Howard Smith did much of the work on Age of Booty’s easy-to-use map editor. All of the official maps that we are releasing with Age of Booty were created using the same map editor that is in the game. Howard comes to Certain Affinity from New York. This is Howard’s first job in the game industry and he provides a unique perspective on the development of Age of Booty.
Howard scrubbing code bubbles
David: What made you decide to join Certain Affinity?
Howard: I think what attracted me at first was the idea of working for a truly independent studio. I always felt I wanted to avoid getting mired in the big business of gaming. When you depend too much on external money or resources you end up not being able to take as many risks with innovation as you can as a smaller more agile company. As a young entrant into the industry, I felt that the place most suited for me would be a company with similar ideals as me. I want to try something new, and at Certain Affinity I knew I would get the opportunity to work with some of the best in the industry who shared that same goal.
That is really what kept me – the people. It’s more than just the level of expertise and talent that has sort of congregated at this company – it’s the fact that everyone is interested in raising the bar and making only the best possible titles we can. That’s the sort of company outlook that really impressed me. We all have a sense of pride in the company and the games that we make. Surprisingly enough, that’s more rare than you would think.
David: You’ve done work on both Left 4 Dead and Age of Booty. How would you compare working on a full-scale AAA product and working on an arcade-sized innovative game?
Howard: There is certainly a different level of excitement that comes from the challenges on working on a larger title, being able to collaborate with a massive team all focused on bringing together something unimaginably complex. I think that even after my time spent working on Left 4 Dead and the Source engine, I’ve really only scratched the surface. It’s a very deep system, and being an important part of that development was extremely educational and exciting for me.
That being said, there’s a lot to be said for working on a smaller arcade title like Age of Booty. The short turn around time and smaller code base make it much more responsive to iteration, and ultimately that’s what makes a great game. I also feel there’s a massive untapped potential for arcade titles. What at first people believe to be limitations with the medium become a sort of self fulfilling prophecy. If we only view the arcade space as a venue for small almost throw away titles, that’s what it will become.
It’s why I think that many of the things that come to mind as gamers when we think about the smaller downloadable titles are not really products of the medium itself, but are really caused by what developers have been doing in that space. I think that often, many developers when working on a smaller title will automatically attempt to circumscribe themselves into some pre-defined space. Retro gaming, casual gaming, puzzle games – but I really feel like assuming this is all we can do with a less-than-AAA title is self-limiting. There are lots of games out there that prove this. Some games are beginning to prove how much more you can do with the medium, and I would like to think Age of Booty ranks among them.
David: Very few map editors are available in the arcade space; why do you think that is?
Howard: I think that part of the problem is what I described earlier – that there are assumptions we make about what is possible or expected in an arcade title.
Certainly, we did our best to avoid that particular pitfall. I mean, not once has anyone during development said “Well, that’s just beyond the scope of a downloadable title.” Or “The price tag really doesn’t justify the development cycle that would go into that feature.” We focused on making an extremely enjoyable game, with all the pertinent systems and features you would expect from a more “serious” game – and it was still small enough to be downloaded and enjoyed by as many people as possible. I think pretty soon developers as a whole will catch on that this is an exciting space to work in, not just because they’ll realize how much is left to be done here, but also because I think the rapidly growing audience will really appreciate solid quality games. As developers begin to explore these sorts of features, and start to push the boundaries of expectation on downloadable titles, we will start to see a lot more of what we consider exclusive AAA features in smaller arcade games.
David: You were teamed up with some very experienced programmers; what was that like?
Howard: I think the first word that comes to mind would have to be “humbling.” If I could use two words it would probably be “extremely humbling.” I’m really grateful that not only did I get the chance to work with engineers who had been programming since I was in diapers – but also the fact that they were really willing to help me grow and mature as a programmer.
I think I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Paul, the lead on AoB, for his careful and patient manner when dealing with a lot of my code. He did a great job of breaking me of many bad habits I had picked up over the years, and really supported me in rising to the challenge of contributing to my first professional title. I can honestly say that because of his efforts, as well as Peter’s, I’ve really gotten the chance to realize my own limitations, but also the things that I enjoy and am good at.
Since then, I’ve continually been given the opportunity to work closely with the rest of the engineering staff – and from each one I can honestly say I’ve learned something new or been shown something I would have otherwise missed. It is a very great honor that they have chosen to count me among them, and I’m grateful for the opportunity I was given to work along side them.
David: The game industry is infamous for working insane hours and burning up talent; was that your experience on Age of Booty?
Howard: Luckily for all of us, the producers and management on Age of Booty did a great job, and made sure to schedule the appropriate amount of time for the tasks so that the team had to put in as little overtime as possible. There were a few occasions where I felt obligated to put in more than the core 8 hour day, but I was never asked to crunch – it was always a voluntary thing.
That being said, there were times when a lot of features that were in danger of being cut were saved by the industrious team members who clocked in those extra hours. I hate to rely on a cliché, but it really is a labor of love. I can’t think of anyone who couldn’t make more money and work less hours outside the game industry – but we are all here because we love what we do, and it’s that passion that drives us to put in the extra time and effort.
I could also easily see people who expect game development to be all rainbows and playtests quickly becoming disillusioned with the fact that this industry is much more demanding in many respects, it asks of you what would be considered ridiculous on any other job. You have to be prepared to step up and do what it takes – and lucky for me I worked with people who have been in the industry long enough to understand that.
I also learned a good lesson in moderation, and I’m also glad that the management understood that extra hours do not necessarily equate to extra productivity. There’s a point of diminishing returns, and I think that any game studio would be wise to learn that forced death marches don’t accomplish what they might expect, and I think hurt the quality of the title.
It’s something hard to quantify, but it’s important for a studio to trust it’s employees to know their limits – they need to push when it’s needed and they can, but to also know when it’s time to step away from a problem and re-evaluate. Similarly, developers need to be willing to go the extra mile when the good of the game requires it, and not force themselves to produce sub-par work. I would like to think that gamers, when they pick up AoB, can tell that we’ve gone that extra mile to hopefully make something that exceeds expectation.
David: If you had a choice to work on another large-scale game or another arcade-sized game, which would you prefer?
Howard: I’m honestly happy working on either, and I think there are exciting avenues to explore along both routes. As long as the premise is interesting and I can feel productive and contribute, I don’t have very much of a preference. If I had to choose, I think I’d like to work on another arcade sized game, because I feel like there’s a lot less risk there involved in trying new things and so it affords us more opportunity to innovate – and I’d like a chance to help contribute to the evolution of the downloadable game space.
Howard was great to work with on Age of Booty. His goodwill and consistent effort made him a valued part of the development process. I saw a great deal of learning take place as well as solid contributions to the quality and scope of the game. I look forward to working with Howard again in the future.
In the next part of these ongoing diaries, we’ll be talking with developers who’ve worked on the Halo series as well as played an integral part in making Age of Booty a great social arcade game.
