FPS General

Sony Online Entertainment is taking the battle in PlanetSide 2 to a brand new continent in the coming weeks, with the release of Esamir. Veteran PlanetSide players will remember Esamir as an icy wasteland on Auraxis.

We had a chance to sit down and talk with Tramell Isaac, Senior Art Director on PlanetSide 2 and Leonard Gullo, Lead World Designer, about Esamir and what the new continent brings to PlanetSide 2. The differences between Indar, the only currently-available continent in PlanetSide 2 and Esamir are much more vast than the obvious environmental aspects.

From the sound of things, Esamir is much more vast than Indar. With far fewer outposts and only one tech plant to speak of, battles will be fierce on Esamir. On the flip side of that, you're going to notice a distinctly larger amount of land to traverse between outposts, making vehicles even more valuable than they have been to date in PlanetSide 2. On Indar, you can walk from outpost to outpost if you want to - it will take you a while, but it's not unheard of. On Esamir, you are definitely going to want to grab a vehicle if for no other purpose than to facilitate a much quicker route to your next hotspot.

With this increased emphasis on vehicles, you're going to want to exercise some caution when making your way across the map. Things like friction and loss of traction are properties that SOE has taken into account on Esamir, so don't expect your rubber-wheeled vehicles to perform as normal on icy surfaces. There are bridges that you can take that will be more secure than driving on the ice, but that might be exactly what the enemy is expecting you to do.

If all else fails, as Tramell Isaac said, 'If you're on a Magrider, you're good.' So there's always that.

Keep reading for more on Esamir, the next continent in Sony Online Entertainment's free to play shooter, PlanetSide 2!

Sony Online Entertainment is pushing out a brand new patch for PlanetSide 2 next week, one that will add the icy continent of Esamir to the game and implement some changes to the Certifications system.

Matt Higby, Creative Director on PlanetSide 2, has taken to the forums to detail how these changes will play out and what we can expect in the meantime. Take it away, Matt:

With tonight's patch we will be re-enabling passive cert point gain and for the next week we will be cranking the rate of the gain up quite a bit. We're doing this so that we can test a lot of the higher level certs which are impossible to acquire right now with the current costs and cert point acquisition rates. I want to be clear that this weeks passive cert point rate is ABSOLUTELY NOT indicative of our final rate, it's juiced way up.

Now for the painful part - with next week's patch and certification point rebalance we will be doing a character wipe. Next week's patch is going to be really exciting, we'll be adding Esamir to the game as well as ungating almost all of the remaining certs and solidifying cert point costs across the board. So this week, enjoy the fast cert point gain, try out lots of certs and let us know what works well, what works too well, and what doesn't work at all.

So, for all of you beta testers out there, as you're playing PlanetSide 2 this weekend, just bear in mind that these changes you're noticing are not representative of the final product.

For more on PlanetSide 2, make sure you stop by the PlanetSide 2 Wiki at http://www.ps2wiki.net/!

Source: PS2 Forums

PlanetSide 2 Quick Tips is a brand new series we're debuting this week that aims to give our readers some expert knowledge to help you improve your game in Sony Online Entertainment's MMOFPS PlanetSide 2.

PlanetSide 2 can be a challenge if you've never played an MMOFPS before but our team has been playing the game since the early stages of beta and we've built a pretty solid understanding of PlanetSide 2's mechanics and how to get the most out of the vehicles, weapons and equipment in the game.

Fighter Planes in PlanetSide 2 are unique to each faction, but the basic function is the same across the board. These are all Light Assault Vehicles, meaning that they can dish out plenty of damage but it's not going to take too much to shoot you out of the skies.

In today's episode of PlanetSide 2 Quick Tips, James gives us the rundown of how to excel when piloting one of these aerial fighter vehicles regardless of your faction alliance.

Check out the video above and drop by YouTube to share your thoughts in the comments on how we can improve and what you'd like to see us cover in the future!

 
PlanetSide 2 Quick Tips is a brand new series we're debuting this week that aims to give our readers some expert knowledge to help you improve your game in Sony Online Entertainment's MMOFPS PlanetSide 2.

PlanetSide 2 can be a challenge if you've never played an MMOFPS before but our team has been playing the game since the early stages of beta and we've built a pretty solid understanding of PlanetSide 2's mechanics and how to get the most out of the vehicles, weapons and equipment in the game.

In today's episode of PlanetSide 2 Quick Tips, we're taking an in-depth look at the Sunderer and how you can get the most out of your time in this heavily armored transport vehicle.

The Sunderer is capable of carrying 12 soldiers and boasts some very heavy armor, perfect for bringing in a fresh squad of troops to provide backup to an embattled group of allies. The vehicle can also serve as a mobile spawn point for allies and even has abilities to function as a repair station for vehicles and can be used to deliver medical supplies and ammo to troops in the field.

Check out Episode 3 of PlanetSide 2 Quick Tips to learn more about The Sunderer and how you can use it to your advantage on Auraxis!

PlanetSide 2 Quick Tips is a brand new series we're debuting this week that aims to give our readers some expert knowledge to help you improve your game in Sony Online Entertainment's MMOFPS PlanetSide 2.

PlanetSide 2 can be a challenge if you've never played an MMOFPS before but our team has been playing the game since the early stages of beta and we've built a pretty solid understanding of PlanetSide 2's mechanics and how to get the most out of the vehicles, weapons and equipment in the game.

Earlier this morning, we debuted the first episode in this brand new series, and here we are again to bring you the second. This time around, we're looking at The Infiltrator Class. Infiltrators boast sniper rifles and advanced cloaking technology.

They aren't the most powerful force on the battlefield, but they have the distinct advantage of stealth and the element of surprise is on their side.

Check out the video above and drop by YouTube for more great shooter content!

PlanetSide 2 Quick Tips is a brand new series we're debuting this week that aims to give our readers some expert knowledge to help you improve your game in Sony Online Entertainment's MMOFPS PlanetSide 2.

PlanetSide 2 can be a challenge if you've never played an MMOFPS before but our team has been playing the game since the early stages of beta and we've built a pretty solid understanding of PlanetSide 2's mechanics and how to get the most out of the vehicles, weapons and equipment in the game.

We've got two episodes of PlanetSide 2 QuickTips coming at you today and in the first one we discuss The Liberator. This is PlanetSide 2's attack gunship, capable of wreaking some serious havoc from the skies of Auraxis. The Liberator supports three crew members; the pilot, the gunner and a tail gunner. The pilot also has weapons at his disposal but the real firepower will be wielded by the gunners.

Check out the debut episode of PlanetSide 2 Quick Tips above for an in-depth look at how you can kick even more ass when you're on board a Liberator.

Don't forget about the Auraxis Showdown going down at SOE Live, either! 

The Auraxis Showdown is a PlanetSide 2 tournament will be taking place at SOE Live and puts all players on even ground with standard issue gear for their faction. After the qualifying matches, 18 players will compete in the Finals match on the last day of competition - Saturday, October 20th!

Follow us on Facebook or Twitter to stay up to date on future PlanetSide 2 Quick Tips episodes.

Update: Here is the link to the stream!

http://www.fpsgeneral.com/streams/planetside2/57-planetside-2

FPS General is excited to announce an awesome live stream event that will be taking place later this afternoon. The team will be streaming Sony Online Entertainment's MMOFPS PlanetSide 2, which is currently in closed beta.

We won't be streaming alone, however, as PlanetSide 2's Creative Director Matt Higby will be coming along for the ride! We will be playing PlanetSide 2 and wreaking havoc on Auraxis over on the PlanetSide 2 stream page starting at 3:00PM Pacific Time - just a little over 3 hours from the time of this post.

During the stream, we will be chatting with Matt about PlanetSide 2 and, more specifically, the very exciting Auraxis Showdown that is set to take place in Las Vegas at SOE Live. The Auraxis Showdown is a PlanetSide 2 tournament will be taking place at SOE Live and puts all players on even ground with standard issue gear for their faction. After the qualifying matches, 18 players will compete in the Finals match on the last day of competition - Saturday, October 20th.

Make sure you follow our channel on Own3d to be updated when we start streaming! The event is scheduled to get underway at 3:00PM Pacific Time. You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay updated on today's live stream!

Sony Online Entertainment has detailed some awesome PlanetSide 2 action going down at SOE Live next month. The event - formerly known as SOE Fan Faire - is set to kick off on October 18th from Bally's Casino in Las Vegas. This is the ultimate gathering of Sony Online Entertainment fans and developers, and PlanetSide 2 is going to be on hand in a big way.

PlanetSide 2 will be represented in the Auraxis Showdown, as well as the Live Boot Camp. Details on the Auraxis Showdown from SOE:

Take on the challenge for the glory of your empire! All troops will start fresh with standard issue gear and certifications and compete in qualifying rounds on Thursday and Friday. The top eighteen players from the qualifying rounds will compete in an 18-man Finals match on Saturday to win the first place grand prize.

There will also be prizes awarded to the top 9 finalists in the Finals with first, second and third place finalists taking home larger pieces of the total prize.

Schedule:
Qualifying Round Day 1 - Thursday, October 18th, 10:00 p.m. – 12:00 a.m. PDT
Qualifying Round Day 2 - Friday, October 19th, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. PDT
Finals Round - Saturday, October 20th, 1:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. PDT

Total Prize Purse: $10,100

• 1st: $5,000
• 2nd: $3,000
• 3rd: $1,500
• 4th - 9th: $600 ($100 each)

As for the Live Boot Camp, it is described as an event where attendees can 'choose your Empire and join in a live PlanetSide 2 boot camp! Earn your stripes by getting together a squad of five and going through Basic and complete training exercises to prove you have what it takes to bring victory to your Empire!'

Curse is going to be on hand in Las Vegas for all the latest happenings at SOE Live, including coverage of PlanetSide 2 so be sure to bookmark FPS General and Curse.com!

For more information on SOE Live, including ticket pricing and availability, check out http://www.soe.com/soelive/!

PlanetSide 2 has a fierce community dating back to the original, groundbreaking PlanetSide released in 2003. That community is constantly impressing us with its feats of PlanetSide 2 prowess, and we feel its our duty to pass those along to our readers.

You see, maybe you have better things to do with your time than watch PlanetSide 2 videos online, but we don't. Without further preamble, we present you the second episode in our PlanetSide 2 showcase, sharing some of the greatest and best videos straight from the PlanetSide 2 community that is creating them!

Enjoy the video above, and drop by http://www.youtube.com/FPSGeneral for more great content every day!

As PlanetSide 2 begins to see more and more new users, we're starting to see an influx in the amount of urban legends and myths that are sprouting up around the game. To debunk or confirm these myths, we've assembled a crack team of PlanetSide 2 Mythbusters! They're on the scene, reenacting some of the more popular rumors and myths in the PlanetSide 2 community so that you don't have to. 

Is it true that you can use a Nanite Revive Grenade on yourself, in addition to teammates? What about that rumor that you can flip over a ground vehicle using the Charge ability on a MAX Suit?

I heard that the Magrider can scale near-90° inclines, is that true?

For answers to all of these questions and myths, as well as even more, check out the video above and be sure to jump back to last week's episode if you missed it the first time around!