Cryptic Studios hires Bill Roper as design director
By Matt Warner - Tue Nov 4, 2008 1:52pm
If anyone has experienced both the highs of success and lows from failure in the game development industry it’s Bill Roper. His new journey takes him to Cryptic Studios as their Design Director on Champions Online.
For a little background check on Bill Roper his career started at Blizzard Entertainment where he worked his way up and served as a Director and also Vice President of Blizzard North. His resume is a budding game developer’s dream showcasing his work on the Diablo, Warcraft, and StarCraft franchises. Leaving Blizzard Entertainment in 2003, Roper co-founded Flagship Studios and PingO, and the newly minted CEO oversaw development on Hellgate: London. Failure followed.
Hellgate: London is slated for resurrection by HansbitSoft
The post-apocalyptic pseudo MMOG promised too much and Roper, guilty of high ambitions, helped fuel unrealistic expectations. The grandiose vision turned into a nightmare, plagued with bugs and a lack of polish, the game flopped and its current fate has it set for shutdown next year. As for Flagship Studios, the company suffered a financial meltdown leading to the company’s demise. Roper has gone on record admitting HGL's failures and acknowledging hard lessons were learned; hopefully, he won’t repeat the same mistakes at Cryptic Studios. The studio is developing Star Trek Online and Champions Online, both MMOGs, and another unannounced project.
Bill Roper had this to say regarding his new endeavor:
Early shots from Champions Online
The news is significant for anyone looking forward to Champions Online. Many gamers are wary of Roper and for good reason, but that's why games have free trials or if you can score it, beta access. In fact, you can try your luck and signup for the Champions Online beta right now - and keep those fingers crossed that he has learned from his mistakes.
For a little background check on Bill Roper his career started at Blizzard Entertainment where he worked his way up and served as a Director and also Vice President of Blizzard North. His resume is a budding game developer’s dream showcasing his work on the Diablo, Warcraft, and StarCraft franchises. Leaving Blizzard Entertainment in 2003, Roper co-founded Flagship Studios and PingO, and the newly minted CEO oversaw development on Hellgate: London. Failure followed.
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Hellgate: London is slated for resurrection by HansbitSoft
The post-apocalyptic pseudo MMOG promised too much and Roper, guilty of high ambitions, helped fuel unrealistic expectations. The grandiose vision turned into a nightmare, plagued with bugs and a lack of polish, the game flopped and its current fate has it set for shutdown next year. As for Flagship Studios, the company suffered a financial meltdown leading to the company’s demise. Roper has gone on record admitting HGL's failures and acknowledging hard lessons were learned; hopefully, he won’t repeat the same mistakes at Cryptic Studios. The studio is developing Star Trek Online and Champions Online, both MMOGs, and another unannounced project.
Bill Roper had this to say regarding his new endeavor:
“Cryptic has experienced huge growth over the past year and has exciting opportunities ahead of it. The company knows how to choose compelling IPs that have rich histories such as Champions and Star Trek. I’m looking forward to working with the team.”
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Early shots from Champions Online
The news is significant for anyone looking forward to Champions Online. Many gamers are wary of Roper and for good reason, but that's why games have free trials or if you can score it, beta access. In fact, you can try your luck and signup for the Champions Online beta right now - and keep those fingers crossed that he has learned from his mistakes.
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