By Rhee So-eui
SEOUL (Reuters) -
After exhausting just about every elf,
dragon and knight featured in Western cultures, makers of
popular online games are turning to ancient Asian history and
war heroes for new inspiration.
Chief among their sources is "Romance of the Three
Kingdoms," an epic Chinese novel whose plots and characters are
familiar to most Asians.
"Romance," which long existed in oral form before it was
put together in writing in the 14th century, covers a chaotic
two-century period in ancient China marked by infighting
between warlords following the fall of the Han Dynasty.
The story, full of dramatic and bloody episodes about
ruthless ambition, military tactics, loyalty and betrayal,
yielded numerous battle legends and war heroes that are still
venerated by Asians.
It also makes for an ideal theme for movies and TV shows,
with the latest being John Woo's "Red Cliff," to be released
just before the Beijing Olympics.
While awareness of ancient Chinese history is still limited
in the West, critical and popular hits such as the film
"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and last week's Jackie Chan
vehicle "Forbidden Kingdom" are preparing Western gamers for
the idiosyncrasies of Asian-based games.
Japanese game developer Koei Co Ltd has pioneered games
based on "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," from PC games in
floppy disk to brand new console versions running on
Microsoft's Xbox 360.
Its "Dynasty Warriors" series, featuring legendary
characters from the novel combined with kung-fu style action,
sold more than 15 million copies worldwide.
Now, makers of online games are trying to bring the
well-known saga into multiplayer role-playing games. They say
the novel provides all the materials needed, from characters to
political landscape, to entertain online gamers for months of
play.
"Romance" could re-energize an industry suffering from the
lack of a major blockbuster game since "World of Warcraft" by
Blizzard Entertainment Inc launched in 2004.
South Korean game developer Wemade Entertainment unveiled a
multiplayer role-playing game, "Chang Chun," last year. In it,
characters mingle with people from real Chinese history and get
involved in politics and battles. Gamers build their martial
art skills, acquire weapons and armor, form clans and lead wars
against each other.
Converting centuries-old texts into virtual reality,
however, proved a tough task.
"It took more than four years of research into the novel's
contents, Chinese history, architecture, clothing and so on,"
said Park Jung-soo, who leads Wemade's development team. "All
members of our team went on research trips to China."
Gamers appreciate such efforts, saying details and
historical facts are key attractions.
"Managing troops, food supply and other elements to win the
war is very interesting. There's also a whole system for
government offices and rankings," said an online user, who
wanted to be identified by ID sbh8243.
"If you want to engage more, you can join the policy team
and lead the country you're in."
"Warlord" by Neowiz Games takes a step further in its
attempt to blend Western and Eastern war history. A gamer can
choose among characters from different cultures, such as a
Chinese general, a Japanese ninja or a magician knight from
ancient Europe. As the game progresses, the gamer faces famous
generals and warriors from history books.
Kim Jae-young, production manager at Neowiz Games, said
developers at the firm combed through not only history books
but artwork, prehistoric wall paintings and artifacts to
rebuild the scenes from long-gone historic moments.
Analysts say well-made games based on "Romance" have the
potential to become money-spinners, given the fast-growing
gamer population in China. Wemade, which is offering a trial of
"Chang Chun" in China, said it ranks among the most popular
online games there.
"The Chinese online game market has yet to fully boom up,"
said Shim Jun-bo, an analyst at CJ Investment & Securities.
"One day there will be a perfectly made 'Romance of the
Three Kingdoms' game from a major studio like Blizzard, and it
will become an absolute blockbuster."
(Editing by Marie-France Han and John Wallace)
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