Conventions
Wolves Meet Pinball In Lupinball – PAX Aus 2015
Some fantastic indie games were showcased at PAX Aus this year. I was fortunate enough to be able to attend the event and speak to many of Australia’s upcoming indie developers about their latest projects. One of the games that immediately stood out to me was Lupinball, a multiplayer game from Brisbane indie developer Craftven. This title is the answer to what happens when you smash wolves and pinball together to make a game – hectic, competitive fun.
“I wanted something with the word ‘Pinball’ in the title,” Michael Ventnor, head of Craftven, said about the game’s origin. “The problem was, all the good pinball puns were taken. But then, for some reason, ‘Lupinball’ came to my head… And I thought, that’s actually a neat idea. That would add a lot more charm to the game. It would give it some unique characters.”
Michael worked the lupine theme into his idea for a pinball-based game. The result is a two- to four-player soccer-like battle, and while the overall game is very simple, it’s got that infectious fun-factor that can make or break an indie game (or any game, for that matter). Players are are dumped straight into a match and need to collect three “orbs” to in order to throw a ball. Once a ball is thrown, it will stay on the map, bouncing off the edges, until it hits another player. Once a player is hit, they’re out of the match. The last wolf standing is the winner.
“The pinball aspect was mostly to do with a game I played on the Super Nintendo that I wanted to remake, called Firestriker,” Michael said. “But I ended up tweaking the design to make it more original. It was also inspired by many of the games I played at PAX last year, some of which are here this year.” He mentioned Bearzerkers and Dungeon League as inspirations for Lupinball.
“I wanted to make a multiplayer game because I had so much fun with those. And what I ended up with was a game I could play in short rounds, because I’m a busy person and I wanted to make a game that I would have time to play.”
The game’s current build features six wolfish characters and five maps. Craftven hopes to have between twelve and sixteen maps ready by the full release date, which is currently aimed at April 2016. A seventh character and online multiplayer will also be added. So far, only a Steam release is certain, but Craftven has been in talks with both Nintendo and Microsoft (who are apparently very pleased with what they’ve seen of Lupinball) to get the game released on the Wii U and Xbox One. Michael said he’s been having trouble reaching out to Sony, but wants to also see a Playstation 4 release. “I’d love to get this to anything that supports a controller,” he said.
Lupinball has been in development for eleven months. Inspired after last year’s PAX, Michael went home and got started on drawing up designs right away. But he wasn’t shy about how tough life as an indie developer can be. The entire project has been worked in around full-time jobs and entirely self-funded. “There was, in fact, a lot of stress in getting this up to polish and a lot of sacrifices that had to be made to meet deadlines for competitions. It’s been tough, but I’ve been very heartened by the response.”
The response to Lupinball has certainly been positive. Not only was there a huge crowd gathered around the booth at PAX, but it was one of the event’s featured indie games. “I’ve just been overwhelmed by the response. I never imagined people would respond as well as they have to it… There have been some stressful nights, but it looks like they’re paying off.”
Seeing Lupinball doing so well at an event like PAX has come as a surprise to Craftven, and Michael says it’s made all of their hard work worth it. “It makes the difficulty worth it. It’s an unbelievable feeling to see that everyone is enjoying this thing that you spent so long creating.”
In exactly two weeks, an epic journey will start in the heart of Transylvania for all those who love comics, games, and movies. The Transylvania Comic Con starts on October 18 and invites all participants to enjoy a three-day event where they will get to unleash their imagination at the cosplay contest, meet their favorite actors at the photo ops and photographs sessions, or find out interesting things at the panels hosted by the event. Great fun is granted even for those who would just like to take a look at the ComicCon and do some shopping of really cool items or snap some pictures with famous props, such as the Iron Throne.
The Transylvania Comic Con will take place in the heart of Transylvania, at the BT Arena in Cluj-Napoca. The event starts on Friday, October 18 at 4 P.M and lasts until Sunday, October 20. The stage hosts’ roles will be filled by Maria Muller and Ken Huegel. Some of the celebrities invited to the event are ‘Vikings’ and ‘Hunger Games’ star Alexander Ludwig, Kevin McNally Pirate of the Caribbean, ‘Spartacus’, ‘Arrow’, and ‘Shanarra’ star Manu Bennet, Rick Cosnett, from ‘The Vampire Diaries’, ‘Stargate Atlantis’ star David Nykl, and Roger Ashton- Griffiths, who played Mace Tyrell in Game of Thrones. Cosplay enthusiasts will get to see Daisy Cosplay and Imriel Cosplay.
Transylvania Comic Con will also welcome three featured artists and a Cosplay Guest, who wasn’t announced yet. The schedule is not public yet, and the timetable is subject to change, however, on October 5 participants will get the first glimpse at the program, from where they will find out more about the guests of the event. What we already know is that Transylvania Comic Con will host cosplay competitions on Saturday and Sunday. The General Cosplay Competition hosted on Saturday targets solo cosplay enthusiasts only, while on Sunday groups will get the chance to show off their costumes. This is also the day of the qualifiers for the international cosplay competition Clara Cow Cosplay Cup.
Tickets for the Transylvania Comic Con are still available for purchase, except for the VIP 3 Days Tickets, which are all sold out. The rules for participants and the tickets can all be found on the event’s homepage, here. It will definitely be an epic event, so we hope to see you there!
The countdown has begun. There are less than three weeks until Transylvania ComicCon kicks off. The three-day event will take place in the heart of Transylvania, in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, between 18 October and 20 October at the BT Arena. Those who will attend the event will get to meet some really cool guests and can participate in numerous activities, all of which are going to be amazingly fun. The schedule of the event won’t be available for another couple of days, however, the majority of guests are known.
Transylvania ComicCon will welcome some beloved actors, such as Alexander Ludwig, Kevin McNally, Manu Bennett, Rick Cosnett, David Nykl, and Roger Ashton- Griffiths. The event will be hosted by Maria Muller and Ken Huegel, and the YouTubers/ streamers of the Transylvania ComicCon will be Cluj-Napoca’s own Creative Monkeyz. It is not yet clear who the featured artists will be, but this should become known on October 5th, when the event’s schedule will become available on the website.
Besides having photo ops and autograph sessions with the aforementioned guests, participants will also be able to show off their imagination and skills at the cosplay contests. The solo General Cosplay Competition starts on October 19 from 13:00. The group competition starts on Sunday, also at 13:00. At the same time, the qualifiers for the international cosplay competition Clara Cow Cosplay Cup will start. Other activities participants can attend at the Transylvania ComicCon include panels, and props& booths. Naturally, there will be an artists’ alley, a gaming area, and a shopping area too.
The entry fee for the Transylvania ComicCon is really affordable. Those who want to have a photo op and get the autograph of Kevin McNally or Roger Ashton-Griffiths have to pay less than 15 Euros for the treat. The VIP three-day tickets cost less than 100 Euros, while one-day entry fees are as low as 10 Euros. These prices may be incredibly low but the level of fun will go incredibly high at the Transylvania ComicCon. Check out the event and all it has to offer here.
Let’s travel back to 2000s. Can you remember the time when MMORPG genre popped up out of nowhere? Early genre games such as Everquest, World of Warcraft or Guild Wars were considered to be the prophets of the new age of PC gaming. MMORPGs or Massively Multiplayer Role-Playing Games have been considered the most gratifying, rewarding, immersive, and time-soaking games out there. However, as time went by, only a handful of MMORPGs managed to secure their communities and stay a little while longer.
So today we’re talking some time (and internet space), introducing the very best games of the MMORPG genre. Some of these games are old and can brag about their long history while some of them are fairly fresh inviting fans of the genre to explore seemingly unending content. Most importantly – all of these games are alive and will grant you hundreds of hours of joy.
- The Elder Scrolls Online
We begin our list with the youngest of the bunch. ZeniMax Online Studios creation, The Elder Scrolls Online is set in the magical continent of Tamriel which will be familiar to the fans of TES franchise. The game’s storyline is indirectly related to other games of the franchise; however, the game is set way far back before the events of Oblivion, or Skyrim. Currently the game has two expansions: The Morrowind and the Summerset, however, the developers have promised a third expansion The Elder Scrolls Online: Elsweyr which is coming out on June 4, 2019.
- Final Fantasy XIV
Final Fantasy XIV is developed and published by Square Enix. First released back in 2013 the game quickly became a hit among many MMORPG genre fans across PC and PlayStation communities. It has tons of great content which is keep on coming even to this day. Recently Square Enix has announced yet another game expansion titled Shadowbringers which will bring a variety of new dungeons and include yet another playable race: the rabbit-like Viera, already known to the fans of Final Fantasy XII. The game will also increase its level cap from 70 to 80 and introduce a number of new zones to explore.
- Guild Wars 2
This ArenaNet MMORPG game certainly deserves a spotlight in our list. Guild Wars 2 is an attractive piece because of its ever-living world structure which captivates players with multiple quests, continuing storyline, and rewarding gameplay mechanics. The game is also considered among the best MMORPGs because of its freedom and versatility when it comes to personalization. You can literally create, augment, and specialize your character in such a way that it would be exceptionally unique to your preferred playstyle.
- RuneScape
RuneScape is the oldest game on our list, however, it carries the very same explorer’s spirit within. It’s safe to assume that if you’re interested in MMORPG genre you’ve tried this game already at a certain point in time. We can still remember the wood chopping, fire making, and fishing activities which required hours upon hours of discipline, and we also remember how much joy did that provide. And it still does if you’re patient enough. That’s why it secured a spot on our list!
- World of Warcraft
No MMORPG games list would be complete without the king of the genre. It has been over 14 years since Blizzard released World of Warcraft. The game was a phenomenal success and became one of the most iconic titles of all time. World of Warcraft is even included in the video game Hall of Fame and there are plenty of reasons why. Even today the game is huge and has millions of players logging in to play it every month. Throughout its history World of Warcraft has seen 7 major game expansions with tons of great content to explore. Furthermore, Blizzard is planning to release a Classic version of the game sometime this summer which means that the king of MMORPGs can be entering its second lifecycle. If you’ve never played – we do recommend you give it a try.
While some of these games can be played for free, some will require you to purchase certain expansions (or game time). On Eneba Marketplace you’ll find everything you need in order to start your new MMORPG adventure!
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