10 June 2013 | |
iTZKooPA
It’s unfortunate that Another One Bites The Dust exists, but necessary. This column chronicles the fateful announcements ahead of an MMOGs’ downfall, a company closure or, in some truly sad cases, both. Grab your Big Gulp and let some hit the floor for the fallen.
Real-time strategy and PvP experts Petroglyph Games have had a difficult year. The ambitious task of creating an enjoyable MMORTS fell flat when Trion Worlds removed End of Nations from the studio’s creative team. Struggling, the company soldiered on, with its new-age MMOG – that’d be MOBAs – product Rise of Immortals. A fiercely competitive subgenre championed by League of Legends, RoI received a lukewarm reception. Thus, Petroglyph relaunched the title with a massive update known as Battle for Graxia.
The revamp failed to gain any significant traction since its release only two months ago. The company will reward faithful players with a cache of free Petroglyph coins to spend on anything in the game up until its closing on June 27. Despite the sad news, the company remains somewhat positive of the title’s future specifically stating that it retains the “right to bring BFG back online at some time and hope to do so in the future.”
Until such time, there isn’t much positive happening for the former Westwood Studios crew. The attempted Kickstarter also failed. More fuel for the Mark Jacobs ‘F2P is unsustainable‘ fire.
10 June 2013 | |
iTZKooPA
Hey, what’s that? There’s a big game convention or something going on this week? Oh, cool. Normally E3 isn’t a bastion of MMOG news, but Wargaming.net never misses a marketing opportunity. But hey, why wait for the actual convention to start when you can just push out your trailer and beat the crowd?
The official E3 trailer is all pomp and circumstance as there’s very little in-game footage on display. That being said, the cinematic trailer is a testament to the company’s overall skill at getting the adrenaline pumping. Things go boom, slice through the water at unfathomable speed and there’s bass. Lots of it.
If the World of Battleships Michael Bay edition didn’t suit your fancy, perhaps the other Wargaming.net E3 tidbit did. That, of course, being the final for real official announcement that World of Tanks is heading to Xbox 360. This shock absolutely no one that’s been following the recent industry purchases of Wargaming.net.
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10 June 2013 | |
iTZKooPA
Cryptic Studios announced that its well-received Dungeons & Dragons MMORPG will be shedding its beta nomenclature on June 20. Neverwinter has been in full open beta, meaning freely accessible to any interested party without the fear of character wipes, since launching on April 30. The title has overcome its inevitable growing pains and has a handful of patches behind it already.
The forward progress of development and general player progression means its the perfect time for some content. And that’s exactly what players will receive. The late-June transition will unleash Gauntlgrym, a barely pronounceable end-game area first mentioned by Jack Emmert during our PAX interview. The zone features a mix of PvP and PvE content in one dungeon-clearing extravaganza. Players will be able to beta the zone in the upcoming Preview server.
Not enough news for you? How about a teaser site for the first Neverwinter expansion, Fury of the Feywild.
7 June 2013 | |
iTZKooPA
*Note* Updated with the latest offer. Stay tuned for more! The promotion has been extended seemingly indefinitely. The current run will end 200 days from June 1, 2013.
Grabbing the latest skin for Artemis is as easy as pi. No, the other kind of pie. Actually, that’s pretty difficult too. It’s easy as cake, but that’s a lie. Uh, it’s easy as boiling water, assuming you’ve easy access to fire. Okay, it’s as easy as a Loki gank. Previously teased in the patch from earlier this week, the promotion is now live and features the complex task of hitting a button. The only catch is that you’re required to have a Twitter account. I mean, it was labeled as a Twitter promotion after all.
Head on over to WishPond, fill in your email address and click the ‘Claim offer’ button to have a Stalker code hand delivered by the robots of the Internet to your personal email account. From there, grab the code and manually type it into the SMITE game client. Yeah, Hi-Rez Studios can make a fantastic and unique MOBA, but has trouble with the copy and paste function!
Now that I’ve that secured, it’s time to go work on Cacodemon Ymir again, which you earn by hitting Level 30 before the game launches. Oh, and while you’re on Twitter, be sure to follow @LoreHound.
7 June 2013 | |
iTZKooPA
Years in the making and multiple revamps later, the release of Firefall is almost upon us. But ahead of the July 7 open beta date has been a string of public betas. These weekend events have been dual purposes, marketing and stress testing. Each has included various prizes, including community unlocks and in-game items, and new content or systems to play with. This time will be no different.
The final public beta runs from Friday, June 7 until Sunday, June 9. The final session includes improved Chosen targeting in open world events, new locations and missions, additional tweaks to progression and crafting and tasty new battleframe abilities.
For those thinking of joining closed beta testing now via invite or by becoming a Founder, don’t forget that James Macauley already promised an end to character wipes in 2012. Check out the Open Beta FAQ for all the details.
6 June 2013 | |
iTZKooPA
Marvel Heroes has been in the wild for quite some time, but June 4 marked the official launch for the any interested gamer. Gazillion’s dungeon crawling Marvel title saw a mini-series focusing on the rise of Doctor Doom. This four-part motion comic was not part of the opening cinematic. Nope. Players beginning their adventure were meet with a completely different production.
Presented as an animated short, the trailer introduces players to numerous Marvel mainstays, from Iron Man to the Hulk, and a quick synopsis of their origins. However, the main reason to watch is the discussion of The Watcher and how it ties into the aforementioned motion comic mini series.
“For over three years we’ve been building Marvel Heroes to be an exciting, free-to-play massively multiplayer action game, and we are ecstatic to finally put it in the hands of Marvel fans and gamers alike,” said David Brevik, President and COO of Gazillion Entertainment. “The creation of Marvel Heroes has been a labor of love. As a die-hard Marvel fan, it’s an honor to give players the chance to take on the roles of their favorite Marvel Super Hero in an epic adventure.”
Hit the jump for the latest trailer and screenshot dump.
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4 June 2013 | |
iTZKooPA
We’ve been watching this one for quite some time, so we’re happy to see that despite some recent troubles, Marvel Heroes will be meeting its June 4 launch date. Penned by Marvel scribe Brian Michael Bendis, the dungeon crawling MMOG is now upon us. Recent beta improvements include a much cleaner heads-up display, the doubling of available powers and the addition of a new crafting feature.
Hit the jump for the Lore Hound coverage over the years. We’ve got everything from the rise of Doctor Doom, exclusive interviews, changes in the currency and Founders packages and, oh, so much more. Continue Reading
3 June 2013 | |
iTZKooPA
Just hours ahead of the launch of Marvel Heroes, Gazillion Entertainment has released the final installment of the motion comic. Doctor Doom’s epic rise to power culminates with the fourth and final installment. The tale, penned by Brian Michael Bendis, wraps as Gazillion prepares for tomorrow’s full launch.
The Chronicles of Doom mini series develops the beginning lore for the dungeon crawling MMORPG designed by David Brevik, a co-creator of Diablo. The premise of Doom’s capabilities are based on the Cosmic Cube, a device originally capable of turning any wish into a reality.
Marvel Heroes allows players to experience unique leveling experiences for each of the superheroes as they explore locations throughout the Marvel universe. Previous closed beta players will be happy to see numerous changes to the user interface, a customization system and overall polish.
Marvel Heroes unlocks to the F2P world tomorrow, June 4, 2013. Hit the jump for the full trailer.
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