Why Can't Johnny Ship?
| Why Can't Johnny Ship? |
| Introduction |
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| Conclusion |
Think of the multimedia titles you know and love. Have we really seen earth shattering changes from year to year? I've been involved in interactive production since 1979. Yes, today's titles are a far cry from the Tandy TRS-80 and Apple II games back then. Yes, we use CD-ROMs, 3D graphics, and digital video. The games themselves, however, are still based on one or more of the interactive experiences of exploration, resource allocation, action, and strategy. Creative authors take advantage of increased technological power primarily to heighten the emotional impact of their creations. In nearly 20 years, most of the evolution has been in interface design.
Which brings us the central point: Technology is the palette that interactive designers use to create experiences for other people. Technology is not a goal. The goal is to create a title that delivers the interactive experience the designer wants. Hopefully it meets the expectations of the intended audience as well.
If we believe this, we can begin to design a production process that delivers titles on time and on budget. Titles that meet our expectations for an interactive experience. Titles designed to take advantage of the expertise of the team members involved. We can begin to create the interactive guild system that will enable us to build titles in a predictable, organized fashion.
Does this mean we should stop innovating and simply build newer versions of designs that have already proven successful? Definitely not. If most PCs are capable of playing back full-motion video, we should take advantage of it. If we have a good realtime 3D engine, by all means let's use it to improve the interactive experience. But let's not forget that the ultimate value of the experiences we create lies in the creative design of our titles.
