The strategy and action mix Kingdom under Fire 2 has reached the “No-Wipe” stage in China, meaning the soft launch.
Here, some have been waiting for Kingdom under Fire 2 for many years. After all, it’s the next installment of a popular game series that built a fanbase on the original Xbox.
In China, the current installment of the Blueside franchise, the “Siege” MMO Kingdom under Fire 2, has now reached the No-Wipe phase, equivalent to a soft launch. In Free2Play games, it’s more common for games to not “fully release” for a long time but to enter an open beta whose progress is retained. The “release” later is often just a formality as seen recently with War Thunder.
Compared to the English version of Kingdom under Fire 2, which is running in Southeast Asia, the Chinese beta is currently receiving a lot of new gameplay content. For instance, 16-player raids have been announced, featuring bosses and their armies.
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For AngryJoe, Kingdom under Fire 2 was the discovery of E3 – although in 2014
For some time now, Blueside has been trying to make the spectacle more known here in the West. For instance, they gained the favor of the well-known YouTuber AngryJoe years ago.
He already declared it “his discovery of E3 2014” three years ago. However, Blueside’s efforts to find a publisher here in the West and make a breakthrough seem to have repeatedly fallen flat.
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Currently, the focus is on a release in China and then in Russia.
The dreams of playing Kingdom under Fire 2 here in our regions are not over yet. Because KuF2 is set to release in North America and Europe. Even a port to the PlayStation 4 is under discussion.
In The Division, we show you how to find the best armor for your builds. Look out for these stats and bonuses.
With the update 1.6, the era of armor value came to an end. In the months prior, this bonus was the most important stat on your gear. With high armor, you could endure much more in combat, which is why this bonus was the only logical choice for nearly every build. Variety in attributes was not present.
But what stats and bonuses should you focus on now? A response to this question is provided by YouTuber and Division expert MarcoStyle. We give a summary of his findings here in an overview.
Best Stats and Bonuses on Your Gear – The Division 1.6
MarcoStyle provides his recommendations for a firearms build (left) and an electronics build (right). Green stands for PvE, orange for PvP. The screenshots are from him.
Backpack
The most important higher attribute is Health Points. Look for values close to the maximum of 13339. A lesser attribute is the burn resistance, but increased ammunition capacity is also welcome.
Chest Piece
The chest piece has two higher attributes. Look for:
Health Points (max. 16674)
and Health Points on Kill (PvE) or Exotic Damage Resistance (PvP). For an electronics build, Skill Haste is good.
For the lesser attribute, Ammunition Capacity is important.
Mask
The mask has one higher and one lesser attribute:
Higher: Critical Hit Chance or Skill Power
Lesser: Damage against Elites (PvE) or Burn Resistance (PvE)
Kneepads
Kneepads have one higher and three lesser attributes:
Higher: Health Points (max. 16674)
Lesser: Damage against Elites (PvE), otherwise Resistance against Status Effects
Holster
Holsters have only one higher attribute: Choose Critical Hit Chance for the firearms build or Skill Haste for the electronics build. But even here, you can’t go wrong with Health Points, which tend to be quite low on a holster.
Gloves
Gloves have three higher attributes. Take increased Weapon Damage for your weapon type and either:
Critical Hit Damage and Critical Hit Chance (firearms)
or Skill Haste and Weapon Damage (electronics).
Mods
For the mods on your armor pieces, Health Points are the highest priority. For the electronics build, Skill Haste is also interesting.
How are these results achieved?
Numerous factors are taken into account, including:
The Stamina Attribute no longer has as much of an impact as it did in 1.5, so in 1.6, you should either go for firearms or electronics. High stamina values are no longer as effective as they once were. If you want to be able to take a lot of hits, Health Points should now be in focus, which is why:
Health Points are the most important bonus.
The new stat “Total Resistance” rolls with extremely low values, which is why it is not recommended.
Enemy Armor Damage has little effect.
You can find all the info in this video:
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Soon, Paladins will be available on PS4 and Xbox One as an open beta. The closed alpha is currently ongoing. We asked Studio Hi-Rez about the console launch and learned more about their plans for exclusive console content and cross-platforming.
Exclusive Content for PS4 and Xbox One
Paladins will offer exclusive content for consoles. Already in the closed alpha for PS4 and Xbox One, there is a special Androxus skin: “X” and “Stage 4” Androxus. Hi-Rez has more content planned for consoles.
“Stage 4” Androxus is exclusive to PS4. On Xbox, the skin is called “X” and is in green.
PC and Console Versions Differ Mainly in Aiming
Before Hi-Rez launched the console version of Paladins, the studio aimed to make the gaming experience equally fun on all devices. The gameplay will hardly differ between PC and console.
A large part of the work was focused on refining the aiming for consoles. In general, aiming with a mouse and keyboard is more precise than with a controller. Paladins had to be adapted accordingly for consoles.
Paladins: Cross-Platforming Not Supported
Cross-platforming would allow players to play together across different devices. The PC, Xbox One, and PS4 each come with their own set of conditions.
These differences are so significant that Hi-Rez does not pursue cross-platforming.
Paladins Aims to Fill a Gap in the Shooter Genre
Paladins will not be the first shooter to launch on consoles, and there are major competitors like Destiny and Overwatch. However, Hi-Rez wants to fill a gap between shooter games for consoles.
In addition to the high-action gameplay common in shooters, Paladins aims to add a new level of depth to the genre. This is primarily achieved through the sophisticated card system. This allows players to customize Paladins to their own individual playstyle.
Additionally, the PvE Challenge exceeded expectations at launch. The team looks forward to expanding this mode with the community, offering unique rewards and encounters that one would not expect in a PvP-focused game.
When is the Release? Open Beta Starts on PS4 and Xbox One “Soon”
Hi-Rez is working hard to bring Paladins to PS4 and Xbox One as quickly as possible. Microsoft and Sony have high standards for their respective platforms. Hi-Rez has great respect for this.
The Ultimate Teams in Electronic Arts’ sports games like FIFA 17 generate 800 million US dollars annually. EA aims to utilize these systems in the shooters Battlefront and Battlefield as well.
The Ultimate Teams in games like FIFA, Madden, and NHL brought EA 800 million dollars in revenue in 2016. The previous year, it was still 650 million. This approach is becoming increasingly lucrative and important for EA.
After the Ultimate Team in FIFA proved to be so profitable, EA has applied it to some other sports games. However, the real opportunity lies in applying the system to other franchises.
At EA, they think a lot about how to transfer the Ultimate Team system to Battlefront and Battlefield
As CFO Blake Jorgensen states, games like Battlefield or Battlefront are similarly deep, so a similar mechanic could be added. They spend a lot of time contemplating this. It’s not for tomorrow, but something for the coming years. Soon, “a lot more of this system will be seen in Electronic Arts’ game catalog.”
Currently, it is assumed that the Battlefield series will take a break after the successful “Battlefield 1” for some time. However, a successor to Star Wars Battlefront is expected by the end of 2017. Apparently, EA wants to release a “bigger and epic Battlefront 2” in time for the movie release of Star Wars VIII – The Last Jedi . Whether there are already signs of this new “Ultimate Team” policy in Star Wars Battlefront 2 is questionable.
In “FIFA Ultimate Team” (FUT), players buy packs with real money or in-game currency, which contain players and other in-game items. With these, they can strengthen their team. These are microtransactions.
The zombie spectacle H1Z1 launches as a shooter. Now it gets its own tournament on US television on the supernatural network “The CW.”
H1Z1 is a disappointment for us MMORPG players. It was developed by the Everquest studio Sony Online Entertainment, the Everquest creator John Smedley protected the survival MMO. It was supposed to be a sort of Minecraft with more RPG elements and, of course, with zombies. In January 2015, H1Z1 entered early access. However, the initial hype faded quickly as the game was long considered too buggy, with too many cheaters, and too many problems.
Just Survive rots – King of the Kill takes off
Later, the studio reconsidered and brought the “shooter side” of the game to the forefront. Instead of crafting, there were now deathmatches in battle royale format. Instead of continuing to develop patches, the studio launched a large tournament and invited prominent Twitch streamers. This side of the game was then separated from the actual game in February 2016 as “King of the Kill,” which was then named “Just Survive.”
While “Just Survive” is rotting away and not much has happened in the 2 years since early access – although the studio swears: “It’s not dead” – “King of the Kill” is fully taking off after a strong start. It is regularly found in the top 5 of the Steam charts. Now they have landed a huge deal.
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$300,000 tournament airs on “Supernatural” TV network
The latest tournament of King of the Kill is called “Fight for the Crown” and will be broadcast on April 20 on US television. And not on some low-tier network, but on the “The CW” network – that’s the teen network of Warner Brothers. They are behind series like Supernatural, Arrow, The Vampire Diaries, or The Flash.
Why is H1Z1 so attractive for the network? The $300,000 tournament will not be held in multiple rounds, but in one giant match. 15 teams of 5 players each will compete against each other in one match. This approach convinces those involved in the deal, says producer Chriss Wynn.
The winner of the tournament will receive $180,000. This attracts popular teams from other eSports titles like Cloud9, Echo Fox, or Counterlogic Gaming. The tournament will take place in Los Angeles.
A port on PS4 and Xbox One is also under discussion:
In Destiny 2, the appearance of your previous characters will be adopted. For some Guardians, this transfer is not a reason for joy.
On March 3, 2017, Bungie finally spoke about the future of Destiny. Sparse information about the upcoming content update “Age of Triumph” was revealed as expected, but probably no one would have bet that Bungie would also disclose concrete news about the sequel “Destiny 2”.
Bungie answered the question “Hard reset or not” and briefly: Yes, there will be a hard reset with Destiny 2. The power of your Guardians, all items, and currencies will be left behind. In this way, the developers want to create the best possible game without being burdened by the past. New adventures are ahead, there are new worlds, new stories, new powers, new loot, and much more, according to Bungie. The hard reset is the best way forward.
However, there is one thing from Destiny 1 that remains: The appearance of your Guardians. The class, species, gender, face, hair, and war marks will be transferred to the sequel. The prerequisite for this is that your character reaches at least level 20 and completes the “Black Garden” story mission.
Character appearance will be adopted? Oh God!
Not all players rejoice at the thought that their Guardian in Destiny 2 will look like in Destiny 1. This topic is causing heated discussions on Reddit. Complaints like “But all my characters are ugly!” come to the forefront. Many players seem to be hardly bothered by the hard reset; they are much more concerned about their ugly characters and that this curse will not end.
They write that at the beginning of Destiny, they simply created a character, partly with the intention of making it as ugly as possible. At that time, they did not know whether they would even like the game – and that they are still playing it in 2017.
Destiny 2 needs a plastic surgeon
Many Guardians are dissatisfied with the hair color they chose or would like to remove one or the other war mark from their face. Some users report that they can only walk around with a helmet in social spaces for months and years because of this.
Over a year ago, we listed 5 features that the community wishes for. Among them was a plastic surgeon, preferably with a hairdresser’s training. Because many players have been demanding for some time that the virtual appearance of the Guardians can be revised. They do not want a new Guardian. Only this one flaw, which is an eyesore, should be removed.
The hairstyle is great! No optimizations needed, right?
Now the calls for such an option are getting louder again: Destiny 2 absolutely needs a function for post-character modification. Some players calm down in the forums: One can also create a new Guardian in Destiny 2. Maybe there will also be the option to store the veteran reward in a vault, then create a new Guardian with the perfect look and still secure the reward in this way.
Whether there will be a “plastic surgeon” in Destiny 2 is still unknown. We only know that the appearance will be transferred. Whether this transfer can still be revised or whether there will only be the option to create a completely new Guardian has not yet been said.
What is your stance on this issue? Would you like to be able to adjust the looks of your previous characters?
Update 1.6 has now brought further optimizations that Massive announced but never detailed. Even in the patch notes for 1.6, there is no information regarding the PS4 Pro.
However, if you look at the update history on the console, the line among all the changes is hidden:
PlayStation 4 Pro now uses 4K resolution at all times for better quality.
PS4 Pro and PS4 – Comparison in Video
Alongside the 4K resolution for the PS4 Pro, the update brought another graphical improvement:
The resolution for temporal anti-aliasing and quality in motion has been optimized.
How these changes look in the game is shown to you by NX Gamer in the video. FPS are at 30:
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In short: The Division now runs on the Pro in 4K – anytime and anywhere.
However, this optimization also comes with a downside that some users are currently complaining about: The PS4 Pro has to work hard, causing the fan to run at full speed – and make quite a noise.
What would Diablo be without the Cow Level? You can always reach it in the hack ‘n slash Diablo 3 at certain times, like now during the Euternasie event. After that, Season 10 will start.
End of Season 9, Start of Season 10 – Also for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One?
The dates for the end of Season 9 and the start of Season 10 in Diablo 3 are known.
Season 9 ends on Friday, March 17 at 5 PM our time.
Season 10 starts on Friday, March 31 at 5 PM our time.
So far, it is still unclear whether the seasons will start for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One as announced. This was actually expected since BlizzCon. Perhaps there will be an announcement in the coming days.
All for the Cow
Until then, everything will revolve around cows in Diablo 3 this March.
The cows are once again waiting in the action RPG Diablo 3. To visit the walking steaks, you currently have the opportunity to participate in the Euternasie event. If you want to reach the “Cow Level”, you need to visit the Ruins of Sescheron in Act 3 and light the large torches at the entrance to the throne room. Once you reach the throne, you will meet the Immortal King Kanai, who will open a portal to “Kanai’s old hunting grounds” for you.
No complete Cow Level
Together with Kanai, you will defeat the Hell Bulls there. This will reward you with gold and experience points. But do not expect a “complete” Cow Level, because you will not encounter the Cow Queen during the Euternasie event and will also not find special chests. The event is only active this month, in March. If you want to participate, you should not take too much time.
A nice surprise
As part of the event, you can even expect a surprise. After completing the event, from March 24 to 31, it is possible to find a mysterious golden chest. This appears with a 100% chance next to Kanai’s throne.
In this, you will find a special version of Kevin Kanai Griffiths’ preferred weapon. It is the legendary two-handed axe Skorn. Kanai’s Skorn can be used for transmogrification, but it can also be used by level 1 heroes and deals 119 damage per second! This sounds like Muuuuhsik in the ears of fans of the action RPG.
The development of a hero is the focus for many players in an MMORPG. In the PvP-MMO Crowfall, you will be able to improve your hero in many ways, for example through disciplines. This gives Crowfall a kind of “multiclass system.”
The disciplines have been discussed since the Kickstarter campaign of Crowfall, but only now has there been concrete information about them.
According to the developers, most systems are now implemented in the game, allowing the disciplines to take shape. For now, the combat disciplines are in the foreground. The entire concept is a kind of multiclass system through which you can develop your hero in various directions.
New opportunities for your class
The disciplines are items similar to runes, which allow you to grant your hero new abilities and values or enable you to use new weapons. Additionally, they open new slots for equipment, grant passive powers, and unlock new power tables.
For example, a player who is playing a knight can gain access to certain active and passive abilities with the bow through the sharpshooter discipline. He also receives an equipment slot for bow, arrows, and a skill table for ranged combat. Thus, the knight becomes a knight-archer.
A discipline rune stone can only be used once. Although you may replace it with another, the previous one will be destroyed. Rune stones exist in different quality levels, which affect the bonuses for values and attributes, for example. Rune stones can also be upgraded over time. Disciplines are divided into weapon disciplines for unlocking new weapons, major disciplines that bring new abilities, equipment slots, powers, and more, and minor disciplines that come with only one active or passive ability.
Craft discipline runes yourself
To engage with disciplines in Crowfall, you need to learn rune crafting and thus produce the runes. Each type requires a different key component for the crafting process. For weapon disciplines, this is an advanced weapon of the desired type.
This way, you can experiment with your hero’s abilities in the MMORPG Crowfall and try something new every now and then.
In Pokémon Go, legendary Pokémon like Mewtwo and Mew are expected to be catchable later this year. An arena overhaul is also planned for the next update of Pokémon Go. The trading feature and “Trainer vs Trainer” battles are being discussed for further updates later this year.
The German edition of Wired has conducted an interview with John Hanke, the head of Niantic. In a preview article, it says:
“Niantic wants to finally deliver what Trainers have been waiting for since the first weeks: the legendary Pokémon like Mewtwo, Mew, and the three elemental birds assigned to the teams.”
According to Hanke, “we will see more of this year.” He can say that with certainty.
In the next update, Pokémon GO will overhaul the arena
Further statements from Hanke from the conversation with Wired:
In Pokémon Go, team play and arenas are under construction – more people should participate in arena battles. Arenas are not functioning as well as desired. Arena battles should become more lucrative. Teamwork will be emphasized. This is seen as the biggest potential for Pokémon Go.
People should have a common goal, meet, and band together to achieve this goal.
The second update will focus on the arenas and revise them. That’s next – what comes after that remains undisclosed by Hanke. Important topics at Niantic are trading and battles between trainers. They are thinking a lot about this.
Niantic has its eyes on fake GPS and other cheats. Hanke believes it is the responsibility of developers to ensure that everyone plays fairly. Fake GPS destroys the greatest fun of Pokémon GO. The reward lies in getting movement and seeing parts of the world that one hasn’t visited yet.
The question remains: How will the legendary Pokémon be introduced into the game?
Mein MMO thinks: It will be interesting to see how exactly the legendary Pokémon will be introduced into the game. There are already many fan theories about this. The “worst case” has been speculated that they may come in the form of a “sponsor deal,” making them only catchable in stores or restaurants of a specific chain. Others believe that legendary Pokémon could be caught at team events. This would fit Hanke’s statements about “team play.”
It will definitely be exciting to see when the legendary Pokémon will appear, which ones will come, and how exactly players will obtain them. From many comments and reactions from fans, we see that players are waiting to catch the first generation along with the legendary Pokémon.
Many trainers dream of catching them all. What would you wish for?
By the way, story is not on the priority list of Pokémon Go:
In Black Desert, there are now numbers for the one-year anniversary. We know the number of characters and which class is the most popular. We also know a lot of other details. However, they do not tell us how many players Black Desert has.
Black Desert is celebrating its one-year anniversary here in Europe.
It has been a year full of new content, as the Western version first had to catch up to the one in South Korea. In South Korea, the MMORPG had already been released in open beta in December 2014, while it was only available for us on March 3, 2016.
It has been a busy year: Classes were gradually unlocked –most recently the Dark Blade on March 1. Then new regions were added, the classes awakened, received their second weapons, and a lot happened in Black Desert.
Now, for the one-year anniversary, numbers have been announced that we want to present to you.
Some Confusion Over Player Numbers
There are just over 3.4 million characters in the Western version of Black Desert. This is obviously not the number of players, but the total number of heroes created – even though some news sites get confused and announce that Black Desert has 3.4 million players in the West – that is not correct.
Kakao Games remains silent about the actual player numbers – like many other MMORPGs. It is assumed that players have created more than one character on average.
Black Desert Europe has fewer heroes but stronger ones
The 3.4 million heroes are distributed across North America and Europe – North America is slightly ahead. Interestingly, there are more high-level heroes with level 56+ in Europe than in the USA (North America).
In Europe, players are therefore a bit more “hardcore” than across the Atlantic.
Recently, the first player in our version of Black Desert reached level 62. A considerable achievement. Although there is officially no “hard level cap”, leveling beyond 50 is described as strenuous. From level 51 onwards, leveling becomes harsher, and from levels 56 and 61, it increases significantly. Worldwide, the highest player is also “only” at level 62.
In North America, as well as in Europe, female characters dominate – Black Desert is genderlocked. In Europe, 64% play with female heroes, only 36% with males.
The Most Popular Classes in Black Desert are Female
According to the chart, the most popular classes in Europe are the Sorceress, followed by the Valkyrie and the Ranger. The Ninja is also quite popular.
The new class Dark Blade and the Warrior have not yet been created by many players.
http://youtu.be/zqO_ISWLfVM
Scandal! Americans Drink More Beer
Otherwise, you can take a look at the statistics and scroll around here. You can find out, for example, that there are only 85 horses in rank 8 in Europe or that the “Brown Spahawk” is the most popular companion in Europe – even ahead of the Shepherd Dog. Ha! So much for stereotypes. However, one must acknowledge the disgrace: In North America, more beer was drunk than in Europe.
In The Division 1.6, we present an overview of all the talents of the exotic weapons. These are their effects.
With Update 1.6, the named high-end weapons were promoted to Exotics. These now have unique, “exotic” talents that occupy the third weapon talent slot and are therefore always active. The other two talents are randomly rolled and must be unlocked using firearms, stamina, or electronics.
Regarding the exotic talents:
They cannot be transferred with AlphaBridge
They cannot be recalibrated
Some weapons function as a weapon set, whose talents only activate when both weapons are equipped.
The Talents of the Exotics – List
These are all the exotic weapons and their talents:
Bullfrog: This is the former FAMAS, which has now become an Exotic. The talent is Simple: Weapon damage is increased by 15%. However, precision and stability mods reduce this bonus. With 1.6, the base damage of Bullfrog was increased by 11.7%.
Tommy Gun – Carefree: Damage while shooting from the hip is increased by 11%.
Medved – Focus: Now fires heavy bullets instead of shot.
Hungry Hog – Insatiable: Killing a target increases damage by 10% until the shooting stops. Stackable up to 5 times.
Tenebrae – Lights Out: Destroying a weak point on an enemy resets the cooldown of skills for you and your group members. The talent has a cooldown of 10 seconds. Weak points include the incendiary canisters on the backs of the Cleansers. More info about Tenebrae here.
Pakhan – Pakhan: Each kill leads to an extra 20% bullets in the magazine during the next reload.
Cassidy – Double Barrel: The double trigger fires both barrels in quick succession.
Urban MDR – Distracted: Damage against targets affected by status effects is increased by 18%. Additionally, the weapon received a 65% increase in base damage with 1.6.
Warlord – Tough Bandages: Damage taken is reduced by 20% while shooting. Damage is added once the shooting stops. More info about Warlord here.
Thompson M1928 – Carefree: Damage while shooting from the hip is increased by 11%.
Damascus – Quick Draw: When the weapon is drawn, weapon damage is increased by 20% for 2 seconds. Afterwards, weapon damage is decreased by 20%.
Golden Rhino – Golden Rhino: Increases stagger by 200%.
Historian – History Repeats: Each bullet burns into the target and detonates 2 seconds later. The explosion deals 700% of the weapon’s value. More info about Historian here.
Caduceus – Caduceus: Each critical hit heals you and your group by 1% of the user’s skill power. This talent has a cooldown of 0.2 seconds. A player can only be healed by one Caduceus at a time.
Midas – Midas: Each bullet you hit with reduces your damage by 1% and the opponent’s damage by 1% up to a maximum of 20%. The effect is reduced by 5% each second.
Showstopper – Showstopper: The precision of this weapon increases the lower the magazine is. The reticle gets smaller the more ammo you fire. The base damage was increased by 11% with 1.6.
By the way: The shotgun Defiler is also exotic but only comes with a talent that is not unique. Determined: Eliminating a target reduces the cooldown time of skills by 7.5%.
The Exotic Weapon Sets in 1.6
In addition to these exotic weapons, there are two weapon sets whose unique talents only activate when both guns are equipped:
Liberator and Centurion – Free Republic: Each shot with the Liberator grants +5% headshot damage with the Centurion. The maximum is 200%. Kills with the Centurion grant +10% more fire rate for all weapons for 10 seconds.
Valkyria becomes Hildr and Eir: Each hit with Hildr increases critical hit damage by 1% up to a maximum of 30%. The bonus decreases by 1% each second. This bonus only applies to Eir. It does not apply to Hildr.
The Diablo-like hack ‘n slash Lost Ark is set to start a second closed beta in South Korea this summer.
The fan site Lostarkdatabase claims to have heard from a Smilegate employee that the second closed beta of Lost Ark is scheduled for June/July 2017. They heard this from another Smilegate employee. However, they all want to remain anonymous. The time frame is not set in stone either.
It looks like a total of three closed beta phases are planned, followed by a “final test,” before the game then launches as an open beta in a soft launch.
Fans will probably have to wait quite a while for Lost Ark
No dates are mentioned in the plans. If there is a year between the first closed beta and the second, it looks rather bleak for a “permanently playable” open beta of Lost Ark before 2018/2019.
Hack ‘n slash fans should prepare to wait much longer for Lost Ark than they may assume.
Currently, there is no information about a version for North America and Europe. It may still take a long time before Lost Ark is playable outside of South Korea.
The PC market in Korea has significantly declined in recent years. Mobile games dominate the previously heavily “MMORPG”-oriented market. Lost Ark is considered one of the interesting projects being observed in the West. Lost Ark could sate a craving that many fans have felt since Diablo 3.
Therefore, Lost Ark has been eagerly awaited by genre fans since its first presentation a few years ago. It looks like Lost Ark will remain a wishful thought for a long time. But perhaps we will get more information in June/July when the next beta truly kicks off.
In this article, we introduce other action RPGs like Diablo that one can expect in the coming years:
Paladins new patch OB 45 will bring us Inara as a new champion, the first woman on the frontline. Here are the abilities and maps of the Stone Sorceress.
In a livestream, Hi-Rez presented the latest patch OB 45 of Paladins. For weeks, there has been speculation about the new heroine Inara, who will soon support the gentlemen on the front. She is a tall woman with long brown hair and noble dresses. She wields stones as a weapon and for defense.
Inara – Abilities in English
Inara uses a spear as a weapon, topped with floating stones. The Stone Bender fires these as projectiles, dealing damage. To protect herself and her team, Inara creates walls and obelisks from stone.
LMT: Stone Spear – Fires 3 projectiles every second, each dealing 225 damage over 0.4s.
RMT: Earthwatch – 5s lasting defensive state in which you and your deployable devices take 30% less damage.
Q: Dead End – Summons a wall that grows from the ground and lasts 5s.
F: Guardian Totem – Places a stone obelisk that emits pulses, slowing enemies by 60% and dealing 150 damage.
E: Seismic Strike – Throw your spear. It penetrates shields and stuns all enemies within 40 units of its impact for 2s.
Inara’s Gameplay, Crowd-Control, and Barriers
Inara is the first champion without any options to increase movement. She has neither movement abilities nor movement cards. Instead, she has the ability “Dead End,” which allows her to summon a stone wall from the ground. With this, it’s possible to cut off enemies’ paths and secure safety. You can also build the wall directly beneath you and stand on it.
With the wall, it is also possible to greatly limit the movement of other champions. For example, if you place them in tunnels and choke points, enemies will have no chance of escaping for a few seconds. Those might be the very seconds that bring your payload safely to its destination.
Inara’s ability “Guardian Totem” creates asmall stone obelisk, surrounding it with a pulsating field. The field significantly slows enemies and deals damage. To keep the enemies within the radius, you must approach them closely. The obelisk is destructible, which ends the effect.
You can protect yourself, the stone wall, and the obelisk by activating “Earthwatch.” This reduces the damage you and your devices take by 30%.
Inara’s ultimate ability “Seismic Strike” works similarly to the Grumble Bomb from Bomb King. She jumps high into the air and hurls her spear at the enemies. The spear ignores shields and immobilizes enemies within a certain radius. In contrast to the Grumble Bomb, the AoE effect occurs immediately and not with a delay.
In this video from “Joshino,” you can see Inara’s gameplay in action. He also showcases the animations of the Stone Guardian at the beginning.
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Inara’s already unlocked legendary card will be “Mother Earth.” This grants you an additional 20% damage reduction when activating “Earthwatch.” Her other two legendary cards provide even more crowd control and enhance her wall or the obelisk.
Inara’s loadout cards do not have any properties to increase her movement. Notably, she has no cards that enhance her direct damage. However, there are cards in your deck that provide her healing and health points or enhance her “AoE” effects.
Legendary – Mother Earth [Standard]: Increases the damage reduction of Earthwatch by 20%.
Steadfast: Your maximum health increases by 150/300/450/600 HP.
Leya says: Normally, I am not a big fan of the tank role and seldom play on the frontline. Still, I’m looking forward to trying Inara. I can’t wait to cut off enemies’ paths and hold them back with Inara’s AoE abilities. Her main task will probably be to block enemies and immobilize them. Also, at my 1.60 meters, I find it cool to play with a giant Stone Bender. Inara is said to be even bigger than Fernando.
I imagine a combination of her and Bomb King on a team to be pure hell. First comes Inara, immobilizing enemies with her ultimate. Then Bomb King comfortably drops a Grumble Bomb and doubles the time the enemies stick. Until Patch 45 arrives, I will continue to think about possible horror combinations and look at pictures of Inara’s beautiful design.
How do you like the Stone Guardian Inara? Let’s see where she will ultimately land on the tier list of Paladins.
In the side-scrolling action MMORPG Closers Online, a pirate server is online, and the developers also want to bring it to the west.
Closers Online is a Korean action MMORPG that was released in late 2014 in South Korea. It resembles side-scrollers like “Streets of Rage” with a pronounced anime look. Fans of such games compare it to Elsword Online or Dungeon Fighter Online.
The US site MMOs.com reported in mid-February about a “private server” that makes the game accessible to a western audience. Closers Online is currently only playable in Asia. “Private servers” or “pirate servers” are versions of a game that have no connection to the developer – thus, it’s a highly sensitive matter.
Here in the west, this has recently come into focus, especially due to an ongoing controversy about so-called classic servers in World of Warcraft.
The logic in this case: Well, Closers Online is not playable in the west. Who would have a problem if it is offered here in this way? It fills a gap. Yes, right.
Official west release for Closers Online also likely planned
In response to the report of the pirate server, the studio Naddic Games, which is behind Closers Online, contacted the MMO site and said: “Hey, we want to bring Closers Online to North America ourselves,” as such a report about a private server can lead to misunderstandings.
Translated: They are ruining our market, our demand, if Closers Online is already playable before we even offer it. The MMO site subsequently updated the old article about the pirate server to make it unmistakably clear: This is not the official version. This is a “private server.”
The MMO site adds: This does not mean that Closers Online will actually be officially coming to North America (and probably also to Europe), but only that Naddic Games intends to.
Here in the video from Asia specialist Steparu, you can take a look at Closers Online yourself:
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Curious story – like so much seems curious about the often obscure tales of Asia MMORPGs that want to try here in the west as well. But it’s certainly a strange way to announce a port.
Ubisoft is taking a stand against AFK farming in For Honor. Sanctions and bans are imminent.
In a new article to the community, Ubisoft addresses a frustrating issue: AFK farming. For those unfamiliar with the term, it refers to a method used by some players to repeatedly gain endgame rewards and experience points without actively playing.
They are “away from keyboard”, but their character still runs through the match. Ubisoft cites the example that they hold the sticks in one direction with a rubber band, allowing the hero to move across the battlefield without the player being present.
Since these AFK farmers negatively affect the gaming experience of other players, this issue has become a top priority for Ubisoft. Therefore, they will punish all users (even retroactively) found guilty of repeated AFK farming.
Ubisoft’s Approach – The Punishments
Depending on the individual case, the developers may impose various penalties:
The first offense will result in a warning.
Repeated offenses may lead to a Ubisoft account ban for the game, which may be temporary or permanent.
Ubisoft will decide on a case-by-case basis and at their discretion the extent of the sanctions. Penalties will be issued only when the violation can be undeniably confirmed, according to Ubisoft.
The first penalties will be handed out early next week.
The developers emphasize that they are currently working on improved methods to identify AFK farmers and to prevent this practice. The entire “For Honor” team feels committed to always taking action against individuals seeking unfair advantages.
Only a few weeks ago, Ubisoft declared war on cheaters and hackers. The first bans have already been issued. More information can be found in the provided link.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The last chapter of Destiny 1 was announced on March 3rd: Age of Triumph or in German “Zeitalter des Triumphs”. What clues can be drawn from the published screenshots?
Yesterday, on March 3rd, was the long-awaited “big reveal” for the next content update of Destiny. This reveal generally indicated that the actual reveal will be next Wednesday: Bungie intends to speak in a livestream about the upcoming and final content for Destiny 1: “Age of Triumph”. In the following weeks, there will be two more livestreams where Bungie will extensively celebrate their “reveal policy”.
Quite surprising for many: Bungie spoke for the first time about Destiny 2 and that the hard reset is indeed coming. Only the appearance of your Guardians can be “carried over”. You can find the information about Destiny 2 here.
Back to “Age of Triumph”. Concrete information has not yet been provided by Bungie; instead, they refer to the three livestreams. They only stated that this content update is from the live team and shall represent a worthy conclusion of Destiny 1. The release will be at the end of March. It should be March 28th.
Raids are coming back – No more doubts, right?
Are there really no other details on “Age of Triumph”? Yes! A total of four images have been published in the reveal article that give a glimpse of the contents of the Age of Triumph. Let’s take a closer look at them.
The first image is the large banner of “Age of Triumph”. Above this banner, it says “Aetas Triumph I”. Aetas is from Latin and denotes a time that someone has experienced – so a life age, a lifetime.
The banner features various symbols, including the Destiny logo. Particularly interesting is the emblem in the top left:
In it, there are undoubtedly symbols that represent the old raids. In the top left is the Vault of Glass, the two swords next to it represent the Crota raid, on the bottom left are “King’s Fall” symbols, thus representing the King’s Raid. The area on the bottom right is likely for “Wrath of the Machine”. Below there are also three jump ships visible.
If the raids are featured in the banner of a new event, any last doubts about all the old raids returning should be resolved – and not just the Vault of Glass, which two other screenshots refer to.
The next image shows a Praetorian in front of the entrance of the Vault of Glass.
The next screenshot shows the weekly “Age of Triumph” rituals. The two symbols on the right are particularly interesting. From left to right:
Weekly Crucible playlist
Daily mission
Weekly heroic strike playlist
Nightfall strike
This symbol is not familiar to many Guardians. It is a slight variation of the Challenge of the Elders symbol. Grab an Elders Seal in-game and check out the symbol that is now displayed above the CoE. This certainly refers to a weekly activity in the Prison. In other words: This PvE activity will be elevated.
On the far right is the raid symbol. Raids will also receive a new activity on a weekly basis. It is possible that extra rewards can be earned each week in a different raid. However, we can only speculate about that at the moment.
The last image that Bungie published shows a hunter in new armor that looks quite “mechanical”. Many Guardians are certain that this is “Vault of Glass” armor. Moreover, the Guardian in the image is in the Glass Chamber.
In Conan Exiles, players on Xbox One will have to wait longer before starting the survival MMO. The schedule has been pushed back, and the release on Xbox One is delayed.
It was already hinted at during the recent investor conference, and now there is confirmation. Conan Exiles will NOT go into the “Preview Program” on Xbox One this spring, but rather in the summer. The launch into quasi-early access on Xbox One has been postponed to the 3rd quarter of 2017. This includes the summer months of July, August, and September. Previously, it was stated that Conan Exiles would come to Xbox One in spring 2017, that is, in the 2nd quarter of 2017.
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Funcom does not provide reasons why it will take a bit longer.
The plan is for Conan Exiles to stay in Early Access for a maximum of one year. A full release on PC, Xbox One, and PS4 is scheduled for the 1st quarter of 2018.
Funcom told investors that Conan Exiles is performing so well that they wish to increase the budget. Funcom believes that the barbarian spectacle has the potential to become a top-10 survival game.
More information about Conan Exiles and the letter to investors:
The Crown Store in The Elder Scrolls Online (ESO) now offers the second season crates. This time, the theme is “The Wild Hunt,” a practice performed by Wood Elves that creates gruesomely beautiful monsters.
Previously, the theme of the boxes was “Storm Atronach” and the special mounts and items from the boxes were like the namesake lightning-struck runestones.
The Elder Scrolls Online – Crown Crates with Wild Hunt
If you weren’t a fan of Storm Atronachs but appreciate creepy Elf rituals, you should be excited about the new season of the Crown Crates. This time the theme is indeed “The Wild Hunt.” It is a practice of the barbaric Wood Elves, who call upon the powers of their primal deity Y’ffre and revert animals to a chaos primordial state.
The beasts are neither plant nor animal, but strange hybrid creatures that, according to ESO lore, are “as wondrous as they are hideous“. In the crates, you can find mount rewards that are horrifying mixtures of plants with bears, big cats, horses, and wolves. The Wild Hunt creatures glow in an ominous green.
Wild Hunt Crown Crates – Werewolves will love them!
In addition to the new mounts, there are also special auras of the Wild Hunt, and the crates can contain items, decor, hairstyles, and tattoos from past offerings along with the usual stuff. These can no longer be purchased regularly, but only drawn from the boxes. In the following video by YouTuber SpaceKong Gaming, you can see the new items and mounts.
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In The Division, today, on March 4th, is the first vendor reset after update 1.6. What offers are available this week?
Even after update 1.6, the vendors receive fresh inventory from Friday night to Saturday. Almost every vendor has at least one item with relevant gear score available. You can find the highlights of this week here.
The weapons of the vendor reset on March 4th
The advanced weapons vendor in the base no longer has named high-end weapons (now exotics) available. This week, the Super 90 with Predator, Precise, and Destructive is interesting. Additionally, there is an M1A with Talented, Expert, and Vengeful.
The special equipment vendor now has some exotics available: Centurion, Cassidy, Liberator, Historian, and Pakhan (all cost 1331 Phoenix Credits). This week, the SASG-12 K with Competent, Precise, and Expert is worth it. Additionally, there is a L86 LSW available, which was buffed with 1.6. It has Expert, Deadly, and Vengeful.
The Meat Locker Safehouse: SMG9 A2 with Expert, Demanding, and Brutal
The Grindhouse Safehouse: SCAR-H with Prepared, Vengeful, and Malicious
The Crypt Safehouse: LVOA-C with Precise, Talented, and Malevolent
E 46th St: SVD with Predator, Competent, and Disciplined
E 40th St: MG5 with Prepared, Malicious, and Malevolent
E 34th St: AUG A3 Para XS with Predator, Capable, and Malevolent
W 39th St: SOCOM M1A with Bitter, Precise, and Malevolent
Weapons dealer in DZ03: M4 – Police Version with Focused, Malicious, and Receptive
The armor pieces for the vendor reset
The equipment vendor in the base has high-end holsters with nimble – a popular talent that significantly increases your survival chances.
Special equipment vendor: Tactician’s vest with health points and health on kill. Additionally, D3-FNC vest with enemy armor damage and ammo capacity. An AlphaBridge holster has good primary attributes across the board.
The Ward Safehouse: Critical gloves – strong for a build with ballistic shield
E 40th St: High-end backpack with specialized
W 34th St: Wild gloves
Vendor in DZ08: “Call of the Watch” backpack, Energized chest piece
Vendor in DZ09: Tactician mask, Predator backpack. By the way, there are also new jackets available here.
The mods this week
Special equipment vendor: Electronics mod
Autumn’s Hope Safehouse: Mine damage mod
Dante’s Run Safehouse: Sticky grenade damage mod
Camp Hudson: Weapon mod with bonus to health points
Madison’s Stand Safehouse: Weapon damage mod when ballistic shield is active.
The Ward Safehouse: Stamina mod with bonus to health points
E 34th St: Electronics mod with skills haste
W 42nd St: Vertical grip with optimal range, reload speed, and critical hit damage
DZ05: Vertical grip with optimal range, precision, and reload speed
Offer of the special blueprint vendor at the terminal
M870 Express – shotgun
Short-barreled Rhino – pistol
Stamina vest
Gun knee pads
High-speed magazine with critical hit chance and two other bonuses
Ti-RANT silencer with reduced threat, critical hit chance, and two other bonuses
Stamina gear mod
Performance gear mod
By the way: The underground vendor still has no interesting offers.
