Dungeon Runners: Dev Chat Log
On August 13th, MMORPG.com hosted our second Dev Chat. This time, our Community Manager, Laura Genender, hosted the event with developers from NCsoft's Dungeon Runners.
MMORPG.com: Our guests will do their best to answer as many questions as possible, but due to limited time and a high volume of inquiries, they may not be able to answer every single one. Users are limited to one question at a time, and you will be notified when you may ask another question.
MMORPG.com: Now it's time for introductions! Feel free to start sending your questions to DevBot while our guests introduce themselves! To ask a question, please /msg DevBot <
[NC]Anson: Hi, I'm Matthew Weigel (Anson in the boards and game) and I'm mostly a database and server programmer... mostly.
[NC]Stephen: I'm Stephen Nichols! Producer / Lead Programmer for Dungeon Runners. That means I rule! Unless there are problems... then it's someone else's fault. ;)
NC_Hawksteel: Heya, I'm Alan Dunkin and I do stuff on the website. Lots of stuff.
[NC]MarkT: Howdy! My business card says I am Mark Tucker, the Lead Designer on Dungeon Runners. Therefore, it must be true.
[NC]Tommy: Howdy! I'm Tommy Lieberman and I'm formerly the associate producer for the game turned into quest designer monkey.
[NC]Bzus: Heya. I'm B Cotton and I'm the lead world builder on Dungeon Runners.
[NC]TwinMoon: I'm TwinMoon, the marketing manager for a whole buncha NCsoft games, and my pie preference has been previously documented.
MMORPG.com: Ghozer|Laptop asks:I tried dungeon runners for a while, and i found it a great game, but the 'none premium' content is lacking (obviously) and i dont/cannot work, and hence cannot afford premium, dont have a bank account or anything similar to even pay for premium... is there anything your planning for people in my situation?? ;)
[NC]Stephen: Ah, that's a good question.
[NC]Stephen: Here's the answer:
[NC]Stephen: We're adding in-game advertising to the game.
[NC]Stephen: That will allow us to open up more content for "free "players.
[NC]Stephen: This is especially true since you will no longer be "free" technically.
[NC]Stephen: So, view ads, get more of the game for "free"
MMORPG.com: Sindee asks:Will there be particle effects introduced to weapons ?
MMORPG.com: Note: You can now submit 2 questions at a time :) have fun
[NC]MarkT: We are currently overhauling all of the particles in the game! This includes new particles for skills, weapons, and other things. So yes, we plan to add cool particles on weapons and even armor!
MMORPG.com: thetrollsadface asks:I was curious what 3d engine and tool sets you used for the game ?
[NC]MarkT: to download the game go to www.dungeonrunners.com
[NC]Anson: We use a custom engine and toolset developed for a previously-cancelled game.
MMORPG.com: Dwreck asks:what is the easiest fastest way to download dungeon runners?
[NC]MarkT: you can download the game at www.dungeonrunners.com :)
MMORPG.com: asks:Do you have plans to implement a secure trade system into the game? If so, when?
MMORPG.com: Oops! That was Sabito's question :)
[NC]MarkT: Yes! We do plan to add a secure trading system. Matter of fact it is so high up on the list of cool new things to add that we hope to cram it into the build after this next one.
MMORPG.com: Adythiel asks:Will premium customers be able disable the in game advertising?
[NC]Stephen: There is no in-game advertising for members. If you pay, you don't get annoyed. :)
MMORPG.com: Sindee asks:What is the DR staffs plans to keep the current playerbase enthusiastic about DR once games like Hellgate and others get released ?
MMORPG.com: LATE JOINERS: to ask a question, /msg DevBot <
[NC]Stephen: It's my belief that we will be upgrading our game far more frequently than HellgateLondon or other competitors. Not to mention that you can't find a game with the unique humor and approach that DR takes. Our biggest appeal, in my opinion, is our constant improvement based on customer feedback. Take that, competitors!
MMORPG.com: LegendRunner asks:Wondering about the worlds how they will get in the new patch: Because we get multiple language servers, pvp and pve servers, and member and nonmember servers, all should be combinated. Which means.. and im bad at math, more then 35+ worlds, how will it look like? all combined?
[NC]TwinMoon: We're focusing on the English servers, worldwide, at this point. Europe and the rest of the world are still deciding what their plans will be - but we will empower them to do what is appropriate for their territory.
[NC]Stephen: To see what things look like post-patch... wait for the patch. In the short term there will only be one PvP server and one existing server will be converted to "membership required".
MMORPG.com: Rudko asks:Are you changing Gaseous Blast to not be unlimited in the number of monsters it can affect. I am hoping you don't :)
[NC]MarkT: Yes. We are making some changes to all AOE spell effects to limit that maximum number of enemies they can damage. Sadly, the current skills are highly exploitable so we are limiting their damage output, but not to the point that the skills are useless. The skills will still be very effective on an encounter to encounter basis.
[NC]Stephen: No. Not really. I mean, it'd be pretty pretentious of me to think that our model will overtake the world! Still, wouldn't it be cool if more game companies have awesome games like Dungeon Runners away for free?
[NC]Stephen: Good lord.
[NC]Stephen: That'd be awesome!
[NC]MarkT: Did someone say Build? What's that? :)
[NC]MarkT: We are working very hard to get it out ASAP! Lots of changes = lots of bugs to fix.
[NC]Stephen: What he said.
[NC]Stephen: ;)
MMORPG.com: gamerman98 asks:besides the possiblities of more dungeons being added to the game, is there going to be more towns, fields and other places added to the game sometime in the future??
[NC]Bzus: We have plans to add a variety of different environments to Dungeon Runners in the future. Given the fact that we update the game often, existing environments will become more varied and interesting as we update.
MMORPG.com: Ghozer|Laptop asks:Theres alot of instance dungeons in 'Dungeon runners' (im guessing this is due to the game) and while im not a WoW fan, i do like the idea of open, free, and any time pvp action... any plans to implement such, or atleast more PvP content in DR??
[NC]MarkT: We have BIG plans for PvP! Obviously right now we are starting off small so we can concentrate on getting the balance right. We plan to have PvP and Co-Op game sessions that aren't just about straight up killing the other guys. There are lots of different competitive things we can do in Dungeon Runners besides just killin'. Here's another cool thing about DR, if the players ask for it enough we will think of ways to put it in. SO ideas for new PvP ga
[NC]MarkT: gameplay are very welcome. :)
MMORPG.com: LegendRunner asks:Will there come anything to make fansites more popular, except for the one thread at the forums. (Just need to know :P!)
[NC]TwinMoon: Fans will have an opportunity to do something no other game has done previously. /marketingspeak Yes, we have a cool program that we are gearing up for.
MMORPG.com: Joeloic asks:I was wondering if you were completely aware of the level of accessibility Dungeon Runners provides to gamers with disabilities (GWDs)? Has there been a conscious attempt to provide that level of accessibility? If so, are you willing to or have plans for on any type of accessible gaming section in your web site?
[NC]Stephen: Let me be honest here (watch out)
[NC]Stephen: DR is such a click-fest that I'd be amazed if someone with significant disability would be able to play it well.
[NC]Stephen: That being said...
[NC]Stephen: We're up for suggestions about how to improve the game for disabled folks.
[NC]Stephen: :)
[NC]Stephen: Post on the forums.
MMORPG.com: Starlin asks:When is the "Big Patch" coming out, and where can we can info on whats going to be implemented with this new patch?
[NC]Stephen: The next "Big Patch" is coming Soon(tm). No, really. Soon. Now, for the real answer...
[NC]Stephen: This patch looks to be going back to QA tomorrow. 80% chance of release to the public test server by Friday. If that goes well, then release early next week!
[NC]Stephen: :)
MMORPG.com: TrentH asks:What advice would you give to an aspiring young game developer, and what would you say is most fun aspect about developing games like Dungeon Runners?
[NC]Anson: Make games, on whatever scale you can. This is the most important advice I could give; recreating old classic arcade games is a good start. If you're looking to be a designer, put together a mod using a basic engine. Something like www.garagegames.com or Torque is a good start. But if you're a programmer, program a small game.
MMORPG.com:
[NC]MarkT:
MMORPG.com: wayubb asks:Any loyalty rewards being considered to be added down the road to paying subscribers depening on the length of time they ahve been a paying customer?
[NC]MarkT: We have started some early brainstorms on ways to support and show our appreciation for our long-term players. We don't have anything very solid to talk about right now, but know that we do want to do something to say thanks. If you have some ideas, we would love to hear them.
MMORPG.com: Goya asks:Will there be any expanding of load capacity in the worlds? (Allowing more players in at a time)
[NC]Stephen: Yes. We're optimizing every build. However, we need to make some changes to the chat system before we open up too many folks. Did you know that the PvP servers will support 500+ players?! Good Lord!
MMORPG.com: Gollias asks:What can high level players expect in this upcoming dungeon?
[NC]Bzus: We've added a dungeon specially designed for players that want a high level challenge. The creatures through out employ more skills than the previous dungeons. There is also a fair amount of quest content to go along with this dungeon as well as a dastardly new boss! We also have plans to add more depth to the Dungeon of Legend, to accommodate the higher level players.
MMORPG.com: Vorteel asks:Are there plans to continue adding large scale quests to the game for the forseeable future, or do you see it as reaching a certain point where the game is 'done'?
[NC]MarkT: Aside from adding new Dungeons and Monsters which you need for new Quests we plan to add new gameplay features as well, which will spice things up. We are talking about adding traps and curses as to name a fewl! On top of that we still plan to continue to add new quest lines. Matter of fact in this next build we have added a new Relic quest system that spans the entire game!
[NC]MarkT: I hate typos. doh!
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