MAG (PS3)

[Tiko7523]

Re: MAG (PS3)

zpr_DunhamSmash wrote:

Thanks, on behalf of everyone here.



And for those of you that are disappointed in 1.03, it's not the end of the world. We're working on 1.04 now, and DLC, and we're making map changes to fix balance issues, and there's a ton of other stuff I can't even talk about yet.



Our approach to this game isn't a 1-2 month release, followed by us moving on. It's a game that's meant to expand and change as time wears on -- the "ever-changing global war" line isn't just a catch phrase, it's our philosophy here.



You really have no idea how many plans and things we have in store for you guys.



Anyhow, thanks for both the positive and negative feedback, all is helpful.

i love you zipper!

[Eton Rifles]

Re: MAG (PS3)

yeah, Zipper does gives it fans what they want. Got to admire them for that.

[LingeringRegime]

Re: MAG (PS3)

Glad, I still have this one. I am sure I will get back to it sometime.

[Tiko7523]

Re: MAG (PS3)

First up is the availability of our pre-order bonus armor! Originally offered as part of our incentive plan to those who purchased the game prior to its release on January 26, these special “medium improved” armor types and their faction-specific camo (Spyder for Raven, Hazard for SVER, and Bulldog for Valor) are now accessible to any and all MAG players in North America starting today, March 11.

The best part? They’re all free! All you have to do is log on to the PlayStation Store after today’s update and grab ‘em when you see ‘em. Once they’ve been obtained, your new armor can then be found in-game between the medium and heavy armor types when prepping your character in the loadout screen. Expect it to take up 800ccs of your total capacity. Stay tuned for bonus armor release timing in other regions outside of North America in the near future.

But that’s not all. We’re also pleased to announce that the latest patch update is coming too! Available starting tomorrow, March 12, at 1am Pacific/ 4am Eastern/ 9am GMT, our new patch tidies up a few technical things while also addressing two bigger items: fixing a bug that allowed downed players to revive inside geometry like vehicles and objectives, in addition to blocking several “lag pedal” exploits from users that employ special devices as an attempt to cheat (Busted!).

For a full list of changes, scroll down to the catalog below and, as per usual, you can find the complete history of MAG fixes and patches by visiting Patch Notes.

Patch v1.04

Available March 12, 2010 | 40MB (TPPS), 30MB (DLS)

Gameplay

* Fixed bug that made it possible for incapacitated players to be revived inside geometry (objectives, vehicles, walls, bridges, etc.).
* Corrected “Kills at 120m” stat display bug.

Weapons

* Sniper rifles have been tuned to be less effective when they’re not scoped.
* Slightly pushed out “effective” range of all short-ranged weapons (pistols, PDWs, shotguns, SMGs).

Interface

* Fixed error text “undefined Unnamed” and the appearance of a blue APC icon that appeared when a Squad Leader FRAGO’d an APC objective.

Server

* Significant anti-cheat improvement that minimizes and blocks several “lag pedal” device exploits.
* Enhanced all queues to accept Zipper-activated “Directives” game states.

sounds like a good patch

[LingeringRegime]

Re: MAG (PS3)

Glad to see the Sniper Rifle is getting patched. Though I was really killing a lot of people with it unscoped.

[Bighoff]

Re: MAG (PS3)

I'm totally pumped with all these releases. I've totally neglected MAG since BF2 came out but this weekend that will change.

[Stormyhog]

Re: MAG (PS3)

Looks like we will be getting free dlc soon. http://kotaku.com/5496928/free-mag-c...hion--firearms

[Eton Rifles]

Re: MAG (PS3)

really cool of Zipper to that. Problem is BBC2 probably have killed their online numbers.

[Tiko7523]

Re: MAG (PS3)

MAG Q&A with Zipper Interactive
Members of the Official PlayStation Forums have been a huge help in submitting some questions for the MAG developers. Answers have been provided by the Game’s Producer Alan Van Slyke, the Designer Jason Olander, Designer and the Senior Community Manager Jeremy Dunham. Did your question get asked?



1.) How the whole MAG idea was created? It’s the final product what you had in mind from the beginning or it has changed?

Alan Van Slyke, Producer: The initial idea for MAG was “battles on a scale never seen before.” To have huge air insertions, mortar barrages, and platoons of players fighting for common goals. In this sense the core of the project never changed. Every feature in the game had to pass our filter of, “does this contribute to the sense of scale”, and add to the core pillars of what MAG is.

The final product is very much what we had in mind from the beginning. We did strip away a little complexity to provide an experience that’s approachable even to casual gamers, but were keenly aware that we needed to retain certain designs (command structure, squad cohesion, squad communication) in place to ensure that a game of this scale wouldn’t devolve into complete chaos.

2.) Which one was the biggest difficulty you had to face while developing a game like this?

Alan Van Slyke: Testing! We had to beg, borrow, and steal participation from other Sony studios to assist in testing the game throughout the development window… both to shakeout design ideas/ maps, as well as to ensure stability at scale. Later in the development cycle, our internal and public Beta phases were invaluable at ensuring that we had a smooth launch – thanks all who participated!

3.) How did you come up with the 3 Factions’ idea? Why those Factions?

Alan Van Slyke: The factions initially started as aggregations of existing international Special Forces and evolved into their current (completely fictional) manifestation over a long period of time. SVER/ Valor/ Raven faction identifications gave players the ability to differentiate (visual aesthetic, weapons, vehicles, skills…), resulting in more choice and replayability. It also leaves the door wide open for us to add new weapons, skills, and gametypes in the future… there’s nothing preventing us from adding the ability to load all 3 factions into the same battle, for instance.

4.) There have been rumors that there will be a 4th fraction. Is that true? An African or Asian faction would be amazing.

Alan Van Slyke: While I won’t comment directly, I will say that one of the things we’re happiest with about MAG is that we’ve built a capable platform. Adding gametypes, factions, weapon types, vehicle types, expanding command structure… the opportunities are limitless, and we’ve only scratched the surface of what we can do with our engine and networking capabilities.



5.) We recently hear a lot about 3D movies and games; can we expect MAG to be in 3D one day?

Alan Van Slyke: Not something we’re currently exploring, but another great idea!

6.) We know eventually that included DLC will be new maps but what else can we expect in terms of DLC? New game modes, new weapons, new gear, new attires?

Jason Olander, Designer: MAG was designed and built to be an ever-expanding platform, so without revealing specifics I think I can safely say that we are constantly evaluating making additions to almost all aspects of the game, which would of course include weapons, gear, uniforms and more.

7.) When are you going to implement a solution for us to launch into games in multiple squads? The actual system is very limited for the Clans.

Jason Olander: As you know, MAG really shines when players are able to group up and play round after round together, creating a great team experience. Limiting how many squads could group up and enter games together was a decision made to ensure that players not in large groups would not be overwhelmed in combat by huge groups of coordinated enemy players. We continue to evaluate whether allowing more than one squad to group together is in the best interests of good gameplay for everyone, so this may change in the future.

8.) In addition to the question before, we expect a “Clans Battle” feature soon, but could you tell us more about it?

Jason Olander: I can’t give details, but I can say that we feel MAG is the ultimate “war game”, and so we will continue to push the bounds of large-scale organized combat with additions down the line.

9.) Will we see any additions to leadership abilities? Such as the OIC having the ability to provide visual prompts which direct squad leaders on the direction of their assault, or even a battle planning screen pre-match which allows the OIC to draw out a ‘plan of attack’ for their team.

Jason Olander: Large-scale combat, an easy to use and understand command system, and rewarding players for working together are ideals we strive for in MAG. Expanding the current command abilities and systems is a key component of enhancing the game, so stay tuned J

10.) Are there any plans of change regarding the vote to kick system? People are getting kicked for not fairy reasons (groups of people feel their friends should be squad leaders rather than them) which can be very annoying especially if it is near the end of the match and you lose all your XP…

Jason Olander: Vote-to-kick is a system designed to enhance the game experience of players by enabling them to remove players that are ruining that experience, and so of course we do not want that to be abused by players just kicking others to make room for their friends, or kicking leaders in order to just take their place. It can be tricky to get this balance right, and so we are always looking into ways to improve the system.



11.) How do you think about the possibility of switching teamkilling off during the first 5 seconds after spawning to avoid instant deaths?

Jason Olander: If you are referring to the occasions in which a player spawns and is accidentally still shooting, knifing etc, and kills a teammate unintentionally, we are working on updates to fix that very problem.

12.) Is there any chance of a leadership tutorial or at least a help guide within the game? A lot of leaders I’ve had recently don’t seem to have a clue about Frago’s or their abilities. The only place I’ve found this information is this forum, there is little mention of it in the manual.

Alan Van Slyke: Additional tutorials and training is definitely something we hope to assist players with. If you’re a new player, ask your squadmates how the FRAGOs work… and if you’re a veteran player, feel free to help your squad leader if he needs it… you’re all in it together!

13.) We are reading many comments in EU about people who can’t find players of the same language inside the games. Are you aware of it? Are you thinking in something to help them such as “lobby” system to organize games per language?

Jeremy Dunham, Senior Community Manager: We’ve definitely discussed ways to make games easier to find on a regional level, but haven’t anything to announce yet regarding any possible solutions. Where we ultimately go with this will be based on demand and the practicality of changing how we originally set up our matchmaking. It’s a tricky thing to iron out, obviously, since you want people to be able to play a game with their countrymen if they so choose, but you also don’t want to break up the audience as a whole too much because then wait times for getting into a game could suffer.



Taken from http://blog.eu.playstation.com/2010/...er-interactive

wow this game could become much better depending on DLC and maybe even a new faction!?

[LingeringRegime]

Re: MAG (PS3)

wow this game could become much better depending on DLC and maybe even a new faction!?

That sounds great.

[42]

Re: MAG (PS3)

MAG Escalation DLC Coming November 2






This past summer, many of you took part in our latest MAG Beta program to help us test out a number of new features slated for our recently-released update, MAG 2.0, and future DLC. Thanks to your devotion, we gathered a surplus of fantastic data that allowed us to make MAG a better game… and we’re not done yet!


Though the MAG 2.0 patch has been available since the end of September, the DLC portion of the beta has remained unreleased — but not for too much longer. Starting November 2, our three-faction gunplay whirlwind, the “Escalation” Add-on Pack, will be available for download from the PlayStation Store for $9.99 (US)!


But we aren’t stopping there.


To celebrate the release of the Escalation DLC, we’re offering two other deals to existing and would-be fans. Check this out:

• Interdiction Add-on Pack: Now $4.99 (US); reduced from original price of $9.99 (US)
• MAG Starter Kit: $14.99 (US): An almost $30 (US) value and everything new MAG users could want: Interdiction and Escalation Add-on packs, a 30-day trial for MAG character slots B and C, six official MAG PS3 avatars that sport Raven, SVER, and Valor characters and badges, and three dynamic PS3 themes (one for each PMC).

If you didn’t get a chance to play it in our MAG Beta, the Escalation add-on supports up to 96 players, or one 32-man platoon for each PMC, as a separate in-game mode that pits the forces of Raven, SVER, and Valor against each other at the same time. The aspirations for each PMC is to earn the requisite number of points before time runs out or, if time does expire, to have the most points overall. Whichever team meets this goal wins the map and additional Shadow War points.



Escalation gameplay is set up in two phases: For phase one, all three teams battle to hold the map’s A, B and C objectives — but when any of the three PMCs gains control of two of the three objectives, phase two begins. In this second phase, the original three objectives are locked and a new fourth objective (D) opens up. Now, the PMC that forced the phase shift must defend objective D against both attacking groups as long as possible; if D is lost, then play reverts back to phase one again and the war continues on until we have a winner or time runs out.









As beta players have already seen, Escalation offers three completely different environments (maps) to the MAG universe, including the volcanic beaches “Isla de Magma,” the mountainous “Silverback Ridge,” and the desert wasteland of “Radiant Barrens.” As an added bonus, our new add-on pack isn’t just made up of new maps – there are also nine previously-unavailable weapons we’re throwing into the mix too:


Raven: Gotha Elite (Assault Rifle) | KP21 (Machine Gun) | Kinmark SRS (Sniper Rifle)
SVER: Tamsen MK2 (Assault Rifle | Ariet SFW (Machine Gun) | Rubakho SVR (Sniper Rifle)
Valor: M31 CIR (Assault Rifle) | M245 (Machine Gun) | Sentinel M421 (Sniper Rifle)


If this sounds like your brand of DLC fun, we’ll see you again on November 2!

[Stormyhog]

Re: MAG (PS3)

MAG Escalation DLC Coming November 2






This past summer, many of you took part in our latest MAG Beta program to help us test out a number of new features slated for our recently-released update, MAG 2.0, and future DLC. Thanks to your devotion, we gathered a surplus of fantastic data that allowed us to make MAG a better game… and we’re not done yet!


Though the MAG 2.0 patch has been available since the end of September, the DLC portion of the beta has remained unreleased — but not for too much longer. Starting November 2, our three-faction gunplay whirlwind, the “Escalation” Add-on Pack, will be available for download from the PlayStation Store for $9.99 (US)!


But we aren’t stopping there.


To celebrate the release of the Escalation DLC, we’re offering two other deals to existing and would-be fans. Check this out:

• Interdiction Add-on Pack: Now $4.99 (US); reduced from original price of $9.99 (US)
• MAG Starter Kit: $14.99 (US): An almost $30 (US) value and everything new MAG users could want: Interdiction and Escalation Add-on packs, a 30-day trial for MAG character slots B and C, six official MAG PS3 avatars that sport Raven, SVER, and Valor characters and badges, and three dynamic PS3 themes (one for each PMC).

If you didn’t get a chance to play it in our MAG Beta, the Escalation add-on supports up to 96 players, or one 32-man platoon for each PMC, as a separate in-game mode that pits the forces of Raven, SVER, and Valor against each other at the same time. The aspirations for each PMC is to earn the requisite number of points before time runs out or, if time does expire, to have the most points overall. Whichever team meets this goal wins the map and additional Shadow War points.



Escalation gameplay is set up in two phases: For phase one, all three teams battle to hold the map’s A, B and C objectives — but when any of the three PMCs gains control of two of the three objectives, phase two begins. In this second phase, the original three objectives are locked and a new fourth objective (D) opens up. Now, the PMC that forced the phase shift must defend objective D against both attacking groups as long as possible; if D is lost, then play reverts back to phase one again and the war continues on until we have a winner or time runs out.









As beta players have already seen, Escalation offers three completely different environments (maps) to the MAG universe, including the volcanic beaches “Isla de Magma,” the mountainous “Silverback Ridge,” and the desert wasteland of “Radiant Barrens.” As an added bonus, our new add-on pack isn’t just made up of new maps – there are also nine previously-unavailable weapons we’re throwing into the mix too:


Raven: Gotha Elite (Assault Rifle) | KP21 (Machine Gun) | Kinmark SRS (Sniper Rifle)
SVER: Tamsen MK2 (Assault Rifle | Ariet SFW (Machine Gun) | Rubakho SVR (Sniper Rifle)
Valor: M31 CIR (Assault Rifle) | M245 (Machine Gun) | Sentinel M421 (Sniper Rifle)


If this sounds like your brand of DLC fun, we’ll see you again on November 2!

I'll be passing as hardly any people bought the first Interdiction DLC pack making it almost impossible to get in a game. So to me it's a waste of $9.99 not because it is no good just that not many will be playing it.

[Hayabusa85]

Re: MAG (PS3)

Was the new DLC delayed or something? Got two messages saying I could get a discount on it with the second saying to ignore the first message but neither message open anything in the store. And once the store finally updated really late I didn't see the DLC either.

[Stormyhog]

Re: MAG (PS3)

Was the new DLC delayed or something? Got two messages saying I could get a discount on it with the second saying to ignore the first message but neither message open anything in the store. And once the store finally updated really late I didn't see the DLC either.

Yeah it has been delayed til later this week as they ran into some problems with it. I got the two discount messages as well probably will get a third once everything is fine with it. Previous post I said I probably would pass on it but may get it with the discount. I just hope more people play it compared to the Interdiction DLC because I do enjoy the game.

[Hayabusa85]

Re: MAG (PS3)

Any word on what the discount price is? Will probably buy it regardless since I love the game so much but it does suck when premium DLC modes end up dead in no time. Would be nice if they made stuff like that free for PS+ at least since that might at least somewhat boost how many people play those modes. Or better it would make sense for all DLC to eventually be free to everybody. Make money of the big fans that wouldn't want to wait and then make it free. Think one of the Halo games did that if I recall correctly. Made a map pack premium DLC for a period of time but announced before it was out that it would eventually be made free.