Moderated by Corey Bridges, Executive Producer for the Multiverse Network (who gets an A for Effort and an S for STFUALRPS), this event was really about hoping that the guy who made World of Warcraft would publicly ridicule the guy who made such digital clusterf*cks as Star Wars Galaxies and The Matrix Online. Hit the jump for all the nerdy bitch-slapping and verbal hair-pulling you can handle, a bit of wisdom for all those working on their own MMO, and a little information on why Starcraft: Ghost is still a possibility.
Rest of speakers arranged by importance and commercial success: Rob Pardo,
VP of Game Design for Blizzard Entertainment
Michael Lewis,
CEO of Cryptic Studios Jeff Yap,
Executive Vice President of MTV Networks Music and Logo Enterprise Group
Rob Pardo’s wallet
A chair
Crystal Pepsi AIDS
Nicholas Beliaeff,
Studio Head of Sony Online Entertainment San Diego
This portion of the summit should have been one of the most interesting, but unlike Clive Barker, ultra-nerds do not a good interview make. A lot of what is said here is common sense, but you have to remember that this summit was about informing the game-ignorant Hollywood execs about our little world, and how they can reach out past the novel and comic book industries and further rape and pillage another, all for the sake of the almighty dollar.
Perhaps if there’s anything worthwhile to take away from this particular keynote, it’s that once an MMO hits the shelves, that’s just the beginning, unlike most other games where that’s usually the end. Also, Rob Pardo gives some excellent insight into the Blizzard business practice, where he explains that not every Blizzard game is a AAA title, but that they have the foresight and humility to admit when they got it wrong and scrap that game (as well as eating all the expenses associated with it) so as to maintain that high brand quality.
This is something companies like
EA and Koei could learn a lot from, and really sets apart those who believe in creative vision and the realizing the best possible end product from the companies who prefer to suffocate buyers and fans with interchangeable sequels and substandard shovelware meant to make as much money as possible with the least amount of effort put in. Hmm ... I wonder which side Hollywood is going to gravitate towards?
Click here to listen to Creating Parallel Community Experiences Between Films and MMO's.
Contest:
9:13 PM on 06.28.2007
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Well, maybe it's because ongoing storylines is maybe not your cup of tea. The gameplay itself is not particularly exciting but the storyline and the RP surely compensate, at least for me.
But obviously SW Galaxies moreso than the Matrix, which did manage to at least do a few things right.