" The gaming industry is growing again in Gothenburg- this is the reason"

Hatten

Guardian
Joined
Aug 12, 2014
Posts
268
Location
Gothenburg, Sweden
Society
Sons of Sweden
Avatar Name
Erik Hatten Londre
Hey,

A quite extensive article in the local news today about MA:


It basically says that Gothenburg is doing well in terms of game development and the rest is about Entropia/MA.
 
" – Vi planerar nu att göra en större uppgradering av spelet, säger Henrik Nel. "

" - We are currently planning a major game update says Henrik Nel"

Interesting....

 
Hello can you quote the whole article?

Its pay to read...

People can google translate it if they want.

Tack på förhand xD
 
Spelbranschen växer igen i Göteborg – här är orsaken
EkonomiEn spelstudio drog till Stockholm och en annan lades ned – de allra största bolagen finns på andra håll i landet.
Men i Göteborg finns nu ett gäng snabbväxande spelbolag. Ett av dem lanserade sitt spel redan 2003, ett annat utvecklar Nintendospel och kan hamna på börsen.
– Göteborg ligger faktiskt långt framme i ett internationellt perspektiv i den här branschen, säger Per Strömbäck på organisationen Dataspelsbranschen.


Valdemar Lönnroth
05:00 - 21 sep, 2020
På Järntorget 8, tre trappor upp – ovanför ABF och Socialdemokraterna – finns ett helt universum. Här ligger Mind Ark och universumet är multispelar- och onlinespelet Entropia Universe – som bolaget har utvecklat och uppdaterat sedan lanseringen 2003.
Det är en evighet i dataspelssammanhang. Men på allra sista tiden har spelet och företaget vuxit tydligt, vilket lett till nyrekryteringar. Spelstudion från Järntorget hade 40 personer i början på året. Nu är man 50.

– Vi har anställt sex personer från Electronic Arts Ghost-studio, två personer från Kings kontor i Barcelona, en nyexaminerad student och en från Volvo, säger Henrik Nel, företagets 28-årige vd.
Ghost är i sammanhanget den studio amerikanska speljätten Electronic Arts hade i Göteborg fram till början av året, men som nu har skalats ned. Och King är Stockholmsbolaget bakom de populära mobilspelen Candy Crush.
LÄS MER: Miljoner på spel för Sveriges e-sportelit
Ett 40-tal spelstudior i Göteborg
1337 Game Design, 8 Dudes in a Garage, A Creative Endeavor, Atvis AB, Bulbsort, Carry Castle, Craft Animations, Creative AI Nordic, Creative Vault AB, Devkittens, Dreamon Studios AB, EA Ghost*, Erik Svedäng AB, Hello There, Hiber AB, Image & Form**, Insert coin / Mobil Storytelling, Int3 Software, Itatake, IUS Innovation, Kirikoro, Lavapotion, Legendo Entertainment, Mind Ark, Nornware, Pathos Interactive, Pax6 Games, Playcentric Studios AB, Retroid Interactive, Räven, Sleeper Cell AB, Steelraven7, Thunderful Publishing**, Wishful Whale, YCJY AB, Zoink**, Elden Pixels, Faravid Interactive, Skygoblin, Warcry Interactive
* Har nu blivit ingenjörshubb inom EA i stället för studio.
** Ingår nu i Thunderful Group
Källa: Spelutvecklarindex 2019, Dataspelsbranschen
Ett spel som är ett universum med egen ekonomi
På frågan vad spelet Entropia Universe går ut på säger vice vd Magnus Eriksson:
– Entropia är mer än ett spel, det är ett helt universum där människor kan socialisera och utforska världen tillsammans. Men det viktigaste är kanske att är att spelet i grund och botten har en riktig ekonomi – de virtuella föremålen i spelet är värda riktiga pengar och du kan arbeta och utföra tjänster i spelet.
En spelanvändare sålde en asteroid i spelet för 635 000 dollar
Och pengarna i spelet kan handla om allt från små summor till större. Faktum är att Entropiaspelet innehar flera rekord när det gäller virtuella föremål.
– Ni har flera topplaceringar på Guinness lista över dyraste virtuella föremål. En spelanvändare sålde en asteroid i spelet för 635 000 dollar och det blev även uppmärksammat när en hel ö såldes för 150 000 dollar. Men den dyraste transaktion var när ett annat bolag skulle köpa en hel planet av oss för sex miljoner dollar. Transaktionen gick inte igenom i slutändan, men det är ändå registrerat som ett rekord, förklarar Henrik Nel.
LÄS MER: Spelbolag blomstrar i pandemin
LÄS MER: Slaget om rollspelsnörden fortsätter
Det här kan ju låta rätt märkligt för folk som inte känner till spelet. Finns det inte risk för pengatvätt och annat med så stora summor i spelet?
– Vi följer alla regler och lagar från myndigheter i flera länder och har inbyggda system för misstänkta pengatransaktioner. Vi har också id-kontroller på användare för att undvika alla sådana risker, säger Magnus Eriksson.

Entropia Universe är ett science fiction-spel av typen MMO, ”Massively multiplayer online game”, alltså ett onlinespel där ett stort antal spel interagerar i en virtuell värld och utför uppdrag, dödar monster eller tjänar pengar. Speltypen dök upp någon gång på 90-talet i och med att internet gjorde dylika spel möjliga. Bild: Mind Ark
Ursprung i onlinespel som växte fram på 90- och 00-talen
För att förstå science fiction-spelet kan man se ett släktskap i fantasy- och onlinespelet som World of Warcraft eller det på sin tid uppmärksammade spelet Second life, som också är stora virtuella världar och som båda lanserades under förra hälften av 00-talet.
– Ja, vi påminner en del om Second life, men skiljer oss också åt också, där vi till exempel har mer kontroll över världen, säger vice vd:n Magnus Eriksson.
Till skillnad mot många andra från denna generationen av spel lever Entropia Universe och har hälsan. Användarna – totalt finns 4-5 miljoner konton och cirka ett par hundra tusen aktiva spelare – finns till stor del i Nordamerika och Europa, samt även till en mindre del i Asien.



– Vi planerar nu att göra en större uppgradering av spelet, säger Henrik Nel.
Jag gör grafik till växter i spelet – jag designade växter till racingspelet Need for Speed innan jag kom hit
När GP går runt på kontoret sitter en ny medarbetare och håller på att rita alla växter som finns på planeten Calypso i spelet medan en annan uppdaterar alla de monster användarna kan strida mot i spelet. En av de nya medarbetarna är Oskar Reftel, som jobbade på Ghost Games innan.
– Jag gör grafik till växter i spelet – jag designade växter till racingspelet Need for Speed innan jag kom hit, förklarar han.

Oskar Reftel är nyanställd grafiker på Mind Ark och designar växtlighet i Entropia Universe, något han gjort på Ghost Games också, bland annat för racingspelet Need for Speed. Bild: Jonas Lindstedt
Var sociala innan sociala medier
Att Mind Ark kunnat hålla liv i ett spel och utveckla ett och samma spel under så lång tid är rätt speciellt, konstaterar Per Strömbäck på branschorganisationen Dataspelsbranschen. Han pekar liksom Mind Ark-ledningen på att Entropia Universe är rätt unikt.
– Entropia Universe är mer än ett spel, det var när det lanserades som ett socialt medium innan det fanns sociala medier. Och hela den ekonomiska modell spelet bygger på och som bär upp spelet är också unik, den borde egentligen vara intressant för ekonomer att forska på, säger Per Strömbäck på branschorganisationen Dataspelsbranschen.
Han konstaterar att Mind Ark inte är ensamma i branschen med att växa Göteborg nu. Det som saknas i staden dock en eller flera riktigt stora spelaktörer. I Stockholm fanns enligt senaste tillgängliga statistik cirka 3 500 anställda i branschen, i Malmö nästan 1 000 medan i Västsverige – där Skövde också har många spelföretag – bara varit drygt 500 personer anställda. I Karlstad finns det allra största bolaget – Embracer – som nu vuxit till flera tusen anställda över världen.
LÄS MER: Stort intresse för e-sport under pandemin
– Jämfört med andra länder i västvärlden och om man jämför städer i den storleken hör ändå Göteborg till toppen när det gäller spelutveckling. Det är bara att Stockholm har stora bolag som Dice och King, och Malmö har ett bolag som Massive Entertainment, säger Per Strömbäck.
Och bakåt i tiden led Göteborg av några större bakslag: på 00-talet försvann det viktiga bolaget Digital Illusions (Dice) från Göteborg och flyttade hela verksamheten till Stockholm och nu i närtid har alltså Electronic Arts – som också äger Dice – lagt ned den viktiga studion Ghost Games.
Men samtidigt har bolag som Mind Ark kunnat rekrytera när andra studior lagt ned.

Den viktiga importören av Nintendospel och konsoler till Norden gick nyligen ihop i en större koncern med ett par spelstudior som utvecklar Nintendospel. Tillsammans bildar de en ny större spelare i Göteborg, Thunderful Group. Bild: Per Wahlberg
Ett helt ekosystem för spelbranschen i staden
– Och det bubblar faktiskt lite i stan igen. För några år sedan startade game developers lounge där spelbolag träffas, säger Magnus Eriksson, vice vd:n på Mind Ark.
Och Henrik Nel understryker att det nu finns fyra yrkesutbildningar i Göteborg som är viktiga för branschen i allt från från programmering till spelgrafik.
Och att det sker en positiv utveckling håller Per Strömbäck på branschorganisationen Dataspelsbranschen med om.
– Här finns ett 40-tal bolag och kanske den bästa forskningen kring spel i Sverige, som bedrivs av Chalmers, Handelshögskolan, Pedagogen och forskningsinstitutet Rise. Dessutom har staden en spelinkubator. Så det finns ett bra ekosystem kring branschen. Och sedan finns ju Skövde som ett viktigt centrum i väst, med . Och sedan har det skapats ett nytt, större bolag – Thunderful.

Brjánn “Putte” Sigurgeirsson, är vd för det nya spelbolaget Thunderful Group med huvudkontor på Fjärde Långgatan, där en tung ägare är mannen bakom Nintendoimportören Bergsala i Kungsbacka, Owe Bergsten. Bild: Nicklas Elmrin
Thunderful Group, som GP skrev om tidigare i år, har över 160 medarbetare, har huvudkontor på Fjärde Långgatan och består av flera bolag som slagits ihop: Nintendoimportören Bergsala, spelstudiorna Zoink, Image & Form och distributören Rising Star Games. Företaget ligger på en miljardomsättning, vilket gör det till ett större bolag, även om mycket av omsättningen rör försäljning av Nintendokonsoler. Den röda tråden för koncernen är just Nintendospel, där till exempel Image & Form utvecklat spelen Steamworld 1 och 2. Enligt Dagens Industri kan bolaget rent av vara på gång att börsintroduceras.
LÄS MER: ”Det värsta som kan hända är att vi gör ett halvbra spel, som får ljummen kritik”
När GP når vd:n Brjann ”Putte” Sigurgeirsson springer han mellan olika möten och svarar han helt kort på frågan om planer framåt: ”Vi siktar på att att utvecklas starkt framöver”.
Ser man till branschen som helhet i Sverige har den haft en mycket stark tillväxt, med stark årlig tillväxt – 2010 noterades en omsättning bland bolagen på en dryg miljard, 2018 närmade sig omsättningen 20 miljarder. Hur omsättningen var 2019 finns ännu inga samlade siffror på men bara de stora spelstudierna omsätter tiotals miljarder kronor. Och detta året med corona, då digitala tjänster fått ett allmänt uppsving, verkar även spelbranschen tjänat på att folk suttit hemma i ökad utsträckning.
– Jag vi har sett flera bolag och spel som fått ett uppsving under corona, när digitala underhållning i stort gått bra, säger Per Strömbäck på Dataspelsbranschen.
 
The gaming industry is growing again in Gothenburg – here's the reason
EconomyOne game studio went to Stockholm and another was closed down – the largest companies are located elsewhere in the country.
But in Gothenburg there are now a bunch of fast growing gaming companies. One of them launched his game back in 2003, another develops Nintendo games and could end up on the stock market.
"Gothenburg is actually at the forefront of an international perspective in this industry," says Per Strömbäck of the organization Computer Games Industry.

Valdemar Lönnroth
05:00 - 21 Sep, 2020
On Järntorget 8, three stairs up – above ABF and the Social Democrats – there is an entire universe. Located here is Mind Ark and the universe is the multiplayer and online game Entropia Universe – which the company has developed and updated since its launch in 2003.
It's an eternity in a computer game context. But lately, the game and the company have grown clearly, which has led to new recruits. The game studio from Järntorget had 40 people at the beginning of the year. Now you're 50.

"We have hired six people from Electronic Arts Ghost studio, two people from King's office in Barcelona, one newly graduated student and one from Volvo," says Henrik Nel, the company's 28-year-old CEO.
Ghost is in this context the studio american gaming giant Electronic Arts had in Gothenburg until the beginning of the year, but which has now been scaled down. And King is the Stockholm company behind the popular mobile games Candy Crush.
READ MORE: Millions at stake for Sweden's e-sports elite
Some 40 game studios in Gothenburg
1337 Game Design, 8 Dudes in a Garage, A Creative Endeavor, Atvis AB, Bulbsort, Carry Castle, Craft Animations, Creative AI Nordic, Creative Vault AB, Devkittens, Dreamon Studios AB, EA Ghost*, Erik Svedäng AB, Hello There, Hiber AB, Image & Form**, Insert coin / Mobile Storytelling, Int3 Software, Itatake, IUS Innovation, Kirikoro, Lavapotion, Legendo Entertainment, Mind Ark, Nornware, Pathos Interactive, Pax6 Games, Playcentric Studios AB, Retroid Interactive, Fox, Sleeper Cell AB, Steelraven7, Thunderful Publishing**, Wishful Whale, YCJY AB, Zoink**, Elden Pixels, Faravid Interactive, Skygoblin, Warcry Interactive
* Has now become an engineering hub within EA instead of studio.
** Now part of Thunderful Group
Source: Game Developer Index 2019, Computer Game Industry
A game that is a universe with its own economy
When asked what the game Entropia Universe is all about, Vice President Magnus Eriksson says:
"Entropy is more than a game, it's a whole universe where people can socialize and explore the world together. But perhaps the most important thing is that the game basically has a real economy – the virtual items in the game are worth real money and you can work and perform in-game services.
A game user sold an in-game asteroid for $635,000
And the money in the game can be anything from small sums to larger. In fact, the Entropy game holds several records when it comes to virtual objects.
– You have several top places on the Guinness list of most expensive virtual items. A game user sold an in-game asteroid for $635,000 and it was also noticed when an entire island was sold for $150,000. But the most expensive transaction was when another company would buy an entire planet from us for six million dollars. The transaction did not go through in the end, but it is still registered as a record, Explains Henrik Nel.
READ MORE: Bookmakers flourish in pandemic
READ MORE: Battle over role-playing geek continues
This may sound rather strange to people who don't know the game. Isn't there a risk of money laundering and other things with such large sums in the game?
"We follow all the rules and laws of authorities in several countries and have built-in systems for suspicious money transactions. We also have ID checks on users to avoid all such risks," says Magnus Eriksson.

Entropia Universe is a science fiction game of the type MMO, "Massively multiplayer online game", thus an online game in which a large number of games interact in a virtual world and perform missions, kill monsters or earn money. The game type appeared sometime in the 90's when the internet made such games possible. Picture: Mind Ark
Origins of online games that emerged in the 90s and 00s
To understand the science fiction game, you can see a kinship in fantasy and online games such as World of Warcraft or the in its day acclaimed game Second life, which are also great virtual worlds and both launched in the last half of the 00's.
"Yes, we remind you a lot of Second life, but we also differ, where we have more control over the world, for example," says Vice President Magnus Eriksson.
Unlike many others from this generation of games, entropy lives universe and has health. Users – a total of 4-5 million accounts and about a few hundred thousand active players – are largely in North America and Europe, as well as to a smaller extent in Asia.


"We are now planning to make a major upgrade of the game," says Henrik Nel.
I make graphics for plants in the game – I designed plants for the racing game Need for Speed before I came here
As the GP walks around the office, a new employee sits and is drawing all the plants found on the planet Calypso in the game while another updates all the monsters users can battle in the game. One of the new employees is Oskar Reftel, who worked at Ghost Games before.
"I make graphics for plants in the game – I designed plants for the racing game Need for Speed before I came here," he explains.

Oskar Reftel is a newly hired graphic artist at Mind Ark and designs vegetation in the Entropia Universe, something he has done at Ghost Games as well, including for the racing game Need for Speed. Photo: Jonas Lindstedt
Be social before social media
The fact that Mind Ark has been able to keep a game alive and develop the same game for so long is quite special, says Per Strömbäck at the trade association Computer Game Industry. Like the Mind Ark management, he points to the entropy universe being quite unique.
–Entropia Universe is more than a game, that was when it was launched as a social medium before there was social media. And the whole economic model the game is based on and that underpins the game is also unique, it should really be interesting for economists to research, says Per Strömbäck at the trade association Computer Game Industry.
He notes that Mind Ark is not alone in the industry of growing Gothenburg now. What is missing in the city, however, is one or more really big game players. According to the latest available statistics, there were approximately 3,500 employees in The Industry, in Malmö almost 1,000, while in Western Sweden – where Skövde also has many gaming companies – only more than 500 people have been employed. Karlstad is home to the largest company – Embracer – which has now grown to several thousand employees worldwide.
READ MORE: Great interest in e-sports during the pandemic
"Compared to other countries in the Western world, and if you compare cities of that size, Gothenburg is still at the top when it comes to game development. It's just that Stockholm has big companies like Dice and King, and Malmö has a company like Massive Entertainment, says Per Strömbäck.
And back in time, Gothenburg suffered some major setbacks: in the 00s, the important company Digital Illusions (Dice) disappeared from Gothenburg and moved the entire business to Stockholm and now in the near future Electronic Arts – which also owns Dice – has closed down the important studio Ghost Games.
But at the same time, companies like Mind Ark have been able to recruit when other studios have closed down.

The major importer of Nintendo games and consoles for the Nordic region recently merged into a larger group with a couple of game studios developing Nintendo games. Together they form a new major player in Gothenburg, Thunderful Group. Photo: Per Wahlberg
An entire ecosystem for the gaming industry in the city
"And there's actually a bit of bubbling in town again. A few years ago, game developers started the lounge where bookmakers meet, says Magnus Eriksson, Vice President of Mind Ark.
And Henrik Nel emphasizes that there are now four vocational training in Gothenburg that are important for the industry in everything from programming to game graphics.
And that there is a positive development, Per Strömbäck of the trade association Dataspelsbranschen agrees.
"There are about 40 companies and perhaps the best research on games in Sweden, conducted by Chalmers, The School of Economics, Pedagogy and the research institute Rise. In addition, the city has a game incubator. So there is a good ecosystem around the industry. And then there is Skövde as an important center in the west, with . And then a new, bigger company has been created – Thunderful.

Brjánn "Putte" Sigurgeirsson, is ceo of the new gaming company Thunderful Group headquartered on Fjärde Långgatan, where a heavy owner is the man behind Nintendo importer Bergsala in Kungsbacka, Owe Bergsten. Photo: Nicklas Elmrin
Thunderful Group, which GP wrote about earlier this year, has over 160 employees, is headquartered at Fjärde Långgatan and consists of several companies that merged: Nintendo importer Bergsala, game studios Zoink, Image & Form and distributor Rising Star Games. The company has a billion turnover, making it a larger company, although much of its turnover relates to sales of Nintendo consoles. The common thread for the group is nintendo games, where, for example, Image & Form developed the games Steamworld 1 and 2. According to Dagens Industri, the company may even be in the pipeline to be listed on the stock exchange.
READ MORE: "The worst thing that can happen is that we make a half-good game, which gets lukewarm criticism"
When GP reaches ceo Brjann "Putte" Sigurgeirsson, he runs between different meetings and answers him briefly when asked about plans ahead: "We aim to develop strongly in the future".
Looking at the industry as a whole in Sweden, it has had very strong growth, with strong annual growth – in 2010 a turnover among the companies was recorded at just over a billion, in 2018 sales approached 20 billion. The turnover in 2019 is not yet available, but only the large gaming studies have a turnover of tens of billions of kronor. And this year with corona, when digital services received a general boost, the gaming industry also seems to have benefited from people sitting at home to a greater extent.
"I have seen several companies and games that have received a boost during corona, when digital entertainment has largely gone well," says Per Strömbäck of the Computer Game Industry.
 
I think Sweden being a very cold, snowy country needs and exercises technology for their social and entertainment purposes.

I think they exercise a vast growth into many areas, including gaming.
 
Interesting read. Thanks for sharing.
 
"a few hundred thousand active players"

:D yeah I guess it depends on how you define "active" I signed in from time to time over a 7 year span while I was getting my BFA but didn't really play. I see a lot of old avatars login in and out for short spans so I guess that is "active" in a sense. On a side note I do see a lot of people on Calypso at all times of day. Back during Project Entropia there were definitely dead times where nobody was online and you could go a few days before running into a green dot until you visited a city. Vehicles and TP chips really helped with avatar mobility, I can be out in the Entropia "bush" so to speak and its not long before a vehicle flies by or avatar TP skips through where I am at.
 
Entropia Universe... blahbla... growing...

Interlink
READ MORE: "Gambling Companies Thriving in the Pandemic"

Entropia Universe... blahbla... records...

David Simmons: "Nah..!"
Hihi...:LOL:



Entropia Universe... blahbla... growing...

Interlink
READ MORE: "The worst thing that can happen is that we make a half-good game, which gets lukewarm criticism"

Entropia Universe... blahbla... records...

MindArk: "ROFL:ROFLMAO:!"
 
Last edited:
" – Vi planerar nu att göra en större uppgradering av spelet, säger Henrik Nel. "

" - We are currently planning a major game update says Henrik Nel"

Interesting....
Rather frightening.....anybody remember how many participants we lost with the Cryengine ?
And how many years it took till all the core elements were integrated again ?
"Minor" updates like the the camera thingy are annoying, "major" updates are something that after over 12 years I just find terrifying.
 
Rather frightening.....anybody remember how many participants we lost with the Cryengine ?
And how many years it took till all the core elements were integrated again ?
"Minor" updates like the the camera thingy are annoying, "major" updates are something that after over 12 years I just find terrifying.
9
But it's also exciting. And absolutely needed if this game wants to survive. Any other game that would appear and have somewhat similar base concept (RCE)and mechanics but up-to-date graphics, would pose a huge issue to EU.
So yes, bring it on, I do hope it's a big design update planned ()SOON :D ) even if many would have to upgrade, we really need this.
 
9
But it's also exciting. And absolutely needed if this game wants to survive. Any other game that would appear and have somewhat similar base concept (RCE)and mechanics but up-to-date graphics, would pose a huge issue to EU.
So yes, bring it on, I do hope it's a big design update planned ()SOON :D ) even if many would have to upgrade, we really need this.
Sorry, but not taking the rather "cataclysmic" decline after the CE update and just looking at the past two years of "minor" updates is frightenting. Way too many "high rollers" selling out and way too little new ones coming in.
I can handle a new engine, but especially some high rollers do not seem like the people that are willing to invest in new hardware or any kind of inconveniance.
They want to conitnue to spent the same few K USd every month and keep doing what they do. You need a lot of new players that come and _STAY_ to reach their spending levels and what the whole economy gets from it.

So nope, not exciting, MA does not have the development team they had when releasing CE, they do not have the funds and they now surely have the track record of really half-baked releases. There have allways been some controverse release, but the fixing now seems to take them way longer than it took them years ago.
Small steps would be okay, but something big ?
Remember Warterloo
 
9
But it's also exciting. And absolutely needed if this game wants to survive. Any other game that would appear and have somewhat similar base concept (RCE)and mechanics but up-to-date graphics, would pose a huge issue to EU.
So yes, bring it on, I do hope it's a big design update planned ()SOON :D ) even if many would have to upgrade, we really need this.

After all the lag I'm experiencing I welcome any change. This I'm guessing is either the engine/code or their hosting provider sucks.
 
Sorry, but not taking the rather "cataclysmic" decline after the CE update and just looking at the past two years of "minor" updates is frightenting. Way too many "high rollers" selling out and way too little new ones coming in.
I can handle a new engine, but especially some high rollers do not seem like the people that are willing to invest in new hardware or any kind of inconveniance.
They want to conitnue to spent the same few K USd every month and keep doing what they do. You need a lot of new players that come and _STAY_ to reach their spending levels and what the whole economy gets from it.

So nope, not exciting, MA does not have the development team they had when releasing CE, they do not have the funds and they now surely have the track record of really half-baked releases. There have allways been some controverse release, but the fixing now seems to take them way longer than it took them years ago.
Small steps would be okay, but something big ?
Remember Warterloo

I think they can optimize models and push CE without updating to an entirely new game engine, will they do that? :dunno:

It just takes time and patience to go through your models and systems and see where things are lacking or causing issues plus they need to get the planet partners on board as well for any engine upgrade.

I am with you on the small steps and bug fixing would go a long way towards player retention and bring in a few new people as well. Capitalize on the fun little quirky things that always made PE/EU stand out and by all means engage the community more often. There are so many ideas floating around this community they need to incubate them in some way that doesn't involve Planet Partner monetary requirements and setting up a full fledged development team.
 
Would be interesting to see what other engine there is that could handle EU (and improve it), but no engine is perfect...
I heard that CE and Frostbite are quite hard to work with.
If UE5 could handle a MMO like EU, and that the engine really works well with the new graphics, EU could become a really
good looking game with a LOT of details.
I guess no matter what engine MA would run EU on, the big issue is probably the license, since EU is so unique.
On the other hand, I don't think a new engine is comming soon, other than maybe a newer version of CE,
so no matter whats comming, all I wish for in the future is the end of the hyping of EU and instead "keep it real"
and stick to development based on highest quality in features and graphics. :p
 
So yes, bring it on, I do hope it's a big design update planned ()SOON :D ) even if many would have to upgrade, we really need this.
Right, best is to weed out the peasants at regular intervals. They're more trouble than they're worth.
 
Would be interesting to see what other engine there is that could handle EU (and improve it), but no engine is perfect...
I heard that CE and Frostbite are quite hard to work with.
If UE5 could handle a MMO like EU, and that the engine really works well with the new graphics, EU could become a really
good looking game with a LOT of details.
I guess no matter what engine MA would run EU on, the big issue is probably the license, since EU is so unique.
On the other hand, I don't think a new engine is comming soon, other than maybe a newer version of CE,
so no matter whats comming, all I wish for in the future is the end of the hyping of EU and instead "keep it real"
and stick to development based on highest quality in features and graphics. :p

" Amazon Lumberyard is a free cross-platform game engine developed by Amazon and based on CryEngine, which was licensed from Crytek in 2015. The engine features integration with Amazon Web Services to allow developers to build or host their games on Amazon's servers, as well as support for livestreaming via Twitch. "

You hear that, MA? FREE. The engine is integrated with the web services. Based on CryEngine so the port shouldn't be difficult.


?
 
" Amazon Lumberyard is a free cross-platform game engine developed by Amazon and based on CryEngine, which was licensed from Crytek in 2015. The engine features integration with Amazon Web Services to allow developers to build or host their games on Amazon's servers, as well as support for livestreaming via Twitch. "

You hear that, MA? FREE. The engine is integrated with the web services. Based on CryEngine so the port shouldn't be difficult.


?
Sounds too good. But the development time needed to implement is probably the reason for which we are left with this outdated graphics and why everyone checking out the game today says it looks terrible. The RCE excuse was used for too long, maybe with the influx of new and returning players from 2020 MA will finally make the step.
San, you are too hard on yourself mate.. Take it easy...
 
" Amazon Lumberyard is a free cross-platform game engine developed by Amazon and based on CryEngine, which was licensed from Crytek in 2015. The engine features integration with Amazon Web Services to allow developers to build or host their games on Amazon's servers, as well as support for livestreaming via Twitch. "

You hear that, MA? FREE. The engine is integrated with the web services. Based on CryEngine so the port shouldn't be difficult.


?
Well UE4 (UE5 also most likely), CE (and Lumberyard) are free in a way, but not for games like Entropia.
E.g Lumberyard is only free when creating either games that don't require a server (single player games on e.g a PC) or when the
game is using a private server local-only.
License agreements are probably hard to solve with games that are in a way unique, like EU.

I hope UE5 will get as good as it seems, and that it will get add ons for really big single world MMOs, would be freakin' cool to
have that kind of detail in graphics that UE5 seem to be able to handle. :) Just the possibilty to drop objects from e.g zBrush without
the need to make low poly objects, normal maps and so on is really nice. :)
 
back out all the alts and maybe you have 20K players

used to be over 1 million wasn't it?

could care less about a major update as they will just fuck it up anyway and same old group will benefit from it if they don't fuck it up. waste of time.
 
Entropia needs work to stay up-to-date. But it is far from too late. Mindark still have a solid foundation to build upon. But it seems competition is coming, and that should be taken serious, starting now
 
Back
Top