Personal
Numbers
09/03/10 09:25
I didn’t want to learn maths, I wanted to learn magic. Not the pulling rabbits out of hats kind, but the real thing with the beard and the staff and the robe and hat.
As a wee boy reading fantasy novels, I always wondered about the people who didn’t learn magic. I mean, if magic worked and it let you do whatever you liked, what kind of idiot wouldn’t want to learn that? Disregarding the fantasy worlds where only a special few have the ’talent’ for magic, there are plenty of fantasy worlds where magic is just a secret knowledge that only the select few know. It’s the guys in those worlds who still use tools to plow fields instead of by snapping their fingers that I don’t get.
Seriously, if you saw someone doing real magic, you’d make some effort to work out how, right? I know I would. In fact, I’d drop everything for the chance to learn a few god-like powers. You’d be mad not to!
It was only when I was much older that I realised that this world does have a kind of magic and I didn’t want to learn it because I thought it was the root of all evil; money.
The people adept at wielding the real magic wear suits not robes. They work in towers looming over the centers of our cities like modern day Saurons. The bankers and financiers don’t make anything. They deal purely in money, applying their arcane knowledge to grow enormous pools of that green magic. With it, they can have whatever they want.
If I had really understood it in those terms when I was younger I may have listened better in maths class. I still think that greedily going after money for money’s sake is an empty pursuit, but on the other hand, not learning magic when it exists does seem pretty foolish.
(By the way, hope you like the new posting format. I’ll try to upload a new comic every week. Fingers crossed.)
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Jet Car Stunts
02/03/10 22:36
I’ve been busy moving this last two weeks. It’s been hectic but we are now in new temporary digs.
The problem is that I have no games consoles until we find a permanent place to put our mountain of crap that is currently in storage. Consequently, I’ve been spending a bit more time than usual checking out iPhone games.
I have been convinced by the iPhone as a gaming platform ever since it was first announced but for the most part I’ve been pretty disappointed by the games that I’ve played. (Although I have not played enough of them for my opinion to be statistically relevant.)
I had dreamed two ears ago, (an insane dream) that Nintendo might start porting some of DS games to the platform. At the very least I had hoped that some of the better third party developers would bring their back catalogues to the iPhone. But after two and a half years there have still been very few DS ports. Cooking Mama (iTunes link) has finally made the jump but I am still waiting for some Phoenix Wright action.
My hankering for DS ports comes from my perception of an overall higher quality of games found on that platform in comparison to the iPhone.
Admittedly there are iPhone game powerhouses like Gameloft that have been pumping out games that are way above the appstore standard, but I’ve been waiting for something really awesome; a killer iPhone exclusive game. For me at least, I found one this week.
Jet Car Stunts (itunes link) is good.
From the simple radiosity inspired flat shaded graphics to the Stunt Car racer inspired acrobatics, this game just keeps bringing me back for more. Admittedly the difficulty level is steep, but death is so common and so meaningless thanks to the handy reset button that the often hilarious wipe outs and near misses are more funny than frustrating.
The tutorials are a perfect intro to a control system that feels intuitive but has a great deal of depth. The steering (via accelerometer) is perfectly implemented and I love the sound.
Jet Car Stunt’s short bursts of high skill gameplay coupled masses of re-playability makes for a perfect phone game in my opinion.
While I still wish for the iPhone’s Phantom Hour Glass to while away longer journeys, I find myself firing up Jet Car Stunts whenever I can sneak in a spare minute.
If you were ever a fan of Stunt Car Racer by Geoff Crammond, you may find this to be its spiritual successor; a game that follows that same death-defying track, while strapping on massive great rockets and launching itself through hoops like some deranged Darwin Award winner.
Five thumbs up!
The problem is that I have no games consoles until we find a permanent place to put our mountain of crap that is currently in storage. Consequently, I’ve been spending a bit more time than usual checking out iPhone games.
I have been convinced by the iPhone as a gaming platform ever since it was first announced but for the most part I’ve been pretty disappointed by the games that I’ve played. (Although I have not played enough of them for my opinion to be statistically relevant.)
I had dreamed two ears ago, (an insane dream) that Nintendo might start porting some of DS games to the platform. At the very least I had hoped that some of the better third party developers would bring their back catalogues to the iPhone. But after two and a half years there have still been very few DS ports. Cooking Mama (iTunes link) has finally made the jump but I am still waiting for some Phoenix Wright action.
My hankering for DS ports comes from my perception of an overall higher quality of games found on that platform in comparison to the iPhone.
Admittedly there are iPhone game powerhouses like Gameloft that have been pumping out games that are way above the appstore standard, but I’ve been waiting for something really awesome; a killer iPhone exclusive game. For me at least, I found one this week.
From the simple radiosity inspired flat shaded graphics to the Stunt Car racer inspired acrobatics, this game just keeps bringing me back for more. Admittedly the difficulty level is steep, but death is so common and so meaningless thanks to the handy reset button that the often hilarious wipe outs and near misses are more funny than frustrating.
The tutorials are a perfect intro to a control system that feels intuitive but has a great deal of depth. The steering (via accelerometer) is perfectly implemented and I love the sound.
Jet Car Stunt’s short bursts of high skill gameplay coupled masses of re-playability makes for a perfect phone game in my opinion.
If you were ever a fan of Stunt Car Racer by Geoff Crammond, you may find this to be its spiritual successor; a game that follows that same death-defying track, while strapping on massive great rockets and launching itself through hoops like some deranged Darwin Award winner.
Five thumbs up!
Articles
26/11/09 23:34
Things have been busy over the last couple of months, but I have put together the first of several planned articles and opened a new section up on the site menu; Articles.
For now there is only one article, it is a selection of sketches that drove some of the marketing imagery for Tomb Raider Legend and Anniversary.
I hope you enjoy them.
Website Redesign
28/09/09 20:07
I could no longer stand looking at the iWeb design I built last week. I put this new design together in Rapid Weaver. I still have a lot I need to add to the site to make it useful for people, but I will continue making improvements until it's good.
Oh, and check out the showreel in the About section.
Oh, and check out the showreel in the About section.
Consultancy
14/09/09 18:50
What sort of market is there for a games consultant?
I worked for Eidos as a publishing designer, giving feedback to external teams, but in that role there was always a certain element of command intrinsic to publisher feedback. Often that meant that the feedback I gave had to be general rather then specific and I didn’t feel I could really provide as much value as a consultant hired by the developer would.
Most external feedback developers get tend to be from publishing until the game is at Alpha or Beta when focus testing begins.
I actually think it can be very useful to have a fresh pair of experienced eyes come in and give a new perception on a project while it’s still in development. Detailed analysis of design documents, risk assessment and suggestions for missed opportunities in a game’s design seems like a useful services to offer, especially when the client is free to take it or leave it.
Having said that I’ve never heard of people in the games industry looking for external feedback other than focus testing, I mean everyone’s got opinions, right?
I think that there are a few aspects of design that can be managed by a an external developer (much of the story aspects of games spring to mind) but it will be interesting to see whether the game development industry is interested in design consultancy services.
I worked for Eidos as a publishing designer, giving feedback to external teams, but in that role there was always a certain element of command intrinsic to publisher feedback. Often that meant that the feedback I gave had to be general rather then specific and I didn’t feel I could really provide as much value as a consultant hired by the developer would.
Most external feedback developers get tend to be from publishing until the game is at Alpha or Beta when focus testing begins.
I actually think it can be very useful to have a fresh pair of experienced eyes come in and give a new perception on a project while it’s still in development. Detailed analysis of design documents, risk assessment and suggestions for missed opportunities in a game’s design seems like a useful services to offer, especially when the client is free to take it or leave it.
Having said that I’ve never heard of people in the games industry looking for external feedback other than focus testing, I mean everyone’s got opinions, right?
I think that there are a few aspects of design that can be managed by a an external developer (much of the story aspects of games spring to mind) but it will be interesting to see whether the game development industry is interested in design consultancy services.
