What we have here is an MMO inspired by the writings of Jane Austen. Haven’t seen that before, have you?
Currently in development at 3 Turn Productions, Ever, Jane is exactly what it sounds like; an MMORPG that puts you into Jane Austen’s world, complete with romance, gossip, and backstabbing. The game is the brainchild of Judy Tyrer, an longtime industry engineer with a diverse range of titles under her belt, including the Ghost Recon series, Magic The Gathering: Tactics, and Second Life. Rather than fighting monsters or aliens, players will use gossip and lies to bring their enemies down; emotionally and socially speaking at least. It’s like high brow online bullying, gamified. Another intriguing element of the game is described on the Kickstarter campaign page :
The invitation system can be used to enhance one’s personality traits but it requires strategic thinking. If a player invites a person of higher Status with the hope of improving their own Status, care must be taken. If the player invited rejects the invitation it will harm rather than improve Status. If the invitation is accepted, but out of Duty rather than Happiness, the Status will only improve slightly. On the other hand, if the player invited accepts with Happiness, Status improvements may be as much as doubled.
As strange as it all may sound, what 3 Turn is trying to do is create an actual role playing game. Most RPG’s contain role playing in so much as you raise your characters stats and perform repetitive tasks, not that you’re experiencing their world. Most modern RPGs emphasize players driving character behavior, rather than vice versa. A true RPG has players acting as an extension of their character, which is an entirely different experience than coming up with a cool name and reading dialog the game displays. From the looks of things Ever, Jane, may be and old school player driven RPG in a unique setting, one that will require players to completely immerse themselves.
The Kickstarter campaign for Ever, Jane runs until December 1st and has a funding goal of $100,000. The money will be used to continue development of the game, as well as add features such as crafting, dinner parties, estates and villages, hunting, sewing, families, and a ton of other ideas you can read about on the Kickstarter page.
