big-content

Latest

  • "Icelandic Model" is ideal for small MMO start-ups, says Alexander Gianturco

    by 
    Justin Olivetti
    Justin Olivetti
    05.20.2010

    When Iceland isn't belching volcanic ash that brings sky travel to its knees, it's kicking butt in the MMO world. EVE Online is widely seen as one of the greatest MMO success stories -- a small yet incredibly complex title from a small-fry studio (CCP) that's seen steady growth over the years instead of the typical rise, crest and fall of most other titles. In a recent chat with Gamasutra, Alexander "The Mittani" Gianturco followed up his talk at GDC 2010 by outlining just why CCP's business model may be the Rosetta Stone for future games to follow. According to Gianturco, the crash-and-burn of many MMOs is due to the insistence that their games stick to the "Big Content" model (à la World of Warcraft), which requires a huge amount of resources and time before launch. He says that this is "near suicidal" for most studios to pursue.