This just in: I’ve gone and joined the Blogs of the Round Table. Okay, so the reason I’m doing this now instead of, say, sometime in the last several months I’ve been reading Man Bytes Blog is becaues this month’s topic, broadly speaking, is on character relationships in games, and as most of you know, it’s a topic I just can’t resist. And of course, it never hurts to get more exposure. So, here we go…

There are obviously many kinds of character relationships in games, and this time around, I’m going to focus solely on the relationship between the player and the player character. I’m sure I’ve mentioned a few times on this blog that I take a slightly unorthodox view on what this relationship must entail, which is that I play games not to be the main character, but rather to be the main character’s conscience. I say “unorthodox” because it seems like a lot of the leading interactive storytelling theory out there seems very concerned with giving the player a lot of freedom to act in whatever manner they choose (i.e. “being oneself”) and being able to respond to said freedom in a dramatically coherent fashion. From a programmer’s perspective — and I work as a programmer, so I should know — the fact that this problem is difficult and complex is a huge part of what makes it so fascinating.

But wait, there's more! »

I read a post over at Man Bytes Blog today about themes of isolation, how they’re so popular in movies and such these days, and how not enough games intentionally exploit said themes, even despite the fact that games are inherently isolating. And then I felt really really good about myself because lo and behold, my most recent games actually do deal quite a bit with isolation in their subject matter. Of course, being a little indie designer whose work attracts a niche audience the size of a protozoa, no one really cares all that much. Still, maybe that Corvus Elrod dude might get a kick out of the fact that hey, not all proponents of “games as art” lie purely on the side of theory. Some of them, you know, actually make stuff.

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I’ve had my eye on Hothead Games ever since I found out that Ron Gilbert was working for them. The fact that they do episodic indie games, have a good relationship with the Telltale folks, and are based in my current hometown is nice enough, but honestly, any company that’s smart enough to hire the creator of the Monkey Island™ series — one of the defining inspirations of my formative indie adventure game developer years — is definitely worth working for.

Bearing this in mind, I’m very proud to announce that as of this coming May, only days after my long-awaited graduation from university, I am going to be working at Hothead full-time as a programmer. [1] They’ll be putting me on DeathSpank, the episodic adventure/RPG that Ron’s been trying to get made for the past handful of years, which I’m super excited about because it espouses many ideals similar to what I attempted with Chivalry is Not Dead, namely morally complex situations and a silly, satirical outlook on your average video game story. In other words, you should all be looking forward to it, if you aren’t already.

P.S. Happy Pi Day!

As I mentioned earlier, last week, I went to my second GDC, which was very enjoyable, as always. Though oddly enough, this time around the actual conference sessions weren’t all that interesting. Or at least, not as interesting as I remember them being last year. Maybe because game developers, by and large, tend to keep saying the same things every year, but since I was a first-timer, it was all new to me. Then again, this year, people seemed a little more all-around optimistic about the state of innovation and creativity in games, perhaps owing to the success of things like Portal, which I promise myself I’m going to play once I finally get a new computer.

Was it still worth going? Definitely. Not just because I had an excuse to visit San Francisco, but because I got to be surrounded by game developers again for the first time in what seemed like forever. People who are highly intelligent, highly creative, and highly passionate about the same things I’m passionate about. Indie games, serious games, comedic games, games from the perspectives of women and other minorities, games that tell compelling interactive stories, and games that change the world for the better… you name it, I got to have a conversation about it with someone, in the flesh. And that’s really an experience I don’t get to have every day.

Personal highlights include the following: Marek Bronstring’s voice, which he’d completely lost early in the week resulting in him sounding like an evil swamp creature; meeting Dave Gilbert again, this time accompanied with his lovely British programmer girlfriend Janet (FEMALE PROGRAMMERS FOR THE WIN!) and occasionally Edmundo Ruiz, a guy I’ve known on the internet since the days of SCRAMM; seeing my Telltale buddies again and meeting a few of the new hires (and the pretty new office!) they’ve accumulated since I went back to school; and looking sadly at the IGF student finalists that completely edged out Chivalry for a chance at the awards. More to come soonish…

Oh my. It appears as though while I wasn’t looking, a bunch of people went and blogged about Pigeons in the Park. First there was Greg Costikyan over at Play This Thing!, who’d written a lovely, analytical shpiel about Chivalry earlier; this time around, he’s just as analytical, which is exactly the kind of feedback a young and relatively inexperienced kid like me needs to get better at this art thing. Then, apparently as a result of said exposure, I found this one guy who’s apparently making a game very similar to my work in terms of design, except it’s about a young man whose father has cancer, or so I gather. In any case, I’ll be keeping an eye out for it. [1] And finally, it looks like Emily Short has given the game a looksie as well. This, I find very impressive in particular since, as I alluded earlier, it was her conversational IF work that played a big part in inspiring this game [2] in the first place.

All in all, I have to say I’m very, very flattered.

Some time ago, I read this one rather lengthy article that compared third-person adventure games to “little theater plays with clunky movement, no dramatic camera angles and a distanced view that makes it impossible to see any facial expressions”. This comparison, of course, was made with the intent of proposing better cinematography in adventure games, which many have already attempted since said article was written back in 2003. However, my strange little mind began to wander, and I thought to myself, why do we even have to emulate movies, anyway? Why can’t we exploit this theatre aesthetic in a way that’s artistically meaningful? Hell, why can’t there be an adventure game that’s actually set on a stage?

But wait, there's more! »

I see it’s been almost a month since my last post, so in an attempt not to sound like one of those people who only blogs about never updating their blog, I’ll instead share with you a few tidbits that have been preoccupying me for this past little while.

First off, I’ve been reading a bit. Recently, I’ve finished Persuasive Games by Ian Bogost, which was not only an interesting read, but also very useful in providing me with practical knowledge to inspire me in my own work. As well, I picked up Good Girls And Wicked Witches: Women in Disney’s Feature Animation, which appears to be a feminist critique of Disney movies. I’ve only just started, but so far, I’m very intrigued.

As for games, I’ve been spending a lot of time with my DS lately, as I managed to finally get around to playing the third installment of Phoenix Wright, as well as Hotel Dusk. Neither are particularly epic in scope, but both are very charming, engrossing, lovable, and just plain fun, and that’s more than good enough for me.

As for games I’m working on, I’ve got a thing or two in the works at the moment, but nothing I’m particularly ready to divulge as of yet. In the meantime, did you know that Chivalry recently got mentioned on Play This Thing! and Rock, Paper, Shotgun? I think this bodes well, as it signifies that the game is finally starting to get itself exposed to gamers at large, rather than just the adventure gaming community. Now, I only hope that said gamers will find something to like in it…