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Andy Wright
Father to Nathaniel, 9
(Senior Programmer, Locomotive Games)
Since becoming a father, I'm much more vigilant for games that have good playful, creative, and customizability and “personalizability-of-experience” elements to them. "Sandbox" gameplay, too, is good for a hell of a lot of "fun mileage".
I'm less interested in games that are just beat-your-head-against-it-ad-infinitum nightmare challenges, and I'm also less tolerant of games that are slow to be fun, slow to draw you in, or at all fussy/buggy with the controls and general interface. I speak partly from the point of view of finding stuff that he will enjoy playing, but also from my own personal tastes which have changed quite a lot in recent years!
Naturally I'm also always on the lookout for games with good cooperative components. We can get into a bit of competitive play sometimes, too, but preferably it's always in a really light-hearted, non-hardcore way, with moderate amounts of surprising randomness thrown in. Also, games that allow for quick turn-around and replayability are great. "Drop in, play for a half hour, then jump out", etc.
I have also certainly been infected with his "What is this for?", "Why is there so much text?" and "When do I get to do something" sensibilities. :-) We both prefer very much to sort of find our own story in the game world, rather than have reams of non-interactive narrative shoved down our throats.
Now, granted, I do still have my "grown-up games" I keep to myself, with various "Mature" elements and/or really involved, immersive stories that Nathaniel doesn't have the patience for yet. But in general, I find I have a lot less patience for those old "hardcore" genres than I used to. RPGs with too much "numbers grind"; FPSes with too much repetitive combat gameplay; or action/adventure games with too much "you better have grabbed the Magic Flarble Of Ice across the world in the Caverns of Death or you won't be able to get past the Gate To The Swamps of Despair, and you'll never figure out why without reading GameFaqs.com" in them.
Game-development-wise, in general, I just try to keep all of the above in mind, and for the player's benefit, always try to Maximize The Thrills and Minimize The Pain.
Currently Playing
Yu-Gi-Oh, various Mario Party and Tony Hawk iterations, Mario Kart (especially Double Dash, where we can play cooperatively together in one car), Super Monkey Ball mini-games, and basketball (real life, casual baskets-shooting and H.O.R.S.E., mostly). Aside from those, there are a lot of fun activities that we enjoy that don't involve "games" per se, but certainly involve play, challenge, and goals (which we've set for ourselves on the fly). And if we ever get our hands on an actual Wii, I expect we'll have some fun with that too! :-)
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Sid Meier
Father to Ryan, 16
(Director of Creative Development, Firaxis Games)
Being a father has heightened my sense of responsibility as a game designer to make sure the content in the games I make is appropriate for the intended audience. I like to make games that give players the opportunity to do or be something great – ruler of the world, a Pirate Captain, a Railroad Baron, an entrepreneur – and have fun and feel good about themselves while they're playing. Playing games with Ryan has also helped me to see games through fresh eyes which spurs new ideas and keeps me motivated and excited to make new games.
Currently Playing
Ryan and I have been playing computer and video games together since he was a little guy. Fortunately, he shares my love of games and being able to play them together throughout his life has been hugely rewarding and has offered us hours upon hours of great bonding time. Right now, we're playing Guitar Hero II which is just an incredible, fun game.
Isaac Barry
Father to Camille, 6, Elias, 5, Tycho, 5 (twins & born on his birthday no less)
(Senior Game Designer, Sierra Online Games)
How has being a father affected me as a developer? In two ways. First, the usual get-your-$#!7-together way. I got a lot more serious about working towards goals and ambitions. Secondly, observing and participating with their play has been great anecdotal support for my suspicions that the arts are, in essence, about evoking feelings.
We may aspire to create new sensations and emotions in our products, but games have always been about creating feelings, no more, no less. Everything else, competition, uncertainty, challenge, learning, exploration, etc., are means that get confused with ends to our audiences' disadvantage.
Currently Playing
The usual kids' PC online fare (PBS, Nick, etc.) is popular, but, lately Lego Star Wars has taken over the house. The first LSW we have for the original Xbox, and, by accident, they erased my save. For weeks afterwards, they diligently applied themselves to the task of unlocking everything back up "for Dad." Lately I've been considering how much fun it might be to play MMOs again.
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Matthew Allen
Father to Audrey, 4
(Lead Artist, Monolith Productions)
Audrey can’t play anything I am working on here at Lith, so I have started to do things like make small XNA apps that she can do fun things with, like when she types a letter it spawns a particle system with that letter, and has a recording of her saying that letter or number. As she grows older, I find myself wanting to work with her a bunch more on stuff. And I feel myself being drawn to the job ads from casual game companies. :)
Currently Playing
The only game she will pick up and play on her own is Nintendogs. We play a ton of stuff together though. Lately, its Mario Kart on the DS. Also we play "Photoshop" where I will navigate the UI. “Daddy, I want the Butterfly brush with orange and green,” and she uses the Wacom to make the pretty pictures.
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