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SOE confirms studio closures, cancels The Agency
Following earlier reports of studio closures and mass layoffs, Sony Online Entertainment has issued an official statement regarding its "strategic decision to reduce costs and streamline its global workforce." The company confirmed the closings of its Denver, Seattle and Tucson studios and the elimination of 205 jobs. Additionally, SOE announced the cancellation of The Agency, the long-delayed, cross-platform spy MMO under development at SOE Seattle. The company said it's discontinuing production of the title to "focus development resources on delivering two new MMOs based on its renowned PlanetSide and EverQuest properties, while also maintaining its current portfolio of online games." SOE added that the Denver and Tucson studios' projects would be transitioned over to its San Diego headquarters. The company's full statement is posted after the break.
SOE's The Agency delayed until late 2011
Whatever happened to The Agency? Inquiring minds want to know, and since Sony Online Entertainment's internal memos haven't been given the WikiLeaks treatment, we'll have to take company president John Smedley at his word. "There was a moment in time in our company where we looked at our own stuff with a clear eye and saw we have to do better," Smedley told Kotaku in a recent interview. Translation: it ain't ready 'til it's ready. While the spy MMO's launch would seem to be quite a ways off, fans should be glad to hear that it hasn't been shelved entirely. We haven't seen hide nor hair of the title since E3 2010, but hopefully the extra time will serve to boost the game's stock in the same vein as SOE's other upcoming MMO. DC Universe, originally scheduled to launch last November, has apparently benefited from the extra test cycles if the scuttlebutt surrounding yesterday's NDA-drop is to be believed.
The Agency not due until second half of 2011
Despite earlier intentions for a 2010 launch, it seems that Sony Online Entertainment's spy MMO The Agency has been delayed once more, this time being pushed into the second half of 2011. In a recent interview, Sony Online Entertainment president John Smedley noted as much, saying the game still "needed a lot of work." "There was a moment in time in our company where we looked at our own stuff with a clear eye and saw we have to do better," Smedley explained. "DC Universe was held for a year-and-a-half from when we wanted to launch it and now I'm very happy with it." And we don't blame him -- when we last played The Agency it felt a bit underdone. Hopefully the folks at SOE Seattle will take the extra year to make a truly worthwhile multiplayer experience.
Fan Faire 2010: DCUO panel video offers more superpowered info
With an exciting backstory trailer having recently been released at San Diego Comic-Con, many have been anxiously scanning for any new scrap of information about DC Universe Online -- especially with release coming soon! Thankfully, for those who were unable to attend this year's Fan Faire, the team members at Sony Online Entertainment have posted video from the panel to their Facebook page. These three videos offer a great overview of the game for everyone from relative newcomer to DC devoted, as well as explaining things in a bit more detail than we'd previously heard. There's also a brief Q&A with the audience afterward that may or may not answer some of your own questions. If you're curious for more news about DC Universe Online (or perhaps still on the fence about pre-ordering) then be sure to check out the hot new panel videos after the break! [Via Misanthrope at DCUOSource]
Preview: The Agency's Player vs Player mode
For me, the selling point of MMOs is the huge, open world; a world full of other actual human beings who I can interact with and who can interact with me (almost like real life!). So when I snuck in some time with The Agency at Sony Online Entertainment's E3 booth this year, it was hard for me to shake the feeling that I was playing an Unreal Tournament-style, Ijji.com shooter (one powered by a modified Unreal Engine 3, no less) rather than an MMO. Sure, the Deathmatch trappings of my demo didn't help, but neither did lead designer Rory McGuire's explanation of how the game's Player vs Player works. Essentially, interactions with other players are instanced into online multiplayer matches (30 players max), as seen here. The results of these battles are said to be reflected in the game's hub world -- locations can be taken by "U.N.I.T.E." or "Paragon" in multiplayer and those locations will show up as belonging to one of the game's two factions. From what I played, however, I'm not confident that what I've come to expect from an MMO -- the feeling of being in one huge world with other human beings -- is present in The Agency.%Gallery-3830%
SOE trademarks 'The Agency Covert Ops'
In the world of videogames, trademarks can mean just about anything. So when Sony Online Entertainment filed for the trademark to The Agency Covert Ops it's no surprise that rumors of a name change were floating around, especially since we haven't seen hide nor hair of The Agency for some time now. We contacted SOE for a statement. Here's their response: "We are always trying to plan ahead for our titles in development and at times that means acquiring TM's or URL's that we feel we may want to own in the future. At this point SOE has made no official announcement regarding this Covert Ops TM and any information in the marketplace about it is premature." What could this mean? Well, it could be a name change, but SOE has several studios from Seattle to L.A. down into Tucson and Austin, too. So, while it's very possible that Covert Ops could be a name change, our bet would be on either a wholly different game or potentially a future expansion. That's just our guess, of course. And there's always the possibility we may never know.
SOE Seattle staff departures shouldn't affect The Agency
In the wake of the recent layoffs at SOE, we're now getting word from Eurogamer that some voluntary departures had happened at the beginning of the month as well. Studio Director and Executive Producer Matt Wilson, Art Director Corey Dangel, and Producer John Smith had all left the Seattle studio to form a new venture called Detonator Games. This Seattle studio is currently producing the upcoming espionage MMO The Agency.Eurogamer also states that a source "in the Seattle game development community" suggested to them that this means some major changes to The Agency, possibly delaying it beyond its projected 2010 release date. SOE responded to that rumor by saying, "The Agency is not undergoing a reboot of any sorts - that is incorrect. The team in Seattle is still working diligently on this project and we're looking forward to showing you new content in the future."Whether these departures will affect the production of The Agency or not, we'll just have to wait and see. What we do know for sure is that the game is playable and looks quite good, according to a demo we saw at E3 earlier this year. Best of luck to the SOE Seattle team and to Detonator Games for whatever project they may be developing.
The Agency's character advancement stays true to skill-based gameplay
In most MMOs, we're used to our time investment leading to a character that is overwhelmingly powerful, compared to a player that is fresh out of the gates. For example, a level 30 is going to thrash a level 10 in World of Warcraft or Warhammer Online, barring gross incompetence from the higher level. However, The Agency's developers are making sure that a ranked-up character isn't guaranteed to beat down a rookie in PvP combat, as SOE Seattle game designer and writer Matt Staroscik detailed in a recent interview.This doesn't mean that there's no point to leveling up a toon -- Staroscik reminded us that players will gain new skills and weapon techniques as they play, and the ability to equip different gear. These perks will make an experienced player a tad more deadly, but a newcomer that takes quickly to the shooter gameplay should be able to hold their own. It sounds quite similar to Call of Duty 4's multiplayer advancement.Staroscik also mentioned the "alias" outfits that we've heard about in the past. The system sounds like it could provide a nice change from being a heavily-armed bad-ass, provided that there's some variety to the missions that come up.
E308: Matt Wilson briefs us on the state of The Agency
We had a fantastic chance to talk with Matt Wilson about The Agency during E3. While a great deal of the footage they showed was largely identical to the footage we'd previously seen, many of Matt's insights about the direction they're taking The Agency in were quite illuminating. From PvP to operatives to vehicular combat and the eventual beta, Matt was generous enough with both his time and knowledge, and let us in on lots of great news and background. If you've been hungry for more information on some of the different aspects of this upcoming game, be sure to join us after the break for a great overview on this hot upcoming SOE property.
E308: Operatives and the in-game economy in The Agency
As part of our long talk with Matt Wilson from SOE Seattle at E3, we got more information on operatives and the plans for the player-based economy coming in The Agency. As you may recall, there was a lot of confusion on just what type of a role operatives would play, based on the talk of RMT. As such, we were glad to get a chance to get some further information on just what the plans were for the in-game economy as well as a bit more on operatives.Will there be some type of a player-based economy?Yes. The economy is money and items, and alternately operatives. The way all these MMOs evolve it's the rare currency, whatever that rare currency is -- like 30 iron keys in Asheron's Call -- that ends up being the thing that players find important. Money ends up usually not being the factor when it comes to in-game economies. And so operatives are what is going to drive the economy in The Agency, because that is the rare system of collection. Once I have the Black Mamba card, and you want the Black Mamba card, then that's where the value in it is for a player. It's all about getting the fun and unique items that will help you play the game better.
Massively goes to Seattle: A wrap-up of ION 2008
It's been a great week on the west coast, for the second annual MMO-centric Seattle conference. Now called ION, everything we've heard has indicated that this week's event was a tremendous success. Massively was there in force, and below you'll find the ins and outs of the sessions and meetups we attended. Focusing on the community managerOne of the strengths of MMOs are their communities. The stronger a community around an MMO is the more likely that game is to last into the foreseeable future. State of online games keynoteGlobalization is one of the session tracks here at ION 08, as befitting an industry seeking the holy grail of a truly global marketplace for online games. Tuesday's keynote was delivered by Won II Suh of Neowiz, a Korean online games company with 20 titles currently supported or in development by 1000 employees across 8 regions around the world. John Smedley keynote shows off Free Realms and The AgencyWhen you think of Sony Online Entertainment, what comes to mind? I'm sure that Everquest, Everquest 2, Star Wars Galaxies and Planetside are some of the titles which most people think about. From what I've recently seen in John Smedley's keynote at ION 08 that's all going to be changing in the near future. SOE Seattle studio tourOur mission: infiltrate SOE's Seattle studio, obtain intel on The Agency, regale the awesomely hyperactive lead designer Hal Milton with questions from left field. MMOs and the television content model (SGW)Joseph Ybarra, SVP of strategic operations at Firesky, the publishing subsidiary of Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment, presented a session today at ION 08 about the Stargate Worlds production model that borrows heavily from Hollywood and TV models.
ION 08: SOE Seattle studio tour
Our mission: infiltrate SOE's Seattle studio, obtain intel on The Agency, regale the awesomely hyperactive lead designer Hal Milton with questions from left field. Operatives were dispatched, urban primitive ladies were photographed, and foyer introductions were presided over by a really cool gun. Stay tuned for more news about living the life of an elite agent, and check out the gallery for tour photos featuring concept art from The Agency, giant robots, and a not-so-secret reveal.%Gallery-22924%
Cross-platform support still up in the air for The Agency
While it hasn't been completely ruled out at this point, SOE hasn't made a decision on whether to make The Agency cross-platform compatible between the PS3 and it's distant cousin, the PC. Lead designer Hal Milton said, "we're evaluating cross-platform support" and then completely closed the topic with the declarative "we're not prepared to make a statement at this time." The Agency isn't the only game set to release on PS3 and PC without the confirmation of dual-platform support between the two. Seeing as how we're breaching a new frontier here, we are beginning to wonder if PS3 gamers can, or even want to live a happy co-existence with their PC brethren. Although critically flawed, Shadowrun seemed to offer a pleasurable cross-platform experience between the PC and the Xbox 360. What do you think? Can SOE pull it off with The Agency? %Gallery-3823%
