Changes are coming for the AD carries in the MOBA League of Legends. Crit weapons, runes, and effects will also be revised as part of this.
First, they want to wait for the World Championships before addressing the AD carries at Riot. It will happen similarly to how it was with the Juggernauts recently. They want to develop individual AD carries more thoroughly, more clearly define their roles, distinguish them from one another, and revise typical ADC items so there is a greater variety in item builds.
AD carries, or “Marksmen,” as Riot calls them, are the damage dealers of League of Legends that primarily rely on auto-attacks from a distance. They are played as glass cannons: hit like an elephant, take damage like a mosquito.
It should be more noticeable when a skilled player is using Caitlyn in League of Legends
So far, we only know excerpts of the developers’ plans for individual carries.
Most is known about Caitlyn. She is seen as a solid champion, but without a real identity, too interchangeable. They want to emphasize her as a sharpshooter that focuses on area control. Players would need to use her traps correctly, pay attention to their timing to shine with Caitlyn.
The difference between a player who is just trying Caitlyn and one who has mastered her should become more evident.
With Quinn, they also want to delve deeper. The champion has accumulated a huge bug thread on reddit. They want to tackle that and work through the mountain of bugs. They want to keep Quinn’s power as a solo laner but make her more playable and overall more cohesive.
Virtual Reality: How Close is Valve Already!
The virtual reality is on the rise. But how realistic it already is, is shown by an impressive video.
When your room is no longer your room
The development in the field of virtual reality can no longer be stopped. What was once distant futuristic music a few decades ago has long since outgrown its infancy with possibilities like the Oculus headset. However, few realize how close we have already come to complete illusions.
David Finsterwalder tests some demos of various virtual reality projects on his YouTube channel, including those from Steam operator Valve. You can see for yourself what it looks like when you suddenly find yourself in the office of an Aperture employee (from the game Portal) here:
Cortyn says: I find it impressive how incredibly good the landscapes and spaces already look. In some places, you can still see pixels and incomplete shadow effects – but it’s only a matter of time before these errors are fixed. The future with “Dive In” worlds, such as from Sword Art Online or the film eXistenZ, is coming closer. Whether that is good or bad is hard to predict. It’s definitely exciting.
Two of the five senses can already be immersed in the virtual world – it remains to be seen how long it will take for the last three to follow and fully transition into a game.
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Guild Wars 2: Next beta weekend will be raiding for the first time
The third and final beta weekend of the Guild Wars 2 expansion Heart of Thorns is approaching. For the first time, all elite specializations can be played!
All classes are available
From October 2nd to October 4th, the last beta weekend before the release of Heart of Thorns, the first expansion of Guild Wars 2, will take place. For the first time, players can choose freely between all elite specializations.
Those who have pre-ordered the expansion can even create a fresh character at level 80 right away and dive into the adventures of the Maguuma Jungle. Characters from earlier beta weekends have since been deleted – everyone has to start anew.
As in the previous beta events, only a small part of the expansion will be available for testing, to avoid spoiling the surprise with the launch.
Raid for the first time in Guild Wars 2
For the last weekend, ArenaNet is even opening up access to the raid – at least to the first boss. Anyone who wants can team up with nine other heroes and get a first impression of the new game content. Players must locate a missing group of Pact soldiers and will be interrupted during the execution, ultimately leading to the first boss fight.
For more about the upcoming expansion and the new elite specializations, you can find it on our Guild Wars 2 theme page.
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Destiny after level 40: What is the light level? How can you level up quickly?
In the MMO shooter Destiny , the light level plays a crucial role starting from level 40. What does light mean? How do you increase it?
The level-up, getting stronger in Destiny, works up to level 40 just as you are used to. Like in any other game with a level system, you gain experience and level up by killing enemies and completing quests.
But with level 40, a “new” system is added: the light level. Compared to the first year of Destiny, light now works differently.
What is the light level in Destiny?
The light level is the strength of the Guardian’s equipment. It is determined by taking the attack values of the equipped weapons and the defense values of the other equipped items and averaging them: the light level.
This is not just an “abstract value” that doesn’t matter. It is extremely important:
- Your light value determines how much damage your Guardian deals
- it determines how much damage your Guardian takes
- and it is the only criterion at level 40 that dictates how good the gear you get is. It determines the stats of your loot
Activities and enemies have a specific light level. If your Guardian is significantly below the enemy’s, they won’t take any damage from you and will hit like space horses. The more important realization is perhaps: the loot situation.
Both insights suggest that you should always aim to achieve the highest light level possible with your current gear.
Tips to increase the light level – a small leveling guide
The most important tip in our small leveling guide is, even if it sounds absurd: To increase the light level and level up quickly, you should always strive to have the highest light level possible. And that at the moment when you receive rewards.
And yes, this also means: A blue item with a high light level is better than a legendary or exotic item with a low light level.
Tip 1 for leveling quickly in Destiny: Increase light level to increase light level… and always take your time decoding engrams
This means in practice: If you’re standing in front of the Cryptarch with engrams and want to decode them, you should wear your highest gear. And if you get a stronger item, equip it before decoding more engrams.
If you have eight blue armor engrams and two purple (legendary) engrams, you should start with the blue engrams. Check after each one whether the new item would increase your light level if equipped before decoding the next engram in Destiny. Save the purple ones for last. Because then, hopefully, you will have a higher light level than at the beginning of the engram session.
Colleague Nexoss is doing this with the engrams… suboptimally, but still useful tips in the video, especially on how to get gear through the factions.
Tip 2: Strikes, Strikes, Strikes
Since with a low light level you only get inferior items from random rewards, you should not buy engrams from the Cryptarch for “legendary marks” for now. If you don’t have a high light level, they are of no use. You’d better save the legendary marks for later or to buy items with “fixed stats”. A ghost from the Vanguard is recommended, for example.
On the other hand, exotic engrams have a chance to drop armor pieces and weapons with particularly high light level (310) when you open them with a high light level (300 or above).
Otherwise, roughly speaking: If you have a light level of 250, you will receive items between 240 and 260. So that guarantees no better loot, but gives you the chance for it.
The first steps – reach light level 240
For the first steps, quests are crucial. Do the quests that you can solve without problems and from which you expect gear that helps you progress. Complete the main storyline. Most importantly, have fun!
The long way from 240 to 290 light in Destiny
Once you reach 240, you should start playing mostly strikes in the Vanguard playlist. These are level 36 strikes. You should repeat them over and over, preferably in a row, to activate the engram bonus. With the engrams you collect here, you should reach a solid level of around 290. You can connect this well with further quests.
The Court of Oryx event also drops a lot of blue engrams. And those are your best friends in this phase.
Things get tricky from 290 light onwards
From 290 onwards, it’s time for the King’s Fall raid. You can systematically collect and spend legendary marks, attempt the Nightfall, or start infusing weapons (currently the trick with the Black Spindle still works) to make the last 20 points from 290 to 310 (if you can even reach that high). Here, you switch from blue items to legendary ones, as they can be infused and further enhanced.
At this level, it’s also worth tackling the tough quests that end with exotic items, like the search for an exotic sword or the Raid weapon Malicious Touch.
For the last tricky points and the challenging passage from 290 to 300, we will make separate guides. More demanding activities are necessary for this, for which fixed teams are recommended.
Do you have tips on how to increase the light level? How have you progressed? Share your secrets with us!
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MMO Trends August: The rich get richer – Diablo 3, Hearthstone big winners
In the MMO trends for August, a clear picture emerges: The favorites are increasing their playtime. Leading the way are Diablo 3 and Hearthstone. However, some smaller titles are also achieving notable successes.
Please note: The statistics we have here reflect the play hours that users of the Raptr program spent on PC in various games during August. This is not an objective top 20, but trends can be discerned from these numbers, showing how the games performed compared to the previous month of July.
August was a good month for gaming. Playtime increased by about 9.4%.
The Rich Get Richer
And the big fish in the pond benefited significantly. League of Legends increased by 9% on an already sky-high level. Dota 2 gained 20%.
Also, World of Warcraft managed to recover somewhat from the more difficult times (rather surprisingly), gaining 8.7%. One of the first “big winners” comes with World of Tanks in 5th place. They increased by 18%.
Good Month for Blizzard
August was a strong month for Blizzard. They benefited from new game content. The Diablo 3 Patch 2.3 and the new Season 4 really brought life back to hell, with playtime shooting up by 91%. Let’s see how long the fresh embers keep the fire of enthusiasm burning.
Also, Hearthstone received a fresh expansion with the big tournament, consuming 30% more playtime in August.
Smite and Heroes of the Storm Struggling
Things don’t look so good for the “still in the race” MOBAs. Heroes of the Storm lost 8.9% of play hours despite all of Blizzard’s efforts.
The action MOBA Smite dropped out of the Top 10, losing 32.5% of playtime. That’s what you get when you’re in a genre with LoL and Dota 2.
Warframe, SWTOR, Final Fantasy 14 Holding Strong
Interest in Final Fantasy XIV remains strong with Heavensward. After a strong gain in July, the fantasy MMORPG FF14 climbed another rank in August. However, this trend may halt as the next patch is not expected until early November. Players are complaining: it is currently boring.
Also, Warframe and Star Wars: The Old Republic recorded significant increases in August. Thus, Star Wars: The Old Republic remains one of the success stories in 2015 despite all the naysayers. And that, even though the big bang, the expansion Knights of the Fallen Empire is still awaited. The stars are favorable for Star Wars: There is a new movie coming up.
MMORPGs – Missing
MMORPGs like The Elder Scrolls Online, ArcheAge, WildStar, or Guild Wars 2 are not in the Top 20.
- In the case of The Elder Scrolls Online, one might have expected to see it again after the buy-to-play transition. However, interest seems to have shifted to consoles.
- With Guild Wars 2, people are spending the year 2015 so far waiting for “Heart of Thorns.” It may take a while before we see any signs of movement here. Only in December, when the November numbers are available, should one expect a return.
- ArcheAge has been out for a while after a rapid success story; a return would be surprising.
- WildStar left the Top 20 regions a long time ago. If something happens due to the free-to-play transition at WildStar next Tuesday, that would certainly be a success.
Let’s wait and see what next month looks like when the data from September is available.
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World of Warships, World of Tanks: Wargaming’s plans for world conquest
Wargaming delivers not only strategic military MMOs like World of Warships or World of Tanks, but also approaches world conquest strategically.
In an interview with Gameindustry, the head marketer of Wargaming EU explained the strategy of his company. Thus, World of Tanks is particularly strong in Eastern Europe and Russia. For Wargaming, an important point: How do we conquer new markets?
Practically all countries that had strong tanks during World War II form the core countries for the success of World of Tanks. Players tended to buy the “iconic tanks” of their country – especially at the beginning of their Wargaming careers. Later, as they progressed as players, they tried vehicles from other countries.
World of Warships launches with Japan and the USA, as these are the markets Wargaming aims for
With World of Warships, the aim is to win back former World of Tanks players and give them something fresh. But also to excite new players, “war game enthusiasts” as they say.
Therefore, World of Warships is keeping an eye on players from countries that did not have a powerful armored force during World War II, but had a strong navy instead. It is also targeting countries where Wargaming wants to expand. That is why World of Warships is starting with the Japanese and the American fleets. Both countries have been identified by Wargaming as growth regions.
Not only is the core market, the PC, booming, but they are also strong on consoles. World of Tanks is performing particularly well on Xbox. Now they are looking forward to expanding with World of Tanks on the Playstation as well. They particularly highlight that players will not need Playstation Plus for the free-to-play title. Playstation players can also look forward to some goodies.
The move to consoles makes sense for Wargaming as it allows them to reach and engage younger audiences. One of the next goals is for the older generation of fathers, who are mainly interested in military history, to play together with their sons, who come more from the shooter corner.
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Guild Wars 2 gets a healer with the Druid
Finally, there are more details about the Druid, the new elite specialization of the Ranger in Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns – and he seems to be a genuine healer…
The Power of Nature
Yesterday, ArenaNet published a blog entry about the new Ranger specialization that all players can look forward to with the Guild Wars 2 expansion Heart of Thorns. Contrary to what many expected, the Druid will be a true healer and can support his allies in various ways. The “ceiling for survivability and healing power” is expected to be noticeably raised. This allows teammates to opt for more aggressive builds, while others can focus entirely on support.
The Staff – the Connection to the Forest
As already mentioned in the teaser image, the Druid will also wield a staff as a weapon. He draws from the primal forces of the Maguuma jungle, which grant him not only powerful healing abilities but also allow him to perform quick positional changes. Here are a few examples of his abilities:
- The Arcane Wisp is spoken on an enemy. It circles the opponent and heals allies every time it touches them on its way around.
- The Solar Beam is channeled on an enemy and damages them. However: Allies within the beam will be healed for its duration.
- The Grace of the Ancestors transforms the Druid into a wisp that quickly moves towards a chosen target location. Upon arrival, all nearby allies are healed.
The Celestial Avatar – The Savior of Every Raid Group?
While the Druid uses abilities and casts spells, he continuously accumulates Astral Power – a new resource for the Ranger. Once it reaches its maximum, the Druid can transform into a Celestial Avatar, granting him access to new weapon abilities. The healing, support, and elite abilities of the Ranger can still be used during Avatar form. In this form, the Ranger can even bring extremely weakened groups back into combat readiness – this sounds like a typical “Oh shit button”. Here are a few more examples:
- For the Cosmic Ray, a target area is selected. All allies in that area will be healed.
- The Moon Strike fulfills two tasks at once: A gigantic beam is summoned that damages enemies while simultaneously healing allies – so the Druid can also provide the necessary DPS.
- Particularly exciting is the Natural Convergence. The Druid channels a spell and inflicts crippling and slowing effects on enemies within range. Those who are still within its effect radius at the end of the spell will be pulled into a black hole and immobilized.
New Animal Companions in the Maguuma Jungle
A handful of new animal companions are a must, so Rangers should keep their eyes particularly open in the Maguuma jungle.
Along with various Wyvern species that each dominate an element (such as fire or electricity), there are also more traditional animals like the Tiger, which impress with their quick leap attacks. Those who prefer something larger can tame a Smoke Scale – a dinosaur variant that can create a large cloud of smoke to hide in.
With his massive healing power, the Ranger is sure to secure a place in many raid groups, which also appear new with Heart of Thorns.
For more on the upcoming expansion and other elite specializations, check out our Guild Wars 2 theme page.
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SWTOR: The first 7 minutes from Knights of the Fallen Empire!
The release of the latest SWTOR expansion Knights of the Fallen Empire is approaching. A video now shows the first 7 minutes of the story.
The Attack of the Eternal Empire
Knights of the Fallen Empire is supposed to be THE story expansion of Star Wars: The Old Republic. Recently, the developer BioWare even reinforced their writers’ team by bringing Drew Karpyshyn back on board, who was already significantly involved in the original 8 class stories.
IGN had the opportunity to record the first 7 minutes of the latest expansion and upload it to YouTube. The arrival of the Sith Warrior at the remaining forces of the Imperial fleet and the plans for the future of the Empire can be seen. We certainly don’t want to withhold the video from you, but beware: it logically contains spoilers.
It’s exactly one month until all subscribers can enjoy KotFE and prove themselves as outsiders. Will the players be up to the challenge of the immortal Emperor Valkorion? Find out starting October 27!
More about Knights of the Fallen Empire and the current changes can be found on our SWTOR topic page.
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Destiny: The next Iron Banner will lack its most important feature
In the MMO shooter Destiny , the Iron Banner will return without its most famous feature.
Last night, the Game Director of “The Taken King”, Luke Smith, tweeted that there will be no reforging in the Iron Banner. Probably not with other legendary weapons and armor either.
Clarification Station: Reforging will NOT be returning on Iron Banner/Legendary weapons or armor.
— Luke Smith (@thislukesmith) September 25, 2015
From the very beginning, the key gimmick in the Iron Banner was the reforging of weapons. This allowed players to re-roll a “base model” and receive a new version of it, as if they had “dropped” the weapon again. Weapons in Destiny stay the same in their base values but can have different properties within certain parameters, which in turn can change the weapon’s values.
Destiny experts turned optimal reforging into almost a science, calculating exactly how individual perks affected the weapon’s effectiveness. There were extensive lists and debates about whether the tracking property for shotguns was preferable over the competing property of Sardine Can or not. Countless videos, articles, and debates revolved around the topic.
Identifying Reforging as a Long-standing Problem in Destiny
Smith does not provide reasons for the removal of reforging. A few months ago, however, the “optimized weapons” with perfectly rolled perks were already identified as a problem, because these hyper-optimized killing machines disrupted the entire balance, especially optimally rolled shotguns like the Felwinter in the Crucible caused significant issues.
While in “House of Wolves” reforging was extended beyond the Iron Banner, allowing practically everything to be re-rolled, it seems Bungie is now taking a different approach, moving away from this concept in “The Taken King”.
We currently do not know when the next Iron Banner will return. The next Trials of Osiris in Destiny also have no date yet. Both PvP events took a short break, it was said before The Taken King.
If you don’t want to miss any information about Destiny, follow our author Schuhmann on Twitter or subscribe to Mein MMO on FB.
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Guild Wars 2: The Heart of Thorns launch trailer is really good
During Guild Wars 2 the launch trailer for the expansion “Heart of Thorns” was presented. And it really is something special.
This weekend the Twitchcon is taking place in San Francisco. Guild Wars 2 is prominently featured there, presenting the latest information and details about “Heart of Thorns”, the first expansion for Guild Wars 2.
The launch trailer includes the crucial characters and moments. You see the jungle dragon Mordremoth, the antagonist of the add-on, and his close relationship with the Sylvari, and can admire Rytlock, the Revenant, in full action-hero pose and there’s a lot to enjoy.
Great piece! What do you think?
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Heroes of the Storm indicates balance changes, new heroes at Blizzcon
Following the American Heroes of the Storm championship, there were some interviews with the developers about the future of the game. They hinted at balance changes and much more.
Interviews Provide New Information
Currently, there are some issues with Heroes of the Storm. Particularly under discussion are the two supporters Tyrande and Tassadar, who will soon receive some improvements. The developers also shared a few words about the plans for BlizzCon and the proposed ban system. We have summarized the key statements for you.
2 Supporters That Should Finally Support
Adjustments for Tyrande and Tassadar are in their final stages. Both supporters can deal solid damage, but often fail miserably at their actual task: supporting. While no concrete statements are made yet, improvements to Tyrande’s healing and a strengthening of Tassadar’s shields would be consistent conclusions that will likely come for all fans of Elf and Protoss with the next big patch.
Rexxar – Not All Warriors Are Tanks!
Many players are dissatisfied with the new warrior Rexxar, who fights alongside the bear Misha. Although the character was played several times during the tournament, he is unpopular with the community. It is often said that he has little potential to serve as a real tank. In response, the developers clarified: Not every warrior should be able to tank equally well! Within the warrior class, there would be further subordinate roles.
For example, Johanna is a strong tank, while Leoric especially handles minion waves quickly. Other warriors, like Sonya, are suited for dealing high damage. The criticism that Rexxar would be useless once Misha is dead is met relatively casually: Misha is an important part of Rexxar. If she is missing, players should notice that as well.
Balancing and Bans
There has been a long discussion about a ban system, as seen inLeague of Legends orSMITE. The developers are currently dissatisfied that certain heroes are continually targeted. Zeratul has a ban rate of 100% in almost all tournaments, even though according to Blizzard’s internal data he is not overpowered. His win rate is close to 50%, yet he is feared.
At the same time, a ban system would raise the barrier for newcomers, as players would need to own more than 10 heroes to participate in ranked games.
In general, the balance of heroes should aim so that not every character is always banned or conversely played in every single match.
BlizzCon – New Heroes?
A brief discussion also took place about BlizzCon. UnlikeWorld of Warcraft or StarCraft, there will be no major expansions for Heroes of the Storm that can be introduced. Fans are wondering what Blizzard can present at the company event. The answer to that was likely anticipated by many: “We are already internally testing a lot of heroes. So there’s a good chance that we will present some of them at BlizzCon.”
We can look forward to who will make it into the game next. I still hope for Azshara and Lady Vashj…
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Battleborn: The Rogue, a mix of Handsome Jack and Vampire
In the upcoming MOBA/shooter Battleborn the villain has been introduced: Rendain. He is a villain who sees himself as the good guy, loves grand appearances and speeches. Doesn’t that sound like Handsome Jack?
The Borderlands series by Gearbox is known for excellent villains, foremost being Handsome Jack. For the story campaign of Battleborn, the developers’ new team shooter/MOBA, a villain with style has also been cast: Rendain.
Villain is 20,000 years old …
Rendain is 20,000 years old, has served his race, the Jennerit, in the empire for a long time, worked his way up, and is now at the top after the fall of the empress, in which he was not uninvolved. For a long time, he tried to stop the annihilation of the stars by the Varelsi. In the last 20 years, he and his people have switched sides.
For Rendain everything revolves around the survival of purebred Jennerit, an ancient pragmatic race of conquerors. How the survival of the Jennerit, Rendain’s actions, and the extinction of the stars are interconnected will be revealed to players in the story campaign of Battleborn.
… and hates it when his subordinates squirm in fear
The Jennerit Empire operates under the motto “At any cost” and this pragmatic approach is also reflected in Rendain. He always has difficulty communicating with his subordinates, as they squirm in fear of him.
However, Rendain would never simply incinerate a subordinate; he is much too focused on efficiency: not wasting good resources.
As Gearbox states, Rendain has the stature of a great villain, loves spectacular appearances, and enjoys giving speeches. However, the parallels to Handsome Jack end here. Ruthless? Maybe! Crazy? Definitely not. Jack’s selfish behavior is also foreign to him; he is focused on the survival of his people.
The heroes of Battleborn are dealing with an aristocrat who has had 20,000 years to become a master strategist and warrior. Perhaps someone like that will prove to be even more dangerous than the handsome Jack.
Battleborn will be released on February 9, 2016, for PC, Xbox One, and Playstation 4. You can find out how to sign up for the Battleborn beta here.
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TERA: End of the Speedrun Tournament Brings Free Gifts for All Players!
About 2 weeks ago, the Dungeon Tournament in TERA concluded. Now the winners have been announced and bonuses have also been awarded to all players.
Onslaught of the Elin Horde
For almost a month, the players of TERA pondered more effective ways to tackle certain dungeons in less and less time. The tournament has already ended on September 5, but now the material of all participants has been reviewed and the winners in the various categories have been declared.
The Face Tank team from the Fraya server ultimately prevailed in the final among the 54 teams, completing the Dungeon Tear in the difficult mode in a blazing fast 10:28 minutes. Also interesting are the numbers that have been released: The most popular class in the tournament was the Priest, while the Mystic was the least represented. The most popular race was – how could it be otherwise – the Elin, with only one player wanting to embody a Baraka. The tribute video featuring the winners and finalists can be viewed here:
Free Code for Everyone
To celebrate the finale, the goddess Velik is giving out free gifts to all players – don’t ask where she suddenly got an internet connection from. Players just need to log in to their Gameforge account (our link takes you to the account) and enter the following under the “Enter Code” menu: TOURNAMENT2015
If entered correctly, you will receive two new potions and Veliks Snow Magic lasting for 7 days in the item distribution in the game. But hurry! The code is only valid until October 2, after which it will expire.
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The Secret World: Hoverboard is live, can do more than in “Back to the Future”
The dark fantasy MMORPG The Secret World has introduced hoverboards that conceal the player.
Recently, we showed a short teaser. Now they are a reality, well at least a virtual reality: hoverboards.
In The Secret World, these are premium items available in the item shop. The hoverboard here can do even more than in “Back to the Future”, thanks to state-of-the-art Orochi technology, players can not only hover but also switch to a “Veil Mode”. There, the hoverboarder is hidden from monsters. Unless they spawn as part of a mission or lie in wait for players.
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Destiny: There is no ten-year plan, rather trial and error
In Destiny , developers contradict several circulating myths such as the famous ten-year plan.
I drive a Honda Civic, I know shit about 500 million dollars
“Destiny – the huge project, with the 10 year plan and a 500 million dollar budget,” that became the story, the history of Destiny in the first year. Community and Marketing Manager Eric Osborne vehemently contradicted this in an interview with the print magazine Edge. It was allowed that exactly this 10 year plan and the huge budget dictated the discussion about Destiny.
“I drive a Honda Civic. I know shit about 500 million dollars,” Osborne explained. “And a 10 year PLAN? It’s a contract for 10 years. That has nothing to do with development. It is ridiculous that people believe we planned everything in detail 10 years in advance.”
It was allowed that the budget and the 10 year plan dictated the discussion about Destiny, which made Bungie a faceless company instead of a group of people who passionately created a great game.
The first year was necessary to reach the current state
These statements from Osborne also match others from Luke Smith, the Game Director of The Taken King. In an interview with Polygon, he also touched upon the feeling of players that Destiny only really begins now with “The Taken King”. Everything before was just a beta.
According to Smith, we are only at this point now because we overcame the first year with all its difficulties. From the outside, everything always seems so simple and straightforward. As if everything should have been anticipated. For Smith, one of the crucial factors in development is experiencing Destiny as a player.
Identified problems in the light system shortly after the release
We are at this point now because we made mistakes in the first year, recognized them, and improved them. In the endgame of Destiny 1, there was only the raid “The Vault of Glass”, nothing else, otherwise players would have only had to do things they had already done. Even with progression, they tried different approaches. From all of this, from all the data, we learned. But we needed time to implement it.
They wanted to get rid of the complicated light system from the release days early, recognizing shortly after the release the problems with it. However, the light system was so deeply embedded in the whole game that they knew they would only be able to address it in the transition to year 2.
“We take it damn seriously that we want to make Destiny better,” Smith continued. “And as much as we hope to have improved Destiny with The Taken King, we know: Our work is not finished, we will continue to work on improving it”
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WildStar: Nexus shines in a new light
In WildStar, the number of light sources is significantly increased. This improves the visuals but also consumes more performance.
Flickering Fire and Shining Stars
Next week marks the transition of WildStar to a Free2Play model. In addition to many changes and improvements to the gameplay experience, the graphics of the SciFi MMORPG will also receive some polishing, as many areas will be equipped with new light sources.
Formerly monotonous textures, such as grassy landscapes or large stone walls, will become quite appealing areas of the environment that fit well with the respective atmosphere. Especially the light sources from stars or campfires are expected to cast the game in a noticeably more beautiful light.
Check out the improved graphics on the Nexus
Unfortunately, with the patch on Tuesday not all areas will yet be equipped with new light sources. Until this has been done across the entire game world, several updates will occur – at least in the starting areas, the effects are noticeably felt.
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Diablo 3 patches, bans, announces bonus weekend
There is a lot going on in Diablo 3 this week. After the excitement about an exploit, bans were issued. Now a bonus weekend is on the way.
We reported on the Hellfire Amulet. There was an exploit that allowed players to activate all passives of their class. Blizzard had already said: We don’t like that at all. Don’t do it, we will punish you.
Ban affects some popular streamers
And that’s exactly how it happened. With a patch, the exploit was closed, and an attempt was made to reduce lag caused by Hell Tooth Witch Doctors.
As part of the patch, there was a wave of bans, accounts were permanently closed. The ban wave was quite large since Blizzard could precisely track who had multiple passives active and who did not.
Blizzard announced:
- Everyone who had more passives active than allowed was removed from the leaderboards for now.
- Those who did it by accident were forgiven.
- Those who repeatedly used the exploit received an account penalty and a warning.
- And those who excessively used the exploit and promoted it were permanently banned.
The ban wave caused quite a stir because the permanent account loss also affected some prominent streamers. Naturally, they are the ones who can spread such an exploit.
The discussion in the Diablo community right now is whether Blizzard also bans bot users. Apparently, some streamers have taken to having bots farm the necessary keys for Greater Rifts off-stream, to then showcase the Greater Rifts, the exciting stuff, to an audience. But that’s obviously hard to track.
Bonus weekend announced
A bonus weekend is active since this morning for PC and consoles. Bounties give double the usual rewards until Sunday night (for PC) or early Monday morning (for consoles).
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Heroes of the Storm: What Medic Lt. Morales can do, the next HotS hero
Blizzard has now released more details about the next character in Heroes of the Storm, the Medic Lt. Morales. Check out her abilities.
Can I please see your insurance card?
The number of playable heroes in Heroes of the Storm is growing relentlessly. After Blizzard presented the skins of the new character Lt. Morales in a “Currently in Development” video last week, they are now following up with her healing abilities.
Gamespot was given an exclusive look at Lt. Morales and was able to take a closer look at her combat skills.
Let’s forget the medical history and get straight to the next of kin
To put it in one sentence: Lt. Morales will be a very, very annoying opponent. But let’s take a closer look at her:
- As long as Lt. Morales does not take damage for 4 seconds, she heals 3% of her maximum health every second thanks to her passive ability Caduceus Reactor.
- The Healing Beam heals an ally every 0.5 seconds as long as that ally stays within range. Reactivating the ability allows for a new target to be selected. Like in StarCraft 2, the Healing Beam has no cooldown.
- For Safeguard, a single ally must also be selected, who will take drastically reduced damage for 3 seconds.
- Her offensive ability is the Displacement Grenade, which explodes upon contact with an enemy. It deals medium damage and knocks nearby enemies back (similar to Tychus).
- The first heroic ability is the Medivac. Lt. Morales designates any target location on the map and then boards the summoned transport ship. Allies have 4 seconds to get on the ship before all players are transported to the indicated position.
- The second heroic ability is the Stim Drone, making Lt. Morales every assassin’s favorite friend. For a whopping 10 seconds, an ally’s attack speed is increased by 75% and their movement speed by 25%.
Congratulations! You are my first patient! The very first!
Those who have already experienced Medics in the StarCraft 2 campaign know how incredibly annoying they can be. The abilities already hint that Lt. Morales will influence games in a similarly strong way, making her the primary target for the opponent. Since Morales cannot heal herself with her abilities, good positioning on the battlefield is essential to maximize her passive ability. If Lt. Morales is isolated or attacked by more than one assassin, she will hardly be able to defend herself.
It will still take a few weeks before she is available in the game. Blizzard has just postponed the launch of the test server on which she was supposed to be made accessible.
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Skyforge abolishes the clan system, attracts new players
The free-to-play MMORPG Skyforge has not been “on the market” for long (although it is still technically considered an open beta), yet there are already significant changes: The clan system is being abolished and the catch-up system introduced.
Clans are like a sword in the hand of a knight for an MMORPG. But the Allods team is completely abolishing clans. With the new update Aelion’s Call, the existing clan system is no longer available. This change is a direct consequence of player feedback. Originally, the developers had planned for the pantheons to split into smaller, permanent player groups known as “permanent teams” or “const parties.” However, it appears that this did not work out.
From now on, there will be a new and clearly more traditional guild management. This will easily display the name, the amount of prestige, the location, comments, and an overview of the members’ donations. There will also be no more structures that determine the number and capacity of clans, and the upgrades for the conference hall and the gallery have been consolidated into pantheon chambers.
Many Changes for Guilds
There are now 21 pantheon chambers. You determine the rank of the pantheons, how many members and commanders you have available. Although there are no more clans, guilds need to be managed, which is done through the commanders. Anyone who wants to become a commander must be democratically elected by the other members. Additionally, it is now not possible to switch to another pantheon for seven days after joining one.
This is intended to avoid “guild hopping” that many players have engaged in to quickly get through all the distortions. Through the distortion meter, it is now possible to store a distortion from the current series and up to four from the previous ones. By improving the meter, more distortions can be stored. To build a distortion meter, one must have defeated at least one End Boss from the previous distortion series.
Good Timing for Newcomers to Join
In addition, the developers are introducing a new catch-up system. Those who are just starting to play usually need some time to catch up to players who have been around for a while. This can be frustrating for some. Therefore, new players now have the opportunity to gain more mastery particles, Sparks of Insight, and class sparks by completing weekly promo adventures. However, one must have reached at least 1357 prestige points to do so.
This way, newcomers can gain an additional 3,000, 7,000, and 10,000 colored sparks in the first three weeks, respectively. After that, you still have further weeks to increase the pace (20,000, 40,000, and so on). This helps you to close the gap faster with players who have been playing longer than you. Once you have caught up to other higher-level players to play with them, the effect of the boost gradually diminishes. Those with 36087 prestige or more will be able to enjoy promo adventures that provide additional limits for Tactical Insight.
So there are indeed significant changes in the MMORPG Skyforge. Surely a reason why the online game is still officially in open beta. That way, there is a slight “excuse” for all the major changes, as one is still in the testing phase. If you want to know more about the action-packed free-to-play MMO, check out our theme page for Skyforge. It is among the three largest free-to-play releases in MMORPGs in 2015.
Interested in Skyforge? You can sign up and get started on the official website sf.my.com.
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My MMO asks: Secrets – explore them yourself or consult a guide?
MMOs are often filled with secrets. We want to know from you: Do you like searching for them or do they feel like a tedious chore?
Secrets – Annoying Chore or Exciting Variety?
In a time where more and more game content is presented to gamers on a platter and tools like a “content finder” have become commonplace in the gaming world, secrets in MMORPGs are becoming increasingly significant. The hidden little details that give the game a very special touch and perhaps reveal more of what is becoming less popular with the mass audience: lore secrets, quiet places, and more details about the game world.
Games like Guild Wars 2 are bursting with hidden locations, such as the numerous jumping puzzles where you often have to invest several hours of gameplay just to find the entrance to the labyrinth. If you don’t feel like constantly searching for these things yourself, you can simply ask Google and have the problem solved in just 3 clicks. Today we want to know from you: How do you deal with secrets in the game? Do you search for them yourself or do you consult a guide for help?
Cortyn says: I really enjoy secrets in games. A good example of this are the lootable treasures introduced with Mists of Pandaria in World of Warcraft. They were small, hard to discover, and you could easily finish the addon without discovering a single treasure. In Warlords of Draenor, it lost some of its magic – there were many more treasures, and most of them were located in obvious positions. You also rarely had to search long, as a specific map could display all treasures.
Anyone who didn’t want to search simply used an add-on that revealed all locations. That had nothing to do with a real “secret,” especially after it became a requirement for flying.
For me, secrets, even very small ones, are a great incentive to play. I get excited when I find things that I know only a small portion of the players will see. It doesn’t even have to be tied to a special reward; often the prospect of a hidden place or two lines of additional NPC dialogue is enough to motivate me to keep looking for secrets in every nook and cranny in my next game.
But now let’s talk about you! What do you think of secrets in MMORPGs? Do you grab a guide and check them off to get it over with? Do you prefer to explore on your own? Or do you search until you find nothing more and then turn to the internet for help? Discuss with us in the comments!
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