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Are you looking for the latest industry headlines? Look no further.

I'm testing out a "Bling Free" format for the column this week. This is your chance to give it the thumbs up or thumbs down. Gone are the fancy graphics and our long-time friend Vin Diesel. Coverage of the MMOG industry continues down its merry path.

1. Daily Column
2. New MMOG Articles at TenTonHammer Today (18 New)
3. Real World News - You Can't Make This Up

1. Daily Column

Vanguard Gets PerSONYfied

Last week we took a lot of flack for posting about a rumour that had been circulating through the Vanguard community since the game had launched and perhaps even before. The rumour linked Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) with Sigil in a partnership to right the listing ship we affectionately refer to as Vanguard: Saga of Heroes.

Over the weekend Brad McQuaid posted the following,

“SOE is in discussions with Sigil regarding the future of Vanguard and Sigil Games in Carlsbad. Talks are going well and first and foremost, our primary concern right now is what's best for Vanguard and its community. We want to ensure that this game and its community have a healthy future. The specifics that we work out over the coming days will all be with that single goal in mind.

What does that mean? It means that right now Vanguard is doing decently but not as well as we hoped...So the bottom line is that SOE is going to be getting more involved with Sigil and Vanguard – our relationship is going to become even tighter – much tighter. At this point I can’t say much more than that.

Does this mean an acquisition? I can’t say at this point.

Does this mean more or less people at Sigil? I can’t say at this point.

Does this mean management changes at Sigil? I can’t say at this point.

I *can* say that regardless of the turn out, SOE knows that Sigil has the experience and vision necessary to run Vanguard and therefore a major change in that area is extremely unlikely and would be foolish on their part.

What it does mean at this point is that both companies agree that we need more of SOE’s involvement if Vanguard is going to continue to get the support it needs to both continue to be worked on and improved and debugged and optimized.... "

There you have it. SOE and Sigil are in talks about Vanguard. It's obvious what SOE has to offer to this relationship. Money, expertise, marketing clout, and more don't come without a price. Sigil can offer a development team that is capable of completing the project that they started.

If SOE believes that the game design is a winner then why didn't they put their resources behind it before launch? Reintroducing a game to the market is a much steeper hill to climb than launching a game in a finished state. EverQuest 2 was polished and finished yet didn't meet expectations and was reintroduced. Star Wars Galaxies became a shell of its former self after reintroduction.

If SOE doesn't believe that the game design is sound then what can we expect to change? Those of you who play Vanguard must have some thoughts on what you would like to see changed?

"So what does that mean again? Again, I apologize for not being able to go into details and it’s the details that need to be worked out. But I think it’s safe to say that both Sigil and SOE see the potential of a mind blowing game by the end of the year. What’s needed, bottom line, is some time, and how to get that time is what’s being worked out. And so I still see a 500k+ game, I was just off by a year for a variety of reasons, some under my control, many not. And I think SOE sees this as well. To pull it off however, requires a funded and supported Sigil and a well marketed Vanguard with these different target audiences identified and solid plan on how to reach them all, and then a solid execution of said plan, hitting them hard, pushing these ‘WoW everywhere’ point of purchase materials from the front to the very back.. In the meantime, the Vanguard that was launched in early 2007 continues to move forward, with much of what I’ve talked about patched in over time, and the rest in the first expansion (or re-launch, or whatever we all agree upon in terms of product and service placement). "

500k+ users in a year seems like a lofty goal to me. Best guess at the moment and it is only a guess is that the game has 100k users and is bleeding. If the game had been launched in the state that Brad wished it to be perhaps 500k was a number I could agree with. It is a niche game, but it's a niche game with a great pedigree and superb development team. Out of the gate it had a chance.

Reintroducing a game has a plethora of problems.

Will you alienate the players who like the game "as designed"? These players are your lifeblood. They are paying the bills. They are supporting the game so that it can exist at all. If you make sweeping changes you run the risk of driving these players off.

Will new players decide to take a chance on a game that has been out for a year? Given the treadmill that seems to be a constant in MMOG design how many players will be willing to start the game a year behind the curve? How can SOE eliminate this problem? Fresh servers are one answer, but there is already a population problem. New servers would undoubtedly drag "current players" to them in a rush to be the first to level to maximum and experience the known content again.

Whatever happens, it can only extend the longevity of Vanguard. I don't think anyone would argue that in its current state the game isn't going to be large enough to support the Sigil development team financially. Can the title reach 500k subscribers in a year? I have my doubts, but I would love to be proven wrong. Developers like Ryan Elam and Jeff Butler who tell it straight-out like it is deserve a victory.

In the short time that I had to chat with them at GDC this year they delivered some of the most frank and honest answers that a gamer could hope for.

I truly hope that Sigil can turn Vanguard into a rousing success and like the rest of you await further information on the new SOE/Sigil coupling.

2. New MMOG Articles At Ten Ton Hammer Today

• Blog: When Do I Get To Play?
  "In his blog, Micajah discusses the length of tutorials and how this can affect the new player experience. He suggests that developers should avoid the blatantly "step-by-step" tutorial and try to achieve a more game-involved style."
• Blog: Gaming On A Budget
  "The second article in the "Gaming on a Budget" series, Micajah explores free-to-play games, explains the differences in each business model, and tries to point gamers in the right direction. In each of the sections, Micajah also directs gamers to example games in each free-to-play business model."
• Blog: A Year With A Mac
  "Well, its been a little over a year since I converted from a die hard PC user to a Mac user. What lead to my conversion to the dark side? You can check it out in the article I wrote a year ago called Gaming on the Dark Side. Having been at this crazy Mac conversion experiment for a while, I thought it was time for an update. This little blog entry is all about the high points and low points of the conversion, things I miss, regrets, issues, etc."
• Dungeons and Dragons Online: Zone Guide - The Cerulean Hills
  "The Cerulean Hills is a rural community beset by foul beasts and humanoids. It is up to the stout hearts of the heroes of Stormreach to save them from this menace. Read Darkgolem's guide to the Cerulean Hills to find out how!"
• EverQuest 2: Rivervale Zone Guide
  "Got a group and the need to make your way through your levels 30s and 40s? Then bring your adventuring selves out to Rivervale! This amazing, and sometimes overlooked zone is perfect for groups and brave soloers alike who are looking for a mob-packed area to hunt in. The Ten Ton Hammer Rivervale zone guide has been revamped to suit your needs and to note the zone changes from the many EQ2 updates!"
• EverQuest 2: Maps To The Enchanted Lands
  "he Enchanted Lands is a great zone for quests and experience, providing hours of fun for you and your party. Ten Ton Hammer has all new maps pointing out the major points of interest, and assuring you never need to stop at a gas station for directions."
• Myth War Artwork Revealed
  "Though Myth War Online has been available to play for awhile, the developers of the game had yet to release any of the artwork that went into the development of the title. Until now! Ten Ton Hammer is proud to feature four images of the anime-style artwork that has been rendered within Myth War Online. Enjoy!"
• Phantasy Star Universe: New Expansion Images
  "SEGA® Europe, Ltd and SEGA® of America, Inc. have announced that their sci-fi action role-playing game, Phantasy Star Universe, will be getting a new expansion in Autumn 2007. Titled Phantasy Star™ Universe: Ambition of the Illuminus, the expansion will be available for download on the Xbox 360 and in stores for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system and PCs.SEGA has been kind enough to give us a description of the expansion as well as image for your enjoyment!"
• Vanguard: Saga of Heroes - The Hard Facts About SOE/Sigil
  "This article presents some financial facts and history of SOE and how its merge with Sigil can only be a positive move for the game."
• Vanguard: Saga of Heroes - Message From Brad McQuaid
  "Today, Sigil CEO Brad "Aradune Mithara" McQuaid released a statement in the Affiliate forums regarding the future of Vanguard and Sigil's partnership with Sony Online Entertainment"
• Vanguard: Saga of Heroes - Paladin Skills 1-25
  "A Ten Ton Hammer community member has submitted some updates for the list of Paladin skills for levels 1-25."
• Vanguard: Saga of Heroes - Guild Housing
  "Answers to Guild Housing questions and more, with Sigil Dev Kwags' input as well."
• Warhammer Online: Chaos Chosen Overview
  "The Chaos Chosen page got updated today to include all the new information about the Career, along with several new images."
• Warhammer Online: Talabecland Zone Overview
  "Another zone added today! This time we have the newly released zone of Talabecland. Situated in the contested zones of the Empire, this land is ripe for the pickings and members of both factions should give this a read over for their knowledge."
• Warhammer Online: May WAR Gallery
  "Today we've converted over all of the April Newsletter images over to our site for next months gallery images. With several new images such as the mass of Chaos Chosen, and the new Dwarf/Greenskin screenshots, this update has it all!"
• World of Warcraft: Mining Guide
  "The Mining Leveling Guide has been updated! We now have information on leveling your mining from 300-375, including the best spots in Outland for Fel Iron, Adamantite and Khorium."
• World of Warcraft: Weekly WoW Roundup
  "To end the week here at TenTonHammer we gather up all that happened here over the course of the week and put them here in one place for easy access. We also seek to find the best of the best on the official forums and award the Hammer Head award to the most moronic post we can find in the official forums (with so many to choose from it's not always easy to award just one)! With all the talk of the upcoming patch, it should be fun!"
• World of Warcraft: Leatherworking Leveling Guide Part 1
  " If you are an aspiring leatherworker, and want the best way to level this skill quickly, then you'll want to take a look at our Leatherworking Leveling Guide! This guide takes you through what it takes to level Leatherworking from a skill of 1 to 300 (300-375 coming soon!)."

3. Real World News

• Woman Needs Veil Of Protection From Modern Life [Thanks Matt]
  Tinfoil hat? How about a tinfoil house!
• Iran Bans Western Haircuts, Eyebrow Plucking For Men
  Your follicles are the seeds of dissent.
• Patch To Measure Pet Stress
  Your gerbil needs valium.

Thanks as always for visiting TenTonHammer.com

John "Boomjack" Hoskin