Patch 1.0 aka, the Stonehenge patch, introduced a few other changes than simply the new area outside of London.

Initially, I thought the updated launcher was part of the new patch but according to some other folks, it’s been here since patch 0.7.

The first thing you noticed that’s new in the patch is the loading screen. Previously the loading screen consisted of the eerie interior of a desecrated church building enveloped in a perpetual night, with the dominant colour being a deep blue. Now it looks like this:

The new loading screen is a volatile mix of clouds and the dead landscape of London.
The new loading screen is a volatile mix of clouds and the dead landscape of London.

I like the new loading screen a lot more. Red clouds, hinting at Hell, with the demon ships flying above and dead trees on the sides.

The game’s actual interface hasn’t changed though and when you log in you’ll find yourself in the same place you were before the update with absolutely nothing appearing to have altered. If you logged off in a station you might notice one of the new changes immediately…or should I say, addition. An annoying one too.

Head on over to the Nanoforge to upgrade an item. You click on it and the interface loads up. Seems normal, what could Khell mean, addition? So you place an item in and…your eyes bulge! From previously requiring four items which were gained through dismantling other items you now see that each upgrade requires at the very least one…Nanoshard!

hellgate_mp_dx9_x86-2008-01-26-16-04-35-64.jpg

Well, that doesn’t sound too bad, and look, they even gave me one for free to start off! “So, Khell”, you ask. “Where can I get some more?” Where you get them is easy, you get them the same place you get your other materials for upgrading - dismantling items from demons! Sounds easy, doesn’t it? Well, it does, till you find out how rare it is for you to get one. While you have a chance to get a Nanoshard from dismantling any item, you’re only ever likely to get one without tremendously good fortune is by dismantling legendary items since they are…legendary. Annoying change, Flagship, annoying.

Another interesting addition is the dueling arena, which pits players off against…other players. Let’s see how imbalanced each class vs another class is. Maybe it’ll be worse than WoW…or not.

Next up, the class changes! The most radically altered class would be the Evoker. I myself am not an Evoker, so I’m going to have to resort to directing you to read the patch notes at the official Hellgate site. I’d quote them, but the list of changes is far too long.

As you can see, they really did change the class. Playing a Guardian myself, I haven’t noticed many drastic changes or improvements but I am annoyed that Aura of Defense’s armor bonus has been halved.

Aura of Defense

  • The armor bonus granted by Aura of Defense has been decreased.

Other interesting improvements include the updated party tool (LFG), the minimap repositioning with active buff icons appearing below the minimap rather than on top of it and the scalable chat window.

User Interface

  • The Mini Map is now set to the top right of the screen with character state icons appearing below.

  • The Chat Window is now scalable. To adjust the size of the chat window, hold down the ALT key. There is a small tab in the upper right hand corner of the chat interface that can be used to resize the window.

  • The LFG interface has received new functionality. To activate the LFG Interface, simply press the ‘P’ key.
    • The screen has been re-arranged to allow for more information and additional features.
    • Party Leaders can advertise existing groups to add new members.
    • Individuals can advertise themselves as being available for a group. To instead create an entirely new group, select the CREATE PARTY option. Otherwise, the character is listed as an individual looking for a group to join.
    • New search filters have been added to better find the right group dynamic.
    • Players can now Invite, Join and Whisper to individuals or groups listed in the LFG interface.

Stonehenge itself is like a new station, accessible through a portal, with three new areas that connect to it. The first is the Caste Caves (or Essence Caves) which contain five different demon types. The caves can be found throughout Stonehenge and each cave has an end boss with…loot. The catch about these caves is that to enter, you need to find Champions (Champions are demons found throughout London of whom drop a demon essence tied to a specific cave. For example, if you kill a Spectral champion then you get a Spectral essence from them), you need five (5) of the type of demon essence (meaning you must kill five of the same champion) in order to enter that specific cave.

Not up for that? Moloch’s Lair is next. You enter his lair and you find him through the randomly-generated interior. You kill him, you get phat lewts!

And then there’s the Wild. Here’s where they are trying to bring the massive of massively multiplayer online to life in their game, which, according to Bill Roper, says they treat like an MMO.

The Wild is basically a grouping only area. You need to have at the very least a party of six in order to actually survive in this zone.

The Wild is divided into three increasingly difficult sections that are balanced for parties of six, seven, and eight. This is regardless of the number of characters that enter The Wild, so while you could try to make your way slowly with a smaller group, the going will not be easy.

That about sums up patch 1.0, the first in what I hope will be regular content updates…and, 1.0 means the game is finally out of beta - only three months after release!


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