Crime Craft is a 3D shooter, thankfully, third-person instead of the nauseating FPS. It is developed by Vogster Entertainment and published by THQ, initially as a PTP in 2009. What sets it apart from other MMOs is the fact that the game is still getting good amount of updates and patches even after it was released as an ftp. Due to its unique gameplay than most MMOs, the makers of the game call it a Persistent World Next-Generation Shooter, abbreviated as PWNS.

Storyline

The story of CrimeCraft is neither set in extreme future nor ancient past. In fact, it depicts recent future in the aftermath of urban collapse. Governments have fallen and the anarchy is now in the hands of gangs. In these times of chaos, everyone is forced to join a gang for mutual protection. Although the story really doesn’t have anything to do with the gameplay, it just justifies the whole violence and killing. And that is satisfying.

Gameplay

Although classified as PWNS, a ridiculous yet interesting name for a genre, CrimeCraft doesn’t offer as many unique features as the acronym suggests. The gameplay has almost all the features you might expect from an MMO shooter, plus a hefty amount of RPG elements. The gameplay seems even more familiar due to the fact that it is actually based on the UNREAL 3 engine, also helping it in standing out from the rest of the ftp crowd.

The game has a large persistent world, a city which is also the lobby. Hundreds of players can be present in the lobby at a time. Players can interact with each other through chat. There are numerous NPCs roaming around as well. Like in a typical RPG, you can buy an item from them or ask for missions. Missions offer great opportunity to polish your skill and collect some items.

Chrahters can be controlled using the typical WASD keys. Controls are pretty smooth. The third person shooter view makes it even better. Yet, one shocking disappointment is that the character is simply not able to jump.

As a new player, you will start with character selection and customization. One sad fact is that the customization is still largely for cash paying customers. Anyhow, the gameplay involves joining and forming gangs, doing missions, buying items and weapons. The game also has a crafting system through which they can craft weapon, clothing and drugs. Finally, the shooter aspect of the game lies in joining instanced battles.

Battle Modes

Battles in CrimeCraft are instanced and that might raise quiet a few eyebrows over the game’s self proclaimed genre of Persistent World Next-Generation Shooter. However, the shooter aspect of the game is completely thrilling and exciting. The best part we say is the variety of battle modes to choose from.

Turf War – It is a two team battle in which each team fight to take hold of five different points spread throughout the map. Whoever achieves the target first, wins the match.
Snatch N’ Grab – it is also a two team match based on the typical capture the flag mode.
A Robbery – Two teams struggle to get their hands on the safe containing $100k. each team is given a safe when the game starts. The team which is able to get 200k in their safe is the winner.
Shootout – This is where the real fun lies. It is a death match where each team strives to achieve more kills before the time runs out.
Riot – This is an individual death match. Each man for himself. The player who kills the most players wins.
Safeguard – This is PvE instead of PvP. You will join a group of player and protect a cargo from non-player opponents.
Stockpile – this also being a PvE requires you to join a group of players and hunt for hidden containers. The map is crawling with non-player enemies.
Capture the Zone – This is a 8vs8 PvP. Both teams compete to capture three points on the map in the minimum time possible.
Tournaments – It is a knockout tournament. In each match, two teams of four members each compete in a last-team-standing type of match. The winning team progresses further in the tournament.

Crafting and Professions

We have talked about the game’s crafting system earlier. Further elaborating on that, let us tell you that your character will actually require joining a profession in order to craft items in this game. There are currently four professions including tailor, gunsmith, engineer and chemist. All of them except gunsmith sound pretty noble for a gangster. However, each of them is able to craft different things that are useful in a different way. For instance, tailor can sew clothes and chemist can make medicines and health boosts. Similarly while gunsmith can craft guns, engineer can make ammos. Even gangs can take up a particular profession. This implies a strong social feature in the game.

Graphics and Sound

3D graphics of CrimeCraft are shockingly amazing. Especially, the landscapes seem pretty real. Animation is really great and no where from the first prologue does this game look like a free to play. However, one major disadvantage of this quality is unusually large client size. The developers and designers have done a great job and it’s really great to see that they are also quite responsive in fixing bugs and working on user suggestions.

Although sound is good. Not much of a stock, but it could have been much better. It is not bad; at least it isn’t up to the standard of the graphics in this game. Music lacks variety and the effects sound pretty frail, even the gunshots.

Pros
• Crisp graphics and fantastic artwork
• Constant updates
• Variety of maps and modes
• Strong social aspect as well as a balanced amount of single player gameplay
• Easy WASD controls
Cons
• Awkward genre name and lack of persistent world elements
• Large client file size
• Non-paying players have clear disadvantage
• Weak sound effects
• No jump

The Final Word

If you are really lurking for some high quality, massively multiplayer, free-to-play shooter, CrimeCraft is one game that really deserves a shot. Don’t listen to people who are whining about lack of features for free players, the last up date named BleedOut has taken care of that already. Over all, the game is interesting and captivating. If you are the kind of gamer who are stuck to their gaming seats, playing GTA on a single-player console, trying out the same gangster gameplay on a multiplayer level is a must!

The updates for the game include the addition of the new Ranger Class to the game, a mix of stealth and long range firepower, as well as being able to summon the his eagle companion to his side will make any Ranger a welcome addition to any party. Also with this latest update comes the increased level cap to level 65, and many improvements to the games PvP system, including a better matchmaking system for the 3v3 system that creates more balance.

New maps for the game that come along with this update are Witchcraft Forest and Shiver Peak for those in the 61-65 range, and new dungeons for the same range of players as they progress to the new level cap.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – February 22, 2012 – Aeria Games, a leading global publisher of free-to-play online games, has released the latest content patch for its highly popular free-to-play MMORPG, Eden Eternal. The new content update includes the all-new Ranger class, an increased level cap, new maps and dungeons, and upgraded PvP content.

Eden Eternal has expanded its vibrant world to include the ranks of the agile warrior known as the Ranger, whose deadly aim can easily disable opponents from a distance. With a fury of high DPS ranged attacks at its disposal, including the Meteor Shower and the Arrow of Fear, this powerful class can stealthily take out its opponents from afar by bow, artillery gun or even eagle. The Ranger class’s unique ability to summon the assistance of the mighty Hunters eagle makes it a lethal new addition to the Eden Eternal universe.

In addition to the Ranger class, an increased level cap of 65 and new PvP enhancements have been made. The improvements such as a 3v3 Matchmaking system have been refined to more effectively pair players with others in their level range. By creating a more balanced, intensive match, players have access to an even-footed arena experience to prove their strength in PVP combat.

Also included in this Eden Eternal content update:

· New Level 61-65 Maps: Amazing new areas including the Witchcraft Forest and Shiver Peak for players to forge through new landmarks in pursuit of wealth and adventure.
· New Level 61-65 Dungeons: Epic dungeons full of new dangerous monsters for players to battle, secrets to discover and powerful gear to loot and equip.

On the PVE side of things, this latest update brings “King’s Chariot”, this high level dungeon has many unique challenges and each of the dungeons three wings will have two levels of difficult, their own bosses, and special loot, as well as rare crafting materials to make high-level gears. So start your download update today and get hacking away.

Hamburg, February 22, 2012 – The massive PvP update released today for gamigo’s action MMORPG Martial Empires will give players plenty to fight about! In the new tournament mode they can fight their way to the top of the ranking list in the hopes of winning a fantastic prize: the exclusive Gold Tiger Mount.

In region wars the goal is to conquer one of six regions with one’s guild. The winning guild earns more than just the right to collect taxes – they will also get a very helpful buff that varies by region. At the end of the week, they will need to defend their region against up to 15 challengers.

In “King’s Chariot”, the new high-level dungeon, players are faced with three different challenges, for example the task of freeing a prisoner before his execution at the hands of an evil henchman. Each of the dungeon’s three wings has two levels of difficulty with their own boss monsters and special loot. Players looking for rare crafting materials to make high-level equipment are in the right place here.

Why should I play Truly Free?
Many other “free” MMOs limit players by restricting access to content,
or force them to pay for a normal game experience. In Aion’s Truly Free model,
players have unrestricted access to all content from level 1-60, no strings attached!
Aion Truly Free is a key aspect of Aion: Ascension™, which also
contains the Aion 3.0 content update. A plethora of
new experiences await, including new zones,
increased level cap, mounts, and housing,
all of which is also Truly Free!

What are the benefits of Truly Free?
The Aion Truly Free experience combines the best parts of the
Lineage 2: Goddess of Destruction™ Truly Free model with numerous enhancements.
Here are some of the key features of Aion Truly Free:
No subscription fee. Play for free!
No account restrictions. Visit any zone, chat in any channel, sell any amount of stuff on the trade broker—nothing is off limits!
Robust countermeasures to combat game abuse. We’re dedicating a ton of resources to preventing account theft, botting, and real money trading.
No hassles. Create your account, download the game, and play!
No harassment. Don’t worry, we won’t hound you with constant offers or promotions.
A lot of great stuff we’ll reveal more about leading up to launch!

How can something this good be Truly Free?
We understand that an active player population contributes to the fun factor for the entire player population, so we want everyone to experience the game as it was intended.
If you like the game, we’d appreciate a purchase from our store (game developers need to eat too!). If you don’t like the game, can’t pay, or don’t want to pay—no worries, it’s on us!

Character Creation and Training

It is rare indeed that when you first jump into a FPS in today’s day and age that you actually get to create your character. Now we are not about to say that you should expect the type of customization that comes with a game like Perfect World or Fallen Earth, but being able to choose from several different outfit options certainly does add a bit of charm to the game and gives the player the opportunity to differentiate themselves from the hordes of other players. These options carry over into the gameplay as well, which is a nice added touch.

Getting your feet wet always requires a bit of training, as so many games look to add a feature here or there that will make the game different, running through the quick 5-10 minute training tutorial is worth it to see the features that Operation 7 has that are different from its competitors. The main thing you will learn is that Shift is to Crouch, CTRL is the Sprint, Q and E are to lean left and right and shoot or look around corners (Probably our favorite), and F will allow you to use your hand to hand combat option without having to change weapons. While we have let you in on most of the things that are different here, we still highly suggest that you run through the tutorial.

Weapon Selection and Previews

Of course whenever players are looking for their new favorite FPS games they want to see that the game has a lot of weapon options. While Operation 7 does have quite a few options in the armory, many of them are going to be locked up and sealed away until you can reach the higher levels, of course getting to the higher levels can take quite some time, so in truth you are going to be stuck with some pretty crappy weapons for quite some time. This is one area that the game could really use some improvement, players do not want to spent weeks leveling up a character, playing day in and day out before they can even use the next tier of gear. In our opinion this is just too long to make them wait before having new gear available.

Now, with the above said, any piece of weaponry can be taken over to the firing range and played with for free. So you can test out any weapon you would like and blow some holes in targets are varying distances. A nice feature especially for those who are trying to decide between many different weapons.

Also, once you have your weapon of choice selected, giving your gear a few extra perks never hurts, all of which can add to the weapons statistics and create a more efficient piece of weaponry. This does not come cheap, so if you want a new stock, or barrel, or magazine. Expect to work hard for the money before you can just make these changes. All of the above, of course, is only relevant if you plan to not spend any real world money. If you decide you must have some of these items or tweaks and want to pay for them, the game is going to be the last thing to stop you from doing so.

Modes and Maps

At the heart of every FPS MMO are the modes and maps that are available, and lets just say that Operation 7 has more than enough to keep the hardcore player happy. Now with that said, many of the maps can be considered overly simplistic, or even far too wide open. Some players have even complained that many of the maps were thrown together without much thought and so they are not used very often by those players creating new games. Yet, there are still plenty of good maps that are used regularly and players have found to their liking. Dependent on which channel you are in there are limitations though, if you start out playing in the beginner channel, you will find yourself playing with many more players in the lower skill levels, but you will have a limit on the maps and modes that will be available.

With the maps come the different gameplay modes, most of which are your standard: Deathmatch, Survivial, Demolition, but there are a few that are different from the normal. Gold Rush, Head Hunting, Hold the Line. Each of these have a certain condition that must be met in order for the game to be a win or a loss. Nothing to crazy here, pretty simple stuff actually, and it is smart for the game to keep this simple and geared toward what players know and understand.

Graphics and Sounds

Graphically speaking Operation 7 would find itself in the middle of the pack. Not the worst, but certainly not the best. For a game that seemingly would work so well on so many machines, the lack of playerbase is disturbing. Granted, this may also be due to the fact that the games publisher does a tremendous job of booting hackers from the game quickly, and working very hard to keep exploits to a very minimum. So it is hard to look down on a game that is potentially hurting itself because it protects its playerbase so diligently from those who would cheat.

Sound effects and music are pretty much on par with the genre, it is always difficult to knock and game for sounds as have music while in the lobby and standard gun fire and explosions are pretty simple and, as stated, standard. With that said, there are some times when there are voice overs, and these are pretty entertaining. Though it is not believed that they were meant to be as entertaining as they are. They are pretty cheesy and pretty much laughable. So whether they were meant to be that way or not, they do add to the entertainment factor.

The Final Word

While this is a solid offering to the genre, the game does have some hang ups. Getting into the game alone is not as easy as it should be. If you are running Firefox or Chrome, you will need to either run the game from IE or use a plugin for your browser to make it work. There were some Full Screen issues that we ran into while playing the game that caused us to have to re-install the game twice. Graphics are a bit dated, but this could also be a good thing as it normally attracts more players, but due to the games strict anti-hacking and 18 years or older policy, the playerbase is a bit lacking. The bones are there for a good game, it just seems like there needs to be something added.

Both developed and published by OGPlanet, Zone 4: Fight District was released in the summer of 2010 to eager gamers. You’ll remember OGPlanet when you hear the titles Rumble Fighter and Lost Saga. While Rumble Fighter and Lost Saga are also fighting MMOs, Z4 brings something new and fresh to OGPlanet’s portfolio.

Getting Into the Zone

So, I’m sure you’re wondering what you’re getting yourself into with all this talk of gangs and thugs. What comes to mind when I say the phrase kill shot? I’m just kidding! Z4 offers various styles of martial arts for you to master. There are no guns, only action packed street fighting!

Zone4: Fight District is essentially classic arcade style fighter meets complex modern brawler. It’s a great mix of old school gaming combined with the fast-paced action of a modern MMO. Now, I’m a big fan of quality graphics. While the graphics don’t necessarily make or break a game for me, it definitely affects my opinion of the game itself. The graphics in this FTPMMO aren’t cutting edge. However, the more realistic style of animation used in Z4 really makes up for the so-so graphics.

Express Yourself

When it’s time to create your character, you will be given 6 characters to choose from; 3 male and 3 female characters. All 6 characters are a different age and have a unique appearance. You can also select the tone of your character’s skin. When dressing your character, you are able to choose your characters’ shirt, pants, shoes, and hair style—each have 3 options. As I’m sure you’ve already realized Z4’s character creation does leave a bit to be desired. And quite frankly, the esthetic options are yawn producing. But if you’re patient, there are a wide variety of clothes, hair styles, and even accessories which are made available throughout gameplay.

Next you’ll face one of the most important decisions you will ever make in this MM. Do you want your character to be a Rush fighter or a Street fighter? Let me break it down for you:

Rush fighters- can master Hapgido, Wrestling, or Judo. Rush fighters are hold attack specialists.

Street fighters- can master Boxing, Muay Thai, and Tae Kwon Do. Their specialization is crushing attacks.

Something to keep in mind is that each gamer account comes with 2 free character slots per server. This will give you the opportunity to play around with both the Rush and Street fighters… So maybe I got a bit too excited when I used the words “most important decisions”.

To Tutorial or Not To Tutorial?

Zone 4 comes complete with an optional tutorial. This option almost always brings up the age old question, should I complete the tutorial? Yes, you should complete the tutorial because it is worth your time…And it is rewarding! Completion of the Z4 tutorial will net you Zen—which is the in-game currency—as well as experience. If you chose to skip the tutorial and later decide that you want to complete it, you’re in luck! You can return to the tutorial at any time.

This tutorial will walk you through the game controls which are actually quite straight forward and easy to learn. It has been said that Zone 4 is the FTPMMO that is easy to play but difficult to master. That statement couldn’t be any more spot on!

YOU ARE IN CONTROL

When playing Zone 4, you will spend the majority of your time utilizing the keyboard. In fact, all aspects of gameplay are keyboard controlled. For example, to control movement, you will use the arrow keypad. Again, the controls are very simple and straight forward. During the tutorial you will learn the standard attacks followed by the special attacks. Next you’ll be instructed on how to carry out an attack on multiple foes simultaneously using the double attack. You will also be taught how to join with an ally to gang up on your opponent. Your last task while in the tutorial is to fight a practice round with the AI controlled “Speak Man” as your opponent. If you completed the tutorial as a new character, you will have arrived at level 3.

In The Zone

Zone 4’s virtual world is composed of multiple districts. Each district consists of more than a dozen channels. Both the districts and channels are persistent environments and players are at liberty to move freely between them. You will also run across various storage boxes, merchants, slot machines, and ranking boards, among others things and they are interactive. The persistent environments are where you will have access to the instanced cooperative “arcades” as well as the PvP arena.

It has been my experience that Z4 gamers prefer the team matches over the 1v1 matches. This can be seen as both an advantage and a disadvantage to any new Z4 players. The team matches offer a newbie the opportunity to adjust to gameplay as teammates serve as a buffer. The disadvantage is that you may be targeted by experienced gamers and taken down before you have a chance to react. Fortunately the respawn wait time is only a few seconds.

One thing that I did notice while in these rooms was the obvious level imbalance. While the host has the option to adjust the match settings to auto-balance, that feature seems virtually pointless in my opinion. The higher level players still have the upper hand and this has the potential to make a match extremely frustrating. If you’ve experience that before (most gamers have) you know exactly what I mean.

Modes a Plenty

Zone 4 has a remarkable variety of modes. Those include:

Free-For-All Deathmatch & Team Deathmatch- These modes allow players to compete individually or as teams with the object being to accumulate the most kills within a set portion of time. In this mode, players will respawn after a short wait.
Survival- Survival mode is just that, a player or team of players fighting to survive—to be the last man standing. The options are given in each room as to whether equipment and/or items will be allowed. This decision is made by the room host.

Challenge- In this mode, there are 50 stages through which you must fight to dominate the Zone. The object of this mode is to see how far you can go as you fight thugs, various enemies, and even bosses. Your hard work will be rewarded in high scores, prizes, and achievements.

Item- Item mode is where you can fight AI controlled foes or rival players. You will be given various items and power-ups which are randomly generated.

Arcade Story- In the Arcade Story mode you can fight alone or with up to 4 players. You will face hordes of enemies in new stories, levels, and episodes which OGPlanet adds monthly through content updates.

Turf War- This mode is the ultimate street fight where your rep is at stake. Guilds of up to 16vs16 go toe-to-toe to defend their turf. In a Turf War, you either go big or go home.

The Final Word

Zone 4 is most assuredly still a work in progress. The English translations are a bit rough and the gameplay can seem a bit repetitive. I also noted that the special attacks seemed a bit overpowering which created an imbalance that I believe should be resolved.

While I mentioned my thoughts on the graphics earlier, I still like the animation and the urban ambience. I can see both Zone 4’s weaknesses and strong suits. However, I believe that it will continue to draw a diverse following of gamers who prefer FTP fighters as well as those online gamers who favor more of a classic arcade semblance.

Ultimately I think that Z4’s strengths outweigh any of its weaknesses. From the wide variety of fighting styles to the incredible 16vs16 Turf Wars, Zone 4 is definitely a FTPMMO that you don’t want to miss out on! I give Zone 4: Fight District a 5. So until next time, game on!

Markham, Canada – February 17, 2012 – Rock Hippo Productions announced today their popular free-to-play online multiplayer action game, Brawl Busters, is now available to download and play via the Steam client. Starting today, players can access all the brawling while retaining all the perks of the Steam interface! Head over to Steam and download the game from the Store for free!

Brawl Busters Web Mall is coming! Very soon, players will be able to purchase items for their Buster via the mall, personalize their character, temporarily boost their stats, and much more. Valentine’s themed items are available now for a limited time.

Rock Hippo is also excited to announce the upcoming Clan support! Busters will be able to group together and represent their crew! More information will be revealed in the near future, and players can watch the official Brawl Busters Facebook Page for updates.

LUXEMBOURG CITY – February 17th, 2012 – Two months after the launch of the European free-to-play service in English, Innova today confirmed German as the first localised version of Lineage II. The German service for the competitive massively multiplayer online role-playing game Lineage II is expected to go live this spring.

Lineage II is being localised for different European territories in several stages, with special care and attention given to each language, including native-language player support and community management. Before the official launch of the German version, Innova will invite players to take part in the beta testing process and provide valuable feedback. The first phase, the closed beta test, is currently planned for March.

“We are really proud to announce the very first German version of this popular MMORPG, that offers such an amazing, vast world and gaming experience for both PvE (player versus environment) and PvP (player versus player) fans,” said Jens Schönherr, Head of German Community Management for Lineage II.

Lineage II has recently experienced major changes with its transition to the free-to-play model and the Goddess of Destruction expansion, and soon Innova will offer the first fully localised service for German-speaking players. Besides, the company will localise the game into further languages throughout 2012. More details will be announced in the coming months.

To play the game, read all the latest information about Lineage II and the expansion Goddess of Destruction in English, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Polish, Spanish and Turkish, please visit http://lineage2.eu.

Additionally, the Immortal Rift has been completely overhauled to allow for guilds to battle it out for control of territory, so gather your forces and be prepared to not only conquer, but also defend and land your guild has taken control over.

Experience Forsaken World like never have before! The brand new flying system will take players through the skies of Eyrda with new bosses, dungeons, and events designed specifically for flying. A new fortress in the sky has emerged along with new, unexplored areas. Be the first to experience the exciting new quests and monsters that roam the land. The Immortal Rift is being revamped into an all-out land conquering system. Attack and defend against other guilds to claim a territory within Eyrda.