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Exclusive Features : Devloper Journals

Title Date Game Overview Author
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Accessibility 12/03/07 Jumpgate Evolution The team from NetDevil's upcoming sci-fi MMORPG Jumpgate Evolution have provided us with this new edition of our dev journal series. This week's contribution uses a quote from Einstein to talk about accessibility in video games in general, and designing a sequel to a classic game. Guest Writer
AI 11/19/07 Jumpgate Evolution In this Developer Journal, Herman Peterscheck, the Lead Producer of the upcoming MMORPG, Jumpgate Evolution, takes the time to talk to us about AI for the space-based game. Guest Writer
AI System: Nuts & Bolts 01/16/08 Jumpgate Evolution Steve Hartmeyer, a programmer on NetDevil's upcoming Jumpgate Evolution, files this Dev Journal on the game's AI system. Guest Writer
Ambush Gameplay 05/30/08 Pirates of the Burning Sea Kevin "Isildur" Maginn, Lead Designer for Pirates of the Burning Sea, has written a devlog explaining the original concept of ambush gameplay, or in other words, a gang of pirates sneaking up on a merchant vessel on the high sea. In the devlog he describes how the original design concept failed in practice, degenerating into what can more accurately be described ganking, and their current efforts to reduce the occurrence of ganking. Guest Writer
An Introduction to CoS: Part One 03/20/08 Citadel of Sorcery The team at MMO Magic has provided us witha great Developer Journal that gives us all an idea of what their game is all about. Today, we provide you with Part One of this journal, the introduction that will whet your apetite for Part Two, where the devs go into more detail about their plans. Guest Writer
Animation 04/06/06 The Chronicles of Spellborn In this first Chronicles of Spellborn developer journal, Spellborn Lead Animator Michael Perdieus shows us his craft. Guest Writer
APB Update 08/13/08 APB Chris Dye, the Community Manager for Realtime Worlds' upcoming MMORPG APB pens this developer journal that brings us up to speed on APB's development, their absence from this year's E3 and beta sign-ups. Guest Writer
Art Journal: Shorath Mesa 03/13/08 The Chronicles of Spellborn The folks at The Chronicles of Spellborn have released this new Art Journal focusing on the Shorath Mesa area of the game. Guest Writer
Artistic Evolution 04/19/06 Pirates of the Burning Sea Bruce Sharp - the Lead Artist on Pirates of the Burning Sea - shows how the game's art has evolved. Guest Writer
Behind Velon Hollow 07/09/08 Tabula Rasa Tabula Rasa game designer Brian Hudson recently completed work on a new instance named Velon Hollow, where the minds of once intelligent beings have been overrun by an unknown toxin, turning them into ravenous zombies. In this dev journal, Brian shares his influences and inspirations in making this new replayable instance. Guest Writer
Being a Lead Designer 02/09/07 Dreamlords: The Reawakening Jon Selin writes a great developer journal letting us in on the highs and lows of being the lead designer for an MMORPG. In this case, Dreamlords. Guest Writer
Better Together: Grouping Improvements in Book 13 04/14/08 Lord of the Rings Online Book 13: Doom of the Last-king, the upcoming free content expansion for Lord of the Rings Online: The Shadows of Angmar, will feature a number of big changes and improvements to the way players find and assemble their fellowships, and Turbine has provided this non-exclusive dev journal which describes those changes. Guest Writer
Black Scorpion Profile 09/13/05 City of Villains Cryptic sent out an interesting package that profiles one of the villains in the upcoming City of Villains: Black Scorpion. Guest Writer
Book 13: Welcome to Forochel! (or…How to Make a Region Without Trees) 04/11/08 Lord of the Rings Online Turbine has posted this great (and interesting) dev journal about designing Forochel from a World Builder's perspective. In MMO production, World Builders are the ones who populate the world withe verything from hills to rivers to buildings to deserts. Guest Writer
Book 14 Dev Journal: Moving the Fellowship 07/18/08 Lord of the Rings Online As the storyline in The Lord of the Rings Online goes ever on, the developers at Turbine have run into the problem of what to do with certain NPCs who move around a lot, specifically the Fellowship of the Ring. This latest Dev Journal from Turbine looks at how they solve these problems in Book 14. Guest Writer
Building a Guild City 05/12/08 Age of Conan The folks at Age of Conan have provided us with this new developer journal on the guild cities system. Guest Writer
Caster Classes 05/04/06 The Chronicles of Spellborn We continue to get word on The Chronicles of Spellborn. Guest Writer
Character Creation 02/28/06 Hero's Journey Stephanie Shaver of Simutronics looks at character creation in Hero's Journey. Guest Writer
Chris Nengerman Developer Journal 04/05/07 The Chronicles of Spellborn Today, we kick off a multi-week series of features from the folks over at The Chronicles of Spellborn. This first developer journal is from Chris Nengerman who is the Lead Game Designer for The Chronicles of Spellborn. Guest Writer
Clan Feature: Brotherhood of Thieves 07/20/06 9Dragons The second clan feature from Ken Johnston and Steve Altman. Guest Writer
Clan Feature: Heavenly Demon Clan 08/17/06 9Dragons The fifth of six articles on the six clans of 9Dragons. Guest Writer
Clan Feature: Sacred Flower Clan 08/10/06 9Dragons The fourth of six clan features. Guest Writer
Clan Feature: Shaolin 07/13/06 9Dragons In the first of six articles, we learn about the Shaolin Clan. Guest Writer
Clan Feature: The League of Beggars 07/27/06 9Dragons Altman and Johnston present another clan in week three. Guest Writer
Clan Feature: Wu-Tang Clan 08/24/06 9Dragons The sixth and final weekly clan feature runs with perhaps the most famous of the six clans. Guest Writer
Classes: Bard, Cleric and Healer 05/02/06 Hero's Journey Lead Designer Stephanie Shaver pens another journal. Guest Writer
Combat 11/22/06 9Dragons This latest developer journal looks at the most basic system of them all: combat. Guest Writer
Combat for Beginners 03/26/08 The Chronicles of Spellborn The folks over at The Chronicles of Spellborn have released this great new Game Design Journal that focuses in on just what it is you, as a beginner, need to know about TCoS's unique combat system. Guest Writer
Combat System Dev Journal 09/12/08 Runes of Magic The folks from Runes of Magic have provided us with this new developer journal covering the combat system in the upcoming Free 2 Play MMORPG. Guest Writer
CoS Introduction - Part Two 03/21/08 Citadel of Sorcery Yesterday, the folks from MMO Magic presented the basics behind their upcoming MMORPG, Citadel of Sorcery. Today, they go into more detail about their plans for: PvP, Combat, Rces, Classes and more. Guest Writer
Crafting in 9Dragons 07/13/06 9Dragons In a double-bill, we also bring you this article on crafting in 9Dragons. Guest Writer
Crafting the Content of Forochel 04/03/08 Lord of the Rings Online The official Lord of the Rings Online website has a new developer journal concerning some of the elements of the upcoming Book 13, including solo info and info on the new area known as Forochel. Guest Writer
Creating the Veteran Rewards Program 11/29/06 City of Heroes The Lead Designer of City of Heroes talks about how they built the Veteran Rewards program. Guest Writer
Designing Fault Lever 01/25/08 Tabula Rasa Tabula Rasa world builder David Vargo guides us through the design process and philosophy behind the Fault Lever instance in Tabula Rasa. Guest Writer
Dev Diary #4 03/25/08 Face of Mankind: Rebirth Face of Mankind's Marko Dieckmann pens this new Dev Diary that outlines the general concept of their game in terms of both features and gameplay. Guest Writer
Dev Journal #1: Growth 07/13/05 Pirates of the Burning Sea Russell Williams, the Executive Producer for Pirates of the Burning Sea, kicks off a new developer journal series. Guest Writer
Dev Journal #2 08/03/05 Pirates of the Burning Sea Reaching milestones is the topic of Russell Williams' second developer journal, as he and the team prepare for PAX. Guest Writer
Dev Journal by Jessica Mulligan 01/23/06 Ryzom The Executive Producer of The Saga of Ryzom talks about player-controlled content. Guest Writer
Dev Paper - Boomrocker Mechanaught 06/24/08 Exteel While it doesn't quite meet our requirements for listing, NCsoft's Exteel is certainly an idea that is appealing to MMO gamers. In this developer paper, the game's devs give tips and strategies for The Boomrocker Mechanaught, weapon highlights and the Defrosted Summit Battle Map. Guest Writer
Dev Paper - Trooper Mechanaught 06/03/08 Exteel While it doesn't quite meet our requirements for listing, NCsoft's Exteel is certainly an idea that is appealing to MMO gamers. In this developer paper, the game's devs give tips and strategies for Trooper Mechanaught, a weapons overview and the "last stand" battle mode. Guest Writer
Dev Profile Q&A: Haluk Diriker 05/03/07 Age of Conan The folks over at Funcom's Age of Conan have provided us with a new Developer Profile Q&A. This time around, AI Designer Haluk Diriker answers our questions as we get to know the folks behind their highly anticipated game. Guest Writer
Developer Journal 02/13/06 Jumpgate Steve "Istvan" Hartmeyer, Jumpgate Developer, talks about the development of NetDevil's other game over the last few years. Guest Writer
Developer Journal #1 08/17/05 Ragnarok Online Cianar Cabos, a member of the Content/Update team for Ragnarok Online, provides us with this first developer journal. Guest Writer
Developer Journal #1 09/14/05 Kaneva Greg Frame, the Chief Gaming Officer over at Atlanta's Kaneva, writers for us a developer journal that explains the company's MMO engine. Guest Writer
Developer Journal #2 10/10/05 Ragnarok Online Minsoo Lee writes a third person article about his role in the development of this MMORPG. Guest Writer
Developer Journal #3 09/07/05 Pirates of the Burning Sea Russell Williams continues his log updates with another update on the progress of his piratey MMORPG. Guest Writer
Developer Journal #3 01/11/06 Ragnarok Online Minsoo Lee returns with another developer journal from this MMORPG. Guest Writer
Developer Journal #4 10/20/05 Pirates of the Burning Sea Russell Williams of Pirates of the Burning Sea returns with another developer journal. Guest Writer
Developer Journal #5 12/14/05 Pirates of the Burning Sea Rayond Wood provides us with another peek behind the scenes. Guest Writer
Developer Journal #6 01/04/06 Pirates of the Burning Sea Taylor Daynes and Troy Hewitt of FlyingLabs Software talk about the navigation system. Guest Writer
Developer Journal #7 02/15/06 Pirates of the Burning Sea Johnathan "Mapmaker" White talks about his work. Guest Writer
Developer Journal #8 03/01/06 Pirates of the Burning Sea A day in the life of a lead designer. Guest Writer
Dungeons to Run In 10/15/07 Dungeon Runners Today, the Dungeon Runners Dev Team has provided us with a new developer journal about the use of dungeons in, well, Dungeon Runners. Guest Writer
Episode 2 Information 03/11/08 Cabal Online The folks from Games Masters, the company behind the European version of Cabal Online, have sent over this developer journal with detailed information on the changes that came as a part of the Episode 2 update. Guest Writer
Exclusive Dual Class System Journal 07/28/08 Runes of Magic The folks behind Runes of Magic have released ythis new developer journal outlining the game's dual class feature. Guest Writer
First, Hate Everything 06/07/06 Pirates of the Burning Sea The Producer of Pirates of the Burning Sea lets us in on a secret: he doesn't like MMORPGs. Guest Writer
Flight Dynamics 01/09/08 Jumpgate Evolution In this new Developer Journal, NetDevil Programmer Steve "Istvan" Hartmeyer talks about flight in their upcoming MMORPG, Jumpgate Evolution. Guest Writer
FlyingLabs At AGC 09/20/06 Pirates of the Burning Sea Our monthly dev journal has them giving their take on AGC. Guest Writer
Friday Night Fights Q&A 07/21/08 Tabula Rasa Friday Night Fights have been a popular event in Tabula Rasa since the game was in beta. NCsoft's Amy “Critters” Crider guides us through the evolution of the event, introduces the new boxing ring, and lets players know how they can join in. Guest Writer
Gracia Update Revealed 07/15/08 Lineage 2 NCsoft has announced several changes to Lineage II with the upcoming Gracia update, which include the introduction of the Vitality System, and efforts to reduce 'the grind' and entry barriers to new players by allowing players to level faster. Guest Writer
Group Combat Missions 04/14/08 Pirates of the Burning Sea The folks from Flying Lab Software have released a new Dev Journal on their official site talking about Group Combat Missions. Guest Writer
Halloween Event 11/08/06 Pirates of the Burning Sea John Scott Tynes looks back at what the team did for Halloween. The brief journal includes some exclusive screenshots. Guest Writer
Hellbound Pet System Enhancements 04/17/08 Lineage 2 The good folks over at Lineage II have provided us with this dev diary concerning the pet system enhancements that are coming with the Hellbound expansion due later this month. Guest Writer
Hellbound’s Steel Citadel 04/07/08 Lineage 2 NCsoft recently prepared this non-exclusive dev journal which provides an overview of the Steel Citadel in Lineage II: The Chaotic Throne – The Kamael: Hellbound. Inside the dangerous Steel Citadel, players will need to take advantage of the new level 85 level cap to battle against the epic boss Beleth. Guest Writer
HJ Developer Journal 06/20/06 Hero's Journey A new developer journal from the people behind Hero's Journey. Guest Writer
How Dungeon Runners Redefines Skills and Classes in the Free-To-Play MMO Game Genre 11/20/07 Dungeon Runners As a companion to our Dungeon Runners Interview, the folks at NCsoft have also provided us with this Developer Diary giving us the development team's opinion on "How Dungeon Runners Redefines Skills and Classes in the Free-To-Play MMO Game Genre". Guest Writer
Instance Updates 07/10/08 Lord of the Rings Online The folks at Turbine's Lord of the Rings Online have released this new developer journal that talks about instancing in the upcoming Book 14 launch. Guest Writer
Interlude Dev Journal 03/12/07 Lineage 2 Tim Tan, the Associate Producer for NCsfot's Lineage II: The Chaotic Throne, lets us in on the newest free update to the game, Interlude. Guest Writer
Introduction 05/27/06 Hero Online The team behind Hero Online introduces their game. Guest Writer
Invention System 03/05/07 City of Heroes Matt Miller, the Lead Designer for City of Heroes / City of Villains drops by to give us an exclusive developer journal about the game's Invention System. Guest Writer
Issue 11 - Standing Apart in a Crowd: Weapon Customization 10/11/07 City of Heroes Last week, we brought you an interview with Matt "Positron" Miller about the upcoming Issue 11 update from City of Heroes / Villains. Today, the folks behind the game have provided us with the story behind the new weapon customization that will make an appearance in Issue 11. Guest Writer
Issue 12: The Midnight Hour and Me 04/30/08 City of Heroes City of Heroes Senior Designer Joe Morrissey writes this developer journal telling us about the Midnight Squad, a group of heroes that has appeared in past lore, but makes their first appearance in Issue 12. Guest Writer
Issue 13: So big it can’t be contained in a single update! 09/25/08 City of Heroes City of Heroes Lead Designer Matt Miller wrote a letter to the game's player base today detailing a change in the planned update, Issue 13: Architect that will see the Mission Architect feature removed (to be published in Issue 14) and the name of the update changed to Issue 13: Power and Responsibility. Guest Writer
Item System in Runes of Magic 09/19/08 Runes of Magic The folks from Runes of magic have provided us with this great new Dev Journal on the Item System in the upcoming Free2Play MMORPG. Guest Writer
Items in 9Dragons 11/02/06 9Dragons Ken Johnston pens the latest developer journal from Acclaim's 9Dragons. Guest Writer
Jon-Enee Merriex Dev Journal 05/04/07 Sword of the New World Jon-Enee Merriex, a Game Master for K2 Network's Sword of the New World, stops by to give us this developer journal highlighting the game's "Multi-Character Control" feature. Guest Writer
Letter From the Director: Roadmap for the Future 06/03/08 Age of Conan The Age of Conan website has been updated with this letter from Age of Conan Game Director Gaute Godager. In the letter, Godager lays out plans for the game in the near future. Guest Writer
Life with Beta 01/10/07 Pirates of the Burning Sea Pirates of the Burning Sea Producer, John Scott Tynes, describes his "Life with Beta" in this newest developer journal. Guest Writer
Magma Caverns - Michael Hutchison 05/20/08 Tabula Rasa NCsoft has been kind enough to supply us with a pair of developer diaries discussing the rework of Magma Caverns. In this first diary, Lead World Designer Michael Hutchison gives us his take. Guest Writer
Martial Arts Combat 03/30/06 9Dragons In the first of a series of developer journals, we learn about combat. Guest Writer
Mekhi Mechanaught, Territory Control and Weapons 04/03/08 Exteel The folks from NCsoft have sent along this developer paper on the Mekhi Mechanagught, Weapon Highlights and Capture the Flag. While the robot battle game doesn't meet our criteria for listing, it certainly shares a number of traits with MMORPGs, including a persistent character. Guest Writer
Mines of Moria: The Rune-keeper 09/11/08 Lord of the Rings Online The Mines of Moria, the first expansion for Lord of the Rings Online which is currently in beta, offers many new dark places for adventurers to explore and a new class for players to use while exploring these places. Today the folks at Turbine have released detailed information on these Rune-keepers and their secrets. Guest Writer
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