It’s been quite a while since we last heard about Global Agenda 2, to the point where here at MMO Fallout we weren’t quite sure if the game was still in production (see: Titan, World of Darkness). Surprisingly, or unsurprisingly depending on who you ask, the game is not only still in development, it is on track for beta release sooner than you think (or I think). Over at the Global Agenda Reddit subforum, Hi-Rez CEO Erez Goren posted a few snippets of information about the much awaited sequel.
Global Agenda 2 is a spiritual successor, with a classless system, a focus on pvp, and another attempt at an e-sports shooter. Furthermore, the goal is to have the game ready to beta test by the end of the year, if all goes well. Meanwhile you can still play the original Global Agenda. It hasn’t had any updates in quite some time, but the servers are still up and running.
Since Aventurine announced Darkfall: Unholy Wars, I’ve seen a bit of criticism from the community over the lack of video demonstrating the new gameplay. In a recently released trailer, Aventurine shows off the Baresark, one of the classes in the warrior school of training. The Baresark is a melee class with the ability to do area of effect damage as well as stomp the ground, throwing his enemies away and (in the video) over a cliff. The new UI is also shown in the video, and you can see that it is incredibly minimalistic.
More videos showcasing the new class-based system in Darkfall: Unholy Wars is sure to come. Darkfall shuts down November 15th and is currently free for all current and past subscribers, Unholy Wars launches as a separate game on November 20th.
Here at MMO Fallout, I consider myself the “odd man out” as far as MMO-oriented websites go. I’m not a big name, most studios that are not named Quest Online have likely never heard of me, most of my viewers are not the commenting type, and I only occasionally get my articles noted on bigger websites (MMOCrunch, Keanandgreav, etc). That being said, I still strive to be as professional and consistent as possible, which explains why my head spins when I see others who make my snark look professional by comparison. Case in point: Eurogamer’s review of Darkfall and Gamespot’s review of Global Agenda.
MMOs are a long term investment, both for the developer and the player. With a larger-than-norm development budget, not to mention several more years in the oven before it’s finished, a developer has to make back enough money not only to cover the initial costs, but also the maintenance and updates post-launch. With the market ever-changing, presently it is moving towards large updates that are free. Understanding this, it becomes much easier to figure out why developers wait years, usually until the original is no longer a viable contender in the market (See: Planetside 2).
Over at CVG.com, they asked the question on no one’s mind, is Cryptic Studios planning on a sequel to their Star Trek MMO, released just two months ago? The answer, as you guessed, is not just a no, but an absolutely no. Never. Cryptic responded by saying that they have ruled out the possibility of ever releasing a Star Trek Online sequel, barring a future new engine.
“I’m not really sure it makes sense to create a sequel in the MMO market. Typically, you see an MMO called a sequel because either a new team worked on the property or the original team wanted to reboot their IP.”
Companies register trademarks all the time for products they want to secure, but not necessarily release. So when I say that NCsoft has registered City of Heroes 2, I want to be completely clear that this is not to be considered confirmation that a sequel to City of Heroes is in the works. I am, however, creating a new section for City of Heroes 2 in the Rumored category, just in case any news appears on the title in the near future.
Meanwhile, the original City Of is still going strong. NCsoft is still regularly updating the title with new free issues, the game received the graphics upgrade this year, and the expansion pack Going Rogue recently went on preorder.
If anything appears on City of Heroes 2, you’ll hear about it here.
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