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		<title>Editor’s Soapbox: Aliens vs. Predator vs. Australia Results in Unbanning</title>
		<link>http://www.247player.com/2009/12/18/editor%e2%80%99s-soapbox-aliens-vs-predator-vs-australia-results-in-unbanning/</link>
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		<pubDate>Fri, 18 Dec 2009 22:07:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>feedback@gamesareevil.com (The Games Are Evil Family)</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Alien vs. Predator]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[PC Gaming]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[australia]]></category>
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		<description><![CDATA[Aussies had pretty much given up hope of Aliens vs. Predator ever seeing the light of day. Well, lets just say that the fat lady hasn't quite sung yet...]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://gamesareevil.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/AvP2.jpg"><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-26173" title="AvP2" src="http://gamesareevil.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/AvP2.jpg" alt="AvP2" width="273" height="204" /></a>The Australian Classification Review Board has had a long running feud with the gaming industry as a whole.  There is a long running history of games being released abroad with the global equivalent of a &#8220;Mature&#8221; rating, while getting rejected down under.  Some of these banned titles include the likes of every installment in the <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;source=web&amp;ct=res&amp;cd=2&amp;ved=0CAwQFjAB&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.softpedia.com%2Fnews%2FGTA-IV-Banned-and-then-Un-Banned-in-Australia-82626.shtml&amp;ei=UfYrS7SlMYXTnAfHj6nzCA&amp;usg=AFQjCNFOBGg9UBguoTupgrJ5GMNMzvC5gQ&amp;sig2=Mzk4CHIP_kQpmGhBKxWMXA" >Grand Theft Auto</a> franchise, the original <a href="http://www.cnet.com.au/australian-censors-ban-manhunt-240001621.htm" >Manhunt</a> (Rockstar <a href="http://www.rockstarwatch.net/news/215/manhunt-2-was-never-submitted-for-classification-in-australia/" >never even bothered</a> attempting to release Manhunt 2), <a href="http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2008/07/australia-bans/" >Fallout 3</a>, <a href="http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/midways-blitz-banned-over-drug-use" >Blitz: The League</a>, and most recently <a href="http://www.news.com.au/technology/left-4-dead-2-refused-classification-in-australia/story-e6frfro0-1225775873481" >Left 4 Dead 2</a>.  Many of these games were later censored by developers so that they could see release, much to the <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;source=web&amp;ct=res&amp;cd=1&amp;ved=0CAkQFjAA&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.escapistmagazine.com%2Fvideos%2Fview%2Fzero-punctuation%2F1191-Left-4-Dead-2-New-Super-Mario-Bros-Wii&amp;ei=hPgrS6_qD9OnnQee07z5CA&amp;usg=AFQjCNHKrWfkG1FHsZ7zsha407JZEbEDUw&amp;sig2=eZIgiGQPimmnrAhUv8fyFA" >dismay of the Aussie gaming population</a>.</p>
<p>For this reason, many were alarmed earlier this month, when the console release of Sega&#8217;s upcoming Alien vs. Predator game was dealt a similar fate. Refusing to approve the game for an 15+ rating, ultimately killed all chances of the game seeing the light of day, at least in its current state.</p>
<p>Things then went from bad to worse when Jason Kingsley, the CEO of Rebellion (AvP&#8217;s developer) went on the record saying the following about the banning:</p>
<blockquote><p>&#8220;The content of AvP is based on some of the most innovative and iconic horror movies, and as such we wanted to create a title that was true to the source material. It is for adults, and it is bloody and frightening, that was our intent.</p>
<p>We will not be releasing a sanitised or cut down version for territories where adults are not considered by their governments to be able to make their own entertainment choices.&#8221; &#8212; Jason Kingsley via <a href="http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/rebellion-disappointed-with-australias-banning-of-avp" >GamesIndustry.biz</a></p>
</blockquote>
<p><a href="http://gamesareevil.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/AvP1.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-26172" title="AvP1" src="http://gamesareevil.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/AvP1.jpg" alt="AvP1" width="215" height="186" /></a>So if the game is deemed inappropriate by a country&#8217;s government and the developer is refusing to budge on the removal or censoring of objectionable content, that would render hopes of Aliens vs. Predator ever seeing the release moot, right? Well lets just say that the fat lady hadn&#8217;t quite sung yet&#8230;</p>
<p>In what seemed like a futile attempt to maintain the integrity of the product, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/14/aliens-vs-predator-attempts-aussie-classification-on-appeal/">Sega filed an appeal</a> with the Australian Classification Review Board, citing that the context of the violence in the game was not being considered.  Though this sounds like a flimsy argument at best, it is actually very similar to one used by Warner Bros. Interactive in <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/news/6202359.html" >defense of F.E.A.R 2: Project Origin</a>, when it was banned back in <a href="http://www.cnet.com.au/f-e-a-r-2-banned-in-australia-339293545.htm" >November of 2008</a>. To this date, F.E.A.R 2 was the only title to ever to have its banning overturned in Australia, without having to censor or remove content.</p>
<p>Well it looks as if Sega&#8217;s gamble may have payed off. Yesterday news was handed down that on appeal, they too have been granted the coveted 15+ rating, without the need to edit any material.  When excitedly addressing the Review Board&#8217;s sudden shift in stance, Darren Macbeth, Sega of Australia&#8217;s General Manager was quoted as saying:</p>
<blockquote>
<p style="text-align: left;">&#8220;It is with great pleasure that we announce the success of our appeal. We are particularly proud that the game will be released in its original entirety, with no content altered or removed whatsoever. This is a big win for Australian gamers. We applaud the Classification Review Board on making a decision that clearly considers the context of the game, and is in line with the modern expectations of reasonable Australians&#8221;. &#8212; Darren Macbeth via <a href="http://kotaku.com/5429337/aliens-vs-predator-unbanned-in-australia" >Kotaku.com</a></p>
</blockquote>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://gamesareevil.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/AvP3.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-26170   aligncenter" title="AvP3" src="http://gamesareevil.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/AvP3.jpg" alt="AvP3" width="500" height="369" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">To put things very bluntly, this is a dramatically unexpected result, especially given how poorly <a href="http://www.edge-online.com/news/left-4-dead-2-secures-australian-release" >Left 4 Dead 2&#8217;s appeal</a> went earlier this year.  Might we finally be seeing a shift in perspective from the previously stingy stances of the Australian Classification Review Board?  As a red-blooded American that is a strong support of our First Amendment Right to Free Speech, I hope that this is a sign of a things to come in regards to game ratings in Australia.  With two overturned bans in the last 12 months, this might very well be the case.</p>
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		<title>The trouble with goals in MMOs</title>
		<link>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/29/the-trouble-with-goals-in-mmos/</link>
		<comments>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/29/the-trouble-with-goals-in-mmos/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov 2009 01:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Eliot Lefebvre</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[academic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[city-of-heroes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[city-of-villains]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[coh]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cov]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cox]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[culture]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[game-mechanics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[player-generated-content]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thats-a-terrible-idea]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[virtual-worlds]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.massively.com/2009/11/29/the-trouble-with-goals-in-mmos/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/game-mechanics/" rel="tag">Game mechanics</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/academic/" rel="tag">Academic</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/virtual-worlds/" rel="tag">Virtual worlds</a></p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Target_Corporation"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" align="top" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/blogs-targets-epl-1129.jpg" alt="" /></a><br />
One of the major problems of a game in which you can do anything is that... well, there's not necessarily much of a <em>reason</em> to do anything.  <a href="http://www.thatsaterribleidea.com/">That's a Terrible Idea</a> recently had an interesting piece on <a href="http://www.thatsaterribleidea.com/2009/11/goal-generation-in-mmos-problem.html">the difficulty of generating goals and objectives in MMOs</a>, especially in contrast with single-player games where your goals are equally pre-generated.  The difference, as the article notes, is that single-player games have individual characters with a large impact on the game world.  There's no issue of making quests compatible with a wide variety of characters of different races and classes, until the individual motivations and goals can no longer fit into the equation.  You don't have anything but the end of content to shoot for.<br />
<br />
So what's the answer?  <a href="http://www.thatsaterribleidea.com/2009/11/goal-generation-in-mmos-problem.html">The original post</a> notes that it's not really possible to reconcile anything but achievement-oriented goals within MMOs due to the fact that the character will still inhabit a static world no matter what you do.  Certainly, there are attempts to create larger-scale impacts for individual characters, but so long as every character goes through the same content or has the same opportunities, there's less of a sense of distinct accomplishment.  Player-generated content in games such as <a href="http://www.cityofheroes.com"><em>City of Heroes</em></a> offers an opportunity for a different path for each character, but there's still not much of a difference in the actual process.  Procedural generation is also bandied about as a solution to the issue, though it lacks any truly successful implementation at this point.  Is there even a solution, or is this simply part of the weakness of the genre?<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both"><a href="http://www.massively.com"><img src="http://www.massively.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Massively" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0" /></a><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/29/the-trouble-with-goals-in-mmos/">The trouble with goals in MMOs</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Sun, 29 Nov 2009 20:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br /></p><h6 style="clear: both;padding: 8px 0 0 0;height: 2px;font-size: 1px;border: 0;margin: 0;padding: 0"></h6><a href="http://www.thatsaterribleidea.com/2009/11/goal-generation-in-mmos-problem.html">Read</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/29/the-trouble-with-goals-in-mmos/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19257210/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/29/the-trouble-with-goals-in-mmos/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/game-mechanics/" rel="tag">Game mechanics</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/academic/" rel="tag">Academic</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/virtual-worlds/" rel="tag">Virtual worlds</a></p>
<p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Target_Corporation"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" align="top" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/blogs-targets-epl-1129.jpg"  alt="" /></a><br />
One of the major problems of a game in which you can do anything is that&#8230; well, there&#8217;s not necessarily much of a <em>reason</em> to do anything.  <a href="http://www.thatsaterribleidea.com/">That&#8217;s a Terrible Idea</a> recently had an interesting piece on <a href="http://www.thatsaterribleidea.com/2009/11/goal-generation-in-mmos-problem.html">the difficulty of generating goals and objectives in MMOs</a>, especially in contrast with single-player games where your goals are equally pre-generated.  The difference, as the article notes, is that single-player games have individual characters with a large impact on the game world.  There&#8217;s no issue of making quests compatible with a wide variety of characters of different races and classes, until the individual motivations and goals can no longer fit into the equation.  You don&#8217;t have anything but the end of content to shoot for.</p>
<p>So what&#8217;s the answer?  <a href="http://www.thatsaterribleidea.com/2009/11/goal-generation-in-mmos-problem.html">The original post</a> notes that it&#8217;s not really possible to reconcile anything but achievement-oriented goals within MMOs due to the fact that the character will still inhabit a static world no matter what you do.  Certainly, there are attempts to create larger-scale impacts for individual characters, but so long as every character goes through the same content or has the same opportunities, there&#8217;s less of a sense of distinct accomplishment.  Player-generated content in games such as <a href="http://www.cityofheroes.com"><em>City of Heroes</em></a> offers an opportunity for a different path for each character, but there&#8217;s still not much of a difference in the actual process.  Procedural generation is also bandied about as a solution to the issue, though it lacks any truly successful implementation at this point.  Is there even a solution, or is this simply part of the weakness of the genre?
<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.massively.com"><img src="http://www.massively.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Massively" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/29/the-trouble-with-goals-in-mmos/">The trouble with goals in MMOs</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Sun, 29 Nov 2009 20:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p>
<h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6>
<p><a href=http://www.thatsaterribleidea.com/2009/11/goal-generation-in-mmos-problem.html>Read</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/29/the-trouble-with-goals-in-mmos/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19257210/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/29/the-trouble-with-goals-in-mmos/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>
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		<title>The Daily Grind: You or not you, in Star Trek Online?</title>
		<link>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/21/the-daily-grind-you-or-not-you-in-star-trek-online/</link>
		<comments>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/21/the-daily-grind-you-or-not-you-in-star-trek-online/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 21 Nov 2009 13:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Kyle Horner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[atari]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cryptic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cryptic-studios]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[federation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[klingon]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[opinion]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[sto]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[the-daily-grind]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.massively.com/2009/11/21/the-daily-grind-you-or-not-you-in-star-trek-online/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/new-titles/" rel="tag">New titles</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/star-trek-online/" rel="tag">Star Trek Online</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/the-daily-grind/" rel="tag">The Daily Grind</a></p><div style="text-align: center"><a href="http://www.massively.com/category/the-daily-grind/"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/67uj546t754h553.jpg" alt="" /></a></div>
This isn't often a question we find ourselves asking others when it comes to character creation in an MMO, but, well <a href="http://www.startrekonline.com"><em>Star Trek Online</em></a> is different in this regard. Considering the very specific sort of wish fulfillment <a href="http://www.massively.com/tag/Cryptic">Cryptic's</a> next game offers, do you plan to first create a fictional captain or in-game version of yourself to captain a starship?<br />
<br />
You see, we began thinking on this very subject not too long ago and a dilemma struck. While being a Vulcan or some odd new species is undoubtedly a tempting concept, seeing ourselves sitting in the captain's chair is nearly as exciting. Considering Cryptic's knack for powerful character creation tools, we've no doubt that coming up with a close approximation of our likeness wouldn't be too difficult.<br />
<br />
We know that every <em>Star Trek</em> fan is going to create themselves at some point but your first "main" is so very important. Since <a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/10/10/star-trek-online-wouldnt-you-like-to-be-a-klingon-too/">creating a Klingon-sided character is unlocked</a> after some initial Federation play, we're thinking of making ourselves first, and then, wait for it... a <em>Gorn</em> <a href="http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/Gorn">second</a>. Yes!<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both"><a href="http://www.massively.com"><img src="http://www.massively.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Massively" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0" /></a><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/21/the-daily-grind-you-or-not-you-in-star-trek-online/">The Daily Grind: You or not you, in Star Trek Online?</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Sat, 21 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br /></p><h6 style="clear: both;padding: 8px 0 0 0;height: 2px;font-size: 1px;border: 0;margin: 0;padding: 0"></h6><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/21/the-daily-grind-you-or-not-you-in-star-trek-online/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19248171/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/21/the-daily-grind-you-or-not-you-in-star-trek-online/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/new-titles/" rel="tag">New titles</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/star-trek-online/" rel="tag">Star Trek Online</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/the-daily-grind/" rel="tag">The Daily Grind</a></p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.massively.com/category/the-daily-grind/"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/67uj546t754h553.jpg" alt="" /></a></div>
<p>This isn&#8217;t often a question we find ourselves asking others when it comes to character creation in an MMO, but, well <a href="http://www.startrekonline.com"><em>Star Trek Online</em></a> is different in this regard. Considering the very specific sort of wish fulfillment <a href="http://www.massively.com/tag/Cryptic">Cryptic&#8217;s</a> next game offers, do you plan to first create a fictional captain or in-game version of yourself to captain a starship?</p>
<p>You see, we began thinking on this very subject not too long ago and a dilemma struck. While being a Vulcan or some odd new species is undoubtedly a tempting concept, seeing ourselves sitting in the captain&#8217;s chair is nearly as exciting. Considering Cryptic&#8217;s knack for powerful character creation tools, we&#8217;ve no doubt that coming up with a close approximation of our likeness wouldn&#8217;t be too difficult.</p>
<p>We know that every <em>Star Trek</em> fan is going to create themselves at some point but your first &#8220;main&#8221; is so very important. Since <a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/10/10/star-trek-online-wouldnt-you-like-to-be-a-klingon-too/">creating a Klingon-sided character is unlocked</a> after some initial Federation play, we&#8217;re thinking of making ourselves first, and then, wait for it&#8230; a <em>Gorn</em> <a href="http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/Gorn">second</a>. Yes!
<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.massively.com"><img src="http://www.massively.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Massively" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/21/the-daily-grind-you-or-not-you-in-star-trek-online/">The Daily Grind: You or not you, in Star Trek Online?</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Sat, 21 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p>
<h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6>
<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/21/the-daily-grind-you-or-not-you-in-star-trek-online/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19248171/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/21/the-daily-grind-you-or-not-you-in-star-trek-online/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>
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		<title>Steam estimated at selling to 70% of PC market</title>
		<link>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/20/steam-estimated-at-selling-to-70-of-pc-market/</link>
		<comments>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/20/steam-estimated-at-selling-to-70-of-pc-market/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Kyle Horner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[aion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[atari]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[brad-wardell]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[champions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[champions-online]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[digital-distribution]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[eurogamer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[impulse]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ncsoft]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[stardock]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[steam]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[valve]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[<div style="text-align: center"><a href="http://www.massively.com/category/mmo-industry/"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/ry67uije4567645uj6.jpg" /></a></div>
Where did you buy your last MMO and where will you buy your next? Chances are you'll be <a href="http://store.steampowered.com/search/?genre=Massively%20Multiplayer&#38;category1=998">getting it on Steam</a> or <a href="http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/steam-has-70-per-cent-of-pc-pie">so the story goes</a> according to Brad Wardell, head honcho over at Stardock. We're inclined to agree with his assertion that Valve's digital distribution platform holds roughly 70% of the PC market as many of us here at Massively have been buying our MMOs -- and PC games in general -- on the service for some time now.<br />
<br />
So is it a good thing or a bad thing for MMO players? Our experience with purchasing games like <a href="http://na.aiononline.com/"><em>Aion</em></a> and <a href="http://www.champions-online.com"><em>Champions Online</em></a> through the service has been positive, and so long as no complications arise via patches or other client issues we see no reason to stop utilizing the service unless better offers appear.<br />
<br />
The only real MMO-related issue we can see is with collector's editions. Some games offer a different set of bonus material for people who opt out of the physical copy and go for the digital, but certain items like art books, mouse pads and other bric-a-brac can't be delivered through a wire... at least, not until sometime in the far flung future.<br />
<br />
Now, as far as <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/11/06/modern-warfare-2-refused-by-digital-distribution-retailers-stea/">the Steamworks integration issue goes</a>... Well, that's a whole other sack of fishes.<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/mmo-industry/" rel="tag">MMO industry</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/news-items/" rel="tag">News items</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a></p><p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/steam-estimated-at-selling-to-70-of-pc-market/">Steam estimated at selling to 70% of PC market</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><p><a href="http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/steam-has-70-per-cent-of-pc-pie">Read</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/steam-estimated-at-selling-to-70-of-pc-market/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19248070/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/steam-estimated-at-selling-to-70-of-pc-market/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.massively.com/category/mmo-industry/"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/ry67uije4567645uj6.jpg" /></a></div>
<p>Where did you buy your last MMO and where will you buy your next? Chances are you&#8217;ll be <a href="http://store.steampowered.com/search/?genre=Massively%20Multiplayer&amp;category1=998">getting it on Steam</a> or <a href="http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/steam-has-70-per-cent-of-pc-pie">so the story goes</a> according to Brad Wardell, head honcho over at Stardock. We&#8217;re inclined to agree with his assertion that Valve&#8217;s digital distribution platform holds roughly 70% of the PC market as many of us here at Massively have been buying our MMOs &#8212; and PC games in general &#8212; on the service for some time now.</p>
<p>So is it a good thing or a bad thing for MMO players? Our experience with purchasing games like <a href="http://na.aiononline.com/"><em>Aion</em></a> and <a href="http://www.champions-online.com"><em>Champions Online</em></a> through the service has been positive, and so long as no complications arise via patches or other client issues we see no reason to stop utilizing the service unless better offers appear.</p>
<p>The only real MMO-related issue we can see is with collector&#8217;s editions. Some games offer a different set of bonus material for people who opt out of the physical copy and go for the digital, but certain items like art books, mouse pads and other bric-a-brac can&#8217;t be delivered through a wire&#8230; at least, not until sometime in the far flung future.</p>
<p>Now, as far as <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/11/06/modern-warfare-2-refused-by-digital-distribution-retailers-stea/">the Steamworks integration issue goes</a>&#8230; Well, that&#8217;s a whole other sack of fishes.
<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/mmo-industry/" rel="tag">MMO industry</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/news-items/" rel="tag">News items</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a></p>
<p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/steam-estimated-at-selling-to-70-of-pc-market/">Steam estimated at selling to 70% of PC market</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p>
<p><a href=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/steam-has-70-per-cent-of-pc-pie>Read</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/steam-estimated-at-selling-to-70-of-pc-market/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19248070/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/steam-estimated-at-selling-to-70-of-pc-market/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>
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		<title>Linden Lab to raise Xstreet fees, loses vendors, products</title>
		<link>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/20/linden-lab-to-raise-xstreet-fees-loses-vendors-products/</link>
		<comments>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/20/linden-lab-to-raise-xstreet-fees-loses-vendors-products/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Tateru Nino</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[business-models]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[culture]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[linden-dollars]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[linden-lab]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[second-life]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sl-policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[slapt]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[virtual-worlds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[xstreet]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[xstreet-sl]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/linden-lab-to-raise-xstreet-fees-loses-vendors-products/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://massively,com/category/second-life"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" align="right" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/10/tan-desk-job-225-1256960028.jpg" /></a>This week, <a href="http://massively.com/tag/linden-lab">Linden Lab</a> announced that it was going to start charging listing fees and minimum commissions on its <a href="http://secondlife.com/"><em>Second Life</em></a> <em>Xstreet </em>Web-shopping adjunct in the near future. Within hours, vendors took down thousands of products, many abandoning the service entirely in favor of alternative services.</p>
<p>It's unclear just how many vendors have abandoned the <em>Xstreet SL</em> system, but it apparently was enough to temporarily overload the Web-sites of third-party sites such as <a href="http://slapt.me/">Slapt</a>.</p><p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/linden-lab-to-raise-xstreet-fees-loses-vendors-products/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Linden Lab to raise Xstreet fees, loses vendors, products</em></a></p><p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/business-models/" rel="tag">Business models</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/economy/" rel="tag">Economy</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/news-items/" rel="tag">News items</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/second-life/" rel="tag">Second Life</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/virtual-worlds/" rel="tag">Virtual worlds</a></p><p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/linden-lab-to-raise-xstreet-fees-loses-vendors-products/">Linden Lab to raise Xstreet fees, loses vendors, products</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><p><a href="https://blogs.secondlife.com/community/commerce/blog/2009/11/18/roadmap--managing-freebies-on-xstreet-sl">Read</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/linden-lab-to-raise-xstreet-fees-loses-vendors-products/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19247639/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/linden-lab-to-raise-xstreet-fees-loses-vendors-products/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://massively,com/category/second-life" style=""><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" align="right" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/10/tan-desk-job-225-1256960028.jpg" /></a>This week, <a href="http://massively.com/tag/linden-lab">Linden Lab</a> announced that it was going to start charging listing fees and minimum commissions on its <a href="http://secondlife.com/"><em>Second Life</em></a> <em>Xstreet </em>Web-shopping adjunct in the near future. Within hours, vendors took down thousands of products, many abandoning the service entirely in favor of alternative services.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s unclear just how many vendors have abandoned the <em>Xstreet SL</em> system, but it apparently was enough to temporarily overload the Web-sites of third-party sites such as <a href="http://slapt.me/">Slapt</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/linden-lab-to-raise-xstreet-fees-loses-vendors-products/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Linden Lab to raise Xstreet fees, loses vendors, products</em></a></p>
<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/business-models/" rel="tag">Business models</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/economy/" rel="tag">Economy</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/news-items/" rel="tag">News items</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/second-life/" rel="tag">Second Life</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/virtual-worlds/" rel="tag">Virtual worlds</a></p>
<p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/linden-lab-to-raise-xstreet-fees-loses-vendors-products/">Linden Lab to raise Xstreet fees, loses vendors, products</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p>
<p><a href=https://blogs.secondlife.com/community/commerce/blog/2009/11/18/roadmap--managing-freebies-on-xstreet-sl>Read</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/linden-lab-to-raise-xstreet-fees-loses-vendors-products/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19247639/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/linden-lab-to-raise-xstreet-fees-loses-vendors-products/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>
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		<title>MMOrigins: The only living boy in Vana&#8217;diel</title>
		<link>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/20/mmorigins-the-only-living-boy-in-vanadiel/</link>
		<comments>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/20/mmorigins-the-only-living-boy-in-vanadiel/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Eliot Lefebvre</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[culture]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mmorigins]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[real-life]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/mmorigins-the-only-living-boy-in-vanadiel/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<a href="http://www.massively.com/category/mmorigins"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" align="top" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/mmorigins-eliottitle1.jpg" alt="" /></a><br />
When I was still young, I was out on a walk with my father in the woods next to my great-aunt's house. The woods were an offshoot of the <a href="http://www.ct.gov/dep/cwp/view.asp?a=2716&#38;q=325188">Devil's Hopyard</a> state park, which meant that they were old and vast. As the family often congregated around the house, there were a number of paths we knew that wove their way through the forest, but I remember where we always stopped, and I remember the day when I asked what was further along.<br />
<br />
My dad grinned, and we kept walking. It was about ten minutes from there to a beautiful, moss-covered waterfall that was right on the edge of the state park, with an alcove just large enough that I could squeeze underneath the falls. That sticks with me every time I start up a new game, because that was when I started to really wonder about where paths might <em>lead</em>. Everything leads <em>somewhere</em>. Finding things out is one of the things I love, probably what attracted me to video games in the first place.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Solaris_Atari_game_screenshot.JPG"><br />
</a><p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/mmorigins-the-only-living-boy-in-vanadiel/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>MMOrigins: The only living boy in Vana'diel</em></a></p><p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/real-life/" rel="tag">Real life</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/mmorigins/" rel="tag">MMOrigins</a></p><p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/mmorigins-the-only-living-boy-in-vanadiel/">MMOrigins: The only living boy in Vana'diel</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/mmorigins-the-only-living-boy-in-vanadiel/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19239713/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/mmorigins-the-only-living-boy-in-vanadiel/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/category/mmorigins"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" align="top" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/mmorigins-eliottitle1.jpg"  alt="" /></a><br />
When I was still young, I was out on a walk with my father in the woods next to my great-aunt&#8217;s house. The woods were an offshoot of the <a href="http://www.ct.gov/dep/cwp/view.asp?a=2716&amp;q=325188">Devil&#8217;s Hopyard</a> state park, which meant that they were old and vast. As the family often congregated around the house, there were a number of paths we knew that wove their way through the forest, but I remember where we always stopped, and I remember the day when I asked what was further along.</p>
<p>My dad grinned, and we kept walking. It was about ten minutes from there to a beautiful, moss-covered waterfall that was right on the edge of the state park, with an alcove just large enough that I could squeeze underneath the falls. That sticks with me every time I start up a new game, because that was when I started to really wonder about where paths might <em>lead</em>. Everything leads <em>somewhere</em>. Finding things out is one of the things I love, probably what attracted me to video games in the first place.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Solaris_Atari_game_screenshot.JPG"><br />
</a>
<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/mmorigins-the-only-living-boy-in-vanadiel/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>MMOrigins: The only living boy in Vana&#8217;diel</em></a></p>
<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/real-life/" rel="tag">Real life</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/mmorigins/" rel="tag">MMOrigins</a></p>
<p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/mmorigins-the-only-living-boy-in-vanadiel/">MMOrigins: The only living boy in Vana&#8217;diel</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/mmorigins-the-only-living-boy-in-vanadiel/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19239713/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/mmorigins-the-only-living-boy-in-vanadiel/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>
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		<title>Anti-Aliased: Blade &amp; Soul &gt; Aion</title>
		<link>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/20/anti-aliased-blade-soul-aion/</link>
		<comments>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/20/anti-aliased-blade-soul-aion/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Seraphina Brennan</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[aion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[anti-aliased]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[blade-and-soul]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cinematic-combat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[combat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cryengine-2]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dead-or-alive]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fantasy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fighting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[martial-arts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ncsoft]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[unreal-engine-3]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/anti-aliased-blade-and-soul-aion/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<div align="center"><a href="http://www.massively.com/category/anti-aliased"><img hspace="4" border="1" vspace="4" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/bsaliased5801.jpg" /></a><br /></div>
All right, now that the inflammatory title that makes you look at my column is out of the way, let's get down to business. This week we got to see a 30-second teaser trailer from the folks at NCsoft about <em><a href="http://games.plaync.co.kr/bladeandsoul/">Blade &#38; Soul</a></em>, a game from NCsoft that has been stealthing in the background, waiting for the right time to strike and jump in front of <a href="http://www.aiononline.com"><em>Aion</em></a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.massively.com/tag/blade-and-soul"><em>Blade &#38; Soul</em></a> isn't a brand new game though. In fact, the game's artwork has already made <a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/08/24/massively-multiplayer-online-boobs/">a guest a</a><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/08/24/massively-multiplayer-online-boobs/">ppearance</a> on our website. (With subsequent comments on how that woman's back is going to break in half if she should walk forward.) Plus, if you really want to see what the game has to offer, a quick YouTube search will bring you to the<span style="font-style: italic"> </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtA1jSreK84&#38;feature=related"><span style="font-style: italic">Blade &#38; Soul</span> HD gameplay video</a> which looks, well, simply stunning.<br /><br />So why am I dedicating my opinion column to a game that's nowhere close to being released? Well, because I think it has potential, and because it's <span style="text-decoration: underline">my</span> opinion column. So come along after the break, and let's look at <span style="font-style: italic">Blade &#38; Soul</span>.<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/anti-aliased-blade-and-soul-aion/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Anti-Aliased: Blade &#38; Soul &#62; Aion</em></a></p><p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/fantasy/" rel="tag">Fantasy</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/new-titles/" rel="tag">New titles</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/anti-aliased/" rel="tag">Anti-Aliased</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/blade-and-soul/" rel="tag">Blade &#38; Soul</a></p><p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/anti-aliased-blade-and-soul-aion/">Anti-Aliased: Blade &#38; Soul &#62; Aion</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/anti-aliased-blade-and-soul-aion/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19241643/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/anti-aliased-blade-and-soul-aion/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div align="center"><a href="http://www.massively.com/category/anti-aliased"><img hspace="4" border="1" vspace="4" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/bsaliased5801.jpg" /></a></div>
<p>All right, now that the inflammatory title that makes you look at my column is out of the way, let&#8217;s get down to business. This week we got to see a 30-second teaser trailer from the folks at NCsoft about <em><a href="http://games.plaync.co.kr/bladeandsoul/">Blade &amp; Soul</a></em>, a game from NCsoft that has been stealthing in the background, waiting for the right time to strike and jump in front of <a href="http://www.aiononline.com"><em>Aion</em></a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/tag/blade-and-soul"><em>Blade &amp; Soul</em></a> isn&#8217;t a brand new game though. In fact, the game&#8217;s artwork has already made <a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/08/24/massively-multiplayer-online-boobs/">a guest a</a><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/08/24/massively-multiplayer-online-boobs/">ppearance</a> on our website. (With subsequent comments on how that woman&#8217;s back is going to break in half if she should walk forward.) Plus, if you really want to see what the game has to offer, a quick YouTube search will bring you to the<span style="font-style: italic;"> </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtA1jSreK84&amp;feature=related"><span style="font-style: italic;">Blade &amp; Soul</span> HD gameplay video</a> which looks, well, simply stunning.</p>
<p>So why am I dedicating my opinion column to a game that&#8217;s nowhere close to being released? Well, because I think it has potential, and because it&#8217;s <span style="text-decoration: underline;">my</span> opinion column. So come along after the break, and let&#8217;s look at <span style="font-style: italic;">Blade &amp; Soul</span>.
<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/anti-aliased-blade-and-soul-aion/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Anti-Aliased: Blade &amp; Soul > Aion</em></a></p>
<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/fantasy/" rel="tag">Fantasy</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/new-titles/" rel="tag">New titles</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/anti-aliased/" rel="tag">Anti-Aliased</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/blade-and-soul/" rel="tag">Blade &amp; Soul</a></p>
<p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/anti-aliased-blade-and-soul-aion/">Anti-Aliased: Blade &amp; Soul > Aion</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/anti-aliased-blade-and-soul-aion/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19241643/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/anti-aliased-blade-and-soul-aion/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>
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		<title>The Daily Grind: How do you like your references?</title>
		<link>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/20/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-like-your-references/</link>
		<comments>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/20/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-like-your-references/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Eliot Lefebvre</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[culture]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[easter-eggs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[humor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[references]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tdg]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[the-daily-grind]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-like-your-references/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<a href="http://www.wowwiki.com/Night_Elf_Mohawk"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" align="right" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/wow-humor-epl-1119.jpg" alt="" /></a>We gamers do love our nods to other media.  From the earliest days of gaming and software, the easter egg has been a staple, something hidden without mention in the recesses of code.  These days, we're as likely as not to have <a href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/72358/page/3">entire areas devoted to a drawn-out reference</a>, or in some cases an entire element of gameplay added mostly as a long-standing joke.  Some games have elevated the art of reference almost to an art form, with major storyline characters introduced as a sort of extended cameo from their original media.<br />
<br />
Of course, that's also the problem with references: it can sort of cheapen the game you're playing if it's subtle, and it destroys immersion if it's mind-shatteringly overt.  So what do you think?  Do you like little snuck-in references to books and movies, or do you like your world to be totally consistent?  Do you prefer it when the inspiration is <a href="http://paragonwiki.com/wiki/Ingame_References">kept under the radar</a>, or would you rather just have <a href="http://www.wowwiki.com/File:Hatch_from_lost.jpg">the whole thing out in the open</a>?  What's your favorite instance of a game calling back to something else?<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/the-daily-grind/" rel="tag">The Daily Grind</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/humor/" rel="tag">Humor</a></p><p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-like-your-references/">The Daily Grind: How do you like your references?</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-like-your-references/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19247129/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-like-your-references/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.wowwiki.com/Night_Elf_Mohawk"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" align="right" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/wow-humor-epl-1119.jpg"  alt="" /></a>We gamers do love our nods to other media.  From the earliest days of gaming and software, the easter egg has been a staple, something hidden without mention in the recesses of code.  These days, we&#8217;re as likely as not to have <a href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/72358/page/3">entire areas devoted to a drawn-out reference</a>, or in some cases an entire element of gameplay added mostly as a long-standing joke.  Some games have elevated the art of reference almost to an art form, with major storyline characters introduced as a sort of extended cameo from their original media.</p>
<p>Of course, that&#8217;s also the problem with references: it can sort of cheapen the game you&#8217;re playing if it&#8217;s subtle, and it destroys immersion if it&#8217;s mind-shatteringly overt.  So what do you think?  Do you like little snuck-in references to books and movies, or do you like your world to be totally consistent?  Do you prefer it when the inspiration is <a href="http://paragonwiki.com/wiki/Ingame_References">kept under the radar</a>, or would you rather just have <a href="http://www.wowwiki.com/File:Hatch_from_lost.jpg">the whole thing out in the open</a>?  What&#8217;s your favorite instance of a game calling back to something else?
<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/the-daily-grind/" rel="tag">The Daily Grind</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/humor/" rel="tag">Humor</a></p>
<p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-like-your-references/">The Daily Grind: How do you like your references?</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-like-your-references/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19247129/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/20/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-like-your-references/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>
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		<title>Linden Lab to disband moribund mentor group</title>
		<link>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/19/linden-lab-to-disband-moribund-mentor-group/</link>
		<comments>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/19/linden-lab-to-disband-moribund-mentor-group/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Tateru Nino</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[linden-lab]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[m-linden]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mark-kingdon]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mentors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[second-life]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[second-life-answers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[second-life-mentors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[second-life-volunteers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sl-community-translation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sl-policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sl-resident-help-network]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[volunteers]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/linden-lab-to-disband-moribund-mentor-group/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center"><a href="http://massively.com/tag/second-life-mentors"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/tan-second-life-mentors-580.jpg" /></a></p>
<p>Yesterday at the morning <a href="http://secondlife.com/"><em>Second Life</em></a> mentors' meeting, <a href="http://www.massively.com/tag/linden-lab">Linden Lab</a> staff announced that Linden Lab's sponsored mentor group, which had been functionally closed (in all but name) for approximately a year now, would finally be disbanded in practice. The move doesn't really come as much of a surprise to observers of the Lab's sponsored volunteer programs over the last eighteen months.</p>
<p>Almost immediately more ex-mentor <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/second-life"><em>Second Life</em></a> social groups than we could comfortably count sprang up, as people prepared to maintain their network of contacts without the overarching group umbrella. While there was surprisingly little actual yelling, some members of the organization feel the blame lies squarely at the feet of Linden Lab's CEO Mark Kingdon, though there's not a lot of apparent evidence to justify that.</p><p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/linden-lab-to-disband-moribund-mentor-group/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Linden Lab to disband moribund mentor group</em></a></p><p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/guilds/" rel="tag">Guilds</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/news-items/" rel="tag">News items</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/second-life/" rel="tag">Second Life</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/virtual-worlds/" rel="tag">Virtual worlds</a></p><p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/linden-lab-to-disband-moribund-mentor-group/">Linden Lab to disband moribund mentor group</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/linden-lab-to-disband-moribund-mentor-group/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19245824/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/linden-lab-to-disband-moribund-mentor-group/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://massively.com/tag/second-life-mentors"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.massively.com/media/2009/11/tan-second-life-mentors-580.jpg" /></a></p>
<p>Yesterday at the morning <a href="http://secondlife.com/"><em>Second Life</em></a> mentors&#8217; meeting, <a href="http://www.massively.com/tag/linden-lab">Linden Lab</a> staff announced that Linden Lab&#8217;s sponsored mentor group, which had been functionally closed (in all but name) for approximately a year now, would finally be disbanded in practice. The move doesn&#8217;t really come as much of a surprise to observers of the Lab&#8217;s sponsored volunteer programs over the last eighteen months.</p>
<p>Almost immediately more ex-mentor <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/second-life"><em>Second Life</em></a> social groups than we could comfortably count sprang up, as people prepared to maintain their network of contacts without the overarching group umbrella. While there was surprisingly little actual yelling, some members of the organization feel the blame lies squarely at the feet of Linden Lab&#8217;s CEO Mark Kingdon, though there&#8217;s not a lot of apparent evidence to justify that.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/linden-lab-to-disband-moribund-mentor-group/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Linden Lab to disband moribund mentor group</em></a></p>
<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/guilds/" rel="tag">Guilds</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/news-items/" rel="tag">News items</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/second-life/" rel="tag">Second Life</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/virtual-worlds/" rel="tag">Virtual worlds</a></p>
<p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/linden-lab-to-disband-moribund-mentor-group/">Linden Lab to disband moribund mentor group</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/linden-lab-to-disband-moribund-mentor-group/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19245824/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/linden-lab-to-disband-moribund-mentor-group/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>
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		<title>The Daily Grind: What&#8217;s a fair price for subscription fees?</title>
		<link>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/19/the-daily-grind-whats-a-fair-price-for-subscription-fees/</link>
		<comments>http://www.247player.com/2009/11/19/the-daily-grind-whats-a-fair-price-for-subscription-fees/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 13:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Seraphina Brennan</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[business-models]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[culture]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[subscription-fees]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[the-daily-grind]]></category>

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Subscription fees are a fact of life for us MMO players.  Most of our favorite games come with one, and it's usually 14.99 nowadays.  Ages ago, we could remember paying the 9.99 a month for our games, before that slowly rose to 12.95 a month and then became the current plateau of 14.95 a month.<br /><br />Sure, we always have the option of playing more money up front to pay a reduced monthly cost, thanks to the miracle of multi-month subscription plans, but today's question isn't about that.  It's about your thoughts on the subscription fees.  What do you think is a fair price to charge?<br /><br />Now don't be silly and say free, because we all know servers don't run themselves and bandwidth isn't free.  While we're not all in the know about the cost to a blockbuster MMO, we do know how much we're willing to shell out for our games.  What's the price you'd like to be able to shell out?<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/business-models/" rel="tag">Business models</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/the-daily-grind/" rel="tag">The Daily Grind</a></p><p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/the-daily-grind-whats-a-fair-price-for-subscription-fees/">The Daily Grind: What's a fair price for subscription fees?</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Thu, 19 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/the-daily-grind-whats-a-fair-price-for-subscription-fees/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19235902/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&#160;&#124;&#160;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/the-daily-grind-whats-a-fair-price-for-subscription-fees/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description>
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<p>Subscription fees are a fact of life for us MMO players.  Most of our favorite games come with one, and it&#8217;s usually 14.99 nowadays.  Ages ago, we could remember paying the 9.99 a month for our games, before that slowly rose to 12.95 a month and then became the current plateau of 14.95 a month.</p>
<p>Sure, we always have the option of playing more money up front to pay a reduced monthly cost, thanks to the miracle of multi-month subscription plans, but today&#8217;s question isn&#8217;t about that.  It&#8217;s about your thoughts on the subscription fees.  What do you think is a fair price to charge?</p>
<p>Now don&#8217;t be silly and say free, because we all know servers don&#8217;t run themselves and bandwidth isn&#8217;t free.  While we&#8217;re not all in the know about the cost to a blockbuster MMO, we do know how much we&#8217;re willing to shell out for our games.  What&#8217;s the price you&#8217;d like to be able to shell out?
<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/business-models/" rel="tag">Business models</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/opinion/" rel="tag">Opinion</a>, <a href="http://www.massively.com/category/the-daily-grind/" rel="tag">The Daily Grind</a></p>
<p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/the-daily-grind-whats-a-fair-price-for-subscription-fees/">The Daily Grind: What&#8217;s a fair price for subscription fees?</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.massively.com">Massively</a> on Thu, 19 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/the-daily-grind-whats-a-fair-price-for-subscription-fees/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/forward/19235902/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.massively.com/2009/11/19/the-daily-grind-whats-a-fair-price-for-subscription-fees/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>
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