SWTOR: Bioware-Entwickler sprechen über KotFE und die Zukunft des MMORPGs

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 3 minutes

The developers of Star Wars: The Old Republic talk about the future of the game and reveal how well KotFE has been received by the fans.

Our colleagues from mmorpg.com had the opportunity in the past few days to conduct an extensive interview with three of the leading developers of Star Wars: The Old Republic. Bruce Maclean (Senior Producer), Ben Irving (Lead Producer), and Charles Boyd (Lead Designer) answered questions and talked in detail about the previous successes of the “Knights of the Fallen Empire” expansion and what the future holds.

swtor_kotfe_screenshot 2
“May the Force be with you always.” – At least when it comes to attracting customers, it worked. All Lana’s fault.

This was just the calm before the storm

Normally, BioWare does not talk about player numbers and EA certainly does not. However, since Electronic Arts has published some data, they can be freely used, and the developers are quite proud of that. Since the launch of the expansion, there has been an increase in subscribers of a whopping 33%. While the numbers may be “good”, “what was really overwhelming were the reactions of the players.” Nonetheless, it is important not to lose sight of the fact that only 9 of the 16 chapters have been released and this is just “the calm before the storm”. The effects of many decisions will only become apparent in the future when the story reaches its “incredible climax”.

SWTOR HK-55 Companion
The upcoming chapters will have a similar length to the previous ones.

Future chapters of equal length

When asked what fans can expect from the length of the upcoming chapters, the response was relatively relaxed, stating that the previous chapters are a good benchmark. However, they are not trying to force a specific amount of content into a chapter; they simply want to tell the story that is meant to be told. Players have already noticed in the first 9 chapters that their lengths can differ drastically – some will be shorter while others will be longer.

Chapter 1 soon for free

Those who have not yet been persuaded to take a look at “Knights of the Fallen Empire” because they did not want to subscribe will soon run out of excuses. The first story chapter of the expansion will be available for free to all Free2Play players starting December 15. “There are some players who left the game just before the release of the expansion. We want to give them the opportunity to experience Knights of the Fallen Empire.”

New classes in the future?

swtor_kotfe_screenshot
New classes in SWTOR? Perhaps in the distant future.

Finally, they briefly talked about the upcoming film, Episode 7 “The Force Awakens” and what new inspiration could be drawn from it. “Of course, we cannot have Darth Vader traveling through time for 1000 years (…), but if a new planet is introduced in the films, we might consider adopting it if it can be logically linked.” At the same time, they made it clear that SWTOR is far from over. There is still “much for the developers to explore”, such as new races, planets, and possibly even new classes.

The pay wall that does not want to be a pay wall

Cortyn says: The interview becomes a bit strange when discussing the differences of KotFE compared to previous expansions. The big news here is that KotFE is free for all subscribers, which creates a “particularly low hurdle” for entry. Particularly obscure is the statement: “There is no pay wall that prevents a subscriber from experiencing the new expansion.” That a subscription in a free-to-play game is pretty much the definition of a “pay wall” seems to have been forgotten for a moment.

For more about the game, such as the discussion about the chapter only for permanent subscribers, you can find on our SWTOR topic page.

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

The Elder Scrolls Online: Unmissable – Bear-owned Crown Store

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time < 1 minutes

In the MMORPG The Elder Scrolls Online there is essential help for a short time.

Every time something involves bears, our English-speaking friends fall into the worst pun hells. We find it bearable and would never participate.

From today until December 14, there are two bear brothers in the Crown Store of The Elder Scrolls Online. One is big and can be ridden on, the other is a cute companion (featured image).

Schneebaer-TESO

The two creatures are only available now; otherwise, the Crown Store in TESOs mainly offers robes and dresses in December. Fancy items for the world’s adventurers. They will be available just before Christmas, on December 23.

Ork-Fest
Breotne-Kleid

In addition to some other items like the classic leopard, a werewolf bite and the vampire curse can now also be purchased in the Crown Store.

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

Destiny: Racing instead of shooting – What is the Sparrow event?

Gastbeitrag Gastbeitrag Reading time 7 minutes

The Sparrow Race in Destiny. What does it feel like to ride a Sparrow? A report.

Today is not a good day to die. Today, Oryx and his Taken are laughing, for today they are spared by my usually ruthless hand of justice. Today, the gun stays in the cabinet. Instead, the racing shoes are laced up and the sleekest helmet is put on. Since Tuesday evening, the “SRL” event is live and is attracting numerous Guardians from the raid to the Sparrow. Like me, for example.

I still regularly fulfill my duties as a Guardian, but – and I have to admit this – not nearly as often as before. After Oryx has fallen for the thirtieth time, the Strikes have been completed for the hundredth time, and thousands of Taken have been sent across the Jordan, one tends to prefer playing Fallout 4, the new Star Wars, or even FIFA. There really hasn’t been much new since the release of The Taken King.

The Sparrow Racing event comes at just the right moment, even bringing clan members back who have let their Destiny game gather dust for weeks. But how does the “SRL” event play? Can Destiny convincingly present itself as a racing game?

Destiny-Amanda

Where is the racetrack here?

As on most of my evenings, after the day’s work, I put on the most comfortable sweatpants and turn on the PS4. Like a schnitzel, I’ve been excited all day for the upcoming Sparrow race. Curiosity, but surely also doubts, drive me with the thought of this event. Nevertheless, I have decided to approach it completely unprejudiced.

Okay, the download is finished, the game starts, everything seems normal so far. In orbit, a notification informs me that the Sparrow event has now started. Pah! As if I didn’t already know that. Off we go to the Tower to Amanda Holliday, who will now probably have more to do than just chill in the hangar and look good. She gives me a quest to acquire the C-license in the SRL. Aha, presumably it all comes down to racing enough until you get the A-license. Let’s see. The bounties are also taken along without reading exactly what to do. Never mind. I’m excited, I’m already itching to get going, let’s get racing!

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But hold on a second. How do I actually start this? Allegedly, the races are supposed to take place on Mars and Venus. However, I can’t find a new location to fly to on these planets. There’s nothing in the Crucible that looks like Sparrows. I scratch my head, whip out my phone to shamefully google it. But just in time, I notice a new icon on the bottom left of the screen. Well, look at that, I’m not too stupid to find the event, I think to myself, and start the player search. Five more players are found immediately.

Let’s go!

Let’s go! And off to Venus. “Infinite Descent” is what the track is called. At first, it sounds like it’s not going to be a very pleasant Sunday drive. First, the racers are shown and cool camera angles of Sparrows and Guardians are displayed. A few snappy remarks and questionable tips are given, a text on how to control the thing is crammed at the bottom of the screen, and the signal that the race has started sounds. I’m as excited as frying fat! But… I’m not moving!

Will our daring daredevil get his ride going? More on the next page!

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Pages: 1 2 3 4

Ark Survival Evolved: Release date is December 16 for Xbox One – Game Preview

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

The PC hit of the summer, the survival MMO Ark Survival Evolved, has a release date for Xbox One. On December 16, it will be available. Xbox players will need to purchase the game.

This is quite a Christmas surprise. Studio WildCard has now announced a release date for its Steam hit for Xbox One in Early Access. Ark was coincidentally released at the same time as Jurassic World in the summer and has now garnered 2.4 million Early Access buyers on PC.

The finished game is set to release in June 2016 – also for Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

However, through the “Game Preview” program on Xbox One, it will be available on December 16 for $35. This release date was confirmed by the studio to the US magazine IGN.

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Ark Survival Evolved

Creative Director Rapczak says: “Everything we currently have on PC will also come to Xbox.” Over the past 6 months, Ark has become more mature and better. Xbox players are now the beneficiaries of all developments and improvements from the last half year.

The Xbox One version will continue to receive patches in Game Preview. It is planned to release patches no later than 2 weeks after they come to PC.

Those who buy it now on Xbox One for €35 will not have to purchase the game again later. Players may even save money – the final version in June will be more expensive. And Xbox will also receive some exclusive content: a bionic Tyrannosaurus Rex skin, an Ark Founder hat skin, and a trophy will be exclusive to Xbox players.

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

WildStar: Server wieder zusammengelegt!

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 2 minutes

In WildStar, the servers have been merged again – but the reasons for this are different than one might first think.

Everything according to plan!

In WildStar, the servers have been merged again in the past few days. Due to the rather negative news surrounding Carbine’s MMORPG in recent days, one might think that this is due to low player numbers. However, this is not the case. The server merger only concerns the “emergency servers” that were launched with the Free2Play variant of WildStar to minimize server load. In the meantime, the large influx of players has subsided (and a whole lot of players have also vanished without a trace), allowing the servers to be smoothly merged again.

WildStar Companion
Combining what belongs together – the servers in WildStar have been merged.

What to do when the entire interface is reset after a server switch in WildStar?

If you have played on a server ending in “-2” (like “Jabbit-2” or “Luminai-2”), you will find that your user interface has been reset to default settings. You can either set everything up again from scratch or copy the interface folder from the “old” “-2” folder to the new one without this suffix.

By the way, if you have 2 characters on both servers and would now exceed your “account maximum” with the 4 characters, there is nothing to worry about. All characters remain accessible. However, deleting characters does not grant you new character slots!

Don’t know what you can experience in WildStar? Then check out our overview of WildStar content for level 50.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. forums.wildstar-online.com
  2. mmorpg.com

RIFT: Christmas event and rewards for long-term players!

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 2 minutes

Rift received a new update that brings back the Faerie Juletide Festival and offers daily rewards for logging in.

The Wrath of Winter

Since yesterday, the latest patch of Rift is active on the live servers. It is numbered 3.5, called “Wrath of Winter” and starts the well-known Faerie Juletide Festival – basically the Christmas event of Rift.

In addition to a brand-new Instant Adventure, where players must assist Father Frost to save the Fen Juletide Festival, there are many new missions that can be activated through the shop item “Minion Card Grish.” All rogue missions from last year are also available again and can be played with the “Minion Card Rudy.”

Rift Faerie Juletide Festival View Snow
Father Frost wants to enhance the festival – but is unfortunately completely drunk. Players need to step in!

The Sparkler Quest also returns, allowing players to get an equipment item with relatively little effort, for which they would actually have to visit the raid “Spirit of Madness.” Completing various game content (dungeons, warfronts, etc.) rewards a random item, but you can determine whether it should be for tanks, DPS, or healers.

As is common with such events, there are special treats available in the RIFT shop for a limited time, such as animated backpacks or holiday-themed weapon skins that are available for only a short time.

The Faerie Juletide Festival will remain active until January 6, after which it will go into summer hibernation.

Affinity – The Reward for Every Day

Players who log into Rift every day and spend a few minutes in the game world will be pleased with the new Affinity system. This is essentially a reward for daily logins, similar to what other games have (such as SMITE or WildStar). Simply appearing in the game grants 5 affinity points, and those who play a bit receive an additional 3.

Rift Affinity Rewards
Numerous rewards await for affinity points.

The points can be accumulated and ultimately exchanged for numerous rewards. Particularly ambitious players save up for the new mount, an ice hovering platform. Those who prefer smaller items can grab some dream orbs. The rewards vary greatly, and there should be something for every type of player.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. massivelyop.com
  2. trionworlds.com/rift/

Destiny: Exploit allows players to easily bypass a 10-euro shop item [Hotfix on 10.12.]

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

In the MMO shooter Destiny there is an exploit that simply bypasses the SRL Book.

Update: In the early hours of Thursday, December 10th, a hotfix was deployed in Destiny. It fixes the problem with the leg engrams and addresses the SRL Book. Players now need to own the book to equip items that come from it. Additionally, the “Preview” bug has been fixed.

Original article:

It should actually work like this: Everyone can use the Sparrow event for free. Anyone who wants more of it buys the SRL Record Book for 1000 Silver (about 10 Euros). This book contains certain tasks and records that a player can fulfill over time while racing with sparrows. Then he clicks on the book and receives “bonus items”, which are mainly supposed to be cosmetic items or reputation with Miss Holliday.

So far, everything works well. Maybe a little too well. Because the problem is: A player doesn’t actually need to own the book to reap all the benefits from it. It’s enough for him to go to the Silver Shop vendor Tess Everis and click on the preview of the book, then he can complete the bounties he has finished and receive the rewards.

Let’s take a short break here to let that sink in.

http://youtu.be/diDpq620fEw

The news of this exploit spread within hours like a virus disguised as a cute cat picture in the Destiny community. Now US gaming sites are also reporting on it, so there’s no reason to pretend it’s still a secret or a limited phenomenon (especially since it was also mentioned in our comments under an article).

Bungie is aware of the problem and has stated that they want to fix it. They already announced it through their Twitter channel.

Meanwhile, angry players who bought the thing are calling: Hey, Bungie. Please give us back the 1000 Silver. If we had known you messed up, we would have never bought it.

By the way, Bungie is also working on the problem with leg engrams. Since the patch yesterday, a handful more issues have arisen.

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

Diablo 3: Legacy of Nightmares – The set if you don’t want to wear a set

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

In the hack-and-slash Diablo 3, the Legacy of Nightmares is making waves. The unusual ring set rewards the collecting passion and raises many decisions.

It is one of the most interesting changes coming with the next patch for Diablo 3: The set Legacy of Nightmares. It consists of 2 rings – the peculiarity: The set bonus only works when no other set bonus is active.

Then the set grants for each “Ancient Item” you wear: 100% more damage and 4% less damage taken. So it really pays off when you are far into the endgame and practically have an ancient item equipped on every slot. The “Ancients” are better versions of the respective items with a higher stat budget – however, they drop relatively rarely.

http://youtu.be/RUk9Fp9B5IU

The damage bonus of 100% stacks. If you have an ancient item on all 13 armor slots (including the set rings), you deal 1300% more damage, receiving a 14x damage multiplier. The damage protection is calculated multiplicatively, meaning you always multiply by 0.96.

Legacy-of-Nightmares

The set is currently very exciting. It allows players to be “creative” and build a corresponding set from the ancient items with “special abilities”. It particularly rewards players who are already far along in their item search and have a lot to choose from. While the “normal” way so far was to specifically search for certain items, as one builds “around a set”.

According to initial reports, the set is quite well balanced, after Blizzard already toyed with it significantly. It is neither useless nor extremely superior to other builds, but it leads to a variety of decisions and “partially-partially” considerations, as YouTuber MeatHeat Mikhali shows in the video: Should I rather wear the best-in-slot shield, even if it is not ancient, or take the “100%” bonus?

Today, Diablo 3 only received a “technical patch” which does not change anything about the game. However, with patch 2.4, that will be quite different. It does not have a release date yet, but it looks like it won’t come until early 2016. You can read more about the next patch of Diablo 3 in these articles:

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

SMITE: Coming soon to the Playstation 4?

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time < 1 minutes

Dataminers have once again been at work and discovered: SMITE could be coming to the PlayStation 4 in the near future!

God Wars for Sony?

After being available only on PC for a long time and also playable on Xbox One last year, it seems that HiRez wants to further conquer the console market. The dataminers from smitedatamining.com have found some signs that a PS4 version of the God MOBA could be on the horizon. It is now speculated that there may have been a limited exclusivity contract with Microsoft, which is about to expire.

Smite Gameplay
Will the pantheons soon battle under Sony’s flag as well? There are at least some signs.

However, this data is in no way official, and it could just be “data remnants” that simply haven’t been pursued further – there is also information in the game files about gods that haven’t made it into the game for years.

However, this step seems only logical. In Paladins: Champions of the Realm, the currently beta-tested hero shooter from HiRez, it has already been announced that the game will be released on both consoles.

Anyone wanting to learn more about the two games should check out our SMITE theme page or read our first impression of Paladins.

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

EVE Online startet die Operation Frostline

Andreas Bertits Andreas Bertits Reading time 2 minutes

CCP Games has released a new update for the MMO EVE Online called Operation Frostline.

Operation Frostline sets the stage for the upcoming spring expansion EVE Online: Citadel, which will bring some fundamental changes aimed at completely transforming the sandbox game design.

EVE Online Frostline 2

Many new ships in EVE Online

The new update sees the mercenary faction Mordu’s Legion calling out to pilots across the universe to attack the Serpentis Corporation after the liberation of the Outer Ring Excavations (ORE) stations. The goal is to loot implants, blueprints, PLEX, SKINs, and more stored there. The new update also introduces 13 new ships. Among them are command destroyers that can drag all nearby ships of a certain size up to 100 km in their flight direction through micro-jump field generators.

The Endurance also finds its way into the game as a new ship. It is a nimble ice mining frigate that can venture deep into space to mine the mineral from destroyed wormholes. Four new Navy frigates for electronic warfare are particularly suited for quick attacks, while the Tech II logistics frigates are designed to help shields and armor of other fleet members recover quickly.

More is coming!

Eve Online

Additionally, the launch markers already mentioned in another news will be added to the hulls of the ships, as well as rust and dust that settles on the ship hulls, showing that the spaceships have been traveling in space for a while. New shield and armor damage effects, improved propulsion effects for all ships, some changes to nebulae and star fields, as well as new skins for ships, beta versions of new orbital and first-person camera controls, improved module effects for smart bombs, electronic warfare modules, cynosural fields, and more will also be introduced with the update.

New module updates, new energy neutralizer variants, modifications to remote repair modules, and new target disruption devices against missiles are also part of the update. A significant change in grid sizes has greater impacts on combat and therefore provides a first taste of the profound changes that will be introduced with the expansion EVE Online: Citadel.

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

Hearthstone: Kartenchaos bringt bekannte Schlacht zurück!

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time < 1 minutes

The card chaos of Hearthstone repeats the battle at the crossroads – with a few small updates!

Because randomness is just great…

Right at 5 PM today, on December 9th, 2015, it was time. The card chaos of Blizzard’s card game Hearthstone started its next round! This week, an “already known” version of the Tavern Brawl is waiting, as the “Encounter at the Crossroads” returns. However, this has been updated to the latest version and now also includes the recently released cards from “The Explorers’ League”.

Hearthstone card chaos crossroads gameplay

If the mode is unfamiliar to you, let me explain it briefly, as it is quite simple: Each player chooses a class, and the game itself takes care of building the deck. Your deck is different each time, so no match is the same as the previous one! If you have bad luck with the cards for one round, just try again.

Remember that the first win in this mode is rewarded with a free classic card pack. It can be worth double, as it either contains new cards that are still missing in your collection, or the surplus cards can be converted into Arcane Dust. From this, wish cards can then be crafted – a match is worthwhile for both newcomers and veterans alike.

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

Armored Warfare receives a new tank Challenger 2, a bit of story

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time < 1 minutes

In the Military MMO Armored Warfare, the new Tier-9 tank Challenger 2 introduces a kind of story into the game.

Armored Warfare was surprised by how well the PvE aspects of the game were received and wants to capitalize on this, perhaps differentiating itself from competitor World of Tanks by further emphasizing its unexpected strengths.

Armored-warfare-Challenger2

And Armored Warfare has another unique feature: Depending on the tier level of the tanks, they range from the 1960s to a near future. So, you are not just limited to military history like the competition, but can also look into future scenarios, such as a world with crumbling governments. The player takes on the role of a mercenary, who offers firepower for hire with his deployment team. The new Tier-9 tank Challenger 2 is a good example of this dystopian storytelling option, as seen in the trailer.

The Free2Play MMO is currently in an open beta on PC: Read more about Armored Warfare in our review.

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

Trove: Voxel MMO now has PvP – with a building component

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time < 1 minutes

The voxel MMO Trove now has a PvP mode, and of course you can build your own, as dictated by voxel honor.

Cynics would say: Cute, the little one is even copying the big ones in PvP. But we’re not that mean. The quirky Trove doesn’t deserve that. The voxel MMO enjoys a fanbase and has achieved noteworthy successes in between. Not bad for a game that started as a mini-project until Trion Worlds recognized its potential.

In the PvP section of Trove, two 5-player teams must compete against each other; these are “Capture the Flag” matches that last only 5 minutes.

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If you only want short action, you can play one of the pre-made maps – or create one like a true Trovian. As the Game Lead Developer states, such things are important, as they want to give players the opportunity to create something in every aspect of the game.

More about Trove can be found in our extensive interview with the developers about the game’s launch six months ago.

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

LoL: Change in Champion Selection Should Eliminate Constant Hotspot in League of Legends

Patrick Freese Patrick Freese Reading time 3 minutes

In League of Legends (LoL), the champion selection is changing. This is intended to help eliminate potential conflicts and toxicity from the game.

As we reported in the article on the update of the League of Legends client, developer RiotGames is fundamentally changing the champion selection in LoL in 2016.

Recently, the game celebrated its 6th birthday, which was one reason to make some fundamental changes to League of Legends.

The current champion selection is not only outdated but also often the source of negativity in the game, says Jeffrey Lin (Riot’s Lead Game Designer of social Systems). “Games where players had to play a role they originally didn’t want to play were on average 15% more negative than games where players could play their desired role.”

Jungler-LoL

The difference to the Team Builder in League of Legends

With the “Team Builder,” where you sign up for a specific role with a specific champion before the start of a game, Riot already tried to counter this source of negativity. Initially, it worked very well, but unfortunately, there are also some problems with the current Team Builder. For example, there are long waiting times for certain popular roles. This high waiting time is already a reason for many players to return to the “Blind Pick” or “Draft Pick” methods to find teammates for the game.

Often, multiple players want to play the same role. You may recognize the following chat:

Player A: “Hi, mid”

Player B: “No I am mid, sorry”

Player A: “:/”

Player C: “I am firstpick, I go mid”

This conversation could be elaborated further. The fact is, someone is forced to play a different role in this case. If you combine this problem with the current Team Builder and leave the result for 42 days with Heimerdinger in a basement, the solution comes out as the new champion selection.

Here, you choose 2 roles right from the start. This has the advantage of shortening waiting times and also improving your understanding of the game, as you will practice on 2 roles instead of just focusing on one function.

LoL-Champion-Auswahl

More communication in the pre-match of LoL

There should no longer be a situation where, as the 5th pick in the champion selection, you say, “Okay, I’ll just go to the bathroom first and be back in 5 minutes – I don’t care what my teammates do…”.

For this reason, the ban and selection system has also been revised.

Quinn-LoL

With the new champion selection, Riot is trying to give players more time for communication while assembling a team. The lost time that was spent discussing who plays on which lane can now be used to create a strong team combination with a lot of synergy. For example, you can build a “knock-up combo” when you have a Yasuo player on your team.

The goal of the new selection is to ensure that players do not have a bad experience with LoL because they were forced to fulfill a specific role.

Jeffrey Lin concludes: “League of Legends has been around for 6 years now… We asked ourselves what we would do differently if we had a second chance to design the champion selection. If our update to this selection means that the majority of players feel ‘This is how League of Legends should be’ or ‘This is how I have always wanted the champion selection to be’, then I would consider it a success.”

The update to the champion selection is one of the most significant changes in League of Legends that we can expect in 2016.

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

Destiny: Banshee-44 on 12/9 – Test weapons, new quests, the best rolls

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

In the MMO shooter Destiny this week, Banshee-44 has participated in the weapon day on December 9th.

Banshee-44 – with all the commotion around the new patch, his appearance isn’t as important as usual. We’ll show you what he has and what you should pick up. We’ve already talked enough about Banshee’s bonus features like First Curse or Tlaloc, so let’s get started.

This week, these test weapons are available at the gunsmith in Destiny

Banshee-44 sends you off with these 5 prototypes to fulfill specific missions. This earns you reputation points with him.

  • A Suros auto rifle must achieve precision kills.
  • With a Häkke hand cannon, you need to get double kills.
  • A Häkke pulse rifle wants to achieve precision hits.
  • A Suros pulse rifle is meant to be used against the Vex.
  • And a Häkke sniper rifle must have a face-to-face chat with Cabal Centurions.
Destiny-Uzume

This week, these weapons can be ordered

You can order these 5 weapons anew this week. Clicking on one of the weapons takes you to the Bungie Armory, where you can find the exact values and all the attributes that this weapon can have.

  • The auto rifle Zarinea-D is relatively fast with high stability and a mediocre magazine – it’s not exactly the ideal setup.
  • The auto rifle Ari-41 has almost the same values. So far, it hasn’t really earned a great reputation either. But auto rifles are on the rise. For example, it could come with balance compensation – that would be quite an exciting weapon.
  • The pulse rifle PDX-45 from Suros is back this week. This is the one everyone has been drooling over due to its great stability. After the patch with changes to weapon balance, it likely won’t be the super killer anymore.
  • From Häkke, there is a sniper rifle Aiofe Rua-D – high range, medium impact, low stability. No one was really waiting for this.
  • The sniper rifle Uzume RR4 can come with interesting Omolon perks like Fireball or Roulette (although Roulette is probably not the first choice anymore). However, it’s difficult for sniper rifles to compete with other weapons like Eirene or Empty Gaze. But this week, it’s definitely one of the more interesting assignments you can give to Banshee.
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Which weapons should you pick up this week?

Overall, no one is really excited about anything right now. People are more focused on sparrows and some “new secrets”; some suspect a new hidden exotic in the game – thus, Banshee isn’t that interesting.

In this video by Mesa-Sean (above), we have the rolls for last week’s weapons.

  • This is the Arminius-D (no strong rolls),
  • Zarinea-D (Braced Frame and Glass-Half-Full in roll #1 are reasonable);
  • Suros Dis-43 (nothing really strong)
  • Thesan FR4 (no strong rolls)
  • and also the shotgun Jungoku-D has no noteworthy perks.

So there’s nothing “optimal” this time; of course, some reasonable combinations are present, but for the 5 from last week, you might as well wait for next week. If we still have wonderful rolls of “older weapons” that were available in previous weeks, we’ll pass them on.

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

Heroes of the Storm: Mehr Helden für alle und neues “Werbt einen Freund”-System!

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 3 minutes

Heroes of the Storm will attract new players. However, this is not done by yourself, but rather by letting the existing players handle it.

More heroes needed for the Nexus

In recent weeks, Heroes of the Storm has been expanded with more and more heroes. Most recently, the unusual concept of Cho’Gall was introduced, and soon Lunara and Greymane will follow. To accommodate the increasing number of characters, Blizzard is increasing the number of heroes that are in the “rotation”, meaning they can be played for free. Instead of having access to 7 free heroes, this has been expanded to a whopping 10 heroes. 6 of these are immediately available for newcomers, while the other four slots are unlocked at account levels 5, 7, 12, and 15.

Hots Free2Play Heldenrotation
The new hero rotation – bigger than before!

Recruit a (new) friend!

Generally popular in MOBAs is the classic “Recruit a Friend” feature, which is now also making its way into HotS. Through a new website, players receive a personal invitation link and can encourage friends and acquaintances to play. As the recruited player gains levels, both receive rewards! If the recruited player reaches level 10, the recruiter is rewarded with a special portrait. If a player successfully recruits 4 friends (and helps them reach level 10), there is a special mount, the “Eagle Hoverbike” from Raynor in Starcraft 1.

Hots recruit a friend
“Recruit a Friend” offers delicious rewards.

The recruited player receives the hero Raynor and a 5-day booster immediately after their first login to get started right away. At level 10, the “Recruit a Friend” portrait and Sylvanas as a free character await.

Hots sylvanas portrait
At level 10, the Banshee Queen Sylvanas awaits.

The bad news to finish: The system does not work retroactively. Those who have already brought their friends to play in recent months will be disappointed. Recruited players may have reached a maximum of level 5 in the game, which will likely lead to all players creating numerous “smurf” accounts to grab the rewards.

Mein-MMO says: Fundamentally a sensible system to attract new players to the game – but it comes much too late. The same will happen that happened with all MOBAs that introduced such a system later: veterans will revolt. All players who have already motivated friends, relatives, acquaintances, complete strangers, and the neighbor’s dog to play will be disappointed, especially since they likely attracted more players than anyone before.

On Twitter, complaints have already been made, hoping that the decision will be reconsidered. Dustin Bowder has rejected this but apologized briefly. The feature is “healthy for the game in the long run.”

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We don’t have to lean too far out of the window to guess: A new Heroes of the Shitstorm is brewing. Not entirely unjustified.

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

The Elder Scrolls Online: TESO kostenlos am Wochenende spielen auf Xbox One und PC

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time < 1 minutes

The fantasy MMORPG The Elder Scrolls Online (TESO) invites players on Xbox One and PC to play over the weekend.

Starting Thursday at 9:00 AM, players on Xbox One can download TESO and play until Monday at 9:00 AM our time.

The same offer is available for PC, but a code is needed, which can be found on various websites, or that friends can also distribute.

Crown-Scroll-TESO

During this time, PC and Xbox One players are offered: If you decide to purchase TESO during this time, there is a 60% discount and you can continue playing your started account.

Players on PS4 are missing out a bit – Zenimax says, we are working with Sony to provide something similar for them. But at the moment, nothing in sight.

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

Whining Wednesday: Was Overwatch “underwatched”?

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 2 minutes

With all the fuss about Star Wars: The Old Republic and the subscription requirement for the bonus story chapter, I almost lost sight of another topic. Quietly, Blizzard’s shooter Overwatch has sneaked into a “beta pause” to “evaluate the valuable feedback” and make important changes. To me, this all sounds a bit flimsy, and thus the title “Mecker Mittwoch” is not quite right – perhaps more of a conspiracy Wednesday?

Overwatch Beta Impression
A bit behind the beta expectations?

Christmas Without Overwatch

For most fans, it came as quite a surprise that Overwatch will end the beta in a few days. I am also quite sure now that this was not the original plan. Currently, almost all Blizzard games seem to be at a standstill. Starcraft 2 is finished, WoW is still a long way off, the Hearthstone add-on is also ending next week and the meta will slowly start to fade away. So, what could have been nicer than letting fans play the new shooter in beta over Christmas to sweeten the holidays a bit? But nothing of the sort.

The reason for this is – at least for me, the paranoid demon – quite obvious. Overwatch has lost a lot of interest in recent weeks. While it skyrocketed in the Twitch streams in the first days, interest has almost fallen as quickly as it did for the WildStar free-to-play version (and that’s “Ferrari” quick). At the time of writing, it is sitting somewhere in the 50s, ahead of FIFA 16 and behind “Gaming Talk Shows”.

Overwatch Mercy
Is there hope for a revival of the hype with the open beta? Probably.

Therefore, I come to my thesis that the Overwatch beta has fallen significantly short of expectations in terms of attention. “Overwatch” is thus a bit “underwatched”. To ensure this interest doesn’t completely fade away before launch, they are now simply tightening it up to host an open beta in January or February – I am sure of that – in which they will just invite everyone.

Maybe I was just misinformed all along. Perhaps it was planned from the start to run the beta in several phases. Maybe I’m just a bit annoyed because I wasn’t allowed in the beta. Well. They don’t know what incredibly valuable feedback they are missing out on!

What do you think? Could the dwindling interest in Overwatch be a reason for the “pause” of the beta?

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

Playstation 4: Multiplayer access for everyone this weekend

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time < 1 minutes

Sony offers PlayStation 4 players an online weekend, allowing them to play games like TESO, Star Wars Battlefront, or Destiny online in multiplayer.

For PlayStation 4, you need PS+ to play the games online in multiplayer. As Sony announces on the US blog, they are gifting a round of online multiplayer for everyone. They temporarily remove the “Members Only” banner from the offer.

ESO-Orc Axe

The free service starts on Friday morning (December 11) at 9:00 AM our time and ends Monday morning at 9 as well.

This allows players who own games with an online component to try them out, possibly complete a trophy or two, and do something different. Sony is particularly focusing on the new Battlefront DLC Battle of Jakku, saying: This is definitely a weekend activity!

The offer is being discussed controversially. One person complains that the PSN will crash again. Another asks, who owns Battlefront and doesn’t have PS+? But a gift horse, and so on. And maybe someone let their PS+ subscription expire, but now feels like playing Battlefront, TESO, or Destiny again.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. PS Blog US

Play Star Citizen for free – with 3 ships

Andreas Bertits Andreas Bertits Reading time 2 minutes

Cloud Imperium Games lets everyone test the Arena Commander module of Star Citizen for free for a limited time.

Star Citizen – the ambitious project by Cloud Imperium Games has faced as much criticism as praise in the past. It was said that the game would never release as promised, that the money would run out, and that fans would be disappointed …

Star Citizen sounds just too good to be true. A single-player game like Wing Commander, an MMO in a massive persistent universe, ships that can be controlled by multiple players, and even shooter segments… A dream for science fiction fans. Of course, jealousy from other developers also plays a role, who want to badmouth the game.

Star Citizen Star Marine

Play Arena Commander for free!

At least a small glimpse of the game can be obtained until December 14th. Until that date, it is possible to view the Arena Commander module of Star Citizen for free. To do this, you create an account on the official website of the game and can then download the module and engage in some space battles with the ships Aurora MR, Mustang Alpha, and Gladius. Available single-player modes include “Free Flight”, “Murray Cup Racing”, and “Vanduul Swarm” as well as multiplayer modes “Battle Royale”, “Squadron Battle”, “Capture the Core”, as well as the multiplayer versions of “Vanduul Swarm” and “Murray Cup Racing”.

Your PC should meet these requirements:

– Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (64 bit) or Windows 8 (64 bit)
– DirectX 11 graphics card with 1GB video RAM
– Quad-core CPU
– 8GB RAM

Star-Citizen-PAX-East

Many cooks improve the porridge

Additionally, Tech Director Derek Senior talked about what it’s like when four teams are working on a game. The individual tasks are divided among the studios Cloud Imperium LA, Austin, Frankfurt, and Wilmslow, England. The work is passed back and forth between the various studios and many Skype calls take place. He can understand if one gets the impression that not much progress can be seen in some areas, because much of what is being developed for the game takes place only in the background, including streaming or the coordination of the game world.

In the end, he hopes that everyone will simply be excited. What this will look like can be seen with the Star Citizen Alpha 2.0, which already combines shooter elements with space travel and allows traveling to various locations. All this in a multiplayer mode with other players. The Alpha 2.0 of Star Citizen will be gradually released to supporters. So, it is not easy to develop such an ambitious game, but in the end, it could definitely be worth it.

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This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. 2P
  2. PcGamesN