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'Dragon Age' lead writer David Gaider leaves BioWare
You might not know his name, but if you've played a game from BioWare in the past seventeen years chances are pretty high that writer David Gaider had a hand in it. Specifically, the Dragon Age series of fantasy role-playing games. The news comes by way of Gaider himself, announcing on Twitter that Friday was in fact, his last day at the studio. "It wasn't an easy decision," the Dragon Age: Inquisition lead writer tells Gamasutra. "The parting is amicable, and I know my current (and as yet unannounced) project will carry on and be awesome."
Amazon is hiring developers for its first PC game
Amazon's ambitions for gaming apparently go quite a bit beyond the mobile space and "hit" consumer hardware. The e-commerce juggernaut is looking for folks to help flesh out the development team of its first PC game and placed a job posting on Gamasutra in an effort to make that happen. As Polygon notes, the studio already has the likes of Portal's Kim Swift and former Ubisoft developer Clint Hocking (Far Cry 2) on board, and the job listing says that designers whose resumés include Halo, Half-life 2 and The Last of Us are involved as well.
The Daily Grind: Would you spend money in an MMO for your guild?
A recent Gamasutra piece chronicled a monetization design consultant's journey into what he calls a "social elder game." Author Ethan Levy participated in multiple high-end, time-limited guild-vs.-guild events in an unnamed online game to see just how much guild members would need to pay out to keep their guild competitive. Hundreds of dollars later, he was able to push his guild into the top 100 to receive what he called "B tier" gear. In fact, he estimated that the top 100 guilds spent between $85,000 and $100,000 -- just on that one event. I'm willing to give my guildies a lot of things -- Steam games, a spot on my couch, my old video card, thesis proofreading -- but I wouldn't drop that kind of money just to make us competitive in a video game, especially if I felt a studio was being exploitative with its "social elder game." Would you? Would you spend money in an MMO for your guild? How much? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Intel is 'not taking sides,' but keeps ads off of Gamasutra
When Intel pulled advertising from the business-focused gaming website Gamasutra earlier this week, it was due in large part to an internet campaign to hit gaming websites that speak out against sexism in the industry where it hurts: ad revenue. Today, the chipset manufacturer has announced an apology (interestingly timed on a Friday evening) for this. Sort of. Intel says that it never meant to appear to be taking sides in the increasingly hostile debate: When it comes to our support of equality and women, we want to be very clear: Intel believes men and women should be treated the same... And while we respect the right of individuals to have their personal beliefs and values, Intel does not support any organization or movement that discriminates against women. We apologize and we are deeply sorry if we offended anyone. These words ring a bit hollow though, given that Intel won't be continuing its ad-buy with Gamasutra, either. For the brief apology in full, check the source link below. [Image source: Getty Images]
Gamasutra examines character names in World of Warcraft
What does your character name say about you? Gaming website Gamasutra asked that question while performing a massive investigation on player names in World of Warcraft, and came up with some interesting answers. Obviously a game like World of Warcraft is going to have a ton of unique character names, simply due to the limits on names per server -- but WoW boasts a whopping 3.8 million unique names, which actually makes the game far more diverse than real-world names. As can only be expected, there was a much larger variety in names on RP servers -- while on average, 58% of names were unique, on RP servers that number jumps to a staggering 83%. But what is unexpected is the correlation between class, race, and name ultimately chosen to represent the character you play. Other information painstakingly investigated included represented regions, name origins, common threads between popular names, and an all-too-interesting look at the differences between negative, positive, and neutral names. It's a fascinating glimpse into one of those things that players tend to take for granted. While you may think you're creating a name that's completely unique and carefully chosen, there's a strong likelihood that somewhere out there in the far-flung reaches of the global playerbase, there's at least one person who's had the exact same idea as yourself. Take a look at the full article for more interesting tidbits about the curiosity of character naming on Gamasutra's site.
Game Developer magazine shutters, layoffs at Gamasutra [update]
UBM Tech has decided to end print publication of Game Developer magazine with its July 2013 issue. The company also notes it will be ceasing distribution of digital issues. So, in short, Game Developer magazine is done after 19 years.Legacy content will shift over to 'Game Developer on Gamasutra' and will be accessible for free.The layoffs at UBM appear to go beyond Game Developer magazine, with UBM-owned Gamasutra news editor Frank Cifaldi writing on Twitter, " I didn't work for Game Developer, but I got hit by the same restructuring, so I'm no longer at Gamasutra."We've reached out for more details and an official statement on what's going on.Update: UBM Tech, which makes most of its bank from running the Game Developer Conference, announced today's editorial closures are part of a "strategic shift in the company's focus toward a unique business model." Gamasutra is cited as having over 1 million uniques monthly, with 3.5 million page views per month. Beyond that, it sounds like UBM is going for no mags, fewer websites and more GDCs."As a result of these investments, certain legacy areas of the business that no longer resonate with the market or meet the needs of the communities will be eliminated. UBM Tech will cease to provide print publications as of July 1, 2013," the company wrote in a public statement. "InformationWeek will continue online, where it's strong brand and loyal audiences will benefit from the new community model for greater engagement. UBM Tech will discontinue the Test and Measurement World and Advanced Trading brands and will close four smaller conferences and events."Update 2: "None of the conferences affected are game related," a UBM Tech spokesperson informs Joystiq.
Using EVE Online to predict the recession
A new blog post at Gamasutra gives an interesting perspective on EVE Online's economic trends and how they translate to real life. Virtual World Economist Ramin Shokrizade writes about his time helping CCP build the game's economy in the early days and how land tax and real estate bubbles can (and can't) work both in and out of a virtual environment. Most notably, Shokrizade elaborates on a prediction he made in 2006 regarding the failed global banking system and how EVE Online taught him the warning signs. Now Shokrizade is an economic consultant to three international gaming companies, and he owes it all to EVE Online.
How freeloaders help free-to-play games succeed
Do those scruffy-looking nerfherder freeloaders (like many of us here at Massively) actually contribute value to an MMO? A new article at Gamasutra argues that yes, they do, and in fact are necessary to a free-to-play game's monetary success. "If you are going straight after this demographic at the expense of a wider audience, you will struggle if you want to be a worldwide success," the introduction explains, "especially if you want to be seen as real AAA-title rather than, say, a casual game. This is due to the fundamental fact that free-to-play works best at scale." The article lists three primary reasons why non-paying customers help a game. The first is that they bring new users via word of mouth, and a certain percentage of those new users will become paying customers. The second is that freeloaders can show appreciation in other ways, such as cross-promotion between games and generating community content. Finally, this segment of players can be the targets of advertising, which is in itself a huge revenue generator.
Valve economist breaks down hiring, firing and in-between
Valve tends to keep as hush-hush as possible on a number of things, not least of which are matters of personnel. So EconTalk's chat with the company's economist, Yanis Varoufakis, in which he explains in elucidating detail how the company hires, fires, and pays its employees, is particularly enlightening. It's Valve's "flat hierarchy" approach which makes these processes interesting, and more than a little unconventional, as Varoufakis demonstrates when discussing the studio's hiring policy."The way it works is very simple," Varoufakis told EconTalk. "Let's say you and I have a chat in the corridor, or in some conference room, or wherever, and the result of this chat is that we converge to the view that we need an additional software engineer, or animator, or artist, or hardware person, or several of them. What we can do is we can send an email to the rest of our colleagues at Valve, invite them to join us in forming a search committee that actually looks for these people without seeking anyone's permission in the hierarchy, simply because there is no hierarchy."This results in a free-for-all interview process, first by Skype, then "if they pass that test" in person, with anyone who wants to participate able to. After that, a consensus is eventually reached, and the hire is made.Firings at Valve came under scrutiny recently after the company laid off an undisclosed number of employees, including hardware engineer Jeri Ellsworth. Varoufakis noted "in many occasions" it's a failure to adjust to the company's lack of hierarchy that leads to an employee's dismissal, with a similar consensus reaching the final decision. This Online MBA video and article from earlier this year neatly summarizes Valve's consensus-driven but case-by-case approach to firing.The rewards for remaining employed by Valve, however, can be lucrative, as company bonuses don't have an upper limit. "Bonuses can end up being five, six, ten times the level of the basic wage," Varoufakis said.Varoufakis goes to into greater detail on these processes and a lot of what's in between in the EconTalk podcast.
Gas Powered Games announces Wildman
Gas Powered Games, the studio behind Age of Empires and a handful of other titles, has hopped on the Kickstarter train. Wildman hit Kickstarter today and has 32 days to hit its $1,100,000 goal. The game is an three-way action RPG/RTS/MOBA hybrid. GPG CEO Chris Taylor told Gamasutra that he's basically "betting the company on it." The Kickstarter is meant both to raise the necessary funds to continue making the game and to give fans a stake and voice in Wildman's development. If the project hits its funding and makes it to release, we're hoping it'll feel right at home in our Not So Massively column.
Did SWTOR make things worse by going F2P?
Gamasutra's Simon Ludgate lays into the makers of Star Wars: The Old Republic with a recent article that takes a look at all the things BioWare did wrong with the greatly hyped MMO. "SWTOR's 'end-game' was anemic at best, especially compared to the well-received storyline content." Ludgate writes. "Surprise, surprise; most of the people who paid for the game didn't continue subscribing after playing through the story once or twice. Between the annoying grind and the recycled content -- another one of those annoying MMORPG tropes -- the game's single player content ended up being even less fun than a normal single player game, never mind the subscription fee to keep replaying it." Whether you agree or disagree, Ludgate takes an in-depth look at everything that he sees as wrong with the game. From a broken cash shop ("Fifty-Six Dollars per Month. That's what it costs to play Star Wars: The Old Republic as a free player.") to the anomaly of fitting a single-player game into an MMO ("BioWare spent most of its money on single player story content, wrapped up in all the worst time-sink tropes that pervade the MMORPG genre"), the gloves are off in this one. Check out the entire 3-page article over at Gamasutra, and let us know what you think in the comments.
Glitch's creator on the game's failure: 'Too foreign of a concept'
If you're looking for just one reason why Glitch is sunsetting, you're out of luck. If you're looking for many, many reasons why Glitch failed, then all you have to do is pull up a chair in front of Tiny Speck's Stewart Butterfield and listen to him talk. Butterfield spoke with Gamasutra about the myriad of reasons why Glitch didn't take and ultimately had to be shuttered. "Ultimately if I have to identify one thing as the problem -- I don't think there is just one -- but if I had to choose just one," Butterfield said, "I think the game was too foreign of a concept for most people." He pointed out that while there was a devoted fan base who "got it," marketing the title presented severe problems throughout most of the game's lifespan: "There haven't ever been other non-combat MMOs that are based on absurdity, humor, and whimsy. I'm not sure anyone has the specific expertise in making this thing work." Other failures that Butterfield identified was a lack of fun gameplay until recently, the decision to do the game in Flash instead of for mobile platforms, large expenditures of money, and Tiny Speck's big team drawing salaries.
Rumor: Dante's Inferno and Dead Space dev may be working on a MOBA
If you were just thinking that the world needed another Massively Online Battle Arena (MOBA) based on a previous game IP, the team at Visceral Games may have read your mind. The Dead Space and Dante's Inferno dev studio has posted a handful of tell-tale job listings on the Gamasutra job boards that point to the development of a MOBA. Among these MOBA-esque positions are a game designer, a global community manager, and a character concept artist, all with experience or passion for the PC MOBA genre. As it stands, the connection between these job listings is only speculation, but the real question seems to be whether or not the studio is working on a MOBA for one of their existing IPs or an entirely new way to kill your friends in three-quarter overhead view with pre-made classes.
GDC Europe 2012: Funcom's Morrison says focus on the why, not the what
MMOs as a rule tend to have a focus on providing content for us, the players. It makes sense; they want us to play their games, so they give us as much stuff to do as possible so that we'll keep playing. But why do we want to do that stuff in the first place? Craig Morrison, creative director at Funcom Montreal, posed that question at his GDC Europe talk, saying that MMO design needs to shift to consider that option. Gamasutra covered what he has to say: "Everytime a player logs in, they need a 'why'," noted Morrison. "What we really need to be thinking about is the why -- it's the bit that we don't really consider enough. Players need a reason to be playing it. What is motivating them?" Referencing both Maslow's hierarchy of needs and Simon Simek's work on motivation, Morrison's talk ranged from discussing how games go wrong by focusing on only one kind of player to encouraging the development and fostering of community. "Unless you expose the players to the community and encourage community interactions, there's not that much difference between your game and a single-player game," he opined.
ArenaNet: Guild Wars 2 a 'reaction' to sluggish MMO design
Do you believe that the MMO genre has been stuck in a rut over the past few years? So does Christopher Lye, the global brand director for ArenaNet, who publicly denounced the post-World of Warcraft trend in the industry as stagnant. In an interview with Gamasutra, Lye stated that Guild Wars 2 is walking the walk when it comes to genuinely challenging the status quo in the industry. "Honestly, I think the problem is that there's been a lack of change in MMO design and that Guild Wars 2 is a reaction to that," he said. "People will call this risky, but we think it's riskier just to churn out the same MMO that everyone has played before." Lye pointed to Guild Wars 2's scaling dynamic event system and its action combat as examples of how ArenaNet is forging its own path. Observing that player consumption of content is "virtually insatiable," Lye said that the team has developed tools to allow it to implement changes and additions to dynamic events in hours, not weeks. Is this industry stagnation coming to an end? Lye says yes: "We're finally seeing a point where companies realize that they're not going to create the next great MMO by just copying what's come before."
The Lawbringer: 7 tips on holding the security line
Pop law abounds in The Lawbringer, your weekly dose of WoW, the law, video games and the MMO genre. Mathew McCurley takes you through the world running parallel to the games we love and enjoy, full of rules, regulations, and esoteroic topics that slip through the cracks. Data breaches cost a lot of money, consumer satisfaction, and trust. In the MMO world, the trust that exists between the game's developer and the player is a tricky relationship to navigate and extremely fickle. Any number of wrong moves or postures can turn your profitable subscription MMO into a public relations nightmare forced to turn the wagon around mid-trip. Security compromises a large part of that MMO trust. Blizzard has had its fair share of security issues and trust problems between the players and itself. As the first MMO to have to battle hackers and not just gold farmers to the scale present in WoW, Blizzard had to invent its own way to do business in the world as it was -- an insecure place dominated by gray-market gold sellers and account hackers looking to sell to an eager, ready-to-spend playerbase. While WoW isn't the astronomically large service that some others affected by recent and notorious hacks are, it serves as an example of one of the big guys in the industry doing their best to navigate a minefield. Greg Boyd and Gary Kibel wrote an article for Gamasutra discussing seven steps to improved security in the online and gaming space. After reading over the article, I felt that many of the points discussed had Blizzard and WoW-specific analogs and real-world examples that might shed some light on the security concerns still out there, what WoW has accomplished in the MMO security space.
Blizzard hiring Diablo III network engineer to work on consoles
As 2012 rolls in, many gamers are rejoicing that they might make it to a year that Diablo III actually releases. Blizzard's action-RPG will certainly be a hit on the PC, although console fans may have more hope today that Diablo III could reach the shores of their platform. According to a job posting on Gamasutra, Blizzard is hiring a "Senior Software Engineer Console Network" to work on the Diablo team. It's a full-time position that will be in charge of designing and working on network systems for a console title. One of the requirements for the job is that the person have worked on a major Xbox 360 or PS3 title and have a good amount of experience with PSN and Xbox Live. While this is not the first indication that Blizzard is working on a console version of Diablo III, it certainly lends credence to the notion that the company is actively working on it. The studio previously said that the title "is probably coming to consoles."
Free-to-play spending poised to become the majority in the US
Free-to-play is on the rise -- we all knew that, but perhaps we didn't quite grasp how much it's gone up. Gamasutra reports that online players have boosted their F2P spending a whopping 24% this year over last, with F2P revenues cornering 47% -- versus 39% in 2010 -- of the MMO market in the US. Analysts predict that we're on track to see $1.2 billion spent on free-to-play MMOs in 2011. This surge of F2P spending isn't just confined to North America, however. Europe, Asia, and other emerging countries already see a majority of MMO spending dedicated to F2P versus other business models. The report states that US players spend 26 million hours daily in MMOs. Your average US player is 84% likely to be enjoying browser-based titles and 50% likely to be invested in a client-based game. NewZoo CEO Peter Warman thinks 2012 will be a decisive year for F2P in more ways than one: "Recent lay-offs and the sudden death of LEGO Universe are serious warnings for the MMO games industry. Success will also strongly depend on how MMO companies extend their unique gameplay and IP across other game platforms, specifically mobile."
BioWare Mythic isn't playing favorites with free-to-play and subscriptions
BioWare Mythic says that the market is big enough to support both free-to-play and subscription models -- and everything else in between. Talking with Gamasutra, GM Eugene Evans said that the company has to acknowledge that there are people who don't like F2P and those who do, and it's important to reach out to both groups. With Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes in beta testing, BioWare Mythic is testing the waters of free-to-play while preparing for Star Wars: The Old Republic's massive subscription launch. "We often got asked about taking our old games free-to-play, and in the case of Warhammer, we felt there was a different way of doing it," he opined, going on to say that the Mythic branch was learning a lot about polish and quality from the BioWare team. Evans commented on the observation that the widening global market means that no one business model is guaranteed to work in every country: "We're all still figuring out what free-to-play means, what the best way to monetize is, and how to run it as a business and engage players in ways they're prepared to accept."
Free Realms clocks 20 million players over two-and-a-half years [Update]
Sony Online Entertainment's most glorious shining star in its MMO library has another merit badge for its sash today. Free Realms just toppled the 20 million player mark, which includes all registrations since the game launched in 2009. This number reflects both PC and PlayStation 3 users. John Smedley is, of course, as pleased as punch: "This benchmark is an honor and a true testament of SOE's success with free-to-play games." It turns out that the PS3 was a godsend for the already hot title, as over three million additional console and PC players jumped on board the Free Realms train following new platform's release. While SOE didn't comment on how many of those new players stuck around after the entire system was taken offline for the better part of a month, this milestone speaks well to the game's popularity. The company is not releasing information as to how many of those 20 million are still actively playing the game. [Update: Clarified numbers on console players added after the PS3 launch.]
