DON’T Go Farther: MMOs

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So I recently speculated on what MMO's could be made out of existing properties – we're pro geeks after all, we want to speculate – and do – the next big thing.  But it helps at times to know what to do.

So I now want to speculate on media properties that SHOULD NOT have MMOs – some of which have been inspired by conversations.  Think of it as fair warning – and food for thought.

BLEACH: Bleach comes down to, as a friend put it, Punching Ghosts.  The series doesn't have much to work on beyond that premise, and I think its time has come and gone.  Do a Naruto MMO instead.

TORCHWOOD (OR FRINGE, OR WAREHOUSE 13 . . .): These paranormal-investigation series either suffer from mutable continuity or VERY tight continuity with little room for players.  Their settings usually mix low-level and world-threatening stuff that don't play well with getting a sense of the world unless done right.  It's actually hard to do one of these as an MMO without a continuity specifically deisgned for them.

DISCWORLD: You just couldn't.  Discworld is about the author's humor and observations and you don't get that in an MMO.

FULL METAL ALCHEMIST: FMA, mixing magic and science and a world with at least some definitions sounds ideal.  The problem?  Everyone would want to play an Alchemist (who wants to be Regular Guy?), leading you to violate the worldsetting insanely.

Anything you don't want to see be an MMO (and may fear it will be?).

– Steven Savage

Cynicism Is Not a Strategy

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It's easy to be cynical – as I'm quite aware.  The economy is tough.  Industries are changing.  Society is altering.  There will probably be another "Transformers" movie.

It's easy to be cynical all the time.  It's fashionable, cool, and makes you look all deep and mature.

Cynicism also doesn't solve a damn thing.  You can be as worried as you want about the career economy, you can be fashionably cynical or really cynical, but here's the basic painful truth:

Cynicism is NOT a strategy.

Being cynical won't solve a problem.  It doesn't make things work better. It doesn't do anything.  At best it can be a shield or an indicator of problems – and that's it.  An alarm doesn't put out the fire, a shield doesn't defeat an enemy.

So ask yourself this – is cynicism something you treat as a strategy?  Is it so core to your identity, actions (or just sheer posing) that it's something you treat as vital, as part of your identity as something that is somehow going to yield results?

It's not.

Strategy is about planning, organizing, measuring, and achieving.  Being cynical doesn't do any of these things.

In fact the longer you remain cynical, the less you get done, and the more cynical you become.  Not a recipe for success.

– Steven Savage

News of the Day 9/30/2009

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Career:
Search that hidden job market – Good advice.

Economics/Freakonomics/Geekonomics:
Looks like Japanese industrial production is up – It is still way down. A minor bit of GOOD news coming out of the country – home to so much geeky industry.

An interactive overview of layoffs in the United States

Anime and Manga:
Crunchyroll is at it again, getting a popular flash anime and another simulcast They're a fan-to-pro crush object for a reason – with no sign of slowing down. So come on Crunchyroll, when will you be hiring . . .

Law:
Big ouch here. Advertisers may be using online photos in their ads – raising all sorts of issues I'm sure we'll be hearing about. If you work in advertising, take note. If you post a lot of pics online . . . also take note.

Publishing:
Print-on demand gets a publicity boost as E.L. Doctorow christens an Expresso Book Printer at the independent Harvard Book Store. Doctorow carries some public attention, and this is a slick bit of promotion for Expresso's manufacturer. I want to see how much attention this gets the process – and if one can have one's own book printed right there (if nothing else bookstores doing this can double as small-press shops).

Social Media:
Mashable posts it's Social Media Jobs roundup

Technology:
Zipcar, the car sharing company, has an iPhone App – Zipcar is basically a membership only, take-it-and go car rental club designed to save money and the environment. This is an excellent synergy, and also an example of a good synergy in general. Does your business have anything similar? Do they need an iPhone app?

Video Games:
OnLive, the cloud-based gaming company, has secured a lot of funding from some big names – including AT&T Holdings and Warner Brothers. I'm still iffy on if OnLive can really make this work, but they're certainly getting some strong backing.

– Steven Savage