Cryptic Hired Bill Roper

[Alex Handy]

Wow, that should help make Champions Online stand out:

Cryptic Studios Hires Industry Veteran Bill Roper
Los Gatos, CA – November 3, 2008 – Cryptic Studios™, one of the leading independent developers of massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs), announced today that Bill Roper has joined the company as Design Director and will be working on Champions Online™.
“Bill brings a ton of creative energy to the Cryptic office and we’re thrilled to have him join our team,” said John Needham, Chief Executive Officer for Cryptic Studios. “His years of gaming and online experience are huge assets to all of our projects, and Bill will assist us in furthering our studio’s vision to create innovative, exciting MMO gameplay.”
“Cryptic has experienced huge growth over the past year and has exciting opportunities ahead of it,” said Bill Roper, Design Director, Cryptic Studios. “The company knows how to choose compelling IPs that have rich histories such as Champions and Star Trek. I’m looking forward to working with the team.”

As a 14-year game industry veteran, Roper has worked directly on numerous top selling titles, including the Warcraft, Starcraft and Diablo series. He joined Blizzard Entertainment in 1994 to work in sound, music and voiceover, eventually being appointed as Vice President of Blizzard North and a Director of Blizzard Entertainment where he managed all external projects and coordinated internal development teams. In 2003, Roper co-founded Flagship Studios and Ping0 where he held the role of CEO for five years and oversaw the launch of Hellgate: London and development of Mythos.

Cryptic Studios, headquartered in Los Gatos, is currently in production of two highly anticipated MMO action games, Champions Online and Star Trek® Online. Champions Online, based on the popular Champions™ pen-and-paper RPG and published by 2K Games, will give players the power of total customization for their hero experience while they explore a vast comic book universe. Set in the year 2409, Star Trek Online will allow players to immerse themselves in the future of the Star Trek universe, exploring strange new worlds, seeking out new life and new civilizations in an ever expanding vast universe.

For more information about Cryptic Studios, please log onto www.crypticstudios.com

[Telefrog]

Um... Yay?

[Sol Invictus]

Hah. I can see the boycotts coming from a mile away.

[MSUSteve]

I'm looking forward to Champions Online and this does nothing to dampen my excitement.

[Coca Cola Zero]

Sounds like good news for Champions Online (though I don't care at all about that title), if you ask me. Just because FSS was a clusterfuck doesn't mean Roper doesn't add immense value in certain roles (including design director).

[Sam Jones]

If they've got any sense, there'll be a clause in his contract that states that the only thing he's allowed to buy from the canteen is humble pie.

[Jag]

Put me down for 1 Lifetime Subscription!

[Tim James]

I was thinking in Internet world this would be lame, but in the business world this is probably a great move because he can share all his lessons learned, telling them what not to do. On the other hand, Cryptic already has City of Heroes under their belts.

[sventest]

Bill is good peeps. Good for Bill and for Cryptic.

[Balasarius]

Just keep him away from the checkbook.

[Anaxagoras]

I was thinking in Internet world this would be lame, but in the business world this is probably a great move because he can share all his lessons learned, telling them what not to do. On the other hand, Cryptic already has City of Heroes under their belts.


I don't understand. He has a string of awesome awesome games under his belt, and one dud. That seems like a pretty good record by anyone's standard.

Am I missing something? (Honest question... I don't follow the personalities of the game industry all that closely.)

[Spect]

Put me down for 1 Lifetime Subscription!

No, please just transfer my worthless HG:L lifetime subscription to this title.

[intruder]

I don't understand. He has a string of awesome awesome games under his belt, and one dud. That seems like a pretty good record by anyone's standard.

Am I missing something? (Honest question... I don't follow the personalities of the game industry all that closely.)

After it was clear that HGL was not the game it was hyped to be people claimed that Bill didn't do that much at Blizzard and mainly was famous because he was the one talking to the press over there.
If that is true or not I don't know.

[beloved one]

After it was clear that HGL was not the game it was hyped to be people claimed that Bill didn't do that much at Blizzard and mainly was famous because he was the one talking to the press over there.
If that is true or not I don't know.

I mean, you do some very successful work with a very successful group of people for many years. Then you spend some years on your own vision with your own set of people... The group you left continue to enjoy success in your absence, but the project you lead fails. It's just not exactly a shining course of events.

[AndrewM]

The group you left continue to enjoy success in your absence, but the project you lead fails. It's just not exactly a shining course of events.

Yeah, it isn't like he wrote many successful novels, and the last one flopped. Nowadays games are the product of gigantic teams of people, so it is hard to tell, from the outside, exactly who or what is responsible for the result.

[Sol Invictus]

While bashing one guy can become pretty tiresome (I know, I'm guilty of this. I'm sorry.), I do agree that crediting someone for the work of entire teams is just as bad. In this case it's especially evident, being that Blizzard Entertainment didn't fall apart at his departure, and the company he founded happened to achieve the exact opposite of what anyone would expect.

Whether he truly "learned from his mistakes" remains to be seen, and anyone who spent money on a lifetime subscription or believed the PR he was talking up before, and even after Hellgate's release has every understandable right to be skeptical about his latest venture. 150 dollars is no small amount of money -- that's a year's worth of subscription for a full fledged MMORPG like World of Warcraft or Warhammer Online, or the price of three major games: Fallout 3, Dead Space and Little Big Planet. All of these games have more value (even replay value) than a lifetime subscription of Hellgate: London.

[Mordrak]

...and anyone who spent money on a lifetime subscription or believed the PR he was talking up before, and even after Hellgate's release has every understandable right to be skeptical about his latest venture.

You should always be skeptical of PR. If someone has something to sell you, don't believe a word they say.

[Joe M.]

I would buy a lifetime subscription to WoW.

I would not buy a lifetime subscription for some random unproven non-MMO game that has suffered serious, unresolved issues since beta. That's just plain silly.

I'm sorry for feeding the troll.

[Foxstab]

This is bad comedy.

[Mordrak]

I would buy a lifetime subscription to WoW.


And that's exactly the reason why they won't offer one.

[Tim James]

I don't understand. He has a string of awesome awesome games under his belt, and one dud. That seems like a pretty good record by anyone's standard.

Am I missing something? (Honest question... I don't follow the personalities of the game industry all that closely.)Hey, don't pick my quote! I thought it was probably a good business decision, at least for all I know about the situation. :)

[Desslock]

And that's exactly the reason why they won't offer one.

They should offer them to the guy with 36 accounts out of pity.

But yeah, they'd lose a lot of money offering lifetime accounts - those are really only offered when the MMO producer needs some quick cash and/or needs to compromise long term profit in order to desperately try to build a sustainable long-term user base. What are the games that offered lifetime accounts - Hellgate..D&D Online...Saga over Ryzom, er...

[Coca Cola Zero]

How can they offer lifetime subscriptions to that which has ... no life?

[Mordrak]

They should offer them to the guy with 36 accounts out of pity.

But yeah, they'd lose a lot of money offering lifetime accounts - those are really only offered when the MMO producer needs some quick cash and/or needs to compromise long term profit in order to desperately try to build a sustainable long-term user base. What are the games that offered lifetime accounts - Hellgate..D&D Online...Saga over Ryzom, er...


LOTRO also had a lifetime subscription, which would have been a decent investment if you got it initially. However, you couldn't have known it would be. Actually, they found labels in the code of the latest WOW clients for paid hair style changes. It's basically been confirmed it's for micro transactions in the future. Blizzard's probably just going to use it as another way to milk money from their huge subscriber base, but it also might be used in the future as a way to reduce or prevent increasing subscription costs to retain and gain users. However, if the past is any indication, I doubt they'll need to take those kind of measures to maintain the size of their subscription base.

[Jafisob]

Does this mean that Champions Online will have no respecs, mail, auction, or good GUI at launch?

[Sol Invictus]

The Champions Online community is having a mixed reaction over all of this, but leveling false accusations against EA never gets old, it seems:

I wouldn't blame Hellgate's failure on this guy though, I'd blame it on EA. EA has shown to me time and again to be a rather low quality company with non-existant customer support and the desire to screw over customers with hidden programs that prevent them from playing their game (see: SecuROM).

Here's what a dev said:

Bill wasn't hired just with Champions in mind; he's actually the Design Director of Cryptic as a whole. He'll be able to take on some of the duties that I've got. Truthfully, this will put me more into the rule of a designer, rather than a manager of designers.

One of Bill's talents, probably back from his Blizzard days, is adding that extra layer of polish to make a game great. I think that we'll be entering that with Champions...so it's a good time. for him to join the team. Besides, when someone of Bill's experience and talent comes along, you snatch them up! It's REALLY hard to get people that good.

All that Hellgate stuff aside, since when did Bill Roper have proper game design experience? AFAIK he contributed to the manual layouts and do voiceover/sound related work at Blizzard. He certainly played no part in the actual game design of Diablo and Diablo II, or even Hellgate: London for that matter. Managing corporate interests and marketing isn't the same thing at all. It's like hiring Ken Kutaragi to design your game.

[Foxstab]

Actually, they found labels in the code of the latest WOW clients for paid hair style changes. It's basically been confirmed it's for micro transactions in the future.
You can bet it'll get activated in Asia in addition to, or in exchange for, the hourly charge per account.


Bill wasn't hired just with Champions in mind; he's actually the Design Director of Cryptic as a whole. He'll be able to take on some of the duties that I've got. Truthfully, this will put me more into the rule of a designer, rather than a manager of designers.

Dear god...there goes the neighborhood.
Oh well, I was holding low expectations out of STO, but now there truely is no hope.
Moving on to SW:TOR...waiting for the other shoe to fall.

One of Bill's talents, probably back from his Blizzard days, is adding that extra layer of polish to make a game great.
Yeah, okay...I've just laughed so hard, I punctured a rib. I'm dead.
Bethesda fans rejoice.


I'm done, I don't want to play games anymore. It's all like a poor DNA strand that's been through mytosis one time too many, all degraded, deteriorated, twisted and unfunctional.
The double helix been exhausted to boot and turned moot.
Everywhere I look, just same morally bankrupt persons, same rehashes and clones, zero evolution, zero innovation.
I'm going to stick to old school games, where it was still creative and fun, instead of hardware demanding and 99% eye candy with 1% design.

It's like hiring Ken Kutaragi to design your game.
Or your console, apparently.

SIX HUNDRED NINTY NINE YOU ASS DOLLARS!

[Ergo]

I'm done, I don't want to play games anymore.
Excellent. Does that mean you'll stop posting here? We'd all be down with that.

[Jag]

Actually, they found labels in the code of the latest WOW clients for paid hair style changes. It's basically been confirmed it's for micro transactions in the future. Blizzard's probably just going to use it as another way to milk money from their huge subscriber base, but it also might be used in the future as a way to reduce or prevent increasing subscription costs to retain and gain users. However, if the past is any indication, I doubt they'll need to take those kind of measures to maintain the size of their subscription base.

Hair changes are implemented already and free. Blizz has already said they are considering micro charges for new changes that they may implement, similar to paid transfers. I think one example I read was face changing.

[Alex Handy]

I should probably let everyone know, now, that Cryptic has been on a MAJOR hiring binge for the last 3 months. Maybe longer. They've had ads on Craigslist for everythign from community manager to star trek UI designer. Roper just came along at the right time, I'd imagine. Experience is always a good thing when hiring. Even bad experience.

[mike]

Zug Zug.

[Acosta]

All that Hellgate stuff aside, since when did Bill Roper have proper game design experience? AFAIK he contributed to the manual layouts and do voiceover/sound related work at Blizzard. He certainly played no part in the actual game design of Diablo and Diablo II, or even Hellgate: London for that matter. Managing corporate interests and marketing isn't the same thing at all. It's like hiring Ken Kutaragi to design your game.

Well, he was senior producer in Diablo 2 and Managing Producer in Hellgate, which probably means experience managing a team. I think that´s the point here, managing a group of designers, more than designing.

I like Bill Roper and Cryptic will probably benefit from his experience and mistakes. Good luck.

[Sol Invictus]

I want the captain of the Titanic to navigate my fleet.

[Kunikos]

I prefer the drunken captain of the Exxon Valdez. He's a real party animal.

[jfletch]

It's the Dave Wannstedt principle. Didn't the other architects of Flagship go on to Turbine? Exactly the same thing. Doesn't matter how much you screwed up your last MMO (okay, "MMO"), you'll always find a job working on other one. The bigger the failure the better!

[EvilIdler]

I want the captain of the Titanic to navigate my fleet.

He certainly wouldn't be so cocky, so a good choice.

[Kalle]

I want the captain of the Titanic to navigate my fleet.

Oh just go away and do another doomed fansite already.

[RobotPants]

So wait, people are saying Roper had no influence on projects he's been on that have been great...but also that since he's now involved with other games his influence is going to make them turn out bad?

[Sol Invictus]

It's all EA's fault that Hellgate: London turned out bad and it's all to Bill Roper's praise that Diablo II turned out good. Or something like that. It all depends on who you talk to.

[Foxstab]

El Oh El

[CalvinGT]

El Oh El

Your contributions are so meaningful, it's a wonder they ever let you leave NMA.

[Spect]

It's the Dave Wannstedt principle. Didn't the other architects of Flagship go on to Turbine? Exactly the same thing. Doesn't matter how much you screwed up your last MMO (okay, "MMO"), you'll always find a job working on other one. The bigger the failure the better!

I have a huge issue with this mentality in the games industry. That you can fail so majorly, and still get a really decent job doing the same thing just blows my mind. To ice this cake, Cryptic should hire David Bowman and Brad McQuaid as lead designers. Oh, and rename the company Fail, Inc.

[Staff Sergeant]

Your contributions are so meaningful, it's a wonder they ever let you leave NMA.

They didn't let him, man, he escaped. Sadly, it was too late.

[Euthanasia]

Well, he was senior producer in Diablo 2 and Managing Producer in Hellgate, which probably means experience managing a team. I think that´s the point here, managing a group of designers, more than designing.

I like Bill Roper and Cryptic will probably benefit from his experience and mistakes. Good luck.

So he was Senior Producer on D2, but not LOD...

http://www.mobygames.com/game/windows/diablo-ii/credits

http://www.mobygames.com/game/windows/diablo-ii-lord-of-destruction/credits

[wildpokerman]

I actually prefer that WOW not offer a lifetime subscription because it gives them incentives to keep improving the game.

[Foxstab]

He had done a lot of voice acting, I understand that's his background.



Your contributions are so meaningful, it's a wonder they ever let you leave NMA.

Oh nice, trying to troll me, amusing.
My contribution was succinct. And I enjoy Sol's humour. File a law suit if you have an objection.
Don't worry, though, I still love you. Hugs and kisses.


It seems that after Romero, the approach to failure changed from egging on them to granting them new and improved jobs.
IMHO, Romero should've been the one to get the 2nd chance, I believe after that horrible experience he was very disilusioned about the process, and besides, it's not like he was a sucky designer to begin with, just a poor first-time-full-time manager.




EFG, I have a friend from Malaysia who's not a serious gamer, hardly an Internet person even (he's a sales promoter making the big bucks on huge commissions and his ISP suck, so he doesn't play much or hang on the Internet much) but he has played the previous fallouts and today he came to me after he got fallout 3 and had this to say:
"wtf did they do to fallout3?!
it cant decide to be a FPS or a RPG
THANKFULLY IT ONLY COST ME 1 BUCK TO FIND OUT [ed note: welcome to Malaysia, capitol of cheapass, no originals but lots of 23rd hand recycled sales] and i still feel CHEATED
those ppl deserved to be bloody messed what they did is unforgivable
all the humor is missing too"
He didn't even know it's not from the same creators, and no, he has no knowledge who NMA are.
Would you like to put him on the stake as well?

[Sol Invictus]

Tell your friend from Malaysia that he has no right to whine, especially since he's making big bucks and all.

I'm from Malaysia and I bought the game. It's easy, just go to Play-Asia.com or PCgame.com.my if you can't be bothered to go down to the KLCC. Shipping is free. There's really no excuse to buy pirated games. None.

Beyond that, what the hell is he talking about? Fallout 3's combat is far superior to that of Fallout 1 and 2, and from his reference to "humor", it sounds like he only ever played Fallout 2, which was more rife with pop culture and Monty Python references than any actual storyline. The dialog was good (as it is Avellone's signature) but most Fallout purists weren't too fond of the so-called "setting", which almost seemed to ignore the 1950s theme established by the original game.

Fallout 3 is a return to Fallout's roots, retconning most of the stuff that seemed out of place in Fallout 2 (tribals) and Fallout Tactics (most of it). The main story might not be very good, but the sidequests, the setting and the characters in general are pretty well done.

I really don't see what's so 'unforgivable' about what Bethesda did with Fallout 3. Perhaps you'd like to elaborate on what your pirate pal meant by that? The humor? Fallout 3 has plenty of dark humor. Just because he doesn't get it doesn't mean it isn't there.

Also, I find it rather sad that he fits into the stereotype of the Malaysian Internet User who can't type proper sentences without freaking out mid-delivery.

Disclaimer: I'm not attacking you.

[Foxstab]

Haha, I should get you two together, then. You can complain and rant about your government to each other and stuff.
Besides, who isn't a stereo type on the Internet? It is The Internet, afterall.


One day I'll need to pick inside some garbage bin and grab a rotten copy of it so that I may counter your arguments proper on equal grounds.
Until then, I'd have to go by media reviews.

Personally, I found humour in Fallout 1, surprised you haven't; being the cynical bastard that you are I'd expect us to share similar sarcastic *taste* (no, this isn't an Orz reference!).


P.S.
He also ragged on EndWar for not having an Asian power, but he loved it otherwise. :P

[Ergo]

Jesus Christ, the Fallout rage-nerds are infecting random threads.

[Sol Invictus]

I don't care about the "situation" with the Malaysian government. I think that a lot of people make a big deal out of nothing. They should just exercise their right to vote if it bothers them so much. It's not like we're living in Thailand or Indonesia here.

Honestly, I don't think you should be bashing Fallout 3, especially if you haven't played it. You're only going by the most negative of reviews without actually tampering what you take from them with the positive reviews of the game, which are numerous. Thinking that they were somehow 'bribed' by Bethesda is silly and conspiratorial. All you're doing is amplifying the negativity and demonizing Fallout 3 into something that it isn't.

Fallout 1 had humor, but like Fallout 3, it was largely subtle and nowhere as crass as the Monty Python references, exploding toilet, Pinky and the Brain and other rubbish in Fallout 2. Fallout is not meant to be a 'humorous' game at all. It is a mature game, with a mature setting. Bad things happen. They aren't supposed to be funny. You can certainly make light of some of the things that happen from time to time, but it's really not meant to be a comedy.

The dwarf Regulator (whose name was Stunty, if I recall) was pretty funny, and the situation with the "Iguana-on-a-stick" was pretty funny, too, especially when you discovered that you were really eating human meat. It's dark humor, and like Fallout 1, Fallout 3 has it in droves. It's just not an ocean of pop culture references like Fallout 2 was, and that is a good thing. I don't need Paris Hilton in my mature post-apocalyptic games, thanks.