Skotos Tech Crowns New Galactic Emperor

BERKELEY, CA, May 7, 2001 — Skotos Tech's second game, Galactic Emperor: Succession, has now been released to the entire Internet for an unlimited beta. In this science-fiction game of intrigue, politics, and subterfuge the ultimate goal is to become the next Galactic Emperor. It is an intense roleplaying experience that can be played in just six days.

In the game of Succession, the Galactic Emperor is dead. But, as the Archons of the Galaxy gather above Principality to elect the next Aegios of a Million Suns, other troubles loom. The alien Vl'Hurgh have initiated a massive assault on the Empire in an attempt to reclaim the ancient relics of the Shining Ones; the Artifact Wars have begun anew. Now, the Archon's political machinations in the Palace must be carefully balanced against the battles being fought throughout the Million Suns... lest the ancient Empire fall.

"Galactic Emperor: Succession is totally unique," says designer Eric Olsen. "It's a hybrid game that combines roleplaying and strategic elements." The roleplaying elements of Succession center on a prose-based environment that depicts the Palace above Principality; here the players form alliances, trade votes, and ultimately elect a new Galactic Emperor. At the same time players manipulate graphical web-based screens to monitor resources, move ships, and command family members. Ultimately, both socialization and strategy are required to achieve victory.

Succession is also unique in another way: it offers casual gamers the ability to play in an immersive world. Tomas Clark, a player of the early beta, says, "The cool thing is that you don't need to play a whole lot to have an impact." Whether players want to manipulate resources for a couple of minutes or plan to spend hours carefully canvassing the Palace, they'll affect the final outcome of the game. In addition, casual players can choose to play Succession for only a week at a time. At the start of each week a new game of Succession begins, and everyone starts to struggle for advantage; by Saturday evening a new Galactic Emperor has been elected.

"We think these innovative features will make Succession a totally new experience," says Eric Olsen. "We expect casual gamers, roleplayers, and strategic gamers all to come together... to determine the future of the galaxy."

Galactic Emperor: Succession is built upon the success of Skotos Tech's first game, Castle Marrach. Castle Marrach, which launched in late 2000, is a primarily social game. It has been described by players as "some of the best roleplaying I've done in quite some time" and "very, very addicting." Succession incorporates the strong social systems developed for Castle Marrach into a much more competitive game. Both Succession and Castle Marrach are built with the Skotos StoryBuilder Server. Succession proves that the StoryBuilder Server is not just an excellent platform for prose games, but also for web-based games of any sort.

The beta test of Galactic Emperor: Succession continues through the middle of June, 2001. Interested players can sign up for a month of free play at http://www.skotos.net/games/succession/.

ABOUT SKOTOS

Skotos Tech (www.skotos.net) is an online game company located in Berkeley, California. It is committed to creating a community of StoryBuilders and players. Skotos offers tools that allow its game designers to concentrate on the plot, character, and detail of the worlds they create; it also provides an environment that allows players to explore these worlds, share their accomplishments, and possibly become StoryBuilders themselves. All of Skotos' games are available for play at http://www.skotos.net/games/. Skotos also maintains a large library of online game articles at http://www.skotos.net/articles/.