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Games Entertainment

Paul Steed Interview 68

Posted by emmett from the foofoo-drink dept.
John Callaham writes: "In his first interview since leaving id, Paul Steed sat down with Stomped to talk about what he is currently doing, his future plans, his thoughts on id and Doom 3, and other topics."
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Paul Steed Interview More

Paul Steed Interview

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  • ...It makes companies write better games, and gives player more to enjoy.

    Somehow though, Quake 3 isn't what comes to mind when I think of "great games".

    As far as I'm concerned, ID software exists to make mediocre games with cool engines. Then, in a year or two, other companies who know how to make games (Valve, Ion Storm [Well, at least the part of Ion Storm responsible for Deus Ex and Anacronox], etc) license the engine, and we get something actually COOL out of the process.

    Unfortunatly, Quake 3 IS the sort of game encouraged by the CPL. (As opposed to things like Thief, or Deus Ex) So at least from my point of view, the CPL doesn't directly encourage companies to make better games, it encourages them to make glitzy, high framerate, multi-player twitch-fests.
  • At this point, if it takes anytime at all, just quit, I've just d/l 8mb+ of this message over and over.
    They need programming skillz
    ;)
    btw - stomped.com is a different machine then www.stomped.com.

    ---
    Warning: Supplied argument is not a valid File-Handle resource in /usr/local/webs/counter-bin/stcode.php3 on line 11
    ---
  • Nothing personal against Mr. Steed, but he is starting to sound disturbingly like Romero. Shrug.

  • I like steed's ideas about a wildly artistic company, but the problem lies in that he is an artist, and for what he would want he almost needs to be paired with carmack. The Q3 engine took 18 months to build and if steed wants 3 games in 5 years he'll either have to use the same engine over or lease one.

    IMHO, paul should stick with the freelance work for the time being, that way he can stretch his legs, and he said, and cna take the time to find the people he would need to for Pummel.

  • Hah. I'm on 1.5 megabit DSL and let it load thinking "Oh, it's just slashdotted to hell and back."

    Then I hit stop and waited for it to parse. A good 5 minutes on a K6-2 333. Ouch.

  • "i disagree" != "flamebait" (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Look, it's not that hard to understand: just because you don't agree with someone doesn't mean you should moderate them down as "Flamebait." Save those negative moderations for morons like Penis Bird MAN and the syringes -- this guy/girl's opinion may not jive with the Slashbots', but (s)he's still got every right to make a point.

    Green Monkey, posting anonymously 'cause I know I'll be modded down...

  • Serves me right for using my moderator points to try to contribute to the community.

    That's NOT WHAT THEY ARE FOR!!!

    You should use your moderation points to attack opinions with which you disagree (especially if they are anti-Linux or pro-Microsoft).

    If you don't get this you've got no business moderating on Slashdot.

  • Woah. Now this is amusing. The interview is obviously Slashdotted. But now, it appears, attempting to click-through to the interview on Stomped.com redirects me right back to Slashdot. Wheee!

    --

  • It's not flamebait... it's a troll... duh... I'm personally amused at the power of this particular one... all these replies and some of them even mod'ed up for gods sake. I would have figured that /. readers would be a little more perceptive...
  • Paul Steeve (American Suparhero) mentions in the interview that the programmer he is looking for has to have experience working with licensed technology. This implies that he plans to license an engine. I don't think in these times it's financially viable to develop a new engine, it's a lot better use of resources to license Q3 or Unreal.
  • You did not get the same PHP/database error they got (over and over and over.)
  • Mr. Steed talks about how many games he's done art for, and it sounds like he goes back a ways. Still, he has some nerve boasting. You never hear such talk from the graphic designers of the great old games like Zork and Nethack.

    I still remember when I first saw a grue. I nearly died!

  • Here's two things they posted about Steed:

    Seriously, What The Fuck Is Going On?

    Solipsism is defined as the theory that the self is the only reality. There is no word for solipsism when it's no longer just a theory. I'd ask one of you to invent one, but since I'm the only non-imaginary resident of the universe, I suppose I'll have to do it myself. I've always suspected nobody else was real. If even a few of you were real, I'd have some feelings for at least one of you, wouldn't I? Sympathy, empathy, some damn thing. And to those of you I've invented for the sole purpose of telling me that I do have those feelings but just don't recognize them: I know sympathy - I feel sorry for myself a lot. I'll often shoot myself off a few sympathy e-cards - sometimes as many as thirty in one day. This one is my favorite because the chinese symbol probably means something like "eat shit" and that makes me feel even worse, which gives me more reason to pass the time - what I now realize is most likely an eternity - by writing myself a few more sympathy e-cards.

    What finally convinced me that my suspicions about the nature of reality are true? Everything that I wish for happens. I wanted Lord British to pay for Ultima IX, and he did. I wanted Daikatana to stink, and it does. I wanted Paul Steed to crash his private plane into the woods where it would flip over and he'd become stuck upside down, wedged in the cockpit window he'd partially smashed through. He wouldn't die, but would just hang there as all the fluids and organs in his body slowly settled into the space between his scalp and skull. After a few weeks, his head would look like an over-inflated water balloon out of which his withered body was sticking straight up - like a tootsie-pop. Everyone would wonder "what happened to Paul Steed?" A few people would look for him, but it would be The Mushroom's Kevin Murphy who'd actually find him. Paul Steed would see Murphy approaching and would try to say "Dude, don't touch my head!" But his mouth would be so dry that he'd barely be able to speak. "Dooooooooooooooooo" is all he'd manage to croak before Murphy gingerly pressed an index finger against the swollen head, popped it, and drowned beneath a tidal wave of Steed's rancid fluids.

    That didn't happen. But only because I later ammended the wish to be that my dreaded arch-enemy Steed would be put somewhere where he'd pose no threat to my favorite make-believe person, Adrian Carmack, and that Murphy would quit The Mushroom to work somewhere even worse, like Gamepro. As you know, Steed was fired. What you might not have heard is that the dust hadn't even resettled on the places where Steed's trophies and Corvette pictures had been before Kevin Murphy announced his retirement. Am I God or what? What will I do next? How does "Game developer Jason Hall exiled to moon" strike you? Not that it matters.

    I also wanted a new Doom. It should come as no surprise at this point that I got it. It's called Serious Sam and it's being developed by a group in Croatia. The amazingly fun demo - which I guess in Croatian is called an Alpha Test - is available on Croteam's home page. I'd kind of forgotten what it's like to have pure, adrenaline pumping fun while playing a game. Mike Wilson should postpone his public search for Steed and instead make sure Croteam gets into the U.S. before one of those talented kids steps on a landmine.

    Open Letter To Game Developers

    Hello gaming friends! What a week we've had! Many of you have written to ask us how we feel about Daikatana, the apparent internal strife at id, the closing of Looking Glass Studios, and the rather matter-of-fact shitcanning of Paul Steed. Where to start?

    As far as problems inside id go, we'd just like to state for the record that we're firmly on whichever side of the issue Adrian Carmack is on. We'd hate to think that he may eventually get around to firing someone we do care about, such as himself, Adrian Carmack.

    Speaking of which, we derive no pleasure from Paul Steed's loss of a job. Yes, he was my arch-nemesis. He was the Salieri to my Falco, the great Satan to my every major world religion, and the alleged Jon Benet Ramsey's parents to my Jon Benet Ramsey. But unlike millionaire slash billionaire Lord British, Steed was also a working man just trying to get by on this mixed up planet I'm forced to call Chetland. Like chubby John Goodman, he was made entirely of ham. He was attuned to the everyday desires of the common people, also like chubby John Goodman. It could be said that he was the chubby John Goodman of the gaming industry - a fat, foul-mouthed everyman who posed no real threat to anyone or anything other than the world's supply of pies. Godspeed, Paul Steed. You were a worthy adversary and a truly ginormous tub-o-lard.

    As you've probably already heard or discovered for yourself, Daikatana is bad but not bad enough to warrant much clever outrage. It's both uninspired and uninspiring. The depressing fact is that the release of Daikatana and the firing of Steed have resulted in the unfortunate closing of two of gaming's most entertaining loudmouths. And with Looking Glass gone, we can't look forward to creating some controversy by badmouthing their next boring game designed for fancypants who consider themselves too good for regular fun.

    This leaves us in something of a pickle. Without a worthy foe, I'm going to have to start cranking out more episodes of the Slugger. And by Christ I'll do it, too. What I'm saying is that one of you developers better get on the stick - the joystick! - and start making some stupid pronouncements regarding your upcoming stupid game. We really don't care which one of you it is. But in an attempt to focus our lobbying efforts, we'd like to officially request that 3D-Realms George Broussard open his big yap and take one for the team. The team being us and you, our dear readers. Both Duke Nuke'm and Max Payne are hugely delayed and have dumb names. So you've got a lot of material there, Mr. George Broussard. Now get to work!

  • Except instead of claiming he will make the game to end all games Real Soon Now, he explains he plans on having definite release dates of quality games and expects to have to build a reputation.

    In other words, a realistic business plan, with out an excess of hype and bullshit. Fancy that!

  • Sounds familiar (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    This all sounds strangeley familiar to what was coming out of John Romero and camp when they founded Ion Storm. After years of floundering along solely on their reputation, they finally seem to be coming into their own. Makes me wonder if Mr. Steed is just another industry hot-shot destined to flounder. I doubt he's ever had to deal with publishers, financing, schedules, and all the other hounds of development waiting to tear into every pissed off employee who thinks he can make it big. Hopefully I'll be proven wrong.
  • I guess I'm the only one who thinks that author was trying to be funny!


    "... That probably would have sounded more commanding if I wasn't wearing my yummy sushi pajamas..."
    -Buffy Summers
    Goodbye Iowa
  • Hey guys, what about an interview of John Steed ? Along with Emma Peel of course ;)

    I know my humour sucks ..

    --
  • That's why I didn't liked any of the Quakes. Yes they look beautiful, but this is the logic of most FPS games:

    1. kill the monsters
    2. flip switches
    3. finish level
    4. increase monster difficulty
    5. goto 1
    After a while it gets really old. What is Quake really? A better-looking Wolf3D. The only FPS I have ever bought were Dark Forces, Jedi Knight and Half-Life. They had a plot. You had a reason to finish the levels.

    Speaking of games with plots. Why doesn't LucasArts forgets about those awful Episode 1 games and makes more Monkey Islands or Maniac Mansions!! Man I miss those.
  • Target Quake is pretty much what you're discribing, I would think. Except it doesn't have cute graphics like Commander Keen did.

    Refrag
  • I have suffered from the affliction you speak of. It's kinda gross after a couple hours to get up and see the sweat pool on my wrist wrest and the grime accumulated on the mouse buttons and 'W' key...not to mention the cramping fingers and throbbing forearm...
    But for all that, and all you guys' whining, Q2 and 3 are still great games, they serve their purpose, which is to vent steam. Nothing like sending rockets through strangers to help you forget about the day's office crap.

    The Divine Creatrix in a Mortal Shell that stays Crunchy in Milk

  • Re:ID and the state of gaming... (Score:4)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 06, 2000 @07:47PM (#952777)
    Hear! Hear! I am sick and tired of deathmatch/capture-the-flag/team* shoot'em up games. Back in '96 when Quake came out, it was really neat being able to play on the Internet with dozens of other people at any time of the day you felt like it. Even disregarding the stupid problems caused by lag and the discrepancies between the network connections of all the players, I still had a blast, even on the days when I spent a lot of time running into lava! ('cause of the lag...) Just running around, interracting with and talking to people from around the world was a whole new dimension that I had never experienced before (except on a much smaller scale with DOOM modem games and a couple nearby friends). And now it's four years later, and the games are still pretty much the same... run around, get keys/weapons/ammo/healt and shoot... It seems like the designers are stuck into a rut or something. Before Quake came out there was an FAQ circulating around (it's probably still on ftp.cdrom.com, under the filename quaketalk.txt or something) that described a completely different game than what was actually released by id software. At that time the designers talked about how the servers would be interconnected so taht a player that jumped into a slipgate might end up reconnecting to another server somewhere. It was also said that if a player stood near the edge of a map and looked beyond, he might glimpse some of the action on a nearby server. Now *that* is the kind of stuff that today's designers should start looking into IMO. With the computing power we have available to us today, and all the high-speed DSL/cablemodem connections, something similar to the Multiverse (from Snow Crash) should be possible. Also, it's time to start working on better human/computer interfaces in games, because I'm sure there's already a lot of people with fucked-up hands already, and those numbers are going to keep rising...
  • [Quoted from Blue's News]

    Paul talks about his departure, his views on id making a new DOOM game, working freelance on Alice, and his own plans for the future, which include setting up a new development company called Pummel Studios. Here is a quote on the latter topic:

    Stomped: How will games be developed at Pummel Studios?

    Steed: Well, the idea I have for a company is a little bit different. I've worked for 4 different companies over the past 9 years and been a part of some really big-hitting PC titles. Basically, I know how to make games. Every game that I work on, I think I make a larger than normal contribution too. Not because of my personality, but because I think I have good ideas. I treat everything very artistically and very vision oriented so that focus and coherence is maintained on the project. I think a lot of game developers don't do that. They don't really concentrate on keeping a coherent vision. One of the things that worked in Half-Life for example is that a writer wrote the story and they stuck to that story. It shows in the end product that people felt they were in that place, that world. That's not to take anything away from the development team for Half-Life. It was the coherence of a personal vision, whether it was the writer, whether it was the producers on it or whatever. Somebody had a vision on that game and they made people stick to it.

    [End quote]

  • Re:History repeating? (Score:3)

    by Junks Jerzey ( 54586 ) on Friday July 07, 2000 @04:16AM (#952779)
    The sad things though, is that he seems to repeat Romero's biggest error: overlook technology to only focus on art/design.

    If that was Romero's error, then Valve made the same error with Half-Life (i.e. they used a prebuilt engine and focused on design). The days of using technology to carry a game are over.

    John Romero's mistake was more that he chose a project too grand in scope to be completed in a reasonable amount of time. This is a common error in the game business; it looked worse in his case because of all the publicity.
  • First, there was Castle Wolfenstein, an old top-down room-by-room graphical game I used to play on my old Atari 8-bit. You are a prisoner armed with a knife who just escaped from your cell. The goal is to escape.

    Then came Return to Wolfenstein which was basically the same game, except the story is that you snuck into the castle and you have to get deep into the base and plant a bomb to kill Hitler.

  • Thanks, that's better.
  • Wolfenstein was supposed to be more interactive too.. changing uniforms with guards, etc. but they dropped it.

    begin rant..

    id simply can't make the best single-player game. it's just not possible. they keep removing the things that a single player game needs (interactivity) and upping the action instead (which is what multiplayer games need).

    when i play single player, i do so just as much for the immersion in the world as i do for the action. a game needs to impress me with graphics, level design, interactivity, etc. Brown, Brown and more Brown just does NOT cut it when you're trying to create a realistic environment to impress a player. perhaps Carmack & Co. always got stuck with the brown crayon in kindergarten. well guys, you can afford all those cars, maybe you can spring for a box of your very own crayons and discover all the wonders of a rainbow of colours.

    and before you go fsck it up with the next DOOM, learn a lesson from daikatana - DON'T ANNOY THE PLAYER. Thats the primary reason I stopped playing arcade games. If your game is so shit you have to resort to limited lives, limited saves, limited ammo, impossible enemies, key hunts, cheating AI, etc. to challenge the player, your game is WORTHLESS.

    end rant
  • Steed said he hated it when people don't have a passion for what they're doing, but only in it for the money...

    that being the case, these games need to do more than simply serve their purpose, they must be everything they can possibly be within the confines of the story.
  • Daikatana smacked of a game designed without the input of a programmer. Anyone with any experience of game logic/ai could have told him just how much of a nightmare the 'intelligent assistants' were going to be.

    Bizarrely enough one of my earlier games had to be redesigned for precisely this reason. We ended up having your 'Alien Ally' (as the game was originally called) kidnapped at the start of the adventure section, rewriting all the puzzles, and renaming the game 'Alien Odyssey' (currently residing at the bottom of a landfill near you ;). Believe me, it was a damn sight easier than writing a billion scripts to handle all the horrible special cases.

    Romero's also a lot shorter than I expected...

  • someone's gonna have to check out what the boys at Old Man Murray [oldmanmurray.com] have to say about this.

    I have to say that i usually agree with them on their not-so-respectful opinion of Steed. I believe they equated his last article to something along the lines of having your testicles stapled to a belt sander.

    Either way - check OMM out for a counter-perspective.


    FluX
    After 16 years, MTV has finally completed its deevolution into the shiny things network
  • I agree that people drink too much cheap beer, and have little taste for the good stuff.

    However, if'n you disrespect Guinness again, I'll have to open a 4 pack of nitro-charged whoop-ass on you. Texas Style.

    Much obliged.

    /Azure Khan/
  • Well, I don't know, and I can't read the interview because it's slashdotted, but here's a guess. Based on my reading of this excerpt [slashdot.org] from the interview, I infer that the guy has an ego the size of Marlon Brando. Maybe it was hard to work with him. Just a guess.
  • I stand corrected, abashed, and amazed [halflife.net]. (2.1.10)

    -lw
  • im not sure... I do know I lost a few karma points for apparantly no reason today, and I have few to spare. Either the moderation system is fscked, or someone got nasty with me in metamoderation. Serves me right for using my moderator points to try to contribute to the community

  • For everyone bashing ID and games like Q3, listen up. ID is a company. They are out to make money by getting millions of people to buy their games, not to create the perfect game. Q3 was written for money based on previous marketing data. They saw that Q2 was vastly played despite the lack of a story. They saw that FPS with inhanced graphics, strong networking, and a smattering of 'minor' things like weapon selection, are cash cows for ID. I can not blame them for making more of the same. 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it.'

    Many gamers thrive on arena style FPS or the slightly more brian involving team action. Are ID's FPS the best games on the market? I think not. Do they fill a niche? They certainly do. Does ID make money? I assume so. If you want games made for the love of gaming, look in the reviews before just grabbing a gore splattered box from the largest store displays. If you want to influence ID's future games toward one with more involving characters and plot, buy a game like Half-Life instead of Q3. ID will get the point and lead the FPS industry in that direction, or they will be one more dried up husk on the industry roadside.

    Excuse the off topic rant.

    PS Don't bash licensing engines. There is no need to reinvent the wheel if you can fit your game concept onto an engine.
  • Good point. I know in the future I will make it a point to not moderate unless I feel DAMN strong about the issue.

  • Steed comes out and says he's looking for a lead programmer:

    Right now, I need a seasoned, experienced programmer who is willing to be my partner in Pummel.

    I hope Pummel goes true, and brings us some kickass games. Getting fired from id was a wakeup call for Steed, and although he can be an asshole at times, I sincerely hope Steed succeeds.

    I just want to play games!
  • hey there kids! check out my newly revamped User Info Page [slashdot.org].
  • The following is definately a rant, be warned...

    All videogame artists are sweaty dullwits. take it from me, I should know, it's what I do.

    No 'seasoned programmer' I currently know or have ever heard of would place his/her fate in steed's sweaty wacom gripping mits, that's for sure! Not for the shred of 'celebrity' he has to offer. Only sweaty dullwit programmers (a little on the gamey side, rather than 'seasoned') would even think about it. Or maybe he could impress some naive croatian enlisted men. Oh, but that's right, they already have a great art dept. over at Croteam, don't they?

    Video games are all about 'what have you done for me lately'. Steed lost it years ago, that's why he needed to be fired. All the rumors you hear about this being 'retalitory' have little to d with the overall realization that he is a rich lazy primadonna.

    Nobody that's made it in this industry has the slightest shred of dignity or honor excepting focused types like Carmack. And he only appears that way in his .plan files. Have any of you ever worked with him? is he petty and cruel like the other 99% of the industry? That's one thing I doubt, but you can never be sure.

    It's really amazing that the industry stays afloat at all, given that the vast majority of the fools in it are utter pinch-mouthed preppies that rarely venture out of their little valley or burg into the real world, or beyond websites like msnbc/financial. Where are the people that made Doom? Steed's not one of them, not for a long time. None of those schmucks have what it takes any longer. Romerero? disgraced. Steed? fired. Carmack? well, he still kicks ass, is focused alright, but without a complete team, UT will kick their ass every time. Doom3 stands a fair chance at bringing id back up front, but they better do it right!

    The video game industry is full of nothing but visionless, overly comfortable, tea-totalling, anal retentive, ass kissing, backstabbing schmucks, that's what I say. MY GOD THESE PEOPLE SUCK!
  • You should use your moderation points to attack opinions with which you disagree (especially if they are anti-Linux or pro-Microsoft).

    Sometimes I just can't help but laugh at trolls such as this one.

    -- iCEBaLM
  • Over 110 comments... only 5 at +2, and precisely 1 of those has anything to do with the story... And _that_ one is a cut/paste from said story. Nice.
    Uh.. I guess this doesn't help, does it.
  • You don't like it, don't play it. You don't want your kids playing it, don't let them. You don't want to read the interview, don't read it. Educate your kids about violence, don't try to censor others. Be proactive, not reactive.
  • /.ed?
  • Don't take me wrong, I'm a great fan Paul Steed, he contributed a lot to the Q3 community by writing tons of tutorials.

    The sad things though, is that he seems to repeat Romero's biggest error: overlook technology to only focus on art/design. Throws in an ego that easily match Romero's, and who knows what we might end up with... -N

  • Sure he's got an ego (Score:4)

    by drinkypoo ( 153816 ) <drink@hyperlogos.org> on Thursday July 06, 2000 @06:51PM (#952800) Homepage Journal

    But what he says about game design coming from the heart is dead-on correct.

    A friend of mine is putting up a site for game developers, and I've been writing some articles for it, not as a developer, but as a gamer. I also have a strong technical background, though, so I can be somewhat knowledgeable about the buisness end of what I'm talking about.

    Enough horn-blowing, the point is, a game has to have certain major components, including a good storyline - And this is the point I want to "me too" from the interview itself. Steed cares about the experience, he obviously believes in making the kind of games he wants to play, and that's one of the three key ingredients. The other two are having good people working with you, because these days you just can't do it all yourself, and to just stick with the project. If you don't let yourself get ground down, and you're talented and you have integrity to your vision, you can put together a good game.

    Another important thing to recognize is that he doesn't have to do the most technically sweet game out there to make a good game. All this talk about how he's just an artist is moot, because that doesn't have anything at all to do with your vision. If he's smart, he'll get some good people on board who know how to run a buisness, some really amazing graphics programmers, an artithmatic junkie who's really into the math of physics, and so on, and they'll put together a winning game.

    The important thing to remember here is that we should give as much of our support as possible to gamers who are making games. When the games are designed by a formula, by people who don't play the kinds of games they make, the games have no soul. The soul of a game is what keeps you coming back for more. Your personal preference does decide what kind of game you play, but to actually make you feel guilty about warezing it so you traipse into the funcoland and shell out the forty bucks, the game has to have a heart.

    Don't worry about ego. The world is full of people who know what they're capable of, and proud. Just worry about what'll happen if, like another certain company spawned from id, they manage to shoot themselves in their respective feet.

  • ID and the state of gaming... (Score:5)

    by Bill Daras ( 102772 ) on Thursday July 06, 2000 @07:11PM (#952801) Homepage
    Recent events have caused me to seriously doubt the immediate future of gaming. The focus on quality has dropped dramatically. Making pretty looking deathmatches is the only thing that seems to matter anymore. Not that I haven't spent hours playing Capture the Flag or Domination in UT, but it seems as if multiplayer action is the only thing that matters.

    When a story actually enters the picture it appears to be something cooked up in about 5 minutes and added to the game over a span of a single lunch hour.

    ID is the worst offendor when it comes to this. I do not doubt Carmack's technical skills, it is simply that the man has limited ability when it comes to creating a coherant story, or even a new concept.

    The seed planted with DOOM has been rehashed countless times over the past 6 years and I see the return to it almost as an admission of failure by the ID team. Instead of sitting on their well served laurels and thinking it over, they simply jump into the next project which is invariably a repeat of several others. In doing so, they take away from their achievements and look like one trick ponies / engine whores.

    It is nice that this game will actually have a story (abeit old and tired),be mostly a single player affair and have great graphics. However I question the merits of the continued drive towards technical innovation while leaving the plot and real creativity behind.
  • It is quite strange to see ID's addiction to trilogies:
    • Commander Keen 1 to 3 (Invasion of the Vorticons)
    • Commander Keen 4 to 6 (Goodbye Galaxy)
    • Quake 1 to 3
    • Doom 1, 2, Ultimate and Final... and soon 3...
    When is "Wolfenstein 3D 3" due?
    By the way, I don't consider Doom as their only revolutionary game.
    Keen (Episodes 4 to 6) is my ID's all time favorite.
    It had a huge playability and was also full of innovations: Secret levels, multi-2D engine, and lots of facilities like game saving, etc. It ran perfectly on 286 computers and I whish its source code were given to the Open Source community.
    Concerning its playability, I remember the first time I played the "Satan's dark delight" in Quake.
    jumping on flying lifts really made me dream of a Keen 3D one day. This one would be a hit for sure... And ID would stop being associated to Bloody/Black/Frightening software.
    But we'll have to cope with Doom 3 before we can expect to smile at the Dope Fish once again.
    --
  • So it would seem... I can't get to the interview either. Would someone post a synopsis please? Thanks!

  • A thing that really struck me while reading this interview, was his view on the working situation. He said at least three things that indicates, that creative work is hard work and can be done in business hours:

    • He states that if you make a plan of what needs to be done and do that, you will meet the schedule.
    • He hates seeing people half a sleep at work.
    • He will not hire people so "creative", that they don't function socially.

    These words are hard words and are kinda counter-geeky too. If he is right in his views, this is bad news for a lot of geeks, where geek here means a person who marvel in his technical knowledges and skills but totally out of habits and abilities to work in the classical sense: Getting up in the morning, work between hours and take orders from your immidiate boss on what to do and how.

    These skills are often fraunded upon, but I know from several jobs, that this is more that not the reason for early termination of employments. It is sad to see collegues that are quite skilled have to leave simply because of lifestyle.

    Does it matter? Yes, because without it your own work will block because your workmate didn't finish on time while being busy doing other things. Everything blocks up, and you find yourself doing things you are not skilled at, because otherwise it will not be done.

    Don't get me wrong: I like people being different and I am not in favor of any dresscode. I work at a place where we have a very relaxed atmosphere and it is good, but we do have a line of authority and people must do what they have been asked to do, which luckily is not more restrictive than nessesary. And it works.

  • > It ran perfectly on 286 computers and I whish its source code were given to the Open Source community.

    Actually, I emailed John Carmack once a year or two ago asking about that exact same thing..
    Unfortunately, it seems that the source code to most of id's earlier games (in other words, the non-3d ones) has been lost forever.. quite a pity really :(

    Interestingly, you could consider Return to Castle Wolfenstein a "Wolfenstein 3", if you think about how the original game was originally sold: in two (yes, you guessed it) trilogies of episodes.
  • All I see is -1 and 0, both OT.
    sigh
    You must just be jumping the gun. Go back and check again.

    Ever get the impression that your life would make a good sitcom?
    Ever follow this to its logical conclusion: that your life is a sitcom?
  • I never thought I would see a pot reference AND a beer reference in a slashdot post. (click the first link at the bottom for the pot reference)
  • John Romero's main problem with Daikatana was that he started a project grand in scale, but then managed it poorly. In theory, Daikatana could've been completed just a little behind schedule (and maybe would've been a competetive product). But then firing your entire development team halfway through the project will set things back a bit.

    That's the big kicker about Daikatana: it wasn't completed in an unreasonable amount of time; it was completed way behind schedule, to the point where the product was outdated the second it hit the shelves.

    Also keep in mind: most of Daikatana's schedule was spent hyping the game. I'm sure Romero thought the game was going to be groundbreaking, and so he hyped it up a bunch to maximize potential sales. But we all know what that got him.

    ***JUMP PAD ACTIVATION INITIATION START***
    ***TRANSPORT WHEN READY***

  • This is taken from a "help@idsoftware.com" finger from a long time ago (when finger actually made sense, unlike today where it's totally stupid because everyone and their grandmother has a web browser, and sites actually make money from web versions of finger clients../rant):

    Status of QUAKE---Updated: Thu, Sep 1st 11:41am

    This will not be out until sometime next summer.
    John now has a simple (slow) engine running. It uses converted DOOM maps and runs them with flats for textures. It looks REALLY cool.
    Ok, imagine this. You have a health thing and you don't need it.
    You meet someone in the game who has a nice weapon but is really low on health. You guys decide to exchange items. You don't really trust this guy so you bring along a friend and tell him to hide out somewhere with a bead on the other guy's head. You meet somewhere in the middle of a field and face off. You drop your health, he drops his weapon and you both strafe over the object of your desire. You start to back away (not turning your back on him) and suddenly decide you're going to whack this guy before he gets a chance to use that health. You move towards him and draw back with your hammer. He notices this and starts to duck, but it's too late. You smash him in the head and watch him fly down to the ground, landing on his side. You smash his still body a few more times and cause him to explode! Now you and your friend pick up all of the items your dead friend left on the ground. As you are walking off you pick up his severed head and put it in a bag. That will come in useful later... when you need something to sacrifice to a demon.

    Oh yeah, that's quake. WTF? Tribes is the closest thing to that, what is this crap about putting a severed head in a bag though? :)
    ---

  • It lets us read something from an 8 meg, /.ed page! It should be 2, informative for those of us not on broadband, or something, instead of redundant.

    Ever get the impression that your life would make a good sitcom?
    Ever follow this to its logical conclusion: that your life is a sitcom?

  • Re:Do we want to hear about criminals like Steed? (Score:3)

    by Dissenter ( 16782 ) on Thursday July 06, 2000 @03:14PM (#952811)

    First off, Duke Nukem 3D was made by 3D Realms [3drealms.com]. Check your sources before you start your crazy ranting.

    Secondly if you really think that /. readers don't play these games you are very wrong as is evident by previous articles like Quake 3 to be sold Retail for Linux [slashdot.org]. There is an interest in this. Try running a search for Quake on /. and you'll come up with a ton of results. If you really have a problem with violent games, maybe you should speak out against the /. readers since we tend to like Quake 3 and other id releases.

    Also you refered to Quake players as Windoze kiddies who just want to run around and shoot stuff. Try reading the article above. WOW it's not just for "Windoze." Maybe you should just stop trying to be so god damn 31337 and voice YOUR opinion rather than trying to portray your post as the feelings of the entire "Linux community."

    I love Quake 3 and the attention that this game has earned in the gamming community is almost unmatched. More money is awarded to "CyberAtheletes" like Wombat (Mark Larsen) CPL player of the year from 1999 than ever before. I am pleased to see this much attention being directed to gamming. It makes companies write better games, and gives player more to enjoy.


    Dissenter

  • New Game (Score:4)

    by Rader ( 40041 ) on Thursday July 06, 2000 @02:50PM (#952812) Homepage
    I bet he's now working on a new game of ultra-violence, and the monsters in there look suspiciously like his previous co-workers...

    Rader

  • Trolls getting dumber, can't tell time. Of the week.

    Ever get the impression that your life would make a good sitcom?
    Ever follow this to its logical conclusion: that your life is a sitcom?
  • I used to work at Microsoft. It was awful. Larry Ellison was always going through my trash and grabbing the receptionist's ass.
    I hate that fucker.
    --Shoeboy
  • Well, ever since we were able to get those awesome games to work for Linux, we, like, worship him!

    Rader

  • Read a couple of reviews, and avoid those type of games. Problem solved.

    --

  • If just because you produced something controversial, we all started calling you a criminal? That's what this guy did. Criminalizing somebody for works of controversial subject matter or tone is much worse than labeling what they do "flamebait". At least, I assume that's the post you're referring to. I can't see it 'cause it's modded down and I'm too lazy to adjust my prefs today, but posts above and below yours have subject "Re: do we really want to hear from whatsisname the criminal" in them" Now people obviously don't disagree with you, but you got modded up as interesting, because you didn't go calling the people you didn't disagree with "criminals" right off the bat. That kinda helps.

    Ever get the impression that your life would make a good sitcom?
    Ever follow this to its logical conclusion: that your life is a sitcom?
  • Promoting Steed's trash only hurts us all.

    Censoring stories on the basis that your post suggests is what really "hurts us all"

  • Return to Wolfenstein *is* the third one:

    1)Wolf3D
    2)Wolf3D: Spear of Destiny
    3)Return to Wolfenstein

    --

  • "Q3 was written for money..."

    Exactly.
    Q3 wasn't written as some definative "Quake" vision (ie, Richard Garriot's Ultima), or even as a really cool idea (ie, Valve's Half-Life) - it was written only to make money. Do I have a problem with that? Yeah, it's kind of cheesy to write a game that's 90% done material. Except for the new people coming into the genre - you're not going to catch new customers with yesterday's games (usually).

    I guess my point is that I didn't buy Q3. I wasn't trying to make a statement by not buying it - I didn't buy it because it didn't interest me. It's the same tried, tired arena-based gameplay... hell, the weapons are 90% the same. I like new features and whatnot - I like new ways to play the game. That's why I bought Opposing Forces, and that's why I bought UT.

    Now, I'm not sure where you thought I was bashing engine-licensing - I was stating the good points of ID. The atmosphere of Doom, their technical expertise, and the fact that they more or less created the popular gaming culture. They also produce really kick-ass engines which folks can use to make really kick-ass games. There's nothing *wrong* with making money - but your actions quickly slip into the grey area when you're only doing a thing for money.

    -lw
  • Yeah, we do. Despite the fact that your post is an obvious troll, it really comes down to simple economics. Look at Thief. Brilliant game, in fact its the only reason I even have 98 installed on a partition.

    At the same time, however, you equate linux users with some culturally superior 3l337. Face it, the only way a game is going to be ported to Linux is if its already made someone millions of dollars.

    I'd much rather see Radiohead in some small venue, sitting about 25' from the stage with a few hundred people, but if tens of thousands of people want to see them at the same time, it makes for an interesting situation.

    If you really want some artsy, intellectual gameing experience for Linux, create one. And if you think that you'll only actually sell 300 copies then go ahead and charge $1,000 a copy. But unless you're willing to spend 1+ years of your life creating this superior game, shut it already

  • I drink beer... (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    ... but block this luser's IP already.
  • Have you been living under a rock for the past two years?

    You imply the entire gaming industry is ID software... which is so blindly stupid, I'm honestly amazed.

    In the last three years, we've seen MAJOR hits from Baldur's Gate, Planescape:Torment, and Fallout (from Interplay)... Warcraft II, Starcraft, and Diablo 2 (from Blizzard)... Ultima Online, Everquest, Asheron's Call... I can go on for quite some time.

    You want story? Check out any of the titles. Interplay holds the RPG crown without a doubt. You want quality? Check out *ANYTHING* by Blizzard. There is a reason their last three titles (War2, Diablo, Starcraft) were "Games of the Year", and their latest (Diablo2) is getting rave reviews. As for quality, story, AND multiplayer - check out UO, EQ, or AC.

    But maybe RPG's/RTS aren't your thing. Check out Half-Life, then, and its expansion Opposing Forces. Great story, awesome graphics... sometimes you forget you're playing a game. Maybe you want thick, dark atmosphere? Look at System Shock 2!!! Conspiracy theories, involving gameplay, great storyline? Deus Ex.

    As for the immediate future of gaming, Icewind Dale has just been released by Interplay. Deus Ex and Diablo 2 recently hit shelves. In the next couple months, look for Baldur's Gate 2.

    Yeah, story has never been IDs strong point. But the atmosphere and gameplay of the first Doom makes the game live in my mind. However, their technical expertise is beyond a doubt. And them being "one trick ponies" and "engine whores" has paved the way for Half-Life (which ran on the Q2 engine), and the *SUCCESS OF GAMING IN GENERAL*.

    ID will continue to churn out eye candy, and make great sales and lots of money. They'll get even more when companies liscense their engines. But just because the night is dark, don't ignore the stars.

    -lw
  • Well said. I am also dumbfounded. Isn't there some sort of logical fallacy that describes such utterly specious arguments? I was in a game store the other day and was awestruck at the number of well spoken of titles i've never played (system shock2, theif2, HL-OF, Vampire, Diablo2, Nascar3, RallyChampionship, NFS-Porsche, Shogun, AoE2, etc. etc.). There are 4 big multiplayer deathmatch games: Quake3, HalfLife, Unreal Tournament, and Starsiege Tribes. More people play Starcraft online than all these put together; more people have bought The Sims than any one of these. I could go on but shall simply defer to my more articulate compadre above.

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