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is the premier daily MMOG newsletter, only from Ten
Ton Hammer!

Welcome
to the 1,398th
edition
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The Ten Ton Hammer events team is on standby for deployment this week as the expo season really starts to heat up. For devs and press alike, the more events there are, the more pressure there is to attend, lest your competitors get the inside track. We'll tell the story of the events schedule to-date and wonder whether there's too many events (and not enough news and demos) in today's Loading... Expoverload?

The
Pulse

You vote with what you
view at Ten Ton Hammer, and the
result
is the Ten Ton Pulse ( href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/thepulse/">What
is The Pulse?).

Today's
top 5 Pulse results:

1. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/wow">World
   of Warcraft
2. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/eq2">EverQuest II (UP 1)
3. Age of Conan (UP 1)
4. EVE Online (down 2)
5. Dungeons & Dragons Online

Biggest
movers in the past 7 days :

1. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/2035">Rift: Planes of Telara
   
   - UP 29 to
   #18
2. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1407">DC Universe Online
   
   - UP 15 to
   #12
3. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/aoc">Guild Wars 2
   
   - UP 9 to #16

• size="-1">6/9
  - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1004">Mortal
  Online size="-1">
  (release)
• size="-1">6/29
  - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/998"
  target="_blank">APB
  (release)
• size="-1">7/13
  - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1801"
  target="_blank">Mytheon
  (release)
• size="-1">7/27
  - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/2461"
  target="_blank">Need
  for Speed World
  (release)
• size="-1">7/27
  - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/starcraft2" target="_blank">StarCraft
  II: Wings of Liberty
  (release)

• size="-1">August
  17, 2010 - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/140">City
  of Heroes: Going Rogue (release)
• size="-1">September
  7, 2010 - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/aion">Aion:
  Assault on Balaurea (free
  expansion)
• size="-1">September
  30, 2010 - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/ffxiv" target="_blank">Final
  Fantasy XIV size="-1">
  (release)
• size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">October
  26, 2010
  - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/170">LEGO
  Universe (release)
  
  
• size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">November
  2, 2010
  - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1407">DC
  Universe Online (release)
  
  

size="-1">Upcoming
Events

• size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">8/18 -
  8/22 - href="http://www.gamescom-cologne.com/en/gamescom/home/index.php"
  target="_blank">Gamescom 2010
  
• size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">9/3 -
  9/5 - href="http://www.paxsite.com/paxprime/index.php" target="_blank">PAX
  Prime
• size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">9/3 -
  9/6 - href="http://www.dragoncon.org/" target="_blank">DragonCon
• size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">10/8 -
  10/10 - href="http://www.newyorkcomiccon.com/">New
  York Comic Con
• size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">10/22 -
  10/23 - href="http://us.blizzard.com/blizzcon/?rhtml=y" target="_blank">BlizzCon
• size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;"> 3/24
  -
  3/26 (2011) - href="http://fanfest.eveonline.com/" target="_blank">CCP
  FanFest
  

Loading... clearing it up like Accutane (without the irritable bowel syndrome).

Expo season is in full swing, and the mood seems generally optimistic among the devs we've talked to so far. It's as if we've given up trying to clone WoW, we know the state of launch grace these online games once had no longer exists, and we've had our fun experimenting with business models, so let's get back to making good, deep, innovative MMORPG experiences and let the chips fall where they may. It's taken five odd years, but we're older and wiser now, and things are finally getting back to normal.

That said, the conference schedule continues to mystify me. Shows aren't about fans or press, at least not directly. As Ben aptly pointed out during a meeting last week, shows are (and always have been) largely about buyers and publishers. Buyers and publishers typically want fall release dates, which is why shows like CES (in January) and E3 (in June) were the place to debut new games. But retail doesn't hold sway like it once did, and e-tailers don't have to worry about buying too much digital inventory. That combined with the death of the one year development cycle for triple-A games means that the video games area at CES is pretty much a ghost town.

After a series of hiccups, E3 has come back into its own, largely because the industry needs some excitement in the early summer, when few games are released, the weather is fair, vacation and moving season is starting up, and (as a consequence) Internet traffic is at its yearly low. Then comes Comic Con International in San Diego in late July, the event where you notice the celebs the first year, and the second and following years you only notice the lines and crowds getting in the way of where you want to go.

So San Diego Comic Con, to its credit, is an awesome fan event, but video games booths are largely clumped together and pushed to the far back corner behind legions of screaming True Blood fans vying for an autograph. The total lack of meeting spaces (and the fact that most or all of San Diego is booked a year in advance) means that our time with games is extremely limited, as is your ability to actually hear a dev answer your questions as you play.

Then things get really interesting in August and early summer, when SOE Fan Faire, Gen Con, QuakeCon, GamesCom, and PAX Prime come around, one after the other. Fan events like SOE Fan Faire are incredible experiences for fans, but are typically geared towards online games that have already shipped (and peaked). Consequently, the press in attendance typically wonders where the fireworks is for new games on the development slate. Gen Con and QuakeCon are explosive conferences in their own right, but are targetted toward other gaming niches: PnP/minis and twitch gaming respectively.

That brings us to this week, when Ten Ton Hammer is having our Rivendell, our parting of the fellowship. The folks in charge here at Ten Ton Hammer recognize me for what I am, an uncouth, uncultured, questionably Appalachian type, so Reuben and Ben are headed to GamesCom, and I'm stateside for an up and coming event on the MMO block: the Syndicate World Conference.

The Syndicate is a steadfast multi-game guild with an active consulting and print guide authoring presence, and we've featured editorials from their dauntless guild leader, Dragons, here at Ten Ton Hammer. Were their event not a closed-door affair, I imagine we would have an MMORPG-ish industry event on the order of a Gen Con, DragonCon, or QuakeCon on our hands. As it stands, a number of top-tier devs and publishers from SOE, Trion, and more will be on hand later this week for an in-depth discussion of their games with The Syndicate's seasoned vets.

But GamesCom is perhaps the perfectly placed event, combining a fan venue and public access, separate meeting areas for press and business development types, and a date which is nearly perfect for the holiday release calendar. The only thing that isn't perfect about GamesCom is the expense of attending a European event. We shouldn't complain: the rest of the world comes to the US often enough and we don't hear them complaining (at least in a language we can understand). Devcos that won't be attending GamesCom (and some, like NCSoft / Arena.net, who will) will be attending the core games event of the year: PAX Prime. We're not done there, however. After a quick rest in September, Austin GDC, New York Comic-Con, and BlizzCon are all coming in October.

It's quite a marathon for press, devs, and PR types, and a huge thank you goes out to events team. On the surface it sounds like a lot of fun, and it is. But that fun is tempered with long days running from apppointment to appointment, networking events until late in the evening, writing till 4am, eating too little, sleeping too little, drinking too much (partly to be sociable, partly because you need the canned relaxation), then getting up early and doing it all over again and again. Then you get back home and spend a week and a weekend catching up on all the work you missed while you were out of the office before the next event. Add to that that these events are booked in some of the hottest places known to civilized man: Vegas, Southern California (which thankfully is having one of its coldest summers on record), Atlanta, Austin, and Germany (where air conditioning and deodorant are always at a premium). That said, it's always worth it for us, both to check out these games and also to meet the folks behind the development veil.

If you could attend any expo or games industry event, what would it be? Would you rather devs and press spent less time at events and more time working on games, or do you appreciate the insider glances into these games as they develop? Have your say in the Loading... forum!

Shayalyn's Epic Thread of
the Day

From our Articles, News & Events Discussion forum



StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty Review



You've gotta love a thread in which the first responding comment is
a flat, "bullshit." In my not so very humble opinion, that's one sure
way to kickstart an epic thread. "Bullshit" was megaflux's response to
our StarCraft II review. Find out why, and what others had to say, then join the conversation! (Maybe you'll be able to come up with a more expansive response.)



==============================

Awesome Quotes from the
Epic Thread


"Awwww. Did someone not get a copy? Or maybe is just an 'I hate anything Blizzard does' type of person?"

 - Dalmarus
==============================

New
and Exclusive Content
Today at Ten Ton Hammer

3 new and exclusive
Ten
Ton Hammer
features
today! 62 Ten Ton Hammer
features
in August! 878
in 2010!

INTERVIEWS

Flying Mounts, and Memories: A Destiny of Velious Video Q&A with EQ2's David Georgeson

http://www.tentonhammer.com/eq2/interviews/georgeson-destiny-of-velious

EverQuest II Executive Producer David Georgeson offers new insights into the just-announced February expansion: Destiny of Velious. David discusses flying mounts, the relationship between the free-to-play EverQuest II Extended service launching this month and the DoV expansion, and also fields a few questions from our Premium Members about marketplace items and EQ2 on the PS3!

Exclusive Season Two Q&A with Star Trek Online's Executive Producer Daniel Stahl

http://www.tentonhammer.com/sto/interviews/season-two-stahl



Cryptic
pumped some great content into Star Trek Online with their Season Two
update. To get some more information on Season Two, Ten Ton Hammer
talked to Executive Producer Daniel Stahl. After plying him with a
great deal of Romulan ale, he agreed to talk without any prompting by
the agonizer.

FEATURES & GUIDES

EVE Online FAQ (Part 1)
http://www.tentonhammer.com/eve/guides/politics/faq1

In
this guide, Ten Ton Hammer Contributing Writer, Space Junkie, addresses
some of the most commonly asked questions about EVE Online.

Today's
Hottest Articles, Guides, and Features

1. Flying Mounts, and Memories: An EQ2: Destiny of Velious Video Q&A with David Georgeson
2. Exclusive Season Two Q&A with Star Trek Online's Executive Producer Daniel Stahl
   
3. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/hands-on-preview-part-1">Rift:
   Planes of Telara First Hands-On
   Preview - Part 1
4. DC Universe Online Hands On Preview
5. Aion: Assault on Balaurea Interview with Associate Producer Sean Neil
   
6. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/starcraft2/reviews/wings-of-liberty">StarCraft
   II href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/starcraft2/reviews/wings-of-liberty">:
   Wings of Liberty Review
   
7. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/eq2/news/scars-of-velious-reveal">EverQuest
   II href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/eq2/news/scars-of-velious-reveal">:
   Destiny of Velious Unveiled
8. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/events/fanfaire2010/pool-party-video">Video:
   From the SOE Fan Faire 2010 Pool Party!
9. href="http://tentonhammer.com/interviews/soldier-connects-across-Star-Wars-Galaxies">Deployed
   - A Soldier Connects Across style="font-weight: bold;">Star
   Wars Galaxies
10. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/gw2/features/previews/personality-and-immersion">Personality
    and Immersion in style="font-weight: bold;"> Guild
    Wars 2 href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/champions-online/interview/shannon-posniewski/august2010">
    
    

Thanks
for visiting the Ten Ton Hammer network!

- Jeff "Ethec" Woleslagle
and the Ten Ton Hammer team