| Behind the Scenes with Zmaster
Zmaster: Hey, Moxie, It's nice to chat with you. I'm excited to be here! I read your column each week and love your quirky comments.
Moxie: Quirky... you know, I like that description! I am awash in quirks. :) And thank you for reading my little Coffee Break; it's been a lot of fun to do so far! You know what I have to ask you here, though... it's the one thing everybody's wondering, and since you're about as "on the inside" as a person can get with MSN Games, you seem the perfect one to answer it. So here goes…
What REALLY happened? Why are classic games and CD-ROM matchmaking going away?
Zmaster: That's a good question. I explained the basics in several online chats last week... on June 19th, MSN Games will be retiring classic card and board games and CD-ROM games. That means certain games, including Cribbage and Bridge, and features such as ZoneFriends will no longer be available.
Moxie: But why? These games have been around forever, and people still love to play them!
Zmaster: That's EXACTLY it! They've been around forever, and the technology behind them is incredibly outdated. We've seen a lot of questions lately about why we can't just update the code and keep the existing services running... what I've had a hard time conveying is that we've been keeping them running for close to ten years, and it’s becoming harder and harder to do as the gap between the old and new technology expands. We've finally gotten to the point where it takes more work and more resources (and more gray hairs and more headaches and more ulcers) to keep the original games running than it would to build completely new versions from scratch, with enhanced features and services and gorgeous new graphics, and that's why the decision was made. It's time to start building the future of MSN Games.
Moxie: Okay, that makes sense. But aren’t you sad that the classic games are going away?
Zmaster: Very much so. I have been working and playing on the Zone for over eight years now. I worked on ZoneFriends, and I helped to launch Bridge, Cribbage, and Euchre. It's very hard to see things that you helped to build being taken down! However, I'm also extremely excited about the new services and games that MSN Games is working on. I love the new Hearts game, and I’m also really excited about the new community features that are in development.
Moxie: These would be the community features you're not allowed to talk about yet...?
Zmaster: Those would be the ones, yes. We're looking into a huge variety of options, some of which I'm really hoping to see implemented. We'll announce them as soon as we have a better idea which solutions we're going with!
Moxie: Okay, let's switch tracks. :) You've been here for a lot of years, and you've watched the changes from Village to Zone to MSN Games. Do you have any great stories about things that have happened on the Zone, either behind the scenes or in the lobbies?
Zmaster: LOL... I have TONS of great stories. What many of our players might be surprised to know is that a lot of the folks who work here on MSN Games also play regularly. Back when we first launched our Age of Empires titles, it was an office ritual for us all to log in every evening after 5:00 PM. I remember one time, we invited the Age community to come online and play with the "@Zone" folks. So many people showed up that we had to open more lobbies to accomodate everyone! We also had some really awesome tournaments and events... like Kasparov vs. the World, the Age of Empires Rumble for Rome, MechWarrior Meltdown, etc.
Moxie: But are there any fun stories that particularly stand out, maybe from the last few months?
Zmaster: Ohhhh, yes, one recent adventure pops immediately to mind: Tax Day, 2006. We decided to have a pity party in the Spades Hall.
Moxie: A pity party…?
Zmaster: Think of getting all your friends together to commiserate over taxes, play Spades, and talk about The Goonies... yes, the movie. Actually, very little commiserating was done and instead we sat around playing games. Those who weren't watching The Goonies were reading off lines posted in real time and listening to great tunes compliments of community radio stations ZRadio and Wildside Radio. (Thanks to all for the great movie transcription and songs from the '80s! Cindy Lauper rocks!)
Oh, wait… I have another one! This was great. A while back, a player named Unusual__Chess challenged some of us to simultaneous games of chess. I hadn’t participated in this type of game before, so I thought I'd put myself up there for the challenge. Of course, I'm not a pro by any stretch, but I do like to think I play a decent game. Well, let's just say it wasn't much of a fight. I think out of the three games (it's a little fuzzy to remember after such a sound beating), I was able to keep one of them interesting (to me, hah).
Anyway, the fact that I lost doesn't matter. What was great was the play-by-play of folks in the lobby, and the crowds coming in to kibitz and cheer (or jeer) us as well. It was quite a hoot! Not only did Chess get to show off his considerable (and definitely unusual) skills, but fun was had by all.
Moxie: So, what's your own favorite classic game?
Zmaster: My favorite classic game, hmmm...? For card games, I'd say it's Hearts, and Cribbage on the board game side. My favorite CD-ROM game would have to be Age of Empires: Rise of Rome. Hands down. I really need to start playing Age III!
Moxie: And the other half of that question: what are your favorite of the new card and board games?
Zmaster: Hearts and Backgammon. I love the new game client and interface, it looks really sleek. I also love playing Spades. Of course, in comparsion with all the excellent Spades players in our community, I'm just a newbie.
Moxie: Have you ever been caught playing for fun on work time? ;)
Zmaster: LOL! That's a good question... I do remember a few times where we asked the developers for a "The Boss is Coming!" feature, where you could click a button and it would immediately minimize your game window. We do get some official game testing time, when members of our team are playing games, and yes, managers do pass by. Hopefully, they remember that it's game testing time!
Moxie: The MSN Games players are pretty darn good at what they do... have you ever been whupped something fierce?
Zmaster: All... the... time! There are SO MANY excellent players on MSN Games from all over the world. I've played some REALLY great games over the years, some real nail-biter ones.
Moxie: What are some of the best usernames you've ever seen?
Zmaster: They're all creative. I especially like the usernames that show a little bit of the player's personality, like "ragincajun". Let’s see… I also remember a few that seemed fun or appropriate… “Nerdy_User”, “HomeworkBreak”, “overtimeworker”… and of course “iForgetThings.” I couldn’t help but think that the one thing he or she would never forget was that username!
Moxie: I spotted a “perrymasonjar” in the lobby of your recent chat… that’s the best name I’ve seen in ages. :)
So what's next for Zmaster? Will you be departing along with the classic and CD-ROM games, or will you be sticking around to help players master the next generation of cool new games?
Zmaster: After the June 19th date, I'll still be online playing. I'll also be working with the game developers and testers on the new services and features. I'm always letting them know what our players are saying and what they want created.
I am officially handing over the torch of customer letters to you, Moxie! So, welcome!
Moxie: Well, thank you so much, both for the welcome for giving us the inside scoop. I believe I owe you a latte!
And to everyone else, thank you all for reading, and I’ll see you next week! | |
