BioWare - LucasArts Collaboration Announced

[Dhruin]

Well, well, well. BioWare and LucasArts have announced a collaboration to produce an unnamed "interactive entertainment product" and have launched a joint website at www.lucasartsbioware.com (http://www.lucasartsbioware.com/) with this press release:
SAN FRANCISCO, CA and EDMONTON, CANADA — October 30, 2007 — LucasArts and BioWare Corp. today announced that they have entered into an agreement to create an interactive entertainment product. The product, details of which will be unveiled at a later date, will be developed and published by BioWare and LucasArts, and will push the boundaries of the gaming market by utilizing the strengths of both companies to deliver an innovative, high-quality experience.
“LucasArts has a deep commitment to developing compelling stories and characters for the unique medium of interactive entertainment, and we have been searching for a developer that shares this value. We found this in BioWare,” said Jim Ward, president of LucasArts. “Through our previous collaborations, we know that BioWare has an impressive ability to blend gripping stories with technological advancements, and we believe that our upcoming product will deliver an experience that will span the traditional boundaries of video game entertainment.”
“BioWare’s mission is to deliver the best story and character-driven games in the world, delivering powerful emotional experiences to our fans.” said Ray Muzyka, chief executive officer, BioWare Corp. Added Greg Zeschuk, president of BioWare Corp., “The collaboration with LucasArts allows us to combine our passion for creating high quality and innovative experiences with those of a company dedicated to bringing only the finest games to market.
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More information. (http://www.rpgwatch.com/show/newsbit?newsbit=6975)

[Lucky Day]

possible outcomes of giant megacompany EA/Lucasarts collaboration anyone?

[Sorcha Ravenlock]

New Star Wars MMORPG.... set in the KOTOR universe :)

[Gorath]

Okay, so Bio is really working on a Star Wars MMO ?!

[Dhruin]

I've argued many times that I didn't think BioWare was working on a Star Wars MMO, so let me clearly say - I was wrong.

I'm disappointed BioWare has taken this entire road. In hindsight, they had absolutely no intention of remaining independent and sticking to original IP.

[Zakhary]

Hmm.. EA, Lucas Arts, Star Wars, Xbox, MMORPGs... yuck!
Bioware seems to be doing everything in their power
to become uninteresting and disgusting :(

Sad. Very sad. I don't like any of this.

[Lethal Weapon]

Are you really that surprised? There have been rumors for about a year now.

The thing I don't get is LA is going to publish EA's new MMO O_O This would be a first. A publisher internally develops a game which is then published by another publisher :lol:

Sorcha, I'd rather have KotOR3 :)

[guenthar]

I play mmorpgs but I probably wouldn't play this since I only play free to play games. I hope people are wrong and it is either kotor 3 or a new single player rpg based on star wars.

[Ammon777]

Very great news, imo!

Anyway, woohoo for KOTOR MMORPG !!! I hope this nails the lid of SOE's SWG coffin forever. Also I hope KOTORO has PvP !!! And I hope I can be a robot maker.

I am excited. Darkfall Online is comin early next year, with Conan Online, Warhammer Online, then at end of year Stargate Worlds. And now KOTOR where I can be a jedi. OMFG I am never gonna see the sun next year. I'm in heaven.

[Lucky Day]

I've argued many times that I didn't think BioWare was working on a Star Wars MMO, so let me clearly say - I was wrong.

I'm disappointed BioWare has taken this entire road. In hindsight, they had absolutely no intention of remaining independent and sticking to original IP.

ya gotta make sure you don't count your chickens before they're hatched.

I think the next question, after than the new EA/Lucasarts relationship, is will this be XBox Live stuff or PC?

[Dyne]

Ugh, MMOs make my bile duct hurt.

[Dhruin]

ya gotta make sure you don't count your chickens before they're hatched.

I think the next question, after than the new EA/Lucasarts relationship, is will this be XBox Live stuff or PC?

*shrug*. Don't care. I listened to Muzyka talk independence and original IP but the result is EA and Star Wars -- or do you think they'll do something original? No, I don't either. Star Wars MMO seems overwhelmingly likely. Which means they are focused on a WoW-killer (because no way is LucasArts accepting modest subscriber numbers after SWG), which is probably how this whole selling off to a venture capital firm to sell to EA thing started.

[Gorath]

The thing I don't get is LA is going to publish EA's new MMO O_O This would be a first. A publisher internally develops a game which is then published by another publisher :lol:

LA doesn´t have their own logistics. The newsbit mentions LA and Bio as co-publishers. This means EA will take over Bio´s part and also move the boxes. There´s no way EA will allow somebody else to ship their MMO - unless the contracts were already signed when they bought Bio. Which is unlikely.

[Gallifrey]

What, nobody thinks this will be a Monkey Island MMO?

A new Star Wars MMO would be fine with me, a KOTOR MMO would be beyond horrible though. The focus of KOTOR is that the PC is a Jedi, hence the name of the game. An MMO where everyone is a Jedi would be abysmal to the point of sickness-inducing.
A Star Wars MMO tagged with the KOTOR name for brand recognition would be lame.

That said, if BioWare can, somehow, pull of a good, story-driven MMO with in-depth character building and advancement with real impact on the gameworld, I'll be more than intrigued. But story-driven and MMO are, as near as I can tell, mutually exclusive elements.

[Reyla]

Lucas and Bioware are making a game. Ok.

I want to hear the real news, though. Somebody please pick up the phone and get a SOE comment. I said it in a few of the rumor threads, there is no way in heck Lucas can back two competeing MMOs based on Star Wars.

[Aditya]

Nowhere does it says its gonna be "MMO"...why does everybody think it will be MMO, that too based on KotOR universe?? KotOR 3 seems likely to me, though I am just being hopeful here.

[Maylander]

Might end up being an excellent MMO though, BioWare is one of the few developers to actually make something solid in the SW universe, so there's loads of potential here.

We'll see in time. :)

[zakhal]

My interest raised like 0,1%. Lets see again in 4-5 years and even then they just might launch yet another turd. Bioware/Lucasarts are good but when it comes to mmogs I trust no one.

[Sorcha Ravenlock]

Sorcha, I'd rather have KotOR3 :)

Oh, I fully agree. The smiley was more to indicate that the rumors seem to be true now anyway. I suppose it was meant sarcastically.

While I do like my MMORPGs every now and again, in the Star Wars universe I want to be that one unique hero (like in KoToR, or like Luke in the movies), not jedi number 461234 killing 10 sandpeople to get a new belt of +10 midi-chlorians.

It's a shame, but we already suspected Bioware sold out on the whole independent making-games-we-want-to-make-thing the moment they went over to EA.

Aditya: No, it doesn't say MMORPG anywhere, but we've known for quite a while now that Bioware is working on Dragon Age, a Sonic the Hedgehog RPG and a yet to be unnamed MMORPG. It just seems to make the most sense that MMORPG is going to be set in the KOTOR universe now.
Galaxies didn't do that well and has been around for a few years now, it wouldn't surprise me if EA, bioware and LucasArts are keen on cashing in on the whole MMORPG thing.

I could be very wrong ofcourse, and I kind o hope I am, another KoTor would be far higher on my wishlist.

[Reyla]

Nowhere does it says its gonna be "MMO"...why does everybody think it will be MMO, that too based on KotOR universe?? KotOR 3 seems likely to me, though I am just being hopeful here.

Point taken.

“Through our previous collaborations, we know that BioWare has an impressive ability to blend gripping stories with technological advancements, and we believe that our upcoming product will deliver an experience that will span the traditional boundaries of video game entertainment.”


Maybe they will resurrect the "Interactive Movie". Like all those adventure games of the late 80s and early 90s.

[Lethal Weapon]

Oh, I fully agree. The smiley was more to indicate that the rumors seem to be true now anyway. I suppose it was meant sarcastically.


Oh I see, sorry then, must be a language barrier.

Totally agree, the magic in KotOR was that you were one of the few remaining Jedi with a very distinct presence in the world. Now imagine 1 million of would-be Revans (no-one would want to play as anything else) running around, ridiculous.

For those of you that doubt that the game will be MMO, sadly this seems to be 99% the case. Apart from what Sorcha said, there have been various rumors in the net originating from the Bioware employees themselves. And then there is the simple fact of their site launching so early, this could never be the case for a single player game.

[fatBastard()]

Nowhere does it says its gonna be "MMO"...why does everybody think it will be MMO, that too based on KotOR universe?? KotOR 3 seems likely to me, though I am just being hopeful here.

True, however, we know that the PC department is working full time on Dragon Age and it has long been known that Mass Effect will be a trilogy with downloadable content in between each "episode", so even though Mass Effect has gone gold, I have no doubt that the team is already hard at work with the first batch of downloadables.

The only branch of Bioware not accounted for is their newly founded MMO department, so I would say that it is VERY likely that they've spent the time developing a "proof of concept" project that they've now managed to sell to Lucas Arts ... but what do I know.

[Alrik Fassbauer]

The Force unleashed anyone ? Maybe a spin-off product ?

We all know that this is the next LA product wich is destined to "break barriers in video gaming" or so.

Personally, I have the feeling as if there are two options:

- MMO
- Single-Player

I don't know.

Maybe they want to combine Mass Effect with The Force Unleashed ?

[Dez]

Lets hope this new unnamed project isn't an other ultra boring mmo.

[skavenhorde]

While I do like my MMORPGs every now and again, in the Star Wars universe I want to be that one unique hero (like in KoToR, or like Luke in the movies), not jedi number 461234 killing 10 sandpeople to get a new belt of +10 midi-chlorians.

I couldn't agree more. Well, other than liking MMORPG :) A Star Wars game just wouldn't be the same if I was one of thousands of 'Lukes' in the universe.

[Dez]

who can blame them..force is cool, jedi are cool and jedi using the force is not only uber cool, but he can also be very powerfull. People like kicking ass. Han solo is ofcourse cooler than luke, but cooler than Darth vader? no way. (to be honest its not fair, nothing could ever be as cool as Darth vader gripping imperial officers/rebels!)

[Maylander]

That is a good point, no matter how cool someone gets, they never get quite as cool as Darth Vader.

[pox67]

I reckon it will be a Raiders of the Lost Arc MMO. haha.

I don't mind a good MMO but doubt I would play another Star Wars one. I realised a while ago that I only like 2 1/2 out of the 6 movies and could care less what Lucas is gonna do with the universe now.

[Lucky Day]

Another question is this, if they were so willing to collaborate why didn't Bio make KotOR2? Certainly those Austin Studios have been working on this for some time so why did LA have to take KotOR to another company?

Why the sudden reversal in policy for Bio? All the tools were there and OE added very little to the actual product - mostly it was the story itself.

Our impression at the time, at this is probably what convinced Dhruin they weren't making a SW IP, was that Bio was done with 3rd party IPs and were busy cashing in on their own name to sell and possibly publish original ones like DA and Mass Effect.

---

A Monkey Island MMO? That's fuel for the fire. Its the only other IP that Lucasarts hasn't buried and with the Sonic RPG coming Bio has shown its willingness to make children's games.

Man, talk about an optimistic thought...

[Gallifrey]

My Monkey Island comment was sarcasm ;)

As for it not saying MMO anywhere, the press release does say "interactive entertainment product" and then bandies about terms like innovation and whatnot. It all just sounds like MMO-styled marketing speak for some reason. And as pointed out, BioWare haven't done an MMO yet, and if they're wanting to forge ahead and be all innovative and next-gen and whatnot, they're going to go MMO.

But, I wouldn't at all mind a new Star Wars MMO. Galaxies has never caught my attention as I've never heard anything good about it, and BioWare did do a brilliant job in capturing the Star Wars setting with KOTOR. I remember playing it, thinking it was immeasurably better than the new Star Wars movie(s) that were out at the time. So, they can do SW well, and it's a large enough setting for MMO playing, so why not.
I just hope they don't go all next-gen tech with it, but rather realise that lower system specs are good for a large MMO subscriber base.

[Alrik Fassbauer]

who can blame them..force is cool, jedi are cool and jedi using the force is not only uber cool, but he can also be very powerfull. People like kicking ass. Han solo is ofcourse cooler than luke, but cooler than Darth vader? no way. (to be honest its not fair, nothing could ever be as cool as Darth vader gripping imperial officers/rebels!)

Even coller now: Play evil characters.

The coolest of all will probvably be the "Secret Apprentice" you play in "The Force Unleashed".

Slaughter Jedi ! Get close to Vader ! Break off the proto-empire in liasion with a female officer !

[Hedek]

KOTOR III would be my favorite alternative too. But part of the reason why MMOs seem so appealing to publishers is their revenue model. Publishers perceive them -and rightly so- as a "zero piracy, full revenues" PC games. Now I wouldn't be against some sort of online requirement to play a single player KOTOR III if that's what it takes to still have single player CRPGs.

On a side note, I wouldn't be so quick at blaming Obsidian Entertainment about Kotor2 not being that good... Lucas forced on them a very tight schedule. When you think about it the biggest complains about that game (inconsistent story and especially an ending that felt rushed) could have easily been addressed with some more time. NWN2 and even more NWN2's expansion MOTB are a proof that Obsidian is capable of well crafted stories when given the time.

[Squeek]

It would be cool if they could, somehow, make it genuinely difficult to become a Jedi Knight. Maybe the dark side could really be tempting too. I can imagine kids crying because they goofed and fell to the dark side!

[Reyla]

It would be cool if they could, somehow, make it genuinely difficult to become a Jedi Knight. Maybe the dark side could really be tempting too. I can imagine kids crying because they goofed and fell to the dark side!

It was very difficult to become a Jedi in SWG but the fan based complained and they made it easier. A Star Wars MMO just won't work even if Bioware is more brilliant than SOE. People seem to forget that all the changes made to SWG which ultimately led to its demise were made because the fans complained it was not "Star Warsy" enough.

I can't believe that anbody would get excited about another try at a Star Wars MMO.

[Gallifrey]

On a side note, I wouldn't be so quick at blaming Obsidian Entertainment about Kotor2 not being that good... Lucas forced on them a very tight schedule.

Specifically, LA ordered the game pushed out to release early. They wanted the XBOX version out for Christmas, when both the PC and the XBOX releases were actually scheduled for release a couple of months later than that. So they had to basically get it done for release and couldn't really change the PC version even though they had the time.

As for getting excited about another SW MMO, I suspect it's because SWG is so poorly regarded, and there's definite potential in the SW licence for a good MMO. If ever there was a good MMO setting, it's Star Wars. It just has to be done right, that's all. And BioWare have proven that they can indeed do Star Wars.
The potential revenues are huge, too. With a setting the size of Star Wars, the expansion pack options are nearly limitless, and there's enough useable content to keep a full design team working on regular updates in addition to full expansion packs. It seems a solid business model.

Now, whether BioWare can do Star Wars well beyond a scripted, controlled, single-player game is the the kicker. Sure, they can script a good Star Wars single player story, but can they keep that Star Wars feeling throughout a sprawling MMO?

[Hedek]

Now, whether BioWare can do Star Wars well beyond a scripted, controlled, single-player game is the the kicker. Sure, they can script a good Star Wars single player story, but can they keep that Star Wars feeling throughout a sprawling MMO?

Agreed, fully. I wouldn't mind something on the lines of Age of Conan where the first few levels are a single player game before it becomes a MMORPG. Imagine that, a true KOTOR III just like we're dreaming for and then once you've beat the story over and over and hoped you could have more of the same treat, you can enter a persistant world, revisit places from the single player game but in "free roaming" mode, engage in PvP against opposite side jedis. I know that would be really hard to imagine, write and implement, especially story wise but I am really excited about how the AoC single player game will be like and how well a mmorpg can blend with a single player game in general.
The singleplayer part of the MMORPG could serve as a filter to become jedi or not. You'd have to beat the singleplayer game in hardcore more to be a jedi in the mmorpg aspect, and the final battle in the singleplayer part would leave your jedi heavily weakened and the first levels in the mmorpg part would actually just be levels to put you back at the same level as other professions.
For those who haven't beat the singleplayer game in hardcore mode yet or don't want to bother can however jump directly in the mmorpg aspect as a scout, soldier, scoundrel, crafter or whatever non-jedi profession they can think of.

[Sir Markus]

Blech. Bioware has been out to lunch for a while. I even thought the KOTOR games were very, very average and too consolized.