MMO games on the distant horizon

[pointedview]

They're a long way from being done, but eventually at least one of them may make it to store shelves:

• Firefly
• Stargate Worlds
• World of Darkness

We'll see what transpires.

Also on the Stargate front, it seems that two direct-to-DVD movies are in progress.

Comments

[jasondemotte]

Stargate's concept art sure looks nice. I think I've seen maybe three episodes of the television show, but it could be cool.

Firefly I'm weary of, to be honest. Looking at the demo games on the Multiverse site, all of them look, well, dated or ugly. And while I can live without super awesome graphics, I'm not sure how well Firefly would work in an MMO setting. The best part of the show was the character interactions and humor, something that probably won't transfer easily into an MMO. At this point, I'd rather just by the Serenity tabletop RPG game and just play with some friends.

World of Darkness is also a bit iffy for me. Back during the height of the NSI days, I probably would have been really stoked to hear about this. But my passion for the World of Darkness dampened over the last few years. The new World of Darkness, though mechanically improved and orgainized much more soundly, just doesn't click for me like the old one did. Also CCP's previous MMO, Eve Online, looked really pretty, but relied heavily on players making the game fun through PVP or trading rather then the game being fun out of the box (in other words, quests, which I find much more interesting then getting killed by another player). Or at least that was my impression during the beta and the time my former roommate played with it very briefly. Not that it means WoD the MMO will be like that, in fact it's quite unlikely, but it still leaves me wanting to be cautious before I get excited. When I hear more info on how play will be like, I might show more interest.

[jasondemotte]

I just realized that that comment came off as awfully negative and that wasn't my intent. I'm curious about all three games (albeit Stargate to a lesser degree), but both the WoD and Firefly were or are two of my major fandoms and I'm not trying to get my hopes up for them quite yet.

[pointedview]

I don't feel that you were overly negative: I think you're sensibly cautious.

I can't say I'm weary of Firefly -- I love the 'verse as much as ever. However, if it makes sense, I want Joss to steer me through it. I want to hear his tale, not make my own. I'm sure there are others who feel differently, but I want the narrative, not the choose-my-own-adventure version.

World of Darkness, on the other hand, was always "Here's the canvas. Paint your picture." I agree that EVE was gorgeous (one of the best portrait creators I've ever seen in any game), but I just couldn't connect with the gameplay. I'm hoping what will happen is that White Wolf's experienced game designers will be permitted to direct CCP's programming talent. If so, it might have a shot at being good ... and I wouldn't be opposed to contacting the old gang for an in-game get-together. :)

Additionally, I'm hoping the WoD player base might be just a hair (I'm not expecting much) more mature than the audience for most MMOs because there might be a greater percentage of people who had played the pen and paper version. One can dream. ;)

[jasondemotte]

I get what you're saying with Firefly. I belive Joss feels the same way, which is why there isn't any licensed novels like you see with Star Trek, Star Wars, or even Buffy. He wants to tell his story, and not let the cheap paperback writer of the month do it for him. The Firefly game might end totally well done and in the spirit of the tv show, but I'm still reluctant to get excited about it until I see something more substantial.

As for the World of Darkness, I believe it's been hinted that Justin Achilli, who was the developer for Vampire: the Masquerade for most of it's revised edition, is involved in someway with the MMO. I don't think they said it directly, just that he's involved with a "computer project" or something like that, but if so I think that is a good sign that CCP is going to be working closely with White Wolf. It'll be intersting to see how it's handled. It's a post WoW MMO world now, and I imagine that it'll probably influence their design to one degree or another.

[pointedview]

Sounds like we're in complete agreement about the Firefly game -- as far as being reluctant to get revved up about it before something more tangible is out there.

Very interesting about J. Achilli, and you're right: I just checked his LJ, and he says this in his 4/18 entry:

There's also a "mystery retreat" happening this Friday for the White Wolf/ CCP crew and it involves a scrubby change of clothes. I'm hoping it's a knife fight deep in international waters.

We have some Icelanders in town now and we're also having a special "mystery retreat" for them and the Swede on Saturday. I know actual details about that, but I'll honor the intent and see that it remains a secret... for now.

In a way, I'm glad it's coming out after World of Warcraft. That game has set standards in so many ways. I hope WoD turns out to be the best it can be.