victorbjr

Instead of a small number of long updates, we seem to have a lot of little awesome things to discuss this week, from free trials, to hunt theorycrafting, to a 14-hour Japanese extravaganza commemorating the first year of A Realm Reborn. Join me as we round up the awesome for a bit of discussion.

As SOE readies itself for SOE Live, a dry spell is coming for the information seekers of Landmark. That said, the most recent update to Landmark – along with the upcoming August 6 update – should provide aspiring builders with some good feels to tide them over from not having Landmark Live for a few weeks.

Victor Barreiro Jr. describes the Hunt system of FFXIV, what changes it brings to player behavior, and why he thinks Hunts are the uncomfortable beginnings of a bigger plan to improve the game.

I tell you about the awe-inspiring and terrifying power of connectedness to others because someone told me a tale that remindedly deeply of how the bonds that tie us together can also be the very one that break us entirely. This is the tale of a young woman named Edda, her adventuring band, and the severed head she carried in a box after our first fateful meeting.

Aside from the tale of a kitten Sony Online Entertainment has adopted, one important Landmark related update is that a new island will test builders’ imaginations The best builders will be given the privilege of having their creations immortalized in Everquest Next and Norrathian history.

Let’s welcome back the Final Fantasy XIV column to MMORPG.com by getting everyone up to speed with Patch 2.3: Defenders of Eorzea. We’ve got new activities to enjoy, a fearsome primal to defeat, Moogle and Hildibrand goodness to experience, and personal chambers to decorate with awesome crafted goodies.

With little information on Everquest Next available at present and the fact that SOE’s Everquest Next/Landmark team is at E3 itself, there is a small chance we may see some Everquest Next-related news or updates tacked onto Landmark showpieces on E3. To wit, I’d like to list down three things I would like to see or hear from SOE upon the MMORPG.com team’s return from E3.

Aside from the long-awaited introduction of cave formations into Landmark’s landmasses, the June 9 update will introduce swimming into the game! How do these two new features combine to add more adventurous experiences? Read on!

Aside from the earnest reveal of SOE’s Dark Elf architectural and aesthetic style guide, Landmark also provided some great news for those who are looking forward to caves but are afraid of losing everything again: there will be very minimal damage or wiping to existing claims.

Hi folks! I was down last week with an illness so I couldn’t get to making a column for last week, and it seems this week the folks at Sony Online Entertainment have wildfires and safety issues they need to contend with. Let’s wish them all well and hope they get through this time without any trouble.

This week's Landmark livestream felt light on the surface, what with a discussion of a set of rustic-themed props being the primary sort of feature discussion. Hidden among the informative tidbits this week, however, is the awesome new power that will be wielded by beta testers for visiting other folks' claims once the latest patch comes in: teleportation!

I find myself enthused by this week's livestream for Landmark, partly because Omeed Dariani always seems hilariously tipsy and pun-filled while working. Aside from that, the livestream actually walks me through the new enhancements that are on their way to Landmark.

In today’s Landmark column, we’ll be discussing part of the recent Landmark Live show, which introduced two new features into the game, as well as talking for a short while about the game’s upkeep system, which some of my friends online have noted can use a bit of discussion: the nature of upkeep for player housing.

This week's Landmark column goes back to the tried and tested formula of discussing recent goings-on in the Landmarky-mark world of Sony Online Entertainment (SOE). Aside from an incoming Landmark patch, which should be active by the time you're reading this, one other point of discussion is the update to the All-Access subscription plan.

Sony Online Entertainment's (SOE) Director of Development for the Everquest franchise, Dave Georgeson, talked to IGN about the free-to-play model. While he says there's “nothing wrong” with subscriptions, he now says “free-to-play is the way that gamers should want their MMOs to be, and the reason I think that is that if we don’t do a really good job and we don’t entertain the player, we don’t make a dime.”