Destiny lures with free legendary weapons and EXP boost

The MMO shooter Destiny now attracts wayward players with enticing gifts. Legendary weapons are to be distributed for free.

Destiny has been on the market for almost two months now and even though some events provided variety, not everyone who bought the game in September is still playing. In the long term, Bungie is certainly planning to bring players back with the new DLC in December. But until then, they are not sitting idle. As some players report on Reddit, they received an email from Bungie after about a month of not logging into Destiny.

Bungie lures players back to Destiny with tips and an experience points boost

The email contained requests to take on the challenge and log back in. Apparently, there are various versions of these emails. One lower-level player received a message from the Vanguard, promising an EXP bonus if he logged back in. These boosts double the amount of experience points gained for half an hour. The Guardian receives three of them. The email also contains some tips on how to quickly reach level 20. Bungie advises to tackle the patrol missions. Combined with the experience points bonus, this should ensure the Guardian progresses quickly in Destiny.

Destiny-Low-Level-Mail


Another email, apparently addressed to a Guardian above level 20, encourages the Guardian to take on the challenge in the raid “The Vault of Glass”. Here, a legendary weapon is promised to ease the way beyond level 20. Again, Bungie has tips available (we also). To progress beyond level 20, the player should participate in the Vanguard Strikes, collect marks, and stock up on legendary items from the vendors. Additionally, there is another chance for a legendary Engram upon completing each strike.

Destiny-High-Level-Mail


Clearly, the emails are a targeted action by Bungie. They have considered what might cause players to stop playing. Perhaps because they do not understand a system or do not see a true goal. To address these difficulties, they not only provide hints on what to do next but also concrete support.


Our tips and more news about the MMO shooter Destiny can be found on our theme page.

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Source(s):
  1. reddit

ArcheAge: For diligent judges, there is a special outfit

ArcheAge-male-judge

In the sandpark MMO ArcheAge , particularly diligent advocates of the state of law or of the state of injustice can expect a fashionable surprise.

Those who let themselves be summoned to the jury 100 times in ArcheAge and judge the fate of alleged criminals can look forward to a fashionable judge outfit. This was recently revealed by a post on reddit. Someone reached the 100 mark and was surprised by what was in the mailbox. The 5-piece set consists of a stylish, surprisingly short-cut skirt, gloves, shoes, and a shirt. However, the skirt is intended only for the ladies or female characters of this world. Men who were looking forward to Bermuda shorts have to settle for regular pants.

Judge is a sought-after job in ArcheAge

The set carries neither titles nor any bonuses. The thread creator says he received most of his summons at the beginning – when only a few players qualified for the judge job. Today, it amounts to only one or two sessions a day. You become a judge in ArcheAge when you have progressed further in level and completed a small quest line. Then you have to stay logged in as long as possible to move up in the queue for the jury position. Unlike the duty of jurors in the real world, the job in ArcheAge is quite sought after.

ArcheAge_court_waiting_line

Justice System in ArcheAge somewhere between comedy and racism

The justice system in ArcheAge is a unique aspect of the game and regularly contributes to the entertainment of the entire server. Court proceedings are broadcast like a show in the server-wide trial chat. Some defendants provide a bit of entertainment value, for example when a looting uprooter claims he only did it to feed his 36-member cat family and his wife is pregnant again. Less amusing, but often heard, is the somewhat childish excuse in murder cases: “But he started it!”

However, it should not be overlooked that in the justice channel, one is often confronted with some not-so-nice aspects of online life. It is considered impolite on some servers to write anything other than “English,” which can be explained rather brusquely to the defendant. French players have a particularly hard time in court. According to reports, Brazilians have a similar situation on the US servers.

ArcheAge-female-judge
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Source(s):
  1. reddit
  2. Forum

Star Citizen: Shooter module planned for spring 2015

The creator of Star Citizen, Chris Roberts, introduced the first-person shooter module of the space simulation during PAX Australia. It has been known that players of Star Citizen can not only compete with their ships. However, the gameplay video of the FPS module shows that Star Citizen does not need to hide as a shooter.

Diverse game modes with destructible environments

Star Citizen Shooter Module

Weightless, you float around a space station and shoot enemies in a shooter-like manner. The next module for Star Citizen is substantial because, for the first time, you will not be sitting in a spaceship, but instead face the challenges of a first-person shooter with a weapon.

In addition to the classic team deathmatch, game modes such as Seek and Destroy and Capture and Hold will also be implemented. The environment is partially destructible, which provides for an even more realistic atmosphere. However, the difficulty of the FPS module likely lies in the weightlessness, as seen in the gameplay video. Thus, not only do you have to aim with the laser weapon, but also maneuver through the space station using a jetpack.

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FPS module coming in spring 2015

The release for the FPS module is already scheduled for spring next year. With 60 million USD, Star Citizen is one of the most successful crowdfunding campaigns ever. In 2015, an alpha version with the first chapter of Squadron 42 and a multiplayer version is also expected to be released. We are curious whether Chris Roberts and his team will stick to this ambitious plan, making a release of a finished Star Citizen possible as early as spring 2016.

If you want to fly through space right now, you should take a closer look at the space simulation EVE Online. We list 3 reasons why you should start with EVE Online. We can also recommend a comparison of the two MMO space simulations, between Star Citizen and EVE Online.

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Source(s):
  1. PCGames

The Division: Release date for Ubisoft’s MMO shooter is expected soon

In the MMO shooter “Tom Clancy’s The Division“, something is happening. The release date is expected to be announced soon.

As reported by the gaming site dualshockers.com , there has been movement in the MMO shooter “Tom Clancy’s The Division”, which has frequently been compared to Destiny in recent weeks. According to Ubisoft’s Japanese Marketing Manager, Yoshitaka Tsuji, he spoke about The Division during a livestream for Ubiday. Tsuji mentioned that no exact release date for “The Division” has been announced yet, but it should not take “too long” before the release date is revealed.

The Division is set to release on Playstation 4, Xbox One, and PC. It attempts to strike a balance between a shooter and an MMO, similar to Destiny. One of the dominant themes surrounding the game is the debate over whether it will be “downgraded” to look the same on PC as on consoles. This discussion has been sparked by Ubisoft’s game Watchdogs. However, unlike Watchdogs, “The Division” will not be released on last-gen consoles, thus significantly reducing the risk.

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Lord of the Rings Online: Beornings with only 51 Trait Points

In the fantasy MMO Lord of the Rings Online, update 15 is coming in just a few days. The Beorning class is being introduced into the game. It will have only 51 instead of 53 Trait points. The allocation of the remaining two points is still under consideration by Turbine. They want to be able to respond flexibly to the wishes of the fans.

In class design, they remain true to the source material

The US magazine massively had the opportunity to chat with the developers of the free-to-play MMO ahead of the fifteenth expansion of Lord of the Rings Online. The discussion primarily focused on the new class and race of Beornings. In contrast to other MMOs, it is particularly challenging and significant to introduce a new class in Lord of the Rings Online due to their strong reliance on the source material. They had to wait for the green light from Middle-earth Enterprises before starting development.

Fortunately, there is some additional information in the Lord of the Rings that the shapeshifter Beorn shares with the hobbit Bilbo. He discusses his ancestors, among other things.

Lord of the Rings Online

For the Beorning, they are listening to feedback from the player community

At the moment, the Beorning feels a bit unfinished, as they consume their class resource “Wrath” too quickly, as noted by the reporter from massively. However, Turbine has already worked on this and mitigated the issue in a new build. Additional skills and legendary items will allow the Beorning to fight longer in bear form.

At Turbine, they want to wait and observe the development of the Beorning. He starts with only 51 points instead of 53 Trait points like other classes. The additional two points are intended to come into play later. They are waiting to see what the community demands.

When asked about the inability to maintain a quarterly rhythm for updates in 2014, producing only three, Aaron Campbell, the producer of Lord of the Rings Online, responded that they are still very pleased with the regular updates – and promised bigger things for 2015.

http://youtu.be/Se3dvZywAAI

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Source(s):
  1. massively

Guild Wars 2: Devs of GW2 mingle with the Zerg

In the fantasy MMO Guild Wars 2, the developers have now mingled with the players and participated in the intense battles in WvWvW. This has apparently impressed them.

Adopt-a-Dev Program at Guild Wars 2 a Great Success

A few weeks ago, we reported on the “Adopt-a-Dev” initiative from Guild Wars 2. Here, active guilds were asked in the forum whether they would be interested in hosting a developer for a limited time. This was meant to give developers insights into the action in World-versus-World at a high level, the huge PvP mode in GW2.

GW2 World versus World


It is now said that they had expected interest from guilds, maybe a few dozen inquiries. However, the expectations were far exceeded. When over 150 guilds signed up, they stopped counting. They didn’t anticipate such a response. They then recruited additional developers for the program so that they could see in their free time how players really play.

Developers Impressed by WvW Action in GW 2

In a video, the individual developers are now sharing what they experienced with their adoptive guilds. Most of them speak visibly impressed about the intense battles in Guild Wars 2. It’s about how a single commander was able to turn the tide of battle, how important the game still is to the players, and how exciting the action can be out there every day.

world-versus-world-gw2


One dev was thrilled about how professionally a group of 40 took out the zerg (a massive, usually uncoordinated group): “First, they decapitated the zerg and devoured it.” The developers are also impressed by the military discipline that players exhibit in GW 2 to be successful.

All in all, the consensus is that it was an extraordinarily positive experience for the developers of Guild Wars 2. Their management is often accused by the vocal community on reddit or in the official forums of having lost touch with the community. Such a “reality check” might help in the future. The father of the idea, John Corpening, is convinced of the success of the initiative and wants to organize something similar again soon. It is important to him to build a bridge to the community.

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ArcheAge: This guild already has its own village

In the sandpark MMO ArcheAge, the possibilities for housing are virtually endless. With the arrival of Auroria, this will only increase. However, even now, a guild has already established its own village.

ArcheAge is an MMO where players can express their creativity and where community matters. With the opening of Auroria the day after tomorrow, guilds will become even more important. If a guild conquers a castle, they can establish their own village nearby, where no one can interfere.

US Guild creates its own little DIY paradise

That is precisely what the guild “Dark Jester” on the US server Naima has already achieved. The guild has created its private utopia on the southern coast of the “Solis Headlands” zone. According to their statements in the official forum, the entire construction area belongs to the guild and not to individual players: Everything is “common property” and serves the well-being of the community.

ArcheAge-Village2


They have established farm stations, dedicated individual houses to specific crafts, and planned the entire village like a blueprint to maximize the use of the coveted building space. The guild has posted some impressive pictures, showcasing what is possible through coordination and collaboration. This could serve as a preview and inspiration for what is possible with castle villages in the coming days.

With Auroria, the cards are reshuffled in ArcheAge

With the opening of Auroria in a few days, such strategic gatherings of houses will surely increase. At the moment, it looks rather chaotic in the building areas. Since players initially did not cooperate with their neighbors, but rather tried to place their buildings in such a way that they occupy as much space as possible. The intention behind this: Players wanted to create dead spots into which no one else can build to reserve space for future expansions.

ArcheAge-Village3


The current scarcity of building space on at least the large servers is still a topic. With the opening of Auroria and four new building areas, the situation should gradually improve. This will surely be supported by the fact that players who are no longer actively playing or whose patron status expires will lose their properties after a period of several weeks.

Those who want to build in Auroria do not have to be in a guild. It is also possible for solo players to secure a property. However, this is only possible once a guild claims and clears an area.


Find out more about the sandpark MMO ArcheAge on our topic page.

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Source(s):
  1. ArcheAge-Forum

“Eye of Azshara” – New addon for World of Warcraft?

Just a few days ago, Blizzard secured the name “Eye of Azshara,” and speculations are, of course, running high across the vastness of the internet.

Especially with the previous teaser images for Hearthstone that Blizzard has sent out in the past few days, colorful fantasies can now be spun – there were some blueprints of typical gnome and goblin inventions visible. Azshara is a region in World of Warcraft, and the center (so to speak, the “eye”) is the Goblin city “Bilgewater Harbor.” This thematically fits wonderfully with an expansion of the card game that deals with goblins and their machines.

Another theory is that the name may already refer to the next expansion of “World of Warcraft.” Because Azshara is, besides being a landscape, also the legendary queen of the Highborne, who was transformed into a Naga thousands of years ago – by the way, she is also one of the most powerful sorceresses of all time, whose appearance captivates every person so much that they would immediately leap to their death for her. This lovely lady also offers wonderful potential for the next WoW expansion, as the Naga storyline was temporarily abandoned in “Cataclysm.”

Last but not least, it could of course also be a mix, so an expansion for Hearthstone that deals with the Naga – as these are already present in the card game, but are significantly underrepresented.

A final answer will probably only be received at BlizzCon this coming weekend – we will keep you updated!

Blizzard - Eye of Azshara Trademark
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Hearthstone announces “Plans” for its second expansion – pun causes speculation

In Blizzard’s free card game Hearthstone the second expansion is focused on plans. Could Goblin developers be behind it?

No one really knows yet if it’s a pun or if there’s more to it. In the past days, “invitations” reached various editorial teams that deal with Hearthstone. On one side of the invitation was a blue schematic of a Goblin construction: Polygon received a Harvest Golem, other sites received a Destroyer or other results of Goblin engineering.
Some well-known Hearthstone players also received these invitations:

On the back was the sentence “Making Plans for BlizzCon – I hope you like my invitation.” That is a pun: The English word “plans” can refer to these construction schematics as well as “intentions.” “Making plans” also has its own meaning – one prepares something, makes plans, has already scheduled the time, has made preparations. It’s somewhat similar to a pun where you send someone a postcard with a printed basket and write, “I’ll give you a basket – I can’t go to the movies on Thursday.”


So it may be that the Goblin constructions have nothing to do at all with what is to be announced and that they were just looking for a clever way to draw attention to BlizzCon, and that Hearthstone will also be part of it.

That Hearthstone’s next expansion would be announced at BlizzCon is actually quite clear. At least that has been indirectly said multiple times.

Whether a “Goblin Engineering” expansion with over 100 cards is actually coming seems rather questionable. There are already some constructs in the game and there isn’t really that much material available. Speculations about the next expansion rather leaned towards taking a WoW expansion with over 100 cards – without raid instances. Such as the protagonists and mobs from “The Burning Crusade.” Raid instances – like Naxxramas – are more suitable for adventures like the Naxxramas of Hearthstone. Blizzard had mentioned possibly alternating between adventures and expansions.

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Destiny: Upgrade Exotic Items from 30 to 32? Bungie makes hints

In the MMO shooter Destiny, Bungie reveals more details about the first DLC “Darkness Looms”, “The Dark Below”. It suggests that the current exotic items are to remain valuable. Is an upgrade in discussion?

On the night from Friday to Saturday, there was another “Weekly Update”. Here, Community Manager DeeJ speaks to the fans about current topics. The most important information was – as so often – a hint. This also aligns with some clues that data miners have already found. Thus, the current exotic items could receive an upgrade with the DLC. Guardians in Destiny will, of course, have to earn them.

Destiny Multiplayer

Exotic Items in Destiny – the spice of life

The exotic items in Destiny are, according to Bungie, a kind of “collector’s item” that a Guardian likes to have in their arsenal because they are best suited for certain tasks. With the next DLC, “The Dark Below”, the level cap increases from 30 to 32. The level in Destiny is determined by the light value of the four armor pieces that one wears.

The currently 18 exotic armor pieces have a light value of 30. But only if they are maxed out. In the expansion, it would not be possible to reach level 32 while wearing one of the exotic armor pieces.

18 armor pieces are currently available – 9 new ones are expected; how to balance this?

This would mean that the 18 current exotic armors are no longer valuable – they wouldn’t cut it anymore. Some fans have already reflected on this. Community Manager DeeJ now says that they promised that the exotic items would be “valuable possessions”. Fans can expect to get information soon about how this will be ensured in the future.

It therefore seems likely that exotic armors will be upgradeable with the next expansion, allowing even “old” pieces to achieve the new maximum light value. Otherwise, shortly after release, the items would become outdated and “content” would be removed from the game. They surely do not want that.

According to the data miners, 9 new exotic armors are coming into play. It will be interesting to see how they are balanced against the current items. Because even if they want to keep the old items competitive, it seems reasonable to make the new items strong enough to ensure that Guardians will want them and stick around.

Destiny Moon Strike

What about the weapons?

When it comes to the exotic weapons in Destiny, the situation seems a bit more complicated. They don’t have a light value. However, it is the case that with the expansion, new “legendary weapons” will also be introduced into the game. Surely Bungie wants to design these in a way that makes them “better” than the current ones.

Therefore, it could be beneficial to provide a means to bring the exotic weapons up to the “latest standard” and enhance them a bit. Whether they will remain slightly beneath the “new” exotic weapons to create an incentive to pursue them is still unclear. Currently, it is assumed that six new exotic weapons will be introduced with “The Dark Below”.

Data miners have already found two items in the database for the next expansion in Destiny: An exotic weapon core and exotic armor pieces. The data miners assume that these items could play an important role in the upgrade of the Exotics.

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

Destiny: Bungie acknowledges, loot caves revealed weaknesses in the loot system

Destiny Loot Cave

In the MMO shooter Destiny , the developers at Bungie show their cards and even admit mistakes. The loot caves, camp spots, were unforeseen. They were due to bugs in the first loot system.

In an interview with the US site mmorpg.com, Community Manager Erik “Urk” Osborne opens up. He is mainly asked about the loot caves. There has been a sort of tussle between players and developers over them, as Bungie has closed them multiple times, prompting players to discover new ones.

Players act unpredictably – even in Destiny

Osborne describes the loot caves as a form of “emergent behavior”, a form of player behavior that arises from the ongoing events in Destiny and which cannot possibly be predicted. No matter how much effort one puts in and what predictions one makes, ultimately, player behavior is simply unpredictable. And after the release, Bungie then sat down and just watched the players. Players act like a kind of dowsing rod, bringing the developers to where the attention must be.

Destiny Screenshot Mount

The camp spots, the treasure caves, were entertaining, and they even took themselves lightly. But the most important thing was that they learned from these loot caves what worked and what didn’t in terms of how loot was distributed.

Spaceship battle? Sparrow racing? Why not?

Later in the conversation, the interviewer tries to coax future insights out of Osborne, but he does not reveal much. Ideas like “ship combat” between the players’ jump ships or a sparrow race are things that they think about and have discussed in the office. Both are fun ideas, but he cannot say more about it.

In the upcoming expansions, they want to highlight an alien race each time. For “The Dark Below”, the Hive will be the focus. Additionally, they plan to bring more of everything, so there will soon be further opportunities to improve the Guardian; they also have some ideas for the Crucible and the mobile app.


More about the MMO shooter Destiny can be found on our topic page.

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Source(s):
  1. mmorpg.com

ArcheAge: Auroria, Land of the Rich and the Strong – Castles, Properties, Guild Wars

In the sandbox MMO ArcheAge, the endgame truly begins on Tuesday. Then the northern continent of Auroria will open. But what is this all about?

On Tuesday, November 4th, the northern continent of Auroria will open in ArcheAge. Its opening was delayed until Trion Worlds was sure there were enough guilds ready to compete for it, so that early starters could not get too far ahead. Beforehand, some guides based on beta experiences had already appeared, describing what is actually happening there. Now Trion Worlds themselves presented in an update to the fans what they can expect there.

Become Your Own Lord

Four new zones have been unlocked. These are Marzala, Ruheland, Heedmar, and Nuimari. The interesting news that Auroria brings is certainly the possibility for extremely successful guilds to claim one of the areas for themselves. This is considered an important part of the endgame in ArcheAge.

ArcheAge-Trio


To do this, an “Archeum Magnet” must be cleansed, and only the leader of a guild can do that. For this, they need the “cleansing Archeum Package.” To craft this, Anya Ingots and Blood Archeum Crystals are required. The Blood Archeum Crystals can be purchased from the merchant for 40 gold each – so that’s not an issue. The Anya Ingots are obtained from Anya Pebbles, which are only found on the island of Auroria.

Trion Worlds states that you need an experienced metalworker and an experienced miner to gather these pebbles. No exact numbers are mentioned.

Quickly back to speculation:

Speculation about the exact numbers comes from a guide

In a guide that appeared on archeagedaily and is based on beta experiences, the author mentioned needing 50,000 mining to first mine the pebbles. Furthermore, they spoke of needing 20,000 in metalwork to smelt the pebbles into ingots. Allegedly, you need 50 Archeum Crystals for the package, which would cost 2,000 gold.

ArcheAge Castle


For 100 Anya Ingots (which are also needed), you require 300 Anya Pebbles. From an Anya vein, a player gets 1-4 of these pebbles. Per vein, they need 50 labor points. According to the guide (this was loudly questioned), these veins can only be found in caves, which are in turn protected by a wall. Allegedly, players need 3,000 labor points to first break down the wall and obtain mining rights for the veins behind it. Behind it are about 10 veins, which only respawn when you leave the cave and break down the wall. As mentioned: This information is provided without guarantee.

The cleansing Archeum Package must then also be transported from the mainland to the magnet with effort … and lazy guilds will probably think it’s a great idea to go on a looting spree.

Back to the official:

What do you gain from a castle?

The special thing about a castle is that the guild can decide who can build in the direct vicinity of the castle and who cannot. If they dislike a house there, they can destroy it. Other houses in the area cannot be destroyed by the ruling guild but can be taxed.

ArcheAge Glider

The new building areas on Auroria have two climate zones and are therefore more attractive; additionally, only special resources can be grown here.

Guild Wars in ArcheAge

Now, of course, it would be silly if the first four guilds on a server grabbed the castles and then nothing ever happened in the endgame of ArcheAge again. Therefore, there is a way to attack these castles and also to lose them.

For this, the developers came up with something clever, as it is strictly organized and a massive gold sink (a drain for gold from the game). At regular intervals, a license to attack a very specific castle appears in the auction house. Bidding occurs on it – these are enormous sums. (According to the guide, these licenses appear every three weeks and start at 500 gold; an auction lasts 24 hours)

The guild that secures the right to attack can then fight in a strictly regulated guild battle against the “established” guild for the right to the castle. Both guilds have the opportunity to prepare for this battle. The attackers must, in a kind of “Capture-the-Flag XXL”, attack the stone and focus on it uninterrupted for 5 minutes, while the defenders try to prevent them. Each of the two parties can, according to the guide (the numbers are unofficial again), send only 100 people.

As can be seen from the sums and numbers, the guild part of Auroria is not for lone wolves. The dominant guilds have surely already made detailed plans on how to quickly gather the ore together. Off the cuff, it won’t work; just to reach 50,000 mining requires several days of preparation. For solo players, there remains the hope that the rush for Auroria will free up land in the home areas. However, players without a large guild must wait until one of the areas in the new sandbox deluxe of ArcheAge has been cleaned.

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

H1Z1: The Ear Gets Creepy – Sound Effects and Music

In the survival MMO H1Z1, the developers also aim to engage players’ sense of hearing to immerse them in the atmospheric world of zombies and the post-apocalypse.

In this week’s dev blog, Gregg Spence introduces his work; he is the Technical Architect at SOE and is working on the sound effects and soundtrack of H1Z1. According to Spence, it is a job that goes unnoticed when done well, but it greatly disrupts immersion when it is not.

Players primarily envision atmospheric movement sounds, the sound of firearms, or background noises from nature as sound effects. Achieving this correctly requires a lot of work hours.

Inside sounds muffled compared to outside

As the first example of these subtleties that players pay attention to not only in H1Z1, Spence shows a video of firearms. They sound different depending on the environment. It is important that players can tell from the sound whether a weapon was fired indoors or outdoors. Even when a shot is fired inside a building, there should be a distinction made whether it is happening in a barn, a church, or a small room.
http://youtu.be/NqQCPUdZX4o
These subtleties also have practical benefits for the player: The proximity and direction of sounds reflect the “real” states. An attentive player can deduce from the sounds where the opponent is standing, how far away they are, and similar details.

Birdsong during the day, wolf howling at night: Ambience sounds adapt to the time of day

Another important focus is the “ambience sounds”: what is happening acoustically in the background. They have now graced the 24-hour day with four different soundtracks. During the day, one should hear birds, and at night maybe the chirping of crickets or occasionally the howling of a wolf.

Even when the weather changes, such as starting to rain or snow, players should be able to not only see but also hear it.
http://youtu.be/ZcvQrJRfmLE

The music in H1Z1 – like in a horror movie

And what would a true horror experience be without atmospheric music that makes you want to scream “Don’t go in there, you fool!” Here, Spence gives an example of a music track that plays as a player approaches a dilapidated town. The music clearly conveys: You are approaching something interesting, you are nearing a climax, but that could also be your doom.
http://youtu.be/yXSDo8cztO4

In H1Z1, it is the case that the more lucrative a location is, the more dangerous it is as well. While excellent items can spawn in a police station (see title image), this also attracts zombies and other players who are out looting. Thus, it becomes incredibly difficult to stay true to H1Z1’s motto “One Step Ahead of Zed”.

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  1. H1Z1.com

Star Citizen vs. EVE Online: Comparison of Space Simulations

EVE Online is an unmatched space MMO. At least for now. With Star Citizen, another sci-fi role-playing game enters the ring. Funded by fans and developed by Wing Commander creator Chris Roberts, Star Citizen is a serious contender to the sandbox game EVE Online. We have compared the two games for you.

First- vs. Third-Person

Into the cockpit, take the joystick in hand and with laser weapons and other pew pew, it’s off against the enemies. At least that’s how Star Citizen is supposed to work in the future. In first-person view, one can speak of an actual simulation. If you fly too fast into the curves, your avatar will pass out and the journey will end abruptly. With intuitive dogfights, just like in Wing Commander, a completely different feeling is already created in Star Citizen. If you get tired of the first-person view, you can also switch to third-person. This way, you can change your perspective according to the situation, thus altering your gaming experience.

Star Citizen
Star Citizen

In EVE Online, the controls look quite different. Rather than using a joystick, you navigate through New Eden with a point-and-click system. Battles may take place in the galaxy, but they could also be fought exclusively within the various menus of EVE. What offers more action is subjective. More exciting for spectators is probably the first-person view in Star Citizen. For fans of strategic battles where the distance to the opponent plays a crucial role, EVE Online is the better solution.

EVE Online
EVE Online

In EVE Online, Time is Required

EVE Online - Skills

In first-person view, one thing is clear: personal skills determine victory or defeat. In Star Citizen, everyone is their own lucky charm. While advantages may come from a faster ship, the individual flying skills are crucial for shooting down an opponent.

It’s different in EVE Online. While you also need experience in piloting a spaceship here, your skill points play an even more important role. In EVE, you put a skill into the queue, and after completion, you can fly a new ship or deal a few percentage more damage. The longer you play the game, or pay for the account, the more your character can achieve, as they have already learned countless skills. In combat, it’s still about your flying skills, but the invested skill points are the decisive factor in EVE Online.

Spaceships: From Small to Gigantic

Star Citizen
Star Citizen

In a sci-fi adventure, the type of ship you fly is also crucial. With around 50 ships, Star Citizen is still underrepresented compared to EVE Online. However, the vehicles in Chris Roberts’s game look breathtaking. The textures are sharper, and there are many more details than on an EVE Online ship. However, the spaceships aren’t that large. In EVE Online, the Star Citizen ships would only belong to the smallest ship category, the frigates. But in EVE, there are much larger aircraft. Thus, Titans are not only the largest but also the strongest ships in the EVE universe. A corporation must invest a huge effort before a Titan rolls off the production line. The value of gigantic spaceships can always be guessed from reports,that calculate the value of a destroyed fleet in real money.

EVE Online - War of the Demigods
EVE Online

In both games, you can customize your ship to your own abilities and preferences. In Star Citizen, you can add extra mods to your little ship. For example, friends can get in and control the guns. In EVE, on the other hand, you equip your ship according to the situation: PvE, PvP, wormhole, or massive battle. Here, the target determines the equipment.

Single or Multiplayer?

EVE Online is a pure multiplayer. Even if you think you are safe from others during a mission, opposing players can scan, find, and shoot you down. This is the allure of this sandbox: you are never alone, and the destruction of your expensive ship can happen at any time. Since May 2013, the developer CCP has integrated the game Dust 514 into EVE. Dust 514 is a free shooter for PlayStation that takes place on the planets of the EVE universe. The shooter is also dependent on the sovereignty status of the respective system. Thus, CCP successfully connects two games of entirely different genres for the first time. In Star Citizen, there is a distinction between single and multiplayer. The single-player campaign is called Squadron 42 and is designed to remind players of the old Wing Commander campaigns. Here, players go through single missions without coming into contact with real, human opponents. However, teammates can be invited for co-op action. In multiplayer, on the other hand, the player must build their own status relative to other players. The world is open and persistent.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gGLE3USB2U

The Economic System

According to Chris Roberts, there will be no item drops in Star Citizen. Players will only find recyclable wrecks of enemy ships. From these, they extract crafting materials that need to be processed. This creates a complex economy that is supposed to resemble a simulation, as every item is ultimately produced by a player. Here, Star Citizen and EVE Online have great similarities.

For even in CCP’s game, there is a completely player-driven economy. Almost everything found on the market can be produced by players. There are player communities that focus solely on the production of massive ships or individual modules. This type of economic system is, of course, very vulnerable to small changes that may be added via patches. Player behavior affects prices: In the last few months in EVE Online, there hasn’t been a significant war, which has led to prices for modules and ships plummeting. Tough times for industrialists.

Price development EVE Online

Star Citizen vs. EVE Online – Which is Better?

Star Citizen Character

For pilots who simply want pure action, Star Citizen is probably better suited. Exciting dogfights with agile ships in an atmospheric environment. With the single-player campaign, you can also enjoy a round of co-op with friends at a leisurely pace. Chris Roberts has done a fantastic job here, and we are already looking forward to the final release. Fans of a quieter experience should download EVE Online. Although “quiet” might be too mild a term: EVE is for those who enjoy sitting at their PC, sweating, because 20 enemy ships just jumped into their system, and they still have to fly their expensive ship to the station. Additionally, business students can apply their knowledge in the economic system. The game is worth it, even if it looks complicated at first. Besides huge ships, players can expect a helpful community and a great developer.

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Destiny: Pumpkin Head, Bats and Phantom Sparrows

Even the MMO shooter Destiny celebrates Halloween. How does the bat swarm work and where are the Sparrows?

We illuminate how the bat swarm works as a respawn animation and clarify the question of the four Sparrows that supposedly came with Halloween.

Pumpkin head announces Halloween in Destiny

After the last update on Tuesday players logged in and found a pumpkin head in the post that they could put on. With this traditionally Irish Jack-O’Lantern on their heads, the Guardians could celebrate their very own spooky Halloween: Atmospheric screams in the background provided the necessary ambiance.


The “Jackolyte”, that’s what the item is called in the game, was fun, even though it didn’t work with every helmet and caused display errors. Three items arrived with the post, the head can stack up to 5, and further drops are made by enemies from the “swarm”. The item can still be obtained.

That was the part of the Halloween update, that everyone could see. Dataminers, however, rummaged through the database and found more items. What’s going on with those?

Destiny

Where are the Sparrows?

Along with the update, four new Sparrows appeared in the Destiny database. That’s what the hover bikes are called, the preferred means of transportation for Guardians on land.

The four Sparrows were referred to as “Halloween” Sparrows by the dataminers. It was even suspected that they had some kind of “horror motifs”. The Guardians in Destiny scoured everything in the last few days to get their hands on these Sparrows. Wild theories were circulating. The most absurd attempts were made. It was a mystery that needed to be solved. And even though someone in some forum shouted “Here, here, I’ve got it”, it turned out to be nonsense. No one has found these Sparrows in Destiny.

Now there was a confirmation in the official forum of what many already assumed. “There are no Halloween Sparrows,” was the official and curt statement from Bungie.

Apparently, only four models were introduced into the game, to be used later, perhaps for the next DLC “The Dark Below”. But the models have nothing to do with Halloween.

How does the bat animation work?

“Flight of Shadows”, another Halloween item is actually in the game, unlike the Sparrows. The item alters the respawn animation, that is, what happens when a Guardian dies and comes back to life. To get it, one must pilgrimage to the vendor Xur with the pumpkin head on (he’s only there until Sunday at 10 AM near the Crucible vendor). Once the head is on, he sells the item “Flight of Shadows” for a strange coin.

The bat animation is relatively short and only active when one is wearing the pumpkin head and then dies.

https://youtu.be/32sCblNIg6Ehttps://youtu.be/WSR9gsvcXeU
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Star Wars: The Old Republic – As strong at 60 as it is now at 55

During the livestream, the developers of Star Wars: The Old Republic, abbreviated as SWTOR, shared some insights and spoke in detail about the changes regarding the combat system with the major Patch 3.0. We have summarized the most important changes for you at a glance.

Less damage for everyone

Star Wars The Old Republic - Combat with the group

The developers consider the damage dealt by players in some cases to be too high, which is why it will be significantly reduced here.

The goal is for players at level 60 with 3.0 to deal as much damage as they currently do at level 55. Since all characters will be weaker with the upcoming patch, the HP pools of the enemies on the level planets will also be adjusted, so the foes will die more quickly.

Every class receives a special buff

SWTOR - Shadow of Revan

They want to encourage players to bring as diverse a combination of classes into operations as possible, and not just those that currently have a slight advantage. To enable this, each class will receive a special group buff, some are temporary, others are permanent. For example, a higher healing rate for the entire operation group or armor debuffs for the enemies that can stack could be considered.

Damage over time – In PvP now significantly stronger, due to less cleansing

SWTOR PvP

Especially the DOT-intensive classes can look forward to the update, as their spells can no longer be removed by healers. However, they are still not unstoppable, as players with self-cleaning or immunity abilities (such as the Force Barrier from the Sorcerer/Sage) can still free themselves from all harmful effects.

At the same time, the cooldown of all cleansing abilities will be increased to 12 seconds. To ensure these abilities still have utility in PvP, most control effects can now be cleansed – this is intended to encourage more team play in PvP.

Speed – Faster, faster, and even faster!

SWTOR - Tython Flashpoint

The value “Speed” will be significantly improved, ultimately it should fulfill a whole lot of things at once: Reduce spell activation time, decrease global cooldown, accelerate regeneration of the class-specific resource, create more ticks of the DOTs, and reduce internal cooldowns. If everything goes as the developers wish, players with 20% speed should be able to activate all their keys 20% faster and more often than players without this value.

Following that, some questions were asked, but the answers did not bring to light any new information. Anyone who wants to take a look at all the discussed changes in detail can do so at Dulfy.

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Cheating in Hearthstone: Blizzard bans Win-Traders; also affected are prominent eSport pros

In the free online card game Hearthstone , some Win-Traders have now been caught after several botters. Their accounts have been banned. Forever, as Blizzard communicates.

Blizzard has no sense of humor when it comes to win trading, as seen from the current action. By logging in simultaneously at relatively high ranks, players were apparently able to play against each other with some degree of probability. This was exploited. Blizzard has been aware of these problems from the Arena mode in World of Warcraft and is taking a hard stance against such corruption of the eSports idea.

Blizzard responds by banning all affected accounts that took advantage of this. A few weeks ago, a longer ban until 2015 was only issued for the bots.

As PCGamer reports, “win trading” may have also influenced the composition of some tournaments. Invitations to these are sometimes based on ranking. Those who gained access to a tournament through such methods will be disqualified.

Reportedly, some more well-known names (like Specialist) are also affected by the bans. Among them is Gabe Walls, a player who made the win trading method public about a year ago to draw Blizzard’s attention to this flaw in Hearthstone to have it fixed.

While Gabe Walls protests against the ban, Specialist, as reported by liquidhearth, agrees with the ban. He openly admits that he was engaged in win trading because he finds it ridiculous that the participant field at BlizzCon is composed of such an easily manipulable system. Specialist finds something good in the ban. Now he has time to focus on his studies.

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ArcheAge: 10% founder bonus is not available, but compensation will be provided

In the sand park MMO ArcheAge , founders are now being promised to be compensated with a 10% bonus on all purchases in the cash shop in another way.

Before the release, it was promised to founders that they would receive a 10% discount on all future purchases in ArcheAge’s cash shop. Unfortunately, the wording was somewhat confused. Trion Worlds mentioned that this would happen after the launch, meaning: “Sometime after the launch.” However, customers understood it as a “from the launch” during the purchase decision. Since then, some founders have been upset that the 10% bonus is missing, especially since some time has already passed. We have highlighted the exact circumstances of the controversy in this article.

ArcheAge_Esel


Trion Worlds has stated that the promised bonus is something that cannot be granted alone. They had to consult with XLGames, the Korean developers of the game, which has now happened. The result is: A solution with XLGames would be too complex and would divert resources from the development of the actual gameplay content in ArcheAge.

Trion Worlds plans to present a solution in the coming days on how they can manage this “alone.” In other words, provide a replacement that will also work retroactively.

Mein MMO believes: It is a bit strange that it took a month to figure out that they have to do it alone. After all, such discounts involve real money. Perhaps some shoppers would have spent a smaller amount or avoided an additional purchase with 10% more credits per purchase.

It is a sensitive issue, as even a delayed replacement will not provide as much benefit as a timely implementation: A player may have lost interest in ArcheAge in the meantime. What good is in-game currency in a game that one no longer plays?

One can only hope that Trion Worlds will present an attractive replacement for the founders in the coming days. When Auroria, the northern continent of ArcheAge, opens on November 4, some players who acquired founder status back then will surely reach for their wallets again and visit the marketplace.

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

H1Z1 gives professional makeup tips for the perfect zombie Halloween costume

The survival MMO H1Z1 now gives professional makeup tips for Halloween to achieve the perfect zombie.

Tonight is Halloween. Even in Germany, people dress up and go out on the streets. Although some might argue that this was simply established by the costume industry through strong lobbying efforts to create a second market beside Carnival (where it is well known that the Treehouse-of-Horror episodes of The Simpsons are actually behind it). Anyway, SOE has taken this as an opportunity to release some professional makeup tips for their games.

And what could be better for Halloween than a zombie costume? Especially with the Walking Dead marathon on RTL II keeping everyone awake for weeks. Transforming into a zombie is quite stressful both in fiction and real life. Particularly if you want to get it right professionally – as you can see in the video. And the poor guy in the chair has to endure quite a bit of sitting while the two makeup artists work on him as if he were meat with eyes. But the result is impressive.

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For those not interested in makeup videos and who prefer facts about the game: The developer videos should soon be moving to the next round. On reddit, fans are being asked for questions for the upcoming devs. So if you are plagued by urgent curiosity, you can ask your questions in English here.

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Star Trek Online tempts players with a lifetime subscription – lowers prices, adds Talaxians on top

In Star Trek Online, players who purchase or have already purchased a lifetime subscription now receive the Talaxians as a playable race. Additionally, the cost of the lifetime subscription is being lowered.

Two weeks ago, the expansion “Delta Rising” was released for Star Trek Online. Now Perfect World is taking the opportunity to remind players of the offer to purchase a “Lifetime Subscription.” As a bonus, the Talaxians, including Neelix, the ship’s cook and morale officer of the Voyager, are added.

STO-Talaxianer

For a lifetime subscription to Star Trek Online, you now pay a one-time fee of €143.83. This is approximately equal to the cost of an annual subscription. In return, you receive not only the Talaxians, but also a lifetime gold status as a subscriber (which comes with x benefits), veteran bonuses, special ships, character slots, and more. You can read all the benefits here.

However, as is common with lifetime subscriptions in MMOs, Perfect World does not guarantee that the game will be offered as long as the customer lives.

Back then, among the fans at the introduction, there was also anger, as veterans who paid month to month did not receive the veteran bonuses that the “Lifetimers” enjoyed from the very first day of their subscription.

What do you think of these lifetime commitments? Is it an offer that you can’t refuse, because otherwise you’ll regret paying for 12 months this way? Or are you more skeptical?

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