The German streamer Marcel Eris, known as MontanaBlack, became a star with Fortnite . Now he is writing an autobiography that addresses his past with drugs. Some fans say this will be the first book they have ever read.
Here’s what the book is about: The book is called “MontanaBlack: From Junkie to YouTuber” and will be released at the end of March. It is an autobiography.
The YouTuber Marcel Eris, known as MontanaBlack, describes how he goes from being a homeless junkie who breaks into cars to buy grass and cocaine to a celebrated YouTuber.
In writing the biography, he was helped by Dennis Sand, an editor of Welt. He previously wrote the biography of Sun Diego, a German gangster rapper.
Many fans may already be familiar with the topic. Back in 2014, MontanaBlack shared the “From Junkie to YouTuber” story in a widely noticed YouTube video, back then still laid over with “Call of Duty” gameplay.
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Fan says: “The first and probably last book I will ever read”
Here’s how the fans are reacting: MontanaBlack promoted his book on Twitter and urged fans to pre-order. On Twitter, with nearly 340,000 followers, he has a strong reach.
Many of his followers are sharing a screenshot of how they order the book. In the comments, it becomes clear that some of MontanaBlack’s fans are not exactly enthusiastic readers but are making an exception for this.
Some say this will be the first book they will ever read, and also the last.
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This is MontanaBlack: Marcel Eris grew up in Buxtehude and built a career as a gaming streamer and YouTuber. He became known through Call of Duty and FIFA.
Since Fortnite became such a hit, MontanaBlack’s career has also skyrocketed. His channel on Twitch exploded around March 2018. This coincides with the success curve of US Fortnite players like Ninja.
Since March 2018, Fortnite has completely entered the mainstream. This also brought a career boost for MontanaBlack.
Since March 2018, MontanaBlack has been rising sharply on Twitch. Source: Socialblade
According to his own statements, MontanaBlack is now one of Germany’s most successful YouTubers and the largest German streamer on Twitch. Recently, he made headlines for hosting the first German Fortnite tournament.
This is what distinguishes MontanaBlack:MontanaBlack comes across as authentic and speaks to his viewers on eye level. He cultivates a unique way of speaking that defines his streams:
he uses the word ” anders ” as very – ” Ander good ” means ” particularly good”
he has developed some distinctive phrases like “G stands for Gönnen”, “Küsschen aufs Nüsschen” or “That runs on kiss-kiss-kiss basis”
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regularly, English words can be found in his comments. He “enjoys” an action, especially when it is ” anders nice”. What he certainly does is “safe”
and he frequently uses the word “honor” in all possible variations – “honor taken” is something bad, a song can be “honor”, meaning particularly good, someone is an “honor brother”. Among his followers, MontanaBlack is known as “Ehrenmann” – nobody wants to be the opposite, the “Unehrenmann”
MontanaBlack maintains a youth language that also functions as a kind of “code” for his viewers, allowing them to identify as fans and part of a group.
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With his style, MontanaBlack is particularly popular with a young audience, who perceive him as authentic and edgy. With his drug past and the flirtation with a gangster image, he collects “street cred”, or credibility.
In contrast to other Fortnite streamers, MontanaBlack seems to be “brandsafe”. It is therefore okay for large brands to collaborate with him. Epic organized the first large Fortnite tournament in Germany with him as a partner.
Other streamers who maintain such a gangster image encounter boundaries.
Currently, there is an Open Beta running for The Division 2. You should take a look before it ends.
When does the Open Beta end? The beta for The Division 2 is not only running this weekend, but it will also be available all day next Monday. The end is on Tuesday, March 5, at 10 AM. Then the servers will go down.
Everyone should at least take a look at the upcoming loot shooter for 1 to 2 hours before the opportunity passes. Why – you will find out now.
There are rewards for The Division 2
That’s why future agents should play the beta: If you are already sure that you will be playing as agents in The Division 2, it’s worth a look into the Open Beta. Because there are rewards.
These are the rewards:
DC Patriot Weapon Skin: A weapon skin that you only need to log into the beta to get.
Capitol Hill Arm Patch: This is a nice arm patch featuring the Capitol. You will receive it by mastering the Invaded Mission. First, you must complete the main mission “Jefferson Trade Center” in the beta to gain access to three level-30 characters. Now log out, choose one of these characters, and an Invaded Mission starts immediately.
Supply Crate Backpack Trophy: This is a backpack tag that you receive by completing the introductory mission for the Dark Zone in the East. After completing the “Jefferson Trade Center” mission, you will receive the mission from Senait Ezera, an NPC in the base at the White House.
Capitol Hill Backpack Trophy: Another backpack tag that is easy to get. Log in to the Open Beta and it should be unlocked.
All these rewards are cosmetic. They do not grant any gameplay advantages in The Division 2, but they enhance your agent’s appearance. Two of them were already available in the Private Beta.
In-game scene from the beta
The Open Beta receives high ratings from MeinMMO readers
That’s why the Open Beta is worth it for doubters: If you are generally interested in The Division 2, but don’t want to deal with typical beta issues that can be found in the test phases of other games, the Open Beta may surprise you.
Because it is received quite well in the community. The servers are stable, the gameplay experience is top-notch, and only a few problems, especially with the sound, mar the experience.
Yesterday, on March 2, we let our MeinMMO readers rate the Open Beta with a school grade. You can still vote. But already after a short time, well over 1000 agents have settled on a grade, with so far
53% of all participants give it a solid 2
20% give it a 1 and a 3 each
and only 7% give it a 4 or worse
So it’s worth taking a peek into the Open Beta. You won’t encounter a bug festival, as one might fear from a beta, but rather a plethora of game content. Most agents are enthusiastic or satisfied.
You can read some opinions – including critical ones – here:
That’s why the Open Beta is worth it for Private Beta testers: If you have already played the Private Beta, you may wonder why you should also play the Open Beta.
There are additional rewards to earn for the main game The Division 2. You can find these above in the article.
You can experience a new main mission with the “Viewpoint Museum”.
The Chem. Launcher is now available as a skill in the game. You can fire flammable gas or sticky foam at opponents.
Compared to the Private Beta, many bugs have been fixed and improvements made. The player experience has changed.
The gate to one of the 3 new Dark Zones. One is playable in the Open Beta
The Division 2 improves many aspects compared to The Division 1
That’s why the beta is worth it for retired agents: If the first months after the release of The Division 1 disappointed you so much that you are actually done with The Division, it’s still worth taking a look at the beta.
The Division 2 offers a completely new setting that you can experience in the beta. The location changes from snowy New York to Washington D.C. in summer.
The Division 2 launches with important features that were missing from The Division 1 for a long time, such as loadouts or a Clan System. Loadouts are already available in the beta.
The Division 2 includes “real” PvP right at launch, which players had to wait a long time for in the first part. PvP modes and a revamped Dark Zone can be tested in the beta.
The open world has more to offer than that of its predecessor, and you can already discover many things in the world during the beta.
The endgame of The Division 2 will have a lot to offer right at launch. You can get a first impression of this in the beta with specializations and Invaded Missions.
Further differences between The Division 2 and 1 can be found here:
That’s why the beta is worth it for inexperienced players: If The Division 2 intimidates you because you haven’t played the first part, the Open Beta is also worth it.
Everyone starts in The Division 2 from the beginning. The setting and characters are new.
You do not need to have played The Division 1 to understand the story in the sequel. Even the beta starts with an introductory video that sufficiently explains the context.
The beta is completely free. Even if you realize early on that The Division 2 is not for you, you will lose only a few hours of your life.
The Division 2 is not only for shooter fans. It contains an extensive progression system, pronounced clan features, and many elements that resemble MMORPGs.
Furthermore, The Division 2 is not a “typical shooter,” but a tactical cover shooter played from a third-person perspective.
You can get a first impression of all this in the Open Beta.
Moreover, the Open Beta is generally worthwhile to help ensure that The Division 2 can have a smooth launch on March 15, 2019. Push the servers to their limits, point out any last bugs and issues to the developers – and have fun while doing it.
In Pokémon GO, a new event is coming soon. A dataminer found quests indicating an event for Equinox. We will show you what is currently known.
That’s why an event is expected: The dataminer Chrales found new quests in the code of Pokémon GO. These are listed under “equinox 2019”.
What is Equinox? This word describes the equinox. This is the day when day and night are of equal length. This year, it falls on March 20.
That’s why it’s interesting for Pokémon GO: Niantic likes to hold events on such special days. Since the dataminer has now found quests named “equinox 2019”, one can certainly hope that an event awaits us.
These are the found quests
Here’s what the field research is about: A total of 4 quests have been found. They all revolve around plant Pokémon.
Chikorita already had a Community Day and is now part of the quests.
Catch X Bulbasaur or Chikorita
Catch X plant Pokémon
Evolve X plant Pokémon
Evolve X plant Pokémon (probably a different number)
What kind of event could it be? Further details of the event are not yet known. Looking at the quests, one can be sure that plant Pokémon will take center stage.
This is related: On March 23, the Community Day in March will also take place. This time it’s all about the plant starter Treecko. This also aligns with the plant Pokémon in the event.
What players are hoping for: If it really becomes a plant event, many players hope that Leafeon will be introduced. This Pokémon is an evolution of Eevee with a plant type. So it would certainly fit.
Players hope for the release of Leafeon
In addition, many players hope for the introduction of Budew and Cherubi. These two monsters from Generation 4 are still missing and are of plant type.
When could the event start? Since the equinox takes place on March 20 in Germany, an event could start then. It remains to be seen when Niantic will inform us about it.
It is possible that such an event may not take place at all, as Niantic has confirmed nothing officially. So far, only quests have been found in the code. Nevertheless, the quests for the year 2019 have been described. It is therefore quite likely that we can look forward to such an event.
The dataminer also found quests for a possible battle event:
Anthem offers a variety of weapons to choose from. Which Masterwork and Legendary weapons are best suited for each Javelin, we will show you here.
Some of the Masterwork or Legendary weapons have special bonus effects that work very well with the playstyle of the four Javelins. The resulting synergy enhances your destructive power and can compensate for certain weaknesses of your Javelin.
Which weapons are best suited for the Ranger? For the playstyle of the Ranger, the assault rifle “Ralner’s Blaze” and the shotgun “Rolling Carnage” are particularly good choices.
Ralner’s Blaze
This is what Ralner’s Blaze can do: This assault rifle is the upgraded version of the “Hammerhead”. When you score successful hits with this weapon, you set your opponent on fire.
Ralner’s Blaze
This is why this weapon is particularly good for the Ranger: Setting enemies on fire with this weapon counts as a status effect. This means that this weapon prepares hit enemies for combo attacks. For the Ranger, this is optimal as you can easily equip two detonator abilities without relying on a primer ability.
A “primer” inflicts a negative status effect on enemies, while a subsequent attack with a “detonator” triggers a damage explosion.
With Ralner’s Blaze, you can thus maximize the effectiveness of your passive ability (additional combo damage). Your melee ability also helps you set up combo attacks.
This is what Rolling Carnage can do: This shotgun is the upgraded version of the “Revenge”. When you perform a dodge maneuver with this weapon, it receives 50% more damage for 20 seconds. This effect can be stacked up to three times.
Rolling Carnage
This is why this weapon is particularly good for the Ranger: Since you can’t dodge as often with the Ranger as you can with the Interceptor, the 20 seconds give you enough time to make proper use of the shotgun’s bonus effect. The Ranger can thus use its dodge offensively and strategically engage in battle to deal high damage.
This way, you can effectively defend yourself in close combat and drastically increase your chances of survival. Since you dodge more often with Rolling Carnage, you become harder to hit while simultaneously dealing significant damage to your foes.
Storm: These are the best weapons
Which weapons are best suited for the Storm? For the playstyle of the Storm, the sniper rifle “Truth of Tarsis” and the heavy pistol “Avenging Herald” are recommended.
Truth of Tarsis
This is what Truth of Tarsis can do: This sniper rifle is the upgraded version of the “Devastator”. When you hit an enemy’s weak point that is affected by a status effect with this weapon, a combo attack is detonated.
Truth of Tarsis
This is why this weapon is particularly good for the Storm: For the Storm, it is nothing easier than to apply a status effect to an enemy from a distance. With the Storm, you can continue to control enemy masses and support your team. With this weapon, you have an additional detonator and can deal significant damage to single targets.
This allows you to provide crucial support fire for team members at a distance or eliminate heavy targets with a single shot without having to use your normal detonator abilities. Thanks to the Storm’s passive ability (better combo chaining), you can further distribute any status effects through the unique effect of Truth of Tarsis.
Avenging Herald
This is what Avenging Herald can do: This heavy pistol is the upgraded version of the “Impact Strike”. With this weapon, you deal 200% more damage while in hover mode.
Avenging Herald
This is why this weapon is particularly good for the Storm: It is clear that this weapon is best suited for the Storm, as the Storm can hover in the air for much longer than the other three Javelins. The Avenging Herald is optimal for dealing devastating damage at close range and quickly taking out single enemies.
The critical multiplier of heavy pistols is already very high, which makes this weapon extremely lethal in the hands of an accurate shooter. The Avenging Herald allows Storm pilots to contribute offensively to the chaos, as the pistol is particularly effective at short range.
Interceptor: These are the best weapons
Which weapons are best suited for the Interceptor? For the playstyle of the Interceptor, the heavy pistol “Close Encounter” and the semi-automatic pistol “Unending Battle” are recommended.
Close Encounter
This is what Close Encounter can do: This heavy pistol is the upgraded version of the “Suppression Fire”. When you perform a dodge maneuver with this weapon, the damage of the weapon increases by 75% for 10 seconds.
Close Encounter
This is why this weapon is particularly good for the Interceptor: Since you are constantly dashing around with the Interceptor and using your dodge ability often, this weapon is optimal for precise shooters. Because you are always on the move, you activate the effect with every dash again and thus enjoy extra damage most of the time.
Close Encounter is particularly effective at close range and is good for slowly approaching enemies with the Interceptor and taking them out with a well-aimed shot before engaging in close combat. To fully exploit the potential of this pistol, you should always try to hit the weak points of your enemies.
Unending Battle
This is what Unending Battle can do: This semi-automatic pistol is the upgraded version of the “Fulcrum”. When you hit an enemy from close range with this weapon, the damage of this weapon and your melee ability increases by 110% for 5 seconds.
Unending Battle
This is why this weapon is particularly good for the Interceptor: With this weapon, you are extremely powerful at very close range. This fully automatic pistol rewards an offensive playstyle and further enhances the effectiveness of the Interceptor’s melee combat.
Your approach with the Unending Battle should look like this: First, you apply a status effect to an enemy (for example, with the poison bomb), then you get in close proximity to the enemy and fire a short burst with the pistol to activate the effect. After that, you can immediately go in for a boosted melee attack.
Through the combo attack and the increased melee damage, you deal massive damage in the 5 seconds. You can repeat this process as many times as you want with either the melee or the pistol.
Which weapons are best suited for the Colossus? For the Colossus’s playstyle, the automatic cannon “Stral’s Fist” and the grenade launcher “Rain and Flood” are recommended.
Stral’s Fist
This is what Stral’s Fist can do: This automatic cannon is the upgraded version of the “Skybreaker”. Hitting an enemy with this weapon increases damage by 10% for 5 seconds. This effect can be stacked up to ten times.
Stral’s Fist
This is why this weapon is particularly good for the Colossus: With the Colossus, you are usually in the thick of the chaos. With this weapon, you mow through multiple enemies while becoming even stronger with each successful hit.
Stral’s Fist is ideal for the Colossus’s battle cry ability, which draws the attention of surrounding enemies. By activating this ability, you can fully utilize the potential of the automatic cannon and easily eliminate several enemy masses. With the large magazine, good range, and high rate of fire, you can protect your teammates while controlling the enemies at your feet.
Rain and Flood
This is what Rain and Flood can do: This grenade launcher is the upgraded version of the “Gunner”. Landing a kill with this weapon clears all negative status effects and increases effect resistance by 75% for 10 seconds.
Rain and Flood
This is why this weapon is particularly good for the Colossus: Since the Colossus is one of the most offensive Javelins and can cause devastating damage with its abilities, it needs something for its defensive protection options. As a Colossus pilot, you will often find yourself in the battlefield and will occasionally receive a status effect. This weapon helps you deal with that and drastically enhances your survival capabilities.
Once you are affected by a negative status effect, you can quickly switch to Rain and Flood, land a quick kill, and immediately nullify the effect. You also gain increased resistance to further status effects, allowing you to stay in the fight even longer.
In Fortnite: Battle Royale, Season 8 has begun, but our author Jürgen is less thrilled about it. Read here what bothers him and what he expected.
Normally, I get as excited as a little kid when a new season in Fortnite starts. It all begins with the teasers four days before the launch. When the morning of the launch day arrives and the specific new features and the Battle Pass are revealed, I can hardly wait to start gaming.
What’s the deal with the banana?
However, Season 8 was already off to a bad start. The teasers barely excited me; strange creatures and pirates? Previously, the Ice King theme or Halloween were more concrete. It all seemed a bit out of place.
Reasons why I don’t like Season 8
When Season 8 started, my mood did not improve, and the more I saw of the new features, the less excited I became.
The theme is strange
As was already clear from the teasers, the theme of the season is pirates and strange creatures. In the end, it was pirates and ninjas.
Pirates are really outdated and boring.
With that, Epic has once again recycled two of the most overused cliché characters in media history. In my opinion, there were definitely better and more original concepts available.
There’s hardly anything new
When Apex Legends came out and became an instant hit in the Battle Royale genre, Fortnite suddenly sprang into action. I thought, “Wow, they will surely bring some really great new things in Season 8 to keep the game fresh.”
Apex should lead to more new features in Fortnite, in my opinion.
After all, prominent players like Fortnite master Tfue complained that Fortnite had become stale and outdated and could only compete with Apex if it reinvented itself. Such competition should energize the game.
But nothing of the sort has happened. Season 8 seems to be extremely conservative. There are only three new locations in the northeast.
Additionally, features have been removed, including the airplane, which not everyone liked, but for me, it added quite a bit to the game.
Instead, we now have geysers, which are basically just permanently installed trampolines. There are also convenience features that could have been added to the game earlier.
The Battle Pass is rather dull
What I actually look forward to the most is the new Battle Pass. If there are cool skins and emotes, I plan whole evenings to unlock them. But this time, there’s hardly anything that really excites me.
None of these new skins really appeal to me.
The two starting skins are the already mentioned ninjas and pirates that I do not value highly. Later, there’s a silly elf and a banana. Even the banana seems a bit too silly to me.
Even the tiger guy doesn’t impress me, and the level 100 skin Bingeralla looks cool, but if I had to guess, I would never have interpreted it as the ultimate outfit.
Their variants are also just dull reskins for which I have to survive up to 25,000(!) opponents. When I saw that, I really had to think, “Seriously, Epic?”.
However, not everything is bad in Season 8. The following features are still fun for me and, in my opinion, are a good idea:
The Ping system: Ever since Apex Legends, I don’t want to play any Battle Royale game that doesn’t have pings!
The shared challenges: I’ve been expecting this feature for months, and it’s finally here. This makes teamwork more fun again.
The cannons: Launching yourself from cannons was already cool in Sea of Thieves. This concept fits perfectly with Fortnite!
The fox pet: The Battle Pass has one highlight – the cute fox Schlawina. I must unlock her!
The fox is the highlight!
How Season 8 might get better
Season 8 has just begun, and the three factions of pirates, fire ninjas, and the Ice King from the trailer hint at an epic conflict. It’s quite possible that Fortnite will add some completely new features and game modes in the coming weeks.
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Possibly including PvE boss battles that will lighten up the PvP and promise particularly powerful loot. And the volcano will surely not remain quiet and will continue to shake up the map.
It remains exciting, even if the start of the new season was, in my opinion, very boring and unoriginal.
But enough of my opinion. How do you find Season 8 so far? Is it good that Epic took fewer risks this time or do you wish for more new and original things in the game?
WildStar closed, ArcheAge and Rift sold, layoffs at Guild Wars 2. For fans of PC MMORPGs, the situation looks bleak at the beginning of 2019, says our author Schuhmann. The last 12 months have brought almost only bad news.
Final Fantasy XIV did its Final Fantasy thing with big Chocobos and cat girls
Black Desert developed well with new features and a graphics update
Guild Wars 2 had gotten back on track with a strong expansion
These were the “Top 5 MMORPGs,” which have since dethroned WoW as the sole dominant game and major beacon title.
Guild Wars 2 looked rejuvenated at the beginning of 2018
In addition, a number of interesting indie MMORPGs were in development, Asian games like Bless or Lost Ark were on the horizon, and there were still several other, already older MMORPGs that had their own player bases.
I said back then: The MMORPG market had become broader and more interesting. The games were all in better shape than five years ago.
Instead of a single major beacon game like “World of Warcraft,” today there are four or five first-tier MMORPGs that are perceived as “successful” and “good.” And even games outside this first tier have their fans.
Schuhmann on the state of MMORPGs, in February 2018
A year later, the mood has noticeably darkened. Because in 2018, there was almost nothing but bad news for PC MMORPGs.
Battle for Azeroth is regarded as a “difficult” expansion for WoW
This is what has happened to the top players since then:
WoW has gone through a rough development with “Battle for Azeroth” – great marketing campaign, but problematic content. The news situation surrounding Activision Blizzard has been tumultuous lately.
relatively little happened with Black Desert and Final Fantasy XIV in 2018
with Guild Wars 2, people are now being laid off. Apparently, the MMORPG had been running on low flame for a while and ArenaNet was supposed to develop mobile games. When that didn’t pan out, NCSoft raised the alarm, leading to layoffs.
Summerset was a solid expansion for ESO in 2018, but it lacked innovation
The layoffs at Guild Wars 2 are also expected to lead to a renewed focus on ArenaNet’s core business: that is, more Guild Wars 2.
However, none of the 5 MMORPGs made a big splash in 2018. Black Desert is financially doing great, but that’s due to the mobile spinoff that is working in Asia.
Funcom, a long-time MMORPG developer, no longer wants to be heavily involved with the genre, focusing on survival games – the relaunch of their MMORPG The Secret World hardly made waves
Bless looked like a promising candidate at the beginning of 2018
The situation looks significantly bleaker here than with the first-tier MMORPGs. Many of the games seem to have switched to some sort of “maintenance mode.” They are not shutting down, but they are not exactly being passionately developed either.
Little is heard from many games outside of the closest fan circles. A game like SWTOR, which just a few years ago made headlines with major expansions, has almost completely disappeared from public view.
We hardly hear or read anything about SWTOR anymore.
This is what has happened with indie MMORPGs:
Chronicles of Elyria was still a distant hope a year ago – now the mood has turned quite sour. There is a lot of criticism that nothing is progressing.
Camelot Unchained is the niche game it always wanted to be
Pantheon is staying out of the turmoil, apparently wanting to avoid any publicity
Overall, little has happened with indie MMORPGs. The games are in tight niches. They are considered hope bearers by their fans and are also followed with interest by other MMORPG fans, but not much moved here in 2018.
The hype around games like Ashes of Creation has rather faded.
Crowfall is certainly a promising indie MMORPG – but when will it come out?
Are there any good news? Yes, there are, despite all the crisis:
But most of the activity in the MMORPG genre will happen in the existing games that have found their own way and groove. There are no big “new MMORPGs” visible on the horizon.
Here in the West, this development has so far not occurred – MMORPG fans have strong reservations against mobile games. Therefore, many online games in Europe and North America are dominated by shooters and action titles.
We can be curious to see if a change will occur here in 2019.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In Destiny 2, with Season 6, the in-game shop, the Eververse, is being revamped. Bungie refers to it as an improvement, but many Guardians see it differently.
This is how the in-game shop is changing: According to Bungie, for Season 6, which starts on March 5, they want to try something new for the Eververse.
The Prism Matrix will be removed. Previously, you could earn one Eververse item per week for free through this. If you still have Prism Shards, you should redeem them by March 5. After Season 6 starts, you can only dismantle expired Prism Shards for 150 Glimmer.
Instead, there will be unique cosmetic item bundles available weekly that you must purchase directly with Silver. Silver is the currency that you cannot earn, only buy. All bundles will also include an exclusive cosmetic item that is only available through these weekly bundles.
Source of evil: The Eververse
One less way to earn cosmetic items
Why is this change happening? According to Bungie, they want to give players more control over how they acquire the cosmetic items they really want. The Prism Matrix, which came into the game in May 2018, was an experiment to give you more control, but they believe they can do it better in Season 6.
How is the community reacting? On Reddit, this change is being harshly criticized. “So your idea of improvement is to remove a way to earn items without Silver and replace it with bundles that must be purchased with Silver?”, writes one user and receives massive upvotes.
Every week there were 10 items in the Prism Matrix pool. One of them was acquired when you activated the earnable Prism Shard. The others could be purchased for 200 Silver each.
Some players are responding with irony and sarcasm, like “Yes, this is exactly what we wanted – new reasons to buy Silver and throw money at Bungie, whoopee,” while others simply write “Bungie, this is not better” or “Yes, this is an improvement for Bungie.”.
Furthermore, it is criticized that there are exclusive items in the bundles as well. Those who do not want to miss any items will be forced to open their wallets weekly.
One user comments that this change reads like a satire from someone wanting to mock Bungie. Many cannot fathom that Bungie itself is presenting this as an “improvement”.
Another Guardian shows understanding that Bungie wants new ways to earn money with the Eververse. That can be understood. However, Bungie should not pretend that this is an improvement for the players. That is hypocrisy.
Tess Everis
Here’s what Bungie says about the reactions: The topic created such a stir on Reddit that a separate official thread was opened for it. In it, Bungie’s community manager Cozmo provided an initial response.
He thanked for the feedback. They will collect it and present it to the team. He emphasizes, however, that players can still earn the Glimmer Engrams, even in Season 6. The “Well Rested” buff is also still available, through which you can more quickly acquire three Glimmer Engrams per week and, therefore, Eververse content.
Glimmer can still be earned as before through bounties. Additionally, the purchasable bundles are merely an optional way to acquire cosmetic items.
However, he does not directly address the upper critiques. He merely lists that the previous ways to obtain Eververse items without purchasing Silver will still exist in Season 6.
Tess Everis will likely have to suffer again
This is how the in-game shop is currently: At the launch of Destiny 2 in 2017, the Eververse was harshly criticized. Because it was too much in the spotlight, especially during events. Too many cosmetic items were tied to loot boxes, so it essentially turned into microtransaction events.
In the following months, Bungie made improvements. You could now earn cosmetic items through more avenues, and the dominance of microtransactions was not as strong. The Prism Matrix in May 2018 added an additional way to obtain Eververse items for free that you did not already possess.
Tess Everis, the NPC in the Eververse, was hated at the beginning of Destiny 2. “Kill Tess” was often seen as a comment. With the improvements in 2018, Tess gradually came out of the crosshairs of the angry Guardians. Now, in Season 6, she will likely have to suffer again.
Xur, on the other hand, is becoming a character who will finally be exciting again.
In Anthem, the well-known streamer xGladd was banned. The community is discussing this vigorously: Some find the ban completely okay. Others are siding with the streamer. He says: “I just play efficiently – I would never have been banned in Destiny for that.”
This is the streamer in question: xGladd is one of the best Destiny players in the world in PvE and has made a name for himself as a speedrunner there. He is known for marathon sessions and for doggedly pursuing goals. It was he who solved the Niobe Lab puzzle in Destiny 2.
With his team, the clan Redeem, he has achieved several World-First titles and has even made it into the Guinness Book of Records with a handicap run.
Since Anthem is a PvE game, but PvP games are more popular on Twitch, xGladd is one of the most important streamers there, even though with about 120,000 followers he is not a big name on the streaming platform compared to Twitch giants.
The streamer has used 3 exploits
This is why the Anthem streamer was permanently banned: He is said to have exploited bugs that affected the “economy” of the game, namely loot drops. BioWare does not elaborate further on this.
According to his own statements, xGladd did three things that could have led to a ban. He explains this in a YouTube video:
He exploited a trick to use the Storm’s ultimate repeatedly – but he states that he only did this briefly and for fun, then reported it to the devs.
And he farmed the final boss of a mission using an exploit by killing him and then killing himself. This caused the boss to respawn and could be farmed again.
This is how xGladd presents it: He says that looking for such “farming opportunities” is the way he plays, just like he played Destiny. There’s nothing wrong with that.
The chest run was possible and intended by the game, thus he did it. He just uses “efficient ways to farm.”
On Reddit, he is accused of exploiting a bug in the “Tyrant Mine.” This is a mix-up – he did not exploit that.
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He himself now rules out “chest farming” as a possible reason for his ban.
xGladd also sees himself as an ambassador for Anthem. He has been promoting the game practically from day one and has introduced thousands of people to it. He said to EA and BioWare: “You’re welcome for getting all these people to buy your game or Origin Premier to try it out. Now they can tell me how much fun they have or not.”
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This is what opponents of the ban say: The ban of xGladd is causing quite a stir, especially on Reddit. There, the top comments are very much on the side of the streamer. Many do not understand the ban.
Opponents say:
If there were exploits that someone could exploit, that is primarily BioWare’s fault, they cannot ban him for playing the game “efficiently.”
That such methods were also used in comparable games like Destiny (Loot Cave) or The Division (Bullet King), no one was banned there.
The original Loot Cave in Destiny 1, a legendary farming spot and an “exploit”
BioWare should have made it clear that players would be banned for using the exploit.
In a PvE game, no one should be banned anyway.
According to MeinMMO:
For a new AAA title, there is absolutely no buzz on Twitch about Anthem. They could practically use every big streamer.
Ultimately, however, I still believe that one cannot punish the player for a mechanic in a game being poorly implemented.
This is what supporters of the ban say: There are also voices, for example on MeinMMO, that support the ban. The arguments here are primarily:
Streamers also must adhere to the rules. They cannot expect special treatment.
xGladd is anyway known for exploiting glitches to get ahead.
Exploiting bugs leads to a ban in any game.
Both are important: You must ban people, no matter how great and prominent they are on Twitch, and you must fix bugs. Together, both create a good game.
I have nothing against power players or pro players. I just have something against people who cheat, and this starts for me with glitching and includes bug using.
We will continue to report on the case on MeinMMO as things develop.
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A former developer and lead designer of Diablo 3 is having a lot of fun with Anthem. That’s why he is now giving tips and advice to solve some of the problems. The reaction from fans and Bioware itself is positive.
Who is he? The developer’s name is Travis Day and he was one of the lead developers and designers on Diablo 3. However, he no longer works for Blizzard.
Day has a lot of experience with loot and reward systems, difficulty levels, and the right balance of stats. Accordingly, his tips are extensive, which he published in the Anthem subreddit.
What he advises the developers of Bioware
“Dead” inscriptions need to go: The problem with the inscriptions, or equipment properties, has been known for some time and is also a topic in the community.
According to Day, the problem is not that some are rather suboptimal. Rather, it is the affixes that make no sense at all and are completely useless.
Therefore, Travis suggests limiting the possible number of affixes depending on the item to a specific selection that still fits the gear piece.
Strongholds need to be adjusted: Day also criticizes the three strongholds available in the endgame.
Currently, their differences in terms of duration and difficulty are too great, yet the reward is always the same.
His suggestion: either adjust the difficulty or increase the reward for the tougher strongholds like the Heart of Rage.
Risk of fatigue: The aforementioned problem inevitably leads to players always taking “the path of least resistance” and repeatedly running the shortest stronghold.
Sooner or later, players will lose motivation to play strongholds altogether.
Players should be able to farm specifically: What is already possible in parts, Day wishes to have better implemented.
Already, players can earn abilities in strongholds and components through legendary contracts. However, these are only available once per day, per faction.
Day suggests expanding this and also introducing a method for farming weapons. Ideally, there should be a reliable method for each type of gear.
Difficulty levels need fine-tuning: For Day, the differences (especially at the Master Ranks) are too great. As an example, he cites the jump from Master 1 to 2.
A good challenge is important, but the difference between “This is easy” and “this is hard and not worth the time and energy” means players prefer to farm on lower difficulty levels. One solution would be the introduction of further intermediate levels.
Day himself claims to have a lot of fun with Anthem and enjoys the game. That’s why he wants to help solve the problems with this feedback and his experience.
He hopes that “his tips are helpful and can help make Anthem a stronger game over time.”
The response to his tips has been quite significant. The community is reacting extremely positively to his post, which now has over 7000 upvotes.
Successfully defeating enemies to accomplish heroic deeds
The community and Bioware are pleased with the suggestions
This is how the community reacts to Day’s tips: Day is no stranger in the industry and among Diablo fans. For many Diablo 3 players, he is one of the developers who has kept the game alive.
Day is largely responsible for many changes that have greatly improved Diablo 3 for numerous fans. Some of these go in a similar direction to what he now proposes for Anthem. They include:
rare items that could only have the main stat of the respective played class
affixes were divided into primary and secondary
a new feature that binds legendary items only to the account and not to the respective character
In addition, Day is also responsible for the Loot 2.0 system, which has a good reputation in the community.
That’s why many fans believe that Bioware should take these tips very seriously, like Tylorw09: “Wait, so this guy designed Loot 2.0 for Diablo 3? If so, I really hope that Bioware looks into this.”
Others go even further and demand his hiring to improve Anthem.
Bioware also responds: Camden Hardy, Development Manager of Anthem, has also responded to Travis Day’s post:
Hey Travis, thank you for taking the time to write this feedback. I really appreciate this unique insight. I have already forwarded it – just in case others on the team haven’t seen it yet. I love your work, I’m a big fan.
Thus, Day seems to have achieved his goal, and his feedback has reached the developer team.
What will be implemented from this and how long it will take is currently unknown. However, some of these problems have already been noted by Bioware and are frequently criticized by fans.
Therefore, the chances could be good that at least part of this will be addressed.
The immediate plans of Bioware for March will be revealed in a roadmap:
In The Division 2, the content of the Year 1 Pass is known. We present all the information about the Year Pass to you.
This is the Year Pass: If you pre-order special editions of The Division 2, you will receive the Year Pass included. The Gold Edition, for example, only contains a 3-day early access and the Year Pass, compared to the Standard version.
For this, Ubisoft charges an additional €40. Therefore, fans want to know which content justifies the €40.
The Year Pass can also be purchased separately once the game is released.
This is included in the Year Pass
What’s included in the Year Pass of The Division 2
With the Year 1 Pass, you receive:
7 days of early access to all episodes in Year 1: The episodes refer to the 3 DLCs that will be free for all agents. With the Year Pass, you can only play the narrative elements earlier.
Instant access to all specializations from Year 1 as soon as they are released. There will be more than just the Survivalist, the Demolitionist, and the Sniper – namely 3 more throughout Year 1. All others can unlock the specializations over time.
8 Classified Assignments: The Fall of DC: This likely refers to 8 secret tasks or challenges that thematize the fall of D.C. Assignments were the daily and weekly missions in The Division 1 that were displayed in the operations overview starting from character level 30. The ISAC missions were also part of the assignments.
Exclusive cosmetic items – namely an emote and an outfit.
Additional in-game activities, namely special bounties (eliminate certain enemies) and special projects (master various tasks in D.C.). You receive one extra project per day and one extra bounty per week.
A Survivalist – What other specializations are coming?
The Community’s Reaction
The first reactions (as of March 3rd) to the information are predominantly positive:
One user is very pleased that there will be more than three specializations. Many are already speculating in the comments on reddit about what these could look like.
Another writes that he was positively surprised by this pass.
The Redditor ab_c cheers: “I must admit, this is a surprisingly rewarding pass. Good job, marketing team.”
In general, it is praised that with the pass, you not only acquire early access but that there are additional contents as well.
However, one also writes critically that he is just waiting for the “Pay2Win” accusations. However, some users respond that one must wait and see how other agents can access the specializations without the Year Pass. What effort they need to undertake to unlock these.
What do you think? Will you get an edition with the Year Pass?
The Elder Scrolls: Blades was supposed to be released at the end of last year, but nothing has happened so far. However, there is now a sign of life and an initial beta. But not for everyone.
When is The Elder Scrolls Blades supposed to be released? The new mobile game from Bethesda was supposed to be released by the end of 2018. However, the developers at Bethesda shifted the release to the first quarter of 2019. So far, nothing has changed, and there is still no specific date available.
However, there is at least news about a closed beta of the game.
Closed Beta before Early Access
What is the Beta all about? The closed beta of The Elder Scrolls: Blades will provide you with the full game before its release and before the also planned early access phase. However, as a beta tester, you will have to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) before you can play.
Moreover, only users of an iOS device will be able to enjoy the beta. Android users are left out.
When is the beta supposed to start? Unfortunately, nothing more specific is known about that yet. However, the wording of the announcement on Twitter suggests that it will likely start soon and that the full release is still expected in spring 2019. So, it shouldn’t be long now.
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What is The Elder Scrolls: Blades? The Elder Scrolls: Blades will be a mobile RPG in the Elder Scrolls universe. You will play – as the name suggests – a member of the “Blades”, the Imperial Elite Guard.
You will have to rebuild your land after a catastrophe and experience adventures in dungeons and dark regions.
The game offers real-time combat with magic and sword. Moreover, Blades looks excellent and sets a new reference for mobile game graphics.
We were able to play a limited demo of The Elder Scrolls: Blades at GamesCom 2018. Here is our report on it:
In Anthem you will encounter various enemies. However, when it comes to the Scars, you should pay attention to one detail.
What are the Scars?Scars are one of the enemy types in Anthem. They are insect-like humanoids that specifically seek Shaper relics. The Scar attack with various units, such as Escari, Hunters, or Scouts, and usually appear silently through their drills.
Scars are nasty insects that suddenly appear with drills.
What’s up with the cave? As some players report on the Anthem subreddit, freelancers should pay close attention to the Scar drills when they are looking for loot. If you destroy the drills, there is a chance that a cave is hidden beneath.
According to players, you can find a few more enemies in these caves. If you can take them out, you will be rewarded at the end of the cave with a chest full of loot.
Keep an eye out for these drills!
Where do we know this from? The loot cave at the end of the drill sounds almost like the portal of the goblins from Diablo 3. In that action RPG, there are goblins that reward players with various items upon their demise, depending on their type.
Some of these goblins also leave a portal to the “Realm of Treasures”. There, you have to face more goblins and creatures and ultimately deal with greed itself.
The portal to the Realm of Treasures can be opened by a goblin or via Kanai’s Cube.
Goblins in Diablo 3 bring many treasures with them.
What do the players say?In a post on the Anthem subreddit, the player popnlocke is currently drawing attention to the drill caves. Many players are surprised and questioning whether the caves really exist.
Others report that they encountered these caves during missions or legendary contracts and therefore could not inspect them.
Some freelancers report that they have seen these caves, but were prevented from entering the loot caves during missions because of the automatic “catch-up” mechanics.
A total of seven characters will have to adjust to changes. This includes the cowboy McCree, who gets a hefty buff.
How McCree is enhanced: The buff affects the ability Deadeye, the ultimate of McCree. This now starts generating bonus damage within 1.5 seconds. Before the patch, the cowboy had to aim at an opponent for 2.5 seconds before the bonus damage would take effect.
As a video in the Overwatch subreddit now shows, McCree can now eliminate heroes with full HP in no time after the patch, even if they are behind the tank Reinhardt’s shield.
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How does it work? With the new patch, McCree needs less time to generate bonus damage and can multiply his damage. Before the patch, Deadeye dealt 275 per shot, after the PTR patch it does 550 damage.
Of course, the video is staged, and the player has enough time to aim at his opponents. Players on Reddit also agree that this is a significant increase in damage, but on the live servers, hardly anyone should be able to fully utilize the damage bonus.
Players also share a tip: The ability Deadeye always starts from McCree’s right side when targeting opponents. Even after the patch, you are safest if you stay as far left from him as possible.
It seems an anonymous source knows the answer. The pass is said to be released on March 12, 2019.
How reliable is this source? According to DailyEsports, which had an interview with the source, it is said to be a person who has close contact with the developers. This is reportedly confirmed by another source.
March 12 is also a realistic date as it falls in the middle of the month, thus fulfilling the official announcement of “March” as the release window.
What will the Battle Pass cost? The source also states that the new Battle Pass for Season 1 cannot be bought with in-game currency. Unlike in Fortnite, you must purchase it separately in the shop using real money. However, no specific price was mentioned.
In Fortnite, you can unlock the pass in-game.
New Info on the Hero Octane
This is what we know about the new showcase hero: The unknown source also had information about one of the new heroes from Season 1. He is said to be called Octane and has been mentioned in leaks multiple times before.
This leak is said to be authentic.
Now there is a concrete image that, according to the source, was taken directly at the workplace of an employee of Respawn Entertainment.
This is Octane: The image shows the hero Octane, an androgynous figure with a gas mask and the metal pose “Fork”. Octane is referred to in-game as a “high-speed devil”.
According to the source, he is said to be the showcase hero of the season and will likely appear directly at launch or shortly before.
These are said to be the skills of the new hero.
What can Octane do? The alleged skills of Octane have also been leaked:
Adrenaline Junkie (Tactical): Octane will be 30 percent faster for 6 seconds. He is immune to effects that slow him down. However, the ability costs him 10 percent of his health.
Swift Mend (Passive): If Octane does not take damage from anything, he slowly regenerates health.
Launch Pad (Ultimate): You can deploy a kind of trampoline that allows you and your team to make long jumps.
What does all this mean? If these skills are accurate, then Octane will be an extremely fast and tough nuisance. His skill lets him zip around quickly, and he won’t even be slowed down by snares.
This should make him an ideal flanker who doesn’t have to hide from Bangalore or Pathfinder.
Will you play Octane if he ends up like described here?
Anthem was released about two weeks ago, and many players have now reached the endgame. What is there to do here? What do the freelancers like, and what is being criticized?
Since February 15, players on Xbox One and PC have been able to play Anthem. On the PS4, the game was released a week later.
Among these players, some diligent players are now in the endgame. BioWare defines the start of the endgame from pilot level 30. Especially players who have been involved for 2 weeks have already been able to look at the endgame more intensively.
What does the community say about the endgame of Anthem?
Community sees issues with loot: Many players say that the endgame of Anthem still needs improvement. Particularly the loot spiral does not motivate them in the long run.
The goal in the endgame is to increase one’s power level through special loot and make one’s character as strong as possible. The stronger the character, the higher the difficulty levels can be mastered.
Therefore, players also see a need for improvement with loot. Due to the unmotivating loot spiral, Anthem is currently accused of content poverty in the endgame.
The power level is displayed at the top right and consists of the various parts of the equipment.
What is the problem with the loot? Players want to farm the best loot as efficiently as possible while also being offered variety. Currently, it is most effective in the endgame to farm masterwork and legendary items from Anthem’s strongholds.
However, since there is no significant difference in loot drops between the dungeons, players prefer to farm the Tyrant Mine. This quickly makes the endgame grind boring for many.
The Swarm Tyrant is the boss in the first dungeon and can be taken down relatively quickly.
I was so hyped for the game. Unfortunately, it is starting to feel like it is disappointing me. It is just dull outside of the basic gameplay. I just feel that at this point, I have no reason to keep playing. It repeats too much and there are few rewards and nothing worth grinding for.
Realfatnutsack
Another problem is that it is also difficult to improve one’s equipment quickly. Because the really good items also drop rarely.
Some of the community is taking the loot problem calmly: There are also players who see these problems but are keeping their cool for now.
MeinMMO reader BavEagle is not rushing into the endgame:
“[…] I still believe it is much too early to draw a content conclusion. For those who are already in the endgame, I really feel sorry and it is probably hard to understand. But unfortunately, I can only keep saying that we are talking about 2 weeks after the release. New content is announced and is already coming this month. A new stronghold will also come next month and the Cataclysm will come in May.[…]”
On Reddit, a post about content poverty in the endgame reached 1,400 upvotes and gained some support. The thread creator myklatrum points out that all MMOs struggle with these accusations after release:
“I put 80 hours into this game last week and now I am done because there isn’t enough to do in the endgame.” – Hmm, where have I [heard this statement] before? Oh! Right, in every MMO or every MMO DLC over the last 15+ years. “I am max level in a week and have nothing to do” – Oh really? Do you know why? You are the smaller part of the demographic. Right, “hardcore” players, you must wait for the rest of us. You always had to.[…]”
myklatrum
Improvements to loot are already underway
Since loot was criticized a week ago, BioWare has already implemented some initial improvements.
This was the problem: Items had inscriptions (perks) that made no sense at all. Players received a bunch of items that they could not use because the stats were useless. Players also found the crafting costs for masterwork and legendary items to be too high. This made it tedious to also get a desired item.
This is how the problem was fixed:BioWare deployed a server-side hotfix that resolved the issue with useless inscriptions. The random stats now match the farmed equipment. Additionally, the crafting costs for masterwork and legendary items have been reduced.
This fix is still pending: This loot fix includes that low-quality loot will not appear from level 30 anymore, where the endgame begins. This is still the case at this point and also hinders players from improving their gear. This fix will be implemented later.
The loot of Anthem is still critically viewed in the endgame. Players see a need for improvement here.
What are players doing in the endgame?
In the endgame, there are currently three main activities:
These activities are mainly aimed at improving one’s stats. Players experiment with different builds and see how they can maximize their output.
Is there more to do? Yes. Our MeinMMO reader Gothsta reports that he enjoys finding the various Cortex entries of Anthem in free play or during world events. These are small lore snippets that are written down. Here you can learn more about the world or the inhabitants of Fort Tarsis.
Find more background and activities in the endgame of Anthem in our comprehensive overview, which is constantly being updated and supplemented:
In Fallout 76, the police are now on patrol. A group of players has taken it upon themselves to embody the law enforcement in Appalachia. And apparently, the idea is quite popular.
Who is the police? A small group of veterans from Fallout 76 plays the law enforcers in Appalachia. They have come together with the idea to act as the police.
They call themselves “Appalachia PD”, as the Appalachia Police Department, and ensure order in West Virginia. Currently, they are only patrolling on the PS4.
As a distinctive sign, they have chosen the medkit icon. Additionally, all members wear police uniforms and hats. You will easily recognize them when you encounter the players of Appalachia PD.
This is what the players are doing: The task of Appalachia PD is to care for new players. In a Reddit post, the Fallout fans explain what their actual intention is:
They protect players between level 1 and 30.
They offer assistance for free during events and missions.
This is how the community reacts: The reactions to the police are overwhelmingly positive. Many fans find the idea of playing such roles in Appalachia to be great. Some even see potential with the upcoming alcohol update to play out possible moonshining plots.
Another player even goes so far as to say that he now wants to act as a defense attorney:
Maybe I should start offering my services as a defense attorney. For those who are wrongfully arrested by the Appalachia PD… 🙂
GaraktheTailot on reddit
Most fans, however, just want to participate. They are so fascinated by the police that they want to be a part of it.
Moonshiners could be potential antagonists for the Appalachia PD.
Can I participate? Yes, Appalachia PD is recruiting. Currently, the players are trying to set up a Discord server to manage the influx and to communicate effectively. Some members have posted their PSN names in the relevant Reddit post to be contacted.
What do you think of the idea? Will you participate?
As a police officer, you should be familiar with Appalachia. How well do you know it?
The space sandbox Elite: Dangerous is set to receive a huge update, but probably not until 2020. Fans are concerned that not much new will happen before then.
Last year, the developers at Frontier Development hinted that they were planning something big for the space sandbox Elite: Dangerous. Now, more is known. In a forum post, the developers revealed the rough content plans for the next two years.
Something big is coming at the end of 2020
These are the developers’ plans: However, those who expected a giant update soon will have to be patient. The developers want to take their time and have assigned a large part of the team to the update, which will likely be released at the end of 2020.
To realize the ambitions of this update and the scope and scale of the planned content for Elite: Dangerous, we expect that this major milestone will only be completed in the later half of 2020.
The update is expected to be substantial. According to the developers, it will be the update with the greatest impact on the game to date. What exactly is planned has not yet been revealed, but there should be roadmaps and news about it later this year.
The new content is expected to be paid and included in the lifetime pass.
“Space Legs” or planet landing?
These are the community’s speculations: Since the developers have hardly released any information and are assuming almost 2 years of development time, fans are speculating accordingly:
Some hope for a long-planned feature known in the community as “Space Legs”. This would be a function allowing players to move freely as pilots on foot inside the ship and on stations and planets.
Fans think it would also be cool to land on planets with the spaceship instead of just using the existing landing vehicles.
Others speculate about an expansion of personal super-ships for guilds and self-built space stations.
All these changes have fans hoping that Elite: Dangerous can seriously compete with the major rival Star Citizen, which also aims to introduce all those features.
Fans fear content drought until 2020
As great as the giant update for 2020 sounds as an idea, players are concerned about the here and now. According to the developers, only a small team is working on new updates for 2019 and the first half of 2020.
According to many fans’ concerns, they are unlikely to release large content but rather Quality-of-Life features and small updates.
This is what the developers say: According to the developers, they plan to release roughly every three to four months, and these updates will not be as large as the past Beyond updates from 2018. However, they plan to significantly revamp the event system.
Whether this will be enough to keep players entertained for almost two years remains to be seen.
Our author Schuhmann has now spent 25 hours in Anthem and has completed the campaign. He is quite excited about Anthem. He understands the criticism about the loot system – but he believes the harsh reviews in the tests were undeserved.
This is where I stand in Anthem: I completed the campaign last night and finished all the side missions available up to that point. This took me about 25 hours and I have reached level 29, so I’m only a few side missions away from the endgame. During this time, I only played the Storm, the Mage Javelin.
Only Origin, EA’s great platform, annoyed me two or three times. After patches, I have often had to reinstall Origin completely.
The way I play Anthem works excellently: I play solo but always use matchmaking to tackle missions with three random people. After the “Grind Quest”, everything went smoothly, I actually had no stumbling blocks.
I always completed all available side quests before continuing with the main quest and dutifully listened to the dialogues, but sometimes I would skip ahead: Not every storyline in Fort interested me. And sometimes I just wanted to get back into the action too eagerly.
Owen, one of my favorite characters in Anthem.
These are the major strengths of Anthem:
I am particularly impressed by the “Instant Matchmaking,” which always finds me a group for the activity right away. So far, I have mostly been lucky with the random groups. I have even had some cool and smooth runs through the strongholds. This “matchmaking for everything” is really great.
I also feel the “Power Surge” with increasing level – an important factor for me in RPGs.
The battles and the way I fly through the world still feel really great after 25 hours – I look forward to every new mission.
Haluk and Faye have both grown dear to me in the 25 hours.
I find the dialogues in the Fort and the colorful cast of supporting characters well done. Not every storyline is fantastic, but I follow them with interest and often have to smile. Characters like Dax or Sentinel Brin are well done, also great synchronized in German. I think the main story and the characters in it with Owen, Haluk, and Faye are really good.
I cannot share these criticisms of Anthem: Shortly after the early launch of Anthem, much criticism was aimed at the game. Currently, it stands at 60% on Metacritic.
The major criticisms that the missions are “repetitive” and the story is not “BioWare-worthy” are ones I can understand from my perspective, but I do not share them:
I did not expect to experience a story in Anthem as I did 20 years ago in RPG classics. The story I experienced was entertaining and absolutely fine. Although the dialogue options are merely window-dressing and do not really contribute to the story. But I know that from online RPGs.
The missions still put me in a good mood after 25 hours and I look forward to them because I find the gameplay here extremely strong and successful.
Bugs and issues that others have with the game, I have not experienced.
The world seems interesting and exciting to me. I find flying from point to point in a mission simply fantastic.
I agree with these points in the criticism: Still, there are two issues I want to address. These are criticisms I have frequently read about Anthem and that I can understand and share.
Inactive waiting for help
This is a problem in gameplay: When you are dead, you are often left inactive in Anthem. Because in harsh fights, there is often a respawn ban.
You can’t even really watch other players or do anything, but have to wait until someone picks you up.
This is a frustrating experience. Although it was in the “more intense battles” that I had team members who repaired me, but the situation just does not feel right. It’s not fun.
A Javelin in Anthem waiting for repairs. Image source: Kotaku
This would be a solution: Anthem should at least allow a player to crawl. The suit is broken, and you can’t move “powerfully” in it anymore, okay. But at least crawling to a better position should be possible.
Too few decisions with loot
This is a problem with motivation: The loot in Anthem, in the early, mid, and late game is simply too boring for such a game – whether you see it as a loot shooter or an MMORPG lite.
The type of loot you find depends in Anthem on your level, and in the first numerous hours, you will be heavily limited.
After 25 hours in Anthem, I have had to make almost no decisions regarding loot. Because the items I found were basically always the same, just at a higher level and with different inscriptions, which I did not pay much attention to.
There are 5 skills as detonators for the Storm – relatively quickly, you can find them all and choose one.
I eventually settled for two skills for the Storm at level 10 (Ice Storm/Fireball) and then just took the weapons with the highest level.
Since you practically do not find any “special items” until level 29, but only standard items, the loot is simply boring because it hardly requires any decisions from me.
I did not feel that it made any difference which weapon I played with or which inscriptions were on it.
Which weapon am I using there? The one with the highest level.
After I had managed the components and skills somewhat and decided on a setup, that part of the game was already completed early, and I just kept replacing one item with another of a higher level and took what weapons were available.
Here the comparison with games like Destiny or Diablo comes to mind, where you quickly get special items with extraordinary bonuses that require decisions:
Do I want to use a weapon with a higher level?
or do I keep my exotic or legendary weapon with the great bonus ability?
Such decisions about my setup and loot are what I would have wished for Anthem. Apparently, that only starts from level 30.
25 hours in a loot shooter without having to make such decisions is too long for me.
Once you have agreed on a setup with the components, you only switch to the next higher one.
This would be a solution: Simply allow low-level masterwork weapons with special bonuses. Hopefully, this will come with further changes to the loot system.
Anthem from an online player’s perspective
This is why I see Anthem differently than many testers: I feel like I approached Anthem very differently than many testers who had to evaluate the game after just a few days.
Often I got a “Things were better before” vibe from these tests.
I do not long for BioWare to develop RPGs like they did 20 years ago. I played those back then as well, but now I am a convinced online gamer.
I long for interesting new gaming experiences in online games. Anthem provided me with that in the first 25 hours.
My colleague Albrecht has already gotten all 4 Javelins to “epic”, as he tells me – including the Colossus.
As a fan of online games, I place a lot of value on core gameplay and a pleasant gaming experience. Here, Anthem shines for me.
The game has a lot of room for improvement, especially regarding loot and polish, I’m sure. But for me, this is not an “unfinished game”, but a cycle I have been going through with online games for almost 20 years: Games start with a solid core, then grow and hopefully get better. And it’s fun to watch and accompany them.
So far, I have not regretted the first 25 hours in Anthem. I am curious to see how it continues. In the endgame, there are supposed to be difficulties and many accuse Anthem of being “too short.”
Streamer Shroud is known for his outstanding shooter skills. In this clip, his accuracy in Apex Legends is almost like an aimbot. This even surprises the streamer himself.
Who is it about? Michael “shroud” Grzesiek is a former CS:GO pro. On the streaming platform TwitchTV, he regularly plays battle royale games and entertains the viewers mainly with his high skill. He also made headlines with this mistake that cost him $400.
Streamer Shroud, when he lost a lot of money
Recently, he has taken a liking to Apex Legends. In a clip from February 27, you can see him making an incredible play.
What does the clip show? Shroud is currently on the move when his teammates come under fire. He quickly changes direction, spots the first enemy behind a rock, and opens fire. Once that enemy is down, he switches to the next opponent in a split second, who also goes down immediately. He also wipes out the last remaining enemy in a flash.
In just about 5 seconds, the enemy squad was taken out.
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Shroud is surprised: After the action, it is clear to see that he is surprised. He shakes his head and says: “That was insane, that was insane, that was insane.” After a few seconds, it calms down and Shroud laughs. “I usually don’t say things like that, but that was really crazy. It looked so cool,” he comments on the scene.
Why is Shroud so good at Apex Legends? The fact that Shroud is so good with the weapons in Apex Legends is no coincidence. He was heavily involved in how the weapons behave in the game. Because they were supposed to work differently at first:
In a developer stream, the makers of World of Warcraft talked about the upcoming patch 8.1.5 and also introduced the new allied races. A suspicion that had already existed was confirmed: Zandalari Druids will become dinos.
How do I become a dino? To get the new dino forms in WoW, you first need to unlock the new Zandalari Troll race. This will appear with patch 8.1.5, which according to new information will be playable on March 13.
How to unlock Zandalari Trolls: With patch 8.1.5, the quest lines for the two new allied races will be unlocked. For the Zandalari Trolls, you will first need to meet certain requirements:
reach level 120 with a character
gain a revered reputation with the “Zandalari Empire”
Complete the War Campaign up to and including “Tides of Vengeance”
After that, a quest to unlock the Zandalari Trolls will be available to you. Complete it, and you can create a Zandalari Troll. If you level him yourself from level 20 to the maximum level, you will even receive a heritage set as a cosmetic item.
Why dinosaurs? In the stream, the developers explain why the Zandalari Trolls receive dinosaurs as forms. This is said to be related to the fact that they worship special gods, the Loa. The connection of the Zandalari to their gods should be better represented.
You can see the explanation again in the video embedded below starting from around minute 29:35.
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One reason for the decision was also that due to the artifact weapons in Legion, experience was already made with different forms. It was decided to experiment with dinos, and so the first form became the travel form, which already existed as a raptor model and was slightly adjusted. Over time, the ideas for the dino forms emerged.
What do you think of the forms?
If you prefer to pledge allegiance to the Alliance, you will unlock the Kul Tiran in patch 8.1.5:
