Author: Admin

Nominations For 2012 Games Developers Choice Awards Online


It is that time of the year again. The third annual Games Developers Choice Awards Online ceremony isn’t held until October, but the list of finalists has been revealed. Zynga dominates the list of finalists this year with nine nominations, and Bioware’s The Old Republic taking six on its own. Additionally, Glitch received several nominations as well as World of Warcraft and Rift.

The awards are this October, check out the GDCA website.

Best Online Game Design

  • Glitch
  • Realm of the Mad God
  • Star Wars: The Old Republic
  • DragonVale

Best Online Visual Arts

  • TERA
  • Empires & Allies
  • Star Wars: The Old Republic
  • Age of Empires Online
  • Glitch

Best Community Relations

  • World of Warcraft
  • League of Legends
  • Solitaire Blitz
  • World of Tanks
  • Diamond Dash

Best Online Technology

  • Diablo III
  • Star Wars: The Old Republic
  • Indiana Jones Adventure World
  • TERA
  • The Sims Social

Best Audio for an Online Game

  • Star Wars: The Old Republic
  • Tribes: Ascend
  • Marvel: Avengers Alliance
  • Diablo III
  • Indiana Jones Adventure World

Best New Online Game

  • Castleville
  • Star Wars: The Old Republic
  • DragonVale
  • Draw Something
  • Rage of Bahamut

Best Live Game

  • League of Legends
  • Rift
  • Cityville
  • World of Warcraft
  • Eve Online

Online Innovation Award

  • Journey
  • Realm of the Mad God
  • Star Wars: The Old Republic
  • DayZ Mod for Arma II
  • Idle Worship

Shadowrun Online Is Not Free To Play, Adopting Guild Wars Model


Have you backed Shadowrun Online? Judging by the game’s current $100,000 raised in ten days, I’d have to guess “probably.” With 21 days left to go on the Kickstarter campaign, Cliffhanger Productions has some rather major news to announce: Shadowrun is shifting business models. While Shadowrun will still sport a free to play option with microtransactions, players will be able to pay a one time charge for the “campaign” edition, and play on a separate server where cash shop items do not cost real money (they are purchased with in-game cash).

The full game will cost $39.99 at launch, but for Kickstarter we’ll have it in a $25 dollar reward tier. Major updates (Add-on packs) will be launched every 3 to 4 months and will be priced at $14.99 USD.

Check the list below for the difference between free to play and Campaign.

(Source: Kickstarter)

Guild Wars 2 Error Code 122: Fraudulent Registration Code


This is a warning to all players who have purchased Guild Wars 2 or are considering doing so. Gaile Gray has taken to the Guild Wars 2 forums to explain some players who are receiving an Error code 122. I will allow Gaile to explain your situation:

If you receive an Error 122, that means that your code was disabled. Most likely this means that you received a fraudulent code from a third-party seller. If that is the case, you will need to contact the seller and get a refund so that you can purchase the game directly from buy.guildwars2.com or from a legitimate reseller.

The Error 122 is very specific and does point to a disabled code. If you purchased your code directly from us using a legitimate credit card, and you feel that you received the message in error, please submit a Support Ticket.

Thank you.

If you bought Guild Wars 2 but not from the following list of retailers, the key may not be valid and disabled by Arenanet. You will be responsible for contacting the retailer you purchased from and obtaining a refund. Be wary as numerous incidents of fraudulent boxed copies have also been reported, meaning resellers are buying boxed copies and then performing chargebacks, and the codes inside of the box are being disabled. Be on guard, even if the game is being sold at a brick and mortar store, if it is not on the list.

North America
United States Gamestop
Best Buy
Canada EBGames
Digital GameFly.com
GreenManGaming.com
DLGamer.com

Oceanic
Australia EBGames
QVS

Europe
Austria Gameware
Gamesonly
Belgium Game Mania
Bulgaria Pulsar Games
Ozone
Technomarket
Technopolis
Multirama
Plesio
Gaming Gear
Croatia ALGORITAM d.o.o.
Cyprus Micromania
Stephanis
Melesoft
Plug-Ins
Czech Republic Games.cz
Denmark CD ON
Gamestop
GAME
Coolshop
El Giganten
Estonia Euronics (Sandman Grupp AS)
Gamestar Holding OÜ
Finland CD ON
Gamestop
VPD
Gigantti
Anttila
Verkkokauppa.com
Puolenkuun pelit
Discshop
France FNAC
Amazon
Micromania
Virgin Megastore
Germany 4u2play
Amazon
Gamestop
Mediamarkt
Promarkt
Saturn
Greece Mediamarkt
Plaisio
e-gate.gr
theconsoleclub.gr
SP Gaming Net Thessaloniki
Hungary 576 kbyte
CD Galaxis
Iceland Elko
BT
Gamestöðin
Ireland Gamestop
Israel Freak
Italy Amazon
Gamelife
Multiplayer
Gamestop
Latvia Elkor Plaza
Videogames Sia
Euronics (Sandman Grupp AS)
Lithuania Avitela Ltd
Baitukas (Baitukas UAB)
Malta Forestals
Netherlands Bol.com
Bart Smit
Game Mania
Norway Game Zone
CD ON
Gamestop
Komplett
Elkjop
GAME
Poland Gram.pl
Portugal FNAC
Serbia GameS
Komparator
Slovakia Sector.sk
Slovenia Igabiba
South Africa BT Games
Kalahari.net
takealot.com
Spain GAME
GameStop
FNAC
Amazon
Xtralife
Mediamarkt
Carrefour
Sweden CD ON
GameStop
GAME
Discshop
Webhallen
Switzerland World of Games
Softridge
Turkey D&R
UK Play.com
Amazon
Zavvi
Digital DLGamer
Born2Play
Ztorm
Metaboli
Computergames.ro
Deutsche Telekom
GreenManGaming

Happy 3rd Birthday, MMO Fallout!


Happy third birthday, MMO Fallout. For the end of year three statistics, I figured I’d crank the effort meter from one to two and a half. I have a lot planned for the coming year, so stay tuned!

Kickstarter: Shadowrun Online For Just $500,000


Hey bro, can you spot me some cash to fund Shadowrun Online? I only need ten grand for the top level Kickstarter perk. Shadowrun is a game all about gritty action and player factions warring it out over a persistent world. According to the description, players will be able to shape not just the world of Shadowrun inside of the MMO, but that decisions will also affect the future of the pen and paper game. It will be free to play (but not pay to win) and set on the Unity 3D engine similar to Cliffhanger Productions’ other MMO, Jagged Alliance Online.

Based on the pen and paper game of the same name, Shadowrun Online has taken to Kickstarter because publishers are notorious for not knowing their elbows from their, well you get the picture. Players are able to play for free, or opt into a premium subscription that offers perks including boosts in experience, rewards, and discounts at vendors.

There are 24 days left as of this publishing with about $400,000 left to go.

(Source: Kickstarter)

The War Z Announced, Zombie Survival MMO


The War Z describes itself as a survival horror MMO, pitting players in a world of zombies and humans in a fight for survival the likes of which we haven’t seen since, well, Day Z. Yes, The War Z takes a great deal of inspiration from the mod to Arma II, even down to the pricing of $30 for the game with no subscription fees. The War Z is currently being developed by Hammerpoint Interactive, a relatively new developer, and is on track for a release this fall. Yes, an MMO set to release within just a quarter or two of being revealed.

Players play on standard servers, of 200 – 400 square kilometers, and will be able to choose from normal and hardcore mode. There will be player vs player combat, and of course player vs zombie. Each server will support up to 250 players, and players will be able to purchase and manage their own War Z servers. As mentioned above, there is no subscription fee for The War Z. The game will be maintained with regular content updates for free, but we aren’t discounting the possibility of a cash shop.

More on The War Z as it appears.

The Future of RuneScape's Cash Shop Is In MapleStory


Whether you like it or not, Jagex is taking its cues from majority stockholder Insight Venture Partners, the American investment group and 55% share holder in the British developer. Luckily for me, IVP is turning out to be a pretty predictable company. The path that RuneScape has taken is not unique, and is one used (rather successfully) by another well known publisher and investment of IVP: Nexon. So if you want to see where RuneScape’s cash shop will most likely evolve into, just take a look at Maplestory.

Maplestory also started its shop with gambling, followed by the introduction of a cosmetic only cash shop, blossoming into what it is today. So let’s take a look at what you might see in the cash shop of the future!

  • 2x Experience: This is a given, and should it be included in the near future, completely unsurprising. After all, Jagex stated recently that they would be getting rid of bonus experience weekends just before they opened the cash shop. After all, why give the milk away for free when you can sell it at market?
  • Cosmetic Pets: This is also a given. It is a cash shop, after all, and what would a cash shop be without the ability to say “I paid $10 on a virtual talking, floating pancake with cat ears.” I have no news that Jagex plans on adding a floating, talking pancake with cat ears into RuneScape but if they do, it was completely my idea.
  • Bound Equipment: Remember how Jagex explained giving high level equipment in Squeal of Fortune? That’s right, it can’t be traded. If (and this is a big IF) Jagex does indeed update Solomon’s Store to include high end equipment, you can bet that you won’t be able to trade it. It will likely also be expensive relative to whether or not the item can be lost when you die.
  • Many More Membership Bonuses: This one is a prediction of my own. Jagex has been running numerous membership bonuses designed to keep people subscribed longer (90-120 day membership card vanity items) and throughout months (bonus experience for members). Expect many more free items to come as a benefit of membership. This will likely include powerful equipment, following the rule stated above being bound to an account.

Just a reminder: These are all my predictions and may be completely wrong.

The Future of RuneScape’s Cash Shop Is In MapleStory


Whether you like it or not, Jagex is taking its cues from majority stockholder Insight Venture Partners, the American investment group and 55% share holder in the British developer. Luckily for me, IVP is turning out to be a pretty predictable company. The path that RuneScape has taken is not unique, and is one used (rather successfully) by another well known publisher and investment of IVP: Nexon. So if you want to see where RuneScape’s cash shop will most likely evolve into, just take a look at Maplestory.

Maplestory also started its shop with gambling, followed by the introduction of a cosmetic only cash shop, blossoming into what it is today. So let’s take a look at what you might see in the cash shop of the future!

  • 2x Experience: This is a given, and should it be included in the near future, completely unsurprising. After all, Jagex stated recently that they would be getting rid of bonus experience weekends just before they opened the cash shop. After all, why give the milk away for free when you can sell it at market?
  • Cosmetic Pets: This is also a given. It is a cash shop, after all, and what would a cash shop be without the ability to say “I paid $10 on a virtual talking, floating pancake with cat ears.” I have no news that Jagex plans on adding a floating, talking pancake with cat ears into RuneScape but if they do, it was completely my idea.
  • Bound Equipment: Remember how Jagex explained giving high level equipment in Squeal of Fortune? That’s right, it can’t be traded. If (and this is a big IF) Jagex does indeed update Solomon’s Store to include high end equipment, you can bet that you won’t be able to trade it. It will likely also be expensive relative to whether or not the item can be lost when you die.
  • Many More Membership Bonuses: This one is a prediction of my own. Jagex has been running numerous membership bonuses designed to keep people subscribed longer (90-120 day membership card vanity items) and throughout months (bonus experience for members). Expect many more free items to come as a benefit of membership. This will likely include powerful equipment, following the rule stated above being bound to an account.

Just a reminder: These are all my predictions and may be completely wrong.

Age of Conan's Upcoming Single Server Technology


I know what you are thinking: “Crom… grant me one request. Grant me single server technology! And if you do not listen, then to HELL with you!” You aren’t? Well, is this your card? Funcom’s recently launched The Secret World carried a rather significant upgrade to the Dreamworld engine. The Secret World runs on one server with several dimensions, allowing players to group up with one another even if their “home” dimensions are not the same. This also allows players with friends on other continents to play seamlessly and without the need for a separate account or subscription.

Well that tech is coming to Age of Conan. According to a recent blog post, on August 7th/8th, Funcom will be updating Age of Conan to allow for the future consolidation of databases. When servers are finally merged, Age of Conan will be left with one server of each type (PvE, PvP, Blood and Glory) for each region (NA and EU). Unfortunately due to the manner in which Age of Conan was coded, long before the single server technology was even thought of, implementing the cross-continent technology from The Secret World is impossible and players from North America and Europe will remain separated.

And yes, a server merger by any other name is still a server merger. According to several of my Age of Conan on-the-field informants, Funcom had expressed interest in combining the separate server types into one server. This may be confirmation that such a merger will not happen for an unknown reason.

(Source: Age of Conan Forums)