The importance of good audio in an MMO
Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Sci-fi, Age of Conan, EVE Online, EverQuest II, Culture, MMO industry, Academic, Education, Virtual worlds, Black Prophecy
In recent years, there has been a dramatic increase in the development budgets of new MMOs. To stay ahead of the technological curve, a large portion of the budget invariably goes toward the graphics department. Studios produce impressive graphics engines and mountains of art assets in an effort to make their game one of the most visually impressive out there. Amidst all the fuss over graphics and gameplay, audio is often overlooked and underfunded. It’s been shown that good music and sound effects can have a significant impact on the perceived quality of a game. This is something that some development studios recognise and support but many continue to neglect this vital part of the gaming experience.
In this article, I examine the importance of good audio in an MMO and explain the underlying psychology involved.
Continue reading The importance of good audio in an MMO
The importance of good audio in an MMO originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 15 Jun 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
The MMO launch subscriber bubble
Filed under: World of Warcraft, Betas, Age of Conan, EVE Online, Business models, Culture, Launches, MMO industry, New titles, Warhammer Online, Academic, Education, Virtual worlds, Star Wars: The Old Republic
It feels like a new MMO is being released every month these days and the market for persistent online games is certainly expanding. At the head of this market is a set of games commonly referred to “triple A” titles. These are popular games from big name studios or games using popular intellectual properties. New games that are considered “triple A” have a unique ability to build unparalleled levels of anticipation and hype around themselves prior to release. In order to draw in as many players as possible, an obscene amount of cash is often spent on advertising to hype these games up for release. But is this appropriate and cost-effective or does it show a fundamental misunderstanding of of the MMO market?
In this article, we look at what can go wrong with over-hyped MMO launches and what happens when the subscriber bubble bursts.
Continue reading The MMO launch subscriber bubble
The MMO launch subscriber bubble originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 09 Jun 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
GDC09: A candid interview with Age of Conan’s game director
Filed under: Fantasy, Age of Conan, News items, Massively Interviews, Massively Event Coverage
Last week at GDC 2009 was exceptionally busy, but that didn’t stop us from talking with Age of Conan’s game director Craig Morrison and discussing what went wrong with the game at launch and what’s been done since to improve upon it.
You’re in for a treat, we think.
After the jump, you’ll also find discussion on free trails for this year, the DX10 client, successful MMOs and upcoming content philosopy for Age of Conan. It’s a bounty of information even King Conan would be proud to see!%Gallery-9836%
Continue reading GDC09: A candid interview with Age of Conan’s game director
GDC09: A candid interview with Age of Conan’s game director originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 30 Mar 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Massively catches up with the new Age of Conan director
Filed under: Fantasy, Age of Conan, Massively Interviews
A short while ago we had the chance to speak with Craig Morrison, the new director for Funcom’s pulp fantasy epic Age of Conan. Morrison assumed the helm after the previous (development) director Gaute Godager stepped down, and since then the AoC team has been making a concerted effort to reach out to players. Perhaps drawing on lessons from other companies that have experienced player perception problems, the Funcom director seems to be making a deliberate campaign out of player recruitment, feedback, and communication.
Join us as we reflect on this initiative, discuss issues that the Funcom staff see as most important to the Age of Conan playerbase, and walk through features associated with the most recent expansive patch. Read on for the full details and insight into this unique MMO. %Gallery-11743%
Continue reading Massively catches up with the new Age of Conan director
Massively catches up with the new Age of Conan director originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Nov 2008 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
The Best of Massively: Five stories that scandalized you
Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Age of Conan, Culture, Warhammer Online
Massively is just a week and a half away from its first birthday, and we’re winding our Best of Massively series down in the final days! This week we’re listing five stories we wrote that caused a lot of people to get very angry — sometimes at us, sometimes at game developers or other industry figures, and sometimes at all of the above!
If you have a thick skin for controversy (or if you’re drawn to it like a moth to a flame like a lot of us are!), check out the list. Just… let’s not let it come to violence, okay?
%Gallery-35305%
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
The Best of Massively: Our top 5 weirdest news stories
Filed under: Galleries, Age of Conan, EVE Online, Culture, Sword of the New World
Whether you missed these stories or you’re just ready for a refresher, we hope they’ll make you smile and laugh — or at least make you raise an eyebrow or two!
%Gallery-33582%
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Urban exploration in Age of Conan
Filed under: Fantasy, Galleries, Screenshots, Age of Conan, Culture, Guides, Tips and tricks, PvE, Virtual worlds
Free running and urban exploration in virtual worlds have both taken off significantly in recent years. Players can be seen clambering around buildings and jumping between the rooftops in games from World of Warcraft to Everquest 2 and Funcom’s Age of Conan is no different. Like a lot of players, I found myself eventually having to make my own fun after a while. For me, that meant finding my way onto the rooftops and jumping between them like a maniac. In this visual article, I find myself on the rooftops and back alleys of two cities in Age of Conan and see things from a perspective that most players will never see first hand.
%Gallery-32334%
 |
Having fun in Conan’s homeland? Make sure to check out all of our previous Age of Conan coverage, and stick with Massively for more news from the Hyborian Age! |
Continue reading Urban exploration in Age of Conan
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
The Best of Massively: Our most helpful guides
Filed under: World of Warcraft, Galleries, Age of Conan, EVE Online, Guild Wars, Lord of the Rings Online, Guides, Warhammer Online, Massively meta
In just over one month, Massively will celebrate its first birthday! Last week we started a countdown to the event by kicking off a series of features highlighting the best stuff from the site so far. We started with our ten most important interviews. Today, we’re continuing the weekly countdown by listing some of your (and our) favorite guides!
We broke them out into six categories, counting down to the best and most popular. A wide variety of games are covered, so chances are you’ll find something useful in here. This list can serve as a springboard to a ton of content — dozens and dozens of articles. So consider this your go-to place for info on some of the hottest games.
Without further ado, here’s the guide to our best guides. Wow, how meta is that!
%Gallery-32805%
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
The Best of Massively: Our ten most important interviews
Filed under: World of Warcraft, Age of Conan, EVE Online, Lord of the Rings Online, Interviews, MMO industry, New titles, Warhammer Online, Stargate Worlds, The Agency, Tabula Rasa, Free Realms
We have exciting news, dear readers. In just over a month, Massively will be one year old! We’re very proud of how far we’ve come since last November, and we’d like to thank you for sticking with us through all these months. To celebrate our first birthday we’re looking back at the most interesting stuff we’ve experienced so far!
We’re starting with our ten most important interviews. We tried to find a good balance between interviews that have insights that are still relevant today, interviews that were important for the history of our site, and interviews that were just plain awesome. We saved the coolest ones for last, so be sure and stick with us to the end!
Think of it as a look back at the past year in the MMO world, if you like. Major releases, major ideas — many of them are here. Enjoy, and be sure and tell us what you think.
%Gallery-32260%
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Massively goes to Dragon*Con: Funcom Q&A
Filed under: Fantasy, Age of Conan, Events, real-world, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Massively Event Coverage
Funcom was on-hand at this year’s Dragon*Con, where they held a Q&A session regarding all things Age of Conan. What follows is as much of the event as could be transcribed from the audio we brought back with us. This writeup was completed based on audio with some garbled sections. Some details may be glossed over as a result. Without further ado:
Q: Any plans to merge the servers?
A: No. What we have looked at is ways of letting people play across servers, but we haven’t made any plans to merge servers.
Working with the tradeskill guys a lot lately and the resource team and we’re designing new quests and areas for resource gathering and building and things like that. Tower objectives and so forth, they’re the next step with the battlekeep system, so I work with the action dynamic team, who are the guys who do the massive PvP and Siegeing. Our first priority at the moment is to get 48v48 sieges running perfectly for everybody. Second priority is to get the next step out, which is Towers, so the guys are working on it.
Continue reading Massively goes to Dragon*Con: Funcom Q&A
