Loading... In Praise of the Fall Back Game

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Posted Wed, Sep 01, 2010 by Shayalyn

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

Welcome to the 1,409th edition of Loading...

In the lull between launches, most every MMOG player has a fall back game--a game they return to when nothing else captures their interest. Although no MMOG developer aspires to create a fall back game, there's no shame in it, either. Join Karen "Shayalyn" Hertzberg for Loading... In Praise of the Fall Back Game.

The Pulse You 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: World of Warcraft Everquest 2 (UP 1) EVE Online (UP 1) Dungeons and Dragons Online (UP 1) Lord of the Rings Online (UP 1) Biggest movers today: DC Universe Online - Down 8 to #18 Champions Online - UP 7 to #13 The Secret World - UP 7 to 19	Recent Releases 6/29 - APB (release) 7/27 - Need for Speed World (release) 7/27 - StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty (release) 8/17 - City of Heroes: Going Rogue (release) 8/18 - EverQuest II Extended (release)
	Upcoming Releases September 7, 2010 - Aion: Assault on Balaurea (free expansion) September 30, 2010 - Final Fantasy XIV (release) October 26, 2010 - LEGO Universe (release) November 2, 2010 - DC Universe Online (release)
	Upcoming Events 9/3 - 9/5 - PAX Prime 9/3 - 9/6 - DragonCon 10/8 - 10/10 - New York Comic Con 10/22 - 10/23 - BlizzCon 3/24 - 3/26 (2011) - CCP FanFest
Exclusive Warhammer Online Giveaway We have eight codes for Warhammer Online. These codes will give you a Bottomless Bowl of Custard to chuck at people, a Skaven Skin Cloak and a Razored Skinning Iron trophy. Want one of these codes? Simply send an email to ben@tentonhammer.com with the subject line "WAAAGH". Eight winners will be picked randomly at the end of the week and contacted through email with their code.

Loading... better than a badger to the face!

It's that time of year--none of the games I'm jonesing for are quite ready to either launch or give me beta access, and last year's launches have burned themselves out in a blaze of glory. It's a real conundrum for a gamer who wants something to play.

Enter the fall back game.

I believe that most MMO gamers have a game they default to when the inevitable boredom between launches sets in. For me, that game is EverQuest II. I first entered Norrath in 2000 or so as an EverQuest noob, and I've been enamored with it ever since. And recently, Sony Online Entertainment made it even easier for me to fall back to EQ2 by kicking off its free-to-play iteration, EverQuest II Extended. Now, not only can I head back to Norrath; I can do it for the relatively low cost of free. (I may be tempted to load up my Station Cash wallet with $25 to buy a premium mount, though. I mean, c'mon--not only would I be much faster, but I could float around Norrath on a black storm cloud complete with lightning bolts.)

Returning to a fall back game is a little like going back to your home town after being away for a few years; there's a certain comforting familiarity, but you're soon going to find that things are different. Where there was once a well-loved hole-in-the-wall diner there's now a Starbucks. Lenny's Gas & Groceries is now a thriving new Mobile station with a slushy machine. Things change, and the changes can be either subtle or startling. I didn't find the Norrath of EQ2X particularly unsettling. My newbie character had one new spell I didn't recall having before, and some of the quests were a bit different, but all in all, I returned to find the Norrath I knew and loved. (Sometimes, however, the changes to a game can invoke shock, as today's Epic Thread indicates.)

The other side of the fall back game is the revisited game. We've all had those, too. Remember that game you were excited about, preordered at launch, played eagerly (between patches and server crashes) during the pre-launch head start, consumed voraciously for a month or two, and then set aside because the game just didn't meet your standards yet? Yeah, that's the one. (For more on the topic of our high gaming standards, keep an eye out for Jason "Medawky" Bolton's Microcosoms column this week.) Often, we revisit games to find them changed for the better. Age of Conan provided a pleasant surprise for me in that regard recently. I hope that Aion will soon, as well.

I'm sure no MMOG developer launches their title in the hopes that it will be a fall back game, but I believe it's a worthy aspiration. No gamer relegates a game to fall back status without having first loved and enjoyed that game, or without being continually intrigued by its potential. For instance, I consider EverQuest II one of the best MMOGs in existence, with one of the finest communities I know. There's certainly no shame in that.

What's your fall back game? Which games have you revisited lately to see how they've improved? Hit the Loading... forum to chat about it.

Shayalyn's Epic Thread of the Day

From our WAR General Discussion forum

Curiosity kills cats...

...and server mergers kill toons? Well, not exactly. Darke's curiosity prompted him to re-up his Warhammer Online account, only to find the servers that held his characters grayed out. The answer to his dilemma and commentary on the state of WAR lies in today's Epic Thread. Go!

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Awesome Quotes from the Epic Thread

"If it has been awhile since you played get ready for a whole new experience."

- linuscalling
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New and Exclusive Content Today at Ten Ton Hammer

5 new and exclusive Ten Ton Hammer features today! 131 Ten Ton Hammer features in August! 947 in 2010!

GAMESCOM 2010

gamescom 2010 Image Gallery
http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/tid/2675

As we wind down our coverage of gamescom (and get ready to start on coverage from PAX!) we leave you, dear readers, with a photo gallery of gamescom 2010. You'll see booth babes, some of the booths themselves, some screenshots, and some things that are just plain weird.

INTERVIEWS

A Video Q&A with Rift's Scott Hartsman, Part 1: Just for Starters
http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/interviews/scott-hartsman/new-classes-and-starting-areas

Rift: Planes of Telara Executive Producer Scott Hartsman discusses a number of never-before-disclosed details, including Rift's newest classes, the lowdown on starting areas like Shadowlands, Silverwood, and Free Marches, and also about other unique game concepts like the Soul Walk. Join us for a new look at what promises to be one of 2011's most promising titles in Just for Starters: A Video Q&A with Rift's Scott Hartsman, Part 1.

Put Up Your Nukes! An End of Nations Video Q&A with Executive Producer Gary Wagner
http://www.tentonhammer.com/eon/interviews/aug-2010/gary-wagner

Ten Ton Hammer goes nuclear with End of Nations Executive Producer Gary Wagner, who discusses what End of Nations offers RTS and MMO players alike. Gary also discusses the PvE battle between players and both regional factions and the tyrannical Order of Nations, how aggressive the Order will be in taking back territory, what players will do to progress if the war turns against the Resistance, our recent hands-on with 5v5 PvP, and everyone's favorite post-apoc topic: superweapons! It's all in our latest EoN Interview: Put Up Your Nukes! An End of Nations Video Q&A with Executive Producer Gary Wagner.

MEDIA

New Videos Preview Aion Expansion Zones Inggison and Gelkmaros
http://www.tentonhammer.com/aion/videos/inggison
http://www.tentonhammer.com/aion/videos/gelkmaros

Aion's first free major content expansion is set to launch on September 7th with Assault on Balaurea and NCsoft has revealed two video previews of new areas slated to go live with the new expansion. The first video previews Inggison, the Elyos foothold in Balaurea, and is filled with aggressive wildlife and plants not found in Atreia. The second video previews Gelkmaros, an area claimed by the opposing Asmodian faction.

FEATURES & GUIDES

Hunter Pets in WoW Cataclysm: A Walk on the Wild Side
http://www.tentonhammer.com/wow/cataclysm/new-hunter-pets

The Hunter is possibly one of the most changed classes in Cataclysm, and an exciting, though often overlooked, change is on the way. The additon of new mobs to the game, which always comes with any expansion, means that Hunters will have a plethora of new pets (and old pets with new skins) to choose from. Our look at hunter pets explores all the wild possibilities.