Issue 57: Good News Everyone! The end of the world is upon us! Those silly Mayans have predicted that the world will end next Friday because that’s when there calendar ends. Makes sense to me. So if you’re not hiding in some bunker somewhere or seeking protection from some mystical mountain in France, check out these headlines. You can take comfort in knowing that even though these games exist in a virtual, fictional world, there is more fact in these headlines then any prediction from an extinct civilization.
Funcom is taking the “end of the world’ lightheartedly with a video made by their creative director that resulted in a pleasant surprise for folks that enjoy that MMO. New game updates for SWTOR, more cool “ninja stuff” for Age of Wushu and more. Read on and game on, friends!
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beta! Age of Wushu Will Have Open Closed Beta
Posted 12/13/12 – I didn’t typo that title. The next round of closed beta testing (on December 20th) will be open to everyone, for a short time. Starting December 20th, anyone and everyone will have 10 hours to beta test the game. After those 10 hours, if you haven’t purchased a deluxe edition then you will be capped at one hour per day for the rest of the beta.
Massively post
New Title! Wizardry Online Goes Live January 16th
Posted 12/13/12 – Sony Online Entertainment has announced that their new hardcore MMO, Wizardry Online, will launch January 16th. If you are not familiar with this MMO, it has some unusual MMO mechanics. Two of the more noticeable mechanics are permadeath and friendly fire (which is why this MMO is labled as hardcore). The beta for this game is currently running so I guess things are doing well. Follow the link below to read more about this title.
Massively post
Transformers Universe Closed Beta Starts
Posted 12/12/12 – While Jagex has not provided an official release date for this browser-based MMO, the closed beta has officially begun. In fact Jagex has also launched the MMOs official website (which looks similar to the old one) where you can go to register for the beta. I have also heard that Jagex is changing the format of this game from an RPG to an MOBA (Massive Online Battle Arena). The link below also contains a trailer so check it out if you like.
ScienceFiction.com post | Official MMO Website
Age of Wushu’s Fourth School: Wudang
Posted 12/12/12 – The fourth school, Wudang School, has been unveiled for the upcoming Age of Wushu MMO. This school focuses more on the balance of mind and body while also incorporating a sword as a deadly extension of your body. The following link has three videos demonstrated three different types of sword combat, breeze, yin yang and taiji.
Massively post
SWTOR Game Update 1.6 Is Live!
Posted 12/11/12 – The Ancient Hypergate is live. As Bioware promised, new content for SWTOR is coming out more regularly and hopefully that keeps the gamers sated. The Ancient Hypergate is a new PvP Warzone, there are new repeatable heroic space missions for level 50 players and some additional game tweaks. See the links below to see the 1.6 trailer and the complete patch notes.
Massively post | Patch Notes
Firefall FPS MMO Review (with footage)
Posted 12/10/12 – I posted this because the author of the article seemed pretty excited about the gameplay of this First Person Shooter MMO style game called “Firefall”. I watched the video (though with no sound) and the game play looks pretty smooth for a Free-2-Play title. Check out the article and the video and see what you think.
The Inquisitr article
TSW To End Subs For End Of World? Yes.
Posted 12/10/12 – Funcom might be hinting that its modern world MMO, The Secret World, might be lifting its subscription requirements. Their most recent press release has a video of creative director Joel Bylos freaking out about the mythical “end of the world” and thus tries to convince management to remove the subscription from the game. Many are predicting that it will be another 10 day free trial but I think the video suggests removing subscriptions altogether. Check it and see what you think. [UPDATED: TSW has officially removed subscriptions (so you still need to buy the game), see second link . I would still check out the first link to see the video that led to this annoucement].
Massively post | Massively post
I also provide The MMO Times in an e-mail. If you are interested in receiving the e-mail version please click here to subscribe.