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Are you looking for the latest industry headlines? Look no further.

1. Daily Column
2. New MMOG Articles at TenTonHammer Today
3. Hot Content
4. Real World News - You Can't Make This Up

1. Daily Column

Where is the line at which a law becomes relevant to a virtual world? I vaguely remember reading about an accusation of rape in the game/world/porn holodeck called Second Life. It is vague because my tinfoil hat reflects all Second Life news as an alien attempt to take over my brain. Luckily for you, the Washington Post took off their tinfoil bonnet momentarily and brought up the incident in a recent article.

The Post claims that police authorities in both Belgium and Germany are investigating cases of 'abuse" in Second Life. With crime all but extinct in those two countries I can see why the police were looking afield to find work. Their zeal to enter the virtual world becomes even more apparent if they read the Washington Post. You see the Washington Post has drilled right to the nutmeat of the problem with virtual worlds. They have researched, questioned, interrogated and verified every bit of information, distilling it down to the most refined facts and nailing the absolute pith of the matter.

"In World of Warcraft, the most popular online game, with an estimated 8 million participants worldwide, some regions of this fantasy domain have grown so lawless that players said they fear to brave them alone. Gangs of animated characters have repeatedly preyed upon lone travelers, killing them and making off with their virtual belongings."

Imagine it.... gangs of animated characters preying on other animated characters and absconding with their virtual belongings. It's horrific! It's inhumane! It's PvP combat you asshats.

It gets better though,

"Two years ago, Japanese authorities arrested a man for carrying out a series of virtual muggings in another popular game, Lineage II, by using software to beat up and rob characters in the game and then sell the virtual loot for real money."

Raise your hand if you have ever been beaten up by software. Norton Internet Security doesn't count. There, all the hands are back down.

Please read the entire article and copy your favourite quote to the comments below. I promise not to beat any of you up with software.

Comment in the blog (now with direct link goodness) or email me directly.

2. New MMOG Articles At Ten Ton Hammer Today

• Blog: Fast, Faster, Fastest?
  "Quick, arcade-style games are having a bit of a comeback, this time in the MMO genre. After playing the latest in MMO-fare, Micajah analyzes the continual increase of speed in MMOs and why it may not necessarily be the answer many developers think it is."
• Dungeons and Dragons Online: Custom Build - The Bardbarian
  "The Bardbarian is a blend of bard and barbarian, able to bring great pain and suffering to enemies, with a catchy tune to go with it! Learn how to make one with PerryC's new custom build: The Bardbarian!"
• EverQuest 2: Necromancer Achievement Point Guide
  "Not quite sure where to spend your achievements points? Necromancers rejoice, for we have put together your achievement point guide! Use this guide to look over all your AP choices to make that crucial decision wisely.
• Gods and Heroes: The Circian Highlands and You
  "Charabis has braved the dangers of the Greek and Centauri menace to bring you a new guide! This time, he headed out to find all he could about the Circian Highlands, and bring it to you!"
• Lord of the Rings Online: Lore-Master Editorial
  "In our latest editorial, we take a close look at the rumors that have been plaguing the Lore-master class since beta by going straight to the source: the players themselves!"
• Record of Lunia War: Screenshots
  "Another Korean MMO is making a splash on Western shores, and this time it's an arcade-style, isometric MMORPG by the name of Record of Lunia War. According to their marketing team, the Record of Lunia War's closed beta test was comprised of 30,000 users, a pretty hefty number for a game that has yet to even be fully released. With a full release scheduled in July and an open beta very soon, we should be seeing more of Lunia shortly. Until then, check out some new screenshots and snippets of the official press release!"
• Vanguard: New UI Mod - Drox UI Version 2
  "After nearly 3 months without any updates, UI author Drox revealed his secret project to the Vanguard community: DroxUI version 2! Changes to the new DroxUI include an overhaul of the color scheme, a hotbar with adjustable size (up to 12x12), and a new buffer bar."
• World of Warcraft: Warlock Pet Guide
  "Our warlock pet guide has been updated with new information and tips for both the young and experienced warlock, including utility for the post-60 skills your pets earn, and a few recommendations for PvP and PvE with your pets."
• World of Warcraft: Horde 60-70 Leveling Guide
  "Another big round of updates on our Horde 60-70 power leveling guide. Today brings a number of updates and shortcuts submitted by our readers as well as a few other useful features. We added a much requested index at the bottom of each page so that you can quickly jump to the different sections. We also added a map of each zone to the guide and a link to our quest database for each zone, so that you can quickly find additional information or make comments on individual quests."
• World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade Instance Updates
  "The recent 2.1 patch made changes to various instances. In general making the non-heroic versions slightly easier, but also changing many of the boss fights. We have gone through and updated our various instance guides accordingly, and you can find all the new information using our handy Burning Crusade Instance Encyclopedia."

3. Hot Content

• Interview With Brian "Psychochild" Green, Founder of Near Death Studios
• Gods and Heroes: Interview With Travis George, System Designer
• Sword of the New World: Exclusive Developer Diary #3
• Lord of the Rings Online: Interview With Jeff Anderson
• Interview With Industry Legend, Don Daglow
• Fury: Q&A With Mike Hampden
• 38 Studios: R.A. Salvatore Interview Part 2
• Gods and Heroes - Video Interview With Chris Launius
• OGDC: Auto Assault Post-Mortem With Scott Brown
• OGDC: EVE Online Interview With Peter Gollan

4. Real World News

• RSPB Bans Cocks, Tits Allowed [Thanks Matt]
  Bird lovers indeed.
• CompUSA Sells Man Empty Box - Refuses To Refund
  Man also purchased a living dinosaur, the moon and Paris Hilton's virginity.
• Terrorists End 'Permanent' Ceasefire
  Further proof that you can't trust those darn terrorists.

Thanks as always for visiting TenTonHammer.com

John "Boomjack" Hoskin