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[Verbinski to turn WSJ article into a film]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/12/18/verbinski-to-turn-wsj-article-into-a-film/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/12/18/verbinski-to-turn-wsj-article-into-a-film/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/12/18/verbinski-to-turn-wsj-article-into-a-film/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Just before we get started, it's probably worth mentioning that we're quite fond of Gore Verbinski's work to-date. This does not offset the creeping trepidation that we might feel about Verbinski and Universal having snagged the movie rights to a Wall Street Journal article about Second Life user Ric Hoogestraat.

No, not rights to Hoogestraat's story, or that of his wife, or of his virtual spouse. Movie rights to a newspaper article. It isn't even really a terribly interesting story, as the stories of Second Life users generally go.

Continue reading Verbinski to turn WSJ article into a film

MassivelyVerbinski to turn WSJ article into a film originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Dec 2008 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>gore-verbinskijanet-spielmanmoviesnora-ephronopinionric-hoogestraatsecond-lifesteven-knightuniversal-studiosvirtual-worldsThu, 18 Dec 2008 12:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Blizzard discusses its methods for success at DICE '08]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/02/08/blizzard-discusses-its-methods-for-success-at-dice-08/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/02/08/blizzard-discusses-its-methods-for-success-at-dice-08/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/02/08/blizzard-discusses-its-methods-for-success-at-dice-08/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

The D.I.C.E. Summit is a yearly gathering of the gaming industry's top talent, there to discuss everything from business practices to development methods to the latest in crazy game mechanics ideas. This year, not only did Gore Verbinski go a little nutty, but the Big Guns at Blizzard -- Mike Morhaime, president and cofounder; Rob Pardo, vice president of game design; and Frank Pearce, executive vice president of product development -- got on-stage to give a talk entitled "Blizzard: From Developer to Worldwide Publisher".

The talk covered a great deal of ground in discussing how Blizzard has gotten to be the king of the hill in the gaming world. Key elements included retaining complete creative control, noninterference from parent companies, and building up layers of knowledge over the years that helped them take calculated risks with each successive title. "If we tried to do WoW from scratch, it would be a monumental effort. We already had the community for WoW. Even though they weren't MMO players, they were willing to try it out," said Pardo.

Go check out the entire article at Gamespot here.

MassivelyBlizzard discusses its methods for success at DICE '08 originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 08 Feb 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>blizzarddice-summitfrank-pearcegamespotgore-verbinskimike-morhaimerob-pardoworld-of-warcraftFri, 08 Feb 2008 10:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Pirates creator criticizes Disney's hesitance to jump into games]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/02/07/pirates-creator-criticizes-disneys-hesitance-to-jump-into-games/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/02/07/pirates-creator-criticizes-disneys-hesitance-to-jump-into-games/http://massively.joystiq.com/2008/02/07/pirates-creator-criticizes-disneys-hesitance-to-jump-into-games/#commentsFiled under: , , ,


At the DICE summit in Las Vegas Wednesday night, Pirates of the Caribbean creator Gore Verbinski gave a chat to game creators about movies, gaming, and his perspective of the industry in general. Beyond his generally complementary comments towards gaming, one particularly interesting aside that perked our interest was the displeasure he expressed towards Disney for not adapting the Pirates universe for an MMO more quickly than they did. According to Verbinski, they didn't even think of starting the project until a few years after the release of the original movie, and did so without his input. Of course, as we all know, they did eventually release Pirates of the Caribbean Online this past year, but Verbinski's comments certainly make us wonder if the game is all that it could have been.

As we reported earlier today, Disney has ramped up its efforts in the MMO space considerably, putting a significant capital investment into what they see as an extension of the brand immersion seen in their theme parks. This conflicts somewhat with Verbinski's perception that the studios see MMOs in the same way that they see plush toys. One has to imagine that Pirates of the Caribbean Online would have been met with considerably more fanfare if it had the Pirates of the Burning Sea gameplay under the hood, but at what point does this sort of discussion degenerate into armchair quarterbacking? In this case, while I don't doubt Verbinski's sincerity on this issue, it sure seems like was hamming it up for the crowd.

MassivelyPirates creator criticizes Disney's hesitance to jump into games originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 07 Feb 2008 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>brandingDICEdisneygore-verbinskilas-vegasmoviespirates-of-the-burning-seapirates-of-the-caribbeanpocopotbspotcoThu, 07 Feb 2008 17:00:00 EST