Ten Ton Hammer - Taking MMO Gamers to the Next Level!

Ten Ton Hammer: A time-based training system (like what you have with studying) is an uncommon trait in an active MMOG. Why did you decide to include something like the study system in the game?

The Alganon devs wanted a way for players to be able to catch up quickly to their peers.

Anderson: The current MMOs on the market are "jealous games." They are "time vampires" that suck up every waking moment of your life and turn you into a pale husk that exists only to feed the cursed beast.

But they are also a ton of fun. Everyone on the Alganon team loves them. Like many of you, we have libraries full of games that still sit unopened, because our current MMOs devour all our free time.

Every single member of the Alganon team is a passionate MMO player who loves to raid, to PvP, to craft, to heal, to tank, to nuke, to loot... these are our favorite things, but nowhere in that list does it say that an MMO has to be jealous to be fun.

We want you to have a life outside the game - we want you to succeed at work or in school, spend time with your family, network on MyAlganon.com, even go out and play other games.

The study system encourages players to do just that. As long as you remain a part of Alganon, your character continues to grow, so that when you return, it is easy to catch up with those players who spent every waking moment inside the game. Not every game can say that.

Right now, as I answer these questions, I am losing ground on my favorite MMOs. My friends are leaving me behind, moving on to greener pastures and harder dungeons. Doors are closing and I may never get them open again. I am losing. It's a horrible feeling. We don't want Alganon players to feel that way.

If we were playing Alganon right now, we'd be progressing. As we did this interview, we'd be getting stronger, faster, smarter. Doors would be opening for us. New adventures would be waiting for us the next time we logged on. That's a great feeling. That's the game I want to play.

Ten Ton Hammer: Are there any limitations to how much a player can "study"? Can a level one character max out all of his studying simply by making sure he logs in and readjusts his study queue?

Anderson: When Alganon launches, there will literally be years of studies available. If a player wishes to focus on combat, they may first choose to max out Tactics, Anatomy, Swordsmanship, and Marksmanship. That alone could take 6 months.

Other players may wish to focus on enhancing tradeskills by studying Mining, Expedient Blacksmithing, and Rare Alloys. There will always be something to study. There will always be some way to improve your character, and more will be added as the game continues to grow and expand.

We are going to build a "study queue" system that allows the player to manage and plan their studies, but it is undecided how far in to the future a player can queue their studies. We don't want a player to set up 6 months of studies and never enter the game.