Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures

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Funcom: From MMOGs, with love

Interview: Age of Conan developer discusses the increasingly popular MMOG genre

Words: Stuart Bishop, CVG UK

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There are people who believe WoW has had a negative impact as millions are playing purely Blizzard's game and ignoring new titles released. What's your take on that opinion?

Ellingsen: I can certainly understand that perspective, but I would only be speculating if I commented on the validity of it. From personal experience, though, I can confirm that when you start playing these games you simply do not have the time to focus as much on other games. It's a type of game that does often require a high level of commitment, and that does not harmonize very well with playing other games when you're trying to lead a real life at the same time.

But I also hope that it gets more people hooked on computer games in general and that it expands the market, and for Age of Conan, we're developing a game that is enjoyable for casual gamers that need time for other things.

Finally, looking ahead, in what area or areas in the MMORPG genre would you most like to see developers innovate, and why?

Ellingsen: I hope developers dare to challenge the genre standards and explore new and exciting settings for their massively multiplayer online games. There are so many amazing licenses and settings to pull from - more than just dungeons and dragons - and I wish for more developers to dare explore these options. Even fantasy can be so many things, such as mature and brutal as in Age of Conan.

I also hope that as technology is improved we see more developers daring to challenge the standards that are set often because of technological limitations, such as the near turn-based combat systems we've seen in pretty much all games of this genre so far. It's time for more developers to dare break the mold and venture into uncharted waters - that is what players will reward them for.