I've been playing in the open beta for the MMORPG Lord of the Rings Online and have been having a lot of fun with it. The game is set in Eriador at the time of the first book. The graphics and gameplay are as good as I've seen in an MMOG but, not surprisingly, it's the content that sets it apart for me. It's not just being able to wander around the Shire, Breeland and Ered Luin—it's that the game designers have done a great job in conveying the rise of evil in those areas in the lead up to the War. In a way the game is showing a large part of what, by necessity was missing in the film adaptations. Of course, there's a huge amount the game designers have had to make up. But from what I've seen so far, it feels authentic.
Although it remains to be seen how they can pull this off over months or years, they have done a pretty decent job of handling the fact the main plot must move on even though players are all at very different stages of the game. There was a Ranger called Strider at the Prancing Pony in Bree when I went there (a Ranger in Ered Luin sent me to talk to him) but presumably later on, I'll be able to see Aragorn in Rivendell. The challenge is that presumably starting players will still see him in Bree.
If you're interested in MMOGs it's worth checking out, even if you're not into the Tolkien legendarium. But if you are, it's obviously an extra treat.
If you play, email me. I'm on the Landroval server.
by : Created on April 15, 2007 : Last modified April 15, 2007 : (permalink)
Google has announced the successful student applications for the 2007 Summer of Code. The Python Software Foundation is mentoring a total of 34 projects (list) and there are probably almost that many again related to Python but being done outside the PSF.
It will be a great summer for Python. Thanks Google!
by : Created on April 12, 2007 : Last modified April 12, 2007 : (permalink)
I haven't been blogging for the last few weeks because I've been back in Australia packing up all my stuff. Most of it has gone into storage with some stuff being shipped to Boston where I'll be spending most of my time over the next few months.
I'm in San Francisco at the moment, on my way to Boston this afternoon. Regular blogging should then resume, including (but not limited to) posts on the Google Summer of Code, Quisition, the Poincaré Project, Lord of the Rings Online and pre-production on my first feature film.
by : Created on April 11, 2007 : Last modified April 11, 2007 : (permalink)