The former head of SOE and Daybreak. Affectionately known to gamers as “Smed.”
john smedley
Perfect Ten: MMOs that set themselves up as spiritual successors
As with the larger video game market, sequels aren't unknown in the MMO space. We've seen studios take a stab at following up successful...
The Daily Grind: So, do you think Google’s Stadia will revolutionize gaming?
Yesterday's Google presentation and announcement of Stadia - and all its attendant accoutrements - set the internet as well as our staff chattering about...
Perfect Ten: The worst MMORPG expansions of all time
A great MMO expansion brings so much to the table: fresh excitement for a game, new classes, innovative features, expanded vistas, additional races, and...
The Game Archaeologist: Project Copernicus
In the end, one of the biggest shames of the whole 38 Studios fiasco is that the MMORPG it was creating and the people...
Massively OP’s 2018 Blooper Awards: Most vindicating story
Massively OP's not-so-serious end-of-the-year awards begin today with our blooper award for Most vindicating story. And the winner is...
Perfect Ten: MMOs to watch in 2019
The MMO genre is in a strange and uncertain place right now -- but also one that is quietly thrilling. We've long passed the...
Daybreak has suffered another round of layoffs, between 60 and 70 people
It's Friday afternoon, which often portends bad news. Tonight, we're looking at more Daybreak layoffs. Massively OP understands that between 60 and 70 people may have been affected.
Former SOE/Daybreak President John Smedley acknowledged the news on Twitter with a little bit of shade thrown in for good measure. The H1Z1 team working through NantWorks also tweeted its condolences.
Massively Overthinking: The best and worst MMO developer quotes of 2018
It's become a tradition on Massively OP to include among our end-of-the-year roundups and editorials and retrospectives a run-down of our favorite - and least favorite - MMO dev quotes of the year, be they obscure, poignant, or just plain dumb. So once again, for this week's Massively Overthinking, I've asked our staff to offer up those quotes and then reflect on what we from the year and reflect on just what we've learned from them.
Smed vows he’ll someday make a game akin to EverQuest Next
Earlier this week on the podcast, Justin and I were joking around about how one of our favorite fun things to write about is...
Another e-thug responsible for DDOSing SOE years back is brought to justice
Hey, remember a few years ago when there was a new Lizard Squad article like every month, thanks to the fact that the e-thug...
Perfect Ten: Failed MMOs that could have succeeded with more love
Hindsight is 20/20. Unless you're blind in one eye from nostalgia, in which case hindsight is 0/20. In any case, you understand that it's...
The MOP Up: Star Trek Online’s starbase defense
With the Age of Discovery pack on its way this fall, players of Star Trek Online are probably curious what the studio has up its sleeve...
EverQuesting: The history of the EverQuest franchise
Back in 2013, I took a walk through the annals of the EverQuest franchise's history. What started as one title not only blossomed into...
NCsoft is working on an Aion-related ‘next-generation’ MMORPG
No matter what your feelings may be toward NCsoft, it is great to see that the developer and publisher continues to greenlight MMORPGs instead...
The Game Archaeologist: A history of EverQuest’s expansions
I don't know if EverQuest holds the crown title for the MMO with the most expansions, but I'm sure it's among the top three...
Under pressure, Sony claims it’s looking into solving its crossplay dilemma
Under great amounts of pressure to reverse its anti-crossplay stance with the PlayStation 4, Sony has finally capitulated somewhat by saying that it is...
Daybreak mourns the death of H1Z1’s lead animator
This week, Daybreak is grieving over the loss of one of its key developers, David "Sarge" Carter. Carter worked as an animator on a couple...
Smed weighs in on Sony’s historical PlayStation crossplay hangups
Sony's managed to piss off a whole lotta gamers over its unwillingness to play ball on Fortnite. As we covered last week, the PlayStation...
Amazon Game Studios’ Greg Henninger hints about big news coming soon – is it New World?
Is Amazon Game Studios finally about to take the lid off of New World? Maybe, maybe not, but this might be a clue:Â AGS' Greg...
Daybreak update: Chief Publishing Officer Laura Naviaux has left the company
Yesterday, Massively OP put together a piece on MMO company Daybreak Games Company and its corporate overlords, chronicling the US government's asset freeze of...
