I know what you’re thinking, “What does En Masse Entertainment consider a user.” The company was kind enough to lay it out for us. The two million mark will be bestowed upon TERA in short order thanks to registered users, not active users. The upcoming milestone comes just over a month after TERA’s birthday celebration.
Apart from typical shenanigans, En Masse Entertainment is preparing a large collection of content for the upcoming summer months. General MMOG playing tends to decline during the warm timeframe, but that isn’t going to stop TERA. The first round of content comes July 2 and will be equally summer themed. Pirates are indicative of summer, right?
Who cares, it means a new 20 v 20 map, siege-based gameplay, new loot and an advanced matchmaking system. There’s also the barely detailed Alliance system which will retool the ambitious, yet faulted, Alliance system.
Ever play a game and wonder what’s the most popular race? Class? What about the deadliest monster or the richest player? Race and class especially, those are near the top of the list of questions I see in every game I’ve played. And to celebrate the first anniversary ofTERA, En Masse Entertainment has fulfilled these burning questions with a special infographic displaying a few of these statistics! Plus, there are a host of special events and celebrations happening throughout the month of May. Who doesn’t love a birthday celebration, especially one that has gifts for everyone?
Hit the jump for the details, as well as some delicious tidbits about upcoming content!
I got a fever, and the only prescription is more Deathwing!
You all may remember, and may even have shared similar sentiments, that before the release ofCataclysm, one of my absolutely most anticipated aspect of the expansion was the idea of a very present villain. Back in November, we got word from Zarhym that Deathwing would not only shatter the Azeroth that we loved, but also would patrol the skies freely, inflicting pain and death upon all who dared walk upon his kingdom.
And yes, he sure does that, randomly but also uncommonly and only in certain zones. But it’s something that happens so rarely that there’s never that constant feeling of looking behind your back or searching the skies to ensure you’re alone. And I’m not insinuating that this should be a very common occurence – after all, that would take away from its specialness, plus it could have the potential to become somewhat of an annoyance if it was a constant issue. But at the same time, the current level isn’t one that instills any sort of sense of suspense that I was hoping the expansion would include. Continue Reading
Let's face it, Moonkin were probably the best part of last year's Bliz -- I mean, anything ever!
It seems awfully early to announce the date for this year’s BlizzCon, but then again, I suppose there aren’t any major game releases to dance about this time around. Oh right, Diablo III! Wait, no, maintain self-control Amatera! Last time you started speculating about what Blizzard was going to do, you only came away disappointed!
Oh, I can’t stop myself! And honestly, it shouldn’t be hard to top the lean offerings of 2010′s event (even if we did get Red Shirt Guy out of it). If that oft-referenced leaked release slate is to be considered, both the back end of this year and 2012 are full of potential titles to talk about. There’s the aforementioned hack-and-slash (if it hasn’t hit retail), the first StarCraft II expansion (and maybe the second, if we’re lucky), as well as the future of World of Warcraft — what’s coming at the end of Cataclysm content if not also what’s after it.
Whatever they show, don’t count on any surprise Las Vegas relocation scare this year. You can already start booking your reservations for the area around the Anaheim Convention Center, where BlizzCon is traditionally held, though ticketing and other pertinent information for the event itself has yet to be detailed.
Note: This post contains spoilers if you haven’t completed questing in Mount Hyjal.
While I can’t yet speak for any of the other new zones in Cataclysm since I haven’t had the time to get to them just yet, I have been in awe since entering Mount Hyjal and finishing up questing there in the past couple of days. Never before in WoW have I experienced a good 125+ straight quests that have been so enjoyable.
It makes sense to start at the beginning, with the starter quest that leads into the zone – Warchief’s Command: Mount Hyjal or Hero’s Call: Mount Hyjal. Either quest takes you to Moonglade, and from there on an Emerald Drake ride to the new zone. Immediately, you’re bombarded by imagery of the terrifyingly huge Deathwing and his favorite new pal Ragnaros, who appear suddenly right in the path of your flight.
I can’t think of a better way to start the Cataclysm questing experience.
But either Deathwing doesn’t care enough about one solitary drake to attack, or he’s too busy scheming to leave his dirty business aside — because you survive the sighting and even live on to warn the heroes at your side and then start down the path to assembling a team that can take down the fire lord.
You’re presented with this very clear objective from the start, and spend most of the rest of the time in Hyjal finding a way to make it happen. There are a few scant quests thrown in along the way that seem less connected to the overarching plot than others (bear tossing, anyone?) but overall, there were very few times throughout the zone that I felt I wasn’t somehow contributing to the good fight. And, to be honest, most of the time I felt like a rabid fangirl who had fallen into an epic battle with some of my favorite characters from Warcraft lore.
Click through for more commentary along with a massive photo gallery of the Hyjal experience, from start to finish.
The holidays are upon us already, and it’s that time of year that we all sit back and reflect upon that for which we are thankful. And then drink in merriment.
This week, as Americans (even those of us on the other side of the globe) roast turkeys then run the gauntlet of Black Friday crazyness, and as in another part of the world, the Christmas markets open to the masses, I’m starting to feel warm and fuzzy inside already.
Which is why in this post, I’ve decided to reflect upon only the good things that are coming our way inWorld of Warcraft, and some which have arrived already. Luckily, with Cataclysmjust around the corner, there’s a lot to be thankful for at this particular moment in-game.
And although we may not be thankful that maintenance has been extended (currently set to end at 5 p.m. PST ie past my bedtime), we can still have some fun anticipating what’s to come. In fact, what BETTER time than now to let the lovefest begin!
I am thankful for:
Holiday deals — If you want to grab a spare copy of WoW (or 5), are looking into recruiting a friend or even are looking for gift ideas, the World of Warcraft, The Burning Crusade and Wrath of the Lich King each are now on sale both in the U.S. and in the EU. Pick up all three for a cool $20, €20 or £16.00.
The Shattering – We’ll see if my good vibes on this one wear off after post-patch mayhem, but as of now I am ridiculously excited to cruise around and get to know the new Azeroth, even in the places that it is “shattered” beyond recognition.
The guild perks system — from mount speed bonuses to auctioneering awesomeness to mobile banking to the all powerful mass resurrection, Cataclysm‘s guild perks system is looking quite tasty. You can bet Mordil isn’t the only one with high expectations for the system.
New playable races — Worgen and Goblin goodness is just around the corner. Whether you’re planning to roll one from the start or focus on your beloved main, we’ll have plenty of fun stuff to keep us entertained, and that’s also thanks to the… Continue Reading
Anybody for some Rock 'Em, Sock 'Em Robots? Also, the yellow dude in the background is the Dune Commander.
There’s a wind of change blowing through the MMO community. Companies are shirking the old subscription model for Free-To-Play alternatives of one sort or another. Of course, this has its advantages and disadvantages depending on the nature and scope of each individual title, but looking at the sort of success that, say, Turbine has had with Eberron Unlimited? It certainly seems worth it.
So, even though it’s a bit of surprise that we didn’t hear anything about it at E3 (in fact, the literature at the time still suggested otherwise), it’s not entirely shocking to hear that Hi-Rez Studios’ Global Agenda is now droppingits subscription model before it even gets off the ground. The intention was to have everything open to players until the company finished deploying all of Patch 1.3, when, at that point, core features like Alliance vs. Alliance combat would fall under a monthly fee. Players could go ahead and pre-subscribe, earning extra tokens within the game until Phase 3 was released.
As I’ve already indicated, that’s evidently something that changed very quickly. The new model allows players access to all content as long as they purchase the core game. Though the remainder of Patch 1.3, “Sandstorm,” will be given out for free, monetization of the game falls on the shoulders of paid expansions and content patches released further in the future, somewhat similar to the way that Guild Wars operated (which is perfect for a PvP-focused game like this).
“But that’s not all!” to quote Ron Popeil. The awesomeness known as Steam is discounting Global Agenda as part of their Perils of Summer Sale, knocking off a cool 33%, for a final price of 26.79 USD. This offer lasts through July 4th. Thanks to the centralized servers, a game like this never feels completely empty, but it wouldn’t hurt to have a few more bodies wandering around Dome City.
Finally, the Troll story moves forward. Vol’jin is taking charge, doing more than just keeping the Warchief’s chambers cozy while the rest of the Horde goes out to knock some heads. The events to come will throw the entire faction into unrest, so the Darkspear are in desperate need of a place to call home. That and, well, it’s just about time that they took back the Echo Islesanyway.
The questline, which culminates in the final defeat of evil Hexmaster Zalazane, begins on the edge of Sen’jin Village. While not the most difficult set of tasks put forth in the game (and they’re intentionally designed so a wide range of people can accomplish them), they’ll take you about 30-45 minutes to complete. I’ve tried to cut up the segments as much as possible so that you don’t have to deal with too much of the running-around bits, but the result was still lengthy enough to split up into two videos.
This first half, which follows, deals with everything leading up to the actual assault, including how the Darkspear rediscover their Druid talents. Enjoy!
Fans of the special Undercity event from Wrath of the Lich King will enjoy the rest of the footage coming very soon. While you’re waiting, why not check out Juggynaut’s footage of Operation: Gnomergan?
I know what you’re thinking, “What does En Masse Entertainment consider a user.” The company was kind enough to lay it out for us. The two million mark will be bestowed upon TERA in short order thanks to registered users, not active users. The upcoming milestone comes just over a month after TERA’s birthday celebration.
Ever play a game and wonder what’s the most popular race? Class? What about the deadliest monster or the richest player? Race and class especially, those are near the top of the list of questions I see in every game I’ve played. And to celebrate the first anniversary of 
