Discussion on the best approach to revive SE
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2013 10:35 pm
I wanted to start a thread for folks to discuss the best way to revive this game. And what SE 2.0 circa 2013 needs to look like to be successful.
I found SE to be a groundbreaking game in 1997 when the first open betas occurred. 4 week persistent galaxies. A GUI client which gave more opportunity for interaction, and gave a significantly better playing experience than games that were just played in the browser. (most multiplayer online games were just browser games at the time) SE won my heart in 1997 when i first found the game, the friends i made and the lively competition kept the game very interesting.
But the year is now 2013. Alot has changed in the gaming community. As a plus MANY more people are online so the user base is potentially much larger. Social media and multiple sites dedicated to games gives a great opportunity to get the word out on this game.
But the market is also very different. A majority of users expect fancy graphics (i prefer playability over graphics, but think i'm the minority). On the market are a number of massive MMOs. That seems like the biggest change since SE's hayday. For example EVE Online is just a crazy example of what game designers can accomplish now a days. 40k people online in a persistent universe. I've played EVE a bit, but i must say i SE still has the best balance in reasonably straightforward rules (not too complex), but is enormously fun. Also something Caleb said last night i thought was good... One of the differentiating factors for SE is 4 week wars versus a persistent universe. I think that's a good thing.
So what do folks think about some of the following questions in terms of the best strategy to revive the game:
1) What does SE need to look like in 2013 based on the changes in the last 15 years to be successful?
1a) What is the right balance of any changes to the game, but to still remain true to the legacy of SE. (Some improvements to the graphics and move it to beta, or more significant changes?)
2) When is the best time to really get the word out on this game? (it's probably too early yet, but when is the right time?)
2a) What is the best approach to get the word out at attract the core players back, and especially new players? (i'm guessing we'd want to post on multiple game forums, as a fyi my two main sources of sci-fi gaming news are the following sites http://www.spacesector.com/ and http://www.spacegamejunkie.com/) What other sites are there out there, and what other ways do we have to get the word out? And if players check out the game, how do we keep them?
Also in the gaming world of 2013 i see many games move forward through sites like kickstarter. One (or a few) sharp programmers, have an idea, and publicize it. They can get the minimal funding they need and make it successful if they themselves don't have a skill in a specific area (for example graphics or music). Build a community to get feedback, test the game, and make it successful. Two good examples of kickstarter projects i think are FTL and and Stardrive.
FTL kickstarter site: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/644 ... than-light (Website: http://www.ftlgame.com/)
Stardrive Kickstarter site: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/131 ... for-the-pc (Website: http://www.stardrivegame.com/)
These are both single player games, but check out the amazing activity they eventually generated on their forums. In FTL's case it was 2 guys, in Stardrive's case it is one guy, but could that approach also work for this? Are there funding needs? Maybe this is more a question of Caleb's vision of the game.
Caleb: will you plan to start charging for the game after beta? Do you need funding for more powerful servers? Do you feel you might not have expertise in a certain area to move forward with the game? Perhaps i should ask first, do you have the time/energy and interest to make this the size of the open beta SE (or even bigger!)? Or is this just a side project in your free time? Any answer is fine, my hats off to you already just for accomplishing all you have. I'm not advocating any significant changes to the game you have right here, i like SE just the way i remember it in 1997 (but i may be the minority and a dinosaur?), but at the same time i'm interested to know your own personal vision for the game that you've recreated, and general plan to move forward... And based on your vision I am interested to know how I and others might be able to help contribute to make your vision and this game successful.
Just wanted to get a thread going to get folks thoughts on some of these topics and generate some discussion.
Hetulik
I found SE to be a groundbreaking game in 1997 when the first open betas occurred. 4 week persistent galaxies. A GUI client which gave more opportunity for interaction, and gave a significantly better playing experience than games that were just played in the browser. (most multiplayer online games were just browser games at the time) SE won my heart in 1997 when i first found the game, the friends i made and the lively competition kept the game very interesting.
But the year is now 2013. Alot has changed in the gaming community. As a plus MANY more people are online so the user base is potentially much larger. Social media and multiple sites dedicated to games gives a great opportunity to get the word out on this game.
But the market is also very different. A majority of users expect fancy graphics (i prefer playability over graphics, but think i'm the minority). On the market are a number of massive MMOs. That seems like the biggest change since SE's hayday. For example EVE Online is just a crazy example of what game designers can accomplish now a days. 40k people online in a persistent universe. I've played EVE a bit, but i must say i SE still has the best balance in reasonably straightforward rules (not too complex), but is enormously fun. Also something Caleb said last night i thought was good... One of the differentiating factors for SE is 4 week wars versus a persistent universe. I think that's a good thing.
So what do folks think about some of the following questions in terms of the best strategy to revive the game:
1) What does SE need to look like in 2013 based on the changes in the last 15 years to be successful?
1a) What is the right balance of any changes to the game, but to still remain true to the legacy of SE. (Some improvements to the graphics and move it to beta, or more significant changes?)
2) When is the best time to really get the word out on this game? (it's probably too early yet, but when is the right time?)
2a) What is the best approach to get the word out at attract the core players back, and especially new players? (i'm guessing we'd want to post on multiple game forums, as a fyi my two main sources of sci-fi gaming news are the following sites http://www.spacesector.com/ and http://www.spacegamejunkie.com/) What other sites are there out there, and what other ways do we have to get the word out? And if players check out the game, how do we keep them?
Also in the gaming world of 2013 i see many games move forward through sites like kickstarter. One (or a few) sharp programmers, have an idea, and publicize it. They can get the minimal funding they need and make it successful if they themselves don't have a skill in a specific area (for example graphics or music). Build a community to get feedback, test the game, and make it successful. Two good examples of kickstarter projects i think are FTL and and Stardrive.
FTL kickstarter site: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/644 ... than-light (Website: http://www.ftlgame.com/)
Stardrive Kickstarter site: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/131 ... for-the-pc (Website: http://www.stardrivegame.com/)
These are both single player games, but check out the amazing activity they eventually generated on their forums. In FTL's case it was 2 guys, in Stardrive's case it is one guy, but could that approach also work for this? Are there funding needs? Maybe this is more a question of Caleb's vision of the game.
Caleb: will you plan to start charging for the game after beta? Do you need funding for more powerful servers? Do you feel you might not have expertise in a certain area to move forward with the game? Perhaps i should ask first, do you have the time/energy and interest to make this the size of the open beta SE (or even bigger!)? Or is this just a side project in your free time? Any answer is fine, my hats off to you already just for accomplishing all you have. I'm not advocating any significant changes to the game you have right here, i like SE just the way i remember it in 1997 (but i may be the minority and a dinosaur?), but at the same time i'm interested to know your own personal vision for the game that you've recreated, and general plan to move forward... And based on your vision I am interested to know how I and others might be able to help contribute to make your vision and this game successful.
Just wanted to get a thread going to get folks thoughts on some of these topics and generate some discussion.
Hetulik