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{{cite web|site=The Mean Machines Archive|title=Retro Gamer - The Making of... MediEvil|type=PDF file|published=March 27, 2008|url=http://www.meanmachinesmag.co.uk/upload/media/scans/medievil_retrogamer.pdf}} | {{cite web|site=The Mean Machines Archive|title=Retro Gamer - The Making of... MediEvil|type=PDF file|published=March 27, 2008|url=http://www.meanmachinesmag.co.uk/upload/media/scans/medievil_retrogamer.pdf}} | ||
===Behind the Classics: MediEvil=== | ===Behind the Classics: MediEvil=== | ||
====September 7, 2012==== | ====September 7, 2012<sup><ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/09/07/behind-the-classics-medievil/|site=PlayStation.Blog|title=Behind the Classics: MediEvil|author=Fred Dutton|published=September 7, 2012}}</ref></sup>==== | ||
'''What was the original concept for the game? Did you draw inspiration from anywhere in particular for the game’s look and feel?''' | '''What was the original concept for the game? Did you draw inspiration from anywhere in particular for the game’s look and feel?''' | ||
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'''A PSP version came out in 2005, but the series has been largely dormant since. Do you ever think about where you might have taken the franchise?''' | '''A PSP version came out in 2005, but the series has been largely dormant since. Do you ever think about where you might have taken the franchise?''' | ||
'''Chris Sorrell''': I’d certainly love to work with Sir Dan one more time and I have lots of ideas that I think would make for a great new ''MediEvil ''game. Sadly I think it’s an unlikely prospect since I no longer work for Sony, not to mention how times have changed in the years since Dan first left his crypt. | '''Chris Sorrell''': I’d certainly love to work with Sir Dan one more time and I have lots of ideas that I think would make for a great new ''MediEvil ''game. Sadly I think it’s an unlikely prospect since I no longer work for Sony, not to mention how times have changed in the years since Dan first left his crypt. | ||
===MediEvil Boards Q&A=== | ===MediEvil Boards Q&A=== | ||
====May 7, 2013==== | ====May 7, 2013{{Siteref|MediEvil-Boards|12662|Interview with Chris Sorrell|May 7, 2013}}==== | ||
'''1) '''In one of the files of the prototype, there is an item called the "[[Trident]]". Was this intended to be a weapon in the game? If so, what would its use have been like (melee or ranged attack)? | '''1) '''In one of the files of the prototype, there is an item called the "[[Trident]]". Was this intended to be a weapon in the game? If so, what would its use have been like (melee or ranged attack)? | ||
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'''CS''' - These were all levels that were originally conceived as full levels and were cut either because a) we didn't have a clear concept for them, b) the idea was more purely 'arcadey' than the RPG-lite feel that we ended up moving towards or - most likely in combination with one of the previous points - we just didn't have time to do justice to the concept. In most cases the best parts of anything we had already done for those levels were spliced into the levels we eventually shipped with, e.g. the Coffin Vaults were the basis for those rooms with the witch puzzle at the base of the Hilltop Mausoleum (and also for the interiors of the [[The Haunted Ruins|Haunted Ruins]] if I remember right). I think the Circle of Shadows ended up as the tiny scene you see after you come out from the [[The Ant Caves|Ant Caves]] (or was it after the Haunted Ruins?!). | '''CS''' - These were all levels that were originally conceived as full levels and were cut either because a) we didn't have a clear concept for them, b) the idea was more purely 'arcadey' than the RPG-lite feel that we ended up moving towards or - most likely in combination with one of the previous points - we just didn't have time to do justice to the concept. In most cases the best parts of anything we had already done for those levels were spliced into the levels we eventually shipped with, e.g. the Coffin Vaults were the basis for those rooms with the witch puzzle at the base of the Hilltop Mausoleum (and also for the interiors of the [[The Haunted Ruins|Haunted Ruins]] if I remember right). I think the Circle of Shadows ended up as the tiny scene you see after you come out from the [[The Ant Caves|Ant Caves]] (or was it after the Haunted Ruins?!). | ||
I think you guys have discussed the Jabberwocky level on the forum and got it pretty much right - it was a chase section where Dan was pursued by the Jabberwocky that ultimately we see only in [[FMV]]. I did do a little work on this sequence myself (which was unusual because it was the only actual level programming that I did), and it wasn't really working out either in terms of fun gameplay or our ability to make a convincing looking forest chase within our tiny geometry budget so cutting this one was an easy choice (I think I'd been playing too much Crash Bandicoot!). The Halls of Illusion were going to feature lots of mirror based puzzles and [[Doppelganger|doppelganger Dans]] that you'd have to fight. This was another one where the concept was a little more ambitious than our relatively humble tech could really accommodate without consuming way too much development time. | I think you guys have discussed the Jabberwocky level on the forum and got it pretty much right - it was a chase section where Dan was pursued by the Jabberwocky that ultimately we see only in [[FMV]]. I did do a little work on this sequence myself (which was unusual because it was the only actual level programming that I did), and it wasn't really working out either in terms of fun gameplay or our ability to make a convincing looking forest chase within our tiny geometry budget so cutting this one was an easy choice (I think I'd been playing too much Crash Bandicoot!). The Halls of Illusion were going to feature lots of mirror based puzzles and [[Doppelganger|doppelganger Dans]] that you'd have to fight. This was another one where the concept was a little more ambitious than our relatively humble tech could really accommodate without consuming way too much development time. | ||
====May 7, 2013 - additional Q&A{{Siteref|MediEvil-Boards|12677|Another interview with Chris Sorrell|May 7, 2013}}==== | |||
'''1) '''An English disk of ''MediEvil 1'' has been uploaded online in Spain, and this version is a full build of ''MediEvil 1'' but contains several minor differences from the game we're familiar with. A main difference is that the battle-axe is obtainable during the first visit to the Hall of Heroes. Do you know if this was a beta version of the game? If so, would you have an idea of how it got to be in Spain? | '''1) '''An English disk of ''MediEvil 1'' has been uploaded online in Spain, and this version is a full build of ''MediEvil 1'' but contains several minor differences from the game we're familiar with. A main difference is that the battle-axe is obtainable during the first visit to the Hall of Heroes. Do you know if this was a beta version of the game? If so, would you have an idea of how it got to be in Spain? | ||
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Would you happen to know what this image is? Is it possibly an easter-egg of sorts? | Would you happen to know what this image is? Is it possibly an easter-egg of sorts? | ||
CS - I don't think the image has any real significance - just a texture created by Jason to convey the feel of a worn away ancient mosaic. ...It seems to be a Roman centurion which doesn't make it an image that's especially 'true' to the ''MediEvil'' world, but then again we never really defined where (or when) the game is set... Since ''[[MediEvil 2]]'' was in Victorian London, its fair to say that Gallowmere must have been a 'Dark Ages' realm somewhere in Europe and hence somewhere most likely ruled by the Roman empire a good while before that? :) | CS - I don't think the image has any real significance - just a texture created by Jason to convey the feel of a worn away ancient mosaic. ...It seems to be a Roman centurion which doesn't make it an image that's especially 'true' to the ''MediEvil'' world, but then again we never really defined where (or when) the game is set... Since ''[[MediEvil 2]]'' was in Victorian London, its fair to say that Gallowmere must have been a 'Dark Ages' realm somewhere in Europe and hence somewhere most likely ruled by the Roman empire a good while before that? :) | ||
====June 24, 2013{{Siteref|MediEvil-Boards|12898|Interview with Chris Sorrell|June 24, 2013}}==== | |||
'''1)''' In one of the early builds of ''MediEvil'', there is an item called the "[[Lake Key]]". What was this to be used for? | '''1)''' In one of the early builds of ''MediEvil'', there is an item called the "[[Lake Key]]". What was this to be used for? | ||
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#We had to trim a few things to make best use of our time in the last months of development. | #We had to trim a few things to make best use of our time in the last months of development. | ||
#Any in game depiction of drugs, alcohol, etc used to be very frowned upon so a drunk looking character could have been a problem with QA regarding the quality/content checklists they have to follow. | #Any in game depiction of drugs, alcohol, etc used to be very frowned upon so a drunk looking character could have been a problem with QA regarding the quality/content checklists they have to follow. | ||
#He was a character rooted on the spot who threw bottles at you - i.e. very easy and not very interesting for the player to take out! | #He was a character rooted on the spot who threw bottles at you - i.e. very easy and not very interesting for the player to take out! | ||
====June 24, 2013 - additional Q&A==== | ====June 24, 2013 - additional Q&A{{Siteref|MediEvil-Boards|12909|Another interview with Chris Sorrell|June 24, 2013}}==== | ||
'''1)''' There is a level called the "[[Programmer's Playground]]" listed among the other levels in the code. What exactly was the purpose of this zone? | '''1)''' There is a level called the "[[Programmer's Playground]]" listed among the other levels in the code. What exactly was the purpose of this zone? | ||
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Our PP also featured some areas where we would test out enemy AI. We had a few different 'pens' where we had different kinds of zombies mapped and another area where you could pick up one of each of the different weapon types to go shoot them - like fish in a barrel - when tuning things like weapon hit strengths or setting up hit effects. | Our PP also featured some areas where we would test out enemy AI. We had a few different 'pens' where we had different kinds of zombies mapped and another area where you could pick up one of each of the different weapon types to go shoot them - like fish in a barrel - when tuning things like weapon hit strengths or setting up hit effects. | ||
I wouldn't say this was a problem so much with the ''MediEvil'' team, but quite often programmers really don't like having to actually 'play' a game in order to test out features that they're working on - having a test environment allows them to jump right to the content they need (quite a time saving when you need to try out something many many times as you're hooking stuff up or trying to recreate a bug). | I wouldn't say this was a problem so much with the ''MediEvil'' team, but quite often programmers really don't like having to actually 'play' a game in order to test out features that they're working on - having a test environment allows them to jump right to the content they need (quite a time saving when you need to try out something many many times as you're hooking stuff up or trying to recreate a bug). | ||
====July 24, 2013{{Siteref|MediEvil-Boards|13209|Interview with Chris Sorrell|July 24, 2013}}==== | |||
'''1)''' Hey Mr. Sorrell, I have something that I've been hoping for some time to ask; it's about ''MediEvil 2'' and your involvement with the project. I read in the interview with RetroGamer that you had several ideas written down for the ''MediEvil ''sequel, one of which involved the game being set in [[London|Victorian London]]. | '''1)''' Hey Mr. Sorrell, I have something that I've been hoping for some time to ask; it's about ''MediEvil 2'' and your involvement with the project. I read in the interview with RetroGamer that you had several ideas written down for the ''MediEvil ''sequel, one of which involved the game being set in [[London|Victorian London]]. | ||
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James ran with the ideas and - of course - introduced many of his own. Jason was involved too, although I don't know how he and James worked together. Overall I liked most of what they came up with for M2, although I disliked the [[Winston, the Help Ghost|squeaky voiced helper ghost]], and definitely in places the game's humour crossed a line for me from the silly/bawdy tone we had in M1 to something a little too puerile for my liking! (I guess the [[Professor ]] embodied a lot of that.) I would also have definitely kept the [[Hall of Heroes]] since I always thought that was one of the more distinctive presentational mechanics we created in M1, oh and Dan's voice was *horrible* - incoherent mumbling was a far better way to go! | James ran with the ideas and - of course - introduced many of his own. Jason was involved too, although I don't know how he and James worked together. Overall I liked most of what they came up with for M2, although I disliked the [[Winston, the Help Ghost|squeaky voiced helper ghost]], and definitely in places the game's humour crossed a line for me from the silly/bawdy tone we had in M1 to something a little too puerile for my liking! (I guess the [[Professor ]] embodied a lot of that.) I would also have definitely kept the [[Hall of Heroes]] since I always thought that was one of the more distinctive presentational mechanics we created in M1, oh and Dan's voice was *horrible* - incoherent mumbling was a far better way to go! | ||
On balance I was probably more in tune with what they did in M2 than the changes that were made in MPSP. | On balance I was probably more in tune with what they did in M2 than the changes that were made in MPSP. | ||
===RETRO=== | ===RETRO=== | ||
====July 25, 2015==== | ====July 25, 2015==== | ||