Some fan-based questions I answered recently, posting them to share - it's about Ravel Puzzlewell from Planescape: Torment and some of the thoughts behind her creation.
What was the origin of Ravel?
We had a number of physically powerful enemies in Torment, and I thought a night hag would be a good adversary, especially if she was a cryptic, deadly puzzle maker. As the game went on, the idea that Ravel was a branching creature whose life resembled a great tree (or bramble
I occasionally get interview questions from students aspiring to be designers. I try to warn them, but...
...anyway, if you're curious, here's some answers. And some questions to go along with them.
1. What is a typical day for you as far as working on a project or projects?
I get into work at 9:30, and try to work for an hour without checking email. This work can be writing design documentation, designing a system, doing mock-ups for an editor or toolset, or
Got back from Comic-con, and here are some pix from the show, in case anyone is interested.
Just a heads up that we'll be at Gen Con and PAX in the coming weeks, so keep an eye out for Mask of the Betrayer.
So, I generally despise writing companion romances (I think unrequited and/or doomed ones are ultimately more dramatic), but there are some techniques I've accumulated over the years that I try to incorporate into writing and designing romances in RPGs.
A lot of these things came out while writing Gannayev-of-Dreams in Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer, and I suppose it could hold true for other inter-party romances in games. What follows is a summary of some points we kicke
Off to Comic-Con within a week, although we won't be showing Mask of the Betrayer there, the plan is to show it at Gen-Con Aug 16-19, and PAX Aug 23-25 as it currently stands. This may fluctuate, so don't quote me on this.
In honor of convention season, I present some things to look forward to at game conventions.
Enjoy and have a good weekend, folks.
There were some concerns floating around about Aliens being an action RPG, so I thought it would best to clarify. While there will be action elements to it, it is still an RPG in every sense of the word.
An analysis of the elements, along with diagrams as to what constitutes an action RPG in the aliens universe, is presented for your viewing enjoyment here. Hypothetically, the diagrams may resemble cartoons. And it may not be a serious analysis. All other standard caveats apply.
Happy
As part of the discussion involving Aliens interface design, our Systems Lead, Paul Boyle, showed us this supercool lighttable interface.
Here's a glimpse of what future keyboards may be like.
There's also pretty lights and a cartoon in there as well, for your viewing pleasure.
Technically, this is "Unofficial GDC Report, Part 3." Technically. This is because this topic goes faaaaaar beyond GDC.
Regardless, I wanted to take a moment to show you why we love the fans who hate us.
Finally made it back from the Game Developer's Conference, and I'll be blogging the experiences through this coming week and the next.
I will say, that parties at GDC can get awkward, depending on the celebrity turnout.
Someone wrote me a letter this weekend, asking if I had any suggestions for breaking into computer game writing, and it occured to me I didn't. I had suggestions for breaking into computer game design, but...
Anyway, here's the gist of the response in case anyone else has a similar question about how it all works.
Writing for video games is something of a different beast compared to game design. My experience is that someone will contract a writer (and usually late in the process) onc
