Update – Page 118 – MMO Fallout

[Editorial] Gem Store Update Poorly Introduced, Response Even Worse

The latest gem store update to Guild Wars 2 has had players up in arms, and it’s hard not to sympathize with their position. Previously, buying and selling gems was a process that involved deciding how much you wanted to buy/sell, setting an asking price, and waiting until your order was filled. If you wanted enough gems for a Black Lion chest key, you could get it. If you had 124 gems and wanted an item that cost 125 gems, you could buy that extra gem.

If you can figure out what is wrong with the new gem shop interface in the screenshot above, you probably don’t work for Arenanet. Given that the trade shop was built to be flexible and user-friendly, the change to a system that is entirely based on fixed, inflexible increments seems counterproductive and quite baffling in its logic, but so far Arenanet doesn’t seem to understand why players would be angry about being forced to buy 400 gems minimum.

As seems to be the popular excuse, Arenanet blamed the update on new players not understanding the system, a problem that apparently only exists in Arenanet’s customer support tickets. Communications team lead Gaile Gray has not helped the situation by going on the offensive against players in the forums. In her first response, Gray explained that “very few people bought gems at smaller denominations.” Following pages of complaints and suggestions, Gray made another post making no acknowledgement of the previous suggestions and instead decrying “most” of the posters as nonconstructive ranters.

Ok, guys. Some of you are unhappy about this change, I can see that. BUT… quite honestly, most of you are sort of (I hate to use the word) ranting (sorry!) instead of offering suggestions.

The comment on this update being geared towards new players is suspicious at best, considering that the lowest increment of gems now costs 75 gold. How many new players are going to have 75 gold to spend on the gem store? None. The only impact that this could conceivably have on new players is to remove their ability to purchase smaller amounts of gems and funnel them toward buying the gems with real money.

Guild Wars 2 has a habit of introducing updates which beg the question “who asked for this?” The answer is usually a lot of unseen people who submit support tickets and then apparently never feel the need to discuss the matter anywhere else, because if you searched the forums you wouldn’t come up with many, if any, results.

Arenanet has already confirmed that an update will allow player to use either system to their choosing, begging the question on why it wasn’t just included in the first place.

RuneScape Update Includes Opt-Out

Today’s update to RuneScape makes it possible for players to reset select combat skills, only once, by talking to Nastroth in Lumbridge. Choosing either option will result in associated skills being reset to level 1, and all associated rewards and quests that required said skill being revoked. Jagex has cautioned that skill resets cannot, and will not, ever be reversed under any circumstance.

As a security precaution, players who have no intention of ever using this feature, but are afraid of the potential for malicious use, can talk to Nastroth in Lumbridge and disable the feature on their account permanently. This option, similarly, cannot be undone.

Archlord 2 Launches First Expansion

Archlord players have plenty to be happy about, as Webzen launched the first expansion pack for Archlord II earlier today. The expansion introduces a number of new areas and dungeons to explore and quest in, and increases the current level cap from 41 to 46. Also available to players is the new Archlord system, where players take to the battlegrounds to prove their merits. Only the best will be able to move on to the Archlord Finals, a last man standing fight that will crown the winner as the new Archlord.

Those less interested in PvP combat will find much to do in three new zones and four new dungeons. To celebrate the launch, Webzen is running a promotional login event, giving away uncommon Avatar sets. The event runs until October 13th.

(Source: Webzen

Xsyon Introduces Farming And Cooking

Xsyon players will be happy to know that no longer will they need to eat their fish raw. Notorious Games has announced the release of two of Xsyon’s most anticipated features: Cooking and farming. With farming, players will be able to plant their own farms and grow crops, crops that will need to be tended to in order to avoid pests, dehydration, and weeds. The produce from farming, as well as other areas of the game, can be used towards the newly released cooking skill. With cooking, players are able to combine ingredients of various properties to create dishes that provide buffs.

As part of the cooking skill, players will need to take care of where they let their food sit. Dishes and ingredients that are not properly stored will rot, and must be stored in special baskets or in tribe commissaries. You can read more about the update on the official patch notes.

(Source: Notorious Games Press Release)

Xsyon Terrain Update

Xsyon has released a massive update to the game’s terrain system. The goal of the update is to provide plenty of room to settle for new players, while facilitating travel for current players and allow them room to expand.

The Xsyon landscape is shaped and molded by players. Over the years many unsightly mounds and ruins of abandoned sites have built up across the land. The terrain reversion update gradually restores this neglected land to its original state. Felled tree stumps and logs that have littered the landscape also decay over time.

You can check out Xsyon for free at the official website.

(Source: Notorious Games Press Release)

Darkfall Lays Out Vision and Direction

Aventurine has announced today that the developer has realigned itself to get back on track with their original vision for a sandbox PvP MMO where risk dictates reward and massive battles carry more meaning. As part of its realignment sessions, Darkfall will undergo a series of updates over the coming weeks. Top priority is the release of custom roles, allowing players to mix and match their skills, armor, boosters, etc, without being penalized. Armor will affect abilities in various manners, but it will no longer block abilities.

Next up, Aventurine is working on rebalancing the economy, going over every monster and resource node to see where improvements can be made. New higher tier tools will be launched alongside special resource nodes, with the whole shebang expected to launch over several updates. Third on the list are proper siege engines. Towers, catapults, and more to assist players in taking and holding territory. And finally, last on the list revealed is a robust quest system, a method to introduce players to the game’s lore and help new players learn the ropes.

The first update, introducing custom roles, is set for “very soon,” with the rest to follow.

(Source: Darkfall Press Release)

Darkfall Welcomes Players Back For March Update

Aventurine recently launched its March update, bringing with it weather effects, masks, clan markets, and more. To give players more of an incentive to join back up, Aventurine has invited beta players for two weeks of free game time. Eligible gamers should have already received an email by the time this article is published, so make sure you check your inbox/spam folder. To take part in the beta, simply send an email or support ticket with your username and “Returning Beta Player” in the subject line. We managed to have our account enabled around fifteen minutes after sending in the ticket.

The two week offer expires April 4th. Current subscribers can sign up for a six month package at 45% off.

Aion 4.0 Launches

Aion’s massive 4.0 update, Dark Betrayal, launched earlier today and promptly broke everyone’s client. Due to an unforeseen issue, the new Aion launcher was taken offline for several hours of extended maintenance today when it became apparent that critical client files had gone missing from the download, resulting in players receiving a corrupt version incapable of downloading the rest of the patch. Technical oversight, or viral marketing for Dark Betrayal? Today’s update brings with it, among other changes, the introduction of two new classes to Aion: The Gunslinger and Songweaver. Players are encouraged to create new characters to test the new classes out.

Also part of the update includes additional incentives for players to join the Asmodian side. The Asmodian faction has had a historical deficiency in population on several servers, so in order to entice players to even the sides, characters on said faction are able to obtain rewards simply for leveling up on those servers. Characters on the servers Tiamat, Siel, and Israphel are the target of this campaign, however the update does not give retroactively to players who have already leveled past the rewards.

Perhaps now is a good time to bring back Aion’s test server?

(Source: Aion)

Old School Servers Are Here To Stay

RuneScape’s Old School server has been up and running for a few months now, with Jagex offering continuous updates to fix bugs and add in small features voted on by the community. One of the big questions that players have had since the servers launched is how successful they would be, what Jagex would ultimately decide about the possibility of an additional membership to play, and whether or not the servers would attract enough players to keep them operational.

Today Jagex released a developer blog for Old School titled “here to stay.” Players should be happy to know that the servers will remain online for years to come and, at least for the foreseeable future, will not require any additional cash.

When Old School RuneScape launched we said access would be included as part of membership for the first 6 months, and then we’d review the pricing. We’ve made that decision now, rather than wait for September… There will be no increase in cost for the foreseeable future and we aren’t planning to review the pricing again for at least the next year, if not much longer. You will be able to access both Old School and the main game for the price you are currently paying for membership.

Jagex is continuing to work on client stability, banning bots, and more.

(Source: RuneScape)

APB Details Upcoming Spawn System Changes

Ever since Reloaded Productions took over All Points Bulletin and relaunched it as APB: Reloaded, the team has been hard at work addressing reverences from the community, whether related to driving, threat systems, lag, and now the spawn system apparently. In a recent blog posting, the APB team discusses the current manner in which players respawn after death, and the troubles associated with the current formula. As the blog lays out, the current system often leaves the player far out of the way, the same spawn point, or right on top of your enemy.

In an upcoming update, players will be able to enjoy Elective Spawning, effectively the same system but instead of automatically spawning at the “best” point generated by the system, players will have a number of spawn points available to choose from. You will also be able to view where other dead teammates have opted to respawn, in order to better coordinate during public matches. Players will also be able to modify vehicles to allow their teamates to spawn inside of them, given certain conditions are met.

You can read all of it at the blog post below:

(Source: APB Reloaded Blog)

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