LEGO
While there wasn’t anything new to be announced
about the LEGO MMO, we did ask Scott whether they were using any sort
of current MMO or game as a basis for the sort of gameplay the hope to
achieve in their upcoming title. “At first, it was really
hard to pin anything down because we have such an open canvas to work
with,” Scott said. “So much of our first little bit
of time spent with LEGO was just brainstorming.”
Scott smiled at us before he went into his next comment.
“We do have a grasp of what our game is now…but we
can’t tell you.”
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name="photo_j" border="0" height="74" width="150">
Although NetDevil can't divulge any concrete info on
LEGO yet, we sure hope they do something with the Bionicle line.
Perhaps the biggest challenge facing NetDevil, at this point,
is determining what they should include in the game to make it
entertaining, yet leave out of the game to insure the safety and
privacy of the young children who will play the LEGO MMO.
One game that is looked upon by the NetDevil crew for guidance
is the LEGO Star Wars series. Both Peter and Scott agreed that LEGO
Star Wars had the right amount of fun and flavor to make it the
incredibly successful game it was. “However,” Scott
added. “it set the bar pretty high for whatever we do with
the LEGO MMO. People will want an online version of LEGO Star Wars. We
just hope we can live up to that.”
For NetDevil, the LEGO agreement has been the first time
they’ve ever had to deal with an outside IP to work from. Our
next question revolved around how the relationship between LEGO and
NetDevil has worked thus far. “We got a good one,”
Scott said. “It’s not like we’re working
with Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, or Marvel – LEGO is
really, really open. They don’t have any rules that we have
to think about or background content that we are forced to include.
Like we said before, it’s pretty much a blank slate. Our only
limitations are that it has to be safe for kids and we need to be able
to match the LEGO look.”
“It’s really the exact opposite of most
licensing deals,” Peter added. “Instead of getting
a fanbase that says we MUST include X villain or Y hero, we have a
group of fans who strives for creativity and yearns for an open-type of
world. There’s no LEGO-man that we need to worry
about.”
Another game that Scott brought up was Neverwinter Nights.
While the comparison may seem strange at first, Scott explained his
reasoning very well. “With NWN, the developers had a fanbase
who expected a world based in D&D. However, they also created
this community of players who build their own modules and their own
stories,” Scott said. “It’s really
amazing what they were able to do with that, and we really want to
figure out a way to do that with the LEGO MMO.”
“We’re not trying to make a Second Life
type game,” he added. “We want a quality game
behind the open world, but we also want to give users the freedom that
can be found in a game like Neverwinter Nights.”
Other NetDevil Topics
The NetDevil Logo
After moving to their new digs in Louisville, Colo., and with
so many new products to push, NetDevil is planning on holding an open
house type event in late June. Ten Ton Hammer will definitely be in
attendance, trying our best to hold our own in a Warmonger tournament
and checking out the latest info on Jumpgate, LEGO, and Auto Assault.
Scott, Hermann, and Grace all assured me that the festivities
will be enormous and fun will be had by all. That is, unless they meet
me in a Warmonger deathmatch and I drop a building on their heads. I
love blowing stuff up, and all of NetDevil’s games certainly
fit that mold.
However, NetDevil hopes to eventually leave that stereotype
– “the company that blows shit up”
– behind. “We’ve had a lot of people tell
us that,” Scott said. “But we really want to be
known as the company that takes risks, is creative, and tries new
things.” And knowing the guys at NetDevil, that will
eventually become their reputation and more - they will be the company
that tried new things, was creative, took risks, and - eventually - was
successful.
Make sure you check out the rest of Ten Ton Hammer's OGDC coverage!
To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our Auto Assault Game Page.
