The professional players in WoW suffer from Split Raiding. With Battle for Azeroth, this should finally be a thing of the past.
Professional guilds in World of Warcraft have been facing more and more problems in recent years, which have been exacerbated by the game design. One of the biggest time sinks was Split Raiding.
“Split Raiding” refers to an activity that mainly occurs in professional raids. To ensure that a player’s main character always has the best possible equipment, professionals own a lot of secondary characters. After current content is in “farm status”, multiple raid groups are created. A small portion of the “mains” ventures out with a large part of the secondary characters. This ensures that every main character always has the maximum chance for new loot, as each main character essentially has a “raid just for themselves” regarding loot selection.
Blizzard does not like this practice, and the raiders themselves do not enjoy it either. The time investment is enormous. However, this is expected by many professional guilds, as it guarantees the best possible preparation and a minimal advantage.
Split Raiding will be unnecessary in Battle for Azeroth
In an interview with PCGamesN, Game Director Ion Hazzikostas revealed that they want to address the issue with Battle for Azeroth.
Blizzard has not intervened so far because 99.99% of players have no problem with this mechanic. They do not want to restrict the game in any way – simple ideas would be something like “One raid loot per account and week,” which no one wants.
But for Battle for Azeroth, the developers finally want to provide a remedy for the suffering professional raiders. While no concrete plans are mentioned, Blizzard supposedly has “some ideas about how loot will be structured” that are to be tested in the beta of the new expansion.
Ultimately, they want to leave the decision to the players. If they do not agree, the “anti-split raid features” will likely not make it into the game.
Are you active in professional guilds that require “Split Raiding”? Or are you hearing about this issue for the first time?
Incredible but true! This Exotic in Destiny 2: Curse of Osiris is said to fire mini robot spiders that explode.
It has been known for a few weeks that with Curse of Osiris, a few old Exotics from Destiny 1 will make a return, such as the Telesto or the Jade Rabbit. Numerous Guardians immediately accused Bungie of a lack of creativity and laziness. The developers are said to be overdoing recycling – while it is fine to bring back iconic weapons, new Exotics must also come that offer a completely fresh gameplay experience.
That Bungie can indeed be creative with the new Exotics in Destiny 2 is proven by this grenade launcher. Because apparently, it fires robot spiders!
The Colony – a truly exotic grenade launcher
This unique Exotic is said to be the Veist grenade launcher, which was briefly seen in the teaser trailer for Curse of Osiris (see the image above). As PC Gamer reports, this “The Colony”. During a play event for Curse of Osiris, they were able to play with this weapon – and it was one of the highlights of the event.
The reason: The Colony fires “insectoid robot grenades”. Upon impact, they open up into spider-like robots and scuttle around until they find a target and explode. They explode immediately on direct hits.
With this knowledge, several Guardians, including YouTubers MoreConsole and Unknown Player, immediately examined the footage shown by Bungie, scrutinizing it frame by frame. And indeed, spider-like robots can be discovered!
Here you can see a “grenade” from this grenade launcher coming into the frame from the right. This capsule opens upon impact …
… and out comes a robot spider that explodes immediately:
Here you can see the footage in moving images. The video is marked from 3:06:
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The tester from PC Gamer writes that he had a grin on his face with every shot. Additionally, the reload animation is amusing. It looks as if the Guardian hesitates briefly when reloading, as if unsure how to handle these “living” spider grenades. It looks “sweet”.
The item description of “The Colony” reads: “We have done some messed-up things in the past …” According to PC Gamer, Curse of Osiris is definitely not messed up with this grenade launcher.
How powerful The Colony will ultimately be remains to be seen. Currently, grenade launchers are abysmal. They might get buffed with Curse of Osiris. Then this weapon could be highly sought after among Guardians …
Star Wars Battlefront 2 offers not only a multiplayer mode but also, for the first time in a Star Wars video game since 2010, a campaign! But what exactly does it look like? Can it be played in coop? And is the gameplay time really as short as many say?
In the campaign of Star Wars Battlefront II, you initially take on the role of Iden Versio, commander of the Inferno Squad. Finally, you have the opportunity to play on the side of the Empire and teach the Rebels a lesson.
With her, you navigate shooting and fighting from cutscene to cutscene, in which you hopefully break out in Star Wars feelings.
Key Facts at a Glance
Depending on the difficulty level, the duration of the campaign is between 4 and 6 hours
Keep your eyes open – there are some collectibles hidden!
At the start, 12 missions and a prologue are available. More will be added with later free DLCs
Couch coop is also available on the consoles – you can play the Battlefront 2 campaign on PS4 and Xbox One in split-screen mode
Although Moira, the newest hero for Overwatch, was only announced and made playable at BlizzCon, the community is already speculating about the next hero.
A little over a year ago, Blizzard emphasized that they wanted to implement significantly more “evil” characters in Overwatch, as there is currently a strong imbalance with the “good” heroes. At least with Doomfist, Sombra, and Moira, they’ve made that a reality – but one thing is still missing: an evil tank.
But nothing escapes the community’s notice. On Reddit, the user EnjiYamakuza spotted another detail in the comic “Masquerade”.
Blizzard has released some artworks of Moira, including a “group photo” with the leaders of Talon. Among them are Doomfist, Reaper, and Moira.
Origin Video Makes Waves
This image was also later used in Moira’s “Origin” video, in which Blizzard explains the backstory of the shady healer. But if you look closely, you can see that Blizzard has slightly modified this image for the cinematic!
The display board in the background has changed. Instead of another window with unclear information, there is now a clear drawing of a battle suit or even a new character.
Many players suspect that this is a battle armor from Talon and ultimately an “evil” tank that will join the characters of Overwatch in one of the upcoming updates.
However, fans agree that Blizzard certainly did not make this change to the artwork by chance. The developers have repeatedly hidden clues about upcoming characters in comics and game content.
What do you think this image means? Is it the next “hero” for Overwatch? Or just a purely visual adjustment?
In The Division, today is the big vendor reset. Which items are particularly worthwhile starting from November 18th?
In the last “State of the Game,” the news came: Agents will have to wait a few more weeks until Update 1.8 is released. It is expected to launch in early December.
That means you have some time to prepare for the update.
Mercy from Overwatch has been revised once again. Are we finally all satisfied?
A new update for Overwatch is live and has brought some changes. In addition to the new healer Moira, which we introduced here, patch 1.17 (PC) or 2.23 (PS4, Xbox One) also brings several adjustments to existing heroes. The biggest changes have once again been given to Mercy.
Since her major rework a few months ago, Mercy has been the problem child of Overwatch. Although the developers’ plan to make Mercy’s playstyle more active and to address her biggest annoyances worked, the community was not satisfied with the rework of Angela Ziegler.
While Mercy lost her mass resurrection, she can now bring individual targets back from the dead much more regularly. The shocking result: The number of her resurrections per round even increased.
In the meantime, Blizzard has further increased the cooldown of the ability.
Mercy can now be interrupted
The latest change ensures that resurrection is no longer a “spontaneous spell” but now has a casting time of a solid 1.75 seconds. During this time, Mercy is also slowed down by 75%, making her an easy target. At the same time, the resurrection is canceled if Mercy is stunned, hacked, or knocked back during this time.
This seems to be well received by players. Resurrection must now be noticeably more tactical and involve much more planning to succeed. Anyone who does not hide behind a shield from Reinhardt or does not perform the resurrection “stealthily” will be stopped in the attempt.
This does not apply to resurrection during her ultimate Valkyrie. When Mercy is in her “ultimate form,” resurrection has no casting time and the healer is also not slowed down.
Overall, the community seems to be happy with these changes; at least, complaints about Mercy have largely disappeared.
Cortyn says: With the casting time of resurrection, Mercy now feels better to counter and allows for many counters. At the same time, the “skill cap” for Mercy has increased a bit, as anyone who activates resurrection at the wrong moment throws away a powerful cooldown. Therefore, all that is left to say is: I am very satisfied with the new Mercy – she is weaker but much more fun.
How do you like the new revision of Mercy? Is she finally “perfect”? Or are further changes necessary?
Master X Master, the fast-paced mix of MOBA and coop action game, had a short life. Just 6 months after launch, the game’s end was recently announced. The game will only continue until January 2018, and then it will be over.
Master X Master by NCSoft aimed to be many things at once. It combined 3vs3 arena, horde mode, tower defense, coop top-down shooter, and finally MOBA in one game, and added a bunch of silly jump & run mini-games on top.
You could also embody some cool heroes from NCSoft’s games, such as the crazy boss Poharan from Blade & Soul, the psycho-hamster Mondo from WildStar, or Rytlock Brimstone from Guild Wars 2.
Master X Master was a colorful buffet of ideas and genres, but it probably did not appeal to the masses.
MXM – Play until the end of January, then it’s over!
Master X Master was released in June 2017. However, after almost 6 months, it seems clear at NCSoft that the game’s concept has no future. There simply weren’t enough players to stay in the game permanently and spend money. Master X Master would simply no longer be economically viable.
Therefore, it was decided with a heavy heart to end the operation by January 31, 2018. Until the deadline on January 31, the following conditions also apply:
All players will receive 500,000 X-Coin to unlock all content.
The real-money shop will be closed.
All players can purchase the community-designed Lua skin for 1 X-Coin.
All game modes will be activated and available at any time.
All purchases made between August 30 and November 16 will be fully refunded. This will happen automatically within the next 7–14 days and via the same method used for the purchase, if the payment method supports it.
Additionally, the MXM team thanks the players who, despite the adversities, have remained loyal to the game so far.
Jürgen says: And once again one of my favorite games is dead …
It’s really like cursed! I have a big heart for cute niche games and underdogs. But everything I love seems to cruelly perish. In the editorial office, it is often joked that when I praise a game exuberantly, “Oh dear, the death curse of Stöffel is at work again! It will be dead soon!”
I’m starting to really believe that. After Battleborn, this is now the second of my appreciated games to say goodbye this year. Yet, Master X Master was really a lot of fun, and I had a lot of joy with it. It had many cool ideas and features that were not found anywhere else.
When I was at the launch event of MXM in England in June, I asked the responsible developer how they planned to stand out against the tough competition in the free-to-play market. “We will build our own niche,” they confidently said. That doesn’t seem to have happened…
I will hold you forever in my heart, MXM, farewell!
Until then, you can warm up in the Trials of the Nine. The weekly PvP event starts today, November 17th, at 6 PM. The Trials will end on November 21st at 10 AM (at this time the Iron Banner will start). The Trials will be played this week on the map Altar of Flame. The game mode is Survival.
What are the Trials of the Nine with the Survival mode?
This time you will fight in the Trials in the “Survival” mode. This is a round-based PvP mode.
You compete against each other in teams of four, with all four players per team sharing a certain number of lives. If a Guardian in your team is defeated, it costs you one life. If you defeat an opposing Guardian, it costs the opponent one life. The defeated Guardian respawns automatically after a few seconds. Reviving by teammates is not possible.
If all lives are depleted, you can no longer respawn. If the team that has no lives left is completely defeated, a round is over. Win multiple rounds to decide the match.
After each match, you will receive “Trials of the Nine” tokens that you can redeem with the messenger for Trials engrams. Additionally, you will receive extra rewards for 3, 5, and 7 victories. If you achieve a flawless run (7 wins without a loss), you can claim an extra reward. If you have 3 losses on your ticket, you must start over.
In the Trials of the Nine, there is no matchmaking. You must assemble your team of 4 players yourself. Additionally, it is a “locked-loadout playlist.” This means you cannot change your weapons and armor pieces until you leave the playlist.
Summoners War is a successful strategy RPG game for mobile devices. However, soon there will be a mobile MMORPG to accompany the colorful fun. At the Korean G-Star exhibition, the planned mobile MMO was introduced with a new teaser.
In Summoners War, you fight against opponents in the “Sky Arena” and defeat them using a combination of summoned monsters and minions. Each creature has specific attributes, strengths, and weaknesses. Following the good old “Rock, Paper, Scissors (Lizard, Spock)” system, certain beings can perform particularly well against other creatures.
This game principle has been a great success so far, attracting more than 70 million players and generating over 500 million US dollars worldwide. Additionally, there have been major tournaments and even World Championships in Summoners War.
Therefore, the Summoners War brand is set to expand further and get its own mobile MMORPG.
MMORPG and other features for the Summoners War IP planned!
At the Korean G-Star 2017 exhibition, developer Com2uS presented a mobile MMORPG for Summoners War. The game, which over 40 developers have been working on for 15 months, is set to be released worldwide in the first half of 2018. It builds on the gameplay of the original Summoners War and aims to expand on online role-playing game mechanics.
https://youtu.be/5Ace2VJSFQ8
The Summoners War MMORPG is not the only new product from the “Summoners War” franchise. According to the Korean site Inven, there are plans for animes, novels, movies, and merchandise related to Summoners War.
By the way, you can watch a Best Of of the last championship in Paris here:
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For some plays, you have to switch very quickly in Overwatch. Such moments can be found in the PotGs of the week.
Every week, absurd, exciting, or simply funny moments happen in Overwatch that are often captured in a “Play of the Game.” We searched social media and found three special highlights for you. Enjoy our three “Play of the Game” moments of the week in Overwatch!
If you don’t have lightning-fast reactions in Overwatch, you won’t get very far in most matches. But what this player did as Ana in the stream is a special mental feat. After he incapacitated the enemy Tracer with a sleep dart as Ana, he runs back to the spawn room, quickly switches to Widowmaker, and coldly takes out the still sleeping Tracer. Only a few players likely possess such reaction speed…
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An explosion from D.Va needs to be triggered correctly – but that’s not so easy. The player Plastic shows, with the help of his colleague Mei, how to hide the perfect explosion from enemies. He lets his Mech fly straight into Mei’s ice wall, and Mei lets the wall collapse at the last moment – the result is a whole series of confused and quite dead opponents!
https://gfycat.com/willingbeautifulhadrosaurus
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Our last clip is again not a real “Play of the Game,” but rather a funny situation that surely doesn’t happen every day. After Ana had a heated 2vs1 with Pharah and Genji, she tries to escape. To refresh her health points a bit, she wants to throw the healing grenade at her own feet – however, she didn’t take the ground into account. It’s also nice to see how, at that precise moment, all will to live fades from Ana and she simply resigns to her fate.
Have you also experienced a particularly cool gaming scene that you’ve captured on video? Then just send us a link to the video (preferably on YouTube), and maybe you’ll find your clip featured in this post next week!
The work on the Classic servers for World of Warcraft begins. The team is being assembled, and ideas are gathered – and the community is an important helper!
At Blizzcon 2017, it was announced that Blizzard is working on a Vanilla project for WoW. There will be servers in the future where the game can be played without expansions.
No more detailed information has been provided yet – only that a team is being recruited specifically for Classic WoW that will focus solely on its implementation. This team will operate separately from the Retail WoW team, which takes care of the current version of the game. So nothing will be neglected.
The class balance in Classic WoW – the beginning of something even more important
On this occasion, a discussion about the class balance in WoW Classic broke out in the US forums. It was not really good, actually nonexistent. Some specializations were so weak that they were unplayable – others so strong that they almost had to be chosen.
This controversial topic even prompted Community Managers “Ornyx” and “Ythisens” to take action. The two well-known writers are in close contact with the community, as well as with the current leaders of the forming Classic team. They serve as a connection between players and developers.
They stated, among other things, that the class balance on the Classic realms may not reflect the state of the past. It depends on what the community has to say about it.
The “Blues” are calling for a factual discussion about the advantages of authenticity or adjustment. Ornyx specifically said: “The community will truly be what dictates the direction of Classic as we work towards it together.”
From this statement, it can be inferred that the wishes of the players will be taken into account as the Vanilla servers are developed. It confirms the announcement that Blizzard wants to bring back “the feeling of Classic” and does not necessarily rely on the hard facts of the past to make Classic purely authentic.
In the Q&A with Game Director Ion Hazzikostas and Community Manager Josh Allen, the two addressed this very issue. Classic should definitely mean Classic – with all its inconveniences. The internal question at the moment is which patch version of the game will be agreed upon. However, the community should still remain in the foreground!
How exactly the team will manage to incorporate the community’s wishes while not changing too much of the game remains to be seen. However, it sounds like it will not just be Classic on new servers, but a continuously supported game with patches and ongoing service!
What is your opinion? Should Classic be completely authentic, or would you like some “Quality of Life” changes from later versions of WoW? Leave us a comment!
What is Hard Light good for in Destiny 2? We take a look at the exotic and reveal whether it’s worth it in PvE and PvP.
The weapon manufacturer Omolon presents three revolutionary products:
A quickly configurable interface for outgoing damage,
a ricochet round that bounces off any surface,
and a projectile weapon platform with infinite range and no drop-off.
All these products are released at the same time. In one package. And Omolon calls the whole thing “Hard Light”.
This information is found in the lore section for this exotic and sounds promising. However, these weapon traits are not all that “revolutionary” anymore, as Hard Light was already present in Destiny 1, albeit in slightly altered form. Let’s take a closer look at the exotic weapon in Destiny 2.
How to get Hard Light – Here’s how you can obtain the exotic
Xur: Sometimes the Agent of the Nine has the weapon, like this weekend
Xur sells the weapon up to a maximum power level of 270. It costs him 29 Legendary Shards. If you have obtained Hard Light once but dismantled it, you can get it back anytime for 10 Legendary Shards from the collections in the vault.
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Hard Light is an exotic auto rifle that is carried in the energy slot. It has a fire rate of 600, a impact of 21, and a magazine size of 49. It belongs to the auto rifles with increased fire rate; for comparison: Uriel’s Gift has a fire rate of 450 but a higher impact.
Otherwise, Hard Light has solid values all around; stability and handling are excellent. The hidden stats “Aim Assist” and “Recoil Direction” are both at 100 and are therefore fantastic (However, the entire weapon shakes quite a lot when shooting. This is one of its biggest drawbacks).
These are the special perks:
Volatile Light:Rounds from this weapon have no damage drop-off, penetrate targets, and bounce off hard surfaces. This perk is identical to the exotic perk from Destiny 1.
Arc, Solar, Void: This allows you to choose the elemental damage of Hard Light (This was not possible in Destiny 1).
To change the elemental damage, you have to open the menu and select one of the three perks. This is impractical in the middle of a fight, as it takes several seconds.
What is Hard Light good for in PvE and PvP?
In Destiny 1, Hard Light was considered a fun weapon that performed solidly but always remained in the shadow of a Suros Regime or later a Zhalo Supercell.
In Destiny 2, Hard Light currently has less competition; with the Workhorse there is only one other exotic auto rifle. Nevertheless, Hard Light can be assessed similarly in the sequel as in Destiny 2: Not a “must-have” weapon, but rather a fun weapon.
The “Volatile Light” perk is quite nice in PvE, but one shouldn’t expect to take down an incredible number of enemies with ricocheting shots. The fact that the weapon has no damage drop-off and can penetrate enemies is likely its biggest advantage. However, the weapon shakes heavily while shooting, making it nearly impossible to land multiple hits in a row on targets at greater distances.
Switching elemental damage mid-battle is too cumbersome, so you wouldn’t want to go into the menu with every new enemy shield type. This is only sensible in a nightfall strike when the prism modifier is active. Or if you already know what shield type the enemies will have before an encounter, you can configure the weapon before the fight. In prestige mode (loadout lock), you can’t actually change the element!
Moreover, switching elemental damage isn’t that “special”. Because in Destiny 2, you can equip legendary energy weapon mods that change the elemental damage. For example, if you have three Uriel’s Gifts with different elements, it is faster to switch between these weapons than to switch the element of Hard Light.
In PvP, Hard Light is also usable, but by no means a must-have weapon – auto rifles generally have a good standing there. The optimal time-to-kill is 1.10 seconds, requiring 11 crits and one body shot. For comparison: The top weapon Uriel’s Gift has a time-to-kill of 1.07 seconds.
The ability to switch elements is completely useless in PvP. However, the fact that the rounds have no damage drop-off, penetrate enemies, and bounce off surfaces can be useful in certain situations.
Conclusion: Buy the weapon from Xur to complete your collection and to have a little fun with it. However, Hard Light cannot be classified as a top weapon worth sacrificing the exotic slot for. In most activities, it’s better to take one of the strong exotic power weapons, like the Merciless.
Are you playing with Hard Light in Destiny 2?
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
With the large launch packages, you can really take off in MU Legend. VIP service, more experience points, a mount, special wings, and more are included in the package.
In MU Legend, you battle through hordes of monsters in a hack and slash manner in open fields and dungeons. With one of currently four classes, you complete quests and gain experience points to increase your character and soul level. This makes you more powerful and allows you to take down tough opponents even faster.
The ARPG targets both PvE and PvP fans. Dungeon crawlers and players who enjoy direct duels with other gamers will also find their fun.
Answer the question and become a VIP – 20 large launch packages for MU Legend
With these fat packages, you will have even more fun in MU Legend. From the publisher Webzen, we have received 20x “Grande’s Launching Package” which we will distribute to you through a quiz. The packages are sold in the game for €25 but have a value of €38. In each package, you can expect the following rewards:
30 days: Platinum service
10 days: Bulcan’s wings (non-extendable)
10 days: Rift Legacy costume (non-extendable)
Mount Fenrir with improved armor (speed +100%)
EXP potion (increases character and soul level gain by 20% for 30 minutes)
How can you win?
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To win one of the limited large launch packages, you must answer a question about the embedded Facebook video. After you have answered the question (hopefully correctly), please wait until Sunday noon. Our giveaway ends on Sunday, November 19 at 12:00 PM. Then the winners will be drawn and will receive their prize code via email.
Important: You can only redeem the codes until December 31, 2017. Only one code can be activated per account.
Blizzard lets all players try Overwatch for free. We will tell you when it starts and what you need to keep in mind.
Have you always wanted to try Overwatch, but didn’t want to buy a pig in a poke? Or do you have some friends who have so far resisted the urge to take a look at Overwatch?
Then there’s good news! Overwatch will be available for free for a few days next week on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
The free weekend starts on November 17 at 8:00 PM our time and ends on November 21 at 9:00 AM.
During the free weekend, most game modes of Overwatch will be available. There are also no restrictions on hero selection; all 26 characters can be tried out freely. Only the competitive game mode will not be available to free players during the free weekend.
The installation of Overwatch is easy on all 3 platforms.
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On PC, you only need the Battle.net app. There you can download the game from the game list on November 17.
On PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, simply go to the respective store on November 17 and select Overwatch and then “Free Weekend” to start the installation. PlayStation Plus or Xbox Live Gold is required to play Overwatch.
Progress made during the test weekend will remain, by the way. If you decide to buy the game afterwards, you can keep your earned loot boxes and the cosmetic items derived from them.
So mark the day in your calendar and invite your friends to play next weekend – you might gain a few long-term players this way.
In Final Fantasy XIV there is a new PvP mode called Rival Wings with update 4.15. In this mode, two teams of 24 players each compete against each other to destroy the enemy core. The concept is very reminiscent of a MOBA game like League of Legends (LoL).
Patch 4.15 is here and with it comes, alongside the new music feature of the Bard, the long-awaited new PvP game mode Rival Wings. In this mode, two teams – Team Falcon and Team Raven – consisting of 24 players each face off. The goal of the new game mode is to destroy the enemy core.
However, the cores are not defenseless. You first have to destroy the enemy towers that maintain a force field. Only then can you dismantle the tower. On your way to the core, three different types of Mechs will assist you that you can summon and then control. Additionally, smaller Mechs regularly run in as cannon fodder, drawing the towers’ fire towards them.
The entire game principle is reminiscent of MOBA games like LoL, DotA2, or Heroes of the Storm. In those games, you also need to strategically advance and gradually overcome the enemy’s defenses with skill and hordes of minions.
In Rival Wings, there are also cannons that allow you to shoot at the enemy from a distance. So it’s similar to certain maps in Blizzard’s MOBA Heroes of the Storm.
Battlefront 2 heated the emotions of players with Pay2Win accusations, loot boxes, and microtransactions. Then the microtransactions were suddenly removed. Is there a phone call between the heads of Disney and EA behind this?
A huge shitstorm has erupted around Star Wars Battlefront II in recent days. The reason was microtransactions modeled after FIFA 18. The progression of Battlefront 2 was designed around acquiring or earning the boxes.
Anyone who wanted everything in the game would have to grind over 4,000 hours or invest over $2,000 in loot boxes, according to some fans’ calculations.
On the day of the release of Battlefront 2, EA apparently took action and removed the microtransactions from Battlefront 2 for the time being. However, there is also said to have been a phone call with the head of Disney…
Does the shitstorm around Battlefront 2 damage the Star Wars brand?
The mega-corporation Disney is not only known for amusement parks and cute animated films. The company also owns the rights to enormously successful franchises such as Marvel and Star Wars. Furthermore, Disney is concerned about its good reputation as a family-friendly corporation. It does not want to be associated with unpleasant things like gambling.
A major shitstorm around a Star Wars product – especially shortly before the release of Episode VIII – is therefore unlikely to be in the company’s interest. Players have already spread the information about the alleged exploitation and the loot box gambling. The goal was likely to prompt Disney to intervene to protect the brand’s good reputation.
In any case, the situation caused increasing waves, and finally mainstream media such as Stern in Germany and CNN in America expressed negative views on Battlefront 2 and microtransactions for loot boxes in games.
Did Disney rein in EA?
Therefore, many players currently suspect that Disney is behind the disappearance of the microtransactions. During the latest AMA (Ask Me Anything, an open question round) of the developers on the subject, EA still insisted on the microtransactions, even though they hinted at alternative progression methods.
However, at launch, the microtransactions were suddenly gone. According to the site Venturebeat, there was reportedly a phone call between Bob Iger, the CEO of Disney, and Andrew Wilson, the head of EA, prior to this. Sources familiar with the situation reported this.
Shortly thereafter, the microtransactions in Battlefront 2 were suddenly removed.
For many players, it is clear that Disney has reined in EA to prevent harming the reputation of their brand. Others, however, see the (temporary) disappearance of the microtransactions primarily as a victory for the fans, who protested loudly and for a long time until EA relented. After all, many players saw a line crossed with Battlefront 2 and fought vigorously against it.
What happens next with the microtransactions?
However, those who read the statement from DICE and EA regarding microtransactions know that the transactions are supposed to return at a later point. The only question is whether it will be only selected items and cosmetics for real money or whether the disliked loot box system will come back in the form it was originally planned.
In The Division, a new event has started today, on November 17th. There is double loot on HVTs!
While update 1.8 is still weeks away, you can make use of the waiting time to grab plenty of loot on the upcoming weekends. Massive is hosting weekend events where you can earn double rewards.
It all kicks off this weekend.
HVT Event in The Division
The event this weekend has already started, it began today at 1 AM. It ends on November 20 at 1 AM.
What is special about the event? You will receive double rewards for taking out HVTs.
High Value Targets are the high-ranking targets
The HVTs are the high-ranking targets, for which you need to collect target data through “Search and Destroy missions. Then bring the target data either to the Officer for daily high-ranking targets or to the Officer for weekly high-ranking targets. Both are located in the Operations Base terminal.
The HVTs grant a variety of rewards: from experience points to Phoenix Credits to high-end weapons and gear sets. They can also drop Exotics.
What else is coming before update 1.8?
Update 1.8 is expected to be released in early December. Since major updates are always deployed on Tuesdays, one might consider December 5. In other words, there are still about three weeks until we can expect new content.
To bridge the waiting time, there will also be an event next weekend (starting November 24) where there will be double rewards. The requirements for this event are not yet known.
In FIFA 18 Ultimate Team, the Player of the Month for October, the “Premier League Player of the Month”, is known. It is Leroy Sané from Manchester City. Check out the player card with the rating here!
Every month, EA Sports selects a “Player of the Month” from the Premier League. Previously, 7 candidates who showed strong performances on the pitch during the month are nominated. Then, a winner is determined through a public vote and the opinions of Premier League experts and club captains.
This “Player of the Month” then receives a purple-gold special card in FUT 18, which you can earn through Squad Building Challenges.
On November 17, EA Sports announced the Player of the Month (POTM) for October 2017. It is the German professional Leroy Sané from Manchester City.
In October, he scored three goals and provided three assists:
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POTM in October – How to get the Player of the Month card
The standard card of Sané has an overall rating of 82. Now he receives this special card with an impressive 86 and outstanding stats. With extremely high pace and strong values in dribbling and shooting, the left winger can certainly strengthen numerous Ultimate Teams: You have two options to play with this POTM card:
Leroy Sané – SBC: You complete a total of four Squad Building Challenges to finish the entire Leroy Sané SBC group. The group reward is a permanent, non-tradable POTM card of him.
Leroy Sané as a loan player: If you only want a loan player card of him, you can complete the corresponding SBC for that. Only one SBC is required. Sané’s POTM card will then be available to you for 20 matches.
In Squad Building Challenges (SBCs), you create a team using your own player cards. This team must meet certain requirements. Then you submit the team and receive a reward for it. The submitted player cards are then gone.
These Squad Building Challenges are live for two weeks starting now (November 17). If you are looking for solutions for the SBCs, you will find them on the futhead page. Solutions from the community should be listed here over the coming days.
A Clarion Call is a limited-time event that grants XP bonuses. If you complete certain tasks, you’ll earn additional experience points.
As Bungie announced last week, Guardians do not have to wait until Season 2 to participate in such an event. The first Clarion Call will actually take place this weekend.
In the meantime, we also know what the event is called in German: It has the cumbersome name “Clarion Call” event.
What the first Clarion Call offers
The Clarion Call is a kind of weekend event:
It starts on November 17th at 7 PM (Friday)
It ends on November 20th at 7 PM (Monday)
During this time, you can earn doubled XP in all sorts of activities. If you want to quickly acquire Glimmer Engrams without spending money, now is your time.
You must play the activities with at least one member of your clan.
It doesn’t matter if you are already a member of a clan or if you join one during the event.
With this Clarion Call event, Bungie aims to create additional incentives for Guardians to organize themselves into clans. Months ago, the developers shared that the big goal is to minimize the number of Guardians wandering alone through the Destiny universe.
If you play Destiny 2 solely solo, you won’t benefit from this first Clarion Call. However, in the future, additional Clarion Call events will take place that do not require clan membership.
Due to Star Wars Battlefront 2, the topics of loot boxes and microtransactions are currently a major issue in the gamer community. What do you think about it?
Anyone currently searching the internet for articles and posts about Battlefront 2 will read less about the gameplay, the heroes, or the weapons from the Star Wars spectacle. Instead, a completely different topic is in the spotlight: loot boxes!
Since it became known that almost all game progress in Battlefront 2 depends on loot boxes with a random factor and that you have to grind for over 4,000 hours if you want to unlock all game content without spending real money, the shitstorm has been unrelenting.
But are loot boxes really that bad? This topic is currently being controversially discussed in our editorial team. Here are two opinions:
Jürgen says: “Loot boxes are a lot of fun and provide motivation!”
In my opinion, loot boxes are actually a great thing and are always associated with nostalgia and good feelings for me. Even as a little boy, I loved unboxing packages.
Especially when I didn’t know what was inside, I felt even more anticipation. And when the box contained a gift I had always wanted, everything was perfect! That’s how I felt on Christmas 1992 when I unwrapped my first SNES and until then didn’t know if my parents would actually give it to me! I was so happy!
Just like I felt under the Christmas tree back then, I feel every time I open a loot box in a game. I always look forward to cool cosmetics and mounts that I want to try out immediately.
Therefore, I actually have nothing against such boxes in games. I just want the option to pay for the boxes with in-game currency or unlock them through achievements. That then gives me extra motivation to face the grind in the game.
Robert says: “Loot boxes promote envy and gambling addiction”
Loot boxes are now a central element in many titles. They are increasingly placed prominently in the game. Even though the loot boxes have so far only contained cosmetic items in full-price titles, I view them critically because, on the one hand, they can promote gambling addiction and, on the other hand, target the envy of other players.
This is also demonstrated by the fact that you can now watch other players open these boxes. Here, psychological tricks are deliberately applied to promote players’ buying behavior. When – as is now the case in Star Wars Battlefront 2 – slight pay-to-win mechanics are also involved, this no longer justifies the purchase price of the game.
In my opinion, loot boxes represent a cheap substitute for content that should actually be present in an accessible form in the game itself. For this reason, I fundamentally reject loot boxes.
What do you think about loot boxes? Participate in our survey!
But enough opinions from the Mein-MMO editorial team. We want to know how you feel about this controversial topic. For this, we have prepared a complex survey together with our colleagues from GameStar and embedded it here. Have fun participating! We are already excited to see how the result turns out!
P.S.: Currently, we are not giving ratings at Mein-MMO, but that might change soon if there is a desire for it, which is why we are also interested in your opinion on possible ratings.
