MMORPG

More bad news for E3: Codemasters leaves ESA

Isaac C. — 2008-10-10T07:53:25-07:00

We interrupt your regularly scheduled TGS updates for news on another gaming convention, E3.

No, it's not dead yet. But this new development won't help it recover any. News has come in that Codemasters has left the Entertainment Software Association, the organization behind E3.

Codemasters is the company behind Clive Barker's Jericho, the Colin McRae series, Overlord, and Lord of the Rings Online.

This makes the sixth publisher to leave the organization since May, adding to the ranks of Activision, Vivendi, LucasArts, id Software, and Crave. This is apparently only a recent development, as they were still a member of the ESA back at E3. Currently, the ESA's population of publishers stands at 22.

Shall we toll the death knell already? Now back to TGS!

More bad juju for E3:

LotRO: Mines of Moria release date and pre-order pricing details

Isaac C. — 2008-10-09T12:49:06-07:00

Let's take a short break from the Tokyo Game Show as we bring news to the MMO crowd.

The first retail expansion pack to Lord of the Rings Online, Mines of Moria, has been given a release date. Expect it to be available on November 18 for both North America and Europe.

According to the press release, those who pre-order the game will get a chance to acquire a special lifetime membership and can acquire the game for GBP 119.99 (EUR 149.99, US 204). Those who pre-order the game will also receive three unique in-game items:

The Cloak of Sunset, a unique cloak emblazoned with an image of the Hollin Gate.
An exclusive in-game Moria character title - Moria Expeditionary .
1 in-game token, which allows you to choose 1 of 8 unique in-game items after launch.

The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria website launches Swig and Toss minigame

World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King system requirements

Isaac C. — 2008-10-08T14:22:22-07:00

Those looking forward to getting Wrath of the Lich King when it comes out should pay attention to this one.

Blizzard has released the minimum and recommended system requirements for the World of Warcraft expansion. Better make sure your PC packs the punch before grabbing the game.

The spec list was released by Bornakk in the World of Warcraft forums, and it shows a general rise in system requirements.

PC System Requirements

OS: Windows XP (Service Pack 3), Windows Vista (Service Pack 1)

Processor:

Minimum: Intel Pentium 4 1.3 GHz or AMD Athlon XP 1500
Recommended: Dual-core processor, such as the Intel Pentium D or AMD Athlon 64 X2

Memory:

Minimum: 512 MB RAM (1GB for Vista users)
Recommended: 1 GB RAM (2 GB for Vista users)

Video:

Minimum: 3D graphics processor with Hardware Transform and Lighting with 32 MB VRAM
Such as an ATI Radeon 7200 or NVIDIA GeForce 2 class card or better
Recommended: 3D graphics processor with Vertex and Pixel Shader capability with 128 MB VRAM
Such as an ATI Radeon X1600 or NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT class card or better

Sound: DirectX-compatible sound card or motherboard sound capability

Mac System Requirements

OS: Mac OS X 10.4.11 or newer
Processor:

Minimum: PowerPC G5 1.6 GHz or Intel Core Duo processor
Recommended: Intel 1.8GHz processor or better

Memory:

Minimum: 1 GB RAM
Recommended: 2 GB RAM

Video:

Minimum: 3D graphics processor with Hardware Transform and Lighting with 64 MB VRAM
Such as an ATI Radeon 9600 or NVIDIA GeForce Ti 4600 class card or better
Recommended: 3D graphics processor with Vertex and Pixel Shader capability with 128 MB VRAM
Such as an ATI Radeon X1600 or NVIDIA 7600 class card or better

All Platforms

Controls: A keyboard and mouse are required. Input devices other than a mouse and keyboard are not supported.
Connectivity: You must have an active broadband Internet connection to play.
Mouse: Multi-button mouse with scroll wheel recommended.
Hard Drive Space: 15 GB free hard drive space

TGS, what's that? BlizzCon 2008 incoming

Gino D. — 2008-10-07T13:05:16-07:00

While a bunch of lucky gamers get to be in Japan this weekend for the Tokyo Game Show, that doesn't mean there's nothing else interesting in our own backyards. Blizzard is reminding everyone that BlizzCon 2008 will be opening its gates this Friday, October 10.

The event runs until Sunday, which will be capped by one heck of a concert: Level 80 Elite Tauren Chieftain and Video Games Live! will be there to blast the audiences' ears with some Blizztunes (yeah, who says I can't make up some words?).

Meanwhile, for those who can't attend the event, there's always DirecTV - they'll be broadcasting the convention as pay-per-view coverage.

The three-day event will have the latest games (and latest builds of upcoming games) for the participants to enjoy. Warcraft, Starcraft, Diablo; you name it, Blizz's got it. They're even welcoming jobseekers who might want to work for Blizzard - make sure your resumes and portfolios are updated! The global staffing team will be in the event to help out those looking for career opportunities at Blizzard.

Final Fantasy XI offering real-life and in-game accessory: the Tidal Talisman

Isaac C. — 2008-10-07T11:54:41-07:00

Square Enix is offering a new item from their Final Fantasy XI Players' Collection. Called the Tidal Talisman, this little showpiece has a corresponding in-game item which you'll receive when you purchase the item

The in-game item allows you to teleport to pre-determined areas every 40 hours. Oh, and it shines in the game. Really brightly.

The Tidal Talisman is available for GBP 24 (US 42) or EUR 30 (US 40.85), depending on where you are. It won't be offered again in the future, and will only be available for pre-order until October 17. Get yourself one by following the source link below.

A must have for die-hard FF fans. It's a little pricey, but if you're into collectibles, then go for it. I wonder if wearing it would make the real-life potion from Squeenix taste any better. I'd buy it myself. But only if it summoned Leviathan. And if it were made of magicite. And if it rains down Ultima on my enemies.

Square Enix Store now open for business

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic MMO to be unveiled

Isaac C. — 2008-10-02T10:08:42-07:00

It seems that the long-rumored Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic MMO game is true after all, and will be "officially" unveiled later this month.

It's about time BioWare upped and decided to "officially" unveil their "secret" game. Everyone already knows about it. In fact, Electronic Arts' John Riccitiello already let it slip earlier this year that they were working on it with them.

Last February, an interview with BioWare over the then-mystery MMO revealed that the game will be heavy on the RPG element. They plan to have every player act as the primary protagonist in their own narrative, as if the game really were their story, their world.

They sound pretty ambitious. Ambitious enough to go against the likes of World of Warcraft? We'll have to wait and see. We'll keep you updated.

Blizzard: No Honor reset for Wrath of the Lich King launch

Karl B. — 2008-09-30T22:10:04-07:00

Blizzard has announced that there will be no Honor resets in preparation for the upcoming release of World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King. This was revealed by blue poster Bornakk on the official World of Warcraft forums. Here's Bornakk's post verbatim:

We had hoped that the introduction of some new Honor rewards in the upcoming patch would give players a great opportunity to spend any of their remaining Honor. However, many players would still be surprised by an Honor and token reset as it isn t something we ve done in the past. As such, we've decided to not reset Honor or tokens upon the release of Wrath of the Lich King. Players who save their Honor will be able to spend it on level 80 rewards, although those rewards will be significantly more expensive than their level 70 counterparts.

There you have it. If you're planning to gun for any of the new Honor rewards in Wrath of the Lich King, better start saving up those Honor points now. The Wrath of the Lich King expansion hits retail on November 13.

Age of Conan to merge servers; some DX10 version functionality coming to test server

Isaac C. — 2008-09-30T12:44:59-07:00

Heads up, Age of Conan gamers! Funcom has announced that it will be merging servers in both the US and in Europe to ensure "more healthy" populations. Says Game Director Craig Morrison:

Healthy populations on each and every server will make sure we maintain healthy communities for the game in the future.

[...] That work has now started, and we are naturally making sure that guilds and players can get to new servers in the best possible way.

They also mentioned that the long-awaited DirectX 10 version of the game is almost ready for launch. In fact, you can expect to start seeing DX10 functionality in the test environment in the next game-play update. Its transfer to the live servers will depend on how testing goes.

DC Universe Online can have PS3-PC cross platform play, but... probably won't

Isaac C. — 2008-09-30T09:51:20-07:00

With DC Universe Online coming to both the PC and the PlayStation 3, the question is, would it support cross-platform play? The short answer: yes and no.

According to Sony Online, there's "no technological reason why we can't [support online play." There aren't that many differences between platforms, and they actually want it to implement the feature, says Chris Cao, the game's creative director: "We want you to play with your friends, so everything that we do tries to get people to play together."

The problem lies in how they're going to patch the game on two different platforms. Giving out patches for the PC is a different matter from patching games for the PlayStation 3. First of all, both platforms have different file size restrictions. Second, to allow cross-platform play between consoles, both patches have to be released simultaneously.

The Agency, another MMO to be released for the PS3 and PC, actually experienced the same problems. However, according to the game's executive producer, it may yet have hope for cross-platform play, saying that "Technology-wise, it's really not that complicated."

The studio working on The Agency and the other working on DC Universe Online are actually both branches of Sony Online, so let's hope that if one finds a solution, the other one can benefit from it too. A cross-platform MMO for the PS3 and PC would be fantastic.

Turbine job ad hints at next-gen MMO project; LOTRO port?

Mabie A. — 2008-09-29T18:12:04-07:00

Turbine is looking for a senior user interface engineer to "bring the user interfaces of our massively multiplayer titles to the next level" on "both PC and console platforms," so said the job ad they've posted online.

Whatever would they need one for? Speculations are high that it could be they intend to bring over to next-gens an already existing title from their library - say like Lord of the Rings Online - as based from the "refactoring existing user interfaces" phrase.

Or, it could be that it's for the as-of-yet unknown console MMO they've claimed to be working on, assuming that it's a new title altogether. Anyhow, the job ad with the complete description and details are over at the source link below. Who knows, you might be the guy they're looking for.

Sony Online looking into MMO for PSP

Gino D. — 2008-09-29T09:26:19-07:00

Lots of developers (both official game studio developers and homebrew devs alike) consider the PSP as a handheld device capable of adopting the MMO genre. To a degree, games like Monster Hunter Portable and Valhalla Knights already somewhat overlap into the circle of MMO games.

John Smedley of Sony Online Entertainment is optimistic - he foresees a future in MMO games for the PSP.

I think PSP is something that we re definitely looking at; 34 million [sold] worldwide really opens your eyes, and they re all connected. [...] we re really starting to see a big push for PSP. We think it s a world-class device In the future, we see full MMOs that are designed for the PSP.

Maybe one way to do it: In Free Realms, you could have a pet-training system that literally connects to our online gaming where you can mess around with your pet. Another way to do it might be to give them mini-games that they can do [on the PSP] when sitting at a bus stop. You re sitting there leveling up your character, you log in at home when you re on wi-fi, and all of sudden your character has leveled up. We think those kinds of experiences are very possible.

Indeed, the concepts he presented sound highly plausible. What with Wi-Fi, Remote Play, and other functions for interconnectivity, seeing the PSP (whether via the PS3 or not) as a tool for grinding your characters on-the-go isn't all that hard to imagine. He already mentioned Free Realms, SOE's upcoming MMO for the PS3 and PC - could that be the start?

SwitchBlade PRO goes live next week, gets SIXAXIS support

Karl B. — 2008-09-24T20:42:21-07:00

Blue Orb has announced that SwitchBlade, an application that lets PC gamers use a console controller to play, will be getting a lot of new features with the advent of SwitchBlade PRO. Foremost is the addition of support for the Sony PlayStation 3's SIXAXIS controller.

SwitchBlade PRO will also come with pre-configured game Blades for more than 20 popular games and the new BladeBuilder tool that allows gamers to build and share their own customized game support Blades. Additionally, SwitchBlade PRO introduces the new Texter system that lets gamers send text messages right from their game controllers.

The catch here is that SwitchBlade PRO is not free. It'll be available on a subscription basis for US 1.99 a month starting October 1. You can also get a year-long subscription for US 19.99.

Ted Price says video game legislation "has no place in America"

Karl B. — 2008-09-24T16:50:24-07:00

Insomniac founder and CEO Ted Price has spoken out on the issue of video game legislation, saying that it "has no place in America".

"We're going through what every other entertainment industry has gone through, and that's being the temporary scapegoat for society's ills," Price told Shacknews in a recent interview. "It saddens me to see legislators stomping all over our First Amendment rights for their own specific interests."

He's right, too. Pop culture has always been an easy target. Theater, movies, TV, music, and even books have been used as whipping boys in the past. Heck, even dancing wasn't spared, although admittedly maybe that was just in Footloose.

It's become a cycle. What's popular today will always eventually be used as the reason for why kids are getting "worse". In the 50s and 60s, it was rock and roll, and then later on, heavy metal. Dungeons & Dragons, too, for a time. Today, it's video games. Right now, most game-related legislations have so far been ruled as unconstitutional, but when will all of these attacks stop?

"It won't be until we have more gamers running for office that this will calm down," said Price. "It's something that we'll weather, because we are right, what we do is defensible under the Constitution and shouldn't be regulated by the government."

That, or until the next scapegoat comes along. For now, Price recommends joining the Video Game Voters Network. He also recommends letting your Congressman know what you think about video game bills in your state. Otherwise they'll just be "walking blindly, following what they think is the mainstream opinion."

Interplay brings in Fallout veteran to work on MMO

Isaac C. — 2008-09-24T12:56:21-07:00

Interplay reports that the team behind the upcoming Fallout MMO is bringing in Chris Taylor, who worked on the original Fallout game. If you were worried that the MMO won't be faithful to the series, this might ease your mind.

Aside from being part of the original Fallout team, Taylor also worked on Baldur's Gate - but don't confuse him with the Chris Taylor who was part of the team of Dungeon Siege and Total Annihilation.

So how long do we have to wait before the game's released? Well, that's a story in itself.

Interplay was awarded the rights to the Fallout MMO, though the rights to the Fallout series were given to Bethesda Softworks. According to their contract, Interplay had to begin full-scale development of the game in the next two years to retain the rights to the MMO. Aside from that, they have to release the full game before four years have passed after development begins.

It'd suck for Interplay if they miss the deadline, so let's just assume they'll meet it. From previous coverage on it, it seems that development started sometime In January last year, so we can expect the game to come out before 2011. Yeah, looks like we're in for a long wait before the game is released.

Church answers if killing in video games is a sin

Mabie A. — 2008-09-23T22:08:12-07:00

We all know that religion and politics don't mix. But how about religion and games? We got a glimpse of that imagined scenario as we found this Q&A portion from the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod.

"Is kiling in video games a sin?" This basically is the query, and it is rather interesting what WELS had to say about it.

Q: I'm very sure that killing/suicide stealing and anything like that is not accounted as an actual sin if it's only in video games. But I'm still not very sure, when I play video games, I'm not murdering at heart because I would never try to take the life of any living thing. And whatever is a video game can't die because it's not alive in the first place, video games are a false alternate reality...

A: As normally defined, taking the life of another in video games (as in acting or in any other fantasy situation) is not a sin against God's prohibition to murder. If, however, what is done in the video game is an expression of hatred or callous disregard for human life, then the heart and motives are wrong, and then it is sin in God's eyes...

For the record, however, obsession with video games can involve other departures from God's will... Typically, this can involve a colossal misuse of valuable time and also end up diverting time and attention from more useful and valuable pursuits that better glorify God and serve our neighbor...

So while they did not flat out say that killing in videogames is wrong, spending too much time with it most certainly is, because it involves "departure from God's will." You know what, I do have an added question to that. What about killing zombies? I mean, they're dead already, right? And it's a matter of self-defense cos if you don't kill them, they'll kill you. Only, you won't be dead dead, cos you'll be one of them. What about then?

Actually, to be serious about it I'd have to agree that being obsessed with video games is wrong, even without the 'God's will' bit. It's just not healthy, right? It strains the eyes, you don't get to do any stretching, you're cooped up all day in your house, you don't find a girlfriend - or if you do have one, you end up losing them ... Basically it really could just shut you out from the rest of the world. Moderation is still the best way to go about it, I suppose.

Still, that was a very interesting question, don't you agree? It gives you quite a lot to think about. So, what do you think?

Rejection! BBFC fires back against ELSPA

Karl B. — 2008-09-23T17:15:19-07:00

The ELSPA-BBFC battle rages on. After getting hammered once again by the Entertainment & Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA), the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has announced that it "rejects ELSPA's claims".

Just a couple of days ago, ELSPA director general Paul Jackson essentially said that the BBFC is not fit to handle games classification. According to Jackson, the linear ratings system of the BBFC makes it decidedly unfit to handle the non-linear nature of games.

The BBFC has kept their response simple, though, opting to just point out that both the Byron Review and the House of Commons CMS Committee are on their side.

"They should be judged against the fact that both the Byron Review and the House of Commons CMS Committee have recommended a greater role for the BBFC in games classification," said the BBFC. "The BBFC's case will be developed in its response to the current government consultation."

Halo MMO was really real, but not anymore

Isaac C. — 2008-09-23T14:06:40-07:00

Rumors have been floating around since 2006 that a Halo MMO was in development, although this has never been solidly confirmed by Bungie, Microsoft, or Ensemble Studios (the studio that developed Halo Wars). It's recently revealed that the MMO was indeed real.

Unfortunately, it was canceled.

Yeah, anticlimactic huh? Anyway, several mock-ups and screenshots of the project have managed to find their way outside the studio. That's them up there, zoom in by clicking them. There's a lot more at the bottom of the article as well. Some specific characters and creatures in the screenshots weren't included in any Halo game, so I'm curious to know where the devs were taking the game.

According to Gamasutra, the Halo MMO project has been in development since 2006 by Ensemble Studios, but was likely internally canceled by mid-2007. By then it already had a prototype UI. Check out the leftmost screenshot up top. It already sports a health bar, man (or Psion, as the game calls it). A lot of similarities to World of Warcraft is worth noting too.

Of course, cancellation of this project doesn't mean it'll never happen. Microsoft's Phil Spencer recently commented that "There are more than two or three teams building Halo things right now." You can always cross your fingers.

The Force Unleashed lands on top of UK charts, biggest Star Wars release ever

Isaac C. — 2008-09-23T10:31:15-07:00

The UK is in the grip of the force as Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, PSP, DS) enters software charts at top spot.

The Force Unleashed marks the biggest release week ever for a Star Wars game, and the biggest launch since Grand Theft Auto IV. The game is also marked as the 10th fastest selling title ever across all formats. It looks like despite lukewarm reviews, The Force Unleashed still has some pull. Get it? The Force? Pull? Never mind.

Also entering top 10 is, what's this? An MMORPG! How rare. Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning also enters the charts this week in fourth place. Also new in the charts is Crysis Warhead at 21st place. Probably thanks to a slightly-less demanding list of hardware requirements. Spore is down to 10th place from 3rd last week.

Here's the full top 10 list of top games in the UK for the week of September 20:

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed LucasArts
Wii Fit Nintendo
Mario Kart Wii Nintendo
Warhammer Online: Age Of Reckoning EA
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 EA
Mercenaries 2: World In Flames EA
Wii Play Nintendo
Carnival: Funfair Games 2K Play
TNA Impact! Midway
Spore EA

ELSPA to BBFC: get a hint, stick to movies; leave games to PEGI

Gino D. — 2008-09-22T12:10:57-07:00

The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has been under fire for quite some time now, with lots of critics saying that they couldn't be trusted in rating video games. Some lobbyists have asked the BBFC to revamp their rating system, while others told them to just leave the video game industry altogether.

Looks like they can't get a hint.

Here comes the boss of ELSPA (Entertainment & Leisure Software Publishers Association) to spell things out for everyone. Reiterating what ELSPA said back in April, ELSPA director general Paul Jackson basically wants to leave video game ratings up to PEGI (Pan European Game Information) rather than the BBFC.

Speaking at a conference, Jackson elaborates:

A linear ratings system like the one the BBFC uses is designed for films with a beginning, middle and end where the outcome is always the same. It just can t cope with the infinite variety and complexity of modern videogames, and the interaction between players.

There is a simple proof of this already available. The film ratings board continually downgrades games classified 18 by PEGI. They go to BBFC 15 or even BBFC 12. History shows us that BBFC ratings - and the UK - would regularly be out of step with our European neighbors.

As well as being quick and simple to follow as a ratings system, it is very easily scalable to cope with the rapid growth in online games and add-ons.

The Agency dev says gamers don't really like cross-platform play

Karl B. — 2008-09-19T18:14:58-07:00

We've heard a lot about the possibility of cross-platform play in Sony Online Entertainment's The Agency (PlayStation 3, PC). This time, it's senior game designer Kevin O'Hara's turn to sound off on the matter. Long story short, he thinks that contrary to what they say on Internet forums, gamers don't really like cross-platform play.

"We've been doing a lot of research on it though and we're finding that players actually don't like it. They say that they want it because it sounds cool to play with your PS3 buddies with your PC," said O'Hara. "But in practice no matter how balanced you make it there's a perception that inherently it's unfair."

This echoes some of executive producer Matt Wilson's earlier statements. Talking about the problems that SOE is facing with regards to cross-platform play, Wilson said that "there's always a dynamic of 'It's not fair!' for whatever reason."

There's still a bit of good news for those who really want to try some cross-platform action in The Agency, though. Even though the feature is not likely to make it to the game's final release, they'll still try it out during the beta phase.

"In beta we'll try it a little bit and see how we like it but if nothing else the majority of servers will be either PS3 or PC, maybe with some crossover servers," said O'Hara.

The Agency may still get cross-platform play support