OK, back to game design. I just had to get the other stuff out of my system. *stretch* Ah, that’s better.
This is an interesting little article about taking MMOs into the open source playground. Specifically, old, dead MMOs whose publishers have pulled the plug. Tabula Rasa, for a recent example, but the article cites others:
After reading Brian “Psychochild” Green’s comment on Meridian 59, I’m a bit torn. On the one hand, as a mook in the game industry, I’m all for wanting to make money off of my hard work, and going open source kind of kills that. On the other hand, as a gamer, I’d rather keep games alive even after the publishers wash their hands, and it’s even better if they are free. On the other hand, as a designer, I think that the game industry has a severe need to maintain historical archival access to games so that we may learn from the work of our predecessors. On the other hand, open source games may well suffer from code hackers diluting or radically altering the original’s vision. A living document such as an open sourced game would be just doesn’t maintain historic integrity with all the little monkeys trying to write Shakespeare in the database.
Alpha Hex is being developed open source, despite my wish to do it all by my widdle self so that I could profit madly from it. I’ve rationalized that decision by reminding myself that I don’t know how to do the engineering for it, and that learning how to do so would have taken a lot of time. I want the game out there, being played by myself and others. I can also admit that I’m going to dig into that code and see what I can learn from a little creative dissection.
The open source movement is great for cheap gamers, fans and students, not so good for those making a living at these things. No surprise there, to be sure, but what think you? If your favorite MMO were to die (as they all must, at some time), what then? Hang up the scabbard, ride into the sunset and find a new love, or cry desperately for life support? Would a zombie MMO be as satisfying as when it was in the prime of its life?
Or, taking another tack, would developing an MMO open source be viable? Could a bunch of us armchair designers democratize the process and create something beautiful and interesting without succumbing to the Second Life succubus? Certainly, open source design isn’t the only way to collaborate in this day and age, but it certainly lowers the bar for entry and can be the diffference between actually getting something done and just dreaming about it. Could a purely voluntary collaborative brain trust come up with anything other than a patchwork Frankenstein of a game the size and scope of an MMO? Maybe we’ll find out if Wiqd and I get things rolling, or if MetaPlace actually works like Raph wishes.
Have you seen Multiverse, Tesh? It’s an open source development platform just for MMO worlds. It functions on Java / Python code and multiple 3D modeling program assets can be imported into it.
http://multiverse.net/index.html
I checked it out long ago before I even had an idea for the type of game I wanted to make strictly to see if it would suit my needs. At the time it did not, as it lacked mechanics like instancing and other things of that nature. Now, however, it’s come quite a long ways. I haven’t read up on a lot of the changes, but it may be worth a look if you haven’t seen it before.
As to your initial topic (if I’m reading it right) you want old dead games to be open sourced? I know that SOE does this … kind of … with things they no long use in EQ. I saw a post that finally described what the coding was for the Ancient Cyclops spawn, heh heh.
Then you have sites like http://eqclassic.org (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z13bue52ggM for a youtube vid on it) that are trying to resurrect the way EQ used to be and have quite the following.
I agree the idea of open sourcing the game would be good because there are just some things the developers never try or even think about that would-be designers and coders WANT to try. I see no harm in it.
Mmm… link reference. I’ll check that out later, but no, it’s not something I’m familiar with. I’ve not really dug too much into the coding side of things, since I’m an artist with delusions of design competency. I want to learn the coding, but I’m working with what I know first.
I waffle a little on the open source bit, actually. If a game is well and truly dead, and the publisher isn’t planning on pulling a Farve or Jordan stunt, yes, I want it to go open source, with a perpetual “imprint” of the game squirreled away somewhere as “read only” to insulate the archive from modders. (Not that modders are bad, just that I want access to the original dev vision.) I completely sympathize with those devs, like Brian Green, who want to hold on to their games and revive them after a premature “death”, if occasion permits.
Then again, I also sympathize with the abandonware mentality; if the devs abandon the game, it should be free. Call it data dumpster diving… not pretty, but really, if they value it so little that they tossed it aside, why should they care? Open source is a step beyond that, but philosophically, I’m all for it. At the same time, I’m happy with Good Old Games (gog.com) selling older games with the blessing of the devs and publishers, geared to work on modern machines.
I think ultimately that I’m more interested in maintaining access to the library of games throughout the industry’s history, and the fiddly concern of “free vs. still charging money” should be left to the publishers and devs. (Who should still get royalties on any sales.) Those who hang on to games out of spite or selfishness are annoying… but I suppose that I can respect it, since it’s their IP.
One tangential example would be Seiken Densetsu 3; I’d be perfectly happy giving Square money for a playable version of that game, say on the DS, but in the absence of that, I’m not all that opposed to the ROMS out there for the game. I’ve deleted my ROM and emulator because of the questionable legality and morality of it, but I do consider myself and my game design history enriched for having played the game. If Square were to release the game open source or even as a commercial product, that “grey” (piratey) area would be collapsed from a quantum state of “don’t ask, just do” into a fully legal/illegal dichotomy.
I think the game has to be designed from the start with open source in mind at some point. Too many games these days (probably wisely) used licensed middleware. Unreal Engine. SpeedTree. Havok. FMOD. And so on… There’s no way someone can open source their game if it used non-open source middleware.
I don’t feel like looking this up, but didn’t id have to pull the audio (or something?) code from Doom when they released the source code because the audio engine wasn’t theirs?
What if the code can be open sourced but not the audio? Some composers license and/or sell their soundtracks separately and therefore cannot be included if the game is open sourced down the road.
Ah, good point. Middleware does muddy the waters a bit. *smacks forehead for forgetting that*
I love the idea of the game living on. I would probably play EQ again for free (if it ever collapsed) for nostalgia sake – and hey, it was fun at one point =)
People would RUIN it. There is no democratic process efficient or strong enough to continually update a game through open source. Everyone (and as a blogger, I can atest to this) believes that they know what’s best in MMO, so get 200 people on a boards trying to sort out the “direction” it should take would end up looking like the WoW forums in no time.
I love the idea, but the implementation would be pure hell. Maybe I should believe in people more?
Perhaps the best way it would work would be to have the devs take submissions from groups of “mod” studios that establish interest, and give the rights to continue to build the game, offer it for free, and stick to some sort of collective vision. Meh, it’s an Everest!
Aye, that’s why I wrote of an “archival” baseline read-only version of the game that modders can’t touch. Sort of an “open to the public source” without “open to be messed with source”.
Or, let people host the game on their own servers, and let the inevitable competition self select the audience. (Those who maintain “pure” servers vs. those who start hacking, whatever. There would be audiences for both. It’s a bit like legalizing the existing WoW private servers.)
“Open Source” is a simple concept with a lot of philosophical complexities once you get down a few layers. This is perhaps something I should blog about on my own site.
Note that Open Source is different than an open platform. I don’t think that Multiverse is open source (at least last time I saw it), but it is an open platform that people can develop on. Contrast this with WorldForge, where you have access to all the source code to make your own project.
One problem is that games are more than just source code. As someone pointed out, there are licensing issues to consider with middleware and libraries. M59 used a licensed sound engine, too, so that can’t just be released as-is. The art, music, and sound assets might not be in the free and clear, either; the M59 “scream” that players may remember is a licensed sound clip that has appeared in many other media; re-distribution of this iconic M59 sound may not be legal.
Related to this is other intellectual property. Even if I didn’t have a lot of interest in running the previous version of M59, I might want to use the “Meridian” trademark for a future project. People who grab the code and use the “Meridian” name, even without permission, might harm the value of the name. And, as a small-scale game developer, I don’t have the resources to go after everyone. Giving out the code would make this problem even worse.
You also have the issue of housecleaning. If you’re giving something away, you don’t want it to be a mess. It’s worse in M59′s case, since most of the source code was written by people no longer involved in the project. I’m not sure they really want their early attempts at coding to be spread around for all to see. So, getting a project ready to be open sourced, at least the parts that can be opened, is going to take a lot of work.
As mentioned before, you also have the issue of artistic integrity. Part of what made M59 so special was the specific visions that the creators and maintainers have held. Throwing the game out there for anyone to run means that you’ll get a lot of different “visions” trying to enforce themselves on the game. Even if you have an “official” version, that doesn’t mean that your game (and therefore your reputation) won’t pick up an association with poor game design choices from the dozens of “improved” servers out there, going back to the “value” of the name I mentioned above.
Finally, part of me would rather see people try something on their own. Instead of just pining for an old game or wishing there were a turnkey solution to set up a game server based on an existing game, I’d rather have people look into making their own work. This not only gives us more options and more types of games out there, but it also gets people to appreciate the issues that go into development. Plus, it’d be nice to see people contribute to existing projects rather than starting up a million small projects that never manage to reach a critical mass.
So, instead of wishing that some large company will open source a game, take a look at existing options. Get involved in WorldForge, or at least try to figure out what you need. Wishing all the “hard work” would be done for you doesn’t get us the independent developers we need to see the industry grow.
My further thoughts.
Brian, for the record, I’m not looking for others to do the hard work in MMO design. The reason I’d want a *game* to stay alive, even if zombified by open sourcing it, would be because I’m personally invested in the game.
As for my development ambitions, yes, I’d like to learn from what has been done when it comes time for me to learn more about coding. Even beyond that, the hoarding nature of most projects means that a lot of game dev is duplicated effort. That’s just an industry disease borne of IP law and proprietary concerns that I don’t see a way around. Still, if I’m digging into code, it’s not because I intend to copy it, it’s because I want to learn from it.
[...] not, I’m just talking about any single game. Brian “Psychochild” Green has rightfully suggested moving on instead of pining for a lost love. Also, when I talk about my cyclic design, I’m talking about a game that, by design, [...]
Sorry, didn’t mean to sound like I was accusing you of wanting to be lazy or anything. I based my comments on the attitudes I’ve seen a lot in the past. People seem to think that since open source exists, source code should be freely available for them to use. There are some very good reasons why even a dying game doesn’t get open sourced. It’s not just about being a money-grubbing bastard wanting absolute control over the game I own.
As I said, I should post my own thoughts on Open Source and games, but let me leave you with this though: Why isn’t WorldForge a good fit for what you want to do? It’s an open source MMO-focused project. Think about that a bit more and you might realize what some of the problems with your own project will be.
Also realize that open source isn’t your only answer. If you don’t know tech, then find some people who do. I’m a programmer type, so you might want to start by dropping me a line and starting a direct conversation. I can’t necessarily agree to give you endless free consulting, but I’m not always in it for the cash.
Have fun.
Nah, I didn’t take that as an accusation, just a misunderstanding that I should probably clear up. Sorry if I sounded snippy.
Actually, the disconnect here is that I’m talking here mostly about generalities, not so much about my own project. I write about MMOs here because they interest me as a testbed of unique game designs, but when I do my own thing, it’s more like Alpha Hex or something more like FFTactics. I’m not sure why I’m not writing about that… perhaps I should be. I’ve about exhausted what I want to say about MMOs in general anywho, I think.
Maybe I’m writing about MMOs precisely because I’m *not* knee deep in making one or playing one 40 hours a week. The academic distancing means I’m not engaging in quite as much personal histrionics? *shrug* I think I’ve taken a somewhat unique tack on some MMO design tenets, and I can’t help but think that’s at least partially thanks to not being emotionally invested in a level 80 WoW character or the like. I’m coming at the design from a more academic angle, with an emphasis on what economic understanding I’ve forged. That’s what I do, look at things a bit holistically.
I might work up to making an MMO, but if I do, I’d definitely try to assemble a team (or join one) and work with real engineers. I know enough about game development and my own skills that I’d want to focus on the art and design, and let the code pilots do their thing. I’d love to know how to do everything, but I just don’t have the time. I know enough about programming to be able to communicate with engineers, but nowhere near enough to step into their shoes.
I really should check on WorldForge, so thanks for the reference.
As for consulting, honestly, I get a fair bit out of your blog in the first place, and anything that I’d ask would be more along the lines of “what is your recommended reading list for someone trying to learn coding and design”. I’ve got a few books at home, but it’s always good to hear others’ experience. I could offer a few suggestions on reading for art, and I’ve toyed with writing a book or two as well for the same.
It’s all a bit strange, since I am an artist professionally, and I really should take more time to paint. I’ll not quickly be up to speed with coding since that’s not my background. I just have an interest in learning it because I love learning, and it seems that it would behoove me to understand what the people I would be working with are doing. I’ve found already that it’s better for troubleshooting if I can tell the engineers more than “it’s not working, fix it, please”.
I guess I’m more of a generalist with an art proficiency, and rather than wanting to be the next Ryan Church concept artist extraordinaire, Kev Walker or Tony DiTerlizzi painter extreme, or Glen Keane super animator (though that would be awesome), I want to be able to pull experience and skills from several disciplines and carve out a more flexible niche for myself. That’s why I dabble in design, too,and wish I could go back to school for an Astrophysics degree.
I’m no DaVinci, but I admire his polymath bent, and I’m trying to embrace the same sort of Renaissance holistic approach.
Tesh wrote:
[W]hat is your recommended reading list for someone trying to learn coding and design”
I’m not fond of most books on game design. They tend to be way too abstract and not grounded in practical issues. It’s one thing to say, “Give the player an engaging experience,” but another to add on, “…within budget and the insane schedule required to beat your competition.” The two books I think are essential reading here are Bartle’s Designing Virtual Worlds and Mulligan’s Developing Online Games. They’re not cutting edge or even good “how to” books, but they give you a lot of things to chew over.
As for coding, my advice is to learn Python. A lot of “real programmers” hate Python, but I think it’s really great to work with. The tools are free and cross-platform, so low investment. There are some good tutorials online, and it’s really easy to work with. It’s even better that you’re not a programmer, because you won’t get hung up on the stupid whitespace issue.
Knowing some tech as an artist is a smart thing to do. There’s a need for what we call ‘technical artists”, but they tend to be in very short supply; the people who can make pretty pictures often don’t have the mindset and patience for the frustrating tech bits.
Anyway, if you do digital art definitely drop me a line. I know plenty of tech guys that can do work, but artists are always harder to find for me. I’d be happy to trade some work.
Have fun.