News – Page 390 – MMO Fallout

Albion Online Will Be Buy To Play, At Least At The Start

The latest Road to Release from Albion Online has given us a look at what launch has in store for the MMO, and that includes quite a hefty and elongated beta period. According to a post on the main forums, the closed beta has been extended to at least August 2016, with the launch hopefully following close behind. In addition, the team has decided to bench the idea of launching as a free to play title, and instead Albion Online will be buy to play.

For this reason, we are putting the free to play plans on hold as well. Making the game ready for a free to play model would take up significant development time which we would much rather use to make a better game. Free to play would also create a lot of risks for the game – spamming, botting, world too small, etc – which we do not want to take if it can be avoided.

Update plans include a significantly expanded world with diverse biomes, more unique cities and dungeons, and a reputation and crime system similar to that found in Ultima Online.

(Source: Albion Online)

Daybreak Servers Slammed by DDOS Attack

We are aware of current connectivity issues and are working to resolve them. Thanks for your patience.

— Daybreak Games (@DaybreakGames) December 30, 2015

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If you’re looking to play any of Daybreak’s games, you might want to take the night off. At the moment, Daybreaks game servers and their websites are experiencing major connection issues which appear to be stemming from a coordinated denial of service attack. The official Daybreak Twitter account has acknowledged the problem and notes that staff are working to fix issues.

According to the Norse attack map, however, there is a massive sustained DDoS attack originating from Mersin in Turkey aimed at the western coast of the United States. Whether or not this attack is related to the server downtime is unknown.

(Source: Daybreak Twitter)

[Warning] Steam Page Caching Goes Rogue

[Update: Valve has shut down the Steam store.]

MMO Fallout can confirm that Steam has experienced a major client bug, causing players to be able to access other accounts at complete random. Speculation is running rampant on the cause, which some are pointing toward a simple caching error, however it is possible to view random users Steam details, including their wallet, owned games, purchase history, and the last digits of their credit card on file.

We tested it on our own systems and managed to log into multiple accounts, although the service is presently barely functioning and crashing pretty regularly.

The good news is that users cannot do anything with the account, be it make purchases, change passwords, etc. It is also possible to access accounts that are protected by Steam Guard.

Triad Wars Is Shutting Down

Triad Wars developer United Front Games has announced that the Hong Kong MMO will be going offline on January 20th. The closure announcement comes just a few days after the departure of community manager Iain, also telling players to look forward to big announcements in the new year. While items in the cash shop will be freely available, players who made gold purchases during December will be able to get a refund by emailing customer support.

We’ve loved seeing how you’ve played Triad Wars but we know it wasn’t right for many of you so we’re letting you know today that we are going to close the beta and service on January 20th 2016 at 12 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. That’s 4 weeks from today and over this time we’re going to leave the game up and running for you to continue to enjoy but we will not be accepting any more purchases.

Triad Wars was a spinoff of the Sleeping Dogs series.

(Source: Triad Wars)

Xsyon Converts To Buy To Play

Xsyon developer Notorious Games has announced that the indie MMO has dropped its optional subscription and converted entirely to buy to play. Keen gamers will now be able to access everything that the title has to offer with a single payment.

Past paid players are welcome to return for free to the world of Xsyon to rejoin and rebuild tribes or simply enjoy the latest features! All players are also welcome to join in testing upcoming improvements. Currently development is focused on creatures, including combat revisions, taming, mounts and pets.

An optional subscription has not been ruled out, pending player requests, and would likely cost $4.99 a month.

(Source: Xsyon)

Marvel Heroes Offers 14 Days Of Festive Favors

Gazillion Entertainment has begun the first day of festive events in Marvel Heroes, inviting players to log in each day for the next two weeks for a new present each day. The game has been pretty generous in the past with holiday presents, and this year looks to be the same with plenty of free eternity splinters, team ups, pets, costumes, and a random hero box. You can also use the code H2-B2 for a free Herbie pet.

(Source: Marvel Heroes)

Funcom Now A Preferred Partner Of Conan

Funcom has announced today that the game developer has entered a partnership with Conan Properties. As a preferred partner, Funcom will be the go-to developer for all video games on PC and console that feature the Conan brand or take place in Hyboria. The first game to be developed under this new relationship will not be announced until January, and marks one of three games set to launch in 2016.

“We are tremendously excited to be strengthening our relationship with Conan Properties,” said Funcom CEO Rui Casais. “‘Conan the Barbarian‘ is undoubtedly one of the world’s greatest and most recognizable fantasy heroes, and as game developers, working with such a character and being able to draw from the fantastically detailed world of Hyboria is nothing short of a dream come true.”

(Source: Funcom press release)

League of Legends Team Owner Arrested On Fraud Charges

Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO and League of Legends team owner Martin Shkreli was arrested today on charges of securities fraud and corruption. According to Bloomberg, Shkreli is accused of using money illegally from his company Retrophin in order to pay off debts incurred by a separate company. Shkreli made a name for himself as the poster boy of capitalism run amok when he bought up a drug used for treating immune-related illnesses including, among other things, HIV and subsequently raised the price by more than 5000% from $13.70 a pill to $750. Shkreli later reneged on promises that the company had learned the error of its ways and would bring the price back down.

Shkreli has been accused of running his companies like a ponzi scheme, using the assets to pay off investors from previous failed ventures. Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders rejected a campaign donation from Shkreli, with Donald Trump referring to him as a spoiled brat. If convicted, Shkreli could be banned from running a public company.

(Source: Bloomberg)

RuneScape Is 15, Brings Back Andrew Gower For New Quest

It’s hard to believe that, as of next year, RuneScape will be older than some of its players. Launched in 2001 as a project by Andrew Gower, RuneScape exploded in popularity to become one of the most played games on the internet. In its fifteen years, the browser MMO has spawned two major upgrades as well as several spinoff versions including the upcoming card game Chronicles. To celebrate the anniversary, Jagex is planning on making 2016 a big year for content.

“To reach this incredible 15-year anniversary milestone is astonishing for everybody working on RuneScape, especially as it continues to experience a fantastic resurgence of players. It is testament to our loyal, passionate, and growing community, that the development teams at Jagex can continue to tell new stories within the world of Gielinor,” said Phil Mansell, vice president, RuneScape.

Founders Andrew and Paul Gower are set to return as guest designers on their own quest, Gower Quest, due to release in Spring 2016. January brings with it the invention skill, the first in a line of ‘elite skills’ introducing new ways to level up your character. Using invention, players will be able to dismantle equipment in order to use the components to upgrade their other gear. Further into the year marks the launch of RuneScape’s newest client, bringing better performance and higher graphical fidelity.

(Source: Jagex press release)

Tribes: Ascend Update Undoes All Purchases

Hi-Rez Studios recently surprised its community with the announcement that Tribes Ascend would be once again receiving the love and, more importantly, updates that had been denied to it ever since support for the title was dropped back in 2013. The Out of the Blue update, or ‘It’s About F*cking Time,” as it has also been called, is a massive list of fixes, tweaks, and new content. Chief among the changes is that the prior nine classes are being melted down into three: light, medium, and heavy. As a result, all purchases have been reverted.

Due to the dramatic changes to the underlying game, all in-game purchases have been reverted and all Tribes Gold and XP refunded to your account. If you have previously purchased the Ultimate Weapon Pack or Game of the Year it will be re-added to your account. If there is any Tribes Gold on your account you will be automatically gifted the Ultimate Weapon Pack.

New maps, new weapons, and an encyclopedia worth of balances make up the majority of this massive update. The entirety of the patch notes are at the link below.

(Source: Tribes)

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