PVP:Yes | Distribution:Download,Retail | Retail Price:$19.95 | Pay Type:SubscriptionBUY IT
Desktop Client | System Req:
| ESRB:T
Pirates of the Burning Sea News - New Dev Log Looks At 1000 Missions
Posted by on Feb 05, 2007 | 13 comments in our forums
Pirates of the Burning Sea serves up a new Dev Log from Jess Lebow entitles 1000 Missions.
What does the number 1000 mean to you?
To me, it's the Mount Everest of numbers. It's the top of the heap, the pie in the sky, the finish line, the goal we have been shooting at for what seems an eternity now but in reality is more like a year.
It haunts me, the number 1000. I wake up in the middle of the night sometimes thinking about 1000. Why? Because that's how many missions we plan to ship with. The number of missions that EVEN IF IT KILLS ME WE ARE GOING TO SHIP WITH.
Did everyone hear that?
And I'm not counting missions that simply send you to the bartender to talk about what's going on in town. I'm not talking about "Why don't you try out this ship" missions. I'm only counting missions with meat on their bones--ones that require a little strategy, a little pizzazz, maybe even a little blood, sweat and tears to complete.
It's not going to be easy. I know that. ConCo knows that.
But the truth is it takes us a lot longer to make a mission than it does to play one. Why? Well, there are a lot of moving parts. But that's another dev log entirely--one for another time.
So, why 1000?
Simple. Because I don't want you to run out of stuff to do while we're putting together the first content patch and expansion.
Okay, so I know there will be some hardcore players who will blow through everything we do in an ungodly short amount of time. But for the average player, I figure the content we're putting out will be good for 300 to 600 hours of play (without playing the economy or PVP).
That seems like a pretty good deal, doesn't it? 300 to 600 hours of play in the initial box?
Okay, so there is a second reason I want 1000 missions.
Because I don't want any two people to have exactly the same experience. I want your choices to change the way you experience the world we've created.
Sure, two people could play the exact same missions, in the exact same order, but I figure the chances of that are a lot lower if there are simply too many missions to choose from. And I suppose someone could play ALL the missions. But if someone did play them all, then I guess having more to play is a good thing, right?
Maybe I'm obsessing over nothing. Maybe the number of missions means nothing. But I don't think so. We in ConCo just want to give you a good game with lots of stuff to do. I'm a firm believer in the idea of biting off more than you think you can chew. I mean, at the end of the day, we're never going to make a great game if we don't push ourselves a little.
Okay, so maybe that's the real reason behind 1000 missions. The reason why I lose sleep at night. Because deep down maybe I don't really think we can make it. Maybe that target it just a little too pie in the sky.
Talking about this, I'm reminded of a story of when I was a kid and I had just gotten my first bicycle. The other kids on my block and I would build jumps out of leftover plywood, rocks, turned-over buckets...whatever we could lay our hands on that would help us catch more air.
Slowly the jumps grew larger and larger, and so did my anxiety. Each time the ramp raised, I wondered silently to myself if I could make it over the jump and if I would survive the landing.
I guess my point is that anything worth doing is worth being a little scared about. If the risk isn't there, then neither is the reward. So, we're taking a risk. We're going to ride up to the edge of that jump just as fast as we can, hoping that we don't catch our shoelace in the spokes and fly over the handlebars to land on our collective chins.
It's a risk we take because we think we can rise to the challenge. The threat of crashing head-first into the ground is what keeps us sharp--keeps us working late into the night and pushing the tools we have built for ourselves to do more than we ever thought we could get from them.
It's a risk we take because when we hit that jump at just the right spot, at just the right speed, we'll go sailing off to catch some rad air--and that moment will be so very sweet. So very sweet indeed.
Read more here.
1000 missions is pretty nuts.
Any word on how mnay WoW and Vanguard shipped with? (or any other top MMO)
That's 1000 per nation, not total; don't think that was made very clear. Which is quite a lot.
"I figure the content we're putting out will be good for 300 to 600 hours of play (without playing the economy or PVP)."
That just sounds bad to me...I wish more games would get rid of the start up bs and make the end game content at the start.
I have to waste 300-600 hours why?
MMO's should be limitless content not do missions until your out of stuff to do.(mostly solo also which goes against the whole point of mmo)
Also whats with the expansions... I pay 15 a month($180 a year) why do I need to buy the game $50(publishers make most the money off the box) then pay another 30 or 40 for a glorified patch.
(dont give me the bs that servers/bandwith are expensive look at l2extreme its not that expensive)
I do look forward to potbs but I was really hoping it to be more of a eveonline with pirates :(
I don't really think the idea is that you have to burn through 600 hours of content to get to the 'end game', more that the content is there and those who like to do missions/quests aren't going to run out of things to do 3 days after launch and start complaining. I guess people can complain about too much content though...novel.
Servers and bandwidth are expensive. The company has to make money too, not to mention recoup the money already spent; that is the general idea behind commercial enterprise. It's also alleged that you have to feed and water programmers now and then too.
Well said!! Very well said, and it's all true. If you risk it and succeed the reward will be great, I think it's really cool they plan to actually put in as many as 1000 missions for people to do. Hope they do well and do succeed in their quest to a 1000 quests, wish you the best of luck
FIrst off, no, publishers don't get the most out of that 50 dollar price tag. The retailer and shipper, for one, make a healthy profit off of it, which adds to the end cost... otherwise they wouldn't be doing it. Secondly, it's all fine and dandy that the publisher gets the cash... but it's the devs that need it.
Secondly, server bandwith is quite pricey, L2Extreme had what, 4000 concurrent users? Taking WoW for example, Each of there servers runs 3-5k users, concurrently. Bandwith adds up. and in FLS's case, where they don't have a publisher to defray costs (At least that was what was last said...), it's coming out of the Dev's bottom line.
And besides the point, you are plunking down 15 bucks a month, for a service you can access the majority of that month, if you so choose. How much do you pay for cable a month? I'm willing to bet more than 15 dollars.
First off let me adress the mission comment.... I dont care if they have 1 or 10000 missions that doesnt matter to me it was the way he said it. Which was "300 to 600 hours of play in the initial box" . I'm glad they have alot of missions they are good fillers but i dont believe you should aim for 300 hours of play with a mmo before you release an expansion.
Second Atoh you are correct ("The retailer and shipper, for one, make a healthy profit off of it, which adds to the end cost... otherwise they wouldn't be doing it. Secondly, it's all fine and dandy that the publisher gets the cash... but it's the devs that need it") Its the devs that need it but with the box everyone takes a peice and thats all I meant.
Lastly ("How much do you pay for cable a month? I'm willing to bet more than 15 dollars.") The cable company pays for the content, pays for the cable lines, pays att(i think) to use the poles for the cable lines. I do like your thinking though i pay 12.99 for my dsl which is less than a mmo...which has nothing to do with the $15 a month for a game. ( i also can buy 30 tacos a month for 15 bucks!)
And as I said before I am really looking forward to trying potbs because its not a standard fantasy mmorpg.