Crowfall Devs Reveal MMO Guru, Ralph Koster, as Design Contributor
Fans of the not-yet-released MMORPG, Crowfall, continue to wait for bits of info to leak from ArtCraft, the game's developer. Ever since ArtCraft announced Crowfall earlier this month, fans have been speculating on where the game might fulfill the studio's promise to take MMO's in a bold new direction. Although Crowfall's game specifics are still being carefully guarded, the studio has just announced that it's been consulting long-time MMO designer, Ralph Koster, to help with designing the interaction of their two core systems: dynamic territorial conquest and a player-driven economy. Koster has been the leader designer for Ultima Online along with Star Wars: Galaxies, both very popular games. Koster is also the author of A Theory of Fun for Game Design.
AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 22, 2015 — Independent game developer ArtCraft Entertainment, Inc. revealed today an ongoing collaboration with renowned MMO designer Raph Koster on the company’s recently announced game, Crowfall.
“Raph and I have been working together for about a year on the design architecture for Crowfall,” explained J. Todd Coleman, CEO and game director. “At the heart of this game, we have two core systems: dynamic territorial conquest and a player-driven economy. Marrying these two concepts is the holy grail of MMO development, and Raph is arguably the best person in the world to help us solve this puzzle.”
Prior to his role as a formal advisor and design consultant for ArtCraft Entertainment, Inc., Koster served as the lead designer for Ultima Online and Star Wars: Galaxies, was the founder of Metaplace (acquired as part of Disney / Playdom studio) and authored the book A Theory of Fun. Koster is widely recognized as an industry leader in game design, and was honored by the Game Developer Conference Online as an “Online Game Legend” in the industry.
Gordon Walton, ArtCraft president and executive producer said, “Raph and Todd are two of the most amazing designers in the history of the MMO genre. Seeing the two of them work together, for the first time, is unprecedented and absolutely fascinating.”
Koster adds, “There isn’t anything on the market like Crowfall, and it has been a long time since some of these design ideas were explored. There’s a very specific audience out there waiting for a game like this – the conflict, the real economy – that has been looking for new steps beyond the games of ten years ago.”
Founded by two of the most experienced executives in the history of online gaming, ArtCraft Entertainment is the combined effort of J. Todd Coleman (director, Shadowbane, Wizard101, Pirate101)and Gordon Walton (executive producer, Ultima Online, Star Wars Galaxies, Star Wars: the Old Republic). The stated goal of ArtCraft Entertainment is to “push the design of Massively Multiplayer Online games in bold new directions.”
About ArtCraft Entertainment, Inc.
Headquartered in Austin, ArtCraft Entertainment, Inc. is an independent developer and publisher of interactive entertainment for consumers around the globe. The Company develops and publishes products on multiple platforms. For more information, please visit our product site at http://www.crowfall.com or contact us via email at press@artcraftent.com. ArtCraft is part of the vibrant Austin, Texas game development community, which includes nearly 100 game companies and more than 2,000 game developers.
Source-ArtCraft Entertainment, Inc.
AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 22, 2015 — Independent game developer ArtCraft Entertainment, Inc. revealed today an ongoing collaboration with renowned MMO designer Raph Koster on the company’s recently announced game, Crowfall.
“Raph and I have been working together for about a year on the design architecture for Crowfall,” explained J. Todd Coleman, CEO and game director. “At the heart of this game, we have two core systems: dynamic territorial conquest and a player-driven economy. Marrying these two concepts is the holy grail of MMO development, and Raph is arguably the best person in the world to help us solve this puzzle.”
Prior to his role as a formal advisor and design consultant for ArtCraft Entertainment, Inc., Koster served as the lead designer for Ultima Online and Star Wars: Galaxies, was the founder of Metaplace (acquired as part of Disney / Playdom studio) and authored the book A Theory of Fun. Koster is widely recognized as an industry leader in game design, and was honored by the Game Developer Conference Online as an “Online Game Legend” in the industry.
Gordon Walton, ArtCraft president and executive producer said, “Raph and Todd are two of the most amazing designers in the history of the MMO genre. Seeing the two of them work together, for the first time, is unprecedented and absolutely fascinating.”
Koster adds, “There isn’t anything on the market like Crowfall, and it has been a long time since some of these design ideas were explored. There’s a very specific audience out there waiting for a game like this – the conflict, the real economy – that has been looking for new steps beyond the games of ten years ago.”
Founded by two of the most experienced executives in the history of online gaming, ArtCraft Entertainment is the combined effort of J. Todd Coleman (director, Shadowbane, Wizard101, Pirate101)and Gordon Walton (executive producer, Ultima Online, Star Wars Galaxies, Star Wars: the Old Republic). The stated goal of ArtCraft Entertainment is to “push the design of Massively Multiplayer Online games in bold new directions.”
About ArtCraft Entertainment, Inc.
Headquartered in Austin, ArtCraft Entertainment, Inc. is an independent developer and publisher of interactive entertainment for consumers around the globe. The Company develops and publishes products on multiple platforms. For more information, please visit our product site at http://www.crowfall.com or contact us via email at press@artcraftent.com. ArtCraft is part of the vibrant Austin, Texas game development community, which includes nearly 100 game companies and more than 2,000 game developers.
Source-ArtCraft Entertainment, Inc.
