Jumpgate Evolution Dev Interview, Dogfighting Video 66
Massively recently interviewed Hermann Peterscheck, a producer for NetDevil's upcoming space-fighter MMO Jumpgate Evolution. He talks about the UI and the huge level of customization, as well as basic flight and zone design. Also available is a video showcasing space combat inside an asteroid belt.
"We're still sort of working on [ship progression], but the idea is that you pick your first ship at level five, which is about an hour or so of gameplay. Basically there's sort of forks, so you start out in kind of a beginner ship and then there's like fighting types of ships, mining types of ships, cargo haulers and within that there's sort of sub-classes. So like, there's light fighters, medium fighters, heavy fighters, bombers. There's haulers that carry a lot of stuff, but move kind of slowly and there's haulers that carry lost stuff, short little courier shuttles that move really quickly."
Re:I don't think so (Score:5, Insightful)
Two of your complaints are valid, but seriously, would you enjoy playing a game where the only sound you hear is your pilot shifting around in the cockpit?
Fun first, realism second (Score:3, Insightful)
Seriously, games are meant to be fun. That is their primary reason to exist. Thus that needs to take precedence over all other concerns. A highly realastic space combat game isn't likely to be any fun. I don't want a game that is concerned with having 100% accurate modeling of motion, I want one that's fun to fly.
All the space shooters that I remember the most fondly are quite unrealistic in many ways. Tie Fighter would be a great example. Love that game, probably the best space shooter of all time. However, nobody is going to call it realistic. The flying mechanics are something akin to being neutrally buoyant in water. There is no gravity, but there is friction that opposes your motion. Also, sound travels quite well, you hear enemy ships zoom by, hear explosions and that sort of thing. You can also change your view around to any number of external camera angles.
So it isn't realistic. Well, nothing about Star Wars is. However it is fun, and that's the reason I'll buy a game.
So if you are not going to buy a MMO because you don't feel it is real enough, well, good luck to you, I suspect you'll never play one then. The companies out there aren't in it to try and simulate reality, they are in it to entertain. Thus reality is going to take a back seat when it interferes with fun.
To me this is like whining that Introversion's Uplink isn't a realistic simulation of computer hacking. Well duh. Real hacking is fairly boring when you get down to it, not the sort of thing that'd make a good game. They made their game to be entertaining, not realistic (for example IPs aren't real in their game, with a select few exceptions).
If you want a realistic space sim, go play Orbiter. However don't bitch if it isn't exciting. Real space navigation isn't. If you want a fun space fantasy game, maybe Jumpgate is for you. However don't bitch when they put fun before reality. Orbiter is trying to make a rather accurate simulation, so accuracy comes before fun. Jumpgate is trying to make a successful MMO, so fun comes before everything else.
Re:I don't think so (Score:4, Insightful)
Why would it necessarily be a bad thing?
Because it would sound boring as hell.
Realism isn't the enemy of fun, it can even enhance it.
Realism is not the enemy of fun, but blindly applying realism is. I cringe every time someone cries that something in a game isn't realistic. It's not supposed to be realistic, it's a game. It's supposed to maximize fun, not realism.