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GDC Preview: Fury
At the Game Developers Conference, Jon Wood stopped by to visit the folks from Auran and Gamecock, the companies behind the development of the combat-oriented MMORPG, Fury.
Players that love PvP above all else in MMORPGs will be impressed with Fury, the latest offering from Australia-based Auran and their North American publisher, Gamecock.
For those who might not be aware, Fury is a hard-hitting, fantasy based combat MMORPG that doesn't get bogged down in the trappings of a traditional PvE MMO.
"PvE is a compromise to a good PvP game" says Tony Hilliam, Auran's CEO and Director. Hilliam believes that as soon as a game has PvE elements, the PvP in the game is instantly compromised. As a result, Fury is a pure blooded, player vs player experience.
;)
At the Game Developers Conference, I had the opportunity to sit down with Hilliam for a short demonstration of this PvP experience. Players familiar with online games like Battlefield will be accustomed to both the concept of the game (battling it out on teams against other players with a specific objective in mind), and with the fast-paced action that this kind of game can, and does, deliver. That is not to say that this game is in any way a clone of MMOFPS games like Battlefield. Instead, it brings the more intense game play of that genre into the MMORPG genre.
In terms of the fast-paced nature of the game, Hilliam tells me that 90% of the abilities in Fury are on a one-second call down. This means that the time is short between using and recharging an ability. On top of this, most of your abilities can be used while on the run. Only the big, powerful abilities require the player to be stationary (and you aren't very often stationary).
Fury is divided into two different kinds of area, the War Zones, and the Sanctuaries. While the War Zones serve as the place to do battle, the Sanctuaries serve as a safe zone where players can train, buy and sell and interact with other players. Each Sanctuary is equipped with six districts, one school for each of the different kinds of magic, a prep area and a Citadel which serves as the vendor area.
;)
The game is built on a unique Realm vs. Realm structure that sees each player's server represent their Realm. In fact, the very first decision that you make upon entering the game is which realm you choose to play. Hilliam equated each realm to a sports franchise. When I start playing Fury (itself quite a competitive game), do I want to play for the New York Rangers or the Montreal Canadiens? This way, it's server pride on the line each time a character does battle.
Servers are likely to be determined geographically, there will be French-speaking servers, German speaking servers, etc. Within those servers, some of the players are going to have their own clans, teams that they always play and fight with. This is not a necessity for Fury though, and Casual and solo players can enter a que to have the game itself find him / her a group.
Advancement
Players advance in Fury by using their abilities in combat and through completing trials (best described as specific, PvP quests). In doing this, over time, I can unlock new abilities to add to my character's repertoire.
;)
Rewards
Rewards are earned, as you may have guessed, through combat. Each time that you kill another player, there is a chance of a loot drop (not the other player's loot) and at least a small amount of gold will always drop.
Fury Essence
Fury Essence is best thought of as a kind of spiritual experience point. These points are awarded on a decreasing scale at the end of every battle. The players of each archetype earns the most Essence, and on down the line. Each Sanctuary holds what the game calls obelisks. These obelisks serve as a repository for Fury Essence that can be donated by the players. The realm that has donated the most Fury Essence to their obelisk gains a +10 bonus in combat.
While I only had a very short opportunity to see and talk about Fury with Hilliam and the other folks from Gamecock and Auran, I can see that they are hard at work on something fun, unique and interesting. On top of that, the developers of this game practically bleed enthusiasm, and I've always found that to be a good sign. I will leave you with this comment from Tony Hilliam:
"We want to be the best PvP game... ever."
The article got me interested... I'll check it out on release.
the problem with this game is that is a watered down pvp-centric game. the dont have pve to catter to the masses, and the pussy pvp the have planned wont catter to hardcore pvpers. they will appeal nobody but fps freaks.
I'll take this as a bonus to the game... Since the best PvP that is currently out there are FPSs. They encorage tactical thinking, realistic damage distribution and so on. I don't like the idea of a PvP centric game, but I preffer it to a PvE centric game. Anyway, if they have a PvP system similar to most other MMOs(In which you require to level grind, gear grind, faction grind, pointless crap grind, etc. to stay competitive) it's going to suck tremendously... So here's to hoping that they get it right.
i coloured in red what interested me most of your post. if you dont want to improve your character either by leveling (or skilling) or by getting better gear, then you will not be playing a rpg. i am not saying that is better or worse. just that if all you want is frenzy killing and respawning, your game is a MMOFPS, not a MMORPG.
about the first part of you post (tactical thinking, damage distribution, etc), i agree that those are good things. but i also want persistency, and that is something every FPS lacks. i want a reason to fight other than "because you are terrorist and i am counterterrorist" or "this is WW2, and i am german and you are american". and most of all, i want to look at the body of my defeated enemy and take everything that is worth a penny. sadly, every FPS lacks this, and Fury too.
that is why i think that this game will be another Planetside. and thus i am not interested at all, sadly.
I'll tell you my beef with levels.
When I'm level one I go kill a bear in full body armors, and with one hit he takes he kills me. I go back leveled to the max, no armor at all and that bear's hits are nothing but scratches... That I can heal with my wolverine-like regenerative powers. I don't define RPGs by being able to gain levels and armors forged by the gods(I think this doesn't even make sense in an MMO, rpg or fps... Gods mass-producing divine "unique" weapons
), I define them by being able to play a certain role... I call this crazy concept, roleplaying. 
i want to look at the body of my defeated enemy and take everything that is worth a penny. sadly, every FPS lacks this, and Fury too.
Hmm... I'll just say that there aren't many MMORPGs that allow you to loot an opponent. Which I admit I would enjoy seeing. I never claimed that FPSs are the best kind of game ever... I just listed positive aspects to combat that they added. That which you complained about has nothing to do with combat itself... In fact it doesn't even have anything to do with being an FPS or RPG. I admit that there is a trend to making FPS the way you describe them, which I think is a shame.
I never played Planetside, because of certain technical issues... But Neocron was actually pretty cool.
That said, the article made it seem interesting...
I am looking forward to playing this.
I can always get my PvE fix from other games. This game looks like it will have extremely fun PvP.
WAR is PvP centric and it has gathered a large fanbase already on the names only (Mythic [RvR] + Warhammer), there is PvE but it is hardly the focus of the game. AoC is the same deal, the fanbase seems to crow about the innovative combat system, mature content and mass PvP. Although the first two could be considered gimmicks they have a reason to crow. However, AoC is also a PvE game so it will apeal to more in the long run i'm assuming (that's if it does good and delivers on all promises).
I will be trying alot of games out in the near future, and this one has really got me interested.
Wonder if it will have a monthly fee?
As for taking the BNet kiddies, I can only assume you are still playing WoW and interested in REAL PvP, which is why you stopped by, no? You can keep the game and the kiddies ;)
Have you played it yet?
I seriously hope that this isn't just another Rakion... Yes, I'm interested in the game... But I am still skeptical about certain aspects
I have played it (at PAX 2006); basically, if you've played arena or GvG in Guildwars, you've got a pretty good idea of what gameplay in Fury is like. Combat in Fury is like Guildwars on speed (and i'm not gonna say whether that's a good thing or a bad thing; that's up to you to decide). They've attempted to take out all of the things that would slow down combat (mana/energy meters, cooldown timers, not being able to jump over obstacles), while keeping the same basic sticky targeting scheme that keeps it from being a FPS. I thought it was fun to play, but could get old fast if PvP arena combat wasn't your thing...
yes, that is the problem. i hate arena PVP. it looks artificial to me. as i said earlier, i want a reason to fight, other than to hold a flag longer than the enemy.
so, in the end:
- arena PVP combat
- no looting
- no crafting
- no economy
- no PVE
i dont think i will play it.
Well sorry to break it to you, but this game will be a major attraction to the bnet kiddies.
One big reason I would never play it. Does not seem like a MMO to me, just a dressed up FPS.
I have to laugh, they claim it is all out pvp, yet no looting. How the heck can that be construed as all out pvp?
Like someone said above, a niche game and most probably a small one at that.
Assuming there is an Open Beta in the future then give it a go and see what the crack is.
I'd like to know how you can refer to Turbine as incompetent. If you had any understanding of the industry, they are one of the best producers out there, mainly because they listen to the feedback from players.
Their graphics are as good as anyone's and you don't have to have a mega computer to run it. Put that in your pipe and smoke it!