Green Monster Games (Curt Schilling)

[Gecko]

Forgive me for jumping in late, but as a long time DBA working in IT, I see some issues here.

Originally Posted by Dymus

1. There are things to be improved in any industry. If there was nothing to be improved then people would stop trying. If I had a list of the the top three things of what could be improved it would be the following:
- Foster Communication within and between development teams for what works and what doesn't.
- Focus on what the product is, not what it could be. Narrow things down to what are realistic goals, develop that core, then if time allows expand it but always maintain the core focus, never ever lose sight of it.
- Learn (and teach) not only from your own mistakes but those of others. Continuously re-evaluate against your goals. Success can teach a lot, failure can teach more. This is why post-mortems are always so valuable.

All these points are solely related to leadership. Good leadership encourages productive feedback and intergroup communications. It also enables teams not to have to reinvent the wheel.

The difference between strong, competent leadership is the difference between Vanguard and World of Warcraft, in a nutshell.

2. The only way to make them a reality is to actually put some ideas into practice. Prove that your method works and then explain to other people how you accomplished it. Blizzard does an excellent job of this. They have a method of development that works very well for them and they go to great lengths to explain those methods to others. The more studios who do this kind of thing the more those ideas can be combined, refined, and it pushes the whole thing forward.

I disagree here completely. The proof is in the results. Consensus is the deathbed in a development environment. There needs to be a captain and a crew. The minute they are on equal footing, the inmates are running the asylum and you get another vapid, disorganized heap. Blizzard is transparent and succinct. They also are well led and run, which is why they are where they are.

The bigger problem isn't the scope, size, or leadership, but the fact that the MMO industry is run by corporate suits with tunnel vision who solely can follow the monkey see, monkey do philosophy that has so interjected itself in games recently, and miss the big picture of MMOs and their real potential.

[Requiem]

Just got forwarded a press release - Looks like they'll be using the BigWorld platform. I take this as good news - they will be able to focus their resources on design and implementation rather than server/client/tools work, and the platform is supposedly able to predict hardware/network bottlenecks and provide you with a map of how things should be set up on the backend to prevent major problems(see: the first year of wow).

Back when the Uberworlds project was more serious and I was looking for the best MMO platform to court for a free license for them to use, I did quite a bit of research and BigWorld was the clear winner for several reasons.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

38 STUDIOS LICENSES BIGWORLD TECHNOLOGY SUITE

BigWorld Technology Suite to Provide Technical Foundation for Upcoming Original MMOG

MAYNARD, MA, February 26, 2007 – 38 Studios (www.38studios.com), a pioneering entertainment force delivering a broad spectrum of immersive products, today announced the company has entered into an agreement with BigWorld to license its BigWorld Technology Suite. The licensed engine will provide 38 Studios with the tools and technologies to support an unparalleled OEE™, (Online Entertainment Experience), for its upcoming massively multiplayer online game.

"BigWorld provides the most proven, robust and technically solid game engine and toolset available, while still allowing us to be flexible and tailor the technology specifically to our game," said Jon Laff, 38 Studios' Chief Technology Officer.

Led by the artistic vision of Todd McFarlane and the enthralling storytelling of R. A. Salvatore, 38 Studios is developing an original IP – a world made up of fantastical elements, settings, characters, creatures, rules, and experiences. The IP will encompass multiple media forms including the online game experience that is currently scheduled for release in late 2010.

"38 Studios is in a unique position in the MMOG market with an exciting project underway," said Gavin Longhurst, Vice President of Business Development at BigWorld. "Our engine and toolset is very flexible, and allows them to use the technology in a very specific way that is ideal for long-term projects such as this. We are thrilled to be working with such a professional and talented group of game developers."

President and CEO of 38 Studios, Brett Close added, "In our current development phase, 38 Studios is focused on prototyping the exceptional quality of our signature Online Entertainment Experience. This process can only come from tools and technology designed to deliver flexibility, efficiency, performance, and processing power. By licensing the BigWorld Technology Suite, we are empowered as developers to exceed the expectations of gamers, and ultimately achieve cross-media market penetration based on a completely original IP."

About the BigWorld Technology Suite
Comprised of the BigWorld Server Software, Content Creation Pipeline, 3D Client Engine Package, Live Management Tools & Instrumentation, BigWorld Technology Suite is the only complete MMOG solution, providing all of the complex technology required to produce an engaging next-generation MMOG or Virtual Worlds.

About BigWorld Pty Ltd
BigWorld Pty Ltd was formed in 2002 to commercialize years of intense R&D, which started in 1999 and continues to this day. BigWorld Pty Ltd is a privately held company based in Australia that licenses its BigWorld Technology Suite middleware platform to game studios around the world that are looking to produce successful next-generation Massively Multiplayer Online Games and Virtual Worlds. Further information can be found on BigWorld website BigWorld Technology.

About 38 Studios
38 Studios, a media and entertainment company founded in 2006 by Curt Schilling, is developing an original fantasy IP driven by the creative and artistic visions of pop-culture icons R. A. Salvatore and Todd McFarlane. Entertainment products will include a massively immersive online entertainment experience that transcends the traditional MMO genre, novels, comics, toys, movies, TV, and more. For more information, visit 38 Studios | World Domination Through Gaming.

[holymight]

Same engine as StarGate: Worlds. Can't wait till people complain they look similar.

[Requiem]

Originally Posted by holymight

Same engine as StarGate: Worlds. Can't wait till people complain they look similar.

too big?

[Traldan]

Well what I've seen of SGW looks pretty good.

Glad they're at this point though. Now bring on the sekrit sauce!

[CylusSoulreaver]

Originally Posted by holymight

Same engine as StarGate: Worlds. Can't wait till people complain they look similar.

Um, was under the impression that Stargate Worlds was U3? Jerrith around here?

[Blackulaa]

What the heck? Is this an MMO or an Ooh Whee!

[Pinski]

Originally Posted by CylusSoulreaver

Um, was under the impression that Stargate Worlds was U3? Jerrith around here?

According to the PRs, Stargate: Worlds is indeed using U3 engine.

[CylusSoulreaver]

Originally Posted by Pinski

According to the PRs, Stargate: Worlds is indeed using U3 engine.

Yea but after posting that, I noticed that BigWorld Technology - Games still has Stargate listed. Perhaps Stargate may be using their other tools or server/database software, not the actual client.

[Zehn - Vhex]

Originally Posted by Fog

You could say the same thing about poker; your opponent's cards aren't visible unless you cheat. However, your opponents' cards are a hugely important unknown, and if you don't consider what they might be, you will lose consistently. Is that "inexcusable?" It certainly doesn't make poker less interesting.

I really, really hate real life anlogies. You could make the argument that not showing threat is like not being able to see your own cards either. Also, you don't know how many cards are in the deck so you can't play the odds either. At which point you might as well just go play the slot machine.

Anyways...

Yea but after posting that, I noticed that BigWorld Technology - Games still has Stargate listed. Perhaps Stargate may be using their other tools or server/database software, not the actual client.

Or they could have just not updated the list. Wouldn't be the first time. I've seen our companies name posted all over websites despite not using their technology/services for 3+ years.

[holymight]

Yeah my bad, the visual engine is U3 with the client/server technology coming from Big World.

[Lonin]

So is 38 Studios just using the graphics engine in the suit as well, or is it doing something similar to SGW? The press release makes it sound like the former, but just wondering.

[Moorgard Mobhunter]

Originally Posted by holymight

Same engine as StarGate: Worlds. Can't wait till people complain they look similar.

So *that's* why all our character models have weird symbols on their foreheads.

[Cadrid]

Originally Posted by Moorgard Mobhunter

So *that's* why all our character models have weird symbols on their foreheads.

Yes, but it doesn't explain that big "L" on your forehead.

I kid!

[Fog]

Originally Posted by Zehn - Vhex

I really, really hate real life anlogies. You could make the argument that not showing threat is like not being able to see your own cards either. Also, you don't know how many cards are in the deck so you can't play the odds either. At which point you might as well just go play the slot machine.

I don't understand. How could you make that argument? In WoW, you know quite a lot without the threat meter (more than you know about your opponent's cards in poker!) You see about how much damage you're doing, you have experience fighting with your tank so you know vaguely how much threat he produces, and you know who's on top of the threat list right now because they're getting attacked.

Anyway, I'm not trying to make some complicated analogy. I'm just pointing out one example of a game -- and there are many -- where limited information is used as an important component of the gameplay.