Column: The Wow Factor was Missing at Blizzcon

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 4 minutes

The BlizzCon 2015 is now nearly a week in the past. So I had enough opportunity to calm down a bit from the initial hype to look at the announced things a little more soberly. I will not go into all aspects here, as we have already covered many points in our news and columns, but I would like to convey my overall impression of the BlizzCon.

The big hit was missing

The BlizzCon left mixed feelings - although the positive predominates.
The BlizzCon left mixed feelings – although the positive predominates.

Looking back, the really big hit was missing at the BlizzCon, something that blows me away, like Overwatch did last year. Maybe the timing was just bad, because you can’t pull a new game out of your sleeve every year. But as often as I heard and read in advance that this BlizzCon has a “surprise that no one expects,” I missed a little something.

Overwatch Release
Overwatch is also available for consoles – unfortunately, this was leaked too early. Bad luck.

All of these may have just been rumors, and the numerous leaks, such as regarding the console version of Overwatch, were certainly not helpful in meeting these expectations. It would be exaggerated to speak of a real disappointment here; the fair was just too interesting for that. But it was a bit unsatisfying without any “Oh, wow!” effect.

Overwatch: Where the Nether is my beta access?!

Last year, I was still a bit skeptical about whether Blizzard could really create a shooter that satisfies all fans. Over the past year, however, the hype train slowly but surely swept me up until it finally picked up full speed. Now the game has even a cute character in anime style with D.Va, who stomps across the battlefield with her mech or fights on foot around control points if needed.

D.Va impresses - a quirky anime girl with her mech.
D.Va impresses – a quirky anime girl with her mech.

The news that Overwatch will be a full-price title has not pleased many people, but I personally think it’s fine. I would find it terrible if characters could be bought individually like in Heroes of the Storm, as that would not do the game any good since the ability to constantly switch is tightly interwoven into the gameplay mechanics. Reports also indicate that Overwatch is already so polished and free of bugs that it could be sold without any issues. So the only question remains: Where is my beta access for the game?

Heroes of the Storm: Cho’Gall enriches the game

2 players, one hero - tons of fun!
2 players, one hero – tons of fun!

Of all the announcements made at the fair, Cho’Gall was the silent highlight for me. No other element in all Blizzard games screams as much for “Grab your friends and let them play!” as the two-headed ogre. What was once a silly April Fool’s joke for World of Warcraft has now become a reality. I am convinced that Cho’Gall alone will lead to a significant increase in the player numbers of Heroes of the Storm.

Anyone who regularly hangs out in voice chat with their friends will have a blast with the double-headed ogre and will sometimes scream in despair when the teammate misses the bomb detonator or when Cho’Gall’s body charges directly into the enemy base because they “accidentally clicked on the minimap.”

The other two heroes, Lunara and Greymane, seem interesting but completely fade in comparison to the ogre. Shared fun is double fun; a Worgen and a Dryad just can’t keep up.

World of Warcraft: Legion – Blizzard breeds itself

First of all, everyone who laughed stupidly at the subheading should be ashamed, and secondly, I should probably explain this. Hearthstone has drawn a lot from World of Warcraft, including all the characters, the game world, and various spells. Heroes of the Storm even draws completely from all other Blizzard worlds, as all heroes have already appeared elsewhere. With World of Warcraft: Legion, however, they are now taking the reverse step and allowing themselves to be influenced in reverse.

With Legion, there are numerous changes to the classes - on paper, they all sound positive.
With Legion, there are numerous changes to the classes – on paper, they all sound positive.

In order to distinguish the classes more strongly in Legion, the developers are looking to other games for inspiration. Warlocks will get the talent “Imp explosion,” which previously only existed in Hearthstone as a card of the same class. But Heroes of the Storm also provided some templates, as Shamans receive an ability that allows them to tear the earth apart and fling enemies aside – just like Thrall in Blizzard’s MOBA. A third example would be Tyrael, who serves as a source of inspiration for Paladins. Just like the warrior angel, light wielders will soon be able to hurl a sword at a distance and then teleport to it at the push of a button.

WoW learns a few tricks from HotS.
WoW learns a few tricks from HotS.

Cynics might now say that the WoW team is running out of ideas. Personally, I am excited about these new steps and hope that there will be more overarching concepts and ideas in the future that will find their way into each other’s games.

In summary, I am quite happy with the BlizzCon. I have noticed that the new Hearthstone adventure leaves me colder than I would have previously assumed, but the developers have managed to reignite my enthusiasm for Legion. I am even willing to accept that the game will not be released until late next year. RP fills any content gap.

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

My MMO asks: Do you play Mobas?

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 3 minutes

We have completed another week and to conclude the successful hunt appropriately, the ritual of the Friday question belongs here. Although we carry the rather concise name “Mein-MMO”, we occasionally also discuss other games that we enjoy playing in our leisure time. Mobas are just right when you don’t want to be stuck in a raid for hours, or when you don’t want to sacrifice a whole night for extensive RP evenings in the tavern.

Not everyone can handle the constant pressure of a PvP match.
Not everyone can handle the constant pressure of a PvP match.

However, Mobas are not the right change for everyone; many players struggle with the pressure of continuous PvP combat. Others feel overwhelmed by having to represent such an important part within a team, while some simply cannot deal with the “starting over at level 1” concept.

So now we come to our question: Do you play Mobas? If yes, which ones and why specifically those? If not, why do these games not appeal to you?

Cortyn says: Until about 2 years ago, I could hardly connect with Mobas. I never got the hang of League of Legends; subjectively, it is not a beginner-friendly game (but it has the coolest soundtracks, right, Jinx?). I am really only happy with SMITE and Heroes of the Storm. With the former, I constantly feel more like I’m in an action game rather than a strategy game.

The interesting gods are a main reason for Cortyn - along with the direct shoulder control of the heroes.
The interesting gods are a main reason for Cortyn – along with the direct shoulder control of the heroes.

In addition, there are the beautiful gods and goddesses (from whom you can even learn a bit of history) with truly outlandish skin ideas and the brilliant principle of voice packs that give each character much more life. The fact that the developers are infinitely laid back is a plus. I have never met game developers who handle their own work more casually and humorously than the folks at HiRez (not even WildStar manages that).

HotS Gameplay
For Cortyn, the Moba of choice: Heroes of the Storm.

Heroes of the Storm has now become my favorite. The fresh ideas like Abathur, Murky or the upcoming Cho’Gall, along with the many different map objectives make the game a noticeable change. Additionally, my emotional connection to Kerrigan and Arthas is quite different compared to any “new” characters, who (from my perspective) could also simply be called “Ranger 13” or “Soldier 76” – oh.

I love PvP, whether in MMOs, Evolve, or Mobas, so team battles are exactly my thing and have sweetened many a break.

But now it’s your turn! Which Mobas do you play and why? Or do you avoid team brawlers completely – why? Let us know and discuss actively in the comments!

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

Destiny: Xur, Agent of the Nine, location and inventory on 13.11.

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 3 minutes

In the MMO shooter Destiny , Xur, the exotic items vendor, appears on Friday, November 13, in the Tower or the Reef. Hopefully, he has no bad intentions.

Friday the Thirteenth and Halloween was also quite recent, so one can almost be glad that the only thing Xur regularly assassinates and massacres is the Guardians’ hopes. A few weeks ago, there was a little surprise with Xur, as he brought a helmet that no one even knew would have a Year 2 version.

Since then, some speculate that Bungie would use Xur to bring either “old exotic items” into Year 2 or even some of the still outstanding “new exotic armor pieces.” Therefore, it remains exciting what Don Calamari has to offer. Hopefully, it won’t be a hatchet.

Xur-Mask

All about Xur in Destiny on November 13, 14, and 15.

When does Xur come and when does he leave again?

Xur arrives on Friday, the 13th, at 10:00 a.m. He leaves again on Sunday, November 15, at 10:00 a.m.

Where is Xur? What is his position?

Xur is located in the Hangar in the Tower. In this video from our friends on YouTube, from ProNDC, you can follow the path.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

How does the Glass Needle work?

We detailed this in this article, allowing exotic armor pieces to be rerolled.

Where do I get the strange coins that Xur wants?

We also have an article for that, where we described how to obtain strange coins in 2015.

What does Xur have in store? What does he have with him?

Xur has an Exotic Weapon Engram, no weapon this time. The Engram costs 19 strange coins with the chance of exotic gloves from Year 2.

For Warlocks, he has the helmet Obsidian Greaves (34/49 INT; 35/50 STR). Like all armor pieces, it costs 13 strange coins.

Destiny-Obsidian-Greaves-Warlock
Destiny-Ahamkaras-Spine-Hunter


For Hunters, he has the gloves Ahamkara’s Spine (55/68 DIS) with him.

Destiny-Titan-Lupi

For the Titans, there is the chest armor the Mark of Alpha Lupi (90/110 INT). This is extremely sought after in the Trials of Osiris.

As a Legacy Engram, there are chest armors. Year 1 items with Year 1 values can drop from that.

From the Exotic Weapon Engram, the following “new” Year 2 armors can drop:

The three other “new” gloves Thagomizer (Titan), Shinobu’s Vow (Hunter) and Ophidian Aspect (Warlock) are not yet in the game, only in the database.

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

Hearthstone: Players should find a solution against Secret Paladin themselves!

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 2 minutes

The players must find a solution against the greatest plague in Hearthstone: The reign of the Secret Paladin continues.

Left to their own devices

Of all the plagues that the Hearthstone meta has endured in recent months, the Secret Paladin is currently one of the most annoying. Not only does the Mysterious Challenger have solid stats of 6/6 for 6 mana, its battlecry increases the value to absurd heights. For each secret of the Paladin, one is placed on the battlefield. With 5 different secrets, that’s a mana value of 11 for just 6 mana – not to mention the fact that this allows 6 cards to be played simultaneously, something that hardly any other class can manage.

Hated and celebrated - the Mysterious Challenger.
Hated and celebrated – the Mysterious Challenger.

Blizzard, in the form of Mike Donais, is well aware of the issue with this card but does not want to intervene. “Before the expansion The Grand Tournament, everyone complained that Paladin secrets were too weak. Now you hardly hear those voices anymore.”

This is true on one hand, of course, but ignores the call for a nerf.

Nevertheless, Donais hopes that players will be able to counter the mysterious Paladin. “Recently, we have been seeing cards like Wild Pyromancer more often in Priest decks, and they perform well against the Secret Paladin.”

For this reason, there is probably no card in the latest expansion “The League of Explorers” that specifically counters so many secrets. They simply want to wait and give the community time to develop their own suitable answers.

Maybe the creative minds can develop exciting decks with the 45 new cards of the League of Explorers that will give the annoying Lightweaver a good run for their money.

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

Destiny: Next week a patch and a slightly different Iron Banner will arrive

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

In the MMO shooter Destiny , some changes are coming next week: A patch and the Iron Banner will arrive in a different form.

Bungie’s Weekly Update was released last night after prolonged maintenance: The server downtime on 12.11 didn’t change anything, the actual patch will come next week.

This is what the patch will bring next week

It was already announced that players will then be able to buy weapon parts and there will be some changes to quests and bounty quests – some are expected to become easier, especially the weekly PvP bounty.

Additionally, the Crucible master Lord Shaxx will sell some new items, those who have completed the quest for the exotic sword can then buy all legendary swords directly from Shaxx.

Lord-Shaxx-Destiny

Additionally, players will repair the quiver for Hunters. Nightstalkers will then be able to fire three Shadowshots again. This ability was temporarily disabled after a glitch occurred.

For the Christmas season, there is a plan for a “Refer-a-Friend” program, which is meant to reward players who assist and help newcomers. The details are still unknown. However, it is expected that data miners will figure this out in the next week.

Destiny-Eisenbanner

Iron Banner will be Clash for the first time

The first Iron Banner with The Taken King in October was quite a disappointment, as there were bugs, and the rewards were not great.

Next week, the Iron Banner returns, it will feature the mode “Clash” for the first time. Normally, in the Iron Banner of Destiny, it’s about control.

Along with the switch to Clash there will be some other changes to the Iron Banner:

  • There will be 20% more reputation for victories
  • Those who complete an activity will receive better rewards, especially for rank 2 and above
  • New packages from Saladin at rank 3 and 5
  • At rank 3, there will be Iron Banner artifacts in these packages
  • At rank 5, Ghost shells can be collected – either in the packages or for completing a match

It is said that Lord Saladin knows that Guardians deserve a reward that is commensurate with the challenge. Who knows if this suggests a higher light level for the drops.

Destiny-Nachtpirscher

Once next week is over, there will be an outline of the December update, After all, while the year 2015 ends, the second year in Destiny has just begun.

This will all take a bit longer, but much closer is the arrival of Xur in the Tower or Reef. We will welcome Xur on Friday, 13.11. at 10:00 AM. Well, Friday the 13th, if that isn’t a good omen for his inventory.

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

Heroes of the Storm: A Murloc and a Spinner are Always the Winners

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time < 1 minutes

At BlizzCon, Cloud 9 achieved victory in Heroes of the Storm with a very unusual combination – Abathur and Murky!

As Fresh as a Daisy

Heroes of the Storm offers some options in hero selection that are not available in other MOBAs. There are three-part heroes like the Lost Vikings or passive influencers like Abathur, who rarely participate directly in the battle. Many of these ideas are fun, but professional teams often shy away from these oddballs and stick to proven tactics. Not so at this year’s BlizzCon!

After Cloud9 took the lead in the semifinals with a victory, they wanted to deliver a very special show and entered with the most unusual combination ever. In addition to Leoric, Tassadar, and Sparkles, the team was complemented by Murky and Abathur – two specialists that are unimaginable for many players in combination.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

Although Team DK was the favorite of the match (especially with their composition of opponents), Cloud9 managed to achieve victory after a rocky start. What is particularly remarkable is how the crowd goes wild when Cloud9 selects Murky as the last member of the team.

It is hardly surprising that with this wacky combination, the support for Cloud9 skyrocketed and 93% of the viewers were convinced before the match that Murky’s team would win.

This game was definitely the highlight of the championship, as in the finals, Cloud9 simply steamrolled their opponent Team Dignitas.

For more information from BlizzCon, including the new heroes Cho’Gall, Lunara and Greymane, you can find on our Heroes of the Storm themed page.

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

The Elder Scrolls Online: In 2016 it goes to Hammerfell and West-Cyrodiil

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

In The Elder Scrolls Online, the plans for next year have been outlined. The two upcoming DLCs are expected to bring new zones again.

Matt Firor, the head of TESO, was available for an interview with the US site mmorpg. Firor is visibly satisfied with the last DLC Orsinium. The Orc city and the associated patch are already out on PC and are expected to come to consoles in a few days. For Xbox One on November 17, and for PlayStation 4 on the 18th.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

2016 is set to emphasize the typical Elder Scrolls elements

Matt Firor Zenimax
Producer Matt Firor.

That would be a successful mix for all PvE players: world bosses, solo quests, group quests. Finding the right mixture has been difficult, but successful.

Especially proud they are of the scaling of players, so that everyone can experience Orsinium. In the next DLC, which is about the Thieves Guild, they will definitely continue this and then see how it goes and evaluate the feedback.

Firor seems convinced by the idea: letting players play together is the best thing about TESO. The level restrictions have been in the way, loosening them is the right step.

In the near future, they want to provide players with the typical Elder Scrolls experience and focus on the story and narrative style.

ESO-Dunkle-Bruderschaf

New zones for TESO in 2016

The Elder Scrolls Online will open new zones in 2016. The DLC in the first quarter of 2016, which revolves around the Thieves Guild, will take place in an area of Hammerfell that has not yet been seen in ESO. The second DLC about the Dark Brotherhood will take place in West-Cyrodiil. However, that is not a PvP area, but a region around Anvil and Kvatch.

How it continues afterwards is not yet revealed. At the moment, they like the quarterly DLCs. There probably won’t be a “big, annual expansion”, even if Firor never says never.

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

World of Warcraft: What is coming in Legion with Warrior, Shaman and Monk!

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 3 minutes

Blizzard reveals in a preview what they have in mind with the changes to Warriors, Shamans, and Monks in World of Warcraft: Legion.

A Small Glimpse into the Future

With the upcoming expansion Legion for World of Warcraft, the gameplay feel of the different classes will drastically differ from each other. To prepare players for the upcoming changes, Blizzard is releasing a preview of the different specs and explains the developers’ thought processes. Today, they focused on Warriors, Shamans, and Monks.

Warrior – Fewer Core Abilities, More Talents

Arms Warriors are already in a good position for Blizzard. The biggest changes will be found in an increased number of active talents that will fit into the rotation and allow for multiple different specs.

WoW Legion warrior defense

Fury Warriors are meant to have a stronger feel of an absolute killing machine. For this purpose, “Berserker Rage” will be a truly significant ability that increases attack speed, thus leading to faster Fury generation.

Protection Warriors have always been the epitome of a tank in World of Warcraft and only require a little refinement. Shield Barrier will be replaced with the new ability “Pain Suppression,” which reduces damage taken for a while. This will be the new main consumption of Fury. The majority of Fury will still be gained by taking damage, which means that in tough fights, “Pain Suppression” will often be available.

Shaman – New Resource and Refinement

Elemental Shamans get a new resource called Maelstrom. This will be built up through abilities like Lightning Bolt, Lava Burst, or Chain Lightning and can then be consumed with Earthquake or the various shocks. Therefore, the cooldown of the shocks will also be removed, allowing Shamans to apply the Flame Shock to multiple targets.

WoW Legion shaman enhancer

Enhancement Shamans are already quite appealing to the developers, as they solidly fulfill the role of “melee spellcasters.” However, they want to place more focus on their name, that is, enhancing the weapons and attacks of themselves and their allies. In talents, they take some inspiration from Heroes of the Storm, as “Shattering” tears the ground in a straight line and hurls enemies aside – a nod to Thrall.

Restoration Shamans should feel a greater variety in their spell selection. Blizzard aims to move away from the constant spamming of the spell “Chain Heal” and ensure that healers can more often target specific allies.

Monk – More Combo, Less Complexity

Brewmasters still do not feel as desired for Blizzard. Too much revolves around absorption shields and not around the “fun” playstyle of a stumbling fighter who can evade attacks in apparent drunkenness. Chi is being removed as a resource; instead, Brewmasters will now have several charges of Brew that interact differently with various abilities and enhance them.

WoW Legion monk mistweaver

Mistweavers also bid farewell to Chi and fully rely on their Mana. Additionally, it is no longer necessary for healing Monks to engage in melee combat; they can focus entirely on healing. In choosing their healing spells, it is no longer necessary to use endlessly weak spells to “prepare” the big ones – there should be freedom to choose between abilities.

With Windwalkers, the goal is to achieve an interesting balance between “less complicated gameplay” and “more depth” by introducing the new mastery “Combo Strikes. This ensures that the Monk’s abilities deal more damage when they differ from the previous ability – thus allowing different skills to come into play that align more with the essence of a “combo” fighter.

For more information about the “Legion” add-on, you can find it on our World of Warcraft theme page.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. eu.battle.net/wow/

Paladins: Closed Beta date of the MOBA shooter is known

Andreas Bertits Andreas Bertits Reading time 2 minutes

The Hi-Rez Studios have announced the date for the Closed Beta of their new online game Paladins.

The Hi-Rez Studios are mainly known for the MOBA SMITE, which offers a more action-oriented gameplay due to its third-person perspective. With Paladins: Champions of the Realm, they are working on a new game that aims to be even more action-packed, without completely abandoning the MOBA paths. Those who want to know how it plays will have the opportunity from November 17, as the Closed Beta will start on that day.

The Closed Beta offers first insights

To participate in this beta, a access key is required, as is customary with Closed Betas. To obtain such a key, one can register on the official website of Paladins. With a bit of luck, you will then be selected as a participant in the testing phase. Soon, the Hi-Rez Studios also want to offer founder packs for sale, which guarantee access to the early test phases of the game as well as additional bonuses.

Paladins Game Shooter

The Closed Beta starting on November 17 is for the PC version of the game. Paladins will also be released for Playstation 4 and Xbox One. However, the beta phases for these versions will start at a later time.

Paladins: Champions of the Realm is a mix of MOBA and shooter. From a first-person perspective, you fight your way through the levels in the role of different heroes, each with unique traits, to bring victory to your team. The graphics are kept in a colorful comic style. Whether this online game can bring fresh air into the genre will likely be determined based on the Closed Beta.

Interesting: Team Shooter, the new online gaming trend: How do Gigantic, Battleborn, and Paladins play?

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. www.paladins.com

Need for Speed Edge: Trailer for the new Racing MMO with the Battlefront engine

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

The trailer for Need for Speed Edge has now been presented in Korea. The racing MMO aims to bring the Need for Speed franchise to Asia.

Currently, G-STAR is taking place in Korea, an important gaming fair there, and Electronic Arts showed a trailer for “Need for Speed Edge,” a Free2Play MMO produced for the Asian market. Korea, really all of Asia, is a PC market; consoles are hardly represented there. Major Western franchises that are strong on consoles are trying to establish themselves there with “MMO” versions of their brands. This doesn’t always succeed; for example, “Borderlands Online” was recently shut down.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

The racing MMO Need for Speed Edge is the next attempt. A 3-day beta is set to start in South Korea on November 26. Early reports say that the graphics look fantastic, and there will not only be races, but players can also tune or trade cars, and even create their own vehicles.

Need for Speed Edge is developed by EA “Spearhead Studios”; the publisher in Asia is the MMO specialist “Nexon.” The Frostbite 3 engine, which is also used in Star Wars Battlefront , serves as the engine for NfS: Edge.

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

Blizzard sues manufacturer of bots for WoW, D3, HotS – [Update: Statement from Bossland]

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

Game studio Blizzard has now sued a bot manufacturer for World of Warcraft, Diablo 3, and Heroes of the Storm. It is reportedly about an 8-digit sum.

“HonorBuddy”, “Stormbuddy”, and other “Buddies” are bots that have been around for many years. Blizzard seems to have had enough now. They have filed a lawsuit in a California court. James Enright is accused. He allegedly made a good profit from distributing such bots. Blizzard believes they have incurred damages in the seven to eight-digit million range, in revenue and in the difficult-to-quantify trust of the players. The exact amount is to be determined in court.

WoW-Bot

Players could have gained “unfair” advantages through the bots, which could have endangered the balance in Blizzard’s games.

Furthermore, they accuse Enright of having violated the copyrights by “reproducing, altering, and distributing protected elements of the products.”

Such proceedings are usually lengthy. This will be something we will hear about for a while – just like with bots. In recent months, they took action against the German provider “Bossland” (albeit in the game); just recently, parts of the community complained that Blizzard’s Diablo 3 is completely infested with bots. Many assumed that they would take action against bot users in the game with bans and penalties. It seems that this time, Blizzard wants to tackle the causes, not just the symptoms.

Update: The manager of Bossland, Zwetan Letschwe, has since commented on this indictment to the site Torrentfreak and also with us. For him, the indictment is ridiculous, as his company manufactures the “products” and Blizzard is suing Bossland at several locations in Germany. The accused James Enright is merely a “freelancer”; he is not even employed by Bossland and certainly not a decision-maker. You can read the manager’s statement in the comments.

Letschwe also references a report from an Erfurt professor from 2012. The report found that bots have no negative impact on MMORPGs in general and on WoW in particular, but rather increase long-term motivation.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. pcgamesn
  2. Gutachten zum Einfluss von Bots auf Spielspaß und Ökonomie in MMORPGS
  3. Torrentfreak

WildStar: PvP Patch Cryoplex is now live!

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time < 1 minutes

The latest content patch for WildStar went live yesterday, introducing a new arena and numerous bug fixes!

The Eldan Freezer

With the latest content patch that went live yesterday, WildStar has been expanded with some new content for PvP players. The main attraction here is definitely the newest arena, the Cryoplex, where all fans of small group skirmishes can now gather. Moreover, both experience and prestige gains (the PvP currency) in the battlegrounds have been drastically increased (between 52% and 157%).

WildStar Cyroplex Arena PvP Battle
The patch brings only a little content, but PvP players should still be able to enjoy

This should allow new players to level up significantly faster in battlegrounds, acquire good PvP gear, or earn some rune fragments. At the same time, the former prestige cap was raised from 10,000 to 12,000, so that no currency is lost when saving for the 10,000 rewards.

In addition to the arena, there were also numerous bug fixes aimed at resolving issues with the interface, as well as some minor balance changes to the classes.

For more information on the free-to-play MMO, you can find it on our WildStar theme page.

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

Hearthstone: We just wanted the card to be no longer good

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 2 minutes

One of the latest patches has hit Warriors in Hearthstone hard. A developer is now addressing the changes.

The Charge is Over!

The Warriors of Hearthstone had to endure a harsh nerf when the Warsong Commander was adjusted with the last patch. The powerful card that enabled many “1-turn kills” is now just a shadow of its former self.

Instead of granting all minions with 3 attack or less “Charge”, it now grants all minions with “Charge” +1 attack. This makes it, in the eyes of many fans, the worst card in the entire game, even worse than the Murloc and Millhouse Manastorm.

Before the nerf, the card was a guarantee for fun games - unfortunately only on the winning side.
Before the nerf, the card was a guarantee for fun games – unfortunately only on the winning side.

In an interview with pcgamesn.com, Ben Brode, one of the leading developers behind the card game, has now explained the reasons for the nerf. The reasoning is simple: Charge is not a fun mechanic. “We impose many rules on ourselves. One of them has been: We have to stop giving minions Charge, as it leads to unfun player experiences.”

Cards like the Obsidian Destroyer are meant to make Warriors interesting again.
Cards like the Obsidian Destroyer are meant to make Warriors interesting again.

At the same time, he admits, “We’ve messed up. We’ve already nerfed the Warsong Commander once and should have done it right back then.”

Besides the Patron Warriors, Arena players also have reason to complain, as their class already has the worst win rate in the Arena, which has now dropped even further. They fear that Blizzard only cares about ranked games and is losing sight of the Arena. “Nothing could be further from the truth,” is the response.

Therefore, especially in the upcoming expansion “The Explorer’s League”, an eye has been kept on the Warriors, as they will receive some strong class cards that are meant to lead to more victories in Arena.

For more information, as well as all cards from “The Explorer’s League”, you can find on our Hearthstone theme page.

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

Star Wars: Battlefront – New gameplay videos shorten the wait

Andreas Bertits Andreas Bertits Reading time 2 minutes

Electronic Arts and DICE know how to get players excited about a game. With new videos of Star Wars: Battlefront, the desire for multiplayer battles is rekindled.

Sure, the two new videos are quite short, but that doesn’t matter; you just watch them multiple times in a row. The first video shows an Imperial Scout Trooper chasing over the forest moon Endor on a speeder bike while trying to take out rebels.

In the process, the Scout Trooper zips through a kind of canyon, which gives a feeling of high speed. In the second video, however, you see the Millennium Falcon engaging in a battle high above a planet (is that Tatooine?) against Imperial TIE fighters. The evasive maneuver is known, by the way, as the “Immelmann turn.”

Speeder Bikes on Rails?

Both videos once again showcase the fantastic graphics of the game. And yet: the video with the speeder bike gives the impression that you are racing through the forest on rails. Is this not an open world area where you can roam freely? Are you only flying on predetermined paths? That would make sense because it surely is very difficult to avoid all the trees in a forest at high speeds.

This discussion had already occurred some time ago, to which the developers stated that there are no “rail shooter sequences.” Still, it seems in the video that you can only move within a fairly narrow “tube.” For the AT-AT walkers, DICE relies on a similar principle. You do not control the walker yourself; rather, it wanders along a predetermined path, and players can only shoot the cannons. By the way, after this news was completed, two more videos were released that we do not want to withhold from you. Featured: the AT-ST pilot and a grenade throw.

It will be exciting to see how the speeder bikes will ultimately play in the online shooter Star Wars: Battlefront when the game is released on November 19 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

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

Destiny: Secret Weapons – These 4 Primary Weapons are Recommended by Bungie’s Statisticians

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 4 minutes

In the MMO shooter Destiny there is indirectly a recommendation from Bungie. The statistician lets you look into the notebook and recommends some primary weapons for the Crucible.

Where do the primary weapons currently stand in Destiny’s Crucible after the big balance patch 2.0? Before, hand cannons were extremely powerful, especially exotic ones like Thorn dominated. At the moment it is different: Pulse rifles are considered the weapons of the hour.

Destiny-Nirnwens-Gnade
They and their buddies threaten to dominate the PvP – What alternatives are there to pulse rifles?

Pulse rifles dominate the primary weapons – But what other weapons are there?

Pulse rifles like Red Death or the Iron Banner pulse rifle Nirwen’s Mercy are making headlines, taking the top spots in the Trials of Osiris among primary weapons. Others like Bad Karma, No Time to Explain, the Riven or Banefulness are also causing a stir.

A discussion on this topic arose on reddit. The accusation: There is no alternative to pulse rifles in 6vs.6 control, the other primary weapons are simply too weak. Legendary pulse rifles are too strong.

Bungie’s chief statistician chimed in and said: While pulse rifles are strong, there are some legendary non-pulse rifles that our data shows to be very effective.

Such a tip from “secret weapons” was already given in June … some interesting weapons came out of it.

Therefore, today we want to present to you the 4 weapons he recommended. The results puzzle us as well, but … that’s just what comes out in the end. And that counts, as we all know.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. reddit
Pages: 1 2 3 4 5

World of Warcraft: How to become Paladin, Warlock and Death Knight in Legion!

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 3 minutes

Blizzard continues the class presentations and introduces Paladin, Warlock, and Death Knight in the new World of Warcraft expansion.

Strengthening the Fantasy Behind the Classes

As part of the upcoming expansion World of Warcraft: Legion, Blizzard aims to better delineate the various classes along with their different specializations. After taking a look at Priests, Mages and Hunters, Paladins, Warlocks, and Death Knights follow now.

Paladins – Away with the Light, Charge to the Front!

Holy Paladins are considered the cowards of World of Warcraft for a reason. Despite their plate armor, they typically stay far from the front lines and heal from a safe distance. With Legion, healing Paladins are brought right into the fray, as their heals become stronger when they are close to their targets. This is complemented by cone spells that require close proximity.

Into melee - Healing in the crisis area.
Into melee – Healing in the crisis area.

Not much changes for Protection Paladins. They receive a new, solid self-heal and bid farewell to “Holy Power”, otherwise, players are quite satisfied with the current gameplay.

Only Retribution Paladins still have “Holy Power” as a resource. Many of their ranged spells will have their range reduced, as the aim is to enhance the feel of a melee fighter. However, talents will allow the Paladin to throw their sword up to 30 meters and then teleport there – a nod to Tyrael from Heroes of the Storm.

Warlocks – More Demons, Less Complex Interactions

Affliction Warlocks can rejoice, as their DoTs are set to come more to the forefront. Recently, it felt more as if “fillers” like Soul Leech and Life Tap were considerably more important than the actual Damage-over-Time spells. This will be corrected by giving DoTs more significance.

The Warlock has plenty of minions in Legion.
The Warlock has plenty of minions in Legion.

Those dedicated to Demonology should prepare for extensive changes. Metamorphosis disappears completely, and Warlocks will now be able to summon significantly more demons than before. “Hand of Gul’dan” now consumes Soul Shards and summons up to 5 wild imps simultaneously, depending on the number of shards. The additional demons can be buffed. Overall, Demonology will likely become a “Minionmancer”, following the motto: “Go forth, my minions, show them how strong I am!”

Not much changes for Destruction Warlocks. Instead of unstable sparks, they now rely again on the good old Soul Shards, otherwise, the typical playstyle remains largely intact with only minor adjustments.

Death Knights – Few Changes, Just Refinement

All three Death Knight specializations are in a very solid state, according to Blizzard, hence there are only minimal changes, and the biggest hopes rest on the yet-to-be-released talents.

For Blood Death Knights, the main change is that Death Strike now costs Runic Power instead of Runes. This resolves the issue that occasionally hindered self-healing when a wrong rune was invested.

Plagues and Undead make up the Unholy Death Knight.
Plagues and Undead make up the Unholy Death Knight.

For Frost Death Knights, there is a small change to the passive bonus “Killing Machine”, which now only affects “Obliterate” (and makes this ability always a critical hit).

Unholy Death Knights receive a buff to their “Festering Strike”, which is set to become a central part of the rotation again. At the same time, talents will ensure that fallen champions can control more undead than before and summon an additional ghoul each time with “Raise Dead”.

More information about the Legion expansion can be found on our World of Warcraft topic page.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. eu.battle.net/wow/

LoL: The autumn collection is here – among these skins there are some eye-catchers

Patrick Freese Patrick Freese Reading time 3 minutes

At League of Legends (LoL), the autumn collection has been unveiled. Among them are some eye-catchers, especially Dragon Trainer Tristana.

As we recently reported, the champion Tristana is getting a new skin in League of Legends. Now we no longer have to guess what it might look like, as we have the skin spotlight for you!

Here you can see Tristana playing with her cute baby dragon and using it as a cannon.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

In the death animation, my tears were directly at 750/750.

By the way: As we already assumed, it will be a “Legendary” skin that will be available for 1820 Riot Points in the shop, which corresponds to about 12€. Just between us… I believe the purchase is already a done deal for me.

Dragon Trainer Tristana

However, this is not the only skin that developers RiotGames want to present to their players in the coming days. The following are also included:

Grave Lord Azir: (English name currently not known)

Azir-Skin
Azir-Image

This skin makes Azir look much darker and, in my opinion, would have fit well into the Halloween sale.

Elderwood Hecarim: (English name currently not known)

Elderwood-Hecarim

The trickster tree among League of Legends champions. I’m already curious to see what it looks like when a tree comes rushing at you at 200 km/h after a teleport on the lane. Well then, timber.

Gragas Caskbreaker: (English name currently not known)

Gragas-LoL

From the images and videos I have seen so far, he looks to me like Obelix belonging to a monk order. The “Brother Tuck” among the champions.

Ryze Whitebeard: (English name currently not known)

Ryze-lol

I don’t know who this skin reminds me of first. Gandalf? Dumbledore? Or just a crazy hippie grandpa from some movie? I’m not sure, but I quite like the concept.

Braum Lionheart: (English name currently not known)

Tree-LoL

With the red beard, this Braum skin reminds me of Erik from “The lost Vikings”. The shoulder armor, however, gives me “World of Warcraft” flashbacks. Well, both are Blizzard. All in all, a nice skin.

Varus Swiftbold: (English name currently not known)

Varus-Swiftbold

Here, perhaps, a bow was crafted from the leftover parts of the “Trickster Tree” Hecarim and Malzahar had his hat taken away. But this shouldn’t be taken negatively. A nice alternative skin for Varus, in my opinion.

Wriggle Ward: (English name currently not known)

Dragon Ward

For those who want to customize their wards to match the new Tristana skin, there is also the little baby dragon in ward form. This only costs 640 Riot points. The other presented skins cost between 750 and 1350 Riot points, which corresponds to about 10€ to 15€.

Which one will be your “must-have”?

This news comes from our reader TheIllaChilla, who operates his own Youtube channel.

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

Destiny: Server down for maintenance on 12.11. [Update: Delayed]

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time < 1 minutes

Tonight, on Thursday, November 12th, maintenance is taking place for the MMO shooter Destiny . The servers are down, Destiny is unplayable. It is not known if a patch or update is coming.

Maintenance is scheduled for tonight. We do not know what will happen, whether anything will change in the game or not.

The schedule looks like this:

  • From 5:00 PM, players will no longer be able to log into Destiny.
  • From 6:00 PM, players will be removed from activities, the Destiny servers will be taken offline.
  • Around 8:00 PM, the servers are expected to be back up, and Destiny will be playable again.
  • Update: Maintenance is delayed by one hour. The current time is now 9:00 PM.
  • Update 2: Maintenance is delayed by another hour. 10:00 PM is now the target.
  • Update 3: The servers for PS3, PS4, Xbox One, and Xbox 360 should be back up now. Destiny should be playable again by around 9:40 PM.

Although a patch was announced for November, it seems more likely that nothing will change in the game tonight and only “scheduled maintenance” will take place. We will keep you updated.

During the maintenance and feeling like reading? Here is our new article on primary weapons recommended by Bungie’s statistics.

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

Bless: MMORPG hope postponed indefinitely

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

The Korean MMORPG Bless has now been postponed indefinitely. Some game elements may need to be fundamentally revised.

Bless Online is produced with Unreal Engine 3, featuring outstanding visual elements: The music is by Hans Zimmer, and the graphics are breathtaking. In the early stages of development, there’s hardly anything more important than trailers and great images. However, when players eventually get their hands on it, there needs to be more to offer.

For us, the first reports were enough to say “this is one of the most promising AAA MMORPGs” in a sparse market. However, there have been doubts in recent months.

Bless-Archer

Instead of Open Beta, first more focus group tests and a lot, lot of work

The game is now in its third Closed Beta in Korea, which, in a normal product cycle for an Asian MMORPG, is actually the last phase – often, there are months between the beta phases in Asia where nothing is heard about the game. However, after the third Closed Beta, it typically moves quickly towards release.

http://youtu.be/8HKTHn7EWrA

Not so with Bless. They have now pulled the emergency brake and said: We are postponing it indefinitely. Neowiz Studio wants to focus on 9 different important game elements and revise them. These include:

  • the server technology
  • the user interface
  • character generation
  • the quest system
  • and combat

In a smaller framework, further focus tests are to take place. The reactions to the last beta were mixed. It seems especially unclear what exactly speaks for the classic design of 2 factions and much PvP, apart from the great graphics.

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

Destiny: What do the four enemy races symbolize? Fan theories to smile and wonder

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 3 minutes

The philosopher fever has gripped the Destiny community. What could the four races in Destiny represent?

In Destiny, the story is vague. One of the developers once had a long discussion with a philosopher about Destiny and said it represents a journey and hope, and somehow everything stands for something else.

The Fallen, the Hive, the Cabal, and the Vex. These are the four hostile alien races in Destiny. In recent days, there has been a discussion on reddit about what these four races could be. Let’s summarize.

Apokalyptischen Reiter
The Apocalyptic Riders in a painting by Wiktor Wasnezow.

Theory 1: The Four Apocalyptic Riders

The first theory takes the 4 Riders of the Apocalypse from the Bible and draws comparisons. A reddit user came up with this theory during his lessons at a Catholic school.

The Hive is “Disease.” This can be seen in their sickly green skins and the brown of their grave ship. Each Hive hosts a parasitic worm.

The Fallen are “Hunger.” They search everywhere for Light, starving for it, their clothing is worn and tattered, their technology comes from the remnants of other civilizations.

The Cabal are “War,” their society is war, they lack culture and religion, they are solely focused on military efficiency and are damn good at it.

The Vex are “Death.” They make no fuss about how they achieve their goals. How did they kill Praedyth? They simply outlasted him. Their most powerful weapon is not a gun or a bomb, no, they think and you cease to exist. No fuss, just death.

Destiny-Vex

Theory 2: The 4 Alien Races are Possible Dystopian Future Fears

As a response, a second user approached the topic from a different angle. The 4 races could represent possible future versions of humanity if everything goes wrong.

The Fallen represent a kind of “Post-apocalypse.” Civilization has fallen apart, and all that remains are criminals who murder and plunder every day.

Destiny-Schar

The Cabal symbolize pure militarism and the rule of power, they are “War Lords” pursuing their own goals without any scruples. The technology makes everything even more dangerous than before.

The Vex represent uncontrolled technology, they stand for a reign of technology devoid of any humanity.

Ninja-Turtles

The Hive, on the other hand, could symbolize what misguided religion or a cult makes up, with all their pacts, their occult symbols, the supernatural ties – they would even have a third eye.

Theory 3: The 4 Alien Races Represent the Ninja Turtles

One third user found this too philosophical. He says: Dude, these are the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Destiny-Fallen

The Fallen are Raphael, a bit aggressive, a bit hot-headed, always driven by emotions.

The Vex are like Donatello, obsessed with knowledge and the study of nature. Also, Donatello is the artist’s favorite turtle, and the Vex are clearly Luke Smith’s favorite race.

The Cabal strongly resemble Michelangelo. Just like the Cabal, Michelangelo is roughly outlined, lacking much profile. Also, he once adopted a cat, just as the Cabal have recruited the Psions.

And the Hive are like Leonardo – the oldest race. Leonardo is also spiritual and … um … that would kind of fit.

And what do you think?

Well, a few people are pondering, and then irony comes in and takes the applause. It says something about our society.

What do you think? Are there any messages hidden in the four races in Destiny? Do they represent something? Do they symbolize typical pop culture tropes in which the human essence is distorted? Or is all this too much Cowabunga for you?

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