World of Warcraft at Ten Ton Hammer

Jumpgate Evolution is a solid contender in the space race visuals category.

Trying to pin down exactly what success means for a given MMO is a difficult task – something my long preamble could easily attest to. What’s of equal importance is figuring out how a specific title can make a large enough impact on the market to ultimately define success on its own terms, regardless of what opinionated sci-fi columnists might think about tin can underwear sets.

Based on the firsthand accounts of two Ten Ton Teamsters fortunate enough to get some hands on time with the game last month at Codemasters’ Gamers Day event, I believe the first key to unlocking the doors of success for Jumpgate Evolution may already be in the hands of developers NetDevil. A quick glance at the official forums is all it takes to see that a core following of X-Wing vs. Tie Fighter and Wing Commander fans are behind the project, but to reach a larger audience JGE needs to be accessible to gamers who may have never used a flight stick, or are perhaps more comfortable with the common WASD control scheme found in most MMOs.

But accessibility extends far beyond the interface. If there was only one lesson learned from the success of WoW, it would be that crafting an MMO that can run on a wide spectrum of machines is crucial if you ever hope to appeal to a broader audience. If NetDevil can deliver on the epic scale of 50v50v50 space combat scenarios and provide a stable platform for those battles that even a gamer with lower end machine can enjoy, then one of the bigger obstacles to success will be neatly taken out of the picture. The fact that JGE looks amazing from a visual standpoint is simply starry icing on the space cake.

There’s also a lesson to be learned from delivering all flash and no bang. The beautiful images that currently reside in our gallery are proof positive that Jumpgate Evolution has the ‘flash’ nailed down tighter than a coffin full of vampires you don’t want to let out of the graveyard anytime this century. But for JGE to truly succeed, core gameplay elements will necessarily have to be equally intriguing and epic. Striking that perfect balance between the micro and macro can be tricky to say the least, but NetDevil is one of the few MMO developers out there with as much experience in forging its own path. While that in and of itself is no guarantee for success, it certainly paints an MMO picture that’s full of potential.

Taking the above into account, I tend to look at Jumpgate Evolution as one of those rare MMOs that’s being developed on its own terms, rather than attempting to conform to any kind of predefined norm. The concept of ‘niche’ has a general connotation that a developer specifically selects a target market that’s 30 degrees to the left of established behemoths like WoW, but I believe that it can mean so much more than that, especially when an MMO is crafted with a unique enough approach while still offering a core gameplay experience that could very well appeal to an audience that breaks the MMO bonds and appeals to a broader spectrum of gamers.

Will Jumpgate Evolution be that game? Only time will tell, but I certainly stand behind my prediction from earlier this year. Do you find yourself nodding in agreement not unlike a bobble-head or a fan in the front row at a metal concert? Be sure to stage dive headfirst into the discussion right here on our forums, or you can always feel free to contact me directly with your thoughts on Jumpgate Evolution’s potential for success!