All Posts by Szark

LEGO Universe has been announced as the official title for the upcoming LEGO MMOG from NetDevil. The game will be marketed toward a younger audience and is set for release in the fourth quarter of 2008.

BILLUND, DENMARK - June 7, 2007 - The LEGO(R) Group today announced LEGO Universe as the official title for the upcoming MMOG being developed by NetDevil(R) to further engage the company's dedicated and active community. LEGO Universe, currently planned for launch in the fourth quarter of 2008, is designed as the first MMOG professionally developed for LEGO fans and supported by community members from around the world.

"LEGO Universe ties together all aspects of our community and line of products in an online environment that can be enjoyed by LEGO fans of all ages," said Mark William Hansen, Director of Business Development, LEGO Universe. "By merging the online world of social interaction with the LEGO concept of play, LEGO Universe will provide our community with an entirely new way to experience LEGO and connect with other players in a fun and imaginative setting."

The full-featured MMOG will be complete with character advancement, expansive social and community features, and will provide a child-safe alternative to other MMOGs on the market. As a player, you'll be able to customize your mini-figs and interact in the universe as any character you choose, providing unique opportunities for players to expand and explore with their creations.

"LEGO Universe is being built as a place where fans and community members can discover nearly unlimited play possibilities," said Ryan Seabury, NetDevil Lead Producer on LEGO Universe. "Given the strength of the LEGO community, a large part of bringing the game to life will be working hand in hand with them to ensure that the core values of creativity, connectivity, and imagination are reflected in the end product."

Read more about LEGO Univers at http://www.lego.com/universe.

The fantasy MMO Archlord is being featured in a Belgian film about a man with autism who is teased and mistreated by his peers because of his autism, and who find solace in the world of Archlord where he is a hero.

Belgian website Telenet Games report that members of their website staff played roles in the parts of a movie BenX shot inside of the Codemasters' MMO ArchLord. The movie is the debut project for writer/director Nic Balthazar.

Read more here.

Click here to view images and a trailer.

14 new images have been added to our Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning screenshot gallery depicting Black Orcs, a Chaos Magus, Warrior Priests, and more.

To view the full size images, and to see the rest of the new screens, visit our gallery here.

IGG has announced that they will be holding a comic contest for Myth War, where players can win plenty of in-game rewards.

IGG Myth War Group has always been striving to provide new contests to all players. After successfully brought out First Myth War Video Contest, First Myth War Blog Contest, First Myth War Drawing Contest, here comes the First Myth War Comic Contest.

Time of activity,

• June 1--30 : Time for collecting drawings.
• July 1--2 : Time for evaluation
• July 3--4 : Time for award

Place: http://www.mythwaronline.com/forum/index.php?f=30

Rule:

1. All the title of participating article should begin with [Comic]
2. Competitors must be the player of MW.
3. Comics must be related to MW and better present the features of MW
4. Any comic involved politics, violence, bloody or other sensitive topics will be banned.
5. Please post multiple entries in one thread and each comic must have 3 to 4 pictures
6. Evaluation: The official will make the final judgment under three qualifications (art, humor, and myth war related)

Prize:

• One 1st Prize?8000 Integral Points(Fortune bombing points)
• Two 2nd Prizes: Each one will get 6000 Integral Points(Fortune bombing points)
• Three 3rd prizes? Each one will get 4000 Integral Points(Fortune bombing points)
• Five Honor Mentioned? Each one will get 1500 Integral Points(Fortune bombing points.

Read more about the comic contest here.

Blizzard has announced that the new Item Database is up and running. The database will allow players to browse through a comprehensive catalogue of all of the items in World of Warcraft.

The World of Warcraft Armory has been expanded with a new dimension of information and functionality - the Item Database!

The Armory's Item Database is a comprehensive searchable database of the items of World of Warcraft. As the only official item database for World of Warcraft, it has the exclusive ability to draw information from the actual game servers and is integrated with the Armory's character profiles. It's also designed for ease of use - to give you the items you're looking for as quickly and easily as possible.

Visit the Item Database here.

The folks over at Guild Wars have penned an interesting article about their upcoming Eye of the North expansion, detailing their focus on dungeons.

It's been two short years since our first game, Guild Wars Prophecies, launched. In that time we've released two standalone campaigns that have expanded lore, increased the number of playable professions, widened skill sets, and have given players more control over their party members. Our current project, Guild Wars: Eye of the North, is our first true expansion, and one that we truly feel is a fitting coda that will guide players through the end of one epic story into the next evolution of the series, Guild Wars 2. We want Guild Wars to go out with a bang and leave a lasting impression on players, so we've decided to delve deep into RPG history in an attempt to recreate the thrill of the classic dungeon crawl.

Dungeons are a staple of the RPG genre. Ask any longtime roleplayer and he'll get misty-eyed and recall tense adventures in underground civilizations, navigating shadowy passageways and unearthing untold fortune. We knew it was the next logical addition, but we had to be sure it was implemented in such a way that was new and relevant to Guild Wars fans. So, what makes a GW: EN dungeon more exciting than your average hole in the ground? Lots of things, actually.

The labyrinthine underground known as the Depths is comprised of a vast network of passageways that touch continents near and far. GW: EN dungeons are not your typical dingy caves, mind you. They are rich with plant life, decorated with ornate carvings and majestic statues, and home to fantastic creatures. One of the biggest challenges our art department faced was to make each dungeon feel unique, while at the same time capturing the sense of an enclosed, sometimes claustrophobic, environment. Unlike the wide-open plains of Elona, groups will have less room to maneuver around obstacles. Enemies travel in high concentrations, so there will be little time to think or relax while pressing onward to the next objective. That stated, some dungeons are simply huge. Your party might trek through twisting pathways one moment, only to be spilled out into a huge open cavern the next.

The very concept of dungeons carries a lot of baggage. We had to distill all the things that make dungeons cool while removing the parts that wouldn’t work for our purposes. New design, art, and programming challenges love to rear their hideous, hydra-like heads every step of the way in game development, and dungeons have been no exception. We got our bearings and started everything in parallel, quickly prototyping and implementing dungeon mechanics such as traps, while level designers roughed out the general layouts for the rooms that would be pieced together to form the unique layouts. Designers wrote up quests and stories to ground these places in the world with their own characters and worked hand-in-hand with the writers to polish the dialogue and make the NPCs live and breathe. The entire process was started simultaneously. The result was a sharing of ideas between different areas of development that will hopefully make this feature greater than the sum of its parts.

 Each dungeon instance is connected by ancient magical technology called an Asura gate. These portals were developed by a race new to the Guild Wars universe—the Asura. Since players will have to the opportunity to adventure as Asura in Guild Wars 2, we had to think ahead about their design. How large would they be? As subterranean creatures, what should they look like? How do they talk? What societal rules should they follow? What gameplay experiences will they offer that people will want to play as them? After months of discussion, planning, sketching, and writing, the Asura slowly materialized into the stout, intelligent, cocky little buggers you see today. Some might come off as self-important—condescending, even—but as a race the Asura can back it up. They are crafty, resourceful, and adept at magic. And they are an integral component of Eye of the North.

 The Asura have connected many races and cultures regardless of distance via the Asura gate system. Unlike a standard portal that links contiguous land masses together, an Asura gate is used to travel great distances not possible through conventional means or standard spell casting. So while the entirety of the Depths is broken up into segments, one can migrate from lands as far away as Cantha and Elona to Ascalon and beyond, provided the system is running in tip-top shape. Travel isn’t always easy, though, as recent events have transformed the once placid corridors into a veritable minefield of death.

 Players stumble upon this mass transit system early in the game, only to find its creators fleeing madly from a cadre of Destroyers hell-bent on their demise. These horrific manifestations do not reason. They are ugly, angular, fiery incarnations resistant to heat and afraid of nothing. Their purpose is singular—to purge the Depths of all living creatures in preparation of the arrival of the Great Destroyer, a fearsome beast of Dwarven legend. Many battles will be waged below the surface, some for personal gain and others at the behest of new allies.

 Where blood is shed, wealth is stolen. There are 18 unique multilevel dungeons that make up the Depths, each populated with its own monsters, environmental hazards and traps, and phat loot. Only the brave dare to harvest riches from the darkest corners of these caverns, and with good reason. End bosses are smarter, faster, tougher, and possess new and unique skills and cunning A.I. developed specifically for this expansion. For example, one chamber might be guarded by a colossal spider. Before you can attack you must first lure it into range. A quick scan of the area reveals several egg sacks of her young. Using a magical flamethrower acquired from an Asura ally, you set fire to her brood. Enraged, she drops from her perch with bloody vengeance and launches an all-out assault on your party. Conventional attacks are slow and cumbersome against the beast. Using a skill learned from a wise Norn shaman, you call upon the bear spirit, who supercharges your attacks and fortifies your Health reserves. This is just one theoretical example of what is possible in GW: EN. You will encounter many such situations while exploring the dungeon system. Since you’ll be forming alliances with different groups and characters, you’ll learn a plethora of PvE-only skills that, when combined with your normal abilities, will give you the tools to overcome the situation at hand. While you won’t always be required to use these skills to defeat a tough boss, employing these new tactics and harnessing elements of the environment will definitely give you the upper hand.

 One criticism that often gets leveled at online RPGs is that actions lack consequence. When a follower bites the dust they are just brought back to life in the next zone. Not so in dungeons. Actions have permanence, so if your guide gets crushed by a rock trap, eaten by a monster, or immolated by lava, that’s it. You’re on your own.

 This isn’t to say that if you screw up it’s time to shout, “Game over, man. Game over!” in your best Private Hudson voice. You can still exit a dungeon for another fresh attempt at victory or resurrect your own party members—a useful feature for the more casual player who might not get it right the first time. But while you are in the subterranean confines of a particular dungeon, the rule of consequence applies. In other words, dungeons are chained instances. Despite the many hardships and pitfalls you will encounter, there will be other opportunities for success. You might stumble across a secret prison camp in your travels. Should you choose to free the captives, you will earn new allies that will help you accomplish your goal. It’ll always be possible to trudge ahead regardless of what happens—you’ll just have to figure out the best way forward.

This is just a sample of the exciting features included in Guild Wars: Eye of the North. We’ll share more as the game nears release this fall.

Read the rest of the article here.

Read more about Guild Wars at http://www.guildwars.com.

Elephant Entertainment has announced a pre-sell campaign for Sword of the New World. Players who reserve their copy of the game will receive 10000 Vis and an exclusive character available only in the retail version of the game.

MINNEAPOLIS, MN, June 6, 2007 - As part of its extensive marketing program for the U.S. retail release of Sword of the New World: Granado Espada, a highly acclaimed massively multiplayer online role-playing (MMORPG) video game, Elephant Entertainment, a new publishing company specializing in bringing innovative game and entertainment content to the retail marketplace, today announced that a nationwide pre-sell campaign is currently underway.

Savvy players who reserve their copy of the retail version of the game will not only receive exclusive access to the game's beta program, but 10,000 Vis in their account. "Vis" is the in-game currency for Sword of the New World, and enables players to purchase various items needed for success. As a result, all pre-sell participants will have an automatic advantage over non-participants when they enter the game.

"We've created a great pre-sell program for retailers that not only allows fans to play Sword of the New World before it launches, but gives them a great start in the new world by providing compelling in game assets," said Wim Stocks, CEO and president of Elephant Entertainment. "Sword of the New World is evolutionary in its design as it is the first of its kind to include the Multi Character Control system where players control three characters simultaneously. Add in gorgeous graphics and dynamic gameplay and you'll know why the rest of the world is in love with the game."

Consumers who purchase the retail version of Sword of the New World: Granado Espada will also receive an exclusive character which is only available in retail versions of the game.

Winner of the 2006 Grand Award for Best Game in Korea, Sword of the New World is a fantasy MMORPG whose story is modeled after Europe's exploration of the New World. Already a highly regarded game within the online community, Sword of the New World is the first MMORPG to successfully adapt the Multi-Control Character system - the ability to control three characters simultaneously - resulting in a fast-moving game filled with strategic daring and intense combat, beautiful artistry and baroque-inspired architecture and fashion, large-scale maps and breathtaking graphics.

Sword of the New World: Granado Espada for the PC is scheduled to ship in mid-July for a suggested retail price of $19.99.

Read more about Sword of the New World at www.swordofthenewworld.com.

MMORPG.com is pleased to announce the addition of another new game to our Game List. This time around, it's IGG's Gods War, an MMORPG based around Greek Mythology.

Storyline/Introduction:

Gods War Online is a 3D MMORPG based on Greek Mythology. The story traces back to the mythical age of Greece when the Gods, Human, Demigod, and Monsters existed in the same continent. In this mystic world, you may tour around all the spots described in Mythology to see the solemn Parthenon, you may feel the majesty of famed Greek cities and even access Gods' territory, you may meet with legendary heroes: Heracles, Theseus, Easun...or the Gods of Mythology, and you may even challenge evil Monsters: the Gorgon medusa, and the Hydra...

Gods War Online's Unique Features:

Greek Mythology

Gods War Online is a fantasy-themed game based on Greek Mythology which trace back to the Age of the Demigods. Players will fully appreciate the Hellenistic civilization and meet all admirable gods of that age in the game.

Characteristic Equipment

The majestic random equipment-creating system grants the diversity of equipment. Gems can be used to upgrade equipments. Tie in with the equipment system, the game has released Avatar system supporting various special effects, which allows players to change equipment in the game.

Deity System

There is fane in every city in the game. Players can choose a god for belief. And the belief in god will bless players with different mighty skills and power, with which players can fully experience the excitement in combat.

Colorful Scenes

The brilliant scenes in game will bring players back to the ancient Greece to track the god's...

Game Contents

1. Combat System: Players are able to attack enemy with combo hit.
2. Class System: There are many classes and relevant class conversion system in the game. Players can change their class anytime.
3. Skills and Magical Spells: There are many skills and magical spells in the game which have flowery visual.
4. Faction: There are 2 hostile factions--Athens & Sparta in the game. Players have to choose a faction while creating a character.

Read more about GodsWar here.

Flagship Studios has released new information about the content of the first series of patches for Hellgate: London.

New and previously unknown information about the Future of Hellgate: London and what Flagship Studios has in store for the game's future content and development has surfaced with the recent Asia Launching Party. Full details are as follows:

We will update special events every month

We are hoping to release larger content-based patches every 3-4 months

We intend to focus on the first four Ongoing Patches

Read more about the future of Hellgate: Londonhere.

On the heels of the release of Neocron Evolution 2.2, Reakktor Media has announced that they have a new content package under development for Neocron.

"After the successful release of Neocron Evolution 2.2, a new content package is currently under development. The motto for this update is "Back to the Roots" and it contains the relocation of Dome of York resident factions back to the city of Neocron. The relations between the factions will also be adjusted to create new exciting conflict potential for the players. Besides the adjustments of the game content, all happenings will be presented in form of in-game events and articles in the webzines Neocronicle and Voice of the Resistance."

For more on Neocron visit http://ng.neocron.com/.

The world's only 3D fishing MMO has launched its official website today. The site includes a few screenshots and an in-game video.

San Jose, CA June 5th, 2006 - FishingChamp announced that the official website (fishingchamp.gamescampus.com) has been launched today. Visitors to the website are able to view for the first time the computer graphics video and also the in-game video. The forum is also available for gamers to post comments and communicate with each other. FishingChamp will also be hosting some pre-closed beta contests and a complete description of each event and associated prizes are listed on the website as well.

"The official launch of the FishingChamp website gives visitors a sneak peek into the world's only fishing MMO", said Mike Min, PM of FishingChamp.

Visit the site here.

ArenaNet has announced that the Guild Wars Wiki is now available as part of the game's interface. Players can now get help when lost or stuck on a quest with the click of a button by accessing the community updated wiki.

Guild Wars players who may be stuck on a quest, or can't find a particular location, now have access to the extensive knowledge contained in the official player-contributed Guild Wars Wiki (wiki.GuildWars.com) right from within the game's interface. As part of the latest major update to Guild Wars, ArenaNet rolled out a beta of this in-game interface enhancement to rave reviews from its fans.

While playing most MMORPGs, gamers often need to check external database sites for information on quests, items and locations within their game world. In Guild Wars, players only need to open up their help panel right within the game to instantly see personalized links to current quests they are on, information about their specific skills, and recently visited locations. In addition, the help panel contains links to each player's guild page on the wiki and the pages of other guilds in that player's alliance, as well as guilds that have sent the player invitations or granted them guest privileges.

All of this information is contained on the official Guild Wars Wiki, which is populated and edited completely by the Guild Wars player community.

For more information visit wiki.GuildWars.com.

The release notes for Star Wars Galaxies Chapter 6.2 have been published detailing several game fixes.

Combat:

• Player actions that lack a damage component will no longer make an attack roll; this will prevent friendly targets from dodging friendly actions such as Nutrient Injection or avoiding hostile actions such as Serotonin Purge
• Creature disease attacks now target the action pool rather than the health pool

Beast Master:

Beast Master Trainers have been moved to appropriate locations in:

• Tatooine - Bestine
• Tatooine - Mos Espa
• Tatooine - Mos Eisley
• Corellia - Coronet
• Naboo - Theed

Read the full release notes here.

The original press release that was posted this morning saying that the release date for Shores of Evendim is on the 13th was in error.  Shortly after the story went up, Codemasters Online Gaming sent out a correction stating that the actual release date is Thursday June 14th.  Hope that clears up any confusion.

The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar official site has been updated with a summarized history of the leader of the Nazgûl and Lord of Minas Morgul, the Witch-King.

In the latter days of the Second Age, nine kings of Men fell under the sway of Sauron, who promised them Rings that would give them great power. The greatest of the Nine was the Witch-king, a ruthless sorcerer who used his Ring to further his own personal ambitions. The Rings, however, were a trick, and corrupted them, drawing them from the living world and turning them into the Nazgûl, the Ringwraiths. The Witch-king became their Captain, and served Sauron until the Dark Lord's defeat in the war against the Last Alliance of Elves and Men.

For more than a thousand years after Sauron's disappearance, the Witch-king and the other Nazgûl disappeared from Middle-earth. When their master returned in disguise at Dol Guldur, however, they resurfaced, and the Witch-king travelled north to found the realm of Angmar and make war against the North-kingdom of Arnor. With an army of orcs, evil Men, and other foul creatures at his command, he corrupted the kingdom of Rhudaur, destroyed Cardolan, and brought down the great Tower at Amon Sûl. Finally, his forces besieged Fornost, the capital of Arthedain, and conquered the North-kingdom at last.

His victory was short-lived, however, for an army of Men and Elves, led by Eärnur of Gondor and the Elf-lord Glorfindel, joined the survivors of Arnor and made war on the Fields of Fornost, west of the once-proud city. The armies of Angmar were destroyed, and the Witch-king fled south to Mordor. Angmar fell to ruin, but Glorfindel prophesied that while the Witch-king was defeated, his doom would not come for some time, and not at the hand of man.

Read more about the Witch-King here.

Inixsoft has announced that the duel system for KAL Online is now open.

Folks, We are pleased to announce that Kalonline opens duel system. Players can fight (1:1, 3:3, 6:6) with other players in Duel Tournament. By this tournament, players can grow their strategy of fight and have fun. Plus, you can get honor points as well.

In order to participate in this tournament, you have to register in advance by talking to NPC in the game. Duel matches open every Sunday and all people can watch matches.

Read more about the duel system here.

Turbine and Codemasters Online Gaming have released details about their first free content update for Lord of the Rings Online. The Shores of Evendim will be open to adventurers on June 14th and will feature 100 new quests, the Battle for Helegrod raid, updates to the music system and much more.

WESTWOOD, MA - June 5, 2007 - Today, Turbine, Inc. and Codemasters Online Gaming announced the details of the first free update for subscribers to The Lord of the Rings Online(TM): Shadows of Angmar(TM), the #1 selling PC title in North America, Germany, UK and France. Book 9: Shores of Evendim, the first of many planned free updates to the world of Middle-earth, introduces an entirely new landscape region, over 100 additional quests, the battle for Helegrod raid, nine new monsters and major enhancements to monster play and the music system. The Lord of the Rings Online has been enthusiastically received by many gaming critics, including The New York Times, USA Today, Yahoo!, PC Gamer, GameSpot and Game Informer in the US as well as The Sunday Times, The Guardian, CVG, Eurogamer, PC Juegos and 4Gamers in Europe.

As the Fellowship prepares to leave Rivendell, Aragorn must re-forge Narsil, the Sword of Elendil. Gandalf has asked for help in Aragorn's search of the lands of Evendim for an ancient jewel that once belonged in the sword's hilt. This powerful relic must be recovered before the Dark Lord Sauron finds it. Players are challenged to secure the valuables of the abandoned city, defy Angmar's encroaching grip on Annúminas, and aid Aragorn in his quest to re-forge Narsil.

Beginning June 14th, heroes can adventure to the Shores of Evendim, the first of many free updates to The Lord of the Rings Online.

NEW FEATURES:

Discover Evendim - About 100 miles north of the Shire, in northern Eriador, lies Evendim, a vast region dominated by the Lake Nenuial, the 'Lake of the Twilight'. On the southern shore, the ancient abandoned city of Annúminas - the former capital of the kingdom of Arnor - is well known amongst the Free Peoples. For according to the Legends, amidst its ruins lay a great wealth and powerful artifacts now threatened by evil creatures and the nefarious forces lurking in Angmar.

Over 100 New Quests - The story continues for players as they aid the Fellowship and encounter new adventures, characters and monsters including the Rogmûl!

Raid in the Battle for Helegrod - Challege the fearsome dragon Thorog in a massive 24-player raid in the Misty Mountains.

Major Updates to the Music System - In addition to the new percussion and bass instruments, players can now utilize a new music notation system that enables them to compose music offline and upload it to your character in-game.

New Collecti