mount posts

Battle of the Immortals explains mounts and pets

by Eliot Lefebvre Feb 5th 2010 at 10:00AM

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Game mechanics, Free-to-play, Battle of the Immortals

The pace of information released about the upcoming Battle of the Immortals is increasing, no doubt to raise anticipation for the game's swift-approaching beta. The most recent post on the official Perfect World Entertainment blog offers more details on the game's mounts and pets, which look to be an integral part of the game's structure and offer a few interesting twists on the features. Mounts, for instance, can be upgraded for increased speed... but each upgrade also allows the mount to learn new skills. The example given was of a mount that learned to teleport short distances as well as running, a helpful trick to be sure.

Pets, on the other hand, can be almost any monster encountered in Battle of the Immortals. Players will have the opportunity to turn a defeated enemy into a pet "every now and then," which is a bit light on details but suggests either a long cooldown or a limited-supply item. Each pet can apparently have their skills slotted for a variety of roles, allowing them to be viable in both PvP and PvE combat. There's a week left before the closed beta begins, so if you're interested, take a look at our closed beta key giveaway to start out early.

Tags: battle-of-the-immortals, boi, closed-beta, mount, mounts, perfect-world, perfect-world-entertainment, pet, pets, pwe, upcoming-betas

Wizard101 raises over $100,000 for charity

by Eliot Lefebvre Jan 12th 2010 at 11:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Business models, News items, Free-to-play, Kids, Wizard101

The holidays are over -- everyone can breathe a collective sigh of relief now -- but there are some gifts that keep on giving. Charitable donations always go up during the holidays, and with the rise of microtransaction stores, games are better able to get in on the generosity. Wizard101 was one of the many offering an in-game carrot for donating to charity, the tiger-striped Meowmodon mount. Aside from having an adorable name, it inspired enough players to purchase it that raised $126,000 for charity.

The total amount received will be split evenly between Child's Play and the Austin Children's Shelter, to suppport both the worldwide community and the area surrounding the KingsIsle headquarters. The company seems quite pleased with the results, and it's a testament to both the community and the game that a free-to-play game could raise such a substantial sum for two excellent causes. The offiicial announcement can be found on the official Wizard101 site, to no great surprise. Congratulations to the players who took part, and we can only hope this effort will be repeated in the coming months -- free-to-play item malls donating to charity have certainly made an impact this holiday season, certain hiccups notwithstanding.

Tags: austin-childrens-center, charity, childs-play, childs-play-2009, kingsisle, kingsisle-entertainment, kitten, meowmodon, meowmodon-mount, mount, w101, wizard101

Buy a mount in Wizard101 for charity

by Eliot Lefebvre Dec 15th 2009 at 10:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Events, real-world, News items, Free-to-play, Kids, Wizard101

Remember when you would try and convince your mother to get you something with the rallying cry that it would be educational? It didn't always work, but it was usually worth a try. Kids playing Wizard101 -- or adults looking to justify their latest impulse purchase to their spouse -- will be able to unleash a variant on that: "But it's for charity!" The Meowmodon mount, pictured above, has just been unveiled as the newest addition to the mount options in the game, but there's a twist: buying it sends no money to KingsIsle. It moves straight on to charity.

Each time the mount is purchased, KingsIsle will donate the full cost of the mount, roughly $15 US, to two charities, the Austin Children's Shelter and the ever-popular Child's Play. Moreover, the mount will only be available between December 14th and January 5th of next year. The fact that it's a limited-time item makes it even more attractive to many parts of the gaming community, and it marks a Wizard101 player as having donated to worthy causes at one of the most important times of the year. So if you have any interest in owning it, by all means, head to the page with all the details, and remember that you don't have to feel even remotely bad about this impulse purchase.

Tags: austin-childrens-shelter, charity, childs-play, donation, kingsisle, kingsisle-entertainment, limited-time, meowmodon, mount, mounts, wizard-101, wizard101

Ride a turkey in Fiesta and help feed the homeless in America

by Seraphina Brennan Nov 16th 2009 at 8:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Events, in-game, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, Fiesta

We here at Massively always appreciate it when games give back to the community, and the folks over at Fiesta seem to follow our line of thought. In celebration of Thanksgiving, they've released the new Thomas the Turkey mount for players to grab from the item shop.

Thomas is a special beast, however, as 100% of his proceeds until November 30th will go towards Feeding America, a charity that works with local food banks to provide food to the homeless and needy. After the 30th, Thomas will stick around in the Fiesta store as a standard mount.

Thomas is currently priced at around $6.80, but it's good to know that the money will be going to a good cause. So don't dilly dally, go out and purchase your turkey before the 30th to make sure you help the homeless and get a sweet ride while doing it.

Tags: charity, feeding-america, feedingamerica.org, fiesta, mount, outspark, thanksgiving, turkey

Codemasters reveals the LotRO Europe pre-order deals for Siege of Mirkwood

by Seraphina Brennan Oct 14th 2009 at 1:30PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Business models, Expansions, News items

Coming hot off the heels of Turbine's Siege of Mirkwood pre-order announcement comes the European pre-order details from Codemasters. While the European players won't be able to simply upgrade their subscription plans to a multi-month plan to get the expansion for free, they do get a very nice deal on the Lord of the Rings Online adventurer's pack.

European players can pick up the expansion and the adventurer's pack add-on, which offers two character slots and 20 shared inventory slots, for 20 pounds or 28 euros. If you buy the bundle, you get the Harbinger's Cloak and the extra mount (the Dusky Nimblefoot Goat) included. Otherwise, if you just buy the expansion for 15 pounds or 20 euros, you only get the Harbinger's Cloak -- a change from the cloak being offered solely in the US adventurer's pack.

Tags: adventurers-pack, codemasters, harbingers-cloak, lord-of-the-rings-online, lord-of-the-rings-online-europe, lotro, lotro-europe, mount, pre-order, siege-of-mirkwood, turbine

Beginner's guide to horse crafting in Fallen Earth

by Shawn Schuster Sep 18th 2009 at 10:00AM

Filed under: Sci-fi, Screenshots, Fallen Earth, Game mechanics, Guides, New titles, Hands-on

When you think of post-apocalyptic mounts, you probably imagine a gas-sipping motorcycle, an armored truck or the last of the V8s, right? Yet, a very practical way to get around when society falls is on horseback. In Fallen Earth currently, a horse mount is probably your best option -- especially considering the fact that you can get one very early in the game.

With all other mechanized mounts in Fallen Earth, you need to assemble them from scavenged parts and fuel them with gasoline. As you can imagine, gas isn't exactly available on every corner after the apocalypse. Repair is done through costly repair kits, and some of the vehicles have some fairly steep limitations when it comes to accessibility around town and up hills (the ATV, for instance, stops dead at every curb). With a horse, you have a whole different set of options and features. Even though you fuel them with sacks of horsefeed, they can slowly regenerate their stamina when they're not being used. Plus, you have the choice of healing a horse with either a veterinary kit or the same bandages you use on yourself.

Want to learn how to get your very own horse at level 3? Keep reading below for our tutorial.

Tags: crafting, fallen-earth, featured, guide, horse, mount, post-apocalyptic, sci-fi

Fallen Earth's special pre-order ATV goes vroom vroom

by Seraphina Brennan Aug 28th 2009 at 5:00PM

Filed under: Horror, Fallen Earth, Business models, MMO industry, New titles

Remember when we mentioned that if you pre-order Fallen Earth over at Direct2Drive that you would get a special horsey known as the Wasteland Runner? Yes, of course you remember, because we just gave you the link to the story so you would remember.

But, apparently, there's a second pre-order gift in town now. A gift that goes by the title of the Fallen Earth ATV. Pre-ordering the game straight from the developer will get you this nifty vehicle that comes with more hitpoints, a larger gas tank, better fuel efficiency, more storage, and a special Fallen Earth paint job. Plus, you get the ability to tell anyone you kill that they can "stick it in your tailpipe and smoke it." Horse riders just don't get that social ability.

So, if you're pre-ordering Fallen Earth, it looks like you have a decision to make. Horse or ATV? It's up to you!

Tags: atv, direct2drive, fallen-earth, fallen-earth-atv, fallen-earth-preorder, gift, mount, pre-order, pre-order-bonus, vehicle, wasteland-runner

Fallen Earth moves into open beta on August 17th

by Seraphina Brennan Aug 12th 2009 at 4:00PM

Filed under: Betas, Horror, Fallen Earth, Business models, Launches, New titles, News items

Yes, that's right, the apocalypse opens up its doors to all on August 17th. If you're really eager for the apocalypse, however, then we suggest you hurry on over to Fileplanet and sign up for an account, as they're going to be the ones handing out access to Fallen Earth. Fileplanet will be making the Fallen Earth beta accessible for download on Friday, August 14th, for all of you who want to get that download rolling early.

If you're really excited for Fallen Earth's launch on September 9th, then you can also hop over to Direct2Drive and grab yourself a pre-order of the game. Pre-orders not only get guaranteed access to the beta, but they also get the exclusive in-game mount, the Wasteland Runner. The special mount has four more points of defensive skills, 2500 extra stamina, and six more pack slots over other horses.

Even more importantly, pre-order customers will be getting a five day head start in the game. Yes, that's right, five days! This means the pre-order customers will be jumping into the game on September 4th, while everyone else will get to experience the Grand Canyon on the 9th.

Tags: direct2drive, fallen-earth, fileplanet, head-start, mount, open-beta, pre-order, wasteland-runner

Soloing LotRO from levels 20 to 40

by Shawn Schuster Jan 14th 2009 at 5:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Tips and tricks, PvE, Academic, Education

As Turbine continues their series of guides for soloing Lord of the Rings Online, this newest one explains the trek from levels 20 though 40 sans fellowship. This five-page guide runs through some of the best moments you'll have in these 20 levels, and the most effective ways to play them.

At this point, you gain several more options for where to play, and at level 20 you can start entering the Lone-lands and the North Downs. You will also start your level 30 class quests and have the chance to buy your first mount at level 35. If you're getting worried about affording your horse around these levels approaching 35, Turbine has some hints for that, or you can read our handy guide on the same topic. We can't wait to see what Turbine has in store for their next guide for levels 40-60, coming soon!

Tags: guide, horse, lord-of-the-rings-online, lotro, mid-level, mount, soloing, turbine

The Daily Grind: Do you take advantage of recruit-a-friend offers?

by Seraphina Brennan Jan 12th 2009 at 8:00AM

Filed under: Culture, Opinion, The Daily Grind

MMOs are all about having a massive amount of people in one world, so you might as well drag a few of your real life friends along for the ride, right? Or are you more of the person who likes to leave his friends behind, so you can have all of those pretty treasures and super powerful abilities for yourself?

Today's grind question wants to know if you enjoy taking advantage of those "bring your friends" offers and why you do it. Is it all about having a way to get your friends into your favorite game quickly and easily, with things like triple the experience for your buddy? Or is it more because you get that sweet mount and free game time? Whatever the reason is, let us know if why you've taken advantage of these programs, or perhaps why you may not be so keen on the whole idea down in the lovely white comment box below.

Tags: free-game-time, friends, loot, mount, recruit-a-friend, the-daily-grind, treasure

Why do people buy virtual goods in MMOs?

by James Egan Jan 9th 2009 at 8:00PM

Filed under: Culture, MMO industry, Player Housing, Academic, Virtual worlds

Massively multiplayer online gamers spend hours -- so many hours -- working towards obtaining virtual gear. Epic armor sets, mounts, player housing, faction ships... the list goes on, and will continue to go on. Our collective fascination with these intangibles ensures our desire for them -- and for those things beyond a player's reach solely within the virtual realm, real world cash makes all things possible.

This is the research focus of Ph.D. student Vili Lehdonvirta of the Helsinki Institute for Information Technology, who breaks down our buyer's impulse according to three criteria:

Functional attributes, such as speed, hitpoints, teleportation.

Hedonic attributes, or how the virtual gear looks or sounds, its provenance or its connection to the background fiction of the setting, and of course customizability.

Social attributes, particularly the prestige accorded with ownership of a rare item.

Have a look at his "Virtual item sales as a revenue model: identifying attributes that drive purchase decisions" for a thorough analysis of why many of us are so inclined to obtain something that's ultimately ephemeral, which goes beyond the simpler "useful vs. decorative" angle.

Tags: academic, armor, armor-set, culture, faction-ship, gear, gold, loot, mmo-industry, mount, mounts, player-housing, real-money-trade, real-money-trading, rmt, virtual, virtual-goods, virtual-items, virtual-worlds

Get ready for LotRO's Yule Festival

by Shawn Schuster Dec 9th 2008 at 12:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Lord of the Rings Online, Contests, Culture, Events, in-game

It's that time once again. As the winter holiday season approaches, what could arguably be considered the best time for in-game events is beginning to arrive. In Lord of the Rings Online, this season is called the Yule Festival, celebrated during the last month of the year.

Yule is considered a time of hope for all free peoples of Middle-earth. It is celebrated with traditional decorations, warm cider, rich feasts and more. As with all LotRO festivals, each home land has its own version of Yule, adding to the variety and excitement of the season. Be sure to check out Bree-land and Michel Delving which will once again host some exciting horse races where the winner will take home a sturdy winter mount. The festivities begin on December 11th, so get ready!

Tags: event, holiday, horse, lord-of-the-rings-online, lotro, mount, turbine, winter, yule-festival

Snow Mammoth mount mauls jaws, takes names in Age of Conan

by Kyle Horner Nov 27th 2008 at 12:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Age of Conan, New titles

Let's put aside any complaints or upsets any of us might have with Age of Conan and take that moment to appreciate the amazingness of this new mount being added to the game. This mount is the kind of thing that, when rolling up on a friend (or enemy), a person wants to possess. If you're at all into the business of looking like a person nobody would want to mess with, than this is a must-own accessory. Plus, as an added bonus it comes in three -- that's right, three -- colors!

Our minds are now racing with possibilities of other sweet-mad mounts, such as unreasonably large sabertooth tigers and cautiously evil-looking hippopotomi. We can dream, can't we?

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!

Tags: age-of-conan, aoc, funcom, hippopotamus, hippoptomi, mount, mounts, sabertooth-tigers, snow-mammoth

Turbine: Horsemanship to become "important" when LotRO reaches Rohan

by Samuel Axon Nov 24th 2008 at 11:00AM

Alright, it's time for that gaming industry tradition of speculation based on vague quotes from developers! In an interview with Ten Ton Hammer, The Lord of the Rings Online executive producer Jeffrey Steefel spoke about future updates to the game, saying that the best is yet to come because now that Turbine has moved into Moria, the really interesting and fully-fleshed-out stuff from Tolkien's source material is only a few steps away.

Among those interesting things is the land of Rohan, which fans of the books and movies will remember is a kingdom that prides itself on breeding and grooming the finest horses in Middle-earth. Steefel went on to say: "When we get to Rohan, does horsemanship become important? Yeah! Us and our horses would be strung up if we got to Rohan someday and didn't pay attention to horses. And it's just a matter of when."

Mounts in LotRO have admittedly always been a bit basic (but in a good way!), so this could mean any number of things, but perhaps the most exciting possibility would be Age of Conan-esque mounted combat. Go ahead and meditate on that for a bit, and read the interview for a few more vague quotes about the future of LotRO and the company's console plans if you feel compelled.

Tags: books, horse, horsemanship, horses, interview, jeffrey-steefel, lord-of-the-rings-online, lotro, mines-of-moria, moria, mount, mounts, riders-of-rohan, rohan, rumor, speculation, turbine

Mines of Moria's cat (goat?) is out of the bag

by Kyle Horner Sep 12th 2008 at 3:00PM

Filed under: Betas, Lord of the Rings Online, Expansions, News items

Ever since the first expansion for Lord of the Rings Online was announced, most fans have been wondering what kind of mount would be willing to traverse the immensity of Moria's underground networks. It certainly wasn't going to be horses, as eventually stated by Turbine itself. New screens from the Mines of Moria beta have surfaced showing a tester purchasing and riding around on what appears to be some kind of goat -- or ram.

While the image and concept of the goat is subsequent to change -- it being a beta and all -- we have to say that we're big fans of Turbine's choice. Horses were nice and all, but give us a goat/ram any day. We're looking forward to getting our goat on later this year when Mines of Moria finally ships.

[via MMeOw]

Tags: beta, goat, lord-of-the-rings-online, lotro, mines-of-moria, mount, turbine