Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning - Creative Director speaks

Mythic Creative Director Paul Barnett likes to talk. And not just about his online RPG. "A game guide is actually there to corrupt your enjoyment of the game. It tells you the most efficient, straightforward and dull way to increase your numbers, and in no way tells you the wonder and joy of the game you're playing. And for most games, the wonder and joy is in getting there. In fact, in most of life, the joy is in getting to something."

There's more: "We now have people obsessed with getting to the endgame, not realizing that the greatness is in going on that journey. It's like Final Fantasy: you play one and it's basically random monster encounters... I'm a big proponent that if you can get people to engage their mind and give them things that give them wonder and awe and engage their imagination, you will have a better game than one which is perfect in its number crunching, but is soulless."

He proceeds to talk about fishing with dynamite, poker, custard, rich English people on drugs and the online role-playing game that has the potential to be the most entertaining since Blizzard decided they wanted to generate as much money as the average gold mine conglomeration.

Mythic is the second group to try their hands at converting the Warhammer fantasy universe to a multiplayer online space, after Climax's aborted attempt. With 25 years of little metal men beating the living daylights out of each other to draw upon, it's a phenomenally large task. Since the Nottingham tabletop gaming company gave them free reign with their license to choose their own out-of-history version of Warhammer, they could have done anything.