outside of a single dimension: forward or backward. In gaming, a linear game is one that
does not give players much choice in what they do. For some games, linear may mean
no choice at all, since backward is often not even an option.
Live: A term used for when a multi-player online game is up and running, with users
from the world at large playing it. The expression “go live” means the time when the
game is released for the general public to start playing. The “live team” consists of the
developers responsible for keeping the game running and updating its content once it
has launched. Any MMP developer will tell you that the act of keeping a game live and
working smoothly is as much work as developing it prior to launch.
Lone Wolf: Term used to describe game developers who do practically everything
themselves in the development of a game: the design, programming, art, sound, and
writing. At the very least, a lone wolf developer must do all of the game’s design and
programming himself. A lone wolf does not typically develop commercially released
software any more, though there are exceptions. For example, Chris Sawyer designed
and programmed all ofRollerCoaster Tycoonby himself, with a contractor completing
the art to his specifications. Though he did not do the art himself, Sawyer can still be
described as a lone wolf developer.
Massively Multi-Player: Strictly defined, a multi-player game involving a very
large number of people playing it at once, at least 100 or more. Typically such games are
also persistent and played over the Internet.Ultima OnlineandEverQuestare exam-
ples of massively multi-player games.See alsoMulti-PlayerandPersistent.
Media: Go out and buy Marshall McLuhan’sUnderstanding Media. Read it. Come
back only when you fully understand it.
Metagame: According to Richard Garfield, creator ofMagic: The Gathering, the
metagame is “how a game interfaces with life.” This means what players take to and
bring away from a particular playing of a game and how that impacts their subsequent
playings of that game. This is particularly applicable to multi-player games. Take, for
example, a game ofUnreal Tournamenton the Internet. If one player is known to play
unethically through camping and other undesirable tactics, players will be likely to
make a special effort to eliminate him in subsequent games. This means that the player
may end up losing subsequent games because of his behavior in previous games. This
interaction between the players from game to game is not part of the playing of the
game itself, but is part of the metagame that the playing creates. For another example,
inMagic: The Gatheringthe time a player spends preparing his deck before a game,
though not part of the game itself, is part of the metagame.
Milestones: A term often used in contracts between publishers and developers. A
milestone is an agreement of how much work on a project will be done at a specific date,
with the publisher only paying the developer when that milestone (usually in the form
of a current build of the game) is delivered to the publisher.
MMOG: Stands for Massively Multi-Player Online Game. See Massively
Multi-Player.
MMORPG: Short for Massively Multi-Player Online Role-Playing Game, such as
Dark Age of Camelot,EverQuest,orUltima Online.SeeMassively Multi-Player.
MMP: SeeMassively Multi-Player.
664 Glossary