Richard Garriott
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TR PvP to incorporate clan-captured CPs
Richard Garriott, founder of the legendary Ultima series and Executive Producer for Tabula Rasa, gave a lecture this evening to the Washington D.C. chapter for the Association of Computer Machinery. Of course, being your personal guide into the complex world of MMOs, we were on-hand to cover the event. While you'll have to wait until tomorrow to see the full write-up, we couldn't resist posting this juicy bit of information that fell from the lips of one Lord British.Addressing the issue of the near-constant feedback cycle that MMOs enjoy by virtue of being in a persistent state of development and refinement, Garriott cited Tabula Rasa's PvP as an element of the game that was being moved up the ladder of development priorities. PvP in the game's current state essentially amounts to guilds camping teleporters and hospitals, waiting for members of warring clans to appear, where they can be taken by surprise and slaughtered. Garriott's vision for the future of the PvP system is set to feature TR's popular Capture Point gameplay mechanic. Clans will be to capture CPs for themselves, generating money based on the activities of the NPCs within the CP. This will have the dual effect of giving warring clans something to do besides spawn-camping as well as give a context for PvP that makes slightly more sense within the lore. It's always been a bit of a rough sell having fellow members of the Allied Free Sentients slaughtering each other, but the idea of clans trying to control commerce is somehow more palatable. Again, we'll have a full write-up tomorrow.
Tabula Rasa soon to usher in the Holidays
In a hot from the front lines communique, the fine folks at TenTonHammer are reporting that Tabula Rasa's first holiday extravaganza is on the test server. The tone of the post suggests that Garriott and Company are trying to be politically correct as they head towards their first yearly holiday event. Maybe a little too PC perhaps? The event is being called a "Seasonal Holiday Observance." Note the use of the word "holiday" as opposed to any verbiage that directly connects it to "Christmas." Or is that their intent at all?We've seen this growing trend of calling Christmas something else in the United States in order to appeal to as many ethnic groups as possible. Frankly, I believe most of the time it's nothing more than pure marketing hogwash. In this case however it actually works because in the scheme of Tabula Rasa's fictional lore the last remnants of humanity is truly a conglomeration of whoever could make it off the planet before the vile Bane nuked into oblivion. It really is nothing more than a rag-tag group of humans where race, color, creed and religion have all become insignificant in the scheme of things (an alien invasion and total destruction of Earth).Furthermore, TenTonHammer reports the appearance of Festive Seasonal Holiday Observance Flora (not "Christmas" trees) throughout many of the zones (i.e. the Twin Pillars Outpost, Foreas Base, Gangus Outpost, and Fort Virgil to name a few). Plus, a one Sergeant Santa (very cute!) is tossing out Secular Head Dressings (not "Christmas" hats). No firm date has been given as to when we should expect to see the S.H.O. on live servers, but as stealthy as that ole Kris Kringle and his flying gift-giving mobile is... you'd be wise to keep an eye peeled to TR's website. It may drop at any moment.
Richard Garriott to speak at GWU on December 10th
Just a heads up to any massively multiplayer nuts living in the DC Metro area, Destination Games head honcho and MMO luminary Richard Garriott will be speaking to the DC Chapter of the Association for Computer Machinery on December 10th at George Washington University from 7 to 9 p.m. EST. Garriott will be talking about some of the more technical aspects of modern game development, getting into the nitty gritty of design documentation, programming techniques, and UI creation. The lecture is free, so even if you just want to come to sit and swoon at the infamous Lord British, you're welcomed to do so.Of course, if you're from the other side of the country or just can't make it, you can check back here to Massively where we'll have a write-up of the lecture for your viewing pleasure.
Garriott says too many Beta testers hurt Tabula Rasa
Gamasutra caught up with well-known designer Richard Garriott at the Independent Games Conference held late last month in Austin, TX. During the event he was asked what lessons he took away from the marketing of Tabula Rasa; his response was a bluntly negative appraisal of their Beta test. Too many testers were added too early, in his opinion, which created a current of negative views in the community and soured a lot of potential players on the game. The people who did participate in the beta, we've had to go back to and say 'look, look, we promise: we know it wasn't fun two months ago, but we fixed all that. Really, come try it again.' We've had to go out and develop free programs to invite those people back for free before they go buy it. So the beta process, which we used to think of as a QA process, is really a marketing process.Massively, of course, was there as well. Check out Elizabeth Harper's great writeup of the keynote in full.
Stereotypes, women in promotional art, and Prince Rurik
Via the magic of our tips page, we were recently submitted a link that takes a very humorous look at women in promotional videogame art. Guild Wars in particular has always taken this to ridiculous extremes; from wallpaper, to box art, to the entire website, really.And yet -- it's marketing. And marketing will always do what they think will sell best, even if it alienates other potential customers; whatever will sell to the majority. If Blizzard thought World of Stardiablo 4 would sell best with box art consisting of David Hasselhoff wearing only speedos (hey, after seeing Mr. T playing a night elf mohawk? anything can happen), that's what we'd get.
Live at the Independent Game Conference: Richard Garriott keynote
This morning your cheerful (only because we've had enough caffeine) Massively staffers are reporting to you live from the Independent Game Conference in Austin, Texas where Richard Garriott is about to deliver the morning's keynote address. For those of you who aren't sure why you should care, let me give you a mini-bio: Richard Garriott helped pioneer the MMO industry with the launch of Ultima Online a decade ago. If that that doesn't ring any bells, all I can say is that you could trace the heritage of most massively multiplayer games today directly back to UO. This morning, Garriott is going to be speaking on good game design through research. Curious to hear his thoughts on the subject? Keep reading for our live coverage of his keynote.
Explore Richard Garriott's secret dungeons
Ever wanted to own a medieval-esque castle with secret passages and a dungeon? Produce one of the most significant gaming franchises in history and that dream could become a reality.The HGTV show Secret Spaces was guided by gaming industry eccentric Richard Garriott, aka Lord/General British, through Garriott's Austin home. Garriott became extravagantly wealthy through his Ultima series of computer games, and has spent some of his money building a house/castle hybrid called "Britannia Manor." The manor is full of secret passageways, hidden rooms, and strange artifacts.We have the YouTube video here for you. Unfortunately, they didn't show where he keeps his Sputnik satellite.[Via Joystiq]
Today's most labyrinthine video: Lord British's house
Fans of real physical spaces inspired by video game logic might enjoy this ten-minute feature on Richard "Lord British" Garriott's home. He calls it "Brittania Manor" (appropriately enough), and the house has enough trap doors and hidden rooms to earn it a feature of Home & Garden's "Secret Spaces" television program.It's an adventurer's dream house, only made possible by the deep pockets of one of the industry's most revered designers. As much as we covet the house, we have to wonder how good the security is, since it has fallen victim to theft in the past.[Via GameSetWatch]
One Shots: A moment in history
Today we've captured a little Easter egg in Tabula Rasa just for you. There are numerous computers throughout the game and most of them are usable -- which means you can see interesting little messages on them. Some are bits of story or lore, others simply give the world and environment a bit more depth than it would have had otherwise. This one, however, is a blast from the past! Using a particular computer in the Cormon base in Raja Gorge fires up Akalabeth, Richard Garriott's first game, published in 1980. (Though how the NCsoft crew managed to misspell Akalabeth with the original game disks hanging in their lobby I'm not sure...!)Do you have a screenshot of your own that you think expresses a unique or memorable moment in your favorite MMO? Send them to us with a description (including game name and location) and you may see it posted here for tomorrow's One Shots. %Gallery-9798%
General British wants you for a trivia contest
To celebrate the successful launch of Tabula Rasa, the folks at NCsoft have set up a surprise in-game event ... for tonight! General British / Richard Garriott will be on-hand for the AFS Sci-Fi Trivia Contest to be held in-game throughout the evening, and across the servers. The release alerting us to the event included this quote from the man himself: "I wanted to quickly do something fun in-game as a thank you to the players who have made this such a smooth launch. We have continued NCsoft's track record for incredibly successful launches and player interest and excitement is higher than we expected in both North America and Europe. The battlefields are full of players taking down Bane invaders & we're having a blast kicking alien butt."No word on where in-game you'll be able to play, but one can only assume details will be given out in the public channels. Here are the times for each server: Centaurus 1pm – Central Pegasus – 6pm Central Orion – 8 pm Central Cassiopeia – 9pm Central Bring your trivia caps and you could find yourself winning some credits. Good luck!
Massively interviews: Starr Long of Tabula Rasa
Two weeks before the launch of NCsoft's latest MMO, Tabula Rasa, Massively had a chance to sit down and chat with the game's producer, Starr Long, in their Austin offices. We discuss Tabula Rasa's past, present, and future -- including a first glimpse at the game's ambitious expansion plans. So what's there to look forward to in Tabula Rasa? Alien-human hybrid races, a major expansion a year (each featuring an entirely new planet), and major content patches every few months. Need to know more? Keep reading!
24 hours of Tabula Rasa: Hour 18
Well, it's 1:00 AM here on the East Coast in the US and you know what that means! No, it's not time to go to sleep, silly -- it's time for the next in our 24 hours of Tabula Rasa giveaways! This hour we're giving away a spiffy Tabula Rasa hat, and a nifty poster given to us by the powers-that-be at NCsoft. As with all the other contests, this one is nice and easy to get into. No messy screencaps, no "here's what I did on my TR vacation" or any of that. That's right! For the price of one measly comment, you can win a stylin' TR hat or a killer poster and be the envy of your gaming friends. You just can't beat free swag!Oh, and hey, just in case you're joining the party late, don't forget that you can still comment on the first giveaway to enter for a chance to win an iPod. That way you've got your tunes with you when you're out blowing things into the next life in TR. Sweet deal, no?
24 hours of Tabula Rasa: Hour 15
Guess what we've got to give away next in our launch day extravaganza? No really, go ahead, guess. Nope, not an iPod, we're already giving away one of those right now. No! Not one of those -- where would we get one of those things at this time of night?Nope, we're giving away a free copy of Tabula Rasa (!), a poster of that exact same game, and... (wait for it) an oversized game box! Yes, videogame retailers everywhere use them as display units, but if you win our little contest, you can use it for... umm... whatever you want.You've got to be 18 or older and a US resident to enter (official rules here), and this hour, let's have you put a comment on this post telling us what your character's name in Tabula Rasa will be if you won this copy of the game. Just like the real game, no obscenity, but unlike the real game, you can break character and put any name you want down below. It won't have any effect on whether you win or not (this is a random drawing), but since I have to read all of those crazy comments, maybe you'll at least put something that makes me laugh. Oh, and don't forget that "General British" is already taken by the dude in the picture here. You've got until 11PM EST -- go!And as always, we're just an hour away from yet another contest in our 24 hours of Tabula Rasa. Only 9 more to go!
24 hours of Tabula Rasa: Hour 8
Ding 3pm (grats!), and that means it's time for yet another launch day contest! This hour, we've got three prizes, one of which that may not seem spectacular at first, but listen, 3pm, don't be so hard on yourself -- you never know what uses people might come up with for an oversized game box.That's right -- this hour we're giving away not only a copy of the game to one person, and a shiny game poster to a second, but one person will receive an oversized game box (sans actual game). Sure, you won't be able to actually play Tabula Rasa, but maybe you can convince your friends that Garriott gave you a giant-sized copy by accident, and the reason you can't play online with them is because your computer's DVD slot is too small for the gargantuan game.Anyway, rules are as usual -- be in the US, over 18, and leave a comment (only one!) on this here post within an hour (that's by 4pm EST), and we'll pick three random winners to win one prize each. Maybe you'll get a game, or maybe you'll get an oversized copy of the game box without the game itself. That's the way life is!And stay tuned every hour on the hour for the rest of the day (and for the next two weeks after that, incidentally) for your chance at winning more cool stuff from our brand new site.
Tabula Rasa end of beta event
As the game nears it's launch date, Tabula Rasa is planning an all-out war to end their beta. The dev team will be playing this Friday, October 26, 2007 between 10 PM and midnight central time, and players will get the chance to frag away at those that designed the game. I can't imagine it will be easy to do, but even Richard Garriott (they're calling him General British on the TR dev floor now) will be there fighting along with his troops.If you have not gotten a chance to try the game yet, beta keys are no longer available, I'm sorry to say. But cheer up. The game itself will soon be out, and you only have to wait until November 2nd for soon to become now.
Tabula Rasa shows off heavy weapons
Tabula Rasa has been a long time coming. Thankfully, it recently started beta testing and we're looking forward to getting a solid look of the end product by E3. When Richard "Lord British" Garriott (who we recommend not robbing) showed the game last year, it was coming along and looked like a perfectly fine alternative to the fantasy filled orc-lands we've gotten used to in the MMO market.In the video, after the break, we get a look at Tabula Rasa's weapons. Graphics have never been a big selling point of MMOs (ask Vanguard what happens when you try do that), so we're just waiting to get a real feel for the questing and gameplay once the beta reports get out. Personally, we still like the Team Fortress 2 heavy weapons video much better.
Does the industry need to give WoW competition?
Right now WoW stands as the big boy on the online gaming scene. It will take quite a bit to close the gap between it and the other -- some could argue the inferior -- titles. Mark Ward at BBC News wrote an article on the subject of competition to World of Warcraft last week, and it raises some interesting issues. Mark interviewed Funcom game director Gaute Godoger, the man responsible for the upcoming Age of Conan MMO. Gaute believes that competition is needed for WoW because it has such a stranglehold on the market right now. Normally, I would have to agree with him, since competition breeds innovation. But in the case of Blizzard, they are competing with themselves for innovation, which is why WoW constantly comes up with new and fresh concepts and content that other games strive to copy. From where I sit, the company appears to be driven by the internal desire to put forth the best game possible, and so I see little in the market today that would have the potential to actually compete with their ethic.
Lord British likes WoW
Well, okay, maybe he doesn't *like* it like it, but Richard Garriott (aka Lord British) certainly appreciates the existence of the World of Warcraft. In an article I came across over at the WoW Vault on IGN, the creator of the Ultima series, and the Ultima Online MMO, discusses his feelings on the juggernaut that is WoW. The article quotes an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, where Garriott states, "We commonly get the question, is World of Warcraft a big competitor that might hurt our sales? It really turns out to be quite the opposite." He then goes on to comment that MMO players typically will only play a game or two at a time, but then move on after a year. I've been happily playing WoW since February of 2004, so I'm into my third year of the game, and nothing else has caught my eye in the MMO market. There are a couple of games on the horizon, but of the folks I'm playing WoW with, the majority have been around from the get-go. Are we just crotchety old-timers who won't admit that the average player only sticks around for a year? Is what Lord British says true? Did any of you ditch other MMO's to come to WoW, or have you ditched WoW for other MMO's after playing for a year?
New Tabula Rasa gameplay vid
NCsoft has released a new gameplay video from Tabula Rasa, the forthcoming MMORPG from Richard Garriott's Destination Games. You'll want to crank up the brightness, as this is one dark and muddy looking featurette. Watch it on GameSpot, or download it from File Front. See also: Joystiq E3 impressions: Tabula Rasa, Lord British to receive lifetime achievement award
Lord British Defies Blizzard's Throne
Longtime gamers will immidiately recognize the name of Richard Garriott, a.k.a. Lord British, creator of the original Ultima series & MMO pioneer. After several years out of the spotlight, Garriott has teamed up with NCSoft, makers of CIty of Heroes & Lineage, for a new MMO called Tabula Rasa. In this audio interview from TGDaily.com, the Lord talks about his vision for a next-generation MMO and why he doesn't fear competing with Blizzard's juggernaut.I've played Garriott's games for around 20 years now, in one form or another, and I'd love to see him at the forefront of online gaming again, but a lot of things have changed since Ultima Online, and it will be curious to see how Garriott's new venture fares. The interview can be found here.
