Interview with Alchemic Dream Inc... content writers (background, scenario, quests) for Dark and Lig

Link:  http://www.darkandlight.net/article.php3?id_article=110

JOL INTERVIEW 

Introduction

1.1. For starters, and for people who don?t know about you yet, could you describe the general activity of Alchemic Dream?

Satange: Alchemic Dream Inc. is a Canadian company providing services for MMOs. Our main services are localization, game mastering, press relations, content writing (background, scenario, quests), consulting and marketing. We also have an online structure for distribution, billing and server hosting.

1.2. Tell us about your carrier path. Do you play MMOGs (if yes, which ones?, how did you start working for the game industry?

Satange: Most of our team is made of MMO players, or people who have a good knowledge of the game industry. As far as I?m concerned, I test every MMO available on the market in order to keep the clearest view on what?s happening.
But I don?t really have time to actually play MMOs anymore. I tend to walk away from my screen when I have some free time.

Speaking of carrier paths, our team members come from very different horizons. I started as a scriptwriter and director (movies), and I was lucky enough to be part of the MMO adventure when it started. Passion finally converted me totally. I worked for Cryo Networks in Paris mainly, before Alchemic Dream was created in Quebec.

1.3. Alchemic Dream?s arrival in the small world of DnL has been announced officially a few weeks ago. Could you please remind us about your role, from now on until release, and once the game goes to retail.

Satange: For now, Alchemic Dream is in charge of public relations, localization and website update in 5 languages. Moreover, we?ll start organizing events as soon as the new test phase is launched, in order to raise people?s interest in this beta phase, and to test the GM tools.
Our team will also develop the storyline elements (quests, lore, etc.). When the game is released, Alchemic Dream will ensure localization, game mastering and customer support, in addition to its current activities.

Alchemic Dream before the release of Dark and Light

2.1. There were many complaints about NP Cube?s lack or absence of communication. Your role is, partly, to enhance this activity. What are your projects regarding communication? What is your schedule for the months to come?

Satange: We already have a schedule, which is coordinated with the developers? own calendar. Communication will be stronger and stronger, from now on.
Our presence in the forums, chatrooms and even betatests will increase gradually.
Dark and Light gets an excellent reputation by word of mouth, and this is a great thing, but this is not a reason to leave a strong communication and marketing phase aside.
The game localization implies a communication effort in every chosen language.

2.2. Recently, we discovered the new version of the community website, and the commercial website should be available soon. Could you tell us about what we?ll find in it? For instance, we know that there will be a FAQ. Is this a gathering of old information, or real new elements? What kind of info will we find on this website? I suppose that this website will be regularly updated. Do you have a schedule for information release? If you do, could you tell us what the next information release will be made of?

Satange: The FAQ is a gathering of every information already published since 2 years. There has been quite a lot of information released so far, and we had to compile all this in one place. This FAQ will be regularly updated with new elements revealed in interviews and devchats. The .com website will give, among other things, elements on some races, classes and places. Moreover, the info access will be more intuitive, and easier to find.

2.3 You said that you wanted to use the community?s productions. Could you tell us more about it?

Satange: Yes, because we will launch this soon.
We?d like to propose the community a theme, every week or month, and the members will send us their works. Our team will read what is sent, then we?ll integrate these texts to the game universe whenever possible.
This method will allow us to strongly increase the amount of content, and at the same time will give the community a chance to participate.

2.4. We read here and there that you could forward "interesting ideas" to the development team, which means that you could intervene on the game content, more or less directly. Can you influence the gameplay, or the game designers? work?

Satange: Players can do this, mostly. A good example is about the key configuration. Following the comments of a high number of players, the dev team changed it in order to please them.
It?s true that our experience and relationship with players allow us to bring developers a different point of view on their game, and this is why we talk with them about game design on a regular basis.

Events in DnL

3.1. Once the game is released, AD takes care of DnL events. Please tell us more about the way you see events in DnL.

Satange: This is a vast subject!
In common events, a player?s role is usually to follow the story, rather than influencing it. The player is a passive viewer in a storyline that decides what happens, no matter what, and the conclusion is inevitable. We gave up thinking like that a long time ago. Today, players want to be more than spectators in a frozen universe. Freewill is a very important thing for us, for our events. We create basic frames, but players decide what really occurs, their actions and decisions have real consequences, and these consequences, may go beyond what they originally wanted to do.

We bring a lot of attention to every quest we create. A simple action like taking an item in some strange or hostile place is very commonplace. Usually, once the item is found and brought back, the adventurers start another quest. It?s not a good thing. We want simple actions like this one to have much wider consequences. The medallion an old man wants back can be a sign of identification that opens the access to a secret organization. Members of this organization would be mad when then learn that their worst enemy now owns this medallion. We want players to think twice before starting a new adventure, even if it seems very basic. Our goal is first of all to entertain players, to renew their interest in the game, to make them part of multiple intrigues and sudden revivals, even if sometimes they don?t know about it. We want to surprise them, to break the routine, to make them feel this epic atmosphere and to impress the skeptical.

In order to reach this goal, we have an experienced team of numerous game masters, available on a daily basis, even very late at night.

Dark and Light will be a new phase in the history of online gaming. In every aspect...

3.2. Can we hope to see events for all character types, no matter their focus (fighter, trader, crafter, manager, explorer, etc.)? Can such themed events intertwine and imply everybody? Will casual players be able to participate?

Satange: Our goal is not to make events for an enlightened elite. Everybody should have fun, whatever his interests may be. Every class, race and gaming style will be involved, sooner or later.

3.3. You said that you didn?t want to launch events at regular intervals. Do you want to set up roleplay campaigns (like in pen and paper games), spread over several months, for instance? How will you organize this?

Satange: There will be vast campaigns spread over several months. They will be made of multiple scenarios, and the interaction will be high. The course of the scenario will depend on players? actions.

3.4. You also mention that you don?t want to split events according to languages. Can you tell us more about it? Is it possible to manage very different cultural communities on the same level ? (for instance, French speaking players are said to be more focused on roleplay)

Satange: What we really want to avoid is mirror events, which is repeating the same event in every language. We will create events in every community language, but they will give a coherent result.

3.5. The strong point in DnL is to be "The greatest MMOG you have ever seen". How will you handle events, given the size of the world? How will you send announcements to players for instance?

Satange: The size of the world is a precious asset for us. For instance, take a band of thieves: if they are discovered, they can always hide some place else. Things you can?t predict, unknown factors, will play a major part in the universe. The pleasure of discovering new things will always be there.

We have many ways to announce an event, but first of all, the method has to be coherent. It can be an announcement in the gazette, a strange message dropped in front of your door... The adventure will always be around.

3.6. NP Cube said that a player?s reputation could play an important role (leaders, war heroes, legendary crafters). Do you want to enhance this will of recognition? If yes, how? Can you influence or encourage a player?s fame?

Satange: The gazette of Ganareth will tell about great and evil deeds of players. According to his actions and "charisma", a player can become very famous.
We want to give some value to great deeds and to character interpretation.
But our experience tells us that a true hero doesn?t need our help to become a legend on Ganareth. Rumours spread fast, you know.

3.7. DnL has a political dimension, and on the long term, character can be elected as city mayors. AD has already managed games with a voting system (A Tale in the Desert mainly). Do you already know how you will intervene in elections?

Satange: Neutrality is a key factor; we have to let players decide by themselves. But of course, it doesn?t prevent us from creating many events associated to the political system.

3.8. NP Cube wishes to encourage roleplay. What will you do to achieve this?

Satange: Everyone is free to play as he wants, and we won?t force anyone to play one way of the other.
However, nobody should break someone else?s immersion by illegal names, or because he speaks about the results of the last football match on a roleplay channel. We will monitor this of course. Morever, online events are the best way to encourage people towards role-playing and reinforce the immersion.
We just published a text about roleplay here.

3.9. One question we have to ask: Can you tell us more about Gary Gygax?s role in DnL? He?s famous for his very complex rule systems (Dungeons & Dragons, and Lejendary Tales). Does he also play a role on gameplay and game balance?

Satange: Gary plays a role as a scriptwriter in Alchemic Dream team. He?ll be the one who will create our main campaigns in Ganareth.

Role of Alchemic Dream in the development of DnL

4.1. Vuuar mentioned several times that the engine was flexible and allowed events to be set up easily. Could you give us real examples of the engine capacity regarding events?

Satange: I don?t know if Vuuar would like us to talk about this ;-P Let?s just say that we can alter the universe according to our needs, create a storm to announce some dark event, burn a village, control NPCs...

4.2. Will you have technical tools to create events? Are these your own tools, or tools developed by NP Cube? Could you give us the details of technical possibilities at your disposal?

Satange: NP Cube tailors in-game tools for us. The interaction between both our teams is excellent, and Dark and Light will be one of the first games to use such efficient tools for online events.