Columns Index

Columns

Welcome to GameSpy's column index! We're committed to bringing you regular gaming commentary that's as substantive as it is entertaining, with GameSpy's crack team of editorial contributors reflecting on a variety of relevant topics. You'll find all of it collected here, so you won't miss a word.

Filled with sprawling worlds ripe for discovery, teeming with thousands of new people to meet, and capable of sucking up entire months' worth of playtime, massively multiplayer online roleplaying games offer one of the modern world's most extreme forms of escapism. Join GameSpy columnist Leif Johnson as he turns a critical eye on the biggest and best of today's MMORPGs, and quests for the virtual worlds most worthy of your time.

      - A Rift of One's Own
      - A New Hope
      - The Soul of WoW Patch 4.3
      - So What If Star Wars: The Old Republic is a World of Warcraft Clone?
      - Mind Over Chatter in The Secret World
      - Will a Group-Finder Tool Help or Hurt the Community of Star Wars: The Old Republic?
      - Does Star Wars: The Old Republic Deserve the Wrath of the Haters?
      - Keep Your MMOs Out of My Elder Scrolls!
      - Will 2012's Big MMOs Hit or Miss? Prediction Time!
      - Have We Simply Outgrown the MMORPG?
      - How Roleplaying Powers MMO Longevity
      - Looking Back at Cataclysm's Impact Crater
      - Losing Sight of the Journey
      - How UI Mods Burn MMORPGs

These days, it seems like everyone's trying to get in on the multiplayer online battle arena (or MOBA) action. This team-versus-team genre of eclectic heroes and tactics is quite the hot item in PC gaming. In this regular column, MOBA junkie Ryan Scott offers up insight into the rapidly growing field of highly competitive (and largely free-to-play!) multiplayer action.

      - Dota 2 For Dummies
      - You Know More About How to Play MOBAs Than You Think
      - Heroes of Newerth's New Player Problem
      - The Support Problem
      - The Whats, Hows, and Whys of the Metagame
      - The MOBA Countdown
      - The Burden of Knowledge
      - The Simple Complexity of Awesomenauts

From the popular hits like Civilization, Total War, and StarCraft to the hardcore wargaming scene and beyond, Rob Zacny explores what makes the nuanced world of PC strategy and tactical gaming tick.

      - Quick-Loading Kills Strategy Games
      - Bridging the Divide Between RT & S
      - How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Competitive RTS Gaming
      - Why We Need Thinking Soldiers
      - Searching For a Good Death in Grand Strategy Gaming
      - Customize with Caution
      - XCOM: Enemy Unknown and the Alleged "Dumbing Down" of Strategy Games

Ever wonder what it feels like to take a corner at 200 miles an hour in a high-powered F1 racer, push the most famous planes of World War II to their limits, or evade detection hundreds of feet underwater in a state-of-the-art submarine? If it has wheels, engines, or props, Andy Mahood can drive it or fly it, and he's your guide to the detail-obsessed world of simulation gaming.

      - Welcome to My Garage
      - Can New Challenger SimRaceway Give iRacing a Run For Its Money?
      - Rise of Flight's Steady Climb to Greatness
      - rFactor 2's Race Toward Mod-Friendly Realism
      - DCS P-51D Mustangs Over Georgia
      - Microsoft Flight's Freefall
      - Andy's Last Airbender

Skyrim started out great, but through the magic of modding the PC version is becoming more incredible every day. Whether it's fixing things that Bethesda didn't quite get right or adding entirely new weapons, spells, creatures, or locations, there's nothing they can't do. In SkyrimProvement, Phill Cameron points you to the best game-changing player-made creations that breathe new and exciting life into your fantasy adventures.

      - Fix Skyrim's UI
      - Make Skyrim's Magic Feel Magical Again
      - Skyrim Player House Mods
      - Mod Skyrim into a Thief's Paradise
      - Mod The Thrill of The Hunt Into Skyrim
      - Revamp Your Vamps
      - SureAI Mod Team is Creating a Whole New World: Enderal
      - A Fantastic Fan-Made Adventure: Moonpath to Elsweyr
      - Skyrim's Craziest Mods
      - Building on Dawnguard
      - Put Some Gore Into Your Skyrim
      - Dawnguard's Incomparable Crossbows

Guild Wars 2 is the boldest, most interesting MMORPG to come along in years. Tom Chick reports from the scene to examine its unique appeal and community.

      - Stop and Smell the Lore in Guild Wars 2
      - Guild Wars 2: The On Again, Off Again MMMO
      - Guild Wars 2 and the Quest for Celery
      - Guild Wars 2's Bot Crisis -- ArenaNet Needs to Step Up Before It's Too Late
      - 10 Things to Do After Level 80

GameSpy's Free Agent is your advance recon into the world of free-to-play games. His mission: jump into a free game every week and play to see how much fun can be had without spending a cent, then try out some paid items to see if they're worth the asking price.

Shooters

      - Super Monday Night Combat
      - Blacklight: Retribution
      - Tribes: Ascend
      - Global Agenda: Free Agent
      - Quake Live
      - Moon Breakers
      - Tribes Ascend - Accelerate Update
      - World of Tanks
      - Team Fortress 2 (Mann vs. Machine Update)
      - Battlefield Heroes
      - MicroVolts

MMORPGs

      - EverQuest
      - Star Trek Online
      - Star Trek Online (September 2012)
      - City of Heroes
      - DC Universe Online
      - Rusty Hearts (Reborn Expansion, August 2012)
      - Spiral Knights
      - Dungeons & Dragons Online (July 2012)
      - Vindictus

Action Games

      - Realm of the Mad God
      - Drakensang Online
      - Vindictus
      - Need for Speed World

Strategy & Tactics

      - Magic: The Gathering - Tactics
      - Jagged Alliance Online
      - Age of Empires Online (March 2012)
      - Age of Empires Online (June 2012 Update)

The Column Archive

Good columns never die -- they just get put in here.

Abandoned Ware
Revisiting the virtual worlds of gaming's past
by David Wolinsky
The life cycle of a successful massively multiplayer online game, like any breakout offline or single-player game, always follows the same trajectory: It grabs some headlines, eventually gets oversaturated, maybe gets parodied by South Park, and then eventually fades from the mainstream's point of view. Unlike offline or single-player games, online and MMO titles have a built-in shelf life. Sooner or later, they're getting ink in gaming mags or blogs again -- but this time, it's because their servers are getting turned off. And with that, an entire world vanishes for all eternity, when it was there just a moment before. In Abandoned Ware, one gamer becomes a field reporter for these once-huge MMOs, before the inevitable eradicates them forever.
      - Abandoned Ware #6: Empire of Sports
      - Abandoned Ware #5: Hello Kitty Online
      - Abandoned Ware #4: Ultima Online
      - Abandoned Ware #3: RuneScape
      - Abandoned Ware #2: Diablo II
      - Abandoned Ware #1: Second Life

Indie Spotlight
Exploring the indie gaming scene, one developer at a time
by Nathan Meunier
Contrary to popular belief, games don't always need huge budgets and teams of hundreds of worker drones toiling away under the watchful eye of whip-wielding overlords in order to be awesome. The thriving indie development scene continues to give birth to some of the weirdest, coolest, and most innovative games around. Indie Spotlight pulls back the curtain, taking a closer look at the world of independent game developers and the magic they make.
      - Indie Spotlight #12: Swords and Spells
      - Indie Spotlight #11: The Long, Hard Road
      - Indie Spotlight #10: Trailblazing and Thievery
      - Indie Spotlight #9: A Story Worth Telling
      - Indie Spotlight #8: No Need to Kill
      - Indie Spotlight #7: Infinitely Running to Death
      - Indie Spotlight #6: Detachable Rocket Boobs
      - Indie Spotlight #5: Blasting Rude Bits
      - Indie Spotlight #4: BIT.TRIP AWESOME
      - Indie Spotlight #3: Adorable Rainbow Vomit
      - Indie Spotlight #2: Flash, Bang, Boom
      - Indie Spotlight #1: Drinking from the Fire Hose

Mind Games
Navigating the psychology of gamers and games
by Nicholaus Noles
Gaming is an interactive experience. We play games -- but at the same time, games play us. In this column, psychologist Nicholaus Noles explores how video games manipulate our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, all in the name of fun.
      - Mind Games #6: Video Games and ADHD
      - Mind Games #5: Cheap Tricks
      - Mind Games #4: Back to the Old Grind
      - Mind Games #3: The Anatomy of a Fanboy
      - Mind Games #2: Hard Times
      - Mind Games #1: Scare Tactics

The Money Making Game
Your window into the world of game industry finances
by Chris Morris
We certainly have no problem getting caught up in the fun of playing games, but the people who create them have their pocketbooks to worry about, too. In this column, finance expert and GameSpy contributor Chris Morris guides you through the tricky corridors the gaming industry's financial side, touching on big-time business decisions and how they matter to the common gamer.
      - The Money Making Game #12: The Social Network
      - The Money Making Game #11: Virtual Items, Real Money
      - The Money Making Game #10: The War on Games
      - The Money Making Game #9: The Winners and Losers of E3 Expo 2011
      - The Money Making Game #8: The Sony Situation
      - The Money Making Game #7: GameStop Goes Digital
      - The Money Making Game #6: Should PopCap Go Public?
      - The Money Making Game #5: The Disney Situation
      - The Money Making Game #4: The PSP2
      - The Money Making Game #3: Is OnLive the Next Big Thing?
      - The Money Making Game #2: The PlayStation Phone
      - The Money Making Game #1: Nintendo's $300 Handheld

Objection!
Your handy guide to the gaming industry's biggest legal disputes
by Eric Neigher
The videogame industry's a big business -- and sometimes, companies don't see eye-to-eye. And what happens when a dispute goes to court, and gamers get their grubby hands on fancy-sounding legal documents? Why, wild, inane, forum-fueled speculation, of course. That's where California-based corporate attorney and GameSpy writer Eric Neigher comes in. Objection! is your one-stop destination to learn what all that legalese means in plain English, straight from someone who knows the twisty-turny language of the law.
      - Objection! #14: The Case of the Vanishing Voucher
      - Objection! #13: The Case of the Stifled Streams
      - Objection! #12: The Supreme Court's Slam Dunk
      - Objection! #11: The Case of the Sony SNAFU
      - Objection! #10: The Case of the Unfinished Panel
      - Objection! #9: The Case of the Purloined PlayStation
      - Objection! #8: The Case of the Corporate Rivalry
      - Objection! #7: The Case of the Copyright Quandary
      - Objection! #6: Analyzing the Supreme Court's EMA Hearing
      - Objection! #5: The Case of the Cable Company and the Communications Commission
      - Objection! #4: The Case of the World of Warcraft Wannabe
      - Objection! #3: Schwarzenegger v. Entertainment Software Association
      - Objection! #2: The Case of the Disgruntled Developers
      - Objection! #1: Activision v. West & Zampella

Of Hydralisks & Phalanxes
What's new, what's relevant, and what's worth revisiting in strategy games
by Tom Chick
When you're playing video games, do you just want to turn off your brain, blow up stuff, and collect loot? Then Of Hydralisks & Phalanxes isn't for you. In a column with a name as awkward and parochial as some of the games themselves, strategy wonk Tom Chick takes a look at the latest and greatest in real-time strategy, turn-based games, city builders, wargames, and other such quasi-cerebral pursuits.
      - Of Hydralisks & Phalanxes #3: Break This Game!
      - Of Hydralisks & Phalanxes #2: The Perfect Real-Time Strategy Game
      - Of Hydralisks & Phalanxes #1: Yes, Strategy Games Are Awesome

The Underachiever
A diary about wasting time diligently
by Ryan Kuo
Games are virtual. When you turn on the console, a world appears; when you turn it off, no trace remains. Except for the achievements you earned -- which fortify your Gamerscore and self-esteem, blip by blip. The Underachiever tracks the productivity of one gamer playing to catch up to his peers. What do games feel like when they're used for work?
      - The Underachiever #17: Half-Life 2
      - The Underachiever #16: Super Meat Boy
      - The Underachiever #15: Red Dead Redemption
      - The Underachiever #14: Pac-Man Championship Edition DX
      - The Underachiever #13: Enslaved
      - The Underachiever #12: Fallout 3
      - The Underachiever #11: Plants vs. Zombies
      - The Underachiever #10: Limbo
      - The Underachiever #9: EpicWin
      - The Underachiever #8: Fruit Ninja
      - The Underachiever #7: Trials HD
      - The Underachiever #6: Fable II
      - The Underachiever #5: Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts
      - The Underachiever #4: Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2
      - The Underachiever #3: Double Dragon
      - The Underachiever #2: Saints Row 2
      - The Underachiever #1: Crackdown

A Whole New World (of Warcraft)
A post-Cataclysm chronicle of Blizzard's virtual world
by Leif Johnson
After shipping players off to a new continent and even an entirely different planet over the last couple of years, Blizzard has gone full steam ahead with the World of Warcraft: Cataclysm expansion, which brings the world's most popular massively multiplayer online role-playing game back to its roots. And then it takes those roots, grinds them up, and serves players an entirely fresh experience in the world of Azeroth. Join GameSpy columnist and WoW-head Leif Johnson as he travels through this whole new world (of Warcraft), exploring new zones, beating new dungeons, and enjoying what may turn out to be the happy medium to unite diehards and casual gamers alike.
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #14: The Case for Wrath of the Lich King
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #13: Beyond Pornshire
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #12: Anybody Out There?
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #11: State of the Raid
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #10: Troll Patch
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #9: Mozart Among the Mages
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #8: Looking For Group
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #7: The Burnout Crusade
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #6: Big, Bad Tol Barad
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #5: Lost in Queue
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #4: And So It Begins
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #3: A Survivor's Guide to the Cataclysm
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #2: Grand Theft Goblin
      - A Whole New World (of Warcraft) #1: Welcome to Gilneas

Ancient History