MMORPG Focus

	World of Warcraft: Cataclysm - A look at the upcoming expansion to the #1 MMORPG

Mar 06, 2010 - 1:29 PM

Article by MMORPGFocus Staff This content is copyright MMORPGFocus.com and may only be reproduced by giving clear credit to the original source and a clear link to this website. mmorpgfocus and the mmorpgfocus logo are registered US trademarks and may not be used unless it is in conjunction with a link to our content. For those who don't know, the third World of Warcraft expansion after Burning Crusade and Wrath of the Lich King will be Cataclysm. It was first announced in August at BlizzCon 2009 to wide-eyed audiences, completel. Work has not only already started on it, but things look to be well under way from a design standpoint. So far most early reports place the third expansion's main action around the Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor, with several interesting new additions that will no doubt bring something different to the game. Let's get the story out of the way first: The lore of the upcoming expansion is spun around a mainstay of Warcraft storylines. Being an older character, he only makes his first World of Warcraft appearance in Wrath of the Lich King though. So who is this venerable character? I am talking of course, about the dragon called Deathwing. According to the story, Deathwing the Destroyer used to be a black wyrm named Neltharion. Charged by a Titan to look over the world, he was transformed into a Dragon Aspect, fulfilling his responsibilities and earning the respect of the people of Azeroth. However, during an epic battle, his mind was warped and as a result he turned against his fellow Aspects, betraying his own people. His new life had now made him evil, leading him into great conflicts until the Dragon Aspects reappeared to retaliate against him. Their resurgence and a showdown caused him to go into hiding. The Cataclysm expansion starts off at this point, revealing his hiding place to have been Deepholm in the Elemental Plane, where he rested until he was finally ready to come back to Azeroth. His dramatic return to Azeroth and its effects are what cause the Cataclysm. Parts of the Eastern Kingdoms are destroyed, razed to the ground by fires or the elements that result from... [Read More]

	World of Warcraft March 2010: A look at recent developments and upcoming patches.

Feb 28, 2010 - 11:46 AM

Article by Skion, MMORPGFocus Staff Writer This content is copyright MMORPGFocus.com and may only be reproduced by giving clear credit to the original source and a clear link to this website. mmorpgfocus and the mmorpgfocus logo are registered US trademarks and may not be used unless it is in conjunction with a link to our content. Last week word leaked out that Icecrown Citadel, that ominous fortress up in the frozen wastes would be the last major raid instance, at least for the Wrath of the Lich King expansion. One of the Community Managers had made it quite clear on the forum that any further tiered raid instances would have to wait for the next big WoW expansion, effectively marking this point the end of the road for tiered raid instances for Wrath of the Lich King. It's been one year and three months since Wrath of the Lich King was released and we are already seeing some of the best guilds looking to conquer Icecrown. With 10 months to go till 2011, and several months till the expansion, we have to ask- what's next for the players? There's obviously the expansion which has got a lot of people excited, and we're already on top of that one- just go take a look at our Cataclysm article for some juicy details. From the devs though, it looks like they are still looking at Icecrown and eliciting user feedback. Blizzard recently announced a Twitter chat for players, specifically looking to talk with players about Icecrown and Fall of the Lich King. Transcripts have been floating around the web, so those of you who missed the chat, go check it out! Topics that were covered range from the upcoming expansion to an overall look back at the Wrath of the Lich King and how it was implemented. The devs discussed aspects of the expansion that they would have liked to change or add into WOTLK, such as more battlegrounds for Northrend and adjusting the emblem system. PvP is always a big topic both for the players and the devs, but they didn't really say too much about it other than "more battlegrounds". Classes got a lot of attention however, with the devs... [Read More]

	Op-Ed: A Look Back At the MMORPG Aion

Feb 22, 2010 - 4:55 AM

Article by Skion, MMORPGFocus Staff Writer This content is copyright MMORPGFocus.com and may only be reproduced by giving clear credit to the original source and a clear link to this website. mmorpgfocus and the mmorpgfocus logo are registered US trademarks and may not be used unless it is in conjunction with a link to our content. Aion (known in Korea as Aion: The Tower of Eternity) was released into the Korean market in late November of 2008. The game looked to have enough potential that Aion developers NCSoft decided it was ready to hit the world market. NCSoft was and still is a big name in the MMO-publishing business, with a lot of experience under their belt and successes on their score-sheet. They worked with all three Lineage games, the award-winning MMO Guild Wars and its eagerly-anticipated sequel Guild Wars 2. Their names were also on City of Heroes. They are currently working on Blade & Soul, slated to launch on Windows and the PS3. Clearly the folks at NCSoft had a lot of experience under their belt. It should come to no surprise then, that the launch into North America and Europe went as smoothly as one could hope, 11 months after its release in Korea. The reception in the US was pretty good. Or really good, depending on who you ask. The number one standout feature that people noticed from the get-go were the phenomenally good graphics and huge set of character-customization options. The game environment was created with the same engine that was used with the beautifully crafted Far Cry games, and no wonder. People were drawn in, at least initially by the brilliant first-impression as they created their character and got it going into the game-world. Really, it's difficult to overstate how much of an impact the visuals had on peoples opinions of this game- calling it an industry-first would hardly be an exaggeration. The team behind Aion are well-aware of the importance of the graphics element to the Aion brand, and have already... [Read More]

	Mobile MMORPGs: Getting your MMO fix on the go!

Feb 10, 2010 - 12:19 PM

Article by Skion, MMORPGFocus Staff Writer This content is copyright MMORPGFocus.com and may only be reproduced by giving clear credit to the original source and a clear link to this website. mmorpgfocus and the mmorpgfocus logo are registered US trademarks and may not be used independently in any way, unless in conjunction with a link to our content. With the rise of smart-phones, computers and the internet have a brand-new niche to explore. With that territory comes the prospect of online games servicing the smart-phone user base to boost their revenue, increase their presence and visibility, or simply to make the game a better experience for existing subscribers. In this article, we will look at how the smart-phone changed the game in an industry that in many ways wasn't ready for it. Many were looking forward to it, but I don't think anyone 10 years ago would have predicted the shape of the game to look like this. We will look at some games that are exploring the smart-phone industry and look forward to more exciting developments. Even if you've been living under a rock for the past few years, you've probably heard of the explosion of the smart-phone industry over recent years. As technology advances, more and more companies and customers are seeing the potential benefits of incorporating technological know-how into phones. Slowly, the humble cellular device started adding on the features- data entry and storage, text messaging, cameras, videos- you name it, the cell-phone companies tried it. By far however, the biggest game-changer in the cell-phone business is the smart phone. Adding PC-like capabilities- processors, quality screens, keyboards, memory and software, these smart phones allowed users to use their phone's capabilities to replicate tasks and activities that were previously undertaken on the computer. They could now surf the web, use email, download, upload, transmit, run applications, even play games. Consumers were happy, service providers... [Read More]

	Gamer iReport: Confessions of a Elementalist Mage Addict!

Feb 02, 2010 - 5:57 PM

Article by Cindemz, MMORPGFocus Staff Writer This content is copyright MMORPGFocus.com and may only be reproduced by giving clear credit to the original source and a clear link to this website. mmorpgfocus and the mmorpgfocus logo are registered US trademarks and may not be used independently in any way, unless in conjunction with a link to our content. MMORPGFocus.com loves to feature diverse viewpoints from different segments of the MMORPG audience, we call these "Gamer iReports." Here we share an Asian player's experience who happens to only play the Mage/Elementalist archetype. He tells us why below: Gamer iReport I've decided to assemble a collection of some of the online games I played that have an elementalist on their series of classes. Elementalists are spellcasters who focus on the elements, particularly their destructive powers. Ever since I started playing MMORPGs, I always chose the elementalist archetype class, I like them not only because they possess magnificent power but also because they are the tempting class when it comes to beauty and glamour. Prepare yourself for a large array of elementalists! A few of many games where I have tried the Mage: Guild Wars It is described that elementalists in Guild Wars are the masters of arcane lore and magical aptitude that can control the power of all the elements; this surely fits the archetype. They can summon the power of fire, wherein they send scorching flames and fireballs at enemies. They can burn the enemies through molten lavas and you can’t hide yourself from their meteors. With their power of the earth they can summon devastating earthquakes, can trap enemies in a stone so they cannot get away. Similarly they can also slow the movement speed and attacks of enemies with their power of controlling the water element. They have attributes that can control the duration and effectiveness of the element that they possess. What else can a Mage loving player ask for? They are weak when it comes to defenses but they are the master of superb offensive power. Granado... [Read More]

	Age of Conan: Hyborean Adventures Named Most Improved MMORPG of 2009

Jan 29, 2010 - 6:25 AM

Article by Skion, MMORPGFocus Staff Writer This content is copyright MMORPGFocus.com and may only be reproduced by giving clear credit to the original source and a clear link to this website. mmorpgfocus and the mmorpgfocus logo are registered US trademarks and may not be used independently in any way, unless in conjunction with a link to our content. The 2009 MMORPG.com awards are out, and an it looks like a surprise winner for the "Most Improved Game of 2009" category- Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures went home with the title on this one. Age of Conan was one of the most polarizing games to hit the MMO scene upon it's launched. Hyped by media attention and a big-budget team (Funcom), many considered it one of the most-anticipated MMOs of 2008. Praised by many for its beautiful visuals, from lush environments to stunning character detail, an immersive storyline, it looked like Age of Conan was set to take the MMO world by storm. Certainly the provocative advertising and massive marketing budget would help, right? Well, not quite. All was not well in the land of Hyboria (or Funcom, rather). Despite the heaping of praise and the generous helpings of PvP goodness, (the real-time combat was highly touted, and still considered a bold and interesting take on PvP) numerous reports of buggy gameplay, glitches and errors gradually began to surface, starting in beta. Some complained that the game felt unfinished and unpolished, many others- that the endgame was virtually non-existent. Clearly these problems were not given adequate attention when release came around and the first few months of gameplay came and went. Even PvP, when taken to its limits exposed unintended consequences that players were not entirely happy with. It was at this stage that Funcom and Age of Conan slowly started to take on negative press. Some painted the game as a poster-child for superficial games- ones that had amazing graphics and visual effects, cleavage and bloody violence, but little else. The crowd was slowly turning against them. ... [Read More]

	MMORPG Politics in China, the case of World of Warcraft

Jan 26, 2010 - 3:07 AM

Article by Skion, MMORPGFocus Staff Writer This content is copyright MMORPGFocus.com and may only be reproduced by giving clear credit to the original source and a clear link to this website. mmorpgfocus and the mmorpgfocus logo are registered US trademarks and may not be used independently in any way, unless in conjunction with a link to our content. World of Warcraft has always been a big hit on the mainland. However, a culture-clash was always predictable as the American Blizzard Entertainment Inc. that designed World of Warcraft had to cater to the specifications of the Chinese market- they had to adapt to the language, culture as well as specific behaviors and values that shaped the experience of gamers from China. Still, an estimated 3.5 to 4 million people actively play WoW in China, and parent company Activision is estimated to garner nearly 8% of their revenue from Chinese World of Warcraft subscribers. All in all, the Chinese market is an appealing one for Activision and World of Warcraft in particular. It's place in Chinese cyber-culture has been cemented, with an assortment of upstart Chinese MMOs taking their inspiration from WoW's almost mythical reputation and success in China. If you've played WoW, I'm sure you've probably come across more than one Chinese gold-farmers. These guys pay the bills by "working" online, a scheme that can be summarily described as grinding for money. Indeed, WoW had to tackle It's this and other unique traits that define the experience of the Chinese gamer. The Chinese market had put up another obstacle for WoW in China recently- that of national video game regulations. China has come down hard on video games in recent years as the "online-game pandemic" has gripped Chinese society- there were reports of regulating playing-time to combat MMO addiction (three-hours a day). There were also reports of monitoring gaming content to ensure that appropriate values were being promoted through the gameplay. WoW's previous operator had allegedly attempted to censor player conversations within the game. WoW itself had faced a few problems with their prior Chinese operator The9,... [Read More]

	Conquer MMORPG: Class guide Part 2

Jan 22, 2010 - 10:53 AM

B]Article by Skion, MMORPGFocus Staff Writer[/B] This content is copyright MMORPGFocus.com and may only be reproduced by giving clear credit to the original source and a clear link to this website. mmorpgfocus and the mmorpgfocus logo are registered US trademarks and may not be used independently in any way, unless in conjunction with a link to our content. Part 2 of this guide will go over Water Taos, Fire Taos and Ninjas. This guide in its entirety should help new players make the best decision when picking classes and understanding how they work in PvP. The Water Tao The Water Tao (commonly just called Water(s)) are the only healing/support class in the game. They are a magic-based class with a variety of support spells, some more useful than others. The three most important support spells that waters will use are Pray (a Revive spell that resurrects dead characters. Learned at level 70), Advanced Cure (healing spell learned at level 81), and Stigma (physical-damage boosting buff learned at level 55). Waters are a vital class in Guild Wars, capable of turning the tide of battle at any moment. They are a very difficult class to level on their own, but receive bonus leveling experience rates that can be stacked for quick leveling, at least to level 110. A great choice if you are the non-violent type who prefers to heal, shield and keep your team alive in battles. The Fire Tao Fire Taos possess great damage dealing ability with their magic spells, but it comes at a price. Fire Taos are very difficult and expensive to level due to the constant need for mana potions. However if well-equipped, Fire Taos can cause a headache for anyone who stands in their way. Fire Taos, along with Trojans were considered the two best PvP classes in the game, and they are both depicted as arch-enemies. Each approaching combat in a very different way; While Trojans depend on aiming skill, luck and speed to land their deadly blow, Fire Taos can cast spells from afar, raining down painful damage on characters with low magic-defense. This sometimes leads to tension among players of one class who accuse the other of being inferior. The... [Read More]

	Conquer MMORPG Online: Class guide Part 1

Jan 19, 2010 - 7:04 PM

Article by Skion, MMORPGFocus Staff Writer This content is copyright MMORPGFocus.com and may only be reproduced by giving clear credit to the original source and a clear link to this website. mmorpgfocus and the mmorpgfocus logo are registered US trademarks and may not be used independently in any way, unless in conjunction with a link to our content. Conquer Online is a free-to-play 2.5D MMO developed by TQ Digital. With many claiming it has one of the most fun PvP elements in any 2.5D game, I feel obliged to create a guide that will explain the pros and cons of Conquer Online's various classes and how they relate to the PvP system. Part 1 of this guide will go over Trojans, Warriors and Archers. This guide in its entirety should help new players make the best decision when picking classes and understanding how they work in PvP. There are six classes in Conquer Online, the Trojan, the Warrior, the Archer, the Water Tao, the Fire Tao, and the Ninja. Each class has their own nuances, and we will look at a short description of the class and what sets them apart in PvP. The Trojan No, it's not a contraceptive, it's a character class. The Trojan is a class with it's own benefits and drawbacks. Trojans get an intrinsic HP bonus, which gives them the most HP of any class before rebirth. Trojans are the first in-game class with the ability to wield two one-handed melee weapons, giving more attack power than other classes. The downside to Trojans is their low magic-defense, particularly when wearing coronets. This leaves them vulnerable to magic classes, particularly Fire Taos. In many ways, the Ninja class nerfed the advantages of the Trojan. However, Trojans still maintain an aura of respect thanks to their one-hit power and because of the skill required to play well. The Warrior The Warrior is a strange class. Most people overlook warriors for PvP, preferring them for their levelling ability- warriors can level much faster than any other class thanks to their superman skill. They are considered the melee companion of trojans, although their damage is significantly weaker. Warriors were... [Read More]

	AfterWorld - MMORPG Sneak Peek

Jan 16, 2010 - 10:46 PM

Article by Skion, MMORPGFocus Staff Writer This content is copyright MMORPGFocus.com and may only be reproduced by giving clear credit to the original source and a clear link to this website. mmorpgfocus and the mmorpgfocus logo are registered US trademarks and may not be used independently in any way, unless in conjunction with a link to our content. AfterWorld (not to be confused with the sci-fi series bearing the same name) bills itself as the first virtual world with a real free market economy. What will it take to put these guys in charge of the American economy? Political jokes aside though, here's what we know- AfterWorld looks very interesting. It's developed by 10tacle Studios, a Russian game studio. AfterWorld is a 3-D MMO set in a post-apocalyptic time period, contrasting high-technology with a rustic almost downtrodden atmosphere. The game looks to be well into development, with the client already in late alpha stage. Client download and registration is open to the public under the Download section of the website. The game's story is very cryptic, allowing the reader to make sense of it as well as they can. As far as I can tell, there are a number of simultaneous occurrences that have an impact on the world's history starting a mere 20 years from now. An extra-terrestrial spacecraft approaches the Earth's surface and communicates with someone in a complex, encrypted format. The local government is on high-alert, suspicious of anyone who tries to investigate. It is unclear at first whether the government themselves are communicating with this spacecraft, or whether they are looking for someone who is. Regardless, the story indicates that this communication has gone on for a long time, and was only just recently discovered. I know it's just a story, but that's a really frightening possibility, in a good way. Could you imagine people living on earth who have been talking to aliens for a long time without anyone else knowing? It's not like that's the only thing that happened- A doctor who somehow reminded me of Nazi doctor Mengele developed nanobot brain implants,... [Read More]

	All Points Bulletin MMORPG Game Preview

Jan 14, 2010 - 4:49 AM

Article by Skion, MMORPGFocus Staff Writer This content is copyright MMORPGFocus.com and may only be reproduced by giving clear credit to the original source and a clear link to this website. mmorpgfocus and the mmorpgfocus logo are registered US trademarks and may not be used independently in any way, unless in conjunction with a link to our content. Step aside, fantasy RPGs, there is a new genre making inroads in the world of MMORPGs! All Points Bulletin is yet another online game (they don't consider themselves a typical MMO) that decides to shun ancient lands, robes and magical spells, going for a modern, gritty, urban landscape more reminiscent of Grand Theft Auto than anything else. The game is still in development, with a launch date for North America and Europe set around Spring 2010, and from what little we know, this game promises to be a killer! Set in the fictional city of San Paro, the game is described as a living, breathing city, replete with civilians and vehicles going about their business. It is into this urban jungle that the players are introduced, handed the task of building their own personal legacies of fame, fortune and respect. Players will join one of two factions, the Criminals and the Enforcers as they fight over money and control of land in an attempt to dominate their turf. The game has an interesting good-versus-evil angle, giving the player the choice of siding with the Criminal population, who create chaos wherever they go, or the Enforcers, who are dedicated to protecting and serving the civilians. The art style is certainly eye-catching and edgy, with stylish graffiti and street art. The players look equally good, with a mix of unique fashion elements, from hip-hop to goth and punk-style clothing. Military camo and various urban styles along with tattoos and punk hairstyles give the characters a gritty edge and great potential for character customization. Vehicle-based gameplay makes a strong appearance in the game, with various cars, complete with shiny paint-jobs, racing stripes and flames as they zoom down the street. The third-person view really gives the player an advantage in the visual area because... [Read More]