Archives for patches category
Filed under: Fantasy, Aion, Game mechanics, Patches, PvP, Leveling, News items
A new patch for an MMO is a bit like a present. At best, it can provide a number of new opportunities for fun and enjoyment. At worst, it can break several things you already liked and now have to replace. Aion has recently deployed the new patch 1.5.1 and, as could be expected, fan reaction is somewhat split on whether it’s a nice present or the immortal pairing of socks and underwear. Certainly there isn’t a major content influx, and the often-requested reduction of the game’s grind has yet to be implemented, but there are still a number of nice updates and additions.
Leaving aside the bugfixes and optimization with only a mention that they should help the game play more smoothly all around, several instanced dungeons have been adjusted somewhat. Nearly all of these changes look beneficial to players — reductions in difficulty and increases in reward, as well as added UI displays for important objectives. They’ve also added stealth-detecting NPCs to starter areas and increased several NPC health totals in an effort to curb destructive PvP tendencies. Quest experience at mid-to-high levels has been adjusted upward, rewards have been slightly improved on several quests, and level-difference experience penalties have been reduced. Last but not least, there’s now more incentive to hold a fortress in the Abyss and work to defend it, as rewards are offered for defending players. Aion’s fans aren’t all happy about the changes, but it’s best if you take a look at the changes yourself. Just remember that even if you don’t like it, this present is unreturnable.
Patch 1.5.1 goes live for Aion originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 21 Nov 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Posted on November 21st, 2009 at 12:00pm by Eliot Lefebvre
Filed Under: aion, aion-patch-1.5.1, aion-the-tower-of-eternity, game-mechanics, grind, leveling, ncsoft, news-items, patches, pvp
What’s more dangerous than an interdimensional prison in which malevolent creatures of immense power plot the destruction of the entire Champions Online world? That same prison being taken over and used as a lair by your hero’s Nemesis and the dangerous Shadow Destroyer. After hints and the surprise playtest event, the official site has unveiled a preview of the upcoming Nemesis Confrontation, which looks like an interesting jump forward in the content offered by the game.
Obviously, the Lair in question is the highlight of the update, which features combat against alien gladiators as well as a collection of powerful villains. There are other rewards to be earned as well, however — ranging from a number of different hero enhancements to costume pieces in the vein of the enemies fought within the lair. If you can’t wait to run the lair in order to get the costume pieces (perhaps you have a perfect character concept to start with), the preview promises that they will also be available in the C-Store. Champions Online isn’t going to make players wait long for the event, either, as it’s launching on the 24th. It should give players quite a bit to be thankful for — when they’re not battling extradimensional alien gladiators, at least.
Filed under: Super-hero, Events, in-game, Patches, Previews, News items, Champions Online
Champions Online previews Nemesis Confrontation originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Posted on November 18th, 2009 at 10:00pm by Eliot Lefebvre
Filed Under: Previews, champions-online, co, costume-pieces, cryptic, cryptic-studios, in-game-events, microtransactions, nemesis, nemesis-confrontation, news-items, patches
Filed under: Patches, Crafting, PvP, Quests, PvE, Free-to-play
Demon Busters in Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine Online are now enjoying a fresh content update, which includes motorbikes courtesy of the Shinjuku Babel mechanics. This new mode of transportation in the game allows players to travel between zones quickly and in first person perspective. Atlus has also introduced alchemy, a crafting system where players can create new objects with unusual properties. Runes that boost abilities for your demons or potions that augment your own abilities are a few possibilities with the new item mixing system. They’ve also released more PvE content in the form of demon friend quests, provided your friendships with the infernal powers-that-be are at the appropriate levels.
Perhaps the biggest content addition to Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine Online is the Team Battle system. The title’s publisher Aeria Games writes: “Gather your allies and friends to crush your enemies in fast-paced, high intenseity group versus group combat for glory and god-like gear. Choose to fight solo in sided matches against other solo players, or combine your strength with others to demolish the competition in team versus team battle.”
Motorbikes, alchemy, and demon friend quests now in Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Posted on November 16th, 2009 at 5:00pm by James Egan
Filed Under: aeria-games, atlus, atlus-usa, f2p, free-to-play, imagine, item-mixing, motorbike, patches, pve, pvp, quests, shin-megami-tensei, smt, team-battle
At the rate we’re getting swamped with information about the upcoming Final Fantasy XI version update, we’ll soon be finding out that the update is also adding two new jobs and a level cap increase. Well, maybe not, but Square-Enix has released yet more news about the upcoming November version update. Already we’ve heard about new gear enhancements, new crafting, job updates, and a reward for content-minded players. The most recent information involves some of the more miscellaneous activities of Vana’diel’s inhabitants, including chocobo racing and fishing.
Chocobo races are being changed over to a new schedule system that keeps races running on a consistent real-world schedule to make coordination easier for players. The system is also adding new purchasable items that will have a variety of bonuses for the devoted race enthusiast. Of course, the new items won’t be cheap — nothing in Final Fantasy XI is — but first through third-place winners in each race will be receiving a much larger amount of chocobucks for their placing, which should make affording things much more fesable. On top of that, there’s a promise of more fish to turn in for the popular “In the Belly” quest, with the hint of new equipment. Keep your eyes peeled, as we might well have not seen the last of the additions to this now-massive update.
Filed under: Fantasy, Final Fantasy XI, Events, in-game, Game mechanics, Patches, Making money
Still more details on Final Fantasy XI’s coming update originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 07 Nov 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Posted on November 7th, 2009 at 4:00pm by Eliot Lefebvre
Filed Under: chocobo-racing, ffxi, final-fantasy-xi, fishing, game-mechanics, making-money, november-2009-version-update, patches, square, square-enix
Filed under: Fantasy, MMO industry, Patches, Warhammer Online, Opinion
It’s a kind of disconcerting time to be a Warhammer Online fan, let’s face it. Patch 1.3.2 had a lot of people muttering quietly (or loudly on the comment threads of posts related to it) that the game is floundering for direction and trying to latch on to something to keep it afloat. This is one way to view things, but hardly the only way. Bio Break has an interesting take on it — they’re not floundering for direction, they’re working hard to regain their footing. The game that was meant to go toe-to-toe with World of Warcraft didn’t quite make it there, but Mythic hasn’t been letting the game sink and falter.
The post is specifically addressing the contorversy that came around regarding the shift to unlimited free trials within tier one, the game’s introductory content. It sounds a bit fishy, but as pointed out, the shift to “unlimited free trial” has done wonders for Dungeons and Dragons Online, boosting its revenue by a fair amount. While Warhammer Online hasn’t yet gone down the same road, it’s clear that they’re continuing to push forward with the game and find new ways to expand the gameplay experience. If you are one of the many fans whose complaints about recent developments have been less than optimistic, you might want to think about this, as the game hasn’t given up the ghost just yet.
Warhammer Online and the perception turnaround originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Posted on November 4th, 2009 at 12:00pm by Eliot Lefebvre
Filed Under: bio-break, ea, electronic-arts, free trial, mmo-industry, mythic, mythic-entertainment, opinion, patches, war, war-patch-1.3.2, warhammer-online
