Author Archives: SynCaine

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About SynCaine

Former hardcore raider turned casual gamer.

Bernie Madoff was a great investor. Used the wrong payment model.

Posted on November 8, 2012 by SynCaine

“I think there will definitely be failures within the next 12 to 24 months. Many who are entering the market right now are doing it as almost a money-grab. But subscription is dead. [Star Wars:] The Old Republic was the … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, DDO, EVE Online, League of Legends, Lord of the Rings Online, Mass Media, MMO design, Random, Rant, Rift, RMT, SW:TOR, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 23 Comments

The Elder Scrolls MMO is… um… not as bad as SW:TOR?

Posted on November 8, 2012 by SynCaine

9 minute Elder Scrolls Online video. So first things first, it overall did not come off as horrible as the first info release sounded, and (almost) nothing in the interviews gave off the SW:TOR “We have no clue how to … Continue reading →

Posted in Darkfall Online, Random, SW:TOR | 5 Comments

GW2 reaches Lineage 1 level of success for a quarter. Grats Anet!

Posted on November 7, 2012 by SynCaine

NCSoft reported their quarterly earnings. The biggest surprise? Lineage 1 and Guild Wars 2 are pretty close in overall sales. Of course that’s not totally fair, seeing as how GW2 just came out, uses the B2P model, and had a … Continue reading →

Posted in Guild Wars, Mass Media, Rant | 24 Comments

Darkfall:UW – Best Case

Posted on November 6, 2012 by SynCaine

With Darkfall set to release in two weeks, I want to write down my expectations for the game. Today will be a best-case post, while tomorrow I’ll do worst-case. If nothing else, it will be interesting to revisit these post-release … Continue reading →

Posted in crafting, Darkfall Online, Housing, Mass Media, MMO design, PvP | 7 Comments

New Darkfall Q&A

Posted on November 2, 2012 by SynCaine

Paragus from Inquisition has posted a Q&A from Aventurine about Darkfall. It contains a lot of new info, and is well worth reading. Aventurine has also provided some additional clarification about the new safe zones here. Overall I like the … Continue reading →

Posted in Darkfall Online | 3 Comments

MMOs: It’s a hobby

Posted on November 1, 2012 by SynCaine

My previous post sparked some good discussion in the comments, and requires a follow-up post. For additional background, see Victor’s post. I think what I failed to clarify is perhaps how I expect an MMO player to play, both as … Continue reading →

Posted in Inquisition Clan, MMO design, Random | 23 Comments

Genre Splitting

Posted on October 30, 2012 by SynCaine

I want to combine some topics and thoughts into what will hopefully be a larger point; it’s crazy that today, games like GW2 and EVE are considered part of the same genre. Allow me to explain. Shiolle asked the following: … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 57 Comments

Xcom: No looking back

Posted on October 29, 2012 by SynCaine

I finished my Classic/Ironman game of Xcom over the weekend, with the final turn of the final battle coming down to making a 90% shot or losing everything. Luckily the 10% did not kick in and I saw the ending, … Continue reading →

Posted in Random | 3 Comments

Fantastic Xcom review

Posted on October 25, 2012 by SynCaine

In case anyone here has not picked this title up, I’d highly recommend reading this review from Gamespy. I think its very fair and hits all the right points. For me Classic Ironman mode really has lead to some highs and … Continue reading →

Posted in Mass Media, Random | 5 Comments

Save the F2P children

Posted on October 25, 2012 by SynCaine

I think I’m slowly transitioning from hating F2P players to feeling sorry for them, somewhat similar to my changing views of WoW and its players. When WoW really mattered and every dev team was trying to clone it, I felt … Continue reading →

Posted in MMO design, Random, Rant, Rift, RMT, SW:TOR, World of Warcraft | 25 Comments