Oh wow. So many good questions and I haven't had time to check in until now! I'm gonna answer as best I can, the questions that leapt out at me.


I majored in drama (doing mostly directing and playwriting) and cognitive psychology, and had a minor in computer science. Went and got a masters in entertainment technology. In my time I've been an anolyst for medical stats, a database programmer for a crash test lab, an Imagineer, and now a game designer (first at EA, now here). I think it's been a pretty steady increase of awesome over that time (though you could argue that Imagineer -> game designer was a lateral).


1) Almost two years now. I joined up as they were working on the DLC for Fallout 3 and was on TESV from my first day.
2) Oh good lord yes. But even more since I've been here.
3) Hahahaha nice try.
4) I don't think I will ever enjoy another game as much as I enjoyed Final Fantasy VI the first time I played it. Don't know if I would hold it up as my favorite these days though. Maybe Chrono Trigger? I feel like I can also say how much I loved Fallout 3 since I didn't work on it.


I absolutely positively adore the Sly Cooper series. I hold up Sly 2 as one of the best, least-discussed games of the last 10 years. Practically perfect. A friend of mine works at svcker Punch and I'm constantly trying to get him to give me the goods on Sly 4.


I am totally a Nord. I once grew a beard that won a gold medal. In a beard competition, no less.


I made a mod for Civ5, adding a clock to the in-game interface. I also modded Oblivion and Fallout 3 a little bit, but nothing nearly as impressive as I see from the real mod community.

High school? That's for late bloomers. I was telling my parents I was going to be a game designer when I was in elementary school. F'reals.


I rowed from 8th grade through 12th grade. I was never in better shape. I kind of miss it, but it's so equipment intensive. Nothing beats being out on the river in the chilly early morning though.


It does indeed look fabulous.


I am a proud owner of one of these t-shirts: http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2746/4175281108_415d88fed9.jpg


I'm pretty sure my dad still doesn't think this is a real job. Luckily my oldest brother is a musician, so I can at least say I have a 401(k).


I've moved onto tea from coffee in an effort to cut down on my caffeine intake. I really like the Twinings Earl Grey and Ceylon Orange Pekoe. I am open to suggestions if people have brands or types that they recommend.


Planetfall. Marathon.

The first game I actually broke down and anolyzed was SimCity 2000. I remember getting the book that explained how everything in the game worked mathematically, and I started thinking about what changes I would make to their model. This is how game designers think about games -- less playing, and more anolyzing.

There's enough people who so desperately want to be in the games industry that I don't think many people just get here by chance.


There is only one chocolate. Milk chocolate is a corruption and white chocolate is an abomination.


I grew up in Jacksonville, so I have to say I'm pleasantly surprised to see my boys at the top of their division right now. Will they make the playoffs? Maybe, maybe not, but it sure is exciting. I like to watch.

I think there's a lot of Ravens fans around here, too. Kenny (our cook) is still a Colts fan from back when they were in Baltimore.


OK, those first two questions are kind of... I don't even know. It's really funny how you guys imagine Todd.

As for the third question -- finding Lucien Lachance's body.


You'll have to buy me a few drinks first.


I *really* like 4E. I like the splitting of classes into roles so everyone has a better idea of what they should be doing in combat. I feel like it has maybe slightly too much emphasis on combat, but it really comes down to what kind of game the DM wants to run.

There are some folks in my group, though, who really prefer 3.5, so I can definitely understand that.


I regret that I can't find who said this quote so I can properly attribute it, but I like the sentiment: "The difference between an amateur and a professional is that the professional knows that everything they do is (garbage)."

Hey im sorry buddy chear up
skyrims gonna come out soon
and im sure theyll answer some of your questions if they can they answered some of mine and i know nothing about anything about art and designing video games, heres a tip have a cute chick as your avatar it attracts attention, it can be a blonde or a burnette i wont get angry at you heck i bet a cute bunny will help lol

I'm gonna try reposting this one:

When you guys are playing one of the Beth games do you mod it extensively?
Do you make your own, mainly download other works, play vanilla?
And if yes or no, it that at all representative of the time (and possibly frustration) you spent developing whichever part of the game?

I have another one

As part of the MERP team (a LotR themed TC for the Oblivion engine), do you have any advice for us on how to go about making a fully fledged game? We have the heightmap at the moment, and are doing the landscaping and some interiors at the moment, along with various scripting things to do with gameplay elements that we want to change. We also have a bunch of really talented modelers, that are really bringing Middle Earth to life.

If you're interested, and want to say hallo, check out our forums http://merp.straygenius.com/forum/

Hey guys, I think this thread is a great idea. Its really cool that you can take the time to interact with the community.

1. Did you ever have another career choice outside of the gaming industry?

2. (Random) What TV show are you into at the moment?

3. Which game have you put more hours into than any other?

Wow, looks like a cool project you have going there. Any screenshots?

As for recommendations -- sounds like you're on the road. Lotta grinding out content. If you've got people who love it, that makes it all worthwhile.

Have you ever pointed out your name in the credits to a random person or friend and say "Check it out [freeze frame] yeah thats right I [helped] made this game."
Cannot see how it would impress the ladies though, I only see it working on the guys...

1. I am nigh unemployable outside the games industry. I guess I probably could be a straight-up programmer. Or go back to theme parks, but that's kind of the same thing, roughly speaking.

2. I am a bad nerd and am only just now watching Buffy. Netflix streaming is one of the greatest things ever created.

3. I would wager one of the Civs, Marathon II, or Super Mario World. I've reset my stats on TF2 a couple times, so I'm not sure how many hours I've sunk into there. Probably for the best.

I notice your job listed above your avatar is "Design Monkey." What exactly is your job title, and what kind of things do you do on a regular basis?

You're providing some quality dev-gamer interaction by the way

We do indeed

http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=29214

If you feel like stopping by once in a while I'm sure the team would be ecstatic, and this goes to the other Devs too .

Duuuuude that was your bargaining chip! You should have said "That depends.. Do you have any screenshots?"

:facepalm: Dammit!!!!!

What he said

I'm a Quest Designer. I spend a good chunk of my time writing (story arcs, character design, dialogue, etc.), and the rest trying to get it working in the game. I spend a lot of time working with programmers on new features and bugs, working with artists on making everything look awesome, and with other designers, giving and getting feedback on all the stuff we're making.



Doin' my best.

Simple question, really simple.

Please tell me that SKYRIM is going to set the bar of epicness EVEN HIGHER. we dont want to be dissapointed. We trust you guys! its been 5 long years of agony.

..please <3

Heh. Well played.

I have *lots* of screenshots.

Unfortunately for you, I like my job, so you won't get to see them from me. :-p

Sweet. So tell me, on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being super epic awesome, exactly how awesome is the main quest in Skyrim?

If we find someone on the forums rich enough to keep you comfortable for life, would that convince you?

Or we could each sponsor you

That might work in person but on the forums people have time to think before they post. I'm talking about manipulating the conversation.

Awww.. Well I'm really looking forward to finally seeing what you incredibly talented folks have been working on and I'm sure you guys are doing a great job

SJML, what attractions did you work on as an Imagineer?

It's interesting reading some of the conversation regarding background education. I just recently graduated with a degree in architecture. In the process, though, I discovered a love for 3d modeling (too bad they didn't really offer any formal classes on the subject). In my spare time I'm practicing my modeling skills and hoping to be able to put together a worthwhile portfolio. One thing I have been wondering, though, is what modeling software is most used or would be most useful to learn?

Highly recommend Twinings Irish Breakfast Tea, its the best.

I was in the R&D department, which does R&D for the whole company (not just the parks), so I worked on a lot of random stuff. Did some mobile marketing stuff which never really took off, some Pirates of the Caribbean mobile stuff, and spent most of my time on the Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure -- early prototypes and game design. It won a Thea Award (like the Oscars for theme parks) for best interactive experience. (I'm really proud of it, even though I was only there for the very earliest stages of it.)

I was only an intern, to be fair, but I learned a *ton* and got to work with some crazy smart people.