Description

Dawid Hallmann Dawid Hallmann Reading time 2 minutes

[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][vc_column_text]The MMO game Planetside 2 is primarily characterized by its massive battles. While games like Battlefield feature up to 64 players competing against each other, Planetside 2 accommodates up to 1,800 players on a huge battlefield.

Planetside 2 ScreenshotThe game follows a free-to-play model. However, those who wish can unlock new weapons and other gadgets for real money.

In terms of gameplay, Planetside 2 may initially seem quite similar to other first-person shooters. However, there are many details to consider that can initially overwhelm the player. It is worth overcoming this entry barrier, as the game rewards it with very intense battles that are rarely offered in other games.

And although it is not an online role-playing game, you encounter similar mechanics here: you are always striving to collect new weapons and equipment, and over time, the character develops further. This genre is commonly referred to as MMOFPS (The FPS stands for First Person Shooter, which denotes the typical first-person perspective in such games).

Planetside 2 – Fair Free to Play Model

Planetside 2 Ego-Shooter

The F2P model in Planetside 2 is thankfully hardly noticeable negatively. Even those who invest not a single cent in the game have a fair chance at any time.

The strongest items in the shop are indeed very expensive, but they are not necessarily required. Overall, Planetside 2 ranks among the best F2P shooters and is therefore highly recommended for any fan of the genre.

Features

The MMO Planetside 2 offers numerous interesting features that make it a true crowd favorite.

  • Massive Battles
    • In Planetside 2, players experience not only battles between a few dozen troops but also between thousands of troops, making the game dynamic and unpredictable.
  • Huge Open World
    • Players immerse themselves in an online world of gigantic size. The maps cover several dozen square kilometers and can be seamlessly traversed.
  • Human Intelligence
    • Since you play the F2P MMO shooter PS2 with and against real players, meaning you have no AI to deal with, battles can sometimes last several days and require a high level of teamwork.
  • Join an Empire
    • At the very beginning of the game, players have the option to join an empire, and this choice will affect the entire future gameplay. The advantage is that every player can join an empire that suits their nature. Do you want to take on the role of a rebel, freedom fighter, or terrorist? The choice is yours.
  • Wide Variety of Weapons
    • Players have access to numerous weapons and vehicles that they can partially unlock or purchase. These differ from one another and offer various possibilities for the further course of the game.

http://youtu.be/Fb90FBLfPBA[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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

The Elder Scrolls Online will slow down in 2015 – focus on consoles

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 4 minutes

The fantasy MMO The Elder Scrolls Online will not maintain the same pace in 2015 as it did in 2014. According to Game Director Matt Firor, it is time to let TESO breathe.

The Elder Scrolls Online was developed at full steam in 2014. Core systems of the game were completely overhauled, and new features such as the Justice and Champion system were developed. This extreme redesign of The Elder Scrolls Online will now come to an end, according to Game Director Matt Firor in a discussion on Reddit.

The focus is on Tamriel Unlimited and the console port

Matt Firor Zenimax
Producer Matt Firor.

In the future, the focus will be more on bringing new adventures. The time for major system changes is over for now. So much new content has been brought in a short time that we need to take a breather and ensure everyone is on the same page. Alone with 1.6 comes a complete rebalancing of all abilities – we won’t do that again quickly, for example.

Update 6 will be the last major update before the launch on consoles. Currently, the focus is on bringing Tamriel Unlimited (the Buy2Play version) to PC and then managing the console launch.

The Game Director of The Elder Scrolls Online, Matt Firor, in the original text:

We are not going to keep up our 2014 pace of updates in 2015 – and our future update pace will focus more on new adventures and game experiences than system changes. It’s time to let the game breathe a little – we’ve done so many new features so quickly that we want to make sure everyone is on the same page with us. 1.6 alone has a complete rebalancing of most player abilities – we don’t want to do that again, for example. Our #1 priority right now is getting Tamriel Unlimited launched on PC, and then focusing on a successful console launch. While we do those things, we have other teams already working on DLC and expect to see that start rolling out at some point after console launch settles down.

The Elder Scrolls Online Kargstein

Imperial City and Spellweaving?

In the same discussion on Reddit, players also ask about the two big ideas that are still missing from the planning. The Imperial City and its redesign of the PvP zone Cyrodiil and the Spellweaving, through which players can generate new abilities.

“Spellweaving” is still planned for the future. There was little concrete information about the “Imperial City” in the question session, likely because the PvP expert, Brian Wheeler, was not present.

After February, not much will likely happen in TESO until the end of the year

My MMO says: This may be the ugly side of the console transition now. In the coming months, not much else is likely to happen once Update 6 is here.

Next week, Update 6 is coming to the test server, it may go live in February, the transition to Buy2Play will occur in March, and the console port will be in June.

The Elder Scrolls Online Farbspiele

This is indeed a lot of work, without much changing for existing players in the world of Tamriel. Then perhaps at Zenimax, we will see that after the summer, in autumn and winter 2015, the first DLCs for The Elder Scrolls Online can be released, with new content, but probably without major changes to the game systems.

One can be curious about how all this will function: Especially since with Update 6 only a “provisional” Champion system and the first phase of the justice system will go live. The further phases of these systems, the Imperial City, and also the Spellweaving must then be planned as a “non-paid” part of DLCs towards the end of the year or for 2016.

TESO-Tamriel-Unlimited

These “DLCs” will more or less replace the current updates and have a paid part (new zones, dungeons, quests) and a “free” part that will then bring such “systems for everyone”. Or one can also detach them and then say: PvP with the Imperial City is only for subscribers. These will be exactly the important questions that will be raised in the future. What is premium content and what is part of the basic equipment in The Elder Scrolls Online?

We had predicted the console port in our forecast for September 2015, then there would have been more time to complete the existing plans. Apparently, Zenimax does not have that much time. A lot of work will now go into areas that do not directly and quickly benefit players. One can only hope that for PC players and TESO veterans there will not be a content drought from the end of February (Update 6 arrives) until the first DLC (maybe August/September).

The developer team of The Elder Scrolls Online answered Reddit users in a large question session. For the part that deals with the details of the console port, go here.

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

Destiny: Bungie sponsors Sparrow Freestyle Event

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

Tricks with the Sparrow are a big deal in the MMO shooter Destiny. Now there’s a kind of rodeo on Mars with prizes to be won, coming directly from Bungie.

The fan site “That Wizard came from the moon” is announcing the first annual interplanetary Sparrow freestyle championship. And they have a pretty crazy video for it. To participate in the event, the EV-30-Tumbler is needed along with a YouTube channel. In the German client, it’s called the Sparrow S-30 Tumbler.

The Tumbler was given to pre-order customers of the DLC “Darkness Awaits”. Only with this so-called “stunt-Sparrow” are some of the advanced tricks possible – we have summarized a few of them.

http://youtu.be/8nBLaoHgSiQ

To participate in the competition, you should record a video of your best Sparrow tricks. The video should definitely take place on Mars. You will then post this highlight reel with the hashtag #TWCFTM by no later than February 7 on your YouTube channel. Then a complicated selection process will take place, and the winners will be announced on February 22. Further details can be found here.

For the first place, there is to win an original framed artwork from Destiny in three panels that shows a fireteam on Mars (so to speak, a “RL” painting that serves as a template for the aesthetics in the digital game). Bungie has announced that they will look into whether there are more prizes available.

Destiny-Sparrow-Tumbler

Looks like a lot of fun, or as the organizers say: “If your Sparrow isn’t on fire, you’re not doing it right.”

Sparrow racing was the hype last year – will the trend return?

Experimenting and tricking with the Sparrow is one of the “iconic” things to do in Destiny. A few months after release, there was a real hype when Guardians discovered what was possible with the Sparrow. Suddenly, Guardians were jumping on the Sparrow over the Hellmouth, performing the craziest tricks or even dancing.

The enthusiasm was so great for a short time that Bungie assigned someone to create a special stunt-Sparrow, the Tumbler S-30, which then served as a bonus for Darkness Awaits and may have influenced some in their purchasing decision.

By now, the Sparrow enthusiasm has died down a bit. Maybe this event can reignite the fire.

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

H1Z1: New patch aims to solve loot problems, stealth makes stealthier

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

A new patch is coming for H1Z1 . It is supposed to solve the loot problems and hide nameplates when players are sneaking.

The zombie MMO H1Z1 is still working on the details. The loot scarcity plagues the game in Early Access still. Especially since the servers are relatively full, but the containers and the world are so empty. This makes the game seem much more boring than intended, as hardly anyone finds anything good. In some reports, H1Z1 is even referred to as the “Boredom” or “Blueberry” simulator. On reddit, a user laid down a message made of rotten meat, stating that it is the only thing he finds.

In the meantime, it seemed that SOE had fixed the problem, but that didn’t last long. Because the “respawn” of the loot caused issues. In the current patch, which is supposed to be rolled out on Friday night to Saturday, they want to fix it. SOE is confident that it will succeed this time.

H1Z1-Polizei-Station
The red placeholder models are possible spawn locations for items.

Another change: When players crouched, basically switching to a kind of “stealth mode,” their nameplates were still clearly visible until now. Players extensively mocked this rather illogical oversight, as the time for such jokes like “Wow, you’re such a ninja. I have no idea where you are!” should come to an end.

The H1Z1 servers are scheduled to go down at 0:45 and remain down for 2 hours.

The complete patch notes in English:

  • Revised loot spawn rules
  • Your nameplate will not display while prone.
  • Fixed Metal Doors to open/close/lock/unlock properly.
  • Punji stick traps, dew collectors, and rabbit traps will now slowly decay over time. They can be repaired with a hammer.
  • Punji sticks have lower health and should be a little easier to remove.
  • Spool of twine now has a unique icon.
  • The arrow recipe now produces one arrow instead of two.
  • Increased placed barricade resistance to damage.
  • Slightly raised the chance to harvest usable cloth from dead zombies.
  • Metal pipes, metal sheets, and hunting rifles can be melted down in furnaces for metal bars.
  • There were two Calamity (EU) servers. One has been renamed to Collapse (EU). Please check the green character indicator on the far left of server select to see if which server your character is on.
  • The ground tamper item has been disabled and the recipe to make it is no longer discoverable
  • Improved Vehicle Survivability
  • Rotten food has been removed from the fridge spawners
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

The Elder Scrolls Online: Controller support for PC is coming, but it takes time

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

In the fantasy MMO The Elder Scrolls Online, TESO will be playable with a controller on PC, and players on the Playstation 4 will be able to use a keyboard.

We recently hinted that PC players may soon be able to use a controller to play TESO in “Skyrim” style.

The good news: This has now been officially confirmed.

The bad news: It will take longer than many had hoped, as was confirmed by Zenimax in a large open Q&A on reddit (along with a mountain of other details). The ability to play The Elder Scrolls Online with a controller on PC is only planned for a time after the console launch in June.

PC players are also expected to take over direct voice chat from the consoles. That is also planned for a time after June.

Later, players will also experience the console UI on PC. For this console interface, Zenimax will also draw inspiration from some popular add-ons for PC TESO, as there will be no “add-on” support on the consoles.

Conversely, it will be possible to plug a keyboard into the Playstation 4 to use the “chatbox” and message.

TESO - Tamriel Unlimited - The Elder Scrolls Online

Own mega-servers for PS4 and XBox One – the planned resolution and other details

Further technical and organizational details about “TESO on consoles” have also been announced:

  • The planned resolution for Xbox One and Playstation 4 is 1080p/30fps.
  • In the long term, they want to allow Playstation players to play The Elder Scrolls Online on the go using a PS Vita; they have already experimented with this. However, it is not guaranteed that such a “remote support” will be ready by the console launch in June. At the moment, there are still some technical difficulties.
  • PC players and Mac players will share a mega-server. Xbox One and Playstation 4 players will each receive their own mega-server.
  • There will be no offline mode for the consoles.
  • The offer for the account transfer from PC TESO to Xbox One/Playstation 4 TESO, when the PC TESO was purchased before June 30, 2014, still stands. Players whose accounts are “eligible” for this transfer will be contacted accordingly. The offer has a price of €14.99.
  • Before the console launch, there will be a beta for Xbox One and Playstation 4.

We will publish another article on mein-mmo.de about the further plans for The Elder Scrolls Online and the exact process of the new “Buy2Play” model. The reddit Q&A was very extensive.

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

Evolve is supposed to run on PS 4 and Xbox One at 1080p/60fps – but probably not at launch

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

The MOBA Evolve is expected to run on the consoles Playstation 4 and Xbox One at 1080p with 60 frames per second. Turtle Rock hopes to achieve this by launch, and will definitely address it in the future.

The site Gamingbolt had the opportunity to speak with Evolve’s producer, Chloe Skew. The topic was the resolution at which the game is supposed to run on consoles. Skew stated that they aim for a resolution of 1080p/60fps, if not at launch, then in the future.

Meanwhile, the tech experts from Eurogamer have thoroughly tested the beta version of Evolve. These results, however, give little hope. On the Playstation 4, the Evolve beta reached 1080p/30fps, while on the Xbox One the monster game managed to achieve 900p/30fps.

Gamingbolt believes that Evolve can only reach the promised ideal values with a Day-One patch. After all, the game is already in gold status, so it’s completed.

PC owners don’t have to worry about such things. According to a report from PC Games Hardware, Evolve runs smoothly there. Well, they would never put it that way. In their words:

With our overclocked R9 290X (1.150/3.000 MHz), Evolve always ran smoothly, even after we raised the resolution via VSR to 2560 x 1600 pixels, the frame rates rarely fell below the 60 FPS set by VSync with maximum details, the graphics memory usage stabilized at around 3.9 gigabytes at 1600p.

Evolve Hunter

Story about DLC controversy continues to simmer

Another story is currently making the rounds about Evolve. The online magazine destructoid uses the controversy over high DLC prices as a reason to recount a conversation between the magazine and Turtle Rock co-founder Phil Robb.

The article conveys the impression that Robb has remained a “gamer geek” who goes to the office in a hoodie instead of a suit, does not hold back his words, and says things that the press agents, the “suit types,” do not appreciate.

However, it seems that Robb is also somewhat trapped in the corporate structure and bound by the laws of the market. The core message of the article, which is based on an “interview from the end of last year,” is that Turtle Rock does not want to give the impression of starting any shady dealings with the DLC:

I don’t like people thinking we’re doing underhanded, dirty shit!

Basically, the interview strongly resembles the impression that the open letter, the forum post, of Phil Robb to the fans gave.

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

Destiny: Weapons with 365 maximum damage due to a bug in the game

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

Weapons in Destiny currently only go up to a damage value of 331. Due to a bug, legendary weapons that can rise up to 365 are already in the game.

Guardians on Reddit initially thought it was a bad joke or a skilled Photoshop, when the image of a 365 Pulse Rifle “Time on Target” first appeared. But there seems to be some truth to it.

Another player then posted a picture of a weapon from his little brother, which was also a 365 Fusion Rifle of the Vanguard, called “Plug One.1”

Destiny-Plug-One1-365

And the potentially most powerful weapon in Destiny has … a level 7 Guardian

The mystery behind these weapons seems to be clarified. It appears that these weapons are created as follows:

  1. Guardian X has a trial version of Destiny (which only goes to level 7).
  2. Guardian X had this trial version before Christmas.
  3. All players received a Christmas gift from Destiny, which included legendary Vanguard weapons, including Guardian X.
  4. However, Guardian X did not open the gift (like any reasonable person), but only now after the last hotfix.
  5. Guardian X now goes to the Postmaster and boom, random legendary Vanguard weapon with maximum damage of 365 as a level 7 Guardian.

It is likely that this will be fixed soon. In any case, very few players are likely to be affected, and it is also unknown whether this weapon will remain upon switching to the full version. (Before that, it doesn’t do anything anyway). At the moment it is also unclear whether this worked on all systems or only with players who were in Destiny’s demo on the Xbox 360.

There is currently no official statement or response from Bungie.

Destiny Moon Battle

Not the first oddity with the demo version and Postmaster in Destiny

Bungie has already encountered a similar problem twice in Destiny. On one occasion, the “Wrap of the Pit“, even before it was in the game, was already available for some mini-guardians in the trial version to find. This drove the “big” Guardians nearly to madness back then.

And recently there was a strange occurrence after a hotfix: If players had previously received packages for completing public events that were stored at the Postmaster, they suddenly gave glimmer materials. But only those specific packages.

The number “365” as the new base damage of weapons likely indicates that the next DLC “House of Wolves” will increase the maximum damage value significantly. A preview of which weapons and armor will be added with “House of Wolves”, you can find here.

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

DC Universe Online: Raiding Superheroes – 43 Minutes in the New Raid Halls of Hades

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time < 1 minutes

In the superhero MMO DC Universe Online, the next DLC is Amazon Fury II. In a video, you can already see how developers and testers perform in the Halls of Hades.

Superheroes in the Greek Underworld – this will happen soon in the superhero and supervillain MMO DC Universe Online on Playstation and PC. Testers and some developers have already ventured into the Halls of Hades and showcase the new raid in DC Universe Online with live commentary in a video.

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

ArcheAge promises improvement for 2015

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 3 minutes

The sandbox MMO ArcheAge aims to change quite a bit and improve many aspects in 2015: more transparency, a more stable economy, and more content.

The sandbox MMO ArcheAge has had a terrible image problem since early November. At that time, Auroria failed. Players had worked for 6 weeks towards the opening of this island. At the launch in the USA, half of the players could not log in. This can only be described as a “disaster.”

Even before and after that, there were serious problems in the game, which meant that the initial rush to the Free2Play game turned out to be a flash in the pan. By the end of the year, ArcheAge faced a lot of mockery and ridicule, but above all anger. However, there are also players who were unaffected by all this and continue to have a lot of fun in the game. The general mood among former players is, however, poor, at least for those who are heard from.

ArcheAge-Beautiful View

In 2015, a new breeze is supposed to sweep through ArcheAge. A new producer, Merv Lee Kwai, addresses the community in a letter and announces the following changes:

  • More transparency – From now on, players should be better informed about what Trion Worlds plans and what is currently happening. Streams, social networks, and the forum will be used for this purpose. Players should know what Trion Worlds is planning for the future of ArcheAge.
  • Easier access to dungeons – This has already been addressed in a patch, which is now live, where players should have easier (and cheaper) access to the instances.
  • More stable economy – Recently, some items in the auction house have become far too expensive, especially related to regrade materials or Archeum crystals. They want to counteract this, not like before with the lightning trees, but in a much more controlled manner. Therefore, they are now starting to introduce certain items into the game via “Divine Gifts.”
  • Desired items as loyalty rewards – Trion Worlds has decided to grant desirable cosmetic items (so-called vanity items) through loyalty points, with the sloth glider initiating this program.
  • No power to hackers – They want to crack down harder on cheats and hacks in 2015 than ever before.
  • General improvements – Trion Worlds wants to introduce a better spam filter in ArcheAge, listen more to the fans, and therefore also lift the glider and mount “normalization,” so faster mounts are really faster. Events like a PvP arena or a fishing tournament are also supposed to be introduced. Additionally, they want to set a limit on how many scaffolds a player can place.
  • New challenges – Furthermore, the next content expansion is soon to come, the Diamond Shore, level 55, and new challenges in instances.
ArcheAge-Village2

Mein MMO says: Better late than never, of course. The limit on how many scaffolds a player can place … that would have made a significant difference back in October and sent a clear signal. Now it’s the end of January, and it will still take a while for this to be implemented. For many who were upset over the significant issue of “land grabbing and reselling at high prices” through unscrupulous methods, the clock has long run out. The sense of justice of many players has been damaged in recent months in ArcheAge, and this is something they can only slowly and with difficulty forgive.

A Free2Play game with the potential of ArcheAge will hopefully and likely continue to attract new players who want to give the game a chance. But until the worst anger dies down and the damage to its image is repaired, it will likely take some time. And Trion Worlds will need to show that they want to and can deliver.

At least in this producer letter, there were open words and it was clearly stated that changes need to be made and will be made. The last statements from Trion Worlds, even in December, sounded more like: “You are exaggerating, everything is fine here.”

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

Destiny: Xur, Agent of the Nine, offer and position on January 23rd.

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 4 minutes

Xur is visiting the MMO Destiny on Friday, January 23. What exotic weapons and armor does he have this time? And which items will you be able to upgrade with him?

Xur is rich. Last weekend in Destiny, he earned over 19 million strange coins. It’s about time for a “My Crib” video, where he dances through his villa on Jupiter and shows off his bling-bling.

Xur is powerful. What he sells, people have, and what he doesn’t sell is coveted. This is shown by all surveys and statistics among players. The Gjallarhorn and Thunderlord are now among the most sought-after weapons: The Gjallarhorn (the “G” is silent) was available only in the second week, while the Thunderlord has not been available yet. The Icebreaker, which he had with him last week, is now over a million times more common in the world of Destiny. These are dimensions that have an impact on daily life. Xur is the Warlord of Destiny.

Xur is being imitated. The fake account we told you about last week, which claims to be an important Bungie employee (though no one knows him), has once again heavily criticized Xur this week and even held a kind of press conference (an AMA on reddit): Gjallarhorn is supposed to drop in the next 4 weeks!

So writes a super-serious website that sees the fake account as an absolutely reliable info source for Destiny. This site also reports on four-headed dragon babies in India, the perfect way to lose 70 kilos fast, and Elvis sightings. Oh yes, and in the week when Xur had the Icebreaker, their big Destiny story was: “Bungie has permanently removed the Icebreaker from Xur’s inventory.” Coolio.

Destiny-Xur

Everything about Xur, the Agent of the Nine, on January 23, 24, and 25 in Destiny

When does the black market trader Xur come to the Tower and when does he leave again?

Xur arrives on January 23 at 10:00 AM German time in the Tower and leaves again on Sunday, January 25, at 10:00 AM

Where is Xur? What is his position, his location?

Xur is located with the Vanguard’s armor masters. Here in a video from our homies at ziro.tv you can see his location.
http://youtu.be/8p-ZkciD7sQ

What is the deal with the numbers on the exotic armors?

In Destiny, exotic armors always have the same properties, but different values in Strength, Discipline, and Intellect. This means that two “Sunbreakers” may be identical in build but can have different values in Intellect. The higher this value is, the better. This is referred to as a “roll”, and this value is rolled. You can find more about this topic in this article.

What armor does Xur have this week for Hunters, Warlocks, and Titans? And what exotic weapon?

Xur is selling this week for 17 strange coins the exotic sniper rifle “No Land Beyond” (Kein Land Ausserhalb). The weapon has managed to perform poorly in both the PvP and PvE rankings, even though some do quite well with it. Xur last had it on offer 4 weeks ago.

Destiny-Kein-Land-Ausserhalb-231

For Warlocks, he is once again selling the exotic DLC chest Starfire Protocol. He had it a couple of weeks ago and the week before that. This week it has 128/137 Intellect. The chest costs 13 strange coins.

Destiny-Sternenfeuerprotokoll231

For Titans, the DLC boots “Type 44 Offside.” He last had them on offer three weeks ago. This time they have 112/120 Strength and Xur charges 13 strange coins for them.

Destiny-Typ44imAbseits-231

For Hunters, he is selling the exotic DLC boots Radiant Dance Machines. With impressive 137/147 Strength. He is selling these disco shoes for 13 strange coins.

Destiny-Strahlende-Tanzmaschinen-231

Additionally, this week there is an exotic helmet engram, but no synthesis for heavy ammo.

Which weapons and armors can Xur upgrade this week?

Xur can upgrade six exotic armors and six or seven exotic weapons each week. However, this only applies to “old” exotic armors with a light level of a maximum of 30 or “old” exotic weapons with a maximum damage of 300. There’s no point in trading 36 light armors or 331 light weapons. You can read here how the exchange works. The only exotic weapon he cannot upgrade, is the Vex Mythoclast. The new version of the weapon is 14.5% stronger than the old one.

Destiny-Hawkmoon

These exotic weapons he upgrades this week:

  • The pulse rifle Bad Karma
  • The shotgun Defiance
  • The other shotgun Universal Remote
  • The exotic machine gun Thunderlord
  • The rocket launcher Gjallarhorn
  • The other rocket launcher Truth
  • And PS-exclusive: The hand cannon Hawkmoon

Destiny-Schwachkopf-Radar-1912

These exotic armors Xur upgrades this week

  • For Hunters the Weakhead Radar (110/118)
  • and the helmet Achlyophage Symbiote (90/97)
  • For Titans the Helm of Inmost Light (98/105)
  • and the Mark of Alpha Lupi, a chest (134/144)
  • For Warlocks the Helm of Light Behind Nemesis (weak 86/92)
  • and the gloves Sunbreaker (99/107)

Well … Xur probably won’t make record sales with this.

More about the somewhat sadistic MMO shooter from Bungie can be found on our Destiny theme page. And by the way: Those who wonder why the post was only available at 10:05 AM and not as usual at 9:45 AM… you can thank the merciless F5 junkies of the last weeks! That’s our revenge!

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

SMITE: Win the god Hou Yi, defender of the Earth!

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 2 minutes

As SMITE has released a new god again this month, we couldn’t miss the opportunity to share this with you! Therefore, we are once again giving away three codes that allow you to unlock the new god along with his alternate appearance!

Hou Yi originates from the Chinese pantheon and is also known as the “great hunter”; it was he who shot down nine of the ten suns of the Jade Emperor from the sky to free the people from the scorching heat. In anger over this act, the Jade Emperor cursed Hou Yi and his wife Chang’e with mortality.

Although the great hunter managed to find an elixir of immortality that was supposed to elevate him and his wife back to the status of gods, this never happened: the potion was stolen and only Chang’e could drink her part of it. Too much for a single body, it banished the dancer to the moon – and the couple is still waiting to be reunited.
http://youtu.be/SPutAnV5pl8

In SMITE Hou Yi is, as expected, a hunter and is particularly suited as a counter god for stealth characters such as Loki or Serqet.

His passive ability grants him three seconds of immunity against critical hits whenever he suffers one, and his “Mark of the Golden Crow” allows him to see enemies even through stealth and walls. Coupled with “Ricochet”, a shot that bounces off objects and can therefore be shot around corners, it makes him a deadly surprise for any assassin. “Dive Bomb” additionally allows him to fly briefly over the battlefield and seek a new position. Lastly, with “Sunbreaker”, he can summon the nine suns he shot down, which deal damage in a large area and slow down all targets afflicted during the duration of “Mark of the Golden Crow”.

[intense_blockquote color=”#ffec7d” border_color=”#00d3e6″]
If you have discovered the latest hunter for yourself and want to try him out along with his recolor “Sunbreaker”, just leave a comment under this post and you will be entered into the draw for one of the three codes. But hurry, the competition lasts only until January 26, 2015 at 8 PM! Good luck to all participants![/intense_blockquote]

The competition is now over!

SMITE is a free-to-play MOBA featuring playable gods from mythology, and its third-person perspective and telegraph system brings the gameplay experience very close to that of an MMO. Want more? Then be sure to read our review of SMITE.

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

Destiny: New Crucible Mode Brings Two-on-Two

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

In Destiny this week there is a new Crucible mode: In “Doubles Skirmish,” two teams of two Guardians each compete for victory.

Destiny-Skirmish

Bungie is coming up with something new for the Crucible. The “New Monarchy” declares a new Skirmish format. Only in pairs will Guardians venture into the Crucible and meet two other Guardians to test their strength against each other. Level advantages will be disabled (so it is not an Iron Banner variant), but the usual Skirmish, just that instead of three Guardians, you will only go into the Deathmatch with two.

The mode is already in the game since the last hotfix on Tuesday evening, but only now is it being officially introduced in the Weekly Update.

Destiny-Doppel-Schmelztiegel

Since there are only a few players, the regeneration time of the Super will be extended. In addition, there should only be heavy ammunition once per match. Maybe it’s a preview of the planned Inferno mode, when PvP designer Lars Bakken says you should rely only on your mind, your weapon, and your wingman.

The goal is slower, harder battles, where it will also be about reviving your teammates. This is already attractive in Skirmish because there are big bonus points for it.

With only two Guardians on each team, it will be even harder to place blame on others. Everyone should be able to show what they are made of.

The first reports are quite positive. They say there are small maps where the individual really matters and where strategic play is key. Knowledge of the maps and timing when to activate the Super is especially important.

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Sure, not every Destiny player is thrilled about PvP and some wish for more PvE content, but this is already a good start. In the Weekly Update that introduced the mode, Bungie promised that there will be more news in the coming weeks. They say they will tirelessly work on the game to continue its development.

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

WildStar: Cabin Boy Missions with a little more ” oomph ” at Level 50

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 2 minutes

At Carbine, developer Kristen “Caydiem” DeMeza has now published another developer blog about WildStar, where she shares a bit about her work and explains what players can look forward to in the “veteran shiphand missions.”

These will be introduced with the next major content patch on the planet Nexus and are meant to bring more variety to players at level cap. We have summarized the key points for you.

Solo or Trio: Challenging, but never truly difficult

The shiphand missions are still meant to be doable solo, including the veteran mode at level 50. However, players will be given the opportunity to group up and experience the mini-instances together, which is why all enemies will scale with the group size – once a tank or healer is in the group, it probably will become quite easy.

Although there will be some new tasks, so veterans can still expect a few innovations, fundamentally the missions will not differ from the “normal” ones during the leveling phase.

We have used the veteran mode to give all missions a little more “punch.” We also took the opportunity to expand the story of some missions… and added a little surprise here and there.

Rewards: Glory, Decorations, and Mounts

WildStar shiphand mission mount

Those who complete the “new” missions will be primarily rewarded with glory – and that is a novelty, as this currency was previously only for group play. Players can exchange these glory points with the respective vendors in Thayd or Illium for entry-level gear, which should still be helpful in the first veteran adventures. However, those who do not need it can trade glory for other items, such as new colors, decorations, or even mounts. Speaking of which: All shiphand missions will now have a timer, and those who manage to secure the gold rank will receive additional rewards, including decorations and exclusive mounts, which should be very rare.

If you dislike long walks, you can breathe easy, as these mini-instances can now also be entered via the group finder, whether alone, with friends, or with strangers; everything can be conveniently set through the menu.

The full blog can be read at wildstar-online.com. At this point, I would also like to recommend my WildStar outlook for 2015.

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

Destiny: 1. Kill of Crota on video; Icebreaker gives Xur record revenue

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

In Destiny, Xur, Agent of the Nine, had the Icebreaker last weekend. And that cost a lot of money. Additionally, we get to see the world’s first kill of Crota in Hard Mode.

The Weekly Update from Bungie is here and provides new numbers.

Destiny-Eisbrecher-1601

Last weekend, Xur had the exotic sniper rifle Icebreaker available, and his window display was more lucrative than it had been in a long time. The Obsidian Mind sparked small Void-related joy among Warlocks, and the Glasshouse was offered to Titans for the first time. But of course, it was the Icebreaker, that sought-after weapon in Destiny, that particularly stimulated the players’ desire to purchase.
They really dug deep into their pockets and laid down 19,436,440 Strange Coins just for the Icebreaker!

According to Bungie, this corresponds to 2,159,604 heroic Weekly Strikes on the highest difficulty level. 1,143,320 Icebreakers have been circulating in the game since then. Xur can buy a lot of cat food for his tadpole babies on Jupiter. Or whatever those guys eat!

Today, on Friday, January 23rd, Xur will visit the Tower again. We will report whether he can increase his record earnings once again. We know what weapon would do that for him, but we have heard that speaking its name brings bad luck. And if anyone believes in such rituals, then it’s us.

Over half a million Hard Raids have already started

Destiny-Ohoh

The other impressive figures from Bungie this week all relate to the Hard Raid that started on Wednesday evening. 24 hours later, 3,344,124 Guardians had participated in 557,354 Raids against the hard mode version of Crota. This is double the number of those who ventured to take down Atheon back then.
The race for the First Kill was achieved by the clan “One and Done” in an incredible 27 minutes. It is a lesser-known clan that is not very active on social media and also refrained from streaming to not reveal their tactics.

They deny accusations that they might have cheated. “We are lactose intolerant, we don’t like cheese.” In the Weekly Update, the Kill video for the World-First Crota in Hard Mode was posted as proof of their impeccable performance. Judge for yourself whether everything went right.

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More about the MMO shooter from Bungie, which we only refer to as a Buy2Play MMO shooter, and which could also be described as an instanced coop online multiplayer loot shooter or “Shared World Shooter” or “Björn”, can be found on our fully packed Destiny theme page.

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

H1Z1: Laughter is contagious – Video celebrates quirky moments

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time < 1 minutes

Zombie MMO H1Z1 is in Early Access and has some bugs. Is the game worth it anyway? At least if you want to have fun.

A viral video is currently making the rounds in H1Z1. But it’s not a danger to life and limb. While the eponymous H1Z1 virus turns its victims into ravenous zombies, the video aims more at the funny bone.

YouTuber STAR_, who usually resides in the shooter Team Fortress II, summarizes in just over 6 minutes the quirks and oddities that players are currently encountering in H1Z1, true to the old question: “Is this a bug or is this a feature?”

But it’s not just the bugs and glitches that amuse players; the interactions between the “survivors” also provide moments of tension and comedy. Admittedly, while the game still feels quite rough at the moment, the video hints at why it has such overwhelming success on Steam.

And always remember: It’s Early Access… it’s supposed to be like this.

More about the Zombie MMO can be found on our H1Z1 topic page.

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

Guild Wars 2: Price Reduction! GW2 Addon on the Horizon?

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 2 minutes

Next weekend, PAX South will take place, and ArenaNet has let a few cats out of the bag – or rather, opened the bag. Most people are sure: On January 24th, the developers will announce the long-awaited addon for Guild Wars 2 .

Low Price and Double XP

Anyone who has hesitated to purchase the MMO should rethink their decision. From Saturday to Monday, GuildWars 2 will cost only €9.99, provided you buy it through the official website. Additionally, there will be double experience points all weekend in Tyria – so this is the perfect time to jump into the game or finally level that one annoying twink you could never motivate yourself to play.

A Major Announcement?

The signs of an upcoming GW2 addon are becoming more and more apparent:

  • Why else would one say from the outset that it will be a “big show” without revealing concrete details?
  • What else could have prompted the developers to temporarily reduce the price of the game by 75%?
  • Why are investors expecting extremely increased revenues?
  • Why did they recently secure the name “Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns“?

In a few days, we will have the answer, and all signs clearly point to the announcement of the first expansion. Those who want to be part of the big presentation live just need to tune into the stream at www.twitch.tv/guildwars2 – it starts on Saturday at 5 PM.

GW2 Heart of Thorns
All of Tyria is talking only about January 24th. Everyone is sure: A new expansion will be announced.

Source: guildwars2.com

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

Skyforge: Attention weapon enthusiasts – Here comes the Gunner!

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 2 minutes

In the god MMO “Skyforge,” the Gunner is a very rugged choice and doesn’t exactly look divine. He is a real weapon enthusiast and could have come straight out of an 80s action movie.

This week we presented the planned combat system at Skyforge in detail. The Allods team said that they want to have a flow in combat in Skyforge; individual attacks should be chained together to form real combos like in Street Fighter or similar games.

Skyforge Gunner 2

The “Gunner” is a good example for such a combo model: Even though he is a ranged fighter, he first fires wildly from his mini-cannon, doing it with so much verve that it overheats. “NP!”, he thinks, “I’ll turn it into a plasma launcher!” With the plasma launcher, he dissipates the built-up heat. And when he’s done with that, he switches to the third mode and transforms the device into a stationary mortar. But: “Why stop there?” A flamethrower is still in there, and he can also call in an orbital strike.

Well, he’s not just a simple foot soldier, but a guy with divine destructive power. And his weapon sounds a bit like the one Gary Oldman is trying to sell to the warrior aliens in “The Fifth Element.”

Gameplay-wise, the Gunner will take on a typical ranged DPS role among Skyforge classes with the self-buff and destructive abilities that come with it. He definitely has the arsenal.

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More about Skyforge, the classes, gameplay systems, and the ascent to godhood, you can find on our topic page.

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World of Warcraft: Incredible! 1 player brings 100 characters to level 100

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 3 minutes

In World of Warcraft, a player has now claimed the title of “the craziest power-leveler” of all time. He has leveled 100 characters to the maximum level of 100.

World-First-Level-10,000. A player has now achieved leveling 100 characters to the maximum level of 100. It sounds completely logical as he explains it. At one point he realized he already had 20 level 90s and then thought: Well, 80 others won’t make much of a difference. This was sometime at the end of Mists of Pandaria, the last expansion.

At that time, there wasn’t much pressure for these “additional 80 level 90s”, so he chose a mix of dungeons and some farming methods through cross-realm leveling.

When Warlords of Draenor came, things got serious. The player hadn’t played the beta and therefore didn’t have a “perfect match plan.” He actually intended to reach a “certain gold goal” in World of Warcraft (but doesn’t say what exactly that was). He abandoned that gold goal when he realized that someone else might beat him to it. And then there were only three things for him: level, level, level.

WoW-Pepe
Does he have a bird? No … DOES he have a bird?

This is how much time was spent in the standard plan for each WoD zone

The plan then took shape during the leveling phase, which he meticulously scheduled. In the end, the following time (including travel time) was allocated to each zone in the “perfect leveling plan”:

  • Frostfire Ridge – 1 hour, 6 minutes
  • Shadowmoon Valley – 44 minutes
  • Gorgrond – 42 minutes
  • Talador – 40 minutes
  • Spires of Arak – 39 minutes
  • Nagrand – 30 minutes

WoW-Loadscreen-Horde

A variety of methods used

However, pure questing was not the only method he used to level in World of Warcraft; he also took advantage of the Garrison and the follower missions, where there are certain, rare missions, seven in total, that also grant the hero EXP. To enjoy this special experience, he logged in with his 100 chars more often to see in which garrison these special missions were available. The simple process of logging in took about two hours.

However, he is not sure how the experience through the followers worked: He says much more research is needed to determine when the missions return and what exactly triggers them. However, he believes that it is possible to get a character from 90 to 100 with only 30 minutes /played – it would just take months.

WoW-Level-10000

… and actually he doesn’t like leveling at all

However, he is very satisfied with the quest design in Warlords of Draenor. This allowed him to save himself the hassle of questing through all the zones and focus more on his favorite activities: Especially bonus missions that give a lot of EXP, or treasure hunting.

Of course, he didn’t level every char to 100 in one go (such craziness he would never do), but he took breaks with each char, especially when something new happened in the garrison, also to regenerate the rested bonus.

At the end of his post in the official forum, he explained: “Actually, I don’t really like leveling, but I love big projects.”

This is competition for the previous holder of the “Okay, this is not fun anymore, this is really crazy, but in a way impressive” title.

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

H1Z1 has eSports plans with the Battle Royale – the creator of Dayz and Arma3 mod is on board

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time 3 minutes

In the zombie MMO H1Z1, the “Hunger Games”-like battle royale mode has only been in development since just before Christmas, but that shouldn’t scare anyone: The guy who is responsible for it has already implemented it in DayZ and Arma 3. If everything goes perfectly, it should bring the mod to eSports.

In an interview with PC Gamer, Brendan Greene, better known as “PlayerUnknown,” talks about his baby, the battle royale mode. He initially designed it for DayZ, later for Arma 3, and now the mode is supposed to become one of the central aspects of SOE’s survival MMO “H1Z1”.

The mode is a kind of ruthless elimination tournament with a constantly shrinking map. And everywhere the mod has run so far, it has enjoyed infectious popularity.

h1z1-werwolf-zombies

We Should Talk

Greene explains in the interview that he followed the development of H1Z1 and then heard in a stream how SOE’s head John Smedley said something like, “I really like this battle royale mode. What the guys are doing there pleases me!” Greene felt a bit flattered. The next day, in the following stream, it was again about him and how much these battle royale events would fit H1Z1.

The next day, Greene received a message: “We should talk. I am John Smedley, the president of SOE.”

This was still before Christmas and since then Greene has been working to transfer the battle royale mode from Arma 3 to H1Z1: “I probably don’t need to say that the last month has been quite stressful.”

At the moment, they have an “early access” version that one can live (and die) with, but the goals are bigger.

H1z1-Zombies-vor-dem-Haus

Seeing eSports potential – a mix of shooter and poker game

For Greene, who has been fine-tuning and working on the mode for a year and a half, the battle royale mode is an ideal format for players for whom the typical professional eSports scene is a bit too reflex-heavy. For him, the battle royale mode has a lot of a poker game: When you sit at the final table and there are only nine left and then one goes out… that is the moment when the adrenaline starts to flow.

Unlike a shooter, his mode is not just about quick reflexes, but also about strategic skill. Moreover, the map is huge, and that constantly challenges even the professional players.

H1z1 Screenshot 8

The Hunger Games scenario in XXL at H1Z1

Greene can easily imagine bringing the mode to greater heights and holding huge tournaments. The elimination mode in such a tournament couldn’t be clearer: Those who die are out. Those who stay alive are still in.

The battle royale mode works pretty much the same as in the “Hunger Games”: A map that becomes smaller with time. Limited murder tools and resources: And “there can be only one.” Compared to Arma 3, they now have a toxic fog wall that ensures the battlefield gets narrower, making the confrontation between players increasingly likely.

Next, they plan a hardcore mode with zombies that can only be stopped with headshots.

More about SOE’s ambitious zombie MMO on our H1Z1 topic page.

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

Destiny: The new shader “Glowing-Hue” on Titan, Warlock and Hunter in raid gear

Schuhmann Schuhmann Reading time < 1 minutes

In the MMO shooter Destiny, a new shader called “Glowhoo” was introduced yesterday with the raid “Crota’s End” in hard mode. The shader “Glowhoo” looks a bit like chocolate mint or After Eight.

Destiny-New-Shader

The loot table for the hard mode of Crota’s End is already relatively clear.

Only the “Crux of Crota”, the item needed for upgrading the “Eidolon Allies” to Necrochasm is still missing. The four primary weapons have already been found, and the new raid shader “Glowhoo” is also already in the hands of players.

In a YouTube video, you can see how the hard mode shader “Glowhoo” looks on Warlocks, Hunters, and Titans in full raid gear. It’s like a “fashion show.”

The special thing about this shader: It really “glows” in the dark, in a kind of fluorescent seaweed green.

If you want to see how this shader looks on you: Here’s our post about the Shader Previewer, where the Glowhoo is already available for selection.

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