items posts

We've all got our best abilities, the ones that do the most damage or heal the most or save us the largest number of headaches. We all have the armor or items or random hats or whatever that give us huge stat increases and make us almost invulnerable in most circumstances.

And then... we have the toys. The stuff that's not bad, but just... doesn't really do much of anything. The one that lets you hover when that's not actually relevant to anything except looking cool. Or the item you've been holding on to that lets you shoot non-damaging fireworks all over a room. Totally useless, of course, but always fun when you get to break it out.

What's your favorite in-game toy? Is it a piece of equipment without any useful stats but a really amazing look to it? An item that does something silly and unique? A spell that's been designed without many practical components, or one that has practical usage but generally just gets played with? When you have the downtime, what's your choice of fun little toys in your favorite game?

Plus, it's not like this has never happened before

Many complaints about this format seem to stem from the notion that this is a new practice. However, keen observers of the industry will note that this practice is absolutely nothing new.

The first introduction of this format is, amazingly enough, World of Warcraft. Name changes, server transfers, character re-customizations, and the eventual faction transfers are all a part of their suite of premium services. Perhaps you never thought about it because Blizz never used the dreaded terminology, but these are microtransactions. You're paying extra to take advantage of a service, even though you're paying for a subscription.

Over in another superhero fun land, NCsoft has been selling character costume packs, extra character slots, and other goodies all for premium prices in City of Heroes. Oddly enough, no one has rioted over the sale of wedding outfits and mystical armors, even when the magic pack comes with a brand new power that you otherwise can't get in-game.

"Microtransaction is a loaded word in our culture -- it makes people think of unfair item shops and poorly formatted 'free to play' games.'"

Lastly, the original subscription/microtransaction model -- Xbox Live. XBL offers all subscribers some pretty nifty services, like cross-network friends lists, cross-game communication, massive yearly updates, and the ability to play games online. But, it also pushes the sale of videos, music, game add-ons, and original games via the Xbox Live Marketplace. It may not seem like it, but this is the definition of the microtransaction model. You're paying a subscription to purchase more content.

So why all the angry?

Why Cryptic? Why Champions? Why does everyone lash out now?

First off, people are angry because microtransactions are coming with the game's launch, and that makes them visible. CoH added their microtransactions years after the launch. Xbox Live was originally just playing games online, adding in microtransactions after a few years of service. World of Warcraft followed the same trend, adding their "premium services" well after launch. Cryptic hasn't slipped them in later, under people's noses.

Another reason people are angry -- Cryptic called them microtransactions. WoW offers "services," XBL offers "content," and CoH offers "packs." Microtransaction is a loaded word in our culture -- it makes people think of unfair item shops and poorly formatted "free to play" games. That word alone has put many people off simply because it exists. I'll put money down and say that some of the naysayers didn't go on to do their homework regarding what Cryptic was offering.

But Cryptic isn't offering anything new. It's a shop of "services" like name changes, costume changes, and other account level data changers coupled with some silly cosmetic options. Plus, Cryptic has stated that anything that has an in-game effect can still be acquired in-game. Don't want to pay for the costume change token? Earn one in game.

Stop saying the sky is falling

It's not. You don't like it, then don't buy from it. This isn't anything extremely experimental or surprising. It's not price gouging if you don't actually pay for it. And it's not like Champions is going to ship with huge swaths of content missing, forcing you to buy items from the Cryptic Store to progress through the game. It's simply an option, nothing more.

Take advantage of the beauty of the system -- if you don't want it, don't pay for it.

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Colin Seraphina Brennan is the weekly writer of Anti-Aliased who is paying for sparkling angel wings, if they're available. When she's not writing here for Massively, she's rambling on her personal blog, The Experience Curve. If you want to message her, send her an e-mail at colin.brennan AT weblogsinc DOT com. You can also follow her on Twitter through Massively, or through her personal feed, @sera_brennan.

Hello again adventurers! Today's topic is once again back on hard gaming ground instead of community theory as I introduce quests and their purpose.

Questing in Final Fantasy XI is not like questing in other games. Quests exist, but they don't jump out at you with bright yellow exclamation points. NPCs don't scream, "I have things for you to do for me!" Quests don't hold your hand as you pursue their goals. Also, most importantly, quests don't reward experience.

So why bother, right? If you're only going to get come cruddy gold and maybe an item, why should you spend your time doing the quest? Beautiful question, and a very accurate one. Let's take a look at the quest system, what it has to offer you, and how to find some quests at your level with ease.

The behind-the-scenes workings of RuneScape's player-kill loot is a lot more complicated than many people might expect. It's not simply a matter of looking for PvP battles and hoping to win the random-number-generator for a sweet item, as a recent developer post on the game's official website explained. In short, a value known as "drop potential" must be increased if you want better loot. This is achieved by spending time in PvP areas, while risking a certain amount of your own items. Some zones like the Wilderness are worth more to your drop potential, but you can probably expect a lot more action too. This system rewards the brave, and leaves the cowardly with junk-loot.

As well as elaborating on the mechanics of PvP drops, the post also mentions that two improvements have been made to the system. One is a shift away from having a larger number of items dropping, to fewer but more valuable items. The other is a simple increase to the value of the items dropped. These changes help with inventory management, and also mean that people are more likely to bother picking up what they've earned. Sounds like a good reason to get out there and see what sort of items you can find -- just make sure you've got the skills to pay the bills.

EverQuest, World of Warcraft, The Lord of the Rings Online, Age of Conan, Warhammer Online and many other MMOs all have one important thing in common. Well, okay; they have a lot of things in common -- like about 85% or more of their gameplay mechanics. But the main thing -- indeed, the reason why they have so much in common -- is that they are all descendants of a kind of text MUD game called Diku.

Acknowledging that, virtual worlds blog Terra Nova published a "State of the Diku" article for the year 2008. The article was written by Timothy Burke. It's mostly a dispassionate look at game design -- serious business. Burke starts out questioning the purpose of "vendor trash" drops (or grey items as they're generally known in many popular contemporary MMOs). Then he analyzes the public quests of Warhammer Online, viewing them as a positive variation on traditional Diku design.

If you're into thnking critically about MMO design, it's worth checking out. We take for granted the fact that most of today's MMOs are based on the Diku formula; maybe that means we're clinging to old ideas that don't make a lot of sense in today's world.

We stopped by the NCsoft booth at Comic-Con 2008 and had the chance to chat with City of Heroes Community Manager Alex 'Lighthouse' Von Minden, who noted that a number of community members were disappointed about not being able to attend the Con for a chance to snag the exclusive in-game item from the VIP Pass. We thought it would be fun to give players not in attendance a chance to pick one up, so we're happy to present Massively readers with 10 chances to win a unique in-game CoH Comic-Con item. This contest is open to all ages and locations -- you'll just need an active City of Heroes account to claim it. To enter, just leave a comment in this thread by 5pm EST Wednesday, July 30. We'll choose 10 winners at random to receive a code for the unique in-game item. Good luck!

Update: contest closed! Thanks to everyone who entered -- we'll be announcing winners ASAP!

MapleStory's 0.56 patch has gone live! The patch's additions are impressively robust; they include a new region and town, guild alliance support, windowed mode support, auto-inventory sorting, macros, and extra party search features.

The new area is called Ariant. You'll find it on the continent of Ossyria. Apparently it's some kind of Arabian Nights-esque desert setting (summer, desert; they're both hot -- get it?). A whole slew of new quests, NPCs, monsters, and items have been introduced as well. Of course, the shop has been updated, too. A special event begins with this patch -- summer-themed items like surfboards will drop throughout the season.

Dude, that's like totally rad! Um, sorry. You're right; that was uncalled for.

We have tackled the subject of mudflation tangentially a few times of late. It seems to have suddenly become the economic buzzword of MMOs. We have all experienced it. We have come to expect, if not accept, it as part of the games we love to play. And though Wikipedia, in its infinite wisdom, has dubbed it an in-game only phenomenon, I posit a different approach to looking at this occurrence.

Mudflation is an immediate devaluation of previously owned items due to the gain or release of newly available items. This is not unlike technological advance in that the release of the latest new toy makes all others somewhat obsolete. The differences here are the perceived need for the item, the amount of devaluation, and the time frame in which this occurs.

Acclaim's martial arts MMORPG 9Dragons is about to gain some more European fans, with the launch of Bardo Euro -- their new European server. Bardo Euro promises to offer the European playerbase an improved game experience with better connections all around.

Apparently the players have been calling for a European 9Dragons server for some time; Acclaim is delivering on their promises to improve the game and is holding a number of special events to celebrate the launch:

• 30% off sale: All items in the 9Dragons Item Mall will be 30% off for 3 days only. June 6-8.

• Bonus exp rate events: Earn 2 times experience points by playing on the Bardo server. June 3-9.

• Monster spawn event: High level monsters will invade Bardo. June 3-5, 6, 8-9.

• VGM/GM PvP event: Test your martial arts skills battling against Acclaim VGM and GM staff. June 3-6, 8-9.

• Fireworks in Bardo: To celebrate the official launch of the European server, fireworks will light up the sky at random times from May 30 to June 8 on the Bardo server.

If you're in Europe, why not give 9Dragons a shot? Roll yourself a Shaolin or Wu-Tang badass and see if you can take down a GM or two in martial arts combat.

Via Warcry

One of the most bewildering aspects of Tabula Rasa (and believe me, there are many) is the almost inexplicably difficult crafting system, which not only turns out weapon modifications that are close to useless in combat, but also requires a style of component micro-management that borders on the insane. Part of the problem is that the only way to get most components is by breaking down other weapons, with no clear guide as to what parts you can expect to get out of the deal. So for most people, you end up with a footlocker full of strange-sounding parts, and somehow still end up without the parts you need to fill those recipes.

Alpha Wolf Wonderlus over at Tabula Rasa Vault has done us all an enormous favor by posting a disassembled item chart that shows what sort of components you're liable to get from a weapon with a given modification. It's still only a matter of probability whether you'll get a certain item, but it's good to know where to start looking if you've got a specific modification in mind.

This will come in handy if I ever make it to level 50 and make a crafting clone, which is just about the only time that crafting in Tabula Rasa is viable. Since crafting talent points are drawn from the same pool as combat abilities, most people don't bother trying crafting until after level 30, when it becomes possible to make a clone with all the crafting talents maxed out. Still, it's neat!

If you're having trouble reading that word, I'll admit that I do too. It's pronounced 'LIH-vih-TIH-nem'. But when my eyes glide over it, I just keep wanting to say 'living items', which must be the point, 'cause that's what they are!

Livitinems are benign critters in the world of DOFUS that live in your clothing items, whose only purpose in life is to change the appearance of your wardrobe. They don't confer bonuses or extra protection, they just sit there on top of you and occasionally comment on your adventures. An interesting thing about Livitinems is that they eat items; capes eat capes, amulets eat amulets, etc. When they've been fed enough, they evolve into a new appearance; Ankama says they can evolve up to 20 unique appearances.

How do you get a Livitinem? Either by subscribing to DOFUS, buying them, or exchanging them with other owners. There are those who may think the idea of a living hat that eats other hats is a little creepy, but just think of it like it's the Minish Cap -- cute! Wait ... they might be trying to say 'live it in 'em' instead. I'll find out and let you know!

Flying Lab Software's Aether has taken a moment to pull himself away from all the pre-launch craziness surrounding any MMO only a couple weeks away from retail. Why, you ask? To give us some information on pre-order bonuses, I say! All silliness aside, these items are pretty hot.

What you'll be getting for pre-ordering is three swords -- one for each style of combat -- that all share the same stats. The Musketeer's Matching Blades (Florentine style), Old World Cutlass (Dirty Fighting style) and Swedish Rapier (Fencing style) are all level 1 swords that are equivalent to the power of a level 20 weapon. We're pretty sure that we haven't heard of a pre-order item this powerful in quite some time, if ever. Pirates of the Burning Sea is set to launch on January 22nd, so if you want this pre-order bonus it may be a good idea to do it now rather than later.

Turbine have updated the Lord of the Rings Online Lorebook again, and this time it's something awesome: the Lorebook now features full item effects.

Hurrah! This is a great step to making the Lorebook really useful, rather than just for... well, lore. Further updates are planned -- according to Aylwyne, item set pages have been implemented, and will be going into the Lorebook shortly after the holidays. One minor problem with the item effects currently, though: if an item has a use effect, the cooldown is listed properly but not what the use effect actually does. You'll have to look elsewhere for that.

As a rush of items hit Tabula Rasa's new Military Surplus over the last couple days, things have been pretty chaotic, to say the least. Players have yet to strike a balance between prices that are ridiculously inflated and those that are barely higher than what you could sell them for to a vendor. There's a strange dichotomy to Tabula Rasa's economy that can be attributed to the fact that items aren't bind on equip. So you can get a purple quest reward, use it until you grow out of it, and then sell it on the Military Surplus for a tidy profit. (Or my preferred strategy, buy the quest reward as soon as you're high enough level for it, use it until you receive you've completed the quest, then sell the duplicate for what you paid.) Theoretically, this should lead to a huge glut of rare items on the Military Surplus, but people are still spending AFS credits by the boatload.

As a service to the community, forum poster Doctor Victeonus put up a "Military Surplus 101" thread over on the PlanetTR forums. In it, he outlines what the MSRP (Military Surplus Recommended Pricing - very clever Doc) should be for items of different grades and levels. I haven't had the chance to try out his method since the market has calmed down a bit, but it's a very interesting guideline nonetheless. Now if somebody could just sort out the insane market for crafting ingredients, I'd be a happy camper.