Zero Punctuation: DC Universe Online

Yahtzee is a British-born, currently Australian-based writer and gamer with a sweet hat and a chip on his shoulder. When he isn't talking very fast into a headset mic he also designs freeware adventure games and has a novel coming out soon. His personal site iswww.fullyramblomatic.com.

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See a new Zero Punctuation review each Wednesday only at The Escapist.

And as usual, NSFW

D&D Online to go free

Turbine has set the launch date for Dungeons & Dragons Eberron Unlimited, in an announcement made by the company today. The game is penciled in for an August 6th, 2009 launch.

In addition to the announcement, the NDA has also been lifted on the Dungeons & Dragons Eberron Unlimited beta. So with the flood gates now opened, share your information and screenshots with us on the forums!

To celebrate today's announcement MMORPG.com has 13 new screenshots of the game. Check them out here!

For more screenshots of Dungeons & Dragons Online, take a peek at MMORPG.com’s  full gallery.

Check out the game here.  And here’s an article about it here.

[via MMORPG.com]

Star Wars: The Old Republic

Sorry about not posting in a while, life has been crazy lately.  So this week I promise to make sure that there are at least a couple posts from me per day.  And I am going to make a greater effort to make them more personal like this.  I have done a couple of reviews and comparisons of products in the past and I think I’ll do the same.

I wanted to share this trailer for the upcoming MMORPG, Star Wars: The Old Republic.  I’m going to be watching this game very closely for a number of reasons.  First, I am a geek and nothing says geek more than Star Wars, or Star Trek for that matter.  Since I’m a fan of both, I am a geek no matter what.  But I’m no fanboy….Let’s get that straight.  I digress.

Secondly, I was a big fan of the MMORPG Star Wars Galaxies, until the New Game Enhancements (NGE) completely jacked it up. I will not comment on this further since it will warrant a lengthy rant.

 

Thirdly, it is a game from Bioware.  They have a great pedigree when it comes to games.  From Baldur’s Gate to Neverwinter Nights to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic to Mass Effect, these guys know how to make a great game.  If any company can make sure this game doesn’t suck, it will be these guys.  (OK, I’d probably trust Blizzard too, but they have their hands full with a somewhat successful MMORPG).

Enjoy.

 

Free MMORPG!!!!

I tried the beta of this game and did kind of like it. But there is only so much time during any given week to play a game. But for those of you who haven't tried it or many of the other MMORPGs out there, here's a great chance to give one a try for free (at least for a little while).

Terminal sci-fi MMORPG Tabula Rasa is free to play for all until its death on February 28, 2009. NCSoft had previously announced the game would be free-to-play beginning Jan. 10, but now new players can request a serial code from the support site and download the game via FTP. Former players can head to PlayNC.com and reactivate using their account management settings. Credit card numbers will be requested, but no money will change hands. Here's your chance to get a free Christmas present and play the game before its servers get wiped clean.

[Joystiq Via Eurogamer]

UPDATE:  This comic was pretty timely for this post.

Zero Punctuation: Age of Conan

Okay, I have to admit that I was not exactly excited about this game. I Don't have nearly as much MMO time as I used to, but I was thinking about giving it a try. But, the only way I may try it is if someone gives me a buddy pass. (Hint Hint...)

U.S. Spies Want to Find Terrorists in World of Warcraft???

Be careful who you frag. Having eliminated all terrorism in the real world, the U.S. intelligence community is working to develop software that will detect violent extremists infiltrating World of Warcraft and other massive multiplayer games, according to a data-mining report from the Director of National Intelligence.

The Reynard project will begin by profiling online gaming behavior, then potentially move on to its ultimate goal of "automatically detecting suspicious behavior and actions in the virtual world."

Really?? Are you shaking your head right now as much as I am? Could our government, the United States freakin' government, really be data-mining MMORPGs and online games to look for possible terror suspects? I am just stunned by this whole thing.

Here's the whole story from Wired.

Why does the song "Too Much Time On My Hands" come to mind

Machinima is tough to make in a game like Lord of the Rings Online. Most of the videos out there are music videos, but I wanted to rep the LOTRO crowd in my Valentine's videofest!

LOTRO musicians sure have come a long way since I tried the game in beta. All that I could muster was the same note over and over until someone begged me to stop, or threatened to report me. However, some creative individuals have come up with entire songs, coordinated with different players and instruments!

Read on for commentary and another video ...

I chose two music videos that I felt embodied the spirit of Valentine's Day. The first is Tainted Love, performed by Die Bäääänd. The second is What is Love, performed by Men in Tights. What LOTRO performance do you feel best represents Valentine's Day?

[via Massively]

More free MMOs

For those of you gaming on a budget, there are a couple more free MMOs to try out. I previously told you about Dungeon Runners from NC Soft. And I recommend that all of you try it. It infuses a lot of humor into the gameplay. Another that I tried the beta for a while back has gone to free to play is RF Online. This one is a sci-fi / anime type MMO and was pretty fun. Now Disney is giving us Pirates of the Caribbean Online. This has just launched, so I have not given it a try, but the folks at Joystiq have. As with all of these, they are free to download and play, and offer a more robust experience with a subscription. Usually that entails unlocking higher levels and areas, and maybe better equipment, but that is usually when you're at higher levels. But if you want to tryout social gaming, nothing is better than free.

Also, most games have a free trial and download so if you want to try out Lord of the Rings : Online or World of Warcraft, give em a try. If you try out either of these, drop me an email and I can meet up with you online to give you an introduction and helping hand in MMO gaming.

World of Warcraft Patch 2.1.0 Out Now

There is a new Wow patch that is out!!

Dubbed “The Black Temple”, this 256MB patch will allow players to enter, well The Black Temple! Players can fight Illidan the Betrayer before realizing they have plenty of other goodies associated with this patch to check out.

There’s a new PVP arena, new equipment, class updates, and so, so much more. Druids even have a new form! Hit the link below for full patch notes and get updating!

linky