Noki Blog

My Spirit Animals: Daria Morgendorffer.

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 15:01:09 -0400

My Spirit Animals: Daria Morgendorffer.

A look at the freeform progression... (reddit)

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 09:06:39 -0400

A look at the freeform progression... (reddit):

One of the things I am most interested in for TSW is the freeform progression utilizing an ability wheel.

There are no classes or levels, you just gain ability points (AP) as you kill things and do quests, spending them however you wish to progress through the 525 unique active and passive abilities.

But how does all this work?

Poster Remake | [Inglourious Basterds] - asked by fiercemichi

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 14:49:53 -0400

Poster Remake | [Inglourious Basterds] - asked by fiercemichi

PAX East 2012: Exploring the dark corners of The Secret World (massively)

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 11:32:00 -0400

PAX East 2012: Exploring the dark corners of The Secret World (massively):

As anyone around the Massively offices can tell you, I am eagerly-bordering-on-obsessively awaiting the release of Funcom’s latest entry into the MMO market, The Secret World. I’m all about the supernatural, occult, and paranormal, and The Secret World’s “all the myths are true” philosophy is right up my alley, so when I heard that there would be a playable demo at PAX East 2012, it was all I could do not to squeal like a 12-year-old girl (and I may have done so anyway).

forlovingandforsayingso: Joss Whedon AMA

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 18:16:22 -0400

forlovingandforsayingso:

Joss Whedon AMA

Photo

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 18:06:15 -0400

TotD (April 10th, 2012)

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 18:04:33 -0400

The Secret World Forums

What are you looking forward to the most?

Joystiq

I am in closed beta. AMA.

Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes is open for business... er, beta (joystiq.com)

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 17:56:00 -0400

Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes is open for business... er, beta (joystiq.com):

Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes entered open beta today, available through the Wrath of Heroes website. Wrath of Heroes is a free-to-play PVP title based on BioWare’s MMO of the same-ish title, Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning.

Wrath of Heroes offers three-sided, six-player arena combat (for a total of 18 players), each battle lasting an “intense” 15 minutes, the press release promises. We’re not sure how minutes can be intense, but we assume counting each second in audible caps lock does the trick.

I am in closed beta. AMA.

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 13:27:00 -0400

I am in closed beta. AMA.:

I wonder where this will go…

The Secret World Previews: PAX East – Skills and Chaos Magic (mmorpg.com)

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 12:29:00 -0400

The Secret World Previews: PAX East – Skills and Chaos Magic (mmorpg.com):

During PAX East 2012 this year, I finally had time to sit down and actually get my hands on Funcom’s The Secret World. It wasn’t a long demo time, but what I did play, I immediately loved. Nothing like running around Kingsmouth (perfect New England-esque setting for a Boston convention) shooting things with my rifle and whipping out my chaos magic to make me get really amped up for a horror MMORPG. It’s fast, fluid, and fun to switch between wielding the ranged rifle and more up-close AOE magic like Chaos.

Video: PAX East 2012 - The Secret World Skills and Combat Preview - MMORPG.com
Read the full article…

TotD (April 9th, 2012)

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 18:01:00 -0400

The Secret World Forums

MMORPG.com

So I got to try The Secret World at PAX

Grand Master Pack for $199 worth it?

Alice Liddell (Alice: Madness Returns) on Zodiac by...

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 16:30:00 -0400

Alice Liddell (Alice: Madness Returns) on Zodiac by AnnaPostal666.

The Secret World - PAX EAST 2012, Day 3 PAX EAST 2012 is over,...

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 15:28:00 -0400

The Secret World - PAX EAST 2012, Day 3

PAX EAST 2012 is over, and we wrap it up with our THIRD and FINAL videocast from the show floor. In this episode we have a quick chat with Community Manager Glen ‘Famine’ Swan, and we also take a special look at the ability wheel and progression system in the game. We also check in with some of our booth visitors to see what secret society they swear allegiance to! Make sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter where you will find photos and other updates from our presence at PAX EAST 2012.

The List: The Best of PAX East 2012 Awards (mmorpg.com)

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 12:19:00 -0400

The List: The Best of PAX East 2012 Awards (mmorpg.com):

The Secret World takes home:

GAME OF SHOW (Runner-Up)
MOST INNOVATIVE (Winner)

Vanguard: Screenshots from level 1 to 13

Sun, 08 Apr 2012 19:25:00 -0400

Vanguard: Screenshots from level 1 to 13:

Vanguard: Segue

Sun, 08 Apr 2012 17:16:00 -0400

To tide me over until Guild Wars 2 and The Secret World, I’ve spent roughly twenty hours checking in on Vanguard: Saga of Heroes.

Vanguard has had an interesting history, largely shrouded in a cloud of issues and controversy. Released back in 2007 (development started in 2002), the game was crippled by bugs and extremely high system requirements that would make even the beefiest of machines sweat.

The result of these and many other issues left Vanguard with an incredibly small, but dedicated player base. For those logging in today, the game is far more stable. I can easily crank up the settings to max, running at 2560x1600 (note: $1k build).

In my brief time…

As of Game Update 6, Vanguard gives you a choice between an original starting area, or Isle of Dawn; an introductory zone that makes it far easier to find people and learn the game. Though this zone is meant to ease a rather daunting learning curve, I still found myself lost with the Diplomacy part of the game - think CCG i.e. Magic: The Gathering.

Speaking of Diplomacy, Vanguard has several areas for which your character can advance. These are also known as spheres.

Adventuring
Crafting
Diplomacy
Harvesting

It is possible to level each of these spheres independent of one another, allowing the player to choose their path to level 55. Though I’ve spent quite a bit of time with crafting, I’ve decided to focus primarily on adventuring with my bard.

What I love…

You receive attribute points to spend, while you level. Breaking up this ‘ding’ mechanic (bulk rewards at level vs. incremental rewards) is great.
Open, open, open world. On max settings, the view distance is awesome. I can not stress enough how important an open world is when immersing yourself in an MMO. This isn’t a themepark. Because the game doesn’t funnel the player, I feel less inclined to grind myself to endgame. Exploration is a blast.
Though I’ve had a hard time with Diplomacy (and haven’t spent much time with it), I think the idea is great and deep.
Crafting is fun, complex, and rewarding. Though I started ignoring complications around level 4, I wonder if they have a greater impact later in the game.
Overall, the game is complex and difficult. Rewards feel earned.
Though small, the mature community simply rocks.

What I hate…

Though graphics are high end, the art direction is largely uneven in quality. Spell effects are boring and underwater environments are desolate. To the game’s credit, many areas do look great.
Rain doesn’t render correctly on high resolutions. This appears to be a problem with Vista/7. Rain does render… it’s just super, super tiny.
Unfortunately, the game wasn’t designed with PvP as a core game system. Character classes are incredibly diverse, but unbalanced. In my opinion, FFA servers don’t work (which have been closed).

With SOE planning F2P this summer and the Vanguard team ramping up content patches, the player base will sizeably grow. It’s a great time to call Telon home and I hope gamers will give this now-gem a shot.

Noki Blog

My Spirit Animals: Daria Morgendorffer.

A look at the freeform progression... (reddit)

Poster Remake | [Inglourious Basterds] - asked by fiercemichi

PAX East 2012: Exploring the dark corners of The Secret World (massively)

forlovingandforsayingso: Joss Whedon AMA

Photo

TotD (April 10th, 2012)

The Secret World Forums

Joystiq

Reddit

Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes is open for business... er, beta (joystiq.com)

I am in closed beta. AMA.

The Secret World Previews: PAX East – Skills and Chaos Magic (mmorpg.com)

TotD (April 9th, 2012)

The Secret World Forums

MMORPG.com

Reddit

Alice Liddell (Alice: Madness Returns) on Zodiac by...

The Secret World - PAX EAST 2012, Day 3 PAX EAST 2012 is over,...

The Secret World - PAX EAST 2012, Day 3

The List: The Best of PAX East 2012 Awards (mmorpg.com)

Vanguard: Screenshots from level 1 to 13

Vanguard: Segue

In my brief time…

What I love…

What I hate…