Folks,
As promised, here’s my August update on the state of Mythic’s Warhammer MMORPG.
1) We have received approval from GW on the initial game design for the game. What this means for Mythic is two-fold. First, we have created an initial design that the GW guys actually like and are excited at the thought of seeing online. Comments such as “The only thing I don’t like about it is that we have to wait two years to play it!” have made the Mythic team smile from ear-to-ear. Secondly, It means that work can begin at full-speed on certain parts of the approved material. Thus, I can say without any doubt that we are right on schedule.
2) The game will take place “out-of-time” with all the current GW material. With GW’s help, Mythic will sketch out a new time period for the game’s setting. This will allow the teams more freedom in creating content that is tailor-made for this game without worrying about contradicting existing GW material.
3) The game will be heavily-Warhammer. Not heavily-influenced by WH, not flavored with juicy bits of WH, but heavily-Warhammer. We are drawing on all the WH fantasy material no matter whether it comes from the Warhammer Fantasy Battles or Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, etc. We will be pulling in as much material as we can in order not only to create a great game but to create a great WH game. An example of this would be our implementation of the Career System from the WFRP or using a particularly iconic High Elf unit within the game as something the player can aspire to become.
4) The game will be RvR-centric, focused on the ongoing battles between three separate groups (more information on these groups down the road).
5) The playable races that will be represented in the game are Humans (Empire), High Elves, Dwarves, Dark Elves, Chaos (more to come on this, sorry for being vague), Orcs and Goblins. While we want to do almost all the other races (except Halflings, who are a race best served over a net at about 100MPH), we don’t want to overreach right from the beginning. We plan on, of course, expansion packs that will bring the other races into the mix down the road. Not having Skaven, Vampire Counts, Tomb Kings, etc. in right from the beginning was not an easy decision but the important thing is to bring in enough races to make it fun but to do so in a way that allows us to more easily balance the game and create specific content for the races that is both fun and true to WH. The temptation to add more races is quite strong but our goal with this game is not to try to impress the player with how much stuff we can throw at you but rather we want to impress you with what we do throw at you (we only choose the best rotten and decaying food substances to toss at you!). In other words, quality not quantity.
6) GW has been very kind and extremely helpful in sharing their knowledge, thoughts, ideas and most importantly, access to Bugman’s Bar, as the project continues to evolve. We have been fortunate enough to work with folks such as Rick Priestley, Alan Merrett, Gav Thorpe, John Blanche and others (the list goes on and on) right from the beginning. The GW people are also continuing to be part of the development process as they continue to share their input with us. The best part of this is that it is a collaborative effort with both sides focused on one goal, to create the best RvR-centric MMORPG to date. We have been fortunate to work with great licenses and licensors in the past but GW has taken the crown (and the throne, the jewels and a serving wench or two as well, damn them!). The approval process has been run professionally and in a timely manner and that, in and of itself, would give GW the crown. However, when you throw in the fact that when this game is released it will not only be GW approved but it will contain lots of new bits that GW has created for use in this game, it is clear that working with these guys has been nothing less than glorious.
7) Magic will play a large role in the game. We are taking all the material contained in the IP and expanding on it while maintaining the core WH magic system. I know that some people here are hoping that magic would be less of a role in this MMORPG than other MMORPGs but as GW would tell you, magic is everywhere in the world of Warhammer. Make no mistake about it, magic will play a great role in the game but it will be WH magic, not D&D magic.
The RvR and combat systems in this game will not be DAoC2. While I don’t want to go into details now (for competitive reasons), what we are creating for this game is tailored to this game, to the IP and to make this a next-generation game.
9) Our artists have, so far, created and nailed (from a WH perspective) a great look for this game. While we have quite a ways to go our guys have, I think, even surprised GW a little bit in how quickly we have grasped the WH IP. With all the input we got from our last trip to GW, I expect that both WH fans and gamers new to the IP will love the look of the game. While we are not ready to post anything yet, I can tell you that the look is not a clone of World of Warcraft but neither is it a clone of Dark Age of Camelot. The look is unique to this game and very, very WH (okay, I’ll tell you this much, our concept art for the Dwarf showed him with a beer mug in one hand ).
10) With the postponement of Imperator and the fact that DAoC’s next expansion in coming out soon, we will be able to almost fully staff the WH team ahead of schedule. What this means is that we will be able to make a big splash at E3 2006.
So, that’s it for now. I’ll be back on these boards in September with more news and updates.
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