Big World: Citizen Zero

Big World: Citizen Zero

Massively multiplayer is becoming one of the hyped terms of this new century. It seems to be a bandwagon thing. It's so hot it's something game designers seem to have to cling to. Micro Forte is no different. Micro Forte has been in computer development for 15 years and works on its projects on the former prison colony now known as Australia. Their most recent project is the massively multiplayer game Big World: Citizen Zero currently in development.

The backstory is quite detailed and absorbing. Bigworld is set in a distant and isolated galaxy far, far away. The Ulruan solar system contains four planets with the possibility of habitation. Three are known to be inhabited. NE6744 is a penal colony that the inhabitants have taken to calling their new home Neo-Eden. While Neo-Eden is certainly stark but it is not inhospitable. The capitol, DeMannon's Ladder, has grown from a utilitarian prison building to a bustling metropolis. Many though have made their home as frontier settlers.

Ulrua, on the other hand, is a lush tropical world. It's filled with vegetation, swamps, and vast oceans. Ulrua is a peaceful place inhabited by the amphibious Beziel. Who find their planet the object of hunters and explorers. The Beziel are most accommodating to their guests.

Trinn is a ravaged desert-like place. Trinn is home to spies, smugglers, prospectors and various law-evading folk. Trinn has become the home for the despised Technical Houses. These houses use their control over advanced technologies to support a decadent lifestyle.

There is a fourth planet in the solar system which might hold the possibility of being habitable but it the gravity is only two-thirds normal and very little is known of its surface.

There are three main cities on the planets. They each serve a distinct purpose for their inhabitants. The capitol of Neo-Eden was the original prison building that now has expanded to contain 1.9 million residents. The place is fully climate controlled and has more than enough facilities for the residents. After the Riot, the city fell under the control of the DeMannon's Ladder Council (DLC). The DLC has done away with any thoughts of democracy and simply strive to keep their citizens docile and comfortable. As a result, most residents completely believe the myths (and sometimes, the truths) about what lies outside the high walls of DeMannon's Ladder - the dangers of Portal Town and, worse still, the Frontier. In this regard the story is similar to other science fiction stories. Portal Town was the result of an escape from Neo-Eden. While the founding ideals of Portal Town were high the town soon began to turn to dust and the town soon turned into a Cybrid ghetto. The corrupt Technical Houses established Purgatory Central. Although small it is a hotbed of illicit activity. Purgatory Central is home to ruffians and various hooligans whose prime entertainment is gambling on dune races.

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