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Well, a literary celebrity at any rate.
It seems Mercedes Lackey (yes, that Mercedes Lackey) is both a huge fan of and an avid player of City of Heroes. She has a permanent account after she wrote a story arc for the Architect Entertainment feature of the game (where players can design their own scenarios to be played by other players), so we're not talking like certain supposed World of Warcraft authors who are all, "Teehee, I've played the game..for about ten minutes." She is a legit player and a fan, and she wants to save CoH.
Here's the letter she wrote to Taek Jin Kim, CEO of NCSoft:
Considering how book nerd culture intersects quite a bit with gamer nerd culture, particularly for games like City of Heroes, this is actually a pretty huge deal. Heck, maybe Lackey could even sweeten the pot by offering to write a short story tie-in, or maybe even a novel? Oh, who am I kidding? A novel tie-in for Mercedes Lackey would be more money than NCSoft would be willing to spend. Still, it has potential.
Do I think Lackey would pull in the sort of money and attention as a television or movie celebrity? No, but then even Neil Gaiman wouldn't have as much pull as Robert Downey, Jr. However, this is a start, and I think these protests to save CoH finally have some serious traction.
It seems Mercedes Lackey (yes, that Mercedes Lackey) is both a huge fan of and an avid player of City of Heroes. She has a permanent account after she wrote a story arc for the Architect Entertainment feature of the game (where players can design their own scenarios to be played by other players), so we're not talking like certain supposed World of Warcraft authors who are all, "Teehee, I've played the game..for about ten minutes." She is a legit player and a fan, and she wants to save CoH.
Here's the letter she wrote to Taek Jin Kim, CEO of NCSoft:
Dear Mr. Kim;
This, like so many other letters, is a plea to save Paragon Studios and the City of Heroes, City of Villains, and Going Rogue games. And like so many others, I could tell you about the thousands of hours I have spent there with friends, the thousands of dollars I have spent within the games, or even how this game allows my husband and I to “meet” and play nearly every night with my father in law, the retired, and multi-medaled Master Sergeant Jim Dixon formerly of Delta Force. I could even tell you how this game is the only one ever to interest him.
Instead, I am going to make you an offer. I am a multi-award-winning, New York Times bestselling fantasy and science fiction author. And I will offer myself and my likeness to endorse and advertise, exclusively, all NCSoft products for a minimum term of five years and a maximum term of ten years, for no compensation or payment, if you will make it possible for the game and Paragon Studios (even in a reduced capacity) to continue to function, either once again under the NCSoft umbrella, or until a new owner comes forward.
I had in mind something like this: Advertisements with a photo of myself, imposed over a transparent image of one of my more striking characters, both of us in the same pose. Text: “I am New York Times bestselling fantasy author Mercedes Lackey. Creating fantastic realms is hard work, and when I relax, I like to play in someone else’s world. I play NCSoft Games. Anything else is unimaginable.” The tagline for the ad campaign would be “NCSoft: anything else is unimaginable.”
I hope, sir, that I have caught your interest, and you will consider this proposition.
Yours truly
Mercedes Lackey
Considering how book nerd culture intersects quite a bit with gamer nerd culture, particularly for games like City of Heroes, this is actually a pretty huge deal. Heck, maybe Lackey could even sweeten the pot by offering to write a short story tie-in, or maybe even a novel? Oh, who am I kidding? A novel tie-in for Mercedes Lackey would be more money than NCSoft would be willing to spend. Still, it has potential.
Do I think Lackey would pull in the sort of money and attention as a television or movie celebrity? No, but then even Neil Gaiman wouldn't have as much pull as Robert Downey, Jr. However, this is a start, and I think these protests to save CoH finally have some serious traction.
