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We don’t usually cover games industry news at Tap-Repeatedly, because most visitors likely visit other sites to get that stuff. So I’m guessing most of you know about former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling and his newly-failed game developer 38 Studios, which collapsed in May in one of the most spectacularly your-leadership-deserved-it-and-I-still-haven’t-heard-that-leadership-say-boo-about-what-it-did-to-its-people implosions since Hellgate London’s Flagship Studios folded. Thus I give you my commentary on that, in the form of this month’s Culture Clash column for the  International Game Developers Association.

I say some pretty nasty things about people in this one. I’m at my best when I’m being nasty so hopefully you’ll enjoy it, and ponder in silence how gently you should all treat me, lest I say nasty things about you!

Confession: I have logged an embarrassing number of hours on Star Trek Online since it went free-to-play earlier this year.  I’d played and enjoyed the game when it first released two years ago, just not $15 a month enjoyed.  But to its credit, STO was and is the only MMO that’s ever really got me considering paying that subscription fee.

Star Trek Online has its issues, sure.  Even now after two years of marked improvement, it’s a bit of a mixed bag.  There are some problems that really stand out, though: heck, a week ago, a Cryptic developer singled out PvP as a part of the game that still sucks.  And that is a very, very fair assessment.  Because it does.

So let’s take a break from talking about your World of Warcrafts and Guild Wars 2s and Old Republics (actually, does anyone care about that one anymore?) and break down what a sort of niche MMO can do to be greater than the sum of its parts.

What better way to spend a sunny weekend than playing games indoors. If I had a portable generator I would have likely taken my desk outside, but then I’d have only had sun glare on my monitor. Instead, I packed off my family for three days and decided to stay indoors away from the sun’s rays, playing Guild Wars 2 for more than 42 hours (curse the need to sleep!)…

Technical difficulties, corrupted in-game audio and a bout of illness have all conspired to prevent me from putting up this video. As my first foray into recording in-game footage and editing it afterwards, it was hardly plain sailing. Despite all this, I’m reasonably pleased with the end result and I’ve taken the liberty of using the Guild Wars soundtrack as an accompaniment to the footage. What’s not to love about Jeremy Soule’s music? Hit the jump for the video, I hope you like it.

I wrote nothing on my notepad for the first five hours of playing Guild Wars 2. I always write something when taking part in any Beta event, which makes writing about those first five hours somewhat of a challenge. But then again, this was no ordinary Beta event. All my original intentions went out the window the moment I logged in.

I don’t think there could be a better email in the world on a rather grey Tuesday, than an invitation to take part in the Guild Wars 2 Beta.  Though I can tell you very little (other than it begins this weekend and I’ve already packed off my entire family) rest assured I will be providing some in-depth coverage come Monday the 20th, so be sure to check back here. If you have any suggestions on what …

I haven’t written anything about Guild Wars 2 in a while. Which makes a change.  But, its been relatively quiet on the news front.  Thankfully ArenaNet havn’t disapointed and today they have officially revealed the final class; the mesmer! Unfortunately for ArenaNet, Gamereactor.dk decided to jump the gun yesterday and release the mesmer skill videos before the big day (resulting in an instant withdrawal on their part) but sadly the damage was done and the mistakenly (or intentially) …

It’s strange watching the rise of player versus player (PvP) prominence within massively multiplayer games. First exposed to the concept in Ultima Online when out in the wilds of Britannia, I’ve watched it evolve from what was a seemingly a recreational activity when not questing or exploring, to it taking pride of place as a must have within the genre…

I’ve spoken to ArenaNet’s lead writer, Bobby Stein before, but after playing Guild Wars 2 at the Eurogamer Expo last month he was kind enough to  get in touch to see how I got on.  Despite my initial reservations most were unfounded, but there were still just a couple of things I wasn’t entirely happy with. With interview questions in hand, here is how we got on…

Where to begin with a first impressions of Star Wars: The Old Republic? There is a lot riding on it for Bioware, a developer synonymous with in depth RPGs and branching storylines. But combine their experience with the Star Wars licence and an MMOG and that is surely a recipe for success.  Right?

Lead Guild Wars 2 content designer, Colin Johanson, managed to find a little spare time in his very busy Eurogamer Expo schedule to sit down and chat with me about all things Guild Wars 2.  Here is how we got on…

I have been waiting a long time for Guild Wars 2.  Years in fact. To finally get my hands on one of the most anticipated games of recent times was a mix of fear and excitement.  I suddenly thought to myself as I approached the booth: “What if I don’t actually like it?”… 

Remember a few months ago where I talked about EVE Online and Dust 514 and how CCP intend to have a console exclusive title, that plays in the first person, effect the EVE universe? No? Ok.  Read this first. Right, now we are all on the same page, CCP producer Thomas Farrer has partaken in a hefty three page interview with Gamasutra to discuss the marriage of EVE and Dust and how the two will co-exist, …

How did I miss this? It can’t possibly wait until my SW:TOR news round-up! Bioware have announced a new player versus player warzone called “Huttball” and who better to detail it than the legendary (and very wobbily headed) Dalas Dickinson! Hit the jump, hit the jump!

In the first of my news round-ups, I thought I’d start with the mighty Guild Wars 2. It has been a busy couple of weeks in the world of massively multiplayer games after Gamescom and PAX,  so I wanted to link a good few news stories, videos and blog posts of Guild Wars 2 that might interest some of you who share my addiction, or for those that havn’t had your ear to the ground. In …