?The parallel is quite easy to draw... Especially when you look through the kinds of stuff you'd typically find in a Dilbert comic. What's even scarier is that the hair isn't too far off either. Actually, to be accurate, I'd say the creature's hair has more resemblance to Wolverine, but with far more gray.
SMM, is that character your "It"
You know what I'm saying? Huh?Ah, well, I got a little bit of pining in the Ghostbusters thread to try and pick up on these stories again, as well as apparently having gained a few new fans among lurkers...
So here I am digging through the thread making sure I'm not repeating myself, and digging through files for some funnier stories.... well, here we go again.
So this bit occurred shortly after the sudden conversion from some weird single-player story to a multiplayer project that the rest of us could actually get on board with. I unfortunately wasn't around for that instantaneous conversion since I was sick that day (meaning that the logs I have of that aren't exact conversation transcripts or anything), but I may get around to that. Anyway, this happened a couple of weeks after that --
Me : [sarcastically] Okay, so what major alteration should I now make my new priority 1?
It : Well, you know... it's like that whole... y'know.
Me : ....... *blinks*
It : You know, I got into this business because it is so possible to make something that's so spectacular, y'know. Visually!!! You know, it explodes in your face and then it's like. After all that, you make loads of dough...
Me : So I take this change of heart has something to do with money?
It : Well, it's --
Me : Makes sense given how much there's a strong push for multiplayer these days.
It : Exactly. Now we're talking the same language. Well, anyway...
There's that level I was telling you about; The one where [Art Director] said nobody would want to play like that.
Me : That... doesn't... really narrow it down to one. Which one are you talking about?
It : You know... the one with the fighting one guy at a time so you can really see the effects and the Karma blending and all that.
Me : Okay, what about it?
It : We really need to get that level in the game.
Me : What happened to multiplayer?
It : Well, it's fine if a lot of people play it at once.
Me : Sooooo... it's a bunch of people in one room ganging up on one enemy at a time?
It : No, I mean a bunch of people play the level at the same time, each on their own machines.
Me : Uuuhhhh... that's not multiplayer. That's just multiple people having a copy of the game.
It : Yeah, multiple players playing the game. So it's multiplayer.
Me : gyuh... that's not quite right. It's when multiple players share the same game environment and collaborate or compete with each other. It's the player-to-player interaction.
It : But then they'd have to be in the same room... what are we supposed to do? Include plane tickets with the game or something?
Me : Huh?!?
It : How else are they supposed to interact?
Me : By way of the friggin' internet! You know... that bundle of wires that connects people's machines so that information goes around between machines?
It : That's so boring, though! You'd have to keep emailing people what you're doing all the time. Like "Oooh... I'm moving left. I'm shooting my gun."
Me : Uuuuhhh, I mean like the LAN gaming sessions we do every so often after work. You know those? The machines are all communicating their game states so that everybody's characters are in the same level and we can play against each other?
It : Ooooh. Why do you want to do that over the internet, though? Everybody ends up doing the same thing.
Me : Wait... what? No... Playing against people instead of bots gives you a certain kind of challenge and a certain feel to the way play carries out. People like that, and we can only sell the games if it has what people want.
It : But then, the real point though is not that people want things. I mean, I've dealt with people before, so I know! You know, people don't really know what they want most of the time. So it's up to us to show them.
Me : Oh boy.
It : See, like, with this level, they really get a chance to pay attention and see the kinds of special effects you can get,and you really get a chance to show them the beauty that is possible with these games. We're not making chess here.
Me : .......... and...?
It : And that's it. I know what's right, not the people out there, so they need to see it to really... *gestures with his hands spread out* mmm ... you know, take it in!
Me : Sounds like a suitable thing for a techdemo or some demo to pitch it to a publisher, but the public--
It : Well, there you go then!
Me : Huh?
It : Okay.
Me : Okay what?
It : Just.... *weird figure-8 like bobbing of his head for a second* ... yeah.
Me : I don't follow.
It : Well, that's how I feel talking to you sometimes.
Ah, well, I got a little bit of pining in the Ghostbusters thread to try and pick up on these stories again, as well as apparently having gained a few new fans among lurkers...
So here I am digging through the thread making sure I'm not repeating myself, and digging through files for some funnier stories.... well, here we go again.
So this bit occurred shortly after the sudden conversion from some weird single-player story to a multiplayer project that the rest of us could actually get on board with. I unfortunately wasn't around for that instantaneous conversion since I was sick that day (meaning that the logs I have of that aren't exact conversation transcripts or anything), but I may get around to that. Anyway, this happened a couple of weeks after that --
Me : [sarcastically] Okay, so what major alteration should I now make my new priority 1?
It : Well, you know... it's like that whole... y'know.
Me : ....... *blinks*
It : You know, I got into this business because it is so possible to make something that's so spectacular, y'know. Visually!!! You know, it explodes in your face and then it's like. After all that, you make loads of dough...
Me : So I take this change of heart has something to do with money?
It : Well, it's --
Me : Makes sense given how much there's a strong push for multiplayer these days.
It : Exactly. Now we're talking the same language. Well, anyway...
There's that level I was telling you about; The one where [Art Director] said nobody would want to play like that.
Me : That... doesn't... really narrow it down to one. Which one are you talking about?
It : You know... the one with the fighting one guy at a time so you can really see the effects and the Karma blending and all that.
Me : Okay, what about it?
It : We really need to get that level in the game.
Me : What happened to multiplayer?
It : Well, it's fine if a lot of people play it at once.
Me : Sooooo... it's a bunch of people in one room ganging up on one enemy at a time?
It : No, I mean a bunch of people play the level at the same time, each on their own machines.
Me : Uuuhhhh... that's not multiplayer. That's just multiple people having a copy of the game.
It : Yeah, multiple players playing the game. So it's multiplayer.
Me : gyuh... that's not quite right. It's when multiple players share the same game environment and collaborate or compete with each other. It's the player-to-player interaction.
It : But then they'd have to be in the same room... what are we supposed to do? Include plane tickets with the game or something?
Me : Huh?!?
It : How else are they supposed to interact?
Me : By way of the friggin' internet! You know... that bundle of wires that connects people's machines so that information goes around between machines?
It : That's so boring, though! You'd have to keep emailing people what you're doing all the time. Like "Oooh... I'm moving left. I'm shooting my gun."
Me : Uuuuhhh, I mean like the LAN gaming sessions we do every so often after work. You know those? The machines are all communicating their game states so that everybody's characters are in the same level and we can play against each other?
It : Ooooh. Why do you want to do that over the internet, though? Everybody ends up doing the same thing.
Me : Wait... what? No... Playing against people instead of bots gives you a certain kind of challenge and a certain feel to the way play carries out. People like that, and we can only sell the games if it has what people want.
It : But then, the real point though is not that people want things. I mean, I've dealt with people before, so I know! You know, people don't really know what they want most of the time. So it's up to us to show them.
Me : Oh boy.
It : See, like, with this level, they really get a chance to pay attention and see the kinds of special effects you can get,and you really get a chance to show them the beauty that is possible with these games. We're not making chess here.
Me : .......... and...?
It : And that's it. I know what's right, not the people out there, so they need to see it to really... *gestures with his hands spread out* mmm ... you know, take it in!
Me : Sounds like a suitable thing for a techdemo or some demo to pitch it to a publisher, but the public--
It : Well, there you go then!
Me : Huh?
It : Okay.
Me : Okay what?
It : Just.... *weird figure-8 like bobbing of his head for a second* ... yeah.
Me : I don't follow.
It : Well, that's how I feel talking to you sometimes.