warlords_patch_header_580Issue 104: Greetings Gamers! I can’t believe its already August and summer is nearly over. The daystar has only been cruel (for me) just a couple of times this summer. It has definitely been hotter in the past. So as the summer wanes we get ready for the fall festivities which includes Blizzcon 2014 and Football (not that black and white ball kind either – REAL Football)! I’ve tried to participate more in the beta invites I’ve received but its been difficult to find the time for beta testing between WoW, SWTOR, work, and real life. I do think that Heroes of the Storm will be a popular game for fans of that type of format. 

So what is exciting in this issue. There are talks of a genre conversion to MMO style for a popular title. There is some expansion news for STO, RIFT and of course WoW. In fact we are supposed to hear the official release date for Warlords of Draenor very soon. Speaking of World of Warcraft, the 10th year anniversary is coming up and Blizzard has some exciting plans in store for that! As summer wanes the gaming is heating up  so check out these headlines while you sit in that dungeon finder queue.

Fallout 4 An MMO?

Posted 8.2.14 – Apparently the director for the next chapter in the Fallout franchise is considering some MMO features for the game. I don’t know if this means Fallout4 will be a full on MMO or if they are just going to introduce some MMO mechanics. I guess it depends on what your definition of MMO is or what you think of when you hear that term associated with a game. Sometimes I immediately think MMORPG but MMO and RPG are not necessarily mutually inclusive. Technically a game can be one and not the other. This is an interesting article if you are a fan of the Fallout franchise. What are your thoughts on it?
Air Herald article

WoD Release Date Announcement

Posted 8.4.14 – Blizzard has decided to tease all of us by dangling the announcement of the Warlords of Draenor release date before our very anxious eyes. They will be making the announcement on August 14th during a live stream event with a couple of the Blizzard execs (including Mike Morhaime). Furthermore, not only will they tell us the release date for the next expansion but they will also unveil the expansions cinematic. I’m sure, like all their other expansion cinematics, this one will be just as epic and will have all of us experiencing nerd-gasms. What is your release date prediction?
WoW Insider post

STO Expansion Talks

Posted 8.5.14 – The Star Trek Las Vegas convention treated fans to details of an upcoming expansion for Star Trek Online. Allegedly the name of the expansion will be called Delta Rising and will, obviously, take place in the Delta Quadrant. There is a link to a Reddit post that has a compiled list of potential features coming in the expansion but the most noteworthy would probably be the level cap increase to 60 and, of course, new Tier 6 ships to unlock. After all, it wouldn’t be Star Trek if you couldn’t fly a starship. Apparently there will be some Voyager inspired interiors and Intrepid models as well as some surprise guest voiceovers. It sounds like a pretty existing expansion. [Updated: 8.7.14 – Cryptic Officially Announced Delta Rising]
Massively post

circledArrowRIFT Patch 2.8 Live

Posted 8.6.14 – RIFT players can now download and plat the Madness Wakes 2.8 patch which will prepare everyone for the upcoming expansion. There are new quests that will advance the storyline leading to the premise of the next expansion. Unlike Blizzard, it looks like RIFT is trying to give players something more to do while they await their next big content expansion. There are also some changes to the Pyromancer soul and a new five-player level 60 dungeon. There are links to the full patch notes in the Massively post.
Massively post

WoW’s 10 Year Anniversary Celebration

Posted 8.6.14 – Can you believe that WoW will be 10 years old this November! Blizzard is going to celebrate its decade of dungeoning by offering players several nostalgic in-game events. There will be a 40-man raid finder for Molten Core available only for max level characters. I cannot even imagine a 40 man raid (I hadn’t played vanilla long enough to make it to max level before BC), let alone a 40-man LFR. I may have to try it at least once, but I probably won’t make it a habit. There will also be a special battleground to relive the old Tarren Mill vs Southshore days. Finally, pet lovers will squeal when they see what Blizzard will be giving out to all who log in (hint: we have seen this rumored pet before). See the links below to read more about the festivities.
Massively post | Official blog post
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