As original RuneScape creator Andrew Gower marches toward the release of his new MMO, Brighter Shores, later this year, he's comforted by the fact that his small team of just eight developers only has to answer to themselves.
"We're in a very lucky position where there's no external investors," Gower says in an interview with 12DOVE. "Because I've been able to fund this entirely myself off my previous success. There's no external investors, there's no publishers, there's no one breathing down my neck saying we've got to meet these guidelines.
"I want players," he continues. "I want people to enjoy my game. That's what I really, really want. You know, I miss running an MMO and having lots of players enjoying it. So yeah, I'm really, really focused on getting as many people playing as possible rather than making as much money as possible. Obviously, I'm hoping one will lead to the other to a degree.
"The reason we're a team of eight, you know, I could have been putting in more, but I wanted to do it at a level that was sustainable based on what I can afford to fund without having to resort to external investors. Obviously, once we've launched the game and we've got some revenue coming in, my hope is to grow the team. And as such, you produce content more quickly. But the reason why we've stuck with it for so long is because I wanted something where I would not have to rely on that external investment."
Brighter Shores will launch on PC and Mac via Steam in Q3 2024. It will be free-to-play featuring an episodic content format, with an optional, purchasable premium pass attached.
"You buy the premium pass and it gives you access to absolutely everything we've released up to that date," he explains. "But obviously, we expect that when we release new episodes, that will drive people to take out a premium pass to enjoy that new episode. And then they might play that for a bit, and then we'll bring out another episode, and then they'll buy another premium pass and enjoy that season."
As Gower tells me about his new MMO, it sounds more and more like a dream game for folks who want a "nice, relaxing escape" – especially RuneScape fans.
