Draft:MediEvil EU site/Sorcerers

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Here the PlayStation Web site talks to the people who designed and built Medievil...

Katie Lea - Level Mapper

• Education: Art Foundation & Art at Cardiff University
• Joined Sony/Millennium: 1993
• Favorite Drink: Black Currant Juice
• Previous Jobs: Mapping with Vectordean
• Favorite Task: Texturing

LEVEL MAPPING

What is a Level Mapper?
It's quite a vague title but it means that I position all the enemies, energy pickups, money pickups etc. I also set up quite a lot of the spy cameras, chase cameras. . . various different types of cameras. I also place collision perimeters which govern where the player is allowed to walk and also keeps enemies out of places they're not supposed to go. . .

So it kind of moulds the level together?
Yes, the artist's actually responsible for building the level models and I place the things that go in it, under guidance from Jason who actually designed the individual levels. I get input from everyone in the team about where characters and items in the game should actually go.

Where do you put them physically?
We have a great graphic interface. I use a Silicon Graphics machine for plotting and use an internal plotting tool called "Mappy". I load the model and I have small markers to place them. For example, I have the model of a small zombie and I change the additional settings that need calibration, such as cell doors, which could present some requirements to open. . . that kind of things.

Is it a reusable software tool? 
Yes. It was used in Frogger and in Beast Wars. It is the basic interface, but it has different types of connections for different projects. It does different things for different projects, and I think it is also used by some of the SCEE London's internal teams.

Was it difficult for you to be only a level mapper, between teams of artists and teams of programmers? 
Actually I am part of both teams. I have to work a lot with the artists because I do model texturing. I must also collaborate with the programmers when placing the items they have programmed. I am a kind of bridge between the two.

ARTIST OR PROGRAMMER?

So what is your background? Artist? Programmer? Marketing? 
Well, actually I have an artistic background. It started off at school where art was my strongest, then I went on to do an art foundation course and I started off doing an art degree at Cardiff but left halfway through. And then I just kind of fell into the games industry.

I was friends with Chris [Sorrell, Producer of MediEvil] and one evening I was just sitting around waiting for Chris to finish, I'd played all of the games in the office, so he suggested I had a go at level mapping and off I went. This was at Vectordean. I started on a 3-month contract working on James Pond 3 doing the level mapping.

What did you start working on? 
Well, at the beginning, I was working on some projects from home, and I worked internally on Deadline, Silverload and Scroll.

Level mapping? 
For Scroll, I was working on the script. It was a role playing game where the graphics were very important. I did basic programming: "the player goes here and here's what happens". I was a "development assistant", which meant I had to do many different things. On Deadline I was setting up, on Silverload I was helping one of the programmers, Gary Richards, in the basic installation of the different elements. That meant using C, but I did not know it very well. . . It was just about cutting and pasting, and installing the animations and the rooms in the game.

DOWN ON THE FARM

What do you do when you aren't level mapping? 
Play games. At the moment I'm playing Alundra. I can't wait for the next one. Another favourite is Castlevania.

What's the first one you really got into?
I first started getting into games when my brother got an Amiga. I think the game was Rodland or something like that. I really liked it. It was just funny little fairies going round.

Did you fight each other to get on the machine?
We used to have a lot of 2-player games so it wasn't too bad. My brothers were younger then me so it wasn't too bad! I didn't get into games as early as a lot of other people seem to have done though.

So, if you stopped level mapping what would you do for a job?
Maybe something on the Internet, web page stuff, I like that. I like things that have got a slightly artistic bent but have also got quite a lot of technical knowledge as well, so you can combine the two. This is why games are perfect for me. Anything else has got to be something that is quite changeable so I'm not doing the same thing over and over again. When I was little I used to want to be a farmer.

Did you look at someone on a tractor and think 'that could be me'? 
No, I think it was that I used to like cows. . .

Are you a country girl? 
I grew up in Chesterfield, England, which is an industrial city, but I spent my holidays on the farm, where my parents rented a little house.

MEDIEVIL

So it's pretty good then?
I've done so many little bits and pieces so on the whole I'm really quite proud of the game. One of my favourite parts of the game is actually the last level coz I think we've got some really cool looking enemies and it's really fun to play and funny too. . . it's really, really funny.

Which bit was the worst - the one that you had to keep re-doing to get right?
Probably setting up the cameras. You can never make everybody happy so you do one version and that's cool until someone turns round and says 'oh I don't like that'. So I guess I go round in a circle a lot of the time trying to keep everyone happy and not keeping everyone happy.

Don't they beat you up? 
Oh, they beat me up a lot. People always arrive and say "Oh, Katie, you can do this, you can do the other." My monitor is always covered with sticky notes.

Do you sometimes refuse to do something? 
Only when it's too late, I'm dead from sleep and want to go home.

How long does it take you to map a level in MediEvil? 
Initially, it takes about a week to install the cameras, create the collisions and position the enemies but it gets redone so often that it is difficult to say.

So are you still working on it? 
Oh yes, we fix things, we change things all the time.

Do you work on multiple levels simultaneously? 
Yes and it's pretty hectic. For artists, it's clearer: they know when a task is finished, but for programmers and myself, it's a lot less accurate.

But it seems to be worth it.
The comments were good. We hope critics will like it. We can never be sure of that, either they like a game, or they hate it.

CROSS-DRESSING

Somebody was telling us about Matt doing weird stuff?
You mean the cross dressing? He only does it for a laugh - he doesn't do it every time he goes out somewhere.

What is it, a stockings thing?
Well he's got striped stockings, he's got various skirts and dresses. He recently bought a long silver dress. You can imagine how he looks with his hair as he's not a petite boy is he?

PINHEAD

What's your favourite genre?
I like a lot of different types of games - probably some kind of action game, but I like platform-type things and puzzle games. My favourite game of late has been Resident Evil 2. Really cool. I am a big horror fan.

So you like horror films as well?
Oh yeah. I love horror films. Hellraiser is my all-time favourite film.

I've never seen that.
It's about a magic puzzle box. It's gory. It's had quite a lot of sequels but the first one is the best; Cenovites and Pinhead. I'd love to play a puzzle game head to head against Pinhead.

Jason Riley - FMV Artist

• Education: Art at Farnmouth College, UK
• Joined Sony/Millennium: 1993
• Born: Hinkley, Leicestershire, UK
• Previous Jobs: Digger (Amiga Game), Creatures, Silverload

CAMEL NIGHTS

What did you do before working here?
I was a book illustrator, I had just finished college in Farnmouth and I was just trying to make a living but couldn't, because there are so many illustrators out there. So I tried computers. At Farnmouth we did technical drawing and life science - taking animals apart, drawing the insides, looking at butterflies.

Ripping their insides out? Are you the one that takes the team's cuddly toy camel apart? I heard that someone cut the tail off at a Christmas party.
That's right. They dismembered Calvin the Camel. People have done all sorts to him. He survived it though. I've taken him on holiday. He had a good time.

Where did you take him?
I have been to Madeira and Greece with him. He was already in South Africa. Camels should travel.

And not to stay still and have their tail ripped off?
Exactly. He has big soft shoes, they are not there for nothing.

And what is this story about a monkey?
That was the programmers. I have nothing to do with that. I christened him Chunky the Monkey, and it stuck.

DRAWING

How did you get here?
I arrived with my portfolio: I had no computer experience and I relied only on my portfolio. And the managers told me, "OK, you have two weeks to learn how to use D Paint". I had never touched a computer in my life. We had Apple Macs in college but we hated them.

You thought drawing with computers was not really "drawing"?
Yes, but then I realized were the way forward, that they were doing the simplest work. That's why we did not like them, but now we know why: it's a production tool that works incredibly fast. It is also less expensive. So I had to learn.

So you had to put the paint down?
Yeah, I haven't put paint to canvas in two to three years.

So you haven't got this creative urge to. . .
All the creative juices get taken out during the day.

Do you rush around being a dramatic artist or are you down to earth?
I'm pretty down to earth. If I get uptight I take it out during kickboxing.

Have you always drawn?
Yes, almost since the age of six. I did not fit any standard. The teachers said "oh, Jason, his mind wanders in the classroom." But, I am an artist, I am different. I did not think I was going to work on games or these kind of animations. But I fell in love with the animation. It allows me to really see my images move while before they remained static. They become something else, it gives them life. I wanted to illustrate children's books, but now I just want to stay where I am. I am much happier as well.

MEDIEVIL

Has MediEvil got a lot of FMV?
It's got about fifteen minutes of it. And there are a couple of scenes that I would have liked to put in but as a last minute decision we decided not to because they didn't quite link in with the story. So we took them out. But it doesn't matter as the story is told better. The FMV is throughout the whole game. There's is a two-and-a-half minute intro that tells you what happens at the beginning. And within the next four to five levels there are about fifteen seconds of animation each. Then the story builds and the timeline of the FMV gets longer and longer and longer telling you more and more of the storyline and getting more exciting.

So there is a bit at the end too?
Yes, there is an outro as a reward that continues for about two minutes. You don't get any FMV if Dan dies. If you finish the game, there is another reward.

What is your favorite part of the game?
I like the ghost ship. I have always loved galleons, ships and stuff like that.

While you're coming from Leicestershire, right in the middle of the UK!
Yes. It's something you do not see often in the area I come from. This is my favorite part. The galleon. The ghost ship. This part takes place almost at the end. It is a ship in the mist and you can also play on it.

Did you find that working in a creative team was restrictive?
It's good to get other people's opinions. I do not mind that at all. It's good to have the opinion of others, it does not bother me at all. It's sometimes frustrating, but in the end we all have the same goal. If you only have your own opinion, it does not work. Many people would probably disagree with me about it.

GAMES

So do you play games as an artist or a gamer?
Both really. I kinda like Crash Bandicoot 2. I like a lot of racing games, I like a fast game. I like the look of Command and Conquer, but my mind span just can't hack a computer game that lasts longer than fifteen minutes. It has to end in fifteen minutes.

Do you find that because you are a creative person , you can't just get on and enjoy playing them because you are always looking at them with a creative eye?
Precisely, I just look for the inspiration from films, books, comics. I do like to look at a wide variety of visual material.

TOOLS

What tools do you use for graphics?
Alias and Matador. I've got about three years knowledge of Alias. I would like to try some more software packages out, but Alias seems to be the main thing to use for development suites and stuff like that.

Have you not used Softimage?
I would love to have a go, because it has a better rendering engine. I am pretty impressed by the other tools on Softimage like the ray tracing. This means that you can have a suitable amount of reflections and refractions. And you can also have motion blur. Whereas in Alias, you can't get motion blur from ray tracer. You have to go into a ray caster, which is a cheaper rendering system.

BRANDY

What else do you do besides taking camels on holiday?
I do Thai boxing and circuit training. The circuit training I've only done over the past two years. When I first started, I didn't do any exercise and I thought "my body's losing it". So I decided to do some exercising. It clears my mind a little bit. And then I can come back and work better.

So you are Mr Healthy?
No. I still eat dodgy food, drink coffee but I don't smoke or drink too much. I only drink on special occasions. Every now and then. I drink shorts mostly. Brandy. No ice. Straight.

What kind of Brandy? Metaxa?
I drank a lot in Greece. It's like a medicine. I don't care about the brand, as long as it's pure Brandy. My father brought me cheap Spanish Brandy and I didn't like it.

Matt Johnson - Programmer

• Lives: Cambridge, UK (born Manchester)
• Education: Computer Science at Leeds University
• Joined MediEvil Team: February 1996
• Previous Jobs: Technology team at Millennium Interactive
• Nickname: Vileda Boy

VILEDA BOY

Is your hair real?
No, they're false hair extensions

How long have you had them?
Three months, but my real hair is only a few inches shorter. It looks really rocky 'cause it breaks really easy. Unless I kind of do something with it, it ends up being a bouffant.

Does it hurt?
Having this done? Yeah, they have to put it in really tight.

What did the others say when you got them?
I had announced that for a long time, because I wanted to do something with my hair. Everyone said, "Do not do it, Matty, do not do it." But in the end, it just happened, and when I got in ... they called me "Vileda"!

Is this a character in MediEvil?
No. Vileda is a brand name for a mop. You know, the ones you "get in every corner" with. There is plenty of advertising for it. And now I am always called "Vileda Boy".

CARNAGE

Why are you working in the Games Industry?
Because I've always loved games since I was a kid. The first game I ever played properly was Manic Miner on the Spectrum in the 80's. Ever since then I've been into games.

So you've been making games at home?
Yeah. And at university, I helped on a few projects on the Amiga that some other people were working on.

Did they really want your help?
Yes. I was writing stuff at home but of course, being a student, I did not have time to do something really serious. The first time, one of my friends made a cheap title called Carnage on an Amiga and learned that he had only two weeks to finish it, or "otherwise ...". He panicked and asked me "help me, I will not get there, it will not be finished, HELP ME". So we put two computers in his room and we finished the game. This is the first thing I was paid for and it was nice.

GIS A JOB

How did you end up working here?
When I finished college, I did a few bits of work at home for a while until my parents got in financial trouble and I needed a proper job.

"Get thee out of t'house and get thee down t'mine?"
That was exactly it. I didn't think that having a computer science degree would be enough to get me a decent position, so I spent a lot of time at home building up my portfolio. . . and it worked. I had a lot of offers. I must have gone to ten interviews and received five offers.

Which offer did you reject?
A shop near Birmingham that looked like a ghost town in the Wild West, with tumbleweeds running down the street. There was such an atmosphere of "I WANT OUT OF HERE"

Why do you like working with computer games?
I like it because you have a lot of freedom and real challenges. Either you think it's great, or you can not stand it. At the moment I do not want to get out of the industry, because that's exactly my thing.

GET SLASHED UP

What's your favourite game on PlayStation.
I really like Tempest X, it's an old arcade game.

No one's ever said they like that one before. Everyone says GT.
It's a terrible crime, but because I've been so busy at work, I haven't played it.

You've never even seen the game? THE racing game? 
I've seen it. I've actually been given it by the company. I just haven't had the chance to play it yet. So it's just been sat there. It seems alright, but I'm not really into driving games.

What types of games do you like? 
I love shoot'em ups and all arcade games like that.

Is this penchant for the violence of shoot'em ups reflected in MediEvil? 
I'm always accused of making enemies too hard to beat, so maybe.

MEDIEVIL

What's the part of the game you're thinking, "Yes, I'm really glad I put that in. It was really worth it." 
Without a doubt, the ability to kill rats.

. . .and the one for which you had the most difficulty? 
Probably the level we call "The Ghost Ship". I did the initial version of the level and James finished it. The level is very unusual because there's a lot of original stuff in there that was quite difficult to write due to technical issues. That gave me a lot of headaches.

HYGIENE

So do you sleep in the office? 
Yeah

It's you. I knew somebody had.
Yeah. It's me

What do you do about having a shower? Or do you not bother?
I get a wash. We have got fairly big sinks. I really dream about having showers here though. It would be really good.

I think all game developers should have showers available because they all end up sleeping at the office.
When we approach deadlines, despite all the goodwill of the world, there is always something that we want to add just before the deadline. It's just not possible to do that in the expected time. We arrive at the set date and we think "Oh, I should have done that" or we have new ideas. And since we really want to do the best we can, we can not say "oh, never mind" and go home instead of continuing to work.

STIMULANTS

How do you stay awake?
It's just a quesiton of habit. When I go out at night I can stay awake for a long time without needing anything to help me hold on. But yesterday, as soon as we finished an important demo, I completely passed out.

Did they have to carry you home? I heard someone had to order a taxi.
Yes that was me. They just left me here. I woke up and talked about what went well with the demo and what did not and talked more and more confused stuff until I realized that I was in a total dream world. And then I woke up, and several hours had passed, and all the screens were off, and the office was completely deserted. . .

TAKE-AWAYS

What are your favorite takeaways? 
I absolutely hate takeaway. We are desperately searching for new things to eat. At one time, I could not even look at Indian food anymore. It was not long before I started eating it again. I eat pizzas like bread. Thai food is fine. Chinese is OK right now because we do not eat it too much.

REST

What's your average working day?
It's a bit weird, 'cause there are up and down times. I went through times that were like really, really busy. At the beginning of projects and when we go through big upheavals, we can usually work from ten in the morning until ten in the evening.

Do you have to come in on the weekend?
Sometimes, yeah. We usually have to. Until seven or eight o'clock is usually standard. When it gets really bad, we go through the whole night and through the next day as well. It can be a bit monstrous.

What will you do when it's completely finished?
I rest.

You are not going on vacation? 
No, I'm broke. I cannot afford a vacation. . . I think I'll go see most of my friends. Take a little time for me. Take a walk in the country, go to see friends in the north.

Nina Kristensen - Artist

• Education: Industrial Design at Australian University specialised in International Multimedia
• Joined Millennium/Sony: 1996
• Nationality: Australian
• Previous Jobs: Technical Drawing, Contracting

INVOLVEMENT

What was your role in designing MediEvil?
I worked mainly on the construction of maps, levels and environments in which the characters move. I worked with Mike Philbin. Between the two of us, we have almost done everything with regards to this part of the project. I also animated some of the characters, ants, witches, little hands and rats. . . little things. . . Mr. Organ is a strange little character who appears only once in the game and is a kind of little secret. . . He sits and plays the organ, looking a little ghostly and half crazy. . . Does he turn up in a certain level?
Yes, he is sitting in the desecrated church. . .

So he has a secret?
Yes, a little puzzle about him.

Does it have to be discovered to advance in the game?
No, it's optional.

Is this part of the game the part that you consider "your" part and that you are really happy with.
Yes, it's one of my favorite parts.

GRAVEYARD HASSLE

What's the bit you sweated most over - the bit you went over again and again. . . The most hassle?
The very first level I think has caused the entire team the most hassle. . . The graveyard.

Is that because it was the first level and you wanted it to be right?
It was the first level we made and it's gone through so many changes. You know, it was a sort of practice first time round so that one has evolved immensely. I hate it now! I'll be very happy if I never have to touch that level again.

But you are working on a new project now so you do not have to go back to it.
Yes, I am working on a new project.

So in a few months, you will go back there, look at it and it will please you.
Oh yes, I like to play it, I do not want to have to change it again, that's all.

WORKING DAY

What's your working day like when you are here? What do you actually do?
Come in. Usually I'd know what I'd be working on. Constructing a map or a character. Sometimes animation which is a really nice change. In the later stages of the project, the last few months, it's been a lot of time fixing so it's been quite monotonous and no longer exciting like the first few days by the fact that I've no artistic input any more. But at the start it was very exciting because you have a new map to build or a new character. . .

So you come here in the morning at what time - 9 or 10?
I start at 10. . .

Are you here until 6?
Yes. Half past six. . . except when things go wrong.

Long nights?
Very, very few. The graphics team is well organised. Everything under control.

You seem to be a normal person. . . ? 
We work very well together, actually.

. . . ! 
Well, when it comes to work, yes. I am not an early bird.

NICE IS THE OPERATIVE WORD

Are you working here?
Um, in Cambridge.

Do you drive here by car?
Yes, I drive.

And, how do you like it?
Cambridge is nice city to live in. Nice is the operative word. Working there is not very exciting, but it's nice.

Is it due to the students?
No, it's not because of the students. There is no nightlife after 23:00 in general.

Would you like to stay in London?
I love London but my work is here. . . This new project really fascinates me. I have a new title: "art manager" on this project.

Does this entail a lot of responsibilities?
Yes, lots of responsibilities but a lot of fun too.

SOMETHING LIKE THAT

If you could do any job what would it be?
I'd probably have to be a sculptor, I think. Or something like that.

Do you like that?
Yeah, quite a lot.

Do you do it in your spare time as well?
I haven't done any for a very long time but I can see that I'm very lucky actually. I get to be very creative at work, which is nice.

So if you did not have your work here, would you probably be a sculptor?
Yes. Yes. I have to be creative. Luckily, I'm getting paid for it!

So this is the right job for you?
Yes, I like it here.

It seems that the people who work on the games are all relatively satisfied with their work. They sometimes complain about the company or something, but the reality is that they are creative. . . Back on topic. . . What's your favorite drink?
Is this about Colin?! . . . Poison, pure poison. Vodka is my favorite alcohol. Vodka with a lemon soft drink or something else.