MMORPG-Jade Dynasty brief beta review

Well the Turtle has been playing the closed Beta for Jade Dynasty for a little while now and I can say that it is better than most free to play MMO’s that I have played. The game has a nice clean look to it and the UI is arranged as you would expect of any MMO today. The game has an abundant amount of quests to keep you busy though most are just the genre standard fetch and kill quests. Jade Dynasty does a good job of leading you around to the NPC’s for the shops,banks and so on. Speaking of leading you around that may be the best thing about Jade Dynasty. When you recieve a quest or complete a quest you can just click on the name (or quest location) in your quest journal and it will lead you there auto pilot style. Some may scoff at the game ‘playing itself for you’ but I found it refreshing after completing a quest away from town I could just click the quest givers name and my character just went there on his own. Another thing of note is the classless skill progression in the game. After making a character and entering the world you dont pick a class. Instead you can choose to upgrade whatever skills you prefer to suit your play style.

It is also worth noting that unlike alot of free2play MMO’s Jade Dynasty allows full access to their game world. You are free to trade with other players, use the market place and see all the content. So far Jade Dynasty is a pretty good time and I have been impressed with the game. It seems that after Runes of Magic, Free Realms and Perfect World’s (the publisher) own Perfect World MMO have hit the market to much praise and success the bar for a free to play MMO has been raised to another level. Jade Dynasty is poised to stand along side those MMO’s as an example of how to do free2play right.

MMO-Cities XL enters next beta phase

Monte Cristo’s Cities XL to Enter Next Phase of Beta Testing

June 10, 2009 – Paris – Monte Cristo Games, makers of the upcoming next-generation city-builder, Cities XL™, is pleased to announce the end of the first beta test of their game, and the impending launch of a new beta. The first beta phase for Cities XL will end today at 8pm Paris Time (11am Pacific Time), so come register before it’s too late to secure a slot for yourself in the next beta, which begins soon!
In order to stress-test the network and its servers, along with give newcomers a better taste of the MMO elements of the game, the new beta will be open to several thousand players from around the world.
To expand the reach of the beta, special registration keys will be made available across a variety of select sites. This list of sites will soon be available, so be sure to check back for an update.
For more information about Cities XL, the next-generation city-builder for PC that offers a mix of city-building, tycoon and Massively Multiplayer Online gameplay, please visit http://www.citiesxl.com.

RPG- Dragon Age updated Hands on E3

Dragon Age: Origins E3 Updated Hands-On

In this special E3 demo, we get some hands-on time with the console version of Dragon Age: Origins, and we check out its sexier side.

EA has been more than generous with the upcoming BioWare role-playing game Dragon Age: Origins. Since the game was announced late last year, we’ve been privy to numerous hands-on sessions, covering the game’s combat, character development, adventure parties, and even a siege. So it was no surprise that EA has managed to pull a new rabbit out of the hat at this year’s E3. In a behind-closed-doors session at EA’s booth, Dragon Age: Origins lead designer Mike Laidlaw demoed previously unseen gameplay footage and a short hands-on session on the Xbox 360 that, far from the blood and gore that we’ve seen before, showed off the game’s more romantic side and gave us a chance to test the game’s console control scheme for the first time.

As we’ve learned before, Dragon Age: Origins is a fantasy-themed RPG that sees you take on the role of a Grey Warden to lead the fight on the humans’ side against an invading horde of creatures called the Blight. The demo that we were shown was designed to let us in on a couple of secrets: firstly, it’s not all about bloodshed; secondly, there are dragons in the game, and you do get to fight them (and ride them for a little bit). We started out at our Grey Warden’s party camp, where we were introduced to Leliana, a red-haired, soft-hearted citizen of a lower class who is madly in love with us. It seems that each character that you are allowed to interact with has his or her own personality, which you must work with to build a particular kind of relationship. To tease her, we go over to Morrigan’s tent, a young sorceress who likes to flirt. After giving her a gift and acquiring points for your leadership and magic skills, she invites you into her tent. Here you have the option to go in or return to Leliana, who is no doubt watching you with bated breath. This is just one of the many moral decisions that you’ll have to make along the way; although these moral decisions are not marked in any way, they become obvious in the dialogue that you have with different characters in the game. If you happen upon a group of thieves, your party will leave the decision of their fate in your hands.

In this case, our Grey Warden decided that he wanted to see what’s inside Morrigan’s tent. Inside, a cutscene reveals us embracing a near-naked Morrigan, who is moaning and panting. As the two kissed, the game demo cut off, and we were told that we’d have to wait to see the full build to know what happens next (but we can guess). We’re told that this scene occurs hours into the game, at a point in which our Grey Warden has put a lot of time and effort into building these relationships with those around him. No doubt it’s harder than it looks, but we couldn’t help but notice how easy it was to convince Morrigan to sleep with us. After this scene, our Grey Warden heads back out to the campsite, where Leliana has seen everything and demands an explanation. Again, you must make a moral choice: soothe Leliana and agree to be her man, or ditch her and go back to the fiery Morrigan. We chose Leliana, and score game points for relationships and love.

We were then shown a part of the game earlier in time than the first sequence, in which our Grey Warden encountered and fought a dragon. The battle took place in a field of grass where members of our traveling party joined us against the dragon. The dragon, as can be expected, breathed fire and was hard to take down, even with five people using swords, arrows, and magic against it. Given that you can switch to and between up to four members of your party at any one time, our Grey Warden used this opportunity to switch to a sorceress, who is able to shape-shift. Once playing as the sorceress, we turned into a giant spider that was small enough to get beneath the dragon and bite its legs. As this was happening, we switched to our Grey Warden again, who was able to use the sorceress’s distraction to jump on the dragon’s back and drive a sword through its eye, finally killing it.

After the demo, we had some hands-on time with an early stage of the game on the Xbox 360. This was the first time we’ve seen this game on a console, so we paid close attention to the control scheme. Our objective in this short session was to find a particular item with another member of our party. We walked through a forest, encountering and collecting items, before coming across a wolf and a cave containing giant spiders in a fight. You can assign six different weapons to your control scheme, pressing the X, Y and B buttons to access them, and A to use them. But the combat here proved very slow. Pressing A near an enemy seemed to do nothing. It was only when we were under heavy attack and standing almost under an enemy that our weapons finally worked. Holding down the left trigger let us switch between weapons, whereas the right trigger brought up the weapons menu, which shows you what weapons you have at your disposal. There is also a stealth mode that you can access if your skill set allows for it by pressing the X button. A is also for using items, and collecting and storing them in your inventory.

Dragon Age: Origins is shaping up to be an impressive and dynamic RPG with loads of combat and character development. We also received confirmation of its release date. It will be out October 20 on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC simultaneously.

MMO- 10 Survival tips for Dungeons and Dragons Online

Ten Tips For Survival

Ten tips for survival in Turbine’s Dungeons and Dragons Online.

If you’re a fan of small groups and solo content or if you’re just starting off into Dungeons and Dragons Online, you might be suffering a varying amount of frustration. Here are ten tips for surviving in X’endrik:

Pick up everything!

Grab that gold, check those mushrooms, and pick up that pack! It’s an expensive world, and you’ll need all the cash you can get. A lot of your income will of course be from completing missions and trading loot, but sometimes you’ll notice your coffers looking slightly bare. Make full use of your storage to collect every treasure bag and item you can, then put aside some time to go and hand in your treasure to those that seek it, and sell anything you don’t need. The more money you have the more help you can give yourself.

Find that vendor!

There are several important vendors dotted around; potion vendors who are a useful source of buffs such as extra wisdom, health, strength and intelligence, and brokers (look for the blue dots for brokers) who sell quality specialised items; weaponry, clothing etc. Be aware that these brokers also buy valid specialised items for more than regular vendors do. If you are rewarded high value specialised loot and need some quick coin, sell it to the correct broker.

Hired help.

Mercenaries are available for hire. Hireling vendors will sell you a single use merc of your choice which you can summon and control in mission. Fighters, Wizards, Clerics, Magicians of varying levels are available to help create a more balanced party should you want to play alone or in a personal group. Note that you cannot hire a mercenary that is higher than your own level and that some mercenaries can be intentionally difficult to control. However, should a merc be killed in the line of duty, simply pick up the soul stone and recover at a shrine as you would any other party member.

Keep your options open.

To save space or to earn quick coin, it’s often easy to pop into an inn and sell everything you don’t currently have equipped. However, you might want to keep some choice items reserved for future use. Some quests will require you to adapt to them, different enemies, elements and traps can be countered with a different suit of armour, a robe, a sword or even a pair of boots.

Don’t forget, all X’endrik residents have access to a bank account. If you don’t quite trust yourself with a prized possession, pop into the bank or visit a banker character to drop off items as needed.

Tailor yourself to your mission.

It’s tempting to just ignore the quest back-story and just click yes until that ‘quest bestowed’ sound rings out, but you may be missing out on important clues to the mission that lies ahead; enemy type being the most important. For instance, you may be proud of that +2 flaming axe, but against level 7 fire elementals it’s not so hot. Worse still, some enemies can damage your weapons very quickly if your character cannot save against it…suddenly finding yourself with a broken weapon mid quest can be a cause for restarting if you cannot repair. It’s worth keeping a cheap club standing by for circumstances such as this, especially when dealing with ghasts and slimes.Wizards and Sorcerers, if you have limited spell space don’t forget to prepare the spells you’ll need first. Most if not all damage spells will work in any mission, but a physical barrier may require a spell to overcome. A good rule is to always keep feather fall, underwater ability and an intelligence boost handy.

It helps to keep different cloaks/armour standing by too. If a quest involves undead monsters a cloak/piece of armour that reduces undead can be useful.

Prepare yourself

Ideally when entering a mission you want everything you need at your fingertips. There are two methods you can use to respond more quickly to threats or urgent requirements. First are the toolbars, of which you can add more.

Click the box with the arrow to add another toolbar to the game window.Organise your needed items in new toolbars such as different weapons for different enemies, health potions and buff potions, and spells. This can be a life saver when suddenly put into quick combat.

The other method is keyboard shortcuts: Go to the options panel, click the key mapping button on the right, and scroll down to the shortcut bar section.

Here you can map keys or key combinations to your most used items, for example: your health potions are in Shortcut Bar 1 slot 8, and you want to access them quickly by pressing CTRL + H, click Shortcut Bar 1 slot 8 as shown in the image and assign the key you want.

Experiment with both to see which you prefer.

Take your time!

You may recall an old adage ’slow and steady wins the race’. Well, in an actual race that makes no sense, but here it applies quite well. Often the idea of running straight through a quest to get the XP seems quite attractive, but you’ll be missing a trick or two. Each mission gives bonuses for the work you do.

Killing monsters: Stop and wipe them out, check every room and corner to get an aggression bonus.

Not killing monsters: If you prefer to be discreet….so be it. You get a bonus too! This requires you to keep the kill count low or to none…so be really discreet.Disarming traps: disarming a certain amount of traps rather than going through/around gives you a bonus.

Secrets: If you get those messages telling you the air has changed…it means that there is a secret door nearby (or someone needs to lay off the beans), do a quick search to discover them.

Breakables: Break it all! Barrels, vases, pots, smash it to bits! Do it enough and you’ll get a reward, plus personal satisfaction…

Bonuses will stack so each new bonus will increase the total score and not the base score which really starts to add up!

It’s also prudent not to rush into every situation, unless of course you know the quest like the back of your hand. A sudden trap, ambush or closing gate could easily cut you off from your party and a level restart due to death means an XP hit.

Déjà Vu

If you find you’re stuck, be it lack of XP or a quest you can’t complete, go and do some quests again. Revisit some earlier quests, complete them and get XP, loot or coin all over again. Might sound dull, but Turbine has thought of that, allowing you to crank up the difficulty level if you wish. Going from Normal to Hard to Elite increases the level by one each time, so a level two quest on elite will be a level four equivalent. With higher levels brings increased dangers but also higher rewards, including favour with the various alliances.

Repeat too often though and the available XP for each quest will take a nose dive.

Hammer time.

If you really want that +3 haggling ring, or have 100 string beads you can’t be bothered to take to the harbour, take a visit to an auctioneer. If you want it, someone will have it. If you have it, chances are someone out there will want it. Auctions take a commission of course, but if you’re willing to wait, the payoff may be much better than buying from a broker or simply discarding what you don’t want to carry around.

First contact.

Don’t forget, if you’re at an early level, everybody you see around you was also there at one point. Behind each character is a human being, and if they are indeed human, it won’t hurt to ask for help. Ask politely, and ask only once. If you start to hound people you may get reported, and even more importantly…they won’t like you very much.People at the same level as you are in the same boat as you. So start a party and reach out to people. You’ll be able to complete that nagging quest and more importantly, you might make some new friends. The core of every MMORPG is about co-operation and friendship. So don’t be a stranger for too long.

MMORPG-Luna Online Preview

Preview

We’re sure you’re noticing a trend in the free to play genre these days and it’s not a particularly exciting one… A phenomenon wherein company ‘X’ produces a ridiculous number of MMO franchises in the hopes that you will eventually take note of one and hopefully invest. On one hand, I applaud this foray into the wild world of MMO capitalism since it exposes the massive multi player genre to the public at large and likewise creates competition for the more dedicated gamers. Competition theoretically means that said company will work harder for your dollar and will hopefully produce a better product in the processes. On the other hand, this projectile vomiting of titles also tends to endear the ‘if it works, why fix it?’ mentality, which has in turn has given rise to the MMO clone wars. These companies will invariably attempt to produce a cutesy MMO with an Asian-anime feel, a serious MMO probably featuring an ancient Chinese theme, some flavor of sports MMO and a fluffy socialization MMO if that wasn’t already included in the cutesy-anime one. One need look any further than Konami as one of the more egregious offenders, and gpotato is rapidly joining the ranks with their newest effort: Luna Online.

Attack of the Clones

That said, clones aren’t always such a bad thing and my philosophy tends toward “clone away, just get it right” and that’s sadly where most companies tend to fall down. So where dose Luna Online fall in that twilight between Win and Fail? The first thing you should know is that Luna tends toward the cutesy anime genre of free to play, looking remarkably like ROSE Online in terms of graphical implementation with a just a touch more depth concerning character customization. Humans and Elves are the species of choice and that customization is limited to hair and eyes, meaning you’ll only stumble across your evil twin every ten minutes instead of the standard one to five. Like most MMOs of the type, this is where you’ll choose your initial class and Luna is no exception, nor is it rocket science. The typical Mage, Rogue and Fighter archetypes can be selected and Luna follows the tried and true Asian job model, where you select your class initially and then specialize at level twenty. Overall, it’s nothing you haven’t seen before so lets pop the hood and look at what’s underneath.

Usually I don’t start out with audio, but it is perhaps Luna’s most notable facet. In fact, it goes a long way toward turning what would be a thoroughly average environment into something more immersive. Stepping into the game’s newb zone for the first time I was greeted by… Dance. 150 beats per second of happy go lucky midi dance that fits the Luna’s feel surprisingly well. The Techno Twins Slad and Veter aside, combat is also acoustically superior, a fact confirmed the first time you loose a spell or technique. Chanting out a spell has to be one of the most unique, disconcerting experiences I’ve happened across in an MMO and the closest parallel I can draw upon is from the audio chanting in the Baldur’s Gate series. Acquiring valuable loot drops are accompanied by energetic exclamations, sighs and other nuances that push your toon into something closer to a living, interactive entity.

Graphically, Luna Online runs the gamut of mediocrity, though that’s not to say the game is ugly. Far from it, in fact, as the sand boxed environments are stylized; full of nice touches and bright colors. Still, we would be remiss if we didn’t note that there probably isn’t a whole lot to wow you since you’ve more than likely been there and done that before. The characters and their techniques are well animated and also flashy in execution, though it’s maybe a step above the competition, if that. Still, the cutesy theme will definitely appeal to a number of players and for what it is, Luna does it well.

So is there anything that stands out as above average? Surely. While each region is effectively a self contained sandbox, most are sprinkled with a number of elites that are all but impossible to miss. Even the newb zone has a few and I can’t help but to express my delight in joining in on a combined attack against at a mere level four. On that note, the mobs animate reasonably well and are creative enough in design as not to written off as stale straight out of the gate; even spouting off dialogue as they roam about the countryside awaiting their demise by your hand.

An Enemy Called Average

Uninspired visuals are acceptable as long as the game mechanics hold up and Luna’s game play is… Well, average. Combat and navigation consists of the ‘park and spank’ variety, leaving ASDW gamers out in the cold and killing off some of the game’s interactivity in the process. Even so, point and click movement is nothing new and hardly a deal breaker in and of itself, though the hum-drum is beginning to stack up.

Also, investing in average is how Luna handles character attributes, which is the tried and true method of leveling, earning skill points and distributing them across various spells and techniques. Physical attributes are handled in the same manner, allowing for a single point per level to be stacked across your character’s defining traits. In practice, there is nothing wrong with this system. It works just as well as it does in every other MMO you’ve ever played all the way back to AD&D, making for a minimal learning curve as long as you set the total lack of inspiration aside. One thing this particular reviewer does approve of is the ability to queue short term actions as the current technique is executing.

About the only stand out in the game’s structuring I noticed is that leveling doesn’t seem to be overtly crippled, proceeding at a nice, imminently bearable pace. This in particular is a sharp contrast to most of its contemporaries, giving it a leg up on its f2p competition. If quests are your cup of tea, you’ll find Luna lacking since they consist almost exclusively of the ‘Run from A to B’ or ‘Kill X number of Y’ variety. Bag space for drops gets somewhat cramped, and bank space can be purchased; both items being standard fare for a f2p title and thus tolerable in this reviewer’s eyes.

For those with an eye toward crafting, items can be created outright or simply reinforced for added stats, relying on the “parts equal better parts equal even better parts” system ad nauseum. Chances of failure are also built into the process so you don’t get too comfortable and are likewise encouraged to visit the as yet to be implemented cash shop for a purchase that will no doubt remedy this and other leveling dilemmas of all sorts. That said, your chances of skill failure can be negated if you’re willing to expend more materials in the product creation. In either case, it’s a simple system to navigate and one limited only by your access to material or funds.

Like many F2P games of a similar type, Luna players can set up their own personal shop to aid in their commercial endeavours and while I applaud capitalism at its best, it’s sad to watch Luna once again impale itself on the very same sword as its contemporaries. One of these days I hope developers will learn that there are few things less attractive than loading into a zone packed wall to wall full of player shop banners like a shanty town. I’ll impart this free piece of advice for them and future developers of this game type: Institute ten meter zone of exclusion around all vital NPCs. At least. Nothing says “fail” like a point and click scavenger hunt through a sea of shops just to find your quest NPC, and I’m frankly surprised that devs have yet to get a clue. A horizon plastered full of sales banners is just tacky, but I will give Luna Online a point for common sense: At least the newb zone is free of this activity.

Massively Mediocre

If it sounds like we’ve been subjecting Luna to a good spanking, that would only be partially correct. In all actuality, Luna Online really doesn’t do anything wrong that we’ve found in our beta testing so far, and everything mentioned above is subject to change at a moment’s notice. It plays well, the graphics are nice and the audio is more than acceptable. The combat engine is quite proven and Luna takes a creative stab at social engineering through dating, families, and of course guilds. Finally, leveling progress is refreshing, blunting the stab of average, even if the GUI bears a remarkable resemblance to its contemporaries in the field…

…And therein lies Luna’s singular problem.

Nearly every single aspect of the game has been done across a number of other titles, and while Luna does it all reasonably well, it’s the furthest thing from new you’ll find in this year’s MMO lineup. Part of the issue no doubt stems from the fact that Luna has been up and running for some time now in other countries; more than likely fresh back in the day but fairly stale in the here and now. I would love to entertain hopes that maybe something fresh will worm its way into this port, but experience has taught me to be pessimistic in that regard. Most developers won’t reinvent the wheel for a new market, especially when the client is already on its first expansion everywhere else.

So where does that leave us? Assuming the cash shop pans out and you’re not terribly committed to another f2p, I’ll actually go out on a limb and recommend you try this title. Go in knowing you won’t see anything you haven’t seen before, but also realize that at least it’s being done competently and with a modicum of skill. Luna Online is a solid play. As long as you don’t ask anything more of it, you’ll enjoy yourself immensely.

Thanks to MMORPG for the great preview!

MMO-WarHammer Online live event June 16th

Mythic Entertainment™, an Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) studio, today announced ‘Rise of the Tomb Kings,’ the final live event in the Call to Arms live expansion for Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning® (WAR). From June 16 until June 22, the forces of Order and Destruction will race to construct giant airships that will soon transport players into the treacherous deserts of the Land of the Dead.

The winning Realm will have exclusive first access to the new Tomb Kings themed dungeon zone, and the unimaginable wealth it contains, immediately following the conclusion of the ‘Rise of the Tomb Kings’ live event. The more ambitious adventurers will be further recognized for their contribution, with exclusive titles: “Sky Captain” for Order, and “Master of the Air” for Destruction. The dedicated – and lucky – players might also receive the Ravening Cloak, an ultra-rare item drop only available during the live event.

“The Call to Arms continues as the armies of Order and Destruction are getting close to unlocking the secrets to the Land of the Dead,” said Jeff Hickman, Executive Producer for Mythic Entertainment. “’Rise of the Tomb Kings’ will see heroes on both sides of the battle competing for the glory of their Realm so they may be the first to plunder the wealth of the Tomb Kings.”

MMORPG-WOW lowering riding skill and cost

Veteran players can attest: it’s getting easier to do things early in World of Warcraft. As the MMO ages, Blizzard continues to tweak the game softly so the newcomer can get in on higher-level action faster.  The next patch — 3.2 — won’t be an exception to the friendly trend. Big changes to the mount system are coming.

Zarhym, World of Warcraft’s community manager, threw down a list of mount changes coming to the MMO with the “next major content patch.” From it, we see that Blizzard is lowering the training levels, increasing speed across the board, and cutting the cost of training and purchasing the little buggers. Not bad if you’re new.

A small listing of the mount changes is available below the fold, but the full details can be found at WoW.com.

Call us crazy, but we don’t mind WoW is steadily becoming more accessible. What’s your take on it? Do you mind that people are blitzing through stuff that may have taken you a week or so to complete?

Apprentice Riding (Skill 75)

• 60% land mount speed
• Requires level 20
• Cost: 4 gold
• Mount cost: 1 gold
• Mail will be sent to players at level 20 guiding them to the riding trainer

Journeyman Riding (Skill 150)

• 100% land mount speed
• Requires level 40
• Cost: 50 gold
• Mount cost: 10 gold
• Mail will be sent to players at level 40 guiding them back to the riding trainer

MMO-Dragonica goes open beta

gPotato’s arcade-style side-scrolling MMO Dragonica has gone into open beta testing in Europe and is free for all to play.

Find out why you might want to at our hands on impressions of the free-to-play, Korean-made MapleStory with attitude. In brief: combos, sheep, moonwalking.

You can sign up for a gPotato.eu account and download the game at the official website. If you already have a closed beta account, your game should patch automatically.