Tag: Launch

H1Z1 Goes Free To Play Following Population Drop


In the past four years, H1Z1 has been announced, launched into early access, promised as a free to play title, converted into a pay to play game, split into two products, rebranded, and now Daybreak Game Company is going back on its original decision to go back on its decision to launch the game as part of their “Free to Play Your Way” library, and will be making the game free to play. H1Z1 officially launched earlier this month as it also deals with a major drop in concurrent player count.

Excited gamers can get their hands on the  Battle Royale mode for H1Z1 while current owners can look forward to a bundle of free goodies. Daybreak Game Company has also directed players to Steam’s refund policy which allows them to refund purchases within two weeks or two hours of game time, whichever comes first.

It is also worth noting that this does not affect the survival mode of H1Z1, dubbed “Just Survive,” which has not announced a free to play transition.

(Source: H1Z1)

H1Z1 Officially Launches As Its Player Base Dwindles


H1Z1 has officially launched after three years of early access, and its launch has brought with it a brand new game mode and the prospect of a coming pro league ala Overwatch’s recently launched venture. The official launch comes alongside a new content patch officially launching season one as well as introducing tactical drops (choosing your deployment area), an overhauled user interface, as well as Auto Royale, a new game mode that sticks players in vehicles and locks them there.

First, a BRAND NEW GAME MODE! This was one hard secret to keep, but we are excited to bring you Auto Royale™, a new team-based, vehicular battle royale game mode. We’ve seen how entertaining driving around can be in H1Z1, so we decided to run with the idea and have a little fun. In Auto Royale, we lock you and your teammates into a vehicle, launch you into the map with up to 29 other teams and watch the mayhem unfold.

That said, H1Z1 may be facing an uphill battle now that it is fully launched as Steam Charts show that the base has dwindled by about 91% since its peak last year. Last March, Kotaku waxed poetic about how King of the Kill had managed to pull its way into the top 10 most active Steam games despite the fact that the reviews were relatively negative for such a popular title. In fact, King of the Kill saw exponential growth between August 2016 and its peak in July 2017 and despite a review of just 57% positive at the time, managed to peak at over 150,000 concurrent players.

And then that number plummeted. By September that figure was down to 105 thousand and by November that number more than halved to 42 thousand. As of the last month, King of the Kill has dropped to about 14,000 peak concurrent players. How this drop in players will affect the viability of King of the Kill’s planned pro league is unclear, as the game’s Twitch viewership has also seen a major drop in attention in favor of PUBG and Fortnite Battle Royale.

Trion Worlds Announces Rift Prime: Subscription Server for Spring


As surprising as it may be, Trion Worlds was once very much against the idea of Rift going free to play. Yes, that Trion Worlds, the one with the $100 weapon pack in Defiance, the one that has more than once had to apologize for stepping over the line with its monetization strategy for Rift. In fact, it was Trion CEO Scott Hartsman who back in 2011 said that free to play would be a large net negative for Rift and its community.

“One of the assumptions people make is you can just take a game and throw a switch and change the model. For starters, you’d have to decide that that would be a good thing, and I do not think it would be – that would be a fairly large net negative for Rift and Rift community.”

Well all that is going to change, as Trion Worlds has announced the launch of Rift Prime, a subscription only server set to go public this spring. Rift Prime will, as stated, require a subscription and will remove loot boxes and drastically reduce the presence of the cash shop.

In the Spring of 2018, we will launch a new server, RIFT Prime. We’ve paid a lot of attention in discussions with all of you and within the broader gaming community regarding business models in the MMO and games industry as a whole.

We have the opportunity to experiment with this fresh RIFT server using an oft-requested subscription model and progressively unlocked content. Our goal for RIFT Prime is to provide the experience that many of you have requested: no lockboxes, a significantly reduced store with more of the current store-based items obtained through gameplay (or removed entirely) – plus the excitement of sequential progression through RIFT’s content with monthly milestones and achievements.

More details on the cash shop are on their way.

(Source: Rift)

Maplestory Blitz Launches In Southeast Asia, Europe, Middle East


Nexon this week announced the expansion of Maplestory Blitz into select regions in Southeast Asia, Europe, and Oceania on Google and Apple devices. Players are tasked with building decks using various heroes from Maplestory and dueling each other in real time battles. During the launch event, players can get their hands on boosters and card packs, collecting classic heroes such as:

  • Mercedes – A talented archer blessed by the Fairy King to rain deadly arrows upon the battlefield;
  • Phantom – The greatest thief who ever lived, and revived after years of imprisonment to avenge the death of his love, Empress Aria;
  • Kyrin – The infamous and charismatic pirate captain set on destroying everything that stands in her way;
  • Oz – Chief Knight of Fire who engulfs her enemies and allies in a blazing reign of flame;
  • Demon Slayer – Formerly the Black Mage’s most loyal commander, the skilled strategist joined the resistance following the Black Mage’s ultimate betrayal.

Maplestory Blitz launches today in Australia, Malaysia, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Poland, the Netherlands and the Philippines.

Guild Wars 2: Path of Fire Is Live


Arenanet today launched the second expansion to Guild Wars 2, titled Path of Fire, now available in digital and retail stores. The expansion launches just in time for Guild Wars 2’s fifth anniversary. Players must unite against the god Balthazar as his Forged legion descends upon the kingdom in a hunt for the elder gods.

“We’re thrilled to be bringing players back to the Elonian desert region, the setting for the Guild Wars: Nightfall campaign, after 250 years and dispatch them on their most daring adventure yet,” said Mike O’Brien, co-founder and president of ArenaNet. “We have packed Path of Fire full of exciting features and immersive content that gives players alternative ways to experience Guild Wars 2, including new mounts and elite specializations for each of the classes.”

Path of Fire introduces mounts to Guild Wars 2 as well as nine new elite specializations, new zones, and more.

Villagers & Heroes Launches New Starfall Expansion


Villagers & Heroes has announced the launch of its next expansion for this fall. Dubbed Starfall, the new expansion is set to bring a ton of new content from an increased level cap, new loot system, talent trees, and more. You’ll be able to level up to 90 thanks to seven new content zones, as well as a fifth rebirth option. Starfall promises more powerful loot with more stat boost and weapon masteries specific to each class.

“We’re very excited to announce the expansion to our game”, Said Mad Otter Games C.E.O Damon Slye. “Starfall is our most ambitious expansion to date that not only adds plenty of new content such as new locations, but also reworks a large portion of the game such as crafting, loot, and the progression system. Oh, and did I mention we are removing repair costs for weapons and armor?”

The list of updates is gigantic, and you can read them all here. In the move up to launch, Mad Otter Games is also offering a challenge for players with rewards for the whole community. For more information, check out the official website.

Black Desert Online Hits Steam: 40% Off This Month


Black Desert Online is available to purchase on Steam, right now! To celebrate the launch of the action MMO on Steam’s platform, players can snag a copy for 40% off for the rest of the month. That means getting in on the action will cost as little as $6. There will also be several in-game sales as well as a few drop events going on until the end of the month. In anticipation of a flood of players, Kakao Games has set up extra servers to share the load.

To better support the additional influx of players, Kakao Games will employ extra Olvia speed servers, some of which will be exclusively reserved to cater for new players that are coming through Steam. Users can choose to play on the exclusive servers or to jump into the greater community straight away. Special “Olvia” servers will help players to level-up quickly and catch up with the existing Black Desert Online community.

For more information, check out the link below. While you’re here, take a gander at Black Desert Online’s latest trailer.

(Source: Steam)

Surprise: Marvel Heroes Announced for PS4, Xbox One


Marvel Heroes is coming to Xbox and Playstation, an announcement that should only surprise someone who hasn’t played or kept up to date on the game’s updates over the past year. Currently announced for Playstation 4 and coming to Xbox One at an unknown date, Marvel Heroes will launch a closed beta that will gradually become turn into early access before finally launching to all. The Playstation 4 launch will be sometime later this Spring while the Xbox One launch will be at a later date.

PlayStation Plus members can also look forward to a variety of perks during the closed beta, including a free “Man Without Fear” costume for Daredevil, discounts on in-game currency purchases, and other limited-time exclusive access to select Heroes. We will have more news regarding Xbox Live members in the near future.

When Marvel Heroes launches, it will not have all of the content of its PC older brother. According to the FAQ on the website, only 38 heroes will be available initially. There are no plans to allow players to transfer their accounts, nor will PC and console players be able to play on the same servers.

(Source: Marvel Heroes)

Shroud of the Avatar Begins Anew: Final Wipe Today


shroud

Shroud of the Avatar is officially in the phase of launch where the game isn’t officially released but the cash shop has been open for a while and characters are no longer being wiped, or sufficient enough to review as we like to think of it. Following yesterday’s telethon, the Portalarium crew managed to rake in over $130,000 in pledges. Richard Garriott referred to the funding drive as the “best single day ever.”

Now that the servers are finally open, Portalarium’s royalty (those who pledged thousands of dollars) will be able to pick their housing spots first. Those of you whose pledges include deeds will be able to see your time slot for claiming land on your account page.

Since Shroud of the Avatar is officially (soft) launched, stay tuned for more content coverage on MMO Fallout.

(Source: Shroud of the Avatar)

Star Trek Online Content Being Streamlined


STO_Screenshot_Season9_042114_jpeg1

When Star Trek Online hits consoles later this year, it brings with it six years of content and changes that have been changing the title on PC. In the latest post on the official website, Perfect World Entertainment recognizes that while the extra content puts the game above what players would normally expect from a new launch, it is not without problems.

Foremost, the additional content has made it difficult for new players to figure out what content to experience in which order. To address this, the mission journal is being updated with categories for adventure zones while separating mission progression from reputation in order to allow the content to be played in the proper order.

In addition, various missions have been removed after being deemed outdated and detracting to the overall story. Some daily missions have been removed with their rewards added to the base mission experience in order to reduce unnecessary questing.

(Source: Star Trek Online)