Carpe Diem is an exciting new MMORPG.The game features several new innovations that have not been tried before in MMO gameplay. Recently,I am glad to have an interview with Jonathan Latham,the Managing Director of Persistent Worlds the European Publisher of 9Dragons.Let him take us into the world of Carpe Diem.
Simon:To start, can you introduce yourself and tell us some info about your company?

Jonathan Latham:Hi, I am Jonathan Latham from Persistent Worlds. We are a new European company specialising in the publishing and operation of MMOs. We set up Persistent Worlds because we love playing MMO games and we really want to bring games to gamers that we love playing ourselves.

Simon:To many gamers, Carpe Diem might be an unfamiliar name. Can you make a basic introduction to your game? In your own words, how would you summarize Carpe Diem?

Jonathan Latham:Carpe Diem is Latin for "seize the day". We felt that this was very appropriate because Carpe Diem is all about seizing the opportunities in the game. Let me explain why. Most MMO games at the moment are moving towards instance based gaming. This is so that they can tell a story through the game play. However, we felt that this detracts from the feeling of being in a real world. We wanted to try and tell a story but be in a persistent world where there are always people around you. We decided to do this by using real people to interact with the gamers and play the role of the main villain. This keeps the game fresh and exciting because, instead of always having pre-programed events, things can now happened spontaneously around the players.

Simon: What are the salient features that will set Carpe Diem from other MMORPGs?

Jonathan Latham:Carpe Diem differs from most other MMO games in four major ways.Firstly, as I said above, a real human being plays the main protagonist in this game. This means that the game play is centered on the player because someone is actually reacting to what they are doing. I will explain how this works in a moment.
Secondly, we wanted to the game feel fast and furious, so most of the action takes place while mounted. You gain your mount very early in the game. However, unlike most other games, where the mount is merely a way of getting from one place to another, in Carpe Diem your mount has a character all of its own. It has its own stats, and will need looking after if it is to fight alongside you.
Thirdly, along with all of the other methods of grouping, there is a new feature that allows two players to combine as one fighting unit. We call this the possession system.
Fourthly there is a distinct story line with the objective of finding the four weapons of legend. Only through the combining of these weapons can Uzziel, the main protagonist in the story be challenged. There are lots of other features as well but we are keeping these under our virtual hats for the moment!

Simon:With many other options to choose from, what kind of gamer will find Carpe Diem most appealing?

Jonathan Latham:I really feel that the kind of gamer who finds instanced based games too unreal and claustrophobic will love Carpe Diem. In Carpe Diem the world feels real around you, friends and enemies can appear at any moment. However, you are engaged in a struggle that will make a difference to the world. If you can find the weapons of legend, then you can challenge Uzziel and break his hold.We are currently getting a lot of interest in beta testing so we will see how people feel about this when we go live.

Simon:The official website states that gamers are pitted against a real person in the form of Uzziel, so how did you come to this idea?

Jonathan Latham:The idea was based on wanting to tell a story within an MMO game. I have personally played many MMO games, and always find that after a period of time I am struggling to stay motivated to keep playing. I believe that it is the story, as well as the community, that keeps people coming back to a game. However, telling a story in a virtual world is quite difficult. One solution to this is to use instance based games. We felt that this was wrong because it destroys the feeling of being in a real world. So we decided to use real people to play the role of Uzziel in the game.
The story is based around an attack on the kingdom. Uzziel, the evil evoker is seeking to control the Kingdom by summoning armies of monsters to terrorise the people. The King has formed regiments of heroes to fight against this evil. The gamers are invited to join the regiments if they want. As well as defeating the existing summoned monsters, the regiments must find the weapons of legend, which are the only weapons powerful enough to challenge Uzziel. If the regiments can unite these weapons then they can mount a challenge on Uzziel. This means a pitched battle between all the players on the server and the legions of monsters summoned by Uzziel. However, these weapons are not easy to gain. Immensely strong Guardians protect them. These must be defeated before the regiments can wield the weapons. And the Guardians are fickle. They will only allow a regiment to hold a weapon for a short period of time before demanding that they defend it against any other regiment wishing to hold it. Holding the weapons gives the Regiment unique powers in the game. Every member of the regiment gains special skills and the captain of the regiment can summon the Guardian to fight alongside them.

Simon: What kind of trouble will bring to gamers by Uzziel?

Jonathan Latham:Uzziel will do his best to shock and surprise the gamers. He might, for example, summon random monsters to attack groups of players when they least expect it. He might also lay down challenges for regiments so that they, for instance, will have to defend a town from an attack by a large group of monsters. Or even, when a player is soloing, he might summon a large monster directly in the players¡® path.

Article By: Simon