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PAX East 2011: Massively interviews RIFT's Scott Hartsman
With the launch of RIFT still fresh, members of the Trion team packed their bags and flew to Boston to attend PAX East. Even though they didn't have a booth, their "We're not in Azeroth anymore" banner made their presence known. In addition, Community Manager Cindy "Abigale" Bowens hosted a party in Boston to celebrate the launch with players and fans. Massively had a chance to sit down and talk with Trion CCO and RIFT Executive Producer Scott Hartsman about launch day, security, plans for the future, and a whole lot more. Read on for the full interview!
The Soapbox: Don't hate the game, hate the copy
Disclaimer: This editorial column is 100% the opinion of the writer and does not necessarily reflect that of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column. If you ask a remarkably high number of players, World of Warcraft is a negative influence on the face of MMOs. Not necessarily for the reasons that many players, current and former, will claim; the complaints of this group have nothing to do with content or overarching design philosophy. No, World of Warcraft has ruined things just by virtue of its very existence. It's WoW's fault that we've seen a flood of games that are, essentially, the same game with a slight twist (WoW in space, WoW with more PvP, WoW in the mind of Derek Smart, and so forth). It's WoW's fault that these games have failed, and it's even more WoW's fault when other games fail. And despite everything, these claims aren't seen as ridiculous. They're often taken very seriously. But really, WoW isn't to blame for its clones or the failures of other games. The fault for those lies exactly where logic would imply.
Craig Morrison on success and failure
Last week's Craig Morrison blog topic brought a wave of interesting comments from readers and writers alike, illustrating why MMO number-crunching is always a hot-button issue. The Age of Conan game director takes another crack at a controversial topic with his followup post, and attempts to deconstruct the logic of fans who insist on labeling games "successes" or "failures" despite not having the information necessary to make such a judgment. "Whether any title that displays a numbers trend similar to another can be deemed a success or a failure depends entirely on the budget, ambition and infrastructure of the project," he writes. While that's common sense to most folks, there are still some who insist that AoC and Warhammer are "failures" despite the fact that they remain open for business and profitable. Morrison acknowledges that both titles fell short of their ultimate subscriber goals, but also cautioned that equating lower-than-desired numbers to failure "is a very dangerous assumption to make."
Craig Morrison talks MMO numbers (or the lack thereof)
Ah, the numbers game. It's often quite comical when it comes to MMORPGs and their die-hard fans (or detractors, as the case may be). Aside from Blizzard, very few MMO development houses release real numbers relating to their playerbases, and forum jousters are thus relegated to citing guesstimates and, in most cases, pure supposition sprung from the likes of wildly inaccurate measuring tools such as Xfire or the late MMOGchart. Funcom executive producer and Age of Conan game director Craig Morrison weighs in on the perplexing state of MMO number-crunching on his personal blog, offering a bit of insight as to why hard data is, well, hard to come by. He cites a lack of context for the near-universal reticence of developers when it comes to publicizing their community sizes. "Without standard definitions everything ends up in that vague, murky and entirely subjective middle ground... and a middle ground that very few could reasonably be expected to accept as being worthwhile exploring in a business sense," he writes. So what's his solution? In broad terms, he mentions a rating system, citing television's Nielsen metrics as well as cinema box office figures as semi-comparable standards. While such a system probably wouldn't stop the endless fan bickering, it might at least provide an answer to the question of how each individual company defines success.
The Daily Grind: When have you felt a sense of completion?
By their very nature, MMOs discourage being done. Not necessarily in an insidious sense -- but when your game relies upon people playing it for months on end, there's a natural emphasis on letting tasks stretch off to infinity. But while it's certainly possible to wind up with almost astonishingly long-running tasks, such as assembling the Relic Weapons in Final Fantasy XI, with enough persistence you eventually arrive at the day when you have your brand-new Excalibur. It's almost enough to just kill something with it and then declare yourself done. Even with an emphasis on long-term goals, there come certain points when you feel that your character has finished everything you want to do -- or perhaps points when the player behind the character just feels done. You are at the apex of power and knowledge, and there's no new challenges that won't be more of the same. In what moments have you felt a sense of completion and finality? Has that been your signal to quit, take a break, or just set a new goal for yourself? Are you happier with games that let you achieve several smaller goals, or one huge goal that feels more significant when you hit it?
tap tap tap reveals secrets of how to succeed in the App Store
tap tap tap, developers of a number of popular iPhone apps, recently posted an entry on their in-house blog about how they made their most recent launch -- Camera+ -- succeed in the App Store. According to the company, the classy photography app launched very successfully, making over $250,000 in the first month of sales. tap tap tap doesn't advertise their apps anymore, although it was part of their strategy for their early successes. Now they feel that contests (they gave away an "ultimate camera package" worth about $10K, and have also held weekly best photo contests) are a great way to get free publicity through social media channels. The company also placed the app in the App Store at a reasonable $1.99 introductory price, although the price is expected to jump up to $4.99 eventually. Read on for more tips about how they pulled off a success like this.
Interview with Doodle Jump's Igor Pusenjak, part 1
There are a lot of successful apps in the App Store, but perhaps there are none more successful than Doodle Jump. Igor Pusenjak and his brother have propelled their simple game about a doodle flinging himself into the sky, platform by platform, all the way up into the top of the App Store charts. They've stayed there longer than any other app, pulling in almost as many sales as there are iPhones to go around. Now, in addition to all of their monetary success, Pusenjak and his brother have also picked up an Apple Design Award; this simple little game is now critically acclaimed as well as being one of the top-grossing iOS titles of all time. I sat down with Pusenjak last week in Los Angeles (just a few miles away from where the traditional game industry was holding their E3 expo) to talk about the past and future of Doodle Jump and how they've found such great success. This is part one of the interview, and it talks about the business of the App Store and how Lima Sky has done what they've done. Part two will be posted on the site later today, and will explore future updates to the game and the long-awaited Doodle Jump for iPad.
Guinness: Modern Warfare 2 had biggest entertainment launch ever
There's been some dispute as to whether Modern Warfare 2 had the biggest first-day sales presence in the entire entertainment industry. Sure, its $401 million launch day revenue topped literally every other piece of entertainment media ever released, but in terms of units sold, it was surpassed by the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows book and ticket sales for The Dark Knight. However, in an attempt to clear up any obscurity, the Guinness Book of World Records proclaimed that the game had the "Most Successful Entertainment Launch of All-Time." Though we shudder to think that we live in a world where success is measured in the amount of money earned, and not the number of lives a book, movie or game touches, we suppose congratulations are in order. So, congratulations, Modern Warfare 2! Guinness says you did it.
FarmVille community surpasses 80 million players
According to information collected by AppData, the FarmVille player base passed the 80 million mark yesterday. We'll give you a second to soak that in. It might help you digest it if we present the number numerically: 80,920,421. Or, perhaps you need another point of reference: That's almost the population of Germany. If you tried to orally count the number of people currently playing FarmVille, it would take you close to four years. And God only knows how large the player base would be then. In related news, Zynga CEO Mark Pincus recently bought a yacht for his yacht. It's just a smaller yacht, that rests precariously on the bow of the larger yacht, in case the larger yacht breaks down. A lifeyacht, if you will. [Via Destructoid]
Pinger's Textfree delivers billionth free text message
Among the many methods available for getting around AT&T's stronghold on text messaging and the exorbitant rates associated therein stands a giant in the form of an iPhone application. Pinger's wildly popular app "Textfree" puts the power back in the hands of users by creating a simple and elegant way to text message your contacts without running up the wireless bill. Today, Pinger announced that they have reached a significant milestone. In the short 10 months that Textfree has been available on the App Store, over one billion messages have been delivered. This huge amount of messages represents a staggering savings to Textfree's users and shines a spotlight on the innovation that Pinger has brought to the iPhone ecosystem. I had a chance to talk with Greg Woock, one of the co-founders of Pinger Inc., about the success of Textfree as an individual app as well as Pinger's strategy for App Store success. Hit the read link to check out Pinger's success story.
An app with everything but sales
TriplePoint PR's site has a post on their blog about Orbital [iTunes Link], an iPhone game released a while back that I presume is one of their clients. Obviously, they've done their job: we're talking about the game, which is $.99US or available in a lite free version [iTunes Link]. But they've also provided us with a little insight into just how things are going in the app's release, and the picture they paint says "not well." Oh, sure, it's been reviewed well, there's a little bit of buzz about it, and the game itself, says the firm, is good (trust them at your own risk, but they sound like they really do enjoy it). So what's the problem? It's not selling. To be fair, it is selling. They've sold less than 100,000 units, they say, and even half of that is a nice chunk of sales. But apparently that's not a success, and they're wondering why. Piracy is their first guess -- we've heard before that piracy can be a huge issue, even on cheap apps. They say the game had an 80% piracy rate in the first week, which has since dropped down to 24%. I'm not convinced piracy can be blamed completely -- there's no guaranteeing that all pirates would have bought a real copy anyway. But certainly there's something going on here -- you can have a terrific app that's well-reviewed and buzzworthy, and if it doesn't end up in the right place at the right time, it still won't be successful (or at least as successful as you want). Everyone is still working to unlock success in the App Store, but with over 100,000 products on the shelves, it has become increasingly more difficult for the good apps to stand apart.
Drama Mamas: Of crime and crossdressing
Dodge the drama and become that player everyone wants in their group with the Drama Mamas. Lisa Poisso and Robin Torres are real-life mamas and experienced WoW players -- and just as we don't want our precious babies to be the ones kicking and wailing on the floor of checkout lane next to the candy, neither do we want you to become known as That Guy on your server. We're taking your questions at DramaMamas (at) WoW (dot) com. Pictured above is just some of the torture devices on the prison ship Success. The writer of our first letter is not looking to send a guild "criminal" on a tortuous journey across the globe to a penal colony, but he is looking to exact a harsher punishment than the one already meted out. Our second petitioner is tortured about being considered weird for playing the opposite gender. We won't torture you with any further delays before letting you at the drama.
MMO Family: The family that groups together
MMO Family is your resource for leveling a gaming-specced family. From tips on balancing gaming with family life to finding age-appropriate niches for every family member, MMO Family offers you advice on MMO gaming of the family, by the family and for the family. Now that we've established why and how to stay plugged into your children's gaming interests, some general internet safety rules for kids and a variety of ways to choose games that are suitable for your family, you're probably ready to log in and get some XP. But if it's the whole family we're trying to consider here, we're not quite buffed and ready to pull. Gaming for kids and gaming with kids are two different things. Have you considered the benefits of fitting both into your gaming family? A gaming family has a lot in common with a rich, well developed MMO. You can solo. You can group. You can team or raid. You can quest, and you can craft. You can go PvP, stay PvE or tuck yourself into a quiet corner to roleplay or socialize. And just as you can cherry-pick your activities according to your interests within a single game, you can mix and match games, what you do within each game and different configurations of groups and partners within your family. There's no law that states that kids must play "children's games" and adults must play "mature" fare. Your kids may be jonesing to play the games they've grown up watching you play – or they may find your enraptured state over the economy of EVE Online utterly stultifying. Cobble together whatever mix of high/low, adult/kiddie gaming everyone finds most enjoyable.
Apple as "the world's most feminine brand"?
Fortune's Bridget Brennan has a bold statement: "Why doesn't Apple make remote controls? You ask: Why Apple? Because if any company could improve one of the world's most user-unfriendly electronic devices, it would be Apple. And then there's this: Apple just may be the world's most discreetly feminine brand." Oh man. We were with her right up until that last statement: remote controls are fairly user-unfriendly, and an Apple remote (other than, you know, the one already out there) would be a thing of beauty. But "the world's most discreetly feminine brand"? That opens up a whole can of nuts we probably don't want to open. But what the heck, snakes be damned, let's open it up. Brennan says that women drive the economy, by influencing 80% of all purchases, and 61% of all consumer electronics products. And she says Apple is doing great, because in a market that's "dude-driven" (her words, obviously), they've brought elegance and style to their products. She says that Apple products don't need manuals, and that Apple's face-to-face customer service is excellent. Which we mostly agree with (while even Apple fans have their issues with customer service, they do a relatively good job). But "feminine"? Do guys not like elegance and style in their products? Do they enjoy reading manuals, or using electronics that aren't user friendly? Apple is successful for these reasons, sure, but we don't quite see how that makes them "feminine." Brennan concludes by suggesting that "Apple's success [shows] when you make women happy, you make everybody happy." But we're pretty sure that, in Apple's case, it's actually the other way around.
Making MMOs massive editorial
Rob Fahey has an editorial piece up on GamesIndustry.biz talking about ways to make MMOs massive. The article states that the question devs should be asking is not "How do we beat World of Warcraft?"; it's "What can we learn from World of Warcraft and how can we co-exist with it?"He defines two ends of the gaming spectrum. The most accessible games are found on services like Facebook, while the least accessible example would be World of Warcraft. This may sound a bit strange since WoW is probably the most accessible of the subscription-based MMOs, but he's using it due to its extreme popularity given the fact that it still has fairly inhibiting install, patching, and strategic components.Rob believes games that fall in the middle of this spectrum are likely to be where we'll see the largest growth potential. He would consider Free Realms to fit this middle-spectrum description. FR has a middle-ground business model, is fairly easily accessible, and marketed at the youth and female demographics. Basically, Rob believes MMOs will become more massive if they can accomplish what FR is currently aiming for and achieving.
Quantifying Wrath's success
The Egotistical Priest has a good series of posts up attempting to somehow quantify whether Wrath has been an overall success or not. Of course, it's definitely a financial success, but has the game's second expansion delivered what both players and Blizzard expected it to? Vonya sets out to find out in what has turned into a three part post: you can find parts one and two on the site now, and part three is set to come out tomorrow.So far, the answer is yes: while the area of Tradeskills is noted as less than a success (it seems to me, too, that tradeskills had more variety and options in Burning Crusade than their current state in Wrath, though that might be because we're only partway through the expansion cycle), everything else is noted as a win for Blizzard: they've really beefed up questing, balance has been intriguing since Wrath (and even if one class has rubbed you wrong, consider how many players came running back with the expansion patch to re-try their class), and of course, Achievements have (predictably) brought the game to new levels of addiction and given players of all kinds new things to do.Vonya still plans to tackle instancing and raiding as the other two criteria for Wrath's success (and there are probably a few other ways you could test it -- lore? setting?), but by the reasoning so far, Wrath is a win no matter how you slice it. Blizzard has outdone themselves with the second expansion -- the only question is where they'll go from here.
Tokyo Beat Down attacks with combo of videos
Atlus sent out not just one, but three short trailers for Tokyo Beat Down, Success Corp.'s new DS brawler. We hate to say it, but the animation looks pretty choppy in these videos. But the concept of the game -- cops beat up tons of dudes -- and the hilarious writing ensure that we will be giving this one a chance.Above, Lewis Cannon demonstrates his nonviolent communication skills. After the break, two more trailers, featuring Cannon shopping for justice (which, of course, he dispenses by punching and shooting dudes), plus Takeshi Bando and Rika Hyodo handing out a few Tokyo Beat Downs as well. Beat Down is out March 31.%Gallery-41390%
Atlus draws us into the dungeon with free Dark Spire soundtrack disc
Not only does Atlus love announcing DS games, it has developed an appreciation for putting those DS games in fancy boxes with soundtrack CDs, and we cannot say that we are displeased with this development. Add the recent delays, and Atlus is on their way to being the reincarnation of Working Designs!The latest game to get the deluxe treatment is Success's breathtakingly beautiful, punishingly old-school dungeon RPG The Dark Spire. Like Super Robot Taisen OG Endless Frontier and Legacy of Ys, The Dark Spire will be a boxed edition with a bundled soundtrack. The disc will include 24 tracks, pulled from both the "modern" and "classic" modes of the game. Samples of the synth-heavy soundtrack are available at the official site!%Gallery-21932%
DS headed for a Tokyo Beat Down in March
Remember Success's police brawler Tokyo Doujitahatsu Terror Wo Chinatsuseyo? Atlus did! In another wonderfully surprising Success acquisition, the publisher has announced plans to release the beat-em-up in North America on March 10 under the catchy title Tokyo Beat Down. Players control an elite Tokyo police division called the Beast Cops, who rid the streets of terrorists and other criminals by beating the hell out of them. A true arcade-style brawler, the cops can "hurl enemies into each other, chain together combos, execute special moves and throws, and then let loose on your foes with an arsenal of firearms, ranging from the small to the obscenely large". We didn't think we needed any more DS games in the next couple of months, but we were SO WRONG. There is always room in our hearts, wallets, and Penguin United DS game cases for an arcade brawler. %Gallery-41390%
DS Daily: Style over sense
I mentioned in the Dark Spire post that I don't usually play dungeon RPGs. I have no aptitude for strategy, little patience for grinding, and, uh, I actually tend to get lost in first-person maze-type environments. So that is just not the genre for me. But I will play The Dark Spire, even if my experience only lasts a searingly frustrating ten minutes, because both of its visual styles appeal to me. Have you picked up something you knew was outside of your usual area of expertise based solely on the style? Are you planning to? Or are you smarter than me?%Gallery-21932%
