Vanguard interview: Nick Parkinson

If you’ve ever played EverQuest in the past few years or so, then you might have caught wind of the (old) news that several core members of the original EverQuest development team had decided to form their own studio.

Well, those people went on to form Sigil Games, and come next year, their first title –  the fantasy MMORPG Vanguard: Saga of Heroes – will be touching down on PCs the world over.

So, what’s all the big fuss about Vanguard, anyway? Thanks to our esteemed net lemmings, we’ve uncovered a FiringSquad interview with Sigil Games community manager Nick Parkinson, so let’s give the guys responsible for the game a chance to answer some questions and give us a few more ideas of what to expect in the game.

Read on, dear reader.

On the Sigil-Microsoft split. Apparently, the rumor mill had put out an item that Microsoft wanted Vanguard to be a Windows Vista only title and Sigil wanted the game to have XP support as well. What’s Nick’s take on this? “I know its such an overdone PR line to say that weÂ’re still good friends with all the folks up there but itÂ’s the honest truth. ThereÂ’s a lot of good people up at Microsoft who put a lot of hard work into Vanguard and want to see it succeed just as much as we do.”

On teaming up with Sony Online. “This is a question we are asked a lot, and the simple answer is because for what we need theyÂ’re the best at, plain and simple. As our co-publisher, SOE will be handling distribution, data center operations (hosting the game, etc), technical (not in-game) support and will be helping us a lot with marketing. All areas where SOE really shines.”

Proximity seems to have helped, too. “TheyÂ’re just down the road from us here in San Diego and a lot of us have worked with them before, so weÂ’re already familiar with one another.”

On solo play. No, not THAT kind of solo play. The ability to do the whole game solo has been one of the things that drove World of Warcraft  to the top of the MMORPG heap, and since Vanguard is being designed around group team adventures, what does the game have in store for the lone wolf adventurer?

“Vanguard is, as you say, primarily a group centric game. However, thatÂ’s not to the complete exclusion of solo play. We do actually have quite a bit of solo content – not as much as group geared content, but enough to make sure thereÂ’s something meaningful to do for those who may not have the time or desire to find a group on any given night. That said, the best rewards are always going to be gained through working together with your fellow players in one way or another.”

Check out the whole interview by clicking on the ‘read’ link below. Go on. You know you wanna.

If you’ve ever played EverQuest in the past few years or so, then you might have caught wind of the (old) news that several core members of the original EverQuest development team had decided to form their own studio.

Well, those people went on to form Sigil Games, and come next year, their first title –  the fantasy MMORPG Vanguard: Saga of Heroes – will be touching down on PCs the world over.

So, what’s all the big fuss about Vanguard, anyway? Thanks to our esteemed net lemmings, we’ve uncovered a FiringSquad interview with Sigil Games community manager Nick Parkinson, so let’s give the guys responsible for the game a chance to answer some questions and give us a few more ideas of what to expect in the game.

Read on, dear reader.

On the Sigil-Microsoft split. Apparently, the rumor mill had put out an item that Microsoft wanted Vanguard to be a Windows Vista only title and Sigil wanted the game to have XP support as well. What’s Nick’s take on this? “I know its such an overdone PR line to say that weÂ’re still good friends with all the folks up there but itÂ’s the honest truth. ThereÂ’s a lot of good people up at Microsoft who put a lot of hard work into Vanguard and want to see it succeed just as much as we do.”

On teaming up with Sony Online. “This is a question we are asked a lot, and the simple answer is because for what we need theyÂ’re the best at, plain and simple. As our co-publisher, SOE will be handling distribution, data center operations (hosting the game, etc), technical (not in-game) support and will be helping us a lot with marketing. All areas where SOE really shines.”

Proximity seems to have helped, too. “TheyÂ’re just down the road from us here in San Diego and a lot of us have worked with them before, so weÂ’re already familiar with one another.”

On solo play. No, not THAT kind of solo play. The ability to do the whole game solo has been one of the things that drove World of Warcraft  to the top of the MMORPG heap, and since Vanguard is being designed around group team adventures, what does the game have in store for the lone wolf adventurer?

“Vanguard is, as you say, primarily a group centric game. However, thatÂ’s not to the complete exclusion of solo play. We do actually have quite a bit of solo content – not as much as group geared content, but enough to make sure thereÂ’s something meaningful to do for those who may not have the time or desire to find a group on any given night. That said, the best rewards are always going to be gained through working together with your fellow players in one way or another.”

Check out the whole interview by clicking on the ‘read’ link below. Go on. You know you wanna.