Posts with tag hello-kitty-online

It seems that every new MMORPG wants to bill itself as a "WoW killer." From Lord of the Rings Online to Age of Conan to (most recently) RIFT, everyone wants a piece of the most popular subscription-based MMORPG of all time.

To date, World of Warcraft has weathered the competition. Its subscriber numbers have reached an all-time high (now over 12 million), with its latest Cataclysm expansion selling nearly 5 million copies in the first month alone. The game should remain popular and successful for years to come. Still, even Blizzard admits: It can't stay on top forever.

So what happens when the game starts losing a significant amount of its subscriber base? If what happened to Turbine's Lord of the Rings Online and Dungeons and Dragons Online is any clue, World of Warcraft might move to a free-to-play model. Since switching to free-to-play, both of Turbine's games added subscribers and increased revenues.

This past weekend, I sat in on the free-to-play MMO panel held at the PAX East 2011 conference in Boston. Afterward, I caught up with Robert Ferrari, VP of Publishing and Business Development for Sanrio Digital (Hello Kitty Online), to discuss WoW. We discussed the free-to-play industry and whether or not World of Warcraft could eventually find a place in it.

"WoW has to be looking at a free-to-play model currently," Ferrari theorized.

Sometimes you'd like to know that there are other MMOs out there, right? It's not all WoW, all the time! Our sister site Massively can provide you with everything you need to know about all of the other MMOs around -- past, present and future.

	StarCraft II turned into World of StarCraft by enterprising fan World of StarCraft is, by all indications, high on the list of desirable games that have never been announced or even hinted at. It's certainly a universe ripe for development, and it's not as if Blizzard doesn't know anything about running an MMO. But why wait for an official release when you can put the game together yourself?
	The latest RIFT news If upcoming MMO RIFT has caught your attention, the past week had a number of RIFT-related news stories that might strike your fancy. New beta additions? PvP details? New class reveals? Massively has it all.
	First Impressions: Battlestar Galactica Online Last year, developer Bigpoint announced that Battlestar Galactica Online was being developed as a free-to-play browser MMO. Just last week, Massively was able to get its hands on the game and take it for a spin.
	The Guild Counsel: What every leader should know about recruiting Do you like WoW Insider's Officers' Quarters? Then you might like Massively's Guild Counsel. This week, The Guild Counsel tackles the topic of guild recruitment, discussing the right and wrong ways to do it.
	Hello Kitty Online meets Manhattan Hello Kitty Online is near and dear to our hearts here at WoW Insider. We were all excited to hear about the latest HKO update. Hello Kitty Online visits New York City, where the locals have gone missing for mysterious reasons. Find out what happened, and cheer up the victims!
	Week in Review: It's all about souls Don't let WoW Insider do all of the talking when it comes to Massively's best content of the week. The Massively staff themselves have picked out what they think is the best content their site has to offer in their own weekly roundup.

Don't worry, we're not going back to HKO Insider (although you really did want us to), but we know there's a good number of you out there tracking that other big MMO release this Fall, the one with the "Lich Kitty." And here's the first gameplay trailer for the game we're really hoping to play this November -- forget about Death Knights and siege vehicles and new pets and hairstyles, we're waiting for solving mysteries and Sanrio characters and... well, new pets and hairstyles.

But seriously, it does look fun, doesn't it? WoW could certainly use a farming profession (maybe to go along with some player housing), and everything is just so bright and shiny and fun. The most popular zone in Outland was Nagrand, and we like to think it's because of the rolling green hills and the sparkling blue skies. If you ever get tired of Knights dressed in black metal and dark magics that curse and torment the leaders of the Horde, just know that Hello Kitty Online is out there, waiting just for you.

[via WoW Ladies LJ]

[1.Local] serves up a smattering of reader comments from the past week, from the sublime to the ridiculous.

Improving the gaming process seemed to be top of mind for many readers this week. A number of threads saw a flurry of suggestions about ways players handle current game mechanics and wish lists for improvements they'd like to see in the future. We touched on Armorying PuGgers, retooling old content versus adding more mid-level content, the state of bleeding-edge guild membership and the sometimes weighty demands of being a tank. We chewed the fat over just how serious matters of WoW are to us ... and never one to shirk matters of fashion, we considered footwear options for WoW players and Hello Kitty fans alike.

Be sure to dive into the comments area of each thread (not this one!) and add your own thoughts – unlike your mama, we like us some hot, fresh backtalk.

The Hello Kitty Online Closed Beta is now over. No, really. While I'm not sure Hello Kitty Online is shaping up to be the great WoW-killer (but what do I know?), there are certainly more than a few folks eagerly waiting to get their kitty on in the upcoming Open Beta. The good news is that Sanrio is definitely keeping their community involved in the process.

So what is the appeal of Hello Kitty Online? It seems a little odd that the game's come up several times. Perhaps you recall Insider's own HKO obsession (short lived, but much discussed). Even before that, when we were told to "Make Love, Not Warcraft," the online island adventure was a welcome reprieve from boar-killing.

But since then, the Warcraft community has maintained its obsession with Hello Kitty. As Thomas Crampton has pointed out, there were more than a few Warcraft-themed submissions to the HKO Closed Beta -- maybe more than the developers were actually expecting. High "Huglord" Amused of Limbo (Gorefiend-PvP) gets my vote for best video application to Hello Kitty Online closed beta. Apparantly, he and Spiderman go way back. And we can't forget the Hello Kitty Island Adventure UI mod.

So, what gives? Why do we of the War and Craft keep coming back around to Hello Kitty, and her cute-sauce adventures?

As you are all aware, we are changing direction around here, so it has come time for Addon Spotlight to sail into uncharted waters. Unfortunately, I have been unable to find much of an addon community for Hello Kitty Online, so things may be a bit rough in the coming months, as developers start filling those little User Interface needs. I wanted to point out that this can be seen as an opportunity for new and exciting things. We've got a fresh start, folks, with all the world of Sanrio in front of us.

Many of you addon users may be wondering what mods we can expect in Hello Kitty Online. I am thinking we will see some savvy WoW addon developers releasing HKO-compatible versions of their addons in the future. I can't imagine any MMORPG without an Auctioneer-like addon. You can expect to see things like Outfitter, FuBar & Titan Panel, an Ace-like system and an entire library of compilations. Once beta-testing ends, and we see a release of Hello Kitty Online, sites similar to Curse Gaming, WoWInterface and WoWUI are bound to show up. With all these exciting weeks ahead of us, you can count on us at HKO Insider to provide all the latest HKO news, and yours truly will bring you all the best addons and mods.

As with addons, macros are still somewhat mysterious, but I promise you'll know more as I learn more about scripting in our new world. Come back after the catnap and I'll give you something to get you by until the full release of HKO.

I'm really excited that we'll be posting about Hello Kitty Online. I took some time to check out their fantastic Dream Studio. Dream Studio is a great resource for displaying your graphical talent to the Hello Kitty Online readers. There are many really fun videos in the Dream Studio, and everyone is welcome to share their creations. It's free to join the Hello Kitty Online community at Sanriotown.

I found this video for XO-Man. This movie is a part of a series of Hello Kitty and Friends Adventures videos. I think XO-Man is the best super hero ever! He has all of the characteristics I look for in a super hero. He's brave, cute, and strong. Most importantly he wears a cape and he's got a plan. I love the part where he knocks back all of the big, mean alligators in the video. I love that he's totally looking out for the little guy. XO-man, you're my hero!

Animal-Lover showed multiple talents in the following video. Not only can she make a super pretty video, but she can bake beautiful Kawaii Kupcakes too. She describes her video as "Cute and lovley cupcakes that I have baked all by myself."

Check out all the amazing talent over at Dream Studio!

Insider Trader is your inside line on making, selling, buying and using player-made products.

To celebrate the kick-off of HKO-Insider, Insider Trader will be doing a bonus column this week! As the closed beta has only just been put in the works, there are understandably few details floating around.

Currently, we have confirmed at least the following professions:

• Mining.
• Gathering fruit from the wild.
• Tailoring.
• Furniture-crafting.
• Farming.
• Cooking.
• House-building.
  

This week we will speculate on what we might see, and compose a wishlist for what we would like to see. Join us on Friday as we resume our normal schedule and delve deeper into the concept of mining as a profession, building on today's overview as well as player feedback.

When I was told about the new change to the site, I wasn't sure what to think. However, after some research, I discovered that HKO machinimators are so much more talented than their WoW counterparts, save for Shepiwot, of course.

In the video that Sanrio Digital made to show off their upcoming MMO, it's obvious that you can literally do almost anything. I can't say enough about this machinima. From the cinematic quality to the music, it's perfect in every way. I can hardly wait to try my hand at some in-world footage!

(WoW Moviewatch fans, if you're out there, send machinima to machinima AT wowinsider DOT com and help me convince them that they've made the wrong choice. Oh no! They're coming for me!)

Previously on the feature previously known as WoW Moviewatch ...

When word came from upstairs that we were switching over to HKO Insider, I was afraid that was the end of Know Your Lore. It turns out, HKO's lore is far superior to Warcraft's lore. For one thing, Hello Kitty is consistent. For two, it is adorable. For three, it has hit the perfect mix of humor and drama, something that WoW could never, ever do.

I've personally fallen in love with a character that goes by the name of Keroppi. The name Keroppi originates from the sound frogs are said to make in Japan, 'kero,' and the word 'ppi' which means 'giant leaps bring faith and forgiveness to all men'. Keroppi comes from a relatively large, well-rounded family. His father is a doctor, his mother is a chef, and he is one out of a set of non-identical triplets. He and his siblings, Koroppi and Pikki, are all very unique from one another in all but appearance. In fact, Koroppi(meaning 'holy crap they look the same' and 'no seriously') and Keroppi are often mistaken for one another, which certainly doesn't make life in the region of Donut Pond very easy.

Rumor has it that some of your favorite characters will be featured in the upcoming MMO as country leaders! In the spirit of Amanda Dean's Azerothian General Elections, I thought it would be fitting to find out who are the fan favorites for leaders of Sanrio.

Let's take a look at the personalities and platforms of the candidates, shall we?

A. Hello Kitty (London, England): Hello Kitty believes that friendship is the key to peace and economic stability. If elected, she promises to hold free friendship seminars and events, including trust falls, group therapy, communal gardening and a buddy system. Other key issues in her platform include the "Cookies for Love" campaign, fair market prices, and staying in school. If elected, she will be bringing Charmmy Kitty on as her advisor.

Sanrio Digital, showing a dedication to content creation and fan service that other game companies could definitely learn from, has already started in with some exciting news for Hello Kitty fans everywhere. Despite not being out of Closed Beta yet, It's been confirmed that Hello Kitty Online will have an expansion in 2009: Hello Kitty Island Adventures!

The expansion will open with Hello Kitty and her friends (Including you, the player) crash landing on a desert island while on Hello Kitty Air flight 337 to the 5th World Cuteness Symposium in Perth, Australia. That's right, in a gutsy move that should rightly earn them the applause of MMO designers everywhere, Sanrio Digital is shaking things up and actually shrinking the game world to one desert island, giving Hello Kitty faithful a whole new area to explore and giving them a break from the humdrum environs of places like Mari Land and Nightengale Lane. Join us after the break for a rundown of some of the other features you can expect!

There's just so much to love about Hello Kitty Online, the new game that we're now covering (thanks to a decision by the higher ups at AOL) 24/7. Maybe you love the character customization -- you can change your hair (why wait until some frozen expansion to do that, right?), clothes, accessories, shoes, or even your facial features. Or maybe it's farming, mining, cooking, tailoring, or one of the many other professions in the game (no Inscription but that sucked anyway, if you ask us). Or maybe it's just doing a little interior decorating -- unlike another game that we used to cover, HKO is going to have player housing from the start.

Yep, there are many, many things to love about Sanrio's upcoming game (not least of them the cutest characters ever made -- say what you will about Ragnaros, but nobody ever wanted to hug him). On this, our first HKO Insider Breakfast Topic ever, we're asking: what's your favorite part of Hello Kitty Online?

We've got an exciting new direction to announce here today on WoW Insider. Because patch 2.4 has just released, and information about Wrath of the Lich King, the next expansion, is pretty much nonexistent (we haven't even been told a release date by Blizzard yet), AOL, the company that owns the Weblogs, Inc. network of blogs, of which WoW Insider is a part, has determined that instead of covering World of Warcraft every day, we will now be covering a new, surely more exciting and surely soon to be more popular massively multiplayer online game.

Yes, starting today, WoW Insider is becoming HKO Insider, and instead of WoW, we will be covering the very popular MMO Hello Kitty Online. With no changes at all coming to Azeroth anytime soon, it's time to say goodbye to the Barrens and Stormwind, and "hello" to Hello Kitty, Sanriotown, and the entrancing world of the Flower Kingdom. Playing with Illidan and Kael'thas was fun for a while, but now HKO Insider will bring our daily insight and coverage to the world of Badtz-Maru and Keroppi. Want guides on how to make your garden grow, or the best way to PvP against the My Melody class? They'll be right here on HKO Insider.

All of your favorite WoW Insider features -- Know Your Lore, Moviewatch, Shifting Perspectives, and 15 Minutes of Fame, are all here (and you'll be able to see them posted later today). But instead of covering World of Warcraft, all of our writers, whether they like it or not, will be covering Hello Kitty Online from now on.

Please enjoy the new focus of the site, and thanks for reading as always. While Hello Kitty Online is still in closed beta, we're almost sure it'll come out before Wrath of the Lich King, and we've been asked to point our site towards the real MMO winner of the year in 2008.