Category: News

Down The Line, Where Does H1Z1 Stand?


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Earlier this year, Daybreak Game Company announced that they would be splitting off H1Z1 into two separate games: King of the Kill and Just Survive. Since February, the games have been operating as two separate products leading myself and some others to ask: How have they fared?

Looking at the statistics, it’s safe to say that King of the Kill is easily what players bought into H1Z1 in order to play. The game peaked out in its launch month with an overall peak of more than twenty thousand players. Since then, traffic has dropped off about 25% to fifteen thousand, a respectable rate of retention, and has even grown slightly over the course of June.

The survival portion of H1Z1, meanwhile, has proven more stable while less popular. You can see in the chart that, upon split, Just Survive immediately loses nearly twenty thousand players from its peak numbers and sticks at about eight thousand. Since the split, however, the game has lost a distinctly smaller portion of its base. Peak numbers in February dropped from 8.7 thousand down to 7.0 thousand, so it looks like a substantially larger portion who stuck around during the split have stayed since then.

So while King of the Kill is more popular, Just Survive seems more stable. Both titles are no doubt doing well for Daybreak.

(Source: Steam Charts #1, #2)

Elite Lord of Alliance Releases Latest Update


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WEBZEN, a global developer and publisher of free-to-play games, today announced the release of “EPIC 2: Outlaw’s Emperor“, the latest content update for its triple-action hack ‘n’ slash MMORPG ELOA: Elite Lord of Alliance.

ELOA: Elite Lord of Alliance is an anime-inspired triple-action hack ‘n’ slash MMORPG, with classic action RPG elements and unique dynamic 3-combat-stance gameplay.

EPIC 2: Outlaw’s Emperor today raised the level cap to 50. This increased level cap is accompanied by new content, including the Veren Arena, Ruins of Forgotten King, and Paliore’s Garden dungeons. In the new dungeons, characters at the new maximum level will have a chance to obtain level 50 rare weapons/armor/accessories in Normal mode, and Engraving Stones in Hero mode.

Spanning from today through to July 12th, 2016 (UTC), the ELOA team is organizing many in-game events to celebrate the latest content update. The Epic 2 Commemorative Coin Event allows players to collect “EPIC 2 Commemorative Coins” via the in-game attendance event, and exchange them through NPCs to get their rewards. Rewards will be allocated based on the number of coins, and include the Awakened Poron Egg, Nightmare’s Avatar Surprise Box, VIP Service (7 days), Low Reinforcement Safety Scroll, Elite Potential Scroll (500), Eva’s Knowledge and Eva’s Fortune.

Returning players who have level 40 unique weapons & armor (over +8 reinforcement) from Hero raids can take part in theReinforcement Preservation Event. They can acquire the “Elite Reinforcement Scroll (100%)” by disassembling the eligible items.

The Newcomer Event also welcomes new players. After finishing the tutorial, new players will arrive at the Baratan Fortress and get level 40 weapons for their classes.

The update also introduces many improvements to the game, such as a shop renewal, a revamped transcendence level system and the addition of more items that can be obtained using Honor Points.

Additionally, level 50 wings, a dolphin pet (Joey), swimsuit costumes, and a limited all-in-one package are now available for purchase in the shop.

Full details about the latest update can be found on the official ELOA website at: http://eloa.webzen.com/en/events/epic2 , and players can check out the trailer on the official ELOA YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/ttXKFt8G_Vs

Firefall’s Future On The PS4


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Hello, Firefall fans,

We wanted to take some time to discuss Firefall and our plans for other platforms. Red 5 Studios cherishes the Firefall IP and we are continuing to make the game in the best way that we can. Additionally we are working to bring the IP to other platforms such as Playstation 4 and mobile.

The team deeply appreciates and embraces those that are enthusiastic about Firefall as an IP and welcome constructive ideas and feedback from all sources including former employees of the studio. Because of the enthusiasm shown we feel the value of the Firefall IP is not only recognized by gamers but the capital market as well.

While we have more plans for the Firefall IP, currently the team’s focus regarding Firefall is working to prepare the franchise for Playstation 4 and mobile. We will be sure to provide everyone with more updates as we have them. We’d like to thank all of those that have supported us and plan to continue to support the team as we continue to progress not only Firefall as a PC game but as an IP.

Best regards,
The Firefall Team

Firefall has had a bumpy ride on PC, and Red 5 Studios seems determined to save the game by starting fresh with new customers on new platforms. User count on PC has declined to incredibly low levels and only seems to be losing more people every day. Mobile and PS4 may be the only way to save the franchise and Red 5 from extinction.

(Source: Firefall)

In Plain English: Epic Sues Paragon Cheat Maker


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Epic Games has launched a lawsuit against German gamer Robin Kreibich under allegations that the defendant violated copyright by selling cheat software for their upcoming MOBA game, Paragon. The program, known as SystemCheats, claims to be the most powerful hack for Paragon and sells as a monthly subscription for approximately $10/month.

The hack promises to give players perfect aiming with “smooth aim” to make their movement seem more natural and presumably less likely for manual detection. According to the creator, the hack is “fully undetected” and can be used with no risk for being banned. Evidently that immunity hasn’t protected Kreibich from court, but the more intrepid viewers might be wondering why a German citizen is being sued in a US district court in California by a game developer based in Maryland. The answer involves some legal wrangling.

Epic Games issued a takedown of Kreibich’s Youtube videos demonstrating how the hack works. When a person files a counter-notice to a Digital Millennium Copyright Act takedown, by Youtube’s own terms of service they consent that any legal matters will be taken care of in Youtube’s judicial district.

It also helps Epic Games that the lawsuit be held in California’s northern district court. Back in 2013, Blizzard won its lawsuit against Ceiling Fan Software simply under the breach of contract charge. The courts agreed that the cheat software was sold with the knowledge that it would breach the contract between World of Warcraft and its users, and the court awarded $7 million in damages and an injunction against Ceiling Fan Software from selling, developing, licensing, or allowing others to use their bot software.

Epic Games is demanding a trial by jury, as well as unspecified damages including reimbursement of their own legal fees.

More coverage to come.

(Source: Scribd)

Planetside Shutting Down July 1st


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April and May were really exciting months for us with the release of the new Construction System, base revamp of Indar, and new population caps to improve battle flow. It’s been exciting to watch all of you experiment with base design and shift battles in new directions. A big thanks to all of you who have jumped in to try it out and given us feedback.

While we hope you are as excited as we are about the recent changes, we do have to make a more solemn announcement. On July 1st, at 4:00 PM PT, we will be closing the PlanetSide 1 server. PlanetSide 1 has a very important history with Daybreak Games and a special place in the hearts of those who work on its successor. While we have run the game for free since 2014, due to evolving business needs and technical requirements it has become necessary to conclude this service.

We hope you will take this opportunity to enjoy the remaining time available with each other and please help us give PlanetSide 1 the sendoff it deserves.

Planetside was supported likely only by the grace of John Smedley and nostalgia, and since Smedley is no longer present and Daybreak has been axing projects left and right in an effort to reduce spending, it was only a matter of time before this ancient shooter got the axe.

(Source: Planetside 2)

Guild Wars 2: World V World Poll Now Available


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Should the Desert borderlands be removed from Guild Wars 2 World vs World? The team at Arenanet is holding a community poll and wants your opinion on whether or not the changes would provide a superior play experience. Players can log in and vote at the link below.

Vote here.

Tree of Savior Bans Another 5,600 Accounts


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IMCGames has announced another mass ban in Tree of Savior. As posted on its official website, the ban targeted players using a third party program to allow themselves access to the game’s market, repair, and other interfaces outside of the game’s cities.

As part of the announcement, IMCGames also broke down exactly how these players will be punished:

– 1151 had already been permanently banned and therefore their status has not been altered
– 3462 had been previously restricted and will now be banned permanently, as this is their second known offense
– 994 will be banned for a total of 30 days, as this is their first known offense

Also worth a note is that IMCGames is now restricting access from Steam accounts that have been sanctioned by Valve. One player who had his account restricted due to chargebacks noted that he is not allowed to play Tree of Savior, receiving the message below. An IMC employee confirmed the rule in the same thread.

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Valve Bans Another Shady Developer


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In what appears to be a more coordinated approach to quality assurance, Valve has banned yet another shady developer on Steam. Developer Kut Stupid, at least as he is credited on the game’s store page, has one title on Steam: Lemurzin. It’s been on sale since November 2015 at the price of $1.99 and carries a “mostly positive” 78% approval rating.

The game is also unavailable for purchase. I’ve noted Lemurzin a couple of times over the past week for the fact that the game has a highly suspicious DLC package, the “Pterodactyl Edition.” For $99.99, you receive an upgrade to the game that changes the propeller to a dead pterodactyl. Yep, that’s it.

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One hundred smackers for that. You may notice that Lemurzin is the exact same game as ZombieRush, another game that was recently shut down by Valve, down to the fact that both games even use the “dried pterodactyl” image. There have been allegations that Kut Stupid and Arthur Kariev may be the same person/group, but there is equal likelihood that both are using the same asset pack.

ZombieRush is credited to Arthur Kariev, however it was originally submitted by Rai Studio Games, another developer that recently had its games removed from Steam for unscrupulous activity including review botting. It is indeed possible that Arthur Kariev and Rai Studio Games are the same people, and by that understanding so could be Kut Stupid.

It’s important to note that since their games have been removed, there has been no comment from any of these developers.

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Housing Hits Elder Scrolls Online In 2017


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IGN managed to interview Zenimax’s own Matt Firor, who revealed that housing is coming to The Elder Scrolls Online in the first quarter of 2017. Before player owned houses come to Tamriel, Zenimax plans on dropping an update in August that will add a customizing barbershop and an Argonian dungeon pack.

The dungeon pack represents a new form of content delivery that Zenimax is aiming for, creating smaller, almost episodic content for players to come back to.

“It’s interesting to see what happens when you take away the subscription model away,” Firor explained. “You don’t see a hardcore playstyle – like playing for six months and then quitting – we don’t see that. We have a lot of players who will play for two or three weeks because they want to get through a zone and then stop. Then they come back two months later for another month, because there’s no pressure to play all of it at once.

Housing is a staple of the Elder Scrolls series, so it’s not surprising that players have been clamoring for it since the game initially launched. Housing joins recent major revelations, from the impending launch in Japan to content scaling to the player’s level.

(Source: IGN)

Funcom Shutting Down Lego Minifigures Online


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You know that there is trouble when a developer actively points out the best time to get out of their contract. We learned earlier this year that Funcom’s license with Lego Minifigures Online ends in October 2016, so there shouldn’t be a surplus of surprise that the title is being sunset at the end of September.

It is with a heavy heart that we announce that LEGO Minifigures Online will be closing on September 30th, 2016. We know that many of you are still enjoying your adventures in the game, and this has been a difficult decision for us to make but unfortunately, the time has come to retire LEGO Minifigures Online.

Lego Minifigures originally launched as a free to play game in 2014. When the title failed to meet expectations, Funcom transformed the game into a buy to play model, effectively locking out anyone who had previously played but not purchased anything. The poor performance of the model was attributed to overestimation of buying power, according to Funcom’s quarterly report from May 2015.

(Source: Funcom)