Filed under: Screenshots

Derek Smart's Line of Defense shows off battle environments

by Justin Olivetti Feb 7th 2012 at 11:00AM

Filed under: Sci-fi, Galleries, Screenshots, MMO industry, Free-to-play, MMOFPS

Last year we got our first look at Line of Defense, a new MMOFPS from Derek Smart and his team at 3000AD. The title is looking good so far and the devs are certainly eager to show off their progress. As such, 3000AD delivered five brand-new screenshots showcasing the environments and outfits that players will experience, including desert and snowy terrains.

Line of Defense takes place in the same game universe as Smart's Battlecruiser 3000AD series, and promises to deliver "open-world FPS mayhem" from the depths of the ocean to the heights of space and everything in-between. You can check out the new screenies in the gallery below, and make sure to catch up on our Derek Smart interview about Line of Defense if you haven't already!

[Source: Evolve PR press release]

Gallery: Line of Defense screens

Turbine shows off new locations from DDO's Web of Chaos

by Jef Reahard Feb 1st 2012 at 11:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, News items, Free-to-play, Dungeons

Dungeons and Dragons Online - Web of Chaos mobs

In case you missed it, Dungeons and Dragons Online is trading Eberron for Faerun. Yes, Turbine is introducing a Forgotten Realms-themed expansion to its six-year old fantasy MMO, but first the company is gifting players with a prequel content push called Web of Chaos.

Update 13 is scheduled to go live later this month, and today we have the first screenshots which focus on a cult called the Lords of Dust. Check out the gallery below for a look at their dungeon base as well as a glimpse of their Rakshasa cult masters.

The content features new quests, new items, and the ability for veterans to start a character at level seven.

[Source: Turbine press release]

Gallery: Dungeons and Dragons Online Update 13 Preview

A sneak peek at Guild Wars 2's PvP Scholar armor [Updated]

by Justin Olivetti Jan 31st 2012 at 9:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Screenshots, Previews, PvP, Guild Wars 2

Admit it: You aren't always out just for the thrill of the experience -- you want the bling-bling to go with it. A shopping spree, with your sword playing the role of "credit card" and each corpse a potential bonanza of fashion acquisitions. That's okay; we're not here to judge you.

In fact, if fancy armor gets your motor running, Guild Wars Insider has a treat for you: two pictures of Guild Wars 2's PvP Scholar armor set modeled by a majestic Norn Elementalist. While the armor may not maximize skin coverage, the detail and design is certainly fetching.

These pictures were taken inside of the PvP lobbies, which are breathtaking environments all to themselves. The picture on the left was taken in the Battle of Khylo lobby.

ArenaNet has been rolling out the news of Guild Wars 2's PvP system ever since Gamescom last year.

[Thanks to Seven for the tip!]

[Update: Guild Wars Insider has posted up additional screenshots of PvP, pets, and even more armor.]

World of Warplanes reveals German tech tree, new trailer

by Jef Reahard Jan 20th 2012 at 10:00AM

Filed under: Historical, Screenshots, Trailers, Video, Game mechanics, MMO industry, New titles, News items, War, Free-to-play, World of Warplanes

It's time for the next big World of Warplanes reveal, and this time around, Wargaming.net is focusing on its fearsome collection of German fighters.

Following on the heels of its American fighters release, the company is showing off its German tech tree, a new screenshot gallery, and a new trailer. The tech tree boasts 19 flyable models which are broken into two groups -- fighters and heavy fighters. Notable aircraft include the Bf109 and the jet-powered Me262, both marvels of World War II-era German engineering.

World of Warplanes' German fighters feature "fast altitude climbs and power dive attacks," and you can get a preview of each machine via the gallery below and the trailer after the cut.

[Source: Wargaming.net press release]

Gallery: World of Warplanes

Eden Eternal adds Samurai class, PvP arenas, and dungeons

by Jef Reahard Jan 18th 2012 at 9:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Classes, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, News items, Free-to-play, Dungeons

Eden Eternal's latest patch lands today, and Aeria Games is adding quite a bit of content to the free-to-play fantasy romp. There's a new Samurai class, a revamped territory wars mode, and a new monster battle arena designed for PvP encounters.

The Samurai is a DPS class that uses a katana to slice and dice foes at close range. The class also features a number of buff abilities as well as a heavy-hitting Asura slash airborne attack.

In addition to the territory wars tweaks and monster arena, Aeria is also adding two new dungeons to Eden Eternal. The instances are designed for level 60 heroes, and each features new bosses and gear. More info is available at the game's official website.

[Source: Aeria Games press release]

Gallery: Eden Eternal

Xsyon architecture gallery shows off unique player-made structures

by Jef Reahard Jan 17th 2012 at 11:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items, Xsyon, Post-Apocalyptic, Sandbox, Crafting

Xsyon's PR machine is shifting into high gear of late, and the post-apocalyptic sandbox title from Notorious Games has released another batch of screenshots. This isn't your typical 10-screenshot blast, either, but rather an entirely new gallery section on the official website devoted exclusively to user creations.

Notorious is intent on showing off what it calls player architecture, as Xsyon is one of the few games on the current MMO market that actually allows for unique creations in terms of buildings, structures, and even town layouts. You can see a few of the choice shots in our Xsyon gallery below, but you'll need to head to the game's official website to see them all.

[Source: Notorious Games press release]

Gallery: Xsyon

Rise and Shiny recap: Wakfu

by Beau Hindman Jan 15th 2012 at 12:00PM

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Screenshots, Video, Events, in-game, Previews, Opinion, Free-to-play, Hands-on, Casual, Humor, Rise and Shiny, Livestream, Miscellaneous

In June, I drove down to Austin, Texas, to once again participate in GDC Online. I do it every year if I can, and I love it. It's a smaller event when compared to the larger E3s and other conventions, but it is more personal and up-close. My favorite speaker at this last event had to be David Calvo from Ankama Games. When he first came out barefoot, I was honestly worried that the chat would be all about goofy, "deep" design techniques that had no real use in practice. In the end, his talk was deep but was really just asking developers to have fun and try new things. Yes, I know: new things. Crazy, huh?

If Wakfu is any proof, those design theories are put to practice every day at Ankama. Wakfu, for me, is a breath of fresh air in so many ways. Even though I am somewhat used to the design and art style, thanks in large part to playing the previous title Dofus, I still find myself loving how simply complex much of Wakfu is.

There are issues that come with complexity, however.

City of Heroes Issue 22 update features heaps of new content

by Jef Reahard Jan 12th 2012 at 2:00PM

Filed under: Super-hero, Galleries, Screenshots, City of Heroes, City of Villains, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Patches, News items, Free-to-play

Paragon and NCsoft have officially announced the latest update for the long-running City of Heroes superhero MMORPG. Issue 22: Death Incarnate is the title's first major content drop since the free-to-play conversion, and new endgame trials, costumes, powers, and VIP items are on the way.

Chief among the updates are tweaks to the Dark Astoria zone (it becomes a Co-op Incarnate Zone tailored for level 50-plus heroes). Also noteworthy is the new darkness power set for Controllers and Dominators, which should cause a cackle of glee for those of you who relish summoning spectral minions and commanding shadows.

There's also a new trial called Dilemma Diabolique in which heroes and villains must join forces to take down the evil sorceress Diabolique before she makes good on her nefarious plan to rule the world. And that's just the tip of the new content iceberg. More info on Issue 22 is available at the CoH website.

[Source: NCsoft press release]

Gallery: City of Heroes Core Gallery

Free for All: The still-satisfying world of action MMOs

by Beau Hindman Jan 11th 2012 at 9:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Screenshots, Culture, Game mechanics, Opinion, Free-to-play, Browser, Casual, Humor, Free for All, Vindictus, Dragon Nest

Look, I'm a red-blooded American gamer. I even call it 'Merica. So it should be no surprise when I feel like getting down with a melee-based chop-'em-up or have the desire to leap, jump and bounce my way through countless levels. In other words, action. We 'Mericans love our action games. I have my particular favorites, for sure, and within that list are my favorites of favorites that get the nod for different reasons. Honestly I'm not into action-based games just for the challenge. I don't need to make repeated attempts at downing a boss to have fun. I enjoy the immediate response that an action game gives me. I love to click the mouse button and see my character's sword swing or gun fire. It's satisfying.

Of course, action games can have their drawbacks. Not only do they tend to produce a euphoric haze that can only be described as "stoner glare" and an open-mouthed state of hypnosis, but they can take a toll on delicate, drum-beaten wrists like mine as well. I take the good with the bad, I guess. Click past the cut and I'll let you know my favorite F2P action MMOs.

League of Legends pops the cork for Lunar Revel

by Justin Olivetti Jan 11th 2012 at 9:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Events, in-game, Free-to-play, MOBA

Feeling the doldrums of winter settling into your bones? Missing the colorful lights and excessive sugar dosages of last month? The good news is that there's still a great holiday to celebrate this month -- the Chinese New Year -- and League of Legends is totally on board with any excuse to party.

Coming to the game is the brand-new Lunar Revel holiday, which is "a time to celebrate the possibilities of the future with the coming of the new moon." Not only will the game be decorated with cheery lanterns, but Riot Games is adding some new goodies to enjoy, including special consumables in the store and unique skins for Talon, Sona, Wukong, and Lee Sin.

The devs say that this marks the beginning of many cultural-themed holidays as they go on a "world tour" to highlight the many countries that play League of Legends. You can get an advance sneak peek at the new Lunar Revel costumes in the gallery below.

[Source: Riot Games press release]

Gallery: League of Legends

MMObility: The argument for a time-limited server

by Beau Hindman Jan 6th 2012 at 12:00PM

Filed under: Screenshots, A Tale in the Desert, Business models, Culture, PvP, Opinion, Free-to-play, Browser, Casual, MMORTS, MMObility

If there is one thing we MMO gamers love about our favorite games, it's the fact that they go on almost forever. Even when we log off, the virtual worlds we inhabit exist without us. Players continue to adventure, craft and explore the game world as we sleep. It's exciting, and it separates MMOs from the rest of the gaming flock. But what if the world ended? What if the ending of the world was part of the gameplay, an understood happening that marked not only the end of one chapter but the fresh beginning of another?

Time-limited servers end, just as I described. While I have not seen the mechanic much in "standard" MMOs, only appearing really in a handful of titles like A Tale in the Desert, there are quite a few MMORTS titles that use it. In fact, some of the most popular MMORTS games out there use time limits in their games. It would seem that many players enjoy the occasional destruction or closing of their worlds.

Would the mechanic work for other games? How can mobile gaming benefit from the short-term servers?

Choose My Adventure: How Lineage II feels to a Western newcomer

by Jeremy Stratton Jan 4th 2012 at 8:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Polls, Screenshots, Lineage 2, Opinion, Free-to-play, Choose My Adventure

We're down to the wire for Lineage II's Choose My Adventure, with one more week to go. My Abyss Walker quickly rushed to the 40s, at which point leveling has slowed down considerably. I've talked about pets, explored (only a fraction of) the countryside, and touched on crafting and other features. What else could we possibly talk about?

I haven't really shared a lot of my experiences with my character class or how the class-transfers and skills affect my overall enjoyment of Lineage II. My third class-transfer is set in stone thanks to your poll choices and the game mechanics; now that I'm an Abyss Walker, I'm locked-in to become a Ghost Hunter, which makes sense. Ghost Hunter is melee, like my Abyss Walker. I can't really jump ship at this point and go ranged. So let's look a little more at my character, what the future could hold for him in terms of more class-transfers, and my opinions on non-situational combat and how that makes the game feel to me.

Gallery: CMA: Lineage 2

Free for All: A surprising evening of roleplay in RuneScape

by Beau Hindman Jan 4th 2012 at 10:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Screenshots, Culture, Opinion, RuneScape, Free-to-play, Browser, Casual, Free for All, Miscellaneous

Roleplay is often treated as the odd cousin of the MMO family. You know the kid I am talking about... your Aunt comes to visit and your mother tells you to hang out with him, and he ends up vomiting in your room. (Did it only happen to me?) The truth is that the odd cousin is often just misunderstood and generally a lot of fun. It might take a small leap of faith and perhaps some time, but roleplay can be a very rewarding experience.

RuneScape might not seem like a prime spot for roleplay. I hardly even heard of roleplay in the community, but I knew that the playerbase was made up of individuals from all age ranges. I thought of trying to find a good roleplay clan or trying to attend a roleplay event or two, but I didn't find the time to investigate. It began to look like roleplay was not something that happened in the game.

That was until last night. I stumbled upon some sort of spontaneous roleplay session, and it was mostly thrilling. I even interviewed a few players to see how the whole thing worked. Click past the cut and I'll tell you what I found out!

Rise and Shiny recap: 1100 AD

by Beau Hindman Jan 1st 2012 at 2:00PM

Filed under: Historical, Screenshots, Video, PvP, Opinion, Free-to-play, Browser, Hands-on, Casual, MMORTS, Rise and Shiny, Livestream

1100 AD is a new browser-based MMORTS that is published by Aeria Games. It's new to me, at least, even though I find a lot of the design and ideas behind the title to be pretty familiar. The truth is that the MMORTS genre is about as repetitive and ordinary as the standard MMO model. Players will come across the same concepts as they have seen in a score of other titles. It's sort of the quandry of the massively multiplayer player: You have to play a lot of games to find that one true gem.

Where does 1100 AD fall in the grand line of copycat MMORTS games? Well, it's hard to say within a week, especially since I have not experienced much of what the game might have to offer like massive wars, alliances or world-changing events. But I can comment on what I found so far in this short week of playing.

Click past the cut and I'll tell you!

MMObility: The year in mobile

by Beau Hindman Dec 30th 2011 at 6:00PM

Filed under: Screenshots, Interviews, News items, Opinion, Free-to-play, Mobile, Casual, MMObility

What a year, huh? We gamers have seen a lot of changes, but especially in the mobile market. New devices came and went, technologies spread out even further in the world, and MMO gaming established itself on the smallest screens possible. Of course, the mobile market is not as large as the standard MMO market, but it is definitely growing. As more devices appear, more players come to fill up the games.

Our phones are not what they used to be, even five years ago. They are now truly tiny and powerful computing devices that are always connected. A player can literally live all of his digital life on one small device. If we look at the laptop and netbook market, we see even more growth and power. All of these devices need games to play on them, and MMOs fit perfectly into the mobile lifestyle.

Click past the cut and I'll recap many of the best stories from Massively's mobile coverage!

Massively Features

Events Calendar

Name	Date
Cataclysm Launch	Dec 7, 2010
DCUO Launch	Early 2011

Massively Staff

Name	Title
Shawn Schuster	Editor-in-Chief
Brianna Royce	Senior Editor
Rubi Bayer	Community Manager
Brendan Drain	Contributing Editor
Eliot Lefebvre	Contributing Editor
Jef Reahard	Contributing Editor
Justin Olivetti	Contributing Editor
Krystalle Voecks	Contributing Editor
Larry Everett	Contributing Editor
Beau Hindman	Columnist
Edward Marshall	Columnist
Greg Waller	Columnist
Jeremy Stratton	Columnist
Karen Bryan	Columnist
MJ Guthrie	Columnist
Patrick Mackey	Columnist
Ryan Greene	Columnist
Lisa Poisso	Columnist