A followup on the lessons of Blizzard's MMO design

Michael Zenke — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry

Back in March we mentioned an article at the OC Register talking all about the design lessons you can take away from World of Warcraft. It turns out that was just a small part of a longer series on the site. Via a reminder link from Tobold, we can head back to the OC to get the full look. In all the site offered up 11 design lessons from the game, each taking on a specific game element and laying it out in layman's terms. We particuarly enjoyed the quip "Demand excellence or you'll get mediocrity." That's the 9th lesson J. Allen Brack laid out for the site, and one that I think most Blizzard players would agree is a core philosophy for the company.

Accompanying this piece was a follow-up, asking readers to be sure and read the lively comments that accompanied the original '11 lessons' article. Many commenters took the site to task, stating that Blizzard wasn't particularly innovative in bringing World of Warcraft to market. Instead, they offered, the game 'merely' polished what the genre already had to offer. What's your view? Did Blizzard innovate, or are they just rock-polishers following in Sony Online's wake?

A followup on the lessons of Blizzard's MMO design originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 06 Jul 2008 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The "lessons" behind Blizzard's innovation

Chris Chester — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business Models, MMO Industry, Academic

Have you ever wondered what it is about Blizzard that has set them so far apart from their competition? It's a question that other bigwigs in the game industry, even those uninvolved with MMOs, have struggled to answer. Activision couldn't wrap their heads around the concept, so they just went and bought Blizzard instead. CEO Bobby Kotick has said something to the effect of, "Well, whatever it is, it'd cost about a billion dollars to emulate," as if it's some top-secret mystery. As it turns out, if you want to know their secrets, all you have to do is ask. A local Orange County newspaper has tracked down some experts and asked Blizzard Producer J. Allen Brack to come up with reasons why they're so successful.

They've only go three of the eleven "lessons" published so far, but they've so far been frustratingly obvious. "Rely on critics." Yes, OK, that's important. "Use your own product." I can see the utility in that. "Make continual improvements." We call those patches! If these are the sort of things that other MMO companies are missing, then the entire Massively staff may have to up and quit to become high-paid MMO consultants.

Here's another lesson for you, free of charge, "Don't release a game until it's finished!" Innovative, we know. Oh, or how about this one? "Treat your IPs like they're actually worth something." We hope somebody brought a pen, we could do this all day!

The "lessons" behind Blizzard's innovation originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 20 Mar 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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