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We here at Massively have pointed to our fair share of positive opinion pieces for Warhammer Online, but we realize that not all people see the game as fluffy bunnies and rainbow unicorns. One such example of this is the ever-endearing Daedren over at r1ft.com, whom we all love for his insightful pessimism towards our favorite MMOs.

Despite the fact that Daedren spends much of his article reaming Warhammer Online, he ends by admitting that it may just be a general disdain for the fantasy genre as a whole, while WAR may just basically be in the wrong place at the wrong time. He writes, "Whatever happened to making a player feel like they are a hero?" "The reason that D&D and Warhammer tabletop games were popular is because the story revolved around the players; they could noticeably affect and change the world based on their decisions. This main aspect and magic of the game is lost in a sea of inane, repetitive and fun killing "Quests"."

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	Did you enjoy this? Make sure to check out our Warhammer guides: Massively's Character Creation Guide and our WoW Player's Guide to Warhammer. Plus, don't miss any of our ongoing coverage as Massively goes to WAR!

This week the online magazine The Escapist is once again delving into online interactions. They've previously talked about everything from failure cascades in guilds to the 'curse' of WoW addiction. Today they've got up a humorous piece about a family misunderstanding around the always contentious act of buying gold. In this case, the gold in question is Guild Wars gold, purchased for a young man enjoying a birthday.

Once the gold is purchased, miscommunications within the family lead to some tense moments and inter-generational conflict. Check out the piece and find out how the story ends, in Brendan Sears' piece "Careful What You Wish For".

Can we even begin to list the ways in which a printed MMO strategy guide is worthless? We think not, yet they still seem to sell, and Gamestop employees still seem to get us to buy one with that crazy retail faux-bargain voodoo of theirs. So in a recent post by Syp over at the Waaagh blog, he turns his regrettable purchase into an actual review of the Warhammer Online Prima Strategy guide.

As you might guess, he doesn't have many nice things to say about these guides. Admittedly, it's just not feasible to create a static guide for an ever-changing game. However, Syp does highlight one aspect of the guide that is semi-useful: the career sections. Apparently, it's the only place "with charts that try to detail abilities, morales, tactics and mastery paths," although they're painfully out of date already. If you've purchased any of these guides, let us know what you think.

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	Did you enjoy this? Make sure to check out our Warhammer guides: Massively's Character Creation Guide and our WoW Player's Guide to Warhammer. Plus, don't miss any of our ongoing coverage as Massively goes to WAR!

The most obvious point of contact is humor: like the aforementioned Python, the humor is unmistakeably British. All the same elements are there. For example, snotty high-class attitudes and the mockery thereof. The satirical portrayal of some of the Elves, both High and Dark, isn't a million miles from Python's Upper Class Twit of the Year, and the snide cut-glass voices of the Dark lot (and their interactions with the greenies) recall Blackadder.

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	Did you enjoy this? Make sure to check out all of our previous Warhammer Online features, and don't miss any of our ongoing coverage as Massively goes to WAR!

I wont bore you all with words and phrases strung together to create some form of coherence, instead I will jump right back in! I am extremely proud to invite you once more to join in with the fun right here at Massively that is TurpsterVision!

As you are undoubtedly aware, Warhammer Online hit the shelves last week; and with it brought a whole new level of awesome to the MMO playing field. Right here on the site we have spoken of the joys of Public Quests, Realm Vs. Realm and a whole host of other goodies.

I have chosen to just focus on a couple of elements that caught my eye this week and I guess we'll have a more in-depth look at the game in the near future. But for now, grab your Spade or Garden Fork and join me in what could quite possibly be the most bloody battle yet...Cultivating!

Our homies at WoW Insider have discovered something wonderful: official World of Warcraft costumes for Halloween. Costumes Inc. are supplying the line, and there's a fine selection on offer. Season 2 Warrior helmets, Taurens, Orcs... and the weapons also make an appearance, though by the look of them, nobody's going to be doing anyone any damage. The fidelity to the original designs is excellent, and they're fully sanctioned by Blizzard, not just cheap knock-offs.

There are even elf ears available, in both Night Elf and Blood Elf varieties! Just imagine how much fun could be had even after Halloween, with... um... live roleplaying. Yes. That is totally what we were thinking. Live roleplaying with friends. In woods. And stuff. With those long, pointy, slender elf ears. Elf... ears.

Check out the complete gallery at WoW Insider!

When you're the official game of International Talk Like A Pirate Day, today is your day to shine. So the folks at Flying Lab Software have been working hard to make today the ultimate in grog-swillin' and booty-plunderin' in their flagship game, Pirates of the Burning Sea.

All day today and until September 26th, you'll find special missions and secret booty for all players. What makes it even better is a special 14-day trial, so you can try it all out for free. Plus, if you fear your Pirate-speak isn't up to par ...or yarr... today, Flying Lab has created a handy Pirate Reference Guide you can find right after the jump. If that's still not enough to shiver your timbers, several other MMOs are celebrating this day with special quests as well, including Lord of the Rings Online, World of Warcraft and Guild Wars. Avast!

If the recent news of Stephen Colbert joining Operation Immortality has you scratching your head, you may be pleased to learn that Tabula Rasa's Richard Garriott will appear on Colbert's show, The Colbert Report, to discuss his flight to the International Space Station, Operation Immortality and Colbert's participation with the project.

This particular episode will air on Comedy Central tomorrow, September 17th, immediately following the Jon Stewart Show at 11:30pm EDT/10:30pm CDT. With Colbert's dry humor and satirical wit, we're sure there will be more than a few jokes made at Garriott's expense.

In speaking with Mythic Entertainment's Paul Barnett, it's hard to misapprehend anything the man says. He's a guy with a forceful personality and a definite sense of 'go-get it done' spirit. It's exhausting just to watch him work, honestly, but also very engaging. In a conversation we had with the Creative Director via email Mr. Barnett offered up a few of his favorite things about Warhammer Online, things that he's noticed players have really responded to.

The man himself was kind enough to elaborate on these notes, for a feature encompassing the things that make WAR special. These are the things that Barnett has noticed players going ga-ga for, especially players that have jumped into MMOs in the past. From the Tome of Knowledge to little things like inventory management, check out the 11 things that make Warhammer the game it is today - in Paul Barnett's own words.

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	Did you enjoy this? Make sure to check out all of our previous Warhammer Online features, and don't miss any of our ongoing coverage as Massively goes to WAR!

G4's MMO-specific showcase, The MMO Report, can be a kind of entertaining show. This week, in honor of the rapidly-approaching launch of Warhammer Online, they're airing the first of a two-part special from Mythic's Virginia headquarters. If you're a fan of nature documentaries, there may be overtones of Steve Irwin's work here. "Crikey, looks like we've got a real live game designer here! Check out his man-dolls!"

More seriously, it's a great look at Barnett and the Warhammer team's philosophy background. Check out the video to see Paul describing the team 'finding the voice' of each race, the evils of marketing, and why his office is designed the way it is. The whole thing is embedded below the cut. Click on through!

Even if the Age of Conan developers are coming in for some serious criticism of late, the players are coming up with some funky stuff. Rodion's Je Demonte - it's French for 'I kick ass', if you were wondering - is not only one of the better Age of Conan fanvids we've seen, it's one of the only AoC fanvids we've seen. There are plenty of demos of spellweaving and the like, but not so much in the way of character video or storytelling. (If you've seen any that deserve a wider audience, let us know!)

So, take a look at the immaculately coiffured Rodion and his charming ladies as he tells the story of his journeys through Hyboria, beginning with his attempts to kick Kalanthes' ass on a certain beach that we'll all find familiar, his acquisition of the inevitable firearm, and his ending up as one of the baddest Stygians of all time. (There are subtitles for the non-Francophones.) The combination of Age of Conan gameplay, rap styling and eloquent French really shouldn't work, but like peanut butter and chocolate, it just does.

The language isn't quite worksafe in a couple of places, but it's hardly parental advisory. Check it out after the cut.

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	Having fun in Conan's homeland? Make sure to check out all of our previous Age of Conan coverage, and stick with Massively for more news from the Hyborian Age!

You may have heard that Wrath of the Lich King will add Xbox Live or Steam-esque achievements to World of Warcraft. There are bound to be two kinds of responses to this. Some folks will say, "Oh great, as if World of Warcraft needed to be more mindlessly grind-tastic!" Others, though, will jump at the chance to show just how dedicated they are to their favorite game. The idea's not totally new to MMOs, though; something similar exists in The Lord of the Rings Online's Deed system.

Anyway, our sister site WoW Insider (your source for in-depth WoW news and features -- cha-ching!) has listed its top 10 favorite achievements in the vast new tome of things to go nuts over. Some of them are listed because they're hilarious, like "They Love Me In That Tunnel." Others, because they're historic, like "The Alterac Blitz." You'll need to be pretty WoW literate to get what's so great about most of them, though.

Even if you think achievements are a soul-crushing waste of time, these will still make you smile. So check them out.

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	One of Azeroth's millions of citizens? Check out our ongoing coverage of the World of Warcraft, and be sure to touch base with our sister site WoW Insider for all your Lich King needs!

This week's column is going to be a little different than the norm I usually cover, but it still falls into that which I love and dedicate my craft to -- the analysis of MMO culture. And who better to analyze than the bane of a game's existence, the fanboi!

They're right, you're wrong. Their opinion is obviously the best opinion on the planet, even if it consists of "this gaem is teh rox, ur dumb and obviuosly a gey retard." (It always fascinates me how they can screw up a word like gay, but can somehow gain the coherence to spell retard correctly.) They clog up the message boards by defending everything the developer does, right down to eating an egg sandwich during their hour long lunch breaks.

They probably mean well and want their game of choice to succeed, but they end up doing more damage to the community at large than good. So let's dedicate this column to the fanboi and how much they screw things up for everyone.

Zero Punctuation's Yahtzee has reached geek culture superstardom by sacrificing sacred cows. By profanely slamming popular franchises such as Halo and Super Smash Bros., he's brought down the wrath -- and the web traffic -- of virtually the entire gaming community. There's a running joke through many of his animated reviews, though: he hates MMORPGs.

Both Tabula Rasa and Age of Conan got the full treatment, and Yahtzee has even criticized some single-player games (such as The Witcher) just for sharing gameplay elements with MMORPGs. His fans apparently thought he was being a bit too harsh. "Not all MMORPGs are the same," they presumably said. "Try EVE Online. It's different!"

And so he did. It turns out that "different" might be in the eye of the beholder. Or just as likely, MMORPGs can never be different enough for Yahtzee! The humorous (and as usual, NSFW) video review is embedded above, courtesy of The Escapist.

I wont bore you all with words and phrases strung together to create some form of coherence, instead I will jump right back in! I am extremely proud to invite you once more to join in with the fun right here at Massively that is TurpsterVision!

After last time trying to sell you all on a new form of entertainment media, I thought I'd return to something a little more traditional. Something that all the MMO fans out there, all the World of Warcraft fans, could really get behind. A game that's on everyone's lips and dancing right into their hearts. That's right: Club Penguin.

Join me below the cut for a special deluxe edition (complete with tuxedo) of TurpsterVision!