City of Heroes Costume Contest: It's been a long time since we've seen one of these contests, which are really worth a good laugh just in time for Halloween. It's the City of Heroes costume contest. For players looking for a reason to go into public dressed as a character from City of Heroes they need not look any further than NCsoft's City of Heroes Halloween Costume Contest, where dressing up like a super-powered hero will not only be acceptable, but could result in the winning of valuable prizes. Starting Sept. 28 and ending on midnight on Nov. 7, City of Heroes players can submit pictures of themselves in public dressed as a character from Paragon City. To enter, contestants need to provide a digital picture of themselves dress in public as their character from City of Heroes and a screen shot of their character from the game. Those who best re-create their hero in the real world best will be eligible for prizes in six different categories. Those categories are best male, best female, best gargantuan, most daring, most humorous and best overall costume. The "Best Overall" winner will receive one GeForce 6800 Ultra Video Card donated by the contest sponsor, nVidia. In addition, top winners in all 6 categories will get: · One Apple iPod 20 gig MP3 Player · One Canon PowerShot A75 Digital Camera · A unique title for their hero in-game · A speaking role ‘hero cameo’ for their character in an upcoming issue of the Monthly City of Heroes comic book All 6 Runners-Up will receive: · One Canon PowerShot A75 Digital Camera · A unique title for their hero in-game · A non-speaking ‘hero cameo’ for their character in an upcoming issue of the Monthly City of Heroes comic book No copyrighted heroes and/or trademarked names will be accepted, also, contestants must be 13 years of age or older to participate and be legal residents of the United States. For more information and for the rules and regulations of the contest, go to: http://www.cityofheroes.com/community/contests_2.html. I'm thinking of entering! Posted September 29 2004 by Div Devlin

DDO GameRifts Opens: Zalaster has been burning the midnight oil creating the newest site to join our growing network. DDORifts' is now open and online to cover the upcoming Dungeons and Dragons Online game in development by Turbine. To kick things off with the opening is a minicontest where those of you who are not knowing about the lands of Eberron where the game is set, you can win a copy of the Eberron Sourcebook. Check It. Posted September 29 2004 by Div Devlin

SWG Invites You Back: Lucas Arts sends word that they are inviting you back to come and retry Star Wars: Galaxies now for the next ten days. Players of Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided who left the game more than 60 days ago have been invited to come back to check the game out for 10 consecutive days for free! All players need to do is log back into their accounts and start playing. Many new features and attractions have been in the past number of months, including: * New Jedi Quests - a quest-based system that guides players through an incredibly exciting and challenging series of missions that leads to Jedi Master. * Exciting New Quests and Missions - like the "Corellian Corvette" and the "Deathwatch Bunker" which offer true Star Wars style adventure with the promise of great rewards. * Improved New Player Experience - Featuring Personal Helper Droids that aid new players in completing quests and advancing more quickly through the early levels of the game. So players who have been thinking about coming back to Star Wars Galaxies to check out what's new before the Jump to Lightspeed space expansion hits, now's the time to do it. And if players decide to re-subscribe, their account will be credited with 10 additional free days of play time! I don't mind if I do! May the Force be With You. (Can you make a Force Sensitive Character in Ten Days?) Posted September 29 2004 by Div Devlin

Fallen Knight Files Lawsuit: From the Chicago Sun-Times. From atop a horse galloping full speed, the knight leapt to the ground in feigned defeat, performance after performance for six years at Medieval Times. But now the knight -- aka James Killis Jr. -- says his employer's behavior was less than chivalrous when he complained that the falls had injured his arm. After he refused a $5,000 offer and then a $10,000 offer to settle his complaint, Killis says Medieval Times sent him on his way. Killis is seeking more than $75,000 in a lawsuit filed Tuesday in federal court. Killis said he took part in "dangerous activities" like jousting matches and riding horses at 35 mph in an enclosed space at Medieval Times in Schaumburg. Adding insult to injury, he adds, he was not informed of his rights to temporary medical coverage under COBRA when he was fired in June. A representative reached at the Medieval Times' corporate office in California had not seen the lawsuit and would not comment. Posted September 29 2004 by Div Devlin

DAoC FanFest Movie: It's been a crazy week already for FanMade Movies, the latest one making it's debut over the weekend for Dark Age of Camelot Fans hosted over the Vault. The Fallen (located at the top) goes to the tune of Immortal and portrays love lost from a Kobold's point of view. Hidden humor involved. Best so far. Posted September 28 2004 by Div Devlin

PotBS Dev Logs: Argh! Pirates of the Burning Sea has a new Developer Log up from Grobeard on how he has been making the game servers fater, smarter and better. It’s been a great relief to me that Pirates of the Burning Sea is not a "World in a Box" solution, in which a single physical machine governs an entire shard. We’re distributing the server organs and world population over a cluster of machines which perform various tasks in maintaining the game. No in-game task is hard-wired to any given machine, giving our system great flexibility in allocating CPU resources to the tasks that need them. This means that if one machine goes down fewer players will be affected, the task that was underway can spring back to life again on a different machine, and you’ll only be competing with a limited set of other players for the affections of the machine you're currently working with -- and all of this happens invisibly to the players, of course. More love, less lag, that’s Grogbeard’s motto. Awesome quote. Read the full log. Posted September 28 2004 by Div Devlin

PlanetSide Aftershock: Sony announces that the new expansion Aftershock for PlanetSide, which will include PlanetSide, the Core Combat expansion, plus BattleFrame Robotics as a special bonus is due to be released in stores October 18! Features to include: - Devastate enemies with the all-new BattleFrame Robotics (BFRs). These heavily-armored mechanized robots feature multiple weapon systems for awesome firepower. - Experience massively-multiplayer online action with thousands of players. Includes original PlanetSide, the Core Combat expansion pack and updated content. - Command various battle vehicles including the air bomber, anti-aircraft buggy and ATV assault vehicle. - Also features Combat Specializations, "Battle Islands", Multiple Battle Configurations and "Instant Action" mode. He we bolded most of the items from the feature page as it was promoted incorrectly. BFR's will rock. Check it. Posted September 28 2004 by Div Devlin

Ragnarok Online Expansion: The megaMMO game Ragnarak Online which boats 25 million players has announced their plans for an expansion titled Amatus, with more to follow. Gravity Interactive's launch of Amatsu for Ragnarok Online marks the first in a series of free expansions to the game based on different cultural settings. Amatsu opens up the world of Japanese folklore and legend for Ragnarok players. Each expansion will include new maps, building designs, clothing and monsters based on actual or mythical elements from major Eastern and Western civilizations. In addition, NPCs will tell players about the history, folklore and traditions of each culture. For instance, in Amatsu, players can wander through fields of cherry blossoms on their way to battle tengu (Japanese mountain and forest goblins). Many of the buildings in Amatsu are derived from actual Japanese palaces and pagodas, complete with gardens and reflection pools. Ragnarok Online has one of the world's largest MMORPG communities with millions of people playing in more than 100 countries. Because of that diverse community of players, Gravity is providing content that appeals to people in multiple geographic regions. Many MMORPGs on the market draw subject matter from a single, or very few cultural contexts. In contrast, the Ragnarok culture-specific expansions will be inspired by multiple world traditions. This will allow local players to see familiar and comfortable subject matter that confirms to the interests, their likes and dislikes, which have been influenced by the society in which they live. This will also provide foreign players with a more diverse game that incorporates novel elements from other cultures. The core Ragnarok game draws its inspiration from Norse mythology. Gravity plans to continuously supply free expansions and updates to Ragnarok Online. Several culturally themed expansions are already in development. The next expansion in the series is currently in beta testing and will be available in a few months. Amatsu is composed of five new Japanese themed regions/maps to explore. Clothing and buildings are based on historical styles and real-world structures from Japan. Several now monsters derived from Japanese folklore such as the karakasa, tengu and kapha populate the expansion. Two technical updates were also recently added to Ragnarok to coincide with the launch of Amatsu. The total number of characters per server for each account was increased from 3 to 5. A graphical sprite addition was introduced to improve particle effects for weapons. I am speechless at the size of the playerbase. Posted September 28 2004 by Div Devlin

Throne of Oblivion Overview: Wolfpack Studios and UBIsoft have released a detailed overview for their upcoming third expansion titled "Throne of Oblivion" for Shadowbane. On the official site you can read about three new classes, the new regions, new realm and rulership systems, updates for the resource system, and enhancements to the siegeing expereince. As they tell us: Ubisoft recently announced the second Expansion Pack for their flagship MMO Shadowbane. The Expansion, entitled Throne of Oblivion, spotlights the sudden appearance of its namesake, the dreadful island of Oblivion, where the Lich-Queen Ithriana marshals the unholy legions of the Void. Strange sorceries somehow managed to "reflect" the island across the scattered fragments of Aerynth, appearing everywhere as a foreboding deaths-head of malice. The Expansion Pack includes a variety of new content such as the new Vampire Race to an extensive new system that allows Guilds to claim rulership over an entire realm, gaining power and prestige. Is this the game we have been waiting for? Check it. Posted September 27 2004 by Div Devlin

Interview w/Brian Green: While at the GenCon Game Fair last month hanging out with folks such as Brian Green from Near Death Studios, Tiffany "Selenia' Garden was also chatting with him about the new graphics interface being put into venerable game Merdian59 and getting the full skinny on the game's resurrection, the community, and PvP in a three part interview. Ton's of items covered. Give it a read. Posted September 27 2004 by Div Devlin

GroonesWorld Player Auctions: Mighty Groone, from GroonesWorld has done it again. Always leading the player community in MMO Games he announced that he has set up a new auction site for players to buy and sell not only game items, but anything that may be laying around that you have a hankering to get a buck on by clearing space. The basic auctions are completely free. There are no insertion fees or final bid fees unless a user decides to use enhancements such as bold, highlight, etc. Even the enhancements are moderately priced; review the website for enhancement fees. For those gamers that wish to sell gaming commodities, I do offer Web Store packages for very reasonable monthly prices. Groone is someone you can trust. Check it. Posted September 27 2004 by Div Devlin

Artifact (Horizons) Sold: Artifact Entertainment, the makers behind Horizons, the "Award Winning" MMO game, sent out word late Friday night that they may have a possible buyer after filing chapter 11 earlier if the court's approve the sale. Artifact Entertainment, developers of the award-winning massively multiplayer online role-playing game “Horizons”, announced today that it has reached an agreement, subject to court approval, with Tulga Games, LLC., in which Tulga Games has agreed to purchase the assets of Artifact Entertainment. Artifact Entertainment's CEO and Creative Director, David Bowman, said, "Tulga Games has made a very exciting offer to purchase the assets of Artifact Entertainment. This offer has been agreed to by our secured creditors and, pending approval of the court, or a superior offer, we will accept Tulga’s offer." Tulga Games' Managing Member, Chris Tulumello, said, "The two companies have reached agreement, pending approvals." Continued Mr. Tulumello, "Tulga Games is very committed to Horizons the game and Horizons the brand. When this sale is approved, I will make certain there is team continuity through the entire process. The Artifact Entertainment team produced an excellent product, and knows it best." Regarding the future of Horizons, Mr. Tulumello said, "Tulga Games believes in the longevity and endurance of Horizons: The Empire of Istaria. This is tremendous asset, with great long-term player potential. Everyone involved wants to see Horizons continue to grow in the coming years and feels, quite simply, that it is wonderful game. Tulga Games, as a company, and I personally, are very proud to be associated with Horizons: Empire of Istaria." Word has it that much chicanery is involved as Chris Tulumello used to be employed at Artifact, and Steve Bowman, Chris and someone else are all partners in a third company. Posted September 27 2004 by Div Devlin

JumpGate Turns Three: NetDevil announced via a press release through Themis that Jumpgate has turned three, and they are still offering packages for players to trade in their existing MMO Space Games for free trials! September 25, 2004 - NetDevil Ltd., today announced that massively multiplayer space combat and trading simulation Jumpgate has achieved three years of operation in the US. "Jumpgate is a dream come to life, not just for many players, but for us as developers," commented Scott Brown, President of NetDevil Ltd., "We started NetDevil out by trying to make our dream of an action-oriented online space game into reality. It is incredibly gratifying to see it still going three years later." Join up with the enigmatic Quantar, the warlike Octavians or the mercantilist Solrain as they work to defeat the alien Conflux menace and rebuild civilization following the great collapse. Create an account by visiting www.jossh.com. Jumpgate features a free ten-day trial or a free thirty-day trial with trade-in and is $9.95 per month thereafter. List of select games for trade-in: - Earth and Beyond - EVE - Neocron - Planetside - Star Wars Galaxies - Anarchy Online To take advantage of the opportunity, players should: - Download Jumpgate (http://www.jossh.com/support/) - Create an account (http://www.jossh.com/join_today/sign_up/) - Package your game CD (box and jewel case optional) - Make sure to include a verified Jumpgate callsign and valid email address with your package, and mail it to: Themis Group C/O Jumpgate Division 2530 Meridian Parkway 2nd Floor Durham, NC 27713 This offer only applies to accounts created between September 22, 2004 and October 31, 2004. For more information, see details at http://www.jossh.com/sswap. It seems like just yesterday we celebrated their 30 month birthday! Posted September 27 2004 by Div Devlin

SWG Fan Movies: LucasArts sent word over that LucasFiles and SWGalxies.net have announced the winners in their fan created movies which take place within StarWars: Galaxies. We received 26 fan film submissions and counted over 250 votes. That's just great considering that this was our first ever fan film contest. We have good news for all fan film authors that couldn't send in their film, because they weren't done yet or simply missed the deadline. We plan on having another contest in 2005! If you are a SWG fan, you no doubt have seen a few of these already, but all of them together were really worth watching. The Categories included, Best Fan Film, Funniest Fan Film, Most Creative Fan Film, and Best "Music Video" Fan Film. Fallen made me sad. It reminded me of the movies on that cable channel for women! Congrats to the winners! Posted September 27 2004 by Div Devlin

CoH Film Fest Winners: NCsoft and Cryptic has announced the winners of their Fan Film Festival for City of Heroes where players created their own movies which will be included into a DvD set and the chance to win a Sony DvD Camcorder. NCsoft and Cryptic Studios have announced two films as "Palme d'Hero" winners for being the top entries in City of Heroes' First Annual Paragon City Film Festival. The winners are "The Liberty League in 'The Doom of Doctor Death'" by Mike D’Anna of Tennessee for the Best Action Film; and "Sometimes the Hero" by Brian Shapiro of Pennsylvania for the Best Comedy Film. The Paragon City Film Festival, which ran from Aug. 30 to Sept. 20, offered a chance for City of Heroes players to create three minute films based on the massively multiplayer online game using the medium of their choice. The Palme d'Hero winners were examples of how players applied their creativity to the films. For example, Shapiro's film included live action combined with game play video and D’Anna’s film included special effects animation added to the game play. Other entries included animation, live action and in-game footage. "All of the players who provided entries to this contest demonstrated amazing creativity and enthusiasm for City of Heroes,” said Jack Emmert, lead designer of City of Heroes and creative director at Cryptic Studios. “I am very appreciative of all the hard work and energy our players put into their films. The entries were all so strong, but we believe the winners have hit the right chords and their films reflect the best that City of Heroes has to offer every player." "The Liberty League in 'The Doom of Doctor Death'" is a takeoff of summer movie blockbuster previews, with slick editing and a fast-paced comic book style. "This was a blast," Emmert said. "This film captures the action and drama of City of Heroes." "Sometimes the Hero" cleverly mixes live action with in-game animation. Shapiro, a dentist, uses his office and dental patient as a comedy prop and a launching point for a battle against a City of Heroes arch villain. "This film reflects how the game transports us to a landscape where we can all be heroes, no matter what we do in our daily lives," Emmert said. "This film has a lot of heart." As Palme d'Hero winners, Shapiro and D'Anna will receive a Sony DVD Handycam Camcorder, have their film included in the Collectors DVD Edition of City of Heroes being released during this year's holiday season, and the winner's City of Heroes character will be featured in an upcoming issue of the City of Heroes monthly comic book. Be sure to check out the winning films! Posted September 24 2004 by Div Devlin

DAoC Valkyrie Class: The newest class for the Catacombs expac for Dark Age of Camelot has been announced, and it rocks. Joining the realm of Midgard will be the Valkyries, a long established tradition of lore. The Order of the Valkyries was started by two stunningly beautiful orphaned twin sisters named Sigrun and Brynhild, who since childhood claimed to be able to hear the voices of the honored dead speaking to them from Valhalla. The voices warned the sisters from an early age that a time of great crisis would soon face the denizens of Midgard, and commanded them to build the Order of Valkyries to lead the defense of the realm against Albion and Hibernia. Check out all the classes thus named so far. Posted September 24 2004 by Div Devlin

D&DO Website Live: Turbine Games, the crew behind the MMO version of the paper great have launched the official website for Dungeons and Dragons Online. DDO.com (they had to of tossed out some bucks to buy that domain) features 3 dev diaries, a gallery, message boards and a six section faq answering some of the basic questions everyone wants to know. Check it. Posted September 24 2004 by Div Devlin

Shadowbane Art, Lore, Music: Wolfpack Studios sends word that they have released new concept art for thier upcoming expansion Throne of Oblivion for Shadowbane. In all fourteen new shots (be sure to look at the first two on the second page) showing the vision of the new realms which focus on a desolate wasteland ruled by the Lich-Queen Ithriana, the Isle of Oblivion is a place of dread. The Vampires who inhabit the realm are become her devoted servants, and their dark dwellings dot the stark landscape. Other foul creatures, born of dark sorcery, prowl the land. They hunt the living, seeking to slay another soul and swell the ranks of the unholy. New creatures and adventuring zones, all featuring graphic improvements, make the new Island a visually exciting and terrifying place for players to explore and conquer. Check em. After checking out the pics, make sure to read the two new pieces of lore titled "The Testament of Deacon Abelon," and "The Siege of Alderas," and then check out some of the new music done by Midnight Syndicate! Posted September 24 2004 by Div Devlin

SWG: JTL Site Live! Lucas Arts has released the official Jump to Lightspeed website for thier expansion to Star Wars Galaxies. Details on the ships, races and sectors has been revelead along with background information on each item making it's way into game. It's all flashy. Posted September 24 2004 by Div Devlin

WoW, More Invites: Blizzard announced that they have sent out a new round of beta invites for World of Warcraft. A new PvE server was also set up to handle the influx of new players and to give older players a fresh start. Also, Blizzard has upgraded their naming policy which automatically denies at least 70 percent of the MMO population from playing the way they want when naming their toons. Some funny stuff in here for names. Posted September 24 2004 by Div Devlin

Strategy First Bankrupt: Long time publisher Strategy First has filed for bankruptcy according to this article on Gamespy. Strategy First is also behind the sci-fi/spaced themed MMOG Vendetta Online in development by Guild Software. According to the Guild Software team the game has gone gold and has shipped to the plant for publishing, but will be dealyed. The rollout of Vendetta Online has been unavoidably pushed back due to various manufacturing delays. These include the printing facilities being affected by the weather brought by Hurricane Ivan, and manufacturing resources being saturated with Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. The new release date is October 26th. On the upside, this delay will allow us some extra time to further refine and polish the game, to make sure the launch goes smoothly. The Gold Master was shipped on time, and will be appearing in stores as a single Hybrid CD with Windows, MacOS X and Linux versions all on one disc. Pre-order information will be posted as soon as possible. In related news, those who have signed up for Beta notification should be hearing from us within the next seven days. We may test the key system with the opening of the beta, so only those who have signed up will gain access. Thus, if you would like access to the beta, please sign up here: <http://www.vendetta-online.com/x/signup> With a bankrupt publisher, how will support occur for an MMO? Posted September 24 2004 by Div Devlin

Tabula Rasa Contest Ends: Our Tabula Rasa contest has come to a close with 3952 entries for swag. Our winners will be announced tommorrow, but you can still participate with us for Tabula Rasa items. Our man in Austin, Texas; Mark "Torch" Maslow will be heading down to the NCsoft Studio's next month to meet the Tabula Rasa team and interview Starr Long with a focus on instancing and the development issues of creating instanced content. If you'd like to ask some questions which will be included, post em on our boards here. Posted September 21 2004 by Div Devlin

Earth and Beyond, Beyond: Today is the final day for Earth and Beyond players to enjoy and say goodbye to one another as EA officially shuts the servers down and the galaxy goes away. It was a great game and a shame it had to close. The folks from Westwood did a great job. Hat's off to Chris Klug, Maria Hamiliton, Jennifer Lane, Boyd Beasley, Craig Elliot and everyone we knew that used to be part of the Earth and Beyond team. Posted September 21 2004 by Div Devlin

Saga of Ryzom Feedback: I never went and picked up my Saga of Ryzom copy last night as I got a message that my copy of Star Wars Battlefront arrived. While I've not been in a couple of other folks have tossed up their previews from the game during beta. Over at GameBunny are positive impressions from within beta, while over at Grimwell Online we have a bleh impression prior to release. No idea how it's going as boards are locked to prying eyes on the Nevrax site. When game companies hide boards it usually means there is a ton of issues with negative feedback from the paying customer base. Posted September 21 2004 by Div Devlin

Time of Defiance Price Slash: Nicely Crafted has announced that they have slashed the monthly subscription price (while other MMO Games Raise Prices) by 33% as part of their autumn new-version celebration bonanza to celebrate the release of their new version for Time of Defiance. "The reduction of our subscription bucks the trend and means that Time of Defiance represents even more value for money than before", commented Ben Simpson, Creative Director. The new software contains brand new audio-visual effects and a number of exciting new features for players including the Eighth House stock market where players can buy or sell resources. Check Em. Posted September 21 2004 by Div Devlin

ToonTown Adds Pets: ToonTown, the rocking MMO Game not just for kids but fun for adults has added a new feature to the game with pets called "Doodles." Disney Online, part of the Walt Disney Internet Group, has unleashed pets called Doodles in Toontown (www.toontown.com ), the award-winning, massively multiplayer (MMP) 3D online game for kids and families. With this latest extension of the game, members of Toontown can adopt a variety of outrageous creatures to play with and raise as pets of their very own. Doodles are available now for adoption in exchange for jellybeans, the currency of Toontown online. They can be found at newly unveiled Pet Shops located in each of the Toontown neighborhood playgrounds. Doodles' roles in Toontown mirrors that of real-life pets. They live at their Toon's (players) home and, as with real pets, players need to care for their Doodles to ensure they don't get sad, lonely or hungry. Once trained, Doodles are capable of doing tricks that improve players' in-game health by making them laugh. Players communicate with their Doodles using phrases in the games' kid-friendly SpeedChat function, a menu-based tool which gives players several layers of pre-written phrases. There are thousands of varieties of Doodles to choose from, with different combinations of physical characteristics and personality traits, and new Doodles arrive at Pet Shops daily. Players both choose their favorite Doodle and give it a name. "One of the benefits of online games is that we can continually create new features to keep game play fresh and exciting for our players," said Steve Parkis, vice president of premium products for Disney Online. "The addition of pets brings several new dimensions to the game, including: nurturing, training and a new kind of socialization." Rock On. Posted September 21 2004 by Div Devlin

Sigil Licenses SpeedTreeRT: Sigil Games announced they have licensed the SpeedTreeRT's popular foliage solution for Vanguard: Saga of Heroes. Kevin McPherson, Senior Programmer for Sigil, said he was grateful for SpeedTreeRT's ability to quicken creation of Vanguard's vast world. "SpeedTree has allowed Sigil to populate the landscape with realistic moving flora in a timely and efficient manner," Mr. McPherson said, adding that support from SpeedTree developer Interactive Data Visualization (IDV) has been crucial. "IDV's support and willingness to go the extra mile for the developer has pleased Sigil greatly." Sigil President and CEO Brad McQuaid praised the operational impact of the SDK. "SpeedTree has saved us development time versus implementing a similar solution internally," said Mr. McQuaid, who also serves as co-producer of Vanguard. "Integration into our code and art pipeline was rapid even given the complexity of our project." If you've not played in a MMO game using this engine, the eye candy rocks, you need to check it out. Posted September 21 2004 by Div Devlin

WoW, Beta On: Blizzard has word that the World of Warcraft beta is back on after their servers got hit in Virgina by a tornado. To go along with the servers being brought back online a new patch has also been released adding a number of changes within game. Some additions include: High End Locations Raid Groups Trade Skills Changed No More Skill Caps Level Cap Raised The New Talent System> Check the full patch notes. Posted September 21 2004 by Div Devlin

Atriarch Developer Journal: Serafina (who rocks and I give all my pens too) from Atriarch has a ton of new news up on the games page. New screenies from the combat engine which she was doing limited demo's on during the Austin Game Conference, as well as a breif impression on the convention iteslf (she goes into more depth on the official message boards at Vault). Check the screens. Posted September 20 2004 by Div Devlin

MMO Jobs: Number of job openings within the MMO Community if you are looking for emplyment within the industry. Caeron 3000 Concept Artist Needed: Magique Productions, Ltd is in need of a concept artist for Caeron 3000 Online. The position includes b&w and color concepts for characters, creatures, vehicles and environments. Interested artists should e-mail tscott@magiqueproductions.com with a bio and link to portfolio of work. An artist who can produce hybrid anime style work is preferred. Flying Labs Looking For Four Flying Labs, the sea-dawgs behind Pirates of the Burning Sea are looking for four new team members. They are looking for an Art Director, Character Technical Lead Artist, Programmer, and SDET, with job descriptions listed on their employment page. Argh! Posted September 20 2004 by Div Devlin

CoH Issue Two: City of Heroes has had their second major publish released into the game with Issue 2: A Shadow From The Past. Released with the free expansion are the long awaited return of capes from beta, new villains, additional zones and a global invasion by creatures from another dimension. This expansion, which is provided automatically to all of the game’s subscribers, launches today with an invasion of monsters from another dimension that will last several days and will require the services of all available heroes throughout Paragon City. While the invasion marks the release of the new update, A Shadow of the Past also provides capes for heroes who have reached level 20 in the game. Capes are one of the most anticipated features for City of Heroes players. Heroes at level 24 will also be able to adjust their super powers in a special mission in the Terra Volta trial zone. Players at level 30 can also receive new visual effects such as auras, and all heroes can earn badges for major accomplishments in Paragon City. With adjusted powers, new capes, badges and effects, the heroes of Paragon City will immediately have to fight off an invasion of hosts from the Shadow Shard, one of two new zones added to City of Heroes in this expansion. The invasion will be marked by destructible dimension gateway rifts that appear at random in every Paragon City zone. From these zones new monsters will appear from the dark dimension of the Shadow Shard. All heroes, regardless of their level, can participate in fighting off the invasion. In addition to the Shadow Shard zone, a new hazard zone, the Hollows, has been established for players at levels 5 to 15. Occupying the Hollows is another new group of stone and fire enemies called Magmites and Pumicites. A Shadow of the Past also includes many other new features, including new trial missions in Terra Volta, Eden and in the caverns of the Hollows. The update also includes many "quality of life" improvements such as user interface changes to the sidekick system, viewing inventory, trading, group seek, e-mail notification and teleportation/resurrection powers. Another feature is a new chat system which provides communication across servers and allows players to create custom chat channels. Tons of new content is good. Make sure to check out the new dance clubs which also made their way into the game with the release of issue two. Posted September 20 2004 by Div Devlin

Tornadoes Hit MMO Games: Saturday a tornado hit several MMO Game companies which have their east coast datacenters in Virginia. Taking hits were Dark Age of Camelot, Star Wars Galaxies, and World of Warcraft most notably. While Mythic and Sony (Sony only had a few short outages) were unaffected with service while those taking part in Blizzard's beta test for World of Warcraft were locked out as it was discovered that water had leaked onto the game servers. You can take a peek at a couple low res pictures of the damage done on the Star Wars Galaxies site. Posted September 20 2004 by Div Devlin

DAoC Roundtable Guests: This weekend will be host to the FanFest for Dark Age of Camelot players gathering in Las Vegas! Two guests of honor (ofcourse the entire Mythic Team is important too) will be legendary greats author Tracy Hickman and writer Laura Hickman who will speak at the event on September 24th. Read on: Mythic Entertainment, developer and publisher of the critically-acclaimed massively-multiplayer online role-playing game Dark Age of Camelot, today announced that Dragonlance originators Tracy and Laura Hickman will be the keynote speakers for the Dark Age of Camelot Roundtable fan gathering. The Roundtable will be held at the Las Vegas MGM Grand Hotel and Casino on September 24th where Tracy and Laura will be speaking about the fantasy world and its impact on today's society. Tracy Hickman is a New York Times bestselling co-author (with Margaret Weis) of many Dragonlance novels including the original Dragonlance Chronicles, Dragonlance Legends, Rose of the Prophet and Darksword trilogies as well as the seven-book Deathgate Cycle. Tracy and Laura Hickman are remembered together for their role-playing game designs in Dragonlance and the Oasis of the White Palm series, but are best known for their classic adventure, the original Ravenloft. About Dark Age of Camelot Roundtable Fan Gathering As Dark Age of Camelot approaches the third anniversary of its launch, players from around the world are invited to gather on September 24th and 25th to meet one another and the game's developers. The Roundtable will feature Dark Age of Camelot-themed activities including LAN play and costume contests. NVIDIA and Prima Games are among the official Roundtable sponsors, and along with Mythic will provide an array of prizes. The Las Vegas Roundtable will be held at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino on September 24th - 25th. At the last minute they had a huge surge of people signup so, get your tickets now! Posted September 20 2004 by Div Devlin

Eve Online Hits 50K: Eve Online from CCP has broken another milestone, this time internal to their customer base in which they hit the 50,000 subscriber mark showing a huge growth this year, after the fall of Earth and Beyond in the sci-fi space genre. "We are very pleased to see players embrace EVE with such enthusiasm and addictiveness. This further confirms our conviction that many gamers enjoy the unique open ended game style EVE offers, compared to the traditional structure gameplay", says Magnus Bergsson, CMO at CCP, "It has always been the goal to offer players an intellectual challenge where they have to bring something to table, instead of placing them in a virtual theme-park where the rides have already been created. This does though require a certain level of understanding and cunningness from the players if they are to be successful in this highly competitive and political world." The subscriber record follows on the heals of multiple concurrent player records in the month of September, with the last record standing at close to 12,000 concurrent players in the same virtual 3D world. EVE is not sharded into to separate worlds, and in its current form estimated to be capable of supporting at least 25,000 simultaneous players. Congrats to those guys! Posted September 20 2004 by Div Devlin

The Matrix Online Delayed: Word from Warner Bros. is that The Matrix Online due to release this winter has been delayed to set up a simultaneous launch both in the United States and Europe. SEGA of America, Inc. and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment today announced that the release date of The Matrix Online, the massively multi-player online game, will be January 18, 2005. Originally slated for a November ship date, the January release will allow the co-publishers to implement plans to launch the game simultaneously in Europe. Preorders go on sale this week in which you will get access to the final version of the game three days before it is available to the public; and an advanced-level "Hyper Jump" ability with a special effect. This will be an opportunity for members of the Matrix community to establish allegiances, join guilds and plan strategies for the full game. During the pre-order beta, players will experience The Matrix Online's full mechanics and abilities, however the game's storyline will commence with the launch in January. Posted September 20 2004 by Div Devlin

Roma Victor Logo Winner: RedBedlam the makers behind the roman themed MMO game Roma Victor have announced the winner of their logo contest where contestants desgined the games logo for a chance to win a roman gladius sword. The winning entry, which features a stylised Roman legionary's helmet and a simple spear motif, was submitted by Miss Bahar Sener, a Turkish national currently studying for her PhD at Loughborough University in England. The Roma Victor logo design competition was announced on March 29th 2004. "We were hugely impressed with the standard of entries and narrowing down a shortlist of finalists was tough, but selecting the winner was even tougher" commented Kerry Fraser-Robinson, RedBedlam's President & Managing Director. "Fortunately, and as always, the Roma Victor Community was there to provide feedback and ultimately Bahar's design proved to be the most popular with both the growing Community and all of us here at RedBedlam." Bahar will be presented with a replica 2nd century Gladius sword embossed with her own design. "Bahar's design will form the basis for all variations of the new Roma Victor logo and will be presented across a diverse range of media and promotions for years to come", added Nick Witcher, RedBedlam's Communications Director.Congrats! Posted September 20 2004 by Div Devlin

Saga of Ryzom Launches: Thursday marked the official launch of Saga of Ryzom, the MMO Game from French developers Nevrax in Europe with those of us in North America due to get our copies today depending on where you ordered from. For those of us who missed the EU launch, word has it that a number of bug fixes did go in which corrected reported lag and server crashes. We'll give you a status on the game this week as the official message boards have been locked down to registered users only. Something to hide? Posted September 20 2004 by Div Devlin

WoW, PvP and Collector Edition: Blizzard released the long awaited notes on Player versus Player combat within World of Warcraft which covers the cornerstones of PvP within game. They discuss the motivation of PvP, the goals of PvP, the ranking system and rewards for doing battle! We really wanted to make our PvP system unique, and we wanted to create a way for everyone to participate in PvP combat if they wanted to. Many MMORPGs out there now segregate their adventuring groups from their PvP groups. Some games are "PvP-centric" while other games are focused only on adventuring. Even in those particular games you'll see that the designers have created special rules servers where people can enjoy PvP even though that wasn't what the game was designed for. We really wanted to bridge the gap. We wanted to design a game where people could have a good time adventuring and at the same time engage in PvP whenever they want, and be rewarded for doing so. That was the overarching goal. Check it. Also, some great reasons to shell out cash for the Collector's Edition of the game on release: The full game on both CD-ROM and DVD-ROM 1-month subscription to World of Warcraft The Art of World of Warcraft, 200+ page hardcover art book World of Warcraft Behind-the-Scenes DVD Exclusive in-game pet Official soundtrack Cloth map charting the continents of Kalimdor, Azeroth, Khaz Modan, and Lordaeron Signed Collector’s Edition game manual 10-Day Free Guest Pass – invite one of your friends to join the epic quest No price as of yet. Figure at least $80.00 US. Posted September 20 2004 by Div Devlin

GenCon'04 Recap: One convention ends, another conference begins, what a hectic month it's been. Last month we took of to Indiana for the best four days in gaming at GenCon. The break down for specifics in our first installment include: - Recap of the Convention - The big announcment for City of Heroes (sure it's been released but ya just had to be there) and DAoC: Catacombs - Dead Gentlemen Productions and Dungeons and Dragons Online - EverQuest II and something "Just for the Guys"(Women may take offense) - Jamming with the Guests of Honor and asking about Gurps Online Check it. Posted September 14 2004 by Div Devlin

As Online Gaming Grows: Another "White Paper" has been released reporting the growth of Online Gaming, although it's still an immature market. Research and Markets from Dublin, Ireland write: The online game business is notable not only for its geographic diversity, but also its demographic diversity. Of course, adult males playing massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG) like EverQuest have received the most attention. However, it is the numbers for the casual games that are arguably more impressive. Services like Yahoo Games, MSN Zone and Pogo attract tens of millions of users and at any given time will have 150,000 to 200,000 simultaneous players each. On top of that, for many services over 50% of their users are adult females, a demographic that has historically shunned video games. Of course, children have been the traditional heart of the console video game industry. With its basis in cutting-edge PC technology, the online game business has started with an older audience. The good news is that online games are attracting kids as they go mass market. Content for children includes subscription-based products like Disney's Toontown, as well as advertising/sponsor supported services like Neopets. In fact, Neopets, with over 20 million users, is one of the first examples of online originated content that is spreading to other media in a big way. With licensed toys, games and McDonalds Happy Meals, Neopets has the potential to be the next Pokemon. The traditional video game audience is also slowly starting to get on board the online game bandwagon. A service like Xbox Live may currently be used by less than 10% of Xbox owners, but it is clearly a sign of the future. Xbox Live is the leading example of where console systems are going with online games. While online games are clearly starting to take-off, it is still worth noting that this is an immature business. Many services are free and dependent on often elusive advertising support. Online game companies are still grappling with business models. On the positive side, it has become clear that there are many potential viable business models, with advertising just one part of the mix. Free sites have the ability upgrade consumers via tiered subscription packages, on-demand distribution, pay-per-play games of skill and other revenue generating models. The number of potential consumers for online games is so much higher then with the traditional packaged foods business that less revenue per consumer is needed to make online games a really substantial industry. Check Them Posted September 14 2004 by Div Devlin

Guild Wars Preoder Box Ships: NCsoft and ArenaNet send word that the anxiously awaited pre-order boxes for Guild Wars has shipped! To go along with the pre-order box, ArenaNet announces their World Preview Event similar to May's "E3 for Everyone" that kicks off the game's beta period. Purchasing the pre-order box for Guild Wars guarantees participation in each exclusive Beta Weekend Event, scheduled for the first weekend of each month. The Beta Weekend Events will be open only to players who purchase the pre-order box or obtain exclusive access to single events through ArenaNet’s programs with leading game magazines or retailers. Each Weekend Beta Event will feature new content and offer exciting new challenges in the Guild Wars world. Check it. Posted September 14 2004 by Div Devlin

Shadowbane Restricted Races Free: The most controversial part during the pre-release days of Shadowbane was the announcement of restricted races which were only available to those who preordered or waited three months for their accounts to unlock them. The time has come, and freedom has been granted! For months the Community has asked that Restricted Races be no more and your request has been heard! Effective as of September 10, 2004, all of the Races in Shadowbane will be available to all subscribers, regardless of how long they have had their subscription. New races are now only available through the purchase of expansion packs, which is all good! Posted September 14 2004 by Div Devlin

WoW, GeForce Chips Preferred: Here's an industry awakening. Blizzard and Nvidia have teamed up for GeForce chips to be the preferred video card for the World of Warcraft game, and with the announcement 1000 beta accounts are up for grabs: NVIDIA Corporation (Nasdaq: NVDA), a worldwide leader in graphics and digital media processors, today announced a collaboration with Blizzard Entertainment for World of Warcraft, the highly anticipated massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) set to release this holiday season. NVIDIA and Blizzard are working together to ready the game for play on NVIDIA graphics processing units (GPUs), the preferred graphics hardware platform for World of Warcraft. The companies will also engage in strategic co-marketing activities as part of NVIDIA's "The Way It's Meant to Be Played" programme. To celebrate the collaboration, NVIDIA and Blizzard will randomly distribute 1,000 closed beta accounts to eager gamers hoping to be among the first to experience the game. Sign-ups will be held for one week only, and have already started at www.nzone.com so go! The days of ATI are over! Posted September 14 2004 by Div Devlin

AO Producer Letter: Marius Enge the Anarchy Online Game Director has poasted a letter to all about what to expect within their latest expansion pack, Alien Invasion. He writes: So, AI is out the door ... First of all I want to thank all the players for hanging in there during the launch. It has been a very smooth launch in our eyes. The servers are running excellently, and thanks to our excellent programming team, there was not a single new server crash introduced with AI. We did however see a slight increase in Client crashes, but that has already been fixed and patched out to the live servers. There are still land areas vacant which means that we made a good estimate in the number of slots we allocated for you. There's alien attacks running all the time, and it seems the players are having fun in the game. I wanted to write up a little something post launch to explain some of the mechanics we introduced with AI. Specifically Alien Attacks and Alien XP. I have seen people asking for information on how the Alien attack works, and there is a lot of interesting theories out there, as to how they supposedly works. So I figured I'll give you guys some information about this, so its easier for you to plan your attacks and your org raids. So, if you don't want pretty detailed information about how AI works, you should stop reading now, if not, please read on ... Check it. Posted September 13 2004 by Div Devlin

Shadowbane Expansion: Live at the Austin Game Conference the Wolfpack guys announced their Shadowbane expansion, Throne of Oblivion. It's got the undead! Ubisoft, one of the world's top game publishers, announced today the Shadowbane: Throne of Oblivion expansion pack will be available at a manufacturer's retail price of $19.99 on November 30. The expansion for the critically acclaimed massively multiplayer online (MMO) game Shadowbane will feature an entirely new realm and rulership system that allows players to seize and vie for control of sections of the game world. "Shadowbane: Throne of Oblivion brings guild warfare and city sieging to an exciting new level with a strategic end-game that is unprecedented in the genre of MMO games. 'Build an Empire' was one of the early rallying cries of Shadowbane and with this expansion, our players can do exactly that," said Frank Lucero, Shadowbane's producer. "Shadowbane: Throne of Oblivion brings with it the new Vampire Race, new classes and disciplines, each with special powers and abilities designed to enrich PvP combat. Additionally, graphical improvements and extensive refinements to the existing siege system will enrich play and improve performance." In addition to the new strategic systems, Shadowbane: Throne of Oblivion will feature extensive new player options centered around an invasion from the Lands of the Dead. Shadowbane: Throne of Oblivion marks the first time in an MMORPG that players can play Vampire characters. The Vampires' clothing and armor will spotlight their supernatural power and allure and demonstrate the appeal of these creatures while exploring a new visual direction for Shadowbane. Their unique powers, strengths, and weakness will add new layers and tactics to the Shadowbane PvP landscape. New classes, including the Nightstalker, Necromancer, and disciplines including Vampire bloodlines and four new siege disciplines will also debut in Shadowbane: Throne of Oblivion. Existing classes and disciplines will be undated to account for the arrival of the undead legions, and new weapons will add new dimensions to the existing power dynamic, forcing players to make new strategic decisions. Shadowbane: Throne of Oblivion will also feature graphical enhancements, shown off to their fullest in new adventuring areas with all-new high-level content. The official coming soon website currently has renders of art for the new classes and races, while the Chronicle site has word that beta invites will be going out next (this?) week. Posted September 13 2004 by Div Devlin

STO Dev Letter: Lead Designer Glen Dahlgren from Perpetual Entertainment has an introduction letter up on the newly launched official boards at StarTrek.com for Star Trek Online. He writes: I'm Glen Dahlgren, the lead designer for Perpetual Entertainment's upcoming massively multiplayer game set in the Star Trek universe. Personally, I'm extremely excited to be working on this project -- I've been a fan since Kirk and his Enterprise provided a real science-fiction alternative to the dubious Lost in Space -- and I also firmly believe that Perpetual is the right company to build this game. No one here is happy with the current state-of-the-art of massively-multiplayer design. Hell, most of those games were created in an environment where internet lag was the biggest factor to consider. For some time, Perpetual has silently been working on technology that breaks down design limitations and provides the foundation for a new generation of MMOGs that will connect people via never-before-possible shared experiences. I come from a background of story-driven, action-oriented games, and I see no reason why an MMOG shouldn't enjoy the same level of detail and the same compelling game play of other genres, but also leverage the incredible potential of a huge, dedicated community of people playing together in a persistent universe -- and not just any persistent universe, but Star Trek! While other, previous games have attempted to capture the essence of Star Trek (with mixed results), we firmly believe that the persistent-world MMOG is the best possible game genre to realize the Star Trek franchise. Check It. Posted September 13 2004 by Div Devlin

Tabula Rasa Delayed: The Tabula Rasa site has word from Richard Garriott that the game is going to be delayed. Greetings to all, I'd like to update everyone about the development of Tabula Rasa. At E3 this year, we communicated to you that the game would be ready to launch this winter. In the few months since the show we've come to believe the game will take us longer than estimated to complete, especially due to some noteworthy modifications and refinements we intend to make to the game. What this means for those of you who've been patiently waiting for the release of Tabula Rasa is that your wait will be a bit longer. The game won't be out this winter and likely won't be ready for some months beyond that. The good news is that we continue to be committed to launching Tabula Rasa only when it is ready. I want people who play Tabula Rasa to have a unique and fun experience and I don't want to ship it until it fully meets the lofty expectations that the Destination Games team and I have for it. Even more importantly, I won't launch this product until we believe it meets your expectations for a quality, ground-breaking massively multiplayer product. Fortunately, NCsoft is a publisher that is as devoted to excellence as we are. The company fully supports this decision and is encouraging us every step of the way. I want you to know that our dedicated team is working diligently to get Tabula Rasa to you as soon as possible and can't wait to get it in your hands so you can try it yourselves. In the future, I hope you'll come back to the Tabula Rasa site as we keep you abreast of what these changes are all about and ultimately when you'll be able to join us in Sanctuary. While at AGC last week, some interesting items were revealed during his keynote about the game which may be taking on a new focus. Posted September 13 2004 by Div Devlin

WoW Stress Test Ends: Blizzard has word on the World of Warcraft site that the Stress Test where players paid to play for an extended trial has ended. From those racing to become the highest level possible forsaking food and sleep, over 500 players won to become regular closed beta testers. Read On: With the end of the stress test beta comes the end of the stress test contest. We'll be notifying the 576 winners (top 3 players of each class, of each faction, on each of the 12 stress test beta servers) as soon as possible, and in addition to those winners, we will also be selecting as contest winners not just the 48 players who would have won had the contest ended at the original deadline (top 3 players of each class, of each faction, across all stress test beta servers), but an additional 96 players who were next in line at that time (next 6 players of each class, of each faction, across all stress test beta servers). No deaths have been reported! Posted September 13 2004 by Div Devlin

DAoC @ AGC: Tommorrow kicks off the Austin Game Conference, in Austin Texas home to the industies leading MMO Developers and Publishers. Making their way down to the rich oil lands from the midwest farm lands are seven speakers from Mythic Entertainment to share their wisdom on gaming. Seven representatives from Mythic Entertainment, developer and publisher of the massively-multiplayer online role-playing game, "Dark Age of Camelot," will be speaking at the upcoming Austin Game Conference, a two-day event held September 9th and 10th, dedicated to the development of online, mobile and next-generation games. Mark Jacobs, CEO and president, will address the relative pro's and con's of licenses in online games on Thursday, September 9th at 4:00 PM. Matt Firor, VP of development and Executive Producer, will discuss best practices for online game development as well as the risks and innovations developers should consider when creating online games on Thursday, September 9th at 12:00 PM and Friday, September 10th at 12:00 PM, respectively. Jeff Hickman, VP of product support and quality, will discuss the most effective methods for keeping customers of online games happy as well as the state of service in massively multiplayer online games on Thursday, September 9th at 10:30 AM and 2:30 PM, respectively. Eugene Evans, Director of marketing, will cover the evolution of the online game business model and how to manage marketing throughout an online game's lifecycle on Thursday, September 9th at 4:00 PM and Friday, September 10th at 10:30 AM, respectively. Matt Shaw, Director of technology, will detail the challenges and opportunities presented to online games by the latest advancements in technology on Thursday, September 9th at 2:30 PM. Scott Jennings, programmer for "Dark Age of Camelot," will discuss the challenges facing database development and operation in modern online games on Thursday, September 9th at 12:00 PM. Sanya Thomas, Internet Relations Manager, will cover the best ways to communicate with a game's audience and create a healthy community on Thursday, September 9th at 2:30 PM. While I did not make it last year, I'm told that Mark Jacobs can really capture the attention of an audience, and with every company wanting their own Sanya, she is sure to draw a huge crowd. Posted September 8 2004 by Div Devlin

Dragon Empires Reveals Kittah: Satine, the now defunct Dragon Empires Community Manager sends word that while the game may be cancelled, she's still plugging away to bring items of interest to the community. She has managed to pry a picture of one of the infamous kittahs out of marketing's hands and shares it with everyone who wanted to see. Check it. Posted September 8 2004 by Div Devlin

Saga of Ryzom Goes Gold: Nevrax sends word via Themis Group, that Saga of Ryzom has gone gold. TriSynergy and Nevrax confirmed today that Nevrax’s graphically stunning MMORPG The Saga of Ryzom has entered manufacturing and will begin shipping to retail stores throughout North America the week of September 20. "The Saga of Ryzom has gone gold," said David Cohen Corval, CEO of Nevrax. "In a few weeks, gamers worldwide will be able to join the saga and become heroes of Atys." Featuring an immersive player-driven storyline, a dynamic ecosystem, groundbreaking mass combat mechanics, and lush graphics, The Saga of Ryzom is the answer to the prayers of massively multiplayer gamers seeking a fresh, compelling experience in a true virtual world. Will you play? Posted September 8 2004 by Div Devlin

Star Trek Online Official: After all the rumors and speculation, it's true. Paramount has issue a press release alongside Perputal Entertainment announcing the development of Star Trek: Online, a MMOG set in the classic sci-fi universe! Perpetual Entertainment, Inc. announced today that it has secured the exclusive worldwide rights from Viacom Consumer Products to develop and publish a massively multiplayer online game based on Paramount Pictures’ Star Trek franchise. Star Trek is one of the world’s most popular, longest-running, and beloved sci-fi properties, with millions of passionately devoted fans throughout the world. As Star Trek celebrates its 38th anniversary, Star Trek gaming begins its next evolution. The license encompasses all live-action motion pictures and television series including, Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Enterprise. "The scope of the content license is extraordinary for a game of this kind, giving us the opportunity to immerse fans and players in the incredibly rich, diverse and exciting universe of Star Trek," said Joe Keene, CEO of Perpetual Entertainment. The game will deliver action, adventure and combat mechanics unique to persistent world games. Its design includes a rich array of solo and multiplayer missions set in space, on planets and in starbases throughout the universe. At launch, it will take place during the 24th century timeline in the series with other aspects of the Star Trek universe to be interwoven and added through expansions. "Players will encounter characters, places, and situations from their favorite Star Trek movies and television series; will explore incredible new worlds; and will cooperate with or battle friendly and hostile races throughout the game," said Chris McKibbin, President of Perpetual Entertainment. "Fans of Star Trek have been longing for a game that lets them participate in and explore the Star Trek universe," said Terri Helton, Executive Vice President of Viacom Consumer Products. "We have been searching for the right partnership for our time-honored Star Trek to create a game that not only appeals to fans but a broader audience as well. Perpetual’s experience, technology and vision for this game make them the clear choice." The game is expected to enter public beta testing in 2006 and to launch by early 2007. For more information, see http://gaming.startrek.com for "Frequently Asked Questions" about the game. Will you boldly go, where... Posted September 8 2004 by Div Devlin

Tabula Rasa Audio Interview: The folks at XGR are making a come back, and while this is an older interview it's up and running as they talk with musician / composer Chris Vrenna, aka Tweaker, in mid Aug 2004. In the interview, Vrenna talks about his experiences working as a sound designer on Doom 3, as well as other game scores he is currently in the process of recording (NCSoft’s Tabula Rasa & Midway’s Area 51). We also hear about upcoming releases from Tweaker. The interview is currently available for download on BitTorrent and is encoded in MP3 format. If anyone is interested in hosting the file, please reply to this email and I will send you the file. Posted September 8 2004 by Div Devlin

Star Trek MMO? Rumors coming out from Paramount's official Star Trek site is that a MMO game could be coming, or it's just a bunch of spin to see the community reaction with so many MMO's in development or being canned. Some intrepid and enterprising fans were able to gain access to a press release which has since been removed promoting the announcment of Star Trek: Online. To go along with the removed announcment were some imaged mockup's that also were verified by SciFi Universe. Continued investigation by the folks over at SciFi Universe have discovered that Perpetual Entertainment based out of San Francisco could be the developers. From the Perpetual Entertainment site: Perpetual Entertainment is a San Francisco based producer, publisher, and operator of networked multi-player and massively multi-player games for the PC and next-generation videogame consoles. Perpetual Entertainment was founded and is staffed by industry veterans dedicated to the vision that playing games together is simply more fun, more challenging, and more rewarding than playing alone. They currently have no MMO games developed, but do say they have two triple A titles in house which they are currently working on. As of today, (the press release was posted over the weekend) they announced they have secured $6.5 million equity investment. Adding more to this, is that the management team of Perpetual Entertainment are Joe Keene and Chris McKibben both of whom were part of EA. Joe Keene was with Maxis who brought us The Sims Online and Chris McKibben managed game development and operations for PC, Console, and Online games including Ultima Online, Majestic, Motor City Online, Earth & Beyond, The Sims Online. It's been a long time coming, and if memory serve's Jessica Mulligan and Raph Koster at one time were working to bring the title to players. New poll for the current day. "Would Star Trek: Online be an MMO to Play?" Posted September 7 2004 by Div Devlin

Dragon Empires Dies: Depressing news over the holiday weekend. Codemasters has tossed in the towel on Dragon Empires, their long in development RPG/PVP MMO Game, citing technical reasons. It is with much regret that we have today announced that we have now ceased further development of Dragon Empires due to technical issues we have recently experienced with the game. This of course is extremely sad news for everyone concerned with the game. For regular visitors of our forums, these will remain active for the foreseeable future to give you the opportunity to give your feedback and keep in touch with your fellow Dragon Empires community members. We are still very much committed to entering the MMORPG market and are currently evaluating other potential opportunities, keep your eyes and ears open for news in the not too distant future. Thank you again for all your loyalty and support over the previous years and we only wish we could have rewarded your passion and enthusiasm with the final game. Best Wishes, The Dragon Empires Team Gary Dunn the Director of Development at Codemasters elaborates more as to the why, behind the shut down. We were experiencing unexpected obstacles with the server code, in particular our ability to serve clients at a scale which would have permitted us to launch the game as an MMO. The resolution of these issues was fundamental to the success of the project and ultimate release of the game. Due to the delays, a detailed analysis and review of the game was undertaken over the period of approximately six weeks in which a detailed study of the viability of the project was undertaken. Every possible route was considered, which included seeking external help and expertise to assist us with this troublesome area. Sadly for all of us, the time and money required to resolve these issues to the high standards that Codemasters requires and its fans expect, posed risks that outweighed the benefits. In the end, the scales were tipped in the direction of a halt to developme