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Creating the Old Republic
Star Wars: The Old Republic Senior Content Producer Dallas Dickinson pens this dev journal discussing the job of the content team and the monumental task of constructing the the Star Wars universe in an MMO which he describes as "essentially building Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (KOTOR) 3 through KOTOR 10, and then shipping them all at once."
What, exactly, does a “Senior Content Producer” do, you may well ask? My job is to make sure that everyone on the different groups that make up the Content Team is working together, communicating clearly and all focused on a single goal. This translates into lots and lots of planning meetings followed by lots and lots of Bug Triage to ensure that we fix the bugs that are most critical to getting a smooth gameplay experience.
How do you make sure that the largest BioWare/LucasArts game ever made happens on time, at the level of quality that people expect from BioWare? Various members of our team have said this in the press before, but I think that folks have generally thought we were being glib. Let me be clear. We aren’t kidding. Building Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ is essentially building Star Wars™: Knights of the Old Republic™ (KOTOR) 3 through KOTOR 10, and then shipping them all at once. There is as much story content here as in all BioWare games combined. As you might imagine, making sure this content all gets done, tested and tuned is a massive undertaking, and it requires the dedication and focus of everyone on the content team to make it all happen.
Our Content Team actually consists of many sub-teams: Writing, Worldbuilding, Scripting, Environmental Art, Combat Design, Combat Art (animations and f/x), Combat Programming, Gameplay Systems Design, UI Art, Gameplay Systems Programming, Audio and of course Quality Assurance. Each of these teams has a huge amount of work to get done, and they all need to coordinate on a per-planet basis. We are very committed to early playability and testing to make sure we are making a fun, complete game.
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For instance, the planet of Korriban (home world of the Sith) went through the following process:
- First the Writing team researched every single detail about Korriban. Having the lead designer from KOTOR as our lead designer helped a great deal but there’s been plenty of fantastic fiction written about the planet since then and it’s important to our fiction teams that we are accurate and embrace the legacy of the great content creators that came before us.
- Reams of history and look & feel documents in hand, the Writing team then set out to create the basic stories and quests for the planet. This involved first a high level overview document that detailed exactly what was happening politically and socially on the planet, as well as what experience we wanted the Players to have and what Classes were going to be adventuring there.
- After the prep work came the real writing, rewriting, peer reviews and more rewriting until we knew Korriban was exactly what we wanted it to be. Good writing comes from rewriting and the same fearless commitment to quality over ego that the entire creation team has to have. Though we knew more changes would come later, we finally had something to start the rest of the process with.
- Next the Concept Art team painted concepts for all of the major areas and art assets for the planet. Every single piece of Korriban from the furniture to the interrogation rooms has to have a particular look and the Concept team worked tirelessly to make sure they had captured the essence of the Sith Empire and what their most sacred planet would feel like.
- While Concept was working the Scripting team hooked up the stories and quests in a basic, box test level, so that a first round of feedback could be assessed. Revisions were made for pacing and structure. Interactive storytelling is far more than dialogue writing and at each stage we have to reevaluate how the experience feels.
- Once we were happy with the test level scripting, the Worldbuilding team laid out a simple version of the planet in our game engine (basic look, proper layout and size), ran through the grey world to plan game flow and visual storytelling. Again there were many revisions and whole sections of Korriban that needed to be rearranged because they didn’t pass muster. Only then was it handed off to the Environmental Art team.
- The Environmental artists then took that simple grey planet and lovingly painted it, filled it with objects, created the terrain and brought it to life, finally lighting it to match the concept art exactly.
- Then came the Combat Systems team (design, art and programming) to build and test all of the character classes (abilities, combat effects, pathing, NPC behaviors, etc) that would be on Korriban and make sure they specifically played well on the planet that had been built. Spawns were moved, skills adjusted, to make the experience the best it could be.
- At the same time the Gameplay systems team (design, UI art and programming) built all of the complex RPG systems you would expect (looting, inventory, quest journals, maps, etc) that make it a complete game.
- Once everything was running as expected, the Audio team had to come in and add the sound effects and music that give Korriban its mood and style.
- And finally, the QA team had to play through the game at every single step and make sure it was all functioning as designed—despite all of the groups above tweaking with things constantly. That’s a huge job by itself.
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This doesn’t even take into account all the work that the Client and Server programming teams are doing to add features, optimize the way the game runs, and ensure that the game looks good and runs fast with all of the constraints that a MMO puts on its technology and hardware.
All of this has to happen at essentially the same time, and it has to be done in a way such that a) nobody is stepping on anyone else’s toes and b) the end result is a complete, playable experience that we feel comfortable putting in front of people who weren’t working directly on the game. And did I mention that this is just one planet? We have multiple planets being worked on at any given time, so that we have a constant flow of testable content finishing up every few weeks for internal testing.
This is what my job entails. Luckily, it also means that I “have to” play the game a lot. I’m thrilled to be a part of a company with the legacy of quality that BioWare has. On top of that, to be working on a project that is the successor to KOTOR is like the icing on the cake.
Dallas Dickinson
Senior Content Producer
Read this article at its Original Source
Can I join your QA team? :>
the game is looking like it's much further along in developement then most beleive....trying not to get my hopes up, but dang it's hard not too
Because this is Bioware, this doesn't surprise me much. It's the type of quality game making I'd expect from them. In fact, the quality of story telling, as described in the journal, sounds higher in quality than even Blizzard's World of Warcraft. I guess time will tell which will be the better game, but I definitely can't wait for this game.
I really like those screenshots.
Looks like they just started working on the game mechanics, but from looking at screan shots they have a good begining with most core concepts done. My best guess is beta might start late 2010 or 2011, and you might have a release in 2011 or 2012.
It good to see a professional company making a mmo after the hacks that gave us Vanguard and Age of Conan. And it seems they are further along than i thought.
As for a beta. Well Bioware seem to be so good at releasing quality games i'd go out on a limb and say only reason they need an open beta would be for stress testing the servers. They could release earlier than anyone expects.
"And finally, the QA team had to play through the game at every single step and make sure it was all functioning as designed—despite all of the groups above tweaking with things constantly. That’s a huge job by itself."
If that is the way the QA team is testing this game, it is doomed from the start. They either need to immediately fire the QA team lead because they are not doing their job or seriously restrain the lead designer from allowing this to occur.
That is not how you test software ever. If they continue this way this game is going to be very similar to SWG when it released, a bug laden morass.
Funnily enough i think most people would have more faith in how Bioware make quality games than some random person posting how it should be done on a forum.
Actually, not sure if you have ever developed software, or if you are a new student of software development but, BioWare is using a very tried and true paradigm as far as software development is concerned. You develop pieces and you make sure that each individual piece is fully functional. Then you add in the varieties like the different character classes etc. Then, AND only then, do you start connecting the different parts, and as you do so you test, test and retest.
This allows you to not pour over 10 billion lines of code trying to track down one bug. By doing it this way when something breaks you know where it broke and are able to adequately respond. Being that I have been a software engineer for nearly 20 years I can tell you that this is PRECISELY how you develope QUALITY software. SOE/Verant most likely, at least from the end product they came up with, went with your idea. Which, from what I read states that people should just puke all over their keyboards and then make sense of it later.
Well the way the author wrote that passage it sounded like a chinese fire drill. And btw I have been doing software QA a lot longer than you.
My big concern with this title is that EA will meddle and cut QA.
As to Bioware, there is a huge difference from writing single player games and a MMO. Now granted some of their games had multiplayer capabilities, but it is still a huge leap to a full blown MMO. There are the wreakages of a bunch of companies out there that could not make the transition. My hope is that Bioware is one of those that does make it.
I have always admired Bioware's products and now I admire their work ethics. They are one of the few gaming companies that makes a good solid game in order to make a profit, rather than putting out bug ridden over-hyped fluff for a quick buck. For that, they have long since earned my loyalty and my business.
I believe they have been working on this for a lot longer than two years and I project a late 2009 or early 2010 release. Preferably sooner. I'm sick to death of the current MMO paradigms and I'm quite looking forward to some changes that are being alluded to in Bioware's game.
I really hope they stick to their vision, because I really like what they've shown so far and the last thing I want from them is a rehash of the DIKU / EQ crap that pervades the market currently.
P.S. Gawd I hope they release with space combat included!
Well i think Bioware realise there is a massive difference if you follow the information they have been releasing. Such as saying it will contain as much content as if they were making KOTOR 3-10.
I remember another big single player company making the transition to mmo's a few years ago and even thou that game isnt too my taste it sure as heck shook up the genre.
SW:TOR wont be to everyones taste but i'm sure it will be a quality game just cause Bioware is making it.
Well, they're not joking about their "story first" attitude, are they? See how they're starting off with the story and building the rest on top of it instead of the other way around? This leads me to believe more and more that it is how they tackle the storytelling mechanics that will make or break this game. I hope they will not follow the tired pseudo-narrative structure which has not produced any good online story experiences so far, and bring something new to the genre.
Says the guy named Ozmodan.
and comparing Biowares QA to SoE's QA is a blatant insult.
Q.F.E.
I am very impressed about the amount of content in the game. Clearly they are a very professional single-player game designer, possibly the best of their type, and they are bringing that background fully to this game.
It is my intention to remain open-minded. Until people actually play the game in open beta or live environment, we won't know if this is the greatest MMORPG ever or the biggest disappointment ever (it could be either). Clearly the potential is there, the content is there. I doubt that it will be buggy, but it may just not be that much fun. The execution of the game itself will be the test.
I expect this to be a huge launch...maybe in excess of a million units sold. We'll likely know within a month or so from launch whether this is another WoW (takeoff), another WAR (orbit) or another AoC (re-entry). Until then, it is all speculation.
Of course, speculation is its own game, one popularly played on forums.
Well, just for the record, I had never played any of Bioware's games but, in anticipation of this MMO title, I picked up a copy of Knights of the Old Republic and tried it out.
I am not that far into it and the game is old, dated and yet ... I am very impressed with it. It is very rich on story, I like the dialog trees, and the (varying) consequences depending on the choices that you make in game. I am also impressed with the writing and voice acting. The NPCs seem very multi-dimensional out and believeable. And this is a relatively older game.
The writing, story depth, voice acting, gameplay, and general attention to detail I have observed in Knights of the Old Republic all makes me very optimistic about SWTOR.
You'll find the same elements in Biowares other games as well, which is why people trust Bioware a lot more than other MMORPG developers when they say they are puting this or that feature in a game and it's going to be awesome.
You'll find the same elements in Biowares other games as well, which is why people trust Bioware a lot more than other MMORPG developers when they say they are puting this or that feature in a game and it's going to be awesome.
you think those stories are good, if your computer can handle it, please try mass effect, the story telling and action combination is unchallenged and amazing
One thing about the article... the alt text for the screen shots says "Earthrise Screenshot"...
Need more QA here ;)...
you think those stories are good, if your computer can handle it, please try mass effect, the story telling and action combination is unchallenged and amazing
Mass Effect is a great game and a great cinematic experience but Biowares best storytelling was in the Baldur's Gate series, those games were absolutely fantastic.
I loved the BG series but then i've loved all Bioware games i've played and they just seem to get better and better. KOTOR 1 and 2 were great games , i played NWN 1 and 2 to death and Mass Effect was brilliant. Too hard to pick a favourite but i cant wait to see what they bring to the mmo space.
you think those stories are good, if your computer can handle it, please try mass effect, the story telling and action combination is unchallenged and amazing
I played and beat Mass Effect when it first came out. I found Mass Effect to be a bit more shallow of a game than the KoToR series were. Sure it had great graphics, but some of the content felt copy and pasted. Just my opinion, and I still will buy Mass Effect 2 and consider Mass Effect a good game, just not nearly as good as the KoToR series.
every time I think of this game and its potential, my brain explodes ....