MMO Roundup: Massively's week in review

[reposted from Massively]

When it comes to MMO news and special features, Joystiq sister site Massively.com has you covered. Whether you're looking for info on the hottest new MMO, or you're just curious about an old favorite, you'll find it at Massively. Check out our biggest features of the week:

Star Trek Online lifetime subs now available
Cryptic has revealed the lifetime subscription offer for Star Trek Online, which comes with playable Borg (not as a faction, but as liberated Borg) and is only available to those who've pre-ordered the game. Oddly enough, the price of the LS is $40 higher than Champions Online's was when it was announced August of last year.

Exclusive Allods Online dev tour: Astral Ships and the end game explained
Earlier this week, the team at Allods Online were kind enough to sit down and walk me through some of the highest-level areas in the game. Knowing that I'm already an avid fan of the game, it was exciting for us both to "talk shop" for a bit. It was especially exciting to see some features of the end game that not too many North American players have seen up to this point. Of course, I'm talking about Astral Ships and the end game.

Bioware confirms 2011 SWTOR release
Yesterday we talked about a rumor that had been floating around thanks to Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello, who had mentioned the spring 2011 launch of an unnamed MMO on a recent conference call. Of course, the Star Wars: The Old Republic rumor mill sprang into action, with good cause as it turns out.

Funcom threatening to delete noob Age of Conan characters
When it comes to character deletions, just about every MMO out there has a clause in their Terms of Service that indicates they have the right to delete your characters at any time and for no reason whatsoever. With that said, there are very few companies that choose to exercise that right.

MMO Roundup: Massively's week in review originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 16 Jan 2010 03:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/16/mmo-roundup-massivelys-week-in-review/

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Age of Conan servers merging, stock hits 2 year low

[reposted from Joystiq]

An MMOG's health is indicated by its server numbers, which means Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures is currently ailing. Funcom's new Game Director for AoC, Craig Morrison, writes on the game's forums that server merging, in both Europe and North America, will soon occur.

At one point Funcom announced that AoC did have 700,000 players, but that was when the game first shipped and players had a free trial month with the purchase. It's not just the players leaving, Funcom investors also seem to be looking for the nearest exit. The company's stock is currently trading at $5, that's down $20 from when we checked in late July and down $50 from before AoC shipped.*

*The downward trend was already occuring prior to the current global economic crisis.

http://feeds.joystiq.com/~r/weblogsinc/joystiq/~3/407327244/

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Funcom stocks plummet after AoC launches

Company in trouble or returning to normal levels?.
Developer Funcom has seen its stock value drop 55% after the launch of Age of Conan, from $54 a share to $24.

Click here to read the full article:

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=194143?cid=OTC-RSS&attr=CVG-General-RSS

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