While we may not be big, or at E3…we have some announcements to make nonetheless.

Seriously, we kept Clyde far away from the git repo on this one

First up on the agenda. V-Shift has now been upgraded to version 1.0, and is ready to receive your input. Some of the fun features which you can now count on:

• Integrated with Emerald Kingdom.
• Single Sign On.
• Community (Forum) access.
• Bug Tracker Access for play testers.
• More to come, such as Twitter Integration, etc.

You should head on over now, and get registered if you have not already. If you’re already a tester, you’re in the system already. Go log in now!

V-Shift 1.0 has been designed by us, from the ground up. It’s designed from the get go to work with Emerald Kingdom, hand in glove. On the techie side of things: off the shelf solutions that other games use, just don’t cut it for us. You can’t innovate if you’re unwilling to get your feet wet, or your hands dirty. We’ve done both here, and have developed a really awesome foundation for the game, and it’s future. As it’s been designed by us to be a part of of the game itself, you can bet that it’s development will be hand in hand with the game itself going forward. We look forward to seeing you there!

Next up: A Story Release from Emerald Kingdom!

Just because we finally finished coding up our community software from scratch, and our fans have been patient…we decided to reward you all with some story. This entry is billed, “The Best Around”…

Meet Thrynity. She’s got issues. Oh my does she have issues.

This entry comes from our new writing super hero duo, Umabel and Macaria. They went full tilt. Just for you. Head on over, check it out. Probe the source for secrets. Then head on over to V-Shift to discuss it!

Last Item: Go Hawks.

We have decked out our blog with Paranoia and Confusia, in their full Hockey regalia. As a Chicago company, we wish our Chicago  Blackhawks a speedy victory. Bring the cup home to Chicago guys. Do it quick! You’re only 4 games away!

It’s a big enough umbrella, but it’s always me that ends up getting wet — Sting

We said some time ago, we do not consider ourselves here at Double Cluepon to be an indie studio. We gave a great many reasons, but it dawns on me after giving it more thought over the years…that we missed the most important reason.

“Indie” has become an identity label. It’s become so rigidly defined in some ways, I am amazed at the days that go by where it’s not recognized as an ISO Standard. I’ll go one further; the shared “indie” identity is a detriment to some of the very people who identify with it.

Yes, it’s true as a shared identity indies have a greater voice. The problem most of the time though, is who has the microphone. I see this more and more as a blemish which has, and will continue to grow over time.

More than ever, it’s important to realize one thing, and one thing only: be yourself. Make what you want. Create according to your standard, and timetable. Don’t let any group (indie, AAA, etc) dictate tastes. Reject the dictates of taste and create new flavors instead.

Do this, and the umbrellas you could stand under wont matter anymore, because you will have built something with a foundation and a roof instead.

It seemed so simple. It seemed so rational. Surely, we thought, post-its would solve everything. Armed with our trusty sharpies, we set to work, and three hours later, we had… well, a poster board with a big mess of pastel-colored post-its all over it. This doesn’t sound very impressive, but to anyone who’s involved with the narrative-in-progress of Emerald Kingdom, it’s a pretty exciting accomplishment.

We’re like the proud parents of an ugly baby that everyone winces at and says “oh, how cute,” to our faces. The difference is that we know our brainchild, though hideous and malformed for now, will grow up to be a beautiful and well-adjusted plot. And who will be laughing then? Us. Well, and you, because you’ll be so happy playing our game you’ll be unable to contain yourself.

Here’s the thing: we want there to be something for everyone in this game, and that’s how we’re writing it. At any given time, there will be multiple major quests available to play, and that’s not including the side quests that are whole crazy mini-stories in themselves. The more we write, the more complex the characters get, the deeper the backstory goes, and the more detailed the world becomes.

Like all children who grow beyond your control, this is exciting and terrifying all at once. I almost want to pinch that poster board’s cheeks and say “quit getting taller or I’m going to tie a boulder to your head!” like a crazy grandpa. Only, poster boards don’t have cheeks. Or heads to tie boulders to.

But the game must go on. And weaving these interlocking plots together, tedious and headache-inducing though it may be, will result in a game that you can get obsessed with no matter who you are. Want to go on raids and fight battles? We got that. Into solving puzzles? No big. Interested in making friends and living out your junior high fantasy of being the most popular kid in the lunch room and pounding those lesser gamers into the ground? Hey, I’m not judging.

I’m just here to write. She says, from a pile of crumpled up post-its.

***

Umabel chiming in here. It is, indeed, an exciting accomplishment to finally feel like everything story-wise is laid out and starting to come together, like the way individual strands of pull and peel Twizzlers form a sugary delicious unit. You can eat the strands one at a time, or you can eat them all at once in a huge bite. Its up to you.

The hard part now in my mind is getting the stick, the swirly goodness, getting everything to balance so that you, our beloved player, don’t have dozens of demands on you at once no matter how many strands you’re chewing. We don’t want you to leave the game after playing for an hour or two (or six…just saying…) feeling like you’ve made no progress…but we also don’t want you to stay away too long.

And we certainly don’t want that “progress” to be in name only, like in other MMO’s. Going from level 20 to level 22 by mindlessly fighting monsters isn’t how we want you to spend your time. I assume, if you’re reading this, it might not be how you want to spend your own time.Or maybe it is, and if it is, well, we have a place for you.

But you shouldn’t have to worry about meaningless incentives like levels at all. And if you’re not into combat, that precious hour can be spent instead solving challenging puzzles, learning more about other players (and NPCs) and generally becoming more immersed in this world that Macaria and I are trying to perfect.

Do you know what we realized, once all the post its were lined up and color coded? We still can’t account for you. What you’ll think, what you’ll do, what quests you’ll obsess over and what ones will fall flat. And, of course, what secrets we’ll try to hide that you’ll uncover too early, leaving us pulling our hair out.

So as much as everything is organized for now, it’s a fleeting kind of grace.

Hey–bring us that tasty chaos. It’s what we thrive on.

We’re pretty sure they can handle it.

We sat these two ladies down for an interview and picked their brains about gaming, Emerald Kingdom, life, the universe, and everything. And without further ado (because their debutante dresses are really uncomfortable), we’d like to present Umabel and Macaria at their official “coming out” ball/blog post.

What’s your favorite video game? 

Umabel: This is a very difficult question for me to answer! In terms of storyline I would have to say Final Fantasy 8. I love that you think you know what’s going on and then plot twists just keep coming. The epic love story, surrounded by a colorful supporting cast.  However, the magic system and other mechanics were… not the best. In terms of gameplay, I really loved Knights of the Old Republic for XBox. I also like Vandal Hearts for PS One, it’s a turn based tactical game that has a kickass story and customizable class paths for each character. Oh–and Elder Scrolls 2: Daggerfall. I was obsessed with that game. So I just answered with 4 games. Yeah…

Macaria: I know this response is totally played (PUN INTENDED), but I love Ocarina of Time. I played it for the first time when I was twelve or thirteen, I think, over the course of a summer, and I think that’s a good age to play a game and become entirely immersed in it. I was always fighting my older brother for the controller to the N64, but this was the first game that we cooperated on. We got so caught up in the story, in the adventure of it, that we were too busy to fight. Instead we traded tips and worked on the hard parts together. He was better at beating the bosses, but I was better at solving the puzzles that were built into the various temples. At the time, that game had everything. When we finally beat it, I remember feeling totally adrift and even kind of depressed, like “What am I supposed to do now?” Like when you finish a really good book and you wish it wasn’t over. That’s what’s exciting about Emerald Kingdom. Umabel and I are writing a progressive storyline, so there will always be new plot and new quests, because nobody likes that post-game existential emptiness. Hooray!

How did you get into gaming? 

Umabel: Honestly, it was my dad! He worked nights, so I rarely got to see him. When he was home, one of the ways he liked to unwind was by playing video games. I used to spend hours watching him play, telling him when to heal his party, or giving tips from strategy guides. It was an interesting way to be introduced to gaming because from my perspective, it was more like watching a movie than playing. So the story and characters were really vivid to me. As I got older I began to play games on my own, and then I got a job at EB Games, so I could take games home for 48 hours and play them. My years from age 14-18 were really the years when I played the most games.

Macaria: It’s hard to say, because I’ve been gaming since I was a really little kid. My older brother and his friends played a lot of games and I got into it because of that. But also, my family moved around a lot, and I was always the new kid, so I think I played games because I didn’t have friends, and then later I made friends who played games. You befriend people you have something in common with, and gamers always create a community wherever they are. That was the case even before the internet. I definitely feel like I have a lot in common with the folks at Double Cluepon (i.e., we’re nerds).

What is your inspiration for writing the game?

Umabel: I just think of what kinds of games I love to play, what elements I am always excited to find, and how I can bring those to the table in an even fresher way. My imagination tends toward the visual, so I’m picturing what the game should look like. I listen to lots of violent electro and dubstep type music when I’m writing to keep myself pumped up and always focused on creating action.  Also, I get excited when I eavesdrop on conversations on public transit about video games. I can’t wait to hear people talking about Emerald Kingdom!

Macaria: We’re writing EK to be a game with really rich, extensive mythology behind it. So I’ve been very inspired by various kinds of mythology, including Greek, Norse, Celtic, African, Australian Aborigine, and the Thousand and One Arabian Nights. When writing the Book of Days, I’ve also been inspired by Medieval religious texts. I love trickster figures like Anansi the Spider because he always jacks stuff up, and I love Dionysus because he always brings the party.

What has been your favorite part about working at Double Cluepon?

Umabel: The sense of community. We’re all working toward a common goal of bringing out an awesome game, but we’re all also friends. I like knowing there’s a group of people I can go to and say whatever crazy idea I’m thinking. Even if they don’t take me seriously, we’ll at least have a good laugh about it. Like when I suggested we include a pile of burning corpses…that got shot down. But we laughed!

Macaria: Oh, how we laughed over those corpses. But yeah… definitely the people! We have a lot of fun here (aside from all the hard work we do, obviously), and this company is full of super talented, interesting people who are really good at what they do. Everyone at Double Cluepon has been really awesome and welcoming since Umabel and I joined the team. I like that everyone has a sense of humor (unfunny coworkers are the worst) and I like that everyone can contribute ideas to any department. Sometimes we get pizza, and that’s nice too.

What has been your favorite part of writing the story? 

Umabel: I like formatting the dialogue and thinking of what choices by the player should spark different reactions in the NPC’s. It’s a fun way to deepen some of the major characters’ personalities. It’s also a way for us to convey information to the player about the history and culture of Magna without having to be explicit. It’s different than any other writing I’ve done before because I have to incorporate the will and expectations of a “character” I can’t control–the player–yet still maintain control over the general events of the story, make them somewhat uniform for everyone despite the linear model (meaning we’ll have to be continually catching up new players). Oh,  and make it not boring. Very challenging!

Macaria: Like I said, I love writing the mythology component of the game. It’s interesting to work backwards from the characters and the plot we have so far and create the myths that tie this universe together. Video games, cartoons, and comic books all pull archetypes from mythology, and it’s been really fun so far to expand on those archetypes and subvert them. Also, it’s been so much fun working with Umabel, brainstorming and bouncing ideas off each other. We have a good rapport, and we’ve been given a lot of artistic freedom to create something exciting and unique that we really care about, and I think that will show in the game itself.

What do you look most forward to? 

Umabel: I’m excited for player feedback/criticism about the story –what works, what doesn’t, which characters people like, who they don’t like, etc. I know what my/our aim is as far as player reaction to events, but the variables are impossible to account for. I want to see everything we’ve created in action! And I want to watch as people try to figure out and anticipate our twists and turns. And the puzzles! Oh the puzzles. And the holidays! Oh the holidays.

Macaria: GAME DAY ZERO!!! (dramatic music) No seriously, I’m just super excited for the game itself, because it’s going to be crazy awesome. I look forward to seeing what the players (YOU) do when you get your hands on this world we’ve created. In any MMORPG, the players take the tools they’re given within the game and exploit them in ways the creators (US) never even thought possible. Emerald Kingdom is a game in which many, many, many things are possible, and I just know we’re going to be surprised, pleased, and possibly frightened (?) by how the community and the culture manifests as time goes on. OH, and the mini-games. Pretty stoked about those.

If you were stranded on a desert island, and could take only one album, book, and movie with you, what would they be? 

Umabel: The album would be Sgt. Peppers. Hands down. It has highs and lows, dance segments and tunes I can weep to after I figure out how to distill alcohol from a coconut.

Because I will.

Movie…hm. Do I want something I already love, like Gone With the Wind?  Or something like A Clockwork Orange that will just make me go crazy faster? Or something terrifying that will make me just curl up in a ball somewhere, like Event Horizon. Or maybe something inspirational that will get me fired up to survive, like The Empire Strikes Back. Book…I think I would want an anthology of poetry, something I can read in small doses that has layers of meaning to keep me occupied. Or again maybe something maddening and absurd like Tristram Shandy. Or Don Quixote, I need to read that again. (Though maybe not again, and again, and again.) I like the way I answer all these “pick one” questions with 4-5 different choices.

Macaria: The classic get-to-know-you question! Wow, I hope this never happens to me, because I hate talking to coconuts (they’re jerks). Does LOST count as a movie? I guess for a book I could take something useful, like Hatchet, or Lord of the Flies. Or, I could take a ridiculously long and dense book, so that I’d probably die before I even finished it. Like War and Peace. I’m sure I’d be so sick of the sunshine and the beach that Tolstoy would be refreshing. As for music, I could jam out to Jimmy Buffet and pretend I was there on purpose. Or I could listen to something high-minded and classical and focus my sun-addled brain on understanding it; I’m thinking Stravinksy, maybe, just to hasten the inevitable madness of solitude. The movie is easy: Terminator 2.

If you could have dinner with any historical figure, who would it be and why?  

Umabel: Hildegarde von Bingen. She was a nun, born 1098 died 1179 (she lived to be 81 in the middle ages! a tough lady). Her parents gave her to the church as a child because she experienced visions. She spent a significant portion of her childhood/young adult years walled up in a room with one other nun as company, an older mentor who taught her to read and write and play an instrument. They could see out a window into the chapel and someone gave them food through a slot in the door but otherwise it was a solitary few years. Once she was released back into the real world, Hildegarde was elected abbess of her convent and became a powerful figure in the Catholic church whose opinion was solicited by Kings and Popes, as evidenced by the surviving letters she wrote to them. Her writings of her visions and about the art of early medicine are fascinating. She was awesome, and well ahead of her time.

Macaria: In all honesty, I have trouble answering this question, which is ridiculous because I was a history major undergraduate and have always been into Things That Happened A Long Time Ago. I’d like to talk to someone who could answer a bunch of my questions, someone who could solve a classic historical mystery for me. I know history is an inexact science, but unsolved mysteries totally bug me! I want to know if Richard III really murdered his two nephews, what happened to the Peking Man fossils in WWII, and for god’s sake, where is DB Cooper!? Also, I’m more inclined to sup with a group of famous people, because one-on-one dinner has too much potential to be awkward. I’d love to hang out with the Bloomsbury Group, the Beat poets, the French student revolutionaries of 1848, Andy Warhol’s Factory, the Harlem Renaissance… I could go on and on. I love moments in history when brilliant people find each other and create a community based on sharing ideas and debating (and drinking, usually). That’s why I’m excited about landing this job at Double Cluepon, because I feel like I’m getting in on the ground floor of something really cool. Except we do fewer amphetamines than the hep cats at the Factory, I guess.

And there you have it. Writers tend to ramble. But they also tend to write stuff, so here’s some Book of Days-type “stuff” to tide you over until you can get your mits on our game. Don’t worry, it’s cryptic and infuriating, as usual. We like to haunt your dreams.

While we have not been pushing many code updates as of late, that does not mean there’s nothing being done. Far from it. While the development department is busy working on the next slew of feature updates, the Art Department here has been going full tilt. For instance, when we last left you folks, this is what interiors looked like…

The Tavern was rather drab. We had some really basic walls and we used existing props to flesh out the inside a bit. This was done to test interiors, and see that they worked.

This was necessary, as the development team had implemented interiors, and they needed to be tested fairly thoroughly. There are still some bugs related to interiors, but they’re not showstoppers. So while the developers were busy getting the interpolation code perfected, the Art Department set about working on the interior of the Tavern. After a few weeks, what we have is a complete overhaul. Not only did we manage to do the interior of the Tavern, we managed to get both the first floor and the second floor of the tavern fairly laid out, and populated with a rather nice array of props.

You can see the progression for yourself here:

Here was the first iteration. We got walls, a door and some other stuff in first. (Click to Enlarge)

A few more props added. But the walls are still very bare. (Click to Enlarge)

To help fill out the walls a bit, we added some framed portraits and pictures. Looking better! (Click to Enlarge)

What’s a door without an upstairs to go to? (Click to Enlarge)

We got our Arcade Machines roughed and placed. Yes, these will be usable in Emerald Kingdom! (Click to Enlarge)

Upon getting all that sorted, we realized we needed to start adding cultural items. Signs and relevant things for Magna. Bitsy and Mystie’s Black and Blue Ale signs are not roughed in. (Click to Enlarge)

The pre-paint basilica model. (Click to Enlarge)

So as you can see, we’ve been quite busy as of late. We’ve been just pouring things into Emerald Kingdom. But we did not even stop there. We went ahead and added the Basilica rough to the Bolton Commons, along with the new Tall Sprite Statues. Between Art, Animation, Assets being placed, Code and everything else…a lot has changed here. We’re having a great deal of fun populating the world with things.

Speaking of populating the world, it’s with a great deal of pleasure that I also announce the addition of two new writers, who so far have been working out splendidly! You’ll know these two as Umabell and Macaria. They have taken to the task like a tiger takes to fresh meat. They have already developed some banner standards by which we will produce story, and have taken the in game story arc we’re developing to places we never even considered! Of course, we expected nothing less. Both of them come to us with solid backgrounds, and a refreshing spirit and gusto as well as what seems to be a real enthusiasm for the task ahead of them.

They’re working out so so well. Look for more from them in the coming months. I mean that, because they already have ideas about how to poke you folks with cryptic little teases.

The other big thing is, we have added a couple of other new folks: Tariel and Enfys. These are two new Archangels who will be staffing the game on overnights during the next Alpha testing cycle. See, once we’re ready with the next round of updates to the client, we’re going to be sending out the next big batch of invites. Tariel and Enfys will be on hand overnights to answer questions, help testers, and generally talk to people curious about the future of Emerald Kingdom. Tariel and Enfys also comprise the Kingdompedia management team. They rock at Wiki administration, and have already given the Kingdompedia a facelift, and started bringing standards and organization to the tome. You should check it out!

There’s one more fun bit of info to spill. Tariel and Enfys won’t be the only ones pulling the night shifts. We’re ecstatic to announce the return of Nova! Nova, if you recall, has been with the company nearly from the start. She was on a leave of absence for awhile, but has now returned to the Double Cluepon HQ, and is ready to get back to work. We’re very happy to have our little snow princess back in the fold.

So, that’s it for this update. If you haven’t been to Emerald Kingdom in awhile, now is the time to check in…see what’s changed, see what’s going on. See what’s coming down the pipe!

We can’t wait to see you there!

First, let’s talk about our latest story teaser release:

Breaking point is our last teaser for the Emerald Kingdom story. It nicely end caps a glimmer into the fall of Magna. When you’ve read it, and discerned all of it’s secrets, you should head over to VShift to join the discussion about it.

Aside from that, we had another great week of updates for Emerald Kingdom’s alpha testing. Some of the highlights:

• Interiors.

A view inside the tavern

We have added the ability to walk inside buildings. This was quite an update. The Art Department even threw in some new tables and chairs for the occasion.

• New Logon Screen.

Loggin in was never so pretty!

We began roughing in the User Interface, starting with the logon screen. We immediately decided it needed some revisions, but still, it looks so nice, finally in place.

• User Interface.

Mmmm Mmmm Good!

We roughed in the main elements of the user interface. It’s starting to look like a game finally. Even though we have not enabled a lot of the interface pieces, we put them in to gather feedback from testers. So far so good on this score. Our testers have been giving us a lot of good feedback as to what they think, how the interface looks, and some initial concerns.

While we have placed this stuff in, we are busy bug finding. But more than that, we have to take a short break from visible updates, and move over to invisible updates. We have begun a course of work that involves adding more functionality to the server, as well as our databases. Working according to the specifications, we should have player inventory and a few other goodies soon.

That about wraps it up! All in all, we’re very happy so far with how it’s shaking out!

So, we covered a lot of ground over the last week. We found some rather annoying issues with how we do server messaging. More about that later. Here is a short break down of what we accomplished in the last week:

1. Added the EULA for the alpha testers
2. Added server broadcast messages so Admins can inform users about server restarts or generally just say “hi”
3. Disabled scene caching.
4. Added chat history. Press Up and Down to cycle through /tell targets and other commands
5. Check for updates every time the login form is displayed. If you log out or get disconnected, you’ll check for updates again (in case the server was restarted for a client update).
6. Add emote with /me
7. Added name colors. Your friendly neighborhood Archangels will have gold names above them
8. Location updates are only sent when moving, reducing load on the server
9. Layering.

So, let’s just go over a few highlights, in the context of major features we enabled, or just set out to provide…

1. The update system.

We are striving to make updating as painless, and as streamlined as possible. We took a good step toward that early in the week. Simply logging out of the client, initiates an update check. If there is an update it downloads, installs, and returns you to the login screen. That’s how it stands now.

The Future: Once we implement session tokens, when we trigger an update, our build system will tell the server there is an update. From there, it would (after it told people it was happening) log you out, update and because you have a valid game session token put you right back where you were, logged in, in game. Conceivably, you could get up, go do something for 45 minutes and come back to a patched game client.

We think getting updates, or anything that interrupts the flow of the game play should be made as trouble free as it can be.

2. The Content Update system.

This was a feature that shipped with Alpha, but we made some changes to the caching to watch how it behaved in practice. Also a smashing success. We know we can update scenes on a live server, and with a scene refresh (leave/enter) players get an updated scene.

The Future: What we need to do now of course is, blend this a bit more. We need to find a way of doing this so the client gets notified of a scene change, and reloads the scene. There are some interesting challenges with this going forward. (What if a new prop has been set where a person is standing? What if the map background has changed with new area definitions etc)

We assembled the female player character models completely. They are now good to go!

3. Everyone started naked, and clean.

But then we added clothing, hair, and faces! We also gave everyone arms. This was an interesting exercise in layering and a challenging problem in and of itself. I won’t delve into it too deeply here because by itself it’s worthy of it’s own blog post. We were also able to add clothing colors as a bonus.

It was not all fun and sunshine. We also ran into some issues, some of them annoying/must kill:

1. Server messaging.

For the folks at home, who are not developers: when we talk about client/server messaging…we’re talking about the communication between your game client, and our server. Stuff like where you are on the map, in the world, etc. Location updates are vexing, and we are in the process of adding interpolation. In the meantime, we have decreased some message frequency and increased some of the message sizing.

2. Memory leaks.

Unavoidable at times. We did a lot of work that resulted in memory usage assembling the player character layers so it was only inevitable that we sprung a few memory leaks. We killed the most glaring and obvious ones (close scopes, clean up listener events, etc).

3. Sometimes you just want to get it working.

Rouging things in applies to programming as much as it does to house building. The interface for items (layering, clothing, hair, faces) is 100% hideous, and will need to be cleaned up.

All in all, a very productive week. We’re happy with the progress, and we’re happy to lay down a few more cornerstones in the coming week.

Last night, we pushed a record number of client patches! These went over quite well. We also in the swing of things improved our method of updating the client. You can see the complete version history here. But now, the simple act of logging out (not quitting, or restarting) is enough to trigger the client to check for an update. Hooah!

We progressed through the evening, identifying issues. Many bug reports were submitted. Some of the highlights:

• We successfully tested content updating on a live server. We can add props to a scene, or even add a whole new map while the server is running, and clients are connected. Clients need only refresh a map by leaving/entering a scene.
• We added and flipped on a lot of base chat functionality like /me and for the admins, a server broadcast.
• We added command history. (Pressing the up arrow cycles through recent / commands)
• As noted above: we greatly improved the client update system. While we can update content with the client connected, adding features to the client still requires patching the client. This is now a bit more intuitive and clean.

We did also run into some issues too. Here is a quick breakdown of those:

• We need to disable clicking to move when over the chat box. Major annoyance. This will be fixed as we plug in the forward facing UI.
• Server latency tests were initially solid. Our server backend operated nearly flawlessly. However…
• We discovered our server was missing some RAM, this caused some faulting on the backend. That is now fixed. But…
• The way we do messaging between the client and the server needs to be modified slightly, to gain a bit more efficiency, and stability going forward.
• Various minor bugs here and there.

All in all, it was a solid first afternoon/evening of testing. The good news: I will be sending out more invites today, and we are going to keep continually testing the alpha client/server 24/7 as a rule, with the exception being critical downtime for retooling the server, or server code changes.

We’re very pleased with our testing crew so far. We’re also very keen to see long term testing results. We want consistency with Emerald Kingdom, to get that, we’re going to be testing as we go. Seeing what works, what does not. We have learned so much already from just 5 hours, imagine what we’re going to learn as we keep going!

If you have not already signed up to be a tester, you can do so here. We’re pulling people randomly, and we are also targeting people we think would be good candidates. Who will the next tester be? Who knows, but it could be you.

Enjoy. For what good it will do you. =)

In the Verdant Age, the world of Magna was a stable and orderly society. Powered by the naturally occurring Gel, and the technology it fostered, the people and citizens of Magna built a society where everyone’s needs were met; science and technology were at their zenith.

Then everything fell apart. Gel, the lifeblood of the world changed in a fast-moving natural disaster. As gel changed, so too then did the people of Magna. Some people mutated into abominations too horrible and dangerous to be left alive. Some people disappeared. However, some of the people experienced a stable mutation: an evolutionary leap that gave them biological immortality, and the ability to bend the world in near limitless fashion.

As the civilization of the Verdant Age broke down and ended, the newly evolved Sprites adapted. After the end, some left Magna to explore whatever lies beyond in the universe. But some stayed to watch over their only known home, in the hopes that the world would blossom anew.

Magna was quick to renew herself. After a thousand millenia, new and mortal intelligent life has resurfaced, and formed new civilizations. Now in the Emerald Age, can the Sprites act as benevolent watchers? Or will they become involved in the interest of helping, or helping themselves? You can find out, once you become a citizen of Magna. Come and join us!

 

 

First teaser image of the Emerald Kingdom Client.

Yes, we have the client. It’s here in our grubby little hands. We have been playing with it now for about 2 and a half weeks. We’re still doing a few things internally with it, and yes…we’re getting it ready to get it into the hands of you folks who have been patiently waiting. But we have our baseline Emerald Kingdom client. What does it do? It does quite a bit when you get right down to it. Remember, as I have said before you really don’t sit down and “make an MMO”…you actually make tools to make an MMO. So, lets start with our tools and talk about how we got here.

StoryTeller, our tool for creating worlds, is very near it’s 1.0 Marker. While it lacks the sound and story system, those are next on the list. While those systems are very important, they are blocked by the fact we need to get some other things working first. Story and sound/music don’t mean much if you have no place to use them. Right now, here is what StoryTeller can do:

• Create a world & set defaults for that world such as starting map, default loading screen, default mannequins (body/char)
• Create scenes & set defaults for that scene: scene size, what other maps the scene connects to, the loading screen, etc.
• Link those scenes together so you can travel from one to the other.
• Load props, and set the isometric boundaries for those props.
• Place props onto a scene. (we even have awesome tools like eye dropper, spray can, etc for this)
• Demo a scene. (Walk around in the scene, using the editor, so you can test what you have built without loading the client)
• Create basic items.
• Create animations (anims), and load animation sheets.
• Specify default animations.* Select, Delete, etc.
• Save those scenes onto the server.
• A whole host of less sexy, but nonetheless important features. (author profiles, change passwords, others, etc)

StoryTeller as it is today..

When Emerald Kingdom gets released to the public as a Free to Play product, we will release StoryTeller to the public, so they can create their own worlds, even their own MMO’s. That’s why it’s so crucial to get StoryTeller right: we don’t want people to have to go through what we did to simply create a vibrant, immersive world. While the release of StoryTeller to the general public is a long way off, it’s important to realize that the philosophy behind it has never changed: creative people should not necessarily need to speak to a code developer to simply engage in the act of being creative.

So, with our tool in hand we have begun building Bolton, and Notlob. They will be the test environments. Bolton is designed to be a symmetrically laid out city, and Notlob will be a very non symmetrically laid out town. Bolton and Notlob will be connected to each other by way of various environmental maps.

The Client today. Complete with /tell

Getting back to the client then. The client is really the viewer for the world, when you get down to it. But the client also is there for you to interact with the world. But more than that, it has to be able to connect to, and interact with an ever changing world. Part of our plan is: no code updates unless necessary. When we make changes to the world, the client has to understand those changes. Why? Because we think patching code for changes in world content are dumb. We really only want to patch the client when we need to support a new feature or function.

As StoryTeller, and our underlying engine and technology, as well as our roadmap are pretty gelled at this point, it’s time to turn our attention to the client, and more specifically building it up, and adding the game play.

The Alpha client is the platform for this. Right now, it can do a lot, depending on how you look at it:

• Login/Logout
• Successfully load the world/scenes
• Walk around the world. (click to move. Keyboard movement eventually)
• Walk from scene to scene.
• Chat globally.
• Private chat (/tell)

It does not seem like a whole lot, but it’s nearly what we need to get started. So, what’s left before we get started?

• Bug Reporting. We need a way for you to report bugs from within the client itself.
• Auto-Update. When we push a new client build, your client needs to update automagically.
• Some more UI pieces: bug reporting button, we also need to implement the actual button for preferences/settings.
• Nice to have: Collision. (right now, you can walk through walls/props)

The first three are absolutely necessary to begin testing. The last one is high on the priority list. But once the first three are done, we will begin inviting people to start testing the Alpha. Some of the things that will be coming initially once the alpha is in your grubby little hands?

• Clothing and Arms.
• Collision (if it’s not already done yet)
• Basic items.
• Something(s) to kill.
• Something(s) to talk to.
• Building interiors.

One of the earliest StoryTeller prototypes, from 2010.

So, as you can see…a great deal has been accomplished and we have a great deal more to do. But, we’re having fun doing it. The other thing we are counting on is that you will have fun testing it, and giving us feedback. As we start to add more and more game play elements player feedback is going to become more and more crucial. If we did not want feedback, we certainly wouldn’t ask for it.

So, in the next week or two, keep an eye on your email. Those of you who have signed up may be one of the lucky initial testers. As we add more features and gain more stability the pool will grow until the alpha testing becomes more and more open. But, from the point we send out that first invite…well, that’s when we push the lead loaded cart down the steep hill.