Computer Show Legends of Kesmai Interview

Alfred C. Giovetti (AG): Thanks for being with us and sharing with us this great information on a game which has been developed over many years

Kevin Higgins (KH): I am happy to bring this information to your attention and share this information with you and your viewers.

Kevin, for the benefit of our viewers, can you give me a short description of who you are and what you do at Legends of Kesmai?

AG: Many games today allow the other game players to kill each other. This practice is referred to as Player vs. Player (PvP) or Player Killing (PKing). Does legends of Kesmai have areas that do not allow PvP or PKing?

KH: Legends of Kesmai (LoK) does not allow Player Killing, and in fact has a code of behavior that is supported by game design which makes the penalties for doing that quite severe. The implementation also allows the player community police itself. PKing is quite rare, and usually quelled in a hurry when it rears its ugly head. LoK's evolution over a significant number of years (it's descended from Islands Of Kesmai) has given us the opportunity to handle this tendency pretty elegantly. We do not currently have an area devoted to PvP in LoK.

AG: Can you share with us some of the history of the Kesmai series?

[Kevin]: While whole books could be written on the development of Kesmai (the corporation), it might be easier if you looked through some old press releases, which you can find at: https://www.gamestorm.com/company/press.html. For history on the game, your best immediate source will probably come from the community and the links to player pages, which I've given below.

AG:Please describe the game play and what makes the game fun.

[Opal says...]: I think most players enjoy the opportunity to take on a new persona, meet new friends and share in exciting adventures. It's a full community of people from around the world, and the game possibilities are so rich and expanded that you can play for many months, learning new things, advancing your abilities, and encountering new challenges.

AG: - Talk about the graphics past present and future (technical aspects please) and how they translate to how it looks.

[Opal says...]: The graphics are attractive but simple. The game is constructed "over" its predecessor, the text-based game Island of Kesmai. The benefit of this development is that there are often a number of ways of doing the same thing in the game, whether using the Graphical User Interface (GUI) or using text commands (parser). One of the goals was to limit the size of the software download (the software is free!) so that has been a constraint on the fanciness of the GUI.

AG: Is there any animation and if so what does it look like and how is it done.

[Kevin] While there are bitmaps (sprites) moving on the screen, the individual characters or monsters are not animated themselves.

G: Sound effects? How many - what are the technical aspects and how does this relate to how they sound.

[Kevin] Unfortunately, I could not get the number of different sound effects for you. However, the sound is rich and varied. Have you played the game?

- Do you know any funny or interesting stories about production or game that you can relate to readers and viewers/?

[Kevin] Funny or entertaining stories about the game abound. You can access the Legends Of Kesmai newsletter--which is actually produced by one of the long time players--at: http://users.ariesgames.com/~malachi/loknews.html or you can see other links to sites produced by players at: https://www.gamestorm.com/adventure/legends/community/links.html

AG: Multiplayer features? Numbers of simultaneous players, network details, what makes the game play the way it does?

[Opal says...] We have upwards of 300 players maximum on most nights. The GameStorm site provides excellent connectivity assistance to help players get the best internet connection possible for Legends. Players can page their friends in the game, and meet in chatrooms for discussions.

AG:Are there any plot driven quests? Describe some.

[Opal says...] Almost every character class has their own special quests, to obtain added powers or valuable items.

AG:Are there any game counsellors or game masters that roam around keeping the peace or helping out players who are lost or need help?

[Opal says...] We have official Guides who are hand-picked volunteers. These players have a great deal of experience and enjoy helping new players learn the game. We find that the player community is in general very helpful to new players, helping them to become oriented and learn the social standards. We have in-game reporting of conduct problems, and rapid follow-up to clarify the rules for players. Player-killing is effectively limited by the built-in Marks system, which automatically bans a player who has killed a certain number of people. We also have a built-in method for removing Marks: these will expire over time, or they can be "forgiven" by the victim, if the victim chooses to do so.

AG: - Are there guilds or clubs of players that can join?

[Opal says...] There are many guilds with a strong presence in the game, and some are present in other multiplayer games across the internet.

AG:- Are there any special honors, powers, titles etc that you can accrue?

[Opal says...] Magic users are eligible to learn new spells, and gain in proficiency, as they advance in their skills and experience. Knighthood is the class-advance solely available to Fighters, upon completion of the first Knight quest.

AG: - Describe the combat.

[Opal says...] The player can wield the weapon of his choice. Enemies are generally of "chaotic" alignment, and can be attacked by "clicking" on them with the cursor. The player must keep an eye on his stats as he fights, and heal himself (drink a bottle of balm) when his hitpoints get low. There is a good deal of strategy involved in fighting the more challenging "critturs", and there is much benefit in cooperative hunting with other players.

AG: - Describe the spell systems.

[Opal says...] There are three main Magic users: Wizards, Thaumaturges and Thieves. Knights have a small set of spells, too. The spells are represented by icons on a spell palette, and must be warmed before being cast. Players may purchase additional spells and magic training as they advance in skill and experience.

AG:- Have we missed anything important? What is it? Describe it and explain its importance.

[Opal says...] The Legends Community is what makes this game as wonderful as it is. Many players have made great friends in this game, and being able to share your adventures is part of the magic. With so many players online at once, you never know how your session will go or who you will meet. The players generally shape the community, and share lore and knowledge with each other in the game, in maps on web pages, and on the message boards. The daunting complexity of the game is well addressed by players' willingness to help each other.

AG: Thanks for meeting with us guys.

Kevin and Opal: Thanks for having us