Sunday, November 28, 2010

Craig Morrison on success and failure

by Jef Reahard Sep 27th 2010 at 11:00AM

Filed under: Fantasy, Age of Conan, MMO industry, Warhammer Online, News items, Opinion

Last week's Craig Morrison blog topic brought a wave of interesting comments from readers and writers alike, illustrating why MMO number-crunching is always a hot-button issue. The Age of Conan game director takes another crack at a controversial topic with his followup post, and attempts to deconstruct the logic of fans who insist on labeling games "successes" or "failures" despite not having the information necessary to make such a judgment.

"Whether any title that displays a numbers trend similar to another can be deemed a success or a failure depends entirely on the budget, ambition and infrastructure of the project," he writes. While that's common sense to most folks, there are still some who insist that AoC and Warhammer are "failures" despite the fact that they remain open for business and profitable. Morrison acknowledges that both titles fell short of their ultimate subscriber goals, but also cautioned that equating lower-than-desired numbers to failure "is a very dangerous assumption to make."

Tags: age-of-conan, aoc, blog, craig-morrison, dev-blog, failure, fan-logic, funcom, mmo-numbers, opinion, silirrion, success, Warhammer, Warhammer-Online


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Saturday, November 27, 2010

Massively Speaking Episode 120

Massively Speaking Episode 120 | Massively | Mail | You might also like: WoW Insider, Joystiq, and more

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NewsReviewScreensVideoAchievementsGuidesForum Massively Speaking Episode 120by Shawn Schuster on Oct 20th 2010 1:00PM

Podcasts, Culture, Opinion, Massively meta, Humor, Massively Speaking

2 Massively Speaking Episode 120 marks the return of Rubi as she joins Shawn to discuss this distinctly slow news week. But there's still plenty to talk about! Topics include Aion's iPhone app, the rumored Elder Scrolls MMO, FFXIV's extended free period (and bad launch), the new Guild Wars all-hero party addition and.... Minecraft. Yes, we just had to talk about it. Also, Shawn found his first castle since the recording. And bought Fallout: New Vegas, as he said he wouldn't. Sigh.

Have a comment for the podcasters? Shoot an email to shawn@massively.com with the subject "Massively Speaking." We may just read your email on the air!

Get the podcast:
[iTunes] Subscribe to Massively Speaking directly in iTunes.
[RSS] Add Massively Speaking to your RSS aggregator.
[MP3] Download the MP3 directly.
Listen here on the page:



Read below the cut for the full show notes.Massively Speaking is the official podcast of Massively.com. Hosted by Editor-in-Chief Shawn Schuster and Contributing Editor Rubi Bayer, Massively Speaking takes on the week's biggest news and dev interviews with plenty of opinion, rants, and laughs thrown in for good measure. Join us every Wednesday afternoon to listen in and see what we'll say next!
Show Notes For Massively Speaking Episode 120

Hosts:
Shawn Schuster Rubi BayerTopics:
Rumored Elder Scrolls MMO in the works Aion announces new iPhone app Final Fantasy XIV offers 30 more days of free time Guild Wars update allows full hero parties Rubi's Hall of Monuments guide is finished! Theme Music:
"Vanguard Forward," by Michael Gordon Shapiro. Used with permission. Tags: humor, massively-meta, massively-speaking, opinion, podcasting, podcasts
Reader Comments (2)Posted: Oct 20th 2010 6:58PM (Unverified) said2 hearts ReportGet well soon Rubi.
I may pop onto GW someday soon, I'm not really into achievements, but I could do with some social time. Starting to feel lonely. Reply Posted: Oct 20th 2010 9:05PM (Unverified) said2 hearts ReportYEAAAH.

Minecraft. Reply Sorry, you must be logged in to leave a comment. InfoDescription

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DDOcast host leaving to work for Turbine

The feel-good news story of the day comes courtesy of the long-running Dungeons and Dragons Online podcast called, crazily enough, DDOcast. Normally a show's cancellation (or in this case, hiatus) isn't cause for celebration, but this particular story has a happy ending since podcast creator and host Jerry Snook is closing up shop to go and work for Turbine in an as-yet unidentified capacity. Snook posts a lengthy farewell on the podcast's website, and he also hints that the show may go on with a new host.

This Friday's show, episode 191, will be the last for the foreseeable future. Snook will also make the show's archives available to interested parties. "I will do my best to have the content available for as long as there is an interest in checking out the show and web site. It is also very possible that DDOcast will return/continue under new leadership," he writes.


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Massively Speaking Episode 123

Massively Speaking Episode 123 | Massively | Mail | You might also like: WoW Insider, Joystiq, and more

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NewsReviewScreensVideoAchievementsGuidesForum Massively Speaking Episode 123by Shawn Schuster on Nov 10th 2010 4:00PM

Podcasts, Culture, News items, Opinion, Massively meta, Humor, Massively Speaking

5 Massively Speaking Episode 123 returns this week with Shawn and Rubi discussing the week's biggest topics, including the upcoming launch of Perpetuum, more job cuts for the Fallen Earth team, SWTOR warzones and more!

Have a comment for the podcasters? Shoot an email to shawn@massively.com with the subject "Massively Speaking." We may just read your email on the air!

Get the podcast:
[iTunes] Subscribe to Massively Speaking directly in iTunes.
[RSS] Add Massively Speaking to your RSS aggregator.
[MP3] Download the MP3 directly.
Listen here on the page:



Read below the cut for the full show notes.Massively Speaking is the official podcast of Massively.com. Hosted by Editor-in-Chief Shawn Schuster and Community Manager Rubi Bayer, Massively Speaking takes on the week's biggest news and dev interviews with plenty of opinion, rants, and laughs thrown in for good measure. Join us every Wednesday afternoon to listen in and see what we'll say next!
Show Notes For Massively Speaking Episode 123

Hosts:
Shawn Schuster Rubi Bayer
Topics:
Perpetuum launching November 25th More job cuts for Fallen Earth Battlestar Galactica Online enters closed beta Codemasters denies picking up APB SWTOR releases more info on warzones and crafting Theme Music:
"Vanguard Forward," by Michael Gordon Shapiro. Used with permission. Tags: culture, humor, massively-meta, massively-speaking, opinion, podcasting, podcasts
Reader Comments (5)Posted: Nov 10th 2010 5:01PM (Unverified) said2 hearts ReportVindictus, now your speaking my language.

I really love this game, so much that I even considered doing a podcast on it.
(going to wait until there is more content, and I'm further along)
But, I am doing a blog on Vindictus and Starcraft 2.

http://exnfrustration.blogspot.com/2010_11_01_archive.html

I also do guides, so far I only have one, How to connect to Vidictus via proxy server.
Yeah, I live in NZ, so I had to find a way around the IP block.
And now anyone who is interested can do it as well.

And I'm glad that you are liking Vindictus Shawn. Now we have one more thing in common.


~Yoh Reply Posted: Nov 11th 2010 5:09PM (Unverified) said2 hearts ReportIt would be nice to know if there is any plan to release Vindictus in Europe.
I wonder a bit why Massively couldnt afford to go to gamescom in Germany but can afford to go to Korea. Reply Posted: Nov 11th 2010 7:55PM ShawnSchuster said2 hearts ReportI'm not sure I follow your logic there. The Korea trip comes later, so I was able to save up longer. Reply Posted: Nov 11th 2010 7:01PM (Unverified) said2 hearts ReportMost of the people who rant about SWTOR failing, are not ranting just for the sake of seeing a game fail. I posted on this before, but as usual, selective memory fails some it seems. SWTOR gets ranted on by some gamers because maybe those gamers have a little more experience in mmo's than some gamers and maybe know what works usually and what doesn't.

Ruby's comment that "if 'gamers' don't like it, don't play it" statement is pretty weak to say the least. How does someone get the position she has with shallow comments like that?

Not to mention she has the arrogance to end in saying "if you don't like a game, she doesn't want to hear it?" Wow. That is a pretty narrow view from someone in reporting mmo reviews and news.

Shawn I can understand about being where he is coming from, but I scratch my head every week about Ruby and why she is still around. Other than the obvious that she is just a "token female" for the show. Reply Posted: Nov 11th 2010 9:14PM (Unverified) said2 hearts ReportFortunately Arenanet did listen to those that didnt like GW1 so they can have more fans for GW2.
If someone is beta-testing a game I dont have access to, I like to hear from those who like the game and those that dont. Reply Sorry, you must be logged in to leave a comment. InfoDescription

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Breaking News EVE Online santa patch to get rid of learning skills Featured StoriesThe Road to Mordor: Community check-up

Posted on Nov 26th 2010 1:00PM

Champions Online designer clarifies power changes

Posted on Nov 26th 2010 12:00PM

Massively interviews CCP Greyscale on the EVE Christmas gift

Posted on Nov 26th 2010 10:00AM

The most popular posts
in the last 7 daysDon't panic -- Massively's getting a makeover! [Update #5] 264 commentsUPDATED: Win a new Guild Wars costume pack from Massively! 128 commentsUPDATED: Get the full Rift beta experience with our VIP beta key giveaway! 70 commentsThe Daily Grind: Should trailers use only in-game footage? 50 commentsThe Daily Grind: What do you think about experience scrolls? 45 comments Engadget OpenVizsla hopes to bring USB sniffing to the ... AAXA debuts L1 v2: world's smallest 20 lumen pico ... Next iPad likely to get a new screen, ... WoW WoW Rookie: Cataclysm troll starting area ... WoW Moviewatch: Staghorn Gets a Pat Down ... Around Azeroth: Overheated and underdressed ... Massively One Shots: Life in a northern town ... The Road to Mordor: Community check-up ... Champions Online designer clarifies power changes ... Big Download Shogun 2: Total War now titled Total War: Shogun ... More holiday sales pop up for PC owners ... Activision launches "Murder Your Maker" teaser ... Autoblog 2012 Mazda5 priced from $19,990, hits dealerships ... First Ride: 2011 Harley-Davidson CVO models ... Report: Bernie Ecclestone beaten, girlfriend ... Urlesque Free Range Turkey Farmer Has His Own Built-In ... A Very EpicMealTime Thanksgiving ... Last Shot - Chlorophyll of a Woman's Touch ... Games.com Blog FrontierVille Winter is Coming Goals: Everything ... PetVille Black Friday Sale gets rid of those ... Happy Aquarium Black Friday Sale begins 10 a.m. ... UGO.com 25 Rappers Who Died Too Young The 100 Best Movie Spaceships AOL Tech Joystiq

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