I don't know if this has come up, but if you still have access to the (very distinctive) vocal talent used in the Animated Series, you might want to consider turning the project into a Radio Play. MP3 files that can be streamed from the web site could probably be produced at a fraction of the cost of an episode of the Animated Series. And for us story-hounds, it would feed the voracious appetite for more of the Anarchy Online backstory, for sure!
It's a good idea. I do think you'd need visuals (online comic book?) to go with the voices, but it's doable. Would the players listen in, though? I'm not so sure.Originally posted by Lily Inverse
I don't know if this has come up, but if you still have access to the (very distinctive) vocal talent used in the Animated Series, you might want to consider turning the project into a Radio Play.
I think the actors we used in the show were great, and I'd love to work with them again. But we'd also need to prove that this was something the players wanted, and not just a fun gimmick.
-Ragnar
((OOC, not related to AO story directly))
If you want to have a look at what some folks have done with narrated comic books go and have a look at cross*generation (www.crossgen.com - or do a google search if I got that wrong) for some examples. Not sure if they'd be willing to sell the tech. involved or not, but my limited knowledge of java script tells me it probably wouldn't be expensive to develop something like that from scratch. Of course, if they're prepared to sell or lease the tech. for a reasonable price then that may work out cheaper.
Visuals are always expensive. Even full-colour comic panels aren't cheap to produce.
Another idea on this (if your art team are as furiously busy as most art teams I know) would be to outsource some of this to the player base. Run some art contests or something - it'd probably generate quite a bit of interest and you'd get some quality artwork for a few pennies and a PR stunt
Crazynotion - Atrox Bureaucrat, RK1
Formerly posted as Mechanita
I'm not entirely sure visuals are an absolute necessity. After all, people can do a lot with a visual already in their heads, and you have four fully animated episodes up already. Even if you were to do only a small portion of episodes as full animations, that might be enough.
As to whether it's worthwhile for the player-base or just a fun gimmick, one thing to do is look at how popular the series is already. Another would be a poll.
Also, remember that a fairly large portion of the player-base still uses regular old dial-up, from what I'm given to understand. A lot of those players wouldn't watch the movies, because they're pretty gosh-darn BIG, big enough that they'd rather spend the time playing the game (doing both at the same time isn't an option.) I'm willing to bet that more players would listen to a radio drama than watch that, if it's going to be so much trouble to get every episode.
Of course, the bottom line is going to be the final consideration, but it strikes me as being a good idea, and probably economically viable if there's a demand for it.
Okay, taking the 'radio play' idea and running with it here:
Another possibility would be to rather than record full story material book some sessions to do some radio broadcast material: interviews with prominent characters (Radiman, Ross, etc.), maybe some discussion panels or just in-the-field journalism. Heck, even some ads or similar for various factions and suchlike would probably be cool!
There's enough player-run radio broadcast groups that would probably kill for stuff like this on mp3. It would, IMHO, add a lot of versimilitude to the world and make people feel really involved. Short radio snippets may well be considerably cheaper to produce than seperate story material, with the added bonus that it can either be in-game material or download-and-listen based on how the players in question want to address it.
I'll keep posting 'em as I think of 'em
C.
Crazynotion - Atrox Bureaucrat, RK1
Formerly posted as Mechanita
Ragnar,
People need to actually hear Ross and Radiman's voice so that they get a better 'feal' for what you write on the Story site.
You chose your voice actors well (except nobody seemed to like Eleena). When I read a speech by Radiman, I have the image of the powerful yet sensitive man with the deep endless voice delivering the message. Even if it's just words on a website.
MP3's are a standard part of life online these days.
If you had a link in the launcher that simply stated:
"Click here to hear Henry Radiman's thoughts on the impending arrival of ICC Peacekeepers on Rubi-Ka' and it simply linked to an MP3 'radio address' , I can guarantee it would be clicked on by a vast majority of players.
You know how when you watch CNN and there's some guy in a bunker in a war zone with no video feed as he's reporting? You get his image and some factoids on a sidebar and listen to his report. You put voice to face to situation.
A poll has been created
http://forums.anarchy-online.com/sho...threadid=47837
Thank you Zepto.
Looks like overall reaction's been positive. Also, Crazynotion's idea would be good too. If you can't continue the animated series (whether all the scripts you wrote have been thrown out or whatever) that would certainly be a nice alternative, especially with Ross, Radiman, and others.
It's almost 30,000 AD. Is it so much to ask that we be able to LISTEN to our leaders instead of just read what they said circa the 19th century?
It would be great if the leaders speeches were released as mp3's. Maybe given first to the radio stations such as gridstream. This would certainly add atmosphere.
I would like to see or hear most storyline, as reading the reports doesn't really give the same feel.
I agree with these posts... I would definetly listen.
Heck, I'd even settle for sub-par voice overs (read: cheap) if it meant I was able to hear the speech.
I'm against creating a radio show, but not because I don't think it's possible or because nobody would listen to it.
Rather, I think that a radio show goes against the 'feel' of Anarchy Online.
Try playing Anarchy Online and compare the visual to the auditory; I've noted that AO is actually very quiet and has an emphasis on the visual.
Whereas, a game like, oh, System Shock 2 (a game which I've been sinking into heavily while on an AO break) is pure auditory. Even Half-Life has more 'stuff' that you hear compared to AO.
In particular I look at the game, where rarely do the people speak and instead use text to communicate. Were you to present the radio show to someone, they wouldn't understand a thing that was going on unless you told the person who was Radiman and Ross. A comic book would work better because everyone already knows what the characters look like from the game.
This is pretty much normal for the format as a whole anyway, though. As an example, take the Star Wars radio plays. The vast majority of listeners KNOW what Luke, Leia, Han, Vader, etc. sound like. Yet several times an episode they work in ways to mention who is talking to whom, for those who might not know or might not be aware of it. It, surprisingly, doesn't need to sound particularly contrived, either. It just needs a bit of skill in working in ways to make it seem natural. Of the animated episodes already out, only the first one REALLY doesn't work without the visuals. You miss some of the subtle hints and foreshadowing without some of the pictures, but the sound alone conveys most of the ideas.Were you to present the radio show to someone, they wouldn't understand a thing that was going on unless you told the person who was Radiman and Ross.
It's really just a matter of writing to the format.
Agreed, but humans derive just as much, if not more, of their information from their ears as their eyes. The quietness of AO could distinctly work against it, but being able to add sound into the experience from outside, after the fact, can only serve to enrich the game. Ross, Radiman, even the Stranger seem more real to the players (from what I understand) because there's a VOICE to put with the faces.Try playing Anarchy Online and compare the visual to the auditory; I've noted that AO is actually very quiet and has an emphasis on the visual.
I don't see how, by adding something, you can take anything away from the in-game feel.
How this can be considered a bad idea is beyond me.
So what if the game is visual now? That's just all the more reason to introduce this audio component.
I like the idea someone said about doing a website/flash comic book with audio. That art wouldn't have to be good either... just black and white drawings would suffice. I think this would be cool as all get out.
Of course, what would be REALLY cool is to actually broadcast in game speeches by Radiman's and others via loud speakers. I bet it wouldn't take long to download (like a patch) these brief speeches. I for one wouldn't mind waiting a little bit longer to load the game because of them. For those that don't want to hear it or don't want to wait while they download, it could be an option to choose whether we want to download these audio speeches.
My main beef against the radio shows was artistic consistency. I didn't think that it would take away from the game, but the radio show wouldn't fit properly otherwise.
Danjaq, yes getting to hear the speeches would be very cool. As for comics with sound... all I have to say is Captain Euro.
OMG, the friggin' monkey things in System Shock 2. That game gave me the creeps more times than I can count.
"oooh oooh oooh ooh"
Martov, LOL! I just checked out that captain Euro... omg... that's funny in that sad, sad sort of way.
Bionitrous: The monkeys scared you? I just thought they were annoying as hell...
But a hybrid... HOLY **** HE'S RUNNING RIGHT AT ME AND YELLING 'RUN' OMIGOD MY PANTS ARE WET AND I'M SO SCARED!
The HYBRIDS? C'mon, what's scary is the protocol droids, especially when they ALL burst out of their pods at once.
"Hello! May I help you sir!"
KABOOM!
And you now know why I will never play an engineer or a 'crat. I can barely stand to LOOK at their low-level droids.
Ehhhhhhh... the bots were kinda scary.
But that image of the first room, where I opened the door (after seeing the ghost of, um, that doc who you just picked up a log from) and then a Hybrid just bursts out at me is tattooed in my brain. Even now, I have to summon up a lot of courage just to pop that CD into my computer.
Someone hasn't played on the highest difficulty, I see.
Go into Engineering, and right after you get the first card, TWENTY of them suddenly burst out of their shells, RIGHT BEHIND YOU!
That's certainly a lot more scary than the next level down, where it's usually only four or five.
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