NCsoft Announces Publishing Deal with Spacetime Studios

[Trippy]

NCsoft Announces Publishing Deal with Spacetime Studios

NCsoft Announces Publishing Deal with Spacetime Studios
Newly formed company with Sci-fi pedigree to make massively multiplayer game for world’s top online game publisher

AUSTIN, Texas, March 8, 2006—NCsoft® Corporation (KSE:036570.KS), the world’s leading developer and publisher of online computer games, announced today its latest partnership with a new company in Austin. Spacetime Studios™, composed of a core team with previous leadership roles on successful franchises such as Privateer, Wing Commander and Star Wars Galaxies, will publish its next game under the NCsoft brand.

Collectively the Spacetime group has shipped 14 previous titles, two of which have been million-unit sellers.

“Having the Spacetime team on board is a great step forward for NCsoft,” said Robert Garriott, CEO of NCsoft North America. “This group has a proven track record in creating games in the space genre. They’ve also been successful in developing massively multiplayer games and we believe that’s a winning combination and a perfect fit for the NCsoft lineup of products.”

“Spacetime and NCsoft is a great match,” said Gary Gattis, Spacetime Studios co-founder. “They are a top-notch publisher that really cares about their developers and the quality of their games. NCsoft has shown us strong support and a willingness to provide a great balance of direction and freedom to develop a game that we have been dreaming of doing for years.”

About NCsoft
NCsoft’s North American business is headquartered in Austin, Texas and is part of Korea-based NCsoft Corporation. NCsoft, with its own development and publishing offices in Texas and California, also works with subsidiaries and third party developers throughout North America to develop and publish innovative online entertainment software products. The company launched two massively multiplayer titles on the same day in 2004: Lineage® II and City of Heroes®, and 2005 released the highly anticipated, Guild Wars® and City of Villains™. NCsoft expects to launch more massively multiplayer titles in 2006. More information about NCsoft can be found at http://www.PlayNC.com.

About Spacetime Studios
Spacetime Studios is an independent game development company located in Austin, Texas. They have just begun a next-generation, AAA-scale MMO with an original IP. The company’s focus is on making a killer, top-of-the-line competitive game, with the technology, design and art creativity needed to make it happen. Spacetime Studios is an experienced, extremely successful team of veterans in the genre, with 14 shipped titles under their belts, two of which are million-plus sellers. More information about the studio can be found at http://www.spacetimestudios.com.

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NCsoft, the interlocking NC logo, Lineage, Guild Wars and all associated logos and designs are trademarks or registered trademarks of NCsoft Corporation. City of Heroes and City of Villains are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cryptic Studios, Inc. and NCsoft Corporation. Cryptic Studios is a trademark of Cryptic Studios, Inc. Spacetime Studios, the Spacetime Studios logo, and all associated artwork and designs are trademarks or registered trademarks of Spacetime Studios, LLC. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

The Spacetime Studios Web site has diddly squat about the company but I did manage to get some names: Gary Gattis (mentioned above), Brandon Reinhart and Jake Rodgers. Their extensive experience with SWG bodes well for the future of this game.

[Arthur_Parker]

Another link on this.

Game publisher picks Spacetime Studios to develop multiplayer, online title.

South Korea-based game publisher NCsoft Corp. is tapping Austin developers Spacetime Studios to create an outer-space-themed online game.

It's the first time that NCsoft, which has its U.S. headquarters in Austin, has signed an external local studio to develop a video game.

It's the type of deal that stokes the city's growing video game industry, which has more than 50 companies, according to estimates by the Austin-based Game Initiative, a group that puts on gaming conferences.

Web-based games can take about four years and cost about $20 million to produce, said Jeremy Gaffney, NCsoft's vice president of game development.

The deal with Spacetime "is a good combination of Austin talent and bringing in national-level and international-level" expertise, Gaffney said.

Four former Sony Online Entertainment Inc. employees started Spacetime at the end of last year so they could create their own game.

"My partners (and I) have wanted to do this for a long time," Spacetime co-founder Gary Gattis said.

Having worked on previous space titles such as "Wing Commander" and "Star Wars Galaxies," the founders knew they wanted to make a game with that science fiction angle.

"We understand flight mechanics and what a dogfight in space should feel like," Gattis said. "We felt we could knock this one out of the park."

Spacetime considered other financing options, including venture capital, but decided to work with NCsoft because it specialized in games that allow large numbers players to compete against one another online.

The studio already has 14 employees and plans to increase staff as it develops the new title.

Spacetime will have about 50 people during the height of the game's development process, Gattis said.

Having high-profile NCsoft as a backer will help the studio recruit talent from around the world, Gaffney said.

But Spacetime has yet to decide on any concrete ideas for the title.

"Because of the strong track record of the team, we signed them on without a strong proposal in place," Gaffney said. "We are sort of working on getting a full proposal and prototype together and will evaluate it over the next year."

[Trippy]

Wow. NCsoft signed the publishing deal without even having a game proposal in hand -- they must be getting desperate in the NA market. Good thing they still have the Lineage cash cows to allow them to make these sorts of speculative deals. Their NA record so far has been mixed at best. CoH and CoV have been a decent success, Guild Wars is doing well but the upcoming expansion is going to be their big test, Auto Assault is going to tank and Tabula Rasa has so far just been a big black hole. At least it's not going to be another Fantasy MMORPG.

[bhodi]

A lot of big names, a lot of talent, and in an area that's ripe for exploitation. I've been wanting a MMO privateer type game for YEARS, and it looks like they've got a team that has a shot at pulling it off. Eve was close, but a bit too time intensive for me... I wish them luck and if things are sounding somewhat positive, maybe when the beta comes out in 2008 (just a guess)  I'll give it a shot.

[HaemishM]

Spacetime Studios™, composed of a core team with previous leadership roles on successful franchises ... and Star Wars Galaxies

I'd hate to see their idea of an unsuccessful franchise.

[Hoax]

A lot of big names, a lot of talent, and in an area that's ripe for exploitation. I've been wanting a MMO privateer type game for YEARS, and it looks like they've got a team that has a shot at pulling it off. Eve was close, but a bit too time intensive for me... I wish them luck and if things are sounding somewhat positive, maybe when the beta comes out in 2008 (just a guess)  I'll give it a shot.

*boogle*

The only game with offline character advancement is too time intensive?  What wouldn't be too time intensive, a game that comes with a bot?

[ahoythematey]

I'm hoping they are collaborating with Cosby on the Chip N' Dale's MMORPG.  Fruit-throwing physics take some STARWARS-talented people to implement.