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Q: Why did you become involved with game development?
As a game journalist, I became acquainted with Kellyn Beeck with the release of Defender of the Crown. Since we coincidentally lived very close to one another, we spent time together and became friends. One day, while driving home from work (I was a columnist and critic for a newspaper), I thought of a main theme for Defender of the Crown, the way I might have written it - inspired more by the film scores of Erich Wolfgang Korngold than the French Baroque style that influenced composer Jim Cuomo’s actual Defender score. I had the gall to share those ideas with Kellyn, actually played the music for him on the piano and, as a result, he much later asked me to compose the Rocket Ranger score. So, it was a classic case of WHO you know, I guess. [laugh]
Q: What were some of your inspirations when creating the games?
Since Cinemaware games were always evoking some entertainment or sports genre, I researched the music of those genres for inspiration. The title of TV Sports identified an obvious source for inspiration. When I scored Lords of the Rising Sun, I researched Japanese music because I was determined that the game would not fall back on generic, rinky-tink “orientalism.” I wanted an authentically Japanese “feel,” though it had to be modified to please Western ears, of course.
For Rocket Ranger, John Williams’ Indiana Jones scores were obvious sources of inspiration; but I also went back to the old movie serials of the 1930’s & ‘40’s which were the original sources of the situations in Rocket Ranger.
And I got the idea for the desert music (underscoring an aerial combat over Northern Africa) while watching a belly dancer perform at a Moroccan restaurant in Disney World. I liked that source of inspiration the best. [laugh]
Q: Can you give us a good story back from the Cinemaware days?
Hmm. Well, I can think of a couple and both of them pretty self-serving. [laugh]
There used to be an Amiga group that met in Palo Alto - AMUG. This was widely regarded as THE Amiga users’ group and, as a result, many legendary Amiga-based products were debuted there. I vividly remember Bob Jacob and co. flying to the Bay Area and meeting them at the meeting to debut TV Sports:Football to the crowd. It was displayed on a big video projector with a pretty respectable sound system. When the product fired up and the music started playing there was applause from around the audience - recognition, I felt, that we had achieved the atmosphere of a network sports broadcast from the very opening of the product. I was “hiding” in the back of the room and Bill Volk - one of the great Amiga innovators and, later, a wonderful design and technology innovator in general - came up and said, “Bob, it sounds just like I turned on the TV to a football game.” It was a simple but much appreciated compliment, coming from Bill.
It was also the essence of Cinemaware: to evoke mass market entertainment "feel" in this new medium. The folks in the company took an infant form of entertainment - computer games - and through high concept, creative skill and incredible team work, Cinemaware pushed the baby into the big leagues.
The second story maybe means even more to me. It was just a simple posting on CompuServe just after Rocket Ranger was released. But first, a little background:
Since a lot of my career has been as a game reviewer, I’ve played more than my share. The thing that most cheesed me off about games - especially in the late ‘80s when we had improving technology - was the 40-hour game that you completed and the payoff was “Congratulations! Want to play again? What? WHHAAAAAATTTTT??!!!! I just spent 40-hours of my life with your damned game and this is the best you can do to reward me?!!?
So I swore that would not happen with Rocket Ranger.
It may or may not be apparent to game players, but the score to Rocket Ranger is highly integrated in its thematic structure. While fighting the Nazis, the action themes are always variants of the Nazi theme and even the flying music is a variant of the Rocket Ranger theme. There are little thematic relationships in the music that echo or reinforce the dramatic relationships in the game. In short, I composed it just the way a film composer writes a background score.
As a payoff for winners, I composed a two minute and thirty second "win music" that revealed all these little relationships by playing the themes in juxtaposition with each other. It’s almost a complete recap of the action of the entire game. I think it’s the best music cue in the product but you ONLY hear it when you win.
Well, because Rocket Ranger is a tough game to finish, not that many people EVER heard this music. But after several months, one guy posted a message on CompuServe indicating that he had finished the game. And, he pointed out, when you finished you heard this music with all the themes of the game. He "got it" that it was intended to help you relive all the events of your Rocket Ranger adventure. And finally - thanks, guy, whoever you are, wherever you are - he said, It’s the only time I’ve ever cried at the end of a computer game. I’ll always be proud of that one moment when my music was able to move one person to tears within a medium - computer games - that too often amounted to little more than finger twitching and loud noises.
Q: What lessons did you learn there?
I really learned to squeeze as much as I could out of three or four simultaneous musical notes on the Amiga, and no more than 40K of digital samples. Arrgggh. The limitations were mind-numbing.
Q: What do you do today?
I freelance as a consultant, sometimes in the area of producing/designing console and computer games. More often these days, however, I consult in web site design, creating interfaces, services and technical strategies for companies who want a presence on the Internet. None of those Internet gigs, by the way, have had anything at all to do with games.
I watch a lot of movies, living in the movie capital of the world. And, yes, I still play games on computer and consoles.
Q: What is your favorite game of all time? What is your favorite Cinemaware game?
Favorite game is a tough one. I’ve played and respected and loved so many of them over the past 20 (gulp!) years. It’s impossible to pick a favorite of all those I’ve played. So, I’ll cop out a but by mentioning the games I’m most proud of. Those are three milestone products (in my opinion) that we created at Dynamix while I was creative director: the EarthSiege series (designed and produced by Mark Crowe and Dave Selle), Front Page Sports:Football (produced & designed by Pat Cook with Allan McPheeters), and Betrayal at Krondor (produced and designed by John Cutter). Hmm, do you see a bit of a Cinemaware “thread” going on here?
I guess my fond favorite among Cinemaware games is Defender of the Crown. Subsequent Cinemaware products had better gameplay but the shock of seeing Defender for the first time was one of those experiences that changed the gaming stakes for all of us.
Q: What developers or publishers do you respect the most?
A few years ago I might have had an answer for you but I no longer have one. I’m quite dismayed at the cut-and-paste way products are developed these days and by the tyranny of the bookkeepers. No one believes more than I in the importance of making products with the primary intention of being commercially successful. In that regard, I was often the “bad guy” at Dynamix. But it distresses me to see SO many games these days with no obvious motive OTHER than the profit motive.
Q: What advice would you give to young folks today who are considering a career in the videogame industry?
Games are like doing comedy. Making people laugh is the ultimate in high stress, mind-numbing endeavors. Creating an opportunity for people to enjoy themselves in any medium is extremely ulcer-inducing. In short, Making Fun is nowhere near as much fun as Having Fun.
Be ready for lots of frustration and disappointment. And know that the better your concept is, the greater your dedication is, and the livelier your talent is, the more disappointment you’re likely to experience.
That said, you always have the chance to create experiences and memories for people that will last a lifetime. And that’s a privilege that is very, very rare.
Q: What kind of games do you expect from Cinemaware in the future?
You know, when I go to a movie, I make a point of going with no expectations and no prior knowledge (a tough thing to do with some of the aggressive marketing campaigns these days.) I try to look at games the same way. So, I have no expectations but one. I expect you to surprise me.
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