Gameplay from the new Battlefield 6

 Some gameplay videos have appeared online for the new Battlefield game!

 In the first video we get a healthy look at a building being destroyed (grabbed a screenshot above).  It will be good to have heavy destruction back in the genre!  While there is some destruction in 2042 it pales in comparison to past games like Bad Company 2.

 In the second video we get some infantry game play.  The theme appears to be modern times which will be a return to the trend of BF2, BF3, and BF4. I am looking forward to a return to the modern battlefield for the series!

 

Digg

 Hell yes; Digg is coming back.

 

Deadlock makes big changes; still a MOBA

 A lot has been going on with Deadlock lately.  It recently became the most wishlisted game on Steam.  There were also a sweeping set of changes to how the game plays along with a revamped map.  Because while players are wishlisting the game players are also able to play the invite-only early access alpha beta testing version of the game.  Honestly, who a I kidding here?  The game is effectively a live game and its a MOBA.  And it's still a MOBA even after all of the changes that were made recently.  And to me that is a damn shame.

 First lets look at Deadlock's popularity since its invite-only test launched.  It rocketed up to 170,000+ peak concurrent players but has steadily dropped since and now enjoys about 17,000 peak concurrent players.  Considering it is a new game from Valve those are not huge numbers.  For comparison Valve's other MOBA, DOTA2, sees 600,000+ peak concurrent players and while not its absolute peak it is not far off.  DOTA2 also saw a steady climb from it's earliest test periods (i.e. there was no drop off as we are seeing with Deadlock).

Chart from SteamDB

 

 So Deadlock is on a downward trend in it's early access phase which makes you wonder if that downward player trend is resulting in the team reconsidering the design of the game.  With the most recent changes many of the gameplay aspects that set Deadlock apart from other MOBAs are being replaced with standard MOBA fair.  The map went from 4 lanes to 3 lanes.  Last hitting became more static.  Mobility and map traversal is reduced.  Basically Deadlock is more like any other MOBA that has come before than it has been at any point in it's early life.

 For me personally the biggest disappointment of Deadlock is that it still remains a MOBA.  Why is Valve making another MOBA?  The theme of Deadlock is fresh and new.  There are so many more interesting things Valve could be doing with that theme.  And so far it seems players are saying the same thing by voting with their playtime.  16,000+ peak concurrent players is nothing to sneeze at but its tiny for a Valve game.

 Maybe I have too high of expectations for Valve and bringing a new game to market that doesn't fit into their stable of existing genres.  Even so it still seems like a waste that the creativity behind Deadlock, it's world, and it's characters is just for another MOBA.  Maybe I'm just not like other gamers with my expectations.

February 25 In Review

February 2025 is already done!?

The Blog

Blogger stats for Feb: 40,187 (note: below graph includes March dates)

In other metrics:

• Posts:
  
• Target: 0
• Posted: 3
• Difference: +3 (I was really demotivated in Feb so the fact I got 3 posts out is a win)
•  Search Trends
• "once human end game" (and its variations) along with "once human lea research lab" popped up this month and there was increased traffic to my August 2024 post: End Game Thoughts On Once Human: Finished LEA Research Labs
  
• "new world inferno build", "inferno build new world", "new world flamethrower build" keep on trucking as folks continue looking for builds for the Inferno artifact.  My out of date but mostly still relevant Frigid Inferno Build is where they often land.
• "new world PvP server" also caught some traffic directing 
• "best battlefield game", "best battlefield", "best battlefield games" continues with my post Best Battlefield!?
  

What I Played

For Feb it was ... wait for it... New World.  Shocker! I still love this game and still play almost daily.  The big change for this month was that a long lost acquaintance and a chance encounter in 3v3 arenas convinced me to try out the Season 7 PvP servers.  The selling point to get me to jump is that he could get me leveled up to 65 "in 5 minutes".  True to his word I was basically leveled to 65 in a few minutes thanks to being able to turn logs into ethereal dust which crafts into animus that you get 2,500 XP for opening.  So a few minutes at the crafting station and hundreds of clicks opening animus and I was 65.

There is also drop on death PvP gear that is easy to obtain (easy to lose as well) so I was geared up in no time (and then promptly ungeared with my first open world death).  And while I was max level with gear there were still some annoyances I had to deal with such as leveling my faction up to max level which requires me to finish the main story quest to access a specific zone. I am still working my way through that and enjoy the frequent open world PvP skirmishes since everyone is flagged and there is always the chance they are loaded with PvP drop-on-death gear! 

I also jumped into the Anvil Empires early access test and that game simply isn't ready for much serious testing consideration.

Years Ago

1 Year Ago

Feb of 2024 brought us Enshrouded and I enjoyed my time digging around that world.

My beloved Green Bay Packers once again exited the NFL Playoffs with a loss to the dreaded San Francisco 49ers.  Boo!

I was also in my very early stages of playing around with AI image generators.  Its a bit crazy to look back over the last year and see how much AI has changed.  I really need to take some time to share more of my AI dabbling.  There is some cool stuff out there.

5 Years Ago

Feb 2020 featured no blog posts.

10 Years Ago

Feb 2015 I felt obligated to post and so I did.

15 Years Ago

In Feb of 2010 I was playing Allods Online open beta and then had my launch reaction and then promptly started arguing about its plans for a cash shop.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 was a hot game heading our way in Feb 2010 and still ranks as one of my favorite Battlefield games.  I spent time comparing it to Battlefield 2, talking about SecuROM DRM, and 

Some of us bloggers also challenged ourselves to try and make believe that Warhammer Online wasn't shutting down or going into maintenance mode.  Oops.

 Oh and I started the idea of posting regular monthly look back posts with my first "What I'm Playing/What I'm Paying" post that looked at the month prior of Jan 2010.  I must have had more free time back then; I played a lot more games.

 20 Years Ago

I started blogging in 2005 but not until May so come back in May for the big 2 0 extravaganza.

 

Playing 3v3 Arenas with PvP Server Gear and WINNING 1vX

 I made another New World Aeternum video; this time showcasing my new character "heartlessgamer2" from the PvP server Scalvia.  I just finished leveling to 65 and grabbed a set of the 725 "Swarm's Mighty" gear which is unique to the PvP server.  This is a great way to jump right to 725 gear score and jump into arenas.  I ended up winning against the odds 1v3 in the first round and we brought it home at the end for a great arena win!

 

New World's New OPR Map: Coral Divide

 New World's new outpost rush (OPR) map is available to preview this weekend so I gave it a spin and boy did I have some fun!  So much fun in fact I had to clip one of the matches where our team came back from 300+ points down to steal a win in the final moments!  Not only that but I scored first place! This new map is a ton of fun!

 First the video:

 I am playing my heavy sworld and shield/firestaff build with a key change to using Burnanator as my firestaff.  This thing BURNS; even after a slight nerf this patch.  It fits my playstyle perfectly!

 A screenshot of the scoreboard as well; 1000 to 986 is about as close as you can get in OPR!  I went 31 kills / 6 deaths / 61 assists.  Over 2.3 million damage!

January 2025 In Review

The first month of 2025 has come and gone; lets take a look back.

The Blog

Blogger stats for Jan: 21,700

 In other metrics:

• Posts:
  
• Target: 22 (weekdays minus holiday)
  
• Posted: 9
• Difference: -13 (motivation, lack there of)
  
•  Search Trends
• "new world inferno build", "inferno build new world", "new world flamethrower build" have been gaining momentum since New World Aeternum (NWA) launched thanks to my build post: Frigid Inferno Build.
• "best battlefield game", "best battlefield", "best battlefield games" continues with my post Best Battlefield!?
  

What I Played

For Jan it was more New World.  I just can't stop playing.  I enjoy the game and play almost daily.  I cycle through the same activities: play the in-game market, queue up for 3v3 arenas, and then queue for Outpost Rush.  Once a week I venture off into the FFA PvP zone for my golden coconut.  Some call it boring and repetitive; I call it just plain fun.

Years Ago

1 Year Ago

January of 2024 brought us Enshrouded and I enjoyed my time digging around that world.

My beloved Green Bay Packers once again exited the NFL Playoffs with a loss to the dreaded San Francisco 49ers.  Boo!

I was also in my very early stages of playing around with AI image generators.  Its a bit crazy to look back over the last year and see how much AI has changed.  I really need to take some time to share more of my AI dabbling.  There is some cool stuff out there.

5 Years Ago

In January of 2020 I was putzing around with a mono black devotion deck in Magic the Gathering: Arena.  If memory serves me it wasn't exactly competitive but it caught some folks off guard every once and a while as its a nonstandard way to win a game.

10 Years Ago

In January 2015 we received the announcement about Guild Wars 2's Heart of Thorns expansion which was the first expansion for the game and piqued my interest.

15 Years Ago

In January of 2010 we were beta testing Allods Online.  I am sure my younger self thought it surely would be the World of Warcraft killer (narrator: it wasn't).

Star Trek Online was entering open beta as well. 

And we were all enjoying Avatar in movie theaters.  I really didn't want to like the movie but had to admit it was a fun movie.

 20 Years Ago

I started blogging in 2005 but not until May so come back in May for the big 2 0 extravaganza.

 

New World PvE

 I made a lengthy reply on Reddit about PvE opportunities in New World Aeternum.  It gained some traction and has been shared a few times on different subreddits.  I wanted to capture a version of it for the blog and long term keeping.

The question asked: "Just bought it! How is the PVE? Is the loot drop rewarding as well?"

My answer:

PvE during leveling is a good experience; you will get a lot of enjoyment out of that.  The game has some of the best "cinematic experiences" for expeditions (aka dungeons) and personally my first trip through some of them such as Tempest Heart were a visual treat (though "story mode" expeditions are very easy challenge wise).

The "rewarding loot drop" depends on who you ask.  New World has a classless system where your build is determined by your gear.  Gear is variable with 3 perks, a gem slot (except on some special items), and which attribute bonus (INT, STR, CON, etc) it has.  What is "best" for a piece of armor, a weapon, or a jewelery thus has variability.  It is not like other games where that one raid drops that one tank sword that every tank has to get.

The game also drops a lot of gear and I mean A LOT; more in the line of a Diablo type game than a normal MMO.  Most of that gear is randomly generated and is basically garbage that you will just salvage.  That goes all the way through end game where a lot of gear drops are just underwhelming.

The game does have a system called "loot biasing" where gear from many end game chests (elite, expedition, etc) will match close to the gear you are currently wearing. So if you are heavy armor with INT as your highest attribute you will likely see heavy armor with INT as the highest attribute.  Unforutnately this comes up short because it doesn't consider weapons and armor drops with weapon perks for other weapons. I personally feel like this is a miss that they should fix with the system.  A heavy armor piece with INT is great if thats my build but if it drops with a flail weapon perk and I don't use a flail its just one more piece of gear I need to salvage down.

But that is just the gemeral loot drop system.  There is lots of "named" items in the game that drop with locked in perks and many end game named items let you upgrade the item to 700 gear score and set the 3rd perk to your choice (there are "perk buckets" with rules so its not any perk, but lots of options to choose what the 3rd perk is).

Then there are artifacts tied to specific content.  Often it drops after a few tries and has pity mechanics so you do get it to drop. Artifacts are end game armor, weapons, and jewelery that you will build entire builds around.  It feels good to get an artifact to drop after working towards it!  And there is a ton of artifacts in the game now and are in every lane of gameplay from solo PvE to group PvE.

Expedtions are a main PvE end game activity; specifically the mutated version.  Each week new expeditions get mutated and have levels 1-3.  "M3" aka mutation level 3 is the hardest.  Mutated expeditions are where many artifacts are obtained and they drop a ton of other rewards, but as mentioned its hit or miss on how great those drops are (most not so much).  Mutated expeditions are also a good way to get dark matter drops for end game loot upgrades which is a necessary part of the end game.

More recently they added the first raid to the game.  It is 10 person and is the hardest end game PvE content.  Many players complain about it being too hard for casual groups if that gives you a sense.  Personally I think its spot on; hard for a pick up group to complete but not impossible; while still being challenging for organized groups.

The raid offers gear up to gear score 725, the new max, and drops rare schematics for crafting which is where a lot of the true best end game gear comes from outside of artifacts.  The artifacts that drop from the raid are also sought after; some pick up groups solely focus on just getting past the first boss just to get folks the artifact that boss drops.  The issue though is the raid drops rewards only once per week; once done with your weekly run there is no reward for repeating.

There is also a 20 person sand wurm "raid" that is a single boss fight with good end game drops as well.

With that said there is tons of ways as a solo PvE player to get 700 gear score gear and it's not hard.  While 725 is the new max; 700 is more than capable in PvE and PvP.  Artifacts can all be upgraded to 725 so many folks end up with 3x artifacts (max you can have in a build is 1 weapon, 1 armor, and 1 jewelery artifact) and 700 on the rest.

While not your traditional "rewarding loot drops" of other MMOs you can set your sights on the gear you want and work in PvE towards it.  Crafting is also a source for tons of end game gear and plenty of PvE activity can be done to earn gold to fund your own crafting or buy from crafters/trading post.

I personally really like that as a mostly solo player I can play this game and match the hardest of the hardcore in builds and capabilities on my character.  Having a group makes it easier to get stuff like the raid or mutated expeditions done, but not a requirement at all in this game.  That is the biggest selling point for me.  As I said I am 4,000+ hours in, have maxed everything, have a maxed build I love playing, and dabble in PvE and PvP.

Season 7: New World PvP Servers

 By the time you are reading this the New World season 7, Season of the Conqueror, will have launched and with it a new set of seasonal PvP servers.  These limited time seasonal servers feature accelerated leveling and a special ruleset that will change each season.  This season will focus on PvP with forced PvP flagging after level 15 and with new gear that drops on death.  Will the PvP crowd finally show up for a PvP focused update in New World?

 The New World team has a long post detailing the PvP servers, but for context here are the main points:

• PvP flagging is forced on at level 15
• Leveling speed is increased
• Special equipment can be crafted for reduced material costs that is stronger than normal equipment but the equipment drops on death and has durability so can break.

 This is basically as close as New World will have gotten to it's original intention to be a PvP focused sandbox with gear dropping on death.  The question is will this be enjoyable and worth the time?

 A big issue I have with the approach here is that these are seasonal servers where I need to start a new character from scratch.  I have 4,000 hours in this game, almost all of it on a single character, so my immediate interest in a new character is limited.  Throw in that the PvP server goes away at the end of the season in a couple months and the draw is even weaker.  Why get invested in something that is repeating what I've already done and that is going away?

 Also the more I looked at the details the more I wondered about the changes made to support PvP.  The main change is the introduction of the ethereal crafting and conqueror's gear.  I like that the gear will drop on death and can change hands, but the bonuses mentioned in the post seem questionable on whether its worth the hassle to obtain/keep.  Why deal with gear you can lose when all of the other gear in the game is going to be available?

 The main issue with the PvP-drop-on-death gear is that there are only a couple weapons and only heavy armor pieces at the end game.  So if you want to play a build that doesn't fit that criteria then you will use gear that doesn't come with the associated risk of being lost.  Add in the skill ceiling in New World's action combat I suspect we will see a lot of players taking zero risk with "no-drop builds" and letting their skill overcome the gap in gear.

 I do like that they are unlocking mounts and heartrunes without players needing to complete the quests, but it seems well short of the number of changes I'd of expected to foster PvP.  One of the big issues I've seen discussed is that instanced content such as expeditions, 3v3 arena, and outpost rush will all be available and be available as cross server to those on the PvP servers.  There will be players on PvP servers that sit in town doing instanced content on repeat, gaining gold and experience (PvE and PvP), and then maybe roll out to PvP when the itch strikes.  That seems like a huge miss on a PvP server where you want players out in the world.

 As a seasonal server it seems like a big miss to keep cross server activity and instanced content.  The focus would have been better on getting players into the open world and hitting points of interest to drive conflict.  Why not take the ethereal crafting concept and extend it to provide access to all the gear that drops in expeditions or other instanced content?  Why, why, why keep instanced content on the seasonal PvP server!?

 If New World gave me a PvP server that was just the normal game with always on PvP and let me transfer my character to that server I'd be all over it.  I think being PvP flagged adds a ton to the game.  But all of the adjustments to make these seasonal worlds "different" don't seem to drive much in the way of PvP and thus I question whether it's worth the effort.  I am on the fence and not sure I'll partake.

The Angler No More

 Unfortunate news for fishing game fans.  Call of the Wild: the Angler has announced an end to development on the game.

 Anglers,

It’s with a heavy heart that we announce the end of development for Call of the Wild: The Angler. The Angler will remain playable both online and offline in its current state, and you’ll still be able to purchase and access the base game and all DLC content across all platforms. The big difference is that there won’t be any new content or updates moving forward.

Our vision with The Angler was to create a fresh take on the fishing sim genre, inspired by our love and passion for fishing and open-world games. It’s given us so much joy seeing your appreciation for the worlds we created and excitement in catching something new with each big update. We wouldn’t have made it these two-and-a-half years if we hadn’t listened very closely to our passionate community, and for that passion, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. However, maintaining the audience size necessary to support the continued development of this ambitious game proved more challenging than expected, so it’s time for the team to move on to other projects.

We understand that this may come as a surprise, and want you to know it was not an easy decision to make. Although the excitement of new content and updates has come to an end, we hope you’ll still enjoy reruns of in-game events and playing online with friends old and new. There’s much to explore in the five reserves as well.

It’s difficult to leave a project that was driven by so much passion, and we’ll always hold it dear, but we’re bringing our experience and expertise to new horizons within Avalanche Studios Group, so please cheer us on! We’re proud to say that our hard work and dedication brought the beauty of fishing (and boatloads of bad fishing puns) to players around the world.

A special shoutout to our moderators, who endured the aftermath of the Gold Green Sunfish and the Carpsucker Hunt of ‘24 (iykyk). And of course, the members of our Player Council, who put countless hours into feedback on updates and making them as good as possible for the rest of the Angler world.

Once again, we want to thank you all for the hours you’ve spent fishing so far, for all the feedback you’ve left us and all the fantastic memories and memes created so far!

Here’s to the great catches we’ve shared and to those that are still to come!

// Team Angler

 I had an on again / off again relationship with the game as you can see in my posting history for the game.  I enjoyed playing but felt the game came up short on being a great fishing experience.  At the end of the day it under delivered on the fishing experience so many of us fishing gamers wanted.  I will remember the times I got to digitally fish with my son but beyond that it was a forgettable arcade-like fishing game.  The good news is it sounds like it will still be available to play offline and will support mulitplayer for the foreseeable future.