Auteurs of the gaming industry
An Editorial about the creative directors of the industry and their influence on the final product
From what I’ve experienced people up the chain of command are willing to take on ideas and suggestions from everyone because the game process has a history of being a communal effort.
Within the industry both methods work though you have to get it just right. It can’t be too hot, or too cold, unless you want your face mauled off by a bear. And there certainly have been occasions when an individual, usually in the dictator’s seat takes it a little too far.
Case in point: John Romero of id Software fame. The man had vision (read delusion) of a great game, a game named Daikatana. The problem is getting that idea from its natural state of mind jelly into an actual feasible working product. As we all know that plan really didn’t really live up to all our expectations and we were all given a playable nightmare. Kudos to the guy, he had some stones made of reinforced concrete the size of overinflated beach balls. However, we need more than a large helping of crazy to make our game both delicious and playable.
Good examples of gaming auteurism cannot really be described as a dictatorship, more like a democracy with a residing president, or some kind of religious cult.
Shinji Makami - This Japanese director is responsible for some of the most well-known and highly praised games out there on the console market. The father of the Biohazard (Resident Evil) series you know when he’s had a hand in a game because they all have a distinct ‘feel’ to them. As with most auteur’s work with a project the thematic experience isn’t something as simple as checklist of what was included in the game.
With Makami’s work, there definitely is a thread running through the games. If you look at his back catalogue which includes a hell of a lot of Resi games, there’s also other’s he’s had a hand in such as Devil May Cry, Killer 7 and Vanquish. Working with production in Capcom brings together sharp game design and awesome zombie/demon killing choreography.
Peter Molyneux - While not the father of game hype he most certainly must be the over excited toddler who’s had too much candy and starts dry humping the couch. Before Jesus came back to earth as the Fable series Molyneux had created games such as Populous, Black & White and The Movies.
Again these projects have that distinct aesthetic to them that resides through his and Lionhead’s games. Molyneux has strived to get his presence floating out there in the gamerverse like a creepy uncle whispering in your ear. It works though; he could talk a nun out of the clergy to become a stripper.
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