jeremy snyder’s meta|remix

so i just finished reading “Developing Online Games” by Jessica Mulligan and Bridgette Patrovsky


i’ve only been in the mmo space for about 1.5 years, but here are some of my thoughts on the book:

• they had a very pessimistic view on broadband. thankfully, that situation has worked out opposite of the authors’ predictions.
• if you don’t know it by now, mmo’s are services, not games or products.
• developing internal tools is crucial. you need the tools to help the customers out.
• cowboy development can be a big problem. i’ve seen this first-hand, not only in the mmo world, but also in the software world in general. maybe the problem is bigger because of the cultural mindset of some game developers, and the fact that real consumer money is running through the system in an mmo, but this is a known issue. if anything, i don’t think they gave it enough attention.
• also, cowboy development doesn’t only apply to development of the code. it can apply just as much to development of the vision.
• the CCP (Change Control Process) and how important it is that all updated be controlled. steve snow at ncsoft (can’t find a link to his site) gave a nice presentation about that at the gdc in san francisco back in february. his position on it is was that all updates should be fully automated.
• community is the biggest value you have or provide. recognize that and nurture it.

it’s a good book, and anyone in the industry or entering it should read it. i think it could really use an update with some lessons learned from the past 4 years, when world of warcraft and habbo have really come to be the top players around.