Questions by Vincent Haoson
Answered by Jonathan Knell (Marketing Associate).
As our way of starting the year with a bang, players of Cabal Online would get to hear from one of the people who are working behind the scenes to make the game such a hit. Onrpg got the chance to talk to Jonathan Knell, marketing associate of Cabal Online. Here’s what he has to say about the game.
Onrpg: Cabal Online has been the one of the most anticipated online games last year. After almost a year of operations how is the game faring in the perspective of the publishers?
Knell: We are very proud of the popularity CABAL Online has been receiving since its launch. The CABAL community is constantly growing and we do our best to make sure that there are always new challenges and exciting surprises that can be enjoyed by both old and new players.
Onrpg: What do you think is the biggest sell of Cabal Online for players? What do you think makes them come back for more?
Knell: While there are many aspects that our players love about CABAL Online, one of the strongest parts of the game is the high quality of the game. CABAL features intense action, beautiful graphics, and fluid animation that can rival many pay-to-play MMORPGs, yet players can get all of this without any download or monthly fees.
Onrpg: What steps have you taken to keep the player interest in Cabal Online?
Knell: In addition to regular updates which include new features – like the recently-released Nevareth Arcade System – and new items, we make a point of constantly introducing unique events that the community can participate in. These events range from double experience weekends to events where players can meet and fight with GMs.
Onrpg: In every Online game the community is considered as one of the most important factors of keeping a game alive. Do you help out the communities surrounding Cabal? How so?
Knell: In CABAL Online, we have made a point of keeping up with the community to create the best game environment possible. We try to stay in touch with our community through events and on the forums. Most recently, we have been working with our community by running various mini test events through our forums. We have also worked with other online communities that have approached us, as well as offering information and interviews to various fan sites.
Onrpg: How big is the effect of your community in your overall operations in Cabal Online?
Knell: The community is always one of our highest priorities when we make plans for CABAL Online. We always try to keep the community’s concerns in mind before we make any decisions such as introducing anything new to the game.
Onrpg: There was an OGPlanet wide Olympic Event that was done last year, was there a favorable response from Cabal Online players? Would there be another event of this magnitude in the future?
Knell: The Olympic Event was a huge event that took quite a bit of planning, and players from all of our games had quite a bit of fun. The CABAL players that participated really loved the event because it was the first time we ever did dungeon crawls with GM supervision, giving players instant bragging rights. Unfortunately, due to the nature of the event, we could only allow a very small number of players to participate, but those who did really enjoyed it.
Onrpg: How do you guys think of events that would fit for Cabal Online? What factors do you consider whenever you think of events?
Knell: Our team constantly meets and discusses event ideas that we feel the community would like. Our main concerns are that the events focus on aspects of the game that our players really enjoy and that they are genuinely fun. We also make a point of constantly trying to come up with new events so that the community doesn’t get bored from doing the same events too often.
Onrpg: Do you consider the events suggested by players in your forums as a source for your inspiration in thinking of in-game events?
Knell: While most of our events are original concepts that come from internal discussion and from trends we see in the forums, we have definitely listened when the community has event ideas. In fact, we ran a very successful “Event to Event” where players could submit their own event ideas.
Onrpg: Is it possible for OGPlanet to host a live event for Cabal Online Players?
Knell: OGPlanet often hosts live events. Just recently, we had an in-game Santa give out presents to players, a hide-and-seek with the GMs event, and some mini-events where players could challenge the GMs. The main issue with live events is that they tend to exclude players that cannot be on when the event is going on, so we try to also make many events automated and long-term so that everyone can enjoy them.
Onrpg: We noticed that in the forums there was a description that says If you’re going to ask if you can play from countries other than the U.S. and Canada, the answer is, “No” Does that mean that you get a lot of those questions often? What steps have you taken besides this one to make sure players don’t need to keep inquiring?
Knell: It is definitely a compliment that so many people from outside of the U.S. and Canada want to play CABAL Online, but this version of the game is exclusive to these regions. We do receive this question quite a bit, and we simply have to respond that players from other regions should look for versions of CABAL Online that are hosted in their home country.
Onrpg: There is a thread found in your forum that says that there is a way for players outside of the U.S. and Canada to play on this server of Cabal Online. Does this mean that there is a high possibility that there are players from other countries that can play on this server? Why is that?
Knell: As with all things, players will always try to find ways around the rules. We are constantly on the lookout for players that should not be in our servers as well as players that are being generally abusive, and in both cases we try to remove them from the server as quickly as we can.
Onrpg: There has been a suggestion to add new character classes to the game, are you considering including new job classes as the game progresses? Why or why not?
Knell: Unfortunately, we do not discuss future releases.
Onrpg: What new weapons and armors are you going to release for the succeeding months of 2009?
Knell: Again, it is our policy not to discuss future releases.
Onrpg: Will there be any major changes within the game this year? What can you share that players can look forward to?
Knell: While we cannot discuss future releases, we can say that 2009 started off very strong and we have no intention of slowing down. We have just released our new Nevareth Arcade System which is getting a very positive response from the community. Players can expect more fun events and surprises in the coming year!
