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Raph Koster, Ultima Online And Star Wars Galaxies Designer, Has Raised $2.7M Towards New MMORPG - M
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Raph Koster, Ultima Online And Star Wars Galaxies Designer, Has Raised $2.7M Towards New MMORPG - MMORPG.com News
Raph Koster is making a new MMO, and he's already raised quite a bit of seed money to do so. The Ultima Online and Star Wars Galaxies designer has started Playable Worlds, a new game company, to create the next great sandbox MMORPG.
Comments
A new gaming studio starting up with a well-known vet at the helm talking about doing an MMO is still industry news and fits this site's news stream better than 90% of what they cover these days.
At least Raph is not asking for $ from the gaming public for pre-sales, pardon me, donations, 7-10 years ahead of release... at least not yet.
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?”
― CD PROJEKT RED
Yet.
Of course the waiting game sucks, but whens the last time we had an industry giant return to the mmorpg fold? He’s an idea guy who learns from the past (read some of his pieces on Ultima Online or SWG) and can break down and rationalize complex systems.
Finally, the game that is described is what many many non-hardcore pvp gamers have wanted in a sandbox mmorpg. However all this pans out, I’ll maintain cautious optimism.
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
Of course, that means "great for me" !
SWG's original design has never been equalled, unfortunately it was butchered after the first 3 years, but that's an old story now.
- Funded by an ESports venture. So, how's this game going to go against the money men and make an MMORPG instead of another ESports game? This may be the real challenge this game might face.
Count me as interested, but hesitant. Rather, I will be hesitantly interested in about 7 years.Logic, my dear, merely enables one to be wrong with great authority.
I don't like vague blanket statements,sure everyone uses them because it saves time and space,i know i get it.However i would need to know why anyone thinks Mr.Koster could design a good game,tell me a couple systems he has designed before that was well done.
I do not consider altaholic designs good at all,terrible in fact.I do not consider a rpg good if it is on rails,linear.I do not consider giving xp for mindless non skill related quests as being good.So yeah give me an example that this guys knows what he is doing.
Even Brad,i don't mind the guy at all,but so far the past has shown me that he sticks to old ways that were never that good or even good at all.What i accepted early year was fine because we were breaking new ground with online gaming and mmo's,however over time i expect improvements new and unique ideas that make sense.New ideas like automated dungeon finders are NOT good ideas,terrible ideas and make no sense,immersion breaking,so instead of getting better,mmo's have been getting worse.
Never forget 3 mile Island and never trust a government official or company spokesman.
거북이는 목을 내밀 때 안 움직입니다
At current market rates, 2.7 million might support a tiny team for four to six months, especially if they run it out of one of the economic shithole hellscapes like Seattle, or any major city in California.
Cool news and all, but it means nothing without two more digits behind that figure.
Regardless, publishers have been burned too many times to invest big money on an MMO, no matter who is making it. They are too expensive and take too long to make, without a good track record regarding the return on investment.
The only way it is going to turn is for indie developers to push the boundaries in ways that can recapture the fanbase and revitalize the industry. Game companies should be looking to make smaller, more focused games for less money and time investment. If the game is fun, people will pay for it and they can add to it later. Something like Artcraft's Artisan Engine could be a way to do that. So much of MMO development involves building the tools needed to build the content.
While you may be right, I don't see anything mentioned that leads to that conclusion.
???
Let's party like it is 1863!
Seaspite
Playing ESO on my X-Box
Their ego's inflated beyond idiocy during those game's development, where they squandered millions of dollars of investment money, massive delays and still didn't manage to deliver a properly working finished product.
Especially Richard Garriott was a real piece of work, that was more busy getting his arse into space and even tried to make NCSoft pay for it under the disguise of a PR campaign for Tabula Rasa. lol /Facepalm
Tabula Rasa didn't even last two years, before NCSoft put it out of its misery.
Vanguard: Saga of Heroes had to be rescued by SOE at that time, Brad was kicked out (drug problems) and it was SOE devs that somewhat managed to salvage the game and make it work properly at least after lots of effort (have to give SOE props for that at least!). But it was too late and the game never recovered, not even under the All Access Pass at the time.