Originally posted by Ozmodan

All you have to do is look at Sony's The Matrix Online to see that there is not very much demand for this type of game in this genre.   Pretty obvious someone is too much a fan of Tad's to take the time to do any market research.

I suppose if they had a brilliant developer who designs a very nice playable game things might change, but I would not hold your breath.

If you got some correlation = causation issues here.  Using this same logic, Blizzard shouldn't make WoW because Rubies of Eventide only had 20,000 subscribers.

As to the many comments about the story, I don't think it needs a story.  Just set it up like the books, with maybe 15 different realms to start, each with their own motivations, and let the players make of it what they will.  The players can make the story.... just like the books.

Originally posted by ardohain

Originally posted by Gajari

As others are thinking, as soon as I heard it was being developed in Singapore, I immediately stopped giving a crap about this game. As racist as it may be, I have absolutely no faith in Asia-based companies being able to develop a good MMO.

Here's comes the next sci-fi F2P grind-fest with great graphics and a tad bit more story than the others.

ah...L2 is korean. while it may not me your cup of tea, it is one of the finest mmo's to be released in the past decade

If you enjoy click*click*click grindfest with absolutely nothing  but click*click*clickgrind*grind*grind, then I suppose.

I'll agree with the others though. Asians trying to make a game based on western storytelling will be a disaster. Can't wait to see how every building will look like a pagoda, there will be no quests of note, just click*click*click*grind*grind*grind.

Oh, maybe they can figure out how to use Gods from different religions as antagonist and say it's all based on ancient asian mythology?

/gamefail incoming

Holy cow, this is awesome, hope they will succeed into making this as awesome as the books or better.

-message removed, said same things over in the next post-

Originally posted by Ozmodan

All you have to do is look at Sony's The Matrix Online to see that there is not very much demand for this type of game in this genre.   Pretty obvious someone is too much a fan of Tad's to take the time to do any market research.

I suppose if they had a brilliant developer who designs a very nice playable game things might change, but I would not hold your breath.

I really dont think you can make this kind of a generalization.. the matrix online failed cause of seriously poor game design and exceptionally bad execution. I would rather draw a line between SWG - SOE - The Matrix Online. SOE managed to drive the matrix online into the ground even with a blockbuster franchise to cash in on. The game was just poorly made, launched too early and badly supported after launch.

I've noticed that any new Sci-Fi themed mmo always generates a lot of buzz, many of us are really really tired with the same old same old elves, dwarves, humans and orcs swing-a-sword-or-cast-a-spell type of game that we've seen over and over and over again.

Now let's hope this game or some other Sci-Fi title in the near future will lay claim to the top Sci-Fi title soon, I've been waiting for a decent Sci-Fi mmo since I stopped playing SWG when it got ruined.

 Along with The Matrix, Otherland, seems like a great storyline for an MMO.

The fact that MxO failed  has nothing to do with its genre. I still can't think of a better suited plot for an MMO.

What Otherland brings into the mix, imo, is the "interconnected worlds/theatres".

There could be central hubs - public zones, perhaps tied to time zones - where players can interact and where people can travel to the various worlds. 

Secret rooms/worlds, virgin worlds/zones (waiting to be molded into some guilds fantasy land), fantasy based zones, futuristic, sci-fi zones, contemporary inner city, yada, yada, yada. You can have the best of any MMO out there, and then some.

Players accumulate skills which may or may not be valuable in any particular world.

It shouldn't be necessary to constantly switch zones/worlds for new content.

Imo, the MMO should pick up either after or way before the actual books storyline. Having to try and constantly save the world from god-like beings that can alter the matrix is too daunting.

Let players/guilds become the next menace.

If they can actually let go of the book's storyline and instead capture the essence of the environment and the "rules" of how players can affect and create/destroy within the world, I think they have the basis for a great MMO.

Im really confused about this. I dont know Otherland, but I like cyberpunk / future cities with big skycrapers, lights, banners.. and Im dreaming about "living" in futuristic city where you can socialize..but even fight sometime (maybe in sewers..some contract to clean or find something..) [i know there is neocron..but its too old and not too much socializing..]

I hope Otherland will get forum here too and I hope in early beta ;-D

if you never read the book I seriously suggest giving it a shot.

Those of you who say you read them seem like you don't understand the potential of this IP as a MMO.  For those of you who never read it, the book is set in the near future and people log into the internet as a virtual reality ala the matrix although they know they are jacked in and they aren't batteries for an AI or anything liek that.  it's more like Shadowrun if you ever heard of that.

Well they discover this part of the network that is hyper real and way better than the normal network and some of the characters get trapped in it.  I won't give away any more of the plot but get this - one of the stories characters plays the future version of an MMORPG.  He has this uber barbarian character  who is one of the best on the server.  He plays a fantasy based MMO and there are refrences to all kinds of other types of games too. 

When the characters travel on Otherland trying to get out they go from world to world, Not all of them are sci -fi based.  So this game, assuming when you play you are jacked into Otherland, has the ptoential to have each different zone be a different genre.  So you might be in a fantasy zone, then a sci-fi zone, then a western etc.

I don't know how this would all pan out on gameplay and character progression but don't get pigeon holed into thinking this will be a sci-fi game.

Great series of books. One of my favorites.

But as a MMO with our current technology, I don't know.

Now if you could play through the books with the technology described by the books... maybe then

Originally posted by galad2003

. . . one of the stories characters plays the future version of an MMORPG.  He has this uber barbarian character  who is one of the best on the server.  He plays a fantasy based MMO and there are refrences to all kinds of other types of games too. 

When the characters travel on Otherland trying to get out they go from world to world, Not all of them are sci -fi based.  So this game, assuming when you play you are jacked into Otherland, has the ptoential to have each different zone be a different genre.  So you might be in a fantasy zone, then a sci-fi zone, then a western etc.

 

I don't know how this would all pan out on gameplay and character progression but don't get pigeon holed into thinking this will be a sci-fi game.

That character who plays the barbarian (he's gravely ill in "real life", no?) is playing in a fantasy world based on "Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser". Fun series and great to see it referred to in Otherland.

Having an MMO that will change the "rules of gameplay" when transitioning between zones/worlds (one world is fantasy based, another sci-fi, another with zero-grav, one is a fairy tale, another is straight out of WWI), an MMO that will offer rich and detailed content in those different zones, could be the next MMO "breakthrough".

There are many ways this can go wrong though. I think one mistake would be to try and emulate the book's storyline. I repeat that they should think about a setting that occurs before or after those actual events.

Character progression may very well be one of the more interesting aspects this game can introduce. I can think of at least two levels of progression - your character's "real life" persona. Your avatar's ability to improve its interface/interaction with the VR. Your ability to grasp aspects of the "meta-world", manipulate the code, create items.

(For example, It might be relatively easy to create non-aggressive items/structures in the public zone - you can create go-carts, gliders, or jet-packs to  address moving around while in a hub zone, but in the "world zones" it becomes progressively harder to manipulate the environment, to bend it to your will. The reverse holds true as well - if you have a Holy Avenger sword in your fantasy-themed world and decide to transition to the public zone, the sword will end up appearing as a walking stick perhaps. Now travel with your walking stick to the sci-fi world and your walking stick ends up being a lasar rifle.)

There can also be your avatar's progression through the world zone it decides to level up in. My friends and I might prefer to establish a base on a planet, or hold a castle by a medieval town, or perhaps rule an island archipeligo. Each zone will have a set of skills that need to be improved upon. Some skills may overlap between zones, while others are entirely unecessary and leave your character vulnerable. So before switching to another world you may have to find a way to acquire a new skill in the public zone from an NPC or PC.

PvP is another interesting aspect of gameplay that could do well in an MMO like this. I can see a non-consequencial annoyance PvP in the hub zones, to an all out sadistic PvP zone world made specifically for players wanting to play that way.

I think it has the potential to be a great game. Good luck to those in Singapore.

Otherland, what an awesome novel and a brilliant idea to use it as an inspiration for a MMORPG.

Oh how I wish, that this dream would become true.