tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51685976144613086102024-03-12T19:21:34.685-07:00Out of BetaThe written cure to my gaming addictionUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger181125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-5003916917374648202015-08-07T23:13:00.001-07:002015-08-07T23:38:16.354-07:00[WoW] Why Varian should be nervous...<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
If I were a human king and a mage-crow landed in my throne room I'd start worrying about when my son is gonna kill me. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Legion?src=hash">#Legion</a></div>
— Elemint (@0utofBeta) <a href="https://twitter.com/0utofBeta/status/629894579022508033">August 8, 2015</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>As I was pondering the WoW storyline so far and looking at the upcoming content I struck upon the notion that this is all a repeat of what has happened before. I mean it is obvious that Legion invasions are a repeat, but the nature of the story itself is littered with similarities. It really hit me when I noticed a particular scene in the features trailer.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QD7KrXG3tTk/VcWhCfP5sCI/AAAAAAAAAqo/B97nS6zA_AA/s1600/GCAnnounce035.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QD7KrXG3tTk/VcWhCfP5sCI/AAAAAAAAAqo/B97nS6zA_AA/s400/GCAnnounce035.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">MANDUIN</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Here we see Khadgar fly into Stormwind Keep to warn Varian and Anduin about the impending Legion invasion in almost the same way his teacher once tried to warn King Terenas Menethil. That got me thinking about the events so far.<br />
<br />
[✔] - Orcs invaded Azeroth, were pushed back, and then defeated on Draenor<br />
[✔] - Orc culture/society is going through an upheaval (post-Garrosh)<br />
[✔] - Night Elves haven't done shit in the story for a while but are about to<br />
[✔] - The Legion is invading Azeroth<br />
[✔] - Illidan freed <br />
[ ] - Human prince turns evil and murders his father<br />
<br />
Just saying, there's some precedent. Certainly doesn't help that Anduin is now sporting the same haircut Arthas did around the time he decided to "stop" the plague and take over Lordaeron. Perhaps it was incidental, but I am thinking Blizzard has intentionally allowed time to come full circle so that we're basically reliving a slightly different version of Warcraft 3.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-37485301382792375002015-08-04T15:44:00.002-07:002015-08-04T15:44:49.375-07:00[WoW] What the investor call tells usActivision-Blizzard's investor call today revealed that World of Warcraft is down to 5.6 million subscribers (including token users). So what does that tell us? Not a great deal...or does it?<br />
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An observation I made on Twitter was that the new subscriber number puts World of Warcraft right back on the downward slope that one would expect from most MMO's. Back when Blizzard announced that WoW had jumped up to 10 million after WoD's release people began to use the term "cyclical" and speculate that perhaps WoW would break the traditional trend of MMO's to slowly taper off into <strike>free-to-play</strike> the sunset, or at least do so much slower than most games. Some suggested that because WoW was so popular/large that it might be the exception to the MMO-decline rule.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aNh3MD9c3Qs/VcE81IwY96I/AAAAAAAAApw/NErxsRyPMh8/s1600/ExampleCurve.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="145" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aNh3MD9c3Qs/VcE81IwY96I/AAAAAAAAApw/NErxsRyPMh8/s400/ExampleCurve.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Curve should actually be slightly lower on the right side</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
However if anything, this shows that even the mighty World of Warcraft isn't immune to subscriber attrition. I think <a href="http://talarian.blogspot.com/">Talarian</a> put it best:<br />
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/0utofBeta">@0utofBeta</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/lifetotem">@lifetotem</a> WoW's curve isn't much different from other long-lived MMOs best I can tell, just a lot higher/longer.</div>
— Talarian (@Talarianjs) <a href="https://twitter.com/Talarianjs/status/628682282195222528">August 4, 2015</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
After I suppressed my juvenile giggling over the idea of WoW being "longer" than other MMOs, I voiced my agreement. What the data tells me is that WoW, as with many MMOs has both "diehards," fans that are there to stay, and "tourists," players that come for brief spurts of content then disappear. The tourists bump the subscriber count up when an expansion is released, then disappear shortly afterwards. However in this case, though WoD attracted a large number of tourists, it also lost them fast.<br />
<br />
That isn't great news for Blizzard, because as you can see above, we're only about halfway through the typical life of an expansion, with no new content for this one on the way (that we know of), and already we're starting the downhill where diehards move on too. At this rate, WoW will hit 2005 levels within the next four years. Drawing back the tourists and keeping the diehards happy is going to be a challenge, especially as WoW hits the point where it's starting to really show its age. Pretty as it can be, it is a ten year old game. EVE for example, one of the few MMOs to have a similar lifetime and popularity, has had to update it's engine numerous times. Perhaps the developers need to re-examine how content is supplied, or even how the game is played.<br />
<br />
On another note, I do wonder how much of this decline is due to Heavensward, as Final Fantasy XIV seems to be chugging right along at around 4 million subscribers (depending on whether you believe the press). WoW has had plenty of competitors stall out of their starting gates or experience an initial surge then rapidly descend into F2P, but never has it had a competitor do well, but grow. FFXIV might be the first "real" competitor WoW has ever had.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-3801486014502244072015-07-31T10:00:00.000-07:002015-07-31T10:00:03.639-07:00[LoL] Fiora and Gangplank, two changes, two reactionsOver the next few patches Riot is making major modifications to several League of Legends characters including Miss Fortune, Gangplank, and Fiora. The latter two occurred at roughly the same time, and the player reactions to each serve to demonstrate the prevalent sexism of how we depict women in video games.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
Each of the three Champion reworks received some level of gameplay change to help bring them up to the modern level, but they also received changes to their art. In the case of Miss Fortune this meant a new skin and a model update to her old ones and for the most part "...kept the familiar look you'll recognize from her splash art." You know, this...<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-htm32kP73mE/VbqHDXckAfI/AAAAAAAAAoo/VKDeb03n5Ao/s1600/MF_Splash_WP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-htm32kP73mE/VbqHDXckAfI/AAAAAAAAAoo/VKDeb03n5Ao/s400/MF_Splash_WP.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At least she doesn't need to learn to swim.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
So far as I can tell this didn't make much of a splash. She looks more or less like she always did but with higher quality textures and a few more polygons.<br />
<br />
However, two other champion updates followed right on her high heels.<br />
<br />
First was Gangplank, who received a huge update to his gameplay and a similarly significant model change. He went from this...<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IoEdQnRI2xQ/VbqIEsOXfyI/AAAAAAAAAo0/b_cU3q0BTjM/s1600/gangplank_splash_art_by_mechaorthopteroid-d4kmrob.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="250" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IoEdQnRI2xQ/VbqIEsOXfyI/AAAAAAAAAo0/b_cU3q0BTjM/s400/gangplank_splash_art_by_mechaorthopteroid-d4kmrob.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cartoon pirate!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
To this...<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_ITeOWkIhYQ/VbqIKjMAeZI/AAAAAAAAAo8/YX6O97xcorg/s1600/GP_Splash_WP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_ITeOWkIhYQ/VbqIKjMAeZI/AAAAAAAAAo8/YX6O97xcorg/s400/GP_Splash_WP.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm scared.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
He aged, his beard and hat changed, he found a snazzier coat. A new player would be forgiven if they thought the two versions were different characters. Suffice to say this was a huge change in art, and generally people celebrated the change. So naturally one would assume that they would feel the same about Fiora's change...except they didn't. For reference, Fiora also went through about as significant a change as Gangplank and went from this...<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vy3i7nkVWGQ/VbqJEq9h5QI/AAAAAAAAApI/7CiDC-yOOyI/s1600/maxresdefault.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="227" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vy3i7nkVWGQ/VbqJEq9h5QI/AAAAAAAAApI/7CiDC-yOOyI/s400/maxresdefault.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is a woman in latex with a broken right arm</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
To this...<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-61i3uhUzDPs/VbqJiwAHc3I/AAAAAAAAApU/nLJFGHWTXNE/s1600/Fiora_Splash_0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="235" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-61i3uhUzDPs/VbqJiwAHc3I/AAAAAAAAApU/nLJFGHWTXNE/s400/Fiora_Splash_0.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is a badass fencer lady</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
So she lost the inappropriate cat suit, ditched the boob-cup armor, donned something relatively form-fitting but practical, and got some slightly sharper cheek bones. The new outfit is fantastically designed. Her change was the same basic idea; polish the art to improve on the character. Not that big of a deal right?<br />
<br />
<a href="https://np.reddit.com/r/leagueoflegends/comments/3e6fts/updated_musketeer_fiora_makes_her_look_like_a_50/">People</a>. <a href="https://np.reddit.com/r/leagueoflegends/comments/3e6t1c/sowhats_up_with_the_new_in_game_fiora/">Threw</a>. <a href="http://boards.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/c/gameplay-balance/vPfJ2o90-well-outraged-fiora-players-you-got-what-you-wanted">Fits</a>.<br />
<br />
You got such enlightened posts as... (be sure to check each link as you read about the character in question)<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="high-quality markdown" data-bind="
visible: !isEditing(),
uberFilter: message
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Ironstylus hates attractive women. It's like he's on a
mission to make every woman in league unattractive. I remember a while
back he was talking about giving Eve a VU where she wasn't a sexy
dominatrix type. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="high-quality markdown" data-bind="
visible: !isEditing(),
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</span>
Look at the major female splashes that were changed. Players had a
problem with <a href="http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20141218173544/leagueoflegends/images/3/33/Ahri_OriginalSkin.jpg">Ahri</a>, <a href="http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20150219221522/leagueoflegends/images/9/97/Katarina_OriginalSkin.jpg">Katarina</a>, and now Fiora. Not to mention the <a href="http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20140828111339/leagueoflegends/images/f/f7/Akali_OriginalSkin.jpg">Akali</a>
sideboob controversy. <a href="http://img4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130303010655/leagueoflegends/images/9/9e/Sona_OriginalSkin.jpg">Sona</a> had a breast reduction. <a href="http://img4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130501082244/leagueoflegends/images/c/cb/Sejuani_OriginalSkin.jpg">Sejuani</a> is now fully
dressed with a rougher face. He seriously wants every woman in the game
to be ugly.</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
- User "Sonnington" on League of Legends forums (links added)</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
In a game with 39 female champions, the poster cites a total of 6 that have undergone some sort of splash appearance change; a mere 15%. Most of them are barely changed at all; Sona has hardly received a "breast reduction," Akali's splash is still filled with "sideboob," and so on.<br />
<br />
The women in League of Legends have long suffered from the issue of "<a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/film/inside-out/disney-pixar-characters-same-face/">same face</a>," a phenomena that is prevalent throughout media of all types. Every single woman has to be "pretty," none of them are aged, ugly, disfigured, or even a hint outside the conventional standards of attractiveness. Meanwhile, Fiora puts a TOE outside the "pretty" box by having slightly older looking features and sharper cheekbones, and suddenly people are outraged and accusing the developer of wanting "every woman in the game to be ugly." That's right women, if you're in a video game, your job is to be aesthetically pleasing. Doesn't matter if you're a badass fighter, wizard, or whatever; you are only allowed if you're pretty.<br />
<br />
No one wants to admit it, but we know exactly why people threw a fit over Fiora and not Gangplank, and it wasn't because they wanted to protect the "integrity" of the character. It's because they can't stand the idea of ANY female character in League not meeting social standards of attractiveness. Note that there was no negative feedback to Miss Fortune, precisely because Riot did absolutely nothing to her sexualization. That is what makes this so telling; we have a perfect example of three characters getting modifications, and when it comes to art the only one that ruffled feathers was when Riot toned down some sexualization.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-51546387290412474962015-07-29T14:34:00.003-07:002015-07-29T14:34:44.452-07:00[Blizz] Changing of the GuardToday it was announced that Blizzard would be announcing the next World of Warcraft Expansion at Gamescom on August 6th. This came as no surprise after the latest patch dropped in June and players are already expressing boredom. Bear in mind that Blizzard is racing a clock it set for itself. They promised repeatedly that players would not suffer a repeat of the debacle that lead to a 429 day gap between the release of Siege of Ogrimmar and the release of Warlords of Draenor. However, the news that this announcement would come at Gamescom instead of Blizzcon has ruffled some feathers.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
Since it's creation Blizzcon has been more of a "WoWcon" than anything else, mainly because for a long time WoW was Blizzard's biggest game by far. The majority of players going to a Blizzcon were going for the WoW content; whether that was to see panels, meet guildmates, or just to bask in the fun of shared love for a story. There's nothing wrong with that, but the world is changing. Going into 2014, another Blizzard game, Hearthstone, was undergoing a huge rise in popularity and millions were signing up for Heroes of the Storm's beta.<br />
<br />
Now in 2015 both have become cornerstone's of Blizzard's brand, especially with regards to e-sports. Frankly, e-sports is where the media interest is now, and WoW no longer dominates Blizzard's bank accounts or player base. WoW tried to get into e-sports but it never really stuck the way MOBAs and card games can.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1y938q5-JMI/VblGFmuTRsI/AAAAAAAAAoM/PJWhsGm1PVQ/s1600/30J8GI1.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1y938q5-JMI/VblGFmuTRsI/AAAAAAAAAoM/PJWhsGm1PVQ/s1600/30J8GI1.gif" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">But there's no need to sneer!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
So the decision likely came for two reasons. First, the business one. Blizzard can't sit on its hands until Blizzcon to make all its announcements, it's just not a good business decision. Announcing a bunch of content at once risks drowning each other out; it's better for them to create a series of interest spikes rather than one big pulse per year. Second, as I said before, WoW is not the only fast horse in Blizzard's stable anymore. I say this as someone who is mainly a WoW player and not all that interested in the other IPs, but it is the truth. WoW is on the downward side of its life cycle, and we players have to come to accept that it won't get the same amount of marketing attention or importance that it used to.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f492tfavq7Q/VblGGu-RDFI/AAAAAAAAAoU/tEdgfxZbEkc/s1600/127.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="176" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f492tfavq7Q/VblGGu-RDFI/AAAAAAAAAoU/tEdgfxZbEkc/s320/127.gif" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">WoWPlayers.gif</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This doesn't mean Blizzard doesn't care about WoW, only that it is reacting to change. WoW is not dead, isn't not going anywhere anytime soon. We just have to come to accept that we're not an only-child fanbase anymore, we've got siblings.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-29235049456699828032015-07-13T10:17:00.000-07:002015-07-13T10:17:11.528-07:00[WoW] Tanaan is close to perfect, but I can't seem to love it<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Continuing a trend started with Mists of Pandaria, Blizzard
has released <strike>Timeless Jungle</strike> <strike>Tanaan Isle</strike> <strike>Gul'dan's Welfare Loot Headquarters</strike> Tanaan
Jungle as the final patch's "catch up and stuff to do" zone to
(supposedly) finish off Warlords of Draenor. In continuation of the "zone
to do shit in every patch" trend started with Pandaria's 5.2 "The
Thunder King", the zone was designed to give players plenty of solo
content to chew on, and engineered to draw the content out for as long as
attention spans will hold. There's certainly a lot to do, and a lot of RNG
involved, but the RNG is not the worst I've encountered and the zone reflects
several iterations on the concept. In short, Tanaan is as close to perfect as
Blizzard has yet come, and I "like" it, but I can't seem to love it.</span></div>
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Timeless Isle was a good idea on paper but was severely
flawed in practice; Taanan's success can be attributed to it NOT making those
mistakes. Most importantly, they've eliminated the "pure grind"
reputation. Of the three Tanaan factions only one of them, the <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/guides/reputation/wod/the-saberstalkers-guide">Saberstalkers</a>,
can be ground out, and there are several other ways to earn reputation. A pure,
uncompromising grind is something we should have let die two expansions ago,
and I am glad Blizzard figured that out.* Blizzard did a fantastic job of
striking a balance by allowing people to quickly grind it out, and (but also)
giving them the alternative of using other means to slowly but noticeably,
raise reputation without grinding. Let us hope Blizzard sticks to this strategy
so that we never have another Emperor Shaohao inflicted upon us again.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ywRSVnWTuHg/VaMbo1ybyNI/AAAAAAAAAnY/uP4npch34vw/s1600/635124503540316018.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ywRSVnWTuHg/VaMbo1ybyNI/AAAAAAAAAnY/uP4npch34vw/s320/635124503540316018.PNG" width="226" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Never again.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Ironically, Saberstalkers had all the ingredients to be
another Shaohao disaster; the mobs are found in only one area, they're mostly
elite mobs, and it requires a lot of kills to progress. However, each
individual mob is worth more reputation-per-time-invested, they're easier on
average, and they seem to spawn fairly quickly when farmed. Plus, with the
addition of the Warlords group finder, even the most socially awkward, shy, and
introverted players (aka me) can easily find reputation grinding groups to ease
the process along.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">They also realized that sticking specific pets/mounts on
rares could cause problems (like hours and hours of unpleasant camping) so now
the eligible rares/pet-battles only drop boxes that have a chance to contain
the various new mounts/pets. No more farming some random boss in hopes of
getting their specific mount/pet; though toys ARE rare specific so some of that
has remained, and I'm actually fine with toys being handled this way because
they are more transient in nature. Plus, they all seem to have a guaranteed
drop chance, so you only need to kill said rare once.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QjTOoEN-MGU/VaPwjdAmEkI/AAAAAAAAAnw/BtF_prjkpWM/s1600/WoWScrnShot_071315_095422.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QjTOoEN-MGU/VaPwjdAmEkI/AAAAAAAAAnw/BtF_prjkpWM/s400/WoWScrnShot_071315_095422.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Terrorfist, a Hellbane rare that can drop a random mount box and/or reputation boost</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Additionally, at least the rares of Tanaan are all free-for-all tagging, meaning anyone can get credit as long as they hit them once. That said, for reasons that come off as the ravings of a
conspiracy theorist, Blizzard refuses to join the 21st century and eliminate
tagging altogether. We hear fears about gold/loot inflation (made mostly moot
anyways by Garrisons, and easily dealt with by modulating rewards) or people
using it to farm experience (and would that REALLY be so bad?). God forbid
people be able to get credit for any mob they attack, it might even cause...and
brace yourself for this...people to help each other without being grouped. It
might cause cross-faction cooperation in an MMO! Can't have that!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">A common complaint about the Apexis crystal dailies was how
disparate they were in completion times. Some of them could be done in 15-20
minutes, while others could take an hour or so. Blizzard clearly heard this,
because the bonus areas in Tanaan are much better tuned. A few of them might
need a tweak or two (Fel Forge, I'm looking at you), but for the most part it's
a marked improvement and most bonus areas can be reliably completed in under 10
minutes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1gqQ7p53cRI/VaMbC_q4hoI/AAAAAAAAAnI/4bUpVu5E8sg/s1600/WoWScrnShot_071215_114429.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1gqQ7p53cRI/VaMbC_q4hoI/AAAAAAAAAnI/4bUpVu5E8sg/s400/WoWScrnShot_071215_114429.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">All those highlighted object can be clicked for more bonus area progress; </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">supplementing your orc genocide</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The jungle is not without its flaws. For one, the place is
actually fairly small, much like its Timeless Isle predecessor, and it masks
this size through clever use of space. You don't really realize how small the
zone is until you stop to think about it, or use <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=119093/avianas-feather">Aviana's Feather</a> (which is one
of the handiest ways to get around). The true irony is that there is plenty of
seemingly unused space in Tanaan; the swamp to the southwest of the hubs, or
the entire dark portal area. Sure there are a few rares in those areas, but
otherwise there's little reason to go.
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Tanaan also has fewer pets and mounts to acquire than its
predecessor, which means players will likely acquire all of them and lose
interest in the area faster. That part I do miss; that feeling that every
single rare could have something cool, and the fact that there were so many
nooks and crannies that it felt like treasure was around every turn. Plus, the
treasure is somewhat boring: some garrison resources, apexis crystals, and/or
the quest crystals (if you have it) at best. But that's better than <strike>Worthless</strike>
Timeless Coins.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-69iMvaSH59Q/VaMbSoOPgYI/AAAAAAAAAnQ/cKEKwMNpvrM/s1600/WoWScrnShot_071215_114244.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-69iMvaSH59Q/VaMbSoOPgYI/AAAAAAAAAnQ/cKEKwMNpvrM/s400/WoWScrnShot_071215_114244.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">That's the entirety of a bonus area; four small sections </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Though ostensibly FILLED with rare mobs to kill, their tiny
health pools continue to ensure that most rares die within about 10 seconds to
spawning. Even the more powerful <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/achievement=10061/hellbane">Hellbane</a>s rares die within a minute or so,
meaning you pretty much have to camp them if you want a specific rare. The
quick death times also make the daily quest to collect crystals that drop from
rares something of a pain if you aren't lucky.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">All that said, Tanaan is actually a very well put-together
zone reflecting careful consideration of their previous attempts, and yet it
fails to really grab me by the collar and demand I play. That is, perhaps,
because it is me that is changing, and my interests are moving away from WoW.
Yet at the same time, it is so artificial, unchanging, and "perfect"
that it somewhat lacks a soul.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">*And if I hear "You don't HAVE to do it..." one
more time. Of course I don't, the ENTIRE GAME is optional. That doesn't give it
an excuse to be bland and boring.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-31155828170612872112015-07-05T21:39:00.001-07:002015-07-05T21:39:13.017-07:00The glory of the Group FinderIn the past I have been very critical of Blizzard's automatic group finding tools, and being a socially awkward and shy person I am usually reluctant to try to form groups myself outside of my guild. So I was resistant to the idea of using the Group Finder initially, but after giving it a shot in Tanaan jungle my opinion has been completely changed.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
While this new Group Finder tool has settings for traditional Raids, PvP, and Questing, it also has the "Custom" group tool which many players use to find reputation grinding groups, specific rare spawns, or apexis dailies. For example, I use the tool to find the "<a href="http://www.wowhead.com/achievement=10061/hellbane">Hellbane</a>" rares so that I can kill them for a shot at getting reputation increasing items or rare mounts. The thing is the Hellbane rares have somewhat long spawn timers, so in order to get them killed quickly I head to their respective spawn points then simply type their names into the group finder. It might take a few minutes of refreshing, but within fifteen I can have any individual one down; usually even faster. Now the catch is that they tend to die fast once the quest is posted, so one has to be close to the spawn if they want any hope of getting credit and loot.<br />
<br />
After doing that, I can hop into a group for the group-oriented "Throne of Kil'jaeden" daily quest (if it's offered). All it took was looking up the quest by name (or a portion thereof) and cycling through the list until I found a group with openings. Usually the list is filled with them, so I just need to find one with an opening and hop right in. When I'm finished I can leave, and other players can take my place, creating a sort of cycle churn of group members.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FY5zmVYrZNU/VZoFV1ZEmZI/AAAAAAAAAmw/Vr5qNe1ycFU/s1600/GroupExamples.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="358" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FY5zmVYrZNU/VZoFV1ZEmZI/AAAAAAAAAmw/Vr5qNe1ycFU/s400/GroupExamples.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sample of the Custom Finder with no search filters in</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
However it is not without issues. Most of the flaws are with it's limited ability to filter results. The group finder does not allow you to dictate a size; so parties of 5 will still show up on the Guild Finder roster, even if players won't be allowed to join them because the group does not want to become a raid (and thus become ineligible for the 5-person activities).<br />
<br />
There is another drawback; you can't specify the kind of server you are on or want to end up on. Meaning PvE players can end up dropped onto PvP realms. While this is not the worst outcome; for rares/outdoor bosses you are in a large group so you have plenty of protection from the opposing faction. However, it does mean in smaller groups grinding reputation or doing group dailies, you are much more vulnerable. For players that specifically chose PvE servers so as to avoid "World PvP" it can be unnerving to find yourself tugged onto a PvP realm because the group finder does not tell you what kind of server you are heading to. I'd love the information ahead of time, or the ability to filter for it.<br />
<br />
Admittedly, that could create an issue where PvP server players find their groups not getting much attention and I have no desire to turn them into "second class" players, but I also don't want to be forced into PvP when I just want to do PvE quests.<br />
<br />
All in all the tool is one I regret not trying out earlier; it's perfect for the shy like me. I don't even have to talk to a person to find a group...and oddly enough, in the frequently toxic MMO atmosphere that can be a welcome function. That is not to advocate a complete removal of human interaction from MMOs, but there are some situations in which it can be handy. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-16136724528164095902015-06-09T14:31:00.000-07:002015-07-30T13:06:33.878-07:00Hugo Ballot 2015 with Puppies marked<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">I don't normally tread all that far outside the realm of gaming, but as I am attending WorldCon this year I've been paying special attention to the Hugos and the...lets call it "kerfuffle" going on around it. It was originally brought to my attention by George R. R. Martin's tweets, and <a href="http://grrm.livejournal.com/417125.html">I think he does a fair job of summarizing it.</a> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">The
following is the full Hugo Award 2015 bracket with nominees put forth by the
Sad and Rabid Puppies slates color coded. When I got down to reading the nominees I
realized I wanted a coherent list of how the slates impacted the nominees, including
both slates, so I decided to make one myself. <span style="color: #0070c0;">Sad
Puppies are marked in Blue</span>, <span style="color: red;">Rabid Puppies in Red</span>,
and any <span style="color: #7030a0;">nominees suggested by both are marked in
Purple</span>.* I want to make it very clear that this should not be used as a
slate or voting guide. <span style="font-family: inherit;">At least some </span>of the authors the Puppy groups included on their
slates were not consulted about it, and it would be unfair to them to deny them
an award merely because of an undesired association. So say it with me, “This
post should <u>NOT</u> be used as a slate.” <u>Each work should be judged on its own
merit.</u></span> </span></span>Of course if you do not feel that any of the works in a category merit a Hugo award you are free to choose the "No Award" option in that category.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">However, due
to the exploitation of the Hugo nomination system (and this was an exploitation
of a system that previously relied on non-slate voting due to a, apparently
misplaced, trust in an honor system) I feel it is only fair that voters have
some knowledge as to why individual works were included. All knowledge is worth
having, and so I leave it to you to decide what to do with this information. You
will notice that in several categories ALL of the nominees belong to a slate.
If that troubles you I recommend considering <a href="http://whatever.scalzi.com/2015/05/20/how-you-should-vote-for-the-hugos-this-year/">John Scalzi’s system</a>.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">This post will be updated as new information becomes available. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;"></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;"></span></span></span></div>
<a name='more'></a><div style="text-align: left;">
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Best Novel</span></b></span></span></u>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Ancillary
Sword by Ann Leckie (Orbit US; Orbit UK) </span></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">The
Dark Between the Stars by Kevin J. Anderson (Tor Books) </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">The Goblin
Emperor by Katherine Addison (Sarah Monette) (Tor Books) </span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">The
Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu, translated by Ken Liu (Tor) </span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Skin
Game by Jim Butcher (Roc Books) </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Best Novella</span></b></span></span></u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Big
Boys Don't Cry by Tom Kratman (Castalia House)</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">“Flow”
by by Arlan Andrews, Sr. (Analog, Nov 2014)</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">One
Bright Star to Guide Themby John C. Wright (Castalia House)</span></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red; line-height: 107%;">“Pale
Realms of Shade” by John C. Wright (The Book of Feasts & Seasons, Castalia
House)</span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red; line-height: 107%;">“The
Plural of Helen of Troy” by John C. Wright (City Beyond Time: Tales of the Fall
of Metachronopolis, Castalia House)</span></span></span></div>
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<u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Best Novelette</span></b></span></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">“Ashes
to Ashes, Dust to Dust, Earth to Alluvium” by Gray Rinehart (Orson Scott Card’s
InterGalactic Medicine Show, May 2014)</span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">“Championship
B’tok” by Edward M. Lerner (Analog, Sept 2014)</span></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">“The Day the
World Turned Upside Down” by Thomas Olde Heuvelt (Lightspeed Magazine, April
2014)</span></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">“The
Journeyman: In the Stone House” by Michael F. Flynn (Analog, June 2014)</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">“The
Triple Sun: A Golden Age Tale” by by Rajnar Vajra (Analog, Jul/Aug 2014)</span></span></span></div>
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<u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Best Short Story</span></b></span></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">“On
A Spiritual Plain” by Lou Antonelli (Sci Phi
Journal #2, Nov 2014)</span></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red; line-height: 107%;">“The
Parliament of Beasts and Birds” by John C. Wright (The Book of Feasts &
Seasons, Castalia House)</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #0070c0; line-height: 107%;">“A
Single Samurai” by Steven Diamond (The Baen Big Book of Monsters, Baen)</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">“Totaled”
by Kary English (Galaxy’s Edge Magazine, July 2014)</span></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">“Turncoat”
by Steve Rzasa (Riding the Red Horse, Castalia House) </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
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<u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Best Related Work</span></b></span></span></u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">“The
Hot Equations: Thermodynamics and Military SF” by Ken Burnside (Riding the Red
Horse, Castalia House)</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Letters
from Gardner by Lou Antonelli (The Merry Blacksmith Press) </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
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and Subhuman: Essays on Science Fiction and Awful Truth by John C. Wright
(Castalia House)</span></span></span></div>
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Science is Never Settled” by Tedd Roberts (Baen.com)</span></span></span></div>
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from My Internet by Michael Z. Williamson (Patriarchy Press)</span></span></span></div>
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Volume 1: No Normal written by G. Willow Wilson, illustrated by Adrian Alphona
and Jake Wyatt (Marvel Comics)</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Rat Queens
Volume 1: Sass and Sorcery written by Kurtis J. Weibe, art by Roc Upchurch
(Image Comics)</span></span></span></div>
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3written by Brian K. Vaughan, illustrated by Fiona Staples (Image Comics)</span></span></span></div>
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Volume 1: One Weird Trick written by Matt Fraction, art by Chip Zdarsky (Image
Comics)</span></span></span></div>
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Zombie Nation Book #2: Reduce Reuse Reanimate by Carter Reid (The Zombie
Nation)</span></span></span></div>
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<u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Best Dramatic Presentation – Long
Form</span></b></span></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Captain
America: The Winter Soldier screenplay by Christopher Markus & Stephen
McFeely, concept and story by Ed Brubaker, directed by Anthony Russo and Joe
Russo (Marvel Entertainment, Perception, Sony Pictures Imageworks)</span></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Edge of
Tomorrow screenplay by Christopher McQuarrie, Jez Butterworth, and John-Henry
Butterworth, directed by Doug Liman (Village Roadshow, RatPac-Dune
Entertainment, 3 Arts Entertainment; Viz Productions)</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Guardians
of the Galaxy written by James Gunn and Nicole Perlman, directed by James Gunn
(Marvel Studios, Moving Picture Company)</span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Interstellar
screenplay by Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan, directed by Christopher Nolan
(Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros. Pictures, Legendary Pictures, Lynda Obst Productions,
Syncopy)</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">The
Lego Movie written by Phil Lord & Christopher Miller, story by Dan Hageman,
Kevin Hageman, Phil Lord & Christopher Miller, directed by Phil Lord &
Christopher Miller (Warner Bros. Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures, RatPac-Dune
Entertainment, LEGO Systems A/S Vertigo Entertainment, Lin Pictures, Warner
Bros. Animation (as Warner Animation Group))</span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></div>
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<u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Best Dramatic Presentation – Short
Form </span></b></span></span></u></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">The
Flash: “Pilot” teleplay by Andrew Kreisberg & Geoff Johns, story by Greg
Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg & Geoff Johns, directed by David Nutter (The CW,
Berlanti Productions, DC Entertainment, Warner Bros. Television)</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red; line-height: 107%;">Game
of Thrones: “The Mountain and the Viper” written by David Benioff & D. B.
Weiss, directed by Alex Graves (HBO Entertainment in association with Bighead,
Littlehead; Television 360; Startling Television & Generator Productions)</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Grimm:
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Productions, Hazy Mills Productions, Universal TV) </span></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Orphan
Black: “By Means Which Have Never Yet Been Tried” written by Graham Manson,
directed by John Fawcett (Temple Street Productions, Space/BBC America)</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Best Editor – Short Form</span></b></span></span></u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Jennifer
Brozek</span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red; line-height: 107%;">Vox
Day</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Mike
Resnick</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Edmund
R. Schubert </span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: black;">(Note: Nominee asked to be removed from bal<span style="font-family: inherit;">lot<span style="font-family: inherit;"> but was too late to be removed)</span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Bryan
Thomas Schmidt</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Best Editor – Long Form</span></b></span></span></u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
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</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red; line-height: 107%;">Vox
Day</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Sheila
Gilbert</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Jim
Minz</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Anne
Sowards</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Toni
Weisskopf</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Best Professional Artist</span></b></span></span></u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Julie Dillon</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red; line-height: 107%;">Kirk
DouPonce</span></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Nick
Greenwood</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Alan
Pollack</span></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #7030a0; line-height: 107%;">Carter
Reid</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
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<u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Best Semiprozine</span></b></span></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #0070c0; line-height: 107%;">Abyss
& Apex by Wendy Delmater, editor and publisher </span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #0070c0; line-height: 107%;">Andromeda
Spaceways In-Flight Magazine Andromeda Spaceways Publishing Association
Incorporated, 2014 editors David Kernot & Sue Bursztynski</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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Ceaseless Skies edited by Scott H. Andrews</span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Lightspeed
Magazineedited by John Joseph Adams, Wendy N. Wagner, Stefan Rudnicki, Rich
Horton, and Christie Yant</span></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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Horizons Niall Harrison (Editor-in-Chief), Brit Mandelo, An Owomoyela and Julia
Rios (Fiction Editors), Sonya Taaffe (Senior Poetry Editor), Abigail Nussbaum (Senior
Reviews Editor), Rebecca Cross (Columns Editor), Anaea Lay (Podcast Editor) and
Tim Moore (Webmaster)</span></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Best Fanzine</span></b></span></span></u></div>
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Gate edited by John O’Neill <span style="color: black;">(Note: Nominee asked to be removed from bal<span style="font-family: inherit;">lot<span style="font-family: inherit;"> but was too late to be removed)</span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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<![endif]-->Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-32518032274967514012015-06-04T17:32:00.001-07:002015-06-06T00:13:23.526-07:00In re: Last Hitting and HotSEdit Addendum: I was reminded via Twitter that HotS does have some mechanics resembling a last hit; however I have since tested and confirmed that the HotS versions (at least those tested; Diablo's passive and Raynor's first tier talent), despite saying "minions and heroes killed" in their description, only require you be in the vicinity of the death, not actually land the killing blow.<br />
<br />
I want to start by saying that from a thousand feet I don't disagree with <a href="https://gdub4.wordpress.com/2015/06/04/re-about-league-and-hots/">Izlain</a> that Hereoes of the Storm (HotS) is a more mechanically simplistic MOBA than League or DotA2; but accessibility is Blizzard's wheelhouse and frankly I'd be shocked if they tried to be the next Heroes of Newerth. HotS is angling to be the MOBA for the average Joe/Jane, the person who doesn't want to spend hours researching item builds, buy a rune build for each champ/lane, a mastery page to match, and know each champion by magic defense per level.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
I feel strange coming into this discussion with an apparent attitude of "In my day!!" but I think it provides some important context. <a href="http://aggronaut.com/2015/06/03/about-league-and-hots/">Belghast disputes the team-play issues of last hitting</a> and personally I agree; but at the same time I understand how it contributes to the strategy of the game as Izlain points out. Now for the "in my day!" part. My first exposure to MOBAs was in DotA...not DotA 2...DOTA, as in the Warcraft 3 mod. I spent long college nights when I should have been studying learning to play Venomancer and Broodmother (among my favorites at the time). There wasn't much of a meta back there, at least in public matches. You generally just matched the lane layout of your opponents and tried to win your lane. Concepts like ADC and Jungler weren't even really around yet. "Last-hitting" for gold was there because it was a limitation of the Warcraft 3 engine, the same with splitting into lanes to maximize xp gain. The designers couldn't figure an in-engine way to get the game to spread gold and xp out so it wasn't even discussed.<br />
<br />
Fast forward to League and last-hitting was included because they felt like it added a dimension of skill. Note that League got rid of some of the other aspects of DotA that they didn't like, such as creep blocking and "denying" (the practice of killing ones own towers/creeps to avoid giving gold/exp to the enemy). I'm glad they did, because it always felt weird to me that in an "RPG" (despite it's competitive focus, League's premise is still that of a sort of arena RPG) you were encouraged to kill off your own forces. Maybe for the "evil" side that made sense, but for the "Good" side? Plus, how is it the magic forces that hand out these so-called bounties can't tell when someone just stole the killing blow from another who did all the work?<br />
<br />
But I digress, the very meta the Izlain illustrates emerged because of an engine limitation; the idea that certain characters should split into lanes and the jungle was to maximize gold/exp. The idea of a Support emerged from choosing characters that did not require a large amount of gold to be useful thus could share a lane with the ADC (also originally a hold over from when Warcraft's engine couldn't do "spell damage" as a stat) and improve its effectiveness.<br />
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Last hitting certainly has a skill component, it takes learning and practice to know about how big the creep's bar should be for you to get the last hit in and how to position yourself to take advantage of this. It just also happens to be a skill, like micromanagement in Starcraft, that some love and some hate for perfectly valid reasons on either side. The choice by one game to eliminate it to highlight others hardly puts it outside of the MOBA genre.<br />
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Izlain links the following quote:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote>
To me someone not liking the actual gameplay of
last-hitting is like someone not liking questing in an RPG; at some
point it’s not so much the game as it is the player needing to find
something that better fits them. Just like an RPG doesn’t need ‘fixing’
by removing quests, the MOBA genre doesn’t move forward by removing
last-hitting, at least not without a suitable gameplay replacement. </blockquote>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote>
-Syncaine</blockquote>
</blockquote>
My greatest respect towards Syncaine, but I disagree entirely. One of the constant complaints about RPGs is the "Got to !, do what they say, come back to ?, collect reward." structure that has stagnated. Blogs name themselves things like Kill Ten Rats and comic artists made (very poor taste) jokes about an MMO character leaving captive citizens in caves because the player released their requisite 6. We applaud games like Guild Wars 2 that try to innovate on the system with more organic and public events or Archeage simply for letting you kill more than 5 wolves and get rewarded for it. The industry hasn't removed quests, but it's attempted to evolve them beyond the rudamentary core. That's precisely what HotS and it's ilk are doing by asking about the necessity of last hitting. <br />
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To say that last hitting is a fundamental of the genre is to say that any difficult-to-improve mechanic is; Quake's bunny hopping, Smash Bros wall-hogging,or DotA's creep denying are all things that were thought to be fundamental but were so immersion breaking (yes immersion matters to some even in competition focused games) or otherwise problematic that the designers removed them. The same could be said of last hitting. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiplayer_online_battle_arena">A MOBA is simply a game in which two teams play as characters with varying abilities in an attempt to destroy an opposing team's primary structure.</a> Everything else is a mechanics choice. In the past people would have said that WoW's Valor points were not fit for an RPG, or leveling solo, or Personal Loot...all these things have been questioned and innovated on because they didn't work in the context of the gameplay the designer wanted. Last hitting is the same.<br />
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What it comes down to is a matter of subjective opinion; last hitting exists because of an engine limitation, to some it's become a cornerstone, to others it's a break in the immersion. HotS chose to be distinct by eliminating it and putting the early-game focus on objective control and teamwork. Let HotS be HotS and League be League.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-26926194688537640122015-05-21T15:35:00.000-07:002015-05-21T15:35:20.898-07:00Talkback Challenge #3: What Made You A Gamer? #NBI2015I like this question because it offers an opportunity to dig back into my personal history and try to figure out where my first exposures to gaming came from. Perhaps unsurprisingly my first exposure to gaming came from family. The first video game I can remember playing was Joust with my cousin on his NES. I want to say that it was at that moment that my love for gaming crystallized, but truthfully I was so young that my memory of it is foggy. The next memory I can conjure up was getting bootleg copies of Warcraft 2 and Doom from my father's co-workers.<br />
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Not to endorse bootlegging or copyright infringement, but I can safely say that those illegal copies sparked my love of gaming. Soon after I was first exposed to the magic of Star Wars at my grandparent's house and to nerdvana I was off. In short, a variety of influenced cemented my love of all things geeky.<br />
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That answers the "How?" but inside the question of "What" in this context is also a "Why?" I've always been an imaginative type. I spend my free time thinking of fantastic settings and stories, and I used to draw a great deal. Gaming was a natural outlet for that what with most of its content set in far off and mystical places. I got to explore worlds alien to our own, even if at the time they were in 2D through beautifully rendered pixels (<a href="http://chrono.wikia.com/wiki/Zeal">wtb house on the floating continent of Zeal</a>). I'm a gamer because I'm a dreamer, and gaming has always been where dreams come to life.<br />
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There is of course one other factor. I have always been a shy, socially awkward, nerd. Two decades ago when I was first exposed to gaming it was the haven of people just like me. I found friends who felt as I did and enjoyed the things I did. There were others involved to be sure, but it certainly attracted a disproportionate excess of types like me. But as I have grown up so has gaming, and right now it's undergoing a renaissance where we learn to cherish those who have always been here but were never as prominent or perfectly fit that mold, and create a medium that invites new people to join. I think gaming is better for it.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-50361382413286132632015-05-14T15:43:00.000-07:002015-05-14T19:39:21.694-07:00[WoW] Botter tears fuel my LOLZA day or so ago <a href="http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/17347095985">Blizzard announced on Battle.net</a> that it was issuing a huge wave of bans for the usage of bots. Unlike previous waves this one was accompanied by a lot more visible rumbling from the playerbase than I could recall from previous ban waves. Historically news about these waves has had an undertone that the majority of the banned were offshore gold-farmers rather than the "ordinary" player. This time the wave was accompanied by a myriad of reports of Mythic raiding guilds losing half their roster, streamers getting cut off during their stream, and known personalities finding their accounts banned for 6 months.<br />
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This particular wave seemed to affect large numbers of people who historically have managed to slide under the radar and they were not particularly happy, as the quotes harvested by <a href="http://nosygamer.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/blizzard-loses-in-court-botters-lose-in.html">Nosy Gamer </a>attest.<br />
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But what bots are we talking about? As described in the posts collected by Nosy, these can include:<br />
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Enyo - A bot that essentially automates a DPS rotation/priority and pretty much just means the player needs to move their character.<br />
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Honorbuddy - A bot that keeps a player active in a battleground so they can farm Conquest and Honor points without actually playing. It apparently can also be used to automate farming in lower level zones where the mobs aren't a threat.<br />
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Garrisonbuddy - A bot that automates the care of a player's garrison so they don't have to<br />
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...and many more!<br />
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The quotes Nosy collected are an amusing collection of justifications for the activity, with such great hits as "I just used _____...", "This will hurt my non-botters/guild because I am not around...", "I'm going to sue!", and "They're gonna lose so many subs, WoW is dead because of this." Let that last one sink in, they're asserting that WoW is going to die because they banned people who CHEATED under the terms of the ToS.<br />
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Look, we can argue what is and isn't a bot. Was sticking a rock on my W key so I can level Athletics in Elder Scrolls Oblivion botting? In a way yeah. But it's not nearly to the level of automation as installing software that plays most of the game for you. Hardware "hacks" are a different beast all their own; if I can solve a lack of crosshair by sticking a dot on my screen it's not necessarily cheating.<br />
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Plus Oblivion is single-player so my conduct has no effect on the game economy or other players. In a multiplayer game the use of bots DOES affect other players, even if it does not seem readily apparent. A bot that harvests 11 garrisons worth of resources is injecting lots more into the economy that otherwise would be. A bot that farms honor means the people on your team are essentially down a teammate. A bot that automates raiding takes a spot from a player who doesn't and reduces the intended difficulty for the raid.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-08eTU5HyJwY/VVUj5ISf2nI/AAAAAAAAAkw/d6JuYhk5o_Y/s1600/BilateralDOPE.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-08eTU5HyJwY/VVUj5ISf2nI/AAAAAAAAAkw/d6JuYhk5o_Y/s400/BilateralDOPE.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Also a fair point</td></tr>
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Personally I have absolutely no sympathy for people who used bots and got a complimentary 6 month vacation from the game. I have plenty of complaints about WoD; I am not fond of the faction rep grind, of how much of a chore Garrisons can be, and of how many frustrating battlegrounds one must do to get a good amount of honor. Yet my solution to those is NOT botting, it's working internally. There are plenty of situations when saying "Fuck the rules!" is justified, this is not one of them. For those banned that have threatened not to come back after their ban, I have but one message...<br />
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That said, I also offer an amused "Good luck!" to those threatening to sue Blizzard over the ban wave. I admire someone trying to put EULAs and ToSs in video games to a test, but this particular challenge is unlikely to get very far.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-35305254904738919582015-05-13T15:45:00.000-07:002015-05-13T15:46:03.826-07:00Do I support unfinished games? TalkBack Challenge #2 #NBI2015<span itemprop="articleBody"><i>Early Access and Kickstarter – Do you support unfinished games?</i></span><br />
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<span itemprop="articleBody">I don't think it was intended but this question somewhat frames the issue on its own. I hate to use the favorite phrase of attorneys but I suppose that part of me is showing through, "It depends."</span><br />
<span itemprop="articleBody"><i> </i></span><br />
<span itemprop="articleBody">I am eager to support the developer of a game I am enjoying in its current state and the developer has big plans for (that they are reasonably likely to achieve). However, there's no way to know whether the latter is true, or whether I will enjoy said game going into its Kickstarter.</span><br />
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<span itemprop="articleBody">I support the idea of being able to offer money to help get a game off the ground, but like any transaction, I like to believe there is a good faith effort on the part of both parties entering into this informal agreement. The developer has to reasonably believe, and be reasonably capable, of actually delivering on their promise. As much as I love the idea behind the big Kickstarter success story, Star Citizen, the more they promise the more it looks like it might become a multimillion dollar piece of vaporware.</span><br />
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<span itemprop="articleBody">Which raises the issue of how Kickstarter and early access are basically becoming platforms for already reasonably established and connected developers to crowdsource their games and might be crowding (no pun intended) out newer and independent developers. <a href="http://www.polygon.com/2015/5/12/8592901/bloodstain-kickstarter-castlevania-reboot">Just look at the money behind the success of the Castlevania reboot Bloodstained</a>...but that's not the talkback question.</span><br />
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<span itemprop="articleBody">There also lies the question of what an "unfinished" game is. I think a fair number of developers would consider their games unfinished to a degree. Maybe there was a mechanic or piece of content they wanted to add. These days games are not simply thrown out into the market, they are living things that get updated periodically. Most gaming bloggers have played or currently play MMOs, the genre where a game is constantly being improved and altered. Looking at something like WoW today versus WoW in 2004. Can we say it was "finished" when sold? The fundamentals of the game have changed so much since then that it's hard to say. Furthermore, pay-to-beta-test and F2P games have muddied the waters of when a game is actually released to the point that no one can really agree. "Release" is a word that just signals the developer realizing they can't keep using the "it's a beta" as an excuse for problems anymore.</span><br />
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<span itemprop="articleBody">Around we go back to the actual question. Yes, I support unfinished games, having supported and enjoyed several in recent memory; Space Engineers, Besiege, Kerbal Space Program, and Prison Architect, but all of those have received continuous support and are constantly growing. I can't say the same of all early access or Kickstarter games. On the other hand, I did not invest in any of them until I saw substance. This means it's a risk each person has to assess for themselves; weighing whether what they see and might get is worth putting down money now, bearing in mind that many Kickstarters and Early Access games flop.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-1721297209692292842015-05-11T17:42:00.003-07:002015-05-11T17:42:48.477-07:00[Splatoon] Let things be differentOver the past few weeks Nintendo's newest IP Splatoon has been in the news because it's been hosting what are basically Open Betas. Splatoon is an FPS in which squid-people shoot ink at each other in team fortress-esque objective based team game. Now if having "Nintendo" and "FPS" in the same thought confuses you...well you're probably reacting the right way. That said Splatoon has all the hallmarks of a Nintendo game; a cute, cartoon aesthetic with minimal if any sexualization, approachable gameplay, a less-violent approach (ink and squirt guns instead of bullets), and an overall goal of being friendlier, less toxic.<br />
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To achieve this goal Nintendo has chosen to entirely omit voice chat.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-v6XLOBP8E9k/VVFMac8XlvI/AAAAAAAAAkU/38lFjBKf8yE/s1600/splatoon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="223" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-v6XLOBP8E9k/VVFMac8XlvI/AAAAAAAAAkU/38lFjBKf8yE/s400/splatoon.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The future...decided by squid-people with supersoakers.</td></tr>
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<a href="http://www.ign.com/articles/2015/05/10/dear-nintendo-splatoon-needs-a-voice-chat-option">Given the reaction of some outlets, you'd think Nintendo had emailed them images of Mario giving them the finger.</a> Nintendo has always had the reputation as the family-friendly, safe option. They clearly want to be the console developer where you can let your kid play without worrying that they are going to be exposed to online toxicity. These days you see plenty of warnings for parents to spend some time listening in on your kid's Call of Duty match before letting them use voice. Nintendo wants to get rid of that concern and tossing voice chat is the first step to that.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"It's 2015. A voice chat option is standard in most online team-based games" - Fran Mirabella III</blockquote>
I see where Fran is coming from; these days there are features in games that become so necessary that they are basically required. But there is a time for following the conventional wisdom and a time to question how necessary a feature is. As much as Nintendo likes to stick it's head in the sand with regards to new developments, it looks like they are keenly aware of the prevalence of online toxicity in games. Thus far no developer has found a good way to make players behave. Blizzard tossed direct chat aside in Hearthstone, and advocates aggressive muting as a means of avoiding toxicity in Heroes of the Storm. Bear in mind that Heroes of the Storm is a MOBA, a genre where team communication is mandatory and Blizzard seems to feel confident that the communication can be handled with pings and context. Having played plenty of FPS games in recent history I never found myself sitting there thinking, "Wow, I wish I had voice chat enabled so I could be told how much I suck." Yes, in competitive play it is absolutely necessary but that is competitive play. Gaming as a whole is finding itself stuck between players who want everything they do in game to be a scrimmage for MLG and players who just want to boot up their favorite game and screw off. Voice chat might seem mandatory to one of those groups, but not the other.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"This opt-in approach solves for Amano's concerns." - Fran Mirabella III</blockquote>
Yes and no, yes an opt-in option for voice chat solves the concern of people being unwittingly subjected to toxicity. However, merely by having the option to go into team chat creates a pressure for people to use it and puts those that don't at a disadvantage. So Nintendo is choosing not to allow it at all. Yes, we can argue that perhaps that is a less ideal option and how people will find ways around it, but we live in a world where games are looking more and more alike. Nintendo is trying something aggressive to fix a problem. So stop trying to turn it into Call of Duty by arbitrarily insisting that a feature is mandatory.<br />
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Let games be different, let them try different things, and if they fail, they fail.You're always welcome to give feedback to developers, but couching that in "It HAS to be this way," is essentially building the walls of the box back up around innovation.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-11439136953144131302015-05-10T11:07:00.002-07:002015-05-10T11:07:55.590-07:00Elemint's Draenor Safari #NBI2015SafariInspired by <a href="http://murfvs.net/2015/05/01/newbie-blogger-initiative-2015-announcing-the-screenshot-safari-nbi2015-nbi2015safari/">Murf's NBI screenshot safari challenge</a> (and completely ignoring the rules thereof 'cause I ain't part of your system! Disqualify thi-[CENSORED]) I ended up packing up my Print Screen key and heading out into the wilds of Draenor. Aided by <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=119093/avianas-feather">Aviana's Feather</a> I went on a whirlwind safari in hopes of getting a few shots to capture the beauty of Blizzard's latest continent. As anyone who follows me on Twitter will know I am incredibly critical of Blizzard, but at the same time there's a certain nostalgic fondness for them in my heart, and if they are good at one thing it's making gorgeous landscapes. Keeping in mind that I am just a fan, not a photographer so please bear with my novice (read: terrible) skills. So without further ado, lets go on a trip.... (I think it goes without saying that these are for the Landscape theme)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1Ay3KEQrHFY/VU8PsECdGUI/AAAAAAAAAiw/grC9NVIbPsI/s1600/WoWScrnShot_050715_153754.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1Ay3KEQrHFY/VU8PsECdGUI/AAAAAAAAAiw/grC9NVIbPsI/s400/WoWScrnShot_050715_153754.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nagrand, Cerulean Lagoon</td></tr>
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First I headed towards a zone that holds a special place in my heart. Nagrand was my favorite zone in The Burning Crusade expansion and has yet to be unseated. That said, the new Nagrand is a fitting homage and I wanted to juxtapose the hills and forests of Nagrand with the encroaching Zangarmarsh mushrooms. Zangarmarsh easily is one of the most impressive zones from an artistic standpoint so I wanted to include some elements of both. Though limited by draw distance, the continent in the distance is Frostfire Ridge, the Horde starting zone and home of their Garrison. Speaking of the Horde Garrison...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3fHF9dXNGPI/VU8QsMkCz1I/AAAAAAAAAi4/ZpuHYmKusCs/s1600/WoWScrnShot_050715_154433.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3fHF9dXNGPI/VU8QsMkCz1I/AAAAAAAAAi4/ZpuHYmKusCs/s400/WoWScrnShot_050715_154433.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Horde Garrison. If you're horde this expansion you'll never leave this place.</td></tr>
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I liked the juxtaposition of harsh red with the softer purple of Frostfire's sky. The brown, gray, and red of Horde architecture stands out starkly against the blue-gray rocks and white snow throughout the region. Also there's buzzards crapping everywhere....<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pcCGml8Q880/VU8RU7ms_pI/AAAAAAAAAjA/IjO4WJNARGc/s1600/WoWScrnShot_050715_154714.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pcCGml8Q880/VU8RU7ms_pI/AAAAAAAAAjA/IjO4WJNARGc/s400/WoWScrnShot_050715_154714.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Auchindoun, somewhat more intact than TBC</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Mpdiz6cyDHY/VU8RddCkg3I/AAAAAAAAAjI/t2CyDVfQ1ZU/s1600/WoWScrnShot_050715_154654.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Mpdiz6cyDHY/VU8RddCkg3I/AAAAAAAAAjI/t2CyDVfQ1ZU/s400/WoWScrnShot_050715_154654.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shattrath City, less intact than TBC. I think this is my favorite, and the one I would submit to the safari.</td></tr>
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Talador features two locations players saw a great deal of in TBC; Auchindoun and Shattrath City. Ironically they have somewhat switched places, with Auchindoun now more intact and Shattrath under siege. I like the purple and white of Draenei architecture mixed with the red-gold of Talador's trees. I've always been a fan of sweeping curves and floating crystals. In taking these shots I felt a moment of sadness for the Shattrath that might have been.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-idvrKT0fq6g/VU8SWaUBVwI/AAAAAAAAAjY/2ttvT2W0gnQ/s1600/WoWScrnShot_050715_161008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-idvrKT0fq6g/VU8SWaUBVwI/AAAAAAAAAjY/2ttvT2W0gnQ/s400/WoWScrnShot_050715_161008.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A terrifying sight if you're an Arakkoa</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-G3Cju1QX2mw/VU8Snrp_BfI/AAAAAAAAAjo/lSnD41MXmlM/s1600/WoWScrnShot_050715_172236.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-G3Cju1QX2mw/VU8Snrp_BfI/AAAAAAAAAjo/lSnD41MXmlM/s400/WoWScrnShot_050715_172236.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A view from the other direction, somewhat marred by draw distance</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IDTn-IvXzWY/VU8Sg41Gs5I/AAAAAAAAAjg/QzK3FokIDlM/s1600/WoWScrnShot_050715_160817.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IDTn-IvXzWY/VU8Sg41Gs5I/AAAAAAAAAjg/QzK3FokIDlM/s400/WoWScrnShot_050715_160817.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The central landmark of the Spires of Arak</td></tr>
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Spires of Arak is actually one of the most visually boring zones in my opinion, but it tells an interesting story and I like the way Blizzard managed to utilize concave curves in Arakkoa architecture as compared to the convex of Draenei. Plus I'm a sucker for tall, ominous towers that can shoot lasers...do with that what you will.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-k80_kYnfpYs/VU8TR27BLSI/AAAAAAAAAjw/tbsuJRLcz-o/s1600/WoWScrnShot_051015_010232.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-k80_kYnfpYs/VU8TR27BLSI/AAAAAAAAAjw/tbsuJRLcz-o/s400/WoWScrnShot_051015_010232.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Shadowmoon Valley is the zone I often see described as most beautiful in the expansion and I think people have a point. There's a gorgeous mix of blues, purples, and greens that gives that eternal twilight feel. Something about the use of color just makes the zone "feel" magical which I believe is the major component of that love. That said, the Alliance garrison is here...lucky punks.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Karabor sans the Illidan</td></tr>
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Karabor is so much more peaceful without the demon infestation, though the guards were not too keen on a Horde Shaman running around taking pictures.<br />
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So there's your quick Safari minus any pictures from Gorgrond because I ran out of time, but it's all rocks and weird jungle trees anyways. Hope you enjoyed! Please like, comment, subscribe, pledge your firstborn, deposit a DNA sample, thumps up, do a dance, favstar or whatever it is the kids do these days if you like what you saw.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-24126396678150262012015-04-24T11:00:00.000-07:002015-04-24T11:00:00.952-07:00What bad implementation looks likeIf Valve has done one thing very well with it's Steam platform games, it was finding ways to bring players into the creative process and ride the coat-tails of their ingenuity into wealth. For a few years now Team Fortress 2 and DotA 2 players have been able to create items for those games, submit them to the workshop, and potentially get approval from Valve. If they got approval they could even get money every time another player purchased that item. For a game company it's basically printing money; you earn goodwill with your fans by letting them contribute and giving them a cut, and you get art assets for your game without having to hire as many artists. Plus the community will tell you which ones they want.<br />
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So Valve apparently has decided that it's time to extend this line of thinking into other games by introducing the ability for workshop creators to charge for their mods in Skyrim. On its face the idea of letting modders charge for what they've made seems reasonable, but in this particular implementation it's causing problems.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xZNOpVY37d4/VTnkneeKgdI/AAAAAAAAAic/mhNtjnfPKto/s1600/SteamWorkshopstuff.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xZNOpVY37d4/VTnkneeKgdI/AAAAAAAAAic/mhNtjnfPKto/s1600/SteamWorkshopstuff.png" height="82" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">New Ways to give Valve money!</td></tr>
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First, Skyrim has been around for a LONG time now. Many of its mods are must-haves for players and allowing people to suddenly stick them behind a paywall might make players feel like their toys are being taken away. Note: As of this writing it does appear that only NEW mods can be charged; but unscrupulous players are re-uploading copies of older and popular mods as paid in an attempt to make some cash off of them.<br />
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Second, even with the DMCA-esque report system there will likely be plenty of instances of thieves stealing other player's mods and presenting them as their own. This makes it the creator's job to actively police the workshop to protect their IP, and then go through the process of getting the offending mod taken down. Plus there is the risk of malicious use of the tool to take down legitimate but competing mods.<br />
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Third, there is no guarantee that a purchased mod will be supported going forward. Plus, with many mods relying on interconnectedness with other mods there is a high chance that one could be broken by the patch of another. Nothing ensures that a broken mode will be fixed.<br />
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Fourth, many mods build or rely upon others; does the mod yours is borrowing assets from get a cut for every sale you make? As it stands, it doesn't appear likely which means the common body/hair mods might need to add a cost just to ensure they get a pair piece.<br />
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The idea of letting modders charge is certainly a valid one; these creators need some support too. It's just that this particular implementation so late into a game's life when it already has a thriving community seems tone deaf on Valve's part. Offering a more direct way to support mod creators, rather than a direct purchase wherein Valve & Bethesda take home 75%* of the cut might have been more in-line with the community as it is. That's not to say that going forward they couldn't try this approach with other games, just preferably not ones that have such a history.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">* Yes it is Valve's platform and Bethesda's IP; creators are technically creating unlicensed derivative works by modding Skyrim. Doesn't mean they have to be as mercenary, bear in mind much larger subsections of the industry exist because of copyright infringement...like STREAMING.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-65112977106421513262015-03-25T18:50:00.002-07:002015-03-25T18:52:01.082-07:00Data Mining and the death of surprise<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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</xml><![endif]-->A few years ago some enterprising players realized that they could glean information on upcoming MMO content by datamining the game. Posting this information on popular websites offered information-hungry players new insights into what the next patch had in store. Yet, at the same time every single MMO developer in the universe let loose a collective groan.<br />
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</xml><![endif]-->In the age of datamining, where versions are compared and contrasted by hundreds if not thousands of eager
fans looking for any even minute changes there is no surprise anymore. On the one hand, there's nothing inherently wrong with players seeking information under every stone, especially in an age where forums are routinely clogged with toxicity and community managers have to don emotional armor to handle them. Players are information hungry after all, we want to know if we should stick it out with your game. A tidbit of information can determine whether we stay or move on to a competitor. Developers rarely brave those waters as it is.<br />
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On the other hand, the internet proliferates news faster than mono at a high school student's birthday party.<sup>1 </sup>Merely existing on social media can mean inadvertent exposure to spoilers of all kinds. Datamining can also open up the developer to feedback the mined content wasn't ready for.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vNizzNWYZQI/VQ_Az4IRa5I/AAAAAAAAAiE/A5r6YQmcJ0M/s1600/SpoilerAlert.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vNizzNWYZQI/VQ_Az4IRa5I/AAAAAAAAAiE/A5r6YQmcJ0M/s1600/SpoilerAlert.png" height="217" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">MID-MARCH FOOLS!</td></tr>
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Thanks to datamining League of Legend’s April fools skins were revealed before April 1<sup>st</sup>. Now it's possible that Riot has some other plans behind the scenes, but some of the big reveal is already out in the open.</div>
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Things aren't all bad, but it eliminates some of the mystery,
and in cases like special events it removes any sense of an unveiling. It can
also create problems for players that don’t want to know everything beforehand,
as the community will expect that you know everything new going into each new
patch. The knowledge can also be a problem for developers, who will suddenly find themselves on the receiving end of inquiries about changes that were experimental.<br />
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Much like how a DnD dungeon master
might need to fudge rolls to improve the game, developers might
occasionally need to "cheat" a little to make things work,<sup>2</sup> and when a developer is relying on the digital dungeon master's screen of the game to hide some mechanics, it can get them some backlash when players are able to see around it. <a href="http://www.geek.com/games/bungie-is-at-war-with-a-datamining-gamer-that-can-predict-the-future-of-destiny-1618212/">Just recently some enterprising dataminers figured out how to predict a "random" vendor inventory in Destiny.</a> They even noticed that Bungie actually can tweak the vendor's inventory behind the scenes, and some are upset because they believed that Bungie was going to let the proverbial chips fall where they may.<sup>3</sup></div>
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For good or for ill datamining is here to stay, but going forward I can't entirely blame developers for trying to hold back version updates and public test realms if it means exposing themselves to less knee-jerk feedback and to preserve a sense of surprise.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><sup>1</sup> Not that I would know.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><sup>2</sup> Though when we're talking about paid gaming experiences the amount of "cheating" we'll accept is significantly lower. </span></div>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><sup>3</sup> It's possible that they just randomized his inventory internally they had someone update his inventory, which still satisfies the "it's random" claim. Albeit inefficiently.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-75349667798746427532015-03-06T14:18:00.002-08:002015-03-06T14:18:53.765-08:00Liebstering! Lobstering?<a href="http://www.lioreblog.com/">Liore</a> has tagged me with this Liebster thing, and I'm flattered! It's new to me and sounded like fun so here I go with the ten questions she posed!<br />
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<b>1. What was your very first MMO character and why did you choose that race?</b><br />
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My VERY first character was a female Tarutaru in Final Fantasy 11, I chose her because I thought Tarutaru were adorable! Plus I wanted to play a White Mage and I had heard that Tarutaru had ideal stats for that class. So a mix of adorable and min-maxing.<br />
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<b>2. Would you rather have a tiny elephant as a pet, or a tiny kangaroo?</b><br />
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Tiny Elephant, sounds cuddly!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--KrpISWLedY/VPomeTS8ltI/AAAAAAAAAhk/-tIv-hPXLfU/s1600/407740.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--KrpISWLedY/VPomeTS8ltI/AAAAAAAAAhk/-tIv-hPXLfU/s1600/407740.jpg" height="184" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I imagine this but not plushie.</td></tr>
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<b>3. Do you overuse any figures of speech in your writing or speaking?</b><br />
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Probably, though I never notice unless it's pointed out to me. I think I use phrasing like "on the other hand" far too often though. Colloquialisms and other shortcuts are handy, so it's easy to fall prey to overuse.<br />
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<b>4. You can snap your fingers and visit any city in the world. Where are you?</b><br />
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HOW DID I GET TO....actually I'm not sure where I would end up. London or Venice probably. I'm a giant nerd so my "to visit" list includes a lot of places Assassin's Creed has taken place in.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ufBaf86w2WU/VPonDbn0gNI/AAAAAAAAAh0/3owmHDJRt0c/s1600/char_59943.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ufBaf86w2WU/VPonDbn0gNI/AAAAAAAAAh0/3owmHDJRt0c/s1600/char_59943.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ezio Auditore: Assassin, Travel Agent</td></tr>
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<b>5. What was your first (real life) pet? Who is your favorite pet?</b><br />
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I've only ever had fish and my first was a little black goldfish named Shadow. I was super creative with names as a child let me tell you... However my favorite pet is a friend's cat named Loki who picked me as his person a long time ago. <br />
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<b>6. You’re on a desert island and only have one album, one movie, and one book. What are they?</b><br />
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Probably the album Helios by Audiomachine, or something else of theirs. Movie would probably be Return of the Jedi. Book...hmm I'd have to go with Lord of the Rings or Hobbit, something long but imaginative. Truth be told I'd probably forgo all three if I could have a very large notebook and supply of pencils.<br />
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<b>7. Why did you start a blog?</b><br />
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I heard there was big money in blogging. Truthfully I had been following some of the prominent blogging old-guard for a long time. I reached a point where simply commenting on their posts was not feeling sufficient and I felt like I had more to say. So I signed up for Blogger and here I am. <strike>Plus the world needed to be graced with the magnificence of my prose.</strike> Okay we all know that last sentence wasn't true.<br />
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<b>8. What’s your favorite video game soundtrack?</b><br />
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Chrono Trigger! All about that Robo theme. Really it's because CT's soundtrack triggers a strong nostalgia cord with me and has a nice variety. I tend to have one or two songs on a track that I really love so picking a single game means more about finding the one song I could hear forever and the rest I wouldn't immediately hate.<br />
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<b>9. Which writers have been the most influential in your own writing?</b><br />
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Outside of blogging I primarily write sci-fi/fantasy and most of my inspiration comes from that, so authors like Tolkein, Patrick Rothfuss, Ursula K. Le Guin, and Margaret Atwood. That said, when it comes to blogging I find myself constantly impressed with the writing of those I follow and they push me to improve every day.<br />
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<b>10. What is your favorite virtual hat in any game?</b><br />
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This might be the toughest question in the bunch because there are tons that I like, though I will almost always go for a <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=90042/straw-hat">straw hat</a> if it's available so I'd have to say something like that. Or any time I can have some tiny, cute alien on my head.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HjZMulS6VEM/VPomnwjf4qI/AAAAAAAAAhs/whMJVJJnaXI/s1600/250px-Triboniophorus_Tyrannus.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HjZMulS6VEM/VPomnwjf4qI/AAAAAAAAAhs/whMJVJJnaXI/s1600/250px-Triboniophorus_Tyrannus.png" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Exhibit B, head slime</td></tr>
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Now I get to choose MY <strike>victims</strike> tags and they will be getting some questions, and I freely admit that I borrowed a few and focused mine on gaming cause...uh...gaming blogger? Duh.<br />
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1. What was your very first MMO character and why did you choose that race/class?<br />
2. What is your favorite role in MMOs and why? Doesn't have to necessarily be a typical part of the trinity.<br />
3. What is the origin of your blogging name or gaming handle?<br />
4. Do you have a game that you like the idea/setting of but don't or won't play?<br />
5. What was your most exciting/memorable moment in gaming?<br />
6. Who stole the cookie from the cookie jar?<br />
7. If you could turn into one animal (and back) at will,what animal?<br />
8. You must add one thing to gaming culture but also remove one thing what are the things? Can be a custom, behavior, etc.<br />
9. If you had to quit writing/blogging tomorrow what would you do in its place?<br />
10. If you could have one pet/mount from a game what would it be?<br />
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I tag <a href="http://talarian.blogspot.com/">Talarian</a>, <a href="http://psycheplays.com/">Kirsty</a>, and <a href="http://murfvs.net/">Murf</a>! Good luck.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-49897072301232654952015-02-23T15:28:00.004-08:002015-02-23T15:30:44.633-08:00[ESports] Streaming went and got complicatedEarlier today <a href="http://kotaku.com/why-riot-is-pissed-off-at-a-league-of-legends-streamer-1687538838">Kotaku</a> ran a piece on an issue emerging in the streaming world. In short, Faker, a professional LoL player, has signed a deal with streaming service Azubu to only stream his games using their service. However, another user, StarLordLucian, is using a Riot-approved mod to stream Faker's games on Twitch using League's built-in spectator mode. Thus Twitch users get the full benefit of the stream, sans the player's image and commentary.<br />
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Naturally Azubu sought to put a stop to this and issued a DMCA note that didn't stick. The thing is, legally speaking the game footage is owned by Riot. Streaming has always occupied an interesting space similar to fanfiction where it is technically copyright infringement but benefits the intellectual property owner enough that they don't bother shutting it down. After all it's usually not good business to alienate your fans when they're promoting your work for free.<br />
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Riot president Marc Merrill feels that StarLordLucian's conduct is harassment and bullying, and I think in other situations he would have a point. Perhaps Mr. Merrill was misinformed about the issue, because spectating and streaming someone against their will could easily become a form of bullying. Imagine if someone followed you around in public with a camera 24/7 and broadcast that online. In the real world this would quickly turn into harassment. Alternatively, if someone picked a particularly low-skill League player and decided to follow them around and stream their games for public ridicule, that would essentially be a form of bullying. Riot would be right to put a stop to that. Neither are the case in this situation because the stream is being rebroadcast by a fan for non-malicious viewing.*<br />
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Instead Mr. Merrill needs to address the issue of ownership of a stream and how much players have a right to control how footage of their play is used. Historically ownership of sports footage has not been an issue because the league owns the footage and heavily manages its use, but in this situation the owner of the sport/footage (Riot) has been more permissive in allowing third parties to stream.<br />
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Faker's team has issued a statement asking that the stream end, but this doesn't prove it to be harassment as we have yet to hear directly from the player in question. Faker's team also did not specifically address the harassment/bullying concern and instead focused on the team's financial concerns in footage of their play and Faker's interest in his own brand.<br />
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This raises concerns about whether players should have the right to "opt-out" of showing up in streams (or spectator mode), and what authority and ownership these multimillion dollar stream hosts have over the content. Should Azubu be able to issue DMCA claims to copycat streams of players it has signed a deal with when Riot is the one that owns the footage? If I'm a player in one of those games and I'm streaming myself could I end up on the wrong end of a DMCA claim from them?<br />
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At the moment, probably not on both cases, but as Kotaku notes this issue is one that might spur Riot into rewriting some of their streaming policies. I wouldn't be overly surprised if their new rules involve requiring you stream your OWN games or not repeatedly stream the same individual X times in a row. Too strict of rules could chill streaming, a major component in esports' success and could drive viewers to other games.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*If this is indeed being done with malicious intent, then Riot should immediately put a stop to this.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-46387910919590493152015-02-02T15:19:00.000-08:002015-02-02T15:19:24.270-08:00Interpreting player feedback is an artI was reading <a href="https://tagn.wordpress.com/2015/01/29/too-late-for-torchlight-ii/">Wilhelm's post about Torchlight 2</a> being too late for the Mac market. Wilhelm points out that three spiritual successors to Diablo 2, Torchlight 2, Path of Exile, and Diablo 3 were released roughly around the same time. Yet of the three Torchlight 2, despite its developer carrying over a lot of good will after the cult success of Torchlight, more or less flopped into obscurity. The problem was that while Diablo 3 and Path of Exile correctly identified portions of the Diablo 2 formula people liked and disliked, Torchlight 2 didn't, and thus couldn't hold players.<br />
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Diablo 3 and Path of Exile figured out that players like to create various
builds, they like "lootsplosions," they like a good campaign, and some form of repeatable
"endgame" content. Both delivered this in various ways, but also identified the frustrations players had with Diablo 2 and mostly got rid of many of them. D3 addressed players wanting to try different builds by allowing free skill swapping. Path of Exile did it by creating a myriad of possibilities and making it relatively easy to reroll. Torchlight 2 on
the other hand effectively recreated the same "once you start you're stuck" philosophy of Diablo 2 that was more frustration than fun. It may have stayed true to the formula, but that formula was written over a decade ago. <br />
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Sure, TL2 allowed for various builds, but they weren't all that exciting and it required a lot of investment to try each. Sure, TL2 offered lootsplosions, but the RNG on gear was so high that a player could go ten or twenty levels with the same gear. Players like that periodic reward; it's fun to get a shiny new weapon every few levels. In both cases Runic misinterpreted what it was about those systems that players enjoyed, and instead tried to remain as close to the D2 formula as possible while only updating it with minor conveniences.<br />
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In a perfect world the developers of a game could read the minds of the players and from there figure out exactly what they wanted. Sadly in practice developers have to rely on metrics, player feedback, and the media. Interpreting that data is clearly an art. If your data is showing that players enjoy killing each other in the open world, the answer is not necessarily to reduce the number of safe areas and confine the map more. There is the additional risk that you get the wrong information; metrics can lie, not everyone fills out exit questionnaires, and direct community feedback risks hearing too much from "the vocal minority." With all that going on I don't blame devs for misinterpreting it all at times, but the market is less forgiving.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-80980303056941468282015-01-23T17:41:00.002-08:002015-01-23T17:41:30.353-08:00[WoW] Reputations gone wrongWoW has had a mixed history with faction reputations, and each expansion has tried to shake things up. Burning Crusade brought us gated grinds with daily quests. Wrath brought us tabards to wear in dungeons. Cataclysm combined the two. Mists drastically changed things by adding dailies, removing tabards, giving rep for a dungeon run per day, and eventually the faction Insignias. Personally I liked the variety approach, the problem is they had to set caps on most of them to avoid people grinding out reputations in a single day due to each giving a relatively big burst. Then we got Warlords where Blizzard transitioned most of the reputations into straight-up grinds with the occasional burst from a follower mission.<br />
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To me this feels like a failure and took away the "everything helps" feeling that Mists had. Sure, it had it's flaws but it was much less painful than any grind before. Now Blizzard may improve reputation gains in subsequent patches, but that remains to be seen.<br />
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So how do we fix this? I'd take a page out of their Valor point book.<br />
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You would split reputation gains into two types which I'll temporarily call Daily and Grindy. You are limited to a finite amount of reputation per day from Daily means and these can include quests, dungeon runs with a tabard (or something similarly wearable), a daily dungeon burst, etc. On the other hand, you can gain as much reputation per day as you want from Grindy means which could include killing mobs, using tokens (insignias, etc), or follower missions.<br />
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This solution ensures that people who prefer the gated daily method (aka, logging in for a short period each day to get a large burst) can still do so, while the people who want to grind it out at their own pace can do the same. I can't stand pure grinding, and call me whatever you like but I think adding a burst in the form of a daily helps keep the grind from becoming mind numbing.<br />
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To encourage multiple styles of play they could also limit the number of Daily quests under the "Daily" reputation gains to grant less reputation than cap, so that people are still encouraged to run dungeons to cap out per day.<br />
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The idea here is an elegant solution, one that satisfies the playstyles and preferences of most players. They could even make offer resource/crafting oriented players the option to donate goods (similar to Ixal beastmen in FFXIV) to gain "Daily" reputation or even for "Grind."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-81959012668922380752015-01-20T15:30:00.004-08:002015-01-20T15:32:00.743-08:00[Heroes of the Storm] Free to spend $40Today Blizzard announced the <a href="https://us.battle.net/shop/en/product/heroes-of-the-storm-founders-pack?utm_source=internal-shop&utm_medium=heroes-family&utm_campaign=HFC-sales">Heroes of the Storm Founder's Pack</a>, finally granting eager fans a means to get into the Heroes of the Storm beta if they weren't lucky enough in the lottery, a popular streamer, press, or the friend of a Blizz employee.<br />
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So you know how thousands of players (including) have been patiently waiting for half a year for their name to come up in the lottery to play the Heroes of the Storm beta? Guess what?! You don't have to anymore, if you're willing to cough up $40. Now before anyone accuses me of not wanting a business to make money, let me say that Blizzard is free to use whatever model they want, and I, as a consumer, am free to point out methods that look greedy or opportunistic. There are plenty of ways to make buckets of money without making your consumers feel terrible about giving it to you. I'm not here to say "A company should only make enough
to keep their lights on" but do mean to say "I think I'm getting nickel and
dimed." Believe it or not, consumer goodwill, aka consumer OPINION of your company, is a cornerstone of business. We even have huge sections of law (anti-defamation, trademark) dedicated to protecting that goodwill. <br />
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This move chips away at my goodwill towards Blizzard.<br />
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I'm a big fan of Blizzard's games. I've played WoW so long I narrowly missed the statue cut-off. I've sunk hundreds of hours into the collective Diablo franchise, and was eagerly looking forward to Heroes. Even I, a fan, have to accept that Blizzard is no stranger to leveraging their name. They know they can get away with $15 subscription fees and a box fee every other year where no other game could. They can get away with Hearthstone having a punishing f2p model for new players. They are no saint, but this is the business world and they don't have to be. They also aren't the first company to do this, Everquest Landmark springs to mind. H1Z1 is essentially doing this too and caught plenty of flak for it; though at least H1Z1 is releasing under full knowledge that it's truly in alpha whereas Heroes could have been released a year go. But this choice brings to mind that old question your parents used to ask, "If all the other companies jumped off a bridge would you too?"<br />
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But that also means we, consumers, can complain when a game that is supposed to eventually be free-to-play and is already being criticized for how glacial the in-game earning ratio is (thus nudging players towards RMT) has decided it's a good idea to charge all those patient customers $40 to skip ahead in line. This is a game that is already holding professional competitions. They are competing in official tournaments for prizes in a game that the consumer public can't even play. This makes Blizzard look opportunistic by promoting their f2p game heavily (by letting streamers, etc play and promote it) then charging people to get into it early because they are tired of waiting. It is disappointing to me that this is the model companies are heading towards, where they hold off release of a free-to-play game so they can charge people to get in "early" (aka, when it should have actually opened).<br />
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Frankly the value for your money doesn't even seem that good. In addition to beta access, you get 3 characters, 3 skins, 2500 gold, and 1 mount for $40. In SMITE, a competing MOBA, I can spend $30 to unlock every single character in the game, forever. Currently they're at 62 characters, so that's less than $.50 per character and the value only gets better with time. A new player in League of Legends can unlock 20 champions for roughly $27. Neither of those games, which are in direct competition with HotS, is charging you to play. The real value of the Founder's pack is the beta invite, and Blizzard knows it.<br />
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I agree that paying for early access for a game can be a fair practice, even if the game is going to be free. For many indie companies this is the only way they will ever get off the ground. Blizzard is not one of those companies. They'll make plenty of money selling characters and skins to the players that would LOVE to be playing right now. Instead, they "offer" to let people pay $40 to get in now, which also undermines player faith in the lottery system and makes Blizzard look greedy.* I mean, why let people in with the lottery, especially since we don't know it's numbers, if we can instead get them to pay? How do we players know that the lottery invite tap isn't going to get closed off now that there's a monetary incentive? This makes players feel like their patience was worthless; that it was all a ruse by Blizzard to stoke the fires of excitement only so they could pull the rug out from under us and start charging for access.<br />
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To end this wall of text, it was somewhat cold of Blizzard to activate the Heroes of the Storm icon on everyone's Battle.net launchers, which historically has been well known to be an indication of getting into the beta, only to use the new page to sell the founder's pack.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KjL9OW_ZDes/VL7itXkavbI/AAAAAAAAAhA/fTQwKqkDjOw/s1600/BuyHeroes.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KjL9OW_ZDes/VL7itXkavbI/AAAAAAAAAhA/fTQwKqkDjOw/s1600/BuyHeroes.png" height="261" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thanks for generously offering me the opportunity to give you money.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*All businesses are greedy, but it's important that your customers not see through that illusion. When they do, they start resenting giving you their money.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-90447156106236437382015-01-19T22:06:00.003-08:002015-01-20T14:09:19.928-08:00Phantasms of CommercializationEdit: The post has been edited to clarify my point and remove confusing statements. <br />
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So while I was ranting about a quote from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsgoD74vLIo&list=PLlRceUcRZcK0E1Id3NHchFaxikvCvAVQe">Jim Sterling's video about Evolve's DLC</a> the insightful Talarian asked:<br />
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/0utofBeta">@0utofBeta</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/ctmurfy">@ctmurfy</a> Question then. What's the difference between "shit we wanted to do, but don't have time" vs. planning to add it later?<br />
— Talarian (@Talarianjs) <a href="https://twitter.com/Talarianjs/status/557317734451531776">January 19, 2015</a></blockquote>
Sadly the question requires more than 140 characters to answer so I delayed for time and scrambled over here to hash something out. The question makes a good point, it's difficult to say when something was cut because the developer ran out of time because theoretically the developer would throw everything in if time and money weren't a factor and when it was a feature that was simply planned to be added later.<br />
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The triple-A video game development model is an entirely commercial thing, but we players like to indulge in the illusion that developers are cool people who aren't trying to attach to our wallets like a mosquito. Many of them aren't, but the modern reality of keeping a game studio open means the studio has to figure out ways to pay its bills. So every studio has to at some point ask itself how it's going to get a return on their game. That was never in question, we live in a commercial world. However, some of those take it a dozen steps further and stop making it about "Lets aim for the stars and make the next WoW!" and take it to "So how can we maximize profit off the <strike>sheep </strike>players?" The trick is not making it obvious where on that spectrum your company lies. When you are using every possible means to generate revenue from players, we get suspicious.<br />
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I think it comes down to the intention of the developers when they are making the choice as to whether or not include a piece of content. If the developer is genuinely out of money to dedicate and needs to release, I see no problem with cutting content that they simply can't pay for. If they are being held to a strict release date and can't postpone any further I am also less critical. Though in "the olden days" plenty of developers would postpone releases to finish a game; these days it seems marketing and corporate controls when things get released, not whether the game is finished and tested (I'm looking at you Assassin's Creed: Unity).<br />
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However, if the developer has already finished the majority of the content piece and will have it ready for release soon after and hold it back purely to sell it for more later, then I start to get a little annoyed. What constitutes an acceptable time period or amount of content is entirely subjective of course. I mean, in the case of Evolve they are literally increasing your eventual cost for content if you fail to pre-order. Now in some situations ordering something before release can be good, but in most of those the quality of the product is highly likely. The video game industry on the other hand has routinely been shown to release shoddy products after large amounts of hype to encourage pre-orders.<br />
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Planning to expand your game in the future isn't a crime, but at the same time, charging people an upfront fee that is only getting them a relatively small portion of the intended total content (with a penalty if they do not pre-order) breaks that consumer illusion that the company isn't seeking to exploit us. Your price model should reflect that intention, which should mean charging a smaller initial fee.<br />
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Developers should aim high. At the risk of sounding idealistic there is nothing wrong with wanting to be the next WoW or LoL, but there is a difference between trying to make something great and trying to nickel and dime your customers. Where that line lies is subjective, you the player have to decide whether you are getting the value your money is worth.<br />
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-72484822503921853402015-01-15T14:20:00.003-08:002015-01-15T14:20:30.149-08:00[WoW] Veteran rewards controversyToday I read on <a href="http://www.mmo-champion.com/content/4652-Blizzard-Sending-Gift-to-Veteran-Players">MMO-Champion</a> that apparently Blizzard has decided to send "Veteran Rewards" to eligible World of Warcraft accounts that are ten years old. I've been playing since a few days after release so theoretically my account qualifies, but as I did not receive an email I am assuming that one has to have subscribed for the entire duration which rules me out. Naturally this created controversy. On one side we have the people who think it's a great idea and I'd imagine the "People eligible" and "People for it" circles on the Venn diagram of this opinion have a lot of overlap, but not necessarily. On the other side are players unhappy with this decision, and I'd imagine that side has a disproportionate amount of overlap with "Ineligible players."<br />
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Not knowing what the item is I can't really say how I feel. If they were shipping a new car Oprah style to everyone who has played for ten years I'd probably feel a little jealous. If it's something small I'd imagine I'll be more or less apathetic. Furthermore, if this is something they will do for everyone who hits 10 years going forward then it will eventually pick up players who weren't initially eligible so players like me have hope for the future.<br />
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However, it got me thinking about the pitfalls that veteran and time-reliant rewards can have on an MMO community with as long a history as WoW. Looking out at my twitter feed I see a variety of players who joined the game at different times. I've encountered players that are rabid fans now but were in single-digit age when WoW came out. Some of the most well known and iconic people in the community didn't join the game until well after release, with some not really getting into WoW until Pandaria. Are they any less a fan than someone who has been with the game since release?<br />
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Gaming in general has a huge problem with gatekeeping, where fans of a genre set arbitrary limits to fence other people out of their particular fandom. There is certainly merit to a company like Blizzard wanting to thank players who have given them somewhere around $1800 in subscription fees and $200-$300 in box purchases. That's a damn loyal customer. At the same time, however, this can tacitly sending a message to newer players that they just aren't quite as special or held in as high of esteem as the older ones. There's a tough balance to be struck, part of which is dependent on what the item ends up being, which we should discover in the next few days.<br />
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That said, Blizzard is far from the first MMO to be rewarding "customer loyalty." Planetside 2 has historically improved the benefits for subscribing the longer a player stays subscribed, Marvel Heroes rewards players for logging in (with the rewards for logging in 100+ days being random heroes and such), and Final Fantasy XIV rewards players with some cosmetic items and in-game pets for subscribing up to certain increments (with the current highest at 630 days). Blizzard is just the first that I know of to do a physical reward.<br />
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All I mean to say is that I understand and sympathize with those who feel somewhat slighted by this decision, but also understand the company's desire to reward those that have been with them this long. This is one of those issues where there is no perfect solution; someone is going to be a little unhappy either way.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-33429634281370753332015-01-06T16:45:00.002-08:002015-01-06T16:45:48.918-08:00[Dragon Age Inquisition] Origins gave me a character, Inquisition gave me a huskOne of the key differences I've encountered when playing Dragon Age Inquisition was the feeling that my character was just a stand-in for myself rather than me stepping into the shoes of some figure in Thedas. In Dragon Age: Origins the player experienced a brief tutorial/backstory event, determined by their race/class, that explained how your character ended up in the Gray Wardens. The experience primed me on how my character might view the world.<br />
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Each intro gave the player a different experience and outlook on society in the setting. After each I felt like I had a grasp of how my character might react to various situations. My city elf, fresh from a scumbag human noble's attempt at prima nocta, had little patience for the human king, while my recently deposed human noble found hope for revenge for his family. With each I felt like I was playing a character who had a story, goals, opinions, and feelings. Yet even though each one gave a framed view of the world the player could still decide how they would react. For example, my City Elf could choose to still believe in the good of humans, or become resentful at the injustice she faced.<br />
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In Dragon Age 2, this was toned down because the player was set in the role of Hawke, but the introductory sequence did give you some impression of who Hawke might be. Oddly enough, in their attempt to make the player feel more connected to a character they achieved the opposite result and left Hawke feeling a little hollow.<br />
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Inquisition did away with the introductory sequence and instead dropped you into the shoes of a race/class combination with a brief backstory. Now I understand that Inquisition's storyline required the player to be in the dark, but as a result I had no framework with which to build my character. I was placed into a hollow shell, meant to be filled, but in a game where there are choices that are much more wrong than others the RP potential is sacrificed on the alter of min-maxing. Now we can say that the player is making that choice, but it means the game is, at times, punishing them for playing a character.<br />
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Were I a new player to the series, I would not understand the experiences of the various races. A new player won't have much grasp of how the Dalish elves view Thedas after only a few paragraphs, nor the somewhat alien philosophies of the Qunari. In an attempt be more of a blank slate, the game's setting loses it's engrossing appeal. Origins encouraged me to play new characters to experience Thedas from their perspective, while Inqusition does not offer anywhere near that experience. There is little reason for me to replay the story; we all get to the same results anyways. They toned down the setting so much that I think it lost it's life. Perhaps some players like that blank slate, but for me it disconnected me from the experience.<br />
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As I said, now my hollow husk of a character just picks the options that seem most likely to appease my companions because their approval as become a form of min-maxing. Instead of someone with conviction and drive, I become sycophant to my companion's opinions. The binary approval system walks hand in problematic hand with the lack of character building. But that is a topic for another time.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-6739890640540922012014-12-30T22:14:00.001-08:002014-12-30T22:14:43.010-08:00Card Game Review: Sentinels of the MultiverseThis weekend I had the pleasant opportunity to play Sentinels of the Multiverse by <i>Greater Than Games</i>, a kickstarted, co-op, superhero themed card game. I admit that when I first heard about it I was weary, I am pretty much a card game carebear and the game looked dauntingly complicated from afar. That said, I'll be questioning my gut more in the future because my group played at least eight hours of Sentinels over the weekend and I would have happily played another eight.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DSsEusu8SBU/VKOMzSHZJBI/AAAAAAAAAgo/MU1M550loJM/s1600/f293f56573c1492949bd9d2d48b82784_large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DSsEusu8SBU/VKOMzSHZJBI/AAAAAAAAAgo/MU1M550loJM/s1600/f293f56573c1492949bd9d2d48b82784_large.jpg" height="320" width="217" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Kickstarter success story</td></tr>
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The game is fairly straightforward despite an outward appearance of complication; you have a Villain deck, an Environment deck, and each player has a Hero deck. Each round involves doing whatever the Villain's identity card requests (usually drawing a card from the deck) and the deck is designed to play itself by automatically applying it's damage/effects to X players with the lowest or highest health. Each player hero has roughly 25-30 hit points depending on the hero which the villain deck will whittle down (rather quickly in some cases). Dropping to zero hitpoints means that hero is defeated and can only use one of three minor abilities on their turn determined by their hero. Then each player takes their turn one at a time. First the player gets to play a card from their hand, then use a power (each hero has one by default and can get more by playing certain cards), and finally ends their turn by drawing a card from their deck. Then the players draw the top card of the Environment deck, react to it, and the round is over. Surprisingly simple, but full of nuance.<br />
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What I found engrossing about the game is that it's roster of a dozen or so hero decks each plays differently despite that relatively simple turn structure. Each deck can modify what can be done in a turn in various ways with some allowing the use of multiple powers or the playing of multiple cards. Each hero approaches that in a different way however, which is part of what makes things interesting.<br />
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The iconic hero of the series is Legacy who dresses in red, white, and blue spandex, wears a cape, and totes a shield around like the alternate dimension lovechild of Captain America and Superman.* Though depicted as the flying, super-strong hero, he acts like the mix of a tank and party buffer with most of his cards allowing him to direct damage to himself and reduce it or temporarily buff/heal his teammates.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dEgQCCnxiiA/VKONbTNwliI/AAAAAAAAAgw/wcKnY3qynmE/s1600/Legacy_0.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dEgQCCnxiiA/VKONbTNwliI/AAAAAAAAAgw/wcKnY3qynmE/s1600/Legacy_0.png" height="320" width="241" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Steve Roger's blond locks, Superman's chiseled chin, <br />and MURIKA's colors, all blended into one.</td></tr>
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Alternatively there's <strike>War Machine</strike> Bunker, a military super robot whose mechanic involves swapping between three modes; recharge, upgrade, and <strike>BLOW SHIT UP</strike> turret, which allow you to draw more cards, play more cards, and use more powers per turn respectively. There's also Chrono Ranger, a time traveling gunslinger who puts bounty cards on enemies which grant him bonuses both while the bounty is active and when the target is defeated. Another, Omnitron-X, plays cards that allow him to do certain special effects, like damaging an enemy or healing an ally, at the start of his turn (thus preserving his play a card and use a power options), but the cards are destroyed (discarded) if he takes too much damage in a single turn. Those are only a few examples of the variety among the heroes.<br />
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If the heroes weren't unique enough, the villains take it up another level. For example, The Dreamer, is a little girl who summons demons from her nightmares, but the group isn't supposed to kill her because she isn't really evil, so you fail if you do so, intentional or not. Thus the team ends up focusing on her minions. Iron Legacy is just a super-powered alternate dimension version of Legacy who <strike>wrecks your faces</strike> fights you alone, while Omnitron spawns an endless army of drone minions and constantly swaps between a high damage and tank variant.<br />
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Each game, if the players know what they hell they're doing, takes roughly 45 minutes to an hour depending on the villain. I know it supports smaller numbers, but our group was 4-5 and the higher number seemed to work well.<br />
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However the game does have a few issues, primarily in it's difficulty options. Playing on normal the game often feels a little too easy, with the heroes easily ramping up and stomping over the villain in question. However, advanced is significantly tougher, and some of the villain's modifications on advanced can make certain heroes feel ineffective or render certain powers (even inherent ones) useless. Some advanced villains can be simply frustrating because it feels like the heroes have no control over the game.<br />
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All in all I think it's a fantastic card game and I am planning on buying my own copy in the near future, I highly recommend it if you're looking for a co-operative, RPG-esque card game to play with your 2-4 friends. <br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*Greater Than Games, if you're reading this, I only tease because I love.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5168597614461308610.post-90878551855303494132014-12-18T17:42:00.002-08:002014-12-18T17:42:56.710-08:00[WoW] A "daily" adjustmentA new player to Warlords (do those exist?) would have to be forgiven for having absolutely no idea what Daily Quests are. At level 100 I see at most a handful a day and most of those are optional quests from the Garrison. This fictional new player would have no idea that at one point in WoW's history (amusingly enough, when WoW was taking place in Draenor's alternate history predecessor, Outland) a player could expect to _FILL_ their quest log with dailies during any particular day. Expansions since Cataclysm have pared down the bloat. Truth be told I like not having an entire quest log to grind through every day; the fewer daily quests feel like they give me more meaningful and open-ended, "Do whatever the #$%@ I want" sense of accomplishment. There's just one more tweak I wish Blizzard would make.<br />
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Before you call me a whiner or blithering idiot, this is a change I am essentially stealing from another game. Not that there's anything wrong with outright stealing gameplay ideas when they work, but I admit I feel a smidgen of guilt at suggesting one game I play steal from another when they're in direct competition for my (and everyone's) attention.<br />
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That moral quandary aside, I want Blizzard to treat the new "Go kill ~100 things in X area" quests like Final Fantasy XIV treat it's daily Hunts. For those not familiar, FFXIV gives you a daily set of Hunt Marks at level 50. Hunt Marks are essentially quests that involve "Go to place X, kill X things." You can only have one set on your character at a time, but you can pick up that day's even if you had yesterday's on you, one you complete yesterday's. So if on Monday I pick up my Hunts but end up setting my face on fire and don't get a chance to play, I can login on Tuesday and go murder whatever random mobs Monday's hunt directs. Then I can turn in the hunts from Monday (actually they auto-complete but it's the same idea) and promptly pick up Tuesdays, allowing me to do effectively two days of hunts in one day. However I haven't actually GAINED any extra hunts, I just didn't miss out because one day I couldn't.<br />
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Now, making it so that you could just keep picking up dailies and do them all at a later date would be a bit much, but giving people a one day grace period helps alleviate the feeling that I am punishing myself by missing on the largest apexis shard injection per day. Wanting players to login daily is one thing, but the time investment it takes to do the apexis shard quest makes me want to just say "Screw it..." more than it makes me want to stick around and play.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2