Intervju sa Chris Avellone-om 1

Chris Avellone je legenda u svetu video igara. Početkom dvehiljaditih, kada sam uživao u naslovima poput Conquest of the New World, Fallout 2, Planescape: Torment, Icewind Dale, nisam imao pojma da sa druge strane, na početku tog kreativnog procesa stoji lik koji je samo nekoliko godina stariji od mene.

Prva igra na kojoj je Chris Avellone radio

Chris i dalje učestvuje u dizajniranju igara sa istim žarom kao pre dvadeset godina. Iza njega su naslovi poput Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2, Alpha Protocol, Fallout: New Vegas, Pillars of Eternity, Torment: Tides of Numenera, Divinity: Original Sin 2, Kako se u Srbiji otvara sve više studija koji rade na kreiranju igara, postavio sam Chrisu nekoliko pitanja o radu u ovoj industriji.

Pathfinder-Kingmaker

1. Navedite mi 5 razloga za i protiv rada u industriji video igara?

Chris Avellone: Mogu da navedem po četri za oba:

Za

Opuštena radna atmosfera

Kolege često dele ista interesovanja (ovo možda zvuči očigledno, ali na drugim poslovima, to često nije slučaj)

Radite na IGRAMA-što podseća na hobi za koji vas plaćaju

Kreativni izazovi su svakodnevna pojava, i nema stagnacije na poslu – često svakog dana imate novi izazov

Protiv

U nekim delovima industrije može da se zahteva mnogo uloženog vremena (crunch)

Možete doživeti razočarenje na početku, kada otkrijete da nemate toliku slobodu u idejama (ali se možete prilagoditi, i to je preporučljivo)

Možete se naći u situaciji da oponašate duh igre (primer: rad na serijalima) umesto da sami odlučujete o srži igre (da ponovim, ovo je sve deo posla)

Neke kompanije ne plaćaju dobro, što vas može dovesti u škripac sa novcem, u zavisnosti od toga gde živite.

2. Koje veštine mladi ljudi moraju najviše razvijati, ako žele uspešnu karijeru u industriji igara?

Chris Avellone: Usredsređenost na detalje i želja da se istražuje i prave greške – Usredsređenost na detalje je važna jer bez nje, vaša će igra imati osnovne nedostatke (bugs) kako tehničke tako i estetske.

Što se tiče istraživanja i pravljenja grešaka – svako ima mogućnost da sedne, iskoristi besplatna oruđa ili programe za modelovanje i da odmah krene u stvaranje sadržaja za igre – nema potrebe da čekate na karijeru, kreirajte svoju karijeru. Možda nećete napraviti idealnu igru na početku, ali ćete mnogo naučiti i napraviti dosta grešaka iz kojih stičete iskustvo koje prenosite na drugu igru, treću i tako dalje.

Ukratko, možete odmah kreirati igru – a ako volite da modelujete igru neke druge kompanije, postoji šansa da vas primete ukoliko završite mod i odradite dobar posao. A ako konkurišete u toj kompaniji, verovatno ćete imati prednost u odnosu na druge kandidate.

3. Da li poznajete ljude iz Srbije i da li ste radili sa nekima od njih?

Chris Avellone: Sreo sam nekoliko ljudi iz Srbije na seminarima o igrama i do sada nikada nisam imao prilike da radim sa njima, ali bih bio srećan ako se pojavi mogućnost.

4. Da li imate omiljenog lika koga ste kreirali?

Chris Avellone: Svi mi se sviđaju iz različitih razloga, bilo bi teško da se odabere samo jedan. Uživao sam dok sam kreirao lik Fall-From-Grace u Planescape: Torment jer je ideja o sukubi koja je mudra, učtiva i u principu dobra osoba, bio zabavan izazov.

Fall-From-Grace

5. Koje igre trenutno igrate?

Chris Avellone: Osim verzija igara na kojima radim, igram Dragon’s Crown i Horizon: Zero Dawn. Takođe sam nabavio novi Nintendo NES, na kome igram Castlevaniju i uživam u tome.

Horizon Zero Dawn

Kada su me nedavno pitali ko je Chris Avellone, objasnio sam da je on po meni, za svet igara ono što je Michael Jordan za košarku. Svi koji žele da učestvuju u kreativnom procesu izrade igara mogu mnogo da nauče od njega. Nadam se da će jednog dana posetiti Srbiju i preneti deo znanja na ljude kojima ono treba.

I don't usually have article in English, but since this can be interesting for people that don't understand Serbian, I will leave original Chis Avellone answers:

1. What is 5 pros and cons for working in gaming industry?

Chris Avellone:I can do four of each:

Pros

Relaxed work environment

Peers often share same interests (this may sound obvious, but in other jobs, this isn’t often the case)

You work on GAMES – it can be more like a hobby you get paid for

Creative challenges always present, and the job never stagnates – you often get new challenges every day

Cons

Can be time-consuming in some parts of the industry (crunch)

Can be initial disappointment when you discover you may not have as much freedom with ideas (but you can adjust, and you should)

May find yourself mimicking a tone (example: working on a franchise) vs. setting your own tone for a game (but again, this is very much part of the business)

Some companies don’t pay very much, so can be hard to support yourself depending on where you work

2. What skills should young people develop the most, if they pursue carrier in gaming industry?

Chris Avellone: Attention to detail and a willingness to explore and make mistakes – attention to detail is important because without it, your game is going to have some underlying flaws (bugs) both technically and aesthetically.

For exploring and making mistakes – everyone has the ability to sit down, utilize free tools or modding software, and start making game content right now – so there’s no reason to wait on a career, go make your own career. You may not make the perfect game from the outset, but you can learn a lot and make a lot of errors quickly that you can learn from and move forward on the second game, third game, and more.

In short, you can make a game on your own right now – and if you enjoy modding another company’s game, chances are they’ll notice your work if you complete it and do a good job. And if you apply to the company itself, you’ll likely have an advantage over other applicants.

3. Do you know people from Serbia, and have you worked with any of them?

Chris Avellone: I have met a few at game conventions overseas, but have not had the chance to work with any of them at this time, no, but I would be happy for the opportunity.

4. Do you have favorite character that you created?

Chris Avellone: I like them all for different reasons, it’d be hard to choose just one. I did enjoy writing Fall-From-Grace in Planescape: Torment because the idea of a puritan succubus who was wise, polite, and genuinely a nice person was a fun challenge.

5. What game are you playing right now?

Chris Avellone: Aside from builds of games I’m working on, I’m playing Dragon’s Crown and Horizon: Zero Dawn. I also got the new re-released Nintendo NES’s, and I’ve been playing Castlevania on it and having a blast.