Star Wars and Raph Leave SOE? 105
Gamespot reports that Raph Koster, chief creative officer for Sony Online Entertainment, has left the company. While Gamespot seems to confirm this news, there are a number of MMOG-related rumours swirling at GDC. Mythic may be in EA's sights for acquisition, and Sony Online may soon be losing the rights to the Star Wars license. IE: No more SWG. Grimwell online has a rundown on these virulent rumours. Chris Kramer (from SOE) said words to the effect of "We're in it together for the long haul." SWG will be staying with Sony Online for some time to come.
Losing Rights to SW? Rumours++ (Score:3, Informative)
How to ruin a sure thing (Score:5, Informative)
Star Wars is one of the most regonized and highly regarded franchises among video game consumers. Players have high expectations, and why shouldn't they? There's enough material there for an engaging and interesting MMO. One has to wonder, how could you mess up a Star Wars MMO?
Well, here's how:
1. Launch a buggy game your beta testers tell you is nowhere near ready.
2. Have no player-controlled starships. Space is just like "zoning" in EQ.
3. Have no class balance, and then screw up class balance. Make sure your producer's favorite class (pet handler) is insanely powerful at launch.
4. Make sure entire classes, (droid manufacturer), are completely foobar.
5. Totally mismanage player relations, eventually cutting off public access to the forums to hide discontentment. Be sure to have a privately run, but public web site up for the producer where he talks about how players are sheep, more or less.
6. Planets aren't even frickin' round, and they have edges which are just high mountains.
7. Make sure questing is so stupid players don't even bother to read the templated instructions for what you are doing, and instead focus on the one or two variables per template. (Go here, blow up nest, run back.)
8. Make sure PvP is totally hosed at launch.
9. Don't bother to react to major economy-ruining bugs for days, even after reports flood forums, so that money is completely devalued.
10. Make the #1 fantasy of every player, becoming a Jedi, completely out of reach to smart players who maybe, like, have a job, and within the reach of mindless drones who play your game 24/7.
Anyways, the game was fscked all along, and the final news that the combat/professions system needed another overhaul was just the coup-de-grace.
RIP; lesson learned for Lucusfilm.
Re:How to ruin a sure thing (Score:2, Informative)
I think, when it gets right down to it, the current MMOG player base responds more positively to a traditional level-based grind system than the skill-based craziness they had in the original incarnation of SWG.
FWIW, they fixed the problem you listed in item #2 when they added Jump To Lightspeed some time ago. JTL is a lot of fun, if a bit repetitive. They could do a lot more with it.
"SOE Looses SWG licence? Debunked." (Score:2, Informative)
Opposite for me and EQ2 (Score:4, Informative)
Then I read a couple of reviews of the "revamp" of EQ2 and I went back to take a look. I was really impressed by how far it had come and decided to continue on with my character. There's a lot of depth there that was lacking when it first came out.
Traveling around in EQ2 isn't bad...no worse than WoW. But then again, I'm one that thinks traveling around EQ1 is WAY too easy than it used to be. The "good ol days" for EQ1, to me, was only the original game and the first two expansions...Kunark and Velious. After that it was the vocal whiners that got the game to where it was almost "teleport directly to the mob, have the mobs line up, die automatically for you, you get the experience, you get whatever you needed. NEXT". It was fun when it was more of a free-wheeling place, where you had to sell your own stuff, where you had to get a port out of some place. The world of EQ seemed SO big back then. Taking a Barbarian from Halas to Freeport was a daunting task of running through the Karanas. It was great. It was an adventure right there. Now...meh...you're a barbarian in Halas just gate up to the Plane of Knowledge and go wherever you want. No biggy. And to me, no fun. Again, that's just me. I'm a little goofy.
But I've been having a blast with EQ2. Well, not at the moment as all my attention is on Elder Scrolls: Oblivion.
At least half true (Score:2, Informative)
So, by now people have seen the news. Yes, it is true I am leaving SOE.
Why? Well, I've been here for gosh, almost six years maybe? It's been a good ride, and I think we've gotten to do some really fun and interesting work. But I am getting interested in doing some stuff that is a bit off the beaten path -- really, anyone who has been reading the blog can see that! -- and while SOE feels it's really cool stuff, it's just not where they are at right now. My contract was up, and it was the right time to poke my head up and look around, that sort of thing. It's all quite friendly, and actually, I hope that I'll work with SOE again in the future, because there's a lot of wonderful talent here and a lot of cool technology, and a lot of friends.
So, sometime soon here I'll be off on my own. Nope, no announcements about plans or anything. I don't have a new studio in my back pocket, I don't have a job lined up, any of that. And... we'll see what comes. I'm thinking sleeping in next week sounds good.
Oh -- the old email still works, for now. You can always post a comment or use the email addy at the bottom of this page to reach me, too.
All sort of anti-climactic, huh? ;)
Personally, I think he is one talented individual who would absolutely shine in a less, shall we say, strangling environment? GL Raph!
Re:Maybe a purge is needed... (Score:1, Informative)
Actually, I *believe* that the Rancor was a gift to Jabba, not raised since he was a little "rancorling." And the "beast tamer" disapproved of Jabba's treatment of the rancor (ie, feeding him people now and then), and was actually planning on "freeing" him from Jabba's place and setting him free.
You can doublecheck me, if you want - I'm pretty sure all the info is in one of the short stories in "Tales from Jabba's Palace."
Now, if you'll excuse me, I've suddenly realized just how much of a geek I am, and need to go do something non-nerdy, like make out with a girl or something.