Revelation Begins Closed Beta 1 Today

For everyone excited about Revelation, the very first closed beta for the game starts today! Servers should come up at 10AM EST for everyone with who purchased any copy of the game (you can buy a copy right HERE ), or have secured a beta key.

We are still waiting for our beta keys to be distributed, but when we receive ours, if you are still looking for a key, but hopefully we will have an update soon.

Let us know how you like the game, and if you intent on playing it at release!

Revelation Beta Delayed

We a heavy heart we must announce that the Revelation beta has been pushed back until the 3rd of November to improve server stability and other issues. While I am sure that that is will be disappointing to many of you, the delay is only a week, and hopefully the community will have a better experience during the beta because of it. You can read more about the announcement HERE.

Revelation Online Coming this Fall

Another Eastern MMO-Revelation Online, is coming to the West this fall, being published by My.com. The game features what appears to be a very fluid combat system with different control options, robust PvP, traditional dungeons and group content, and a solid guild management system. The game features 6 classes (that aren't gender locked), and is set in an Asian inspired fantasy setting known as Nuanor.

We hope to learn more about the game in the near future, and bring you more coverage about it when we do.

Other Sandbox MMO's

Some of you have been asking me what other Sandbox MMO's are out there worthy of your attention. Perhaps having getting bored of Black Desert Online or simply looking to try another game with a similar experience.

There is a new game coming out later this year called Albion Online. I have followed this game for over a year now, and am on the verge of giving it a go first hand. The game features a massive, open world PvP that takes into account Zerg vs. Small Scale PvP (The more people that focus a target, the less damage he takes, and the more people hit by an AOE, the more damage it causes). The crafting in the game looks to be about the best I have since since Eve Online, and housing in not instanced (except for your personal island, something I will try to go into more detail in another post.

If you have any interest in the game, stay with me over the next couple of weeks and I may just provide you with some more insight into the game, along perhaps a little more....


-Gryphon

Black Desert is getting Naval Combat

Tomorrow, Black Desert Online is getting a sizable Naval content patch, which will include Underwater Exploration, Treasure Hunting, New Ships, Sea Monsters, Pirates, Naval Combat, and a Port opening up a new Asian style continent which will be expanded in future updates. Hopefully we might just see this before the end of the year!

Here is a link to the Korean Trailer.

Node Wars Rehearsal 2 Starts July 3rd

Black Desert Online will be kicking off a second round of rehearsals starting July 3rd, with a prize of 50 Million Silver to any guild that builds a tower during the week. This is in addition to the 30 Million Silver rewarded for placing a tower during Siege Rehearsal 1. As an added bonus, if a guild has placed a tower during both rehearsals, an additional 20 Million server will be added as a bonus.

• Siege Rehearsal Participation Rewards
  • Siege Rehearsal 1: 30,000,000 Silver
  • Siege Rehearsal 2: 50,000,000 Silver
  • Bonus for attending both 1 & 2: 20,000,000 Silver

• NA Siege & Node War Times
  • Siege Time
    • UTC: 01:00 – 04:00
    • CEST: 03:00 – 06:00
    • PDT: 18:00 – 21:00
    • CDT: 20:00 – 23:00
    • EDT: 21:00 – 00:00
  • Tower Build Time
    • UTC: 05:00 – 00:00
    • CEST: 07:00 – 02:00
    • PDT: 22:00 – 17:00
    • CDT: 24:00 – 19:00
    • EDT:  01:00 – 20:00
• EU Siege & Tower War Times
  • Siege Time
    • UTC: 18:00 – 21:00
    • CEST: 20:00 – 23:00
    • PDT: 11:00 – 14:00
    • CDT: 13:00 – 16:00
    • EDT: 14:00 – 17:00
  • Tower Build Time
    • UTC: 22:00 – 17:00
    • CEST: 00:00 – 19:00
    • PDT: 15:00 – 10:00
    • CDT: 17:00 – 12:00
    • EDT: 18:00 – 13:00

Valencia is Coming!

Great news BDO fans! The much anticipated Valencia update will be going live tomorrow, June 29. This update will increase the world size by 30%, feature 500+ new quests, increase gear level to +20, and will introduce Whale Hunting into the game!

Also, how many of you are actively still playing the game? I still log on daily, but sadly the once daily updates to this site have slowed down quite a bit due to a serious dose of real live along with the fact that I am now a very active Guild Master in BDO. If you are on the Orwen server and are looking for a guild, please contact me, we may have a spot for you.

Streamer Spotlight: Cyberhippiecollective

Cyberhippiecollective streams Black Desert Online regularly Monday to Thursday from noon until 6pm GMT+1 and beyond. He also does occasional Weekend Retreat bonus streams.

Cyberhippiecollective tries to make his BDO stream as relaxing as possible and gather a tribe of likeminded people who love MMOs and other interactive games. On the side he also tries to build his dream project which is a collaborative workspace for game makers and lovers and have fun while doing it (www.cyberhippie.co).

Cyberhippiecollective started playing and streaming Black Desert from Croxus (EU) recently and so far he has been doing it full-time and intends to stream it as his main game well into the future.

His channel is here.

Tales of of the Black Desert Part 1

NickDKinHD has started a wonderful new Youtube series detailing the rich lore and backstory of Black Desert Online. This 15 minute video will catch you up on BDO’s story without spoiling the story of the game itself. I highly suggest you go and take a look. You can find the video here.

6 Things you should know about the Mediah Release

With the release of Mediah later today, we thought it might be helpful to share a few things that may be useful to players unfamiliar with the new region. Please note that the information contained in this guide is based upon the Korean version of the game-there might be a few changes for the Western version. We will do our best to update the guide as quickly as possible if there any substantial changes made for the Western release.

Mediah itself is a huge update to the World of Black desert Online, adding roughly ⅓ more total area to the world map. With the new region, we will be receiving higher level mobs, making it much easier to reach level 55, and will allow for a newer or more casual player catch up with the more active players on the server that have grinded to the cap. While not confirmed, we believe the hard cap will either be raised or eliminated altogether with the Mediah update (although advancing past level 56 will be a very slow process).

Below are a list of 6 things that will change or be added with the Mediah update that will alter how you gear up or play the game.

Grunil Armor

Grunil Armor is a very flexible armor set that offers HP, an AP set bonus, and 2 Enhancement slots per piece. You can farm pieces by killing mobs in Mediah, purchase it through a vendor for about 100,000 silver and Amity in Altinova, or craft it (there are are armor workshops in both Glish and Calpheon you can purchase to create it). The bonuses make the armor extremely flexible, and for players that enjoy creating alts, the suit can be useful for just about any class. As for your older gear, you can try to sell it, or salvage the blackstones from it. Sadly, the number of Blackstones you get back are random-you are not guaranteed to get the same number back that you put into upgrading it in the first place.

Boss Armor

Boss armor will now drop from from the various bosses you can summon from Scrolls. These include Armor (Red Nose and Hebetate), Helm (Giath), Shoes (Muskan), and Gloves (Bheg).The various individual pieces can be combined into a set that scales incredibly well, making it one of the more powerful sets in the game. As the various pieces are rare and expensive, you will want to use Memory Fragments (acquired mainly through Relic Scrolls, and the new Forbidden book Scrolls) to repair your maximum durability lost to failed Blackstone Enhancements.

World Boss Kzarka

A brand new world boss on a 8-12 hour timer that spawns in the large sacrificial room in the Serendia Shrine (Southeast of Glish). This boss drops the famed Kzarka weapons which is a serious upgrade to your Yuria or Liverto Weapon. Be on the lookout for the server announcement that will notify you (about 6 seconds) just before Kzarka spawns, and make sure a sizable number of people have responded before attempting to engage the boss. His appearance is often a channel-wide event, with hundreds of players participating.

Forbidden Books

Similar to Relic shards, you will be able to collect 5 Forbidden Books dropped off mobs in Mediah and arrange them in a “V” formation in your inventory to create a scroll that will summon several waves of monsters to defeat, giving you another source of obtaining Memory Fragments and Seals.

Alchemy

You will now be able to craft Alchemy Stones, which come in three varieties; Destruction (which grant Accuracy, AP, Attack and Casting Speeds, and Ignore Armor), Protection( Damage Reduction, Evasion, Maximum Health, Resistances), and Life (Life skill buffs) to socket into your gear.

Heidal becomes more Important

As Mediah expands eastwards, Heidal becomes important as it makes a great starting point for linking your nodes. You may want to move your base of operations to Heidal once the expansion releases to allow easier access to the east.

Mediah Releases Tomorrow!

Daum EU has announced that the large Mediah update will be hitting the Western servers in tomorrow's maintenance, one month after the game's release.

This is particularly surprising as there was almost no lead up to the Mediah content dropping so quickly by Daum (short of a hint of "very Soon" in an interview with PvtWiggles during a livestream interview). Mediah is a very large expansion, increasing the world size by almost a third.

Here are some of the things you can expect to enjoy in Mediah:

• World size increased by 30%
• Over 1,000 new quests
• Kzarka - An enormous boss that can take on hundreds of players at a time
• New guild missions, including special bosses that drop formidable weapons
• Crimson Battlefield - Instanced 40v40 skirmishes that players can queue for in groups of five or solo
• New weapons and more powerful armor set
• Craftable Alchemy Stones allow players to apply Attack, Defense, or Life bonuses to their equipment
• Equipment can be enchanted to higher levels

As of the writing of this article, we till don't know if we will be seeing new classes in this update.

You can find the official post here.

Easter Event

For the next Two Weeks, players will be able to gather Easter Eggs in game, which can be found throughout the world or dropped from enemy mobs. These eggs can be consumed for temporary benefits, or 10 of a kind can be exchanged for a Black Spirit egg, while 40 of a kind can be traded for a piece of furniture that can be placed into your house.

This event ends April 6, during the weekly maintenance update.

Saint Patrick's Day Event

From the 16th to the 21st, Daum EU has announced Black desert Online's First in-game event, a celebration of Saint Patrick's Day!

During the event, you will be able to celebrate Saint Patrick's day by logging in each day and receiving daily login rewards. These rewards include:

• 1 Green Dye Box
• 2 Green Firecrackers
• 3 Beer

All you need to claim these daily login rewards is to click on the rewards button at the bottom right hand of your screen and click claim.

In addition, all Green dye bundles will be on sale during the event for 80 pearls each, and you will be able purchase a single green dye bundle for just 1 Loyalty.

Streamer Spotlight: Cryy

Cryy is an up and coming content creator on Twitch and Youtube, formally streaming Archeage on the Lucius server. He is known for his PvP skills, great communication with his community, as well as a willingness help his viewers learn the ropes of the games he likes to play.

Feel free to hop into his stream to ask him whatever questions you might have about Black Desert Online.

Horse Taming and Breeding Guide

In the World of Black Desert Online, if you want a decent mount, you are going to have to trek out into the world and tame one yourself. While you will receive a donkey at the end of the Velia quest line (donkeys actually have more base storage than a horse, which might make earlier trade runs easier until you can get a wagon), and can buy a starter horse from a merchant; you can find and tame horses in the wild all the way up to tier 5 (the first horse I tamed was tier 4). 

You can also made quite a bit of money by selling horses on the market. I know someone from CBT2 that made most of his fortune (1+ million Silver in the first day) just by going out and taming horses, then selling them on the horse market for profit.

What You Need

In order to tame a horse, your Taming skill must be at least level 5 (which you should get when your starter mount reaches about level 8). You will also need to purchase some lassos from a stable hand, costing 1500 Silver each. You are going to make mistakes in the beginning, so I suggest picking up at least 20 (or as many as you can afford). While not required, I also strongly suggest acquiring sugar lumps which will give you a boost in your efforts to domesticate your mount. These can be purchased directly from the auction house, but they are very easy to make via cooking. They only require 10 Raw Sugar and 1 Spring Water, which can be purchased directly from a tavern keeper for a little over 2000 Silver. I’d suggest making at least 3 for each mount you are going to tame.

Where to Find a Horse

Now you must set off into the world and find a horse to tame. I have found herds a short ways Southeast of Calpheon, Southwest of Heidel, and slightly East of the Northern Heidel Quarry. Once you find a horse in the wild, slowly approach to get close enough to throw a lasso. If you get too close, the horse will run away from you. If this happens simply wait for it to stop and approach it again (crouching will help you get closer). Be careful not to get the horse stuck on a rock or an incline, as you won’t be able to mount it later and all your efforts will have gone to waste.

Catching Your Horse

Once you have gotten close enough to the horse (the horse should have the red target on it), right click on the lasso on your inventory to throw it. Left click to throw the lasso, keeping the target on the horse, and a bar will appear. Hit the spacebar (make sure you don't try and hit left click again like I did) while you are in the sweet spot and the horse will become snared. Now you will be able to walk towards the horse slowly (you may want to wait a moment before attempting to approach the horse after it is lassoed as sometimes the horse will rear almost immediately). As soon as you see the horse rear up on its hind legs, press the spacebar. This will cause the second mini-game to start. While the minigame is active (there will be a countdown timer) spam your spacebar key as much as you can, keeping the meter to the right and in the blue. Once the timer expires, continue to move directly towards the horse. You may have to play the mini-game several times until you finally reach the horse.

Now, you can press “R” to attempt to mount, or press “F1” to give it a sugar lump. I recommend feeding the horse 3 lumps of sugar, then attempt to mount. If the horse doesn’t throw you, you will be able to guide it back to the nearest stable hand to register. If you are thrown you may be kicked and the horse will run off, and you will be forced to start again from scratch. Be careful not to attack the horse, as if you kill one, you will suffer a Karma hit. If you came upon the herd with a mount of your own, make sure you have left it in a safe area until you can return.

Once you get the horse to a stable hand, you will be able to register and name it. Oddly enough, you won’t be able to tell the sex of the mount until after it is named, so if you intend on using the mount regularly, you may wish to choose a gender neutral name.

Mount Breeding

In order to get horses of higher tiers, a male and a female horse of the same tier can be bred together (unlike pets, the horses are not consumed in the process) to create a new horse of a (hopefully) higher tier. To breed a pair, both will need to be at least level 10, although your chances of getting a higher tier horse increase with the level of its parents. You may also attempt to breed horses of varying tiers, trying to get a horse in between the two, or possibly (but unlikely) one of a higher tier.

To initiate breeding, check both mounts into the same stable and remove their gear. They also must both have full stamina. Register both your mounts for mating (a price must be entered for the male, but if you are breeding your own horses together you will get this money back). Then click the mating market and select your horses. You can also register your stallion for breeding, and collect the money the mare owner pays for the privilege of breeding with your stallion. Males can breed up to 2 times, while females can only be bred once. You can purchase breeding reset tokens from the cash shop, but they will only work with once with a given horse. The Female breeding reset costs 640 Pearls while the Male cost reset is 330.

It will take up to two hours for the process to complete and the foal to be born–which will actually be an already fully grown horse.

Client Download will be Available Tomorrow.

You will be able to download the Black Desert Client tomorrow (Daum will let us know via social media when the links are live). To clarify, if you possess the CBT2 version of the game, you will be able to patch it to the release version of the game. If you still have the CBT1 version of the game, it is advised that you delete it as it is not compatible, and could cause conflicts when installing the release client.

Source: https://twitter.com/BDO_News/status/703233699333148676

Streamer Spotlight: RyutheRed

RyutheRed has been streaming on Twitch since 2014, starting with such games as Guild Wars 2 and Archeage. Known for being incredibly interactive and outgoing with his fans, Ryu has been streaming Black Desert for a while now (Korean version). He also not only plays a Tamer, he just happens to be one in real life (his black 130 pound German Shepard is a frequent guest on his streams).

Ryu has been married for 7 years and has 3 daughters, and currently enjoys being a stay at home dad, and also works part time as a personal trainer. Over the last year he has been growing a strong community and is rapidly building towards becoming a full time streamer. He is extremely helpful to people seeking knowledge about a game, so don’t hesitate to ask him whatever questions you might have about Black Desert Online when you visit his Twitch channel located here.

Server Names Confirmed!

We have confirmation on the names of the North American and European Server names for launch–which happen to be the same as they were for closed beta 2. They Are:

North America

• Edan
• Orwen

Europe

• Alustin
• Jordine

As a reminder, your start date depends on the pre-order package you have purchased:

• February 28th for everyone who purchased the Conqueror's Package
• March 1st for everyone who purchased the Explorer’s Package
• March 2nd for everyone who purchased the Traveler’s Package
• The game launches on March 3rd for everyone who did not purchase a pre-order package.

One last thing to note, each server will have 9 channels at launch, which will hopefully be enough to accommodate the amount of people that will be logging into the game.

Editorial: Cash Shop Thoughts

One of the bigger controversies coming out of CBT2 was the reveal of the cash shop pricing. While some of the items were priced similar to what I had predicted in my “Which Version to Buy” article listed here, some items cost significantly more than what was previously thought. Most people were expecting pricing comparable to other buy to play games previously released, such as Guild Wars 2, Elder Scrolls Online, and the Secret World. What we got was more akin to free to pay pricing, with some items costing even more than what you would typically expect in some of the more expensive F2P games. While I still stand by my comments that there isn’t Pay-2-Win in the cash shop, this whole experience reminds me of when Eve Online introduced “walking in stations” in the Incarna update, and tried to charge obscene prices for cosmetic items, such as $50 for a monocle (one will only set you back a mere $5 in Black Desert Online).

To give you an example , a full costume is going to cost you $32 (we had thought they were going to run you $15). I am fine with the minor stats on costumes. I am also OK with the fact that if you don’t buy a costume, you are going to be very limited on how you can change the way your character dresses. I am not fine with the fact that such items are so severely overpriced and are character bound on top of that.

These prices, are quite simply insane. A single costume costs more than the cheapest copy of the game. I get that Daum needs to keep the servers running, and to pay for additional development, but as Guild Wars 2 and the Elder Scrolls Online have already proven, if you make a good game, people will support it. I was intending on purchasing several costumes for my main and a few for my alts over time (I like costumes, damn you Guild Wars 2), but at these prices, I’ll collect my Conqueror's edition costume and pass on the others.

Also, while I appreciate the fact that you can unlock additional inventory slots via questing and the Miles shop, they will sell a lot more inventory space by charging $1 per slot with a discount if purchasing X number of slots (currently they are $1.50 each with 8 dropping the price to $1 per). Charging $2 for a Partial skill reset? Almost $30 for all the weight limit increases?  $5 for Lucky underwear? This isn’t Korea. No one is going to pay that kind of money for these items. Correction, a few will, but you are going to drive off a huge portion of the player base in the process.

Although there has been no official update as to whether or not we can expect any changes to the pricing in the cash shop in the near future, their Community Manager Jouska did have this to say:

“When it comes to a project as large and complicated as launching a MMO there are many people involved and decisions require discussion.  If you factor this in with the pre-existing workload and take into account that multiple time zones are involved it becomes apparent why it takes time.  Information is not held back arbitrarily, once we have the information for an announcement, the announcement will be made.”

I sincerely hope that Daum gives us an update on the pricing before the pre-order period ends, as I have heard from more than a few of you that the prices in the cash shop are, to quote Jimmy McMillan, “Too Damn High”. I also fear that people will simply refuse to buy items in the cash shop, which could put the game’s future into question and  possibly cause the introduction of actual Pay-2-Win items. Hopefully Daum will get the message.

Editorial: Interview with the Developers Thoughts

The large question thread submitted by Daum Europe to the Developers based upon the communities questions has come back and 17 of the (Best?) questions have been answered. While most of the answers only offer hints of what lies ahead for Black Desert Online, some offer more concrete details on what we can expect in the future. I am offering my opinion on some of the questions that Daum has touched on, if you want to read the full post, you can find it on the forums here.

On Male Mirror Classes for the Ranger, Sorcerer, and Tamer

Sadly, there are no plans to include include male counterparts for these classes (I would assume that a female Berserker isn’t in the cards either), although the Developers go on to say that we may see a similar class with different abilities in the future, such as with the Warrior and the later released Valkyrie.

Personally, I think that this is a bad move by Pearl Abyss. While I can understand going in a different direction than the Wizard/Witch being identical pre-awakening (this largely occurred by accident, as many of the Korean players wanted an alternative to the older Wizard-and thus the Witch was rushed out), I was hoping to see that most of the original classes would receive a counterpart similar to the way that the Blader/Plum and Ninja/Kunoichi were handled. For those unfamiliar with the Korean version of the game, these classes share a common line of skills, although there are some differences which makes each counterpart class unique. They also receive different Awakened Weapons (a new weapon you will gain access to at level 56).

Also, the Warrior and the Valkyrie aren’t really mirrors of one another, as each possess very different skills and I could easily see a female and male counterpart to each (say the Amazon for the Warrior and the Templar for the Valkyrie).

I really hope PA decides to reverse this decision on further feedback from the community. Considering the last several classes have been mirror designed, it just feels incomplete that the older classes (or at least the majority of them) won’t be receiving this treatment.

On the Addition of New Races

Pearl Abyss says that they are interested in adding new races, but acknowledge that race is very much based on personal preference. Personally, I’d prefer more options in character creation to allow those who are trying to make a dwarf or elf looking character (Dwarf Berserker FTW!), but a class tied to a specific race could have possibilities, if the class truly demonstrated features that exemplified the race in question. Only time will tell what PA has in store for us, although I suspect we might be getting new racial classes with the Elf and Dwarven regions that have yet to be officially announced (but teased in Korea).

On the Introduction of Craftable/Earnable Dyes

The developers have come to understand that the ways to acquire dyes could be improved upon, and could possibly offer basic dyes for purchase with silver (or earned another way), rather than going to the cash shop. I am personally am not a fan of the way dyes are acquired at all. You need to pay for random boxes of one use dyes and a single piece of gear/costume has multiple dyeable areas, meaning if you want to dye your chestpiece blue, you are going to need more than 1 blue dye just to properly dye that specific piece.

I think that the dye system could be fixed either by allowing for a dye to be unlocked and used repeatably when acquired, similar to Guild Wars 2, or allow dyes to be slotted and removed, similar to the way Star Wars: The Old Republic handles dyes. A third possibility could include allowing a single dye to dye as many parts of a piece of armor as you want. Regardless, I don’t intend on buying many dyes until a better system is put into place.

On Creating Healing and Support Classes

Pearl Abyss states that while conventional MMO games offer classes with designated roles, BDO offers a different style of gameplay with its action combat. They hint that more support and healing abilities could be added to existing classes in the future, as well as being included with new classes that will allow players to provide additional support, pointing to some of the healing and buffing abilities possessed by both the Wizard and Witch classes as a start. I personally agree with this stance 100%. I have grown tired of the MMO Trinity (Tank, DPS, and Heals), but would like to see more support abilities found in the various classes, or a combo system that allows classes to synergize skills off one another for additional benefits, ala Guild Wars 2 or Elder Scrolls Online.

On increasing the Mapsize

The developers have stated that in addition to the new regions we can expect in the future, older established regions will see the their borders (currently covered in fog) expanded in the future. We can expect to see more than just new than settlements, nodes and mobs however, as PA also talks about adding enhancements that will expand upon how we play the game. A reference is made to the third Valencia update which will feature maritime trade, gathering, and even naval warfare.

On Stealing Trade Packs

A feature found in Archeage that some have been asking for in BDO, Pearl Abyss has indicated that they need to be careful about the implementation of such a system, as it can be quite frustrating to some players, while others quite enjoy it. They also indicate confidence in their ability to strike a balance between the two.

I believe we will be getting some sort of a theft mechanic system, but I suspect that it will be tied to the previous answer. That is, having new areas that can change the player experience. I could easy see a system added where you could make lucrative amounts of money by implementing a system in a new region that requires trade runs that could be intercepted and looted by other players, say in Valencia or Southern Calpheon. I am cautiously optimistic about the possibilities such a system could present.

On Adding Instanced Dungeons and Player Raids

Pearl Abyss states that while we could be seeing more dungeon content in the future, we will never see the instanced grindable dungeons for loot that has become the mainstream in most MMOs today. We should expect to see advanced raid type content in the future. I’m looking forward to what PA has in store for us.

There are also some thoughts on improving AI intelligence, creating apps allowing players to manage aspects of the game, crafting, adding lengthy and more challenging quests, and remapping keys to allow for additional customization of how the game can be played. All of the answers point to “we are open to the possibility” rather than this is something that is being actively being worked on.

Overall, I am a little disappointed that Pearl Abyss answered so few of the questions put forward by the community. While I understand that there are many barriers with the difference in languages, and the fact that the developers are going to be hesitant to committing to future content updates, I really feel that more could've been answered, or at least touched upon. I would also like to know what happened to setting pathing “loops”, and if we are going to be seeing any further tweaks to experience granted from monsters.

I was also hoping to get some sort of update on any changes being made to the pricing of the items in the cash shop, because as of right now, the prices of some items are just too high (costumes...cough). I really hope we do receive some sort of update before the pre-order period ends, because I personally have heard from more than a few people that they are waiting for an announcement before they pull the trigger and purchase the game.