Daily Blogroll

Yesterday I blogged about several games in development in 2001 that maybe aren’t so well known these days. Back in 2001, nobody knew Blizzard’s World of Warcraft would change the scene, but everyone knew great things were ahead. Computers were doubling in power every year, graphics as well, and what looked good in 1999 looked downright primitive just two years later – EverQuest’s graphics overhaul that began with Shadows of Luclin and continues today was testament to that, as well as the new beginning of EverQuest II. ...

I was cleaning out my closet and found a few old floppy disks, REALLY old. Someone had scrawled “Daily Blogroll: Sep ‘01” on them. I honestly don’t remember writing any blogs way back then. I had no idea what was on them. They were two 8" disks, so between the two of them, there could be as many as four or five pages of documents sitting there, unread, for eight years. ...

Was there ever a mob that you really, REALLY hated as a low level, that you just HAD to go back later on and just kill, kill, kill? Well, old Dorn in North Ro was that mob for a lot of us EQ players. Seeing him CRINGE before me now in EQ2…. Worth the ride! One of the things that made EQ so memorable was that there was really nothing like it at the time. They could pretty much try anything, because, what else was there? Not like these days, where there’s so MUCH choice, so MANY good games, that it’s hard to stick with just one, and so game devs do whatever they feel they must to grab and keep players. ...

That’s like Galaxy Express 999, NOT the Futurama ship. That’s Planet Express. Ever, like, DIE in a game, and your pet begins dancing around your decaying corpse, singing about what a great day it is? Thanks, Hello Kitty Online! Leveling has slowed quite a lot in that game. My pet is having a super time, though. If you spend several hundred hours in your game of choice, the LAST thing you really want is someone coming up and telling you that you’re wasting your time, because Game B is SO much better than your Game A – insert any two games in those slots. Super Mario World vs Legend of Zelda. Cribbage vs Bridge. WoW vs…. well, any other game that is not WoW. ...

I’ve been thinking of swapping my sidekick in Legends of Zork from the Gent (who made me essentially immune to traps) to the Accountant (who earns interest on your stash) for awhile. It kinda disappointed me that they nerfed her – it used to be that having her in your base would soon make you rich as Croesus. Not so much anymore, but as each upgrade now costs well over a million zorkmids, I need all the help I can get. And I can switch back to the Gent later on, once I’ve reached my goals and seeded the clan bank with some good upgrades for others. ...

(Shhh! Hello Kitty Online’s closed beta started yesterday! Expect a HKO First Look once I’ve found my way around). Massively reports that EVE Online’s next expansion, Dominion, has just been announced. Dominion brings a new focus on planets, undoubtedly setting the scene for EVE’s planetbound companion FPS MMO, Dust 514. EVE is also adding social media functionality to the game, and I have no idea what that means. Tweet every mission? No clue. Lastly, the walking around in stations expansion is given a name, Incarna, so I guess we’re stuck in our pods for at least another few months. ...

Wow, can’t believe it’s almost autumn. Summer came so late to New England; cool and rainy through most of it, a couple of hot and humid days, and now the cooler days are back. It’s like living in Seattle. Played a bit of Champions Online over the weekend. I take a character to level 10, start them in on the Hero Games cage matches, see how well they do and take what I learned to the next character. My most recent character was the Green Reaper, a character with all of Green Lantern’s abilities without the power ring. Custom framework of supernatural + telekinesis, allows for a ranged power builder, ability to make ego weaponry from thought alone, and the ability to toss heavy objects at people – with her mind! Travel power is green fire flight. ...

Started on the second tier of Grizzleheim last night. The Virgil Roughlands (level 25+) are a pretty significant step up from Svarstaad Pass. Even two boxing, I had to choose my cards with a lot more care than almost any challenge in recently-completed Krokotopia. At levels 27 and 32, my two-box team is as closely matched as they have ever been. Thankfully, Marissa now has the (yucky) Humongofrog to match up with Allison’s Sandstorm for mass monstery death. ...

I never watched Stargate: SG-1 while it was on (is it still on?), so when everyone was getting all excited about the prospect of Cheyenne Mountain’s Stargate Worlds MMO, it meant nothing to me. Now, thanks to Hulu, I’m catching up. A couple of episodes in to the second season and it’s clear the show is already chafing against its episodic “planet of the week” formula. Could Stargate Worlds make it work for them? Will it work for Bioware’s Star Wars: The Old Republic, or will people yearn for a less story-based, more personal play experience? ...

Is Gatheryn in open beta or not? Massively says not yet, but following Merry and Pippin’s example, I showed up where I wasn’t invited because they couldn’t keep me away. Picture above is from the docks, where it’s clear they haven’t invented automated rust scrapers and hull painters in Elymia as of yet. In news of the OTHER upcoming superhero game, Massively also has screens of SOE’s DC Universe Online. This fast-paced, arcade-ish actioner looks to be the evil twin to Champions Online’s more traditional quest-based offering. ...