Case Study: Canaan
An Insight on Browser
Games’ Breakthroughs
and Challenges
Aaron Hsu
 Chairman, XPEC Entertainment

What is a Browser Game?
Basic characteristics of a browser game:
Typical
Online Game
Web Browser
Technology
Browser
Games
What is a Browser Game?
Genres of Browser Games
What is a Browser Game?
Genres of Browser Games
Simulation Game
Travian
Farmville
Ikariam
Barbie Girls
What is a Browser Game?
Genres of Browser Games
First Person Shooter
Quake Live
Fallen Empire: Legions
Brave Arms
Battlefield Heroes
What is a Browser Game?
Genres of Browser Games
Casual Games
Partypoke
r
Chess Game World
Bejeweled
Zuma Blitz
What is a Browser Game?
Genres of Browser Games
Massively Multi-player Online Role Playing Game
Runescap
e
Dofus
Dark Orbit
Canaan
What is Canaan?
• Browser Based and Flash Game
• Massively Multi-player Online Role
Playing Game - MMORPG
What is Canaan?
• Cute and Attractive
• Intelligent Navigation System
• Very low minimum computer
requirements
• SNS integrated
Canaan Languages
China
North America
Japan
Korea
Taiwan
Europe
Indonesia
Spain
Released in 11 languages in 9 Regions
Canaan’s Achievements
50 Million Registered Users!!
Awards
• China Web Games Summit 2008
Best Browser Game
• Bahamut Players’ Community
Most Popular Browser Game 2010
• Taiwan Game Show 2010
Gamestar Browser Game 3rd place
• 17173.com
Top 10 most popular browser games 2010
How Canaan Became a Success
Superb Graphics
Customizable Avatar
•
•
Unique fashion system that shows the distinction of the character
Flexible wardrobe system that adjusts to the characters
movement
How Canaan Became a Success
Using particle systems to create special effects
All 64 kinds of special effects’ file size are only 232KB!!!
High Rendering performance : the page simultaneously
support the fighting units of 20 cast skills
How Canaan Became a Success
Smooth game loading
Well-designed data compression and storage
format, reducing the size of the web client
greatly.
• 10 Map of the World, 12 copies of maps,
battlefield maps 3
• 1,000 kinds of equipment, 1,500 species of props
• 700 monsters, 100 species of pets
• 1000 NPC game
Game client resources do not exceed the
total size of 100MB!
How Canaan Became a Success
Flow Saving technology
The average single-user message traffic (both directions):
less than 3Kbps
Reasonable segmentation of the resource loading
mechanism, allowing the player to more quickly enter
the game
Map the size of public resources (login to the game
download only once): 4MB
A map size of the resource: 4MB
For the first time into the game resource downloads: 4
+4 = 8MB
Loaded again with a map downloaded (buffered): 0MB
512Kbps speed conditions, for the first time login to the
game just time-consuming: 8MB/512Kbps ≈ 2 分钟
512Kbps speed conditions, the switch only takes a map:
4MB/512Kbps ≈ 1 分钟
How Canaan Became a Success
Rich Game Content
pet
combat
system
mailbox
union equipment
seamless
system
religion
base map
shops
auction
Instance skill friends
dungeon
Avatar
PK
XPEC web game technology UI
• Modular, highly customizable UI system, greatly
improving the efficiency of the development of
the game interface
Client Logic
Client Logic
UI
Other
UI
UI ClientTightly Coupled
Client
UI
UI
UI
Module
Module
Module
A
B
C
Engine
Module
UIClientLoosely Coupled
Browser Game’s Challenges
Perform the same way client based
games do!
Limitations
•Hardware
•Software
Strategic game design is the only way to go
around these limitations.
Browser MMORPG’s Potentials
• Browser based games have a very
promising future.
• The technology enables the game to be
accessed anywhere without the need of
specific hardware.
Browser MMORPG’s Potentials
Growing list of internet capable devices
Browser MMORPG’s Potentials
MMORPG Factor
•
•
•
•
•
Role-playing
Social interaction
Culture
Economics
Development
This genre has a unique stimulus on gamers. It
has the tendency to attract and retain more
players longer compared to others. Competition is
continuous and the challenge is never ending.
Browser MMORPG’s Potentials
• The inevitable growth of social
networking services that helps in
promoting social gaming.
• Technology keeps being updated
every now and then, developing a
browser game as good as client based
games is not too distant.
Browser MMORPG’s Potentials
Cloud Computing Technology will
impact on Web Games progress
Netbooks
Mac
PC
PC
Bounty
Hounds
Facebook
XPEC
Consoles
Yahoo
Bing
MySpace
Google
Microsoft
Online
Games
Canaan
Ipad
Smartphones
Conclusion
Browser MMORPG is fast advancing
with today’s technologies.
The future of gaming appears to be in
browser based game’s direction.
It’s only a matter of time when the
advantages of other gaming
technologies can be experienced in
browser games
Q&A