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Originally posted by Cerion
Hmmm, time and money seem not to be an issue. That means grandpa has deep pockets. Could that grandpa be Lucas Arts?  God I hope it's a Star Wars title.  An MMO set in their KotOR era would be nice. What ever they do, though, I know it will be fantastic. Imagine that, reputation matters?

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Whatever they are doing seems exciting to me.  I am hoping for something Sci Fi based instead of the same old rehashed and worn thin elves and dragons theme, but 2 comments here really caught my attention and made me take special notice. 

1)  The first comment about finding crafting and economies extremely exciting.  I find the "mini-game" of crafting and economies to be a feature that is extremely potent and untapped.  I have many friends, for example, that "play" the auction house in WoW with a level 1 alt just for kicks.  They track prices, corner markets, buy low and sell high.  Also found the crafting system in SWG fascinating before it was gutted and changed.  Somebody just needs to step up and make some commitments to crafting and economies so it can contribute significantly, but not hinder the combat classes significantly.  The problem is that the current MMO mindset is that all of this is somehow silly and not worth programming, but some of the most diehard fans (with multiple accounts to back up their interest) are dedicated non-combat types. 

2)  The second comment about seeing a chance to step outside the existing MMORPG clique is extremely exciting too.  I applaud them for wanting to think outside the box and sincerely hope they can re-energize the current accepted concept of grinding levels, doing instances and collecting loot which has become prevalant.  Its repetitive, boring and at the end of the day extremely dissatisfying yet it has somehow become synonymous with MMO's.

Bottom line is that no matter what they make I know it will be a solid product and I will definitely play it...even if it is just another elf and dragon slashfest redux.  I just wish they would give us some idea and maybe a name so I know how to refer to it on my most anticipated game list.

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Originally posted by Cutedge
When discussing the Wii, they told us something that really hit home for their product as well. “Innovation has a high cost… failure.”

Just because you ran SWG into the ground doesn't mean that anything that has innovative elements in it will fail.

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Originally posted by req3st0r

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Originally posted by Cutedge
When discussing the Wii, they told us something that really hit home for their product as well. “Innovation has a high cost… failure.”

Just because you ran SWG into the ground doesn't mean that anything that has innovative elements in it will fail.

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Did Bioware have anything to do with SWG?  I've never heard anything about that?  I'm pretty sure they didn't, but ever since I touched SWG in beta I've stayed far far away so I'm definitely out of touch.  If so it would definitely temper my expectations...

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Vogel and Walton both worked on SWG.

Rich Vogel was a senior producer for SWG, and worked closely with Raph Koster on the design of SWG.

Personally, I'd argue that this makes Vogel one of the good guys. The original design of SWG was great.

Also, Gordon Walton was the head guy for SWG development for a while (the late 2004 timeframe, if I recall correctly) until he left to pursue "other opportunities." Until his departure, he was generally considered by the folks who were active on the official forum to be saying and doing the right things for the game. No one's sure, of course, but the widely-held suspicion was that Walton was actually too much in the players' corner, an attitude that did not mesh with the plans for SWG held by other producers.

It's a bunch of guesswork, really. But for all the self-inflicted wounds endured by SWG, Vogel and Walton are among the few who didn't fire multiple rounds at their own feet. BioWare Austin will probably do very well to have them on board to develop an innovative MMORPG.

--Flatfingers

Very nice article.  I have to say that I am excited about Bioware's project.

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Originally posted by Lepidus

To help bring the game’s vision into focus, James Ohlen has moved to their Austin office. The ten-year BioWare veteran is the Creative Director for the entire studio. He worked on all the classics, like Baldur’s Gate, and will combine that single-player RPG experience with the MMO know-how of Vogel and Walton. He brings the signature BioWare design and storytelling to their project.

The primary high-level goal of BioWare Austin’s project is to apply that brand of storytelling to an MMORPG. They want NPCs to be more than “pez dispensers” and players to feel “epic”. Whatever they produce, it will be a story driven game.

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I am a little worried about the "story driven" part.  While I think that Bioware has an excellent creative staff, a MMOG is vastly different from single player games.  When I see "story driven" I think of my recent foray into City of Villains.  While the story was quite fun, I saw no reason to continue with the game afterwards.

Still, I am more than willing to give Bioware a chance to try this out.  I hope they succeed!

You SWG fans dont give bioware much credit

they are extremely innovative and creative.  They have made argueably the best RPGs ever to hit the PC.

I seriously dont think they will pick up Star Wars as it is currently licensed to Sony who are (as all of you put it) money grubbers.  They got their hands on a ticket and they will keep tossing it around until they tire of it.  God knows they wont give that license up to someone else to profit from.  Theres just way too many negatives why Bioware would not and can not do this. 

The only reason a lot of you have to think this way is because it opened up shop in Austin and they made a Star Wars game.  You should really investigate how many game companies (especially MMO's) are based out of Austin.  Its becoming a game developers mecca

keep thinking there will be another SWG put out by Bioware and yer setting yourselves up for disappointment

Im not meaning this to be a flame, but this speculation has gone on way too long and its very over the top.

Personally I have no assumptions as to what they might develop.  But a company like bioware is always the cream of the crop in their ventures.  My guess is a Planescape type MMO but thats wishful thinking :)

I am very looking forward to this. BioWare is the company which made (in my eyes) the very best and most replayabale game ever brought to the PC: Neverwinter Nights. I play(ed) many MMORPG but I always return back to the LMBSMORPG* called Neverwinter Nights. The game is endless if you use the package right (that is, if you look further than the crappy original campaign which is the only thing that tends to get reviewed on game websites). I am looking forward to NWN2 (not by BioWare btw), but if BioWare steps into the world of MMORPG - that is GREAT news.

* Less Massive But Still Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game.

I don't know what it's going to be but with Bioware, it's got to be good. I have KOTOR and it's the best RPG I have ever played. I hope we get more news soon.

I think we can rule out a Star Wars MMO after this article. Did you notice how Walton stressed how it's great to be working for a company now that prefers quality work over rush jobs? That was a direct jab at LucasArts. LucasArts is well known for their 'schedule > polishing' policy thanks to their president Jim Ward who has no background in gaming and just doesn't understand the necessity to delay a game's/publish's launch sometimes. LucasArts is crazy. They ordered expansions from SOE for SWG like you order fast food in a restaurant. It's no wonder that the game never had a chance to achieve any level of decent quality. Well, whatever it is that BioWare is working on, it ain't Star Wars. This pretty much confirms it.