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

Ten Ton Hammer: Gatheryn has been touted as a very social game. Are you developing any sort of mechanic to promote socialization in your game? Or is it a "you build it and they will come" sort of idea?

Isa: We're definitely going to have all the standard features of a standard MMO: chat, in-game mail, etc. But I really think that is the standard stuff. For us, we're really hoping to make activities that are fun for players to get together and do as a group.

Dances, talent shows, fashion shows, all of these things are things that we're working on putting into the game. We also want to have hosted events from MindFuse where players can all gather together for an event for a pre-scheduled meet-up....a party basically.

Ten Ton Hammer: Are there ways to reward players that participate in these events without having a billion GMs?

Isa: Yeah, and we actually want to have a system of achievements to point out the players that have earned particular social achievements in a given month. Of course, the achievements wouldn't be limited to simply social stuff, but giving out prizes to those players that have attended the most public events is definitely something we're looking at.

Ten Ton Hammer: What about guilds? Are they going to be a part of the game? Will they have things to do in Gatheryn?

Isa: Players will be able to form their own guilds, but they will probably focus around gamers that either enjoy a certain activity like dances or playing cards, or a certain goal like raising money. We may also see guilds form around particular mini-games. In that sense, they may be more like social groups, rather than the normal version of guilds.

Ten Ton Hammer: Finally, is there anything that players can do to become a part of the Gatheryn community at this point in development?

Isa: Absolutely! We actually have a community manager who is working on setting up our beta program, and I think the community is going to start there. Forums are also on there way, and a fansite kit is coming together for anyone that wants to put together a fansite. We welcome a lot of interaction with the different communities; we want to hear from everyone and talk to them!

Ten Ton Hammer: Great! Thanks for your time, and we hope to talk to you again soon!