This concludes our interview series with Brian Green, CEO of Near Death Studios and Lead Developer of Meridian 59, the longest running commercial MMOG. You can catch Part 1 here, and Part 2 here.

If you look closely in this installment, you'll catch 3 exclusive screens of the new lighting system!

Mystery: A couple of studies postulate that unless you have a product that caters to a more general audience, you're stuck trying to steal players away from other entrenched competitors. Do you feel that your game is capable of being marketed to a non online audience, or will it have enough power to pull players away from games where they've been building characters for years?

Brian: Personally, we think it's equally valid to go for a more specific audience instead of just going for a more general audience. As mentioned above, you can cater to a specific audience easier than you can to a general audience. Meridian 59 offers a level of PvP combat you can't find in other games because many games are not including PvP as an option. Some games are limiting PvP in certain ways or are restricting it down to make it more appealing to a wide audience. While Meridian 59 isn't a constant killing field, it does offer the ability to fight other people anywhere at any time, an option that is rare in other games; this is what some people really want in their online gaming experience. Meridian 59 also includes consequences for people that engage in non-consensual PvP as well as ways for players to engage in consensual PvP.

For all the bad press that PvP has gotten, I think Meridian 59 has managed to strike the right balance between the open PvP systems that lead to the gankfests that plagued other games and the ruthless restriction of PvP found in most current games. This level of PvP adds some excitement to the game without making players fearful to ever leave the safe zone (unless they've angered enough people to make this a dangerous proposition). We are sure that there's a group of people that would appreciate PvP of this type and would find Meridian 59 more enjoyable than other games.

The Vale

Mystery: When gold was first discovered in the California countryside, people came from all over for a chance to strike it rich. As we know, only a lucky few were able to see this dream realized. Like the dot com rush, and then ensuing bust, do you see a similar looming bubble burst for marketplace saturated with online games?

Brian: Meridian 59 was built a long time ago (in "internet" time), before online RPGs gained mass acceptance. It was created because the people working on it thought it was a really cool idea based upon their experiences with other types of games. We've worked on Meridian 59 for years based upon our love for the game.

I think there's some problems with a "gold rush" type mentality, though. People look at the income from the larger games and desire that income for themselves. Unfortunately, they often don't consider the steep hurdles in both technology and design in creating an online RPG. It's quite different than creating a single-player game because it's a service instead of just a game. I think that some people are just chasing after what's currently popular instead of really trying to focus on the strengths of the medium.

Arena Outside

Mystery: The commonality of experience in single player rpg and action titles is that the developer can always manufacture a way for the player to be at the center of the action. In retrospect, many of the larger established titles have come to believe that the separate and outsider feeling that players feel is one of the main reasons for a lack of adequate retention numbers. Does your game address the issue of the "hero" complex?

Brian: The simple answer is: you are in control of your own destiny in Meridian 59. Given the size of the severs, you can easily make a name for yourself. You will quickly be known as the person that helps others if that is what you do. Likewise, you will quickly be known as a dangerous murderer if you go around and kill others. The game does not provide any artificial distinction to make the player the only "hero" in the game; it is based almost entirely upon your reputation with other players.

I think this is a huge benefit to the smaller server sizes of Meridian 59. It's easier to make friends and to become known if you are one person out of a few hundred people as opposed to one more name in a list of many thousand. In the rush to build larger and larger worlds, it's easy to forget that there are important reasons why small towns have a different feel than large cities. Meridian takes advantage of this difference in different sizes of communities.

Island Smith

Brian: One characteristic of the treadmill is that you never get a feeling of really advancing. You use your Fireball 9 spell to kill the 9th level goblin, doing 25% of its health in damage; this is identical to when you were using your Fireball 1 spell to kill the level 1 goblin, doing 25% of its health in damage. Sure, the numbers are bigger, but is that really fun and exciting? What's the point in advancing if all you're going to do is use essentially the same powers to fight the same enemies?

One point of pride is that Meridian 59's spells are mostly unique. Out of the 150 or so spells, there are very few that can be describe as "same as this other spell, only more powerful". The only spells I can think of like this are the 3 different "healing" spells. Even those are different because the weaker spells are more mana and cost efficient, but heal less damage per cast than the higher level spells. So, you aren't just advancing levels to get more powerful versions of spells you already have; you're advancing levels to get new spells with new effects.

It's the same with monsters. The simple giant centipedes you kill as a less experienced character are quite different than the Dark Angels that make mirror images of themselves and attack you with spells. You won't just find a thousand different types of goblins to fight.

Additionally, character advancement is a lot more interesting. You can advance your character in different schools of spells. You aren't just advancing your one level statistic by gaining experience points, you're advancing your spells and skills by using them. You gain hit points by fighting tough monsters. You gain levels in different spell schools by learning enough in the current level you know. Yes, you still have to work to advance, but it's not a mindless "xp grind" like you find in other games.

A fond Thank You goes out to Brian for letting us bend his ear on the issues. His experiences are unique in the industry, and it's great to hear from someone that can really weigh in on the important questions.