TEN: About TEN - Press Releases - 971219
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SAN FRANCISCO—December 19, 1997—Total Entertainment Network™ (TEN™) today announced
the immediate availability of the much-anticipated version 2.0 of AD&D; Dark Sun Online: Crimson Sands
(DSO 2.0), the online-only game enjoyed by thousands of Internet role-playing game (RPG) enthusiasts.
Sporting a number of new features and enhancements, DSO 2.0 offers an entirely new set of regions,
quests, and non-player characters (NPCs). Along with this major new release, TEN announced that it has been
developing AD&D; Dark Sun Online: The Age of Heroes. This second- generation online title is being
designed from the ground up to provide an expandable, customizable, secure world which supports true AD&D;
gameplay.
DSO: Crimson Sands, v. 2.0
The significant changes within DSO 2.0 focus on providing players with daring missions and exciting
experiences instead of mundane errands. The new DSO 2.0 also includes important enhancements such as:
These 2.0 changes follow other recent DSO additions, such as the staff-run Ongoing Stories (where players�
actions affect the course and outcome of each story) and a Guild Point System (where guilds and other player
groups can earn points to obtain guild halls, message boards, and other in-game benefits). These support
programs, along with future upgrades beyond version 2.0, will provide players with engaging, personalized
role-play for a long time to come.
DSO: The Age of Heroes
While Crimson Sands has proven to be fun for players, it has also been a valuable training ground for
TEN. In fact, so much was learned during DSO�s early months that a year ago work began on a new online AD&D;
engine -- one architected from scratch to be capable of providing the Internet role-playing game which players
clearly wanted. DSO: The Age of Heroes will be the first product to use TEN�s proprietary online AD&D;
engine. Inspired by 18 months of DSO player feedback, The Age of Heroes will provide:
Customizable Figurines - Players may choose from an assortment of figurines (the online counterpart of
table-top lead figures) to represent their character. Players will then be able to �paint� their figurines
from within the game. There will be hundreds of different figurines, with millions of ways to color each one.
Ease of Communication - Chat channels will allow players to maintain discussions with various groups of
players, regardless of where they are in the game world. Message boards, e-mail, and guild support will also
be made readily available.
Modern Interface - The game will run as a true, re-sizable Windows95 application. A Web browser window will
be built right into the game. The graphics will be high resolution with high color depth.
Security - All important game information will run on the server to prevent cheating. Server logs will allow
DSO management to make sure that troublemakers are removed from the game.
Tactical Combat - The combat round will follow AD&D;�s turn-based rules precisely, including spell-casting
times. Combat will not bog down with large numbers of combatants, Internet lag will not be an issue, and
there will be significant incentive for characters to work together as a party.
World Expandability - There will be one world, unlimited in potential size. Thanks to TEN�s expertise in
scalable network architectures, servers can be easily added to extend the world, such that it will support
tens of thousands of simultaneous players without impacting performance.
DSO: Crimson Sands was developed by Strategic Simulations, Inc (SSI), with ongoing development now done
by TEN. DSO: The Age of Heroes is being developed by TEN in cooperation with SSI and TSR, and uses art
provided by SSI. Both games are TEN exclusives. For more information, or to download DSO: Crimsons Sands
v. 2.0, go to http://www.ten.net/games/darksunonline.
Total Entertainment Network is the premier entertainment network for game playing consumers on the
Internet. TEN has online rights to more than 30 games—over half of which are TEN exclusives—by
leading software publishers including 3D Realms Entertainment, Apogee, Blizzard, Bungie Software, Eidos
Interactive (formerly Domark), id Software, GT Interactive, Maxis, MicroProse, Sierra Online/Papyrus,
SSI and Westwood Studios. TEN received its initial funding from Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers,
with subsequent investors including Ameritech; Goldman Sachs; Robertson, Stephens & Co.; Vertex
Management; Wasserstein Perella Ventures.
Garth Chouteau
TEL 415.778.3774
Because the changes with version 2.0 are so extensive, all characters have been re-set to their starting
levels to ensure game balance and consistency.
AD&D; Rule Adherence - The designers are being strict in their implementation of AD&D; rules in order to
preserve the game balance that has come from 20 years of Dungeons & Dragons. Unlike some computer games which
are only superficially based on AD&D;, this engine is AD&D; down to its core.
According to Jeff Kesselman, senior TEN engineer and lead programmer and architect for TEN�s AD&D; engine, "Our
goal is not to create a world simulation. Instead, we are reproducing the experience of playing table-top
Dungeons and Dragons. DSO: The Age of Heroes will be about character development and role-play, about
tactics and strategy, and about playing with friends and being a hero."
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TEN and Dark Sun Online 2.0 screen shots are available in digital format upon request. AD&D;, DARK SUN, and
the DARK SUN logo are registered trademarks of TSR, Inc. TSR is a subsidiary of Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
Total Entertainment Network, TEN, and the TEN logo are trademarks of T E Network, Inc.
TEN Press Contact
FAX 415.778.3520
