Questions
by Cody “Micajah” Bye, Managing Editor
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Answers
by Dave Clarke, Producer, VestGame Entertainment
When a typical gamer looks at the free massively multiplayer games that
are on the market or in open beta, it’s easy to feel
overwhelmed. Every day seems to spawn the announcement of more titles
heading to the North American shores, and the old titles linger on year
after year. The Ten Ton Hammer staff is always interested in making a
gamer’s choice easier, and so we’ve dedicated
ourselves to bringing you the best free-to-play coverage on the
internet. Along those lines, we recently received an opportunity to sit
down with Dave Clarke, a producer for VestGame Entertainment, who was
more than willing to chat with us about his upcoming imported MMOG,
href="http://www.worldofkungfu.com/">
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If you’re looking for a MMO gaming experience based around
Ancient China, he may have the game for you!
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World of Kung Fu is
actually based on the stories and mythology of Ancient China.
Ten Ton Hammer For the
readers who don’t know anything about
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could you briefly describe what the game is all about and why players
should be interested in it?
a MMORPG based on stories and mythology of Ancient China.
There have been a few games released recently that are similar, but
this one is actually made in China by people who grew up hearing these
stories, which we feel adds a layer of authenticity to the
game. One of the main concepts of this game is the ability to
create a “Wulin”, or traditional Chinese Kung Fu
society.
In most games, when you begin, you have to pick a faction or a side to
begin on. In WoKF, you can change your allegiances however
and whenever you want, because “factions” in our
game are based on Kung Fu schools and countries. This adds a
new level of depth to a multiplayer world. Also, the
“classes” in the game are based upon techniques
using traditional kung fu weapons, so it’s a nice change from
the elves and dwarves of most other RPGs. And it’s
free to play!
Ten Ton Hammer: Over the
last few years, imported MMORPGs have begun to spring up with
increasing rapidity. You’re entering a fairly jam-packed
marketplace with WoKF; how are you going to make the game stand out?
What sort of features will draw players to WoKF rather than any of the
other games on the market?
one of the first things you notice is that it’s a graphically
well designed game. It looks more like a game you would buy
than a standard free-to-play game. That in itself helps it to
stand out. We’ve also been trying to give the best
customer support that we can. Many of these other imported
MMO’s offer very little support, but in WoKF,
you’ll actually see GMs online and in game 24 hours a day
ready to assist you. Our GMs and Game Sage support staff are
great, and we actually participate in the game community, not just sit
on the sidelines and observe.
There are a lot of other great features in the game, one of my upcoming
favorites it that actual players can become the King of the various
countries in the game and control that country and decide if it will go
to war, etc. I think that the level of player involvement in
the game world above the normal quest and grind is what will draw
players to this game. We also run a lot of special events,
some requested and devised by players, to give a better sense of
community and to keep it interesting.
Ten Ton Hammer: The game
is currently in open beta. What sort of feedback are you looking to
gather from the players? What areas of the game need improvement or
polish from the original version?
we’re really looking for suggestions from players about what
can make the game better. It’s very successful in
China, but American players have different ideas of game play, so we
try to cater to that as best we can. We have a very active
forum and suggestions are taken seriously. Many of the player
suggestions from our Closed Beta were incorporated in to the Open Beta,
and honestly, I was surprised to see that players were amazed that we
actually listened to what they had to say and did something about it.
As for improving and polishing the game, we see this as an ongoing
process! There is always room for improvement, and we plan on
doing it.
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Experience is earned
through completing quests and killing monsters.
Ten Ton Hammer:
What kind of advancement system does WoKF possess? Does it rely on
killing monsters or can you advance in other ways? How many
classes/skills are available in the game?
different “classes” in the game, based on
traditional Chinese Kung Fu weapons: Spears, Broadswords,
Fans, Staves, Hooks, Swords, Bows, Hammers/Axes, and Fists.
Each one has different play styles. For example, Fan users
are the healing class in the game. Another cool feature
that’s coming up is that players can get married and have
children. The children will become an actual player character
that has skill sets from both parents, so players will be able to have
“hybrid” classes.
Advancement in the game is pretty straight forward. You can
gain experience and levels by completing quests and killing, but there
are also other avenues of advancement based on reputation in different
fields in the game. Another feature of the game that helps
with leveling is that you gain more experience if you play
together. Team based play offers better opportunities to
level, and special systems allow for players with special relationships
to have unique abilities to aid in this.
Ten Ton Hammer: Are their
any sort of alternative paths you can follow in WoKF? For example, can
players cook or make weaponry? How does this process work and what
makes it different from other games?
course! There are many different paths in WoKF.
Players can craft food, medicine, weapons, armor, fashion clothes and
many other things. I think the big difference here is that
players gain reputation for all of these things, and that reputation
allows players to create better and better items the higher their
reputation is. You can forge your weapons and armor to give
bonuses, and there is a refining system that allows for creation of
special items that only skilled players can make.
Ten Ton Hammer: Does the
game focus more on player versus player (PvP) or player versus
environment (PvE) type combat? It seems that most imported games really
have a focus on PvP, is this the same sort of scenario with
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good amount of PvP available in the game, especially with the School
battle and Country battle systems, but there is also a good amount of
PvE combat as well.
I suppose it depends on your play style. We’re
trying to make the game world accessible to everyone and how they like
to play.
Ten Ton Hammer: Judging
from the screenshots of World
of Kung Fu, you seem to want to strike a balance between
realism and fantasy with a dash of silliness thrown in. Is this true?
Why’d you decide to go this particular route?
was designed to be a fantasy world, but we wanted to make it believable
and fun at the same time. So yes, I think that’s a
true statement. Part of the reason why the game was designed
like this is because it is made in China. I’m sure
you’ve seen some Kung Fu movies. Realism and
fantasy with a bit of silliness thrown in. I think that
actually sums it up nicely.
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WoKF was originally
developed by Tengren in China.
Ten Ton Hammer: When was
WoKF originally developed and who developed it? How long have you been
localizing the game? When are you expecting to fully release the title?
developed by Tengren in China, and it’s been in the works for
a few years. We’ve been localizing the game for
just under a year. The full title release should be in a few
months once we catch up the localization process with the current
Chinese version.
Ten Ton Hammer: Are you
following the standard business model for most other imported games and
making WoKF free-to-play with gold buying incentives included in the
game?
Yes. WoKF was designed to be a free-to-play game and it uses
the Item Mall concept to offer items that help in gameplay.
We like this concept, because it gives players the power to decide if
they want to spend any money. You don’t need to buy
a $50 game at the store and then pay $15 a month to play. You
just download, and within minutes, you’re playing the game.
Ten Ton Hammer: Finally,
is there anything else you’d like to tell the Ten Ton Hammer
readers?
To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our World of Kung Fu Game Page.
