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Africa, The MMOG
Via Joystiq, an MTV Games story about a MMOG that attempts to encompass Africa in a game. From the article: "Less reserved, Adam Ghetti, the teenage creative director at Rapid Reality, the company actually creating the game, said he hopes the game will right some wrongs. 'The white American board developers of the large MMO development companies out there right now don't honestly have the right background and knowledge on the continent of Africa and its lore, mythology and rich history, and quite honestly neither did I,' said Ghetti, who is white. 'They just don't teach it over here.' The game is designed, in part, to change that."
It better run on Ubuntu!
Small potatoes make the steak look bigger.
Which faction will you roll your character as Tutsi or Hutu?
Ah, PvP!
...what level do you have to be to get into the "Slave trader" alignment?
Anyone here remember the game "Heart of Africa" from the 80s? I thought it was a pretty good game for learning the physical geography of Africa.
this could be a great thing.
When I was a teenager I read a lot of fantasy, until I realized that 99.9% of the fantasy genre is taken directly from Tolkein. The same can be said about fantasy games. Its all Knights, Wizards, Orks, Elves, Dwarves and Dragons. Maybe they will mess with the names, but the roles are set in stone.
Anything realizeing a vision of its own would be a welcome change.
Not that any of that will help a crappy implimentation...
i got all the background i ever wanted to know, or didnt as the case may be, by watching Hotel Rawanda. i see this game failing miserably.
No, because if that were the case, then there'd be no famine.
Circumcision is child abuse.
I think one of the issues that we (Americans) have is that you normally hear of "Africa." It is the only continent that is mentioned as a country (aside from the obvious Australia which is a country, or Anarctica, which has no countries). I don't think people(in general) realize that Africa is made up of distinct countries with distinct cultures.
Then again, many of my country men can't name 10 state capitals in the US... so maybe understanding other cultures is too much...
And All I Ask is a Tall Ship And a Star to Steer Her By
The things most worth talking about in Africa are unfortunately pretty nasty... things like ethnic cleansing and the yearly starvation of hundreds of thousands. Somehow I don't think that's what they have in mind here...
It looks like the goal is more something along the lines of stereotypical Africa... a lot of elephants and odd piercings. That, somehow, doesn't seem educational either.
I'm just confused. It's to be a fantasy game, but it's still somehow supposed to teach about Africa? Did anyone learn about Europe from LOTR? Raise your hands, now...
2) The designer of the game claims both that it will have state of the art graphics and that it will run on low-end computers. Sorry, but you can't do both at the same time! Also, much of the gameplay that works great when you're on the same Ethernet segment as the server is virtually unplayable when you're on a dial-up on a different continent than the server.
In general, you can't be all things to all people; you need to pick your battles and focus on doing just a few things, but doing them well.
I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
Seeming to be a comon thread amongst MMOG's these days (Star Trek, Star Gate...), this looks like it has tremendous potential. I truly hope that this project succeeds in all the areas that the spunky 19-year old developer hopes. If this goes well, perhaps we may see some other games in this genre; Pre-columbian Native Americans, Han-dynasty China, Shogun-era Japan. I could see this becoming a major franchise. As for that 19 year-old head, I just wish I had a company to help me put my game ideas to code...
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To do the Heart of Darkness quest. Willing to split silver that the yellow cons and up drop.
!Xabbu and his girlfriend finally got out of Otherland and into business. ;)
More seriously, if it works the way !Xabbu's was in the book, it could actually be educational.
Cannibal despots FTW!!!
Oh, that's right. I a total cynic. That's why. Never mind.
Africa, from an inside flavor. This will be interesting to see and i for one am going to be expectant of the views presented. Will this be of the time of Egypt? Will it cover the Congo and Llukumi existance and history of the west coast? The Ethiopia, Swahili and Zulu nations of the east coast? There are a number of pantheons and diverse cultural histories to be represented either correctly or fictitiously. Perhaps crickets are not all that would be heard and maybe you might learn something about Africa from the game, unlike LOTR which was not set in europe....
Foreign powers killing natives, natives repelling the foreign powers, natives killing each other. This could be a really cool game.
You can't add pianos and telephones.
Dr. Smart, I presume?
http://www.mmorpg.com/showFeature.cfm/loadFeature/ 122
What happened to these other 4 games? And are those graphics and sketches indicative of their "better than UE3" quality? I know I would invest in a company of 20 people led by inexperienced teenagers who are planning to unveil multiple MMORPGs at once with bad art and generic ideas!
After all, those talentless saps at Blizzard had to use over 200 employees just to get their little game off the ground!
Seriously though, something doesn't add up here. Creative directors are usually not very young because experience is a GOOD thing. New ideas are great, but ideas can only get you so far. The most important thing in any large undertaking (like creating the most complicated type of game available) is knowing how to schedule, how to pace, how to get your work done on time and under budget (or as close as you can manage!). That old adage about perspiration over inspiration has endured because there is a lot of truth to it.
On top of that, exactly how is such a tiny team going to produce such amazing assets? Where did they get the funding to either buy or create technology that supports normal mapping and tone mapping in an upgradeable and portable way? Where is their customer support team? Where did these "8 months to a year" numbers come from? Not from some tawdry thing like "experience" I imagine...
After Gizmondo and Infinium, articles and interviews like one this start to leave a sour taste in my mouth...
s/Rapid Reality/3DRealms/g
s/Adam Ghetti/George Broussard/g
Oh, right! I knew that sounded familiar...
Slaves came from Africa. Anglo-saxon men are bad.
What I wouldn't give for a Multi-Cultural class that actually studied different cultures instead of how the white Anglo-saxon male has subjugated them.
-Rick
"Most people in the U.S. wouldn't know they live in a tyrannical state if it walked up and grabbed their junk." - MyFirs
...Vaporware? Seriously, how was the developer's description of all the "neat stuff" any different from the Microsoft press machine. I see this project's schedule slipping until it is finally laid to rest.
Adam Ghetti is Swahili for "Derek Smart".
I bet this is the last MMOG anyone will EVER own.
-Styopa
The concept of using Africa's rich and extremely DIVERSE history as the basis for a game is a great idea. But yeah, he's setting his hopes too high in promising to encapsulate all of it effectively. It reminds me of that World War II simulation MMO game that turned out to be a total failure (mostly due to a rushed and buggy initial release). To create a game like Ghetti wants to create, you'd have to spend decades, if not a lifetime, working on it.
..."Africa" might give Africans a new window to the virtual world...
Who says that's such a good thing? Who says they really WANT it? Oh, you American you!
I'm completely burnt on the standard elves and orcs MMO, but unfortunately of all the MMO's I've tried, these seem to have the best game play mechanics for how I like to play. I'd love to see a new MMO that has some depth to it with a different cultural setting. I don't particularly care if it's a romanticized view, so long as it's fun and different.
Since the game is set in 13th century Africa, I'm assuming "learn something about Africa" means "get the flavor of African mythology". The knight/castle/dragon games and stories aren't an accurate portrayal of medieval times, why should something based on African mythology be held to a different standard? Sure most of present day Africa is a political, economic, and sociological disaster zone. I'm not sure that has anything to do with the mythology of the different African cultures being an interesting setting for a game. I do think it's kind of a big chunk to bite off simply because of the diversity. The geography could make for some beautiful and varied locales to play in though.
Here's what the 19-year-old programming wizard responsible for developing this ambitious MMOG promises he'll deliver just 10 months from now, thanks to supposed paradigm-changing technology that reduces development costs and timelines by "ninety percent or more"
:) Don't really need to read past that.
:p
Thanks... I needed the laugh
Everyone and their dog seems to be trying to make an MMOG. Heck, I have a few ideas of my own and I'd really love having the time and the resources to implement them. The truth is, though, that MMOGs are some of the most complex and difficult software built today... I don't think many people realize that. Add to that the fact that a MMOG lives and dies by how many people it attracts - the _Massively_ Multiplayer part - and... yeah, you can see where this is going.
Go to the Ogre3D (open-source 3d engine) forums and read all the posts from people saying they're starting their own MMOG project, and does anyone want to help. Take a wild guess what the usual response from the more experienced developers is
ClutterMe.com - easiest site creation on the Net. Just click and type.
Cool, I want to play a 419 scammer.
I played the beta, kind of sucked when my character got AIDS though..
- A Roman Empire game, with barbarians, roman gods, and intricate politics;
- Latin America - Aztecs, Mayans, Amazon tribes (they have a rich folklore);
- A Mongolian horde game, with tribes roaming central Asia and fighting against each other.
If well done, this kind of game could be a invaluable tool to teach and explore other cultures, their histories and environment. It's a great idea.That all depends, really. Is that actually the sound of crickets, or does that happen to be locusts?
Americans aren't all isolated and ignorant of the world. I've had quite a few friends in Africa that I've been in contact with for a while and am trying to help out. Strangely enough, most of them seem to be relatives of deposed generals in Nigeria trying to get their massive fortunes overseas.
What's this game about ? Sitting in front of your hut all day and wait for the strangers with the trucks full of food, so that you don't have to go out and hunt or farm yourself ? Suppressing the workers in your diamond mine so you can get rich ? Guilds like Hutu's and Tutsi's that slaughter eachother out of pure racism ? I think in the USA people tend to idealize Africa as a kind of paradise, while in fact it's mostly a wretched lethargic continent ruled mostly by brutal dictators.
just don't include Nigeria.
"It's in America. You know, the continent."
Sorry smart guy, but there is no continent of "America".
There is "North America" and "South America", but NO "America".
Just thought I'd point that out.
Stop acting like a smug asshole, especially when you're totally wrong.
How pathetic are you that you follow me from topic to topic and waste all your mod points at once modding me down?
Could that have anything to do with the fact that so many countries pop in and out of existence in Africa?
I freely admit that my African geography needs work, but that's mainly because I don't want to bother relearning it every six months.
How pathetic are you that you follow me from topic to topic and waste all your mod points at once modding me down?
What I wouldn't give for a Multi-Cultural class that actually studied different cultures instead of how the white Anglo-saxon male has subjugated them.
How about a field trip? I went to West Africa (Senegal and Mali) for four weeks last winter, and while there's a lot to learn, it gave me more understanding -- and more hope -- about Africa than a lifetime of reading news papers and watching the nine o'clock news.
It was not my first trip to the third world, but it gave me a lot of perspective on things like islam, ethnic strife, development, democracy, desert spreading, colonialism, poverty etc etc. It was a lot different from what you see on tv. Perhaps the most encouraging thing was to see that Mali, the fifth poorest country in the world, was a functioning society. They lacked many basic amenities, but it was not like they were laying in the streets dying all covered in flies. And it is a lot different being told this and seeing it, and discovering the differences and similarities between different societies.
It gives hope, before I sort of subscribed to the idea that Africa was doomed and just sinking lower and lower into poverty. The picture you get from Western media. It is not true. There is a lot happening, and I do believe that e.g. Senegal will be a new "African tiger" not too long from now, pulling with it neighbouring countries.
There is a lot to be said to substantiate my beliefs, but the best way is really going there. And, use public transports, you learn a lot by discussing politics with your neighbour in a bush taxi.
"If there is no 'America', then what is 'North America' the 'North' part of?"
Nothing. It's a continent named "North America".
"If there is no continent of America, then what are the 'United States of America'? United states of a place that doesn't exist?"
Then kindly point out the continent of "America" on a map. Shouldn't be too hard.
And while you're at it, point to "carolina" and "dakota".
Why is it so hard for you to understand?
How pathetic are you that you follow me from topic to topic and waste all your mod points at once modding me down?
So you think because people like you are too stupid to use the correct names, and instead lump the two ENTIRELY SEPARATE continents into one, that you've proven something?
Find a current map that agrees. Wikipedia, the source anyone can edit before using as a citation, doesn't count. 400 year old maps don't count either.
One current, official map. That's it.
But since such a thing doesn't exist, you can choke on my dick.
How pathetic are you that you follow me from topic to topic and waste all your mod points at once modding me down?
"It's not on a current map I kind find"
That's all you had to say.
The rest of your post is a pathetic attempt to explain why it doesn't matter what the REAL name is. I DOn't give two shakes what a bunch of primives call it. Their ignorance, and yours, changes nothing.
By the way, I love that
"I can't find a map, but that doesn't matter because, well, because I have to be right"
I'm going to let you in on something. Ready?
IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT YOU THINK, OR HOW MANY LINKS YOU POST, NOWHERE ON ANY CURRENT MAP IS THERE A CONTINENT NAMED "AMERICA".
Refute that, or STFU.
How pathetic are you that you follow me from topic to topic and waste all your mod points at once modding me down?
So, when did the original poster who wrote about the American continent mention anything about seeing it on a map? He didn't, that's your ad hoc criteria, and it's bogus. Newsflash, flyinwhitey: IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT YOU THINK, IT'S STILL PERFECTLY CORRECT TO GROUP THE AMERICAS AS THE AMERICAN SUPERCONTINENT. Your map criterion for proving this is logically flawed; there are other ways of naming things other than what is on a map. People call New York the Big Apple, but you won't find that on most maps. HOLY CRAP THOSE PEOPLE NEED TO GET THEIR FACTS STRAIGHT.
Just because you're wrong doesn't mean you should press this issue further. In fact, it means you should quit. I am, because I don't have anything more to prove.
I hope the kid making this game doesn't go too far "representing" Africa. The place has some major challenges (AIDS for example), and they are complex: http://www.nybooks.com/articles/9
"So, when did the original poster who wrote about the American continent mention anything about seeing it on a map? He didn't, that's your ad hoc criteria, and it's bogus."
The names on a map are MY criteria? No, that's THE criteria. If you don't like it, take it up with the cartographers.
"People call New York the Big Apple, but you won't find that on most maps."
Right and if someone asked me the NAME of the city, it wouldn't be the Big Apple. I realize you're an imbecile, but even you can understand the difference.
Your argument says nothing other than "because some people are too ignorant of the CORRECT name, they use an INCORRECT one, and that INCORRECT name should count too".
But it doesn't. No matter how much you try to claim it does, nothing changes.
You can't find a single OFFICIAL instance of the TWO SEPARATE continents being called "america". There is NO continetn of America, regardless of what you call it.
"Just because you're wrong doesn't mean you should press this issue further."
PROVE I'M WRONG. You say it, but give NO evidence. NONE.
All you have to do is point to one official source, of credible MODERN cartographers, and I'll buy your stupid argument.
But you can't.
"I am, because I don't have anything more to prove."
You're right. You have no point to prove, so shut up and stop insiting you're right without ONE BIT OF EVIDENCE.
Latly, I think you're a jackass. By your argument, you ARE a jackass, because that's what I call you.
Ok, I guess in that case you might have a point.
How pathetic are you that you follow me from topic to topic and waste all your mod points at once modding me down?
This is a scan of something I found
It's a Spaight-Ghetti production.