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Fallen Earth News - Vivox Voice Technology
Posted by Jon Wood on Sep 05, 2006 | 11 comments in our forums
The MMORPG, Fallen Earth, will be making use of VIVOX in-game voice communication. The two companies, Icarus Studios and Vivox Inc., announced that they had reached a technology integration agreement:
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FRAMINGHAM, MA – September 5, 2006 – Icarus Studios and Vivox, Inc. announced today that Icarus’ highly anticipated massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) Fallen EarthTM will include on-demand, in-game voice communication as the result of a technology integration agreement between the two companies. Vivox will provide Icarus with game-embedded voice communication services customized for and integrated into Fallen Earth. The MMOG is set in a near future post-apocalyptic world struggling to emerge from the collapse of civilization brought on by viruses and environmental disaster. Fallen Earth players are able to speak at will with other players in-game, create discreet team audio conference channels and join, leave and rejoin voice channels during game play without impacting game performance. All voice communication is hosted and mixed on Vivox servers in order to ensure no lag in game play and minimal drain on CPU resources. On-screen indicators show players which channels are monitoring audio communications and which player within a channel is speaking. Players will also have moderator privileges to kick, mute, ban and un-ban other players, all synchronized with the team and raid privileges of the in-game group leader. “We pride ourselves on our cutting edge, internally developed technology, but when it comes to offering real-time voice communications to our players, we turned to Vivox for their ability to deliver superior server side VoIP technology and easy expansion for external and cross-game IP voice chat,” said Jim Hettinger, CEO of Icarus Studios. “The Vivox Network managed service offering allows us to get up and running quickly. In addition, they have been great partners in the development effort to bring our vision for in-game communications in Fallen Earth to life.” "Industry veterans and visionaries such as the Icarus team continue to raise the bar for richer gaming experiences in an exhilarating MMOG market,” said Vivox CEO, Rob Seaver. “Including real-time voice in Fallen Earth demonstrates their commitment to innovation and to the immersive player experience. By partnering with Vivox, Icarus Studios will open communications to players inside and outside the game, improving game play and strengthening community around the title and their brand. It’s this kind of innovation that will further revolutionize the industry and keep players engaged for the long term.” Icarus Studios will offer a sneak peek of Fallen Earth for the first time to the game industry, and demonstrate the embedded voice solution in the Vivox booth number 314 at the Austin Games Conference, September 6-8, 2006 in Austin, Texas. |
For more on Fallen Earth click here.
I personally don't like this trend with MMOs adding voice in with the game. When I play a game, I enjoy talking to my guildmates in voice, but I seriously don't want to be forced to listen to *every* person that I play with.
And I know, some people will say "Well, if you don't want to hear it, you can just turn it off". If the voice is there, everyone will expect you to use it, or just not group with you. Atleast, that's how it went in DDO.
This is the part of the post that really caught my eye. Looks like we may finally see some new info on the game in the next few days. :)
Icarus Studios will offer a sneak peek of Fallen Earth for the first time to the game industry, and demonstrate the embedded voice solution in the Vivox booth number 314 at the Austin Games Conference, September 6-8, 2006 in Austin, Texas.
See, the big issue with voice being integrated into the actual game...groups *will not* read the chat.
Example : One day, I was playing DDO and went with a group to an instance (can't remember which). I had voice on where I could hear them, but was only typing myself. The rest of the people didn't know this instance.
So, we get to a part where you could go multiple directions. The leader says in voice chat "Which way do we go?". I typed out in chat which way. He continues to ask in voice. I continue to say "Come on, this way guys." in the chat. I end up dying from respawns due to standing here, waiting for this guy to read what I say.
So, what does he reply with in voice? "Let him stay dead, if he's not going to pay attention and come with the group." Er, yeah. I just spent 5 minutes typing out the answer to your question, and I should stay here dead because *YOU* wouldn't pay attention.
I'd rather avoid this same situation in every MMO I play.
Integrated voice chat in a post apoc setting is a good choice. No so much with a fantasy setting, but in Fallen Earth, people speaking "modern day english", swearing up a storm...or whatever won't break immersion for me at least.
It's nice to hear some news about FE. I was starting to get worried. Can't wait to see their new trailer!