Former players of World of Warcraft are invited this weekend to take another look at the MMORPG. Blizzard is offering free access to old accounts and new content.
Here’s what the offer is about: If you used to play WoW but haven’t logged in for a while, you can check out the new features for one weekend.
For a few days, all former accounts will have access to World of Warcraft up to and including Legion. Additionally, there is a short trial phase for the latest expansion, Battle for Azeroth, if you haven’t purchased the expansion yet.
The trial phase includes three hours of gameplay in Battle for Azeroth content per character or until the quest “We Need Each Other” (Horde) or “A Divided Nation” (Alliance) is completed. The trial can be repeated with up to 12 characters.
If you haven’t purchased Battle for Azeroth, you will only receive three hours of gameplay (per character) for the new content.
When does the offer apply? The start for the returning player special is on Thursday, March 21, 2019. The event ends on Monday, March 25, 2019. Specific times are yet to be announced. A similar offer was already available for Legion.
How can I participate? If you haven’t played WoW for a while and perhaps don’t even have it installed anymore, you will first need to download the Battle.net client.
What you can do at the event depends on whether you already own Battle for Azeroth or not.
If you have already purchased Battle for Azeroth, you will have access to all characters on your server for the duration of the event without having to pay the fee for WoW.
You can simply play as if you had paid and do everything you can do with a regular account.
If you do not own Battle for Azeroth, you have three hours per character available in Battle for Azeroth and all content up to and including Legion. The Legion content is also included in the “Starter Version” of WoW.
The main change here is the trial hours you receive for BfA, during which you can explore some of the new quest areas and content such as
Anthem will not be accessible today due to maintenance work in the early afternoon. Everything you need to know about the server downtime is here for you.
Update 16:05: The Anthem servers should be available again on all platforms.
Update 15:15: The Anthem servers still seem to be down. We will keep you updated!
When is maintenance? As BioWare announced, scheduled maintenance for Anthem will take place today, Tuesday. The servers will be taken down and you will not be able to log into the game.
This is the maintenance on March 19:
The work will begin around 1 PM
The maintenance should be over by 3 PM
Keep in mind that these are approximate times. If there are issues, the work may take longer. In that case, we will inform you here.
Bring is visibly looking forward to the maintenance work.
What is being worked on?As BioWare announced in the Anthem subreddit, maintenance work will be carried out on the servers today. According to Technical Design Director Brenon Holmes, it involves “things on BioWare’s end.”
Holmes further explained that the developers use various technologies to control how the different game services function. Occasionally, software or hardware needs to be updated that supports some of these technologies. This is intended to happen today among other things.
Since this is server-side maintenance, there should not be a patch to download.
With a new Exotic of Season 6, Hunters can finally kill in PvP with one hit in Destiny 2. However, the armor Exotic has more to offer and is certainly worth a closer look.
This is the Exotic in question: With Season 6, five new Exotics have made their way into the game, including three armor pieces – one for each Guardian class.
The Hunter received the gauntlets “Liars Handshake” which allow him to transform into a powerful melee killer in certain situations. Thus, Hunters can finally hold their own in close combat against Titans or Warlocks.
Gauntlets “Liars Handshake” – What the new Exotic can do
What sets the gauntlets apart? This new armor Exotic is specifically tailored for the Arcstrider Hunter. The special feature of these gauntlets is their intrinsic perk Counterpunch.
When you use your Arc melee attack or are hit by a melee attack, you can initiate a powerful melee counter through Counterpunch, which heals you.
Counterpunch raises your melee damage during the counter or the second melee attack from 100 to 300 for 4 seconds. This allows you to take out any Guardian in the Crucible with just one melee hit.
What are the purposes of these gauntlets? The massive damage increase for melee and the healing make this Exotic especially interesting in PvP. In PvE, however, the gauntlets do not really make a significant impact.
This Sub-Focus works best with the gauntlets: While the gauntlets can be used with all Sub-Trees of the Arcstrider, the top Sub-Focus “Way of the Warrior” creates the best synergies with Liars Handshake. The following perks are active:
Combo Punch: A kill with this melee ability starts health regeneration and temporarily increases melee damage
Combat Flow: Melee kills recharge your dodge
Deadly Reach: Dodging increases melee range
Additionally, choose Reckless Dodge, which recharges your melee ability when using the dodge roll.
All perks of the Way of the Warrior are actually very situational, as Hunters previously didn’t have a good punch and the advantages were therefore hardly utilized. But with Liars Handshake, the intrinsic and focus perks can now be combined into a very effective overall package.
This is how you play the gauntlets: Basically, you play the Hunter like a Titan: as soon as you’re in melee range, it’s “Brain off and hit hard”. This principle is then refined with some small Hunter quirks.
As soon as you’ve landed a first hit or have been hit yourself, you use your melee. Within four seconds, this should take out any opponent you hit – even a Hunter with active “Golden Guns” super. Most other supers can be taken out with a second hit.
If several opponents are nearby, use your dodge roll and hit them again. Now you also have an enormous melee range.
Furthermore, Counterpunch and the subsequent hits heal you. A kill with Counterpunch restores half your health immediately, while the subsequent hits regenerate it gradually through Combo Punch, until you can land another Counterpunch kill. Kills also recharge your dodge, so you can dive back into the fray immediately.
If you use the combination of abilities and Exotic correctly, you can prevail against several opponents. Especially in situations where you are outnumbered, this Hunter Exotic can shine.
Who benefits from these gauntlets? They are not an absolute must-have Exotic, but depending on the situation, these new exotic gauntlets can prove to be quite useful and powerful in PvP.
While they can only shine situationally, anyone who enjoys engaging in close combat as a Hunter and prefers a corresponding playstyle should take a closer look at them. This way, you can often secure a decisive advantage in close combat.
In this video from Atzecross Gaming, you can see Liars Handshake in action:
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.
Apex Legends will not offer any special tasks and challenges for Season 1. There are clear reasons for this, but challenges may come later.
What are challenges in the Season Pass? Some battle royale games, especially Fortnite, offer special tasks weekly every season. If you complete them, you earn a lot of points for the battle pass and can level up faster, thus getting your goodies more quickly. Without such tasks, you have to grind through the levels.
In Fortnite, the weekly challenges are always a big hit, which millions of players await. In Apex Legends, although there is a battle pass, developer Respawn explicitly does not want to offer challenges.
Play calmly first before chasing challenges
This is why Respawn wants no challenges: In a blog post, the developers of Apex revealed their reasons for omitting challenges in Season 1. At first, they joked about challenges:
You will notice that the first version [of the battle pass] is not built around a complex quest system, where you have to do a 720 backflip from the Artemis watchtower and get two Wingman headshots before you hit the ground.
Respawn does not seem to hold much stock in tasks that distract you from regular gameplay. Fortnite has often introduced tasks that had nothing to do with battle royale and regularly sent players to their deaths.
Will there never be challenges in Apex? However, Respawn immediately backtracked and explained that there are indeed possibilities for challenges.
We believe there will be enough design possibilities for quests and challenges in future battle passes. However, we want to keep the first version such that players can just play and get to know the game.
What does this mean for players? The omission of challenges means that you have to grind through all 100 levels of the Season 1 battle pass without aids until you finally receive the cool new Havoc skin.
This weapon skin and all skins from the pass will be exclusive to Season 1 and will not appear again.
This was also the case in Fortnite with the first battle pass, and players were very pleased when challenges and tasks finally came in Season 3.
What do players say? While some players would like challenges in Apex Legends, most agree that it is better to have no challenges than a few silly tasks like those found in Fortnite or PUBG.
In the latter, you had to go into the water or the death zone, which no one does voluntarily. Challenges, according to the fans, should make sense and not be some obscure nonsense.
The absurd example of the backflip from the watchtower by Respawn gives hope that the developers are indeed thinking of something special for future season challenges.
The so-called Nodes are the core feature of Ashes of Creation. Both PvE and PvP take place in them. In a new series of articles, the developers will provide a closer look at the Nodes.
What are Nodes? Nodes are locations in the open world that can be conquered, developed, and defended. Each Node has an area that it influences.
Anything that happens within this area influences the Node. Completing tasks or gathering materials grants experience to the Node.
Conversely, the Node also influences the area. Quests are determined by the level of development, but also by the race that controls the Node.
However, these areas are supposed to vary in size. The more a Node develops, the further the influence of an area is supposed to spread.
The Nodes are the points, and they influence the respective colored area
How do the Nodes work?
At the start of the game, there should be 103 Nodes on each server. The basic structure should always be identical.
How does a Node level up? A Node has a total of seven different stages in development:
Level 0 – Wilderness
Level 1 – Expedition
Level 2 – Camp
Level 3 – Village
Level 4 – City
Level 5 – Metropolis
Level 6 – Megalopolis
While the first stages can be completed quickly, the development of a Node up to the Megalopolis takes several weeks or months.
Image of a Megalopolis in Ashes of Creation
What does leveling up a Node bring? The larger the Node gets, the more can be accomplished within it. It is only upon reaching Level 2 that merchants and bankers move in.
Once a Node reaches the status of “Village”, it becomes possible to operate player housing. Also, the number of quests increases with the level.
What kind of tasks await you in a Node depends on the type of the Node.
Houses in Ashes of Creation
What types of Nodes are there? In Ashes of Creation, there are four different types of Nodes. These are fixed from the beginning, are identical on all servers, and cannot be changed:
Economic Nodes
Military Nodes
Scientific Nodes
Divine Nodes
Depending on the type of Node, the NPCs and the tasks vary. Economic Nodes are predestined for trade centers. Accordingly, more and more merchants will come with increasing levels.
Military Nodes, on the other hand, have many more guards and are easier to defend. Thus, Nodes around a fortress are always of a military nature.
A fortress in Ashes of Creation
Vassal Nodes: When a Node reaches Level 3, but the surrounding Nodes have not yet achieved this and lie within the influence area, the developed Node makes the others into Vassal Nodes.
These Nodes give experience to the mother Node and also share their influences in diplomacy, wars, and economy. Accordingly, a Vassal Node cannot rise up against the mother Node.
A Vassal Node cannot surpass the mother Node in development stages. Nevertheless, they can have Vassal Nodes themselves.
A city in Ashes of Creation
Race influence on the Nodes: The influence of races on the Nodes is particularly interesting. If a large part of the controlling faction plays the Py’rai as their race, then the buildings will also come from this cultural area.
This influence should also affect the story of quests and events in the Node’s area, as well as dungeons and raids.
How a Node levels up in Ashes of Creation
The next steps of Ashes of Creation
In the coming week, the focus will be on the conquest and destruction of Nodes. Another article and a video from the developers are planned for this.
Ashes of Creation plans release for 2020: The first Alpha, in which the open world is supposed to be explored, has not yet started. It has been postponed indefinitely.
The release of Ashes of Creation has also been postponed. Unlike originally announced, it is now planned for 2020:
The creators of The Culling: Origins have announced the end of their Battle Royale. This brings the third iteration of The Culling to a close. Both the first part and The Culling 2 had to be shut down.
When does The Culling end? The developer has announced that on May 15, 2019, the online services of The Culling: Origins will be shut down. Thus, the game is coming to an end almost exactly 9 months after its Free2Play launch.
According to the Director of Operations, Josh Van Veld, offline modes are still expected to be available. However, since The Culling is based on multiplayer as a BR shooter, the end of the online modes likely also means the end of the game.
That’s why The Culling is dying: The reason for shutting down the servers is that the game simply did not generate enough revenue.
When we released the Origins update and made the game free2play, we hoped that the income from in-app purchases would be enough to cover the team and ongoing development. Unfortunately, that was not the case.
It wasn’t even due to a lack of players. Although many players played The Culling: Origins, it just didn’t generate enough:
Even with thousands of active users daily, the revenue was only a fraction of what the development team needed for their daily operations. As a result, we had to reduce the team size, which meant we could no longer ensure consistent support and updates.
Currently, some packs are still available for purchase on Steam. However, these and the in-game shop will be deactivated “as soon as possible.”
This is how The Culling developed: The Battle Royale The Culling has faced some heavy hurdles since its inception. Even two iterations before Origins did not make it:
In September 2018, the original version was relaunched as “Origins”
Now, in May 2019, The Culling: Origins is also shutting down
Whether The Culling will make a fourth attempt remains to be seen. Currently, Van Veld is hinting that investors could get involved with Xaviant to save the servers of The Culling: Origins.
The battle royale market has recently been conquered by a new challenger:
In India, there is currently a huge debate about PUBG Mobile. The game is described as “addictive” and reports from the Indian press are increasing about how young Indians die due to their addiction to the game.
How did people die in India? In the latest incident, two Indians were hit by a train. They are said to have been playing PUBG Mobile near the train tracks, according to Indian media. This cost the lives of Nagesh Gore (24) and Swapnil Annapurne (22).
It is said that both players were so engrossed in PUBG Mobile that they did not notice the train.
In another incident, an 18-year-old boy from Mumbai reportedly committed suicide in February 2019 because his parents refused to buy him a new phone for PUBG Mobile.
Consumed acid instead of water
What other reports are there from India? In early March, a report circulated in the Indian media that a 25-year-old Indian had been seriously injured because he reached for acid instead of water, drank the acid, and severely burned himself.
Here too, PUBG Mobile was blamed. The man had reportedly been playing it in his garden and became so engrossed in PUBG Mobile that he did not notice the difference and drank acid instead of water.
He survived the incident because he was quickly taken to a hospital and operated on there. But even during treatment, he reportedly continued to play on his phone, according to media reports.
Another report from October 2018 tells of a 19-year-old man who was said to be addicted to PUBG.
The 19-year-old murdered his father, mother, and sister. He stabbed them to death at night and ransacked the house to make it look like a robbery.
The Indian media say he had skipped school frequently, preferred to play PUBG for 11 hours a day, failed exams, and had conflicts with his parents over this.
Violent and addictive
This is the mood in India regarding PUBG: Many articles in the English-speaking Indian press cite experts explaining that PUBG is violent and inherently addictive.
Incidents are cited regarding how destructive the addiction is. The cases are described as “shocking.” Parents are concerned about their children.
This is what PUBG itself says: The game is quoted with a statement that while it strives to provide the best possible gaming experience, it also believes it is very important to act responsibly.
Therefore, they work with parents, educators, and government authorities, listen to their feedback, and do what they can to improve the mobile experience.
This is how India reacts to the news: In some parts of India, PUBG is now banned. People are even being arrested for playing it.
The public outrage over the game is apparently great.
US site expresses doubts about media reports
Are there also doubts? At the US site Dotesports, there are doubts about the report regarding the death of the Indians who were reportedly run over by a train while playing PUBG Mobile:
It is unclear how a mobile game player could be so engrossed that they wouldn’t hear a train.
It is also unclear why PUBG Mobile is particularly singled out in this incident.
Train fatalities are widespread in India – alone in 2012, 15,000 people died while crossing railway tracks.
Here, it is believed that the press reports could lead to heightened sentiment against PUBG in the country, and more people may demand that the game be banned. Dotesports suspects that some officials in India would likely welcome such a ban.
Mobile addiction is also an issue in China and Europe
This is what lies behind it: PUBG Mobile runs on over 200 million devices in India and is said to have about 30 million players logging in daily. It is a massive deal in India.
Comparable incidents and reports have occurred repeatedly whenever mobile games created such hype.
When Pokémon GO exploded in summer 2016, horror stories emerged about players playing it while driving or falling somewhere because they weren’t paying attention to their surroundings.
The debate in India, however, resembles the situation in China even more. There, there were fears that the country’s youth could fall victim to the mobile game “Honor of Kings”. Here too, horror reports about addicted players hit the headlines.
Developer Tencent then announced its own regulations in China to limit the gaming time of teenagers.
Ultimately, however, the Chinese government intervened and imposed bans and penalties.
The Adventure Sync of Pokémon GO could receive a major update. A dataminer has discovered a new feature for finding new Pokémon.
What kind of feature is this? The text passages found suggest that Adventure Sync may soon help you find Pokémon.
You’ll receive a notification when there’s a Pokémon nearby that you don’t already own.
This was found by the dataminer
These are the text passages in question: The new feature is called “awareness.” There are two text passages that describe the feature:
Adventure Sync can now inform you about nearby new Pokémon!
Adventure Sync can find new Pokémon nearby, even when Pokémon GO is closed!
So far, Adventure Sync only rewards you for the kilometers you walk
What could this mean? Adventure Sync already counts your kilometers when the app is closed. With the new feature, it could notify you when a Pokémon is nearby that is still missing from your PokéDex.
There is already a similar feature: Players among you who use Pokémon GO Plus might recognize something similar. The GO Plus flashes in a different color when it targets a Pokémon that you are still missing.
The GO Plus has a similar function
Adventure Sync could now do the same. For example, you might receive a push notification when a new Pokémon is nearby.
When will this feature be released? So far, it has only been found in the code. There is no release date yet.
It may not come out at all. Finding it in the code means nothing for certain, but it could be an early indication.
This is what Adventure Sync can do so far: So far, the fitness feature only counts your walked kilometers. Every week you receive a reward based on the distance covered.
The dataminer has also found a new feature related to the friends feature:
The Ultimate Team mode of the FIFA series celebrates its 10th birthday today, on March 19. When does FUT Birthday start in FIFA 19 – the big FUT birthday event?
When was Ultimate Team released? On March 19, 2009, EA Sports ushered in a new era in the FIFA franchise. On that day, the “FIFA Ultimate Team” mode, commonly known as FUT, was launched in FIFA 09.
This marked the beginning of the most successful – and profitable – mode in FIFA history.
Today, March 19, 2019, FUT turns 10 years old. So far, EA Sports has not announced a birthday event for FUT 19 – but this anniversary will certainly not go by without a celebration. After all, “FUT Birthday” has been a tradition for years.
FUT Birthday last year
Release date of FUT Birthday – When does the event start?
An official start date is still pending. However, the possible dates can be significantly narrowed down.
Since the FUT Birthday event always starts around March 19, the release date is either:
March 19 – this date seems obvious but is unlikely. Major events in FUT 19 always start on Fridays. So it probably doesn’t start today.
March 22 – this is the upcoming Friday and the new start date that many experts are now settling on. We also expect it to start on March 22 at 7 PM.
When does the event end? FUT Birthday usually lasts for a week. It should end on March 29.
Keep in mind that this is not official information. EA Sports will likely reveal when it actually starts shortly before the launch.
These contents are conceivable
What can we expect for FUT Birthday? EA Sports is expected to release a FUT Birthday team. This will include upgraded cards of players who were fan favorites in past FUT editions.
In addition to the FUT Birthday cards, there will likely be SBCs, pack offers, and perhaps one or two surprises.
More information about possible FUT Birthday contents and an overview of FUT Birthday in FIFA 18 can be found here:
How FUT started: 10 years ago, the Ultimate Team mode was introduced as a paid DLC. It cost around 10 dollars.
Even in FUT 09, the framework that defines the mode today was already in place: there were chemistry, player, fitness, training, and contract cards, you could choose a stadium and earn coins.
Moreover, it was possible to build your Ultimate Team through smart negotiations in the transfer market or by opening packs. The quality levels gold, silver, and bronze were already present.
After tournaments or seasons, you could search in vain, but you could play offline and online. The basics of FUT, which we still know today, were already present in FUT 09.
Here you can see a trailer for FUT 19:
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.
However, the most important change was probably in FUT 11: EA Sports decided to offer the Ultimate Team mode for free. This was the breakthrough for FUT, as now countless fans had no barrier to checking out FUT. The number of players and revenue from microtransactions have increased significantly since then.
Apex Legends finally gets its Season 1 and the first Battle Pass. In this pass, you can earn dozens of skins and other items. We have gathered the best rewards here for you.
What rewards are available? In the Battle Pass, you can unlock various items:
Weapon Skins
Apex Coins
Skill Trackers
Loot Boxes
Banner Frames and more
Additionally, you will receive one skin each for Mirage, Lifeline, and Wraith if you simply purchase the Battle Pass (Level 1). At certain levels, there are also special loot items that we want to introduce to you.
In The Division 2, the skill bugs have mostly been fixed. Finally, they no longer drive me – and many other agents – crazy.
I am currently equipping all new skills in The Division 2 one by one and taking them into battle. I want to know how they play!
These are the skills I am currently playing with: Right now, I am stuck with the cluster seeker mine and the healer drone.
I like to use the seeker mine to deal solid damage right at the start or to flush enemies out of their hiding spots.
The drone hovers above me and restores my armor when I have been too long out of cover, shooting wildly. Especially cool: The drone follows me and heals me while doing so.
However, these are two skills that were affected by the “skill bug” that plagued The Division 2 in recent days. And that bothered me a lot!
Here’s why the skills drove me mad: Just last night, I was on a story mission where I was supposed to heroically rescue someone (don’t worry, the article is spoiler-free!). However, my heroic appearance was not too heroic, as I was shot dead twice.
This caused the skills to immediately self-destruct after being activated. Only after a 15 second cooldown could they be activated again, hoping that they would work now. But 15 seconds is a really long time.
Chem.-Launcher in The Division 2
Thus, the drone mercilessly let me down yesterday because of this bug. It should have saved me, recharged my armor, and healed me repeatedly for several seconds while I joyfully shot at the enemies. But instead, the drone decided to break down immediately. And the shotgun guy who came around the corner had an easy game.
It wouldn’t have been so bad if this problem had only occurred rarely. But it did not. My skills kept breaking, leaving me … relying only on myself and my gun.
Most of the time, skills are used in critical or tactically smart situations, so it is devastating when you cannot rely on them. The skill bug can really drive you mad.
Apparently, several problems caused this “skill bug,” most of which have now been fixed. A patch is expected to be deployed this week that will eradicate the remaining skill bug problems. Until then, you should avoid the talents “EXTRA” and “OVERLAP”.
Is it running better now? Yes, since the maintenance yesterday, I was able to play The Division 2 for 1-2 hours, and during that time my skills worked perfectly.
But you also report that the situation has improved:
Roccatmax writes that he had extreme problems with the skills before the maintenance. He was unable to play anything except Impulse and Chem.-Launcher. Now everything is running without errors. He has already played for 3 hours after the maintenance and has not encountered any skill bug issues.
Alexhunter writes: “I played for an hour after the patch yesterday and the skills functioned correctly throughout. Before that, I was severely affected by the problem. It seems to have helped for sure.”
Also, on reddit, there is a trend indicating that the skills now work significantly more reliably. However, a new problem has been found with the Chem.-Launcher (Oxidator). Apparently, this reverses the recoil behavior of the Police M4 when you use it. Normally, the weapon climbs upward when shooting, but after using the skill, it aims downward.
The bonuses of the Sniper specialization are also said to be problematic. Every time you change weapons, the bonuses seem to be lost.
Massive is expected to provide a fix for this soon as well. We will report on this.
What is your experience with the skills in The Division 2 now?
On March 16, 1999, Everquest was released. Even after 20 years, it is still actively played and developed. In this article, we will look back at the history of the game and its influence on the genre.
Everquest plays an important role in the milestones of MMORPG development. It was one of the first 3D online role-playing games and soon after its release, surpassed the player numbers of Ultima Online.
Due to its success, it also had a strong influence on the development of the most successful game in the genre, World of Warcraft.
Redesign of the old artwork for Everquest Next, which was never released
The Pioneer of Themepark MMOs
The first MMORPGs: MMORPGs developed from Multi User Dungeons (MUDs). Among the first games that made the genre accessible to a mass audience was Ultima Online. It was released in September 1997.
Everquest was released about 17 months later and fundamentally changed the genre. With its three-dimensional world and its basic structure, Everquest set standards for MMORPGs that still apply today.
First Everquest expansion “The Ruins of Kunark”
What was Everquest’s structure like? Everquest used a first-person perspective, rather than relying on isometric views like many other games. This allowed players to experience the world of Everquest in a completely new way.
The structure of this world was also unique. The high difficulty and the necessity to form groups and be creative in combat early on generated excitement. It was also the first open world that did not rely on instances.
On Reddit, User Findar describes his experiences with the game as follows:
Everquest was the first RPG that felt alive. The players were real, the community was closely connected, and one often interacted with familiar faces. You could quickly make a name for yourself, and […] Botting and multiboxing weren’t a big deal back then.
However, players left the game because the mechanics were poor. […] The UI was bad, the pathfinding was horrendous, the quests were terrible, there was hardly any class balancing, and the game had many bugs.
Many gaming websites also described the game as a true revolution and gave correspondingly high ratings:
Was the MMORPG successful? Just a few months after the release of Everquest, the subscriber numbers of Ultima Online were surpassed.
Everquest became the first game to reach 450,000 subscribers. At its peak, just before the release of World of Warcraft and Everquest 2, the game had even 550,000 paying players. For that time, these numbers were actually unimaginable.
Only with the release of Everquest 2 and of course the class leader World of Warcraft, each in November 2004, did the numbers then drop rapidly.
MMORPG subscriptions until 2008, excluding WoW (Source)
Sandbox or Themepark? Whether Everquest is truly a sandbox or a themepark MMO is still debated by some players today. Essentially, one must discover many things independently in the world and conquer challenges as a group.
Some quests are not immediately available but must be discovered. For instance, if you give a guard a muffin, he is distracted by the eating. This way, you sneak past him to reach the actual quest-giver.
However, eventually the gear is maxed out, you outgrow certain zones, and you have seen all the content.
Accordingly, the path might not be as clear as in today’s themepark MMOs with linear stories and fixed tasks. Nevertheless, Everquest is considered the pioneer of these games.
The latest expansion “The Burning Lands”
This is how Everquest looks today
Can I still play Everquest? The servers of Everquest are still running today. The game is free-to-play. Additionally, there is a shop and an optional subscription. It belongs to the old MMORPGs that are still played today.
Everquest and its gameplay and combat system have aged quite a bit. Nevertheless, one can still have fun with the game today. The reason for this are the challenging tasks and the special community that has formed over the years.
Screenshot from Everquest
How successful is Everquest? Currently, Everquest is more successful than in 2015. Daybreak is satisfied with the development, and new progression servers are regularly set up.
These servers reset the MMORPG to its original state and gradually expand it with the existing content.
Statistics 20 years after release: For the anniversary of Everquest, Daybreak released statistics about the game. A total of 25 expansions have been released for Everquest, the latest in December 2018.
The game now includes over 152,000 different items, more than 400,000 NPCs, and more than 13,700 quests.
A hardcore fan: The player “Tharkis” has reached 4,750 days of playtime since the game began 20 years ago. That corresponds to about 13 years of pure playtime.
If you are interested in other MMORPGs before the time of World of Warcraft:
Octane, the new legend
in Apex Legends, probably had a
rough start. No less than the top player Shroud
wanted to see the speed junkie nerfed even before the release.
Who is Shroud? Michael “Shroud” Grzesiek is one of the most famous players in Apex Legends. He has been considered a “human aimbot” due to his enormous precision since his time in CS:GO and has played a significant role in the development of Apex Legends. For instance, the excellent gunplay can partly be credited to him.
What does Shroud have to do with Octane? Shroud was one of the few lucky ones who got to test the new legends in Apex Legends before the release. He had the most fun with Octane.
Shroud is one of the top players in Apex Legends.
According to his own statements, he played the speed junkie to excess. But what you love, you must also let go, because Shroud realized that Octane was too overpowered.
Octane is too fast
What was Shroud’s criticism? As much as Shroud loved Octane, he had to admit that the new legend was too fast. Therefore, he recommended the developers to nerf Octane to make him a bit slower. He mentioned this during a live stream on Twitch.
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.
What became of Shroud’s suggestion? Unfortunately, Shroud does not know how Respawn Entertainment nerfed Octane. However, he recommended a slight nerf.
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.
According to Shroud, it was initially planned for Watson to also appear in Season 1. Whether this is still the case will be revealed during the new season.
One of the best Fortnite players in the world is the streamer Turner “Tfue” Tenney. He may now be facing a longer break: He thinks a health issue with his neck is due to too much gaming, too much Twitch, and not enough hydration.
What does Tfue have? As the 22-year-old Fortnite star Tfue explains in a stream, he apparently has issues with his neck. From afar, it looks like a lymph node is swollen.
He went to a doctor about it, but the doctor doesn’t know what exactly is causing it either.
The doctors prescribed him antibiotics in hopes that it will go away. However, if the problem cannot be resolved this way, he will probably have to see a specialist or undergo surgery.
The streamer shows his problems in a Twitch stream.
Where does it come from? Tfue himself believes that he played too much Fortnite and streamed too much.
He also thinks that he didn’t drink enough during the streams and was therefore dehydrated. Although he is trying to drink more, according to his self-diagnosis, he hasn’t always succeeded.
He has been waking up every morning with the worst headaches.
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.
Why doesn’t he just take a break? Apparently, Tfue actually needs a break from playing Fortnite and streaming. Swollen lymph nodes are considered a sign of infection and require rest.
However, the nature of his job makes it difficult for Tfue:
If he takes longer breaks, he loses his position on Twitch, thereby losing subscribers and consequently money. In January, Tfue revealed his subscriber count: That was 53,000 people, which amounts to over $100,000 every month.
Moreover, there seems to be a bit of panic that the Fortnite hype is dying out. Established players want to leverage their position for as long as it lasts.
You can see from Tfue’s example that it seems difficult for Twitch stars to take a break, even when it is desperately needed.
After Diablo Immortal, Activision Blizzard has now announced another major title for mobile devices. Shooter fans will soon be able to engage in multiplayer duels on mobile with a new “Call of Duty” game – Battle Royale included.
This new game is about: As the publisher recently announced in a statement, a new mobile game called Call of Duty: Mobile will be released soon.
The title is being developed in cooperation with the Chinese tech giant Tencent and is set to be released not only in the Asian market but also in North and South America as well as in Europe and other countries. It is, by the way, the same game that was announced for the Chinese market back in August 2018.
What’s in Call of Duty: Mobile? The game will be a first-person shooter with a free-to-play model and will be playable on iOS and Android devices.
Call of Duty: Mobile will feature numerous popular weapons, maps, and characters from the entire “Call of Duty” franchise, including from the “Modern Warfare” and “Black Ops” series. In various competitive multiplayer modes, you can then compete against players from all over the world.
Here you can watch the announcement 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 popular mode from Black Ops 4 is also included: Battle Royale is also on board – although not directly at launch.
Some fans noticed a jump from helicopters over a large map in the last seconds of the Call of Duty: Mobile announcement trailer – very much in the style of the popular Battle Royale mode Blackout from Black Ops 4. The official description on the Google Play Store then confirmed this.
There it states that the multiplayer mode is just the beginning. In the coming months, updates and additional game modes, including a unique Battle Royale experience, are expected to follow in true Call of Duty fashion.
When is Call of Duty: Mobile coming out? There is no exact release date yet. The launch date is expected to be announced in the coming months. However, the game is likely to be released in or after the summer of 2019.
Along with the game’s presentation, a beta for Call of Duty: Mobile was also promised for selected regions. The test phase is said to take place “this summer”. Interested players can register on the official “Call of Duty: Mobile” page and thus get a chance to participate in the beta.
How fans are reacting to the announcement: Reactions on Reddit and YouTube are currently mixed.
Some fans are excited about the announcement and the game. Finally, Call of Duty would receive a proper and graphically appealing mobile offshoot. Additionally, the game seems to look like a worthy rival to PUBG or Fortnite on mobile devices. It seems that the developers have picked the best features from the “Modern Warfare” and “Black Ops” series and put them into one complete package.
Other players, however, view the new Call of Duty: Mobile critically. Many fear unfair microtransactions and believe that Activision is merely working on another way to drain money from players – especially due to their cooperation with Tencent. Additionally, some fans are upset about the mobile trend and believe that one should fix their AAA titles before entering the mobile market.
Will another major title come as a mobile version soon? That Activision is increasingly focusing on the mobile trend is undeniable.
After the announcement of Diablo Immortal, Call of Duty: Mobile is already the second major Activision franchise to receive its own mobile offshoot. It is no secret that the publisher has recognized great potential in the mobile business.
And another mobile title may soon be added. Because aside from the wishes of some fans, who have long wished for a WoW for mobile devices, there are already concrete hints that work is indeed underway on another high-profile mobile title.
There are reports that a WoW mobile game in the style of Pokemon: Go, that is, a kind of Warcraft: Go, is already in development and was reportedly in a playable state as early as late 2018.
What do you think of the new “Call of Duty” offshoot for mobile devices? And how do you see Activision’s general trend of establishing its major franchises also on mobile?
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Otherside Entertainment has released a first short trailer for System Shock 3. What is shown looks fantastic. But the question arises: Will the developers, like in part 2, include a multiplayer mode again?
What was shown? The trailer is very short, but gives a pretty good impression of the atmosphere in the game. Dark corridors of a space station can be seen, where gruesome mutants are eating corpses.
Also visible are crazy killer robots trying to break out of some kind of laboratory, and there are some experiments being conducted on humans. Of course, a performance by the insane AI Shodan, who already mimicked the antagonist in System Shock 1 and 2, must not be missing.
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.
Which engine is used?The System Shock 3 announced about 3 years ago uses the Unity engine, which is why the trailer was also presented during the Unity keynote at the Game Developers Conference.
The video demonstrates very well what the engine is capable of. Graphically, the game looks impressive.
What is known about the title so far? Not much is known about the story. An artwork shows the destroyed Citadel Station, the space station where part 1 of the series took place. Perhaps we will return there to finally defeat Shodan.
The game appears to be played again from the first-person perspective. How strong the role-playing elements are is still unclear. System Shock 1 was more of an action-adventure, while part 2 had significantly more RPG features.
What about multiplayer? System Shock 1 is a pure single-player game. Part 2, however, allows you to experience it with up to three other players in co-op.
This co-op experience greatly enhances the title. As nowadays a lot of emphasis is placed on multiplayer elements, it is quite conceivable that System Shock 3 could again receive a co-op mode. However, this has not yet been confirmed.
System Shock 3 uses the Unity Engine.
Skepticism prevails at the moment
Why are players still skeptical? System Shock 3 is being developed by Otherside Entertainment. The studio did not exactly cover itself in glory after the launch of Action RPG Underworld Ascendant flopped in November 2018.
Not only was the game plagued by technical issues and bugs at launch, it did not meet what players expected from a spiritual successor to the role-playing classic Ultima Underworld. Instead of an RPG, an action-adventure with parkour elements, little story, and only rudimentary interaction with the few NPCs appeared.
Therefore, some are now fearing that a similar thing could happen with System Shock 3.
However, fans need not worry much: System Shock 3 is being developed by Otherside in Austin, Texas. It is a completely different team led by cult designer Warren Spector (System Shock, Deus Ex). He knows System Shock very well, as he was responsible for the first part.
When is System Shock 3 coming out? A release date has not yet been announced. The trailer is from a pre-alpha version, so a release before 2020 is not to be expected.
The Javelin in Anthem are highly advanced and flying combat suits. During a presentation, the developers explained why there is an altitude limit for the suits in the game.
Why do we fly in Anthem? In Anthem, we move outside the city of Fort Tarsis in our Javelin. Besides fighting against enemy factions and the beasts of the world, the Javelin are also used for movement – for racing or flying.
If you fly too high in Anthem, a gust of wind will bring you back to reality.
Why is there an altitude limit? Players move in the world by flying – but not unlimited upwards. If you fly too high, you will be roughly pulled back down by a gust of wind.
During the presentation “Rocket Man: Creating Flight for Anthem“, the developers explained at GDC 2019 why this is the case. According to Daniel Nordlander, Senior Gameplay Designer at BioWare Edmonton, and David Hoang, Senior Animator at BioWare Austin, the altitude limit in Anthem is meant to contribute to the fun of the game.
The developers drew inspiration from the “Gravity Rush” game series. In these games, players can manipulate gravity and fly kilometers into the sky.
Would you notice the lurking Ursix here if you were flying too far above the game world?
Why can’t that happen in Anthem? According to Nordlander and Hoang, BioWare did experiment with something similar. In Gravity Rush, the game world is visually obscured when it’s too far below the player.
We tried some [similar] approaches, but the main concern was still that you didn’t really have to fly through the world – you could just fly over it. […] I think as soon as we lowered the flight altitude a bit and you actually had to fly through the world, we found out that players engaged with it much more. That’s why we decided on that.
The battle royale game Apex Legends will soon have a new legend. The speed junkie Octane is ideal for those who like to play risky. But those who want him must buy or unlock him.
Who is Octane? Octavio “Octane” Silva is the new hero in Apex Legends. The skinny guy is a real speed junkie as he can zip around particularly quickly. His skills are:
Adrenaline Junkie: Octane’s active ability makes him faster. According to a leak, he receives a 30 percent boost. However, he loses health for this.
Stimpack: Octane heals himself as soon as he is no longer being shot at.
This is how Octane plays: Based on his skills, Octane is a hero for players who like to play at the limit. He is fast but loses health because of it. If he wants to heal, he has to pause briefly. So, timing speed and pauses optimally is essential.
Hero is not in the Battle Pass
How to get Octane? The new legend is not part of the Battle Pass. Octane must be purchased separately, like the two paywall heroes Caustic and Mirage.
What does Octane cost?
Octane will soon be available in the shop for 750 Apex Coins.
That corresponds to 7.50 euros.
Can you unlock Octane for free? That is also possible. You can unlock Octane for an as yet unknown number of Legend Tokens.
What about the other new heroes? According to leaks, more new heroes are planned. However, there is no concrete information about their release. It is quite possible that at least one more hero will come during Season 1.
What do you think of Octane? Will you buy the speed junkie?
In The Division 2, the current best build for PvP is known. This allows you to kill all enemies with just one shot. Here’s how the 1-Shot-Sniper-Build works.
Just a few days after the launch of The Division 2, many agents have reached the endgame. Now they are looking for optimal builds to dominate in PvE or PvP.
That’s why this is the best PvP build: Division expert and YouTuber MarcoStyle has introduced a PvP build that he believes is currently the strongest build for “agent versus agent” combat.
Because: You kill with just one shot. One hit is enough to take down any opposing agent, no matter how they are built. Since this 1-Shot-Sniper-Build works at both long and short distances, this is the best PvP build – no other is needed.
Here you see the build in the video:
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.
These items you need: The build is quite easy to recreate. You don’t have to search forever for the perfect rolls, just wear this equipment:
Weapon: Model 700 – Highend (Sniper Rifle, World Tier 4)
Armor: 3 pieces of the “Airaldi Holdings” brand set (they don’t even have to be highend)
And that’s all. It doesn’t hurt if you have talents and stats on the gear that further increase the damage. But they aren’t necessarily required.
If you want to be 100% sure that you can eliminate every agent with one shot, you can make fine adjustments and pay attention to these stats and talents:
Backpack with weapon damage bonus
Gloves with sniper rifle damage bonus
Holster with health points bonus and talent for +5% more weapon damage
Body armor with weapon damage, headshot damage, and critical hit damage. The talent grants 10% more damage
Knee pads and mask do not contribute anything to this build from MarcoStyle
With the mods, you can further increase weapon damage and sniper rifle damage.
What the three pieces “Airaldi Holdings” do:
+10% precision
+10% headshot damage with sniper rifles
+10% damage
Take these skills with you: With the skills, you can take the Booster Chem Launcher (repairs armor) and the Defender Drone (blocks some incoming bullets in PvP).
The Defender Drone is, by the way, a way to counter the other 1-Shot-Sniper-Builds that are already running around.
With this drone, you are partially immune to damage – but not guaranteed
A specialization is not necessary. But the sniper specialization is definitely recommended. With this, you can compensate for stat weaknesses if your build is not optimized, as you get 25% more headshot damage on all weapons. Additionally, you get 30% faster reload and 30% increased stability.
Info about the weapon: The sniper Model 700 has some rather useless talents according to MarcoStyle, some of which aren’t even active. However, a talent for 10% faster reload is okay.
The secondary weapon is basically irrelevant since you have the sniper as the best weapon in every situation. It kills in one shot at both close and long ranges. If you hit, there is no better alternative.
That’s why the build also works at close range: If you increase damage in as many places as possible in your build, you can choose a different scope than the standard scope.
For example, take the ACOG scope (4x), which reduces the headshot damage bonus compared to scopes for long range, but allows you to play the sniper as agile as a rifle (without having to awkwardly look through the scope first):
This makes it much easier and faster to kill enemies at close range. You don’t have to go through the animation before you can look through the scope and aim. The ACOG scope is available at the Quartermaster as a benefit against SHD tech.
How to play this build? Your goal is to always aim for the heads of the enemies. If you have good aiming, you will dominate PvP with it.
It’s advisable to play in a group. Because if you don’t hit the enemy’s head, maybe one of your group members will.
Is Massive adjusting the balance because of this?
This is what many are currently upset about: Recently, a discussion ignited on the Division subreddit. Because MarcoStyle expressed his opinion via Twitter that the PvP area in The Division 2 has some problems, as such simple builds are far too strong.
It doesn’t matter if you skill as a tank, damage dealer, or supporter, normalization adjusts all stats too much. So you can’t even do anything against this 1-Shot-Sniper-Build.
On Reddit, thousands of agents complained that MarcoStyle and other streamers would ruin the game if they are already “crying” that Massive should make adjustments. Some really nasty insults against the content creators were read. The topic escalated quite a bit. We reported here about this witch hunt on Reddit.
This sniper build shows, however, that Massive will likely have to make adjustments to the balance in PvP sooner or later. Because over time, this 1-Shot-Sniper-Build will certainly become too dominant, as it is already spreading like wildfire.
After all, most want to be out there with the “best build” in PvP.
Gamigo announced a Battle Pass for the MMORPG RIFT. Fans are confused as there is no explanation of what this pass is supposed to offer.
What has Gamigo announced? Through Twitter, the company stated that it wants to introduce a Battle Pass for the MMORPG RIFT. However, without any explanations.
The company is asking what players think so far and what they would like to see in this Battle Pass.
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.
This is how the community reacts: Fans are expressing complete confusion. The question arises how to inform Gamigo of what they think when there is no idea of what is planned.
Fredelas comments under the announcement on Twitter: “How about you first explain what you’re talking about?”
Buster Cornhull sarcastically comments: “What are we supposed to think? About your logo?”
Nevertheless, the community is trying to provide suggestions.
What could the Battle Pass bring? Dataminers have already found clues of a Battle Pass in RIFT. According to the discovered information, a new quest system will probably be introduced, where you complete missions daily to earn rewards.
Daily quests would indeed make sense. However, it seems a bit strange that these would only be available through a Battle Pass. Nevertheless, new content is planned, which should alleviate the fears of fans that the MMORPG is dead.
When will the Battle Pass come? Currently, it is not clear when Gamigo wants to introduce the Battle Pass for RIFT or what it will cost. Apparently, Gamigo itself is still not quite clear about what they want to introduce with the pass.
