Settlers in Russia

UBISOFT®’S FREE-TO-PLAY THE SETTLERS® ONLINE INHABITS RUSSIA

Paris, France - September 27, 2011– Today, Ubisoft^® announced that The Settlers Online, the free-to-play, browser-based, multiplayer strategy game based on The Settlers franchise, is expanding beta testing into Russia. Ubisoft is working with Fabrika Online, a company specialized in social entertainment services and online games for the Russian market, to publish the game. The open beta will start in October.

The open beta of The Settlers Online in Russia follows successful beta tests in Germany, France and the United States (as Castle Empire), and represents Ubisoft’s latest investment in the Russian market. According to a recent PricewaterhouseCoopers report, the Russian online games market is forecast to increase to USD 723 million in 2014, and the total volume of the video games market in Russia is forecast to rise to USD 1.3 billion, at a compound annual growth rate of 11.1%.

“Bringing Web-based, free-to-play titles like The Settlers Online to emerging game markets like Russia is a key part of Ubisoft’s online strategy,” said Alain Corre, Director of Ubisoft EMEA. “We will offer Russian-speaking players the same high-quality gameplay, the same level of service and the same connections to the game’s community that will make The Settlers Online a great game around the world.”

Launching the beta of the The Settlers Online represents the second time Ubisoft has worked with Fabrika Online in Russia. The two companies also worked together to publish Heroes of Might and Magic Kingdoms in August.

“Fabrika Online is glad to present the online version of such a widely popular brand as The Settlers to a Russian-speaking audience,” said Anton Rouff, CEO of Fabrika Online. “The game matches the significance of the brand and we expect it will definitely reach the highest levels of popularity with Russian gamers. Working with The Settlers Online is a big honor for us and a great way to continue our successful relationship with Ubisoft.”

Developed by Ubisoft’s Blue Byte studio, The Settlers Online is a purely web-based PC game, which can be played by anyone for free. Players establish their first settlement on untouched soil and expands it to a bustling city full of settlers, until it becomes a glorious kingdom. To achieve this goal, players need to combine production workflows and should establish an efficient logistical infrastructure. During the game, guilds and military also become increasingly important in order to succeed against other players. Carrying out challenging adventure quests together with friends rewards the player with fame, glory and extraordinary treasures. No matter if players are professionals or novices of The Settlers games, they quickly understand the gameplay thanks to numerous help systems.

More information about The Settlers Online in Russia can be found here: http://www.thesettlersonline.ru/

© 2010 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. The Settlers, Blue Byte and the Blue Byte logo are trademarks of Red Storm Entertainment in the U.S. and/or other countries. Ubisoft and the Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the U.S. and/or other countries. Red Storm Entertainment Inc is a Ubisoft Entertainment company. Developed by Blue Byte Software.

Sexy Gamer of the Week

Hey There!
My name is Ylenia, but someone around the internet calls me Aryan, Visenya, Cersei.. ( If you're wondering... No, I do not have any personality disorder! ). I live in Tuscany, in a small town in front of the sea named Forte dei Marmi (Italy), but when I meet people on the street they start talking me in german. And well, I can definitely be described as a huge geek.
I'm a model, a student of Architecture, a cosplayer, a costumer, a NERD, and of course a girl gamer!

I began with the very first gaming consoles, I can easily say I've tried (almost) them all!


Owned gaming consoles: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, PSP

Best gaming console: PlayStation 3. I'm a fan of Sony consoles, I can't do anything! My first love was PlayStation 1.0

Fav games: Tomb Raider(the whole saga), Dragon Age 1, Dragon Age 2, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, Call of Duty

Least fav games:  This is hard to say, I would never buy any sport game.

Hobbies: I think now is the time to kill off some of the myths that spread around nerds life: we are humans just like you, we eat, we drink, we... you got it. And fancy what! We also like sports! Horseback riding, running and volleyball are at my top. I love rpg-ing, from larping to online gaming, fantasy stuff, modeling, and so on.
And.. the world of "A Song of Ice and Fire" by George Martin is my biggest passion <3

This is my website: http://www.princessanddragon.com
My blog: http://stalkmeall.blogspot.com
My DA account: http://belledamesansmerci.deviantart.com




<3 MUTTONBASHER!

Ciao belli!

Minecraf Mod... Melody?

Just something cool that we like, and wanted to share with you all.

Minecraft Note Block Fun

Random Review

Ar tonelico Qoga: Knell of Ar Ciel

Before the PlayStation 2 era, developer Gust, responsible for the diverse Atelier series, was virtually unheard of outside Japan. It was not until Nippon Ichi Software's North American branch Atelier Iris: Eternal Mana that the developer gained some recognition, with Gust ultimately focusing on a new franchise, Ar tonelico, whose first installment on the PlayStation 2 saw foreign release in 2007. A sequel came two years later on the PS2, followed by a third installment, Ar tonelico Qoga: Knell of Ar Ciel, for the PlayStation 3, which just might be Gust's best game yet.
Like its predecessors, Qoga features an indicating in dungeons that changes color to indicate how close the player is to encountering enemies, with this gauge gradually emptying foe each victory, ultimately running out of bars to indicate no more encounters remain in the dungeon; however, if the player exits and reenters the dungeon, the gauge will refill. The first installment of the Ar tonelico series featured a fully turn-based battle system similar to the Atelier franchise, whereas the second featured an updated battle system fusing turn-based and real-time elements.
Qoga once again shifts battle systems, this time to a fully real-time system where one Reyvateil and three vanguards are present, a change from the two-Vanguard, two-Reyvateil setup in Melody of Metafalica. As in prior installments, the Reyvateil charges Song Magic, and enemies are able to enter her "zone" and attack her, in which situation the player needs to press the O button to repel the enemy, although the player will need to wait a few seconds before being able to repel the enemy from the Reyvateil's zone again. The player manually controls one of the Vanguards, while the A.I. controls the other two, although the player can change the controlled Vanguard.
Attacking the enemy is simply a matter of moving near an enemy and pressing the Square button, with the player able to chain three standard attacks. If the player times attacks in sync with the Harmograph at the bottom of the screen, they'll deal more damage, and the Heart right next to the gauge will grow larger. When the heart says "Purge" ready, the player can hold the L1, L2, R1, or R2 button to have the Reyvateil strip some clothes, and the power of the Song Magic will rise faster. Depending upon how much the player has advanced in the Reyvateil's Cosmosphere, the Reyvateil can purge up to four levels, after which a sequence begins where the player needs to time presses of the X button right for even more Song Magic power, afterward resetting the Song Magic to 0%.
Outside battle, the player can, as in previous Ar tonelico games, dive into a Reyvateil's Cosmosphere to advance several mini-story events at the cost of Dive Points, necessary to unlock upper levels of Song Magic as well as Hyumas the player assigns to the L1, L2, R1, and R2 buttons for added effects when purging such as increased defense. The player can also unlock alternate forms for Reyvateils with different stats from their normal forms. Furthermore, the player can synthesize Images, essentially items, some of them being necessary to unlock HP-consuming skills (there is no MP) for Vanguards they can execute when the player presses a directional button with the attack button.
Ultimately, the battle system works nicely, with adjustable difficulty levels and most fights moving at a steady pace and not taking a terribly long time, although being able to skip spell animations would have quickened the pace even more. Exploring each Reyvateil's Cosmosphere is, as with before, a nice diversion from the plot, and while the battle system might be simplistic overall, what particularly with the absence of MP, it works well nonetheless.
Controls are also mostly solid, with an easy menu system, easy town and dungeon navigation, and the ability to get a reminder on the current objective at inns, though it isn't always foolproof, and the player might be left scratching their head a few times. There are also no automaps in dungeons, which can somewhat hurt given the complexity of one dungeon, and players can't tell how equipment increases or decreases stats before buying it, although this isn't a terribly big flaw since money isn't too bad a problem. Ultimately, control is decent.
Although the story doesn't have a lot of links to prior Ar tonelico games, it's still decent, with perhaps one major plot twist and multiple endings depending upon actions taken during the game. The localization definitely gives the game a mature sense of humor, despite some errors and oddities at times such as Aki referring to herself in the third person. Overall, a decent plot.
As is expectant of a game about Song Magic, the soundtrack definitely excels, with plenty of pleasant diverse tracks and even some remixes, including some 8-bit tracks in one Cosmosphere level. The voice acting is alright, although if players can't tolerate the English voicework, they can simply switch to the Japanese voices. All in all, a superb-sounding game.
The visual style of Qoga is interesting, combining occasional prerendered anime-style environments with three-dimensional character models and three-dimensional scenery, a combination that looks mostly pleasant. However, the game makes the odd decision at times of fuzzing out the game graphics to have static character portraits narrate story scenes. Still, the game is pleasant on the eyes.
Finally, finishing the third installment can take as little as fifteen hours, if the player gets the premature Bad Ending, although it can take up to thirty to get a normal ending or the best ending, with a New Game+ allowing the player to restart the game at certain points with levels retained. Ultimately, Ar tonelico Qoga is a solid sequel that hits most of the right notes while only leaving minor room for improvement, particularly with regard to the lack of automaps in dungeons, which only really hurts at one point. Like subsequent installments of the Final Fantasy franchise, it mixes up things drastically, and does so successfully.

The Good:
+Enjoyable battle system.
+Mostly solid control.
+Good localization and plot with multiple endings.
+Great music and graphics.
+Plenty replay value.

The Bad:
-No automaps in dungeons.

The Bottom Line:
Probably the best Ar tonelico and Gust game yet.

Score Breakdown:
Platform: PlayStation 3
Game Mechanics: 9/10
Controls: 8/10
Story: 8/10
Music/Sound: 9/10
Graphics: 8/10
Localization: 8/10
Lasting Appeal: 10/10
Difficulty: Adjustable
Playing Time: 15-30 Hours

Overall: 8.5/10

Sexy Gamer of the Week

This week Muttonbasher Gaming is proud to present: Melody Jaede

i do a little of everything..
graphic design . digital art . photography . traditional art ( pen, pencil, paint, sculpting etc) i am not an die hard gamer, but do enjoy killing bad guys on those particular days that killing actual humans is frowned upon.. i guess that would be everyday.. lol  i sing first alto. been trying taekwondo, jujitsu and been attempting yoga although it bored me to tears. I'm a mother [22 years ] & wife been married for 3 years. I'm only 5'1 so I'm kinda short. but like they say... great things come in small packages.

Go check her out at: http://chibidottmel.deviantart.com/

Minecraft Mod Monday

Alright so today we are skipping the "mod" portion to bring huge news in the minecraft front!

1.8 update is now available. Nuff said. go check it out and let us know what you think of the upday.

Go check it out, and go support the team.
Download here!

Atelier Rorona: The Alchemist of Arland Review

Atelier Rorona: The Alchemist of Arland

 

Gust Corporation made itself known with the Atelier, Mana Khemia, and Ar tonelico franchises, with Nippon Ichi's American branch ultimately deciding to bring Anglophones these games starting with Atelier Iris: Eternal Mana. In 2009, the franchise debuted on the PlayStation 3 with Atelier Rorona: The Alchemist of Arland, with NIS America localizing the game the next year. How does it stack up to other games in the series?
Throughout the game, the protagonist, Rorona, receives assignments that she must complete within a period. As with other Atelier games, she can synthesize various kinds of items at her workshop, and around town, she can take on requests from shopkeepers and allies to turn in items, which can net her rewards such as money and increased popularity of her workshop. She can also purchase items with her money from shops, such as recipe books to unlock more items she can synthesize, and hire up to two allies, paying them whenever she leaves town.
Outside town, Rorona can visit various fields and dungeons with her allies, with plenty of gathering points in each, not to mention enemies she can hit with her staff to get a preemptive strike; however, enemies can occasionally do the same against Rorona and her party. Regardless of who goes first, the game takes players to a separate screen for combat, where Rorona and her allies have various commands from which to choose, such as attacking with their equipped weapons, using skills that consume their HP (there is no MP in the game), or escaping; only Rorona can use items.
After the player inputs a character's command, they immediately execute it a la Final Fantasy X, although one should note that there is unfortunately no turn order meter, a step down from other games in the Atelier series that had this feature. The player wins a battle if they defeat all enemies, although defeat means a trip back to town and the loss of some days until the next deadline. Winning a battle nets Rorona and her allies experience for occasional level-ups, in which case their stats slightly increase and the player can distribute a skill point into their skills.
Dungeons and fields may have occasional points when Rorona needs to use a bomb to blow up a boulder or use an ice bomb to freeze a river to cross it, with both kinds of items synthesizable at her workshop. Ultimately, the gameplay systems work decently, although late in the game, deadlines can really put a strain on the player, with the potential for players to lock themselves into an situation where they can't finish the game if they have only one save slot, since failing to meet a deadline results in her workshop's closure and a Game Over. This wouldn't have been a problem if the player could start the game from scratch with levels and items retained, but the gameplay is still decent at best.
The controls are solid as well, with easy menus, synthesizing, shopping, and whatnot, and a general linear structure that keeps players moving in the right direction. To be able to see if Rorona can complete quests before taking them is a nice convenience, as well. Granted, the game does limit Rorona's basket space to sixty items, and it's odd that the game only allows for saving at her workshop since the game is nice to players when they die, but otherwise, the game is user-friendly.
The story is decent, with an endearing cast of characters and some story variations, although there isn't much in the way of antagonistic forces for Rorona and her allies. The translation, however, is largely solid, with some occasional innuendo, and only some small errors. Ultimately, the story isn't superb, although it is a decent driving factor throughout the game.
As usual, the Gust sound team does a nice job with the soundtrack, with plenty of bouncy tracks, although the English voice work is largely hit-or-miss; luckily, the player can switch to the Japanese voices if desired or simply cut dialogues short during cutscenes.
Atelier Rorona uses a cel-shaded visual style, with nice character models, character art, and scenery, although textures look bland close-up and characters and enemies don't have shadows in battle. One odd design decision is that while the normal graphics look fine, the game frequently fuzzes them out to have static character portraits narrate cutscenes. Despite this, the game is easy on the eyes.
Finally, the game is short, taking less than twenty hours to beat even if players finds themselves in a premature Game Over situation, although trying to acquire every Trophy can easily boost playing time and adds nice replayability. Overall, Atelier Rorona: The Alchemist of Arland isn't the best Atelier or Gust game, what particularly with the ability to enter a no-win situation, although it still excels in many areas including its gameplay, story, music, and graphics. Those who can look past its flaws, maybe arm themselves with a guide to be on the safe side, might just have a fun time.
The Good:
+Solid gameplay systems and control.
+Charming plot and translation.
+Great music and graphics.
+Trophies add nice replay value.
The Bad:
-Can be unwinnable.
-Can't restart the game with stats and items retained.
The Bottom Line:
Not the best Atelier game, but still enjoyable.
Score Breakdown:
Platform: PlayStation 3
Game Mechanics: 8/10
Controls: 8/10
Story: 7/10
Music/Sound: 9/10
Graphics: 8/10
Localization: 9/10
Lasting Appeal: 10/10
Difficulty: Medium
Playing Time: Less than 20 Hours
Overall: 8.5/10

Muttonbasher Forums!

We now have live forums! They are pretty bare, and for sure not finished. but they are usable :D

Muttonbasher Gaming Forums!

Gears 3 contest!

OK all you talented people there is a contest for gears 3 that you should know about :o big prizes and awesome art. Here you go. and if you win. remember we sent you :o

DeviantArt Gears 3

yay!

Congratulations to DntMessWitRohan  for winning the shoutbox givaway! hmm when will we do another cool givaway? :o

CONTEST TODAY!!!!!!

Can't be any more clear! having a contest today! just leave us a shout in the shout box over there ---->>>

and when we see fit we will announce a winner! that simple :D

what is the prize?!?!?! its a secret! so go post and yes you can post multiple times :D

Review #2

Alundra

 

         Shortly after Final Fantasy VII made its splash on the PlayStation, Matrix Software, a subsidiary of Sony Computer Entertainment, developed Alundra, which many proclaimed to be a Zelda killer and one of the best action RPGs to appear on the system, localized by Working Designs the same year as its Japanese release in 1997. I unfortunately didn’t experience such a game given its flaws, such as a mediocre battle system, some really irritating puzzles, and a neglected storyline.

         Alundra, to begin, bears a battle system most any Zelda game would feature, with the title hero gaining a few weapons and tools to help him battle the enemy. As he receives weapon upgrades, he does gain charge attacks, though most, I noticed, were fairly ineffective and not very helpful. As with the Zelda games, Alundra doesn’t gain experience from killing enemies, only the occasional bit of money and life-recovering doohickey. Speaking of life, Alundra increases his life and magic meters from finding special items spread throughout the world. Yes, he has magic, as well, although I found little use for it, especially given that I could only find two meager upgrades to his MP meter. The boss fights aren’t particularly special or very strategic, either, mostly requiring the player to track a boss’s pattern, keep up with it, and attack when able to. In the end, the battle system doesn’t do a great job in separating Alundra from other ARPGs, and is mediocre at best.

          What’s frightening, though, is that combat is actually a pretty decent diversion from the utter hell of solving Alundra’s many puzzles, some of which are close to impossible if you don’t use a guide of some sort. There are a few decent ones, though, but the ability to jump opens the window to some pretty lousy jumping puzzles that require near-perfect reflexes on part of the player. The placement of save points throughout the game is also quite horrendous, with the player at times needing to go for well over an hour without being able to save. Alundra also lacks maps of any sort, often forcing the player to waste time figuring out where to go next in the world or in a dungeon. The game also leaves players in the dark about the side quests, such as the collection of Gilded Falcons, which just sit in their inventory, daring them to guess what the devil they’re there for. The rest of the menus aren’t bad, though, with everything compacted onto two screens. Still, interaction could’ve definitely been better.

       Alundra, more or less, is a generic Zelda clone, with one of the only real nods towards creativity being the protagonist’s ability to walk into dreams.

          Alundra, of course, is the game’s protagonist, sailing on a ship that eventually wrecks ashore in a land where the town of Inoa suffers from an evil named Melzas that haunts the dreams of the populace, and, given his ability to walk into dreams, Alundra sees through their problems and travels across the land in the bargain to explore dungeons, solve puzzles, and defeat a few random nemeses. The plot, while more dramatic than your typical Zelda story, really takes a backseat to the endless traveling of the world and dungeon crawling, and does involve many seemingly random fetch quests, some involving walking into dreams. Character development, except maybe in case of Alundra’s female equivalent, Meia, is also largely neglected. In the end, Alundra features yet another RPG plot with some nice ideas but weak execution.
Much of the music, though, is actually pretty nice, such as the themes of Inoa and its surroundings, not to mention the victory theme when Alundra defeats a boss, and while the dungeon tracks aren’t as strong, and a bit repetitive, they do help enhance the mood of the game, and overall, this is one place where the game where doesn’t fall entirely flat on its face.

         The 2-D graphics are nice, as well, with wholly believable scenery and decently proportioned character sprites, though they only face four directions. There wasn’t a whole lot of recycling of character and monster sprites as far as I saw, and the few anime cutscenes are nice, as well, though the fact that Alundra’s a redhead in the anime but a blonde within the game is a bit maddening. Still, Alundra does look pretty good, and is very much on par with the best-looking RPGs of the previous generation.
While the combat aspect of Alundra isn’t too hard, the puzzles can be maddening at times, making the game a bit on the evil side of difficult overall. Still, the title isn’t too long, taking anywhere from twenty to thirty hours to complete.

          Despite the ovation it received from many upon its release, I found Alundra to be hardly the pinnacle of gaming it was hyped to be. It’s better than some of Matrix Software’s other offerings, such as Dual Hearts on the Playstation 2, and I’m certain Alundra’s own sequel, but it’s pretty difficult to recommend nonetheless, unless you can find it at a discount price—and, of course, like puzzles.

The Good:
+Good graphics and music.
+Decent localization.

The Bad:
-Generic battle system.
-Puzzles can be taxing.
-No dungeon maps.
-Poor direction on how to advance.
-Paper-thin plot.

Score Breakdown:
Platform: PlayStation
Game Mechanics: 6/10
Controls: 4/10
Story: 3/10
Music/Sound: 7/10
Graphics: 8/10
Localization: 8/10
Lasting Appeal: 2/10
Difficulty: Hard
Playing Time: 20-30 Hours
Overall: 5/10

 

Written by: Jmg124


(find a link to all our authors in the side bar)

Sexy Gamer of the Week #3

Shantel Knight AKA Zombie Bit Me

A tiny terror come to eat your bwaaainzz. (:<

Canadian | Artist | Model.

Basement geek; Gamer, comic/manga/anime/cosplay lover, lives at fan expos.

Zombies make me melt.

fav. game: Halo or Super Street Fighter 4
least fav. game: Can't say I have one.

Go check her out at:

DEVIANTART

http://blo0dyskittlez.deviantart.com/

OFFICIAL WEBSITE :'D
www.zombiebit.me
FOLLOW MY TWITTER<3
www.twitter.com/zombiebitme
FOLLOW MY BLOG <3
www.zombiebitme.tumblr.com
ASK ME QUESTIONS. <3
www.chacha.me/zombiebitme
www.formspring.me/zombiebitme

Muttonbasher <3's ZombieBitMe!

Minecraft Mod Mondays #3

Today's mod review will be a simple one, but it is a really cool one for adding some nice aesthetics to the game. We are talking about :

[1.7.3] Water Shader alpha v4 

This mod adds a reflective surface to the water in the game, and just give it a really nice feel. Here is a few pictures and a link to the mod and download instructions.

 

 

Here is a link to the mod, go check this one out and show some love for the modding community of minecraft.

[1.7.3] Water Shader alpha V4