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2012: The year of the MMO Kickstarter
Kickstarter is perhaps the biggest story in the world of gaming since the birth of the home video console or the integration of online components into consumer entertainment. No new product, innovation, or invention has carried with it such immense potential for shifting the way the industry plans, builds, and delivers its products. And with projects covering everything from hardware to companion apps, it's almost impossible now to imagine a gaming world without Kickstarter, even though it was our reality just a few short months ago. The legacy of Kickstarter is one that we're witnessing in real-time. Most of the major successful projects are slated for late 2013/early 2014 releases, giving us plenty of time to speculate on what may or may not go wrong with the crowd-funding model and the products it bears. Over the next year, games will either make it to market or they won't. Developers will squander their budgets or release on time. It's all up in the air. With that in mind, we thought now would be a good time to look back on some of the biggest MMO Kickstarter projects of 2012. The fate of some of these titles is inexorably tied to the fate of Kickstarter as a viable game-creating platform -- and maybe even crowd-sourcing as a whole.
Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond renamed to Starlite with beta incoming
In the wake of NASA successfully landing a robot rover on Mars recently, you might be wondering what happened to the NASA-themed MMO titled Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond. The first thing that's happened to it is that the project has been retitled Starlite. Project Whitecard Studios Inc. hopes the new name will be less cumbersome and also provide a better idea of what the game is about at a glance. Development has progressed on the game as well, with a beta expected to begin sometime before the end of 2012. Prospective players can experience the game on mobile devices and browsers to minimize barriers to entry. If you're interested in a game focused on the technical side of space travel and exploring to the boundary of our solar system, keep a close watch for news on the upcoming beta. [Source: Project Whitecard Studios Inc. press release]
Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond handing out trips to the (virtual) moon!
As Project Whitecard wraps up its Kickstarter fundraiser to raise funds for Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond, it wants to give a little extra incentive for any would-be donors. Anyone -- past, present and future -- who gives to the NASA project will be entered into a drawing for one of 50 free copies of Project Moonwalk. Project Moonwalk is a video game simulation of the 1969 Apollo 11 mission, designed to be not only fun but also educational. The game hits the high points of space race history, from Sputnik's launch to the lunar landing and subsequent return to Earth. Made with the Unreal Engine, Project Moonwalk will be released this fall. Currently, Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond has raised over $41,000 through Kickstarter, well exceeding its $25,000 goal. If you're interested in helping in the second great space race, then you have six days to get your pledge in to the cause before the fundraiser ends!
Gamebreaker's This Week in MMO: John Madden edition
Video game enthusiasts, pay attention. Each week, Gary Gannon and the crew at Gamebreaker.TV bring you the latest MMO news with their weekly show called This Week In MMO. The show rotates through a panel of personalities to bring you the latest news and opinions from MMO gaming. Sometimes these panels include reporters from our very own website, like Editor-in-Chief Shawn Schuster and Community Manager Rubi Bayer; even EVE expert Brendan Drain and SWTOR columnist Larry Everett have made appearances on the show. This week, Gary is joined by ZAM's Mike B aka Fony and Hillary "Pokket" Nicole to talk about PlanetSide 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic, subscription models, WildStar, Lord of the Rings Online, Mortal Online, Astronaut the MMO, and why women don't like voiceover. First up: PlanetSide 2 will be free-to-play, and SWTOR may be the last subscription MMO. Is anyone surprised? The panel weighs in on whether WildStar mechanics are more of the same or maybe this game has something new. Mike B and Pokket discuss how LotRO is making Isengard appear more epic. We also find out why Mortal Online territorial control is not for the faint of heart. Lastly, is anyone interested in being an astronaut anymore? If you like intelligent, fun discussion about the latest in MMOs (in video format), you should check out the recorded version of This Week In MMO right after the cut, or live every Wednesday evening!
Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond prepares to plumb the depths of space for adventure
While NASA's shuttle mission may be over and the International Space Station's future in doubt, there is one place that space exploration is moving forward: online. Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond is looking more promising by the day, especially now that the team has secured almost $40,000 via Kickstarter to help fund the project. So why did NASA agree to an MMO of all things? Daniel Laughlin, project manager of NASA's Learning Technologies, sees the two as having a lot in common. Talking with Universe Today, Laughlin said, "Based on the existing literature as well as my own experiences gaming, an MMO was the logical choice for a game project for NASA." While NASA is partnered with the development team, the space agency is not funding the game -- hence the use of Kickstarter to raise money for Astronaut. It takes place in 2035 as mankind is just starting to colonize the solar system, and it promises to use real physics and technology to simulate these efforts. Khal Shariff says that players should expect a lot of crafting, use of proper gear, and missions that flow together for a bigger storyline. Interestingly enough, it seems that even NASA has room for a few new heroes. "We have protagonists in the game, and I won't say much about them, because I don't want to spoil the opening scene of Chapter One," Shariff said. He hopes that players will enjoy the melding of science fiction with science fact: "We want you to sit down and curl up with one session and have a feeling like you had when you read the best short science fiction stories, especially like those of Clarke. There is plenty of adventure to plumb."
Astronaut: Moon, Mars, and Beyond developer talks educational mission
Astronaut: Moon, Mars, and Beyond has been in the news a lot lately, but just who are the folks behind the educational MMO from NASA and Project Whitecard? A new piece at Gamasutra sheds a bit of light on that as well as a few more details about the project as a whole. "I'm originally a developer," says Project Whitecard CEO Khal Shariff. "I thought, 'oh, I could be a developer for the rest of my life, or I could start my own company.'" That company has some pretty lofty goals for its first MMO, including reaching out to millions of kids worldwide and getting them interested in STEM education (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). "We are dedicated to using game technology to do things that, when somebody interacts with the game, it maybe leaves the world better or leaves somebody smarter," Shariff says.
Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond meets fundraising goals, updates FAQ
Astronaut: Moon, Mars, and Beyond has taken several small steps over the course of its short lifetime, but can it make one giant leap to a full-fledged release product? It's off to a decent start, judging by its Kickstarter fundraising tally. The devs have issued a press release proclaiming the success story and are drafting a FAQ document designed to get more information out there to potential investors (and eventually, players). The latest version of the FAQ is viewable on the official website, and we've included a few highlights for you here: The game is a follow-up to Moonbase Alpha (released in 2010) Project Whitecard and Wisdom Tools are the developers per a "Space Act Agreement" with NASA The target audience will be the 5-24 age and the gaming and science enthusiast markets The game will be available for iOS and Windows PC; other platforms are being considered Unreal Engine 3 is being used to develop the game A beta is planned for December 2012
Astronaut MMO may finally launch (pun intended)
Just when Astronaut: Moon, Mars, and Beyond was about to be written off as vaporware, NASA has popped back on the scene to announce some commercial backing for the project from developers Project Whitecard, Wisdom Tools, and Virtual Heroes. According to the first announcement over two years ago, the MMO aims for a demographic of players age 5 to 24, setting them up as astronauts who are training to explore deep into Earth's star system in the year 2035. Imagine Space Camp... but actually in space. To assist in funding the project, the developers of the upcoming MMO have created a Kickstarter page that includes a four-minute video explaining what the game is about. CEO for Wisdom Tools Dr. Sonny Kirkley explains in the video that the game is meant to be fun, but at the same time the designers "want the learning to be authentic." To that end, NASA has granted the developers full access to the rich history of the space program so that a true sense of realism can be achieved. The game has been developed with the Unreal Engine 3 to work on PC, iPad, and some yet-to-be-announced consoles. Look for the beta testing to start in December of 2012, and watch the full Kickstarter video after the break.
NASA releases new information on their upcoming MMO
Back in November, we talked about an exciting space MMO in the works from NASA, called Astronaut: Moon, Mars, and Beyond. The information they had at the time was pretty extensive, and left us anxious to find out more and try it out. We're getting our wish, as NASA has announced that Moonbase Alpha, a "mini-demo game', will be available on Steam around January of 2010. Moonbase Alpha gives a real look at NASA Constellation program design details that are planned by NASA for 2020. The full game is set farther in the future -- around the year 2035 -- "but the ability to explore our own near-future moon missions are in scope in the much-anticipated STEM-learning game sponsored by NASA Learning Technologies."
Take part in space exploration with NASA's coming MMO
How would you like to take a trip into space? No, not the stylized science fiction that Star Trek Online promises, or the fantasy-with-spaceships of Star Wars: the Old Republic. We've heard the announcement about NASA's coming space MMO, Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond, but the game hasn't been making the rounds in the usual gaming circuit. An in-depth article about the game's development and planned release is interesting for any fans of the rigors and challenges of spaceflight, not mention a look at a game that's moving far outside the usual realm of our genre. Much like America's Army, the goal of the game is to try and give players a taste of what it's like to actually work in the field being simulated. While the game is focusing on creating enjoyable gameplay first, players can expect to see landscapes and tasks grounded in solid scientific principles and based upon actual astronaut missions, complete with the real and tangible challenges of exploring inhospitable worlds. The article also discusses the MoonBase module, which is set to be launched as a free standalone component on Steam in January to serve as both a preview and a testbed for the game. Take a look at the full article for a closer examination of what the game could mean, and what it might be like to play a space game where you were less concerned about arming weapons and more concerned with understanding the world around you. (Or, if you have to, start imagining an expansion set in the 1980s adding the Soviet space program as a new faction. Which is only slightly less realistic.)
NASA MMOG Astronaut: Moon, Mars, and Beyond announced
Talk of NASA's upcoming MMOG has been circulating since last year, but it wasn't until March 20 that the agency formally announced its plans for Astronaut: Moon, Mars, and Beyond. They're going to partner with developers Information Place, Virtual Heroes and Project Whitecard to create the virtual world, which NASA hopes will build interest in space exploration among students.Financially, the game won't demand much taxpayer dollars; most money is coming from individual investors and sponsors, although NASA will be lending its experts to the game's development.Virtual Worlds News has dissected the announcement further. No word from beloved space explorer Buzz Lightyear just yet, but we'll keep an eye out.
