Sony Online Entertainment has long offered up the ‘Station Pass,’ an all-access subscription that allows gamers to play all of their online titles for one monthly fee. Previously priced at $29.99 a month, SOE has just announced that they’re lowering that price down to $19.99.

Basically, that means for a hair under twenty bucks a month, you can play games like EverQuest, Everquest II, Vanguard, and Star Wars: Galaxies (until Dec. 15, anyway). You’ll also get premium access to SOE’s free-to-play titles like EQ2X, Free Realms, and Pirates of the Burning Sea..

This rate change brings the price back to where it was prior to the last rate increase in April of 2007. No word on whether this relates to the removal of Star Wars: Galaxies in December, but you can bet it was a consideration.

There’s plenty more info on SOE’s website.

1UP is appealing to gamers to take a 5-10 minute break from their games to fill out the 2008 MMO Gaming Study survey. Those who make time for this no fail quiz by December 1st will be entered in a Sweepstakes to win a $300 American Express Cheque.

Attention FileFront Community!
We want to hear about your MMO gaming experience. Help shape how MMO games are built and be entered in an exclusive sweepstakes drawing to* win a $300 American Express Cheque. * Survey only takes about 5 to 10 minutes and your input would be greatly appreciated.

In addition, you can earn additional entries into the sweepstakes. The first 500 completed surveys will earn a double entry into the prize drawing.

*Directions for the survey:*
1. Step#1: _[CLICK HERE TO START SURVEY]
2. Fill out the entire survey to be eligible for the drawing. *Please fill out the entire survey by December 1st in order to be eligible.*
One entry per household only, additional entries will be void. The winner will be notified as soon as a winner is selected.

Thanks again for your continuing support.

Sony Online Entertainment has tricks and treats for everyone as it celebrates Halloween on all its MMOs and the Legends of Norrath: Oathbreaker TCG. EverQuest and EverQuest II will be celebrating their traditional holiday events. The Matrix Online and Vanguard: Saga of Heroes are into the act as well.

The inaugural Galactic Moon Festival runs until November 7 on Star Wars Galaxies. Set a course for Naboo or Tatooine to get in on the thrills and chills. Full details on each event follow the break.

GAMERS BEWARE: SONY ONLINE ENTERTAINMENT OPENS ITS BAG OF TRICKS TO THE ONLINE COMMUNITY THIS OCTOBER
Online Titles to Host Variety of In-Game Halloween Events Including EverQuest® II ‘s Nights of the Dead and First-Ever Star Wars GalaxiesTM Galactic Moon Festival
WHAT:
Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) conjures ghosts, ghouls and goblins for the gamer community in a variety of in-game events themed around Halloween. This October, EverQuest®, EverQuest® II, Star Wars Galaxies, Legends of Norrath™, Vanguard Saga of Heroes™, EverQuest® Online Adventures and The Matrix Online players can celebrate All Hallows Eve by participating in themed quests, donning avatar costumes and masks, and trick-or-treating for loot and candy!

In-game events are as follows:

EverQuest®: The lands of Norrath have been overridden with mystery, magic and mayhem. Help the inhabitants of Greater Faydark weed the Necromancer’s Garden of the horrible sprouting skulls that have taken root there. Assist farmers in West Karana subdue the spooks in a Scarecrow Roundup. Rewards will go to all who succeed in combating these episodes of the supernatural! These events are scheduled to run Oct. 24 through Nov. 7.

For detailed information, please visit www.eqplayers.com.

EverQuest® II: Nights of the Dead only comes once a year in Norrath, so players take heed! During this ghastly holiday, citizens of Norrath can venture into Qeynos or Freeport to free the spirits trapped in the haunted houses, combat evil in the haunted mansion missions, trick-or-treat with NPC’s in the cities for something especially sweet or participate in Ponchy the Halfling’s petrifying quest series! Nights of the Dead is scheduled to run Oct. 22 through Nov. 3.

For detailed information, please visit www.eq2players.com.

Star Wars Galaxies: For the first time ever, Naboo and Tatooine will play host to the spooky zones of the Galactic Moon Festival. Oct. 14 through Nov. 7, this foreboding festival will be filled with ghosts, gravestones, spiders, Sith-o-lanterns and other creepy crawlies. Visit the Galactic Moon Festival organizer Z’ozpheratu to obtain the appropriate costume, and then players can taunt costumed NPCs with tricks in exchange for Halloween treats. May the fright be with you!

For detailed information, please visit http://starwarsgalaxies.station.sony.com.

Legends of Norrath™: Scary creatures lurk in the fields at night this Halloween! Anticipated to run Oct. 22 through Nov. 4, players will face the mysterious and deadly Scarecrow King in an all-new Legends of Norrath scenario created just for Halloween. New and existing players alike are invited to bring their best decks and try this free scenario with Halloween treats, including a powerful promo card and valuable loot cards for EverQuest or EverQuest II for those who manage to slay the monster!

For detailed information, please visit www.legendsofnorrath.com/scaryscarecrow.vm.

Vanguard Saga of Heroes™: The sinister necromancer Sartok has summoned some of his most fearsome creations yet and will soon unleash them on the inhabitants of Telon during Sartok’s Surprise. Travelers beware, as three terrifying new undead raid encounters will be roaming the lands seeking out adventures both young and old. Any heroes able to best Sartok’s abominable creations will be rewarded with special appearance-altering costumes and magical masks. While adventurers rest between battles, they can complete special new quests to claim additional rewards such as new pets or more magical masks.

For detailed information, please visit, www.vgplayers.com.

EverQuest® Online Adventures: Slated for launch on Oct. 23, EQOA will introduce a special Halloween quest for those who aren’t afraid of a few tricks and possibly a treat. Part of the Halloween quest includes the introduction of the Skeleton King who brings riddles to players who encounter him, but be careful, answer a riddle incorrectly, and you may meet the reaper.

For detailed information, please visit, http://everquestonlineadventures.station.sony.com.

The Matrix Online: Halloween’s massive moon and creepy round-the-clock nighttime set the backdrop for the appearance of seven new disguise masks in The Matrix Online, for a total of 28 collectible disguises of spooky and exotic Matrix characters! With events scheduled to run Oct. 23 through Nov. 6, any Redpill can catch the zombies and jack-o-lanterns that drop lootable masks in the various neighborhoods of the four districts. Be forewarned, a special bite attack from the spawning zombies will render any victim “zombified”; however, players can then use the bite attack to zombify others!

For detailed information, please visit, http://thematrixonline.station.sony.com/players/.

WHEN/WHERE: All throughout the month of October, Halloween-themed events are scheduled to take place in the virtual worlds of your favorite SOE games. Exact dates vary by title. Please log on to www.station.com for more information.

Manchester University has released the results of a study on the Gold Farming industry that guesstimates its profits at $500,000 a year. According to the study, titled “Current Analysis and Future Research Agenda on ‘Gold Farming’: Real-World Production in Developing Countries for the Virtual Economies of Online Games,” the industry employs 400,000 people world wide who take home an average of $125 a month.

Manchester University’s Richard Heeks told BBC News that although the study is sound, the Gold Farming industry is “a digital underworld populated by scammers and hackers and pornographers” so it’s hard to nail down exact figures.

“It seems unlikely to be less than $200 million per year, and it could well be more than $1 billion per year,” he said.

At those figures, you’ve got to wonder why every time you log into Lord of the Rings Online, World of Warcraft or any number of other MMOs you’re assaulted with offers as soon as you step inside civilization. Of course 80% of Gold Farmers are Chinese and their cost of living and standards of comfort can be quite different than those in the US.

Although the “services” Gold Farmers offer are annoying to most, they couldn’t exist without a demand. Steven Davis, chief of game security firm Secure Play agrees that it’s not likely this plague on MMOs will die out anytime soon.

“When you get people with more money than time and time than money the two will find a way to meet,” he said.

“You could get rid of it,” he said, “but you would get rid of one of the most fundamental parts of player-to-player interaction.”

Sony Online Entertainment is spilling more details on Fan Faire 2008. For the second year running, SOE president John Smedley will kick off the event with the Community Address. There will be a simultaneous streaming video broadcast online as well as a live audio broadcast in EverQuest, EverQuest II and Star Wars Galaxies through Station Voice by Vivox.

WHEN
Friday, August 15th at 6:00pm PST.

WHERE
To view the live webcast, please go to:
http://www.videonewswire.com/event.asp?id=50659

To listen to audio broadcast in-game, please go to:
www.station.sony.com/stationvoice

According to the SOE press release, SOE will be featuring all its MMOs including a lineup including the hit titles EverQuest, EverQuest II, EverQuest Online Adventures, PlanetSide, Star Wars Galaxies and Vanguard: Saga of Heroes as well as upcoming titles Free Realms, The Agency and more. SOE’s Fan Faire runs from August 15-17th in Las Vegas. For further details on events check out the official Fan Faire 2008 website. Although online registration is officially closed, on-site registration is now open at the Hilton Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

SOE has released the Attendees List for Fan Faire 2008. The event will take place in Las Vegas August 14th to the 17th. Players can check out which of their friends or rivals will be at Fan Faire using a simple game and server search. Only the name of the avatar is listed so there’s no worry about personal privacy issues.

Check out the growing Attendees List and the emerging details on this year’s Fan Faire at the official SOE Fan Faire registration site.

Sony has announced that SOE’s 37th podcast is up and available for download. This episode features Julie “Ellyra” Burness and Nick “Glip the Gnome” Parkinson from the Vanguard team and promises to give gamers 10 reasons to come to Fan Faire 2008. You’ll finally get to hear the interview with Cat Neri, and learn how to pronounce all those EQII server names correctly.

The motto of this podcast is, “Save the Hamster, Save the Fan Faire!” You can access the podcast here.

via TenTonHammer

Smedley talks in depth about SOE’s strategy in the MMO market. The most important lesson SOE has learned along the way is to listen to its customers. He cites the reaction of the Star Wars Galaxy community over changes to the game a few years back.

I think we were a little too arrogant as a company. We thought we knew what was best as a company, and we should have listened more. That’s really the biggest lesson we’ve learned as a company in the last eight years. Listening to our customers is everything.

The lessons we’ve learned from our community have just been extraordinary. For years now we’ve been running something called the Influencer Summit, where we pull 100 people, and 50 of those people will be our worst critics.

So one of the things we’re trying to do is listen better as a company, and over the past few years I think we’ve done that – I’m really proud of the strides we’ve taken in that direction. Listening is a very important skill.

This interview will give you information on SOE’s portfolio of MMOs including EverQuest and EverQuest2, the troubled Vanguard: Saga of Heroes. The article also covers new titles in development such as The Agency for the PS3 and another title for the Indian market based on the Ramayan 3392 AD comic.

via GamesIndustry.biz

Valentine’s Day is fast approaching and if you are single, in a gaming relationship or just boycotting this overrated Hallmark Holiday, SOE has something that is sure appease you whatever your situation may be. SOE is hosting a barrage of Valentine related events via three of their popular online games EverQuest II,Vanguard: Saga of Heroes and Planetside.

EverQuest II will be romancing players throughout the annual week long “Erollisi Day” celebration honoring the goddess of love, Erollisi Marr. Players will be able to present each other with virtual Erollisi roses, enjoy heart shaped cookies and sip love potions. Also during this holiday, players may discover love notes or message candies when they kill mobs throughout the online world of Norrath. While in EverQuest Online Adventures, the adventurers of Norrath will be celebrating Valentine’s Day by seeking out a GM who will provide them with a unique holiday quest available to all.

In Vanguard: Saga of Heroes, the world of Telon has caught the love bug and it is spreading Valentine’s cheer among the citizens with city decorations that give players candies and treats. These aren’t just any treats, eat one of these candies and you will experience temporary Valentines buffs.

Planetside players who log in February 12-14 will receive a special ball-and-chain merit. Also, the dummy NPCs that fill the virtual shooting range now feature names such as “It’s Not You It’s Me” and “Ice Queen” – both phrases which are near and dear to my heart.

Erollisi Day and Valentine’s Day events are scheduled to take place the week of February 12th – 19th. Exact days vary by title. For more information check out the respective game links.

Via: Press Release

Towns and cities in Telon will be celebrating the Festival of Glorian on Vanguard: Saga of Heroes. Tales of Atnas Claws and his spirit of giving lift spirits and inspire an abundance of gifts and goodies for players throughout the world. Players can celebrate with rides over the rooftops on Randolph the flying reindeer or decorate your home and guild with ominous looking snaggle-toothed snowmen.

Log on to Vanguard: Saga of Heroes next week to join in the celebration.

via Vanguard: Saga of Heroes

The guide to the Ancient Port Warehouse, Vanguard‘s newest raiding zone is up on SOE’s Saga of Heroes web site. The guide is meant to prepare players for the new 18 man raid zone before it goes live.

The guide lists suggestions for preparation of your raid members and equipment. It also lays out some tips on how to handle Leadership roles.
Players might want to bookmark the site and check back frequently as Vanguard promises daily updates to the page.

via Vanguard: Saga of Heroes 

Thom Terrazas, producer of Sony Online Entertainment’s Vanguard: Saga of Heroes has posted a letter to Vanguard players covering some of the changes being introduced in phases 2 and 3 of Update 3.

Terrazas expounds upon the Vision of Vanguard and hints at changes being made to fundamental game mechanics. The team is striving to optimize game mechanics and stability of the system.

One of the many changes players will see are character model improvements such as the removal of unnecessary bones for faster rendering of characters and making the character models sexier in general.

Players can also look forward to changes to the travel system to make grouping easier, increased loot drop percentages and a tweak to expedite the experience gain cycle to increase fun factor. There are also planned additions to combat tactics such as a Stun ability and the death penalty will now only cost players degradation of their items and the trauma of traveling back to the scene of their death.

What else is coming?

In no particular order, here are a number of topics we are evaluating for change and improvement:

• Additional player housing
• Improved map; map icons that distinctly show points of interest
• City and Dungeon maps
• Readily available information showing you where you can adventure at your level
• Factions in towns
• Consistency – Streamlining hand off quests that lead you in the proper direction for character progression
• Changing some buff spells to group based
• Combat Visual Timing – Improve the timing on combat responsiveness (when you click on an ability, the action performed is in sync)
• Player power curve versus NPC power curve
• The ease of obtaining bags (especially at lower levels)
• Additional high-end content – Raid and Non-Raid content
• Increasing the Quest Journal size – Also adding organizational tabs to distinguish Adventuring quests from Diplomacy and Crafting quests
• Regional banks – remove them!
• UI improvements
• Alternate form of currency – Special “coins” to redeem at certain Vendors for obtaining items such as adventuring, diplomacy cards, titles, potions, etc.
• Alternate advancement or specialization for your character

via Vanguard: Saga of Heroes

Are you looking for your weekly fix of MMO news? Would you prefer it with a dash of irreverence and plenty of humor?

If so, we’ve got you covered. G4 TV has a segment they’re putting out weekly titled, “The MMO Report.” It features news and rumors from a number of MMO’s, and presents it all in a format styled after Comedy Central’s “Colbert Report.”

Check it out, and stay tuned for more from our friends over at G4!

Vanguard Saga of Heroes takes a look at two of Telon’s Guild Hall. The Old Timers Guild of Xeth has constructed a Large Thestran Guild Hall. So new it’s unfurnished yet, the guild hall offers an impressive interior with breathtaking views. Divinus of the Xeth server has constructed a Large Qalian Guild Hall. Like something out of the Arabian Nights this guild hall rises from the sands near the coastline.

The Official forum invites players to post screenshots of their own creations on the community forum.

via Vanguard Saga of Heroes

Back in June we posted some screens for Vanguard: Saga of Heroes, the MMORPG from Sony Online Entertainment. The developers have just issued some more new screens a second update to the game which includes the following fixes and additions:

Guild Halls
-Be the first to build a grand Guild Hall! Although Guild Hall Plots won’t be available until after server merges, quests to help you on you way are in game for those who can’t wait to get started!

Bind on Equip
- All equipable items that were bindable are now either bind on equip or bind on pickup, with the majority of the items being bind on equip.

Improvements Made to LFG!
- The Looking For Group tool is receiving a revamp, and now you’ll have the ability to display which quests you’re working on, as well as which dungeons you’d like to explore when looking for a group. There are many other options that allow the LFG tool to be tweaked to your liking!

MORE AFTER THE BREAK

Resting Has its Rewards!
- Heroes may now rest in Vanguard! Resting increases the rate at which a hero will gain adventuring, crafting, or diplomacy experience.

Diplomacy Becomes Level Based!
-Diplomacy has moved from a “skill-based” system to a “level-based” system to increase the opportunities for sphere interdependence.

Revamping the Diplomacy UI!
-Speaking just became a bit easier. Diplomats can now double-click cards during parlay to play them as if you had clicked the “Speak” button.
-Cards that are unusable due to refresh timers will now be dimmed until ready to play.

Deconstruction
-Deconstruction kits are now available for purchase from vendors for a minimal cost! Use these handy kits to convert items into a resource or dust.

New Item Level Requirements
-All equipable items in the Adventuring, Crafting, and Diplomacy spheres now have a minimum level to equip associated with them.

PvP Fixes Implemented!
-Many bugs have been banished from PvP to make combat more effective and fun for all those taking part!

Crash Fixes and Optimizations
-The Vanguard Team has put a lot of effort into both improving game performance and eliminating bugs that cause crashes. Highlights can be found in the full patch notes.

Find Your Way with Quest Tracking!
- Your Quest Tracker is making some changes for the better. Not only is the layout bigger, but you’ll better be able to decide which quests you see, which are hidden, and scroll over Tracker text for a brief summary of that quest!

Helpful UI Changes to Improve Item Identification!
- Keeping in line with our efforts to make Vanguard easier to understand and more intuitive, we have added a variety of improvements to items including descriptions of abilities and percentages of proc chances!

Scrolling Combat Text
- You can now switch on scrolling combat text in your Settings panel! There are many ways to tweak this option to make it most effective for your play style.

For more screens, trailers and general information please visit our FileFront page or the official website.

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