GameByNight

Star Citizen is one of the most highly anticipated games being developed in years. The game has defied expectation, time and again, and built up one of the most dedicated fanbases on the internet. This week, fans were lucky enough to receive an official path to release, a timetable for what to expect this year and the starry-eyed “commercial launch” of 2016.

My name is Chris, and I have a problem. In 2009, I realized that I don’t like Fallout. I have tried, over and over, to connect with what gamers love in these titles and just can’t. Games have been bought and rebought chasing the elusive dragon that is the post-apocalypse. I’ve made excuses, rolled multiple characters, and forced myself to play. I like Elder Scrolls, so why not this? This is my story.

January is the perfect time for reflection. It’s the start of a new year, a breath of fresh air after the last; a time to look back on the prior twelve months and learn the lessons that need to be learned before moving forward. I have a lesson for the games industry in case it missed it: stop trying to copy MMORPGs. Your games are worse because of it.

Full-time jobs, children, spouses… It happens to all of us: the good things swoop in and steal game time right out from under you. It begs the question: are MMOs even for us anymore? We’ve been through the wringer and have your answer, and eight crucial tips to make sure you succeed.

Another year has come and gone, and with that flurry of levels and experience points goes many of our most-wanted RPGs finally delivered. 2014 was a good year for roleplaying games with the likes of Dragon Age: Inquisition leading the pack but 2015 looks to be downright spectacular. We here at MMORPG have spent a lot of time discussing this year’s games, but with New Year’s Eve fast approaching, let’s look ahead to what next year has in store.

In the age where Dark Souls reigns supreme, Dragon Age: Inquisition can seem staggeringly easy. The last two weeks has seen conversations about the game dominated by harsh critiques of its difficulty. All you have to do is hold one button! critics claim, then collect your loot. The thing is, that’s not totally inaccurate, even if it does ignore huge swaths of the rest of the game. But you know what? I don’t much care. And do you know what else? Neither should you, and here’s why.

Thousands of fans woke up to letdown this week when CD Projekt Red announced that they would once again be delaying The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. MMO fans faced much the same when Zenimax announced that the console versions of The Elder Scrolls Online would be facing a similar delay and not release until sometime in 2015. Even through the haze of disappointment, there’s a silver lining here: maybe these games will actually work when they launch.

Gamergate has invaded the public consciousness. What was once a simple conversation about ethics in gaming journalism has spiraled into an all-out shouting match with anything progressive firmly falling in the movement’s sights and any critics being quickly labeled as bigots. As I’ve played through Dragon Age: Inquisition, encountering characters of every stripe and sexuality, my mind kept returning to these themes. Did Bioware include this character or that for a reason?

It’s Thanksgiving week here in America, and if you’re anything like us, you’re in a turkey-induced haze, ready to log into your favorite video game. It’s also a time of year to reflect and think about all of the things we’re grateful for. This week, the RPG Files is taking a break from its usual format to bring you the ten things we’re thankful for in modern RPGs.

Dragon Age is this generation’s Baldur’s Gate. It is a series built for the ten-year recollection, just like Mass Effect before it, where we sit and recall just how good the old games were and how new games should take the hint. It’s not the battles, not the bloody encounters with fade demons or dark spawn that burn these games into our memory. It’s the choices. The relationships. The story we forge for ourselves. In a nutshell, it’s everything we love about Dragon Age: Inquisition.

The holiday season has arrived, and with it comes the annual torrent of questions: what games are worth buying? Which games lived up to the hype? And most important of all, which in this diverse sea of games earns the coveted title of “Game of the Year”? We have a new question: even with leveling, and stats, and gear, how many of them – Destiny, Shadow of Mordor, Overwatch? – actually deserve to be called RPGs?

Prepare to Die. Has there even been a more appropriate tagline for an RPG than From Software’s Dark Souls? In an age where accessibility seemed to be the mantra, the Dark Souls franchise seemed to stick out its chin in defiance. As “punishingly difficult” and “supremely rewarding” became its selling points, masses of players rallied under its mystique, guaranteeing the rest of the industry would answer. Lords of the Fallen is that answer. The question is: does it stack up?

Too often, there exists a disparity between the feelings of game reviewers and game players. Such is the case with Destiny, the disappointing mega-hit we were told could only break our hearts with the letdown. What’s the deal, games industry? We answer that question, and break down the week’s biggest news, in this week’s RPG files.

Dragon Age: Inquisition will take single-players between 150-200 hours to complete. Even with a solo campaign of 20-40 hours, we ask the question: is it too much for a game that’s not Elder Scrolls to maintain?

Welcome back to another edition of the RPG Files! Each week we take a look at the latest and greatest in the world of roleplaying games and deliver it fresh with a side of commentary and more than a little snark. This week we’re taking cues MMO part of our site with the news that Star Wars: The Old Republic will be releasing a Revan-centric expansion, a character last seen in Knights of the Old Republic. Will we ever see a KOTOR 3? That and the news of the week in this week’s breakdown!