Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

24 Hours In The Matrix

Posted by Zonk on from the jackburn dept.

Both E! Online and Gamespy have looks at the most recently launched Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying game, The Matrix Online. From the Gamespy article: "Since the close of the beta, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment announced that it has employed a troupe of 20-odd people whose job it will be to enact narrative scenarios in The Matrix Online live. These people will assume the roles of popular characters, interact with players, and generally move the stories in ways that only live "actors" can."

23 of 71 comments (clear)

  1. Tough choice by Chris+Pimlott · · Score: 3, Funny

    E! Online and Gamespy... hard to say which company's game reviewing I respect most...

    1. Re:Tough choice by nacturation · · Score: 4, Insightful

      E! Online and Gamespy... hard to say which company's game reviewing I respect most...
      --
      FreeiPods.com [freeipods.com] is legit (See Journal)

      And this coming from a guy hawking an iPod pyramid scheme. Hm... ;-)

      --
      Want to improve your Karma? Instead of "Post Anonymously", try the "Post Humously" option.
  2. Good and bad... by tha_mink · · Score: 3, Funny

    While it sounds like a cool job...imagine trying to explain to your non-computer related friends and family what you do for a living. It's almost like working in one of those costumes at Disney_World...

    "You see...I am an actor in an online game which was made from a movie...aw...forget it"

    --
    You'll have that sometimes...
    1. Re:Good and bad... by Meagermanx · · Score: 2, Funny

      I'm just thinking of all the resumes they must be getting right now: "Hello, I'm a thirteen year old with plenty of experience in boh the MMO communities, and the RPG communities, and..."

  3. After reading this, I can say but one thing. by AtariAmarok · · Score: 4, Funny

    "Whoa..."

    --
    Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
    1. Re:After reading this, I can say but one thing. by JNighthawk · · Score: 5, Funny

      And 10,000 Matrix Online players simultaneously say "I know kung fu."

      --
      Wheel in the sky keeps on turnin'.
  4. End of Beta was excellent by Red+Moose · · Score: 5, Interesting
    I got in the beta around 3 weeks before it ended. It was buggy as hell and missions were bugged, graphics, fighting was bugged, etc., . However, the concurrently ran a QA server which was a good few patches ahead. A lot of criticism that arrived at the open beta was because of the sudden influx of people bitching abotu stability when in fact the open beta change was a Stress Test for the servers.

    In the 72hrs prior to shutdown of the beta, it was patched up to the QA server updates. There was immediate improvements across the board in tability, etc., . The initial criticism of Matrix Online being a bugfest was no longer warranted but it did suffer the labelling because of Stress Test.

    The end of the beta - the almighty Matrix system crash that happened in game was amazing and a very involving MMORPG experience. Agents were spawning from game characters, major player controlled characters were being hunted down which was interaction at a pretty intense level. Major clans that had been involved over the months were summoned to appearances of Morpheus, etc., . Basically, we all got a glimpse of the plot and how it would work with the game.

    At the same time, we had Radio Free Zion streaming in with live actors. This was excellent immersion and was not as cheesy as you think. It was all very "real" with this added element, plus with great music streaming in the background on this station.

    So it built up over a period of hours, with sightings of Neo, the machines and the zionists breaking a truce with Morpheus insisting on the return of Neos body, etc., . Very well scripted and shows a lot of story potential. I was surprised at how well it actually all came together in the end but I'd recommend it definitely.

    WHile the key to the start of the game proper is you being a freshly freed human you choose your side - Merovingian, Machinist, Zionist. Characters from the movies come into play in your missions as you go up in rank. Also, the traditional warrior/magician classes remain but the magician is represented by matrix "hackers" who can fuck with the matrix world, etc., . Very well implemented.

    OK, so the whole breakdown of the human-machine truce from the end of Revolutions based on Morpheus demanding Neo's body is a bit lame it's better than humans starting a trade war or something equally Lucas-esque.

    --

    Acting stupid isn't much fun when there's someone around who knows better

  5. Actors don't work by yasth · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The whole idea of actors has been tried before, it is really hard to pull off, though. 20 odd people at 40 hours a week, yields 800 hours 48000 minutes. Given that they probably hope to have about that many players that means about a minute of interaction a week.

    Also wouldn't the interactions mostly be a bunch of comic book guy type questions? I mean cool it is neo and some guy is playing him, but what is he going to say? "Good job on that bunny, now watch me do my superman thing?".

    --
    I'd do something interesting, but my server can't handle a slashdotting.
    1. Re:Actors don't work by Quarters · · Score: 2, Insightful

      The process of distributing TV and radio is call broadcasting because a small amount of data can simultaneously be distributed to a large viewer/listener group. Your "minute of interaction a week" conclusion is flawed in that it depends on each in-game actor only interacting with, and being seen by, one player at a time. This, obviously, won't be the case. At the worst the # of actors will generate "about a minute of interaction a week". The greater the parallelism with the player base achieved, the more interaction time / week generated.

  6. How Cool? by Dubpal · · Score: 3, Insightful

    While it's a nice idea, 20 actors over a massive environment containing thousands of players seems to be spreading it a little thin. For the average user, are these actors going to have any real impact on a player's experience? Seems to me if the game gets anywhere as popular as other MMORPGs, you're going to have little chance of interacting with an actor.

    --
    If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face forever.
    - George Orwell
  7. Graphics, how is it? by BrookHarty · · Score: 2, Interesting

    The only review I see in detail is here.
    http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/gameId/8 8

    Downloaded the videos from the website, didnt seem that impressive compared to what I'm playing in World of Warcraft.

    Anyone have any experience? How does it look and play compared to WoW? I know I tried City of Heros after playing WoW, canceled my account to CoH after a week.

    1. Re:Graphics, how is it? by StonedRat · · Score: 2

      I found the graphics to be nothing special, and the camera swings around too much, i prefer the graphics and camera in WoW. WoW has better gameplay too.

      --
      "Religion is the most malevolent of all mind viruses." - Arthur C. Clarke.
  8. Great, but.. by cluke · · Score: 4, Insightful

    This is great and all, but the problem is that in games like this, everybody is determined to exist *outside* the game. People aren't playing against the game, they are playing against the rules - as if the designers have set them a challenge of how to defeat the system. This renders all role-play bogus. It is all the worse in MMORPGs like this (as opposed to single player RPGs), where peer pressure ensures that highest level = the winner.
    I mean, let's not kid ourselves, for all this fancy talk, we know that this game is all about whomping mobs and collection phat loot, whilst "omfg wtf lolling" with strangers. A few role-playing actors aren't going to fix that.

    1. Re:Great, but.. by LordZardoz · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Your right.

      But a few role playing actors does imply a consistent supply of Live Content / Game Events. This will permit those intrested do live quests and have some direction / goal to their gamplay, rather then playing "Click the 3D Monster to Death".

      END COMMUNICATION

  9. Crafting (Coding) in MxO is horrible! by JNighthawk · · Score: 3, Informative

    The coding system is absolutely terrible in MxO. You get your raw resources (bits) by decompiling items. From there, you create code fragments which can be used to create items and abilities. A major problem is there is no way to tell the chance you have to succeed in crafting. It tells you nothing about whether your coding skill really has an effect on the outcome of your crafting attempt. Also, the rarity of the bits is very skewed, with some of the most necessary bits for even low level items and abilities being rare.

    --
    Wheel in the sky keeps on turnin'.
    1. Re:Crafting (Coding) in MxO is horrible! by {8_8} · · Score: 2, Informative

      You can somewhat gauge your chances of success by looking at your WriteCode skill. If an item requires a WriteCode skill of 15 and your skill is at 15, I've seen a 50/50 shot at creating the item. You can boost this by coding near the booster antennas (although a small part of me wonders if the rumors of the antennas helping coding are true or not)

      The rarity of bits 1-8 isn't an issue at all. The best way to obtain a bit stock pile, as well as some of the less common bits, is to decompile Redpill Specials and Black Beanies (or whatever they're called). The Redpill Specials have a good chance of getting you every bit except 8, and the Black Beanies have a good chance of getting you every bit except 3 or 5, I think. Once you learn the recipe for both items, just make an item code, compile 15 times and decompile. I filled up storage space this way. The only downside to this method is the time it takes to compile/decompile.

    2. Re:Crafting (Coding) in MxO is horrible! by randomblast · · Score: 2, Funny

      Is it just me, or is this "coding system" a little stupid...
      It's like having a game about sex...

      (19:57) OI! Shag me!
      (19:57) OK
      (19:58) *You have both attained nakedness*
      (20:02) *You have reached orgasm*
      (20:03) *She has reached orgasm*
      The End.

      It's like... it's an abomination to sex, like this is an abomination to real coding!

      --
      ...these aren't my real teeth.
  10. Re:Interaction.. by Meagermanx · · Score: 3, Funny

    While that would work, and is a good idea, I had kind of pictured an actor making speeches and stuff. You know, rallying troops, staging battles, stuff like that. Or if they just walked around, you could just have them talk to a few lucky people. So you would be saying "So, did I tell you I talked to Neo? He kept saying 'whoa'. It was weird." And your friend would be like "Really? Cool. I saw Trillian once."

  11. Re:I KNOW KUNG FU! by larsoncc · · Score: 4, Funny

    For the last time, NO, you DON'T. /Trebek

    --
    Video Game News, FAQs, etc
  12. Re:Interaction.. by geminidomino · · Score: 2, Funny

    *ducks as an elephant on a surfboard shoots across his room*

    STOP THAT!

  13. Re:I KNOW KUNG FU! by MatthewNewberg · · Score: 3, Funny

    They day is mine, Trebek. http://www.eonline.com/On/Snl/VideoGallery/

    --
    mnewberg.com
  14. Huh? by SwimsWithTheFishes · · Score: 2, Funny

    I don't understand, what is the Matrix?

    --
    *click**beep**beep* Scotty, One to Mod up!
  15. Nothing Changes by SwimsWithTheFishes · · Score: 2, Funny

    I keep hitting RELOAD but its just the same thing over and and over. Why can't I get this Matrix to reload?

    --
    *click**beep**beep* Scotty, One to Mod up!