Otherland: Interview with Product Manager Florian Horpel

In August 2011, gamigo announced Otherland, an action MMORPG utilizing Unreal 3. Based upon the novels of Tad Williams, Otherland blends the systems of an MMORPG with the environment of interconnected virtual worlds. MMOHut caught up with Florian Horpel, Product Manager of Otherland at gamigo, to take an early look inside Otherland.

Can you describe Otherland for those who haven’t read Tad William’s novels?

Wow, that really isn’t all that easy. Tad Williams needed about 4000 pages to do so, after all. To sum it up, one could say that Otherland is a collection of virtual worlds. It is set in the future, about 100 years from now, and in this scenario a group of extraordinarily rich people is trying to make themselves immortal.

Life takes place almost entirely online, the next step along from the Internet as we know it today. People can log in and, using modern technology, even experience senses. It’s not like the Internet is today, with browsers and a keyboard, but it’s an active experience. You log in with your avatar and experience the web, which you can move around in, talk to people, and touch and smell things.

Where do players come into this new virtual world’s story?

Well we don’t want to give away too much just yet. But I can say that the game ties into the plot of the novels. However – and this part is very important – you don’t need to have read the books to understand the game’s storyline. The threat that players are faced with is a new one. Players are slowly introduced to this world and presented with a story that is riveting and understandable without having to know too many things from the books.

On the other hand, though, fans of the novels will certainly recognize a lot of familiar things and will be able to put those in context, whether it’s territories, buildings or characters.  It was very important to the RealU Design Team to integrate certain elements from the books into the game world and create these visually, and they worked with Tad to do so. All in all, we’ve spent a lot of time on that and I believe that a lot of it is really creative and breath-taking. Anyone who wants to see for themselves can check out our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/OtherlandMMO), where we post previews and discuss them.

Otherland’s website mentions “simulations” – what are these, exactly?

Otherland is a virtual world. Where other RPGs have territories, Otherland has “simulations”. It’s really quite fascinating, because first you have to learn and get to know all the special features and rules of that system to really comprehend its meaning and be able to use it. This part is very closely connected to the story and players are also continually confronted with this phenomenon visually as well. For example, 8Squared looks just like a normal medieval world at first glance. Once it starts to break apart, though, or if the simulation isn’t loaded fully, you start to see the virtual nature of it shimmering through and can tell that, at the end of the day, everything is just built out of code. Of course the visuals all support this idea and transport the player into a very unique experience, not just through what they see but also through the story.

With each area based on different themes, from medieval to sci-fi, will gear be harmonized in some way so that players aren’t walking around as half-cyborg, half-knight?

One of the huge advantages of Otherland is that the player is given a lot of freedom. In a virtual world there are no borders, at least theoretically. How players set up their avatar and equipment is entirely up to them and depends on their personal preferences as far as gameplay and appearance are concerned. There are no factions, which wouldn’t make too much sense here anyway – unlike in a classic fantasy setting.

This freedom to set my appearance exactly how I want it to be, without being bound by the laws of physics or biology, is what makes Otherland truly unique. The extent to which players use this freedom is up to them and depends on what kind of eDNA they collect or want to collect. But I think a lot of people will really appreciate this variety and will also use it, so we’ll see a lot of truly unique things.

Lambda Mall, one of the game’s areas, is a social hub with additional social content like mini games. Is this area meant as a cross between the massively multiplayer online game and the virtual world, or is there more to it than that?

Lambda Mall plays a very central role in Otherland. One shouldn’t compare it to Second Life, though. Yes, Lambda Mall is a “social hub”, a place with bars, shops and mini games. This is where I can meet my friends, join up with a group or just take a bit of a break. While there are a few dark corners that are dangerous or where one can get rare materials, for the most part it is a safe zone that one returns to regularly.

But Lambda Mall is still fully integrated into the plot of the game. It’s where I get started as a player, and a lot of quests will take me through Lambda Mall because it plays such a central role in the multiverse. If you wait just a bit longer, there will surely be more information about Lambda Mall soon.

eDNA plays a big part in the game. Besides MyLand, will players have other ways of showing off their collections? Will there be a way to transform collected eDNAs into something new?

To begin with, the goal is to collect eDNA and use that to create weapons and other things. That is one way for me to get equipment for my character. As I mentioned earlier, one always needs to keep in mind that Otherland is a virtual world, which means that an axe is not made of wood and iron but of eDNA. That doesn’t mean that eDNA for a blade can be used to make a special reptile skin for my character, though. I will need to collect different material for that.

I can also use eDNA to re-create NPCs I have killed and use them to defend my property, for example. It also plays a role for clans, for example when I want to defend a ClanLand.

Will there be guilds in Otherland? If so, will they have their own property systems like MyLand?

Certainly. Guilds or clans play a very large role and we believe that a system like that is essential for providing a complete game experience, even in a game like Otherland that is so innovative and unique in so many other ways. I also want to be able to join up with others and share my experiences independently of the story or the game’s background.

Clans will also have their own territories, known as “ClanLands” (though that name is subject to change). These are a type of clan base that can be expanded, attacked and defended. There will be more details about these at a later date.

What kind of competitive gaming, like PvP, will be incorporated in Otherland?

In addition to lots of PvE elements, which are certainly to be expected given the storyline of the novels, we will of course also offer a number of PvP options so that different kinds of players will be able to find the variety they like best. I don’t want to go into too much detail about PvP yet at this time, though, because we’re thinking about making a number of minor changes or integrating additional modes. But it will certainly be an important part of the game and players can fight against each other and also with their clans for special… let’s call them “items”. We’ll provide more information about those at a later date.

Can you describe what Otherland’s combat system is like? Will there be gamepad support?

The combat system in Otherland will have lots of action, so much so that it will almost feel like a console game. It has non-targeting gameplay, which adds a lot of dynamic and variety to combat. I think that will be very important in the future because it gives the game a lot of depth. Using skills and weapons properly requires more focus, there is more tension and involvement, and in the end players identify more with their characters and their skills.

We have not planned for gamepad support, at least not to start with, because this is an MMORPG in the end and we’d like to give them the controls they are used to. Gamepad integration was considered during the game’s design, though, which means it certainly could be added in the future. So the possibility is there.

Has there been any discussion of how microtransactions will be involved with the game to support its free-to-play status?

Yes, of course, that is a pivotal topic for us and we have put a lot of thought into which items or mechanics we will integrate into the game how in order to guarantee a balanced gameplay experience for everyone. Otherland will, as you mentioned, be a free-to-play game and was also designed as such from the start. I think that will be a huge advantage in comparison to games that might have similar production values but were switched to this model too late. It’s too early to name any details, though.  But, like with all our other games, everyone will be able to play the entire game content for free, and cash items will also be available via an auction house. So in the end, what I can afford for my character is really a question of diligence, skill and a bit of luck as much as it might be about money.

Find out more about the game on our Otherland page, and keep your eyes open for more information about this unique MMO.