wes-yanagi
Latest
Lock in a cheap DC Universe Online subscription starting Feb. 8
A price drop for DC Universe Online's subscription already? Not quite, our costume-clad consumer friends. Senior producer Wes Yanagi did, however, detail a "promotional rate" of $30 for three months of service, beginning February 8, in a post on PlayStation Blog. Dubbed the "DC Universe Online Legend Plan," the promo offers 25 percent off the standard three-month rate of $42 and will allow players to continue paying that rate once the initial quarter-year subscription expires. The promotion ends on March 1, so get in while the getting's good! [Thanks, Wombat!]
DC Universe devs talk trinity, changes to the game world
Thirsting for more information on Sony Online Entertainment's DC Universe Online? Comic Book Resources has your long cool drink of water in the form of a lengthy studio visit recap. Last week, SOE invited a gaggle of game journalists to "DC University" for a tour of the game's development headquarters that included lectures from the likes of game director Chris Cao, creative director Jens Andersen, producer Wes Yanagi, and writer/resident DC legend Marv Wolfman. In between geekgasm-inducing peeks around the studio, the lucky invitees got some hands-on time with the upcoming title as well as the opportunity to ask the developers a few questions. When the discussion turned to combat, it became apparent that DCUO isn't going down the traditional MMO "holy trinity" path with its classes and builds. Cao states that while tank, healer, and DPS parties may be possible, they won't necessarily be the norm since "everybody's a damage dealer." Cao also talked about accessible and inaccessible portions of the game world and whether players would be able to unlock more locations as the title ages. "We've bottled the city, the idea is that somebody's going to have to unbottle it," he said, referring to the storyline angle in which Brainiac cuts off access to Metropolis' Daily Planet. While the devs were noncommittal in terms of specifics, Wes Yanagi commented that permanent changes to the world would likely occur via seasonal events and new players would be able to experience the pre-event world.
DC Universe Online and its appeal to female gamers
The days when comic books and video games were predominantly male pastimes are thankfully fading into memory, and the growing number of women gamers in the MMO space drives this point home. But are these games "female-friendly?" According to MTV Multiplayer, we may see Sony Online Entertainment reach out to women with DC Universe Online. Tracey John recently interviewed DCUO creative director Jens Andersen and senior producer Wes Yanagi about what the upcoming title may have to offer women beyond some of the in-your-face combat we've been seeing lately in the DCUO footage. Andersen says DC Universe Online won't just be about clobbering the hell out of your opponents. Rather healing, buffing, and support in the game are designed to be far more engaging, not simply stats shown in the interface. Andersen believes that these elements of gameplay, combined with extensive character customization will draw more women to the super-hero title.
Issues with DC Universe Online cross-play not entirely technical, also cultural
Will cross-platform play be a part of DC Universe Online come launch day? In light of a recent interview between Tracey John of MTV Multiplayer and DCUO devs Wes Yanagi and Jens Andersen, it's not looking too good.While the official answer was more of a "We'll see." the overall direction of the two developers' response to the cross-play question was to punctuate the social discrepancies between PC MMO players and console users. They cited the PC MMO ritual of getting to know someone in text chat before speaking via TeamSpeak or Ventrilo, then followed that with the console experience: Microphones, matchmaking and lots of subsequent smacktalking. A fair point.Although, on the other hand, Playstation 3's don't come with a standard headset like Xbox 360's. In fact, many users seem to have been adjusting just fine to text in the recently launched Home service -- although there seems to be plenty of griefing. So while console and PC MMO players may not blend well as is, the PS3 is a bit of an anomaly when it comes to communique in the first place. So who knows? Did you enjoy this? We've donned our capes and tights to explore SOE's DC Universe Online in-depth. Come explore more of Metropolis and Gotham with your friends at Massively!
DCUO interview details cross-platform play and rumored release dates
Our sister site Joystiq had the opportunity to sit down the DC Universe Online's Senior Producer Wes Yanagi at the New York Comic-con, and cleared up some of our current curiosities about the game. Firstly, Yanagi took the opportunity to debunk any rumors of a later 2009 or early 2010 release date for the game and stated, "I would say that we don't have a date right now. There's really no date." That sounds pretty cut and dry to us, and it makes sense considering SOE hasn't even moved the game out of alpha testing yet.Additionally, Yanagi also commented on cross-platform play between PC and PS3 versions, stating that it's not in the game as of right now. However, it's something SOE would like to do, but simply can't confirm. Since there apparently aren't any advantages between PS3 controllers and keyboard/mouse combos, we'd like to see cross-platform play make it into the game.There's much more great stuff in the interview, so check it out if you're looking forward to DC Universe Online as much as we are! Did you enjoy this? We've donned our capes and tights to explore SOE's DC Universe Online in-depth. Come explore more of Metropolis and Gotham with your friends at Massively!
Joystiq interview: Wes Yanagi on creating DC Universe Online
UPDATED: We've updated a few interview answers with clarifications from Wes Yanagi after the break.While there's been a lot press coverage on DC Universe Online, a variety of topics have emerged that we felt needed some solid "yes" and "no" answers: Will there be cross-platform play between the PS3 and PC versions? Is the game really coming out as early as "late 2009 / early 2010?" If we create a character with stretchy appendages, can we stretch everything?Yesterday, we put the questions to DCUO senior producer Wes Yanagi during a hands-on with pre-alpha code -- the same code playable on the show floor at this weekend's New York Comic Con, in case you're wondering. He debriefed us on the current situation regarding cross-platform play, character customization and a whole slew of other interesting stuff -- including how his current gaming (Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy Tactics) is affecting the development process.We'd like to give you an audio option but, unfortunately, the recording conditions of the room were less than ideal. Hit the break for the whole thing in text form. %Gallery-43826%
DC Universe Online's revenue model and development discussed
DC Universe Online's senior producer Wes Yanagi recently spoke with Gamasutra about a ton of things related to the supermen title, but the big question asked was related to RMT. While he couldn't say whether or not the game would be based on a subscription or microtransactional model, Yanagi did say he thought microtransaction models had huge potential. To illustrate his point Yanagi brought up Free Realms, saying that SOE will probably see a financial success there. This echoes many opinions convinced that SOE is testing the waters with Free Realms in order to see what does and doesn't work in a western market.To us, it sounds like there's a fairly good chance we'll see some kind of microtransaction system for DC Universe Online. And why not? Superhero games with lots of costume customization make for good itemization, such as the Cyborg Booster pack in City of Heroes.It wasn't all RMT and business model discussion, though. Yanagi also brings his the team's desire to finish all the game's features before it ever hits beta, which we think is a wonderful idea. Between bad beta experiences and their effect on games and seemingly half-cooked features in launched titles, it's nice to see developers paying attention.
