If you don't get in to a beta you have to live vicariously though an NDA that doesn't allow people to post about what's going on. You read each forum post thinking to yourself "I wonder if this is some random idiot, or if he's in beta and knows what he's talking about!" Or alternatively, "I wonder if this is just some random idiot in beta that wouldn't know a good thing if it bit him in the butt!"
Either way, it's painful. Wanting to follow a game so closely and not having information and knowing that someone else does is so hard. You go from concept art to exclusive screen shots shared throughout the game community and wonder if that's what you thought it would look like, and how it will look in the game world.
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From PlayOnline.com
As they wander the battlefields of the Crystal War, adventurers will encounter Lilisette, an eccentric dancer who is shadowing the mysterious Cait Sith. Her unprecedented actions will slowly but surely warp the very fabric of the age...
Click
here to learn more about the unfolding story of the Wings of the Goddess!
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Have a friend who let their Tabula Rasa account lapse? Well if you bring them back and they reactivate their account, you both get 30 free days to share. Check out the details
here.
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Have fun in Fury Online? Get ready to take the competition to the next level with Fury League!
Brisbane, Australia, May 8 2008.
Auran Games, creators of Fury, the fast-paced arena combat game, today announced the launch of a new skill-based online competitive format called Fury League. Players can not only test their skills against other players but also win Fury Gold which can be converted into real cash.
To introduce players to the new “turn skill into cash” concept, the Fury League Qualifying Season will run throughout the month of May. This is a totally free to play Qualifying Season aimed at building a large social and competitive online community based around fast paced arena combat.
To get the competitive juices flowing, and to ensure plenty of hard fought competition, the Qualifying Season will culminate in two special “Cash Ladders”. The top 1,000 players on each Ladder will win cash prizes with a total of $25,000 to be won. The first Cash Ladder will kick off May 20 with players competing in 8 v 8 team Vortex. The second will begin on May 27 with players competing in the 4 v 4 Elimination game type.
In addition to the Cash Ladders, for every game played during the Qualifying Season players earn one Free game entry in Fury League which will kick off in June. Players can earn up to a maximum of 1,000 free game entries, so players of every skill level will be rewarded for participating in Qualifying Season matches.
Read the entire release
here.
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Just in time for Mother's Day, Wonderland Online will end closed beta and begin open beta.
Wonderland Online Team will start open beta at 9:00pm (GMT-5) on 11th May. Its closed beta will come to an end at 3:00am (GMT-5) on 11th May. All participating players’ information will be saved. Players can apply for a new account to take part in open beta.
A new server called Taurus will be launched at that time. Both servers of Aries and Taurus are totally independent from each other. Characters information in them will not be shared. Players play the game in Taurus with a brand-new character. Besides daily regular events, Wonderland Online tam will hold many interesting events.
For more information visit our official website.
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The folks over at Voyage Century know you love fishing. To help you out, they're releasing the coveted Deep-Sea Fishing Rod for a mere 500 credits!
Voyage Century will be launching the Deep-sea Fishing rod exchange event so players can go fishing. Deep-sea Fishing rod is one of the top fishing tools in VC, and as you probably know the level of your fishing tools determines the success rate for obtaining top items, so the top fishing tools are always in great demand.
Recently, a player bid 15000 (omg!) credits to buy Deep-sea Fishing rod. This is far higher than the most expensive mall item. Well in order to thank this player for his support of our game, we will reward him with 15001 credits.
After we release the Deep-sea Fishing rod exchange event, players only need to pay 500 credits to get the item. We hope our players have fun with it.
Voyage Century will continue respecting all players’ suggestions and thoughts, and making responses as quickly as we can. Offering our players the best service is always our goal.
For more, please visit here.
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Time for Joanne's weekly
Q&A in a bag:
Q. I recently came back to the game and I am happy to be back. I downloaded all the clients current to Labyrinth. Do I need all of them? I usually always play on the Labyrinth client. I have deleted SI and TOA with no ill effects. Can I do the same with Catacombs and Darkness Rising? It sure would speed up my scans and clean ups and defrags on my computer. Future patches and upgrades won't do checks any further back than having the Labyrinth client?
A. Welcome back says The Bearded Wonder who also has the answer you wanted to hear: For the installs, you only need the one you are using. So keep the Labyrinth client and clear out the others to enjoy that extra space.
Q. What is the damage value on the Master Level 9 Stormlord ability ‘Energy Tempest?’
A. Knowing the value of many things, the Balancinator replies: Energy Tempest does 15% of the target's health per pulse. It is affected by the target's resists as well.
For many a World of Warcraft player, this latest expansion from Blizzard for their ginormously successful MMO is the most anticipated one, boasting everything from walrus-men to the fabled Death Knight. While increasing the level cap from 70 to 80, this new expansion also offers players a choice of starting areas, rather than everyone beginning their journeys from the same location, as has been tradition for WoW in the past. Players will also enjoy a vastly increased land mass on which to play, as the areas are so large several of the zones have been split into smaller zones. This is great news, as the expansion provides much more content for adventurers to enjoy in between now and the next expansion (typical MMO player... always looking forward to the next one!). Also, players will enjoy actual climate changes and scenery as they travel through Northrend, going from windswept plains to icy tundra, with everything in between.
Julie "Ellyra" Burness, Vanguard Community Rep at SOE, has let us know that beginning Tuesday, May 13, 2008, players will be offered two opportunities for server transfers for both new and existing Vanguard players!
"Originally, we had offered one transfer per character created before the server merges, but due to a large amount of old friends coming back to the game, we’ve decided to do away with all those rules, and open up the server transfers to anyone – regardless of their creation date or prior move history.
We’re hoping this opportunity will let people come back to the game, and easily find a home on a server where their friends are playing."
Round one will start on May 13th, and round two will become at some point in the following week. According to Julie, "Requesting a move is simple, and only requires logging into the game and using the /petition command. Players will need to include the names of all the characters on their account they would like to have moved, along with the server they would like to be transferred to." She also pointed out some things to keep in mind when looking to transfer:
- Players cannot transfers to the Sartok (PvP) server, but are free to move to any other server.
- All broker items should be packed up before the move, tombstones and house items collected. Players do not need to tear down their homes.
So if you've ever wanted to be on a different server, now is the time! Mark your calendars and pack your moving boxes for the big day!
And with the coming of the much loved and ever anticipated Friday goodness, comes my Friday readings desperately clinging to the coat tails of the weekend kick-off hoping to soak up some left over love!
This week I ramble about
games getting too easy and about how our
little family is constantly changing.
Enjoy! Have a safe and happy weekend and happy mother's day to all the mom's out there!
Game Update 45 is slated for next week, and Gnobrin brings us more information on the goodness headed our way!
Read more!
The development team for the Lord of the Rings Online has added another creature to their ongoing "Creatures/Characters of Middle-earth" series. Who gets the spotlight today? Dori!:
Of the thirteen companions of the great Thorin Oakenshield, Dori was often responsible for keeping an eye out for the Company’s burglar, the hobbit Bilbo Baggins. Now Dori acts as an emissary to the dwarf-mines of Othrikar in the North Downs. Learn more about this famous dwarf in this week’s content update!
You can read the entire write-up
HERE, and
HERE at the European website.
Play Elf Online? Want to know the proper build for a scholar? Check out the following release from the Elf Online staff!
So it seems to me that people have been asking on a consistent basis about the proper build for a scholar. Generally speaking, it really depends on what you will be choosing as your second job. Currently, although I only have experience in buildiing the stats for a doctor, I will try to explain a short summary of the other 2 jobs as well: Poet and Alchemist.
First off, it is very important that each of the 3 jobs has enough stamina to meet the requirements for wearing dream, hero and legendary armor. You can easily check by going to the NPC in Dragon City that exchanges armor for gold powder and hover over the correct respective armor which for a scholar, should be leather. After meeting the stamina requirements, the builds start to branch off a bit.
Doctor
Since your main job will be designated as the healer vs. an attacker, it very important to have the correct balance of mp and hp. The AOE (area of effect) heals and single heals can start to become quite pricey at higher levels and therefore, a substantial amount of mp is needed. However, your most important job is to keep yourself from dying, therefore as important as MP can be, a higher level of HP can become crutcial. I have personally pumped 2 Wis, 3 Stam or 1 Wis, 4 Stam into my doctor in order to ensure that by lvl 60 my HP will be over 4000.
Today we've launched
a new site covering the online trading card game, Legends of Norrath. Legends of Norrath is accessible from both inside the two EverQuest games, and as a stand-alone game.
In traditional Allakhazam style we have an incredible amount of data, guides, tools, and news. A few of the cooler things:
Card List: Every single Legends of Norrath card so far, complete with all stats, card graphics, and a user-updatable wiki for each card.
Deck Builder: Build your own deck of 50 cards straight from our site. Allow other people to rate your deck,
search by the best decks, comment on other peoples decks and a whole lot more.
Wikibase: Just like our EverQuest 2 and Final Fantasy XI site, our Legends of Norrath site combines the best features of a database and a wiki. Almost every page is updatable by users using our customized wiki software, and we also have traditional wiki content such as guides and tutorials.
Forums: Want to discuss a build? What do you think of the new Raid Decks dropping from in-game? Have a suggestion for improving the site?
Of course there are also a lot more features,
so check our the new site today!
What goes better together than drinking and axe throwing? Not much, and the folks over at Turbine agree!
Turbine, Inc. and Codemasters Online today announced the launch of Swig and Toss, the second mini-game on www.unlocktheminesofmoria.com. Registered participants can challenge themselves and their friends to earn special deeds that unlock unique rewards including exclusive videos, images, and in-game items that will aid them on their journey when The Lord of the Rings Online™: Mines of Moria launches this fall.
Swig and Toss is an axe throwing competition with a bit of drinking and wagering to make things more interesting! In this 10-round game, players try to keep a steady aim while attempting to hit a target with their axe. Hit the mark and win! Miss and hear the Dwarves around you scoff at your lack of skill.
Between rounds, players can take a few swigs from their mug to help quench their thirst. This will help boost their confidence and loosen their pocket strings, increasing the amount they can wager.
Swig and Toss is available today at www.unlocktheminesofmoria.com. Registration is free!
The folks over at Wonderland Online are giving you a special way to celebrate Mom in their forums. Then head on over to the Aries server on May 11th for a GM photo op!
With Mother’s Day fast approaching, the Wonderland Online team is holding a special event celebration from May 7th to May 15th.
Players can make special cards with some passionate words or blessings and post them in the WLO forum to participate in this event. Player’s works should include characters or scenes featured in Wonderland Online. Player’s votes and official opinions will be taken into consideration to decide the final winners. Winners will be announced May 25th.
In addition, the WLO team will also be holding a photo op event in Aries server from 2:00am to 3:00am (GMT-5) on May 11th. Players can go to Starter’s Beach, Kelan Village, Welling Village and Holy Village to take photos with GMs. The photos will be uploaded to the WLO official website.
For more information or for official contest rules visit the Official Wonderland Online site.
Gnobrin
posteth:
A well worn traveler of the lands known as the Town Crier journeys lands near and far seeking out the latest in EverQuest II news and information. Join us once again as the Crier returns from his latest journeys, filled with news and information from all around those strange lands. One never knows what new secrets his stories will hold!
Y'all are cordially invited to the next exciting Allakhazam Developers Chat! Members of the EverQuest II Developer and Community Teams will be there, bring your questions!
Thursday, May 8, 4:30pm PDT - TODAY!
In the #EQ2 channel on Allakhazam IRC
General chat during the actual event will be in #EQ2-FFA
New to Allakhazam IRC?
Instructions here!
Stratics sat down with Matt Miller, Lead Designer for CoX.
Matt Miller, Lead Designer for the City of Heroes/Villains (CoX) franchise briefly stepped out of his neon-colored superhero tights and donned his secret disguise for a Q & A with Stratics Central's
Managing Editor, Tricia "Seridove" Bennon on their recent content update, Issue 12: Midnight Hour, which entered Open Beta today. The interview can be found here.
Musings on MMO Betas
New Wings of the Goddess Missions
Bring a Friend to Tabula Rasa, Get Free Game Time
From the Makers of Fury: Fury League
Wonderland Online Open Beta Begins Sunday!
Voyage Century: Deep Sea Fishing Rod Available
Friday Night Grab Bag
Wrath of the Lich King - Details Revealed!
Server Transfers Announced!
Happy Friday!
Characters of Middle-earth: Dori
Scholar Series Job Build
Legends of Norrath Allakhazam launches!
Interview with CoX Lead Designer Matt Miller