Archive for the ‘interview’ Category
Tuesday, April 21st, 2009
I’m currently dragging myself across Europe. Check out @fourzerotwo for updates as they happen.
DAY 1 - Arrived in London around 4pm on Sunday. A good 7 hours of sleep on the plane had me prime and ready to kick off our over seas adventure and pumped to see the sights of London. So what’s the first thing I see out of the cab? G4 TV host Adam Sessler’s smiling mug outside my hotel. Totally random and unrelated to my purpose in London and totally ironic that the first thing I see in London is something I could have stayed in Los Angeles and see all I wanted.
I later found out that Bethesda was in London as well with a few aces up their sleeves as well. Apparently announcing their new game, “Fallout: New Vegas” earlier than they would have liked as word leaked from their press conference like a flood and after one journo breaks embargo, it’s the wild west of game journalism. I felt for the guys, as there’s an art to how and when you release information on a game your working on. Just like a great game, it’s all about the pacing. You don’t want to blow your load right out of the gate. You want to build up to the climax and tease first. Gain interest in your story and characters gradually before you give em’ the farm. (sexual innuendos are totally in YOUR head, not mine!)
With that said, I feel bad that their big announcement was leaked earlier than they planned, but ah well, I’M HYPED!
I did a quick site check at our hotel to make sure things were up to snuff before meeting some acquaintances for dinner in downtown London (Covent Garden area) before getting an impromptu walking tour of London’s major sites by fans that were UK natives. It was late, but I got a chance to check out Big Ben, Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square, and Buckingham Palace. Standard tourist affair really but was a great to get it in before we kicked off the real work Monday morning, as I knew we’d have no time to rest once the week got started.
DAY 2 - Monday started early (a bit too early for me) and fast. Luckily though I got too meet up with some familiar faces to start off from our friends @OPM_UK (Official Playstation Magazine UK), PC Zone, OXM UK and many others. What exactly we talked about I can’t say. As I said, it’s all about pacing with this type of stuff and trust me, it works on in your favor in the long the run. While the middle of the day is under wraps, dinner that night introduced me to a new love of mine…. MEXICAN DONUTS. An absurdly delicious and near-deadly of donuty-powdersugared-toffeetdipped dessert served at the restaurant in our hotel. While 2 could probably be considered unhealthy consumption of sugar, I snuck about 8 more orders onto the bill and stuffed my face like I was dying the next day. (which I felt like doing after the 9th Mexican Donut)
Ah… gluttony. My old friend.
DAY 3 - After I awoken from my sugar coma, we rounded out our trip to London with 3 more meetings from our benelux buds before making a mad dash to the EuroStar. A 300 mph train that goes underneath the english channel and across the French countryside into the heart of Paris. An awesome trip. By Day 3 my body was starting to feel the effects of jumping time zones and non-stop activity, but once we arrived in Paris and were met immediately off the train by the sight of 3 French soldiers with FAMAS rifle’s strapped to their chest on patrol of the EuroStar, I got hyped and thus got my second wind. I was ready to see what Paris had to offer and prep for 2 more days of adrenaline.
We did a site check then headed to our hotel before dinner with the ATVI France team. I laughed when they gave me an English menu at the restruant and realized it was oddly different from the original french version everyone else had. It seemed I was being profiled as the first item on the French menu was “Frog Legs” whereas the first item on my menu was “Cheese - Burger w/ French Fries”. Really? Do I look THAT american that you assume I’ll just want a Cheeseburger with fries?….. well YOU’RE RIGHT! I did want that!
I’ll be honest, I’m not sure where French Fries got their name or if France is related at all really, but these will the most killer Fries I’ve ever had. Fantastic homemade french fries. I also got a desert of ice cream in the form of French Vanilla (honestly, I wasn’t just eating food with ‘French’ in the title on purpose, it just worked out that way…… REALLY!).
Ended out the day back at the hotel fighting with the local wifi to try and receive some assets from the guys back at IW studio for approval. Once that was done, it’s time to get some well needed sleep before another 7 AM start to the 2 days in Paris. Rinse and repeat then we’re off to Germany!
/end
>Updates as they happen<
Tags: London, madrid, paris, stockholm
Posted in IW4, London, Modern Warfare 2, Playstation 3, UK, infinity ward, interview, life, twitter, video games, xbox 360 | Comments
Wednesday, April 1st, 2009
SOURCE: GAMASUTRA
Check out the most recent feature on Gamasutra.com where one of our lead designers and I discuss Achievements in games.
Achievements are “like a topping on a pizza,” explains Robert Bowling, community manager at Infinity Ward. They enhance the gameplay experience and reward dedicated players for their effort and skill.
That is why unlocking all the potential points in a Call of Duty game is such a grueling process. They are badges of honor — particularly achievements like “Mile High Club,” says Bowling.
In reference to the question, “Do you design the game first, then worry about achievements, or do you design around achievements from the start?” - Achievements are “like toppings on a pizza”, as to say they are purely meant to enhance gameplay, not determine it. You make the pizza taste fantastic with it’s core ingredients, then you work on how to enhance that flavor in the same way you make the core game great, then comes the process of adding the extras.
Only 2.8 percent of the 10 million Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare players who have ever logged into Xbox Live have earned the achievement, which is awarded for completing COD4 on veteran difficulty.
Achievements like “Mile High Club” should be rare — perhaps only one per game, Bowling explains. “It is one of the hardest achievements to achieve and you lose some of that weight when they are all that hard. It would be more frustrating than fun.”
Players, however, complained that the achievements in Call of Duty 2 were too difficult to obtain, says Call of Duty 4 lead designer Zeid Rieke. All but three of the 13 achievements had to be completed on veteran difficulty. So the studio compromised for COD4.
What are your thoughts on it?
Read more about what we said as well as input from several other great developers on Gamasutra.com - Unlocking Achievements: Rewarding Skill with Player Incentives
Tags: achievements, editorial, feature, gamasutra
Posted in achievements, call of duty 4 modern warfare, infinity ward, interview, video games, xbox 360, xbox live | Comments
Friday, April 4th, 2008
[vodpod id=ExternalVideo.496893&w=425&h=350&fv=] from www.gametrailers.com posted with vodpod
Looks like the official release time for the new Variety Map Pack DLC for Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is going to be 6:30 AM PST Friday morning. It’s currently 11:47 PM Thursday night at the time of this posting, so only 6 more hours to go before we can jump on the new maps. To go along with the news of the exact release time, Gametrailers has posted up two new videos that we shot yesterday at the Infinity Ward studios about the map pack. There should be one more in the pipeline for Chinatown, meanwhile enjoy the new Broadcast and Creek videos where I lay out some of my favorite strategies for the new maps as well as a general overview of what you can expect after 6:30 AM when the maps are available for download via Xbox Live!
[vodpod id=ExternalVideo.496901&w=425&h=350&fv=] from www.gametrailers.com posted with vodpod
In addition to the map packs hitting, I hear there may be a little extra XP up for grabs this weekend when playing on the new maps. So I’ll definitely be online this weekend to play the new maps.
Tags: broadcast, call of duty 4, cod4, creek, dlc, Downloadable Content, gametrailers, interview, map pack, variety, video
Posted in Downloadable Content, call of duty 4 modern warfare, interview, video, xbox 360, xbox live | Comments
Saturday, March 15th, 2008
[vodpod id=ExternalVideo.486307&w=425&h=350&fv=] from www.gametrailers.com posted with vodpod
As promised, here is the world exclusive unveiling of the new multiplayer DLC map Chinatown which appeared on SpikeTV Friday night. What’s so great about Chinatown? Well among being a beautiful map set in the downtown district of Chinatown under the lighting of a full moon and decorative laterns in the rain soaked streets of the city…. it’s a classic Call of Duty remake of Carentan! One of the most popular and most demanded maps from the previous Infinity Ward Call of Duty games is back with a complete visual over haul and design elements.
So far you’ve seen three of the four new maps in the upcoming Variety Map Pack, with the Gamespot article showing you Broadcast and Creek and now Chinatown on Gametrailers, don’t worry though, as Monday is going to have a load of new visuals and information on ALL FOUR maps in the upcoming DLC pack. With all new gameplay footage on every map and some brand new screenshots as well coming Monday you’re about to get a information overload next week from IGN, TeamXbox, and Gamespy who came down this past week and spent the entire day playing multiplayer with the team and I at Infinity Ward on the new maps.So be sure to check out those sites on Monday, I’ll post a re-cap on here most likely and if you have questions about the maps in the meantime or afterwards be sure to let me know and I’ll try to answer anything you might have. Meanwhile, let me know what you think of the maps so far, how’d you like Chinatown? Thoughts on Broadcast or Creek? Let me know.
Tags: call of duty 4, carentan, chinatown, cod4, dlc, Downloadable Content, gametrailers, interview, map pack, modern warfare, spike tv
Posted in Downloadable Content, GDC 2008, Playstation 3, call of duty 4 modern warfare, interview, television, video, xbox 360 | Comments
Saturday, March 15th, 2008
Heads up that Spike TV will be unveiling the exclusive world premier of Chinatown, a new map in the upcoming Variety Map Pack DLC for Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, tonight / early tomorrow morning at 1:00 AM PST as part of Gametrailers TV w/ Geoff Keighley. They’ll be showing exclusive gameplay of the map along with an interview with me where we’ll reveal exactly how this map is exactly what some of you have asked for (I’m looking at you Sgt. Payback - among others).
Once it shows on Spike TV it should be available on Gametrailers.com shortly after (probably later tomorrow) and when it is I’ll be sure to post the video on the blog here so you all can watch it incase you miss it. However, be sure to tune in if you can and check out the footage. I know this map is going to be a lot of people’s favorite when the map pack hits.
In case you didn’t know, the new map being revealed tonight called Chinatown is just 1 of the 4 maps that will be released in the Variety Map Pack as DLC for Xbox 360 and PS3 this Spring.
Tags: call of duty 4, cod4, dlc, Downloadable Content, gametrailers, modern warfare, spike tv, video
Posted in Downloadable Content, GDC 2008, Playstation 3, call of duty 4 modern warfare, interview, xbox 360 | Comments
Tuesday, February 26th, 2008
[vodpod id=ExternalVideo.480890&w=425&h=350&fv=] from www.gametrailers.com posted with vodpod
Last week was a busy one, with me being in San Francisco for GDC all week long. While I was up there though I had a chance to talk to a lot of people about the upcoming DLC we’re working on. The overall news of them all though is that there are Three (3) New Maps coming out in Spring for Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and most importantly these maps are 100% community inspired. Those who frequent the blog may remember a bit back when I announced we were even working on DLC, I asked you for your input. I said, if it was up to you, what would you like to see?
I’m happy to say, as I’ve been playing the new maps over and over again here at the studio and at home during play tests that a lot of you are getting exactly what you asked for. I can’t wait till I can go into detail about the specific maps, but I can proudly say that your feedback made it in. Another thing I like about this map pack is the fact that it’s bringing completely new locations to the game, so we’re getting away from more desert towns or Russian villages and want to bring you something that brings more variety to the map rotation. You guys are going to love these maps. I tried to drop as many hints as to what you can expect in the following interviews without giving too much away and ruining anything, I’ll be talking a lot more in the future about what you can expect as we start finalizing details and release dates. Right now we’re working on some video stuff for one of the maps and I’ll keep you guys informed on more when I can.
Hit the jump for the a partial interview list from last week.
(more…)
Tags: call of duty 4, cod4, dlc, gdc 08, interview, maps, modern warfare
Posted in Downloadable Content, GDC 2008, Playstation 3, call of duty 4 modern warfare, community, interview, xbox 360, xbox live | Comments
Tuesday, February 26th, 2008
I did a quick video interview with Marc Ecko’s Complex Magazine this past week that will be going live in March. We discussed Call of Duty 4, First Person Shooters, and video games in general for the interview. I’ll be sure to post the actual video when it goes live later in March, meanwhile you should check out their latest issue with Olivia Munn from G4 TV and enjoy the pic the producer snapped after the interview.
Tags: call of duty 4, complex, gdc 08, interview, magazine
Posted in GDC 2008, call of duty 4 modern warfare, interview, video games | Comments
Thursday, February 21st, 2008
This is my first change to sit down and blog all day, but the day is going great. Later tonight I’ll collect all the links and interviews that have went live so far and post them so you can keep track of the interviews.
Just got back from 1up / EGM / GFW studios over at Ziff Davis Media where I sat down and talked a few of their reporters and participated in the 1up Yours podcast. It was a good show where we talked about a lot of FPS-centric community items, such as “what keeps a community involved over a long period of time” , “How to keep the game fresh”, and “how to not intimidate new players once it’s already popular”.
Also did a great interview with Playstation Universe, international press, and a few others.
while on the show floor I also ran into Devin from 360sync.com and sat down for lunch and a quick interview to chat about the community, Call of Duty 4, and gaming in general.
Gotta run, have a TV interview at 5:30 a few blocks away, I’ll write more tonight after the GDC Choice awards!
Tags: 1up, 360sync, egm, games for windows, gdc, interview, interviews, Playstation
Posted in GDC 2008, call of duty 4 modern warfare, community, infinity ward, interview | Comments
Friday, February 15th, 2008
I recently talked with IGN’s Hilary Goldstein regarding the development of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare; taking a look back at what could have been, why we chose to make it how it is, and changes that you may see in the future to the game. We touched on a lot of great subjects from vehicles in multiplayer to how the team finds inspiration for missions and future DLC maps.
Bowling revealed that there were once vehicle mission in the game and even Humvees in multiplayer. He went on to explain what was coming in the next patch and explained the process for creating multiplayer maps.
Check out the full 4-page interview at IGN here: IGN: Call of Duty 4 Post-Mortem
Tags: call of duty 4 modern warfare, cod4, development, ign, infinity ward, interview, multiplayer, post mortem
Posted in call of duty 4 modern warfare, infinity ward, interview | Comments
Wednesday, February 13th, 2008
The Game Developers Conference (GDC) is coming up next week and I’ll be in San Francisco all week. While I’m up there though I’ll be stopping by the 1up Yours Show along with Bungie’s community manager Brian Jarrard to talk video games…. and stuff. I plan on playing it by ear for the most part (those tend to be the most entertaining interviews) as well as discussing community involvement I’m sure.
1up Yours plans to be doing daily shows the week of GDC and look to have a lot of great guests all week long. Details on the show below, and hit the jump for the full schedule straight from the producer’s blog.
WEDNESDAY, 2/20
1UP Yours: “Shoot ‘em Up”
Robert Bowling, Infinity Ward & Brian Jarrard, Bungie
With our two games respectively battling it out for the #1 spot on Xbox Live, I’d say it might be an interesting show to see the different approaches each of our studios take. I’ll of course have a recap next week after the show.
(more…)
Tags: 1up yours, call of duty 4 modern warfare, cod4, games developer conference, gdc, gfw, halo 3, interview, podcast, show
Posted in call of duty 4 modern warfare, community, infinity ward, interview | Comments
