XGC Brittany
New member
What role did you play in the Gears of War project?
I was the Producer, which means I oversaw developement by managing the schedule, setting the priorites, mitigating the risks, and facititating communication between all of the different disciplines on the team and out publisher.
Give the readers an idea about you day-to-day tasks.
My biggest daily task was to make sure everyone had what they needed to be successful, Usually that was communicating information between people on the team or to the publisher.
What was your favorite aspect of this project?
My favorites aspect of the project is the "join in progress' co-op play. The ability to be playing Gears in single player and see your friend come online, invite him to join, and have him take over Dom without ever leaving the single player game is awesome. Co-op has always been my favorite feature in an game, and I'm so excited about what we did in Gears.
After you complete the game, what fo you expect (or hope) players will say?
I hope they'll say, "That was awesome. Now lets's play co-op on Insane."
What was the trickiest task assigned to you, and how did you solve it?
Everything about making AAA games is tricky. Hopefully you liked our solution.
What did the Unreal Engine 3 allow you to achieve in Gears that you couldn't have accomplished without it?
Shipping a game this big with a team this small.
Despite the advanced XBOX 360 hardware, were there any gameplay elements that just weren't feasible with today's current state of technology?
No.
What are you most proud of concerning the game?
I could probably write four pages on all the things I'm proud about, including the team, the process, and the final product. But if I were to pick one small area that I was involved in, I'm especially proud of the voiceover work. I was involved in the casting, the directing, and even some of the writing, and I helped design the combat chatter system. Hearing our very talented cast bring our characters to life and make the game experience that much more rewarding to the players makes me very proud.
What originally attracted you to the video game industry, and how did you get your start?
Being a gamer is what attraced me to the industry initally. When your career is based on your favorite thing to do, how could it be any better? My path to games was a bit convoluted. I was self-employed as a buisness analyst doing government database systems when I got hired into Microsof Consulting Services in Ottawa, ON Canada. As a Microsoft employee, I then decided that me goal was to work my way onto main campus in Redmond and get into the games group. A year an a half later, I had a job offr from Redmond as part of Enterprise Services, and a year and a half after that I was interviewing fro Flight Sim. Oddly enough, the same day as my interview for the scernary producer for Flight Sim, a new position opened up as the Producer for MS Train Sim. I jumped at the chance to produce my own game and got the job. Twelve years afo, I was doing data flow diaggrams for government lawyers; today. I shoot monster in the face with a shotgun. Nice career path...
What keeps you in the game industry?
First, it's the people. i love nothing more than to be working with passionate and creative people who all love what they do. Tha's very difficulst to find in a typical corporate environment, but not so for most people woking in games. making games sounds like and easy job but it's not and you really have to want to work on a games to keep up with the time and effort required. Second, it's the work. I've never had a job where I got to do so many fun and creative thing. For example, I get to work with the writes to help create dialogue and story, with the designers to help create new ideas and features, with the artists to help shape environments and characters, and with the overall team to determine how we're going to go from nothing to what we hope is an amazing experience. How could you leave that?
What titles have you worked on?
I've worked on several titles that have never seen the light of day-one of which included a focus-group member looking directly at the one-way mirror saying, "Do not make this game." In terms of shipping titles, I've worked on MS Train Simuilator (don't laugh; it sold over a million units worldwide), Blood Wake (okay, now you can laugh, but it was fun and I still think BW2 would have been awesome), and Counter-Strike Xbox. If you listen closely while playing CSX, you'll hear me as one of the 'bot voices.
What can we look forward to in the future with the Gears of War franchise?
It's up to the gamers whether the Gears of War franchise has a future, But if it does, I'm sure it will be a fun one!
Do you have a pet tactic or any tips you'd like to share with our readers?
So many to chose from...Thers's the DBNO bait, the suicide hid, the Torquebow mine...Hmmm...Well, I guess one of my favorite tactics is really more about flair than skill. When you get caught out in the open and need to close the distance between you and your victims/attackers, i like to have my shotgun equipped and evade inro them. this way, you close the distance fast, make yourself harder to hit, and then, as you unroll, you take off their head with the shotgun blask. when you preform it smoothly, it feels oh so good and a little sticky.
Favorite Movie?
The Fifth Element
Favorite food to snack on while gaming?
Diet Mountain Dew to keep up the pace, Who need all that sugar with their caffeine?
Current gaming obsession (aside from Gear)?
The Alpha of the Burning Crusade, expanision for World of Warcraft.
Favorite all-time game?
No such thing for me. But fondest memories include Tribes and Diablo II.
Stranded-on-desert-island CD?
"How to Survive While Stranded on a Desert Island" book on CD
Favorite magazine?
Don't really have one that I read every month. In terms of graphic novels, though, I've been really enjoying Powers.
Favorite book?
Princess Bride by William Goldman
Hobby?
Playing Poker...Badly!
Secret?
I only pretend to be Canadian so that I can get all the girls with the cool english accent.
I was the Producer, which means I oversaw developement by managing the schedule, setting the priorites, mitigating the risks, and facititating communication between all of the different disciplines on the team and out publisher.
Give the readers an idea about you day-to-day tasks.
My biggest daily task was to make sure everyone had what they needed to be successful, Usually that was communicating information between people on the team or to the publisher.
What was your favorite aspect of this project?
My favorites aspect of the project is the "join in progress' co-op play. The ability to be playing Gears in single player and see your friend come online, invite him to join, and have him take over Dom without ever leaving the single player game is awesome. Co-op has always been my favorite feature in an game, and I'm so excited about what we did in Gears.
After you complete the game, what fo you expect (or hope) players will say?
I hope they'll say, "That was awesome. Now lets's play co-op on Insane."
What was the trickiest task assigned to you, and how did you solve it?
Everything about making AAA games is tricky. Hopefully you liked our solution.
What did the Unreal Engine 3 allow you to achieve in Gears that you couldn't have accomplished without it?
Shipping a game this big with a team this small.
Despite the advanced XBOX 360 hardware, were there any gameplay elements that just weren't feasible with today's current state of technology?
No.
What are you most proud of concerning the game?
I could probably write four pages on all the things I'm proud about, including the team, the process, and the final product. But if I were to pick one small area that I was involved in, I'm especially proud of the voiceover work. I was involved in the casting, the directing, and even some of the writing, and I helped design the combat chatter system. Hearing our very talented cast bring our characters to life and make the game experience that much more rewarding to the players makes me very proud.
What originally attracted you to the video game industry, and how did you get your start?
Being a gamer is what attraced me to the industry initally. When your career is based on your favorite thing to do, how could it be any better? My path to games was a bit convoluted. I was self-employed as a buisness analyst doing government database systems when I got hired into Microsof Consulting Services in Ottawa, ON Canada. As a Microsoft employee, I then decided that me goal was to work my way onto main campus in Redmond and get into the games group. A year an a half later, I had a job offr from Redmond as part of Enterprise Services, and a year and a half after that I was interviewing fro Flight Sim. Oddly enough, the same day as my interview for the scernary producer for Flight Sim, a new position opened up as the Producer for MS Train Sim. I jumped at the chance to produce my own game and got the job. Twelve years afo, I was doing data flow diaggrams for government lawyers; today. I shoot monster in the face with a shotgun. Nice career path...
What keeps you in the game industry?
First, it's the people. i love nothing more than to be working with passionate and creative people who all love what they do. Tha's very difficulst to find in a typical corporate environment, but not so for most people woking in games. making games sounds like and easy job but it's not and you really have to want to work on a games to keep up with the time and effort required. Second, it's the work. I've never had a job where I got to do so many fun and creative thing. For example, I get to work with the writes to help create dialogue and story, with the designers to help create new ideas and features, with the artists to help shape environments and characters, and with the overall team to determine how we're going to go from nothing to what we hope is an amazing experience. How could you leave that?
What titles have you worked on?
I've worked on several titles that have never seen the light of day-one of which included a focus-group member looking directly at the one-way mirror saying, "Do not make this game." In terms of shipping titles, I've worked on MS Train Simuilator (don't laugh; it sold over a million units worldwide), Blood Wake (okay, now you can laugh, but it was fun and I still think BW2 would have been awesome), and Counter-Strike Xbox. If you listen closely while playing CSX, you'll hear me as one of the 'bot voices.
What can we look forward to in the future with the Gears of War franchise?
It's up to the gamers whether the Gears of War franchise has a future, But if it does, I'm sure it will be a fun one!
Do you have a pet tactic or any tips you'd like to share with our readers?
So many to chose from...Thers's the DBNO bait, the suicide hid, the Torquebow mine...Hmmm...Well, I guess one of my favorite tactics is really more about flair than skill. When you get caught out in the open and need to close the distance between you and your victims/attackers, i like to have my shotgun equipped and evade inro them. this way, you close the distance fast, make yourself harder to hit, and then, as you unroll, you take off their head with the shotgun blask. when you preform it smoothly, it feels oh so good and a little sticky.
Favorite Movie?
The Fifth Element
Favorite food to snack on while gaming?
Diet Mountain Dew to keep up the pace, Who need all that sugar with their caffeine?
Current gaming obsession (aside from Gear)?
The Alpha of the Burning Crusade, expanision for World of Warcraft.
Favorite all-time game?
No such thing for me. But fondest memories include Tribes and Diablo II.
Stranded-on-desert-island CD?
"How to Survive While Stranded on a Desert Island" book on CD
Favorite magazine?
Don't really have one that I read every month. In terms of graphic novels, though, I've been really enjoying Powers.
Favorite book?
Princess Bride by William Goldman
Hobby?
Playing Poker...Badly!
Secret?
I only pretend to be Canadian so that I can get all the girls with the cool english accent.