IG: It also seems as if you want to introduce a touch of randomness and chaos into the proceedings too (critical attack hits and failures have been mentioned.) How does this fit into your overall philosophy for Camelot Unchained? And yes, Camelot Unchained will also punish you at times for your actions within the game. I want to give players the opportunity to really explore a world without also giving them the “CliffsNotes” version at the same time. I want to put consequences back into the decision-making process. While I don’t want to make playing Camelot Unchained a job, I do believe that we need to do away with a lot of what MMORPGs have chosen to offer their players. The more hand-holding we make MMORPGs, the less immersive, in my opinion, most of them have become. MJ: Absolutely, especially for hard-core (or simple core) gamers such as myself. IG: Reading through some of the game’s Foundational Principles, it appears that you’re aiming to reverse some of the recent MMO trends for ‘hand-holding.’ Do you think the genre begins to lack something when the games get too friendly, forgiving and lacking in consequences?

It may also be quite helpful when it comes to getting new development teams and young developers opportunities to get funding for their projects, which would not have been available to them otherwise. This, I hope, will force the few major publishers that remain in the traditional spaces (PC and console) to moderate some of their positions in regards to IP ownership, payment models, etc. MJ: Crowd-sourcing will not change the entire industry’s funding process, but rather, it will offer a viable alternative to the current publisher-centric model. IG: How have you found the whole Kickstarter process and what are your thoughts on the self-funding model, do you see the industry now moving in a new direction when it comes to publishing and funding? As all character leveling comes from RvR and crafting, it bears no resemblance to the modern, theme park-style titles. It will also draw a lot of inspiration from the works of people like H.P. Mark Jacobs: Camelot Unchained, unlike the vast majority of MMORPGs, is tightly focused and RvR-oriented. IncGamers: For those who may have missed the Kickstarter, can you briefly summarise what Camelot Unchained is and how it’ll differ from what most people tend to associate with MMOs? To learn more about the game, we asked lead designer Mark Jacobs about the thought processes and intent behind many of these riskier development decisions. A focus on Realm-vs-Realm, conscious attempts to avoid ‘hand holding’ and methods of enforced socialisation are all key to City State Entertainment’s design philosophy.

Throughout its successful Kickstarter campaign, Camelot Unchained has always been billed as an atypical MMO.

Camelot unchained