Massively http://massively.joystiq.com Massively http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://massively.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Massively http://massively.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Engaging the brain: Funcom talks about the immersiveness of story in The Secret World]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/05/27/engaging-the-brain-funcom-talks-about-the-immersiveness-of-stor/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/05/27/engaging-the-brain-funcom-talks-about-the-immersiveness-of-stor/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/05/27/engaging-the-brain-funcom-talks-about-the-immersiveness-of-stor/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

"No designer could ask for more to draw upon," The Secret World's Joel Bylos says. "This world, our world, is the greatest resource of them all."

And so begins a fascinating trip down the dark alleys of storytelling in Funcom's upcoming MMO. In a dev diary posted at MMORPG.com, The Secret World team suggests it's more interesting to set the game in our world instead of in rehashed fantasy lands. By embracing the concept of "everything is true," the writers open the door to every conspiracy theory, every urban legend, and every branch of pseudoscience known to man.

"The story is exploration. The story is discovery," Bylos promises. He says that the ultimate goal of the storytelling team is to get players to stop mindlessly clicking and to start engaging the story on a conscious level. This includes investigating events, hunting for clues and solving puzzles. No, this isn't Scooby-Doo Online (although that would be awesome).

It's also interesting to note that every character in the game has full voice-over and motion capture as a way to pull you into the story instead of jolt you out of it. Bylos also outlines the different types of missions, which include stealth and infiltration, action, investigation, and story.

[Thanks Even!]

MassivelyEngaging the brain: Funcom talks about the immersiveness of story in The Secret World originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 27 May 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>conspiraciesconspiracyconspiracy-theoriesdev-diarydeveloper-diaryhorrorimmersionimmersivenessinvestigationjoel-bylosmmorpg.compsuedosciencepuzzlesRagnar-Tornquistscooby-doo-onlinestoriesstorystorytellingthe-secret-worldtswurban-legendsvideowritingFri, 27 May 2011 10:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Funcom hints at Secret World death penalty, sabotage missions]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/04/05/funcom-hints-at-secret-world-death-penalty-sabotage-missions/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/04/05/funcom-hints-at-secret-world-death-penalty-sabotage-missions/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/04/05/funcom-hints-at-secret-world-death-penalty-sabotage-missions/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,

All is very hush hush around Funcom's The Secret World. While a good bit of new info surfaced at last month's GDC, there are still more questions than answers regarding the firm's followup to Age of Conan.

That said, occasionally the devs will dangle a tasty morsel, and in a new interview at Game Snafu, Funcom designer Martin Bruusgaard does just that with regard to TSW's death penalty mechanics. "We will not implement a death system that can be exploited as a fast travel system, because dying in The Secret World should be a sign of failure, and not optimization in any way. We don't want to punish the players in a form where they can lose stuff, neither items nor experience, but rather penalize on time," he explains.

Designer Joel Bylos also chimes in with some interesting bits about the game's questing mechanics, chief among them a hint about new sabotage missions. "These missions share a similar gameplay style to the original Deus Ex game -- avoiding security cameras, disabling traps and hacking computers, etc. Generally the traps are dynamic only in the sense that players can disable/enable them in the world. This becomes interesting when other players can accidentally trigger an alarm in the camp you are sneaking through," Bylos says. Check out the full interview at Game Snafu.

MassivelyFuncom hints at Secret World death penalty, sabotage missions originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 05 Apr 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>conspiraciesdeathdeath-penaltyfuncominterviewjoel-bylosmartin-bruusgaardmissionssabotagesabotage-missionsskill-basedthe-secret-worldtswTue, 05 Apr 2011 20:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Ragnar Tørnquist on what sets The Secret World apart]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/10/23/ragnar-tornquist-on-what-sets-the-secret-world-apart/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/10/23/ragnar-tornquist-on-what-sets-the-secret-world-apart/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/10/23/ragnar-tornquist-on-what-sets-the-secret-world-apart/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,


One of the games we've seen a lot of reader interest in at Massively is The Secret World, in development at Funcom. One of the key people behind the upcoming horror MMO is Ragnar Tørnquist, Producer and Director of The Secret World. Tørnquist recently sat down for an interview with Vladimir "Evoker" Georgiev from UGDB.com to discuss what will set The Secret World apart from other MMOs we've played.

One of the refreshing aspects of the game is there are no levels or classes in TSW. Tørnquist tells UGDB, "Our goal is to make sure that players can sit down and play this game and enjoy themselves from the very beginning. You don't start out fighting rats with a rusty sword. You get cool firearms, black magic, occult weapons from the outset -- and you're fighting demons and the undead, not wild boar or petty criminals."

Continue reading Ragnar Tørnquist on what sets The Secret World apart

MassivelyRagnar Tørnquist on what sets The Secret World apart originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>conspiraciescultsdragonfuncomgame-mechanicshorrorilluminatiinterviewsloremysteriesnew-titlesoccultopen-worldopen-world-pvppvpragnar-tornquistsecret-societiestemplarthe-secret-worldFri, 23 Oct 2009 11:00:00 EST