Warp Pipe Technologies - The Road To Demasked
Continued...
N-S: What are your current plans for implementing the Demasked/Magellan Suite? Have the original talks with developers and publishers provided any benefits to bringing your product to the public?
CP : We have been talking to developers since E3, and they are incredibly excited about Demasked's capabilities and the opportunities that come with it, particularly a segment of Demasked called "ant-farm ". We will begin speaking with publishers this year at E3. I would personally like to work with one publisher exclusively, but we'll see how the rollout ends up. Shortly after E3, barring strong interest by a particular publisher, we will be pursuing our first major round of financing.
N-S: Are you able to elaborate more on what "ant-farm" is?
CP : I can tell you what ant-farm is not. Ant-farm is not simply a fisher price toolkit, allowing developers to easily write network code on top of a pre-built community environment while publishers hemorrhage money, ala GameSpy . Ant-farm allows for complete artistic and development freedom, allowing publishers to profit from owning their online infrastructure. We are currently in a time where everything is cut and paste, and the community experience between each game is non-distinguishable, minus games that cost millions to implement and run these features. It's a vicious cycle that hasn't broken because developers are struggling to keep pace with the street date, and some publishers don't mind treating their online infrastructure as marketing expense when they should be treating it as a revenue stream and a way to form a lasting relationship with their customers.
N-S: How far into development is ant-farm? Do you have a working prototype as of yet?
CP : We are wrapping up our prototype as we speak, and we look forward to test driving it with our community sometime after E3.
N-S: will it work with current software such as Metroid Prime: Hunters or other similar wireless play games?
CP: That ' s an interesting question. One thing about ant-farm that have developers reeling, and I hope it is something publishers will learn to appreciate, is the fact that it will consolidate legacy application servers. This will allow today's online games, and even games of yore (Chu Chu Rocket , very hypothetically) to be played indefinitely by gamers without any added infrastructure cost to the publisher. Again, there is a good example of our tripod philosophy. However, ant-farm cannot make games without an online infrastructure suddenly spring to life with new online functionality.
N-S: While we're on the subject, to clear any confusion, WPT has no connection with GameSpy Networks , correct?
CP : Most definitely, we have absolutely nothing to do with GameSpy Networks in any fashion. We are not interested in borrowing from the PC gaming culture and bringing that into the console space. The current segment of online consoles is very much a borrowed culture. We realize that, on a whole, console gaming habits -- especially when it comes to online gaming -- differs from the PC environment and we look forward to fostering a culture, specific to the console.
N-S: There have been rumours flying around that Demasked is not solely for the Nintendo DS any more, if this is indeed true, how will the software interact, and what platforms are they planned for?
CP : As stated earlier, Magellan was slated to debut with the Nintendo DS. We are obviously very respectful of Nintendo and we enjoy their products. As it stands, Demasked is very heterogeneous. Demasked could be used in all three next-generation consoles including the two current-generation handhelds.
N-S: Very interesting - as it stands right now, Demasked seems to be a tool for developers. Is there any aspect of it that will be intended directly for the end user, other than the fact that it could be included in future game software?
CP: It's more of a platform than a tool, but it really knows no genre. Right now it's still trying to find its identity. My biggest concern is putting publishers and developers to task, making them use Demasked to its fullest extent. I say this, because it could easily be abused on behalf of publishers and developers who are only interested in profiting off of it, using it only for cost containment and ease of deployment.
This is why we are very wary on partnering at the moment. We would like to partner with a publisher exclusively; however that publisher must show us a commitment to delivering these new possibilities to gamers. I did not get into this business solely to make profit, I'm here because there is a void and we are going to fill it. Therefore, partnering with any one company can be a curse or a blessing. Nintendo ' s recent announcement regarding DS online is a positive thing, it shows they are committed to the changing their corporate culture to be more responsive to their consumer, I'd like to see more of that in the industry.
N-S: Since you brought up GDC, has their network announcement (and the rumours of their partnership with GameSpy ) changed any of the philosophies or aspects of the Demasked project? Do you see it as competition or inspiration?
CP: With respect to any future relationship with Nintendo, I think it was a move in the right direction. Overall, it was a very positive thing. When we tried to open a dialogue with Nintendo at E3 2004, they were simply not ready. The priority was with the launch of the DS, they were trying to stave off online functionality as much as possible. Their announcement at GDC showed a lot of courage. I ' m assuming they chose GameSpy as a quick stopgap solution. I wouldn't expect GameSpy to be involved past the Nintendo DS, but this is purely speculation on my part. Either way, it doesn't affect our business, as ant-hill would be able to integrate into their current and future infrastructure, whether or not they decide to continue their relationship with GameSpy .
N-S: There has been much mention of a component of this suite called "Chorx"; it is arguably the most sought after part of Demasked, in terms of wanting to know what it is... So, what is it?
CP: The Chorx are characters in a game we will be releasing shortly after E3, called "Ahhh-choo!". It is the vessel that will allow us to put ant-hill in a live testing environment.
N-S: What platform will it be released on? For testing, I'm assuming the PC will be the initial platform?
CP : For the sake of maximum accessibility, it will be a flash game. However, I think it would make a great handheld game. We'll see what the future holds for the Chorx.
N-S: Is it developed internally or have you contracted an outside source to create the Chorx?
CP: It's about as unique and quirky as the company itself. It was inspired by a conversation we had in the car during E3 2004 about infectious diseases. It was designed by myself and developed internally by Tushar Singh, our CTO, and our staff. The art direction is from the author of the Demasked logo, our Creative Director, Jon Willcox.
N-S: Barring any unforeseen circumstances, how soon after E3 do you plan on showcasing the Chorx?
CP: It really depends on what happens at E3. Our main priority will be securing capital around that time.
N-S: You mentioned earlier that start-up companies in this industry are not an easy thing to do, what obstacles did you have to overcome to get WPT where it is today?
CP: Sadly, the video game industry is no longer primarily about video games. It's all about intellectual property, corporate positioning, acquisitions, and making shareholders happy.
The video game has become nothing more a commodity to some publishers, it's the tragic result of the industry's own success. This is why we are very vigilant as to who we decide to partner with, as I do not want Demasked to be solely a tool which decreases operating costs while shareholders benefit from a higher dividend.
On the other hand, this is business, and we do look forward to growing and helping other companies who use our technology for game innovation and community relations. When the satisfaction of gamers is the bottom line, the market will truly grow past the very dedicated and loyal PC and casual gamerswho enjoy Grand Theft Auto to a much larger and diverse market which include Women and Men over the age of 40. One of the few market externalities that I believe will work in our favor is the abundance of disaffected developers who are being pushed to deadline on completely uninspiring products. We look forward to assembling a very spirited team that will put the passion, which is currently lacking, back into the industry.
N-S: While you are releasing a demo game with the Demasked infrastructure, do you plan on becoming a game development studio as well as a middleware tool house (e.g. the Demasked Suite)?
CP : That ' s an interesting choice of words. I suppose you would traditionally think of Demasked as middleware, however I do not. Ideally, we would be much more involved in the deployment and implementation process from the infrastructure point of view, all the way to advising on game integration. However, yes, we have several game play ideas we would like to see happen after theorizing and conceptualizing the possibilities that go along with Demasked. We have one game design, in particular, called "City Block" which I very much look forward to seeing in the future.
N-S: How do you believe WPT will fare against companies like EA and GameSpy , who are arguably better known and have a huge hold on the gaming industry at large?
CP : I try not to look at it as an "us" vs. "them" approach. The industry is very large and is composed of many segments; there are gaps in their product offerings that we will fill and vice versa. If this generation has taught us anything it is that there can be no one ultimate publisher or developer that can be everything to everyone, I see that as a good thing.