electronic-arts posts

Jumpgate Evolution brings on a new Executive Producer

by Kyle Horner Nov 24th 2009 at 7:00PM

Filed under: Sci-fi, Jumpgate Evolution, New titles, News items

Any of you die hard Dark Age of Camelot fans out there? We hope you're paying attention, because NetDevil just brought Lance Roberston aboard their Jumpgate Evolution team as executive producer. For those not in the know: Lance's career blossomed as he rose through the ranks at Mythic Entertainment while working on Dark Age of Camelot. As such, he possesses extensive experience developing MMOs with both PvP and PvE focuses. He also helped to ship Warhammer Online as a senior producer, before the unfortunate events we're all aware of over at Electronic Arts.

Jumpgate Evolution is a three faction game that deals with PvP and PvE. Sound familiar? It should, as DAoC's tri-factions were one of its selling points back in the day. Lance also benefits from having experience in the "what do do" and "what not to do" areas of PvP/PvE MMO development, so we're certain he'll prove to be an immensely useful member of the JGE team.

Tags: daoc, dark-ageof-camelot, ea, electronic-arts, executive-producer, gazillion, gazillion-entertainment, jge, jumpgate-evolution, lance-roberston, mythic, mythic-entertainment, netdevil, war, warhammer-online

Everybody loves a good cantina fight in Threat of Peace, issue #20

by Kyle Horner Nov 20th 2009 at 11:00PM

Filed under: Sci-fi, New titles, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic

And so the plot thickens, as the identity of the man attempting to dissolve the peace treaty between the Republic and the Empire is now closer to being revealed. Yes, this week BioWare continues their free online comic Threat of Peace with issue number 20, which largely focuses on the Bounty Hunter known as Braden.

The developer's propensity for seeding hints at future in-game content through this series continues, and in that statement we mean to say Nar Shadda is most likely going to be a playable planet in Star Wars: The Old Republic. We also wouldn't be surprised to see Dantooine become an in-game destination as well, since it's both a classic location and apparently the future site of some intrigue for Threat of Peace readers.

We suppose it'd be easy enough to assume most planets featured from the movies and previous KOTOR games will end up in Star Wars: The Old Republic. Nonetheless, it's fun to play the guessing game when it comes to a highly anticipated MMO. We're hoping the next official planet announcement goes to Nar Shadda, as it's just such a lovely place to visit.

Tags: bioware, bounty-hunter, braden, dantooine, darkhorse, ea, electronic-arts, empire, lucasarts, nar-shadda, republic, star-wars, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, the-old-republic, threat-of-peace, webcomic

SWTOR's Imperial Spy gets an official reveal

by Kyle Horner Nov 13th 2009 at 7:00PM

Filed under: Classes, New titles, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic

We've pretty much known about it for a while, but Star Wars: The Old Republic now officially has an Imperial Spy class. Granted, even before, we had a pretty good inkling that some kind of spy or rogue class was in the wings for the Empire players -- especially since the Smuggler had no logical counterpart.

So what's the big deal about an official announcement? A class page full of juicy information just waiting to be devoured by eager fans. The combat tactics movies are easily the most impressive section of the class page, simply because the abilities shown are exceptionally fun. We can't decide which we like more: the stun dart / targeted blaster strike or the orbital bombardment. Even the ability to throw down an energy shield in the middle of combat looks pretty cool.

Whatever your favorite ability or class happens to be, there's no doubt these new screens are looking better than before. We're always excited to see progress being made and it's heartening to have a visual reminder that Star Wars: The Old Republic is coming along.

Gallery: Star Wars: The Old Republic Screenshots

Tags: bioware, class, classes, ea, electronic-arts, empire, imperial-spy, lucasarts, star-wars, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, the-old-republic, tor

Massively interviews WAR's producer on the future of the game

by Tracey John Nov 11th 2009 at 4:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Interviews, Patches, Warhammer Online

Warhammer Online has gone through big changes recently, both in-game and out. Mythic recently released the title's 1.3.2 patch, which had some controversial changes, and this week we learned that staffers at the studio were let go as part of Electronic Arts' new business strategy.

In the midst of all this, Warhammer Online producer Jeff Skalski answered questions via e-mail to Massively.com about where the game is headed.

"Right now, our focus is on improving the RvR campaign, career balance, and game performance," Skalski said. "These are critical to our long term success. We also continue to fix bugs and work on overall game polish. These are the things we sit down and discuss every patch planning meeting we have."

Though we got a letter to the community from producer Jeff Hickman earlier, Skalski also addressed questions about appeasing both existing and new players, whether or not to merge servers again and the overall future of Warhammer Online in these troubled times.

Tags: Electronic-Arts, featured, jeff-skalski, Mythic-Entertainment, war-patch-1.3.2, warhammer-online

Producer letter addresses the future of Warhammer Online

by Eliot Lefebvre Nov 11th 2009 at 9:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, MMO industry, Warhammer Online, News items, Opinion

It's funny how times change. Not so long ago the most disconcerting thing that players of Warhammer Online players had to deal with were the numerous changes introduced in patch 1.3.2. Now, however, the recent layoffs that have hit EA and Mythic are far more worrisome. Executive producer Jeff Hickman has taken the time to try and assuage the community fears with a recent letter to the community regarding the future of Mythic's franchises and the game's ensuing viability. Hickman doesn't address the layoffs directly, instead using the letter simply to try and reinforce the image that the game is going to continue and keep being improved upon.

The letter becomes a bit more unsettling when Hickman calls the response to the aforementioned patch 1.3.2 "great." It's quite likely nothing negative is going to happen to Warhammer Online, as it has been making an earnest effort to turn around a disappointing first year, but time hasn't yet healed the wound of "triple A and here to stay." Different companies and different games, but it's fresh in our collective memory, and only time will tell what the ultimate impact of recent events will be upon WAR.

Tags: ea, electronic-arts, layoffs, mmo-industry, mythic, mythic-entertainment, news-items, opinion, tabula-rasa, tr, war, war-patch-1.3.2, warhammer-online

Rumor: 80 more layoffs hit Mythic

by Kyle Horner Nov 9th 2009 at 5:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Warhammer Online, News items

Gamasutra is reporting that another 80 layoffs have hit Mythic Entertainment as well as several other Electronic Arts studios, although Mythic was the only MMO group to feel the sting of sudden unemployment. That would equate to 40% of the team, which would make for a brutal staff blow. Our best wishes go out to everyone finding themselves without a job and we sincerely hope they all find steady work as soon as possible.

What does this mean for Warhammer Online, exactly? In light of the new Endless Trial it seems like EA is doing everything it can to squeeze profit from the project, which began with a bang last year, but unfortunately fizzled out soon after Wrath of the Lich King hit. And now with Mythic assisting BioWare on Star Wars: The Old Republic, along with maintaining Dark Age of Camelot and Ultima Online, you would be forgiven for seeing dark clouds collecting in the skies above.

Nevertheless, there should be people still working on new content for Warhammer Online, at least in theory. So hopefully we'll hear something soon, such as a boxed expansion, which would raise spirits quite significantly at this point.

[Edit: This is no longer a rumor as it has been confirmed]

Tags: bioware, breaking, daoc, dark-age-of-camelot, ea, electronic-arts, gamasutra, mythic, mythic-entertainment, star-wars, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, ultima-online, war, warhammer-online

The Digital Continuum: Five exciting MMOs in 2010, part 2

by Kyle Horner Nov 9th 2009 at 12:30PM

Filed under: Sci-fi, Opinion, The Digital Continuum

Tags: bioware, blizzard, ea, electronic-arts, gazillion, gazillion-entertainment, jge, jumpgate-evolution, lucasarts, netdevil, star-wars, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, the-digital-continuum, tor, world-of-warcraft, wow

Warhammer Online developer diary on combat with hackers

by Eliot Lefebvre Nov 7th 2009 at 6:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Bugs, Exploits, Warhammer Online

Hackers, as everyone knows, were scheduled to be the mirror class to Choppas... wait, no, that's not right. We're not talking about one of the classes of Warhammer Online, we're talking about that scourge of the paying and fair-playing populace of every MMO. The most recent developer diary on the game's official site is with John Cox, development manager, discussing some of the ways and means that allows Mythic to fight against the scourge of hacking and try and keep the game on the level.

Cox discusses a number of techniques, starting with the most obvious: that several people working on fighting the hacks are part of hacking communities, observing silently and sometimes even testing them internally to develop a response. He also discusses why some of the progress on fighting illegal behavior is a bit slower than the community would like, and why it's not always as possible to shut things down straightaway on the server end. With a discussion of some of the holes in detection, which includes an explanation of why the game briefly had Vista users almost universally flagged as hackers, it's an interesting look behind the scenes at Warhammer Online's efforts to fight the good fight. (That is, the one not involving Order versus Destruction.)

Tags: bugs, developer-diary, ea, electronic-arts, exploits, hackers, john-cox, mythic, mythic-entertainment, war, warhammer-online

Warhammer Online's endless trial now available

by Kyle Horner Nov 6th 2009 at 7:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Warhammer Online, News items

The endless trial has arrived in the land of Warhammer Online, and it's quite the offer. Of course, we've reported on the actual trial before but as of today (post-maintenance) it's officially enacted within the game. So if you've been waiting to go back and check things out but didn't feel like re-subbing or somehow missed out on all the excitement of the game's launch last year, then now is the perfect time to get in and take a look. If you're not sure what the heck this whole "endless trial" thing is all about, here's a handy official FAQ to peruse.

We think it's a good if not bold concept, especially considering players only have to download 1gig of data before the game will dynamically stream the rest as they play. Hopefully it works out for Mythic, who've been putting much blood, sweat and tears in trying to improve perception since its heady launch days.

Tags: bioware, ea, electronic-arts, endless-trial, mythic, mythic-entertainment, trial, war, warhammer, warhammer-online

Warhammer Online and the perception turnaround

by Eliot Lefebvre Nov 4th 2009 at 12:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, MMO industry, Patches, Warhammer Online, Opinion

It's a kind of disconcerting time to be a Warhammer Online fan, let's face it. Patch 1.3.2 had a lot of people muttering quietly (or loudly on the comment threads of posts related to it) that the game is floundering for direction and trying to latch on to something to keep it afloat. This is one way to view things, but hardly the only way. Bio Break has an interesting take on it -- they're not floundering for direction, they're working hard to regain their footing. The game that was meant to go toe-to-toe with World of Warcraft didn't quite make it there, but Mythic hasn't been letting the game sink and falter.

The post is specifically addressing the contorversy that came around regarding the shift to unlimited free trials within tier one, the game's introductory content. It sounds a bit fishy, but as pointed out, the shift to "unlimited free trial" has done wonders for Dungeons and Dragons Online, boosting its revenue by a fair amount. While Warhammer Online hasn't yet gone down the same road, it's clear that they're continuing to push forward with the game and find new ways to expand the gameplay experience. If you are one of the many fans whose complaints about recent developments have been less than optimistic, you might want to think about this, as the game hasn't given up the ghost just yet.

Tags: bio-break, ea, electronic-arts, free-trial, mmo-industry, mythic, mythic-entertainment, opinion, patches, war, war-patch-1.3.2, warhammer-online

Ultima Online still going strong, says lead designer

by Rubi Bayer Oct 30th 2009 at 3:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Interviews, News items, Ultima Online

In all the hype over the new games being released these days, one might think that older MMOs would fall by the wayside as players scramble to snap up the latest offering on the market. Not so, says Tim Cotten in a recent interview with Gamasutra. The lead designer of Ultima Online says the game is still going strong.

Ultima Online has "got a very core player base, and not a small one", says Cotten. A good MMO will earn player loyalty no matter how long it's around, and Ultima Online is still enjoying that player base after twelve years. They recently invited former players to return for a couple of free weeks, and new content is still a feature -- the eighth expansion was just released in September. Cotten hints at lots more to come too: "UO itself, if you want to go for a historical timeline, we're only around Ultima VI; we've got tons more of content left to play with."

It looks like there's definitely something to be said for old favorites. Keep it up, UO!

Tags: ea, Electronic-Arts, mythic, Mythic-Entertainment, stygian-abyss, tim-cotten, Ultima-Online, uo

Jedi Knight officially steps into The Old Republic spotlight

by Kyle Horner Oct 30th 2009 at 12:00PM

Filed under: Classes, New titles, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic

Rumors and speculation have been floating around this week about the Jedi Knight, so no big surprise when BioWare reveals that, yes, Knights of the Jedi persuasion are in fact a player class in Star Wars: The Old Republic. The news comes with all the expected class page accoutrements such as screens, concept art and a few videos showing off three Jedi Knight attacks. It's all standard practice information release at this point, which only slightly dilutes the excitement of the announcement.

The videos all show the proper level of Jedi powerhousing that you'd expect, although we're not entirely cool with all the droid destroying that's happening. Sure, we're aware that unlike Sith, Jedi are limited to disabling droids and pushing things around but that's no excuse to pick on the little helpless mechanical people. Yes, we said people -- robots are people too!

In all seriousness, this is probably the class reveal everyone has been waiting for and/or expecting all along. Jedi and Sith were a given, so from here on out it's almost entirely anyone's guess. Spy? Rogue? Droids? Wookiees? Albino Ewoks? Okay, that's a little silly, nobody wants to play a rogue over a spy.

Gallery: Star Wars: The Old Republic Concept Art

Gallery: Star Wars: The Old Republic Screenshots

Tags: bioware, class, ea, electronic-arts, ewok, ewoks, jedi, jedi-knight, jedi-knights, lucasarts, rogue, sith, spy, star-wars, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, the-old-republic, tor, wookiee

Warhammer Online, now with 100% more Mac support

by Eliot Lefebvre Oct 29th 2009 at 10:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, MMO industry, Warhammer Online, News items

There have been some big changes in Warhammer Online of late -- that's undeniable. But the game is pressing steadily onward, making a major change that oddly hasn't altered a single element of the gameplay. No, this change is entirely targeted at the players, as the game has now launched the Macintosh version of its client. They've been hinting at it and talking about it for quite some time, but it has gone live and is available, complete with full support for the game's free trial for any Mac gamers still on the fence regarding whether or not they want to dive in.

Certainly there's been some discussion among the game's community about whether or not the Mac client has been necessary or even desirable, with the common statement being "well, everyone can just run Boot Camp for it." But there's no doubt that a native solution is better than a workaround, and it makes the game more appealing to people who would prefer not to fuss around with Boot Camp. Take a look at the official question-and-answer page to see the details about the new client, or if you'd rather be a malcontent, start demanding Warhammer Online for Linux next.

Tags: apple, boot-camp, ea, electronic-arts, linux, mac, macintosh, mythic, mythic-entertainment, news-items, war, warhammer-online

What voice does for MMOs

by Eliot Lefebvre Oct 24th 2009 at 5:00PM

Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Star Trek Online, Virtual worlds, Star Wars: The Old Republic

One of the big claims about Star Wars: the Old Republic is that the game is meant to be fully voiced, from start to finish. On the flip side, Star Trek Online will not be fully voiced -- in fact, its executive producer Craig Zinkievich recently made some statements asking more or less what the point of voice acting in the game really is. To quote: "It adds something to the game, but I don't think that VO-ing all of your text provides for that big a bang for the buck in terms of immersion."

Bio Break seems to disagree rather emphatically. As he points out, voice is one of the most immersive and important parts of a game world in which our immersion is, by necessity, limited. We can only hear or see what's going on in front of us, which makes the things we hear and see all the more important. (Or makes a USB taste simulator all the more urgent.) He points out, quite rightly, that each of us have at least one or two bosses that we remember more on the strength of their voice acting than because of the fight itself.

Bioware, of course, has long offered a great deal of voice acting in its games. It remains to be seen if the promises of pervasive acting in Star Wars: the Old Republic will be carried out, but the discussion about how important voice is will remain either way. Take a look at the article, and share your thoughts in the comments: is it important that a game have full voiceovers and cutscenes, or is that a distraction without much relevance?

Tags: bio-break, bioware, craig-zinkievich, cryptic, cryptic-studios, ea, electronic-arts, immersion, opinion, star-trek-online, star-wars-the-old-republic, sto, swtor, virtual-worlds

GameX coverage begins tomorrow!

by Seraphina Brennan Oct 22nd 2009 at 8:00PM

Filed under: Events, real-world, MMO industry, News items, Massively Event Coverage

GameX, the Northeastern video game industry summit and expo, is starting tomorrow! As we said earlier this week, we'll be there, getting face time with guests, visiting Mythic Entertainment and Hi-Rez Studios, and getting you information on some of your favorite titles.

In addition to our coverage here on the site, we'll be updating our Twitter account with things we see at the expo and pictures! Now instead of running to us every five minutes for your Massively fix, you can get updates, pictures, and more from us in the form of tweets! If you're not currently following @massively, or if you're not on Twitter, now is the time to both sign up and add us to your follow list!

Tags: ea, electronic-arts, escapist, escapist-magazine, game-expo, gamex, gamex-2009, global-agenda, hi-rez, hi-rez-studios, mythic, mythic-entertainment, philadelphia, social-media, social-networking, the-guild, twitter, war, warhammer-online, yahtzee-croshaw