Interview: Secret of the Solstice Product Manager, Alfred A. Austria

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Written by ReesyCup

Friday, 28 March 2008 20:55

Secret of the Solstice Product Manager, Alfred A. Austria took some time out of his busy schedule to speak with us about their popular mmorpg and fills us in on what you can expect from a game this gaining serious momentum in the gaming world. We learned about its migration to the North American market, details on Solstice Events, and Outspark's focus on the community. Have a look at everything he had to say.



MMOFury	The outlook of the game is very different and unique. Can you brief us with the general idea behind the game?

Alfred A. Austria	Secret of the Solstice is based on a story where the characters find themselves in the middle of an ancient conflict between the remnants of a once glorious kingdom and a tyrant who has cursed the land. Players train to become a soldier of Xen, and at level 16 they can choose to become one of four classes. Players then level to become Heroes of Xen. As the game progresses, players can take part in story-based events that will eventually lead to the discovery of the Secret of the Solstice, the defeat of the powerful and evil tyrant Alastor, and saving the world.

MMOFury	Development process is always very difficult. How challenging was the developing process of Secret of the Solstice and what major issues did you face during the development?

Alfred A. Austria	Outspark is not the developer of Secret of the Solstice, we are the publisher. Secret of the Solstice was developed in Korea by DnC Entertainment. As a publisher, the hardest part is localizing the game to fit the North American market. We had to translate the text, and then localize the dialogue which is a very long and tedious task. MMORPG’s contain a lot of text for quests, items, NPC dialogue, error messaging, and functions. Another part of localization is game balance and distinguishing between North American gamers and players from other parts of the world. There are major differences between these gamer types and being able to fit the game to the market determines its success. As we continue to operate the game, we work closely with DnC to introduce new items that our players will enjoy.

MMOFury	What key features have been submerged in the game and are they added to attract a specific group of users?

Alfred A. Austria	As a customer-centric games publisher, we try to cater to the needs of all our players – whatever type they may be. Secret of the Solstice has features that cater to both experienced and new players, and we also hold daily, weekly and monthly events in the game for everyone. An example of a special event would be “The Awakening,” which includes elements from the game story intertwined with daily play. In The Awakening, a city is suddenly attacked by the game’s arch-villain, Alastor – monsters appear and start attacking the players. They must defend the cities from these attacks within a certain period of time in order to succeed. The reward is an experience boost over the weekend. The rate of increase is dependent on the time it takes to defend the city. We have a lot of daily events for casual users like trivia contests, mini-games, storytelling, weddings and many different types of parties. These include events based around holidays and even NPC birthdays. During the events, players get a chance to hang out with the community and the Game Masters (GMs). At parties players can also win free items and other prizes. Once in a while the parties are crashed by monsters and villains; this is an element that adds a lot of fun and excitement to each event and the players really enjoy it. All these events are run by Outspark Game Masters and each week we come up with new events that incorporate in-game features, premium items, and interactive fun.



MMOFury	Can you briefly explain the combat system, various kinds of items, classes, characters and other related key elements that are present in Secret of Solstice and will appeal to the user?

Alfred A. Austria	Secret of the Solstice has 4 main class types and 2 prestige classes. Players begin the game as regular citizens of Xen (called Xenians). At level 16 they can choose to become part of a specific class guild – Fighter, Rogue, Mage and Acolyte. Players then level up in each class through 3 distinct tiers. At level 45, the Rogue and the Acolyte are given the option of branching into the Archer and Templar Prestige class. The Fighter is your basic melee & tank class. Rogues hide in the shadows and strike with speed. Mages deal powerful magic damage and Acolytes heal and protect other players. Archers attack from a distance with their deadly aim, while the Templar uses holy damage to destroy his enemies. Depending on their class, Secret of the Solstice players have access to a variety of different skills and items. These include ranged, melee and area of effect attacks, along with buffs you can use on yourself or against your opponents. In game items range from weapons and armor to potions and accessories. Secret of the Solstice has a cash shop where players can purchase premium items with SparkCash. Players can buy awesome costumes to customize the look of their characters, along with power-up items that increase experience or stat attributes like hit points, speed, etc. Other premium items that are available include emoticons, pets and potions.

MMOFury	Since the release of its open beta version last December, what has been the general response of the users towards the Secret of Solstice?

Alfred A. Austria	Secret of the Solstice has been well received by our community and we have players of all ages, genders and locations around the world. They love the game play, the classic feel of the graphics and the numerous in-game features like raising pets, joining events and the premium items. The one feature of Secret of the Solstice that stands out the most is the player community. We have an amazing group of friendly, colorful and engaged players that spend a majority of their time hanging out in game, holding their own events and parties and chilling with our game masters. At Outspark we believe that community is the most important aspect of any online game and keeping the community happy, engaged and really listening to the players is what we strive to do.

MMOFury	An interactive community is very necessary in the promotion of any kind of game. How do you plan to develop the gaming community of Secret of Solstice?

Alfred A. Austria	Our game features an interactive storyline that is very much controlled by the actions of the community and the players. Some NPC’s are role-played by game masters and these characters spend time in game with the players and listen to their everyday needs, suggestions, and really just hang out with them. Our game masters also spend time talking to players whether it be in-game, through the forums, fan sites and chat rooms; they really try to listen to player feedback and think about ways to make the game even better. Then we try to implement or change the game based on these suggestions. Just the other day, there was an in-game poll asking users if they wanted us to increase the drop rate of a certain item needed for a specific quest. We told the players to get a minimum amount of sign offs on the increase and they did. We then increased the drop rate based on player feedback. While we can’t make every single change the community wants, we do our best to listen to their feedback and think about how it can make the game better. This is the level of service we at Outspark are trying to maintain with all our current products and any future games we will have.

MMOFury	You have gained success in other markets, what are the steps and strategies being used by you to attract US users towards the game?

Alfred A. Austria	There really is no magic formula; the most important thing is to know your game, know your customers and use that knowledge to offer a great service. If the game play and features you have to offer really fit your target market, then the players will follow.

MMOFury	And they definitely have. We thank you for taking some time to get these questions answered and will stay tuned for more from Secret of the Solstice, more information can be found in our game database and users may download Secret of the Solstice here.