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Earthrise Interviews: Update Interview
MMORPG.com's Garrett Fuller recently spoke with Masthead Studios' Atanas Atanasov about the progress of the upcoming sci-fi sandbox MMORPG Earthrise.
By Garrett Fuller on November 20, 2009
| MMORPG.com: | Give us a status update on Earthrise's development. Can we expect a Beta test any time soon? |
| Atanas Atanasov: | At this time, Earthrise is still in closed beta receiving feedback from a limited number of players. We have already taken several steps forward in the development process and are looking forward to making exciting announcements shortly. |
| MMORPG.com: | The game follows a sandbox approach. MMOs like EVE and Ultima have built their success on this format where other games have failed. Why does the sandbox approach add so much to the longevity of a game? |
| Atanas Atanasov: | So far MMORPGs have figured two proven paths of keeping players interested in the game long term: constant addition of solo-able content or raid challenges that players must overcome and then wait patiently for more, and the sandbox approach where players have to find their own niche and approach to the environment and their challenges are set not by the game designers but by the combined actions of all other players. The latter approach's main strength is the cooperative notion that the game is indeed shaped by the players. To many players, the ability to change content to their personal or collective will is much more important than the chance to experience more and more content. The sense of involvement and power to create and change can invigorate and keep players glued to the game for years to come. Games like EVE and Ultima have both succeeded to achieve a stable and exciting environment for sandbox gaming and have been some of the inspirational sources for Earthrise as well. |
| MMORPG.com: | Players will be using skills to build up their characters. Can you give us examples of three player skills in the game? |
| Atanas Atanasov: | Skills in Earthrise provide players with access to Abilities that are purchased with skill points in sequence, unlocking new, more flexible and more powerful options for either combat or crafting. For example, Dissonance Psycher is a Psychic Battle Skill containing Abilities that allow Psychers to repel attacks from their opponents, control their combat abilities and use enemy actions for their own advantage. Each Ability can be further developed to unlock Tactics slots, slots in which special enhancements can be placed (called Tactics) and modify the Ability's properties. An example of a Tactics skill is the Aggression Boost skill containing Tactics that modify the damage output of abilities often with the trade off of higher Energy cost or slower execution speed. Finally, an example of a Crafting Skill is the Assault Rifle Manufacturing skill. Its Abilities are all passive and cannot be used in combat, and each Ability unlocks access to crafting a single Technology of assault rifle. As players invest Crafting Points in its advancement, new Technologies of more powerful and flexible in design weapons will become accessible to the crafter. |
| MMORPG.com: | The world of Earthrise is based in sci-fi, what piece of science fiction has had the biggest influence on the game, whether it is book, movie, or even game? |
| Atanas Atanasov: | We have drawn inspiration from movies such as Habitat, the Fly (for some creatures in Earthrise), and Equilibrium. Also, the book "Le Peuple de la Mer" features a society with hierarchy and rules very close, but not necessarily equal, to the first ideas we had about Continoma. |
| MMORPG.com: | Earthrise has an open policy when it comes to PvP, do you see the Player Killers vs. Player Defenders phenomenon that existed in Ultima becoming the norm? |
| Atanas Atanasov: | Open PvP poses one of the most serious challenges in MMO game design - how do you make a fun and exciting game where players have the freedom to totally wreck the game environment with destructive actions? Instead of prohibiting the PvP gameplay down to what is considered fair to everyone, we decided to allow players to act as criminals but also implemented numerous mechanics that encourage law-abiding players to profit from standing against criminals and preserving the peace and order in the game. In that regard, Earthrise is indeed aiming to position players as Player Killers vs. Player Defenders, with the Player Defenders backed by a law system and functional guards and the Player Killers having the item loot incentive to take the risks of the criminal trade. |
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| MMORPG.com: | Player gear is very important in Earthrise. Talk about the impact gear can have on PvP? |
| Atanas Atanasov: | The PvE gameplay that Earthrise aims for is very accessible - players can easily expect that without hunting down the rarest and most powerful gear available in the game, they have a fair chance against most of the mutant denizens on the island. In PvP however, players can expect to customize their armor and weapon to a large degree to create specialized equipment builds that give them a serious advantage in combat against other players of the same level of power. While player skill and smart tactical use of player's abilities still remains as the main factor that will decide the battle, gear is even more important in PvP since your enemy has the same economic leverage to gain access to powerful and customized items. |
| MMORPG.com: | How do you see player groups and factions forming in the game? |
| Atanas Atanasov: | Earthrise's player-driven economy and political scene is ripe for reasons for players to group together into organized guilds. Guilds have the military force to protect their members against the actions of stray criminal groups or rival guilds, as well as the ability to harvest and distribute access to powerful and rare resources needed to create the most powerful items in the game. Since the most sought after and rare resources are gained through control over special resource-rich territories in the game, players who form a guild have a better chance of taking control and expanding their influence over the server. This can be done by selling the harvested resources and gaining monetary resource or keeping the distribution of said resources under tight control and possibly facing fierce competition from all their rivals who are fighting for their own niche on the dynamic market. The constant fights for control over the numerous territories will unleash a never-ending war for control where each player can find their place within the ranks of their guild. That is not to say that individual players will not fully enjoy the game as they can either play alone or they can be contracted by guilds, even if they do not become members of their ranks. |
| MMORPG.com: | What parts of game combat are you most proud of? |
| Atanas Atanasov: | In the past 4-5 months we completely reworked the combat system. The current version of the system is something we are most proud of. First we focused on the targeting mechanic which is very intuitive and easy to learn. We have also worked on providing a wide range of abilities and infinite possibilities for their combinations with tactics and gear. Throughout the combat process, players will find that they have two options for camera control: locked camera and a free moving cursor, which will suite everyone's needs. |
| MMORPG.com: | Players are very excited for Earthrise, what message do you have for them at this stage of the game? |
| Atanas Atanasov: | My message for players is "Patience". We don't want to rush Earthrise to the market so we are working hard to deliver a game that players will enjoy for years to come. |
;)
Sounds pretey cool to me. Just woundering when this game is ever gona come out lol. I swear its like Jumpgate evolution, you hear about it, but every like 6 months or so. Not like star wars you hear news every week. I just hope this game delivers what they hope it will.
Im glad they decided to approach the "sandboxy" type of game. Not because im a fan of that genre but because the market is already crowded with theme park mmo's.
Just hope they do it well and to be enjoyable, we definately need more good games on the market.
GAH I WANT IN ON CLOSED BETA! RAWR!!
All sadness aside, I am really happy that they are going to have some big announcements coming up soon. I am highly looking forward to those announcements and I am also looking forward to maybe a new gameplay video. Here is to the upcoming month(s).
This game is definitely on my watch list. The gameplay they intend to offer sounds like alot of fun. Hopefully we don't have to wait too far into 2010.
I'm actually glad, that Masthead doesn't rush the release of this game. I'm happily waiting another few month, if the product get's released polished therefore.
Same I like the patience conern, Hopefully it wont be a disaster like MO.
Atanas Atanasov:
My message for players is "Patience". We don't want to rush Earthrise to the market so we are working hard to deliver a game that players will enjoy for years to come.
And that's what a lot of us like to hear. Patience is what a lot of MMO'ers have, whether it be leveling or waiting for new content, we CAN wait, as long as the developer CAN deliver. Rushed releases just kill games, and it's a relief to hear that Masthead doesn't want to disappoint like so many others have. Good luck on a solid release, this gamer is looking forward to your awesome game.
I always like that added element of danger that open pvp provides, but the ridiculous gankfests that make playing impossible (especially for new players) in eg. Darkfall is a turn off. So I'm very encouraged by this:
Open PvP poses one of the most serious challenges in MMO game design - how do you make a fun and exciting game where players have the freedom to totally wreck the game environment with destructive actions? Instead of prohibiting the PvP gameplay down to what is considered fair to everyone, we decided to allow players to act as criminals but also implemented numerous mechanics that encourage law-abiding players to profit from standing against criminals and preserving the peace and order in the game. In that regard, Earthrise is indeed aiming to position players as Player Killers vs. Player Defenders, with the Player Defenders backed by a law system and functional guards and the Player Killers having the item loot incentive to take the risks of the criminal trade.
I'm more concerned that Star Wars will just fall flat. They have a LOT of advertising and updates and interviews on the game... reminds me very much of WAR and AOC half a year or less before those games were released.
I'm actually pretty thrilled that these guys at Earthrise haven't released ANY ads to speak of because (and this is shocking) there isn't anything to release yet. They are working on it.
The lack of tale-spinning and leading people along a pipedream is pretty refreshing. Even if the game sucks, at least I wasn't pulled in head first by rampant advertising. This might be the first higher profile MMO I get to try without any real previous bias. Kinda cool.
If you have ever played EvE think of the Earthrise territories like 1.0-0.0 space. The further out you get from civilization the less guards there are and also the closer you get to player owned territories.
Are there any recent gameplay videos or dev comments citing the differences in their "new" combat mechanics? I'm just curious because I remember watching gameplay clips from their old combat model and shuddering.
The game overall sounds like it has a lot of potential. Hopefully they nail it.
Here is one of the QOTW of update to the combat mechanics....
I would not take this into too much detail but this is the best information we got for most current targeting mechanics.
looking forward to this one my self. Good they are putting some thought into the sandbox to make it work. Hope we get some good toys to play with in the sandbox as well:P
i'll keep track of it, but i remember seeing gameplay trailers that looked terrible.
If you thought that was terrible, you've never seen alpha footage before.
While I wish them well, open world full loot PvP is still = game for gankers.
Plus, this game seems to indicate that the better PvPers will control the best resources. This game seems like pure PvP trying to disguise itself as something different.
If you have ever played EvE think of the Earthrise territories like 1.0-0.0 space. The further out you get from civilization the less guards there are and also the closer you get to player owned territories.
I played it for about a month.
I hope Earthrise doesn't suffer from Eve's silly bribery loophole. That was one of the deciding factors when it came to cancelling my sub. The ability to safely attack other players in "safe" zones for what for most long-time players is a pitiful amount of money.... that struck me as so stupid that I couldn't even begin to imagine what other stupidity might lay in store for me if I played any longer.
While I wish them well, open world full loot PvP is still = game for gankers.
Plus, this game seems to indicate that the better PvPers will control the best resources. This game seems like pure PvP trying to disguise itself as something different.
I think it depends, though if the system lives up to their claims, it looks promising to me.
I tried Darkfall. I could live with the open pvp and looting, though it wasn't a turn-on for me.
What I couldn't live with was all of the stupid, easily exploited "rules" surrounding pvp that generally resulted in the opposite of their intended effect.
Eg. same-faction players continually jumping in front of you so you get tagged as rogue so they can kill you without consequence.
Eg. use of towers with above trick to kill same-faction members.
Eg. same-faction players inviting you to a team, killing you, then looting your corpse (a stupid loophole - though I'll admit it made me laugh when it happened)
Eg. guilds declaring war on another guild just so they can kill a passing same-faction member, killing them, then undeclaring war.
etc. etc. etc. etc.
DF would have been better off just throwing their pvp rules to the wind and letting everyone have at it. As it was, it felt less like honest pvp and more like death-by-scumbag-lawyers.
While I wish them well, open world full loot PvP is still = game for gankers.
Plus, this game seems to indicate that the better PvPers will control the best resources. This game seems like pure PvP trying to disguise itself as something different.
How are they trying to disguise anything? They say pretty darn clearly that the game will be focused on PvP.