by Jeff Woleslagle on Aug 12, 2009
Loading... is the premier daily MMORPG news and commentary newsletter, only from Ten Ton Hammer.
Cryptic has dropped some fairly cryptic hints about STO's future and, to be honest, we truly love this stuff. The mystic pull of October continues with what one French MMO site is claiming as a release date leak for Star Wars: The Old Republic. Our doubts, expectations, and more news and links in today's Loading... Cryptic Being Cryptic.
Coyote is back in a big way at Ten Ton Hammer, and his daily column explores all things geek with Coyote's trademark wit in It's All Geek to Me. Read it daily at Ten Ton Hammer! Today's topic: Sports and the average geek... (Hehe... mathlete...)
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:
World of Warcraft Aion (UP 2) Champions Online (UP 1) EverQuest 2 (down 1) Lord of the Rings Online (UP 4)Biggest Movers today :
EVE Online (UP 1 to #10) Warhammer Online (down 1 to #11) Global Agenda (UP 16 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
8/19 - 8/23 - Gamescom Cologne 8/21 - 8/22 - BlizzCon '09 9/4 - 9/6 - Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) 9/15 - 9/18 - GDC Austin Upcoming Releases 8/25 - CrimeCraft (release date) 9/1 - Champions Online (release date) 9/9 - Dungeons & Dragons Online Eberron Unlimited (release date) 9/9 - Fallen Earth (release date) 9/22 - Aion (release date) 10/9 - Cities XL (release date) Early 2010 - APBLongtime readers know that I have a habit of mixing up Star Trek Online and Star Wars: The Old Republic. It's not that I have the concepts confused - I know my Mandalorians from my Manticore - but sometimes I come up one coffee cup short in choosing the right name for what I'm talking about. Let me muddy the waters a bit further by saying that October has assumed almost mystical significance for those aching to get their hands on the two hottest upcoming space / sci-fi MMOs.
To me, reports that Star Wars: The Old Republic will see an October 2010 launch strike me as a little absurd - you can talk targeted dates a year in advance, but no matter how credible the "source" is within EA (the night janitor, perhaps?), there's a reason that the cooler heads at EA and Bioware aren't talking dates. Namely because the people in the know don't have hard dates in mind for release over a year in advance. You have wishes, hopes, expectations, milestones, and ploys to keep publishers temporarily distracted, but you certainly don't have a hard release date this far ahead.
Sardu's October theory for Star Trek Online closed beta beginning in October sounds much more plausible to me. Maybe the bus station posters aren't hitting at a beta, exactly - perhaps just a cool new trailer or something - but we know for a fact that Cryptic is planning to begin closed beta for Star Trek Online "later this year." And October 18th is, in fact, later this year.
On the less cryptic side of Cryptic, open beta for Champions Online will begin next Monday, August 17th. That and other pre-launch details were announced yesterday. Sadly, The Hairballer, Yoyo Ma, Rotter Rooter, Treeslayer (a holdover from Vanguard), Lunchlady, and my other favored closed beta character creations will be wiped in anticipation of open beta. Sacrifices must be made, but I have all their pernicious details right here ::taps head::
Your thoughts and opinions are always welcome in the Loading... forum, or feel free to email me.
Shayalyn's Epic Thread of the Day6 new MMOG hand-crafted articles today! 42 in August! 902 in 2009!
New MMOG Articles At Ten Ton Hammer Today [Thanks Phil Comeau for links and Real World News]
Star Trek Online Closed Beta to Begin in October?Giveaways:
DDO Unlimited Beta Giveaway Runes of Magic Item Giveaway Champions Online Beta Key Giveaway (Premium Members Only) Aion Closed Beta Test 6 Key Giveaway (Premium Members Only)Hottest Content:
Star Trek Online Closed Beta to Begin in October? Champions Online: Exclusive Interview on Sidekicks, Super Groups, and Supervillains Age of Conan - A Year Later, Part 2 The Hollywood Cycle: Comparing the MMO Industry with the Silver Screen Flight or Fight: A Look at Advanced Flight and Combat in Aion The Co-Op PvE side of Global Agenda: A Q&A with Exec. Producer Todd Harris An Advanced Guide to Crafting in Aion Ten Ton Hammer Hands-On Preview - Wonderking Online The Guild In-Depth Interview with Director Sean Becker World of Warcraft - Trial of the Champion Instance Guide New City of Heroes Issue 16 Power Customization ScreenshotsThanks for visiting the Ten Ton Hammer network!
-Jeff "Ethec" Woleslagle and the Ten Ton Hammer team