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Gabriel Knight III
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November 26, 1997 |  |
Last time I talked about the state of the industry, something a few of you seemed to find depressing. Sorry about that. This time, as promised, I want to focus on GK3.
It has been a great couple of months. The game engine and its secondary layer of high-level functions are done, and now the programmers are getting the first time block up and running. We wanted final recorded dialogue for this (which we hope to turn into a playable demo by spring), and we also wanted to give the animators final dialogue to work with where possible.
In other words, I've spent most of my time writing furiously for the first recording session. The design bible outlines the plot (where ego goes and what they learn or do at each step). From there, I write the detail script, which flushes out each scene in the design bible into dialogue, animation called for, programming flags set, etc. Then I add additional scenes and messages to fill out the gameplay. More of these will be added all the way up until we ship.
While editing this first session script, we also were faced with the business of casting. I consider casting one of the most important aspects of a project, and I know it can make or break a game. We also have very vocal GK fans who insist upon this person or that to play the major roles (yes, you know who you are!).
As a rule, I tend to browse the boards. I like to hear what people are saying about the GK games, and I will be influenced if there's an overwhelmingly consistent bugaboo. But as a rule I take things with a grain of salt. I have no intention of simply repeating myself - each project must and does have its own vision. That vision has to come from the heart, not from my trying to please anyone. The plot of GK3, for instance, is daring. It will offend some people. I'm sure fans will wonder why I felt compelled to write something so controversial as opposed to playing it safe with, say, a nice little ghost story.
What can I say? When these ideas come and they feel right, I run with them. It's not my job to play it safe; it's my job to tell an evocative story. I'm sure the Bavarian government wouldn't be too thrilled with what I did with Ludwig either, but it was right for the story.
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