We are living in the fourth world and according to ancient Mayan mythology on December 12, 2012 it will end. Who would use such end times mysticism to promote their upcoming horror-themed MMORPG? Funcom did, and it was for The Secret World. The game will feature an original contemporary setting filled with magic, myths, conspiracies, all topped off with gobs of horror.

The Secret World is still in pre-beta development so you can’t wrap your steepled fingers on it yet. There, there. Don’t sink down too far in your comfortable chair because an update regarding the game’s development was recently posited by Ragnar Tørnquist. If that name doesn’t ring a bell, Tørnquist is the creative mastermind behind the much-loved adventure games, Dreamfall and The Longest Journey.


Screens above from The Longest Journey - view more shots from the classic adventure in our file library!

Source: Ragnar Tørnquist’s personal blog.

So what’s changing? It’s a bit too early to talk about details. Rest assured that little of what you’ve seen so far will change dramatically: it’s the stuff we haven’t shown (or, indeed, made yet) that’s gone back to the drawing board. The story and the setting is the same as it’s been since the early 00’s. The locations, the conspiracies and mysteries, the vast history, intriguing characters and fantastical creatures, the light and the darkness - it’s all there. The gameplay is going through a redesign - for the better, let me assure you - and we’re revisiting content produced in the past two years to lift it up to a whole new level. Not necessarily graphically, because the game already looks amazing, but to link everything thematically, to emphasise the importance of the story, to add contrast and drama and spectacle, to create a world that people will want to experience and live in. Permanently.

We want The Secret World to stand out and be remembered - obviously. To not be just another MMORPG, a WoW clone, of which there are already too many. We’re going to play up the strengths of our universe and differentiate ourselves in both the setting and the gameplay - and particularly in how players can become exactly who they want to be, their secret selves, both visually and in terms of powers. Everyday adventurers and superheroes; guardians of the secret world; champions of Gaia. Warriors. Explorers. Cryptologists. Cryptozoologists. Mystics. Magi. Demonologists. Storytellers. Historians. Travellers. Lovers.

And just because we’re not talking much about the game at this point doesn’t mean there’s no game, or that we’re going to take longer than planned to finish the game - it just means that we want to wait a little longer before we reveal our deepest, darkest secrets to you (yes, even you, faithful followers, although you will be the first to know - the reveal will, hopefully, begin here). Another year? No, certainly not. 2009 will be the year where you learn about the secret world and begin to D2D (though I did warn you about that part) and play a role in unravelling the vast conspiracies that span oceans of time and space.

Screens above from Dreamfall - view more shots from the great adventure set in The Longest Journey universe in our file library!

The Funcom attachment plants seeds of doubt inside the minds of many. There’s a history for some – it isn’t good – doubts formed from negative experiences due to bad experiences with Age of Conan. There is a deeper correlation between both games other than the Funcom relationship, one that intertwines the two on another level. And that is The Secret World is under construction with the same toolbox used to build Age of Conan, the DreamWorld Engine. Early launches plagued with woes can kill a MMOG so hopefully this time around Funcom grants Ragnar Tørnquist and his crack-team of developers enough resources and time to create a finished masterpiece.