In the last Magicka Dev Diary, we got insight into the fine art of balancing PvP for a game that gives you so much freedom when it comes to spellcasting. Now, the dev team from Arrowhead tells us what their beef is with crowd control abilities, and why fights in the Magicka arena are never over 'til they're over.

Welcome to another Dev Diary! This time around, we’ll be talking about our thoughts on water bombing, and the efforts we made to balance the game. In our opinion, water bombing (see the above video) is a valid tool for the Magicka player to use when fighting in PvP, and as previously mentioned, it’s no small task to strike a balance between elements that are used for their effects, against elements which are used for their damage. Many a coffee cup was upturned—and many Bothans died to bring you this information!



Looking at the second tournament held by Kreitor, we saw water bombing as a very potent tactic. Water bombing was basically casting one earth together with four water, creating a powerful projectile blast that knocks down other players, then locking them down with a water beam. We all know that being knocked down pretty much sucks, since you completely lose any ability to defend yourself.

When experimenting with water bombing, we noticed a few things. First of all, the push from the water came from the direction of the player casting, not from where the water bomb landed. This might have been good for balance—making sure that you can’t just knock people out from behind their shields—but on the basic level it didn't make sense, because really you should be knocked away from the explosion of water.

We also noticed that you might fly a long way, sometimes even suffering a fatal landing. We changed the way water bombs affect wizards, so that even when you are knocked back by water, you are always standing. You can still be knocked out from behind your shield, or knocked into mines, but you're not completely defenseless. You can always just put up another shield.



This change brought with it another change, this time to the water beams. It is now very, very hard to use a controlled beam of water on someone, without them sliding to the side and out of the beam. By no means does this make the water beam useless! But it's no longer so easy to pin someone against the wall, or squirt them off a cliff.

Many of us have played generic MMOs, and we all know how irritating it can be to lose character control. It’s simply no fun. Playing a game should never mean standing around, waiting for your enemy to finish you off. We designed the game to always offer a way out, no matter the situation. (For example, if you're frozen, you can always just thaw yourself.)

So it's our goal with Magicka PvP that it should never be completely impossible for you to recover from your situation. This means that until you finally die, there is no reason to give up: there is no "I’m gonna lose" moment, where you just release all control and wait passively while you're finished off.

This has created a lot of interesting situations, such as where the attacker expected their attack to be deadly, but the attack didn't quite kill their opponent. This can result in a turnaround, where the heavily injured player grabs initiative. As you can see, Magicka PvP is a lot of fun, and you'll all be enjoying it very soon!

Magicka taps into the curiosity in all of us; we can't help but want to know how two elements will react together. But, more importantly, how effective will the result be at killing stuff? Soon, however, enemies won't just include monsters and your "buddy" who always seems to friendly-fire a Meteor Storm right on your head. PvP is finally making its way to Magicka, and the devs from Arrowhead Game Studios want to tell you all about. Come and enjoy a sit-down chat with Arrowhead's Johan Pilestedt. Feel free to brew some tea while you read.

For the benefit of our fantastic player community, we thought we might open our doors a little and show you what we are working on regarding the upcoming PvP patch. The PvP patch will bring official PvP to Magicka, in the way we always wanted, and with some great refinements proposed by the community.

Today's blog post is about the Ice shards, spamming of spells and how resistances will work. I hope you will enjoy a look inside the machinery.

Taking a hard look at PvP—you know, blasting friends to bits—we noticed that spamming ice shards, often with arcane and lightning, was a very good tactic. Further testing confirmed this. Even further testing confirmed this even further. In short, just spamming the same arcane ice shards over and over was an easy way of winning 8/10 competitions. Yeah, fun stuff! But we knew that we had to do something about the balance—the question was what.



We considered several different approaches to modifying ice shards, discussing different ways to balance them out. During this process, we revisited their damage formula, to see how ice shard damage was calculated. We found that the original formula spawned more and more ice shards the more ice you had charged up, and applied the same damage to all of them. For example, using 4x ice and 1x arcane would give you 12 shards, each of which would do the same damage as if you had 1x ice and 1x arcane. Now, this might sound good in theory, but experience showed that these ice shards were a little too powerful.

The solution was to divide the damage based on the number of ice shards—not in a 1:1 way, but gradually, to even out the damage. This lowered the damage somewhat, and eliminated the scaling problem. But it didn't solve the issue of ice spamming. Spamming was still effective, especially in close range, and this compromised the gameplay. After all, we don’t want every encounter determined by a competition of which player can spam faster.



Ultimately, we made the physical component in the ice shard damage depend on how much force you charged up, much like the earth element. This leveled the field a bit more, by making it worthwhile to charge your ice shards – if not to full, then at least for a second before releasing them. This promptly stopped spamming, as it was always worth more damage to charge your ice shards.

Meanwhile, the interaction between beams and shields has also changed. It used to be that if you fired a beam at someone, you could strike them even through a personal shield. The beam would detonate at that person, hurling them away and potentially doing huge amounts of damage. We've now changed this so that beams will always explode at the caster, or at the nearest merge. This means that using beams will not be the same no-brainier it used to be. You must take care when casting a beam, lest you put yourself in potentially grave danger!



Finally, resistance auras have been completely reworked. They now offer full protection to any spell containing that element. This means that if I have lightning resistance, then even the almighty QFQFASS beam won't hurt even the slightest bit. It is our hope that this change will force players to think more about what elements they are using, and adapt to different situations. To discourage players from turtling by using a resistance aura, the individual elements for a resistance aura now give a very short period of resistance, which increases with the more elements you have of the same type.

It's no easy task to balance Magicka for PvP, because we can't simply balance spells for their damage. After all, it’s a complex, dynamic spell-casting system. Many spells have a lot of utility, and the large amount of combinations available makes it difficult to predict exactly how a small change will affect the overall balance of the game. Alas, that's all for now. Tune in next week, when we talk about water bombing and loss of character control.

Paradox are releasing two new survival challenge maps for Magicka. One will be free, the other will cost $1.99. Players get to decide which map will go free in a poll on the Magicka Facebook page. RPS pointed us towards the video above, which shows off the two maps on offer. Paradox say they're set to come out on April 26 "without requiring so much as a single potato."

If you want to stand a better chance of beating the new maps, you might want to take a look at our overview of Magicka's most spectacular spells.

Paradox are releasing two new survival challenge maps for Magicka. One will be free, the other will cost $1.99. Players get to decide which map will go free in a poll on the Magicka Facebook page. RPS pointed us towards the video above, which shows off the two maps on offer. Paradox say they're set to come out on April 26 "without requiring so much as a single potato."

If you want to stand a better chance of beating the new maps, you might want to take a look at our overview of Magicka's most spectacular spells.

Magicka: Vietnam was released last week, and we love it. The best part is the glorious union of guns and spells, and the experimentation that comes from combining different elements into spectacular new magics. We've gathered ten of the most explosive, useful and entertaining spells we could find.

Since the game teaches you the special Magickas, we've omitted them from the list. Meteor Storm and Thunderbolt might be cool, but you know how to do them already, this list is about using the stock elemental effects to create wondrous and deadly new things.

1: ARSE Mines - ARSE - (shift) right click



ARSE (Lightning Cold Arcane) mines aren't the most damaging mines in the game (that honour belongs to the less catchy ESQFA mines) but they freeze enemies, do good damage, and you are never, ever going to forget what keys you need to hit to make them.

2: Hit Weak Point for Maximum Damage - QFQFSAA right click



Steam is always helpful. In fact the secret to most of the game's highest damaging spells is to combine two steam elements (QF) with an arcane element (S) and a pair of lightnings (A). You can cast this on your weapon or as an area attack and do massive amounts of damage, but it's best use is as the most powerful beam in the game. Cross the streams for even more damage! (Ignore Egon, he's a killjoy).

3: Haley's Comet - DSR - right click



Bombs work differently to beams. They use Earth (D) as a carrier. They charge up as you hold down right-click (increasing range) and fly out when you release it, detonating in a burst of area damage. Useful for attacking a group of enemies at range. This little gem does strong damage and chills your enemies, letting you inflict more damage before they reach you. More Cold (R) means more damage and chill effect, more Arcane (S) means a bigger area of effect. Season to taste.

4: Stalagdeath - SQR shift right click



There are more damaging area attacks out there (I refer you again to the steam, lightning, arcane combo) but Ice (QR) based attacks hit a wide radius and come with a cool ice crystal effect. The more ice in the spell, the wider the radius. A single Arcane (S) greatly increases the damage. You could also mix in an Earth (D) to add a knockdown effect. Be careful when using this in multiplayer, the massive radius means you can quite easily 'accidentally' take out your allies.

5: The Mighty Glacier - DQRQRQRQR - right click



This is one of the few top tier damage spells not to use the steam/arcane/lightning combo. The mighty glacier is a bomb, but does no splash damage. Instead, it focuses all of its power on a single target. You don't have to train it like a laser, the combo is easy to remember (just hit D and wildly mash Q and R) it's a great fire and forget weapon, and even the toughest enemies will feel it's sting.

6: PewPewPew - QRSA right click



Beams, bombs and area attacks not enough for you? Then how about a shotgun? Still not good enough? What about an Ice Shotgun? No? What about a Laser Lightning Ice Shotgun? I've got your attention now haven't I? Combining Ice (QR) and right click will fire a trio of ice shards in front of you, adding arcane (S) and lightning (A) ups the damage considerably, while adding more ice gives you more shards. As if that wasn't customisable enough the spread tightens if you hold down the right mouse button, just tapping it fires in a wide arc for when you're cornered.

7: Fun with Acronyms! - (QF)SAFE - middle click



Typing SAFE into Magicka and middle clicking will (unsurprisingly) keep you safe by making you immune to Fire, Arcane and Lightning. You can also add a Steam (QF) to it for more immunities, although that's less easy to remember. It's not showy, but casting this on yourself means you can use your big damaging spells without having to worry about accidentally killing yourself (although some say that's half the fun).

8: Super Exploding Electric Ice Wall - EQRQRAS



For most of these entries I've tried to come up with a catchy name, but in this case I couldn't possibly create anything more brilliant than the simple description: Super Exploding Electric Ice Wall. As the name suggests it is a wall (E and right or shift right click) of ice (QR) that is electrified (A) and explodes (S). Voila: the Super Exploding Electric Ice Wall! (the second ice makes it super). It's perfect when you want to block your enemy with an ice wall. And electrocute them. And blow them up.

9: Volcano Trap - EDFFF



One of the cleverest concepts we've seen, and also one of the most likely to get you killed. Combining Earth (D), Shield (E) and Fire (F) creates a wall of volcanoes that burn anyone who comes near them. Right clicking casts them in a semicircle, shift right clicking encircles yourself and shift left clicking casts them on your weapon, letting you spring them in a line the next time you hit. Why is this useful? Because enemies trapped by them will inevitably bumble into the walls and repeatedly set themselves on fire. You can even trap them in a circle of volcanoes with you if you like, just stand very, very still if you do.

10: Life from Below! - EW (shift) right click



One of our favourite spells in Magicka. Healing mines manage to be simple, effective and very very silly all at once. They're great because it only needs two elements to cast, and standing in the middle of the mines does enough healing to fully rejuvenate a near dead Mage (making any extra Ws redundant). Then there's the icing on the cake; it knocks back enemies, but leave you standing serene in the middle of a totally lethal looking explosion. Once we figured this one out it became our default method of healing. Get used to casting it as soon as you resurrect your allies (WA and Space) which if you use the rest of these spells, you'll probably be doing a lot.

A more comprehensive guide to how all the different elements mix can be found here. These our are favourites, but what's your go-to monster zapper?

Two new Duke Nukem trailers hit the web this week. One covers the history of one of PC gaming's most recognisable characters, but it's the above video that had me scratching my chin the most. Duke Nukem Forever is actually going to get released, which is great, but I cant help but feel that Gearbox are pushing just a little too hard. The above trailer is amusing, but I can't shake the awkward feeling of misogyny that seems to ooze from it. Is pixelated pornography a step too far, or is it just harmless fun? Debate in the comments.

From one form of pixel porn to another, Unreal showed off their new engine tech in a features demo this week. The video drops such tantalising names as 'Apex Clothing' and 'Shadowed Point Light Reflections' that's sure to tingle the spine of any graphics junkie.

Battle Slots is possibly the most bizzare idea for an RPG I've heard. Developers 8monkey Labs have taken the usual fantasy setting, and rammed it into a slot machine. Intrigued? Take a look at the trailer. Tempted? Grab the demo.

Nuclear Dawn started out life as a Half-Life 2 mod, but has since been granted life as a full stand-alone release. The post-apocalypse word seems fairly standard, as does the shooting from the exceptionally brief trailer. But hey; we all love to show support to mod teams that aim big. Nuclear Dawn will be available on Steam from September this year.

When Magicka launched earlier this year, I was pleasantly surprised by just how much fun it was (I still can't say 'banana' properly since seeing the game's opening). So how do you go one step further when you've already created one of the best small games of the year? You ship the mages out to the burning rice fields of Vietnam, of course. You can check out the DLC expansion's mission in this lengthy preview, which shows off the new weapons (including an outrageous rocket launcher) and those trendy olive drab robes you'll be wearing out in the jungle.

The more and more I see of Brink, the more certain I am that it will sit quite nicely between my TF2 and Battlefield addictions. This weeks gattling gun trailer provided further evidence to the team-based parkour shooter's case, and I can already see where my summer evenings are going to be spent.



Whilst Notch and his team work on altering perceptions of collectable card games with new project Scrolls, SOE are doing the same for the long-established Magic game. Magic The Gathering: Tactics forges the usual card-based visuals for 3D character models, whilst still being faithful to the mechanics of the card game. In the above trailer, the developers talk about bringing the Planeswalker to life.

And finally, a bit of everyone's favourite StarCraft II pro - Day9. His Newbie Tuesday videos are some of the best tutorials for players wanting to get into the cut-throat world of StarCraft's online skirmishes, and this week he gives an hour's worth of tips on using Reapers and experimenting with their various tactics. It is, naturally, coupled with Day9's trademark humour, which we love him dearly for.

We've been spoilt for great trailers lately, but... wow. An expansion for the spell-mixing sorcery game set in Vietnam, combat helmets over your robe-hoods, scorching and electrocuting Vietcong-themed goblins. The Battlefield pose at the end is genius.

The soundtrack to Arrowhead Studios’ Magicka has been released as a free download. The 26-tracks are available [..]

In Magicka, you're a wizard. You've got eight elements that you can stack up, mix, multiply, and unleash. You can cast them at goblins, cast them at anything next to you, cast them at your specially blunted sword, cast them at your own face.

Singleplayer mode is a light comic fantasy, narrated by your dodgy mentor, Vlad. The black-clad Romanian wizard keeps pointing out that he's not a vampire, and making bad puns about sinking his teeth into things. It's a mix of satire and pop culture references that'll have you smirking dangerously throughout.



Lots of care has gone into the way the elements combine and contort in your spells. Combinations shape the form (Missile? Beam? Cone? Wall?) and function (Healing? Burning? Shielding? Exploding? Freezing? Drenching? Zapping?) of each glorious experiment. There's enough variety for every wizard to have his or her own favourite attack style. Mine is a steamy lightning beam that scalds you before dealing bonus lightning damage from the water element in steam.

Concocting these spells is a little confusing at first, as you're commanding eight elements across eight keys, but you're rarely faced with enemies that can't be killed by particular elements. Button mashing will get you far, and a mistake might just surprise you.



The environments are top-down, linear jaunts through bright and breezy fantasy tropes: forests full of goblins, orcish trenches, swamps, mines, the land of the dead. Wander off the beaten path, and you can find powerful equipment and new magic spell recipes that reach beyond the scope of your regular elemental concoctions - spells such as Revive and Teleport.

Singleplayer will soon wear thin, sadly. It's not that you can't beat it with the right spells and an awful lot of goes – it's that if you make a mistake and burst like a sticky water balloon, you get chucked back to the last checkpoint you reached. In once case, that involves fighting three big groups of face-pounding orcs and one-hit-smash-to-deathing ogres, in a row, before you hit another checkpoint. If you quit before you complete that level (perhaps out of, ooh, say, frustration), you'll have to start it all over again when you boot up the game again. Ultimately, you'll hit this annoying boss or that overpowered yeti thing or this boring underworld level and you'll just give up on singleplayer. Then you'll turn to multiplayer.



And multiplayer is good, when it works. If you've got a few networked computers and three eager friends with Magicka on their Steam accounts, you can enjoy the splendour of four death lasers combining neatly into a super-beam that bursts ogres in seconds. You can have tactics and gambits and laugh as they end with one wizard left, deciding if he wants your gear before he resurrects you.

The bulk of us, however, will be butting our heads against the brick wall of online multiplayer. At the time of writing, developers Arrowhead have been releasing patches every 24 hours, and they're gradually improving on the terrible connectivity issues. Despite their efforts, you no sooner host a game than Steam Chat dies, Skype calls drop, and flatmates start inspecting the router for flashing lights. For a game so reliant on multiplayer to be fun, there are lots of missed opportunities. There's no chapter select function, no joining mid-session for latecomers or disconnected players, no voice chat, no dedicated servers, and tons of lengthy, wordy cutscenes that only the host can skip.



Get it working, and it's great. For £8, you'll get your money's worth before everyone forgets about it. But it could have been game of the year material! Silly wizards.

Purchase Magicka before January 31 and you'll get a Wizard Survival Kit for free. Read on for details and a new trailer.

The game is still undergoing patching after it's buggy launch, but progress is good according to publisher Paradox. " working on patches to fix the current online issues, adding content and implementing player requests like keyboard mapping and more. For those having trouble with the online co-op, the multi-player is running smoothly over LAN and local co-op" said Paradox in a statement.

For more information on the game and it's new free content, take a look at the informative trailer below.