Here at GDC 2010 we had the chance to meet with Benjamin Zuckerer of CipSoft and have a look at the upcoming iPhone version of their popular TibiaME mobile MMO.
TibiaME is an exclusively mobile, top-down 2D MMO that made its debut on Nokia platform devices six years ago and has been growing its community ever since. At present there are approximately 50,000 active players in the game world, which consists of 67 islands, with 16 levels each. The islands exhibit a variety of different terrain types, such as forest, dungeons, ice, and "undead."
TibiaME places the player in the game world as either a warrior or a wizard. The islands of the world are peopled by other online players and a host of enemy characters that range from squirrels to demons — 56 types in all. There are magic-using boss monsters to contend with, as well. During the demonstration we were given of the pre-release iPhone client, there was no lack of activity in the world, as can be seen in our demo video.
While the iPhone version of the game client ties into the same game world that has been running these six years, it is a complete, ground-up rewrite that has been under development for a year and a half. The 20×20-pixel character graphics of previous versions of the game have been redrawn at a rather more detailed 50×50 pixels for the iPhone version, a new user interface has been implemented, and fight sequence animations have been added to the mix, as well.
The iPhone release will make its debut mid-year and follow the "freemium" price model. The base release can be downloaded free of charge and offers two (of the total 67) islands to explore. Characters playing in this mode are limited to a maximum of level 20 experience. Those wanting to experience the full game world can buy play time in blocks of one (5 euros) or 4 months (12 euros). Any character that has been built up in the pay model will retain all stats in the event an unrenewed block of time, but will be unable to level higher without the purchase of additional play time. The developer estimates that the base, free play experience delivers about one month of engaging play for the typical user.
To keep the game fresh, the developer has been in the practice of releasing a series of updates over the course of a year: 12 small that alter various game details, and 2 large, bringing new features and notable enhancements.
The only stand-out negative we saw about the title is its complete lack of any in-game music or sound effects. The iPhone version will allow the user to play tracks from their iTunes song library, however. And, of course, the main stand-out positive is the six years the game has been live and the sizable community that has grown within it, a most iPhone MMO's can't point to.
See our gameplay video for a look at the action in the pre-release client.
TibiaME for the iPhone is expected to debut mid-2010. Additional screenshots of the game can be seen at CipSoft's TibiaMEFacebook page.
Blizzard forum poster Bornakk recently mentioned as a part of their efforts to increase the functionality of the World of Warcraft Armory that players will soon be able to access in-game auction houses through the web site itself, as well as an app that's in the works to manage your auctions on your iPhone.
Features and functionality of the app are still in the process of being worked out, and Blizzard admits that since this is a fairly complex addition to the integration seen with both the armory and the iPhone so because of this they don't have any kind of release estimate yet. Also mentioned is that parts of this service will be "premium-based", and more details on what exactly that means will be revealed at a later date.
Blizzard isn't exactly shy about charging players for in-game services between character server changes and sex changes, so it's anyone's guess as to where the "premium" will come in to play with this new app. Previously released Blizzard iPhone apps, World of Warcraft Mobile Armory [App Store] and Battle.net Mobile Authenticator [App Store] have been popular amongst our community, so we will be keeping a close eye on the development of the auction house app.
Thanks to everyone I used to play World of Warcraft with relentlessly IM'ing me about this today.
WiSTONE's Symbian MMORPG has finally made it to the iPhone, Anrufen Online [App Store] is a free to try online game with two different classes, and realtime combat that pits players against monsters and even other players. The isometric viewpoint and graphical style reminds me a lot of Ultima Online, and reading WiSTONE's web site for Anrufen reveals a shocking level of depth that doesn't immediately seem apparent when aimlessly wandering around the game world on a free account inside of the few maps you're restricted to.
If you decide to subscribe, Anrufen Online will run you $12.99, paid quarterly. This gameplay video provided by the developers shows what you're capable of both while fighting monsters and other players as you progress in the game:
Reactions on our forums seem mixed so far, but in my time with the game there seems to be a lot of potential here if you can overcome the cumbersome menu systems which seem to be directly ported from the Symbian version of the game combined with an overly cluttered interface. Still, if you're looking to get your MMORPG fix on the go, Anrufen Online seems to be one of the more complete offerings available on the platform.
Towards the end of July this year we previewed a massive multiplayer online game set in space called Outer Empires [App Store] by Ironwill Studios. Aside from its new iPhone client, Outer Empires also works by pointing any modern browser to the game's web site at outer-empires.com.
The game is quite similar to a 2D version of EVE Online, and the game concept has remained the same since our preview:
Outer Empires takes place in a persistent galaxy where players can choose from a variety of different activities as you play in the intergalactic sandbox. There are tons of quests (or "Missions" as they're called in game) to complete that range from simple transport jobs to exploring and bounty hunting. Once you establish yourself in the world, you can set up colonies as well as run or join a guild (or "Factions" in Outer Empires).
There's a whole array of upgrades, ships, and other things to buy as you rank up in game. While the iPhone client costs $1.99, you can play the web version for free and neither version of the game has mandatory subscriptions. If you do choose to subscribe, you will get double the experience and space bucks of free users for completing the same missions. Subscription prices range from $3.99 a month with options for 3, 6, or 12 month discounts along with a $99.99 lifetime subscription.
Outer Empires is a cool concept, but like any online game how much fun you have with it will likely depend on the community inside of the game. I'd definitely at least give the free browser version of the game a try if the idea of a mobile space MMO interests you, and if you find yourself captivated by the Outer Empires universe, pick up the iPhone client.
To followers of our forums, no three letters send a sharper chill up your spine than "MMO". Usually paired with the suffix "RPG", MMO's thus far on the iPhone have largely been fairly bland and focus more on friend code trading, point buying, and recruiting other players instead of actual content. Thankfully, Ironwill Studios is about to change all of that with their soon to be released space MMO Outer Empires.
Outer Empires takes place in a persistent galaxy where players can choose from a variety of different activities as you play in the intergalactic sandbox. There are tons of quests (or "Missions" as they're called in game) to complete that range from simple transport jobs to exploring and bounty hunting. Once you establish yourself in the world, you can set up colonies as well as run or join a guild (or "Factions" in Outer Empires).
Of course you have access to a wide variety of ships and upgrades to those ships which can all be purchased from player-created manufacturing plants. Having only clocked a few hours in to the beta so far, I'm reluctant to compare it to EVE Online, but there's not much else to compare it to.
The cool part about Outer Empires is that the game runs both in a browser on your computer, as well as in the app on your iPhone. Accounts are shared between both versions of the game, and you can literally log out in your browser, log in with your iPhone, and be exactly where you left off with all the same functionality of the desktop client on the go.
Ironwill Studios has an ambitious update cycle planned to patch in additional ships, player races, and other content supported by monthly subscriptions. Talking to Producer and Development Lead Paul Hutson via Skype we were told the monthly subscription fee would be "Around £2.50" which at current exchange rates is in the neighborhood of $4.00 per month. Initially subscriptions will be managed via PayPal, but Hutson has hopes to implement 3.0 in-game purchases for subscriptions soon.
Overall the concept of Outer Empires is really neat, and I've enjoyed playing both the browser and iPhone versions of the game, although once you get used to playing in the browser the iPhone client seems cramped in comparison. It remains to be seen how the community will react to a monthly subscription based game, but don't worry, you can try it for free without any time limits.
Free players can only reach a maximum level of 10, which will allow you to get a good feel for the game to decide if you want to bite on a paid membership or not. If you decide not to, you can still log in, chat, and do anything you want including completing all the missions for players level 10 and under.
If you decide to take the plunge on a subscription, all the experience you gained from doing extra missions after you hit the level 10 cap is applied. This is a unique approach on MMO trials, as they're usually based on a firm time limits before forcing you to pay up. If you play at a leisurely pace, it could take you quite a while to reach level 10 and if you just prefer the social aspect of chatting in Outer Empires you may never have to pay at all.
Outer Empires is currently under development, and according to my chat with Paul Hutson, they hope to submit the game to Apple later this month. If you want to know more, check out the Outer Empires web site which is absolutely packed with all kinds of information.
Sure, you might still have your full tier 1 set in your bank from Molten Core, and you may be lucky enough to wield [Val'anyr, Hammer of Ancient Kings] but in leaving the comfort of your basement, all of your phat loot and sick achievements are left behind. Or rather, they were left behind, before Blizzard released the World of Warcraft Mobile Armory [App Store] for the iPhone.
That's right citizens of the Horde and defenders of the Alliance, Blizzard's recently released app allows you to keep track of all your World of Warcraft characters, along with their stats, equipment, achievements and more. You can access your guild's stats and calendar, as well as other informational and planning tools. Experiment with talent trees or search for items, the World of Warcraft Mobile Armory can do it all.
Blizzard released this fairly impressive trailer walking users through the various functions of the app:
The World of Warcraft Mobile Armory is available as a free download, but requires a World of Warcraft or Battle.net account to use.
Here at GDC 2010 we had the chance to meet with Benjamin Zuckerer of CipSoft and have a look at the upcoming iPhone version of their popular TibiaME mobile MMO.
The iPhone release will make its debut mid-year and follow the "freemium" price model. The base release can be downloaded free of charge and offers two (of the total 67) islands to explore. Characters playing in this mode are limited to a maximum of level 20 experience. Those wanting to experience the full game world can buy play time in blocks of one (5 euros) or 4 months (12 euros). Any character that has been built up in the pay model will retain all stats in the event an unrenewed block of time, but will be unable to level higher without the purchase of additional play time. The developer estimates that the base, free play experience delivers about one month of engaging play for the typical user.
Blizzard forum poster 
WiSTONE's Symbian MMORPG has finally made it to the iPhone, Anrufen Online [
To followers of our forums, no three letters send a sharper chill up your spine than "MMO". Usually paired with the suffix "RPG", MMO's thus far on the iPhone have largely been fairly bland and focus more on friend code trading, point buying, and recruiting other players instead of actual content. Thankfully, Ironwill Studios is about to change all of that with their soon to be released space MMO Outer Empires.
Overall the concept of Outer Empires is really neat, and I've enjoyed playing both the browser and iPhone versions of the game, although once you get used to playing in the browser the iPhone client seems cramped in comparison. It remains to be seen how the community will react to a monthly subscription based game, but don't worry, you can try it for free without any time limits.
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