This issue of Inside the Vault brings us Brendan Anthony, Bethesda's handyman-type fix-all programmer:<blockquote>Ever play the Fallout games?
I knew this day would come! No, the truth is I haven’t played them. It’s not quite as important that programmers play the previous games as it is that artists and designers do so, but I’ll tell you what, I hereby resolve to play Fallout 1. And I won’t even cheat on this resolution like I did with my New Year’s promise to stop killing hobos.
What is your favorite type of game to play?
Thief, Deus Ex, and System Shock 2- the so called “immersive -sim” canon. For my money, these games do so many things right where so many others go wrong that it’s hard for me to play games these days without making negative comparisons to this lineage.
There are a lot of factors that make a game fun for me: Player freedom and agency, mature writing and art design, and clean integrated design patterns are all personal touchstones. But one factor that can differentiate the great from the merely good is a clear vision backed up by strong direction. I’d much rather play a focused, polished game that sticks to a small number of ideas than a game that has features thrown in seemingly just because other games have them, or (God forbid) as filler material. Shadow of The Colossus rocked!
I was always a huge fan of the Elder Scrolls series, clearly, but my favorite game of all time would have to be The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. I have a Hyrule/Trifoce tattoo on my arm to commemorate the way the first Zelda consumed my childhood imagination. Plus, Link to the Past: so much better than Ocarina of Time! Yeah, I went there!</blockquote>Link: Inside the Vault - Brendan Anthony
I knew this day would come! No, the truth is I haven’t played them. It’s not quite as important that programmers play the previous games as it is that artists and designers do so, but I’ll tell you what, I hereby resolve to play Fallout 1. And I won’t even cheat on this resolution like I did with my New Year’s promise to stop killing hobos.
What is your favorite type of game to play?
Thief, Deus Ex, and System Shock 2- the so called “immersive -sim” canon. For my money, these games do so many things right where so many others go wrong that it’s hard for me to play games these days without making negative comparisons to this lineage.
There are a lot of factors that make a game fun for me: Player freedom and agency, mature writing and art design, and clean integrated design patterns are all personal touchstones. But one factor that can differentiate the great from the merely good is a clear vision backed up by strong direction. I’d much rather play a focused, polished game that sticks to a small number of ideas than a game that has features thrown in seemingly just because other games have them, or (God forbid) as filler material. Shadow of The Colossus rocked!
I was always a huge fan of the Elder Scrolls series, clearly, but my favorite game of all time would have to be The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. I have a Hyrule/Trifoce tattoo on my arm to commemorate the way the first Zelda consumed my childhood imagination. Plus, Link to the Past: so much better than Ocarina of Time! Yeah, I went there!</blockquote>Link: Inside the Vault - Brendan Anthony