Welcome to the 1,088th Edition of Loading...

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One of the most exciting answers to come out of our recent Jumpgate Evolution dev chat was that NetDevil and Codemasters would offer some kind of premium box option. Whether or not that fits the usual idea of a Collector's Edition remains to be seen, but what makes a CE worth the extra money? Is it the box, the goodies, or the idea that you've further proven your fan-dom above the average player? That's the question in today's Loading... Collector's Edition!

Coyote's It's All Geek to Me is the lighter side of Ten Ton Hammer. Read his humor column daily at Ten Ton Hammer. Today's topic: Marvel vs. DC (Who truly commands our hearts... and wallets?)

The Pulse

You vote with what you view at Ten Ton Hammer, and the result is the Ten Ton Pulse (What is Pulse?).

Here's today's top 5 Pulse results for today:

  1. World of Warcraft
  2. Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures
  3. City of Heroes (UP 12!! - read why)
  4. Star Trek Online (UP 2)
  5. EVE Online (UP 3)

Biggest Movers in the Top 20 this week :

  1. FusionFall (UP 62!! to #18 - read why)
  2. Star Trek Online (UP 7 to #12 - read why)
  3. Darkfall (UP 16 to #17 - read why)
Recent MMO Releases
Upcoming Releases
Important Dates

Loading... Daily

Tonight's scheduled vooncast is a good news / bad news thing. Bad news: the Earthrise devs cancelled out. Good news: Warhammer Online 's Gabe Amatangelo and Jeff Skalski, two of the leading devs behind this summer's Land of the Dead expansion, have agreed to come on the show. Download Voon if you haven't already and join us in room "Ten Ton Events" at 7pm. It's our last Loading... Live show before a brief E3 / summer hiatus, so join in if you have the time.

Speaking of Loading... Live, thanks to Doomtron, Sepomat, and the Vivox team, we've recovered and posted the Jumpgate Evolution vooncast we initially feared was lost due to a recording bug. In it, producer Hermann Peterscheck explained many aspects of the game in great detail. But as far as new information goes, Mike Rowland of publisher Codemasters offered some completely new info on how the game will be distributed and whether or not there will be a Collector's Edition:

"Regarding digital downloads, we will be having digital downloads I believe. We may be going with Steam for some of that, so you may be going with Steam for some of that... Yes, you'll get your month's free subscription when you buy the box. If you get the other editions, which I'm probably not allowed to talk about, you'll get a bit more time. Watch the website for that one..."

"There will be different levels of membership that you can buy, different packaging," Katie Postma added. "We just saw it, so it hasn't all been finalized and approved. NetDevil just sent their ideas to Codemasters so we'll learn more about that in the months before launch, for sure."

As for the "different levels of membership", we should avoid reading too much into this. Preserving a competitve, skill-based balance weighed into just about every answer regarding combat and the JGE economy in the Vooncast, so it doesn't seem likely that you'll be able to buy your way to automatic success in JGE.

But a Collector's Edition, or something very like it, seems probable, and the crowd in the channel cheered the news. I'm continually impressed with how folks take to CEs. Though I've purchased and played every subscription-driven MMO I could get my hands on since Ultima Online, I can only claim two CEs - Warhammer Online and Wrath of the Lich King - and soon regretted the loss of shelf space and the extra $20 - $30. I do admit to a tinge of jealousy when I enter a dev's corner office and see a shelf full of CEs lined up like trophies won in the great pissing contest of game experience. It's much more tangible way to list your exploits than, say, a forum signature.

Those among you that are Collector's Edition collectors, is it the impressive looking box? The in-game goodies? The toys, maps, soundtrack, or actual attempt at decent documentation? What makes a good Collectors Edition? I'm sure more than a few publishers want to hear what you have to say, so put together your ideal CE in the Loading... forum, or as usual, feel free to email me.


Shayalyn's Epic Thread of the Day

From our WAR: General Discussion Forum

Others have played and guess what...they are unimpressed!

He's baaaa-aaack!

Wind it up, kiddies--persius, the Warhammer Online hater we loved to hate, is back to troll the Ten Ton Hammer forums.

Persius's
first WAR thread, "So I have played it and I am unimpressed," not only
proved to us that he may be incapable of using contractions (I feel ya,
man; it's a bitch figuring out where that apostrophe goes), but it
became one of the most Epic Threads on our forum. Now, he's back to gloat with another thread, aptly titled: "Others have played it and guess what...they are unimpressed!"

Cue the lolcats and other thread derailing goodness...it's showtime!

==============================
Awesome Quotes from the Epic Thread

"Of course they are unimpressed, otters are not supposed to play video games!"


- Mormoran
==============================

Have you spotted an Epic Thread on our forums? Tell us!

9 new MMOG hand-crafted articles today! 91 in May! 617 in 2009!

New MMOG Articles At Ten Ton Hammer Today [Thanks Phil Comeau for links and Real World News]

  • Premium Content: A Gaming Bully - Is World of Warcraft Ruining MMOGs?

    World of Warcraft has become a term of both endearment and bitter hatred. But why does this game attract so much attention? Is it deserving of its place at the top of the subscriber list, or has it ruined our games forever? We take a look at the game and discuss its impact with some top developers of today's industry, including representatives from Funcom and NetDevil.
  • Loading Live #17 - Jumpgate Evolution Dev Chat Posted
    Producer Hermann Peterscheck answers a host of audience questions while Codemasters Mike Rowland reveals new details about Jumpgate Evolution distribution in the seventeenth edition of Loading... Live. After Machail and Ethec review this week in MMO news, the JGE team handles tough questions about the endgame, mining, crafting, smuggling, PvP, exploration and much more in this entertaining 45 minute podcast.
  • Exclusive Dragonica Online Beta Key Giveaway

    There are a vast number of free-to-play titles that are slowly making the transition to the North American marketplace, but one of the newest entrants is Dragonica Online. Developed to be a vibrant, tongue-in-cheek sort of title, Dragonica Online looks to be a fantastic new player in that market that features a variety of other side-scrolling sort of titles. To help them have the best beta preview possible, Ten Ton Hammer has put together a beta key giveaway for all of our readers to participate in. Go grab your key immediately!
  • Lineage 2: Developer Diary #5 and New Screenshots

    Lineage 2 recently released a new Developer's Diary for their new expansion, Gracia Final. The latest Developer's Diary talks about some of the new items, weapons, armor, cloaks/capes and more in the latest expansion. But that's not all. The Lineage 2 development team also included 8 new screenshots for the community to admire with this latest release. The new screenshots show off some of the new cloak and Vesper item models for the game.
  • Neo Steam: Ten New Screenshots

    Neo Steam: The Shattered Continent has moved into Open beta and to kick things off they have provided Ten Ton Hammer with 10 new screenshots from the game. These new screenshots show off some of the action, environment and even steamballons in the game.
  • Free Realms: Wizard Guide

    Free Realms has been taking the world by storm and now boasts over two million registered players. Those that are paying members have access to some of the coolest quests and classes in the game, including the Wizard. Learn how to find the Wizard trainer and become a master of the mystical arts with this essential guide!
  • Free Realms: Chef Guide

    Free Realms has been taking the world by storm and now boasts over two million registered players. While some content is restricted to paying members, the chef job is available for free. Danny "Ralsu" Gourley recounts his journey to the level cap as a chef, starting with levels one through eight.
  • World of Warcraft: Macros for the Paladin

    Have you ever wondered how you can hit both your trinkets and then cast Crusader Strike all with the touch of one button? Well look no further friends, the guide to Macros for Paladins is just one click away itself.
    Read up on tanking macros, healing macros, and of course some helpful macros that will actually make you taller. Well maybe not taller, but better looking! Well maybe not that either, but no bother, remember to work smarter not harder, and get your start with Paladin specific macros today.
  • World of Warcraft: Druid Talent Guide Update

    The WoW Druid has its talent schools split into Feral, Balance and Restoration. The feral tree is for both those that want to tank and those that want to DPS, melee based. The balance school lends itself to the 'layzor firing pew pewers' that long for ranged caster DPS. The Restoration tree lends itself to well….being a tree. Restoration is for those that want to heal their comrades and annoy their opponents by being nearly impossible to kill.



    Hot Content - Or, what I took a fancy to:
  1. Vanguard: Exclusive State of the Game Q&A
  2. City of Heroes: Exclusive Dev Diary with Bruce Harlick - A Circle of Fifths
  3. EVE Online: Sins of a Solar Spymaster #13 - The Participation Game
  4. geeked: Pick-Up Lines #2
  5. Star Trek Online: Exclusive Interview with Craig Zinkievich
  6. FusionFall Swag Giveaway
  7. geeked: Classic Pick-Up Lines #1
  8. Premium Content: Gamers Behaving Badly - Hacks, Griefs and Cheats
  9. Disciple Launch Interview with CEO Toby Batton
  10. Staff Farewell Tribute to Tony 'RadarX' Jones

Real World News


Thanks for visiting the Ten Ton Hammer network!

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


To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our Jumpgate Evolution Game Page.

Last Updated: Mar 13, 2016

About The Author

Jeff joined the Ten Ton Hammer team in 2004 covering EverQuest II, and he's had his hands on just about every PC online and multiplayer game he could since.

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