Loading... October 1st, 2010 - Password Overprotection
Posted Fri, Oct 01, 2010 by Ethec
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Ton Hammer!
I set aside about four hours yesterday afternoon to install and play Final Fantasy XIV. Surely, thought I, four hours would be enough to make a fresh start with FFXIV and share my initial impressions with you in today's newsletter. Instead I spent a good three and a half hours installing and setting up the game and about a half hour actually playing. Well, 'playing' is a little generous. Of that half hour, about 10 minutes was spent in character creation mostly wondering about classes (primary classes) like the fisher and botanist and the sheer volume of obscure, irrevocable decisions I was making, 18 minutes was spent waiting for or watching cutscenes, and I spent the remaining two minutes actually playing.
So let me sum up my thoughts on the game thus far, and feel free to impugn my observations since I was only truly in-game for, as I said, two minutes of the four hours allocated: 1) poorly seeded torrent patchers are the most sinister example of MMO devolution to-date, 2) the world is pretty, the characters are cute, 3) in addition to creating the sort of cute characters and pretty worlds that would have Walt Disney giggling in his grave, Square Enix also excels at cockblocking players at every turn during the account setup process, 4) gender ambivalence is at an all time high - could I get some man clothes that aren't skin tight or show belly? 5) I must be playing the game through a side view mirror, because all the monsters are several times bigger in the cutscenes than they actually appear.
I don't want this to be another blog post about the pain in the ass that is Square Enix billing. It's been done before, and particularly well in FFXIV's case in Karen's Loading... last week. Buying virtual currency to just pay for a subscription and paying per alt is strange, but what we're hearing about clickandbuy is scary if it's true (in the interest of full disclosure, the clickandbuy site notes that you're free to cancel subscriptions at any time but that you must observe "the periods of notice specified by the vendor." If any period of notice is specified by Square Enix, I can't find this information on the website, ergo, scary. And, after all, this isn't SquareEnix's first go-round with allegations of deceptive billing practices.
Instead, I'm more out of sorts that I had to create multiple accounts with multiple passwords to play one game. Final Fantasy XIV requires a Square Enix account (which you already have if you played Final Fantasy XI), a "service account" to set up the game, and a payment account (the clickandbuy.com step, dodge it with PayPal at your peril). I could have written this off as just Square Enix's usual lunacy had I not spent a good chunk of the weekend trying to wrest control of my Guild Wars and City of Heroes account.
NCSoft requires a master account to set up billing, then per-game accounts for each of the games. The simple solution is to pick a usernames and strong password, then keep that the same for all accounts though a single developer or publisher. That doesn't work. None of the usernames can match (and Guild Wars tacks on an @ncsoft to usernames too), consequently I make a bad habit of forgetting my login info for NCSoft games. Plus, NCSoft logins pry a bit. Logging into my Guild Wars account, for example, requires me to remember the name of one of my characters. That's probably fine for diehard fans of the game, but my original GW experience was pretty short and not very memorable, and worse: GW characters have surnames. After a lengthy call to customer service, Eh Thec sits idle on the server, guarding my path to future Guild Wars enjoyment. Then to have to turn around and do the same thing with City of Heroes - it's enough to drive you insane.
I fully understand and appreciate the desire to keep my game account and payment info secure, but for all the talk of account security, the authenticators and secret questions and other hoops to jump through, I feel more hassled than safe. With no dongles and half the passwords required, my online bank account seems far safer than the majority of my game accounts. I find it easier to go back to games under the SOE and Turbine umbrella, and remembering login info plays a major part in that. SOE's Station Launcher is a very elegant solution that I wish NCSoft in particular would adopt. When SOE ties in authenticators, as much as I hate traveling with them and fear the inevitable battery failure (a smartphone version, perhaps?), this might be the perfect solution.
Are you feeling password overprotected too? Does adding yet another password to the mix really make your account more secure? Are authenticators, provided they're free or low cost and easy to tote, the solution? Discuss in the Loading... forum and happy October!
From our WoW Raiding & PvP Discussion
Raiding & Gearscore
So, let's say you're a World of Warcraft player and you've reached a time in your character's life where he's ready to raid, only...whoops! Your almighty Gearscore isn't high enough. It's like that old conundrum where you can't get the job you want without experience, but you can't get experience because you can't get the job you wan. What to do? Our WoW community is talking about it.
=====================================
Awesome Quotes from the Epic Thread
"I certainly will give PlayerScore a try!"
- Fritzo
=====================================
6 new Ten Ton Hammer features today! 111 Ten Ton Hammer features in September! 1066 in 2010!
REVIEW
Final Fantasy XIV Review at Ten Ton Hammer
http://www.tentonhammer.com/reviews/final-fantasy-xiv
In celebration of the official launch of Final Fantasy XIV, Ten Ton Hammer guest writer, Ralsu, reviews the game in its entirety. Can FFXIV hold up to other new titles? How does the game play for new players and Final Fantasy veterans alike? And, most importantly, is the game worth your dollar?
PREVIEW GUIDE
WoW - Introduction to the Mastery System
http://www.tentonhammer.com/wow/guides/mastery
Mastery is a stat that has a different meaning for each of the 30 available World of Warcraft class specializations. In general, mastery is a stat that will massively increase the potency of a defining aspect of your chosen specialization and serve to significantly differentiate each spec.
MEDIA
Lex Luthor Revealed in New DC Universe Online Artwork and Screenshots
http://www.tentonhammer.com/dcuo/screenshots/lex-luthor
Sony Online Entertainment has revealed the latest character in their upcoming MMOG, DC Universe Online. The latest reveal showcases that criminal mastermind, Lex Luthor. Armed with his power suit, Luthor is known for his overwhelming desire to kill Superman and, you guessed it, take over the world. SOE has released a new batch of art and screenshots of the criminal genius in action and you can check them all out here.
Final Fantasy XIV Video Showcases World Conflict
http://www.tentonhammer.com/ffxiv/videos/cg-trailer
Final Fantasy XIV recently launched, bringing magic wielders and furries to fans everywhere. With the game's official launch, Square Enix has also released the opening movie CG video that offers a look at some of the story and conflict found in the FFXIV world. The video runtime is about seven and a half minutes, so grab a snack and enjoy a look at some of the excellent cinematics of FFXIV.
Top Ten Things You Need To Know About FFXIV
http://www.tentonhammer.com/guides/top-ten-ffxiv
Final Fantasy XIV is not a typical MMOG. It’s filled with unique mechanics and new ways of doing things that may throw you off your game. Understanding the different facets of the game takes time to discover, and may surprise you along the way. To lessen the shock of these discoveries, and smooth out some of the speed bumps on your road to enjoying this rich title, I’ve assembled my list of the Top Ten Things You Need To Know About FFXIV.
Ten Ton Hammer's Beginner's Guide for LotRO - General Gameplay
http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/90254
Everybody has to start somewhere, and it's no different in The Lord of the Rings Online than it is anywhere else. Players who are new to the game may feel a bit overwhelmed or confused with the unfamiliar setings and controls, and some of the game-specific language. There are a lot of new things to learn, whether you are Free-to-play or a new VIP subscriber. So here's your General Gameplay Beginner's Manual to help smooth things out and allow you to get the most out of the game.
Welcome to the 1,431st edition of Loading...
Initial (very initial)
impressions of Final Fantasy XIV
and thoughts on account proliferation (or why we don't need three
accounts to play one game) in today's Loading...
Password Overprotection!
The PulseYou vote with what you view at Ten Ton Hammer, and the result is the Ten Ton Pulse (What is The Pulse?). Today's top 5 Pulse results: Biggest movers today:
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Brewfest Tankard O' Terror Contest October is just around the corner, so you know what that means. It’s that festive time once again when we get to raise or virtual tankards in World of Warcraft in celebration of the annual in-game Brewfest event! To help get you into the spirit (or should that be spirits?) of the event, we’ll be giving away not just one, but two signed Tankard O’ Terror’s from Taverncraft. For full contest details be sure to race your ram over to our Brewfest Tankard O’ Terror Contest page! Enter now as the contest ends on Friday, October 1st at 11:59pm! |
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What's your PlayerScore? World of Warcraft players, find out at playerscore.com.
Loading... more fun that a barrel of Murlocs!
I set aside about four hours yesterday afternoon to install and play Final Fantasy XIV. Surely, thought I, four hours would be enough to make a fresh start with FFXIV and share my initial impressions with you in today's newsletter. Instead I spent a good three and a half hours installing and setting up the game and about a half hour actually playing. Well, 'playing' is a little generous. Of that half hour, about 10 minutes was spent in character creation mostly wondering about classes (primary classes) like the fisher and botanist and the sheer volume of obscure, irrevocable decisions I was making, 18 minutes was spent waiting for or watching cutscenes, and I spent the remaining two minutes actually playing.
So let me sum up my thoughts on the game thus far, and feel free to impugn my observations since I was only truly in-game for, as I said, two minutes of the four hours allocated: 1) poorly seeded torrent patchers are the most sinister example of MMO devolution to-date, 2) the world is pretty, the characters are cute, 3) in addition to creating the sort of cute characters and pretty worlds that would have Walt Disney giggling in his grave, Square Enix also excels at cockblocking players at every turn during the account setup process, 4) gender ambivalence is at an all time high - could I get some man clothes that aren't skin tight or show belly? 5) I must be playing the game through a side view mirror, because all the monsters are several times bigger in the cutscenes than they actually appear.
I don't want this to be another blog post about the pain in the ass that is Square Enix billing. It's been done before, and particularly well in FFXIV's case in Karen's Loading... last week. Buying virtual currency to just pay for a subscription and paying per alt is strange, but what we're hearing about clickandbuy is scary if it's true (in the interest of full disclosure, the clickandbuy site notes that you're free to cancel subscriptions at any time but that you must observe "the periods of notice specified by the vendor." If any period of notice is specified by Square Enix, I can't find this information on the website, ergo, scary. And, after all, this isn't SquareEnix's first go-round with allegations of deceptive billing practices.
Instead, I'm more out of sorts that I had to create multiple accounts with multiple passwords to play one game. Final Fantasy XIV requires a Square Enix account (which you already have if you played Final Fantasy XI), a "service account" to set up the game, and a payment account (the clickandbuy.com step, dodge it with PayPal at your peril). I could have written this off as just Square Enix's usual lunacy had I not spent a good chunk of the weekend trying to wrest control of my Guild Wars and City of Heroes account.
NCSoft requires a master account to set up billing, then per-game accounts for each of the games. The simple solution is to pick a usernames and strong password, then keep that the same for all accounts though a single developer or publisher. That doesn't work. None of the usernames can match (and Guild Wars tacks on an @ncsoft to usernames too), consequently I make a bad habit of forgetting my login info for NCSoft games. Plus, NCSoft logins pry a bit. Logging into my Guild Wars account, for example, requires me to remember the name of one of my characters. That's probably fine for diehard fans of the game, but my original GW experience was pretty short and not very memorable, and worse: GW characters have surnames. After a lengthy call to customer service, Eh Thec sits idle on the server, guarding my path to future Guild Wars enjoyment. Then to have to turn around and do the same thing with City of Heroes - it's enough to drive you insane.
I fully understand and appreciate the desire to keep my game account and payment info secure, but for all the talk of account security, the authenticators and secret questions and other hoops to jump through, I feel more hassled than safe. With no dongles and half the passwords required, my online bank account seems far safer than the majority of my game accounts. I find it easier to go back to games under the SOE and Turbine umbrella, and remembering login info plays a major part in that. SOE's Station Launcher is a very elegant solution that I wish NCSoft in particular would adopt. When SOE ties in authenticators, as much as I hate traveling with them and fear the inevitable battery failure (a smartphone version, perhaps?), this might be the perfect solution.
Are you feeling password overprotected too? Does adding yet another password to the mix really make your account more secure? Are authenticators, provided they're free or low cost and easy to tote, the solution? Discuss in the Loading... forum and happy October!
Shayalyn's Epic Thread of the Day
From our WoW Raiding & PvP Discussion
Raiding & Gearscore
So, let's say you're a World of Warcraft player and you've reached a time in your character's life where he's ready to raid, only...whoops! Your almighty Gearscore isn't high enough. It's like that old conundrum where you can't get the job you want without experience, but you can't get experience because you can't get the job you wan. What to do? Our WoW community is talking about it.
=====================================
Awesome Quotes from the Epic Thread
"I certainly will give PlayerScore a try!"
- Fritzo
=====================================
New and Exclusive Content Today at Ten Ton Hammer
6 new Ten Ton Hammer features today! 111 Ten Ton Hammer features in September! 1066 in 2010!
REVIEW
Final Fantasy XIV Review at Ten Ton Hammer
http://www.tentonhammer.com/reviews/final-fantasy-xiv
In celebration of the official launch of Final Fantasy XIV, Ten Ton Hammer guest writer, Ralsu, reviews the game in its entirety. Can FFXIV hold up to other new titles? How does the game play for new players and Final Fantasy veterans alike? And, most importantly, is the game worth your dollar?
PREVIEW GUIDE
WoW - Introduction to the Mastery System
http://www.tentonhammer.com/wow/guides/mastery
Mastery is a stat that has a different meaning for each of the 30 available World of Warcraft class specializations. In general, mastery is a stat that will massively increase the potency of a defining aspect of your chosen specialization and serve to significantly differentiate each spec.
MEDIA
Lex Luthor Revealed in New DC Universe Online Artwork and Screenshots
http://www.tentonhammer.com/dcuo/screenshots/lex-luthor
Sony Online Entertainment has revealed the latest character in their upcoming MMOG, DC Universe Online. The latest reveal showcases that criminal mastermind, Lex Luthor. Armed with his power suit, Luthor is known for his overwhelming desire to kill Superman and, you guessed it, take over the world. SOE has released a new batch of art and screenshots of the criminal genius in action and you can check them all out here.
Final Fantasy XIV Video Showcases World Conflict
http://www.tentonhammer.com/ffxiv/videos/cg-trailer
Final Fantasy XIV recently launched, bringing magic wielders and furries to fans everywhere. With the game's official launch, Square Enix has also released the opening movie CG video that offers a look at some of the story and conflict found in the FFXIV world. The video runtime is about seven and a half minutes, so grab a snack and enjoy a look at some of the excellent cinematics of FFXIV.
Top Ten Things You Need To Know About FFXIV
http://www.tentonhammer.com/guides/top-ten-ffxiv
Final Fantasy XIV is not a typical MMOG. It’s filled with unique mechanics and new ways of doing things that may throw you off your game. Understanding the different facets of the game takes time to discover, and may surprise you along the way. To lessen the shock of these discoveries, and smooth out some of the speed bumps on your road to enjoying this rich title, I’ve assembled my list of the Top Ten Things You Need To Know About FFXIV.
Ten Ton Hammer's Beginner's Guide for LotRO - General Gameplay
http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/90254
Everybody has to start somewhere, and it's no different in The Lord of the Rings Online than it is anywhere else. Players who are new to the game may feel a bit overwhelmed or confused with the unfamiliar setings and controls, and some of the game-specific language. There are a lot of new things to learn, whether you are Free-to-play or a new VIP subscriber. So here's your General Gameplay Beginner's Manual to help smooth things out and allow you to get the most out of the game.
Today's Top 10
- WoW - Introduction to the Mastery System
- Final Fantasy XIV Review at Ten Ton Hammer
- WoW Rogue Talent Guide for Patch 4.0.1
- Marvel Super Hero Squad Online - A Heroes & Helicarriers Preview
- Ten Ton Hammer's Beginner's Guide for LotRO - General Gameplay
- Measuring Gear and Comparing Scores in World of Warcraft
- Return to Norrath! An Interview with EverQuest 2’s Dave Georgeson
- An Introduction to Weapons in Guild Wars 2
- For the Emperor! Gods and Heroes - An Interview with Heatwave Interactive
- Ten Ton Hammer's All-New Minstrel Class Guide for Lord of the Rings Online
Thanks for visiting the Ten Ton Hammer network!
- Jeff "Ethec" Woleslagle and the Ten Ton Hammer team
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Genre: Fantasy
Status: Closed Beta
Release Date: September 30th, 2010
Fee: P2P
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