Microsoft unveiled its new next generation console, the Xbox One, yesterday at a major press event at its Redmond Headquarters. Microsoft’s Don Mattrick posed the question “”What if a single device could provide all your entertainment, what if it could turn on your TV and talk to all the devices in your living room?” and then went on to highlight [...]

Star Trek Online launched its first major expansion today, Legacy of Romulus. Unfortunately, due to my busy schedule at present, I have had precious little time to explore the free new content. The 10 GB patch not only provides a wealth of new material but overhauls many existing elements of the game. The most noticeable is the character selection screen [...]

This weeks Contains Moderate Peril Podcast starts with a look at the problematic launch of Update 11 for LOTRO. Brian and I reflect upon some of the bugs and problems that have arisen, as well as the positive changes such as the new Lore-master pet for Mounted Combat. We then consider Trion’s recent announcement that Rift will be going free to [...]

Contains Moderate Peril Episode 104: I'm a driving instructor from Johannesburg [ 1:02:27 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

One of the upsides of Update 11: Treachery of the White Hand, is the revision of the mounted combat trait system by Turbine. As a result the Lore-master class now has an additional pet that can be summoned while mounted and used in combat. The War Wolf  functions similarly to a skirmish soldier and is as equally erratic. However it does has some [...]

Yesterday’s problematic launch of Update 11: The Treachery of the White Hand came as no surprise. As usual Turbine did their best to manage the problem but effective communication was not immediately forthcoming. The sad reality is that many players were expecting something like this to happen. It has become common place, not just with LOTRO but across the gaming industry. Buggy [...]

In this weeks Contains Moderate Peril Podcast Brian and I are somewhat surprised by how quickly Update 11 for LOTRO has gone from beta to final release. We also consider the ongoing issue of players not receiving their monthly Turbine Point grant. We also look two recent exploits that have affected both Diablo III and Neverwinter and the associated fallout. I [...]

Contains Moderate Peril Episode 103: Ooh You Are Awful... But I Like You! [ 59:13 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

In this weeks Contains Moderate Peril podcast, Brian and I tackle the difficult issue of  whether real world issues should impinge upon MMOs. Exactly what should be let in or kept out of the in-game world? This discussion is a direct result of Turbines recent endeavour to highlight The One Fund charity via their games. We also revisit Neverwinter, now that it [...]

Standard Podcast [ 1:15:17 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Remember when Turbine introduced the Apparel Dummies into LOTRO last July and the drama that accompanied it? Well finally Turbine have managed to create a variation of this service and implement it in such a way that will potentially keep all parties happy. Lalia’s Market (Yes, that Hobbit that has caused no end of problems for players on the Barrow [...]

It is totally understandable why Turbine wants to support The One Fund, being a Boston based business. However, the way they have set about doing this and the subsequent manner in which they have handled the “debate” regarding it, has been counter productive and damaging. I’m sure I am not the only one who thought “this will end in tears” after reading the [...]

Once again the Contains Moderate Peril podcast has been beset with technical problems. This weeks show is unfortunately on thirty minutes long, as the other  forty minutes of recorded material had continuous background interference and could not be used. However, we still manage to pack a lot into the remaining half hour with a discussion regarding the new expansion for LOTRO, [...]

Contains Moderate Peril Episode 101: Bob [ 32:30 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Turbine announced the successful applicants for the LOTRO Player Council on Friday. Unsurprisingly, complaints soon started to appear on the official forums. It was inevitable that the Council would cause controversy and it didn’t take long for criticism to be levelled at some of the members. Allegedly, despite there being clear rules about certain types of bloggers and writers being excluded, it was [...]

Upate 11: Treachery of the White Hand will be available on Bullroarer public test server presently (NB It was not at the time of posting this article). The patch notes have been published on the official forums and they make for some quite interesting reading. Not only does the update have a new landmass and continuation of the epic story but [...]

Today’s announcement by Turbine that the next LOTRO expansion will be Helm’s Deep, really didn’t come as any surprise. The game seems to have a clear scheduling pattern with regard to free updates and paid expansions. Plus there was the small clue that the last expansion only gave us half a region and left the storyline on a cliffhanger. So we now [...]

Contains Moderate Peril has reached its one hundredth episode. However, as we don’t believe in making too much of a fuss, its just business as normal in this weeks show. So Brian and I take a look at the controversy that sprang up regarding Hobbit Presents. Why is it that Turbine seem to have such a tough time trying to come [...]

Contains Moderate Peril Episode 100: I Have Got No Brakes! [ 1:13:28 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The forthcoming Star Trek Online expansion, Legacy of Romulus, went into closed beta on Thursday. During this first round, access has been restricted to invitation only and grants those lucky players the chance to create a Romulan character on the Tribble test server. It has also been clearly stated that this is an initial build that lacks all the “bells and whistles” [...]