Welcome
to the 1,247th
edition
of Loading...
Loading... is the premier daily
MMORPG news, coverage, and
commentary newsletter, only from Ten Ton Hammer.
Star Trek Online open beta
begins today and gamers around the world are furiously downloading and
patching the game as we speak (or rather, as I type and you read). It's
the biggest party since New Year's Eve. But is it the kind of party you
want to go to? We take a look at open beta; the perks, and some of the
downsides today in Loading... Last Stop Before Launch.
The Pulse
You vote with what you
view at Ten Ton Hammer, and the
result is the Ten Ton Pulse (
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/thepulse/" target="_blank">What
is The Pulse?).
Here
are today's top 5 Pulse results:
World
of Warcraft
Star Trek Online
(UP 11)
Lord of the
Rings Online (UP 1)
Dungeons and
Dragons Online (down 2)
EVE Online
Biggest
movers today:
Jumpgate
Evolution (UP 6 to #19)
Vanguard:
Saga of Heroes (down 2 to #13)
Aion
(down 1 to #6)
Recent Releases
9/22
-
Aion
(release date)
10/8
-
Cities
XL (release date)
11/3
-
Dragon
Age:
Origins (release date)
11/10
-
Final
Fantasy
XI Ultimate
Collection (release date)
12/1
-
LotRO:
Siege of Mirkwood (expansion)
12/1
-
EVE
Online: Dominion (expansion)
12/2
-
DOFUS
2.0 (update)
12/15
-
EverQuest:
Underfoot (expansion)
Upcoming
Releases
1/26
- Mass
Effect 2
(release date)
2/1
-
Global
Agenda
(release date)
2/2
-
Star
Trek Online
(release date)
2/16
-
href="http://everquest2.station.sony.com/expansions/sentinelsfate/index.vm">EverQuest
2: Sentinel's Fate (expansion)
March
2010
-
APB
Spring 2011
-
Star Wars: The Old
Republic
Loading... Daily
Open betas are sort of the final arc in a party just before the grand
climax, after which folks tend to start clearing out and going home.
It's a fun time, but if you were in closed beta you may notice a real
shift in the mood of the party. It's starting to get a little loud,
there's some obnoxious people lurking about, there's pizza everywhere
and there are couples making out in several corners. Well, ok, maybe
less making out and more pew pew, but you get the idea. Besides, you
probably don't really want to
see a Klingon and Cardassian making out in the corner anyway... unless
you're one of those types.
Me, I'm not a fan of open betas. Open beta is usually around the time I
start packing up my things and get ready to head out. I think it's
mainly due to the reason listed above--the mood of beta has changed,
and there are suddenly a ton more people around. Closed beta tends to
be a fairly small, quiet group, and you get to know the folks you play
with. Once open beta hits, all bets are off and public chat channels
become filled with the standard open beta commentary. It's usually the
same script every time, just a different theme.
"Where's the AH?"
"There is none. This is [Star Trek, Conan, Middle Earth, etc]. It's
called a [broker, auctioneer, world market, etc] here."
"lol. why does evry1 think is wow?"
"omg, I can't believe i got the name cappppptine kyurk [connann,
billlboe, etc]. I thought it'd be taken for sure."
"real original. Go back to wow."
"can any1 make me new armor?"
"this game sucks. it's never going to make it past launch."
etc, etc.
You've been there, you know how it goes. It really is the same thing
over and over, no matter what the game. And to be honest, it bores me a
little, and annoys me a lot. So I head out around open beta time, and
just wait for launch, which is the climax of the party anyway. Launch
has a little different feel than open beta simply because during open
beta, everyone with an internet connection logs into the game, many of
whom are already embittered or otherwise predetermined that the game
has no redeeming value whatsoever. These are the kinds of folks you see
who log in, take three hours to do the first quest, and spend the rest
of their time with the game minimized or typing furiously in public
channels in an effort to fight their own crusade to convince players
everywhere that they should not be playing. Then they post their
"reviews" on their blog and tell all their friends that they're
experienced MMO players and their opinion is worth something. Yes,
these are but a few of the many types of people you'll run into in open
beta.
That all said, I do recognize the importance of open beta. Not only
from a technical point of view as kind of a last chance to fix up what
you can before launch, and test server load, but also from the hype
factor. If your game's
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/giveaways/sto_beta">open beta key
giveaways are out of keys in, oh say, 4-8 hours after going up, you
know there's a good bit of buzz going for the game. Those in open beta
will also work for you by word-of-mouth. That's a double edged sword
though. If they enjoy it, they'll convince their friends to buy it. If
they don't, they'll convince otherwise potential clients that it's not
worth their time.
In the end though, open beta really is about only one thing. A chance
to try new games free. And isn't that what really matters? Let us know
href="http://forums.tentonhammer.com/showthread.php?t=48936">in the
forums.
Shayalyn's Epic Thread of
the Day
From our
Tavern
of the Ten Ton Hammer
How
Long Have You Been Gaming?
To quote one of our forum regulars, Kralle, there's "nothing wrong
with necroing this topic." Indeed, the topic in question is so old
that, were it a corpse, it would look like something from the cast
of "Thriller" by now. Nonetheless, we all love to talk about our
individual gaming histories. Go vote in the poll, then
href="http://forums.tentonhammer.com/showthread.php?t=22046">tell us
how long you've been a gamer.
==============================
Awesome Quotes from the
Epic Thread
"
For me it all started in the arcades in the very early 80's.
Pacman, Space Invaders, Asteroids, I was playing most of those when I
could barely reach the controls without a stool. Except for Asteroids.
We had one of those sweet tabletop cabinets at our local arcade for
that one."
- Landric
==============================
Have you spotted an Epic Thread on our forums?
href="http://forums.tentonhammer.com/showthread.php?t=32559">Tell
us!
New and Exclusive Content Today at Ten Ton Hammer
9 new Ten Ton Hammer features today! 44 in January! 44 in 2010!
FEATURES & GUIDES
style="font-weight: bold;">Star Trek Online Beta Key Giveaway
from Ten Ton Hammer
Boldly go into Star Trek Online's open beta with a key from Ten Ton
Hammer! Help test the game from January 12th (at 10am PST) to January
26th, and be among the first to play the game. Key quantities are
limited so act fast! Click the link above for instructions, then
click
here to check out the latest Star Trek Online articles and guides from
Ten Ton Hammer!
style="font-weight: bold;">
style="font-weight: bold;">Dungeons and Dragons Online: New
Character Build The Warchanter
The Warchanter isnt your standard weakling
bard. Hes a walking, singing, lute strumming engine of melody and
destruction.
A bard/fighter/rogue mix, the Warchanter is always a welcome addition
to any
adventuring group in Dungeons and Dragons Online.
Ten
Ton Hammer's Big Guide to WoW
Tanking - Part 1
In World of Warcraft there are three primary roles that you can fill as
a player. These roles are that of a damage dealer, healer, or tank. In
this writers opinion no role is more important than the tanks, since
they tend to have more control over the groups success of failure than
any other player. Knowing this is such an important role, how do
players get ready for it if they are new to it? Don't worry, Byron
"Messiah" Mudry is here to walk you through all the basics you need to
know to tank in World of Warcraft.
Star
Trek Online: Top Ten Things To Know about STO
No one can hear you scream in space, or on the internet
(forums dont
count). Before you go beyond the stars aboard your very own spaceship,
there are a few things youll want to know. Prior to your adventure in
Star Trek Online, make sure you read up on the top ten things youll
want to know to maximize your fun right out of the Starfleet academy.
style="font-weight: bold;">WoW: A Look at the Chen Stormstout
Deluxe Figure
Blizzard has released a new deluxe figure of Chen Stormstout, a
Pandaren Brewmaster from the WarCraft franchise. We take a look at the
history of Chen Stormstout along with the a detailed look at the
quality of the figure. Thinking about buying the figure or just want to
know more about it? Our latest article will give you all of the details
you need to know along with if it's worth picking up.
style="font-weight: bold;">WoW Weekly Report - "Putting the MO
in MMOG"
Issue 49 of the World of Warcraft Weekly Report is now up and we've got
a lot to cover. This week we go into account security, dragons,
highborne, and how WoW is a multiplayer game. Join us each week as we
explore various topics, news, and lore from within the WoW
community.
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/aion/guides/class/gladiatorpvp">
style="font-weight: bold;">Aion Gladiator PvP Gameplay Guide
Regardless of which Aion class you play, player versus player combat is
a challenge and each of us needs every bit of help we can get to
sharpen our skills and better our game. While the Gladiator makes a
great PvP contender, it is still not without its own pitfalls. Get the
tips
and tricks for your Gladiator to raise your chances of winning against
other players in our Gladiator PvP Guide.
style="font-weight: bold;">So Now You're An
style="font-weight: bold;">EVE Online CEO (You Poor Fool)
Running a corporation in EVE Online isn't easy, which is why Ten Ton
Hammer Contributing Writer, Space Junkie, gives us a few words of
painful advice about how and, more importantly, why to run a
corporation.
Just Browsing -
The Top Ten Current Browser-Based MMOGs
Not everyone these days has an top end gaming rig at their disposal at
their disposal but virtually everyone has a web browser, and this fact
certainly isn't lost on enterprising game developers in search of the
next big thing. Browser-based MMOGs are a rapidly expanding force in
the gaming world and this week we spotlight them with a Top Ten
Browser-Based MMOGs list. Featuring everything from divide-and-conquer
strategy to traditional sword and board fantasy, with lots of new
concepts in between, we recap some of our favorites from the genre.
Today's
Hottest Content
style="font-weight: bold;">Star Trek Online Beta Key Giveaway
from Ten Ton Hammer
Star Trek
Online Q&A
with Al Rivera - All About Ships
Carved in Stone
or Written in Pencil: Developers' New Year's Resolutions
Star Trek
Online Ten
Ton Hammers Hands-On Beta Impressions
style="font-weight: bold;">Dungeons and Dragons Online: New
Character Build The Warchanter
Global
Agenda
Mission Types Interview with Exec. Producer Todd Harris
Star
Trek Online Beta Journal #3 -
Rising Through The Ranks
WoW
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/79042"> - Creating the Perfect
U.I.
The
Anatomy of
Fleets in EVE
Online
Dungeons
& Dragons Online:
Eberron Unlimited Review
Thanks
for visiting the Ten Ton Hammer
network!
- Benjamin J. de la Durantaye
and the Ten Ton Hammer team