Tag: Runescape

OldScape’s Second Content Poll


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When Jagex announced the old school servers for RuneScape, they did so under a very clear promise: That the servers would be maintained with minor updates on a regular basis, depending on what the community voted for. Since then the plan has been unveiled for how the polls will work: Players are presented with a laundry list of update proposals based on forum feedback, and vote on each update individually. A poll must receive 75% approval otherwise it will be rejected.

The second content poll has ended and if you aren’t a member of the old school servers, odds are you have no idea what was in it. Players voted in approval to bring a free to play ruleset server, which is a little more complicated than it sounds. Old school RuneScape will still require a base RuneScape membership to play, but the server will act as a free to play server restricting members weapons/items. Many players prefer fighting with free to play rules because the combat is more simple and less varied. Players also voted in approval of an update to improve the game’s pathfinding code, allowing multiple players to use the same agility obstacles, official themed worlds, trade chat, and spell queueing.

Interestingly enough, players voted against an update that would allow them to rotate the camera while holding down the middle mouse button (63%), allowing players to queue for a world if it is full (70%), and allowing players to complete the Monkey Madness quest without gaining defense experience (61%).

Finally, wasting no time, Jagex has uploaded the third content poll for Old School RuneScape. The first question asks if players would like rare items to return in some form (currently at 85% approval) while the second asks whether or not the tradeable rares should remain tradeable (currently at 75%). The second content poll runs until April 17th.

OldScape's Second Content Poll


old

When Jagex announced the old school servers for RuneScape, they did so under a very clear promise: That the servers would be maintained with minor updates on a regular basis, depending on what the community voted for. Since then the plan has been unveiled for how the polls will work: Players are presented with a laundry list of update proposals based on forum feedback, and vote on each update individually. A poll must receive 75% approval otherwise it will be rejected.

The second content poll has ended and if you aren’t a member of the old school servers, odds are you have no idea what was in it. Players voted in approval to bring a free to play ruleset server, which is a little more complicated than it sounds. Old school RuneScape will still require a base RuneScape membership to play, but the server will act as a free to play server restricting members weapons/items. Many players prefer fighting with free to play rules because the combat is more simple and less varied. Players also voted in approval of an update to improve the game’s pathfinding code, allowing multiple players to use the same agility obstacles, official themed worlds, trade chat, and spell queueing.

Interestingly enough, players voted against an update that would allow them to rotate the camera while holding down the middle mouse button (63%), allowing players to queue for a world if it is full (70%), and allowing players to complete the Monkey Madness quest without gaining defense experience (61%).

Finally, wasting no time, Jagex has uploaded the third content poll for Old School RuneScape. The first question asks if players would like rare items to return in some form (currently at 85% approval) while the second asks whether or not the tradeable rares should remain tradeable (currently at 75%). The second content poll runs until April 17th.

Reminder: School Shooting Threats Are Illegal


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There is a special level of stupid that describes a person who thinks that it’s funny to make public threats to shoot/bomb a school, whether they make them in offhand comments on online games or actually contact the school via phone/online/mail to make the threat. Eventually you have to ask yourself how many people need to be arrested and charged with making a threat before the other idiots get the clue and keep their unique sense of humor private.

I don’t know when that will happen, but I do know that 18-year old Thomas Frongillo of North Oxford has likely ruined his chances at a decent career. According to Telegram, Frongillo was arrested after he allegedly made the comment “I’m shooting up my school tomorrow” on the online game RuneScape. The incident was reported to Jagex by players, who presumably used Frongillo’s account information to identify him, and the evidence was sent to Oxford police, who in turn alerted the campus police. The transcript also included anti-Semitic comments and Frongillo drawing a swastika in-game.

Frongillo has been arrested and charged with threatening to commit a crime and threatening a bombing or hijacking. The kicker in this story? Frongillo is in the police academy studying criminal justice. According to Frongillo’s defense attorney, the comment was “a harmless jest,” and was not meant to be taken seriously.

What is it about RuneScape and real world violence?

(Source: Telegram)

Jagex Unveils RuneScape 3


We’ve known about a next generation RuneScape for quite a while now. What we know so far is that RuneScape 3 will be a continuation of RuneScape 2, where the current game will cease to exist and players (and their characters) will be fully transferred to the new system. RuneScape 3 will also bring with it better graphics, powered by HTML5 and a fully orchestrated soundtrack.

We will have more details about RuneScape 3 as Jagex hands them out.

(spoiler alert)

With the recent release of The World Wakes, Jagex released a quest to set up where the future of RuneScape will head. Guthix is dead and his edicts banishing the gods from Gielinor have been destroyed. Followers of all of the gods are making preparations for the return of their deity, and undoubtedly Jagex’s MMO is about to plunge into a planet-shattering war.

Jagex Decrees: Gambling Illegal In RuneScape


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The word of God has spoken. RuneScape has been updated today with a strange set of new fixes to various items. The Easter ring now only turns one color, flowers planted by players now grow in one single color, the seal of approval emote now only displays one animation, and the classic cape no longer varies between animations. Why the sudden lack of random play? Jagex has finally put their foot down, issuing an official notice to players running gambling rings: You will no longer be tolerated.

Jagex has added a new bullet point to RuneScape’s rules list:

You must not advertise, organize, promote or participate in player-run games of chance, where game money or items are staked on the outcome of a random activity.

Players caught running gambling rings will be met with mutes and possible permanent bans. As with the bot busting update, the fight against gambling is one that will not end with this update. Jagex will continue to monitor the game and combat other methods as they pop up.

(Source: RuneScape)

Jagex Begins Muting Gambling Hosts


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Jagex is continuing its war on gambling in RuneScape with a recent hidden update to the game. As we’ve talked about before, one of the most popular gambling methods in RuneScape is called hot/cold, that uses an item called a mithril seed which when planted into the ground produces a random colored flower. The gambler makes a bet on which color type (hot or cold) will sprout. There are other gambling methods, again as we’ve talked about, but the hot and cold is one of the more prevalent.

Players are reporting that Jagex is taking a stand against gambling hosts, however, and have not only given the official go ahead for player moderators to begin muting gambling hosts, but they have also implemented an update to pick up on common gambling phrases and automatically mute the speaker for two days. According to a few reports, the phrase is “h/c 2x” which stands for “hot/cold 2x.” The new policy was implemented suddenly and without a public announcement by Jagex, with many players only discovering the new system once they’d been punished.

More to come on Jagex’s fight against gamblers, no doubt.

Old School RuneScape’s First Content Poll Coming


noedits

Over the past couple of weeks, Old School RuneScape has seen a number of patches to bring the game back into a fully functioning state. This past week’s patch reintroduced the Construction skill, and with it player owned housing. Next week’s patch is set to bring back the mini-game Barbarian Assault. Alongside next week’s update will also introduce the first in a regular series of content polls, where Jagex picks ideas from the community forums and puts them up to a vote.

According to the poll rules, each feature will be run through a simple yes/no vote, and each poll runs over the course of a week and requires at least 75% approval in order to be passed. Only players with at least 100 total level in Old School will be able to vote. The first set of polls, listed below, will be simple content updates:

  • Easter event – the 2007 Easter holiday event is re-activated to coincide with Easter this year.
  • Herb naming – unidentified herbs become grimy <herb name>.
  • Remove roof – a command to toggle the visibility all roofs on and off.
  • ‘Enter’ to login – the enter key submits login information, rather than only the login button.
  • Bank booths – left click bank booths to instantly open the bank interface.
  • F2P worlds – still members only, but allows PKers to fight with F2P gear restrictions

You can find the entire announcement below.

(Source: RuneScape)

Old School RuneScape's First Content Poll Coming


noedits

Over the past couple of weeks, Old School RuneScape has seen a number of patches to bring the game back into a fully functioning state. This past week’s patch reintroduced the Construction skill, and with it player owned housing. Next week’s patch is set to bring back the mini-game Barbarian Assault. Alongside next week’s update will also introduce the first in a regular series of content polls, where Jagex picks ideas from the community forums and puts them up to a vote.

According to the poll rules, each feature will be run through a simple yes/no vote, and each poll runs over the course of a week and requires at least 75% approval in order to be passed. Only players with at least 100 total level in Old School will be able to vote. The first set of polls, listed below, will be simple content updates:

  • Easter event – the 2007 Easter holiday event is re-activated to coincide with Easter this year.
  • Herb naming – unidentified herbs become grimy <herb name>.
  • Remove roof – a command to toggle the visibility all roofs on and off.
  • ‘Enter’ to login – the enter key submits login information, rather than only the login button.
  • Bank booths – left click bank booths to instantly open the bank interface.
  • F2P worlds – still members only, but allows PKers to fight with F2P gear restrictions

You can find the entire announcement below.

(Source: RuneScape)

OldScape Poll Ends, Jagex Alters Conditions


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Here at MMO Fallout, I’ve often said that Jagex’s polls are really little more than exaggerated PR stunts. Players are given the option of voting yes, or not voting at all, and the tally ultimately follows the rules of Who’s Line is it Anyway, where everything is made up and the points don’t matter. Following the tiered system Jagex laid out, and subsequently altered to allow more benefits with less votes, Old School RuneScape will now be available for an additional $5 membership fee with a small team dedicated to continued maintenance, and “possible” anti-bot updates.

In a news article posted today, CEO Mark Gerhard has detailed what players should expect with the full release of Old School RuneScape. Players will be able to vote on future changes, and will be happy to see the implementation of Botwatch to keep nasty cheaters and gold farmers away. In addition, the membership fee on top of the standard member cost has been waived, at least for now.

As a gesture of our own goodwill and an aspiration for this newly established community to flourish and hopefully grow I’ve decided that we will NOT be charging the additional $5 membership fee for at least the next 6 months!

The news article notes that the member fee will continue to be waived so long as population levels are healthy. So even without five hundred thousand votes, Old School players will still enjoy most of the benefits of the tier. The Old School RuneScape server is currently available in the form of early access to members who voted in the poll, and is still considered a work in progress as several features have not yet been fully implemented.

(Source: RuneScape)

Jagex Opens (Limited) Members Skills To Free Players


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In 2012, Jagex opened up a 14-day free trial for free to play players. The account is limited in regards to trading and acquiring items, and once the 14-day free trial ends, any items that are members only are unable to be used until that player purchases a subscription. With today’s release of the March developer blog, Jagex has announced some upcoming changes to the way free players are able to experience membership without the need to actually pay. Instead of a 14-day trial, free players will have access to a limited amount of the members world, as well as very limited access to members skills.

Talking of free players, we’re changing the trial system so that new players once again start off as a free player. To do this, we’re making Burthorpe and Taverley part of the free game, as well as the associated quests and training areas within it. We are also allowing free players to train members’ skills up to a maximum of level 5, giving them a taster of the kind of content there is on offer for players who subscribe.

The blog post also details Jagex’s continued fight against player-run gambling outfits.

Other alterations we intend to make this month are changes centred around the flower games and associated ‘risk’ gameplay that currently dominates the Grand Exchange. Exactly what these changes are and what form they take is going to be up to you – we’ve built a variety of solutions from rules changes, content changes and even our own versions of the games – and we’re planning on chatting to you to work out what solution works best for the community. Keep an eye on the news for details.

You can find the full list of scheduled updates for March at the link below.

(Source: RuneScape)