8/9/99

GenCon is over and our fellows who actually had the pleasure to visit the show are on their way back home from their trip to Milwaukee. It is a shame we haven’t been able to send anyone from the team really, because I know how much you would have loved to talk to us and hear more about our exciting project. Incidentally, we would have loved talking to you just as much. Well, we are in what is commonly called the ‘crunch’ phase of the project, which means no more vacation for the team members, long work hours and Saturday work for everyone. It is the toughest phase of a project but oftentimes also the most energetic one. If you ever harbored thoughts of becoming a member of the game developing community, you’d better be prepared for this, because it seems to be an implicit part of any project. I can’t wait to hear the reports from the show, how people reacted and responded to the product. After all, this was the first time we let people take a look at the game in public, and it was also the first time we allowed people to lay hands on the game to play with it for themselves. Over all these years that I have been making computer games I have learned one invaluable lesson, “Listen to what the players tell you!” To me it has always been extremely important to hear what people think of various products, especially the ones I had been working on. It can give you vital clues about what you’re doing right and what you should revise. When the game is in the market it’s usually too late for that particular game to make corrective adjustments, but so far there has always been a next game that allowed me to incorporate my knowledge and experience to some extend. In order to grow as a games designer and producer it can help immensely to simply compare my own feelings and understanding with that of other players. Of course, every game designer has to have a personal idea of what he’s trying to do and usually this vision is very predetermined in the designer’s head. However, just as many other things, developing games has become a team effort a long time ago, and as such every designer needs to be flexible enough to adjust the own vision depending on the real-world needs of the project. We’re not developing these titles in limbo, we are creating these games in business oriented companies for a real, demanding market. The only way to make the best of the scenario is clearly to put your ear on the pulse and try to create a blend of what your original vision is and what the players ask you to come up with. Ooohhhh... Big Tuna just came in from GenCon and I gotta run and talk to him. See you all later, Guido Henkel

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