Area 51 Wrap Report

Best Decisions Peter Franco: One of the best decisions was to extend the timeline. That really allowed the engine proper time to develop and ultimately gave the artists and designers a fantastic tool set. Rather than rush things and pump out a quickie budget license title, Midway really worked with us and allowed us, an independent developer at the time, the time and creative latitude to create something original.

Another big decision happened about half way through development. The team had been so fractured focusing on a multitude of unrelated systems that we slowed down, pulled the entire team together and made one level, just to set a bar for ourselves. It was a huge effort, but it really gave focus to the project and the team. This effort ultimately became the Last Stand level in the game, and showed both the internal team and the publishers the light at the end of the tunnel.

the vast majority has complimented the quality of the gameplay. They have said that the feel is very solid, the action is intense and the graphics are top notch... which is what we feel is the real essence of an FPS.

Finally, selecting a main target platform early on was a great decision as well. We selected the PS2 and built everything in the game to maximize that system on both the performance and graphics levels. This really helped our PS2 version look as good as it does. It was only later in the process that we decided to also shoot for Xbox and PC, which was a challenge in itself to bring over a game so tailor-made for the PS2. But were it not for this decision, we probably would've ended up with two mediocre-looking versions of the game.

Key Strengths Peter Franco: We spent a lot of time creating a lip-sync system that rivaled or surpasses anything on the PS2 and even the Xbox. We had to create a semi-automated way of taking audio tracks and turning them into skeletal-driven lip-sync animation.

I would also classify our in-house editor engine as a strength of our project. Like I said earlier, we had one of the fastest pipelines I have ever worked with in the industry.

Our multiplayer team did a great job. We were initially slotted to be just a campaign game, but later on, we were given the directive to add multiplayer. And in relatively short order, we had a great multiplayer portion of the game with several gameplay modes, Infection being particularly noteworthy.

And finally, though it took a long time, our cohesion as a team was our ultimate strength. We really learned how to work together well. Initially, there was tension between disciplines - programming, art and design. But when strong leadership stepped into the design department, the rest of the disciplines snapped into line. At the end of the project, we were a well-oiled machine. Each member knew their own strength and we were able to do a tremendous amount in a very short period of time.

Areas for Improvement Peter Franco: Our mutation ability comes to mind. It started developing into a very cool game play feature too late in the development process. So, while we made good use of this as a mechanic and unique hook, given more time, it's something that we could have pushed further and really built upon.

Zach Wood: Our storytelling could have been better. Because we went through so many design iterations throughout the course of development, the plot points and key story elements had to bend somewhat to level design. The main thread of Cole's journey is good, but we never fully explore the other players the way we could have. Also, our cinematic camera tool came online late in the development cycle, so it was something we couldn't fully take advantage of due to the schedule.

Peter Franco: Also, the very act of extending the timeline was both a blessing and a curse. Ultimately, it made the project stronger, but it did lead to a lot of work thrown away because levels that were being handled a certain way were re-assessed when the longer timelines came through. There was a lot of re-work on this project as a result. This is something we are looking to minimize / eliminate in the future.

Lessons Learned Peter Franco: Well, as I just stated, there was a lot of re-work on this project. That is something we are targeting extremely seriously by focusing on our development processes. We are studying Hollywood production processes and other successful game studios. Our goal is to be an industry leader with respect to clearly defined development processes, approvals and content creation.

Very closely related to that, we are also targeting overtime. Area 51 was like many games before it, built from the hours of 10am to 2am. This overtime has had a negative impact on our team and on the industry as whole. This is why we are looking very closely at our processes... again, with a goal of being an industry leader with respect to development process and lifestyle.

Lastly, we learned the Krispy Kreme donuts are very delicious on Fridays. :)