SOE's John Smedley
Sony Online Entertainment's very own raid boss on the MMO company's new perspective.
We're far more committed than any other company in the USA. We already have four titles in development, three of which we've already announced.
I don't get why people ask me this question [laughs] - we're a Sony company! We want Sony to win!
It's like approaching Free Realms demographically - you have to think through how radically different they are, from the controller to the community. The controller is a very different beast to the keyboard. It's a totally different experience, centred around communication.
Most online console games use voice, and many PC games use [typed] chat as their medium of communication - though that's increasingly becoming voice-focused.
Furthermore, the communities are radically different. For starters, on your computers you can open up forums, help sites - people on PCs keep them open at the same time as the game as a point of reference. The experience on a PC is so different, as people are so used to multitasking. A console player will predominantly be playing in their living room. We have to give them the time and energy to make sure that their experience works for them, and for the type of person that will play this game. We're not quite there yet, but we're getting there.
Fundamentally we'll be looking to stay the same. We're looking at one where we sell a product at retail or digitally, that you can buy a subscription and buy micro-transactions for. The only difference, for now, is that we'll most likely limit the console versions to retail at first, as the client will be so big. We will want to ultimately make these games available for digital download.
It depends on what you consider EverQuest. As far as just the original game goes, If you'd asked me that ten years ago, I'd have said a year. Today my answer's very different - I'd think another 10 years would be definitely possible. We've still got a lot of players, and the EverQuest franchise itself is something we're hard at work on.
I mean, think of how long you played the game for. Many have for upwards of five years; in my mind I can't even think of how long I've played any other series. It's just EverQuest, the Civilization games, and Battlefield 2 for me. There are some series that just have that resonance and staying power, and I believe EverQuest is one of those franchises.