Pursuing A New MMO Style 2
by Christian Nutt [12.20.10]
Nexon continues its assault on the Western market with a console-like PC MMO, Vindictus , which marries action gameplay with the microtransaction framework and online gameplay knowhow the Korean studio is most famous for -- and director Eun-Seok Yi explains it all to Gamasutra.
Business/Marketing, Interview, Social/Online

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Creating A Glitch In the Industry 8
by Christian Nutt [12.17.10]
Stewart Butterfield, Flickr co-founder, turns his attention toward the online game market with Glitch, an entirely new title that delivers what he views is an experience unlike anything yet launched, and he here explains why.
Design, Interview, Social/Online

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Revamping Character Creation In EVE Online 8
by Torfi Frans Olafsson, Arnar Hrafn Gylfason, Benjamin Bohn, Sveinbjörn Magnússon, Ásgeir Jon Ásgeirsson [12.09.10]
The popular MMO, which originally launched in 2003, has recently replaced its character creation system with an entirely new one, and here, CCP's senior staff takes Gamasutra readers on a tour of the concepts and methods that resulted in the soon-to-launch tool.
Design, Programming, Art, Social/Online

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Peering At The Future: Jesse Schell Speaks 6
by Christian Nutt [12.03.10]
Educator and developer Jesse Schell sits down with Gamasutra to talk through the implications of his keynote speeches to the industry, as well as try and catch a glimpse of the future, as we sit at a crossroads of a tremendous number of technologies and audiences.
Business/Marketing, Design, Interview, Social/Online

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Playing with Fire: Ethics and Game Design 12
by Michael Fergusson [12.01.10]
Social game developer Michael Fergusson takes a look at the ethics of using compulsive gameplay mechanics in the genre, suggesting that developers need to be more up front and players need to be more self-aware of the form and function of social play.
Design, Social/Online

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Virtual Economic Theory: How MMOs Really Work 9
by Simon Ludgate [11.16.10]
What makes MMO economies tick? Here's a look at several different games and real-world economic theory to explain the mechanisms that govern value to players, and how to design an economy that best serves your players and you.
Business/Marketing, Design, Social/Online

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Social The CrowdStar Way 1
by Christian Nutt [11.15.10]
The Facebook top 3 developer's VP of product development Pete Hawley shares his insights into competing in the market -- and talks of his company's drive to use data and virality to back up the creation of genuinely compelling products, not in place of it.
Business/Marketing, Design, Interview, Social/Online

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Beyond Facebook: Global Social Game Opportunities 2
by Paul Hyman [11.09.10]
Facebook dominates the U.S., but there are opportunities worldwide -- and while language barriers and different services might scare you off, three global companies hope to help English games meet wider audiences.
Business/Marketing, Social/Online

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Building Battle.net 10
by Kris Graft [11.05.10]
Blizzard's Greg Canessa explains his company's vision for Battle.net, the pitfalls that the company encountered while building it, and the challenges unique to such a complex endeavor.
Business/Marketing, Design, Interview, Social/Online

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The State of Social in Social Games 19
by Aki Jarvinen [10.19.10]
Where does the "social" fit in social games? Digital Chocolate lead social designer Aki Järvinen examines social concepts and social mechanics to explain what types of interactions these games embrace and eschew.
Business/Marketing, Design, Social/Online

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