Art's Closet on Blade Radio aired live Nov 19th 2010

Art's Closet on Blade Radio aired live Nov 19th 2010

-Emily Diehl-

ArenaNet's Community and Content Manager  Emily Diehl is leaving ArenaNet to go to Undead Labs. (Undead Labs, the studio founded by a few ex-ArenaNet employees,)

She started at the studio in 2006 as a member of the systems design team.

Since I’ve worked closely with many of you on this site, I wanted to let you know that my last day at ArenaNet will be this Friday, November 19. Starting next week, I’ll be heading over to join my friends at Undead Labs, working on their unnamed zombie game.

For folks that know me, it’s no secret how much I love horror stuff. The first movie I ever remember seeing was Night of the Living Dead (when I was four), and I’ve been obsessed with horror ever since. I love Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2 with a passion, but in this case, having the privilege to work on a zombie title is fulfilling a lifelong dream of mine.

http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Feedback_talk:Emily_Diehl

-Isaiah Cartwright “Izzy”-

Izzy is Game Designer on GW2 but was already part of the team on the first episode. Yeah, remember. He was the one who got most of the players raging about class balancing in GW.

This idea applied to GW2 translates as follow:

Visually intense fights
Skills able to fulfill several functions

http://gw2.mondespersistants.com/?article=171&page_art=2

-Hearts of the North-

Hearts of the North is the next installment of Guild Wars Beyond, an ongoing campaign that expands upon the Guild Wars storyline and lays the foundation for the upcoming Guild Wars 2.
It began yesterday! Hearts of the North, the next phase in Guild Wars Beyond, tells the story of the union of Gwen and Keiran Thackeray. You'll reunite these legendary heroes and help prepare for their wedding through a series of all-new quests and missions. You can even dress for the occasion in one of our elegant new wedding costumes!
http://www.guildwars.com/heartsofthenorth/

-ZAM-

ZAM is proud to announce the launch of our new Guild Wars 2 community site! Check it out for forums, news, information and more!

http://www.guildfans.com/story.html?story=24060

My name is Jeahr, though some older members of the Guild Wars community may also know me as JR. I've been involved with the fansite business for many years, and I'm pleased to have the opportunity to work with ZAM on opening this site. Guild Wars 2 is a game I'm incredibly excited for, and we're hoping to provide the best experience for every community member here.

-Star Trek Online News-

Enterprise Bundle in the C-Store

Buy all four Enterprise-themed extras and save 20 percent! This pack includes theFederation NX Class Starship Replica, Federation Costume Pack: Enterprise, Federation Costume Pack: Enterprise Mirror Uniforms - Circa 2160, and the Federation Costume Pack: T'Pol.

Season Three: The Genesis Info

http://www.startrekonline.com/season_three

-Turbine Point Cards-

Turbine Point Cards are prepaid cards that you can purchase at your local Target, Best Buy or GameStop retailers.  WHAT?? WAIT PAID GAME CARDS FOR FTP??

Get your cards at GameStop, Best Buy or Target today and receive FREE Turbine Points with every purchase. The $10 card gives you 120 FREE points, for a total of 750 Turbine Points. The $25 card gives you 450 FREE points, for a total of 2,000 Turbine Points. These offers are valid only while supplies last at participating GameStop, Best Buy and Target retailers, so don't wait!

http://www.lotro.com/news/latestnews/893-turbine-point-card

-All Points Bulletin, The Second Coming.-

Earlier this year Realtime Worlds fell apart and the game “All Points Bulletin” became another Game casualty.

...and then there was light...

APB picked up by GamersFirst

“APB: Reloaded” and reloaded as Free-to-play

76 days and in the toilet...and back out.

-Virtual Real Estate-

Last year, an investor named Erik Novak broke the record for the largest single expenditure in a virtual world, paying $330,000 for a space station in Project Entropia, an online science fiction world where the economy for laser rifles and body armor ultimately comes down to U.S. dollars. But now a group of investors has set a new record, operating in the same game, paying $635,000 for Entropia mogul Jon Jacobs' "Club Neverdie." More than half of that, $335,000, came from a single investor.

The club's previous owner was earning $200,000 a year by taxing every virtual transaction that occurs within the confines of the game space. Panasjuk and the other investors hope to be able to start turning a profit with similar numbers.

http://www.aolnews.com/surge-desk/article/entropia-universe-housing-bubble-man-pays-335000-for-a-virtual-property/19724395

-Die2Nite- Game review English-language beta of free to play zombie apocalypse survival game

« A little after midnight, a deathly silence fell all around you, as if all life had suddenly come to a halt. The night was icy cold... Then you saw them, dozens of them... hundreds even, meandering towards you... Their hands grasp you, grab you, pull and claw at you... Then they drag you with them throughout the night, to be devoured in the small hours. »

Yes...Dead, dead and eaten ...

BETA

A Real-time multiplayer browser game – It's the kind where you log in throughout the day to check your status and perform actions – Reminds me of Zynga games, Facebook games.

Originally a French game that was praised by said press.

I spent hours searching for salvage out in the desert, and when I finally came back I came back empty handed and the gate was closed.

..yep and in order to get in ..you have to frantically post on your communities forum to get in.

You get dropped into a village with a randomized name with several other players from your time zone, and the goal is to survive. Every night the village gets assaulted by zombies, and every day you head out into the desert to scavenge for items. Items them to build anything from walls to guard towers to workshops.

Your village has a wall around it and can only be entered through a main gate, which in turn can only be opened or closed from the inside. If somebody closes the gate too early, the stragglers have no choice but to leave a frenzied posts on your town’s forum to try and save themselves from becoming a late-night snack. If nobody remembers to close the gate, Your town ends up a drive thru.


You can die. The whole town can die.


This is why the size of the player base is so perfect. When there’s only 40 of you, you’re all important. For one thing, new players aren’t added after your village is created, and for another thing any dead players become more zombies. Also, in a group that small it’s easy for anybody to rise up and become leaders by giving advice and issuing orders on your town’s messageboard, and anyone trying to be a lone wolf and look after themselves (taking items from the town’s supply dump, say, or stealing) will not only make a noticeable impact, but it’s a relatively easy process to turn enough of the town against them to get them banished, or even hung.

COLONY OF NIGHTS WITHOUT END (2)

No news from our 7 courageous citizens who ventured into the World Beyond yesterday. If in doubt, pillage their house...

It should be noted that last night, some citizens report having seen EvilG opening the gates just before the attack. There are also some who say that it wasn't entirely accidental... Result: 7 deaths.

- The Crow

“What am I playing”

Priston Tale II the 2^nd Enigma

Unreal Engine

April 12 2010 Game Bridger unveiled today the name of its new free-to-play games portal, GamerKraft

RIDING A DAMN RABBIT

Guild/Clan/Squad/Fleet

a group of people joined for a common interest.

WHY?

“It's Work”

Solo was difficult then – Joining meant survival

Social benefits- “Honey I'm Home” - “Guys at the Pub” “the Hang out”

Beat the curve, Learning curve – In game help?

Leadership Appreciation Weekend

SOLO player in an MMO

“We are different, you and I”

What makes you different in your MMO?

Or, what makes you consistent...Class, Race, weapons.

Theif, hunter, sniper, rogue or that guy with the big gun

Related articles

• ArenaNet Community and Content Manager departing for Undead Labs (massively.com)
• Guide to the Hearts of the North in Guild Wars (brighthub.com)

Happy Holiday and News

Hello Closet'teers...

Due to the Holiday, We will not have a live show or a Podcast for this week but will return in pure Wardrobe fashion the following week.

We have been busy in our 4X4 world, and I want to take this opportunity to share the news. Along with a live show and recorded Podcast with our friends at GNET Radio, we have added more Closet time with another project.

Over the last few weeks Art's Closet has also been found at Blade Radio. Blade Radio has been the Internet Radio Station for Guild Wars over the last several years and are beginning to branch out into other games. Currently, Blade Radio has entered into Star Trek Online and of course will be catering to Guild Wars 2 upon release.

At Blade Radio, our format is just little different. We host a three hour show with weekly segments: Every Friday at 12pCST

“Gaming News” - Commentary on random news topics from the gaming world.

“It's a Gamers Life” - A lighthearted look at the life of Gamers, in and out of the game.

“Twin Journey's” - 2 Halfling brothers who just don't know what game they’re in (Halfling Skits)

“Closet Mail Bag” - Listener e-mail

“Closet Rock Block” - This segment varies from playing music to talking about it.

The management at Blade Radio are working on an area to host “Art's Closet” with a Blog and per-recorded shows. When everything is finalized all links will be found here.

This Blog will continue as well our relationship with GNET Radio, we are just branching out.

I want to wish everyone a happy holiday filled with good times, good food and family fellowship.

Happy Holiday from Art's Closet.

Related articles

• Guild Wars fansite hosts "Night of the Mini Pets" community event (massively.com)

Episode 2

Audio trouble again this week *sigh*, but we will do our best to work through it. What I managed to save I should have posted soon. We didn't cover everything in our notes but at least we have the notes..

....Russ

PC Love -

Game topics from the week.

EverQuest House of Thule....

....is the seventeenth expansion of the ground breaking EverQuest franchise. Now in its unprecedented twelfth year, EverQuest continues to add immersive game play, captivating storytelling and exciting worlds to its legacy, now set in a never-before-seen dreamland full of mystery and adventure. House of Thule offers an expansion rich in content and packed with game-changing features including a level cap increase and the addition of player housing, which new players, veterans and MMO fans will relish. http://www.everquest.com/everquest.vm

"Halo: Reach," the highly anticipated follow-up in the popular gaming series, will hit stores at midnight, Sept. 14, in more than 25 countries, and retailers around the world are gearing up for late-night launch events. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2369051,00.asp

The first "Halo" game made its debut in 2001, and the franchise includes follow-ups "Halo 2," "Halo Wars," and "Halo 3: ODST." Microsoft released a beta version of "Halo: Reach" in May, which attracted more than 2.7 million players who logged more than 16 million hours of game play.

Fans can line up at tens of thousands of retailers tonight to get their hands on the game at 12:01am local time. For those in New York City and other major cities, however, Microsoft will be going the extra mile with several star-studded launch events.
The standard edition of "Halo: Reach" will retail for $59.99, while Limited and Legendary editions will sell for $79.99 and $149.99, respectively. The Legendary version includes a 10-inch, hand-painted statue of the Noble Team, the Spartan soldiers featured in the game.
Microsoft is also offering an Xbox 360 Limited Edition "Halo: Reach" bundle that includes the 250GB Xbox 360 console, two limited edition wireless controllers and a standard copy of "Halo: Reach" for $399.99.


“This Software is licensed to you, not sold.”

While the US Supreme Court’s 102-year-old "first-sale" doctrine says that copyright holders can't prevent consumers from reselling or renting a product after an initial sale, the US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a 2008 decision affirming Vernor's right to sell the used software, ruling that Autodesk’s contract made it clear that the rights to install its programs were being licensed rather than sold. http://www.next-gen.biz/news/court-ruling-threatens-used-game-sales

The ruling aims to distinguish between when a piece of software is sold and when it is merely licensed, with the user potentially unable to resell if it's the latter.

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/30370/Court_Of_Appeals_Ruling_Threatens_Sale_Of_Used_Games.php

Many other popular software programs already installed on home and office computers are covered by licensing agreements using similar language to Autodesk's programs, Beck said.
"That means the infrastructure already is in place for other software makers to say their customers don't really own those programs," he said. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100910/ap_on_hi_te/us_tec_software_resale

b) Game of the week: 

Guild Wars 2- NCSoft/ArenaNet

In our new MMO Manifesto video, ArenaNet Studio Lead Mike O'Brien and key creators explain how Guild Wars 2 will defy MMO conventions and create a new kind of game - free from boring grind and static, unchanging worlds. Loaded with incredible gameplay footage, the MMO Manifesto video charts a bold new direction in gaming.

Personal interaction - Your character's story reflects your interest and your choices - no two players will have the same experience.


One of the challenges of a massively-multiplayer game is that in being inclusive to a vast number of people, it loses a lot of the personal interaction that makes single-player RPGs so much fun. When you're looking at the games on the store shelf, it seems you have only two options - a game that you can play with your friends, or a game that has a satisfying personal story. The Guild Wars 2 design team believes that a game should have both
http://www.guildwars2.com/en/the-game/personal-stories/personal-story-overview/

Dynamic Events

In Guild Wars 2, our event system won't make you read a huge quest description to find out what's going on. You'll experience it by seeing and hearing things in the world. If a dragon is attacking, you won't read three paragraphs telling you about it, you'll see buildings exploding in giant balls of fire, and hear characters in the game world screaming about a dragon attack. You'll hear guards from nearby cities trying to recruit players to go help fight the dragon, and see huge clouds of smoke in the distance, rising from the village under siege. http://guildwars2.com/en/the-game/dynamic-events/dynamic-events-overview/

Environmental Weapons

So the weapons you're currently holding in your hands determine your first five skills. Breaking a barstool over the head of a rowdy bar patron can yield a chair leg that can be used to great effect as a club. http://guildwars2.com/en/the-game/combat/part-two/

In Guild Wars 2, we’re going even further to make the out-of-combat experience a role playing experience by introducing “personality” as a player character role. How you respond to other characters develops and changes your personality over time, letting you affect how the game treats you. Personality is your character’s attitude toward others; it grows and changes as you play through your personal story and as you adventure in the persistent world.

http://www.arena.net/blog/personality-in-guild-wars-2

c) PC Retro: 

The 7th Guest -

The 7th Guest, produced by Trilobyte and released by Virgin Games in 1993[3], is an FMV-based puzzle video game. It was one of the first computer video games to be released only on CD-ROM. The 7th Guest is a horror story told from the unfolding perspective of the player, as an amnesiac. The game received a great amount of press attention for making live action video clips a core part of its gameplay, for its unprecedentedly large amount of pre-rendered 3D graphics, and for its adult content.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7th_Guest

An older game title that is always up for debate, its either okay, or awful

Rock n Roll -

Music/Song/Artist topics of the week.

a) News from the pit

2 Dio tracks for Rockband came out on Tuesday

“Holy Diver” and “Stand up and Shout”

http://www.rockband.com/forums/showthread.php?p=4011463#post4011463

Ozzy and Halford Tour -

OZZY OSBOURNE will return to North America for a month-long arena tour launching November 12 in Victoria, B.C. and concluding December 12 in Minneapolis. These shows--in support of his album SCREAM and latest single “Life Won’t Wait”--are part the of the Rock Legend’s in-progress 18-month world tour on which he’s earning some of the best live reviews of his career (including raves for new guitarist, *Gus G). HALFORD, featuring legendary Judas Priest front man, Rob Halford, will perform on all dates. The first leg of arena dates will mark OZZY’s first headlining North American tour since 2007’s trek for his Black Rain album. Tickets for the Live Nation-produced tour go on sale beginning Friday, September 17.
http://www.ozzy.com/us/news/ozzy-annouces-north-american-arena-tour
http://www.robhalford.com/index.php
No More PoP music at funerals


In Australia, The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne has banned the use of pop music at funerals, according to The New York Times. Archbishop Denis Hart has said the act of playing pop songs is not considered “a celebration of the life” of the deceased.
The new guidelines state: “Secular items are never to be sung or played at a Catholic funeral, such as romantic ballads, pop or rock music, political songs, football club songs.”
The Melbourne Hearld Sun reported that football songs are popular at many funerals, in addition to pop hits. Although Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” and Bette Midler’s “The Wind Beneath My Wings” are often requested, the newspaper reported that quirkier choices like AC/DC’s “Highway to Hell,” Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust” and Monty Python’s “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life” also had been popular before the ban.

http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyle/News/archbishop-0913/

Metallica, How many versions of a song is worth having...????

We're getting psyched up for our return to Australia and New Zealand next week (September 15, 2010 Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne, AUS) . . . it's been six long years since we've visited and we're ready to throw down! The nice people at Universal Music were so darn excited that they actually suggested that we release something special to commemorate this last run of World Magnetic tour dates, so . . . ta-da . . . we present the "Six Feet Down Under" limited edition EP! Coming to Trans-Tasman record stores and right here at the Metallica.com Store on September 20. 

http://www.metallica.com/index.asp?item=603343

http://www.livemetallica.com/default.aspx

"This is the next logical step in a process that began back in 1991 when we first implemented the 'Taper Section' at our shows, where the fans were encouraged to bring in their own gear to record the show, and then take home their very own 'bootleg' of the concert they had just seen." said Metallica's Lars Ulrich.

http://www.metallica.com/index.asp?item=2542

b) Artist/Song of the week: 

Alice Cooper

Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier; February 4, 1948)[1] is an American rock singer, songwriter and broadcaster whose career spans more than five decades. With a stage show that features guillotines, electric chairs, fake blood, boa constrictors and baby dolls, Cooper has drawn equally from horror movies, vaudeville, and garage rock to pioneer a grandly theatrical and violent brand of heavy metal that was designed to shock.

Alice Cooper's "shock rock" reputation apparently developed almost by accident at first. An unrehearsed stage routine involving Cooper and a live chicken garnered attention from the press, and the band decided to capitalize on the tabloid sensationalism, creating in the process a new subgenre, shock rock. Cooper claims that the infamous "Chicken Incident" at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival concert in September 1969, was an accident. A chicken somehow made its way on stage during Cooper's performance; not having any experience around farm animals, Cooper presumed that, because the chicken had wings, it would be able to fly.[24] He picked it up and threw it out over the crowd, expecting it to fly away. The chicken instead plummeted into the first few rows occupied by disabled people in wheelchairs, who reportedly proceeded to tear the bird to pieces.[25]

Cooper's first album Pretties for You, released in 1969, had a slight psychedelic feel. Although it touched the US charts for one week at #193, it was ultimately a critical and commercial failure.

Despite the publicity from the Chicken Incident, the band's stronger second album, Easy Action, released in 1970, met with the same fate as its predecessor.

"I'm Eighteen", released in November 1970

The album that followed, Love it to Death, released in February 1971, proved to be their breakthrough record, 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Cooper

http://www.alicecooper.com/

Alice Cooper delivers a killer show at Riverside Theater

“His voice hasn't been affected much by age. If anything, his weathered growl accented the gritty lyrics of "Vengeance Is Mine," "Poison" and "Under My Wheels."

Milwaukee Wisconsin - Journal Sentinel
By Erik Ernst, Special to the Journal Sentinel

c) Singing Yin and Yang: this segment covers the “not my type” of music but will listen to the song

“Sly and the Family Stone”

Sly and the Family Stone are an American rock, funk, and soul band from San Francisco, California. Active from 1966 to 1983, the band was pivotal in the development of soul, funk, and psychedelic music. Headed by singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist Sly Stone, and containing several of his family members and friends, the band was the first major American rock band to have an "integrated, multi-gender" lineup.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sly_and_the_Family_Stone

http://www.slystonemusic.com/

Full Flavored MMO

Whatever happened to the days of grabbing your sword and shield for a good old killing spree.

It was bumped for a job.

I have killed 20 Bugbears, completed 15 Quests for the Mayor, saved a small village from certain doom all before noon. I'm bored, guess I'll go stand around in the center of town. It's like the game developers thought there just wasn’t enough. In fact, they thought about it to the point of creating jobs.

Image via Wikipedia

For me it all started with a box, or crate in Everquest. I would combine certain components to make Fish Rolls. It's not good enough that I had to quest all day to buy rancid water and bread, now I have a trade, I have a job. I made......fish rolls.

If that wasn’t humiliating enough. 

Not only did I have to craft things I could use,

I eventually had to go get the resources myself?

“You mean I need a pick, a shovel and an Axe?”

And what happened to my clicky crate? Now I have to slave over a hot stove and watch closely so that it doesn’t get to hot, or I fail. I remember people in EQ2 getting dead working at a forge. Too many reactions that didn’t get counteracted and you end up taking a dirt nap, that was harsh but the Forge got a "Ding".

The endeavor to make games bigger and better, more immersible and bring that “something new” to the masses, have really put the Mass in Massive.

“I am a Cleric of 50 seasons and a candle stick maker.” ..and I thinks it's cool.

It's opened up alternatives for all gamers. I've known several that spent more time harvesting and crafting than adventuring, because its what they liked to do. Of course those are the people to be friends with if you don't have a job. They have 6 character slots and each one has a trade, that person is their own store.

I know there are many debates on the need or if there is a true benefit, but in the circles I've traveled over the years craftsmen were always needed. Its just another facet of the MMO that can be enjoyed. I know myself that after a hard or long day, harvesting can be relaxing. All is good in the world. We have adventuring, crafting and harvesting. One could almost be self sufficient making their own food, armor or weapons. It seem to be a healthy balance, until someone wanted to parley,

“Parley what?”

Image via Wikipedia

When Vanguard Saga of Heroes shared their “Spheres” with the public, Diplomacy was their new, never before attempted without a safety net, show for the gaming world, one more Job for the player. I don't believe that diplomacy achieved all the goals that were set, of course there were a lot of goals for Vanguard that fell short. 

On a side note here, Vanguard was just short of perfection for what I wanted in an MMO, performance issues shortened my time there, it has so much potential.

Image via Wikipedia

The beginning concept of diplomacy was unique, and for me, very enjoyable. This was just another road to travel for the gamer along with everything else, crafting, harvesting and adventuring. We have the perfect world now, complete with work and recreation.



Friday night I am going to run a Dungeon with the guys and Saturday I am going fishing, but first a little diplomacy with the Missus.




What more can a gamer want in their fantasy world.
I know...how about some personality.

Image via Wikipedia

Curtis Johnson, one of the designers on Guild Wars 2,  gives us a little insight.

In Guild Wars 2, we’re going even further to make the out-of-combat experience a role playing experience by introducing “personality” as a player character role. How you respond to other characters develops and changes your personality over time, letting you affect how the game treats you. Personality is your character’s attitude toward others; it grows and changes as you play through your personal story and as you adventure in the persistent world

Read more of Curtis's Blog here

Okay, now we're complete. Personality is the piece that my world was lacking. I now have character for my character. Curtis does say that there are some rewards but the adverse effect doesn’t make you an outcast. If you are honorable there will be perks, if you are a jerk you will just have to pay a little more for service or they will spit in your soup at the Inn. It's really not an issue on how big a role personality will have, but more of how will the world react to you. I do remember the feeling in my early EQ2 days on how I was approached depending on my faction. It was nice the day I was saluted entering the Freeport Militia House.

There isn’t the pot of gold or a major end game advantage, it's just another, rather cool, facet of the game to work with. I do understand the benefits of crafting, harvesting, diplomacy and I am sure personality will have its place as well. I simply see this as being another choice or option for the gamer to advance as an individual in our wonderful world.

Adventure awhile, craft awhile, harvest awhile, then negotiate a night at the tavern with the Missus and cash in on your Karma. Now that’s a day at the office, if we can get them all into one MMO.