Game Mechanics

From Stargate Worlds Wiki (SGW)

A poster sent to the son of a developer

Stargate Worlds will be based on the television series Stargate SG-1. This is a science fiction series set in our time where teams travel through the Stargate to other worlds, discovering new beings, other civilizations, and fighting evil enemies. Before its cancellation at the end of the 10th season, Stargate SG-1 was the longest running continuous science fiction show ever. "From the moment you login, you will feel like you are living in the same world as the T.V. show."^[1]

The following topics have been moved to their own page:

Character Creation - Character creation and customization.

Communications & Chat - How players will communicate.

Economy - Currency and the player economy.

Grouping - How players will form into groups for combat and quests.

Hardware and Software - Information on the graphics engine, system requirements, consoles, operating systems, client, user interface, and servers.

Leveling and Player Advancement

Non-Combat Content - Puzzles solving, crafting, and minigames.

Puzzles - Puzzle solving and minigames will be an important part of Stargate Worlds.

Story and Canon - The game's storyline and issues relating to the show's canon and synchronicity between the television franchise and the game.

The Stargate - Gate mechanics, manual dialing, addresses, etc.

[edit] Gameplay

Stargate worlds will feature a different combat mechanic than other MMOs, combining elements of traditional RPG and MMORPGs with elements from action games and third person shooters.^[2] The unique atmosphere of Stargate Worlds will also be created by the relationships formed between characters, the challenges they overcome, and the epic nature of the storyline.^[3] Gameplay will be mainly directed but there will be opportunities for open-ended play. In open-ended play, a player mostly knows in which direction their character is heading. This will particularly be the case for archetype based questing, certain storylines, and new characters. ^[4] Instancing will only be used when necessary for truly epic missions.^[5]

[edit] Target Audience

The game will be marketed towards players that are new to MMOs as well as to seasoned gamers and international customers. Essentially the world-wide fans of the Stargate TV series are going to be the principal target audience.^[6]

[edit] Music

Music was an important part of the Stargate SG-1 experience, and it will also be an important part of the game experience. Some of the music we can expect to resemble the Stargate soundtrack, while some is being created entirely from scratch.^[7] The music may be such an integral part of the game that the in-game music may not be able to be switched off independently of the other sound effects.^[8] Some samples of the in-game music and sound effects can be found in the Nick LaMartina video podcast.^[9]

[edit] End Game

Stargate Worlds will include a variety of endgame content. This will range from PvP to large WoW-type raids to crafting and non-combat content. Guilds will also provide a large amount of elder play. This is one of the areas that is discussed most by the community, particularly in regards to balance. The beta phase will likely generate the input needed for this intricate balance.^[10][11][12] The developers have promised plenty to do once your character reaches level cap.^[13] If you're mainly solo, the endgame will consist mostly of minigames and crafting. Also there will be some content in the form of episodes (content patches)^[14]

The end game content is going to be strongly linked to the storyline that players experience while they level up. The developers have said that the two factions will find themselves in a "Cold War" and that the events here will move along through the use of content updates.^[15]

[edit] Content updates and Live(GM) Events

Stargate Worlds will be set in an evolving universe so content updates and live events will be an important part of the game. Live events are something that the developers are particularly excited about. Players will "be able to feel a part of the continuity, and what better way to accomplish that than to allow players to interact one-on-one with a living, breathing, dynamic set of characters and events that unfold in real-time?"^[16] In addition to live events to advance the storyline, there will also be events just for the fun of it.^[17]

Content will be added most likely on a six week development cycle.^[18] Some of this new content may include new gate addresses^[19], while other content may be changing existing planets as the storyline progresses.^[20] Content will also be added and altered to the lower levels to encourage replayability and make that experience much more exciting.^{[21] [22]} In a recent interview, it was revealed that CME intends to add enough content to provide a different play experience even if they play the same progression.^[23] Given what we know about time to level cap and the average time committment of an MMO player. this suggests that the game will undergo noticeable changes every 8-10 weeks.

[edit] Death

In a game that involves combat, death is inevitable. Permanent death, while of interest to some die-hard gamers, will not be a feature of the game. However a developer did mention that there is a special situation in which a player's character may actually die.^[24] However, ascension will not be an option in the game at release.^[25]
Characters don't die, they get incapacitated.^[26] When a character is incapacitated. they can choose a number of options to be brought back to life. If another player has the skills or technology. they can be revived or they may spawn in a nearby 'aid station.^[27] From this aid station, they have the option of purchasing a return trip to their body. Newly revived players may suffer the temporary effects of incapacitation, which may include reduced attributes, slower health regeneration and increased cool-down times.^[28] The aid station may take the form of, for humans, the Field Remote Expeditionary Device or F.R.E.D.^[29] It is speculated that human players and free Jaffa may also spawn in the 'infirmary', Goa'uld and controlled Jaffa at a sarcophagus, and the Asgard at a cloning station, instead of the more generic aid station. The developers have also planned something new and exciting for the death system in Stargate Worlds.^[30]

[edit] Vehicles

There are no drivable vehicles planned at this stage although players may be able to use a 'taggable' vehicle such as a subway train or shuttle.^[31] Nor are players going to be able to fly any in-atmosphere vehicles on release. These are an entirely different mechanic to both ground transport and space travel. However, players will have to deal with NPC controlled death gliders or F302's 'buzzing around' and strafing you and your group.^[32][33] Spaceships may serve as locations that players can visit. Space and playable spaceships may be dealt with in an expansion.

[edit] Price and Monthly Fee

The pricing structure of Stargate Worlds has not been set. It is likely to match the industry standard, whatever that happens to be at the time of release.^[34][35] Payment methods have also not been confirmed, and will likely be determined by the game's publisher, but CME has indicated that it would like to see a variety of ways to pay for the game. ^[36][37]

[edit] Release Date

The game will be released when it is finished. That may seem like a no-brainer, but CME and MGM are committed to releasing the game only when it is "ready to go".^[38] There has been much speculation on the release date. CME Has updated their website for a 2009 release now instead of the original 2008. This will provide more time to polish this game. As irritating as it might be to wait, it's much better than paying for a game that's not ready to release.

[edit] Foreign Language Release

An initial release is planned in English, French, Italian, German, and Spanish followed by a release in Asian languages.^[39]

[edit] Miscellaneous Mechanics

[edit] Cut Scenes

It is unknown whether cut scenes are being developed, although the developers have indicated that they would like to include them. Possible places for cut scenes include character creation and some mission briefings.^{[40] [41]}

[edit] Special Characters From the Show

This is Stargate, so we can expect to meet many of the characters in the show. CME is in talks with actors from the show to do voice acting but it is unknown who, if any, of them will be participating. Also, some of the Stargate actors do play MMORPGs and may even play Stargate Worlds. It is unlikely but possible that they may, at times, play their character in the show. David Hewlett (dr. Rodney Mckay in Stargate: Atlantis) has already stated in his blog that he'd like to.^[42]

[edit] Balance

CME is very concerned with balancing all aspects of the gameplay. In fact, many of the posts by the developers on the forums have been about concerns of balance.^[43] Most of the interviews also include comments on balancing the game. In fact there are so many comments on balance that it's impossible to give even a short overview of them here.

A sampling of the more recent posts include:

A thread about balancing content, specifically end game content in terms of soloing, groups and raids.

[edit] Easter Eggs

Stargate SG1 was a show that never took itself entirely seriously. From references to MacGyver and Richard Dean Anderson's sense of humor, to the whole show taking a laugh at itself with the Wormhole Extreme and 200 episodes, Stargate SG1 was really funny.
The developers intend to insert much of the same sense of humor into the game. The Creative Director, Chris Klug, has hired writers who he believes will produce work that would have been good enough for the show. The game will certainly make the user laugh, on occasion.^[44] This will probably include Easter Eggs of some kind, but of course they're not going to tell.^[45]

[edit] In-Game Advertising

At this stage the developers have not made any plans about advertising and product placement in the game. However they have assured the community that if it occurred it would in no way would there be anything that is out of place or disruptive to the gameplay.^[46]

[edit] References