Multiverse Network
{{Short description|American startup company}}
{{No footnotes|date=May 2023}}
{{Infobox company
| name = The Multiverse Network, Inc.
| logo =
| type = Private
| foundation = July 2004
| location = Mountain View, California, USA
| industry = Online Games
| key_people = Bill Turpin, Co-founder & CEO
Rafhael Cedeno, Co-founder & CTO
Corey Bridges, Co-founder, Executive Producer and Marketing Director
Robin McCollum, Co-founder & Principal Engineer, Client Technology
| homepage = [http://www.multiversemmo.com/ www.multiversemmo.com]
}}
The Multiverse Network, Inc. was an American startup company creating a network and platform for massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs) and 3D virtual worlds. Multiverse's stated aim was to lower the barrier of entry for development teams by providing a low-cost software platform for online game and virtual world development.
In 2009, the company extended its development platform to support Flash{{cite web|title=Multiverse Unleashes New Era of Online Gaming|url=http://multiverse.net/press/pr20090205.jsp?cid=6&scid=9|accessdate=21 December 2009}} and built a series of real-time multiplayer games to demo the technology. As part of the worldwide marketing effort behind James Cameron's film Avatar, Multiverse built two Flash-based games,{{cite web|title=Multiverse's Remix Makes it Easy to Create Avatar Spinoff Games|date=17 December 2009|url=https://venturebeat.com/2009/12/17/multiverses-remix-makes-it-easy-to-create-avatar-spinoff-games/|accessdate=21 December 2009}} one with McDonald's and another with Coca-Cola Zero. Both games allow players to explore Pandora, where much of the film takes place.
In late 2011, Multiverse closed from lack of profits, releasing the source code to the Multiverse Foundation, a nonprofit group of volunteers who are presently updating the platform.{{cite web|title=Cash-strapped Firefly MMO developer Multiverse closes (January 4, 2012)|url=http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/39463/Cashstrapped_Firefly_MMO_developer_Multiverse_closes.php|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130124120631/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/39463/Cashstrapped_Firefly_MMO_developer_Multiverse_closes.php|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 24, 2013|accessdate=9 December 2012}}
Technology
Multiverse provided technology known as MMOG middleware (Multiverse used the term platform). It included the client software Multiverse World Browser (for Microsoft Windows only), a server suite, development tools, sample assets, documentation, and a developer community. The goal was to provide consumers/users with a single client program that let them visit all of the virtual worlds built on the Multiverse Platform. From the consumer point of view, this enabled a de facto network of virtual worlds.
Like RealmForge, the Multiverse World Browser was written in C#, and based on the Axiom Engine. The Multiverse server suite was written in Java and used a publish/subscribe messaging system to provide reliability and scalability. The server also provided a plug-in API. The Windows-based tools used the COLLADA data interchange format, to enable artists to import 3D assets from popular tools such as Maya, 3D Studio Max, and Google SketchUp.
Business model
Multiverse provided its technology platform cost-free for development and deployment. Income came through revenue-sharing; Multiverse took a share of any payments made by consumers/users to the world developer. If a developer provided a world for free (or free for a period of time), Multiverse did not charge anything. When a developer started charging consumers/users, Multiverse took a share (10 percent), and also handled the financial transaction processing. Development teams hosted their own servers and retained 100 percent of their world's IP.
James Cameron joined the company's board of advisors, and Red Herring magazine selected it as one of the "Red Herring 100" privately held companies that play a leading role in innovating the technology business.
In December, 2006, Multiverse announced that it had optioned the rights to develop an MMOG based on Firefly, the science fiction television series. In 2008, Buffy and Titanic games were announced. None of them ever came to fruition.
Open source
After closing shop, the Multiverse Network released its code as open source under the MIT License. It is now{{as of?|date=May 2023}} managed through the Multiverse Foundation.
References
- {{cite web | publisher = VentureBeat | author = Dean Takahashi | work = GamesBeat | date = December 17, 2009 | url = https://venturebeat.com/2009/12/17/multiverses-remix-makes-it-easy-to-create-avatar-spinoff-games | title = Multiverse's Remix Makes it Easy to Create AVATAR Spinoff Games | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{cite web | publisher = Gamasutra | author = Leigh Alexander | date = September 10, 2009 | url = http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=25189/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121018125125/http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=25189/ | url-status = dead | archive-date = October 18, 2012 | title = Multiverse Bridges Talks 'New Frontier' | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{cite news | newspaper = Wall Street Journal | author = Don Clark | date = April 3, 2008 | url = https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB120719726445485981 | title = Virtual World Gets Another Life | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{cite news | newspaper = The Economist | date = March 19, 2008 | url = http://www.economist.com/opinion/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10880516/ | title = Break down these walls | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{cite journal | journal = Technology Review | author = Eric Naone | date =October 29, 2007 | url = http://www.technologyreview.com/Infotech/19629/?a=f/ | title = Moving Freely between Virtual Worlds | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{Cite news| newspaper = Financial Times | author = Chris Nuttal | date = October 26, 2007 | url = http://www.ft.com/cms/s/d373b824-83de-11dc-a0a6-0000779fd2ac,Authorised=false.html?_i_location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.com%2Fcms%2Fs%2F0%2Fd373b824-83de-11dc-a0a6-0000779fd2ac.html%3Fnclick_check%3D1&_i_referer=http%3A%2F%2Fmultiverse.net%2Fabout%2Fnews.jsp%3Fcid%3D5%26scid%3D1&nclick_check=1/ | title = Real life intrudes on the virtual world | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{Cite news| newspaper = Financial Times | author = Chris Nuttal | date = October 15, 2007 | url = http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b67ee532-7ab9-11dc-9bee-0000779fd2ac.html?nclick_check=1/ | title = Will the web go 3D? | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{cite web | publisher = CNET News.com | author = Daniel Terdiman | date = October 9, 2007 | url = http://www.news.com/Google-tools-to-power-virtual-worlds/2100-1043_3-6212325.html?tag=nefd.top/ | title = Google tools to power virtual worlds | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{cite journal | journal = Technology Review | author = Wade Roush | date = July–August 2007 | url = http://www.technologyreview.com/Infotech/18911/page1/ | title = Second Earth | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{cite news | newspaper = Wall Street Journal | date = June 18, 2007 | url = https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB118194712466137265 | title = What's New: Fueling Fantasies | accessdate = 2012-01-31 | author = Scott Austin |author2=Arthur Kimball-Stanley |author3=Ty McMahan |author4=Erica Owen }}
- {{cite news | newspaper = The Economist | date = June 7, 2007 | url = http://www.economist.com/search/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9249157&CFID=4554328&CFTOKEN=34218013 | title = Online gaming's Netscape moment | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{cite journal | journal = Red Herring | date = May 31, 2007 | url = http://www.redherring.com/Article.aspx?a=22463&hed=Multiverse+Snares+%244M§or=Industries&subsector=EntertainmentAndMedia | title = Multiverse Snares $4M | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}{{Dead link|date=January 2012}}
- {{cite journal | journal = BusinessWeek | date = April 16, 2007 | author = Robert D. Hof | url = http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/apr2007/tc20070416_780263.htm | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070418143837/http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/apr2007/tc20070416_780263.htm | url-status = dead | archive-date = April 18, 2007 | title = The Coming Virtual Web | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{cite magazine | magazine = Wired | author = Mark Wallace | date = December 7, 2006 | url = https://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,72263-0.html?tw=wn_index_1 | title = Firefly Reborn as Online Universe | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{cite web | publisher = Tech Central Station | author = Patrick Cox | date = October 2006 | url = http://www.tcsdaily.com/article.aspx?id=102306A | title = The Next Big Thing | accessdate = 2012-01-31 | url-status = dead | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20100511142144/http://www.tcsdaily.com/article.aspx?id=102306A | archivedate = 2010-05-11 }}
- {{cite journal | journal = BusinessWeek | author = Burt Helm | date = February 13, 2006 | url = http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_07/b3971073.htm | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060205022710/http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_07/b3971073.htm | url-status = dead | archive-date = February 5, 2006 | title = James Cameron's Game Theory | accessdate = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{cite journal | journal = BusinessWeek | author = Burt Helm | date = February 13, 2006 | url = http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_07/b3971076.htm | title = Syncing Hollywood and Gamers | accessdate = 2012-01-31 | url-status = dead | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20120214161253/http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_07/b3971076.htm | archivedate = February 14, 2012 }}
- {{cite web | publisher = Gamasutra | date = December 6, 2005 | author = Nich Maragos | url = https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/multiverse-launches-multiverse-platform-for-mmog-development | title = Multiverse Launches Multiverse Platform for MMOG Development | access-date = 2012-01-31 }}
- {{cite journal|journal=Red Herring |date=December 6, 2005 |url=http://www.redherring.com/Article.aspx?a=14757&hed=Game+Developer+Service+Starts+§or=Industries&subsector=EntertainmentAndMedia |title=Multiverse seeks to help independent game developers |accessdate=2012-01-31 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060430171049/http://www.redherring.com/Article.aspx?a=14757&hed=Game+Developer+Service+Starts+§or=Industries&subsector=EntertainmentAndMedia |archivedate=April 30, 2006 }}
- {{cite web | last = Kent | first = Steven | date = September 23, 2003 | publisher = GameSpy | url = http://archive.gamespy.com/amdmmog/week1/ | title = Alternate Reality: The history of massively multiplayer online games | accessdate = 2012-01-31 | url-status = dead | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20120204050425/http://archive.gamespy.com/amdmmog/week1/ | archivedate = February 4, 2012 }}
External links
- {{official website|multiverse.net}}