Blizzard starting work on 'Next-Gen MMO'?

[Nonentity]

If you take a look at Blizzard's job opening page ( http://www.blizzard.com/jobopp/ ), you'll see that the top 3 links are for a 'Lead Engine Programmer - Next-Gen MMO', 'Lead Tools Programmer – Next-Gen MMO', and 'Lead Technical Artist – Next-Gen MMO'.

Combine that with the fact they recently opened a support branch in Austin...

HMM. This may be unrelated to all the hubbub about the impending Starcraft 2 announcement.

[Mesozoic]

Didn't Blizzard make an announcement some time ago that all their new titles would be subscription games?

Or was that something I picked up on one of my gin-soaked, late night wanderings through the WoW forums?

[Miasma]

They are probably only bothering to release Starcraft 2 so that they can roll the success into World/Galaxy/Universe of Starcraft  .  God damn I would love a Sci-fi MMO that doesn't suck.

[tazelbain]

http://www.f13.net/index.php?itemid=167
It was later denied.

[WayAbvPar]

Didn't Blizzard make an announcement some time ago that all their new titles would be subscription games?

Or was that something I picked up on one of my gin-soaked, late night wanderings through the WoW forums?

In your defense, that is really the only to make those forums tolerable.

[Calantus]

I find you achieve a similar effect when the stupidity overcomes your brain cells. Sure you still have to read the forums for a few seconds before the high-on-stupid kicks in and protects you, but it's cheaper than buying alchohol.

[Simond]

SC2 announced in SK at that event, Starcraft Galaxies to follow a few years down the line.

[Liquidator]

Whatever.  As long as they don't try to turn Diablo 3 into an MMO.

[schild]

Diablo 3 will probably be an MMOG. Or at least a Guild Wars-esque one in any case.

And just because companies deny it doesn't mean they're right.

I'm not in the business of lying on the frontpage.

[tazelbain]

Don't think you lied.

[schild]

Don't think you lied.

:) That was for other people tuning into this thread.

[Venkman]

Diablo 3 will probably be an MMOG. Or at least a Guild Wars-esque one in any case.

And just because companies deny it doesn't mean they're right.

I'm not in the business of lying on the frontpage.

It depends on who did the denying. I'm too lazy to look it up. Was it Blizzard denying Blizzard was going to do this or Vivendi denying it would be Vivendi/Sierra doing this?

And whether you were right or wrong doesn't mean you were lying. It's what you knew at the time :)

[schild]

Blizzard denied it.

I still can't reveal the source, but I loled at the denial.

[sinij]

Blizzard denied it.

I still can't reveal the source, but I loled at the denial.

We all know, its not true until officially denied.

[schild]

Pfffffffft, even when stuff is officially denied, about 50% of the time the denial is total bullshit.

[Nonentity]

Blizzard has a huge staff. They can more then likely be cranking away on multiple projects. They are secret and crafty, and more then likely the job listings were put on the site deliberately. I can tell you that right now.

If they were trying to get people to apply seriously, they'd hand-make calls, not put a job listing on their public website.

[Typhon]

Blizzard has a huge staff. [...]

what does this have to do with making MMOs?!  heyooOOOOO!  lol, I'm so childish! 

[NiX]

Was it Blizzard denying Blizzard was going to do this or Vivendi denying it would be Vivendi/Sierra doing this?

I believe the story goes that Vivendi said they wanted every other Blizz franchise to become an MMO and Blizz denied such claims.

[Venkman]

Which leads me back to my question.

Vivendi wanting all Blizzard franchises to be MMO does not necessarily imply Blizzard is the one to make them into MMOs. Now, to me, Blizzard not making those into MMOs themselves would be a big miss because "Blizzard" is as much a brand name as "Diablo" and "Starcraft" to gamers. Buuut, if Vivendi is serious about making this happen and Blizzard is serious about preventing it, I suspect we'd find out who really owns the franchises :)

[schild]

Blizzard has a lot of say artistically. That's to say, they can be trusted to make the game. But in terms of business, har.

But making MMOGs out of Starcraft and Diablo are no brainers. I'd have done them before Warcraft as Warcraft 3 was their last game and the last thing we needed was more medieval bullshit.

And yes, signs are pointing to a Korean announcement for Starcraft 2, it only makes sense. But Starcraft Galaxies or wtfever and Diablo Online are guarantees, like death and taxes.

[eldaec]

I'm not in the business of lying on the frontpage.

Should we infer from this that everything you say away from the frontpage is part of a cruel web of deception intended to bring about the downfall of everyone here and possibly the entire human race?

I think so.

[Daeven]

Blizzard denied it.

I still can't reveal the source, but I loled at the denial.

If by 'lol'ed' you mean 'giggled hysterically while pointing at the very silly person' then I can buy that.


"Dear Blizzard, are you going to exceed the GDP of Bolivia or France when you release Starcraft Online?"

"We are not currently working on Starcraft Online"

*insert much hilarity and disbelief here*

[Baldrake]

Vivendi wanting all Blizzard franchises to be MMO does not necessarily imply Blizzard is the one to make them into MMOs.

So Vivendi is going to hire Turbine to make Diablo Online? 

[Venkman]

And that's the only way to deliver an MMO? And that's the only type of MMO Diablo could be?

All I'm saying is that there's a lot more ways of looking at Vivendi making the announcement than the assumption that Blizzard development will shift to Diablo for the next four years and then Starcraft the next four beyond that. I have no more idea of how they are actually going to make all their franchises into MMOs than anyone else. I just think there's more questions than the answers some people use to support their assumptions.

[Baldrake]

Well, there's truth to that. We really have to begin to question what an MMO really is. My favourite example these days is CoH. When a game consists entirely of instanced mini-dungeons, in what sense is it really an MMO?

All I was reacting to was the notion that Vivendi would farm out Blizzard's IP to an inferior developer. And let's be honest - compared to Blizzard, everyone is an inferior MMO developer.

[Triforcer]

Blizzard will develop a Diablo/Starcraft MMO up until the point someone in the board room remembers their degree in economics and says "Hey, might this hurt the solid gold toilet producing MMO we have now?"  Thus, two years in, the project will die.

History always repeats itself.

[AcidCat]

Eh, I think Diablo would be too similar to WoW, at least in the basic "swords & sorcery" theme. With this, they would be cannibalizing themselves too much.

Starcraft, on the other hand, has the potential to be different enough in theme to bring in the sci-fi audience. And they could take the gameplay in a more action-oriented direction to make it even more different than WoW.

I think at this point, a Universe of Starcraft would be a no-brainer for them. I wouldn't see it releasing any sooner than three years from now anyway, at which point WoW would be old enough to be losing significant subscribers to the various latest & greatest MMO's that come out between now and then. A Starcraft MMO would hit just in time to bring the masses back into the Blizzard fold.

[schild]

MMO-Wise Starcraft would be a reskinning of Warcraft.

Diablo would not... assuming they stick to what makes Diablo, Diablo. I.E. The ability, however small, to get the same ridiculous item from a foozle or a raid mob. As well as frenetic clicking instead of hotkey based skill-less "combat." That's not to say click click click click takes skill, but at least it doesn't pretend to be anything it isn't.

[ajax34i]

Blizzard will develop a Diablo/Starcraft MMO up until the point someone in the board room remembers their degree in economics and says "Hey, might this hurt the solid gold toilet producing MMO we have now?" 

New box on the shelf that you can call "different game" > 2nd expansion of an old game.

[Trippy]

MMO-Wise Starcraft would be a reskinning of Warcraft.

Not necessarly. They could expand on what they did for SC: Ghost and make it an MMOFPS.

[Triforcer]

MMO-Wise Starcraft would be a reskinning of Warcraft.

Not necessarly. They could expand on what they did for SC: Ghost and make it an MMOFPS.

I would kill all of your pets for a good Starcraft MMOFPS.  But given the state of the genre (Planetside and Flying Tanks Online) I can't see the Blizzard suits going that way. 

[schild]

A Blizzard made FPS. That's a good one.

[Trippy]

A Blizzard made FPS. That's a good one.

That's what Blizzard's management said about doing an MMORPG.

[schild]

A Blizzard made FPS. That's a good one.

That's what Blizzard's management said about doing an MMORPG.

Yes, but it's BELIEVABLE that Blizzard could make an MMORPG. They've shown nothing that proves they can make an FPS, let alone a farmed out failed action game that's nothing like an fps.

[Ironwood]

Hooray, another round of listening to Schild put Blizzard down for no fucking reason whatsoever.