Loading... GamesCom Highlights

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Posted Tue, Aug 25, 2009 by Ethec

Welcome to the 1,151st edition of Loading...

Loading... is the premier daily MMORPG news, coverage, and commentary newsletter, only from Ten Ton Hammer.

Throughout this weekend at BlizzCon, folks like me who haven't quite drank enough of the Blizzard kool-aid were haunted by one question: what am I missing from GamesCom? Thanks to the newshounds at Ten Ton Hammer, I was able to catch up in relatively short order and I'll share my impressions of the biggest GamesCom headlines and weekend news items today in Loading... GamesCom MMO Highlights.

The Pulse

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

Here's today's top 5 Pulse results:

Biggest Movers today :

EverQuest (UP 4 to #19)
Runes of Magic (UP 2 to #14)
Guild Wars (UP 2 to #15)

Recent MMO Releases

7/13 - Darkfall NA launch
7/21- FFXI "Moogle Kupo d'Etat" Addon (release date)
8/4 - World of Warcraft Update 3.2 (content patch)

Important Dates

9/4 - 9/6 - Penny Arcade Expo (PAX)
9/15 - 9/18 - GDC Austin
10/1 - 10/3 - EVE FanFest

Upcoming Releases

8/25 - CrimeCraft (release date)
9/1 - Champions Online (release date)
9/9 - Dungeons & Dragons Online Unlimited (release date)
9/15 (NEW) - Fallen Earth (release date)
9/22 - Aion (release date)
10/9 - Cities XL (release date)
Early 2010 - APB

Loading... Daily

So if Blizzard games aren't your cup of tea, Europe's new games conference mecca, GamesCom, brought plenty of non-WoW MMO goodness (though the BlizzCon opening ceremonies were simucast in Cologne. If you had your head buried in a DirectTV feed or, like me, were slowly sinking into the floor of the Anaheim Convention Center standing in line or in a crowd, catch up on the latest on what's happening around the wide world of MMO gaming with me:

Star Trek Online fans got a 4-part video series done in stunning YouTube-esque videography. Doubtless Gameguide.nl was told not to zoom in on the screen, but were they told not to pan over to Andy Velasquez or maybe eliminate some of that nasty head room. Just saying. It might not exactly be the kind of video reveal that the Cryptic marketing team was planning on, but the game looks great (even if space looks a bit busy) and Craig Zinkievich relays plenty of great info in his usual exuberant style.
It must have been the weekend for 4-part series, because IGN flexed some media / retailer might and got Bioware to make them a video series for Star Wars: The Old Republic. The story, full dialogue, and first Bounty Hunter and Smuggler missions were what we saw at E3 but couldn't film (writeup here). The real goodness begins halfway through the second part with the reveal of the Sith Warrior class and Korriban. The Warrior has a fairly traditional Warriorness to him, with charge, melee, and execute abilities.
Aion won some awards at GamesCon, most prominently "Best Online Games" from German portal giga.de. Clicking that link (NCSoft's, not mine) takes me to a prominent ad for "Messe-Babes" which we'll trust isn't as dirty as it sounds in German. Lead Designer Yonchan Lee caught some softball questions from the audience, and had fairly unremarkable answers about things like PvPvE, but he did raise the possibility of instances before level 25, player housing, and mounts used not for transportation but for other aspects of the game. With Champions Online allowing in-game Twitter, it wasn't a total surprise that the Aion team is talking about providing social networking in-roads.
As you'll see below, a Guild Wars 2 teaser trailer premiered at GamesCom. The visuals are stunning, and a fair amount of the video looks to be taken from in-game, and it'll be interesting to see how the Guild Wars (1) community reacts to what seems a much more PvE-oriented GW experience.

In other news:

No more lifetime or 6-month subscription offers are available for Champions Online - congrats to Cryptic on the sellout.
For Fallen Earth fans, it's a good news / bad news situation. Bad News: Icarus has pushed its release date. Good news: they've only pushed it by a week. We've been getting requests to cover Fallen Earth a little more fully, so we'll do our best to interface with Icarus in the remaining weeks before launch.

What announcement thrilled you the most this past weekend? Share your thoughts in the Loading... forum.

Shayalyn's Epic Thread of the Day

From our Articles, News & Events Discussion forum

Guild Wars 2 Teaser Trailer Premiered at GamesCom

I love gaming conventions, even when I don't attend them. Big events usually mean new goodies in the form of information and media about the upcoming games we're jonesing for. GamesCom has been no exception to the New Goodies rule this year. For instance, NCSoft and ArenaNet unveiled a sweet Guild Wars 2 teaser trailer. I consider myself well and duly teased...and intrigued. Check out the thread to check out the trailer, and then let us know if Guild Wars 2 makes you feel all funny (like when you climbed the rope in gym class), or if it leaves you cold.

View and discuss!

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

"Yes, that is an awesome trailer, but I've obviously missed something here. People talk about Guild Wars 2 like it's the second coming of Christ or something. But, you know, Guild Wars isn't that amazing; its average combat, generic settings (thought beautiful) and completely devoid of the persistant worlds that truely make an MMO.

So...what gives? Why is everyone so excited about a sequel to a game no one seems to play for more than a few months before going back to a real MMO?"

- bobfish

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

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

7 new MMOG home-grown articles today, many from BlizzCon! 74 in August! 934 in 2009!

New Coverage and Guides At Ten Ton Hammer Today

BlizzCon 2009

Blizzcon '09: Starcraft 2 Hands-on Preview
Blizzcon 2009 brought about a ton of new information about Starcraft 2, Diablo 3, and the MMOG knockout World of Warcraft. Our very own Adam Stow went to Blizzcon and got to play the latest version of Starcraft 2 so that he can relay his experience back to you. How does the single player campaign feel? Will Hydralisks become the new Zerg vs. Zerg favorite? Found out our hands-on view of Starcraft 2!
Video: Fan Impressions from BlizzCon 2009
While the hype and atmosphere of BlizzCon is fun, the best reason to go is the discussions, laughs, and arguments you'll have with other fans. One of our favorite BlizzCon features is a series of fast-paced, unscripted fan interviews we do with BlizzCon attendees, and this year we have quite an assortment - from families to a top-ranked guild leader to a few folks in costume (and in character) to not one but a three-spot of Arthas doppelgangers!

More Articles:

WoW - Trial of the Crusader - Lord Jaraxxus Strategy
With the 3.2 patch to the World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King, Blizzard opened up another raid instance for players. The second encounter in the Trial of the Crusader raid starts off when a lowly Gnome Warlock comes out to summon a felguard for your group to fight. Something, however, goes horribly wrong, as it usually does when a Gnome is involved, and mayhem ensues. Instead of a felguard, a demon lord is summoned. Your raid must therefore defeat the fearsome Lord Jaraxxus to move on in the Coliseum. Byron "Messiah" Mudry walks you through the basics of the fight in this strategy guide.
Comic - Zeroes - "A Bit Overpowered"
Champions Online is based entirely off of superheroes. The big, the bad, and the bold all share Millennium City as their home. But what about the less than average caped crusaders? Who will tell their story? This week, Nothingman finds himself a serious adversary... in a low-level tutorial boss named Black Talon?:
Introduction to Aion Titles
Titles in Aion are a bit different than those featured in many other MMOGs. In Aion, titles actually provide benefits when used, allowing the player to enhance specific stats from certain titles. These boosts can enhance battle statistics, flight, and more to aid the player in smiting their enemies from the sky. This week we have put together an introduction to the titles in Aion to help get you familiar with some of the benefits of wearing titles in Aion.
In the Business of Fun: A Video Q&A with The Syndicate's Sean "Dragons" Stalzer
Ten Ton Hammer spoke with The Syndicate's guild leader and CEO, Sean "Dragons" Stalzer, on the highlights of the annual world conference in 2009, on their current efforts and how they balance their guide authoring, consulting, and philanthropic side with the fun of gaming in the context of a close knit, friendship-oriented multi-game guild. If you want to take your guild to the next level or gain some long-term staying power, it's well worth watching this video!
Interview with THQ*ICE for Dragonica Online
As the massively multiplayer online gaming marketplace continues to expand, developers are continuing to push the boundaries of the "standard" gameplay that we enjoy. A prime example of that is THQ*ICE's upcoming 3D side-scroller, Dragonica Online. Recently unveiled to the public via its open beta test, Dragonica is a mixture of cartoon style with fast-paced action. Ten Ton Hammer recently sat down with Product Manager Ben Serviss to find out more about this fantasy-based action MMO.

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