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Players allegedly negotiating with NCsoft to buy City of Heroes
Instead of spending gobs of volunteer development time and money on City of Heroes knock-offs, wouldn't it be better to simply acquire the real deal? That's the thought behind a fan effort to purchase the rights to the superhero MMO from NCsoft, while proving to the publisher that the team has the talent and capability to handle the property. According to a poster named Ironwolf on the Titan Network message boards, progress is being made on this front. Ironwolf wrote the following on August 13th: "I did contact the team yesterday and got this reply back: Things are moving along. We should have things worth showing fairly soon, made a great leap forward yesterday." The efforts to purchase City of Heroes started in early March, according to a timeline on the same thread. On March 12th, Ironwolf noted, "Got letter back from [former NCsoft executive] Chris Chung -- it showed that is WAS possible to buy the game." On April 5th, he wrote that the general range of the price is "very doable." [Thanks to Duane for the tip!]
Catlateral Damage knocks its funding goal off the shelf
We've got another game to be added to the rapidly-expanding genre of animal simulator games: Catlateral Damage, which started as a game jam project and charmed its way into our hearts back at the beginning of the year with a limited demo build, has met its $40,000 Kickstarter goal. The feline festivities are anticipated to make their way to Mac, Linux, PC and Ouya in Q4 of this year. The kitty train doesn't stop here, though. Developer Chris Chung has 12 more days to reach his stretch goals, which include extra levels, a PS4 version and support for Steam Workshop. Chung is also participating in Ouya's Free The Games Fund, which means that his financial support will double upon a successful close of the crowdfunding campaign - with some caveats. Meanwhile, at Catlateral Damage HQ ... [Image: Chris Chung]
Take a nap, knock stuff over in the full Catlateral Damage
Anyone who has a cat knows the feeling – you get home from a long day of work and look at your feline laying blissfully in a patch of sunlight, waiting for catnip or belly rubs, and you think, "I wish I were a cat." This is the audience for Catlateral Damage. Catlateral Damage is a first-person kitty simulator, where you (as a cat) attempt to knock over as many of your owner's things as possible, within a certain time. It started as a game jam idea and morphed into a full project – it won the People's Choice and Indie Prototype awards at the 2014 MassDigi Game Challenge, became the first participant in Fire Hose Games' indie accelerator program, and soared through the Steam Greenlight process. Now, developer Chris Chung is looking to raise $40,000 by July 11 to help him finish the full version of Catlateral Damage, and add features such as chasing mice, hacking up a hairball, hiding under the bed, eating catnip and laying in the sun. The final game will have procedurally generated gameplay and multiple playable cats, plus a larger storyline: "Your goal is to reach the fancy mansion down the street and destroy the super secret, super valuable object hidden within its locked safe. You start in your home apartment, traversing and trashing various houses on the street until your reach the mansion. In each house, you start in a locked room and make messes in rooms to unlock adjacent ones. Once all rooms are sufficiently sloppy, you nap in a box (yes, really) before moving on to the next house." [Image: Chris Chung]
Developets: A tribute to the four-legged friends of indie developers
Chris Chung with the family cat, Nippy At the start of the 2013 7DFPS Game Jam, Chris Chung was given the challenge of creating a unique first person shooter within seven days. No other rules, requirements, or qualifications; just complete creative control over a project and a week's worth of time in which to complete it. This task in mind, Chung began brainstorming ideas, trying to come up with something that could be both unique and feasibly accomplished. He remembers the idea forming in his mind during a long car ride on the first day of the jam. "I was thinking of what kind of interesting first-person game I could make that I hadn't seen before, and 'cats' was the first thing I thought of."
Catlateral Damage getting mew (new) modes
Catlateral Damage, the first-person knock-stuff-over-as-a-cat game from develo-purr Chris Chung will be getting some mew modes for its com-meow-cial build, Eurogamer reports. What's that? Stop with the cat puns? You gotta be kitten me! Okay, fine. When Catlateral Damage gets a commercial release, it'll include at least two new modes: Cat Ops and a "free" mode where players aren't beholden to a timer and can explore at their leisure. In an email exchange with Eurogamer, Chung explained that Cat Ops will have players try to knock over objects without waking their owner. "I feel like this mode will fulfill the desire to be a sneaky cat, and also give quite a different challenge than the current game mode," he wrote. Eurogamer also inquired about a possible Time Attack mode. While Chung wrote that it wasn't yet planned, he also noted that it would be "very easy" to add, and that he would make a note of the idea. Chung also wrote that he plans to add more levels and increase the scope of the game so that players could potentially explore an entire house. Catlateral Damage is expected to have a commercial version later this year. We assume there will be a major paw-ty when it does. Haa.
Catlateral Damage chronicles the life of a destructive kitty
Ever wonder why cats love knocking stuff off of shelves? Because it's fun, that's why. Indie developer Chris Chung tackles this aspect of feline fascination in Catlateral Damage, a first-person action game that casts the player in the role of a particularly destructive cat. In Catlateral Damage, players hop up on overhead surfaces and send household objects crashing to the floor with repeated paw swipes. Break enough of your owner's valuables (hint: combos award point multipliers) and you win. For anyone who has never owned cats, this is a fairly accurate simulation of what their day-to-day life entails. Cats are jerks. The current alpha version of the game is playable for free online, and is available as a free download for Windows, Mac, and Linux. A paid version is set to launch later this year via Steam Greenlight.
Mobile startup Motiga promises real-time mobile multiplayer tech, starting with 'The LeftOvers'
Motiga is a new startup with a clear goal: To build a technology platform that enables small mobile gaming teams to include real-time multiplayer "quickly and with less resources." Motiga's platform is called (backronymed?) the Motiga Infinite Context Engine or MICE. To show off what MICE is capable of, Motiga is co-developing The LeftOvers, which it's billing as a "free-to-play, real-time multiplayer game." "The fact that The LeftOvers is created by a team of three developers is a testament to the ease of use and robustness of our technology," said Motiga co-founder Rick Lambright. Lambright, along with fellow co-founder Chris Chung, bring a lot of expertise to the outfit. Chung served as Chief Strategy Officer at Trion and before that, spent time at NCsoft and Guild Wars developer ArenaNet. Lambright was Chief Architect at MMO pub Gazillion Entertainment where he worked on the tech for games like Marvel Super Hero Squad Online and LEGO Universe. Is an easy-to-implement real-time multiplayer solution for mobile gaming possible and, if so, is that model of multiplayer something mobile gamers are interested in? We're not sure, but we're excited to find out. %Gallery-131678%
NCsoft West gets a new CEO
There's been another shift in the staffing over at NCsoft West. This time, former CEO Chris Chung will be moving aside to let Jaeho Lee take his place. Lee was the chief financial officer of NCsoft, and his appointment at NC West was made with the intention of improving the subsidiary's communication with home base in Korea. NCsoft's corporate PR director Jae Sung Lee gave a comment to Kotaku regarding the move:"As part of the corporation's global strategy, global management grows increasingly important, and the need to work together across business units becomes paramount to our success. This personnel change increases our ability in each market to remain competitive."Chris Chung hasn't been turfed out on to the front doorstep as a result of the move and will remain where he is at NCsoft West, albeit with a lesser job title.
Microtransactions, the NCcoin of the realm
With all of the discussion about in-game advertisements going on, I thought I'd bring your attention to something else NCsoft is using to provide additional services in-game. Now whether you believe Exteel is a MMO or not, it's the flagship for NCsoft's micro-transaction model using NCcoin, and it's a great way to see if the model's going to work before potential roll-out to other titles. "But Jon," you might ask, "what is NCcoin?" Well, let me 'splain.NCcoin is a dollar-per-penny in-game transaction process that allows you to purchase in-game equipment, upgrades and enhancements using real-world coinage. Unlike gold farming schemes, however, this isn't a third party asking you to spend $59.99 for 60 million influence. NCcoin is currently available in 100, 500, 1000 and 2000 denominations, and for that you pay $1, $5, $10 or $20, respectively. According to NCsoft NA president Chris Chung, "NCsoft's goal is to bring more and more people into the online gaming market, and part of achieving that goal is to continue to diversify how customers can pay and play."
NCsoft releases sales numbers for 2007
NCsoft's corporate monkeys released their sales numbers yesterday, showing off a solid net profit of $48.4 million, an increase of over 18% last year. Something has to be said for NCsoft's execs like new President Chris Chung, as the company was able to post a strong increase in profit, even as global sales dipped 3% since last year to $355.1 million. Sales for the crucial fourth quarter were up however, jumping 11% to $95.9 million on strong sales from the Lineage series and the launch of Tabula Rasa in November.Korea continued to be NCsoft's dominant market, accounting for 59% of global sales, as compared to the 17% attributed to North America. This, of course, would account for the fact the relative success of the various franchises. Lineage and Lineage II, which are still wildly popular in Korea, ran sales of $34.2 million and $36.4 million, despite their age. Tabula Rasa, a title ostensibly aimed at the North American market with it's sci-fi and shooter fascinations, saw relatively meager sales of $5.4 million since it launched in November. This is further proof that the Asian market is simply too big to ignore. Companies looking to break Blizzard's grasp on the market may do well to look abroad.
NCsoft's first console game to be announced this year
Wired notes that, while we still don't know which game NCsoft will be bringing to the PlayStation 3, we can rest assured it's coming soon. Last week's DICE event gave the website a chance to talk to NCsoft's Chris Chung about their future plans for the console. While just a short time ago Mr. Chung was cagey about those details in chats with both Massively and 1up, he was willing to put some details on the record for Wired.Said the new President, "[We'll have] something to announce--not only announce but to show--by the second half of this year. I'm pretty psyched about that." The piece goes on to note the obvious ways to go: porting some of the more console friendly titles like Guild Wars or Tabula Rasa to the system. Chung says that's not their goal, though, and hints that their announcement will be an all-new title geared specifically for a console. Even though they already have several titles in the works, it'd be great to hear about a brand-new game from this company. Perhaps such a new game would be coming from the mysterious Carbine studios? Only time will tell.
NCsoft's North American head honcho speaks to the masses
Chris Chung, the new president over at NCsoft North America, has been a busy man since taking up the position a few weeks ago. Between his interviews with IGN and 1Up, Massively, and other sundry blurbs here and there, he still felt it necessary to address the masses directly - blog style. And it's a fantastic read.His latest statement doesn't give us any additional earth shattering news about what the company is going to do under his rein - that's been covered ad nauseam, but it does give us a much better perspective on who Chris Chung the person is. I found his honestly particularly comforting because NCsoft is "my" gaming company. While I don't much care for Guild Wars or Lineage II (even though they are absolutely breathtaking in their graphical beauty), I play every one of their other games (Exteel, CoX, Tabula Rasa, Dungeon Runners), played Auto Assault from beta until it ran out of gas, and I can't wait to get my hands on Aion. It humanizes him in a manner that we don't see too often -- in any industry. He talks openly about how it can be a burden taking over for someone as experienced and respected as Robert Garriott. He believes that he got the job as president not because of some special talent, but the lack thereof. Perhaps the most insightful thing Chris talked about was his managerial style. I can relate because I too am a manager. What, you think I do this full time? While I'm not a manager for a company as large as NCsoft, the tenants stay the same: it's all about taking care of the people. And because I understand that, the thing that will stick with me the most is this quote: my job is to make sure that the employees here at NCsoft do what they do best and that the management team takes care of their needs so we can continue to produce great products for this industry.If you've been leery of all the changes at NCsoft... don't be. They're in good hands.
Our chat with NCsoft's new president
Earlier today we discussed interviews held by Mr. Chris Chung, the new president of NCsoft, with 1up and Game Informer. Massively also had the pleasure of talking to Mr. Chung about NCsoft as a company, and we came away with a few interesting tidbits about the future of the world's most diverse MMO publisher. In our discussion with Mr. Chung, we primarily focused on the future of the MMO business. We talked about where the future products like Exsteel and Aion fit into the company's stable of games, and examined a bit why NCsoft has been historically so open to alternative business models. Mr. Chung also hints at future plans for the company aimed at younger players.I particularly found his discussion of possible future ideas for their well-known superhero title City of Heroes intriguing:Massively: You said that you don't forsee bringing newer business models to subscription games; there's no interest in applying that to a game like City of Heroes? Mr. Chung: In terms of games like that, the issue is finding out what the players actually want. We need to make sure the players have ways to access the game the way they want. Instead of saying "here's a half-finished product and you're going to pay for the other half" ... if we do offer microtransaction items for City of Heroes we need to ask the fanbase directly what they want that isn't already in the game. We need to figure out what they want, what they'll pay for, before we offer it to them. As we explore this we need to carefully tread this water.Read on for more of our conversation with NCsoft's new president.
NCsoft Prez Chris Chung talks shop with GI and 1UP
Game Informer and 1UP both recently had the privilege of sitting down with NCSoft President Chris Chung to talk about what direction he plans to take the company in 2008. Some of the things that Chung spoke about (and there was much overlap between the two interviews) were reminiscent of the comments that Richard Garriott made in his speech at George Washington University late last year. Garriott had talked about how NCsoft was looking to make their stable of MMOs more integrated with one another so that as players tire of one game and move onto another (a phenomenon referred to as "churn" within the industry), they can ensure that it will be another of their products. He also spoke briefly about NCsoft's current approach to console games, and he sounded considerably more tentative on the subject than we had originally been led to believe. He was complimentary of Sony's network model, and stated that he believed it was more in line with their policies than the competition. If we had to speculate, this would seem to indicate that Microsoft's Xbox Live service, which not only requires propriety features be included but also requires a subscription fee, was not their cup of tea. 1UP was more direct about this line of questioning, going so far as to ask out-right if City of Heroes was making its way to consoles. Chung refused to give a direct answer, but he didn't deny anything either, which is intriguing. It's an interesting interview, and sheds the NCsoft President (who only officially stepped into the role two weeks ago) in a favorable light.
NCsoft execs play musical chairs, reshuffle
NCsoft sent out a press release today, announcing that two of their big execs were looking for new homes over the holidays. Robert Garriott (not to be confused with Richard Garriott, his brother) is stepping down as the president of NCsoft's North American wing and is going to be taking a far more nebulous role in "global business development and planning." Reportedly, he'll be working with NCsoft's CEO Taek Jim, though it's not clear at this point whether he'll be headed out to NCsoft's home base abroad or whether he'll be staying in Austin long-term.Taking Garriott's place at the helm of the North American operations will be Chris Chung, who got his start managing the business end of ArenaNet, and will be moving up from his current position as the VP of worldwide product development. Both Garriott's move and Chung's promotion will officially take effect on the first of the new year. We have no inkling yet whether this will mean anything for us gamers, though we'd assume probably very little.[Via MMORPG.com]
