quests posts

The breakdown of Final Fantasy XI's VanaFest 2010 announcements

by Eliot Lefebvre Feb 28th 2010 at 11:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Final Fantasy XI, Classes, Events, real-world, Game mechanics, News items

After a month of heavy anticipation from the fans, VanaFest 2010 finally has come and given us all the information that we could want about where the game is heading from here. And the show did stay focused upon Final Fantasy XI -- the only mention of Final Fantasy XIV was the announcement that its first wave of beta testing will start on March 11th with a limited number of participants. That left quite a bit of show left to detail all of the changes coming to the game.

And there was certainly a lot of news to be shared. An increase in level cap, new add-on zones, job reviews, conclusions to existing content, server merges, new seasonal gear -- there was no shortage of surprising announcements. Continue on past the cut for the short version of what came out during the show and what players can expect.

Tags: breaking, breaking-news, campaign, class-adjustments, class-balance, content, ff11, ffxi, ffxiv, final-fantasy, final-fantasy-11, final-fantasy-xi, final-fantasy-xiv, job-adjustments, level-cap, march-version-update, missions, quests, server-merges, square-enix, vanafest-2010, xbox-360

Planet Calypso welcomes their new community manager while looking to the future

by Seraphina Brennan Feb 12th 2010 at 10:00AM

Filed under: Sci-fi, Entropia Universe, Game mechanics, MMO industry, News items

The team over at First Planet Company, the minds behind the MMO/Second Life hybrid Planet Calypso, have recently welcomed a brand new community manager onto their staff -- Hanne Einan Gulbrandsen. Gulbrandsen is the game's first dedicated community manager, bringing the virtual world in line with the company practices of other MMO companies.

But, while Gulbrandsen settles into his new office and title, First Planet Company has also detailed their development roadmap for this year -- going over future additions such as vehicles, a new questing/mission system, and the addition of fish to the world (as shown above.) The mission system will finally give Calypso MMO style storyline quests, offering players a new way to play the game and experience the planet's lore. How these new quests will impact the game's real money-based economy will be interesting, especially if doing them offers in-game rewards.

Tags: community-manager, entropia-universe, first-planet-company, fish, hanne-gulbrandsen, lore, mindark, missions, planet-calypso, quests, vehicles, vu10

Massively's Black Prophecy Q&A: Mission Systems

by James Egan Feb 1st 2010 at 11:00AM

Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, Interviews, New titles, PvP, Quests, PvE, Massively Interviews, Black Prophecy

Massively has been following the development of the sci-fi MMO Black Prophecy very closely, and was pleased that the title's developer Reakktor Media wanted to do a series of focused Q&As with us on several aspects of the game. Our last such Q&A started at the beginning with character creation, but in our second installment of the Black Prophecy interview series we discussed the game's mission design. To that end, we posed some questions to Lorenz Dames, the Lead Game Designer on Black Prophecy.

Lorenz explained a great deal about how Reakktor is approaching solo content vs. group-oriented gameplay. He also told us how Reakktor Media is merging the completion of mission objectives with dogfighting your fellow players through PvP missions, where other players will try to counter your efforts to complete goals. Our interview should provide Black Prophecy fans with a solid overview of the game's mission design, which will be an essential aspect of the sci-fi MMO's gameplay.

Gallery: Black Prophecy Gallery

Tags: black-prophecy, featured, game-design, game-mechanics, interviews, lead-game-designer, lorenz-dames, massively-interviews, missions, new-titles, pve, pvp, quests, reakktor, reakktor-media, sci-fi

The Daily Grind: Should MMOs be more or less reliant on questing?

by Seraphina Brennan Jan 22nd 2010 at 8:00AM

Filed under: Game mechanics, Opinion, The Daily Grind

MMOs and questing have become inseparable, much like breakfast and bacon or Abbott and Costello. Since World of Warcraft popularized the "questing exclamation point," MMOs have since embraced the concept and have utilized it in one way or another ever since.

Today's question is an interesting one, as we want to know what you guys think of quests. Do you think MMOs should be more reliant on questing, using quests to drive story and other gameplay elements, or should they be less reliant on questing, seeking to entertain the player through a more varied set of systems?

So go on, hit that comment box, and tell us all about your gripes with questing or your love for the exclamation mark. Share them with fellow readers, get into a conversation, and let's see what comes out today's Daily Grind.

Tags: opinion, questing, quests, the-daily-grind

CABAL Online reloads for a new update

by Seraphina Brennan Dec 18th 2009 at 10:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Cabal Online, Game mechanics, Patches, Free-to-play

Free-to-play MMO CABAL Online has recently played host to a new update entitled "CABAL Reloaded." The new update has aimed to correct a few areas of gameplay as well as offering players some brand new content to play through.

As a few other games have recently done, CABAL has looked at their earlier gameplay and made a few changes to the early content. In Reloaded, the developers have added three new dungeons targeted at those between levels 35 and 70, giving lower level players more options of game play. New quests have been added to the game as well, but those quests are more targeted towards endgame players, rather than midgame.

Other additions, such as skill books and a change to the party interface, adds more to the playability of the game than it changes how the game plays. For the full story on what's been added and changed, check out the full patch notes available on the North American forums.

Tags: cabal, cabal-online, cabal-reloaded, expansion, new-dungeons, ogplanet, patch, quests, update

The roles we play

by Brendan Drain Dec 8th 2009 at 10:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Classes, Culture, Game mechanics, Lore, MMO industry, Quests, PvE, Opinion, Roleplaying

To some people, the term "role-playing" conjures up images of guys with tinfoil swords and shields shouting "Lighting bolt!". Role-playing in MMOs gets a similarly polarised reception, suggesting scenes of people playing pretend and speaking to each other in Shakespearean tone. To those of us that grew up with pen-and-paper role-playing games and single-player RPGs, it might mean the opportunity to play fantastic characters like wizards and rogues. At its core, however, role-playing is something far more subtle and fundamental than we sometimes give it credit for and it underpins the entire MMO genre. In playing an MMO, we are inherently playing roles that the game's developers have created for us. But do most MMO developers really know how to create engaging gameplay for us or are they failing to immerse us in their own chosen roles?

In this probative opinion piece, I delve into the roles we play in MMOs and the things developers often do wrong when designing an immersive game experience.

Tags: age-of-conan, design, development, eve-online, fantasy, featured, game-design, Game-Mechanics, immersion, immersive, kill-ten-rats, lore, mmo-industry, opinion, quests, role-playing, roleplaying, story, storytelling, swtor, world-of-warcraft

The roles we play, part 2

by Brendan Drain Dec 8th 2009 at 10:00AM

Disguising the grind

by Brendan Drain Nov 30th 2009 at 10:00AM

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Age of Conan, EverQuest II, Culture, Game mechanics, Lore, MMO industry, Quests, PvE, Opinion, Hands-on, Virtual worlds

Believe it or not, grind is an essential part of an MMO and we might be pretty lost without it. Repetitive content is the cornerstone of the MMO genre but it's not all just smacking monsters over the head for hours on end or completing yet another "kill ten rats" quest. The repetitive elements in an MMO give us predictable gameplay in a form we can digest. We don't feel lost when we pick up a quest because it uses similar mechanics to previous quests we've done. From a development standpoint, the amount of time it takes to create new and unique gameplay for an MMO is quite large and it's just not feasible to churn out unique gameplay with every new piece of content. Instead, developers are forced to re-use the same gameplay mechanics over and over again. So if we genuinely appreciate predictable, repetitive gameplay and it's not feasible to do otherwise, why are we always so up-in-arms about the evils of grinding?

In this probative opinion piece, I look at why we need repetitive gameplay in MMOs and the various ways developers disguise grind to keep the game entertaining.
Update: Link to page 2 fixed. Thanks Brian!

Tags: developers, development, disguising, events, everquest-2, game-mechanics, gameplay, goals, grind, grinding, kill-ten-rats, lazy, mechanics, opinion, predictable, quest, quests, repetitive, trigger, world-of-warcraft, xp

Disguising the grind, part 2

by Brendan Drain Nov 30th 2009 at 10:00AM

The rewards of faction loyalty in Earthrise

by James Egan Nov 24th 2009 at 6:00PM

Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, New titles, Quests, PvE, Earthrise

The latest Earthrise Question of the Week is all about quests in the upcoming post-apocalyptic MMO. "Central to the PvE experience, quests in Earthrise are designed to help introduce the players to the tense cultural and political scene that shapes the two conflicting factions fighting for control over the island of Enterra," explains Moll, the game's Community Manager.

There are faction-specific quests unique to either Continoma or Noir, but Earthrise's game mechanics will let players defect to a rival faction to experience another walk of life on Enterra island. Switching allegiances will not be a trivial matter, however, and the consequences a player assumes for doing so will limit how often most characters defect.

Tags: community-manager, continoma, earthrise, enterra, enterra-island, factions, game-mechanics, masthead, masthead-studios, moll, new-titles, noir, organizations, post-apocalyptic, pve, qotw, quests, sci-fi

Motorbikes, alchemy, and demon friend quests now in Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine

by James Egan Nov 16th 2009 at 5:00PM

Filed under: Patches, Crafting, PvP, Quests, PvE, Free-to-play

Demon Busters in Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine Online are now enjoying a fresh content update, which includes motorbikes courtesy of the Shinjuku Babel mechanics. This new mode of transportation in the game allows players to travel between zones quickly and in first person perspective. Atlus has also introduced alchemy, a crafting system where players can create new objects with unusual properties. Runes that boost abilities for your demons or potions that augment your own abilities are a few possibilities with the new item mixing system. They've also released more PvE content in the form of demon friend quests, provided your friendships with the infernal powers-that-be are at the appropriate levels.

Perhaps the biggest content addition to Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine Online is the Team Battle system. The title's publisher Aeria Games writes: "Gather your allies and friends to crush your enemies in fast-paced, high intenseity group versus group combat for glory and god-like gear. Choose to fight solo in sided matches against other solo players, or combine your strength with others to demolish the competition in team versus team battle."

Tags: aeria-games, atlus, atlus-usa, f2p, free-to-play, imagine, item-mixing, motorbike, patches, pve, pvp, quests, shin-megami-tensei, smt, team-battle

Runes of Magic's milestone numbers

by Eliot Lefebvre Nov 13th 2009 at 3:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Business models, Game mechanics, Crafting, Quests, Free-to-play, Runes of Magic

Free-to-play MMOs have been staking out an impressive share of the gaming audience, and one of their poster children is Runes of Magic. Frogster Interactive, is understandably pleased with the success that the game has enjoyed, so they've taken the time to share some interesting figures of the game's popularity.

The most recent chapter of the game, The Elven Prophecy, was released only a couple of months ago. Since then, over fifteen million quests have been completed (even more staggering when one considers that the game has recently cleared the two million mark for registered players). A quarter of a million bosses have been brought down in that span of time, as well as over sixteen million items crafted. Even allowing that some of those were likely craft grind fodder, those are impressive numbers.

Of course, one of the wonderful parts about any sort of free-to-play game is that any curiosity about the game can be satisfied by playing right away, which has no doubt contributed to the success Runes of Magic has enjoyed thus far. While it's not the biggest name in the industry, it's experiencing a groundswell of popularity, good news both for fans of the game and the business model alike.

Tags: business-models, crafting, f2p, free-to-play, frogster, frogster-interactive, game-mechanics, quests, rom, runes-of-magic, runes-of-magic-the-elven-prophecy

EVE Online Lead Content Creator explains epic mission arcs for pirate factions

by James Egan Nov 11th 2009 at 9:00PM

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Game mechanics, Interviews, Quests, PvE

One of the new content additions coming to EVE Online this December are Epic Mission Arcs for two of New Eden's pirate factions -- the Guristas and the Angel Cartel. Scott Holden (aka CCP Molock) is the Lead Content Creator at CCP Games who has overseen the inclusion of the new pirate missions into EVE. Holden recently discussed some of the specifics of pirate mission running with Mondes Persistants.

The epic arcs for the Guristas and Angel Cartel will offer up roughly 10-12 branching missions, says Holden. The Guristas arc will largely be based in nullsec space in Venal, but players will be able to begin in Orvolle (high security) or low security starting points like Taisy. The Angel Cartel epic mission arcs will mostly be based in the Curse region, the stomping grounds of the Cartel. Would-be devotees to the Angel cause (of sabotage, extortion, and general mayhem) will be able to embark on the faction's mission arc from solar systems like Sendaya or Konora in low sec. Surprisingly, it seems that a player doesn't need high pirate faction standings to access either the Guristas or Angel Cartel epic mission arcs. Players with good standings with empire factions will be able to jump into the pirate mission arcs via mission agents found in low security space.

Tags: angel-cartel, branching-storylines, ccp, ccp-games, ccp-molock, dominion, epic-mission-arcs, eve, eve-online, expansions, guristas, interceptors, interviews, mission-running, missions, mondes-persistants, pirate-factions, pirates, pve, quests, sci-fi, scott-holden, speedboat-missions

Demo impressions of Star Trek Online from Eurogamer Expo 2009

by James Egan Nov 2nd 2009 at 5:00PM

Filed under: Sci-fi, Video, New titles, Quests, PvE, Star Trek Online

We recently mentioned that Star Trek Online fans would get a chance to play through a demo of the game at Eurogamer Expo last week. One of the first reports we've read about the Star Trek Online demo comes from Oli Welsh at Eurogamer who was uniquely positioned to check out the game (it was their Expo after all.) Welsh begins by writing, "Trekkies can put one fear to rest right now: Star Trek Online feels just like Star Trek." Although this might assuage a bit of the apprehension some gamers have about trying yet another Star Trek game, Welsh is up front about the fact that the demo he played through was a contained single player experience. It's too soon to say what gameplay will feel like when hundreds of other players are thrown into the mix.

He writes about the demo's transitions between locations via warp jumps, keyboard navigation of star ships (standard WASD, with additional throttle control), and the pacing of ship combat. Welsh also walks the reader from the bridge of a Federation vessel down to the surface of a planet where Klingon opponents await. Fans of the game should read Eurogamer's hands on with Star Trek Online and may also be interested in the video footage of STO gameplay from Limited Edition, shot at this year's Eurogamer Expo (starting at 02:40. They've also captured gameplay of Global Agenda as well.) We've got a video embed of that for you after the jump.

Tags: combat, cryptic, cryptic-studios, demo, eurogamer, eurogamer-expo, eurogamer-expo-2009, federation, gameplay, global-agenda, hands-on, john-nicholson, klingon, limited-edition, new-titles, oli-welsh, pve, quests, sci-fi, shuttler, star-trek, star-trek-online, sto, video

The Daily Grind: The epic confrontation between that guy and what's-his-name

by Eliot Lefebvre Oct 26th 2009 at 8:00AM

Filed under: Lore, Quests, Opinion, The Daily Grind, Humor

We all go into autopilot sometimes. So, you know, we're on a marathon session to level up, and we're mostly just sort of clicking by instinct. You belatedly realize, however, that you were in the middle of a quest chain. The reason you realize this, sadly, is because you're at the penultimate stage of said quest chain, and the questgiver is making references to all the work that you've been doing to reach this point... when you don't really remember most of what you've been doing up until now. There might have been something with fish men? Or the other fish men. It's all kind of a blur, really.

Lore is important, and few people would argue that, but when have you managed to completely miss every bit of what's supposed to be going on? Did you not read up the backstory in the manual and therefore not know that the person you're fighting unleashed horrors on his own people? Did you forget about an NPC that is actually kind of important in retrospect? Or did you just steamroll through things and only find out later that there was an overarching reason for all of this?

Tags: champions-online, co, humor, lore, opinion, quests, tdg, the-daily-grind