GDC Online: Damion Schubert Talks Casual And Hardcore

Even though content at GDC doesn’t often revolve around specific games, nor is it always “gamer” friendly, I know I enjoy keeping up on what’s going on behind the curtain. Taking a peek at how games are made is always interesting to me, and in my opinion no one gives a better look at it than BioWare’s own Principle Lead Systems Designer on Star Wars: The Old Republic, Damion Schubert.

I’ve been attending GDC Online (called Austin GDC prior that) since 2007, and I’ve always enjoyed Damion’s talks the most. He tends to hit on the topics that are the hot-button issues for online gamers. Back in March at GDC in San Francisco, he touched on the solo player in “Designing For Loners“. Last year at GDC Online in 2010, he talked about the grind in “How Online Gaming Has Adopted The Grind“.

So since I wasn’t able to attend this year, I was sad that I was going to miss this year’s topic – “Double Coding: Making Online Games for Both the Casual and the Hardcore“. Thankfully, this year Massively has me covered!

With MMOs, Schubert says that devs are often trying to double code the games for both casual and hardcore players. This is where the well-known slogan “easy to play, hard to master” originates. He held up Blizzard as a primary example of this model. Blizzard’s “donut,” as Schubert calls it, has a casual outer ring and a hardcore center for both types of players. By double coding, Blizzard ensures that casual players can invite their hardcore friends to experience the game and vice-versa.

This is fascinating topic by a talented game developer and covered wonderfully by Massively – head over for the full read if you want to know more about how the sausage is made!

Photo: Massively/Joystiq