Feature written by Amadeo Plaza
Two years ago we published an article entitled “A Salute to Japanese Game Designers.” The article gained a lot of attention and to this day is cited in the Wikipedia entry for Satoshi Tajiri, creator of the Pokémon franchise. It’s been quite some time since that publication, and such an article begs the question: “What about the western game designers?”
With that said, it would only be appropriate to salute the envelope pushing designers of the West who in recent and past times shaped our expectations of what good gaming should be. Although it’s a debatable statement, for several years now, many of the innovations you see in today’s games have been coming from western game designers, not their eastern counterparts. It’s only appropriate that we highlight some of these brilliant minds.
Peter Molyneux
He’s done it all. The 49 year old designer of highly lauded games such as Populous, Black & White, The Movies, and of course, Fable, Molyneux is an AIAS Hall of Fame inductee, has been honored with entry into the Order of the British Empire, has been given the title of Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French government, and has been awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Science by the University of Southampton.
He has a reputation for over-hyping his products, and learned his lesson with Fable when the final game was lacking many of the features he advertised in interviews leading up to the release. Haughty statements, like “Best Game Ever Made,” haven’t discredited him as one of the most revered designers of all time, however, as his development company, Lionhead Studios, is highly respected and is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Microsoft Game Studios.
It seems there isn’t much else he can do in his career to further bolster it, which explains why he’s taken on more of a publicist’s role for Lionhead Studios, and the industry in general. He’s certainly one of the more outspoken designers in the business, and rightfully so, you’ll see him in a lot of interviews. He is, without a doubt, one of the industry’s few true luminaries, and a highly respected figure.
Tim Schafer
Funny man Tim Schafer is a favorite here at Gamer 2.0, and is responsible for such gems as Day of the Tentacle, Full Throttle, the immensely acclaimed Grim Fandango, and most recently Psychonauts. He began his career at LucasArts, as a co-writer for The Secret of Monkey Island, moving on to co-designer for the sequel. Following another co-designer job for Day of the Tentacle, he stepped up to his first solo project with Full Throttle, and has been creating laughter across the industry ever since.
Schafer may not be in the AIAS Hall of Fame, but he did win a BAFTA award for best videogame screenplay for Psychonauts. Following his departure from LucasArts after over ten years, he founded Double Fine Productions, probably one of the friendliest and down-to-earth development studios in the business. At one time we emailed Schafer at Double Fine just to say “hello,” and he was kind enough to personally email back. He continues to write much of the hilariously witty dialogue for his games along with maintaining the role of lead designer, and we expect to see great work out of Double Fine when Brütal Legend, their next title, comes around later this year.
A comedic mastermind and natural storyteller, it’s only a matter of time before Schafer is inducted into the Hall of Fame for his amazing contributions to the advancement of the industry.
Sid Meier
Rivaling Will Wright’s accolades record, Sid Meier is a member of the AIAS Hall of Fame (its second inductee) and a recipient of the “Lifetime Achievement Award.” His career spans an impressive three decades, and two development studios he himself co-founded (Microprose and Firaxis). And although he doesn’t work on all the games that bear his name, he continues to work as the creative director, and his legacy has been imprinted so deeply that they continue to carry his namesake.
The Civilization and Pirates! Series are his two most widely known franchises, and continue to garner considerable praise for their innovations in the turn-based strategy genre. Every designer has a niche at which they excel, and Meier has proven time and time again that he’s here to stay and remain on top.
Two years ago we published an article entitled “A Salute to Japanese Game Designers.” The article gained a lot of attention and to this day is cited in the Wikipedia entry for Satoshi Tajiri, creator of the Pokémon franchise. It’s been quite some time since that publication, and such an article begs the question: “What about the western game designers?”
With that said, it would only be appropriate to salute the envelope pushing designers of the West who in recent and past times shaped our expectations of what good gaming should be. Although it’s a debatable statement, for several years now, many of the innovations you see in today’s games have been coming from western game designers, not their eastern counterparts. It’s only appropriate that we highlight some of these brilliant minds.
Peter Molyneux is widely recognized as one of the most influential and respected figures in the industry, always looking for ways to bring innovative gameplay.
He’s done it all. The 49 year old designer of highly lauded games such as Populous, Black & White, The Movies, and of course, Fable, Molyneux is an AIAS Hall of Fame inductee, has been honored with entry into the Order of the British Empire, has been given the title of Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French government, and has been awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Science by the University of Southampton.
He has a reputation for over-hyping his products, and learned his lesson with Fable when the final game was lacking many of the features he advertised in interviews leading up to the release. Haughty statements, like “Best Game Ever Made,” haven’t discredited him as one of the most revered designers of all time, however, as his development company, Lionhead Studios, is highly respected and is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Microsoft Game Studios.
It seems there isn’t much else he can do in his career to further bolster it, which explains why he’s taken on more of a publicist’s role for Lionhead Studios, and the industry in general. He’s certainly one of the more outspoken designers in the business, and rightfully so, you’ll see him in a lot of interviews. He is, without a doubt, one of the industry’s few true luminaries, and a highly respected figure.
Tim Schafer
Tim Schafer is well-known as one of the funniest game designers in the industry. Creating genuinely laugh out loud material is extremely difficult, but Schafer seems to do it with ease.
Schafer may not be in the AIAS Hall of Fame, but he did win a BAFTA award for best videogame screenplay for Psychonauts. Following his departure from LucasArts after over ten years, he founded Double Fine Productions, probably one of the friendliest and down-to-earth development studios in the business. At one time we emailed Schafer at Double Fine just to say “hello,” and he was kind enough to personally email back. He continues to write much of the hilariously witty dialogue for his games along with maintaining the role of lead designer, and we expect to see great work out of Double Fine when Brütal Legend, their next title, comes around later this year.
A comedic mastermind and natural storyteller, it’s only a matter of time before Schafer is inducted into the Hall of Fame for his amazing contributions to the advancement of the industry.
Sid Meier
Rivaling Will Wright’s accolades record, Sid Meier is a member of the AIAS Hall of Fame (its second inductee) and a recipient of the “Lifetime Achievement Award.” His career spans an impressive three decades, and two development studios he himself co-founded (Microprose and Firaxis). And although he doesn’t work on all the games that bear his name, he continues to work as the creative director, and his legacy has been imprinted so deeply that they continue to carry his namesake.
The Civilization and Pirates! Series are his two most widely known franchises, and continue to garner considerable praise for their innovations in the turn-based strategy genre. Every designer has a niche at which they excel, and Meier has proven time and time again that he’s here to stay and remain on top.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
 |
|
 Games, News, Reviews, Media and More |
|
 Review: Valkyria Chronicles |
11/17/08 |
 |
|
| Review: Mirror's Edge |
11/14/08 |
|
|
 Review: Mirror's Edge |
11/14/08 |
|
|
| Preview: Killzone 2 |
11/13/08 |
|
|
 Review: Dragon Ball Z: Infini... |
11/12/08 |
|
|
| Review: Legendary |
11/12/08 |
|
|
 Review: Legendary |
11/12/08 |
|
|
  |
|
