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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Right after the closed beta weekend, a fresh trailer for the upcoming action title “Evolve” has been released. The video, which is nearly 7 minutes long, covers the entire game.
Both the four different hunter classes are briefly explained, as well as each of the monsters included in the base game. Additionally, one learns a lot about the upcoming game modes and boasts over “800,000 possible combinations” concerning the gameplay.
As someone who has already extensively experienced the beta, I can sincerely say that the trailer in no way overpromises – no match is like another, and it will likely take weeks and months to master the game, whether as a monster or a hunter team.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Details about the new 24-man raid at Blade & Soul have surfaced. The final boss is a powerful turtle and supposedly has 30 phases.
Blade and Soul will step into unfamiliar territory with the new 24-man raid , as reported by the Asia site mmoculture. This raid is said to be scalable for the first time and provide a challenge even for just 6 players. However, the loot that drops will be weaker.
The game mechanics and raid design probably dictate that players clear enemies in a kind of “arena battle” until a “meter” is filled and then the boss appears.
The “final boss” could probably be described as a kind of “ghost turtle”. Allegedly, it has 30 phases in which it assaults the players with various spells, summons adds, and sometimes even mini-bosses. Sounds like a real challenge. It will be interesting to see how it actually turns out.
In the zombie MMO H1Z1, the European servers are now here, and they have quirky names.
Finding 200 names for servers within a few days is not that easy. For such things, the community is often involved in the zombie MMO H1Z1. They proposed all sorts of names, and SOE selected from them. The now chosen server names range from “Amsterdam” to “Zaragoza.” However, this does not specify the server location (coincidentally, Amsterdam does), but these are just names.
Thus, there will also be EU PvP servers (which is the norm) and PvE servers (no combat between players possible). In addition, there are hardcore servers with permadeath, where zombies can only be killed by headshots, and first-person perspective is always used. Then there are hardcore servers only for PvE players (headshots, permadeath, first-person perspective) and servers where everything is “normal”, but only allow first-person perspective.
Permadeath means in the world of H1Z1: When the player dies, they lose all learned recipes, and containers assigned to them become freely accessible to everyone.
The servers named after German cities, terms, or regions
Berlin (Hardcore Server)
Black Forest (Hardcore) – Schwarzwald, ha, we requested that in an article
Bremen (Hardcore PvE)
Cologne (Carebear PvE) – Köln
Dortmund (normal)
Duisburg (Hardcore)
Düsseldorf (normal)
Essen (normal)
Frankfurt (normal)
Götterdämmerung (normal) – Wagner
Hamburg (normal)
Hannover (normal)
Heisenberg (normal) – not the meth cook, the physicist
Munich (normal) – München
Scharnhorst (normal) – a Prussian general and a district of Dortmund
Schwerer Gustav (Hardcore) – a railway gun in World War II
Stuttgart (normal)
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In Destiny, the new exotic weapon, the Necrochasm, is currently not in the game.
While Crota kills in hard mode of Destiny are still quite rare, there have been a few. However, there hasn’t been a confirmed drop of the “Crux of Crota” yet. This item is supposed to allow crafting the Necrochasm from the Shroud of the Pit/the Eidolon Ally: An exotic auto rifle that fires incredibly fast.
At the moment, it seems that this drop is either not possible at all, really, really rare, or that certain conditions are tied to the drop.
The most likely option is probably “The drop is not possible yet”.
The “Husk of the Pit” (Shroud of the Pit) was only unlocked with another patch that came out of the ordinary. Perhaps it will be the same with the Necrochasm, that it will be added to the game later.
Currently, as is often the case, there are already some rumors circulating. Some suspect that you have to defeat hard mode Crota in Destiny while using the fully upgraded Eidolon Ally or at least having it in your inventory.
http://youtu.be/9dfiTYb3fdk
Update 23.1. 2:20: A somewhat nebulous update. Bungie has officially commented on the Crux of Crota. Community Manager DeeJ has asked the developers. And received confirmation: The Crux of Crota is in the loot table. And will drop. He is following up to confirm. As of now, not a single drop of the Crux of Crota and thus the Necrochasm has been confirmed.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Publisher Ubisoft releases the Extreme Car Pack, the first DLC for the “Racing MMO” The Crew, and simultaneously makes the Extreme Live Update available for all players for free.
The Extreme Car Pack is the first of four DLCs for The Crew and is available for download at €6.99. It includes three new cars: the Aston Martin V12 Zagato, the 2013 SRT Viper GTS, and the Abarth 500. Additionally, there are new tuning kits available in the in-game shop that allow you to change wheels, paint, and interiors as part of customization options.
The Extreme Live Update offers all players four new missions for free: Either you compete in a high-speed race along the Colorado Rivers in Vertigo, climb to the top of a mountain in roller coaster mode, or prove your ice skillz on icy roads. In Hurricane, you can drive full throttle through a construction site filled with jumps. With all these new features, I almost forgot to mention the new animal and nature design stickers for your cars.
In the new trailer, you can check out the content update nicely showcased. Perhaps you’ll then see why the operators call everything “extreme.”
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Anyone who did not receive an invitation to the Closed Beta of Blizzard’s MOBA Heroes of the Storm can now directly purchase access with a founder’s pack. This includes heroes, skins, and a sack full of gold.
Who doesn’t know it? You sign up as the first of all for the beta phase of a new game and, of course, receive no key. Blizzard now offers the opportunity to purchase a founder’s pack for Heroes of the Storm. For €34.99, you can secure the pack and thus access to the Closed Beta. Additionally included are the three heroes Raynor, Diablo, and Tyrande, as well as three skins (Commander Raynor, Diablo as Lord of Depths, and Blood Elf Tyrande).
On top of that, there is a starting capital of 2500 gold, with which you can unlock additional heroes or items. Speaking of gold: The golden Cyberwolf as an epic mount is also included in the founder’s pack.
Heroes of the Storm will launch as a free-to-play title after the beta phase. To ensure a stable and safe beta phase, the founder’s packs are therefore only available in limited quantities. From Blizzard, it is stated:
The founder’s pack will become a full version of Heroes of the Storm. Only a limited number of founder’s packs will be sold. Please note that the sale of the founder’s packs may be temporarily suspended to provide a safe testing environment for the game.
Conclusion: Some sell their souls to the devil, and others buy a founder’s pack from Blizzard. I actually think it’s good. Unfortunately, I always belong to the unlucky ones who never receive a beta key for any game. Now I have the opportunity to sneak into the game beforehand and also receive some extras. I think that there is no kindness on the part of Blizzard hidden behind this, but rather a concept – whether for extended monetarization or for strengthening customer loyalty (through early investment in a new game). Still, the decision is ultimately up to everyone themselves.
Sure, the patient among us can wait for the open beta or have already enjoyed the alpha phase. I, however, have not. How do you actually find the trend with founder’s packs that guarantee advantages such as direct access to the beta phases?
As an extra goodie for everyone, the founder’s pack comes with a trailer in typical Blizzard fashion. The trailer humorously explains the founder’s pack.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
In Destiny, the hard mode started around 19:00. By 19:50, the race for the first kill was already over. There he lay.
This is what the new shader, which can be obtained from Crota, is supposed to look like. Nickname: After-Eight.
Yes, it is getting faster in Destiny. It took around 50 minutes, then Crota was defeated in the hard mode of Crota’s End. His new level and the resulting damage advantage did not help him.
The new champions of the “World-First-Belt” are, as it currently looks, the players of tripleWreckTV. They replace InvigorateGaming, who had claimed the title of “World First” the last few times.
The last World-First for the “normal kill” of Crota came after six hours. This one after 50 minutes.
The final fight against Crota plays out somewhat differently than in normal mode.
There is no “Chalice” and no cups, and some adds spawn more. For the sword bearer, according to reddit from the Crota killers, not much has changed. For the other five in the team, though, the fight has become significantly more stressful. Now they kite the Gatekeepers and do not kill them anymore. Additionally, there are considerably more “yellow” mobs than before – and the enrage timer is either tight or directly tied to a health value, which is still uncertain.
Are they too tough or is he too weak?
The speed of the World First is impressively high. This raises the suspicion that the raid in Destiny would be “too easy.”
Here, difficulties in balancing become apparent: If you keep hardcore players in the starting blocks for 6 weeks, let them refine the tactics further, and then scale the raid only relatively linearly, it will quickly be over.
Furthermore, raiding in Destiny differs significantly from classic MMO raids: A days-long rehearsal of specific tactics is not feasible. There is also no “real” progression within the raid, that you need gear from boss A to defeat boss B, in Destiny.
We will bring further updates about the story as it develops. The kill by tripleWreckTV seems secure. Now it’s just a matter of whether maybe another fire team that hasn’t streamed themselves was faster but is now silent.
According to the first reports, the upgrade material for the Necrochasm has supposedly NOT dropped. It seems not to be a “guaranteed” drop, but rather like the Vex Mythoclast, a drop probability in the game.
Legendary weapons are definitely already dropping at least two before Crota.
Update 20:50: Oh, there was actually another group faster. According to Bungie, the folks from “One and Done” are the champions (with a guest player):
Bungie User Research has confirmed the World First finishers for the Hard Mode version of Crota’s End. One and Done. pic.twitter.com/jRxFsUcPxN
The kill by tripleWreckTV has also been confirmed. It just wasn’t the first. Whether everything happened without any glitches or shortcuts being used is currently a topic of discussion. If no one streams it, it cannot be verified. And the raids in Destiny have been known since release for having “shortcuts” or being prone to tricks that significantly simplified the raid.
According to data from DestinyTracker, “One and Done” completed the raid in 27:50 minutes, while tripleWreckTV needed 39:07 minutes for their kill.
Small Guide: And here is the tactic for Crota Hard Mode in Destiny
Update 1:50: Here are two videos demonstrating a tactic that is currently considered relatively good. The tactic is based on defeating Crota in just two sword phases, keeping the fight under 4 minutes and saving a lot of hassle.
The tactic focuses mainly on staying in the middle, ignoring the Boomers, and providing the sword bearer with a Titan bubble. On reddit, they are quite excited about this.
This is the kill from the sword bearer’s perspective:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
This time we probably don’t need to talk long about the topic of the week, as a game has secured the top spot all by itself. Of course, we are talking about Evolve, which even before its release revealed its plans for future DLCs and their pricing. For many aspiring players and pre-order customers, this is a slap in the face for several reasons…
“Full-price title” for 100€
There were several reasons to be upset about Evolve. On the one hand, the game already costs 50€, but those who want to “invest in the future” should immediately buy the package for a mere 90€, which includes additional monsters and hunters, as well as exclusive skins.
Unfortunately, those who had already decided to pre-order and did not do so directly on Steam cannot simply “upgrade” to the 90€ version, but will probably be forced to buy the other contents individually. One already expresses trust in a product from the outset and then is left empty-handed.
“We’re just making the game, we’re not selling it”
[pullquote]Ripping off remains ripping off[/pullquote]
Don’t developers notice when they build a game in such a modular way that content can be “pushed out” almost monthly? This reasoning alone justifies relatively little for me personally. Ultimately, as a consumer, I don’t care who is responsible for the additional, absolutely overpriced content. Whether it’s TurtleRock or 2K, ripping off remains ripping off.
“You will never be excluded because you don’t own a DLC”
I can only smile sarcastically at the second big statement. It is true that one can play with players who have purchased new characters, but that is not supposed to diminish the fun? Even during the beta last weekend, it became clear that certain hunter combinations are significantly more successful against a specific monster than others. I can already see the first matches in front of me, where you get kicked from the lobby because you haven’t bought “DLC-Hunter 17”.
I could absolutely understand the prices for new characters (15€ per monster, 7.50€ for a hunter) if the game were free to play and had to sustain itself that way. But selling a brand new game for 50€ and then introducing “microtransactions” that absolutely do not deserve the name due to their pricing is nothing short of a ruthless insult.
The timing
Probably, the whole act wouldn’t have been met with such terrible feedback if they had just held back with this announcement until after the release. Then they could have said: “Hey, we would like to keep the game alive, but we need the money. Therefore, the new content will cost something again.” Together with a reduction in DLC prices, I would have gladly swallowed that lie. This way… they have left many people in a mess.
If the alpha and beta weekends hadn’t given me so much fun, I would probably drop this game.
However, since the game is still one of my favorites for the year based on what is included in the “normal” version, I will probably continue to play it. Whether I will have paid another 100€ for any DLCs in a year, I dare to doubt.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In the MMO shooter Destiny the start of the Hard Mode of Crota’s End will be launched this evening. We will accompany the event.
This evening from 19:00 our time it might be happening. However, the exact time is unknown: The Hard Mode of the raid “Darkness Lies Ahead”, Crota’s End, is supposed to open this evening.
Bungie is clever. They do not just make the raid trivially easy to access, but open it manually and create a small event around it, so that players wait for the start signal like runners in a race.
When does the Hard Mode of Crota’s End start?
Some groups and Guardians are already in position and want to be the first to face Crota’s enhanced forces and him. The exact start time is still unknown. It should be announced “from 19:00”.
In approximately one hour, we will begin the process of activating Hard Mode for Crota’s End. Are you ready?
It really seems like it will start on time. Remember to log out!
In ten minutes, we’ll start clicking buttons to activate Hard Mode for Crota’s End. Sign out of Destiny and await updates to begin the race. — Bungie (@Bungie) January 21, 2015
Ehm… does that mean: It’s starting? (Oh right, they have begun “clicking the important buttons” to start the raid. Well played, well played!
19:10: Now the hunt for Crota’s scalp should officially be opened.
What can the Guardians expect in Crota’s End?
It is not yet clear what the Guardians can expect in the Hard Mode of Crota’s End. Whether Bungie only increased the light level (from 30-32, to about 33-35 or 32-34) or if there are more surprises waiting for the Guardians. A mere increase of the light level would already make the raid considerably harder, as Guardians would then inflict only a percentage of the current damage. The loot is already known: 4 primary weapons, the Necrochasm, a special shader, and a spaceship, and probably also the “normal loot“, but one cannot be completely sure, maybe the guys from Luke Smith have come up with something new.
Live streams for the Hard Mode of Crota’s End
We at mein-mmo.de will monitor and accompany the start of the Hard Mode and will look for a German stream where you feel like you’re sitting “in the front row”.
At the moment, teams are getting ready to rock the raid “Crota’s End”. Many will have already run through the normal raid in preparation and are now taking a little “bio break.”
If successful (so not during the bio break, but during the raid) the evening could turn out to be a lucrative undertaking. Bungie has promised fame and fortune to the first Guardians to defeat Crota. Well, actually just fame.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Here is our little “Aha-this-is-happening” ticker for the raid
19:15: The first mobs start at level 33. That looks like 33-34-35. That means
A level-32 Guardian does only 68% damage to the 33 mobs.
To the 34 mobs, they only do 58% damage
And to the 35 mobs (Crota), they do only 48% damage … half
A light-level-31 Guardian will not deal any damage to Crota at all. And … apparently, respawning is disabled throughout the entire raid.
Update: Ah, apparently it’s not 33-34-35, but level 33 for all… so it might not be that tough, at least not towards the end.
19:30: Oh, it looks like there might be (at least one) primary weapon already before Crota. In German, it’s called “Erlass der Überseele”, that’s the pulse rifle. It dropped to a Guardian right after the lamp phase both in the stream at PRONDC and also with this guy here:
19:35: According to Bungie’s tweet, the first teams are already at Crota.
19:40: Yup, it seems that “Erlass der Überseele” (Oversoul Edict) is a confirmed drop for the lamp encounter.
19:55: The first kill of Crota’s End (Hard Mode) is probably already completed. The first reports mention about 50 minutes. Invigorate was not it; they are still fighting. Bungie is currently looking into the action; it definitely ended extremely quickly.
20:00: It’s said to be TripleWreckTV. The kill was shown on a stream and seems to have been the fastest among the current streamers. Now it’s about whether someone who wasn’t streaming was faster.
20:30: So – the whole raid maximum level is 33. Legendary primary weapons are NOT just from Crota, but there seems to be a chance for one after each section. Pulse rifle after the lamps, auto rifle after the bridge, scout rifle after Ir Yût, and the hand cannon with Crota himself. Nothing has been heard about the Crux of Crota (the Necrochasm thing). The new shader is said to be great. Here we’re struggling with the Crota-First: Destiny: That was quick – Hard Crota softened after about 50 minutes (World-First)
20:50: According to Bungie, the World-First kills are confirmed. However, it wasn’t tripleWreckTV, but “One and Done” who were even a bit faster.
21:20: The loot is apparently not as logical as we thought earlier. Now there are conflicting reports. The lamp drop is the pulse rifle, the bridge drops the pulse rifle and the auto rifle. Ir Yût drops nothing, and Crota then drops hand cannon and scout rifle.
21:30: By the way, it’s said that the Red Death will make a comeback – as a health regenerating weapon. Bad news for the Red Death: Suros Regime will also be used, and armor that regenerates health when orbs are collected will perform well.
22:15 Here is the new shader Glowhooo in a video. The shader can only be obtained from Crota. Code word: After-Eight.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
01:55: Many EU players have now headed to bed. In the USA and other parts of the world, things are just getting started. The general consensus so far: Up to Crota, it works, then it doesn’t anymore. Only a few have defeated Crota in Hard Mode. However, a tactic has now emerged that should make the kill significantly easier. We will introduce it to you at the end of this article.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The fantasy MMO The Elder Scrolls Online will indeed switch its payment model. It will adopt a Buy2Play model. It will be available on consoles XBox One and Playstation 4 on July 9.
This is a bombshell. The fantasy MMO The Elder Scrolls Online is actually changing its payment model, but it will not be, as some speculated, a Free2Play game; instead, it is switching to Buy2Play.
This means: Players will have to buy the base game to play it, but will not have to maintain a monthly subscription (like with World of Warcraft). However, money will probably be required to unlock content that comes with later content updates (the major patches). Everything that has been released in TESO until the switch will be available to everyone.
The Elder Scrolls Online will continue to offer a “Premium Membership” called TESO Plus. Those who engage in this will receive a fixed amount (1500) of the new in-game premium currency “Crown” every month. With these crowns, players can purchase and download additional content. It is likely that these crowns will also be available for purchase “without a subscription.”
With these crowns, new game content (DLC) can be purchased as well as some cosmetic items like companions or services. However, the game should also be well playable without crowns and a subscription.
During an active “TESO Plus” membership, players will have access to all DLCs and receive a 10% bonus on experience, gold, and crafting materials. On March 17, the switch to the payment model will occur for PC players. The Elder Scrolls Online is set to come to consoles XBox One and Playstation 4 on June 9.
As part of this change, The Elder Scrolls Online will also take on a new name. From now on, it will be known as “The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited.”
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Players on Xbox One or Playstation 4 will need an Xbox Live Gold or Playstation Plus membership to play TESO. Pre-order customers who have already secured TESO for the consoles will now receive a TESO Unlimited variant. Existing subscriptions or game cards will be converted into the corresponding duration of the “Premium Membership.” As a welcome post, everyone starts with 500 crowns.
My MMO says: Yeah, this is probably the “The Secret World” way. The base game is free. To further ensure financing, additional new content (DLC) will likely be placed behind a paywall. Currently, there are no details on what will be DLC and what will not. However, it is assured that the game will also receive non-paid updates.
One actually expected such a change, as an “subscription model” would have been very hard to sell on consoles. Therefore, the “Free2Play” rumors that have circulated for a long time are definitely unfounded. This is a completely different model.
Oops, unfortunately this affiliate widget is no longer available.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Yesterday, the closed beta for the Free2Play shooter PlanetSide 2 started on PlayStation 4. The Executive Producer Clint Worley answered some questions about the upcoming test run. For example, he revealed that players cannot enter the entire game world.
PlanetSide 2 Registration on PlayStation 4
Since the beginning of December, players have been able to register for the started beta and hope for their luck. Contrary to expectations, premium members of the PC version did not receive any advantage in the allocation of slots. However, those who missed the registration should not despair, as spots can still be snagged.
Release version is expected to be relatively bug-free
At the start of the beta, mmorpg.com interviewed Executive Director Clint Worley. He stated that not every feature of PlanetSide 2 will be unlocked for the beta on PlayStation 4. Initially, only two continents will be available. However, console players can look forward to a new tutorial map, which is expected to guarantee a more effective learning curve. Worley also said that great emphasis is being placed on eliminating various bugs. In the end, the console version should be released as error-free as possible.
Players should be pleased that the developers of PlanetSide 2 are extensively hunting for bugs in the closed beta, and we can expect a largely error-free release version throughout the year.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
Every week, extraordinary performances take place in the MMO shooter Destiny in the Crucible. Some of the best can be seen here.
These highlights and YouTube clips of Destiny are sought after and evoke reactions like “Pah! That was just luck!”, “Oh God! Is he good!” or “Nothing special! I can do better!”. While montages sometimes give the impression that anyone can pick 3 good minutes from 40 hours, it is much harder with individual plays or an entire match.
The five most spectacular plays in the Crucible from this week can be seen in this video by Destiny Tracker.
http://youtu.be/p9YouJcNiDU The actual highlight that we want to draw your eyes and ears to, however, is not found in these plays. Rather, it is a video of a Japanese player who is out and about with the Fatebringer and the shotgun Secret Handshake in the Iron Banner . Japan has been given a localization by Bungie that gives the whole game a different flair, don’t you think?
At reddit they are already asking how to get the Japanese Lord Shaxx to their homes… and of course, with which controller the guy is out and about? Perhaps, like for so many other games, it simply follows the rule: Skill Level – Asian.
http://youtu.be/cRRz9id5MKE
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The year 2014 had its highs and lows. Today, our author Schuhmann only deals with the lows.
First of all: The assessments are, of course, subjective and do not claim to be exhaustive. Please note that it is always only about one aspect of the game, not about the whole MMO.
No. 5: The mega-servers in Guild Wars 2 and the feeling that as a European, you don’t count
For me, one of the five biggest disappointments in 2015: The mega-servers in Guild Wars 2 and how they dealt with the non-English-speaking community.
This is a present problem in many MMOs, where we non-English-speaking Europeans are regarded as a sort of “appendix” that somehow tags along.
In Guild Wars 2, the mega-servers in China and the USA, where there is only one language for a huge number of people, were certainly a great idea. In Europe, where Babylonian language confusion reigns, it looked quite different.
Learn English or die?
You don’t speak my language! And who are you anyway?
There was no clear statement from ArenaNet. German players sometimes felt like second-class gamers, whose interests had to take a backseat to those of the USA and China – for economic reasons.
This was not a good time for Guild Wars 2. Meanwhile, many major titles and companies ignore Europe as a separate market. They assume that gamers can simply inform themselves on the US sites and play on international servers because everyone can speak English. This seems to be a trend that one must get used to. And even if this will not be a problem for many, some who cannot do anything with English will be left behind.
No. 4: World of Warcraft’s content drought
If it takes longer again – grab a fishing rod!
I had to swallow when World of Warcraft won the price for MMO of the Year 2014 on some sites.
Guys, please: Game of the Year. Not the last 45 days.
Until November, there was no new content in WoW for the entire year. The Siege of Orgrimmar was eleven and a half out of twelve possible months in 2014 the current raid and many had already completed it on New Year’s Eve 2013.
Blizzard’s attempts to make old content more attractive with a few tricks “Oh, there are cool skins, achievements, pets!”, rather focus on these ongoing droughts than alleviate them substantively.
This year we really have it together, honestly, well, at least the chances are better than last time
For me, the ongoing content droughts in World of Warcraft are one of the biggest disappointments in the entire MMO genre. This year they promised again that it would be the last one of this length. This time, however, they had significantly more employees hired, but they first had to be trained and probably caused more work than they actually accomplished.
But meanwhile, they also do this with humor in WoW and you can hear them a bit sheepishly saying: “Yes… we know that we say this every year, but this year it looks better than before!”
No. 3: The console debacle in The Elder Scrolls Online
Pah! The reaction of the console players to the sudden delay.
Only a few weeks before the console version was supposed to be released, it was announced that they needed another half a year. Technical difficulties!
Then there was no news from the console port for months, only to finally say at the end of 2014: We are waiting until our major renovations are complete and bear fruit. Then we will deliver.
The overall development at The Elder Scrolls Online is by no means disappointing. The renovations are sensible. The delay of the console port was certainly the right choice.
We noticed two weeks before that we needed another six months
But: Why didn’t they come clean with the fans? Especially since the truth is obvious: We are not currently able to bring it to consoles because we think it would not be successful. We will only release it when TESO meets our expectations.
This would have been refreshingly honest, and it would have created a more equal relationship with the fans. Instead, they created a climate where some are waiting for “finally the truth” to come out and TESO to prove to be the flop that so many are anticipating.
A “We noticed two weeks before that we needed another six months” and a “Oh, now that we have already waited six months, we can add another five”… this way, they simply treat the fans as fools. I would have wished for more backbone. Or Zenimax should have said much earlier: Guys, we will put the consoles on hold for now.
Timing and the way it was explained were disappointing for me, not the actual decision.
No. 2: The monthly content patch in WildStar
Hmmm, the monthly updates aren’t achievable…
For me, the second biggest gaming flop of the year: The content flow in WildStar and its sudden drying up. Before the release, Carbine announced that they would deliver a new content patch every month.
The fans were extremely skeptical: “Do you really think you can manage that?”
“Trust us, we are professionals. We will show you that we justify your trust.”
Carbine wanted to work on 16 patches at the same time. When WildStar was released and the first monthly updates were due, they turned out to be far too buggy. The team’s resources, especially quality control, were too widely spread. The entire house of cards collapsed.
Bitten off more than one can chew
After just three months, the “monthly” patches died and they switched to a quarterly system. The fans that remained at that time reacted understandingly, anything was better than buggy mini-patches.
It remains the disappointment that one of the central promises was already taken back so early. Carbine simply overestimated itself.
No. 1: The partnership between Trion Worlds and XL Games on ArcheAge
The development of ArcheAge is heartbreaking.
For me, the biggest flop of the year was the collaboration between Trion Worlds and the Korean developers of XLGames on ArcheAge, with all the problems that arose from it.
Whether it’s the permeable hackshield and all the nasty tricks it made possible; the many small problems and bugs; the major catastrophes like the botched Auroria launch and the APEX exploit; the difficulties with the extended server downtime, or the chaotic introduction of cash shop items: ArcheAge did not have a good year.
Trion Worlds repeatedly pointed to Korea and said: We rely on their cooperation.
This led to a vague situation the entire time, where the executives of Trion Worlds sometimes seemed helpless, as if they were passing the buck elsewhere.
The culmination of it all was the introduction of special saplings in the cash shop that provided the coveted blitz wood. Trion Worlds responded to the justified allegations that it would turn the entire economy upside down: We didn’t know they would be that strong. XLGames handles the cash shop.
Did they change anything immediately? No, they had to wait for the normal cycle until they disappeared “naturally” again.
Customer service staff and shadowy figures
Support staff under constant fire.
Thus, Trion Worlds essentially put itself in the position of customer service representatives who had to endure their customers’ bellowing on the phone, while the actual targets of the criticism became somehow dubious background figures who were never tangible. A very unsatisfactory situation for all parties involved, in which Trion Worlds merely acted as a facade that got eggs thrown at it.
The PR interviews and statements of Trion Worlds employees were compared at the end of the year in forums to the appearances of “Comical Ali”, the Iraqi information minister during Desert Storm. He was still talking about the triumph of the Iraqi army while US tanks were already rolling into Baghdad.
Moreover: The game thus has had a strange vibe from the very beginning. There were repeated concerns that Trion Worlds would not treat ArcheAge as carefully as their own game but would instead want to exploit the “horse” as much as possible at the start when enthusiasm is high and pull as much money out of it as they could. With their own product, it’s a commonly heard opinion that they would have treated it “more caringly”. Without test servers, they rushed to release major updates driven by insane time pressure and completely botched them. Whether they can recover from the debacle surrounding Auroria seems questionable.
“How could ArcheAge go so wrong when Rift went so well!”
For me, clearly the flop of the year and a main reason why ArcheAge has fallen short of expectations.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In H1Z1 , there was apparently a way for players to duplicate ammunition in the first few days.
H1Z1 players may have noticed: Loot was extremely scarce in the early days of the game. That makes it all the more astonishing when you take down an enemy in a “Robin Hood-style shooting with bow and arrow for the very, very poor” and 400 bullets fall from their pockets.
Those who said: “This can’t be true?!” are right: “This shouldn’t have been possible at all.”
The culprit was a type of “dupe” exploit that was circulating and likely involved the “proximity crafting.” Through this system, players can also craft items that are lying near them.
As this dupe spread, players demanded a “server reset or server wipe” so that everyone could start over from scratch. SOE initially turned that down and preferred to reset specific players instead.
With 400 bullets, hunting is great!
At the moment, this is not very important anyway: This “exploit” was supposed to be fixed yesterday as part of a major patch, for which a two-hour maintenance window was requested. However, something seems to have gone wrong, and the servers are still down at the moment (October 21; 11:20).
In addition to the fix for the exploit, the patch should also bring melee headshots, the balancing in crafting has been changed so that more metal can now be obtained from “large metal items”, and there should finally be more loot in the containers in the world.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In the Korea-MMO Black Desert , the cat is the hero’s best friend. As a pet, it levels up, can ease enemies of their loot, but must be well-fed.
Black Desert will likely not be a game for allergy sufferers. It is clearly committed to cats. As reported on Korean sites, Black Desert will be crawling with cats. Since early January, they have been new in the Open Beta. They can be purchased for pearls in the game and are characterized, among other things, by the fact that they loot dead enemies, meaning they can claw the loot from them.
Furthermore, the cats, just like mounts, will be able to level up, provided they are well-fed. The food is available from a special vendor, or players can craft the food themselves.
As can be seen from the screens of the Korean sites, the cats in the world of Black Desert prefer the classic “Pirate carries Parrot” position, which is also known as the “mad fairground fortune teller carries black cat” position.
In this video, a helpless giant attempts to flee from a white plague spirit.
http://youtu.be/ozc415H73C4
We at mein-mmo.de say: We welcome our new and kind feline rulers!
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Every time a new MMO is announced, players have certain hopes. They wish that the game matches their expectations exactly. Ideally, they would send a list of features to the developers for them to implement.
In this video, I would like to share my 10 wishes for EverQuest Next in no particular order. I am fully aware that some of these wishes are quite unrealistic and may not be implemented. Nevertheless, I hope that at least one or two points will be fulfilled, as these are all things I hope to see in the game or would like to see in a game at least once.
But there are surely things that I have not mentioned here that you would like to see. Please write your wishes for EverQuest Next in the comments!
– Darion
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The zombie MMO H1Z1 is still looking for two hundred creative ideas to name the European servers.
After the community has already been consulted for the naming of the US servers, now the Europeans can show how well they are familiar with zombies, zombie movies, and zombie names.
SOE is asking fans for creative help in naming 200 EU servers. Initial ideas from Reddit users include “Amsterdamned,” “Stockholm Syndrome,” or “Oberbayern.”
SOE is requesting server names that consist of no more than two words and do not violate copyrights.
So, if you have ideas and a reddit account: SOE would like to hear them. And please suggest a Schwarzwald! Or Schwarzwald Klinik. One of the two. This thread is about here.
As of now, the EU servers are expected to arrive either on Wednesday or Thursday. They have already arrived in Europe. The server location is likely Amsterdam.
@TheNorz literally being worked on 7/24. servers are being setup. they are physically in our data centers. so anytime Tue-Thur
The action MMO Neverwinter has announced its sixth expansion, “Elemental Evil.” The module will raise the level cap to 70.
Neverwinter cannot be accused of content drought. With Elemental Evil, the next “module” is already on the starting blocks, following “Rise of Tiamat“, which is how larger updates that bring new gameplay content to Neverwinter are referred to.
With “Elemental Evil,” the level cap is set to rise to 70. There will be new quests, talents, and equipable class features.
This time, the forces of nature have turned against the population of Neverwinter – something must be going wrong for them to constantly have someone trying to wipe them out. First orcs, then dragons, now elementals. Just bad karma.
Fortunately, the “Oathbound Paladin” will be introduced as a new class in the game. This class will heal in the healer role and hold the line as a tank in Neverwinter.
For the time after module 6, they are announcing “player-based fortresses” and guest appearances by well-known personalities from the AD&D universe and its rich history.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
