about the 8-player raid
von Tarek Zehrer
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.