I recently had the opportunity to interview Hermann Petersheck producer of Jumpgate Evolution at Netdevil. Being that the inteview was a bit long, this is not a complete word by word transcript, but instead just the juicy parts.

Q: Going back to the original Jumpgate, which used a classic cockpit/first person perspective, what was the reason for changing this to a 3rd person/chase perspective as seen in the recent footage at PAX?

A: We didn’t actually change it, we added that to it. The reasoning was we wanted to appeal to more diverse kinds of players.   There is first person mode in the game right now, but we haven’t done cockpits yet, which we plan on doing it.

Q: Players travel throughout the game by using Jumpgates.  Does this work like StarTrek where I can “jump” my ship from one area to another at anytime or do I have to travel to a designated area to use a physical gate to make jumps?

A: There like portals, you fly to them and you jump to whatever that next area connects to.

Q: So no warp drives?

A: We might do something like that at some point, but it’s always kinda dangerous adding teleports to a MMO because there’s value in travel time.  What I mean by that is if it takes you a while to get somewhere in order to get something of value, if you take that time of travel away you have to make sure that balances against the reward.  We might do something like a warp drive at some point, but it’s not planned right now.

Q: It seems that PvP has made a recent revival with Warhammer Online and Age of Conan.  How does your PvP system work?

A: We are planning a couple of different things.  One is where you’re just fighting someone in open space and you gain XP from it.  Then there’s battle space, sort of an arena type system that’s  scenario based where there are clear objectives for the players.  So the first one were working on is with two Capital ships approaching and you have to take out the other person’s Capital ship before they take yours out.  So it allows for huge ships in space to fight each other with huge amount of people on either side.  That’s an instanced space sort of PvP scenario.

The original game had a thing called beacons where you would convert the beacons to your side for your nation and based on that you would get certain benefits.  For example posting auctions would be cheaper or repair costs would be lower based on how much space you controlled.  So that would give people focal points to go after and there’s a sense of owning a certain part of space.  Those might be outposts that are defended, if you own them the defenses would fight for you.

Q: Will there be open PvP servers?

A: We’ve talked about that a lot internally.  Most MMOs do the standard PvE with designated PvP areas then servers that are Open PvP, but we’ve talked about mixing them some way.  Possibly a flag based system where at character creation the player would chose what sort of experience they wanted.  So when you make a character you can choose hardcore mode and you play together with other players with different rules.  I don’t know if it will work on not, we’ll have to see when we test it.

The thing I hate about the PvP server solution is that these kinds of players are over here segregated from these other players and there segregated because they want a different gaming experience. Is it possible to allow the two groups to play with different rules in the same world or is that confusing.  I don’t know the answer to that.  Those are the types of ideas we’ve had.

Q: Scenarios have been a big hit in Warhammer Online allowing gamers to join PvP battles from anywhere on the map.  Does Jumpgate Evo plan on anything similar?

A: They did that so perfect so that is something we would want to do.  Normally you go talk to a guy who represents the PvP arena and you have to get in queue and sit around a wait, that’s boring.  I really like that solution so I plan to do that type of thing.  I love that instant PvP solution.

Q: How does Jumpgate Evo handle player death?  Will there be looting?

A: Right now when you die your stuff is damaged and you go back to the last station you were in where you have to pay to have your ship repaired, but you don’t lose your equipment or ship.  As far as rewards, I like the idea that PvP gives you similar rewards to PvE.  So in other words if I defeat you in battle, I get XP points, maybe a bounty and you can do a loot roll against players and have them drop different stuff.   I think were going to stay away from the, I kill you, you’re going to drop all your stuff and I’m going to pick it up, simply because it’s so fraustrating for the victim.

However as I eluded before we contemplated  the idea of this sort of, hardcore mode sort of thing, so if you play in that mode the rules are different, so then if you do die maybe you’ll lose your stuff or ship, but in exchange you’ll advance more rapidly.  Right now for the normal type of game play, you don’t lose items.

Q: Being a space combat MMO there will obviously be comparisons between Jumpage Evolution and Eve Online.  Is your game better?

A: I don’t like the word better, I’ve played Eve quite a bit and I actually like it, a lot.  I think it’s more like we’re very different.  We’re trying to create a different type of space experience, which is more an action kind of game where you’re flying in your ship, you’re engaging in combat that is skill based, it’s more of an intimate kind of experience.  Were not necessarily trying to beat Eve, were trying to create a different type of experience.

I recently had a chance to ask Bill Roper, the Design Director and Executive Produce of Champions Online, a few questions about the upcoming superhero MMO.You can find the Champions Online interview below.
Q1) Since this is a super-hero game, will players be able to have a side kick?

The side-kicking system in Champions Online allows younger, less experienced heroes to temporarily increase the effective levels of their powers to be able to adventure with a more experienced hero. Conversely, those superheroes with greater powers can “tone things down” to play on an even level with their less-powerful friends.

Q2) How soon will players get their travel abilities?

Heroes gain their first travel power at level 5, right after helping resolve the crisis in Millennium City. In order to allow for more flexibility in character design and role-playing, heroes have the chance to gain a second travel power becomes available at level 35!

Q3) If I make a melee character without a flying ability, will I be screwed in PvP when fighting someone that can fly and has a ranged attack?

We’re doing a lot of balancing right now to avoid just this sort of issue. Melee classes have attacks they can use at range (such as ripping up hunks of the ground to throw at enemies) – most of which knock their target out of their travel powers. This is especially nasty when used against a flying opponent.

Q4) How will teleporting work in combat, PvP and PvE. Seems like a very powerful power.

All of the travel powers are powerful in their own right, so every travel power has what we call “gears” associated with it. Heroes move fastest when they are completely out of combat, slower when being attacked but trying to escape, and slowest when actively participating in combat. Teleport has limitation on how far you can teleport and how frequently based on which of these “gears” the hero is in.

Q5) How will XP be divided amongst healers, tanks and DPS character? Will it be based off the amount of damage done only?

We not only track the amount of damage done and damage taken by a hero, but we also track how many points of damage a hero heals – both on themselves and on others. We make sure that proper credit is given to supportive heroes in both PvE and PvP in this regarding, making the choice of playing a hero that focuses on aiding others just as rewarding.

Q6) Since you get to create your own Nemesis, why wouldn’t I just create a really weak one?

The powers for your Nemesis are drawn from defined, balanced power sets. This ensures that players can’t “game” the system and make a weak arch-enemy. Nemesis is designed to be the biggest challenge a single hero can face, so we want the villain you create to live up to that standard.

Q7) Can other players participate in my nemesis fights or is that strictly solo?

You can invite your friends and allies into any Nemesis mission you have. This is one of the reasons we’re excited that Nemesis is the first of our ways to allow players to generate their own content. We also are going to be expanding the Nemesis system in the future to accommodate multiple Nemeses on a map, which will completely kick things up a notch!

Q8) In PvP, Tournament of Champions, B.A.S.H and Apocalypse, can I join these events using the PvP queue?

Absolutely! The queue system is designed to allow players to get in line to jump into PvP while still adventuring and saving the day until another Hero Game is ready to go.

Q9) Why can’t I be a villain?

We wanted to focus on the heroic side of things with the launch of the game. The missions, interactions of citizens, and so forth are all directed to your being a hero. There are so many stories to be told, justices to be upheld, and worlds to be saved that we’re excited to bring those chances for good to life. We do let you design a villainous foe with the Nemesis system, and some day we might even delve into the darker side of superheroes.

Q10) If I’m a superhero, why do I need to craft things? I’m already super.

Not every hero has powers that come from within. Many have lots of wonderful toys they use to fight crime. This is just the type of hero that will be crafting new goodies in the Arms school of crafting, which also has non-physical elements such as fighting styles. And our crafting system goes far beyond the creation of just physical items like guns and armor. There is the Science school where things like mutagens and serums and nano-bots are created. Mystical crafters design new spells or arcane artifacts. We’ve spent a great deal of time and effort to allow players to experience crafting while staying true to whatever the concept of their hero is.

FreeMMOGamer: Can you introduce yourself and your role in Hello Kitty Online?

I am Grant Wei; I am executive producer at Aeria Games and am responsible for the North American launch and continued services of Hello Kitty Online.

FreeMMOGamer: What is Hello Kitty Online, and how will it stand apart from other MMORPGs?

Hello Kitty Online is a casual online game prominently featuring Hello Kitty and her Sanrio friends. The game has all the features of regular MMORPGs but takes the player in a very different direction. Although loot and leveling are part of the game, there is no pressure to level up or compete for the next uber loot; the game is about having fun and interacting with friends.

FreeMMOGamer: Is Hello Kitty Online trying to appeal to the younger players only, or is there something for the older crowd?

Hello Kitty Online appeals to anyone who enjoys a relaxed entertainment experience and anyone who enjoys “hanging out” with friends. Hello Kitty Online also appeals to Hello Kitty fans and these fans can be of all different age groups as indicated by our research.

FreeMMOGamer: Players can have their own pets. How many are there and what are their specific purposes?

There are lots of pets; and we will keep adding pets throughout in content updates as well. Players can also breed pets to get new ones!

FreeMMOGamer: I suppose the focus of Hello Kitty Online isn’t on fighting. But how big a part does this play on leveling up?

Fighting is not a focus and is not required for leveling up. Players do need to tame wild creatures from time to time.

FreeMMOGamer: What about community features? What tools are you providing players with?

Players can email each other directly from within the game to any other email address. Players can share blogs and videos with each other within the game; they can also create videos with simple editing tools. HKO will also feature guilds, houses and character profile pages.

FreeMMOGamer: How is the closed beta going?

We are starting Closed Beta soon, we will keep you updated!

FreeMMOGamer: Is there a release date for the U.S. yet?

Fall!

FreeMMOGamer: Any other things you would like to say to our readers?

Hello Kitty is looking forward to seeing everyone in her Online game!