PlanetSide 2 Message Board older than one year ago

I’m beginning to think gaming industry people don’t actually know what the word “dead” means. Back in my day, it was a pretty final thing – oftentimes even considered fatal. Now, though, if something doesn’t have all eyes on it, it’s apparently dead and gone forever. Just ask adventure games and, oh right, that whole “entirety of PC gaming” thing. And now, with the era of WoW’s incomparable dominion drawing to a close, MMOs seem to be getting the same treatment. But that’s a knee-jerk reaction. Nothing’s six feet under just yet. The writing is, however, on the wall, and its message is quite clear: change or lose your audience to boredom’s creeping clutches. But how? Well, if you ask SOE president John Smedley, it’s time to stop railroading players and start letting them live their virtual lives as they see fit. I know because I did, er, ask him. I also asked him about replicating the success of EVE Online, PlanetSide 2‘s eventual planet-based metagame, EverQuest Next‘s new incredibly player-driven reboot, and tons more.

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PlanetSide 2 takes place on a planet. An entire planet. If it didn’t, it’d be named Countryside, LargeLandmassSide, or Fred. And so, in that spirit, SOE’s adding a whole new continent – one of two more that are ultimately planned for the launch version. This one’s called Esamir, and it appears to be the estranged landson of the ice planet Hoth, what with all its frigid unpleasantness and potential for series-defining moments starring Harrison Ford. Take a peek at its peaks, valleys, and dangerously low-flying aircraft after the break.

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There was something I neglected to mention in my previous observations about Planetside 2′s version of the venerable Galaxy drop ship, and that was the tactical implications of having it as the mobile base and spawning point. I’d been meaning to discuss it for a while, but then SOE went and fixed the problem. They promoted the Sunderer – Planetside 2′s bus-like person-carrier – to the role they had originally designated to the Galaxy.

Thoughts on this, and more besides, resides below.(more…)

By membership, of course, they mean subscription. While Planetside 2 will be completely free to play, a subscription confers a number of benefit. In response to the beta feedback the $15 a month sub will now confer: “25-50% increased resource gain, 25-50% increased XP gain, 25-50% increased passive cert point gain.” Each of these “start at 25% and increase by 5% per month of sustained membership up to a total bonus of 50% each at 6+ months membership.” Then there’s a priority login queue for subs, early Access to new cosmetic items on the store and 500 StationCash each month. Personally I suspect I will be paying for one of these for at least the first few months.

Meanwhile, I’ve been playing a bit in the beta, and feel that this remains one of the most exciting games out there right now. I will have some more thoughts on the progress of that beta a little later in the week. Our community is getting organised in this thread. Join us!

Redundancy police, beware. I’m about to commit a heinous crime the likes of which will make you physically ill even after your 30 years on the force. I will now use the word “impressive” until it loses all meaning. Here goes: PlanetSide 2 is an impressive game. It’s impressively large, yet also impressively free-to-play, and that impresses me. Not only that, SOE’s been impressively open about the development process and its intentions for the gigantotronic shooter behemoth. And now, based on a new post from creative director Matt Higby, I get the impression that SOE’s impressively dedicated to steering clear of pay-to-win’s slippery slope.

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PlanetSide 2‘s beta is up and running (and flying and shooting and doing whatever tanks do), and it has many things. Jim, of course, has chronicled a large number of them in his characteristically handsome fashion. But, if you believe SOE’s rhetoric, that’s only the tip of the iceberg. And it’s not particularly difficult to believe, seeing as it’s getting ready to drop an entire continent on us. And then another continent after that, but probably not until much, much later. Also headed to our side of the PlanetSide planet: performance improvements, gunplay tweaks, and, well, maybe a delay – if need be. According to SOE, this one’s launching “when it’s ready, and not before.”

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Thus far, PlanetSide 2 has proven to be pretty great, but it’s definitely not perfect. The main issue, as I see it, is that it’s not currently being played by everyone on Earth. But then, it is only in beta, and that’s simply the nature of the beast. It doesn’t have to be, though. Not anymore. SOE, you S-O-see, just kicked off a new “Alpha Squad” program. Yes, it’ll run you $40 for a planet-sized shooter that is – technically speaking - free-to-play, but this is actually a pretty nice deal. Allow me to explain.

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Blimey, I really am enjoying Planetside 2. Even more than I thought I would. But the initial excitement of epic ultra-war is passing, and I have begun to gather my thoughts more sensibly. And they have begun their precipitation upon the changes made to the Galaxy dropship – a lumbering skybeast designed for hauling folk around the wide open maps – which is central to both the original Planetside, and the opalescent sequel. Its role, however, is a little different in the new game, and something about the way Planetside 2 works means that one of the most thrilling aspects of the original game – the hotdrop – seems to have fallen into disfavour. I’ll try to explain, as well as bundling in a bunch of other thoughts on the ongoing beta, below.(more…)

Planetside 2 is in beta. You can sign up here. You should sign up, because it’s brilliant.

I’ve been in there for a week, and with the NDA having dropped, I’ve posted a few thoughts below.(more…)

AND I’M NOT ONE OF THEM WAAAAAAAAAAH.

That’s all this post is, really – a public lamentation that I’m not part of the latest New Hotness, said New Hotness being fab-looking MMOFPS Planetside 2, which has finally opened its door to a selected few members of the public. Hopefully I’ll be welcomed to the ranks of the eternal tri-war before too long – meantime, how have you lot go on? Clearly, we shall have to form some sort of enormous RPS faction once this thing is up and running for more of the public. No doubt the recent reveal that Planetside 2 is coming to Steam in addition to SOE’s Station platform will help make what’s already likely to be a huge playerbase all the huger. Sign up for the beta here, though it may be sometime before you’re given the king’s shilling.(more…)

It may come as something of a surprise to you that you aren’t waging futuristic war on a massive scale while listening to “Ride of the Valkyries” right now. Speaking personally, it’s a thought that crosses my mind every day. Thing is, it’s actually not a minor form of mania today, as PlanetSide 2′s beta was supposed to have touched down by now. It is, however, nowhere to be found, and there’s a very good reason for that: a last-second delay – albeit, a pretty minor one.

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The Planetside 2 beta was originally, enthusiastically planned to begin today or tomorrow, but has now been pushed to "Friday or Monday," SOE president John Smedley tweets. On Thursday Smedley said the beta would launch early this week "barring any unforeseen circumstances."

Such circumstances must have included not having enough awesome, since today Smedley notes the delay is because "we have some stuff we need to make sure is awesome," and the team needs to polish and test a few things before a "massive" number of people attempt to play. We're not sure what scale SOE measures the awesomeness of its games by, but it looks like Planetside 2 is aiming for very.

The game might be free, but it's a safe bet this Blur-produced trailer wasn't.

Ready for war? How ready? Ready enough that being on the edge of your seat is starting to feel comfortable? So ready that you don’t merely dream of epic battles on continent sized maps, but consider the time spent doing so to be mental training? If someone said “You might be able to play Planetside 2 as early as Monday?” would you nod politely, or explode with excitement? If the latter, read no further – at least until you’ve put down lots of plastic sheeting.

No, really. You wouldn’t want to get giblets in the carpet now, would you?

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Planetside 2's closed beta will begin "NEXT MON OR TUESDAY BARRING ANY UNFORSEEN CIRCUMSTANCES," according to an all-caps tweet from SOE president John Smedley. Invitations to the beta, which Smedley refers to as a "real beta" and not a "marketing gimmick," will automatically be sent to everyone that ever subscribed to the original Planetside.

Additionally, anyone without a Planetside history that is interested in testing out the new digs can opt in to the program on its official website. Invites are being sent out in waves, with priority given to active Planetside subscribers, inactive past subscribers and then opt in entrants, in that order. Can we somehow opt in to the beta while opting out of being stabbed by invisible robots? Seems like a downer.

#planetside Premiering live today at the 2012 China Digital Entertainment Expo & Conference, PlanetSide 2's 'Death is No Excuse' CGI trailer takes the spirit of Sony Online Entertainment's upcoming massively multiplayer online first-person shooter and dresses it up in a fancy coat of blood-splattered CGI. If only the game were so pretty. More »

PlanetSide 2 has a CGI trailer. And of course it’s as pointless as all other CGI trailers. But I post it more to say, look, Sony are spending enough money on this game for there to be pointless CGI trailers. And weirdly, as much of a waste of that money as it was, and as galling as it must be for the developers to ponder what they could have done with the cash, it makes me realise that this is a game the flailing PS3 owner is taking seriously. If you see what I mean.

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The PlanetSide 2 beta approaches. If you gaze off into the distance, you can see it lumbering our direction – largely because the more-massively-multiplayer-than-every-other-massively-multiplayer shooter looks to be bigger than Earth. SOE’s officially rolling out the red carpet in the form of a conveniently organized what-you-need-to-know list, and – as it turns out – it translates roughly to “a lot of things.” Let us slip into our most comfortable sifting gloves and have a go at it after the break.

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Perhaps even this week, if rumours be true…

You can’t see me right now, but I’m – at least, near as I can tell – dancing some kind of jig. I think that’s the proper, technical term, anyway. I believe it’s something that occurs when people either become very excited or develop serious medical conditions. Regardless, PlanetSide 2‘s beta is officially right around the corner, so this is a glorious occasion. Specifically, in a new behind-the-scenes video, executive producer Josh Hackney noted that lucky fans will be able to play the beta on a PC that belongs to them in a house they don’t have to leave “within the next month.” Jubilation! That, however, ate up roughly three seconds of a 21-minute video. It’s probably a major understatement to say that there’s more after the break.

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#planetside Why do I want more PC gamers to get excited upcoming massively-multiplayer first-person shooter PlanetSide 2? Am I a masochist? Am I in the pocket of Sony Online Entertainment, bribed by all of that cash they made on The Agency? No, the answer is much simpler than that: I want to kill you all. More »

Here's a ton of information about each class, vehicle and the game features of PlanetSide 2 presented in this theater presentation from E3 2012.

Zebra soldiers! That's what they showed!

You can’t. It’s impossible. I mean, yes, PlanetSide 2 is a first-person shooter, so a certain amount of flying lead is to be expected. This trailer, though, takes it to absurd new heights. For me, the sound of gunfire and explosions eventually became akin to the comforting pitter-patter of raindrops outside my house. Countless virtual men lost their lives, and I wanted to curl up under a blanket with a good book. So probably never put me in a real sci-fi future purple warzone. At any rate, this trailer’s pretty astonishing – though I think it’d leave me a bit worried if I hadn’t already seen others. Open fire on the break to see the full thing.

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Gather your ground assault troops and combat vehicles to drill through the defense in PlanetSide 2.

We’re all acutely aware of this one, now. The big remake of the only MMOFPS to have got it right, 2003′s Planetside. So close. Yeah, and there’s still no date on this. The closed beta is in progress, and this is one of so, so many trailers. Come on SOE. It’s time. Let us at it!

Another spectacular red-on-purple-on-yellow/blue action below.(more…)

Fight on land or in the air in this enormously customizable MMOFPS.

We check out the vehicle customization, take to the skies in a powerful Reaver, then dive into the mission system.

Hundreds of troops wage war simultaneously in the massive online shooter, PlanetSide 2.

Gear up and defend the facility!

#e32012 Publishers are rolling out their E3 line-ups just as the big convention rears its massive head. We've even had some somewhat-surprising, but really-not-that-surprising reveals come of these announcements, too. More »