Liquidize105
08-09-2005, 12:19 PM
Kieron Gillen posted an interview (http://gillen.cream.org/wordpress_html/?p=676) with Doug Church (http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,4965/) on his workblog two weeks ago. I don't know how I could've missed this until now.
Church is one of the people who should have a much larger profile in the minds of the Gaming public. In short, a fair chunk of the things which Spector gets credit for, originate with Church (And, to be fair to Warren, he goes entirely out of the way to tell people this).
It also worked well increased the idea that the ship was a context which you were free to lose yourself and explore.
“If you look to Underworld to Shock to Thief, I think you can see a progression of taking out everything that kept you from diving into the world. That’s the reason why the CD version of Shock was so much better than the floppy disk version. We desperately tried to stop them releasing the floppy disk version, as - well – the whole reason we overlaid the automap, the whole full screen, the augmentations was because we wanted you to play it full screen, not to stop and read but be in the world all the time. With Thief it went even further. We really tried to narrow down the player’s ability, but within that narrow scope to give them complete control. I can see the progression that way.
In a lot of ways, with Deus Ex and the stuff Warren’s doing, is the reverse of that. Okay – you guys took all that lot out. We’re going to go back to the Kitchen Sink approach and go for broad but shallow game as opposed to a deep and narrow game. Obviously, some day we hope to both make a both Broad but deep game.”
Thanks for the solid interview with a myriad of interesting facts and opinion, KG. Give us a nudge next time, wouldja?
Oh anda wouldn't you like to know that Thief was originally a Communist zombie game? Definitely a winning combination if I ask me!
Church is one of the people who should have a much larger profile in the minds of the Gaming public. In short, a fair chunk of the things which Spector gets credit for, originate with Church (And, to be fair to Warren, he goes entirely out of the way to tell people this).
It also worked well increased the idea that the ship was a context which you were free to lose yourself and explore.
“If you look to Underworld to Shock to Thief, I think you can see a progression of taking out everything that kept you from diving into the world. That’s the reason why the CD version of Shock was so much better than the floppy disk version. We desperately tried to stop them releasing the floppy disk version, as - well – the whole reason we overlaid the automap, the whole full screen, the augmentations was because we wanted you to play it full screen, not to stop and read but be in the world all the time. With Thief it went even further. We really tried to narrow down the player’s ability, but within that narrow scope to give them complete control. I can see the progression that way.
In a lot of ways, with Deus Ex and the stuff Warren’s doing, is the reverse of that. Okay – you guys took all that lot out. We’re going to go back to the Kitchen Sink approach and go for broad but shallow game as opposed to a deep and narrow game. Obviously, some day we hope to both make a both Broad but deep game.”
Thanks for the solid interview with a myriad of interesting facts and opinion, KG. Give us a nudge next time, wouldja?
Oh anda wouldn't you like to know that Thief was originally a Communist zombie game? Definitely a winning combination if I ask me!