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Flash Point 71: Lacerating Chips and Potato Chocolate

January 26, 2014 by

flash-point podcastThe festive break is done and it’s fair to say we’re all hanging to get back into the saddle and start talking games. Apologies for some of the sound quality in parts as well.

Points of discussion:

SWTOR
– Rakghoul event
– Shout-outs to Jason, Dan and David on Twitter

Jawa Junk Pile
– FF XIV
– Rust
– WoW
– Hearthstone review with a hefty side-trip into Magic: The Gathering nerds
– Minion Rush
– Rocksmith
– Assorted TV/Movie recommendations

– Shout outs for our Facebook page, Twitter account, Simon’s Twitter account, Kristy’s Twitter account and ODS-1’s Twitter Account. – And don’t forget to buy an Oceanic Gamer T-Shirt or thirty!

Please review or rate the podcast on iTunes if you can – it makes a huge difference!

Listen via iTunes, on Stitcher or right here:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:00:50 — 27.9MB)

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Filed Under: General News, Podcast Tagged With:

Flash Point 70: We Have Space Paddocks

December 16, 2013 by

flashpoint-podcastWe’re back after an extra week off to talk about Galactic Starfighter, Ghostcrawler’s departure from Blizzard and another classic My Lore Is Stuck In Your Canon segment (which appears later in the show than it should thanks to David’s incompetence).

Points of discussion:

SWTOR
– Galactic Starfighter
– 2 years of SWTOR
– Shout out to Russ Moody for comment on last podcast
– Google robots and Amazon vegetable choppers

Jawa Junk Pile
– Simon’s PS4 review
– 2014 predictions
– Secret World demanding on hardware
– Marvel Heroes
– Ghostcrawler leaves Blizzard
– TV and movie recommendations for the Xmas break
– My Lore Is Stuck In Your Cannon: the Sith Empire and Galactic Republic in the future
– Shroud of the Avatar
– Depression Quest fiasco
– Tiny Death Star (Android version — iOS version)

– Shout outs for our Facebook page, Twitter account, Simon’s Twitter account, Kristy’s Twitter account and ODS-1’s Twitter Account. – And don’t forget to buy an Oceanic Gamer T-Shirt or thirty!

Please review or rate the podcast on iTunes if you can – it makes a huge difference!

Listen via iTunes, on Stitcher or right here:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (34.3MB)

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Filed Under: General News, Podcast Tagged With:

Flash Point 69: Tinsel in Tatooine

November 24, 2013 by

flashpoint-podcastIt’s a rather eclectic episode this fortnight, with some good MMO coverage and the odd piece of Dr Who discussion.

Points of discussion:

SWTOR
– Galactic Starfighter
– Double XP week – link
– Life day
– Antlers in the Cartel Store

Others
– Console launches
– WoW: charity drive, new pets and mounts. fun on the Timeless Isle
– The Secret World ‘levelling’

Jawa Junk Pile
– The Stanley Parable (warning: spoilers)
– Dr Who ‘Day of the Doctor’ (more spoilers)
– Shout out to EA customer service

– Shout outs for our Facebook page, Twitter account, Simon’s Twitter account, Kristy’s Twitter account and ODS-1’s Twitter Account. – And don’t forget to buy an Oceanic Gamer T-Shirt or thirty!

Please review or rate the podcast on iTunes if you can – it makes a huge difference!

Listen via iTunes, on Stitcher or right here:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:15:07 — 34.4MB)

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Review: The Stanley Parable

November 17, 2013 by
The Stanley Parable

Follow the line Stanley

Oh how easy it is to get cynical about games. For those of you that listen to our Flash Point podcast, you’ll know we don’t suffer for lack of cynicism. Which is why I love finding a game that smacks all of that cynicism fair in the face – The Stanley Parable is definitely one of those games.

The game was originally released in 2011, had a substantive remake as a standalone Windows game and last month had a further enhancement via the Steam Greenlight scheme, which is the version I’ve just played.

I’m not going to even begin to try and describe what The Stanley Parable is about, beyond saying that you are Stanley, and you have a narrator along with you for the ride. The narrator (Kevan Brighting) really does make the game in so many ways and I can’t remember the last time I’ve had so many laughs in a game. It’s part interactive fiction, part satire and part puzzle game (although don’t start thinking too deeply about puzzles from what I’ve seen after four hours of play). The writing is simply stupendous, hence the regular laughs. Aside from that, it’s the ‘What the..” moments that really deliver the value in the game.

I’m really hard pushed to find a lot to criticise – the gameplay is different enough that I haven’t experienced any significant frustrations to date. I did consider keeping notes at one stage as a mud map to determine the story paths I’d taken, but given some of the paths change from time to time, I gave up on that idea. I’d love the ability to save a game too, although I can see that the nature of this game makes it a partly redundant idea.

For US$15 this game is more than worth the money and given its reported success to date, I’m hanging out for what comes next from this creative team.

Tips / recommendations for The Stanley Parable

  • Download the demo, no matter how sold you are on the game
  • Explore but don’t expect massive amounts of feedback
  • Stand still in locations for 30 seconds or more
  • Stand in the Broom Closet for at least 3-5 minutes: you won’t regret it
  • If you haven’t got to the story branch with the Adventure Line, you haven’t been trying hard enough
  • If you have kids older than 8 or so, get them involved as I found this led me down routes I may have otherwise missed
  • Don’t give up until you’ve found the ‘game credits’ area
  • See point 1: seriously, the demo is brilliant on its own

Here’s where you go to find out more – and thanks to the Good Game TV team for reviewing this game themselves. This is a game I’ll be coming back to for a while, purely for the fun it provides.

10/10 in its genre for me – just let me know what genre you’d put it in ok?

To finish up, here’s a gallery with a handful of screenshots I’ve taken so far, with an emphasis on the meeting room as I loved the scribblings in there. Don’t view them if you want to go into the game 100% fresh.

 

 

 

Filed Under: General News, Other Games Tagged With:

Flash Point 68: Big Kev And His Fat Arsed Owls

November 10, 2013 by

flashpoint-podcastIt’s a new content extravaganza in MMO-land at the moment, so we devoted some time to SWTOR, WoW, TSW and Marvel Heroes to name four.

Points of discussion:

SWTOR
– Double XP week – link
– In-game cartel coin purchases now live
– Community Cantina – Austin
– EA wins a Shonky Award
– Tangential PS4 / Xbox One discussion
– My Lore Is Stuck In Your Canon: The Galactic Republic

Others
– WoW: Warlords of Draenor discussion
– Project Titan shelved
– World of Warcraft Movie premise
– Wow not going F2P ‘anytime soon’
– Heroes of the Storm beta
– Hearthstone beta
– Diablo 3 expansion – Reaper of Souls
– Marvel Heroes 2.0 Update

Jawa Junk Pile

– Build your own Death Star – link
– Star Wars Episode VII release date and keeping to the ‘dirty aesthetic’

– Shout outs for our Facebook page, Twitter account, Simon’s Twitter account, Kristy’s Twitter account and ODS-1’s Twitter Account. – And don’t forget to buy an Oceanic Gamer T-Shirt or thirty!

Please review or rate the podcast on iTunes if you can – it makes a huge difference!

Listen via iTunes, on Stitcher or right here:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (29.8MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

Filed Under: General News, Podcast Tagged With:

World of Warcraft Is Going Down The Draenor

November 9, 2013 by

Apologies for the post title but I just couldn’t resist. With BlizzCon 2013 underway, the announcement has been made about World of Warcraft’s next expansion. Titled Warlords of Draenor, , we get seven new zones on a new planet (Draenor), an increase in the level cap to 100, the ability to start a character at Level 90, player Garrisons and some world PvP options that sound interesting. Not surprisingly there’s no firm release date as yet.

Here’s the announcement trailer:

I’ve been a very irregular player of WoW over the past few months, but nothing gets me back into the game quicker than an expansion, and I have to say I like the look of this one. Here’s what’s got me particularly intrigued:

1. The ability to have your own garrison populated by NPCs picked up via questing could make the game in a big way, assuming there’s decent levels of customisation available. I love how this is a nod to the original Warcraft games and I’m hopeful that this will be a focus of further development. If there can be pet battles, there can be some retro Warcraft scenarios / quests surely?

2. As a player than actually likes levelling, I’m encouraged by the level cap increase that’s twice the increase of Mists of Pandaria. Sure, that doesn’t mean there’s necessarily twice the levelling content, but I’m going to remain optimistic.

3. The new character models and veiled references to graphics engine improvements have me excited as well. No-one is going to argue WoW is anywhere near being a graphically cutting edge game, but ongoing improvements at least stop the gap widening.

Most importantly, we want to hear from you – has the expansion announcement caught your attention? Check out our poll on the right hand side of the page and take part if you can. We’ll also be talking everything Warlords of Draenor on tomorrow night’s podcast.

Filed Under: General News, News, WoW Tagged With: ,

SWTOR 2.4.2 Full Patch Notes

November 1, 2013 by

swtor-patch-incoming-bannerWe’re on the eve of being able to shoot the crap out of each other in space, but whilst you’re waiting for that fun to start, have a look through the latest patch notes. SWTOR 2.4.2 throws a bunch of bug fixes into the mix as well as some new Cartel Market items. I also need to acknowledge the humour shown in these patch notes – have a read of the second last note at the bottom of this list.

Game Update 2.4.2 Patch Notes

General

  • Quick Travel terminals throughout the galaxy now display proper indication when they have not yet been discovered.
  • All Oricon Quick Travel terminals remain unlocked after being discovered.

Cartel Market

General

      • The description for Cartel Market Certificates has been updated to clarify where to find appropriate vendors.

New Items

**Please note that Cartel Market updates are dynamic. Changes listed in Patch Notes may take effect up to several days after the patch is made available.**

      • New Bundle: The Rising Hero Bundle! This new bundle contains the items below and is available until November 12th at an overall 40% discount. Discounted Cost: 2163 Cartel Coins.
        • Authorization: Artifact Equipment
        • 3 Major Experience Boosts
        • Medical Probes
        • Unlock: Inventory Module
        • Unlock: Cargo Hold Access
        • Unlock: Additional Cargo Bay
        • Unlock: Crew Skill Slot
      • Players can now recover health and energy using the spooky TRK-R Treatment Chamber, available until November 5th in the Cartel Market! Cost: 1200 Cartel Coins.
      • A new minipet, the Infected Womp Weasel, is available in the Cartel Market until November 5th. Cost: 120 Cartel Coins.
      • Players can now purchase the following standard single-use Dye Modules individually on the Cartel Market in varying intervals:
        • The Black and White Dye Module will next be available for 24 hours beginning on November 1st at 11AM CDT. Cost: 1000 Cartel Coins.
        • The Black and Dark Purple Dye Module will next be available for 25 hours beginning on November 2nd at 11AM CDT. Cost: 600 Cartel Coins.
        • The White and Black Dye Module will next be available for 24 hours beginning on November 3rd at 11AM CST. Cost: 1000 Cartel Coins.
      • A new item, Kick the Huttball, is available in the Cartel Market! This item modifies the “Throw the Huttball” ability, allowing players to kick the ball, thus breaking the number one rule in Huttball. Cost: 400 Cartel Coins.

Bug Fixes

    • Corrected several minor text issues within the Cartel Market.

Classes and Combat

Bounty Hunter

Mercenary
Pyrotech
        • Rail Shot no longer vents 16 Heat instead of 8 when the Superheated Rail skill is trained.

Collections

  • Account unlocks now function for all weapons, minipets, and mounts in the Supreme Mogul’s Contraband Pack.
  • Added missing art for items in the Pursuer’s and Tracker’s Bounty Packs.
  • The erroneous “Preview in Market” button has been removed for the “Revan’s Heir” Title.
  • The Ebon Hawk’s engines are no longer reversed when displayed in the Collections Window.

Flashpoints and Operations

Flashpoints

Czerka Core Meltdown
        • Players who have the “Bloom” preference turned off no longer have a psychedelic purple ceiling experience during the encounter with the Enhanced Duneclaw.

Operations

Dread Fortress
        • Removed a rogue red square that just wanted to be a part of something bigger from the phase door of this Operation.
        • Corruptor Zero’s Concussion Mine firmware has been updated to a new dreadware version and the effects now correctly attach and detach as described.
        • The magnet in the Grob’thok encounter will now display an effect on the ground to make it easier to spot its location.
        • During the encounter with Draxus in 8-Player Story Mode, the damage dealt by Mass Affliction is now consistent after the Corruptor is defeated. Dread Palace
        • Dread Master Calphayus has upgraded his Focus Crystals, and they now have immunity to crowd control effects that are equal to his own immunity.
Eternity Vault
      • During the encounter with Gharj, players who attempt to enter the cave behind the boss while he is still alive are now defeated.

Items and Economy

General

      • Removed Rating requirements from all PvP items.
      • Conqueror and Obroan Focused Retribution Relics now activate properly inside Warzones.
      • Arkanian and Dread Forged Relics of Reactive Warding now function as described and do not trigger inside Arena Warzones.
      • Juggernaut and Guardian PvE set bonuses that increase the duration of the Bladeturning ability no longer cause Bladeturning to stop functioning.
      • The Revan Holostatue has been updated such that it no longer functions as a Basic Commendations vendor, and players can now purchase Black Market gear using the item.
      • Added voice modulation effects to the following gear pieces:
        • Cassus Fett’s Helmet
        • Volatile Shock Trooper Tac Helmet
        • Eradicator’s Mask
        • Dynamic Sleuth Mask
        • Voltaic Sleuth Mask
        • Galvanized Infantry Helmet
        • Energized Infantry Helmet
        • Series 808 Cybernetic Cerebrum
        • Mandalore The Preserver’s Helmet
        • Opulent Triumvirate Helmet
        • Restored Triumvirate Helmet

Visual Bug Fixes

      • Marka Ragnos Chestpiece now displays the sleeves properly when equipped.
      • Bastila Shan’s Tunic no longer displays as incorrectly cutting into the feet of fashionable Female Human characters who choose to update to a newly-available hairstyle.
      • Probe Droid minipets now display high resolution textures.
      • The Tirsa Prime and Tirsa Elite speeder models no longer display engine trails after dismounting.
      • Master Hunter’s Headgear now changes color properly when dyed.
      • Bolts on the lower chin strap of the Contractor’s Helmet now display properly with facial animations.
      • X-3 Techmaster Gloves no longer appear distorted on female characters using Body Type 3.
      • Darth Sion’s Pauldron now displays properly and does not cut into the body during movement for the following:
        • Shoulders: Male characters using Body Type 4
        • Lower body: Male characters using Body Type 2
      • Items in the Preferred Friends bundle are no longer associated with a Cartel Market rarity.
      • The Adno Windscorpion now animates properly for characters using Body Type 4. ]

Vendors

    • Basic Gear Vendors on the Republic and Imperial Fleets now sell Makeb Galactic Reputation weapons.

Legacy

  • The Hutt Cartel has cleared up a clerical error and now those players fortunate enough to earn the “Worm Food” Title will find it to be appropriately categorized.
  • The Legacy Global Unlock for “Ship Guild Bank” can again be purchased.
  • Participating group members are no longer required to be within a minimum range to be granted Achievement credit when a boss is defeated.

Missions and NPCs

Missions

Class Missions
Jedi Consular
          • Chaos and Harmony: Master Syo Bakarn no longer manifests his duality with a physical copy of himself to some Consulars on the “Speak to the First Son” mission step. Note: This mission has been reset.
Bounty Hunter
            • Hail the Conquering Hero: The Huntmaster no longer uses a body double during this mission.

Daily Area Missions

Daily Area Missions
Oricon
          • Pre-empted Signals: Removed the group of enemies that stand around the Launch Commander’s Security Bunker in the Launch Staging Logistics area to prevent them from meddling in the encounter.
World Missions
Korriban
          • The Hate Machine: Completing this mission now grants the “Imperial Scholar” Title and the appropriate Codex entry.
Makeb
          • Recruitment Day: Added a missing conversation paraphrase for Imperial Agents on the mission step “Clear the Debris.”

NPCs

    • The Dread Guard Dominator who used to patrol the Watchtower Lower Passage on Oricon has been laid off due to his position being unnecessary.
    • The Launch Staging Logistics area of Oricon has undergone staffing changes such that groups now have more space in between them.
    • The “Reaper of Life” damage increase buff applied by Commander Zaoron on Oricon no longer displays as a debuff.
    • Republic camp guards on Tatooine have received additional training and are now level 55.

PvP

Warzones

Arenas
        • Players are no longer able to reach the spawning areas in Orbital Station by climbing on nearby pipes.
        • Tatooine Canyon has undergone a minor makeover to block some of the desert sun, resulting in the Arena being less “bright” and more visually consistent with other Warzones.
Ranked
      • The Highest Earned Rating is no longer incorrectly set to 0 in rare instances.

UI

  • Defeating the Gree’s Asharl Panthar Combat Specimen on Ilum will now grant the appropriate Codex Entry.
  • The Hate Machine on Korriban has reduced its hatred enough to grant those who finish the mission the “Hate Machine” Codex entry.

Miscellaneous Bug Fixes

  • Players are no longer able to stand in places in the Launch Staging Logistics area of Oricon that allow them to kill enemies without taking damage.
  • Updated the Exhaustion Zone in certain places on Hoth and Tatooine to prevent players from accidentally leaving the game world.
  • Added missing text to several places in the French and German versions.
  • The mysterious floating box on the Imperial Fleet is no longer mysterious, because it is no longer floating.
  • Made several art fixes across CZ-198, Belsavis (Macrobinoculars missions) and Makeb, such as adding textures, grounding floating buildings and correcting distorted scenery.

 

Filed Under: General News, Patch Notes, SWTOR Tagged With:

Flash Point 66: Asteroid Pizza

October 13, 2013 by

flashpoint-podcastWe’re just a little bit excited about the announced Galactic Starfighter expansion for SWTOR, but we get through plenty of other stuff as well this episode.

Points of discussion:

SWTOR
– Galactic Starfighter expansion
– Dread Masters content
– My Lore Is Stuck In Your Canon: The Infinite Empire

Others
– Kristy re-visits Guild Wars 2

Jawa Junk Pile

– Buy an Oceanic Gamer T-Shirt

– Agents of SHIELD renewed to make a full season

– Doctor Sleep by Stephen King

– Star Wars Episode 7 casting announcement rumour

– Summertime Blues (link – and yes I said Joe Strummer when I should have said Brian Setzer)

– Pseudo Echo (warning: 1980s hair styles)

– Yogventures – as mentioned by Simon in his opening comments.

– The Fall of Lucas Arts and ow EA may not be all evil

– Shout-out to SBRazma for their iTunes review

– Shout outs for our Facebook page, Twitter account, Simon’s Twitter account, Kristy’s Twitter account and ODS-1’s Twitter Account

Please review or rate the podcast on iTunes if you can – it makes a huge difference!

Listen via iTunes, on Stitcher or right here:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.7MB)

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Filed Under: General News, Podcast Tagged With:

The Secret World Issue #8 Preview

October 4, 2013 by

tsw-issue8 Game Director Joel Bylos has provided a bit of a sneak preview to MMORPG.com on the upcoming Issue #8 update for The Secret World.

Called the Venetian Agenda and having a (surprise) focus on Venice and the Council of Venice, it sounds an interesting storyline that’s providing a bridge to Tokyo in Issue #9, with Bylos hinting that the Dragon faction may be getting quite a bit of love in that update.

Additionally, Scenarios and a new augment system will be making their debut. The ability to customise scenarios sounds like a winner to a more casual player like me – will be interesting to see what it has to offer.

Check out the full interview here.

Filed Under: General News, The Secret World Tagged With:

SWTOR 2.4: Dread Palace Bug

October 2, 2013 by

It’s been around 12 hours since SWTOR 2.4 went live, and it appears there’s a pretty significant bug in the new content:

2point4bugdreadpalace

There’s also some other issues coming to light such as less commendations being received when playing old Warzones and some people finding they are needing to download the full 12GB client to be able to update.

Bugs are a reality for any patch, but I do have to wonder how much testing occurred with The Dread Palace if you can’t complete the Operation….

How are you finding 2.4 so far?

Filed Under: General News, SWTOR

SWTOR 2.4: Full Patch Notes

October 2, 2013 by

swtor-patch-incoming-banner

SWTOR 2.4: The Dread War is now live, so if you’re stuck at work or somewhere else where you can’t actually play, then console yourself with the full patch notes for your perusing pleasure:

 

Game Update 2.4: The Dread War

Highlights

    • New Story Mission Area: Oricon! Located in an uncharted system well off the Hydian Way, Oricon is a remote moon that is immeasurably strong with the dark side – a perfect home for the feared Dread Masters! Begin the Oricon journey by talking to O6-D5 on the Republic Fleet or D5-F3 on the Imperial Fleet. Details under General
    • Warzone Arenas! 4v4 Warzone Arenas are now active for Unranked, Ranked Solo, and Ranked Team play! Details under PvP
    • New Level 55 Daily Missions! Explore the ship-strewn, mysterious landscape of Oricon as you battle the deadly Dread Guard and their minions. The Dread Masters are bent on destroying both the Empire and Republic and they’re using their every resource to do so! Details under Missions and NPCs
    • New Operation: Dread Fortress! Begin your assault of the Dread Masters lair, an ancient fortress claimed by the Dread Masters soon after arriving on Oricon. Details under Flashpoints and Operations
    • New Operation: Dread Palace! Make your way beyond the Dread Fortress to the foreboding palace of the Dread Masters –and battle towards the final confrontation with the galaxy’s greatest threat.Details under Flashpoints and Operations
    • New Galactic Reputation Organization! A new organization has been added: Strike Team Oricon (Republic) (Republic)/Dread Executioners (Imperial). Details under Legacy
  • New Gear Sets! Three new sets of gear have been added: Dread Forged (new tier), Oriconian (new PvE Commendation gear) and Obroan (new PvP tier). Details under Items and Economy
  • New Vehicles and Mount! The Praxon Pyroclast, Gurian Volcano, and Strike Force Tauntaun have been added! Details under Items and Economy

General

  • New Story Mission Area: Oricon! Located in an uncharted system well off the Hydian Way, Oricon is a remote moon that is immeasurably strong with the dark side – a perfect home for the feared Dread Masters! The area includes two new Operations, two new Galactic Reputation Organizations, and completing a series of level 55 missions will unlock access to a [DAILY] mission series. Players can begin the Oricon journey by talking to O6-D5 on the Republic Fleet or D5-F3 on the Imperial Fleet.
  • The Cartel Bazaar is now a Rest Area.
  • A Cargo Bay is now available to players in the Cartel Bazaar.
  • Speeders on the Western Ice Shelf of Ilum no longer dismount players and prevent travel from Imperial Firebase 3 or Republic Recon Post.
  • The Thranta that takes players to the Elysium base on Alderaan is no longer on a killing spree; it will not dump players to their death, thus preventing completion of the [HEROIC 4] Shock Doctrine mission.
  • The in-game mail confirming access to the Digital Expansion: Rise of the Hutt Cartel has been updated to no longer refer to the player purchasing the expansion.
  • The Rakata Transporters on Belsavis are now connected to one another once they have been discovered.

Cartel Market

New Items

**Please note that Cartel Market updates are dynamic. Changes listed in Patch Notes may take effect several days after the patch is made available.**

    • A new bundle is available on the Cartel Market. The PVP Consumables Bundle offers players 10 Medpacks and 10 Adrenals that can be used in all Warzones. Cost: 200 Cartel Coins
    • A new bundle is available on the Cartel Market. The Major Warzone XP Boost Bundle offers Major Warzone Experience Boosts that can help the player level up quickly while in Warzones. Cost: 180 Cartel Coins

Classes and Combat

Jedi Knight

Guardian
Defense
          • A single stack of Courage now appropriately reduces the focus cost of your next Blade Storm or Force Sweep.

Sith Warrior

Juggernaut
Immortal
          • A single stack of Revenge now appropriately reduces the rage cost of your next Force Scream or Smash.

Jedi Consular

Shadow
        • Phase Walk now only teleports the player when the ability is deactivated manually. All other methods of removing the effect (such as clicking to remove the buff from the effect bar) will simply end the ability without a teleportation.
        • Phase Walk now only goes on cooldown when the character successfully teleports.

Sith Inquisitor

Assassin
        • Phase Walk now only teleports the player when the ability is deactivated manually. All other methods of removing the effect (such as clicking to remove the buff from the effect bar) will simply end the ability without a teleportation.
        • Phase Walk now only goes on cooldown when the character successfully teleports.

Bounty Hunter

General
        • Reduced the cost of Flame Thrower to 24 heat (down from 25) and slightly reduced the damage dealt.
        • Kolto Overload now triggers at 35% health and may heal up to 35% of max health (both up from 30%).
        • Rail Shot now deals slightly more damage.
Mercenary
General
          • Mercenaries now receive the proper dual-wielding damage bonus for Rail Shot.
Pyrotech
          • Increased Thermal Detonator explosion damage, but reduced the damage it deals over time.
          • Reduced the cost of Incendiary Missile to 16 heat (down from 22) and slightly reduced the damage it deals.
          • Degauss has been redesigned: Activating Chaff Flare increases your defense chance by 12.5/25% for 6 seconds.
Powertech
Shield Tech
          • Coolant now allows Kolto Overload to heal beyond 35% health (up from 30%).
Advanced Prototype
          • Increased the cost of Immolate to 10 heat (up from 8) and increased the damage it deals.
          • Slightly reduced the damage done by Retractable Blade.
          • Prototype Cylinder Ventilation has been redesigned: While High Energy Gas Cylinder is active, players will vent 1/2 heat every 1.5 seconds.
          • Prototype Flame Thrower has been redesigned: Flame Burst, Flame Sweep, and Immolate have a 50/100% chance to grant Prototype Flame Thrower, which affects the next Flame Thrower by increasing the damage dealt by 20%, reducing the heat generated by 2, slowing targets by 30%, and making it immune to interrupts. This effect can stack up to 3 times.
          • Prototype Weapon Systems now additionally increases the critical strike damage bonus for Flame Thrower by 10/20/30%.
          • Power Loaders now additionally increases the critical hit chance of Rocket Punch by 2/4/6%.
Pyrotech
          • Increased Thermal Detonator explosion damage, but reduced the damage it deals over time.
          • Reduced the cost of Incendiary Missile to 16 heat (down from 22), and slightly reduced the damage it deals.
          • In addition to its previous functionality, Automated Defenses now also increases damage reduction by 15/30% while Kolto Overload is active.
          • Bursting Flame has been redesigned: Rocket Punch has a 33/66/100% chance and Flame Burst has a 20/40/60% chance to trigger your Combustible Gas Cylinder if active.
          • Sweltering Heat has been redesigned: While Combustible Gas Cylinder is active, Flame Burst and Flame Sweep have a 50/100% chance to reduce the movement speed of affected targets by 40% for 6 seconds.
          • Degauss has been redesigned: Activating Chaff Flare increases your defense chance by 12.5/25% for 6 seconds.

Trooper

General
        • Reduced the cost of Pulse Cannon to 24 energy cells (down from 25) and slightly reduced the damage it deals.
        • Adrenaline Rush now triggers at 35% health and may heal up to 35% of max health (both up from 30%).
        • High Impact Bolt now deals slightly more damage.
Commando
Assault Specialist
          • Increased Assault Plastique explosion damage, but reduced the damage it deals over time.
          • Reduced the cost of Incendiary Round to 16 energy cells (down from 22) and slightly reduced the damage it deals.
          • Degauss has been redesigned: Activating Diversion increases your defense chance by 12.5/25% for 6 seconds.
Vanguard
Shield Specialist
          • Soldier’s Grit now allows Adrenaline Rush to heal you beyond 35% health (up from 30%).
Tactics
          • Increased the cost of Fire Pulse to 10 energy cells (up from 8) and increased the damage it deals.
          • Slightly reduced the damage done by Gut.
          • Cell Generator has been redesigned: While High Energy Cell is active, players regenerate 1/2 energy cells every 1.5 seconds.
          • Havoc Training now additionally also increases the critical strike damage bonus for Pulse Cannon by 10/20/30%.
          • Charged Loaders now additionally increases the critical hit chance of Stockstrike by 2/4/6%.
          • Pulse Generator has been redesigned: Ion Pulse, Explosive Surge, and Fire Pulse have a 50/100% chance to grant Pulse Generator, which affects the next Pulse Cannon by increasing the damage dealt 20%, reducing the energy cell cost by 2, slowing targets by 30%, and making it immune to interrupts. This effect can stack up to 3 times.
Assault Specialist
        • Increased Assault Plastique explosion damage, but reduced the damage it deals over time.
        • Reduced the cost of Incendiary Round to 16 energy cells (down from 22) and slightly reduced the damage it deals.
        • In addition to its previous functionality, Adrenaline Fueled now also increases damage reduction by 15/30% while Adrenaline Rush is active.
        • Ionized Ignition has been redesigned: Stockstrike has a 33/66/100% chance and Ion Pulse has a 20/40/60% chance to trigger your Plasma Cell if active.
        • Sweltering Heat has been redesigned: While Plasma Cell is active, Ion Pulse and Explosive Surge have a 50/100% chance to reduce the movement speed of affected targets by 40% for 6 seconds.
        • Degauss has been redesigned: Activating Diversion increases your defense chance by 12.5/25% for 6 seconds.

Collections

  • Items from the Pursuer’s Bounty Pack now have the correct icon for the account-wide unlock button in the Collections Window..
  • The account-wide unlock now works correctly for Emote: Whatup
  • The account-wide unlock now works correctly for the Poison Lobel Pet.
  • The Collections entry for Cassus Fett’s Armor Set now has the belt.

Companion Characters

Treek

    • Characters created before Game Update 2.3 can now progress beyond the first affection conversation with Treek.

Crew Skills

Crafting Skills

General
        • Removed Isotope-5 as a material requirement for crafting Rating 156 [Artifact] gear.
Cybertech
      • All Cybertech grenades now bestow a new effect called Bastion on the target, in addition to normal effects. Players who have this effect applied are immune to further Cybertech grenade attacks for the duration of Bastion (3 minutes).

Flashpoints and Operations

Operations

    • New Operation: Dread Fortress! Begin your assault of the Dread Masters lair, an ancient fortress claimed by the Dread Masters soon after arriving on Oricon. This Operation is available at level 55 in Story and Hard Modes, and it contains 5 boss encounters with lockouts.
    • New Operation: Dread Palace! Make your way beyond the Dread Fortress to the foreboding palace of the Dread Masters –and battle towards the final confrontation with the galaxy’s greatest threat. This Operation is available at level 55 in Story and Hard Modes, and it contains 5 boss encounters with lockouts.

Items and Economy

New Additions!

      • Dread Forged is a new tier of gear obtained from the Dread Fortress and Dread Palace Operations in Hard Mode.
      • Obroan is a new tier of PvP gear obtained via Ranked Warzone Vendors on the Republic and Imperial Fleets. Itrequires Ranked Warzone Commendations as well as the associated Conqueror piece.
      • Oriconian is a new set of PvE Commendation gear obtained Ultimate Gear Vendors on the Republic and Imperial Fleets.
      • The Praxon Pyroclast is a new vehicle obtained as a rare drop via Dread Palace and Dread Fortress Operations boss encounters in Hard Mode.
      • The Gurian Volcano is a new vehicle obtained as a Galactic Reputation reward via the Strike Team Oricon (Republic)/Dread Executioners (Imperial) Galactic Reputation Vendors on Oricon.
      • The Strike Force Tauntaun is a new mount obtained as a mission reward upon completing the Oricon story missions. It requires “Legendary” rank with Strike Team Oricon (Republic)/Dread Executioners (Imperial).

General

      • Dye modules can now be added to most Adaptable (Orange) Gear, including Lore-based pieces and crafted items below level 15.
      • Primary Black/Secondary Deep Red dye module is now available via the Strike Team Oricon (Republic)/Dread Executioners (Imperial) Galactic Reputation Vendors on Oricon.
      • Centurion and Mercenary Commendations have been removed. These Commendation types have been converted into Warzone Commendations at 1:1 ratio, are no longer displayed in the Currency Tab of the Inventory Window, and Warzone Vendors no longer trade items for them.
      • Players can now can use either Shift + Left Click or Shift + Right Click to split a stack of items, which will allow the function to be used while the GTN Window is open.
      • The JA-3 Speeder’s engines now have sound.
      • Movement sounds no longer persist after dismounting the Adno Mantis, Adno Locust, and Adno Saberwasp speeders.

GTN

      • Players can now use Shift + Left Click an item while the GTN is open to populate the search box with the name of that item.
      • Added a sortable “Unit Price” column to the GTN Window, which will display the listed item’s price-per-unit.
      • The GTN now auto completes with the price and duration of a player’s last posted auction. In addition, the last price will be remembered on a per-unit basis. i.e. If a player puts 1 med pack up for 10 credits, and their next auction is a stack of 20 med packs (the same type as before) it will auto complete 200 credits (10 credits for 1 x 20 = 200). The remembered price and duration are reset upon area transition or log out.
      • All Galactic Trade Network kiosks are now appropriately named.

Vendors

    • New Vendor: Operations Gear Vendor! Players can now exchange Arkanian, Underworld, and Dread Forged gear tokens for the appropriate armor piece via the new Operations Gear Vendor on the Republic and Imperial Fleets.
    • Basic Gear Vendors now sell Arkanian Relics and Black Market gear.
    • Elite Gear Vendors now sell Verpine gear.
    • Ultimate Gear Vendors now sell the new Oriconian gear.
    • Ranked Gear Vendors now sell the new Obroan gear.
    • Warzone Gear Vendors now sell Conqueror Gear
    • Warzone Gear Vendors now sell new Conqueror Relics.
    • Partisan gear is no longer available for sale.
    • Warzone Enhancement Vendors now sell Conqueror level Enhancements
    • Ranked Enhancement Vendors now sell Obroan level Enhancements
    • Warzone Enhancement Vendors no longer sell Partisan level Enhancements
    • Reduced the cost of Schematics sold by the Basic Commendations Schematic Vendor:
      • Bracers and Belt Schematics now cost 15 Basic Commendations.
      • Implants, Earpieces, and Offhands now cost 60 Basic Commendations

Legacy

  • New Galactic Reputation Organizations! Complete missions on Oricon to earn Galactic Reputation with Strike Team Oricon (Republic) and Dread Executioners (Imperial) and purchase special rewards including the new Strike Force Tauntaun!
  • Added a new category called “Dailies” to the Achievement Window which tracks Achievements for the following Daily Mission Areas:
    • New: CZ-198
    • New: Oricon
    • Moved: Black Hole (previously located under Location > Corellia)
    • Moved: Section X (previously located under Location > Belsavis)
  • The Achievement “Down with the Corporate Elite” no longer incorrectly completes by defeating 15 rather than 30 enemies.

Missions and NPCs

General

      • New Level 55 Daily Missions! After advancing through the Oricon story mission series, players can further explore the ship-strewn, mysterious landscape of Oricon and battle the deadly Dread Guard and their minions via a new set of [DAILY] missions. Players must stop the Dread Masters, who are bent on destroying both the Empire and Republic and are using their every resource to do so!
      • Players can now obtain [WEEKLY] The Dread Palace and [WEEKLY] The Dread Fortress from the Operations Terminal on the Republic and Imperial Fleets.
      • PvP missions have been updated:
        • [WEEKLY] missions no longer require wins and now advance with one point for a loss and two points for a win in an Unranked Warzone.
        • Ranked Warzones no longer count towards [DAILY] or [WEEKLY] mission progress.
        • Mission requirements are now as follows:
          • Under level 55 [DAILY] PvP missions: 2 completed Unranked Warzones
          • Under level 55 [WEEKLY] PvP missions: 5 completed Unranked Warzones
          • Level 55 [DAILY] PvP missions: 4 completed Unranked Warzones
          • Level 55 [WEEKLY] PvP missions: 15 completed Unranked Warzones

World Missions

Balmorra
        • Attempting to abandon the following missions now clearly indicates that they may not be able to be obtained again:
          • Operation Breaking Point
          • Big Guns
          • Despair
          • Disguises
          • Breaking the Resistance
Makeb
      • Trouble in Paradise: Now that Navigator Uptin has learned to speak Basic, he wants to talk more and the conversation with him has been extended.

Space Combat

  • The Grade 7 Improved Power Converter now enhances and reduces damage appropriately.

PvP

Warzones

General
  • To ensure proper matchmaking, players are no longer able to change Skill Tree points while in a Warzone queue or match.
  • Bolster has been adjusted to account for the addition of the new Obroan and Dread Forged gear.
Arenas
  • 4v4 Warzone Arenas are now active! These small scale PvP maps reward victory to last team standing in the best of three rounds. Missions and rewards are provided in the same manner as current Warzones.
  • The following Arena maps are currently active:
    • Orbital Station Arena
    • Tatooine Canyon Arena
    • Corellia Square Arena
  • Arenas count as a single Warzone in the Unranked Warzone queue rotation. (Each map is not weighed individually.)
  • Players can queue for Arenas in Ranked Solo or Ranked Group modes via the PvP queue button on the UI minimap.
  • Czerka VX-736 Injector can no longer be used in Warzones.

UI

  • Using the “Ready” emote now shows up appropriately in the Chat Window.
Filed Under: General News, Patch Notes, SWTOR Tagged With:

FIFA 14 Launch Trailer

September 30, 2013 by

The latest FIFA instalment is now available, and if you want a taste, check out the launch trailer:

It’s available now for PC, Wii, PS3, Xbox 360, 3DS and PSP, with Xbox and PS4 versions launching when the console does.

Filed Under: General News
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