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Digital Esports Platform "KALARO" launches in October

Gets a boosts from top corporate partners, Kalaro a digital esports platform, will be launching on October 12, 2020. It will be Asia's fist fully-integrated end-to-end Esports online platform that was created by an internationally-experienced team of Filipino tech experts.

(L-R) Top: Jun D. Lasco, Founder & CEO; David Nithyananthan, Co-Founder, Renalyn David, Director
Bottom: Coleen G. Lasco, Director; Marvin A. Alberto, President of Pnex Int'l Corporation; Arlene S. Jimenez, Director

The-AsiaGroup.com Inc. officially announced also its alliances from top corporate brands  namely National Computer Systems (NCS) of Singapore, ERNI from Switzerland, and local companies Union Bank of the Philippines, DragonPay, GCash and Globe Labs.

On its launch in October, the nationwide online sign-up will be made available to Esports fans and players. Interested gamers can join Kalaro using their mobile number, Facebook, Twitch, Razer, or Google accounts.

"We are thrilled to finally unveil Kalaro to be the catalyst in rapidly developing world-class Filipino Esports talents. With the incredible support we are getting from our partners and the gaming community, we're excited to realize the synergy Kalaro will create among corporate brands and more than 30+ million Esports enthusiasts in the Philippines," said Renalyn B. David, Board of Directors Member of The-AsiaGroup.com Inc./ Pnex Int'l Corporation.

NCS handles the technology cloud infrastructure to ensure that Kalaro is globally available to all Filipinos 24/7. They also handle the various integration requirements of Kalaro so that it can connect online to all other apps like Facebook, GCash, DragonPay, Twitch, and other 3rd-party systems.

On the other hand, ERNI is responsible for the design of the User Interface (UI) and overall User Experience (UX); translating these designs into actual working systems for Kalaro users to enjoy. Together with the in-house tech experts of The-AsiaGroup.com, Kalaro has achieved the global standards in software (app) design and development.

"Kalaro was able to capture the aspirations of all the eSports stakeholders and present it in a creatively designed User Interface (UI) which results in a fun, easy to use and with a comprehensive set of features fitting to the demands of tech-savvy millennials and Gen Zs," said David Nithyananthan, Co-Founder of The-AsiaGroup.com Inc./Pnex Int'l Corporation.

The digital platform also paves the way for corporate brands to collaborate with Kalaro's stakeholders. They can have storefronts inside Kalaro to enable them to promote and sell their products online to Kalaro users. Brands can also sponsor gamers, streamers, teams and leagues. Kalaro members can electronically transact 24/7 anywhere around the globe. This e-wallet feature of Kalaro is powered by Union Bank of the Philippines, DragonPay, GCash, and Globe Labs.

On its launch in October, the nationwide online sign-up will be made available to Esports fans and players. Interested gamers can join Kalaro using their mobile number, Facebook, Twitch, Razer, or Google accounts.

"We at Pnex Int'l Corporation are both proud and excited to launch our Esports platform, initially, to the Filipino gaming community. The more than 30 million Filipino gamers are a huge market and Kalaro will surely be their gaming companion. Our team has done an incredible job in creating a world-class product we Filipinos can all be very proud of," said Marvin Alberto, President of Pnex Int'l Corporation.

The timeliness of Kalaro seems to be in perfect alignment with the need to boost the Philippine economy. Kalaro can mobilize the 30+ million Filipinos gamers market for some economic activities which would give jobs to corporate brands who will focus on this market segment, create work-from-home opportunities for streamers & gamers, spark some consumer spending and at the same time hone future Esports world champions!


How to Not Get Caught in Among Us, an Impostor Guide

Among us has been one of the most trending games today, yet Among Us isn't actually a new game, it was released on 2018 by Innersloth (the developers of Henry Stickmin). Among Us is like a Space Version of Mafia, where you can be a secretive killer or a useful crew . You can play Among Us with your friends or a random group online. Among Us is a game where you might lose your friends, because you will learn how to be a compelling liar, and lying might be necessary if you are the Impostor. Being an Impostor is being the most essential person on the game.

Best Time to Sabotage

This might be one of the problems that Impostors encounter. The Impostor should go first to their designated fake tasks, while standing near fake tasks, sabotage the Comms or the O2, then secretly blend with the crew and fake that you are helping them fix the sabotaged area. Also make sure that when you vent, there are no one near.

Make a Clean Kill

Making a Clean Kill might be hard to players that are new to Among Us. If you ever feel free from everyone and when the coast is clear, then it's time to eliminate them, go near an innocent crew and click kill to eliminate them, the next step is to vent and always make sure that the coast is clear before you unvent.

The crew you eliminated will become a ghost that can spectate everyone, but don't worry, other crews will not hear their screaming voices on the in game chat. It's either the crew will be reported or an emergency meeting will be started, at this time, it will be announced to everyone, that the traitor is active. Join their in game chat, the simplest way to cleanse your suspicious activity is by asking the where and who. Don't start blaming until innocent crew starts to blame each other. Keep in mind that you cannot eliminate them fast, as their is a long cooldown of the kill button, hosts decides the kill time, voting time, etc.

Venting Guide

After you make a kill it will be suspicious if someone sees you leave a room and then find a body, you will be the suspect if this happens. However, you can jump on vents and stay their until they find the body, crews won't be able to know you are there and then you can blend in back with the crew.

Watch out before you unvent, impostor's are usually caught unventing, so make sure you unvent on a place where crew's don't usually go.

Act Innocent while Voting

A body is found or the emergency button is pressed, at this time you will need to vote someone so you can eliminate them. While voting you can open the chat button. Just act innocent and blend with their accusations to other innocent crews. Never vote first, that will make you even more suspicious, wait for the perfect timing and then vote.


How to Redeem FREE Watch Dogs Legion from NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series Card

The new graphics card from NVIDIA finally landed globally, and NVIDIA lined up an bundled AAA title together with these graphics card. If you purchase any of the GeForce RTX 30 Series, you'll get a free PC Digital Download of Watch Dogs Legion and in-game items.

Note: This guide will only work for graphics card that are purchased from the Philippines. Game code is only offered when you purchase the qualifying graphics card from September 17, 2020 until October 29, 2020 or while supplies last.

Qualified NVIDIA Graphics Card

Here are the complete list of qualified graphics card that can redeem the FREE games with any brand.

  • GeForce RTX 3090 / GeForce RTX 3090 Desktop
  • GeForce RTX 3080 / GeForce RTX 3080 Desktop
  • GeForce RTX 3070 / GeForce RTX 3070 Desktop

How to Get the FREE Watch Dogs Legion Code

First, you need to register your graphics card with the participating brands. You need a photo of the Serial Number and its invoice to get a redeem code. Below are the list of brand redeem page where you can register your RTX 30 series graphics card.

Brand Registration Page
AORUS https://ph.aorus.com/event-detail.php?i=1678
GALAX http://www.galax.com/en/webforms/index/index/id/117/
Inno3D http://www.inno3d.com/redemption_detail.php?refid=106
MSI https://www.msi.com/Promotion/watch-dogs-legion
Zotac https://www.zotac.com/ph/page/the-geforce-rtx-30-series-bundle
Palit ???
ASUS ???

You only need to enter the Serial Number, Country, Purchase Date, photo copy of Serial Number and Invoice. Make sure to fill up the name and email, this is where you'll get the code for the game.

How to Redeem the Code

To redeem the free games, you need to install the Graphics card into your PC.

Update to the latest driver and latest version of GeForce Experience. It should be v3.18 or higher.

Open GeForce Experience app then login your NVIDIA account.

At the top right corner, go to Account > Redeem.

The code will expired on November 30, 2020 or while supplies last. So make sure to redeem the code once you've obtained it.


PlayStation 5 Standard and Digital Edition Priced at $499 and $399 (With Specs)

Sony has announced the official retail price of its next gen PlayStation during the digital showcase event early this morning. As expected, the price is closed to XBOX Series X priced and the other variant with the same specs except for Blu-ray disc is less $100. The PlayStation 5 Standard Edition (Based) are priced at $499 (PHP 24,155), while the PlayStation 5 Digital Edition priced at $399 (PHP 19,300).

It will be available on the United States, Japan, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, and South Korea on November 12 and to the rest of the world on November 19th.

However, the official price is solely for United States and it doesn't include taxes and shipping fees for other country. The price will be different when officially landed in the Philippines. But, when you order this console online like in Amazon or eBay and shipped to the Philippines, our estimate total cost will be PHP 30,170 for Standard Edition and PHP 24,335 for Digital Edition including Duty and VAT. That's if you're lucky enough to get a stock during the release date because of the hype ongoing with the new console.

Sample breakdown when ordering the product from United States to the Philippines.

PlayStation 5 (Standard Edition)

  • Based Price: PHP 24,155 ($499)
  • Estimated Duty & VAT: PHP 2,924
  • Shipping Fee: PHP 3,091
  • Total: PHP 30,170

PlayStation 5 (Digital Edition)

  • Based Price: PHP 19,300 ($399)
  • Estimated Duty & VAT: PHP 2,342
  • Shipping Fee: PHP 2,693
  • Total: PHP 24,335

Note, the prices above didn't include storage fee from custom and other miscellaneous.

PlayStation 5 Specification

Also, there are rumored specs circulating online on what supposed to be the specification of PlayStation 5. Here are the specs similar to the upcoming Radeon RX 6000 series graphics card.

  • CPU: x86-64-AMD Ryzen "Zen 2," 8 Cores / 16 Threads, Variable frequency, up to 3.5 GHz
  • GPU: AMD Radeon RDNA 2-based graphics engine, Ray Tracing Acceleration, Variable frequency, up to 2.23 GHz (10.3 TFLOPS)
  • System Memory: GDDR6 16 GB, 448 GB/s Bandwidth
  • SSD: 825 GB, 5.5GB/s Read Bandwidth (Raw – PCIe 4.0)
  • PS5 Game Disc: Ultra HD Blu-ray, up to 100GB/disc
  • Video Out: Support of 4K 120Hz TVs, 8K TVs, VRR (specified by HDMI ver.2.1)
  • Audio: "Tempest" 3D AudioTech

Are you ordering this new PlayStation 5 abroad? or you'll be waiting for the official release in the Philippines. Let us know in the comment section.


PlayStation 5 teases the Black Version for their upcoming Showcase Event, Sept 16

Sony just announced an upcoming showcase event next week for their next-gen console, PlayStation 5. Surprisingly, the promo image included in the announcement teases us the Black Version of the console, making us curious – if they changed their mind and include this variant during the launch this year.

UPDATE as of September 12, 2020 at 11:18PM: Unfortunately, the teases promo image is not a Black variant after all. It is just a shadow, we tried increasing the brightness in Photoshop and it shows the original white version.

Sony wants to give their fans one more look at some of the great games that will be coming to the PS5 launch. The digital showcase event will be lasts for about 40 minutes and features updates on the latest titles from Worldwide Studious and their world-class development partners.

The event will be lived on Twitch or YouTube next week, Wednesday, September 16 at 1pm PDT. In the Philippines, that's Thursday, September 17 at 4:00AM (Manila, Philippine Time).


PS5 Inside the Box, Here's What You Get

The next-gen Playstation (PS5) are just few months away, but Sony is so secretive in showing details of their new console. Apparently, there are some careless distributor leaks some information of what's inside the box including its Model Number and a FREE base.

Twitter user Daniel Ahmed uploaded a photo (https://twitter.com/ZhugeEX/status/1304458398369538051) showing parts of some kind of a document, maybe a manual. It contains complete details of what are the contents of both PS5 and PS5 Digital Edition retail boxes would be.

PlayStation 5 Console Inside the Box

  • Model Number: CFI-1015A
  • Box Contents:
    • PlayStation 5 Console
    • Wireless controller
    • 825GB SSD
    • Base
    • HDMI cable
    • AC power cord
    • USB cable
    • Instruction manual
    • ASTRO's PLAYROOM (Pre-installed game. Console may need to be updated to the latest system software version. Internet connection required.)

PlayStation 5 Digital Edition Inside the Box

  • Model Number: CFI-1015B
  • Box Contents:
    • PlayStation 5 Digital Edition
    • Wireless controller
    • 825GB SSD
    • Base
    • HDMI cable
    • AC power cord
    • USB cable
    • Instruction manual
    • ASTRO's PLAYROOM (Pre-installed game. Console may need to be updated to the latest system software version. Internet connection required.)

Both of the system contains the same content except for the console. It is also good thing to know that the storage are separate option from the console, which means it is not soldered in the system and it is replaceable with an aftermarket PCIe 4.0 SSD.

Unfortunately, other accessories like Headset, remote controller and HD camera are not included in the box.


66-Year-old Aiden Pearce is back on Watch Dogs Legion as a Playable Character

First protagonist of Watch Dogs franchise is back in the 3rd installment of the game 'Watch Dogs Legion'. The Fox, Aiden Pearce will be a playable character in the game, but since the Legion is set in the near future at 2040, he aged a little bit older at 66-year-old.

Aiden Pearce was born on May 2, 1974 at Northern Ireland, you played him in Watch Dogs 1 as a 39-year old in the fictional world of Chicago, beating the ctOS operating system that controls the city. In Watch Dogs 3 Legion, near-future London at 2040, he was aged 66 years old with a beard and he will be part in the side story of the game "Story Arc".

The Story Arc is an all-new chapter and only available in Season Pass. In this side-story, Aiden Pearce will be a fully playable character and you'll be unlocking his own story in the game. There are no details yet on how he re-appear in the game or he is a part of resistance, or even a leader of it?

Anyway, here is the full game teaser of the game introducing Aiden Pearce.

Watch Dogs: Legion is now available on XBOX One, PlayStation 4, and PC. It will be soon available on XBOX Series X, S and PlayStation 5 this year.


ASUS ROG announces up to PHP 25K off for selected RTX 2060, 2070 & 2080 Graphics Card

Just in! ASUS Republic of Gamers Facebook page just announced that they're adjusting the prices for their best-selling ROG GeForce RTX 20 Seires graphics card with up to PHP 25,020 off. However, there is no exact information yet if this mark down is available nationwide, or where/how to buy these deals. They only leave a link to their official retailers and resellers; and a note that says "We'll let the photos do the talking, and you do the card hunting.".

Updated as of 09/10/2020 at 10:57 PM, Back2Gaming reported that ASUS representative confirms that the mark down price will be effective starting tomorrow, September 11, 2020.

Here are the prices of card the are set to be mark down.

  • ROG RTX 2080S 08G – PHP 24,490 (PHP 49,510)
  • DUAL RTX 2080S 08G EVO V2 – PHP 23,450 (PHP 44,800)
  • ROG STRIX RTX 2080S A8G – PHP 23,950 (PHP 48,210)
  • ROG STRIX RTX 2070S 08G – PHP 21,450 (PHP 35,950)
  • ROG STRIX RTX 2070S A8G – PHP 20,830 (PHP 34,460)
  • DUAL RTX 2070 08G MINI – PHP 20,830 (PHP 24,170)
  • DUAL RTX 2070 08G EVO V2 – PHP 20,590 (PHP 24,810)
  • ROG STRIX RTX 2060S 08G EVO – PHP 19,610 (PHP 26,840)
  • DUAL RTX 2060S 08G EVO V2 – PHP 18,380 (PHP 24,170)
  • TUF RTX 2060 06G Gaming – PHP 17,940 (PHP 20,090)

This news is exciting for everyone as grabbing yourself an RTX 30 series this year is unsure because of the hype ongoing with its "double performance" against its predecessor. If this markdown is really for a nationwide sale, it will surely sold out their unsold graphics card from the market, because there are people waiting for ages to get a cheap upgrade. But if not, only lucky few folks will be able to enjoy this deal.

As of writing, the prices didn't reflect yet from their online shops at both Lazada and Shopee, some are even out of stock. We will update you with more details once we spot it 😉

Here is the Facebook post announcement.


List of All Redeem Code for Black Desert SEA (Remastered)

Black Desert SEA Remastered is one of the most anticipated MMORPG game on PC and many players are looking for ways to have a starter pack in the game to level up further. From time to time, Pearl Abyss has been dropping redeemable coupon code from their event and news page, and some players might not notice this and was unable to get the free opportunity of getting the new codes.

Table of Contents

  1. Redeem Code List for 2020
  2. How to Redeem Coupon Codes for Black Desert Remastered

To help you stay updated with all of the free redeemable code Pearl Abyss are offering, in this guide, you'll find all of the codes that you can redeem.

Redeem Code List for 2020

As of September 10, 2020, here are the list of redeemable code that you can claim through the game.

Coupon Code Date Added
PEAR-LABY-SS10-YEAR September 10, 2020
HASH-ASHI-NGOO-D202 September 9, 2020
AUTU-MNSE-ASON-GIFT September 8, 2020
HASH-ASHI-N916-SOON September 7, 2020

You can only redeem the code once per account. If some of the code already expired, please let us know in the comment section so we can label it.

How to Redeem the Coupon Code for Black Desert SEA Remastered

To redeem the coupon code, you need to go to the Redemption Page at https://payment.sea.playblackdesert.com/Shop/Coupon/

You need to login your account, either through Facebook, Steam or Black Desert account.

Once you've authorized the login, you'll be able to redeem the codes. Just copy and paste each of the code and you'll be able to receive the item from your inventory or in-game mailbox.

You have to take note that entering incorrect code for 10 times will prevent you from entering it again for 1 hour.

If you haven't downloaded or played Black Desert Remastered yet, you can now purchase it from Steam for a discounted price.

That's it, guys!


Ragnarok Mobile 6v6 PVP Event Details (New Season Sept 12 to Oct 17)

Every week, Ragnarok M Eternal Love will have a 6 weeks of the new season 6v6 PVP match for all adventurer, it will be held every Saturday from 1:00PM to 1:00AM (Manila, Philippine Time). The first round is this Saturday September 12 and will end on October 17, 2020.

Each player will have a chance to join the match 10 times per week.

Requirements

  • Players need to have level 90 above to join the match.
  • Each team needs to form a party of 6 players. If a party is not full, it will be automatically find a pool of player to join your party.

How to Start 6v6 PVP Match

There will be an icon on the game screen where you'll be able to join the match, click it, form a party of 6 and you're good to go. Or you need to find the Team NPC Competition Merchant, Don.

Each round will have a duration of 10 minutes, the main objective is you need to collect points as many as possible for your team.

How to Earn Points

To earn more points, players need to do the following task.

  • Hold on the Elemental Orbs
  • Conquer fixed Spot Resources
  • Eliminate your opponents

How to Win

To win the match, team who reached a maximum points of 4,000 will win the game automatically. If the time limit reached, the team with many points will win.

Rewards

Teams can earn Honor Proof and Through-war Coin in the matches. Which player can used to exchange for past season mount and pets from the NPC Don, Team Competition Merchant.

At the end of the season, player who reach certain ranks and top 600 will get the following rewards.

Rank Rewards
Top 150 Legend tier Players Thunderbolt Sheep Egg

Item Type: Pet Egg

Move Spd +25%
Top 300 Legend tier Players Whirlwind Sheep Egg

Item Type: Pet Egg

Move Spd +25%
Top 600 Legend tier Players Bell Sheep Egg

Item Type: Pet Egg

Move Spd + 25%
Legend Tier Reward Wild Ridge

Item Type: Tail

Dmg Reduc. +4%
In the Arena Mode (6v6), DMG Reduction +20% and Magic Reduction -10%

Deposit Reward:
M.Atk +3
Max HP +30
War God Tier Rewards Bone Shackles [1]

Item Type: Headwear

Max HP + 1000
In the Arena Mode (6v6), the effect (chance and time) of poisoning and freezing-type of attacks + 25%

Deposit Reward:
Atk + 3
Max HP + 30
Elite Tier Reward Mini Martin Egg

Item Type: Pet Egg
Fighter Tier Reward Scorching Roar

Item Type: Mouth

Dmg Reduction for the Demi-Human Race + 5%
In the Arena Mode (6v6), DMG increase for the Demi-human race +10%

Deposit Reward: Max HP + 60

The Stream Team: Preparing for a first Heist in Path of Exile

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Betawatch: Frozen Flame burns its way into a cool closed beta

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The Division 2 previews Concealed Agenda, the Summit, and gear transmogging

With the latest update to The Division 2 arriving on Tuesday, September 22nd, now seems as good a time as any for the devs of the game to summarize all of the things that are coming with the update. And that's just what they did. Leading off things is the game's third season, Concealed Agenda, […]

The World of Warships Transformers promotional event is live

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Champions Online's third anniversary week sees Dr. Destroyer and his Destroids attack the city

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Blade & Soul previews another round of item and system changes arriving with Cosmic Horizon

As ever seems to be the case with new updates to Blade & Soul, the upcoming Cosmic Horizon update will introduce some more tweaks to the MMO's items and systems. This time around, players will be facing some sterner challenges in floors 9-20 of Mushin's Tower, Outlaw Arena, Circle of Sundering, and Den of the […]

Warhammer Online: Return of Reckoning offers a special title for taking part in its anniversary events

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Torchlight III promises a date for final data wipe and launch 'soon'

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The Stream Team: Gone fishing in AdventureQuest 3D

AQ3D just introduced an expanded fishing system, making it the very first trade skill! Massively OP's MJ has always loved fishing (especially in games), so she cannot wait to check it out. Even better, fish go into a new resource tab so they won't fill up her inventory! Join us live at 2:00 p.m. as […]

Path of Exile's Heist expansion officially launches this afternoon

It's expansion day for Path of Exile as Grinding Gear Games goes all Oceans 11 with the release of Heist for PC and Mac players. As we've covered at length, this update introduce the Heist challenge league, new equippable NPC, the Rogue Harbour hub, new items, trinket lots, new skills, skill reworks, and of course, […]

No Man's Sky teases 'the beginning of something new': New update Origins, launching next week

No Man's Sky studio Hello Games has a bit of a habit of casually announcing major expansions out of the blue and crashing its own website. Today being what it is, that's exactly what happened this morning with the announcement of Origins, launching next week, with basically no pomp or fanfare, "the beginning of something […]

Kickstarted MMO Fractured lowers price of entry, rearranges alpha and beta schedule

Dynamight Studios' latest dev blog has some big changes for Fractured and its fans, starting with the news that the game's price is coming down down down. The devs explain that the alpha has gone on longer than anticipated as the developers continue testing, which means the first beta hasn't launched yet (and probably won't […]

Disintegration is shutting its multiplayer servers down after less than five months

In what will no doubt be a non-surprise to pretty much anyone who has paid attention to the industry over the past decade, it turns out that multiplayer shooters need more than just "you do the shooty and there are other people" to build a community. You cannot replicate the success of Halo by showing […]

Inside Star Citizen shows off an improved personal inventory, planet painting, and homestead concepts

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WoW Factor: No, Shadowlands is probably not going to be terrible

I've noted many times at this point that World of Warcraft does not seem to have done a great job with Shadowlands, at least from what we've seen so far. A little prison of the team's own making over here, a little bad philosophy behind redesigns over there, and not even a little salami as a treat. And […]

Dungeons and Dragons Online turns on its pirate event for the weekend

With this weekend's International Talk Like a Pirate Day bringing out the buccaneer in all of us, Dungeons and Dragons Online wanted to join in on the swashbuckling good time. The MMO is activating its Crystal Cove event from now through September 22nd, which opens up the usually hidden area for adventurin' and plunderin'. According […]

The US government is now probing Epic and Riot in relation to Tencent's data security

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Astellia Online grants an 'ultimate buff' for its first birthday

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Capcom unveils new single-player RPG and multiplayer Monster Hunter games for the Nintendo Switch

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The Daily Grind: How important is player-generated content to you in MMOs?

When I look at the current crop of top MMORPGs, I'm dismayed to realize that not a single one of them has anything significant in the way of player-generated content inside the game. Sure, people roleplay, and a few of them have relatively limited prefab housing, but if you're looking for something structured like a […]

The Stream Team: Standing a Ghost of a Chance in Dungeons and Dragons Online

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Massively Overthinking: How to deal with cheater scum in MMORPGs

I'm sure it was a random coincidence, but last week two different Star Wars Galaxies emulators posted about steps they were taking against cheaters and RMT purveyors: SWGemu banned 65 accounts for real-money trading, while SWG Legends banned a pile more for similar offenses, recouping over 12B in credits. SWGL then doled out tempbans and permabans […]

Last Oasis drops three new bomb types on players in its weekly update

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APB Reloaded makes clothing more accessible and balances weapons in its latest patch

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Xbox Series X and S preorders go live on September 22nd, with hopefully no chaos

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Fallout 76 is merging some content releases and delaying others into 2021

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The Survivalist: First impressions of Conan Exiles' Isle of Siptah expansion

Framed. Convicted. Exiled. Now, shipwrecked? What do the fates have in store for me next? Perhaps this Isle of Siptah will be my redress. Wait, what was that sound… Say what you will of Funcom, but after my first taste of the shipwrecked survival life, I think it got something right with Isle of Siptah. […]

Valorant's game director discusses rough plans for new Agents, maps, and modes that promote 'social downtime'

Riot Games' team-based tactical shooter Valorant has been, by all accounts, enjoying some quiet yet steady success. Even so, that only means that the game should continue to grow and adapt, and a general idea of those plans were talked about by game director Joe Ziegler in an interview with US Gamer. Plans for future […]

World of Warcraft caps off its Afterlives with a look at Revendreth

Despite the appearance, the Venthyr of Revendreth in World of Warcraft: Shadowlands do not really vant to dreenk your blud. They vant to make you a better person because you were kind of awful in life, but there's the potential for some kind of redemption at the end of the day, hence being tossed into this particular corner of the eponymous […]

Final Fantasy XIV's final anniversary story closes the book on the origin of the Crystal Exarch

Every year, Final Fantasy XIV has a quartet of anniversary stories to shed more light on the characters of the game's story. But this year, the last story isn't filling in gaps in the usual way. Instead, this last story of the year is closing the book on a side story that has been running since […]

Crowfall says its new Shadowbane-inspired class design will create an 'explosion' of build possibilities

Yesterday, several members of the Crowfall dev team sat for an AMA with DownToQuest Twitch, and while the whole broadcast isn't up for non-subscribers as we type this, several fun clips are, with useful insight into the game's development. Notably, ArtCraft's J. Todd Coleman discusses the overhaul for class design and balance. "The marching orders I […]

LOTRO Legendarium: Is LOTRO getting greedy with its fall content update?

Boars. Beets. Battlestar Galactica. OK, let's talk about one of those things, at least in a roundabout way, because there's no escaping the fact that Standing Stone Games stirred up a hornet's nest this past week. The announcement that Lord of the Rings Online's fall content update is being rebranded as a "mini-expansion" cocked quite […]

Secret World Legends marks the autumn season with an Envoys of Avalon retread

This news will either be fun to hear or the dull, wooden thud of a nail hammering into a coffin if you're a Secret World Legends player. As of yesterday, the game has once again brought back the Envoys of Avalon to Agartha to mark the autumn equinox and will keep them in-game until September […]

Wisdom of Nym: Speculating on the newly announced Final Fantasy XVI

So, uh… hey! Final Fantasy XVI! That's a thing we learned about yesterday, huh? I'm sure we're all shocked that Naoki Yoshida's very specific dismissal of rumors about him and the title turned out to be not actually a denial after all. If only someone had noted at the time that it was a very specific denial […]

Phantasy Star Online 2 announces Episode 5 launch date of September 30 and starts lead-up campaigns

The next episode's worth of content is coming soon to Phantasy Star Online 2 as Episode 5 has been confirmed for a release date of Wednesday, September 30th, bringing with it a level cap raise to 90, new ARKS missions and areas to explore, new enemy types, new quest types with new rewards, new seasonal […]

Echo of Soul is sunsetting yet again, this time on Steam, and no it's not giving refunds

We return now to the confusing story of Echo of Soul, which as we've previously chronicled has at least a million versions and has sunsetted them approximately half of them. The one relevant today is the version run by Blue Potion Games on Steam, which never actually launched out of early access but is apparently […]

World of Warcraft hitches up PvP's pants while WoW Classic throws a tournament

Eleventh hour adjustments are being made to World of Warcraft: Shadowlands' PvP scene in response to a whole lot of player concerns over the upcoming expansion's competitive scene. Blizzard's main focus in this department is to adjust Conquest gear so that all of it includes the versitality stat. "The result of these changes should be […]

PlayStation 5 targets November amidst buying frenzy, while Facebook trots out the Oculus Quest 2

Expect everyone in the gaming world to be a bit console-crazy this week — and console-insane come November. Not only is Microsoft launching the Xbox Series X on November 10th, but now we know that Sony is releasing the PlayStation 5 two days later on November 12th. Sony's PlayStation 5 will come in two editions: […]

The Daily Grind: What common MMO developer reassurance doesn't reassure you at all?

At one point, I was tossing an idea around for a Perfect Ten column about a Kickstarter drinking game. It didn't go anywhere, ultimately (it wasn't very funny), but it did touch on the point of repeated MMO developer promises, which I think we can agree is most certainly not limited to cash shops because […]

The Stream Team: In SWTOR, 'gotta catch 'em all' refers to droids

Massively OP's Larry and MJ are still out to learn the secrets of — and sabotage — The Shroud, but their real focus is on collecting all the droids in SWTOR! Who wants to pass up an achievement? The duo continues their quest by infiltrating transport station number five on Taris. Join us live at […]

Final Fantasy XVI is announced with Naoki Yoshida of Final Fantasy XIV as producer

Surprising absolutely no one, Final Fantasy XVI is going to happen! Yes, it turns out Square-Enix is continuing its flagship series, we're all shocked. The reveal today took the form of a four-minute trailer for the game along with a blog post on the official PlayStation site, announcing the game in the words of director […]

EVE Online's Depths of the Abyss is live as CCP updates policies and World War Bee 2 endures

EVE Online has lots going on this week, from patches to policies to drama. Let's dig in: First, this week's patch, Depths of the Abyss, is fully live now, with perks for people on both ends of the PvE spectrum. The new tier 0 abyssal deadspace should help newer players ease into the mechanics, but […]

Old School RuneScape introduces more Poll 72 changes and tries to open the discussion on Revenant Caves

It's another week of updates for Old School RuneScape and another gaggle of included adjustments based on Poll 72's results. That all might sound like a complaint, but it's hard to really balk at weekly updates of things that players voted to have added. This week we're seeing some improvements to Agility Courses, a new […]

TERA on console makes a wide swath of adjustments to awakened class skills and maps out the rest of 2020

Players of TERA on console that have an awakened class are going to want to pay attention to the latest update's patch notes because things are a-changin'. This patch has introduced some balance adjustments and improvements to awakened classes, affecting every single class in the game to varying degrees, though the most numerous are applied […]

City of Heroes Homecoming emphasizes player-created content, bars 'controversial political content'

City of Heroes' most popular rogue server, Homecoming, is a fount of player activity these days, and the dev team wants to make sure that the community gets the credit. Two new mission architect efforts recently were stamped with the "Dev Choice" seal of approval, a magic costume contest is coming up this Saturday, and […]

Whatever happened to the Final Fantasy XI mobile remake?

Do you remember ages ago, when Final Fantasy XI first announced that it was scaling back to a maintenance mode and a new mobile remake of the title was announced by Square-Enix in partnership with Nexon? Probably not, because that was back in 2015, and that screenshot we have as the header is basically the only […]

Torchlight III finally releases its 'update for dummies'

After a couple of delays, Torchlight III's latest patch is finally here. It's an "update for dummies," as Echtra is calling it. Please don't take that personally; the studio is referring to the addition of training dummies to the game to help players parse their DPS in the safety and comfort of their own forts. […]

Wikipedia is now an MMO (according to Wikipedia itself)

Anything online with a community can be considered an MMO if you play it correctly. That might sound like a joke (due to it being a joke), but consider that even Wikipedia itself can be considered an MMO in the right light. Players (editors) choose a race (editing style) and class (editing role) and roam […]

Titan Reach starts its Kickstarter with a target goal of $430,000

You may recall a while back when we highlighted Titan Reach as a game that you might not have heard of before. The game's Kickstarter is live now, with a target goal of just over $430,000 for this particular project. (It's converted from AUD, where the target is $588,000.) So what does the actual project entail? […]

Desert Oasis: Black Desert Mobile is not just a mobile copy of Black Desert

Last week, I taught my freshman classes basic email etiquette. In a time of distance learning, it's an important skill to teach. We looked into why etiquette matters, writing professionally, and that CC stands for "carbon copy." I also taught them how to properly use it. I'm too young to have ever used it during […]