Conventions are always a great time for developers to spill the beans about what’s next for their most anticipated titles, and PAX is a Prime venue (you’re welcome) for big announcements. Our staff was on the ground for all things related to MMOs and RPGs at PAX Prime 2015. Here are five of the most interesting stories from last week’s conference!
5. Sword Coast Legends is Still Awesome
Sword Coast Legends is a hot pick for the next big thing to hit isometric RPGs, and n-Space/Digital Extremes’ upcoming game showed up big time at PAX this year. Rob got to take the DM mode for a spin, and said simply, “Even if Sword Coast Legends didn’t have a premade campaign to start with and I just focused on the DM toolkit it would still be my game of show for PAX.” You’ll be hard pressed to find a better recommendation than that.
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4. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided Gets a Release Date
Deus Ex: Human Revolution was a great game with strange boss battles and a weird culmination, and the much-anticipated sequel received a launch date at PAX Prime. Square Enix has billed Deus Ex: Mankind Divided for a multiplatform release on February 23, 2016, and you can now pre-order the game and get ready to stealth your way into the future.
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3. Atlas Reactor is a Game
Among impressions and announcements for Devilian, ArcheAge, and Rift, Trion Worlds announced their newest free-to-play title, Atlas Reactor. Bill has some impressions of the turn-based tactical game, and it looks like an interesting multiplayer take on XCom or Shadowrun Returns’ gameplay, with a cel-shaded Borderlands aesthetic. It’s also coming out for PC and Mac next year.
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2. Final Fantasy XV Announces Its Release Announcement
As seems to be the trend for a lot of blockbuster games, Final Fantasy XV has received a release date...for its release date. A lot of us here at MMORPG.com are excited for the next installment in the Final Fantasy series, and at PAX, Square Enix confirmed that it’s indeed coming in 2016, although we’ll have to wait until March for an official launch date.
1. Guild Wars 2 goes F2P; Heart of Thorns Launches October 23
It’s safe to say that ArenaNet planned to pack a punch at PAX Prime 2015, and they came out swinging. Their flagship title Guild Wars 2 is now free-to-play and will be be getting 10-player raids with Heart of Thorns when the expansion launches on October 23. Not only is this the biggest news that we’ve heard from GW2 for a while, it’s doubly spectacular because HoT releases on my birthday. Thanks, ArenaNet!
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Honorable Mention: WildStar’s Free-to-Play Release is September 29
Though announced after all the PAX weekend craziness, Carbine Studios dropped the release date last week for WildStar’s free-to-play transition. You’ll be able to jump into Nexus for free come September 29, so you might as well download the game and start updating now!
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What are some of your highlights from PAX Prime 2015?
Som Pourfarzaneh / Som is a Staff Writer at MMORPG.com and a Lecturer in Media, Anthropology, and Religious Studies. He’s a former Community Manager for Neverwinter, the free-to-play Dungeons & Dragons MMORPG from Cryptic Studios and Perfect World Entertainment, and is unreasonably good at Maze Craze for the Atari 2600. You can read his weekly column or exchange puns and chat (European) football with him on Twitter @sominator.
