It’s been almost two months since the rocky release of Masthead’s Sci-Fi MMO, Earthrise, and the reception is very mixed. While the concept is there and the industry needs a next-gen Sci-Fi title for players to sink their teeth into, Earthrise has a wide array of bug-related issues that are keeping it from its potential. Masthead Studios is fully aware of this, and has released an official roadmap, detailing their plans for the coming months.

In any case, the game is certainly massive, and the atmosphere is welcoming and daunting at the same time. Masthead is doing their best to provide an open environment that fosters all styles of play, while filling the world with as much content as possible. The graphics are so darn good that some players are getting more graphics lag than server lag, which is something I hadn’t personally experienced since Age of Conan.

Jump past the cut for the details on Masthead’s development plans for Earthrise…

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Not much has changed in respect to most console and PC titles, however in the MMORPG genre, beta testing has been completely redefined in the last few years.  It used to be that only a few lucky people, maybe a few hundred, would be selected to participate in a games closed beta testing phase.

I myself have applied for many closed betas over the years and remember having to fill out some pretty lengthy applications.   Then wait around and see if I was selected to participate. Today however things are very different, just take a glance over to our Beta & Item Key Giveaway area on the right site.  Today joining a closed beta does not necessary mean the developer wants you to test anything.   In fact if you start seeing beta keys becoming available for closed beta, it more than likely means the publisher is switching gears to start marketing their game.

Now, I have no problem with publishers or developers using their closed beta testing phase as a marketing tool to gain more exposure for their title.  However I do take issue when a game goes into “open beta” and accepts payment from players for anything.  By the very fact developers are labeling their games as beta, means they acknowledge the fact that it is not yet ready for release and contains bugs and possibly major problems.

With that acknowledgement, this should also mean publishers should not accept payment from players during their open beta phase.  The game is not complete, so they should not ask players for money.  However times have changed and there are more than a few publishers doing this as common practice.

Today Allods Online announced that their game will be “official launching very soon”, after more than 13+ months of open beta testing and having an open item shop.  To be honest, I thought Allods Online launched months ago, so I was a bit thrown back when I saw the announcement today and is actually the reason for this editorial.

Over the last few years we have seen many MMO games launch that were just not ready for release, only to see a player backlash and subscription numbers plummeting a few months later.  Age of Conan is the last major release I can remember where this happened, although I’m sure there were others.  Now publishers are using open beta testing not only for marketing, but to fund their incomplete and buggy games.

From a players point of view, I find it unethical for publisher or developer to open up items shops for real money while the game is in open beta.  However I can understand why they do it.  MMO games take years to develop and are extremely expensive to create, so if publishers can start earning income while still in beta, it’s a big help.

So the decision really comes down to the individual player.  Those that want to spend money for a game in beta can, and for those,  like myself, who don’t wish to, don’t have to.

It usually goes something like this.  I log into one of my social network websites and see the request ‘Elmo M wants to connect’.  I see Elmo M is connected to a few of my friends already, so I click on ‘connect’, then refresh the site, where I see:

Elmo M just grew angry beets in Mafia Farm
Elmo M just built an armored outhouse in Frontier Wars
Elmo M just liked ‘How to get 500 dollars free on Mafia Farm’
Elmo M just completed the mission ‘Buy a Chicken’ on ‘Robot Madness’
And so on…

Social network games are the joy and obsession of millions of social network users and the bane of existence for the rest.  Social games can be fun and even exciting for a player who enjoys steady progress and achievement, but for players who crave a deeper experience these games can be seen as shallow and pointless ‘click-fests’.

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For those who aren’t into the MMO racing scene (yet), Tales Runner is an exhilarating competitive racing MMO, set in a vibrant and bubbly world. The mood is jubilant while the worlds are fantastical; in short, this is a great game for the little ones (or those who simply enjoy the prospect of racing in a persistent online world).

Head on over to the giveaway page here at MMOCrunch to snag your very own Golden Pig! What benefits do these pigs bring? Ah, let me count the ways…

Effects:

• Invincible in the beginning of each race
• Electric Resistance +20%
• TR +10
• (In the Chick Channel) TR +40

The folks over at gPotato have put up 1,000 (one thousand) little piggies for adoption, and its up to us to find them a home! If you’re interested in trying Tales Runner, jump on over to the official site and sign up! Jump past the cut for further instructions…

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They’ve landed. What, aliens? No, not this time, anyways. This week, Gamigo has seen fit to beam down 100 Closed Beta keys for our loyal Crunch visitors! If you’re curious about this fast-paced space combat MMO, head on over to our beta key giveaway page to grab your pilot’s license. After that, sign up here and register your beta key here. Done!

Let’s cover some of the basics: in Black Prophecy, your player character is represented by an extensively customizable ship, which will evolve as you make your way through the game world. In contrast to EvE Online, this game fosters a more traditional skill-based progression that does not require months of time investment. For players who couldn’t get into the highly detailed (and slightly monotonous) gameplay of EvE, Black Prophecy may be the droid you’re looking for. Human avatars are not planned for launch, but Gamigo has made it clear that they will consider such implementations further down the line.

The Black Prophecy Closed Beta is set to launch in April, so keep checking back for updates!

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Keeping a steady pace of content reveals, Trion Worlds has released an exciting trailer covering the River of Souls event (a.k.a. Update 1.1). This in-game event is unique in that it spans the entirety of Telara; this will foster a palpable sense of urgency and camaraderie between all Ascended, and we may find that Guardians and Defiants will have to band together to put a stop to Alsbeth’s dark crusade.

The lore of this Rift event centers around the Soulstream, an ethereal river of souls that runs endlessly around the perimeter of the Plane of Death. When a soul leaves the world of the living, it travels in this river until it is ready to embrace death. Regulos has previously been able to invade the Plane of Death itself, but he was never able to tamper with the Soulstream. Until now.

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This week, Sony Online Entertainment has ported their successful free-to-play title, Free Realms, to the Playstation Network. With this move, the console gets its very first F2P MMO, coming hot on the heels of SOE’s recently released superhero title, DC Universe: Online. With 17 million registered players, Free Realms is one of the most popular MMORPGs of all time, offering a wide range of activities for all age levels.

John Smedley, President of SOE, shares his thoughts on Free Realms‘ impact on the console, “Our games extend the current lifecycle of the console with the added value offer of bringing tens of thousands of people together, in a game world, to socialize at community events, compete in combat activities and engage in a diversity of gameplay experiences, for years to come.” Jump past the cut for more details on the console experience…

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In closing their successful Fanfest this year, CCP has posted a new video depicting the future of EvE Online. In an ambitious move, CCP has visualized the player interaction between EvE Online and CCP’s upcoming MMO/FPS hybrid, Dust 514. In addition, the video gives us a stunning glimpse into the dark world of Incarna, EvE’s upcoming expansion. With Incarna, players will be able to control their human avatars (sans space ship) and conduct business in the universe’s many stations. As the video shows, there may be more to that than we think…

If you’re curious about CCP’s recently concluded EvE Online Fanfest in Iceland, click on over to the official site for details.

T3Fun is prepping us for a hectic month of April with special in-game events scheduled for CardMon Hero and WYD.

In the card collection MMO Cardmon Hero, it’s a race to kill monsters in the Trial of Time dungeon challenge or a battle for survival via the gauntlet matches of The Rise of Heroes tournament. Trivia fans will also get to flex their mind muscles with the GM-hosted pop quizzes with prizes for providing the correct answers.

Meanwhile, over at the 3D fantasy realms of WYD, there’s a popularity poll and art contest afoot. Players can win prizes when they invite their friends to register for a new account and get voted as the most popular hero in the game. Budding Picassos can also submit stunning illustrations or even screenshots of their character. Easter also brings in the ubiquitous egg hunt event, with festive boxes strewn about the game world ready for the picking.

Keep on checking the official CardMon Hero and WYD websites for more info on these community shindigs for the coming month.

First Looks: Runes of Magic is a fun, free game that combines certain aspects from other games into a fast paced and inviting MMORPG. The moment I made a new character, I got sucked into a whole new world, with great looking fighting, spell casting, and killing animations. I couldn’t stop playing. The leveling is never boring because of so much variety. Even though it has the usual gathering, talking, and killing quests, I can easily skip out on a tedious one and still level up at a good pace. The double class system is really appealing because it adds variety; usually I would have to create a new character to mix up the game play among MMOs, but in RoM, switching to and from diverse play styles can be done on the fly. The best part of it all is that everyone is helpful, especially when it’s easy to communicate with zone chat.

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