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 2015 AOL, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[GamersFirst sees a management shakeup]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/16/gamersfirst-sees-a-management-shakeup/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/16/gamersfirst-sees-a-management-shakeup/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/16/gamersfirst-sees-a-management-shakeup/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Not pictured: management.
GamersFirst is in the minds of gamers for its successful relaunch of APB: Reloaded, which went from a lightning-fast shutdown to a successful free-to-play title. The company is also developing new games based on original IPs for future release. But there's some rumbling going on behind the scenes at the company, as the company's parent corporation, K2 Network, saw the resignation of its CEO, Joshua Hong. Bjorn Book-Larsson, former COO and CTO, has been promoted to the CEO position, with Hong's future uncertain.

The official statements claim that the transition of power was amicable and pre-arranged, but it also comes on the heels of worldwide layoffs from K2 and rumors of a power struggle behind the scenes. Rahul Sandil, the company's public relations chief, claimed that there was no truth to these rumors and that the plan was to move forward from simple localizations of titles developed in foreign markets. Sandil went on to confirm that APB: Reloaded continues to be a large-scale success for the company and that further development will be centered around work that Book-Larsson had already seen during his time as CTO and COO.

MassivelyGamersFirst sees a management shakeup originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 16 Feb 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>all-points-bulletinapbapb-reloadedbjorn-book-larssonbusinessbusiness-newsceocooctof2pfree-to-playgame-industrygamersfirstjoshua-hongk2-networklayoffsmanagementmmo-industryrahul-sandilThu, 16 Feb 2012 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Dan Stahl takes back the captain's chair in Star Trek Online]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/13/dan-stahl-takes-back-the-captains-chair-in-star-trek-online/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/13/dan-stahl-takes-back-the-captains-chair-in-star-trek-online/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/02/13/dan-stahl-takes-back-the-captains-chair-in-star-trek-online/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Star Trek
Remember in Star Trek: The Motion Picture how Kirk returns to the Enterprise and shoehorns his way back into the Captain's chair, leaving the previous job-holder to be absorbed by an interstellar entity that was really a relic of NASA's space program? What a hoot that was, and it's in no way relevant to today's story of former Star Trek Online Executive Producer Dan Stahl resuming his duties from Stephen D'Angelo after vacating the position in 2011.

Stahl left Cryptic in September 2011 for a job at Zynga, at which point D'Angelo assumed the producing role. Interestingly enough, Stahl quickly returned to Cryptic last December but was assigned to heading up the Foundry team. The saga has come full-circle as Stahl returns to executive producing and D'Angelo resumes his command as Cryptic's CTO.

Stahl posted a short re-introduction letter to mark his comeback: "After several eventful away team missions and a desk position training cadets in San Francisco, I'm grateful for the opportunity to be back at the helm of this very important title."

MassivelyDan Stahl takes back the captain's chair in Star Trek Online originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 13 Feb 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>captain-kirkcrypticcryptic-studiosctodan-stahldaniel-stahlexecutive-producerf2pfree-to-playkirkperfect-worldperfect-world-entertainmentpwestar-trek-onlinestar-trek-the-motion-picturestephen-dangelostoMon, 13 Feb 2012 21:00:00 EST<![CDATA[APB Reloaded keeps us up to date on development]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/03/11/apb-reloaded-keeps-us-up-to-date-on-development/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/03/11/apb-reloaded-keeps-us-up-to-date-on-development/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/03/11/apb-reloaded-keeps-us-up-to-date-on-development/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

It's always good to see a games company keep the lines of communication open in regard to an upcoming title. It's especially nice to see those frequent morsels of communication presented in an open and downright amusing fashion! The team behind All Points Bulletin: Reloaded is certainly managing to do just that, as we can see in its most recent update.

According to none other than the COO/CTO for GamersFirst, Bjorn "TechMech" Book-Larsson, the team currently working on ABP: Reloaded has made a huge find in terms of server bugs. Apparently, the way the current in-game death camera is coded, the entire sector hits a lag spike -- or as he puts it, "take[s] a brief 100ms moment of silence" when a player is killed. This, in turn, causes a lot of the rubberbanding that players see on their end. Finding this bug means that the team is now hard at work on a fix, and Book-Larsson is hopeful that we may even see it released to closed beta players within a matter of days.

If you're curious about the progress GamersFirst is making on APB: Reloaded, then be sure to head over and check out the newest blog post or go get signed up for closed beta!

[Thanks, Connor!]

MassivelyAPB Reloaded keeps us up to date on development originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 11 Mar 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>all-points-bulletinall-points-bulletin-reloadedapbapb-reloadedapbrbetaBjorn-Book-Larssonbugbugsclosed-betacooctodevelopment-updatef2pfree-to-playg1gamersfirstmmofpsrubberbandingFri, 11 Mar 2011 20:00:00 EST<![CDATA[CCP Games to present at Game Developers Conference 2009]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/02/12/ccp-games-to-present-at-game-developers-conference-2009/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/02/12/ccp-games-to-present-at-game-developers-conference-2009/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/02/12/ccp-games-to-present-at-game-developers-conference-2009/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,


CCP Games, the developer of EVE Online, has announced that they'll have a presence at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) next month. The company's CMO, Ryan Scott Dancey (aka CCP RyanD), is slated to speak about how CCP uses social network engineering to reach out to more subscribers. Specifically, he'll describe how the company puts Tipping Point theory (about how information spreads) into action. That session is titled: "Network Marketing: Leveraging Social Networks to Grow an MMO".

On the technology front, CCP's CTO Halldor Fannar will speak at GDC 2009 in a session geared more towards programmers and technical artists, "From Evolution to Revolution: Upgrading the Graphics Engine of EVE Online". Fannar will lay out the issues CCP has faced with upgrading EVE's graphics engine, and explain how their ideas went from being on paper to a shipping game. His presentation will show the tools in action that allowed them to "take the required generational leap in art production."

Game Developers Conference 2009 runs from March 23-27 at the Moscone Center, San Francisco, and as we've mentioned previously, will have a lot to offer MMO fans of all genres.

MassivelyCCP Games to present at Game Developers Conference 2009 originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 12 Feb 2009 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ccpccp-gameschief-marketing-officerchief-technology-officercmoctoeveeve-onlinegame-developers-conferencegdcgdc-09gdc-2009graphicsgraphics-enginehalldor-fannarmarketingmoscone-centerpremium-graphicsryan-scott-danceysan-franciscosci-fisessionstipping-pointtrinityThu, 12 Feb 2009 20:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Mythic CTO to keynote at East Coast Games Summit]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/10/21/mythic-cto-to-keynote-at-east-coast-games-summit/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/10/21/mythic-cto-to-keynote-at-east-coast-games-summit/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/10/21/mythic-cto-to-keynote-at-east-coast-games-summit/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Mythic Entertainment's Chief Technology Officer Matt Shaw is slated to keynote the America's Video Game Expo (VGXPO) and its East Coast Games Summit. VGXPO will take place at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, from November 21-23.

In a session titled "MMOs, Everyone Wants to Do One!", Shaw will discuss the differences in developing single player games versus MMO titles, and the lessons learned along the way. Some highlights of the upcoming East Coast Games Summit at VGXPO include:

  • "Pitch Your Game Idea": a session for entrepreneurs to pitch their game concepts to industry leaders.
  • "Scrum Deconstructed": a hands-on workshop for game industry management and technologists.
  • "Breaking In": a conference for students and others interested in making a career out of games.
Speakers from companies like Acclaim Entertainment, Electronic Arts, BioWare, and Nexon will be at VGXPO as well.
Warhammer Online Coverage Did you enjoy this? Make sure to check out our Warhammer guides: Massively's Character Creation Guide and our WoW Player's Guide to Warhammer. Plus, don't miss any of our ongoing coverage as Massively goes to WAR!

MassivelyMythic CTO to keynote at East Coast Games Summit originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 21 Oct 2008 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>business-modelschief-technology-officerctoea-mythiceast-coast-games-summitkeynotematt-shawmmo-industrymythicmythic-entertainmentscrumvgxpovideo-game-expowarwarhammer-onlineTue, 21 Oct 2008 15:30:00 EST<![CDATA[More new, veteran blood at 38 Studios]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2007/12/04/more-new-veteran-blood-at-38-studios/http://massively.joystiq.com/2007/12/04/more-new-veteran-blood-at-38-studios/http://massively.joystiq.com/2007/12/04/more-new-veteran-blood-at-38-studios/#commentsFiled under: ,

There's a strange sort of parallel between the hiring practices of Curt Schilling's 38 Studios and the team with which he has won two of his three World Series Championships, the Boston Red Sox. While sports fans like myself watch on with some interest as the Red Sox seek out high-priced talent from other teams within the American League, 38 Studios has announced the hiring of their own big gun in the shape of Jon Laff, a former leader engineer over at Electronic Arts.

Laff is the latest in a series of high-profile partners at 38 Studios, where ace pitcher Curt Schilling has assembled a team that includes writer R.A. Salvatore and famous comic book artist Todd McFarlane. Laff, who has worked with EA for several projects, including Medal of Honor: Rising Sun, Medal of Honor: European Assault, and the as-yet-unreleased Army of Two, will act as Chief Technology Officer for the budding company. Says Laff of his hiring, "With the company's visionaries and industry leaders such as Schilling, McFarlane, Salvatore, and Close at the helm, 38 Studios is laying the groundwork to become the industry's next major innovator. I'm looking forward to being an integral part of 38 Studios and to developing the next generation of online entertainment."

Whoever is doing the PR for 38 Studios is sure doing a good job of dribbling out information every couple weeks to keep us interested, without ever really showing any details about their IP. Color me frustrated.

MassivelyMore new, veteran blood at 38 Studios originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 04 Dec 2007 17:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>38-studiosCTOcurt-schillingeajon-laffred-soxTue, 04 Dec 2007 17:01:00 EST