Blizzard recently implemented its own social network application called RealID, which launched as a totally optional adjunct to World of Warcraft. Two weeks later and the indication is that “totally optional” actually meant “compulsory with the launch of the Cataclysm expansion“. The reaction to this move hasn’t been positive, with a lot of the criticism … Continue reading
Filed under Advertising / Marketing …
APB: Advertising Over VOIP
Something I hadn’t heard of before: advertising over VOIP. Particularly in a MMO. Especially in a MMO that charges a box cost and subscription fee to play. Kudos then, I guess, to APB for being so creative. You can pay to turn it off by paying for Vivox Premium services, or alternatively use a different … Continue reading
Prototype: Now With The A-Team
I’m pretty close to getting all of the Xbox 360 achievements on Prototype. I still have to complete the game on hard and also without dying, but that isn’t going to stop me. Nope, it’s the stupid Platinum results for the street races that will stop me – the character controls are awful if you … Continue reading
DC Universe Online: Talking Loud, Ain’t Saying Nothing
I have to say I’ve been massively impressed with how DC Universe Online has managed to spin the same (or standard) information out time and time and time again, each time as though it is something new or surprising. Sure, it’s to be expected in new MMOs, but DCUO has really taken the art form … Continue reading
Super Hero Squad MMO – First Teasers
After going quiet for a bit, the first snippets of info are starting to emerge about the Marvel / Gazillion / Amazing Society MMO for Super Hero Squad. The trailer is out tomorrow, with an accompanying press release trumpeting some very broad reasons why people would want to play it. The interesting thing in the … Continue reading
Bitter Pills, Regardless of Colour: The Fall of The Matrix Online
The use of intellectual properties for MMO titles is an interesting and conflicted area. Ultima Online was the first major MMO to attract player attention, having been built on the long-standing Ultima IP, while World of Warcraft’s strength is partly built off its association with the Warcraft real time strategy franchise. However, just having an … Continue reading
Black Eyes Before Debut for Warhammer 40K
With the Warhammer 40K MMO from Vigil Games debuting at E3 this year, I’m sure that publisher THQ wanted a nice clear run at building some heat for this title. Warhammer Online from Mythic is dying a slow death – WAR is shutting down in parts of Asia and there is plenty of consolidation on … Continue reading
CoH/V, Going Rogue and Trial Accounts
It appears fairly clear that Praetoria – being released in the City of Heroes / Villains’ Going Rogue expansion – is going to serve as the ‘new and improved’ starter area for CoH/V. (Older zones won’t be revamped until it is “an event for the game as a whole” according to the same interview). Going … Continue reading
The Failure of Beta – Testing and Marketing
The whole alpha / beta situation around MMOs is an interesting one. It’s a critical area of both testing and marketing for any MMO which is a curious place to be since ‘testing’ and ‘marketing’ are really at opposites ends of a gaming scale – testing is about fixing bugs and dealing with a rough … Continue reading
Nielsen GamePlay Metrics – Is It Doing It Right?
I’ve been interested in Nielsen’s GamePlay Metrics service since I came across it a while back. The basic intent is to record which games people are playing and for how long – in much the same way Nielsen’s does for TV – in order to be able to sell that data back to various interested … Continue reading
World Class Villains 