Jim Moreno tackles the difficult task of roleplaying a merchant in this edition of RoleCraft: "Even roleplayers are known to struggle with this cookie cutter gameplay, and with keeping their characters from looking and acting just like every other character in game. What to do? One sure way to avoid the pitfalls of routine is to realize that there are many other classes in game besides adventurer. It's time to become a professional roleplayer!"
Sean Bulger's periodic community column today looks at the concept of Open PvP (player vs. player) and what it does to games and their communities.
A while back we talked about conflict between players and what sort of a role that it can play in a game and for communities. During this, it was noted that player competition can be implemented in numerous different ways. This week, I would like to revisit this discussion and talk about one of those particular methods: the open PvP world.
Open PvP is one of the more controversial topics in MMO circles and plenty of people have fairly strong opinions one way or the other on the subject. That said, I would like to explore both the positive impacts and negative ones on the player community. Open PvP has the potential to help bond a community fairly tightly, but it also has the potential to truly tear it apart as well.
Read more after the leap.
Last week, Jonathan Steinhauer's column looked at the design of outdoor areas in The Dangerous Wilderness, Part 1. In Part 2, he continues his thoughts on the basic challenge most every MMO faces.
The easiest solution, though it avoids the root of the problem, is to disperse the ground spawns to a more realistic population level. There are areas where one would expect to encounter monsters, and that is where the heavy concentrations should be. Hard core hunting should occur in the fortresses and camps of the various villains, monsters, and animals that are the bane of the adventurer, not every time you step off the path. This opens up the wilderness for travel and casual hunting while giving players the kind of combat that exist in epic stories: battle in the lairs.
Read more after the leap.
Jim Moreno looks at the biggest question for the modern MMO roleplayer: how do you keep in character in an instance? They're here to stay, so it's time to learn how to deal with them.
Hear me now and believe me later, there is no reason why roleplayers cannot and should not engage in the same high quality RP within an instance as without. Personally, I'm not at all knowledgeable as to where the notion started from, but I absolutely aim to crush it here and henceforth. More than that, I want to share with fellow roleplayers why I think instances are the best places for RP, and provide some tips on how to take on these adventures with RP in mind. I hope they help!
Read more after the leap.
In a new editorial, columnist Jonathan Steinhauer embarks into "The Dangerous Wilderness". He looks at the concept of pf the wild and how it's presented in MMOs.
As I've wandered through the wilds of various games, I've been stunned by the panoramic vistas that have opened out before me. Trees sway in the light breeze, their leaves rustling softly through my speakers. A stream trickles by, the sunlight gleaming of the whorls and eddies of the current while in the distance, purple mountains capped with white glaciers scrape the billowing clouds. The imagery is so detailed, I could almost believe it is real.
Read more after the leap.
PlayNet is looking for some good employees to help finish Hero's Journey. Are you good with programming and have past experience with coding? Most likely, none of you do, but its still a good sign to see them growing with such little news.
Check out the application here and pretend like you can fulfill all those needs.
Good news everyone! The new support site is up and running. The entire system is dedicated to making your lives easier. With a built-in Knowledgebase ( information added daily ), and the ability to check old tickets the new support site is very user friendly. If you are wondering what will happen to all of the tickets in the old system, fear not. We will make sure that all outstanding issues are resolved before bringing the site down.
You can find the new support site here: http://support.istaria.com/support-center/index.php
Simutronics is an exciting company and their debut project Hero's Journey most of all. The game is the flagship title for the HeroEngine. If you're interested, we need someone to run a fansite as part of our network about this game, which is chalked full of potential.
Interested? Please send an email to lepidus@warcry.com.
The official Hero's Journey site got a rare update over the weekend as Simutronics released the second of a three part series on the classes of their game. In this profile, we learned about the Necromancer, Ranger and Wizard.
Part two of our three-part series highlighting the classes of Hero's Journey! This time around, we're discussing the Ranged group: Necromancer, Ranger, and Wizard!
You can read all the details over at Play.net!
Class update on the Ranged Group!
Part two of our three-part series highlighting the classes of Hero's Journey! This time around, we're discussing the Ranged group: Necromancer, Ranger, and Wizard!
You can read all the details over at Play.net!
