Jim Moreno tackles the difficult task of roleplaying a merchant in this edition of RoleCraft: "Even roleplayers are known to struggle with this cookie cutter gameplay, and with keeping their characters from looking and acting just like every other character in game. What to do? One sure way to avoid the pitfalls of routine is to realize that there are many other classes in game besides adventurer. It's time to become a professional roleplayer!"
Sean Bulger's periodic community column today looks at the concept of Open PvP (player vs. player) and what it does to games and their communities.
A while back we talked about conflict between players and what sort of a role that it can play in a game and for communities. During this, it was noted that player competition can be implemented in numerous different ways. This week, I would like to revisit this discussion and talk about one of those particular methods: the open PvP world.
Open PvP is one of the more controversial topics in MMO circles and plenty of people have fairly strong opinions one way or the other on the subject. That said, I would like to explore both the positive impacts and negative ones on the player community. Open PvP has the potential to help bond a community fairly tightly, but it also has the potential to truly tear it apart as well.
Read more after the leap.
Last week, Jonathan Steinhauer's column looked at the design of outdoor areas in The Dangerous Wilderness, Part 1. In Part 2, he continues his thoughts on the basic challenge most every MMO faces.
The easiest solution, though it avoids the root of the problem, is to disperse the ground spawns to a more realistic population level. There are areas where one would expect to encounter monsters, and that is where the heavy concentrations should be. Hard core hunting should occur in the fortresses and camps of the various villains, monsters, and animals that are the bane of the adventurer, not every time you step off the path. This opens up the wilderness for travel and casual hunting while giving players the kind of combat that exist in epic stories: battle in the lairs.
Read more after the leap.
Jim Moreno looks at the biggest question for the modern MMO roleplayer: how do you keep in character in an instance? They're here to stay, so it's time to learn how to deal with them.
Hear me now and believe me later, there is no reason why roleplayers cannot and should not engage in the same high quality RP within an instance as without. Personally, I'm not at all knowledgeable as to where the notion started from, but I absolutely aim to crush it here and henceforth. More than that, I want to share with fellow roleplayers why I think instances are the best places for RP, and provide some tips on how to take on these adventures with RP in mind. I hope they help!
Read more after the leap.
In a new editorial, columnist Jonathan Steinhauer embarks into "The Dangerous Wilderness". He looks at the concept of pf the wild and how it's presented in MMOs.
As I've wandered through the wilds of various games, I've been stunned by the panoramic vistas that have opened out before me. Trees sway in the light breeze, their leaves rustling softly through my speakers. A stream trickles by, the sunlight gleaming of the whorls and eddies of the current while in the distance, purple mountains capped with white glaciers scrape the billowing clouds. The imagery is so detailed, I could almost believe it is real.
Read more after the leap.
It's been a while since the databases were updated, so here's the mother load. The item database now lists all discovered unique equipment, including their recipes, and they'll also show up in the Item Builder if you put the correct combination in.
I've also upgraded the unit database to have several pages (instead of all the units on one page), and the item database to both have pages and be sortable. The pagination should make the site load a bit faster. Enjoy!
I'm not sure if this is the same version of Pocket Kingdom that we can play on the N-Gage, but it looks like some version of the title has launched in Hong Kong. I can't see it being reasonably possible to download and store the several MB that Pocket Kingdom requires onto a cellphone though, let alone whether they have enough processing power to run the title, so I'm thinking it must be stripped down in some fashion.
Just RPG gives Pocket Kingdom a 92%!!!
"When it's all said and done, Pocket Kingdom is not only the best N-Gage game I've played yet, but also one of the most addictive games I've ever played on any platform."
Batten down the hatches and secure the katanas! Nokia is sponsoring its first (presumably of many?) Pocket Kingdom world tournaments. Registration is open now on the N-Gage Arena site, and after the first month of formal competition, the top twenty combatants from each region (the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Asia) will be pitted against each other in bloody, leet-speak soaked combat. The top three players will receive hand painted shields, and the overall winner will be interviewed on the N-Gage Arena.
GameSpy has given Pocket Kingdom a Game of the Year Award. In fact, it even graced the lists with the number one spot for the N-Gage. Make sure you head on over to GameSpy's Game of the Year and check out PK beating out the First Losers!
