Will this game compete with all the new mmo's coming out?

TheWarc

*see title!

Playing: The Saga of Ryzom
Looking forward too: Matrix Online

Elapsed

I like the game, I think it looks like a lot of fun. However, I'm not a copmletely blind fanboy. I admit it doesn't strike me as being a huge success.

IgnisAer

Yeah, its true that the mmo is a volatile genre, but I think AA has a pretty good chance of snagging a pretty big audience. If they can get ahold of all the custom car people and the people with repressed rode rage (like me), that would definitely put some life into it. There's a big market for people in real life showing off their custom cars, and I think if NetDevil plays to that appeal, they could bring in a pretty big audience. I'm definitely not a marketing person tho, so I can't say that for certain =P. I'd like to see AA get big.

zamoth_bg

the idea of the game is with huge potential. the problem is the realization. for the retail i think they at lesat make the game look good. (graphics,sound, feel of the driving and such) and hope in later stages add the deapth of the game and hope see a good background story. i will w8 and see though i think that will have flat gameplay but will surely try some cARMAGEDDON. Hope youll be able to get of the ... cars or bikes or whatever, and  run over s.o. :P there should be blood and violance. hope for M rating. ah... hopes.

NC_Pann

My answer to this is probably not going to be a shocker, considering who I am and what my job is, but put me down for a resounding YES!!!!

Let me I'll tell you why -

1. And now, for something completely different... No swords, no elves, no dragons. I'll be the first one to admit that I love Fantasy, be it games or movies or artwork. It's what is familiar to me because I've been exposed to it since I was a kid. But Fantasy has been done in MMOs over and over again. It's time for something unique and Auto Assault brings that to the table, not in some obscure way like "It's BlahBlah Land! As Tyzi Tim, you zoom through Farmer Fala's feezil patch with your best friend Cuko Connie to kill the Bombin' Bunnies who threaten your home!" What the heck is that?!

Since Auto Assault is cars, it's automatically familiar. (My friend Mist loved MCO though she's never driven once in her life!) Post-apocolyptic worlds, though actual mileage may vary depending on the imagination of the storyteller, are also vaguely familiar in some way - who hasn't seen at least ONE of the Mad Max movies? (Beyond Thunderdome is still the best if for no other reason than Tina Turner's hair, but I digress...)

So, familiar elements, yes, but put that together in a MMO, and that makes it new and fresh for those of us who've done the MMO rounds and are ready for something different.

2. NetDevil loves their work more than Joanie loves Chachi... This isn't NetDevil's first time around the block. They learned some valuable lessons that first round and are applying that knowledge to Auto Assault. That's not to say that other dev studios aren't driven and determined. No one goes to work and says, "Hey, let's make a crappy game that doesn't sell! We'll spend millions of dollars and get precious little of that back, but at least we'll have a job for a few years until the publisher pulls the plug!" I don't do a little happy dance when I hear that a game is cancelled. I know how hard those folks were working and, though we would have been competing against each other on the market, deep down, we're all a very friendly bunch and a lot of us know each other and, even if we don't know each other, we still root for one another. Again, I have gone off on a tangent. Sorry. *clears throat*

So, back to NetDevil, and let me add Snow (our producer) in here, too, because if anyone has ever personified the word "driven" it is Snow. He looks like Matt Damon, talks like a Soprano, and even though I am nearly old enough to be his mom (not really, but I feel like it sometimes), he can unintentionally scare the bejezuz out of me if I see a look on his face that indicates I may have disappointed him in any small way. This entire team is dedicated heart and soul to making Auto Assault a success, no matter what it takes. Success isn't measured by hype or box sales alone, but in the quality of the product and the consumer's happiness with it. We want you to love our game as much as we do. NetDevil is doing all they can to make that happen.

3. The Fun Factor... Sales don't mean doo-dah if the game isn't fun, so fun is at the top of our list of goals for Auto Assault. Death penalties aren't fun. Losing items or experience when your ISP hiccups and you lose connection and log in to see you were killed in absentia is teh suxxor. There needs to be some deterrent, of course, so that you're not just lolloping around silly-nilly with no element of danger looming over you. Yeah, you're safe, but it's not fun and gets boring. Our answer to the dilemma is the airlift system. If you die, you're airlifted back to a repair station to get patched up (which costs you money, so there's a bit of a deterrent there, too, I guess) and then you have to make your way back to your group (so you are, in essence, sidelined for a few minutes, which can also be seen as a deterrent), but - again - nothing but a small inconvenient so it's not a devestating blow to your gameplay experience.

The arenas will probably be one of the most fun and exciting aspects of the game. I am not a PVPer myself, but am so stoked about arenas and hope I don't get pwnd too badly. I have PVPd before and it can be a heckuva lot of fun, especially when it is consentual. (I tried it and discovered I just didn't have the heart in UO to go gank some unsuspecting sod who was wandering innocently through the woods.) There is no AI in our current technology that can compare to the challenge you face when pitting your skills against another living human being. Arenas will give you the chance to do that solo or with a fantastic team you put together. We're not able to say much publicly about them yet, but Scorch told me last night that he and Fooo were working on them and he can't wait for me to see all of it because "it's going to kick butt!!!"

I could ramble on and on about this, but I've already made a very long-winded post, so I'll stop here. In parting, I'd like to invite you to not just take my word for it, but read what others who've seen the game have to say. There's a very good reason why we keep making these "Most Anticipated Game of 2005" lists. These interviews and previews spell it out: http://www.autoassault.com/press/

 

 

zamoth_bg

Well. Until I saw gameplay (I mean I have a go at the game) everything is just hype. When would see beta test of the game? This is the main way to contribtue to the up coming tittle and the best way to hear what we think about it. It is very nice that s.o. close is venturing forums.

IgnisAer

Well, the word I got was that NetDevil was going to start opening up Beta for AA within the next two months, depending on how things go. Ever since pann told me that, I've been watching the official page like mad trying to make sure I don't miss the announcement.

Ferrox

I reckon this game will do fine, I'm really looking forward to it though we cant tell for sure until beta. I can see this game getting a lot of subscribers off the bat just because its a new idea. Whether they can keep em is up to the devs.

I'm sick of fantasy genre, developers need to take chances like this and come up with new ideas. A western and Scuba/Undersea mmo would be great for the future

NC_Pann

Dude, please don't give yourself carpal tunnel syndrome hitting the "Refresh" button! If you gimp out your trigger finger before beta, you'll get pwnd for sure!  

I'll be making all sorts of posts and sending out e-mails to site owners when the registration page is up so everyone will know about it.

P.S. Ferrox, what in the Sam Hills of Wisconsin is that avatar pic you're using?! It scares me a little.

Ferrox

changed to protect the innocent.

NC_Pann

I thought it was Carlos Santana in drag (Photoshopped, of course, cause Carlos is just too cool for blue eye shadow,) but I'll take your word for it.

TheWarc

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Originally posted by NC_Pann
I thought it was Carlos Santana in drag (Photoshopped, of course, cause Carlos is just too cool for blue eye shadow,) but I'll take your word for it.

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Off-topic?

Imperatorian

I think its awesome developers and and people that work for the MMO companies post here.

And yes, I think this game will compete.

NC_Pann

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Originally posted by TheWarc

Off-topic?

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Tattle much?

I'm schmoozing with the folks, Warc. Going off-topic is an occupational hazard. Not to mention that I have a problem with a short attention span sometimes have have a tendency to get distrac- .... ooo colors and shinies... *wanders away*

IgnisAer

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I have a problem with a short attention span sometimes have have a tendency to get distrac- .... ooo colors and shinies... *wanders away*

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Yay! Shineys!

skyce

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Originally posted by TheWarc



Originally posted by NC_Pann
I thought it was Carlos Santana in drag (Photoshopped, of course, cause Carlos is just too cool for blue eye shadow,) but I'll take your word for it.

Off-topic?

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Where's the Off-topic board for Auto Assault? I don't think there is one. 

Karuji

Well what happens if you dun wanna race da big cars. What if I wanna hide and race wit my lil remote control car? And the risks in racing... I dun wanna burst into flames because of combustion propelled exploding thingy what's in the engine. I wanna walk around with a RC car. Not to mention how dangerous I am behind the wheel. Brake...? Seat-belt...? All I know is the gas.

Thoemse

Competing? This seems to be the answer to my prayers! if they don't fu** it up this will be my new home fpr a long time!

Edit: Pann? Sounds so familiar to me. You were community manager with another MMO company i wont mention before this job?

dsorrent

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Originally posted by NC_Pann
No one goes to work and says, "Hey, let's make a crappy game that doesn't sell! We'll spend millions of dollars and get precious little of that back, but at least we'll have a job for a few years until the publisher pulls the plug!"

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BZZZZT!! WRONG! There are people out there who say that. That's the ONLY way one can explain THIS.

NC_Pann

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Originally posted by Thoemse

Edit: Pann? Sounds so familiar to me. You were community manager with another MMO company i wont mention before this job?

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Yes, I was. Auto Assault is my third project as a community manager-type. If you played Ultima Online on the Great Lakes shard, you would have known me as Seer Pann there, as well.

Imperatorian

I've always wondered, what do the HQ's of MMORPG companies look like if I may ask Pann? Can you actually see the servers? If so, how awesome do they look?

Keeping the hamsters well fed and happy? (Inside MMORPG'ers joke; some might not get it)

IgnisAer

I'm curious as well. I remember seeing the insides of NOA's fortress on a video as a kid, but I love to see what kinds of places game makers work in. Being a game designer hopeful myself, I like having some images to look forward to.

dsorrent

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Originally posted by Imperatorian
I've always wondered, what do the HQ's of MMORPG companies look like if I may ask Pann? Can you actually see the servers? If so, how awesome do they look?
Keeping the hamsters well fed and happy? (Inside MMORPG'ers joke; some might not get it)

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Most companies which make the MMORPG's don't host the MMORPG Servers (i.e. they are not located in a building that company owns) They usually have companies like UUNet, Sprint or a backbone company host the servers. Since these companies are usually global, it makes setting up server shards around the world easier and cheaper than if they did it themselves.

Edited to add the following..

As for how awesome the servers look, this might give you some idea... it was posted on another MMORPG forum...

MMORPG Server - eBay

NC_Pann

Oh, the hamster jokes have been around a long, long time...

We have some servers in-house, but those are for things like billing and whatnot. Game servers are usually spread out over several locations in order to optimize the connections for players. Visually, unless you are just a top-tier geek and know what you're looking at, it's just a bunch of racks with these things that kind of look like stereo receivers piled up. (Top-tier geeks will not identify me as someone who is not "one of them." As much as I love games, I am not particuarly tech-savvy.)

I'm always worried that people who have never been to a game company before might be a little disappointed when they come to visit because I don't know what their expectations are. I'll often say, "This probably isn't the Wonka factory you were expecting..." but, to date, I don't think anyone has walked away going, "Well, that sucked! How boring!"

Just out of curiosity, what do YOU think the NCsoft or NetDevil offices would be like?

Ferrox

Probably lots of rustic cubicles made out of corrugated iron and sheetmetal with Lord Humungus sat in the middle in what was an old dentists chair converted into a throne, whipping people. The devs and such are all village people look-a-likes in chainmail vests and gimp masks. The entire office is situated in a large derelict water tower.

Thoemse

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Originally posted by NC_Pann
Originally posted by Thoemse
Edit: Pann? Sounds so familiar to me. You were community manager with another MMO company i wont mention before this job? Yes, I was. Auto Assault is my third project as a community manager-type. If you played Ultima Online on the Great Lakes shard, you would have known me as Seer Pann there, as well.

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Nah never played UO. You were with eve online too? (Or was it some other gme. Nah i think it was EVE.)
Just found my way back to eve btw. Still great game and will keep me entertained until Auto Assault gets rleased i hope.