What kind of team contents would be needed to make a decent MMORPG?

jph12

I mean as in... how many programmers, animators, artists, etc. would be in a team which have made a decent MMORPG, in a reasonable time (1-2 years plus). And I want like... what job titles they have (eg. 5 programmers, 2 artists, 1 sound guy thing etc.) Hope you understand my question.

Thanks! (:

TheHatter

1-2yrs? 

Probably several thousand people. lmfao. MMOs aren't made in 1-2yrs.

wisesquirrel

In what time are they made though?

 

I am guessing between 4-6 years.

jph12

Indeed, hence why I used the word "plus".

I'm aware that MMOs take a long time to be made.

Ceridith

Two large variables is whether or not they're building the core server code and core game client from scratch or not.

wisesquirrel

I say add both of those variables since if they don;t I am guessing they are planning to go for another copy of an already existing MMO.

In other words, not worth playing.

jph12

Well, yes, they (however many THEY is) are building this MMO from scratch. And it is safe to presume these "they" are skilled in their field of work.

MMOmaker

 

Large teams with huge budgets can be anywhere from a few dozen to perhaps 300 people and can take years to finish a game.

It is also possible to have smaller teams, smaller budgets and development times that are much shorter. Six months to a year is quite feasible. I did one in one year working alone most of the time and with only a few people helping towards the end.

Exactly what job descriptions and titles you'd want varies widely, but it is common to have more graphics artists, modelers and animators than programmers. I've heard that a two to one ratio is typical there. Our team wasn't set up that way because I bought a lot of models and artwork and only hired one graphics artist while we had two or more programmers at various times.

Some job titles and job descriptions that would be worth having are listed below. On small teams, any of these can be done by just one person and sometimes combined with other roles. On large teams, all of these jobs would be done by groups of people with one person in charge of that function and others assisting. For example, instead of a programmer, you'd have a senior programmer or programming manager and then a team of programmers working for that person.

 

Lead Developer

Is in charge of the whole development team and makes sure their work integrates well and is consistent with the overall plan.

Game Designer

Designs the whole game

Programmer

Writes code for the game and sometimes also for development tools. By code, I mean like C++ code, not just scripts. Scripting is so much easier that it's cheaper to hire separate scripters for scripts and leave the serious coding to the programmers. The programmers usually work on things like creating or customizing the game engine, creating and managing databases and the interaction of the program with the databases. Writing or customizing client and server software, etc.

Scripter

Writes scripts using python or another scripting language. Scripts typically control things like what NPCs say and do, what magic spells or technological items do and other in-game actions like that.

3-D Modeler

Creates 3-D models. This would especially include models of characters, but also models of trees, buildings, etc.

Graphics Artist

Creates 2-D graphics, especially the skins or "textures" of 3-D models. This includes not only graphics in the game world, but also graphics used in the GUI, cut scenes, the game website and in advertisements.

Animator

Animates 3-D models. Can also develop other animation for cut scenes, advertisements, etc.

Terrain Specialist

Modern game editing tools make this a much easier job than ordinary 3-D modeling so it can be done by someone less skilled and less highly paid than your typical 3-D modeler. The terrain specialist creates the shape of the ground in the game world, adds in different "textures" which are actually the coloring and pictures on the surface of the ground and mountains. This job can usually be done by the Game editor if there is no terrain specialist on the team, but creating custom terrains is usually done on different software than the main game editor software.

Game Editor

The game editor uses game editing tools to bring together all the other elements of the game. On some teams this is done by programmers, but most development teams now use game development tools that allow this to be done without any programming whatsoever. The game editor imports the terrain files into the game, then adds in rivers, lakes, oceans and models of trees, bushes, buildings, etc. The Game Editor also imports models, graphics, sound files, music, scripts and puts them all in the right places and uses the game tools to make sure they work as intended.

Sound Effects Specialist

Creates or acquires sound effects stored as digital files that are added to the game. This includes voices and all other sound effects except music. Sometimes music and sound effects are handled by the same person or team, but not always.

Music Specialist

Creates or acquires music for the game. This can include theme song, mood music, etc.

Writer

(sometimes called Story Writer) Writes the storyline, lore, quests, dialogue, etc.

Playtester

This is usually done by other members of the development team at first, then by people who are not officially part of the development team, but it is an essential function. The playtester plays the game to see if it is working well and to provide feedback to other members of the development team. Playtesters are supposed to play the game in different ways. They test it the way they expect typical players to test it, then they also play it in unusual ways to see if there is any way a player can cause the system to make errors or crash.

 

The development team usually only involves the above type functions, but a development team by itself is not enough. Here are other key positions in a game company that are essential for a game development team to succeed:

 

President / Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

Head of the game company. Responsible for all activities of the company. Oversees all other work. In larger companies there are usually other executives who work under him to assist in this work.

Chief Operating Officer (COO)

Large companies often have an executive whose job is to manage all the day-to-day operations of the company so that the president can focus on longer-term strategic decisions and plans.

Information Technology Manager / Chief Information Officer (CIO)

Responsible for computer systems. This includes deciding what hardware and software the company will use, how any networks will be established and for implementing all this. Also responsible for upgrades, network security, etc.

Webmaster

Responsible for creating and maintaining the website for the company and for the game. This generally includes not only a standard website, but also forums and often includes functionality to download the game software (unless it's a browser-based game) and for players to create accounts and make payments online.

Accounting / Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Responsible for all financial aspects of the company including negotiating terms with key vendors, handling billing, accounting, tax filings, raising capital, etc. Each of those functions is handled by one or more different people in large companies. In a very small company it may all be handled by one person.

Marketing / Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)

Responsible for advertising, marketing plans, publicizing the game or other products of the company. Also involved in negotiating marketing arrangements with distributors, especially game publishers.

Personnel / Human Resources Manager

Responsible for recruiting personnel, complying with employment laws, managing contracts of independent contractors, etc.

Counsel / Legal

This is the company's lawyer. Large companies sometimes have one or more lawyers who work exclusively for the company. Such lawyers are called "in-house counsel". Other companies, including some of the largest, hire lawyers or entire law firms who are not employees of the company.

Board of Directors

The board of directors is responsible for the overall success of the company and is elected by the stockholders. The board of directors has the power and responsibility to choose the president and can dismiss him if they find his performance to be inadequate. The board of directors controls the issuance of company stock and whether to distribute profits to stockholders as dividends or whether to use them to grow the business.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MMOmaker

Why do you ask?