Eeek! I’m late I’m late! I must beg forgiveness to anyone looking forward to my weekly summary; a vacation combined with the opening of The Secret World‘s beta weekend sent me spinning off into the land of distractions. But it’s been another pretty exciting week here at LoreHound! We’ve got item giveaways, MineCraft goodies, news about a few betas and several lengthier pieces that go into more detail than just providing news. I love the longer pieces, as an unabashed MMO addict there’s very little that I love more than long talks about gaming. Game theory, character building, analyses of subscription numbers and playerbase makeup, how to guides –  I love it all.

And of course, my favorite topic – The Secret World! The open beta! Yes, it’s here at last! I have a ton of screenshots that I’ll be posting up later as well as a preview. I’ve been spending way too much time with this game, wanting to squeeze out every possible moment while the servers are up. I think I was up playing until 5am, my eyeballs feel like they’re about to fall out, but I’m still looking forward to later this afternoon after I’ve finished up my errands when I’ll be able to play again! Here’s a screenshot to keep you all entertained until I’m able to put up the full review:

And now, on with the show!
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Another week has come and gone … it seems like time flies much more quickly since I started writing these weekly summaries! And what a week this has been, not only has TERA launched, but there was some excitement as a long-rumored Elder Scrolls MMORPG was announced. For years, Bethesda has been denying there will ever be a TES MMO, but it seems the temptation was too sweet to pass up and we shall soon have one! I’m of mixed minds about it, I’ll admit. Several years ago I would have jumped in excitement, but I haven’t enjoyed any of the Elder Scrolls games since Morrowind so the prospect of an MMO based on the current state of the series leaves me somewhat uninterested. But I’ll definitely be watching in case I’m surprised.

I was reflecting last week that we were in a sort of golden age of gaming, the announcement of a TES MMORPG seems to continue that trend. Guild Wars 2, The Elder Scrolls, Diablo 3, Torchlight 2 … a lot of heavy hitting franchises are on the horizon. I’m wondering, will we be seeing more announcements for MMORPGs and sequels for other games? Personally, I’d love to hear there was a Yakuza MMO in the works, although I suspect I’m doomed to disappointment there. But next week my enthusiasm will return – keep an eye out, I’ll be reporting on The Secret World‘s first public beta weekend! And on with the show!

• Mike has spent his time immersed in Guild Wars 2 and TERA. He gave his impressions of GW2‘s World vs. World and then compared it with TERA combat.
• Randy reported on Ensemble Online, an up and coming RTS by indie developer SemiFormal Studios. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on this one!
• It’s always sad to see games being cancelled, especially when they look as interesting as this one did. Pitchblack Games canceled Dominus.
• Lots of TERA news! iTZKooPA collected lots of information for those looking to read as it downloaded. There’s a new trailer, and Mike gave his first impression.
• Mordil returned, hyped up with excitement for TERA as well as his own game. Check it out and send him some encouragement!
• Elder Scrolls, Elder Scrolls… Heartbourne announced the announcement, Mike found the trailer, wondered why fans grumbled about it, and dug up a wealth of information. I don’t want to be intrigued, but non-instanced dungeons makes my crusty old-timer’s heart go pitterpat!

It’s been another great week here at LoreHound. More PAX interviews have appeared, we’ve had a few exclusives, and there’s even been some game industry mudslinging. I was terribly excited to see news about Torchlight 2, and I’m sure there’s even more excitement about Diablo 3. I won’t be playing either game as I’ve got weekend plans, but I’m sure between TERA and Diablo 3 there’ll be lots of beta testing going on this weekend.

This week seems to have flown by so quickly! Maybe it’s because I’ve been sleeping through a nasty flu, or wasting lots of time on The Secret War. Actually, given that I’m ranked #2 for my state on the leaderboards, I’d say I’ve been wasting entirely too much time on The Secret War. What can I say, I’ve got not-so-hidden dreams of world conquest, although I’ve been contenting myself with doing my best to keep Brasil and China in the hands of the Dragons. In any event, I feel like no time has passed at all since I wrote last week’s rundown. But enough about me, I’m sure the week’s news is much more interesting!

• PAX East Interview with Jared Gerritzen of Zombie Studios, who discussed Blacklight: Retribution with iTZKooPA. New maps, game modes, heroes and more!
• PAX East Interview with Chris Rippy of Robot Entertainment where iTZKooPA gets the scoop on lots of gameplay footage for Orcs Must Die 2.
• PAX East Interview with Tor Egil Andersen and Erling Ellingsen of Funcom, talking about character progression in The Secret World. Part Two is where iTZKooPA asks tougher questions, like when will we see more ARGs.
• itZKooPA talked about the new content patch in Champions Online, and how it put the game back on his radar.
• PAX East Interview with Victor Kislyi , CEO of Wargaming.net about the upcoming flying MMO World of Warplanes. If you want to take to the skies, there’ll be a public beta in June!
• Mike told us about Yet Another Free SWTOR Weekend. How many of these do they plan on having? I agree with Mike, they should just get it over with and open up a fulltime free trial.
• I was excited to see the launch of The Secret War, the Facebook app that’s paired with The Secret World, and discussed the unexpected success that shut it down for a few hours. My wild speculations turned me into a laughingstock – I honestly expected the app would be down for days or weeks instead of hours!
• The first beta weekend for Guild Wars 2 was announced!
• TERA‘s open beta weekend kicked of yesterday. Everyone can play this weekend, even if you’ve not purchased the game.
• SWTOR‘s subscription numbers may be declining, according to analyst group Cowen and Company.
• Bluehole Studios called NCSoft a corporate bully, and said they won’t back down. TERA will be released, even if they have to fearlessly stomp through the grist of rumors and lawsuits.
• PAX Interview with Stefan Ramirez of Bluehole Studios. iTZKoopa got the scoop on how the “holy trinity” will play out in TERA, as well as more details about the lauded political system.
• The Diablo 3 open beta stress test weekend is underway, allowing anyone to get their hands on the game. I haven’t had much interest in this, but I’ll admit to being slightly disappointed it’s this weekend when I won’t be at home to play.
• PARTY!! It’s the five-year anniversary of Lord of the Rings Online, and iTZKooPA spoke with Aaron Campbell, Senior Producer of LotRO, about the exciting events happening within the game to celebrate. Fireworks, mounts and costumes are just a few of the goodies available during the festivities.
• PAX Interview with Max Schaefer of Runic Games about co-op, quest sharing and other exciting tidbits in Torchlight 2.

iTZKooPA is back with another interview from PAX East 2012, this time with Jared Gerritzen of Zombie Studios who discusses the recently launched multiplayer online FPS, Blacklight: Retribution.

The guys talk about some of the new maps, weapons and hero characters that are coming to the game in the next few months, as well as the new game-mode, Net Warfare. Mr. Gerritzen also reveals that new two more game-modes are on their way and that the company will be introducing new PvE game-modes later on this year. They discuss a bit about eSports and the future of Blacklight: Retribution. A future that looks very bright.

Check out the full Blacklight: Retribution interview below.

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