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Red Devil's Jumpgate Evolution (Twitch Space Sim MMO) Beta Signups Open
Bamelin
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Just a quick heads up,
One of my buddies got an email from Codemasters last night, looks like they are doing sign ups for the the closed and open beta for their new game Jumpgate Evolution.
sign up link
I think the game is the sequel of the old Jumpgate? Was a fairly popular MMO if I remember correctly and was entirely twitch based:
The combat in Jumpgate Evolution is fast-paced and from what I experienced in the early stage of the game, it is twitch based, meaning you shoot the moment you hold down the trigger/mouse button. Using the thruster and the joystick also created a more immersive environment during movement and combat as I flew around asteroids and passed space stations in my dogfights against the pirates.
http://www.mmogamer.com/09/09/2008/gc08-jumpgate-evolution-hands-on-impressions
Here's some stuff that came out at PAX about the game:
Trailer:
http://www.gametrailers.com/player/38722.html
http://www.gametrailers.com/player/39465.html
article from build shown at PAX: http://vault.ign.com/View.php?view=editorials.detail&id=108
I have to say the trailer and gameplay vids looks pretty cool, a sort of "Eve Online" vibe but with combat twitch based. I've been waiting for a good pseudo space sim ... haven't really played one since Allegiance. Maybe I'll get to break out my massive Sidewinder again
Bamelin on
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I'm seriously thinking of checking this out. I just hope it turns out to be as good as the original.
I'm curious as to how PvP works (if there is any). Ideally I'd like to see an Eve style universe but with Xwing style combat.
The old game was full of gankers. It was actually a big problem. Hopefully they'll have a system in place in the new one to deal with that.
Heh, rereading that, I'm guessing I didn't really answer your question. You update your ship with laser (or a hard shell shooter, in which case you'll have to carry ammo around too). You have different shields, each with their own weight, installation capacity, output and energy usage, engines with different energy buildups and acceleration values. There are missiles too, and drones you can deploy, as well as paraphernalia (the Rotacol, a handy asteroid tracking device, or the Accelerator Booster that lets your ship achieve ridiculous speeds as the cost of almost all of your energy).
Unlike EVE though, the combat is all real time, and all up to you. You actually fly the ship, with the mouse or a joystick, and you use your weapons in real time instead of clicking on icons. The combat system is actually a lot like X3, but the interface is much smoother and the ships are much, much easier to control.
Regarding PvP, things could get really intense, so much so that the GMs would update the main game site with news about guild clashes, and actually use the animosity between them as major story points in the game.
The game, as a whole, was fun. Story was present and progressed steadily, players were (usually) amiable to each other, and the economy and combat worked great.
Did you ever play Allegiance? That was the last real twitch space sim I played. Wondering if the controls will be similar.
Whoa. I think I heard the Homeworld Vrrrrmm sound in the trailer.
E: Woo. I did send in an application! I wasn't dreaming.
Thinking back on the game, I actually remembered an awesome little story. Be prepered, this is a long one:
The main enemy of the old game were the Conflux, pink space faring mollusks that shot anyone they saw. A big deal of the old game was finding out who the Conflux were and what they wanted.
Me and a couple of my friends were mining zinc in one of the random asteroids in the unclaimed sectors of the game, me being the miner, my two friends serving as guards (the unclaimed sectors were full of player owned pirate stations and bastard pilots). I finished up mining, and we all headed back to the nearest Jumpgate, the giant, triangular portals that connect the various sectors.
We all jumped through, but instead of appearing where we ought to, we found ourselves in an unfamiliar sector, full of strange asteroids and, more importantly, no Jumpgates, not even the one we should've emerged from.
Me and my friends were worried: maybe this was some sort of bug, some strange connectivity issue? We were all still talking to each other and flying in sync, so the server had to be up. Just as we were about to log off (an undesirable thing, as it would mean losing all the precious ore in my cargo hall) we started picking up strange readings just beyond standard radar range. We all started flying towards the readings, when all of a sudden on of my buddies vanished. Just plain up disappeared. We couldn't hail him in the local channel, nor could we whisper to him on a private one. We both stared into the point in space our vanishing friend was last sighted in for a while, talking on the comms. All of a sudden my second guard stopped replying. I turn to where he is, and he was gone too. Now I was in an unfamiliar sector in space, in a giant mining ship, alone and unprotected.
I started getting spooked, turning my ship every which way, when I noticed one of the Conflux coming my way. This was bad news, as I ditched all my weapons to make way for mining lasers. But I noticed something strange: the 'flux wasn't steaming off towards me as they usually do, bio-engines roaring and guns at the ready. It was flying at a slower pace, and in strange patterns. It finally came up to me, and instead of shooting me, started flying around me, and then away, as if inviting me to follow it. Without any other choice but to risk my precious cargo or be lost forever in the void, I did so.
The 'flux lead me towards the strange readings we picked up before. we were only a few clicks away when we came across a gigantic asteroid field. The 'flux flew me around one of the largest asteroids, and as we finished the turn, I saw something amazing: before me was the biggest Jumpgate I ever laid eyes upon, three or four times the size of the regular ones. There was something even stranger though: there was a pink, pulsating growth on each of the triangular edges of the Jumpgate, and the glowing blue orb at the center of the gate had strange pinkish hues to it. The 'flux flew around me once or twice, and then headed at full speed into the gate, jumping away. Gulping, unsure of what to do, I waited for a minute or so before fretfully heading after it.
I found myself back at the unclaimed sector I jumped back from. My two guards were there, waiting for me. They told me each of them saw a blinding flash of pink light before finding themselves back at the sector. We all exchanged our experiences from this strange encounter and flew back to our home station, to sell our goods and spread the tale around the community.
(tl;dr, me and my friends were the "victims" on a tiny little event orchestrated by the GMs of the game, to create rumors and buzz around the community and add a little bit of fun to an otherwise regular day of playing. stuff like that happened all the time.)
Also, I recall hearing something about the UI being in flash or something that was high moddable. Not a programmer, so I dunno.
MMO's tend to lend themselves for the occasional really cool experience, if you are a hardcore player.
Just so you guys know there is a GUILD signup for the beta too. This might be a good way to get in if we did some sort of PA guild.
I never asked for this!
Sounds like my prayers have been answered