When you get your new online game, you really just want to install it and play. Some, actually look at the instructions and notice you are asked to open a slew of ports. Others just try to connect and find that it fails. Each may lead to the step of searching how you open these ports or why you need to.

The newer type of online games want to provide rich features to the user base. They like to push automatic updates to you, provide news through a game management client, in-game advertisement, monitor your PC while playing and report this information back, etc… Still, all of these should be outbound connections and shouldn’t require you to open a single port inbound (unless you are hosting a game or running a server).

I believe the following are possible problems when a game asks you to open up several inbound ports:

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Some of you may have heard of the book, Exploiting Online Games by Greg Hogluhd and Gary McGraw, which is a modern day look at the security of MMO’s.

If you haven’t been paying attention, you may not have noticed that the virtual items in online games are producing real currency. For some who realize this, they have taken an aggressive and efficient approach to obtaining the virtual items needed to make cash through the use of bots or other tools. Others use phishing attacks, malware, trojans, keyloggers, and more to obtain access to your account and then steal all of your items which you have worked so hard for.

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For those of you who want to learn more about the game systems in Age of Conan, there is an extensive fan-made video F.A.Q. that contains tidbits of information about the entire game, taken from many articles, interviews and FAQs. Check it out by cliking here. Great work…props to Ben “Acolyte” Avery! Check it out, it’s great!

** Official News Item HERE. **

Well, SOE has done it now. They have pretty much made Vanguard : Saga of Heroes the game it SHOULD have been at launch. Now, they are sending out invites to everyone with a VG account with no subscription. They have given everyone of those people with good account standing and given everyone access to the game until January 20, 2008 (or something like that). Also, there’s currently a 50% XP bonus for the holidays, until January 3rd, 2008. So anyone that wants to give this game another try, go ahead and check it out…in case you’ve missed the e-mail. Personally, I think they’ve done a good job of polishing the game and making it actually playable. I wish VG well.

Blood money! How’s that for currency? Just that prospect alone, money gained from PvP, makes me want to go to my local bank branch and open a savings account, with daily interest. PvP is big in Age of Conan (AoC), but that’s not all. AoC is shaping up to be quite the diamond in the rough. They have, for the most part, been taking extra steps to set themselves apart from the competition.

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I came accross this post on GMTristan.com, about crimes related to MMOs. Have a look-see…click HERE. It’s an interesting read.

Do my eyes deceive me? Can this be true? A new D&D edition on the horizon! As a DM which hasn’t yet fully converted to the 3.5 rules, I’m not sure what to think. Then again, who am I kidding, I’m as giddy as a schoolgirl. Any pencil and paper RPG news (not to mention CCG news, look out for future posts) gets me excited, and this is no different.

Just picture this, each hard copy D&D book you purchase will come with an online code which can be redeemed for an electronic copy…nuff said.

Check out the D&D 4th Edition forums here.
Or the official D&D site here.

Anyone interested in trying out this really fun game can go now to MMORPG.com and with your free account, have access to a 3 day free trial of the game. I suggest you do, since you don’t have much to lose.

Check it out here.

Now, if your title has the word “reckon” in it, I reckon that may not be a good thing. Banal jokes aside, this game have the potential of taking over my life if it were to live up to its hype and promises. I have been closely following the development of this game, through its podcasts and devlogs.

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Will 2008 be the year 2007 should have been? Will the new breed of MMOs slated for release in the New Year bring us a fresh new gaming experience? Will they disappoint? Will my spell-check help me write better posts? Let’s take a look, shall we?

I will be taking time to write about some of the games that will be released in the New Year and comment on my impressions, hopes, worries, dismays and general bitching all around. Stay connected and don’t touch that dial. We’ll be back with some insightful rantings.