Looks decent. I'm not a big MMO fan though but It'll be worth following.
Check out the announcement
Full Version: Shadowrun Online
Oh 
. Ahh well, as their first 'official' announcement this might deserve its own thread otherwise I'm sure a mod can fold it into the bigger one.
Personally I like the idea of it being a browser based/unity engine game. It allows for very fast and very frequent updates with a minimum of effort on the Dev's part, that's why the Desktop Dungeons Beta is run using the Unity Engine. It can also allow for some fairly decent graphics especially if you have talented 2D artists. Iron Grip Marauders has a fantastic atmosphere and it's built using the Unity Engine. It's not the prettiest engine in the world, but you can do some decent stuff with it.
Regarding the F2P model that you plan on using, I have to wonder what is the 'scarce' resource going to be? In my (albeit limited experience) F2P games rely on having a single 'scarce' resource that you need to pay real money for. The key is though that the scarce resource needs to be something that is achievable in game through gameplay, paying money just helps accelerate it. For example in Iron Grip Marauders the rare resource is Gems. Iron and Gold is received by undertaking raids on enemy outposts which forms the core gameplay but you only get 1 gem every time you level up and 4 or 5 gems for unlocking certain 'achievements'. Iron and Gold are used to buy your units, conduct research, upgrade your airship ect. Gems are used on the black market to buy units you might not have access to otherwise, buy licences for unique units that can't be researched but still tread that delicate line wherein they are not significantly better than the regular units, accelerate research and training times (research can take days to proceed naturally), and buy bits of cloths for your avatar.
I'm not sure how that would translate to a game like Shadowrun where there are already only 2 resources, both of which are absolutely essential to the game would be able to come up with something you have to pay for without breaking the verisimilitude. I mean you couldn't make Nuyen the scarce resource, since shooting people in the face for money forms the core gameplay experience. I'd also be very leery of trying to monetize Karma since that would effectively turn awakened characters into a Pay to Win class which is a surefire way to earn the ire of the F2P audience in general.
Anyhow, if Primetide happens to poke his head in here and you haven't watched it yet, I might direct you towards this Extra Credits episode where they talk about F2P games and microtransactions here. They have some fairly insightful comments.
*edit* hadn't finished the other thread. Noticed it was was an F2P with micro-transactions model which answered one of my questions.
. Ahh well, as their first 'official' announcement this might deserve its own thread otherwise I'm sure a mod can fold it into the bigger one.Personally I like the idea of it being a browser based/unity engine game. It allows for very fast and very frequent updates with a minimum of effort on the Dev's part, that's why the Desktop Dungeons Beta is run using the Unity Engine. It can also allow for some fairly decent graphics especially if you have talented 2D artists. Iron Grip Marauders has a fantastic atmosphere and it's built using the Unity Engine. It's not the prettiest engine in the world, but you can do some decent stuff with it.
Regarding the F2P model that you plan on using, I have to wonder what is the 'scarce' resource going to be? In my (albeit limited experience) F2P games rely on having a single 'scarce' resource that you need to pay real money for. The key is though that the scarce resource needs to be something that is achievable in game through gameplay, paying money just helps accelerate it. For example in Iron Grip Marauders the rare resource is Gems. Iron and Gold is received by undertaking raids on enemy outposts which forms the core gameplay but you only get 1 gem every time you level up and 4 or 5 gems for unlocking certain 'achievements'. Iron and Gold are used to buy your units, conduct research, upgrade your airship ect. Gems are used on the black market to buy units you might not have access to otherwise, buy licences for unique units that can't be researched but still tread that delicate line wherein they are not significantly better than the regular units, accelerate research and training times (research can take days to proceed naturally), and buy bits of cloths for your avatar.
I'm not sure how that would translate to a game like Shadowrun where there are already only 2 resources, both of which are absolutely essential to the game would be able to come up with something you have to pay for without breaking the verisimilitude. I mean you couldn't make Nuyen the scarce resource, since shooting people in the face for money forms the core gameplay experience. I'd also be very leery of trying to monetize Karma since that would effectively turn awakened characters into a Pay to Win class which is a surefire way to earn the ire of the F2P audience in general.
Anyhow, if Primetide happens to poke his head in here and you haven't watched it yet, I might direct you towards this Extra Credits episode where they talk about F2P games and microtransactions here. They have some fairly insightful comments.
*edit* hadn't finished the other thread. Noticed it was was an F2P with micro-transactions model which answered one of my questions.
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