Kotaku
A sharp-eyed reader points out that Blizzard added three new positions on their job openings page yesterday for a "next-gen MMO."
The company is looking for a lead engine programmer, lead tools programmer and lead technical artist. While the reader theorizes that this is for a console port of World of Warcraft, my money is on World of Starcraft or something like it.
Remember, yesterday was also when Blizzard told us that they intend to announce a new product at th Worldwide Invitational in Korea on May 19. They also said they do plan to revisit the StarCraft universe at some point in the future.
What do you think? A new World of Warcraft, a Starcraft MMO, oooh, maybe Lost Vikings the MMO?
Job Postings [Blizzard, thanks Ryne]
Comments
I will murder them all if they make a Lost Vikings mmo.
Those games had impossible amounts of swish emmitting from them. Two of my favourite games ever. If they so much as dare to make a 3D lost vikings game (mmo or not), I'll be very upset. And we all know that when gamers get upset, they kill.
World of Warcraft 2? Naw, I doubt that, what with the expansion still hooking people better than meth.
I could see a "World of Starcraft," to get the remaining geeks that have yet to be taken in by WoW. Three factions could be cool. And if they make it an FPS MMO (like Planetside) then I'll have to strap on the ol' adult diaper, because I might not get away from my computer ever again.
Diablo MMO could be interesting. Can you imagine a 40 man raid to kill Satan himself?
Damn you, Blizzard. I just got off your WoW teat eight months ago. Now you're trying to suck me back in!?
Oh hell yes. Can you imagine a cooperative multiplayer version of Lost Vikings in 2D? Just a dream.
Diablo 3 should be a hack-n-slash MMORPG style based game. Very different, very cool. :)
Lost Vikings! One of my first video games. Just seeing that makes me want to play it again, wow I loved those games.
@Elixir: You could play lost Vikings 2 players on the SNES and probly everything else it was on.
Oh nooooooo I hope they dont ruin Starcraft by making it a MMO. If they do then we know blizzard is dead. The only place for Starcraft is in a RTS game.
@Elixir:
You mean the original games...
Lost Vikings MMO ftw, chose from one of 3 classes.
@aden.exe:
You know, minus the first one. So just the second.
I liked Blizzard more back when they weren't a MMOG developer. In fact, they used to be my favorite developer. They don't cater to me, the MMOG hating gamer, anymore.
If they make a Starcraft MMO microsoft should pay huge money to make it exclusive. This would really help the 360 in the Korean, Japanese, etc market. I would also be big in the rest of the world because of the success of WoW and the good will towards Blizzard.
a "World of Starcraft" with real time combat similar to HellGate: London sure would be swell.
/vote Starcraft MMO, the gaming world needs a sci-fi MMO that doesn't suck or isn't extremely dated.
They have a MMO, go back to Diablo allready!
Hmmmm, a next-gen Lost Vikings could cause a little competition with LittleBigPlanet
I really hope Starcraft 2 will be out... regardless of it being a MMO or RTS.
*sigh*
Blizzard tasted the blood of dirty MMO-money.
And so the chance of a RTS fell even further.
Damn, Lost Vikings? It would be totally AWESOME! :)
I LOVE ME SOME LOST VIKINGS!
...will it ever be released on the (Wii) virtual console, I wonder? :)
DIABLO III PLZ.
Starcraft is a strategy game - that's why we love it. It doesn't need to be an MMO, surely Blizzard realise that? I'm not interested in spending hundreds of hours as a Protoss Templar, hacking at Kakurus and Brontoliths to level up once every six months.
I'm a huge Starcraft fan but I have zero interest in an MMO game based on the Starcraft universe. The only effect a Starcraft MMO game would have is, it would cannibalize the number of WoW subscribers, and piss off all the people who loved Starcraft.
Awwww man I'm so gonna be the Zerg Lurker class. I'm gonna hide underground... and... shoot spines at things...
AWESOME!
Or maybe I can be the Zerg Defiler class! I'm gonna hide underground... and do... absolutely nothing. That is, until a group of people come by and I cast Plague! Then I hide again!
DOUBLE AWESOME!
So here's hoping for Starcraft 2.
I'd totally be Olaf !! Just think what they could do with all those farts in 3D.
Anyone play the sequel for the PS1? It was cool except they added a fucking dragon and wolf...Wait, those would be awesome for a MMO.
Fools. It's not Lost Vikings, Warcraft, Starcraft or even Diablo.
It's gotta be a Blackthorne MMO, of course. The fans would expect nothing less.
Starcraft MMRTS. Could be amazing.
Alright then, let's put together what we have!
1. A new MMO is in produktion
2. There are plans to revive the Starcraft Franchise
3. They are going to announce the "New Game" in KOREA - the craziest country about Starcraft on this Planet.
So, wouldn't it particularly make sense to do something over there? IMHO definitly!
I would be very surprised if this is the project they're announcing on May 19th. They're holding Blizzcon in August, and I'd imagine that means that WoW expansion number 2 and the project everyone thinks is Starcraft 2 will both be playable. This job is probably for something further down the road.
A Starcraft MMORTS game with a persistent universe that people fought over, if done well, would rock.
Regardless of what they announce, we probably won't see the final product for 4 or 5 years.
They need to make a current gen MMO first instead of that fucking saturday morning cartoon they have now
Lost Vikings! I thought I was the only person who had wet dreams about those silly Nords. Bring on some Lost Vikings!
Starcraft mmorts?
ZERG RUSH!
kekekekekekekeke^-^
I would rather get a starcraft 2 rts then. I liked the first one, but the only think I ask is...make it less cruel :(
That game made me feel stupid, foolish and painfully weak more then once.
There have been rumors that Diablo 3 was gonna be some type of MMO, so I'm gonna go with that over a MMO Starcraft.
The real Blizzard left and created their own company
This is the real Diablo sequel.
http://www.flagshipstudios.com/
for blizzards next game-
I hope it is a Starcraft game and if it is a MMO please make it drastically different that WoW and more RTS'ish
I am calling it right now:
Rock and Roll Racing 2: Electric Boogaloo
I'm hoping it's either a SC or Diablo MMO, but with a twist. Perhaps MMOFPS or something like that.
On the mmo side, they'll be keeping it Wow or push over to Diablo...that way they keep the sword/sorcery, so they'll keep most of the original Wow people.
A starcraft mmo? I think not.
WoW 2
I sure hope not World of Starcraft.
That would be the end of my life right there.
Personally. I think they will do what they did with the Warcraft series.
Put out an RTS to get people interested in the story again (and add depth to the universe), then drop the MMO bomb a couple of years later. WoW took what, 5 years to make? So if they announce Starcraft 2 (Announcing a game in Korea, it must be!) in May, it drops in late 2008 or early 2009. Starcraft Univerise or whatever hits in about 2011, 5 years from when they started hiring for a "next gen MMO" and just in time for people to finally leave WoW.
Quite the theory, I know, but it makes sense to me!
Blizzard had better make StarCraft 2 (the RTS!!!) soon. I'm going insane.
I'm going to go out on a limb and predict an entirely new franchise. (Which is probably just wishful thinking on my part.)
A World of Starcraft would be VERY cool.... but for god's sake, Blizzard. If you don't release Starcraft 2 first, I'll personally burn the testicles of the entire staff.
I'm torn between Starcraft2 and a World of Starcraft. I recently fell off the WoW bandwagon so I'm looking for something to replace it but I NEED Starcaft2. It is up to the fates to decide.
It's either going to be SC2. or WoW on the consoles. I can't see them announcing a new MMO based on SC until the WoW numbers die down.
the lost vikings...
BEST
GAME
EVER!
ok the pool is now open and i'm making the first bet:
$100 on Diablo 3 followed by Diablo MMO (just like they did with Warcraft III and WoW)
it makes sense to have the game first then the MMO with all the extended universe stuff
What form the game will take is dependent on the definition of "next-gen" that Blizzard has adopted. Are they working with "next-gen" as a way of determining the advancement of technology in general (i.e. "better than WoW!), or are they referring only to hardware/console advancements (x360/PS3)?
Then again, I'm the kind of guy who analyzes Cliffy B.'s essay in the GoW booklet.
p.s. I'm betting on the latter option.
World of Starcraft is just going to be World of Warcraft in space. Pssh.
(I secretly hope it takes off and becomes much more, like SC did to WC2)
Whatever it is, it will make a buttload of money...
Diablo 3 perhaps? Wasn't there a rumor that it was going to go MMO a while back?
I can't imagine a WoW console port. You simply NEED a mouse and keyboard for that game...
LOST VIKINGS! I remember getting a SNES when I was about 8 years old and when I was to buy a new game I choose Lost Vikings becuase of the cover looked cool. I wasn't disappionted! Although friiikin 100$ for a game was ALOT for a 9 year old. (Probably why I only had two games before the console broke)
Starcraft MMO? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
:( I want SC2 the RTS
RTS MMO FTW.
If anyone can pull it off it'd