What Would Walt Do?
You're a game company and you're looking for lore. We've learned that even if you pick something obviously in the public domain, you still might get sued. What to do? Do what Walt did! Take your lore from sources whose heritage is so ancient and obscure that no one can possibly claim ownership. (For extra credit, twist this ancient and revered lore around so that it suits some contemporary ideology. )
The WWWD Award for 2005 goes to ...
Mystic Journey: Fairyland USA!
From the press release (thanks MMORPGDot):
"Mystic Journey is a huge world including many realms, such as: the
world of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella,
Beauty and the Beast, Little Red Riding Hood, The Matchstick Girl,
Mermaid, Alice in Wonderland, Emperor’s Robe, Peter Pan, The Arabian Nights and many more."
Hmmm. Guess there won't be any more entries in this category. All the lore is now taken :( .
Posted by Edward Castronova on February 6, 2005 | Permalink
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Comments
I guess they'd have used Arthurian tales too if DAoC hadn't got there first...
I myself tried to raise funds to develop a virtual world based on the Arabian Nights, but for one reason or another couldn't persuade enough people to give me money. Staking a claim on the settings of old stories is a good idea: there's no legal barrier to anyone soing a new Arthurian virtual world, but DAoC has cornered the market.
Going for popular form of folk tale at once is OK, but it won't corner any markets as it's not focused enough.
Richard
Posted Feb 6, 2005 10:37:36 AM | link
Richard> Going for popular form of folk tale at once is OK, but it won't corner any markets as it's not focused enough.
Except if the point of the service is to experience and explore your version of these fairytales. One day you are Cinderella, the next day you are Red Riding Hood. Or it could Shrek-land USA.
Posted Feb 6, 2005 11:41:28 AM | link
Wondering if Steamboat Willie counts as ancient lore.
My guess is that if you based a game very strictly on the world of Beowulf you could get piles of academic funding for it. So too for other classic literary fantasy worlds.
Posted Feb 6, 2005 12:35:54 PM | link
You mean something like Arden?
Ted - you may want to find out about all this cash...
Posted Feb 6, 2005 1:19:59 PM | link
Peter Pan?
Posted Feb 6, 2005 1:21:43 PM | link
I've always wondered why there seems to be so few computer games in general (and no MMORPGs that I know of) based on the Wild West. For a setting that has inspired a huge amount of books and films, it seems to have been completely forgotten by game designers. I know I wouldn't mind playing a cowboy, it would be a nice change from the overcrowded fantasy market at least.
Posted Feb 6, 2005 1:44:08 PM | link
They keep working on it, but they've got a problem: Either you have permadeath, or you have to explain why people don't die *without* invoking magic or superscience.
--Dave
Posted Feb 6, 2005 2:26:00 PM | link
RedWolf:
There was a MMOG coming out of Korea based on the Wild West called 'Priest', I dunno what became of that, cancelled maybe.
Actually after some googling it seems they turned it into 'Rush Online' (http://rush.joycity.com/) it looks like it is an 'interesting' game.
Dave:
Or you could just invent some silly excuse like fainting.
Posted Feb 6, 2005 5:15:15 PM | link
Re :Wild West
I wonder how many gunslingers we will have called Roland and R0land etc, maybe a Jake Chambers and Eddie thrown in for good measure, oh wait I already saw them in the EQ2 trial period :p
Not to mention all the historic outlaws...
Posted Feb 6, 2005 8:00:32 PM | link
Peter>You mean something like Arden?
Ted - you may want to find out about all this cash...
I am shooting for this award in 2010.
Actually, I'm not worried, because I don't think it's possible to twist Shakespeare. Or, rather, it was meant to be twisted, and has its effect in your efforts to twist it.
Posted Feb 7, 2005 7:57:48 AM | link
DAoC's treatment of of Arthurian legend was extremely thin - there was a city named Camelot, and it just about ends there. A few quests which most people didn't read may have hinted at it, but that world has hardly been "done", any more than DAoC cornered Norse mythology through their Midgard realm (which actually seemed a more compelling treatment, possibly because I was less familiar with that territory).
There might be a (not insignificant) PR issue, but content-wise that world is still wide open, imho.
Arabian Nights sounds excellent.
As far as the Wild West, Freddy Pharkas Frontier Pharmacist addressed the death issue: "Be kind, please rewind".
Posted Feb 7, 2005 1:53:52 PM | link
Actually after some googling it seems they turned it into Rush Online it looks like it is an 'interesting' game.Priest was at E3 2003, but I couldn't find it anywhere in 2004. Do you know if they found a Publisher? I tried the old Babelfish trick on that website you found, but the connection timed-out.
The game I saw was an interesting blend of Wild West cowboy tech with Shamanistic Indians, using a twitch-based combat system in a semi-PvP environment of zone ownership. Was fun, given the incomplete state of play then.
Posted Feb 7, 2005 3:46:44 PM | link
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