If you're like me and itching for some new WildStar information to sink your teeth into, I may have just the thing to whet your appetite. Starting PAX East week off with a bang, Carbine has released the April WildStar Beta Patch Notes to the public, and there's quite a few interesting bits of information to be seen this time around. While I won't be diving into every individual piece of information scattered across the 71 pages of patch notes, I will hit some of the major highlights players can expect to encounter in this upcoming beta weekend.

Without further delay, let's dive in!

If you missed last weekend's WildStar PvP livestream, have no fear because Carbine has the video prepped and ready to go for your viewing pleasure this week. Join Senior Community Manager, David Bass, Community Manager, Tony Rey and PvP Systems Lead, Jen Gordy, as they spill the details on everything related to WildStar's Battlegrounds and Arenas.

If you take away anything from this video remember to stay out of the red, go for objectives and lead your team to victory–or die trying.

If you're planning to head to PAX East next week, you may be in for a pretty big surprise coming straight to you from the WildStar universe.

Nexus Talk Episode 35 is here! If you still haven't gotten your fill of WildStar's stealthy Stalker class this week, Richie Procopio is here to give you another dose of some Stalker action. Join Richie as he details the Stalker class, recaps Carbine's Stalker class livestream and shows off some of his own live gameplay of this stealthy assassin.

Don't take your eyes off of this WildStar class, or it might be the last thing you see.

Nexus Talk Episode 34 is live! This week, Richie Procopio takes a look at Accessibility Vs Complexity in the upcoming MMO, WildStar, and how new players might take to the game. He also shares a bit of his own speculation and experiences after being able to run around on Planet Nexus, so stay tuned!

Hey WildStar fans! With the epic-six week class drop finally at an end and the press NDA lifting for levels 1-15, we’ve seen a lot of combat and action-packed info from the WildStar community. Today I want to take a step back and look at a different aspect of the game, one that can sometimes be overlooked in many MMOs. However, in the case of WildStar, our topic of discussion is actually one of the key systems that holds the entire game together and is also one that you might not think of right away. This is the game’s crafting system.

In some games, crafting is included as a “side-project” or something that isn’t given much attention compared to other design aspects. This can often make those dedicated crafters out there feel unimportant, especially once the majority of the player base has reached end-game and crafted gear becomes obsolete. However, In WildStar crafting serves a very important role and not only allows crafters to serve an important economic purpose in the game, but it also allows them to specialize in a specific crafting area and make crafted items that are generally better than other rewards given in various parts of the game.

Today I’ll walk you through the basics of the crafting system and touch on the individual parts that fit into the greater picture. And while this won’t cover every nook and cranny of each crafting skill--and there are a lot of them--it should get you started on the right road to becoming a master crafter at the very least. And one final note before we get started, keep in mind that while you will see some of the crafting UI that is currently in beta, all of the UI and even information we cover isn't final and may be subject to change; beta is beta remember. So without further ado, let’s jump into some crafting!

Hey WildStar fans. As many of you know, the game’s long-awaited “Winter Beta” is upon us and the beta servers are live and kicking with testers making their mark on Planet Nexus. Now, I know I know, not all of you are in the beta yet, but until that blessed day arrives I have some more news that may serve to quench your thirst for info about this upcoming sci-fi MMO.

While I was hanging in California to chat with some of the Carbine team and get some hands-on time with WildStar, I managed to snag an interview with the game’s Design Director, Mike Donatelli. He gave me the rundown on how Winter Beta is progressing, as well as a few tidbits on crafting and some of the social systems that are going into the game.

So while you’re patiently waiting for those beta keys sit back, relax and enjoy some Winter Beta news.

Those of you who have been reading my WildStar content here on ZAM have probably figured out that I’m a pretty big fan of the game. If the “See you on Nexus” closing to most of my WildStar articles wasn’t a big enough hint, I’m sure that you’ll be able to fit the pieces together once you’ve finished tuning in this time around.

After years of researching this upcoming Sci-fi MMO, which eventually lead to day-dreaming about bringing my guild to the surface of planet Nexus--hey don’t judge me--I finally got the opportunity to embark on an epic journey of my own.  Last week the awesome folks at Carbine Studios and NCSOFT invited members of the press, including myself, to fly to California and check out the game first hand. And, while trying to remain as professional as possible and resist the urge to jump up and down like a crazed Chua who had just been handed a new radioactive gatling laser, I gladly accepted the offer and headed out to San Francisco to hang with the Carbine team.

PC Gamer, after receiving a tip from an anonymous source, is reporting that NCsoft West in Seattle is undergoing a "realignment": 

"NCsoft is realigning internal publishing resources to better suit the needs of our game development studios. As a result of the realignment, several employees and contract positions were affected. This was a very tough decision to make and wish the best for all NCsoft employees in their next ventures"

While Seattle is also home to NCsoft's ArenaNet studio, developers of Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2, by the wording it doesn't appear that studio was affected -- we await confirmation.

With decimation of the game industry this year, we wish the best of luck to those affected by these business decisions. Talent always finds a way.

We're working to get more details, and will pass along more info as we get it.

Bill "Lethality" Leonard

Source: PC Gamer

You might remember reading about a seemingly obscure company called Worlds.com filing a patent infringement lawsuit against MMO developer NCSoft (Aion, City of Heroes, Guild Wars) last spring. It was widely covered in the video games press, and widely criticized by most community members. The suit revolves around a set of patents filed by Worlds.com back in the late-90s for its Starbright World project; a "social network" for sick and terminally-ill children.

Around the same time, Worlds.com CEO Thom Kidrin announced he planned to go after other major MMO publishers like Activision-Blizzard (World of Warcraft) and Linden Labs (Second Life), essentially claiming that every MMO on the market today owes Worlds.com patent infringement damages. In addition, MMO developers and publishers would have to pay Worlds.com a licensing fee to use its"interactive virtual world system" technology (more on that later).

Meanwhile, another patent troll stepped up to the plate last week, hoping to make a quick buck at the MMO industry's expense, à la Worlds.com. As we reported a few days ago, Paltalk Holdings Inc. filed suit against a handful of developers, including Turbine Inc., Activision-Blizzard and NCSoft, among others. The suit claims the MMO companies are violating its patents for its HearMe technology (an inconsequential, business-oriented "online meeting service"), which Paltalk bought the rights to in 2002. Will the MMO industry collectively stave off these lawsuits, or is this just the beginning of a multi-million dollar litigious gang bang?