Over at our sister site Gamasutra, they've got an interview with Korean designer Hak Kyu Kim, creator of popular MMO Ragnarok Online. Kim's also got a new project, Granado Espada (Sword of the New World) in the works with his new company, IMC Games. In the interview, Kim discusses the difference between developing MMOs and offline games, excerpted here:

What was the biggest difference between developing MMOs and offline games?

HK: The biggest difference is that making an online game is about creating a playground for players. Rather than trying to fill everything up from the beginning, I have to leave a lot of spaces empty that can be filled as the game evolves with its players.

Do you think it’s easier or harder to develop a MMO?

HK: I feel that to make a good MMO you need to obtain various types of knowledge, from business economics, to statistics, to history, to marketing, and many others, as all those bodies of knowledge are critical to making the game as good as it can be. For example, business and economic knowledge is very important when you’re trying to create the economic system within a game. This can’t be done well unless you as a developer know how to make it work.

I guess there’s a lot of math involved in keeping the right balance.

HK: Yes - if you want to maintain the right balance, it is very important to hire the right type of experts in statistics.

You can now read the complete interview at Gamasutra, which includes Kim's thoughts on the Asian market, distinguishing his game from the other offerings, and the background of Ragnarok Online.