Sugar Rush External Testing Phase 1 Goes Live Tomorrow

The testers have been chosen and Sugar Rush is all ready to go for 2:00 PDT (or is it 3:00? A bit of confusion between the notice and the news item) tomorrow.  If you applied, then login to the Sugar Rush Website and check to see if you were accepted or not. (I got accepted for once. OMG MIRACLE)

For those that didn’t get in, you probably won’t miss much, as this is the first time this game is being tested, ever, in a public environment. (Previous games up to this point were already out in other areas of the world, but Sugar Rush is going out to the public for the first time)  Those that did get accepted are most likely in for a buggy experience.

Testing times are going to be a big short, though the best chance to test the game for those that got in will be on the weekend.  The final testing period will end at 3:00 PM PDT on Wednesday, June 25th.  By then, I will most likely be giving my first impressions, so watch this space.

Also, for those that were part of Combat Arms’ closed beta and participated in the survey, winners have been posted for those getting 25k NX cards and $25 amazon.com gift cards, so make sure to check the CA website to find out if you’ve won.

And finally, MapleStory Patch 0.56 will be happening very shortly, which will implement Ariant, skill macros, a legal window mode, party search, and guild alliances.  (All of this coming from gMS Tespia.)  At first I thought it would be enough to bring me back to MS, but I’ve decided to stay that.

Ready For A Sugar Rush?

As if Nexon wasn’t getting enough new games out already, only not too long after Mabinogi’s official release and Combat Arms’ closed beta. (Which is probably also adding fuel to the fire of a bunch of already furious KartRider players.)

The situation, is a bit different this time.  This is the first game offered by Nexon that has been developed on this side of the Pacific. (Out of all the games Nexon America offers so far, all have been by Korean developers; Wizet for MapleStory, T3 for Audition, Nexon Korea for KartRider, DOOBIC studios for Combat Arms, and devCAT for Mabinogi.)  Nexon American’s next game, Sugar Rush, has been designed by their development team up here in Vancouver and this will be the first time the world has ever seen this game.

A big test for Nexon will come with this year’s release of its first game aimed at the North American market, “Sugar Rush,” in which players brawl with each other as they try to gobble up virtual coins. The game is being made by a team of Nexon workers in Vancouver, Canada, including Steve Rechtschaffner, a former competitive freestyle skier who helped to create EA’s popular SSX skiing game during a 12-year career at the games publisher.

-Nick Wingfield, Wall Street Journal (Source)

I also don’t know about you guys, but my thoughts about this game just by reading that are kind of summed up in five words: “Super Smash Bros. Coin Battle.”  Then again, I guess we won’t know until we see it, right?

That being said, closed beta applications are currently being taken on the not-so-secret-now Sugar Rush Teaser Site.  Login to your Nexon account and you’ll see the “Apply for Beta” button.  I myself have applied but am not expecting anything because, quite frankly, Nexon doesn’t choose me for jack.  (Oh well, depending on how Sugar Rush plays I guess I can get my fix by playing a few coin brawls in SSBB.)  Because this is an initial release, though, I would be expecting the initial beta to be very private and very buggy, so I wouldn’t expect a “backdoor” way to get into this beta as was the case with Mabinogi.  Beta signups will be closing fairly fast, and will be chosen this coming Wednesday or Thursday; I can’t remember exactly what date.

Also, system requirements are also a concern for me; I know I’ve said it with KartRider, and with Mabinogi, and with Combat Arms and every time my computer has held up to it, but this time with it being a brand new game, whether my computer can run it is really a toss-up this time.  I guess the only way to know is to try it when I get the chance.

Also, another interesting tidbit by Nick Wingfield from that same article:

Rechtschaffner, now chief creative officer at Nexon Publishing of North America, predicts more and more consumer dollars will shift toward free online games and away from traditional games costing $60 each. “I think we’re going to become television to their film,” he says. “There will always be room for big blockbusters, but there will be less and less of them. I think we’ll reach a much, much broader audience.”

-Nick Wingfield, Wall Street Journal

In that case, let’s hope net neutrality holds up for this sort of gaming enterprise can succeed in the future.