metadigital

Greg Costikyan has designed more than 30 commercially published games in various genres and platforms. He has written about the game industry for publications including the New York Times, Salon, and Game Developer magazine. At present, he works for Nokia Research Center's Multimedia Technologies lab as a games researcher.

You cannot serve two masters ... either the Darkside or RL ...

Also it is silly that a demand for a tribute of 50 gold will be rejected, but a demand for 5 gold over 100 turns will be accepted! But the point is that the game has been developed so that war is inevitable AND that war isn't fun. So they have engineered something that is (probably a very sound social history edutainment piece, AND) not fun to play.

Orders have been calculated, surprises sprung and results posted. Enjoy, and don't forget that next Friday is the next turn's deadline, and it helps to get your orders in early. "

Already posted it. Here is part two. ... Matrix Games, for instance, still publishes its games in boxed form - but they say they sell far more copies of games like Gary Grigsby's World at War via direct download than they do at retail. The reason that's happening is simple: Many PC game styles that, in years past, got huge attention from the PC game zines and consumers now have a hard time getting distribution. Retailers don't even like stocking PC games - they take up too much space, and they don't sell as well as console - and have cut way back on the titles they'll stock. As a result, if you're a computer wargamer, a flight sim fan, a fan of 4X space conquest games or of graphic adventures, or even of turn-based fantasy - you're going to have a hard time finding product you like on the shelves. Those gamers are beginning to learn they can find what they want on the net. But "if you build it they will come" doesn't work; stick a game up on your own website, and you'll be lucky to sell a thousand copies, even if it's good. And even for the gamers who have migrated online, it's not ideal; you may know about Matrix's site, but there are a lot of other decent computer wargames out there, and to track on the field, you have to visit a half-dozen different sites. And the magazines and review sites no longer bother with the kind of games you like, so it's hard to figure out what's good and real. There are any number of developers out there just itching to find another path to market, a way to develop games outside the conventional model - and to make a decent living by so doing. But at present, they don't have a clear path to market - and though the technology exists, the Internet can act as a distribution mechanism, it's not obvious to them how to reach their potential market. In other words, technology isn't the problem... Marketing Is the Problem Even though the PC magazines are starting to devote some attention to "indie" games, it's still scant. And in general, download-only product isn't taken seriously; the assumption is that if it doesn't get published conventionally, it isn't "real," it must be of lower quality. And, of course, the conventional publishers buy most of the advertising space, so the magazines naturally pay more attention to them. ... To solve the marketing problem, we need a new kind of business. You need an operation that aspires to be the place to go for indie product. Not casual games; there's no point in trying to compete with the likes of Yahoo! and Real, the casual games market is well served already. No, you want to be the place to go for hardcore gamers looking for something beyond what the conventional machine gives them. And the company needs to be marketing driven. Developers (and if truth be told, many publishers) suck at marketing. It's not a core competence, and it's not something they've ever done. The purpose of this intermediary company must be to figure out how to get exposure for independent games and niche/indie product - and it needs to spend the bulk of its revenues on advertising and PR. In other words, the Internet allows you to avoid retailers and solves the problem of distribution; what it does not solve is the problem of making consumers aware of your product, and getting them to want to buy it. There's a role for an operation that steps up to the plate and says "We know how to sell online, and we will spend good money to make sure your product does." Developers can and should figure out how to stop relying on publishers for development funding - but they will always need help on the marketing side. And moving online not only doesn't solve the problem - it makes it worse, because moving gamers online requires a change to consumer behavior. And yes, that means some revenues need to go to the intermediary - but developers should still wind up with the bulk of the revenues, not the risible 7% they typically get today. And developers will of course own their own damn IP. And anyway - our product consists of bits. So why are we still shipping boxes of air when we have a network designed to ship bits? Re-Engineering the Customer In comics, film, and music, there is an audience that has what you might call "the indie aesthetic." They prize individual vision over production values. They believe they are hip and cool because they like indie stuff. They like quirkiness and niche appeal. And they are passionate about the things they like. We need to establish the same aesthetic in gaming. And while that's hard, it's also pushing at an open door - the meme exists in other media, so why not in games? In other words, some of the marketing you need to do is the conventional stuff - advertising and promotion. But the more important task is getting the meme out there. And to do that, you need more than ads. You need manifestoes. Brickbats. Slogans. Outrageous stunts. You need to rabble-rouse. Like, say, by writing articles like this. Here are some slogans, if you like: "Corporate games suck." "Gamers of the world unite! You have nothing to lose but your retail chains!" And one more, but a little explanation: The PC is largely irrelevant to the publishers now - it's the fourth, and weakest platform. When they publish a PC version, it's usually because there's an Xbox version, and the port is easy. But games designed for console controllers and TV screens twelve feet away just don't play so good with mouse-and-keyboard and a screen two feet away... You're better off playing the Xbox version. And so PC sales continue to slide... Except in the genres that just don't work on consoles: MMOs, RTS, and sim/tycoon. PC games should be designed for PCs. Thus: "Aren't you tired of getting Xbox's sloppy seconds?"

Do not invoke the Volo. :ph34r: He will materialise when his next iteration is complete. Until then, the game is safely under construction. (If you read the thread, he was thinking of adding support for the community miscellania: extra weapons, armour, monsters and items.)

Yeah, it's great acting, but it isn't so good without seeing the actors. Sure Source is a great engine with terrific facial animations: but it isn't that good. (I don't think anyone would believe an animated character could make the faces of Jack Nicholson or Jim Carey look believable.) This raises a good point: voice acting is not the same as film, tv or stage acting (which are all different to each other, too). Radio plays need different talents from their actors. Good voice acting is not more difficult, per se, than any other form; it needs different skills and props, though.

I can win, I know the strategem and tactics to use, but the total enjoyment of the game (with its new improvements to terrain, more units, more technologies, etc, etc, etcetra, etcetr

I know, I'LL play as ENGLAND ... ... after all you wouldn't have known, and you wouldn't even nitoce ...

I concur. The bottom line is: whatever the additions to Civ3, it didn't work. It wasn't more fun to play, it was less enjoyable. Leaving aside that they used the same engine, which was tottering at capacity in Civ2, the new ideas amounted to the Homer Simpson-designed car of the future.

You are only supposed to roleplay a bloodsucker, not be one IRL ...

We could randomly assign a player to the country ... like Reveilled ... ^_^

Bite your friends neck (for method acting purposes, of course), to get into the mood ... ... You never know: you might end up with a very close friend ...

Oh, England is probably not going to respond from now on, so what do you want to do? Are they neutrals, or should we try to get another player? (I can obviously postpone the deadline as required.)

It's because they're French, of course.

The single-player game is pointless. What is the point of backstabbing / cheating a dumb AI ? Ooo! How exciting ... I tricked the Artifical Idiocy ...

It's called fostering discussion and perhaps some interesting/productive debate. [sarcasm] I can see by the recent threads on these forums that such really isn't needed, what was I thinking? Certainly Obsidian was foolish to want to shut these forums down with all the high brow and reasoned discussion. [/sarcasm] My bad. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Fixed

Grenades are silly in KotOR games. Throwing grenades always results in a direct hit! They don't bounce awkwardly before the target, or overshoot (unless the target runs up after you launch the grenade). It's very silly, considering that there is a percentage chance to fail in hand-to-hand combat!

Winter builds (disbandment) completed and updated on the first post's map. Please remember that Spring is tomorow: 1904 Spring Fri [9th September, Noon UTC] No ifs or buts, any late orders will not be counted (so get tentative orders in now!).

Hey, it's a fair cop; and society is to blame.

*Pulls out parent credentials* I am yet to see one statement of intent actually materialise as planned ... Although that might be because she is a teenage grrrl... QED

The mutation was extirpated.

I know you're part of the simulation! No human could be so relentless in their pursuit ...

That is crazy talk! The Ultima historians almost pretend it doesn't exist. Richard Garriot admits that he really wishes he could take much of it back, what with the time-travel and all. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> But ... Ultima ][ was the only one released when I was in high school ...

It's a mutation.