Mythological Mirth

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

1. Daily Column

I'm going to go out on a limb and predict that as a person who frequents this column you are likely expecting some bizarre combination of facts and humour. You want to be informed and entertained, educated and engaged. That's a tough gig no matter how you look at it.

Don't get me wrong I'll all for delivering funny facts. I'm all over it like a hobo on a ham sandwich. Let that mental picture sink in for a minute. It's kind of funny isn't it, a hobo scrambling around, mashing a ham sandwich into his mouth? Now imagine that the hobo is Rosie O'Donnell. That's even funnier. Rosie, her big yap stuffed full of ham sandwich crawling around like some primeval mutant pig-dog hybrid. If there is a mutant pig-dog in the mythology of any culture I bet it looks a lot like Rosie. Which leads me to...

I'm not sure if it is my love of mythology, the intricate minion system or perhaps something as simple as the attitude of the team behind the game that keeps bringing me back to Gods and Heroes: Rome Rising. It's an unfortunate problem for a writer. I yearn to explain to our readers why this game so appeals to me, but I can't put my finger on what is triggering my fascination.

As luck would have it our resident rodeo clown, Jeff Woleslagle conducted a video interview with none other than Stieg Hedlund who you may know as the Lead Design Director for both Diablo and Diablo II. Stieg is one of the most soft-spoken geniuses in the industry and is currently the Design Director on Gods and Heroes.

While Jeff was interviewing Stieg I was interviewing Gerard Butler, the actor who played King Leonidas in the movie 300.

Now something for you to think about...

You can't turn on the television without seeing a deodorant commercial. Names like Ocean Spray, Arctic Mist and Glacial Blast are used to make an otherwise unpleasant product seem somehow winsome.

What are the deodorant "flavours" used by MMOG characters?

Do Taurens smooth Thunder Bluff under their armpits? Does the "Axe Effect" work in Azeroth? Is Silverpine the scent of choice for Night Elves?

Perhaps EverQuest 2 characters go a different route with scents like Serpent Sewer or Dire Hollow?

Give it your best shot. Comment below...

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

2. New MMOG Articles At Ten Ton Hammer Today

Blog: Deconstructing Star Wars: Saga Edition
"Cody "Micajah" Bye takes the new pen-and-paper roleplaying game through its paces and determines whether the new game could support a conversion to the digitized realm."
Editorial: Can You Only Love A MMOG Once?
"Once you leave an MMOG, it's nearly impossible to go back. People, places, and gameplay changes, and if you do return, you'll find things are much different than when you first encountered them. In their editorial, "Can You Only Love an MMOG Once?", Cody "Micajah" Bye and Jeff "Ethec" Woleslagle explore how it's so hard to return to a game that you left, and how gamers should prepare themselves before they do re-enter a world they left behind."
Dungeons and Dragons Online: Custom Build - The Master of Minions
"Yep, you can have as many as three pets nowadays in DDO (if you count flaming spheres). The nice thing about the master of minions is you save spell points, since your mithril companion doesn't use spell points to summon. Like to hang around with a crowd of followers? Find out how with Darkgolem's new custom build: The Master of Minions!"
EverQuest 2: The Little Things - Chocololate Bliss
"You don't have to be a pint-sized Pocket Hobbit(TM) to appreciate that sometimes the little things can make or break your online playtime. Nor do you have to have been witness to the "Bring Back Bear Head Helms" campaigns from EQ to know that what is a trivial matter to some can be a big thing to others. Over the next couple weeks, join guest author Niami DenMother from EQ2 Traders Corner, and possibly even another surprise guest author or two, for humorous approaches to some of the "little things" in store for crafters with the upcoming release of GU36."
Gods and Heroes: Stieg Hedlund Video Interview
"Stieg Hedlund is one of the more soft-spoken legends of the games industry. Maybe you haven't heard of Stieg, but you've probably played Blizzard Entertainment's vaunted RPG Diablo or its incredibly successful followup Diablo 2 (released in 2000), which was a highly successful online multiplayer game in it's own right. Stieg was credited with Lead Design Director on both Diablo titles, so he's no stranger to great gameplay and compelling storylines. We talked with Stieg at the recent SOE Gamer Day about making the move into Massively Multiplayer Online Games (and a fresh new IP) with Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising, and discussed his favorite design elements of this mythological MMO slated to release later this year."
Lord of the Rings Online: Guide To Hobbits
"Are you thinking of creating a Hobbit in Lord of the Rings Online? Do you just enjoy saying "Hobbitses" like we do? Join RadarX as he examines everything there is to know about Hobbits such as class availability, racial skills, and history."
Voyage Century: In-Game Pet Images
"To celebrate the summer-time, the team at Voyage Century Online has elected to hold a promotion that gives a 70% discount on various pet-catching items and props. While we have the official announcement listed below, the Ten Ton Hammer team also grabbed a pair of VCO screenshots that showcase two of the in-game pets players can eventually receive. Enjoy!"
Wiki: The Secret World
"A new page has been added to the wiki, featuring The Secret World â a new game under development by Funcom."

3. Hot Content

4. Real World News

Miracle Diet Pill Side Effect: You Shit Your Pants [Thanks Matt]
"That large sector of the public that enjoy having their pants filled with liquefied shit has been seriously under-catered to"
Mugger Attacks Cabbie, Gets Mugged Himself
In Soviet Russia the cabbies mug YOU!
Atlantis Heat Shield Cleared For Return To Earth
How many pieces it will return in still up for debate.

Thanks as always for visiting TenTonHammer.com

John "Boomjack" Hoskin

Last Updated: Mar 13, 2016

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