@Update Just another confirmation (nothing new) over at Facebook about the current status of the upcoming WoD MMOG.
the WoD MMO development goes on, just at a slower pace until the release of Dust 514.
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As you might have noticed on several other news sites and the “furious” community, CCP mentioned in a press release that it will focus development on the EVE Universe and
World of Darkness will continue development with a significantly reduced team. This team will continue to iterate and expand on the gameplay and systems they have designed. We will also redeploy creative teams in Atlanta to support the launch of DUST 514.
WoD MMO Producer Chris McDonough posted over at the wodnews forums:
Hey Guys, sorry I haven’t read all of the posts, been a long day and out buying drinks for some folks who are departing. Just wanted to say, this is not the end of World of Darkness, far from it. It is also not vapor ware, as we have been doihng playtests for a while. I have been involved in all of the descisions made surrounding this project and the current situation. I am also in charge of rallying the teams come Monday to refocus our efforts on getting this thing in shape. This is a tough spot, but I can promise you, we still have plenty of guys on staff.
Thanks,
Chris
while CCP CEO Hilmar Petursson mentioned in a Gamasutra interview:
Development of World of Darkness will continue, and the game will launch in a less ambitious form, he said — and will be driven, as EVE has been, by its community, not by internal initiatives.
Meanwhile Chris McDonough responded another time on the wodnews forums and clarified that most of the rage is unjustified and the only really concern probably is to “just” have to wait even longer ;o)
Hey Guys,
Just drifting by now that some of the madness is over. What is really happening here is that we are slowing our progress until DUST ships so that we are not focusing on too many things. We had staffed up as if we would be able to be production ready at this time and we simply are not. The World of Darkness team has spent significant time working on EVE over the last 2 years and much of the tech we were going to used was delayed while to company focused on flying in space features. That is why it took so long for Incarna to get released. The simple overhead that goes into maintaining a growing game like EVE is huge and was underestimated by us as a company. And before anybody com pains about EVE, I would remind folks that the ONLY reason there is a World of Darkness MMO coming at all is because of EVE. That and the fact that CCP believed in World of Darkness so much. The stuff that we plan on reducing on World of Darkness is mostly redundant content that is expensive to make. The core of the game and it’s features are mostly unaffected.
I’m a big fan of transparency and I will always shoot you guys straight. Doesn’t mean things never change and my words won’t be taken out of context and come back to haunt me later ;-) but this is how things stand right now. By the way, the scope of the game changes all the time. We make frequent changes to accommodate simplicity or the ability to deliver something. This is why I make such a big deal out of saying nothing is set in stone. Set in stone is when it is released and even then, only until we patch :-)
Thanks! – Chris McDonough World of Darkness Senior Producer
I obviously will post about any upcoming update as always but until then and until we really know more about the game/development…
Next week (11/02/11) the first trailer for GTA V will be released! And more importantly, so will Uncharted 3.
The sequel to the best made game so far (best storytelling, pacing, presentation, score, sound, design, love in details, atmosphere, gameplay, synchronization, acting and so on) – and probably the new successor of that title (I have no idea how Naughty Dog wants to top Uncharted 2 but they probably will somehow). I play games for about 20 years now but never was as excited as the last few years! :)
I literally can’t wait and already am sad when thinking about finishing this masterpiece (in one day or two at the most).
Already saw too much about Uncharted 3 (thanks to spoilery headlines and screenshots on Twitter and gaming websites) but I think I still was able to avoid most of it (Can’t believe how the masses keep destroying their experiences of great masterpieces like that by consuming every bit of information there is).
Also I experienced and finished Team Ico’s Ico (HD remake) for the very first time two weeks ago. It was the expected masterpiece and work of art as expected (and more!). Probably my new favorite gaming experience.