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Jon Van Caneghem joins NCsoft
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Garrett
 
 




Joined: 13 Jul 2001
Posts: 74
Location: Munich, Germany
Jon Van Caneghem joins NCsoft
   

We just received this mail from NCSoft, nothing less, nothing more:<blockquote><em><b>Jon Van Caneghem Named Executive Producer at NCsoft</b>
<br><br><br>
Creator of Popular Might and Magic and Heroes Series to Join Forces with Online Gaming Company, Adding Further Prominence to Already Talented Team of NCsoft Game Designers
<br><br>
Austin, TEXAS, June 8, 2004—NCsoft™ Corporation, the world’s leading developer and publisher of online computer games, announces the appointment of Jon Van Caneghem as Executive Producer at NCsoft North America. Van Caneghem is best known as the founder of New World Computing and the creator of some of gaming’s most prominent franchises, including the Might and Magic® role playing game series and the Heroes® strategy game series.
<br><br>
Van Caneghem started New World Computing in 1983 and grew it to become one of the largest development houses in the computer games industry. The company was later acquired by 3DO. Van Caneghem created the Might and Magic and Heroes series and turned them into two of the industry’s most successful titles, with more than 20 million units in combined sales. Each title holds hall of fame status and has been ported to virtually every gaming platform available. They have also been translated into more than fifteen languages. At NCsoft he’ll begin work on a new, unannounced online game project.
<br><br>
“NCsoft has quickly established itself as a creative and technical leader in the online games industry,” said Van Caneghem. “They clearly understand where the online games business is going and see the huge potential that is has to offer. I’m excited to be joining a company with such expertise and I look forward to working with Richard Garriott and NCsoft’s talented team of designers to create the next generation of massively multiplayer online games.”
<br><br>
NCsoft executive, Richard Garriott, said, “I’ve always admired Jon’s innovative approach to game design. His impressive background in the entertainment industry complements and further broadens the capabilities of our strong studio development team. I look forward to working with him to create the most innovative titles the industry has to offer.”</em></blockquote>
<br>So, it is both Richard Garriott and Jon Van Caneghem in one company now...alas, it is a MMORPG comapny only...stay tuned for more news...
Post Tue Jun 08, 2004 5:03 pm
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Yeah, if only they weren't an MMORPG-only company... I'd be interested to see what JVC + Garriott could do with a single player game.
Post Tue Jun 08, 2004 5:04 pm
 
Nemisis Dragon
Village Dweller
Village Dweller




Joined: 12 Feb 2002
Posts: 4
   

Nothing.
Garriott lost all his virtues over the years. He only sees the "$$$" for his eyes...
Post Tue Jun 08, 2004 6:21 pm
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Eevle
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Oh well,
   

I suppose that means he won't be working on HoMM5 then, or MMX

MMO's, bleh

Eevle
Post Tue Jun 08, 2004 11:01 pm
 
Garrett
 
 




Joined: 13 Jul 2001
Posts: 74
Location: Munich, Germany
   

yeah...I am very disappointed as well. this is no good news, seeing another veteran fall for the online hype.
let's hope sirotek and bradley won't junp on the shitty mmorpg train
Post Tue Jun 08, 2004 11:04 pm
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Arma
Mysterious Lady
Mysterious Lady




Joined: 24 Oct 2003
Posts: 1230
Location: in the middle of hell
   

While it is sad to see that JVC won't be working on a new Heroes of M&M ot M&M title, it is good to see that he's finally up to something.
And anyway, I must say that Richard Gariot"s new title - Tabula Rasa - sounds pretty interesting so far. I hope there is some more info, and JVC will be working on that too. If that happens, TR will surely swipe away all other MMORPG titles.
Post Tue Jun 08, 2004 11:36 pm
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crpgnut
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Joined: 22 May 2002
Posts: 197
Location: St. Louis
My 2¢
   

It seems that NCSoft is hiring developers who have lost touch with their audience. Garriot and Caneghem both turned their backs on what made them famous and are trying different things. I'm sure together they'll be able to create the next Pagan or MMIX! My hope is that whoever owns the Might and Magic license only allows it to be developed by someone who is true to the original vision of the game. I've given up all hope of another real Ultima.
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Post Wed Jun 09, 2004 5:16 pm
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the dim
Eager Tradesman
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Joined: 04 Sep 2002
Posts: 28
Location: Norway
   

Some while ago now JVC said himself that he had some good ideas for mmorpg games that he still hadn't seen in any game to that date. He also said he have for many years wanted to make an mmorpg and there was some plans for it, but 3DO never saw it realized. I think this may be a good opportunity for JVC to show of those ideas. The MM series is really good imho but I can understand one get tired of doing the same for 20 years (crpgnut: JVC had near nothing to do with MMIX).

So good or bad?

I would rather see JVC join up with a company that doesn’t solely focus on MMO(RP)G's. It doesn’t hurt that he makes MMO/RP)G it will be interesting. And after all it's better to see him back in the gaming business (instead of driving those cars).

Oh, btw. crpgnut, if you haven't noticed already there is another MM game in production, MMT: http://www.mmt.34sp.com/
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Post Wed Jun 09, 2004 9:14 pm
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crpgnut
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Joined: 22 May 2002
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Location: St. Louis
   

quote:
Originally posted by the dim

Oh, btw. crpgnut, if you haven't noticed already there is another MM game in production, MMT: http://www.mmt.34sp.com/


Yep, I've seen this. I don't have much hope for it though. At the pace they're moving this game will never see the light of day. It might as well be called Grimoire II.

If they release a playable demo, I'll get excited. Til then it's a pipe dream. Many people start projects and then realize that it takes too much work and dedication to finish it. I was pleasantly surprised when Devil Whiskey actually
made it to release. It's very outdated graphically, but at least they stayed the course of their dream.

I wouldn't mind being pleasantly surprised again though.
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Post Thu Jun 10, 2004 3:30 pm
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Well we may move forward slow. But the project is moving and has no sign of stopping. As all volunteer projects the workload people can take varies much, the last weeks a great deal have been done. A bit ambitious project maybe, but I don't think it is too unrealistic that me make it (heck I am not working on something that will never see the light)

((I am known as SirGalrim over there if you wonder.))
Post Thu Jun 10, 2004 8:40 pm
 
the dim
Eager Tradesman
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Joined: 04 Sep 2002
Posts: 28
Location: Norway
   

Hum, for some reason I was loged out.
That last post was by me.
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Post Thu Jun 10, 2004 8:42 pm
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(DaClassico)

SirGalrim: No point in justfing our project. Once our first demo is out it will prove the project's worth.
Post Fri Jun 11, 2004 5:06 pm
 
crpgnut
Captain of the Guard
Captain of the Guard




Joined: 22 May 2002
Posts: 197
Location: St. Louis
   

quote:
Originally posted by Anonymous
(DaClassico)

SirGalrim: No point in justfing our project. Once our first demo is out it will prove the project's worth.


Agreed DaClassico. A demo is worth a billion words. I very much want your project to succeed if it stays true to the Might and Magic universe. One thing is for sure, you can't screw it up any worse than it already is. I haven't looked at your site in quite some time but I did download the tech demo which at least showed some promise. If you can release a demo of a starting town, npc conversations, a dungeon and a few quests, I think my (and many other's) excitement level will go through the roof. Especially if the full game matches the size of a Might and Magic game. One thing that caused MM9 to fail in my eyes was it was a very slimmed down version. Gone were the 80-90 dungeons and multiple class choices. They sacrificed core game elements so that the game could be more graphically satisfying. They even failed in that. 9 is ugly compared to almost any 3D game. Try putting it next to Morrowind, which was released shortly after and had an even longer development cycle, and it looked like puke.
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Post Fri Jun 11, 2004 6:36 pm
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Sir Felgar
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Crpgnut - progress with MMT may appear slow because of a lack of updates to the website however I can assure you the opposite is true. The last two months have probably been the most productive we've had yet - which is part of the reason we've not updated the site for so long - we've been too busy! Expect a big update to the site soon.

About a playable demos - in general these are usually only released a few months before a game is to be released. We are along way from having our game complete so we are not in a position to release a playable demo (yet). Sure we could put out more tech-demos to keep everyone happy, but tech demos won't help the development team to complete the actual game (which is the whole point!).

If you're wondering I would say that size-wise MMT is comparable to MM6 in terms of outdoor maps, dungeons, number of quests etc.

Finally - about MM9 - this game was made from start to finish in 7 months to comply with a 3DO imposed financial deadline. I'm not saying this should excuse it's short-comings, but it certainly played a large part. Imagine what NWC could have done with MM9 if they'd had 3-4 years to make the game like the Morrowind developers had (not to mention the same budget!)...

Sir Felgar
Post Fri Jun 11, 2004 7:44 pm
 
crpgnut
Captain of the Guard
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Joined: 22 May 2002
Posts: 197
Location: St. Louis
   

SF-Agree whole-heartedly with your MM9 comments. I don't blame the Devs, I blame the moronic 3DO and JVC too. He's the one that jumped to 3DO for the big money and gave up many rights in the process. There are very few companies that should be trusted with RPG franchises. 3DO wasn't one of those! If Bethesda, Bioware, or Troika had bought NWC, I think that the Might and Magic franchises would still be strong.

As far as MMT goes, a playable demo just proves one thing. The game is done enough to be playable. Until that point, it's just a hobby for the people working on it. I never get excited about remakes because 90% never come to fruition. I HOPE that MMT makes it, but I'm from Missouri so I have to be shown something to get excited. A 3D engine isn't a game so tech demos don't count.
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Post Fri Jun 11, 2004 8:40 pm
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