Many thought Hearthstone was dead after the last update, now Blizzard comments on the concern

Karsten Scholz Karsten Scholz Reading time 2 minutes

When it became clear that the new expansion of Hearthstone would not have a game board, parts of the community became concerned about the digital card game. Is the end approaching? Now there was an answer from Blizzard.

What was the source of the concern about the end? Just a few days before the launch of the new Hearthstone expansion “Danger in Paradise”, the Blizzard officials explained that for the first time since the introduction of the feature, there would be no new game board for the new content package.

For part of the community, this was a sign that the developers might invest less energy in the more than ten-year-old digital card game from now on. The concern about an impending beginning of the end intensified further because Blizzard’s response came late and only referred to an explanation planned for the following week.

Blizzard and the community – this escalates every now and then:

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Blizzard bans the man who ruined WoW Hardcore

The Future of Hearthstone

What does Blizzard’s explanation look like? At the end of last week, Executive Producer Nathan Lyons-Smith actually spoke out in a comprehensive post on the official website (via hearthstone.blizzard.com). Below, we summarize the key points for you:

  • The communication of the developers with the community has been lacking in recent months – specifically regarding the latest changes and the current strategy of the team, or why there is no game board for “Danger in Paradise.” Nathan Lyons-Smith wants to improve this in the future.
  • Self-built, Battlegrounds, and Arena are the most popular game modes in Hearthstone, so the team’s focus is on expanding these.
  • What has also worked very well: Changing the design of the Arena in detail, with early access to cards from new expansions, new rules for deck building, and selected card pools. This path is to be continued, and next year a further comprehensive update for the Arena will be provided.
  • The developers have decided against continuing to release three static game boards per year. Instead, there will only be one game board that will be significantly more dynamic – with the option of choosing the game board, companions, and new hero skins.
  • All existing Hearthstone game boards are to be incorporated into the rotation of standard format game boards as quickly as possible.
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According to Nathan Lyons-Smith, Hearthstone is doing well and is anything but dead. On the contrary, the developers now want to lay the foundation so that you can feel “comfortable in the tavern for another decade and much longer.”

Finally, the producer writes: “We have fantastic cards and themes planned, we want to tell new stories in Azeroth and beyond, and we have events and features for you that we hope will surprise and delight you.” By the way, there was also trouble for the anniversary: Blizzard has alienated the entire community on the 10th anniversary of a game

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

A YouTuber builds their own RAM to upgrade a 40-year-old PC and it actually works

Benedikt Schlotmann Benedikt Schlotmann Reading time 2 minutes

A YouTuber has equipped a 40-year-old computer with 64 MB of RAM. The biggest problem was finding working components.

The YouTuber Bits and Bolts specializes in retro hardware on his channel. In his videos, he disassembles ancient processors and motherboards and tests games on old graphics cards.

In his latest experiment, he equipped a 40-year-old computer with 64 MB of RAM. However, he had to design the RAM himself.

A small revolution for the 40-year-old computer

What kind of computer is this? Intel’s 386DX was released in 1986 and was Intel’s first 32-bit processor series. It could theoretically address up to 4 GiB of main memory (RAM), which was never utilized. Even 32 megabytes were a lot at that time. By comparison: a typical Windows 3.1 setup in the early 1990s required only 1 MB of RAM. The clock rate was 33 MHz.

What did the YouTuber do? The YouTuber Bits and Bolts created a step-by-step guide for building 16-MB SIMM modules with 30 pins from commercially available components. This may seem a bit unremarkable in 2024, but it would have been a real novelty in the 80s.

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The biggest problem for the development of RAM was, according to the YouTuber, the search for usable components. He needed 30-pin SIMMs for the development, which cannot be bought today. Typically, with such old used components, one can never be sure how well-preserved the parts still are.

Eventually, he managed to install 64 MB of RAM into a system from the 1980s after testing and finding that the performance of the system had improved.

Why 64 MB? 30-pin SIMMs support a maximum of 16 MB per unit. Therefore, he wanted to test whether he could equip his system with 64 MB or 128 MB. In the end, it turned out to be 64 MB of RAM.

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Old hardware is only worth it in a few cases

Is old hardware worth it at all? If you are considering upgrading an older system with hardware, it is rarely worthwhile. The problem with very old components is often that they limit themselves: You can only equip a 10-year-old processor with a similarly old motherboard and DDR3 RAM. Therefore, you will never enjoy modern features. Additionally, older CPUs often do not operate in a cost-efficient manner.

For modern hardware, you already have to replace the entire system (motherboard, RAM, and CPU). Upgrading old hardware with similarly old hardware is hardly ever worthwhile. A list of hardware that you should definitely not buy today can be found in the following article directly on MeinMMO: 7 Upgrades for your Gaming PC that you should definitely not buy

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

The Dragon Riders Explained: Season 2, Episode 6 of House of the Dragon

Niko Hernes Niko Hernes Reading time 2 minutes

In a new video, Marco from Nerdkultur analyzes the sixth episode of season 2 of House of the Dragon. This time it’s about the titular dragons, among other things.

Attention Spoiler: The following post discusses the 6th episode of season 2 of House of the Dragon. You should have watched the episode before reading.

Who is Marco Risch? Since 2015, Marco Risch has been on his YouTube channel Nerdkultur dealing with news, analyses, reviews, and interviews about current movies, series, or games.

In addition to that, he meets weekly with his colleague Yves Arievich to chat in the Podcast Nerd & Kultur about pop culture topics like Star Wars, Marvel, and DC.

Both the YouTube channel and the podcast are part of the Webedia network, which also includes MeinMMO.

In his new video, Marco analyzes the 6th episode of House of the Dragon and explains, among other things, the current situation of the dragons:

Start video
Nerd Culture: House of the Dragon Analysis: Season 2 Episode 6

Dragons and Power Dynamics

At the beginning of his video, Marco explains the connection between the dragons and their riders. To soothe dragons, there is a Valyrian song that is also sung in the episode. The song addresses the fate between dragons and riders. However, it also becomes clear here that dragons are not controllable beings.

Thus, there are also dragons without riders that should only be near their nest, as defined by George R.R. Martin himself. However, Sheepstealer seems to be hunting far away from his own nest. In addition to Sheepstealer, there are three other dragons that currently have no rider: Vermithor, Silverwing, and Sea Smoke.

Marco explains how the 6th episode shows that the power dynamics are changing. This is symbolized not only through the camera but also through the dragons. The contrast between Ser Darklyn, who approaches Sea Smoke unsuccessfully, and Sea Smoke, who approaches Adam in another scene, symbolizes the change.

Meanwhile, Aemond seems to have some problems with his acquired power. Nothing seems to be working properly. Jason Lannister, Aegon, and Alicent show that nothing is going the way Aemond would like.

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Daemon and Alice Rivers

Among the common people, the rebellion against the nobility is escalating. There is too little food, causing the conflict between the nobility and the people to escalate further. Rhaenyra’s and Mysaria’s plan works. Rhaenyra wants power, but her advisors want Daemon.

Daemon, on the other hand, must confront his fears and dreams. Alice Rivers is there to support him, and we finally find out whether Alice Rivers really exists or only appears in Daemon’s dreams. The supernatural is broken through, and it initially seems that Daemon has faced everything. If you missed the last analysis, you can find it here: The End of Dragon Rule Explained: Season 2, Episode 5 of House of the Dragon

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

Godsworn reminds of Warcraft III, lets you take on the role of pagan gods – has 92% positive on Steam

Linda Knabe Linda Knabe Reading time 2 minutes

A real-time strategy game on Steam reinterprets the time of the Northern Crusades and adds a touch of fantasy. You take on the role of powerful gods to defend your land.

What game is this about? Godsworn is a real-time strategy game on Steam, which started Early Access in March 2024. It is developed by the indie studio Thunderoak Interactive. Since its release, the game has received 92 percent very positive reviews.

At first glance, the game resembles Warcraft 3 and Age of Mythology. The setting is based during the Northern Crusades and depicts the conflict between pagan Balts and Christian missionaries with their crusaders.

Start video
Godsworn started in March in Early Access

Our colleagues from GameStar have already tested the game at the start of Early Access and reported back to you.

What can you expect? Godsworn is a strategy game that you can play solo, but also in online PvP and online co-op. And even though the game is based on a real historical time, the developers have given it an individual and imaginative touch.

You take on the role of pagan gods who walk the Earth at that time and make it your mission to protect your people from invaders. Each of these gods has their own abilities and play style. For example, you can take on the role of the sun goddess Saule or the moon god Meness.

Godsworn also offers you the chance to take the other side and lead your troops as Archangel Michael to defeat the pagans and convince them of your faith.

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In Godsworn, it’s not just about combat

No matter which side you choose, it will not just be about charging into battle violently and aimlessly. You will also need to gather your followers and build new villages and towns for them. For this, you will let them collect resources and protect them while they pray for you, which in turn gives you more power.

In co-op mode, you must try to unite your two tribes and your followers to face the enemy together. If you fail to do so, your land might simply go down the drain right before your eyes. Another strategy game is said to be particularly suitable for genre newcomers: A new strategy game by former Blizzard employees aims to improve the genre, focusing on a tool that makes everything easier

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

Once Human is successful on Steam, but players criticize a major weakness

Cedric Holmeier Cedric Holmeier Reading time 2 minutes

The zombie multiplayer game Once Human is steadily gaining new players on Steam, while older players have slowly reached everything the game has to offer. However, new players are currently a problem for the old ones.

What is the vulnerability? In the zombie survival game Once Human, the servers are repeatedly a major problem for players. Not only are there different types of servers, but also that the servers quickly reach their maximum player capacity.

A server is full when too many players have created a character there. Whether they ever log back in doesn’t matter; once the server hits the limit, it is full. This is a problem for several reasons.

Here you can see the trailer for Once Human:

Start video
Is it worth starting with Once Human when the reset is coming soon?

Empty servers and starting over again

Why is the current system a problem? The current system has several issues. On one hand, the servers are getting emptier over time. Especially since the game is free, many players try it out without the intention of playing for a long time. Because no new players can come in, a server dies over time.

The second problem affects the players who have been there from the beginning. Not only are their servers getting emptier, but they cannot play with friends when they want to try out the game as well.

If they do want to do that, they have to start over on a new server and lose what they have played for so long. There are even migrations happening between the servers.

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How are the players reacting? Players are frustrated with the system. Many players report that they and their friends have restarted every time a new friend wanted to join.

On Reddit, Mediocre-Natural-259 writes:

I have recreated my character 4 times and switched to servers with low population so I could play with more friends who want to try the game. Now I have 3 friends on my current server and 4 who want to play, and there’s no way to convince them to start over.

SunArau is facing the same problem on Reddit:

[…] A friend eventually convinced me to start playing, but I couldn’t log in on his server, so I jumped to another one, and while I was messing around, I invited a few people to start too, so… yeah… now basically no one wants to start over.

But another problem is also frustrating players, reports Sors_Numine on Reddit: “That and a lack of shared quests. It really makes it easy to split up and not be together anymore.”

Getting on a server with all your friends requires good coordination, and even if that succeeds, there isn’t much to accomplish together. If you want to start together with your friends in the future, we have explained here how to do it best: Once Human: Play together with friends – Here’s how it works

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

A NASA scientist is convinced that we live in the Matrix – With an experiment, he wants to prove that his theory is real

Benedikt Schlotmann Benedikt Schlotmann Reading time < 1 minutes

A scientist believes that we live in the matrix. In California, a series of experiments have now been initiated to verify this.

Who is it about? Thomas Campbell is a renowned physicist who has worked for NASA and is now employed by the US Department of Defense.

In 2017, he explained in an article his “Test for Simulation Theory” and claims, using various concepts from quantum mechanics, that we live in a kind of matrix.

Now, scientists at California State Polytechnic University (CalPoly) have begun the first experiment to test Campbell’s hypothesis. This was reported by the English-language magazine Futurism.

By the way, the whole thing is funded by a nonprofit organization called the “Center for the Unification of Science and Consciousness” (CUSAC), which Campbell founded.

The universe cannot exist if there is no one to observe it

What kind of experiments are they? Campbell’s experiments involve a new variant of the double-slit experiment, a physical demonstration intended to show that light and matter can behave both like waves and like particles. This is reported by the Spanish colleagues from 3Djuegos.com.

Campbell believes that the recorded information does not exist at all when the observer is removed from these experiments. This stands in contrast to current quantum physics, which assumes an entanglement that connects particles over a distance.

Simply put, this means: If there is no person to observe the universe, then it does not exist. Campbell himself explains that his five experiments “could challenge conventional understandings of reality and uncover profound connections between consciousness and the cosmos.”

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More science fiction: If you want to dive deeper into science fiction, take a look at the following list on MeinMMO. Here we introduce a number of movies: The 13 best science fiction movies according to IMDb

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

In Call of Duty, everyone complains about the exhausting matchmaking – Activision secretly reduced it and now says how the test went

Christos Tsogos Christos Tsogos Reading time 2 minutes

In Call of Duty, the discussion surrounding matchmaking is always a constant topic in the community. One should turn it off as it only brings frustration. Now Activision has revealed that they had reduced their SBMM for a short time and the results were clear.

What kind of test was that? At the beginning of 2024, Activision conducted a test in CoD: MW3. In this test, 50% of the population in North America was used as “test subjects.” These selected players were allowed to play with a modified form of SBMM (Skill-based Matchmaking). This modified SBMM had a lower focus on the skill of other players.

The group you were thrown into was thus randomly determined. That or even more extreme: without SBMM, is what players want in CoD, but the test did not have the results you would hope for now.

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CoD: Black Ops 6 shows the new Omni-Movement in gameplay

SBMM of CoD is an important feature

What were the results? The results were obvious. While about 10% of the top players continued to play and secured their victories, the rest lost interest in playing a new round or staying in the same round. The reason: there were unfair matches because fans were thrown into the mix with other players who had a much higher skill level. This ultimately leads to frustration and, ultimately, to a decline in player numbers.

Interestingly, Activision had only reduced the SBMM for the test – not completely turned it off. A complete shutdown could have shown even better that SBMM is an important factor in current multiplayer games. You can find the 25-page report from Activision here: activision.com.

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What do the players say about it? On Reddit, the release of the report is celebrated. With up to 24,436 upvotes and 3,965 comments, users are participating in the discussion around SBMM (as of July 29, 10:59 AM). The following comments can be heard:

  • “Great paper, the gaming industry could make more of this public.” – cyanrave
  • “The reason why the ‘good old days’ of video games are over is metagaming, not SBMM. SBMM is an attempt to mitigate the effects of metagaming on the player base.” – BusBoatBuey
  • “And they forget that there was SBMM back then too, but everyone was bad, so it didn’t matter LOL” – blindmodz
  • “This is no real surprise. I think xDefiant shows that no SBMM is okay or even fun for people on the right side of the distribution curve (for a while), but it drains the bottom 40-50% who will statistically be cannon fodder and quit.” – Doctor_Box

What do you think of the report? Are you still in favor of Activision completely disabling its SBMM, or are you now glad that you are not being destroyed by e-sports players every round? Let us know in the comments. You can find more about CoD here: The new crossover of Call of Duty and Fallout manages to make fans of both games unhappy

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

In Dungeonborne, you will soon attack with bones and a beating heart as a weapon

Linda Knabe Linda Knabe Reading time 2 minutes

Dungeonborne delivers the first skins for your weapons in August. A trailer now presents them. You can see it here on MeinMMO.

Dungeonborne is a new game on Steam, which is heavily based on the “Dark and Darker” principle. The game was released on July 19, 2024, and has received 70% mostly positive reviews on the platform since then.

Your goal is to leave a dungeon with as much loot as possible. But for that, you should not only gather as much as you can but also escape the dungeon in time. Time is ticking, and once the map has completely darkened, it’s over.

It’s a kind of battle royale that finds its inspiration in Dungeons and Dragons and offers you various classes that fight with medieval weapons and magic. You will not only face other players but also NPCs in the form of different monsters.

Now a trailer shows the first weapon skins that players can look forward to in August:

Start video
Dungeonborne liefert euch im August erste Waffen-Skins

What kind of weapons are these? The weapons featured in the trailer are “only” weapon skins that you can receive in the game starting August 1, 2024.

The short trailer focuses on the design of the skins, which definitely fits in a world full of dark dungeons and monstrous creatures. The weapons look as if they are made from various bones and skulls, with some muscle and scraps of flesh still hanging from them.

You will see a sword and a shield that seem to consist of a whole torso, daggers, and a broadsword. There is also a bony crossbow and a club with a skull.

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Mages fight with a beating heart

The orb stands out the most, which allows you to attack magically in the game. This is not just made of bones, but is a still beating heart that you, as a player, carry around.

In Dungeonborne, particularly PvP enthusiasts will get their money’s worth. The thrill of potentially losing everything in the game is particularly appealing to many players. However, shortly after the release, some wish for another feature to make the game a better experience for everyone: With Dungeonborne, a good “Dark and Darker” is finally back on Steam, but one feature is missing

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

Pokémon GO: Trainer faces a challenge that takes him 7 years

Paul Kutzner Paul Kutzner Reading time 2 minutes

In Pokémon GO there are all kinds of challenges that you can face. A trainer reports on a personal challenge that has taken him several years to complete.

In Pokémon GO, you can complete so-called field research. In this, you have to complete a task and receive a reward in the form of items or Pokémon encounters. For each field research you complete, you get a stamp with the date when you mastered the research.

If you complete a field research on seven different days, you will receive what is called a field research breakthrough. This also rewards you with an item and a Pokémon encounter. The Pokémon available for this rotate regularly.

A trainer on Reddit is now reporting on a challenge related to field research that he is facing. And the completion of this challenge takes a full seven years.

Start video
Heavenly teamwork in Pokémon GO – a new season begins

7 years instead of 7 days

What kind of challenge is this? Instead of completing a field research every day, the trainer IceT77 only completes one field research per year. And he does this on the same day, namely July 28.

This means that he does not require just seven days to obtain the field research breakthrough, but a whole seven years. He started the challenge in July 2018 and can complete it in July 2025 if he doesn’t forget to submit a task.

We have embedded the corresponding post on Reddit for you here:

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How did he come to this challenge? The challenge came about rather randomly. The trainer writes about it: It was a coincidence that I opened it once a year, and from then on I just stuck with it.

Did he cheat? According to his own statements, he did not exploit tricks like the submitting in different time zones, but completed a task regularly once a year. For this, he set a reminder so he wouldn’t forget.

What does the community say about it? In the post on Reddit, there are several comments praising the trainer’s patience and suggesting ideas for further challenges.

  • I definitely wouldn’t have the willpower to wait a whole year between tasks., writes trainer maniacal_monk
  • Haha, that’s great. The next challenge is the extra day in February during a leap year., comments trainer ZeusTheGreat7
  • Man, that’s so cool!!! You’re probably the only one in the world who’s ever done that., says Eaglewolf13
  • The anticipation is great., writes trainer Gloomy-Kimtxn
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It remains to be seen if there will be a Reddit post next year where the trainer announces that he has completed the challenge. And what challenge he will tackle next.

What about you? Do you have similar challenges that you are working on? Would you have the patience and endurance to complete the trainer’s challenge? Feel free to let us know in the comments. If you want to know what to expect next month, check out the events in August 2024 in Pokémon GO.

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

The great rival of Diablo 4 shines with update – Never before has Path of Exile had more players on Steam

Karsten Scholz Karsten Scholz Reading time 3 minutes

With “Settlers of Kalguur”, the new content update for Path of Exile was released on July 26, 2024. While the launch on consoles faced challenges, the player numbers for the hack & slash adventure on Steam exploded.

How was the launch of “Settlers of Kalguur”? The new update for Path of Exile must have been a rollercoaster of emotions for the developers at Grinding Gear Games:

  • For the first time ever, a major content update “Settlers of Kalguur” was released simultaneously for the PC and console versions of Path of Exile. Serious issues occurred on PlayStation and Xbox, triggered by a hotfix implemented on short notice (via pathofexile.com).
  • In addition to the significant problems on consoles, many other bugs were fixed over the weekend – a list of all hotfixes can be found on pathofexile.com.
  • On Steam, the major rival of Diablo 4 set a new record thanks to “Settlers of Kalguur”: On July 26, 2024, there were temporarily 228,398 players online in Path of Exile at the same time. The old all-time high was 211,637 concurrent players from April 2023.
  • It should be noted that many PC players utilize the standalone launcher of Path of Exile and do not log in via Steam. According to a post on X, the peak on PC may have been around 350,000 concurrent players – also a record for the eleven-year-old Path of Exile.

The content of “Settlers of Kalguur” in the trailer:

Start video
Path of Exile presents new expansion in trailer

Hack & Slash with City Manager

What does “Settlers of Kalguur” offer? The current influx of players logging into Path of Exile is certainly related to the anticipation for Path of Exile 2. Additionally, the new content update provides good reasons to visit the dark world of Wraeclast:

  • With the July expansion, the challenge league “Settlers of Kalguur” starts, where players help build a city and establish a trade route. Familiar characters like Dannig, Rog, Tujen, and Gwennen make a return.
  • When building the city, you also manage it and hire workers to assist you in mining, smelting, enchanting, agriculture, and other tasks.
  • In the endgame, you create maps using engineer Isla with kalguurian modifications, which assigned fighters must then complete for you.
  • At the rune-smithing table, you can enhance weapons through an engraving with rune magic.
  • Through the new currency market, you can trade currencies and most other stackable items with other players asynchronously.
  • Three new endgame bosses hijack your trade ships or capture your workers.
  • There are extensive changes for the Ascendancy class of the Gladiator and further balance adjustments.
  • The new Ascendancy class of the Guardian replaces the Hunter.
  • There are extensive improvements for various endgame content, the console version, as well as quality-of-life adjustments such as an increase in item pick-up range.

Even before the launch, many Path of Exile fans expressed excitement about the updates.

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What does the community say about the update? On Steam, the review rating barometer from the past 30 days stands at “Very Positive”, with 89 percent positive reviews. When looking at the reviews from the last few days, one recurring statement comes up: Path of Exile is the best ARPG on the market.

Similarly enthusiastic posts can be found on X. Streamer Tri notes that he considers the current league to be the best yet (via X). Popular WoW streamer Bajheera concurs (via X): “The best league so far!”

Lucky Ghost adds (via X): “350,000 concurrent players is insane! It’s well deserved, this league is incredible. I’m enjoying every second of playing a melee character for the first time in years.”

Have you already tried the new content in Path of Exile? What is your conclusion? Are you also excited? Or do you lean more towards the Diablo 4 camp? Share your thoughts in the comments! Speaking of Diablo versus PoE: Path of Exile 2 presents a new class, showcasing what makes it better than the Necromancer from Diablo 4

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

Protection against spam calls: These free apps help with annoying calls on iPhone and Android phones

Gerald Wessel Gerald Wessel Reading time 2 minutes

Spam calls are a scourge of our time, becoming more acute and nerve-wracking due to AI. We show you apps that help.

What are spam calls? This technical term can refer to a variety of unwanted and sometimes even dangerous calls. Almost everyone knows the phenomenon: Your phone rings, the number is unknown to you and not in your contact list. When you answer, an AI voice reads you an advertisement or there is just silence on the other end.

Regardless of who or what it is: spam calls are annoying and can even cost you real money if you call back. We present you with a brief overview of two apps each and the options that iOS and Android inherently provide to identify and block spam calls.

You can read about what the N symbol on your phone means here with us on MeinMMO or watch it in the following video:

Start video
What does the N symbol on your phone mean?

Stop spam calls, these apps help

How can I activate the default spam call detection on iOS and Android? Both Google and Apple generally offer tools to deal with spam calls out of the box.

  • iOS: In iOS 13 and newer, you can use “Silence Unknown Callers.” This option can be found in the settings of your iPhone under “Phone.”

What does “Silence Unknown Callers” do? This feature on Apple devices suppresses calls from unknown numbers and stores them only in your call list. The phone does not ring at all – either by vibration, display, or sound. You will only find the entry in the call list, and the caller has the chance to leave you a message on your voicemail. (More info: via Apple.com)

  • Android: Go to the settings menu of your smartphone, navigate to Caller ID and Spam, and activate Filter Spam Calls.

What does Filter Spam Calls do? Just like with iOS, the filtered call only appears in the incoming calls and is redirected to voicemail.

Why should I then use third-party apps? With third-party apps, you get a more user-friendly interface and control options to configure how the app should handle spam calls.

Do the apps cost anything? No, but they contain ads and/or the option for in-app purchases. However, downloading, installing, and using them will not cost you anything extra.

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Anti-spam call apps for Android

On Google Play, these two apps are rated very well: Call Blocker or Truecaller: See who is calling. Generally, all apps of this kind work relatively similarly. Even if you choose other providers, you will always have the option to manually add numbers to a blacklist or often set entire number ranges that should be blocked.

Truecaller offers on Android as well as on iOS (see below) an additional database where numbers end up that other users have already blocked. So, at least in theory, you often receive direct information about a spam call when it comes in.

Anti-spam call apps for iOS

On the iPhone, you can find these two well-rated apps in the Apple App Store: Begone: Spam Call Blocker and Truecaller: Caller ID Blocker. The options are identical to those on Android: more information, more control, customizable ways to create blacklists for blocking.

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If you’re interested in more tips from the world of mobile and data security, we have more on offer on MeinMMO. Because aside from the informative articles linked above, we have more to tell about smartphones, whether you use Android or iOS. Elsewhere, we have for example listed six myths about phone usage that you should no longer believe.

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

MMORPG for Lord of the Rings presents next expansion, soon new hobby and legendary servers will come

Karsten Scholz Karsten Scholz Reading time 2 minutes

At Comic-Con in San Diego, there was information about the next expansion of Lord of the Rings Online: Legacy of Morgoth. Also, Update 41 is set to be released this week. MeinMMO summarizes all the important details for you.

What is known about the new expansion of LOTRO? The roadmap for 2024 already indicated that a new expansion for Lord of the Rings Online is set to release in the fourth quarter. Included are four fresh regions, a raid, and an instance group.

At Comic-Con in San Diego, more details were revealed:

  • the new expansion is called “Legacy of Morgoth”
  • with the addon, the storyline of “The Song of Waves and Wind” will continue; more details on the story series can be found at lotro-wiki.com
  • as part of the storyline, you will leave the city of Umbar to venture into the desert of Harad

With the last expansion, a new class came to Middle-earth; here is the trailer:

Start video
The Lord of the Rings Online DLC lets you set sail with a new class – Watch the trailer here

Was that all the information from Comic-Con? In regard to the MMORPG for Lord of the Rings, the responsible parties also presented the most important new features of Update 41, which is set to be released around July 31, 2024 (via forums.lotro.com). The patch brings, among other things:

  • the new hobby of bird watching
  • a new event for craftsmen
  • new quests and rewards for monster play
  • after humans, elves will also receive new customization options such as faces and hairstyles, and improvements to animations are planned

Alongside Update 41, the two new Legendary servers Angmar and Mordor will go live, offering a fresh challenge with a stronger variant of the Ringwraith attacks. The victims of the Nazgûl must team up with other Middle-earth fighters to have a chance at victory. Powerful loot awaits as a reward.

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Which free MMORPGs are still really fun in 2026? MeinMMO reveals it to you in the video
von Nico Scheibel

News from the other Daybreak MMORPGs

The representatives of Daybreak Game Company used the panel at Comic-Con not only to look at the upcoming content for Lord of the Rings Online. There were also topic blocks for the other MMORPGs of the publisher. Here are the highlights:

  • Lead designer Chad Brown talked about the upcoming port of DC Universe Online for the Xbox Series. He also introduced “Harley Quinn vs. Apokolips,” the upcoming episode of the superhero MMORPG. The storyline is based on a DC series in which Harley joins the “Female Furies” to receive a brand new suit and a hammer. The release is planned for fall.
  • Executive producer Rob Ciccolini spoke about the new expansion “Magic of Myth Drannor” for Dungeons & Dragons Online, set to release on August 14, 2024. It brings the new archetype of the chaos mage, the playable race of the Eladrin, and fresh content in a new zone.
  • Executive producer Jenn Chan mentioned on stage the 25th anniversary of EverQuest and the 20th anniversary of EverQuest II. The milestones will be celebrated with in-game events, player gifts, updates for the “Anniversary Tower,” and the updates “The Outer Brood” and “Scars of Destruction.”

Are you looking forward to the upcoming addon for LOTRO? Let us know in the comments! Recently, there was also a touching message from Middle-earth that shows why the community of Lord of the Rings Online enjoys such a positive reputation: After a near-fatal attack with a brass knuckle, the victim receives help from Middle-earth

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

In Cataclysm Classic, two dungeons make their comeback this week, SWTOR prepares for a new update

Karsten Scholz Karsten Scholz Reading time 4 minutes

It’s time again for our MeinMMO format “MMORPG News in Two Minutes”. We summarize the most important news around the best genre in the world. Look forward to many new contents for World of Warcraft, the testing of new servers for Lord of the Rings Online, as well as Ultima Online and much more.

This week’s highlights:

What else happened? For New World, the closed beta for the new console version started on July 25, 2024. The test runs until July 31 at 6:00 PM and takes place in two phases. From day one, participants can jump into the fray with a new character. However, endgame tests are also planned starting July 28.

Unfortunately, there was some trouble at launch, as many European interested parties could not activate their invitation code for the PlayStation 5. The reason: Only 20 of the more than 45 EU countries are allowed for the test. A detail that Amazon Games had not communicated sufficiently in advance.

The trailer for the new console version of New World:

Start video
Trailer for New World Aeternum announces console version

New Servers for HdRO and Ultima Online

This happened with the big MMORPGs:

This happened with the small MMORPGs:

  • With the update Paths to Glory Albion Online received a new achievement and mission system on July 22, 2024, which is meant to guide newcomers and provide additional incentives for veterans. Other innovations include several crystal weapons, extensive adjustments for the streets of Avalon, as well as optimizations for guild islands, fate boards, and more.
  • In a livestream, the developers of Star Wars: The Old Republic presented the innovations of update 7.5.1 (via swtor.com).
  • Fractured Online officially left Early Access on July 24, 2024. Alongside the launch, there was a fresh server start (via Steam).
  • Old School RuneScape remains good for quirky news despite its high age. First, a player “completed” the MMORPG after 1,758 hours, then it went after 16,000 chickens.
  • For Ravendawn a new update has been announced, which is set to go live on August 9, 2024. Not only gameplay improvements have been promised, but also fresh PvP and PvE contents. 
  • With Infinity Land a new fantasy MMORPG in anime style for PC and Mobile has been released.
  • A new armor type, the Norrathian Armory, has been introduced for Everquest 2, which allows you to share items with other account characters (via everquest2.com).
  • For Lord of the Rings Online, tests of the new Legendary Server Mordor are currently taking place. Angmar and Mordor are expected to go live on July 31 or August 1, 2024. The release of update 41 is also planned for July 31 (via mmorpg.com).
  • The open beta for the New Legacy server of Ultima Online started on July 26, 2024, and is expected to run until July 28 (via uo.com).
  • On July 22, 2024, the first boss dungeon with Sanctum of Rebirth was released for RuneScape (via mmorpg.com).
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This happened with MMORPGs in development:

With that, we have summarized the most important things that have recently happened in the world of MMORPGs.

What were you excited about this week? What frustrated you? Let us know in the comments at MeinMMO. If you are looking for affordable MMORPGs in 2024, the following list might help you: The 12 best free-to-play MMORPGs 2024 in comparison

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

Pokémon GO: All Spotlight Hours in July 2024 and their Bonuses

Paul Kutzner Paul Kutzner Reading time 5 minutes

In July 2024, there will again be some Spotlight Hours in Pokémon GO. We will show you when they take place and what you can expect there.

What kind of event is this? The Spotlight Hours are events that take place every Tuesday. For 60 minutes, one Pokémon is in focus, appearing in very high numbers.

In addition to the Pokémon, there is also a bonus that is active during this time. This can be a bonus on experience points, stardust, or candies.

Start video
Heavenly teamwork in Pokémon GO – a new season begins

All Spotlight Hours in July 2024

When do the Spotlight Hours run? The Spotlight Hours take place every Tuesday from 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM. On which dates in July 2024 you can find which Pokémon and bonuses is shown in the following table.

DatePokémon & Bonus
July 2Pikachu with cake hat and 2x catch XP
July 9Seemops and 2x catch candies
July 16Bithora and 2x sending candies
July 23Digda and Alolan Digda and 2x evolution XP
July 30Togedemaru and 2x catch stardust

Spotlight Hour on July 2

Which Pokémon is in the spotlight? On July 2, you will find Pikachu, one of the most popular Pokémon, in the Spotlight Hour. On this day, you will find it wearing a cake hat.

Pokemon GO Spotlight Hour July 2024 Pikachu with cake hat

Which bonus is active? In this Spotlight Hour, the bonus for 2x catch XP is active. This means that for all Pokémon you catch during the Spotlight Hour, you will receive double experience points.

Is the event worth it? Pikachu with cake hat cannot evolve into Raichu. The Pokémon is not among the strongest attackers available in Pokémon GO. It is not worth using either in raids or in the battle league.

If you are actively collecting experience points, the bonus may be more interesting for you.

Can you catch Shiny Pikachu? Yes, you might also encounter the Shiny variant of Pikachu with a cake hat during the event. If you are a Shiny collector, this could be the most interesting point of this event for you.

Spotlight Hour on July 9

Which Pokémon is in the spotlight? Seemops, a Pokémon from the 3rd generation with the types Ice and Water, is in the forefront during this Spotlight Hour. It can evolve into Seejong and then into Walraisa.

Pokemon GO Spotlight Hour July 2024 Seemops

Which bonus is active? In this Spotlight Hour, you will receive double the number of candies for catching Pokémon. It does not matter which Pokémon you catch.

Is the event worth it? The final evolution of Seemops, Walraisa, is not the strongest Pokémon for the battle league, but it is not the weakest either. In the Super League, it ranks among the top 100, and in the Hyper League, among the top 50 Pokémon.

For raids, you should not rely on Walraisa. It is not one of the strongest Pokémon in Pokémon GO as an Ice or Water attacker.

Can you catch Shiny Seemops? Yes, with some luck, you can encounter Seemops as a Shiny Pokémon as well.

Spotlight Hour on July 16

Which Pokémon is in the spotlight? On July 16, you will find Bithora in the Spotlight Hour. This Pokémon is from the 6th generation and has the types Rock and Water. It can evolve into Thanathora.

Pokemon GO Spotlight Hour July 2024 Bithora

Which bonus is active? If you send Pokémon to the professor during the event, you will receive double the number of candies. It does not matter which Pokémon you send: You will receive the candy bonus for each Pokémon sent.

Is the event worth it? If you plan to use Bithora and its evolution for raids or battle leagues, you will be disappointed. Both Pokémon are not particularly good attackers.

If you have already marked Pokémon with a tag to send to the professor, the bonus might be worth it to clear your Pokémon bag and get extra candies.

Can you catch Shiny Bithora? Yes, Bithora is also available as Shiny in Pokémon GO. If you are lucky, you can catch the Shiny variant of the Pokémon during the event.

Spotlight Hour on July 23

Which Pokémon is in the spotlight? During this Spotlight Hour, Digda and Alolan Digda are in focus. The Ground-type Pokémon from the 1st generation has a evolution, Digdri.

Pokemon GO Spotlight Hour July 2024 Digda

Which bonus is active? During this Spotlight Hour, a bonus for double experience points when evolving Pokémon is active. It does not matter which Pokémon you evolve: You will receive double the amount of experience points for each evolution.

Is the event worth it? Digda and its evolution Digdri are not particularly strong Pokémon. They are not worth using as attackers in raids or for battle leagues. This also applies to the Alolan form.

The bonus on experience points when evolving Pokémon could be more interesting for you if you currently have many Pokémon to evolve and could use the experience points.

Can you catch Shiny Digda? Yes, Digda can generally also be found as a Shiny Pokémon. With the high number of Digda at the event, you have a comparatively good chance of obtaining the Pokémon as Shiny.

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Spotlight Hour on July 30

Which Pokémon is in the spotlight? On this day, Togedemaru will be in focus. This Pokémon comes from the 7th generation and has the types Electric and Steel. It does not have an evolution.

Pokemon GO Spotlight Hour July 2024 Togedemaru

Which bonus is active? In this Spotlight Hour, a bonus for stardust is active. If you catch Pokémon within the 60 minutes, you will receive double the amount of stardust. It does not matter which Pokémon you catch: The bonus is active for each caught Pokémon.

Is the event worth it? Togedemaru is not worth using in raids. The Pokémon is simply too weak for that. In the battle leagues, it is somewhat usable in the Super League, but for the other leagues, it is not worth it at all.

With the stardust bonus, you can at least top up your stardust supply a bit. This bonus can be further increased by using a star piece.

Can you catch Shiny Togedemaru? No, Togedemaru is not yet available as Shiny in Pokémon GO. You can only catch it in its regular form.

What do you think of the Spotlight Hours in July 2024? Are there Pokémon and bonuses that particularly interest you, or will you not participate? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments and discuss with other trainers. We also have an overview of all events in July 2024 in Pokémon GO.

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

Diablo 4: 3 things you should do before Season 5 starts

Nicole Wakulczyk Nicole Wakulczyk Reading time 3 minutes

On August 6, Season 5 begins in Diablo 4 and you still have some time to secure the rewards and finish everything you want to accomplish. MeinMMO summarizes the most important things for you.

When does Season 5 start? Season 4 ends on August 6 and then Season 5 starts. We expect it to go live in the evening around 7:00 PM. There could be an appropriate patch beforehand, and maintenance work is not ruled out. Season 4 launched in May with a big update, and preloading was not possible – Blizzard stated that discussions are ongoing to improve the process in the future.

What’s included in Season 5?

All information about Season 5 can be found here in detail:

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What happens to my season character? All season characters from Season 4 will become eternal characters. Chests, gold, and materials will be consolidated. If you want to play Season 5, you will need to create a new character again.

Start video
Diablo 4: Developers offer insight into the Season of the Infernal Hordes

Secure all the cosmetics you want

The battle pass of Diablo 4 has some cosmetic content that you can only obtain in the current season. If cosmetics are important to you and you like the style of the battle pass, you should grind until August 6. Highlights include:

  • the mount armor “Demigod Slashes” at level 1
  • the town portal “Devouring Malevolence” at level 13
  • the gravestone “Triple Shattered Monument” at level 47
  • various cosmetic equipment
  • various weapon skins and emotes

If you are a fan of player titles in Diablo 4 and want to secure many of them, there is again a hidden title in Season 4. However, if you want to grab this, you need to complete quite a few tasks:

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Clear out your chests and make space

Your characters will move to the eternal realm, seasonal content will not carry over, but potions, nightmare sigils, equipment, and also (Uber) Uniques will. All items share a chest, but you also have multiple compartments there. Check your inventory as well, as it tends to accumulate quite a lot.

After the season, you still have some time to transfer items into the “eternal” chest. It can get quite chaotic if you haven’t sorted things beforehand.

So consider what you want to keep from the stuff you farmed in the season. If you also want to continue playing in the eternal realm afterward, it would be wise to farm certain bosses now, so you can possibly secure some cool Uber Uniques:

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Prepare your next character

If you want to play Season 5, you need to create a new character. However, it does not start “completely from 0,” but can carry over some content that you can prepare now:

  • complete (at least) the prologue of the campaign to have access to seasonal content
  • find all Lilith statues, which grant you permanent bonuses
  • explore the entire map, or at least collect the teleport points in each city
  • farm the reputation in the areas and complete the region progress for a faster start
When starting a new character, you can collect a few bonuses if you have been diligent.

While this takes some time, it only needs to be done once. After that, you will have the advantages for your characters in every subsequent season – unless you switch to Hardcore. There, you will need to uncover the map again and complete the region progress anew.

Season 5 begins on August 6. If you are still unsure which class you want to play when it starts, our tier list might help you. There we show you which classes and builds are the strongest in the endgame. We also provide a brief description of the best builds and links to recreate them: Diablo 4 Season 5 Tier List: The best builds for all classes in the endgame

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

One Piece: Which Straw Hat would you like to have as a friend?

Jasmin Beverungen Jasmin Beverungen Reading time 2 minutes

The Straw Hat crew from One Piece now has ten members, who couldn’t be more different. But which member of the Straw Hat crew would you most like to spend time with? We will clarify this in an ultimate survey!

Each Straw Hat pirate has their own quirks. Some love to take it easy, while others crave action all the time. Luffy is known for his big appetite and restlessness. We always see Zoro with weights in hand because he needs to train.

When Usopp isn’t busy crafting new equipment, he is goofing around with Luffy and Chopper. Although Chopper sometimes withdraws to study his medical books. Sanji makes sure everyone is provided with food.

Brook spends his free time practicing music, after all, he is the Soul King. Franky keeps the ship intact and knows all about machines. Jinbei enjoys the quiet and sips tea leisurely, while Nico Robin lies in the next lounge with a good book. Nami, on the other hand, would alternate between relaxing and extensive shopping.

Start video
One Piece: These are the 5 coolest ships sailing the oceans

So the question is: Which Straw Hat member would you most like to hang out with? Let us know in the survey below which pirate you would prefer by your side.

Here’s how you can participate: To have your opinion taken into account, you need to cast your vote in the survey below. You have the opportunity to vote. You decide which pirate you would be most likely to befriend.

It may happen that none of the Straw Hats appeal to you. Then tell us in the comments if there is another character with whom you would rather hang out.

MeinMMO has already created a power ranking that is based on the strength of each member. It is supposed to show how the Straw Hats would perform in a Battle Royale. One Piece: The members of the Straw Hat crew in ranking – How Luffy, Franky, and the others perform

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

LoL Swarm: 5 Tips for Beginners

jacquelinek jacquelinek Reading time 3 minutes

The new PvE mode in League of Legends is reminiscent of popular games like Vampire Survivors. To help you get started in this new mode, we at MeinMMO have put together a beginner’s guide.

The new PvE mode Swarm, or Swarm, was released on July 17 together with the new champion Aurora. In this mode, which is very similar to popular hits like Vampire Survivors, you fight alone or with up to three friends against a massive horde of monsters.

Especially at the beginning, if you haven’t played similar titles before, the mode can quickly become overwhelming. We have compiled tips to help you get started in Swarm.

[toc]

Start video
Swarm – Trailer for the new LoL PvE mode

Use Your Abilities

This tip may initially sound very trivial, as it is obviously sensible to use your abilities E and R. However, what is important in Swarm is that you do not use your abilities in the same way as in League of Legends.

In LoL, you are probably used to using your abilities cautiously and not immediately when they are available again. In Swarm, it’s a bit different, and you should use your abilities frequently. Since there are cooldowns, it makes sense, at least for your ultimate ability, to use it when there is a larger mass of monsters around you.

Don’t Be Afraid of Damage

To win a round in LoL Swarm, you must survive for 15 minutes before facing the boss, which looks different depending on the map. During this time, you will inevitably take some damage. If you are playing solo, you need to act more cautiously, and especially walls can become a big problem. More on that later.

Still, particularly when you have unlocked the Healing upgrade, you continuously regenerate your health, so taking a bit of damage is not fatal. It only becomes problematic when you are surrounded by monsters.

In multiplayer, however, you can take the damage you have taken a bit more lightly. If you are overrun and defeated by the monsters, it is possible to be revived by a friend. You can even use this as a strategy to gain more experience points.

Spend Your Gold on Upgrades

In LoL Swarm, you primarily need gold to buy upgrades. There are a total of 15 upgrades that you can acquire:

  • Damage: Multiplies damage
  • Armor: Reduces incoming damage
  • Maximum Health: Multiplies maximum health
  • Healing: Restores health every second
  • Movement Speed: Increases movement speed
  • Pickup Radius: Increases the ERF and pickup range for gold
  • Area Size: Increases the area size of some weapons
  • Duration: Increases the duration of weapon and ability effects
  • Critical Hit Chance: Increases the chance of critical hits for weapons that can critically hit
  • Ability Speed: Reduces the cooldown of weapons and abilities
  • Experience: Increases earned experience
  • Projectiles: Increases the number of projectiles fired for firearms
  • Gold: Increases the gold earned
  • Bonus Duration: Increases the duration of Miss Fortune’s Battle-Bunny bonuses
  • Anima Power: For each level, 1% damage, 1% movement speed, 1% ability speed, 1% pickup radius

Some upgrades will only unlock during the course of the game, but with each upgrade, you make the upcoming run easier for yourself. So it’s worth checking after each run if you can buy a new upgrade.

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Destroy the Boxes on the Map

On each map, you usually find boxes in corners and against walls that you can destroy. Inside, there is always one of the following three things:

  • Gold
  • Healing
  • Vacuum Orbs that suck up all the experience on the map

Especially the healing can save your life in critical moments, especially if you don’t have a passive ability that replenishes your health points. The vacuum orbs also give you a nice advantage and can sometimes allow you to skip several levels at once since a lot of experience points are inevitably left behind at the beginning.

Importantly, the boxes regenerate over time. So don’t hesitate to destroy the boxes early in the game and try to remember the spots where you can find healing.

LoL Swarm Boxes on the Map
You can find boxes spread across the entire map.

Watch Out for Walls and Chokepoints

You will quickly get the hang of how to best navigate the map. At the beginning, it can be helpful to avoid chokepoints or not to circle around walls. Especially when your abilities are still on cooldown, this can quickly mean your end. However, you should not completely avoid these, as there are often boxes with gold or healing there.

Swarm is the new PvE mode of League of Legends, following a completely different gameplay principle than fans are used to from Riot Games. Overall, you can choose between 9 champions. In a tier list, we have listed the best champions for you: LoL Swarm: Tier List of the Best Champions

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

World of Warcraft has just undergone the biggest changes since Cataclysm

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 3 minutes

World of Warcraft has changed its direction – forever. The biggest step the MMORPG has taken in decades.

It’s a wild time for World of Warcraft right now. These are the last days of the “Dragonflight” expansion, but the big Pre-Patch 11.0 has already ushered in the era of The War Within and brought the most significant changes to the game that World of Warcraft has seen in the last 10 years.

Foremost is of course the big feature of the Warband – but there are also many small innovations that contribute to a smoother and better gameplay experience.

Start video
WoW: Pre-Patch 11.0 – Trailer for the new pre-event of The War Within

The Warband Changes WoW Forever

The big new feature is the Warband, which marks a clear paradigm shift for World of Warcraft.

The small statement “Almost everything is now account-bound thanks to the Warband” reads almost like a triviality. A minor quality-of-life improvement that makes everything a bit more pleasant.

But that’s not all. This is almost a 180° turn from what World of Warcraft has done in the last two decades.

These are many small features that together make for a big change:

  • Almost all relevant resources and currencies can be transferred between characters.
  • The account has a shared bank that all characters can access – from anywhere.
  • Reputation is account-wide, every character can work on it, and all benefit.
  • Quests only need to be completed once per account, then they can be hidden – anyone who wishes can play them multiple times.
  • Every character can now unlock all items as transmog, so your warrior benefits when the mage finds plate armor.
WoW Warband List
The Warband not only looks cool – it also changes a lot about the game.

Suddenly, it’s not just individual characters that matter. There’s no need for multiple characters to complete the same quests over and over again. There’s no need to earn a particular reputation reward multiple times just because one wants to switch characters.

For some, the downside may be that you now “have to” spend less time in-game to make good progress on twinks. But when you think about it, that actually means:

You can now use the time saved to do things in the game that really bring you joy.

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The End of Classic Mounts

A change that many may have missed concerns the mounts in World of Warcraft. Players are usually used to unlocking “normal riding”, then fast riding (and so on). But Blizzard has also revamped this system, removed some steps, and even increased the speed of riding. The changes in detail are:

  • The riding skill for 60%-mounts is no longer required.
  • Riding skills are now available starting at level 10. Mounts have a speed of +100%.
  • Riding proficiency is now available starting at level 20. It allows the use of flying mounts at a speed of +220%.
  • Master riding is now available as early as level 30. It allows the use of flying mounts at a speed of +420% – so 100% faster than before.

What sounds like a small adjustment ultimately results in you being much faster even at early levels and quickly overcoming those tedious first levels. This – combined with the XP reduction up to level 70 – means that new characters can catch up to the endgame much more quickly, making everything feel “snappier”.

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WoW player creates addon that every story fan needs, community cheers: “This is so cool”
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State of Play: Where do the MMORPGs WoW, ESO, GW2, Black Desert and FF14 stand in Spring 2016?
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State of Play: Where do the MMORPGs WoW, ESO, GW2, FF14, and Black Desert stand at the beginning of 2017?
von Schuhmann

With these changes, World of Warcraft has taken a giant step towards “Modern MMORPG” and laid the groundwork for the game to not only keep up with the ongoing modern MMORPG market during the duration of the World Souls saga, but also to endure afterwards. Now all that’s really missing is housing.

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

Gameplay of Vessel of Hatred shows a feature that fans have desired since the release of Diablo 4, making travel better

Benedict Grothaus Benedict Grothaus Reading time 2 minutes

Blizzard is planning the first expansion for Diablo 4 with Vessel of Hatred. More and more details about new features are becoming known from recently shown gameplay. One of these features has been requested by players since the release, although it is actually just a tiny quality-of-life change.

This is what players wish for:

  • In Diablo 4, there are several capitals, one for each region, and with Vessel of Hatred, another will be added: Kurast. When you use your town portal, you always end up in the capital of the region you are currently in.
  • This has bothered players since the game’s release, as some cities have a better layout than others and are more “convenient.” One of the biggest threads on Reddit back then already demanded that players be able to favorite a city to always navigate to it.
  • In this way, players could save time and wouldn’t have to awkwardly select the respective city via the map. It seems that Blizzard is bringing exactly this feature in Vessel of Hatred.

Where is this information coming from? Blizzard invited some experts to their home in Irvine, California, shortly before the official presentation of the Spiritborn to play the class in advance. They also had the new area Nahantu to explore.

The streamer and YouTuber Rob meticulously ensured in his gameplay to briefly click on all new features with the mouse to analyze them later. A detail was noticed (via wowhead).

For the capital Kurast, there is now the option to right-click (on PC) to set the city as a favorite – exactly the function that players have been wishing for for a year. In Rob’s gameplay, there are quite a few details that even the expert himself did not notice.

Whether the function works in all cities is still unknown, but it would be logical. Of course, it is also not yet certain whether the feature will actually come, but there is nothing to suggest otherwise.

MeinMMO was also invited to the event. Here you can find our impressions of the Spiritborn, and in the video, you can see the new gameplay with commentary:

Start video
This is how the Spiritborn plays, the new class in Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred

Vessel of Hatred fulfills a multitude of wishes

The city favorites are just one of many features that will come with Vessel of Hatred, if they do come. But we already know that Vessel of Hatred fulfills a multitude of fan wishes, including:

Only with Season 4 did the game experience a resurgence, as the entire loot system was overhauled, and the endgame appeals to players significantly more. Vessel of Hatred clearly continues this trend.

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With Vessel of Hatred, you will also get the new area Nahantu with the capital Kurast south of Kehjistan. The area is an overgrown jungle with new enemies, including a cult, new demons, and wildlife.

The story also continues. You will find out what happens to Mephisto’s soulstone, which Neyrelle stole at the end of the campaign. The intro already shows that the “thief” is not doing particularly well. No wonder considering who she has gotten involved with: Mephisto will be the new big boss in Vessel of Hatred – Who is he anyway?

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

The 5 strongest clans of Naruto Shippuden in the power ranking

Fabienne Kissel Fabienne Kissel Reading time 5 minutes

In Naruto Shippuden there are many cool clans, but which one is actually the most powerful? We took a closer look at the clans and show you which are the strongest.

How was the ranking created? Our ranking is based on the current state of the Naruto Shippuden anime/manga. We compared all the clans and picked our top 5. In our assessment, we took into account the individual abilities and background stories of the clans. Based on this, we show you the 5 strongest clans of Naruto Shippuden.

Attention Spoilers: The article contains spoilers that run throughout Naruto Shippuden.

Start video
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 – Opening Trailer

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Rank 5: Hyuga Clan

Naruto: Hinata
Image source: naruto.fandom.com

The Hyuga Clan is one of the oldest and most respected clans of Konoha. The Hyuga are known for their Byakugan, a Kekkei Genkai (hereditary ability). It is one of the most powerful eye techniques (Dou-Jutsu) and allows for nearly complete 360-degree vision.

Shinobi with the Byakugan can see through massive objects and over great distances, functioning almost like a telescopic view. In addition, the Byakugan enables them to see the chakra flow and the Tenketsu (chakra points) in another person’s body, giving them a significant advantage in combat.

Thanks to this ability, the Hyuga can target with their technique Gentle Fist (a unique Tai-Jutsu) to disrupt or even completely block the chakra flow of their opponents. Through hard training, many clan members possess excellent chakra control.

Notable clan members include:

  • Hinata Hyuga
  • Neji Hyuga
  • Hiashi Hyuga

Rank 4: Senju Clan

Naruto: Senju Clan
Image source: naruto.fandom.com

The Senju Clan is among the most powerful and historically significant clans in the world of Naruto. Its origins trace back to Asura Otsutsuki, the younger son of Hagoromo Otsutsuki. As descendants of Otsutsuki, the Senju clan was the only clan able to compete with the Uchiha clan in strength during the war. The two clans signed a peace treaty and together founded the village of Konohagakure (Konoha).

The Senju were also known by the name The 1000-Hand Clan. This clan is known for its enormous experience in ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu, making its members incredibly versatile in combat.

Particularly outstanding was Hashirama Senju, known as the strongest shinobi of his generation. He is famous for his Mokuton technique (Wood Release), a unique ability that allowed him to create and manipulate wood and trees from his chakra. Hashirama could even create large forests and alter entire landscapes.

The Senju Clan has produced several significant Hokage, including:

  • Hashirama (the first Hokage)
  • Tobirama (the second Hokage)
  • Tsunade (the fifth Hokage)

Rank 3: Uzumaki Clan

Naruto-Sage-Mode

The Uzumaki Clan was famous for its mastery of Fuinjutsus, i.e., sealing techniques. This ability was so powerful that many villages feared the Uzumaki. Several villages decided together to annihilate the Uzumaki Clan and thus its village, Uzushiogakure. Numerous members were slaughtered, and the survivors went underground.

Many clan members possess enormous chakra reserves. With their impressive chakra reserves, they can heal injuries quickly and live very long lives. The Uzumaki are distantly related to the Senju Clan. Over the years, the Uzumaki and Senju maintained a close relationship, occasionally marrying members of both clans, such as Hashirama Senju and Mito Uzumaki.

Here are some of the most famous members of the Uzumaki Clan:

  • Naruto Uzumaki
  • Kushina Uzumaki
  • Mito Uzumaki (first Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi)
  • Nagato (Pain)
  • Karin Uzumaki
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. naruto.fandom.com
  2. GameRant
  3. Dualshockers
  4. SerienReviewer (YouTube)
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