Grinding The Gears: The CoG MMO Report (02/25)

[Goronmon]

This weeks update is a fair bit late, but here is the week in MMOs up to last Wednesday.


Gamastura posts an article (http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=22316) concerning the "image" of free to play MMOs.

Massively interview with lead economist (http://www.massively.com/2009/02/19/massively-interviews-eve-online-lead-economist-dr-eyjog/) for EVE Online, Dr. EyjoG. Details (http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/14/feature/2743/page/1) on the AI update for the soon to be released expansion.

Jumpgate Evolution to launch (http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/jumpgate-evolution-gets-june-date) in June.

Blizzard posts Ulduar dungeon preview (http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/underdev/3p1/ulduar.xml) for World of Warcraft.

In WAR news, two 'new' classes, the Slayer and Choppa, hit the PTR (http://herald.warhammeronline.com/warherald/NewsArticle.war?id=636).

Australia still hasn't completely figured out how to rate online games (http://www.massively.com/2009/02/20/aus-government-confused-on-mmog-ratings-requirements/).

Funcom CFO resigns (http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/funcom-reports-q4-USD23-3m-loss) after company posts huge loss.

Cryptic answers (http://startrekonline.com/node/176) some questions about collision detection, warp speeds in Star Trek Online

Lead designer Lee Hammock answers (http://mmorpg.gamesource.it/Articolo/56/Fallen-Earth-Parla-Lee-Hammock-2.html) some questions about Fallen Earth's position in the genre.

NASA (http://news.bigdownload.com/2009/02/19/feature-first-look-at-nasas-unreal-engine-3-based-mmo/) releases some info about their own entry into the MMO genre.

Interview with Atanas Atanasov, CEO of Masthead Studios, answers some question about the upcoming Earthrise (http://reviewstash.com/viewtopic.php?id=1049) entry.

Information about the upcoming solo content (http://eq2players.station.sony.com/news_archive_content.vm?id=2079&section=News&locale=en_US) update for EQ2.

Cryptic discusses defense (http://www.champions-online.com/dev_blog/ask_cryptic_02-23-09) for their superhero MMO Champions Online.

Details on the Dual Class system (http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm?feature=2737&game=351&page=1&bhcp=1) in Runes of Magic.

[Rakael]

I'm actually very interested in Champions Online. I hope it isn't another letdown.

[Camel]

Ulduar (WoW) looks pretty awesome! They are incorporating a ton of characters (Hodir, Thorim, Freya, etc) that people have already seen/heard of while doing quests in the various zones, and I really like that.

Unfortunately, I've lost my spot as a raider in the guild I am a part of since I don't play the game all that much anymore. Oh well!

[Alkanos]

Every time I see EQ2 news, it gives me a tiny twinge of nostalgia. Maybe it's cause I've been MMO-free for a little over a year (not counting a tiny stint in SMT Online and half a month each of FFXI and Conan). For the most part I did enjoy playing the game, but I had done most non-raid stuff in the game a bajillion times.

The problem is that I know that if I started up again, I would get bored pretty quickly and basically throw away 15 bucks. Bah!

[MagGnome]

Thanks for putting this together! I almost installed the EVE trial earlier today. It's getting harder and harder to resist.

[Rakael]

Thanks for putting this together! I almost installed the EVE trial earlier today. It's getting harder and harder to resist.

Unless you have time for a second job, I would advise against Eve. It is a beautiful game no doubt, but the time investment required and the learning curve can make it a chore.

[Goronmon]

Unless you have time for a second job, I would advise against Eve. It is a beautiful game no doubt, but the time investment required and the learning curve can make it a chore.It's only time consuming if you are in a rush. I only play a couple hours every few days or so. Do some mining, make some money, etc. Just need to pace yourself and ask plenty of questions.