Orson Scott Card making a MMORPG saywhu...?!?

Personally I'd rather see Card develop a massive multiplayer online role-playing game set in the Ender saga, but even he would be hard-pressed to persuade people to fork over $15 a month to play-act as prepubescent politicians. That and he'd kill off the entire player-base with old age if the space travel was done like it is in the books. But that he's doing this one is enough to pique my interest. From Card's official website...

eGenesis to Develop Alvin's World as a Multi-player Online Game
Letter to Hatrackers from Orson Scott Card
January 5, 2005

After all these years of taking part together in this online Hatrack River community, I'm happy to announce that today (5 January 2005), I entered into an agreement with eGenesis, the game company that created "A Tale in the Desert."

Andy Tepper, the lead designer of ATITD, saw in the Tales of Alvin Maker a world where another non-combat-centered community-building game could offer new possibilities.

Four different magic systems, plus the technology track, offer players many ways to develop their characters; the presence of Calvin, Arthur Stuart, Peggy Larner, and Alvin Maker himself will provide plenty of complications and opportunities.

Above all, this alternate version of America will have ongoing events that players can affect, changing history each time a full game is played...

Hit here for more details on the forthcoming game. Must admit that I've never read any of Card's Alvin Maker books but an alternate-history America where magic really works does seem an intriguing setting to explore. I've read all the books (except the "Shadow" co-novels) in the Ender series though: Ender's Game should be required reading for ANYONE who works with young people, or soldiers in training, or seminary students... actually, it should be required reading by everyone. And then Card pulled the very rare feat of making the sequel, Speaker for the Dead an even better novel than the first! Just going by that and a lot of other things this man's produced, the Alvin Maker game should be one to watch.