Dan Vondrak Interview

From the editor: X-men Origins: Wolverine is hitting the big screen very soon, and it looks hot.  Of course gaming fans also are looking forward to the game with the same name, with everyone’s favorite Xman of all WOLVERINE.  Of course with the large crop of games based on movies that have already been done, there are only a very few that even come close to engaging entertainment in any way.  So of course fans and even more so reviewers and reporters are all wondering what will the latest delve into the mix offer? Screen shots look impressive; you just cannot beat the premise. On the flip side, so many times in the past that has been said about a game to only turn out falling way short, some even out right embarrassing.  X-Men Origins: Wolverine, so far looks like it has all the right stuff, And the folks involved with creating the game have been nice enough to answer a few questions. Well, what can we possibly ask that has not been asked a few dozen times already?  Well fellow Impulse Gamer’s let’s do this…. 

Edwin, Donna and Shael Millheim joined together to come up with the questions. Some are the common fare, some perhaps not so common. They also show the passion of the game creators in what may well be a hit title, X-Men Origins:  Wolverine. 

1: How did you approach such a huge franchise project?

DV: Wolverine was a passion project from the start.  This same team was just finishing up Marvel: Ultimate Alliance when rumors of a Wolverine game at Activision started cropping up – we jumped at the chance. We got started before it was even officially a movie game.  We are huge fans of Wolverine, I am personally a big fan.  We knew Wolverine games haven’t hit the mark in the past and our entire focus was to finally treat this guy with the respect he deserves.  So we approached this with a single question, “What if someone made the best Wolverine game ever, what would it be?”  Don’t think about any limitations, technical, rating – just list everything that kicks ass about Wolverine and let’s make it happen.  The first thing we told Activision is “we know this is going to scare some of you, it’s something you’ve never seen with a Wolverine – but we’re making this a brutal, realistic, visceral portrayal of Wolverine”.  We’ve never looked back from that point – and we love how the game has turned out. 

2: There are always restrictions with movie based games, things you can and cannot do. How much leeway did you have with the game? Story, events that take place?

DV: Restrictions…  that isn’t part of this game, that word didn’t exist to us during the development.  We had a vision for what this game was going to be and there was no way we were going to compromise for anyone.  The overall rule was to always make this feel like Wolverine.  For the story stuff, if there was a character or a moment we believed in from our version of the story, we worked it into the movie version.  We kept getting script updates from Fox and would constantly work our own plotlines and characters.  In the end we were happy with where the movie story was going so it was easy to work with.   

3:  What do you think the best ways to deliver a entertaining movie based game are? What are some of the pit falls that can hinder those goals?

DV:  Well first off you shouldn’t think of it as a movie game – you have to make a great game regardless of the movie (or license).  Once you have the gameplay foundations set, make up your own story that you think is cool – it’s your job to deliver an experience that’s unique but familiar to the people who have seen the movie.  Next you start by integrating the movie story into your story, not the other way around.  I would never just take a movie script and start from there, it’s going to change a ton.  So decide the story you want to tell and pull pieces from the movie into it.  That’s what we did and we ended up getting 90% of the movie story into our game – but we’ve also got an additional 30-40% of extra content, comic stuff, etc. that makes the game experience unique.  But again never lose track of gameplay, gameplay, gameplay – the movie shouldn’t have any bearing on that.  A movie or a license gives you a box to work inside of – that doesn’t mean you can’t find cool parts within that box. 

4:  there are always things in a games development process and testing that just do not work. What was one of the things that had to be dropped from the game X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and why?

DV: I don’t know what you’re talking about. … Oh you’re still here.  Okay, let’s see.  Believe it or not, with the extra year of development time we were given from the movie being pushed back we were able to get almost everything in there. We had originally planned (and actually made) missions where you were allowed to play as Wade Wilson (aka Deadpool) and (another character I can’t mention because she’s in the game still, but not playable).  It was pretty cool, you had scenarios where you could snipe at a distance as Deadpool to protect Wolverine.  Ultimately we realized that people were going to want more and more out of Deadpool and it was going to take our resources away from making sure we nail Wolverine 100%.  When the decision was made I just said there’s no way we can ever think we took time away from Wolverine to make another character better – so let’s focus everything on Wolverine. 

5:  Tell us your favorite part of the game, be that a level, a feature, a design.

DV: The combat just kicks ass, so many things to talk about, it’s freedom, responsiveness – but I’ll pick just one move: the Lunge.  If you’ve ever opened up a Wolverine comic you are sure to see him pouncing on guys in the classic Wolverine pose, arms out, jumping off a building or across a group of bad guys to smash into the dude he’s trying to take out – that is Lunge in our game.  Target anyone you want and lunge towards them, 20, 30 feet away -- it is so powerful and gives you an awesome ranged attack that closes the distance.  Oh and one more thing – the blood and dismemberment – it adds an incredibly satisfying layer to the whole game.

Stoya Interview

LORNE, Australia, March 27, 2009. Impulse Gamer interviews Digital Playground's Stoya, who is smart, sexy and sassy and is as far away as possible from the stereotypically porn star that the media tries to sensationalize. She knows what Cosplay is and regularly updates her Twitter page. Stoya has won a plethora of awards in 2008, including the AVN Best New Starlet and XBIZ New Starlet of the Year. She loves her job as an adult film star and is a huge fan of science fiction and knows exactly where she is headed.

Please note that you must be over 18 to read the following interview due to adult content. It is your responsibility to comply with local laws. By clicking here to continue, you are certifying that you are of legal adult age.

Ross Isaacs Interview

Emmy nominated cinematographer, Ross Isaacs has over thirty years experience as an underwater photographer, cinematographer and film maker. He has produced a number of books and documentary films on whales.

Ross' home base is Port Douglas in far North Queensland, Australia, adjacent to the most spectacular locations on the Great Barrier Reef. His experience includes major features films, television drama, nature documentaries, as well as television commercials.

Originally conceiving this film on humpback whales, since 2001 he has completed many expeditions to Hawaii and Alaska to shoot this project. Specializing in natural history, He has worked with some prestigious organizations such as National Geographic Television and BBC Natural History Unit, and has sold his own documentary films in over 50 countries. He brings a special understanding of the main subject of this film.

[IG] Ross, thanks for sharing your experiences with Impulse Gamer. The question on our minds that we would love to be answered is… how did you get into underwater photographer? This could be a dream job for some, however I’m sure that the work can be quite difficult at times.

[Ross] I have always had a fascination for what lives below the surface of the oceans and photography is one way of bringing the treasures back from under the surface to share with people above.

[IG] You've filmed animals from around the world, what is your favourite place where you like to film? And do you have a favourite species?

[Ross] I absolutely love the outer Great Barrier Reef for variety and the extraordinary spectacle of life. I recently got to film some of the strange organisms which live underwater in South East Alaska.

[IG] What do you believe your greatest achievement is?

[Ross] For me producing "Humpbacks- From Fire to Ice" has been one of the most wonderful journey's and perhaps my most fulfilling achievement.

[IG] Could you tell us what an average day of filming involves?

[Ross] On an average day we are usually involved in preparation of equipment and positioning the crew to best film the subjects.

[IG] In terms of an average day filming “on set”, how much time do you spend underwater?

[Ross] I would spend probably 20% of the time underwater depending on where and what we are filming.

[IG] What are some of the dangers that you have encountered while filming underwater?

[Ross] Dangers are usually created by our inexperience with the task at hand such as when we use new complex breathing equipment like the closed circuit rebreather.

[IG] Have you ever been threatened by the wildlife that you have filmed?

[Ross] Rarely have I been threatened by the animals I am filming except if you push the boundaries and try to interact to closely there by creating stress for the animal which we try to minimize.

[IG] Could you inform us of some of the highlights of your career?

[Ross] One highlight of my career was to work with David Attenborough who is generous as he is inspiring.

[IG] What were your thoughts and emotions when you first came across a whale?

[Ross] I was extremely focused when I had my first encounters with whales and tried to remain calm to get the shot with my camera.

[IG] How did you come up with the premise behind Humpbacks from Fire to Ice?

[Ross] I had been filming humpback whales in Hawaii and it seemed like the obvious story line to follow their full migration from the volcanoes in Hawaii to the icy waters of Alaska and back again.

[IG] With your history with wildlife, do you believe that mankind can stem the damage they have created? Will whales still be seen in 100 years from now?

[Ross] Human kind have to try and live more harmoniously with nature if we want to sustain the environment into the future...I worry that some species my be threatened and may not be here for our grand children in a 100 years.

[IG] What is your favourite moment from Humpbacks from Fire to Ice?

[Ross] My favorite moment was when I got to film a singing whale. I was down 25 meters and it was just me and the lone whale which was booming out this extraordinary sound totally engulfing my body with noise.

[IG] In Humpbacks from Fire to Ice, you follow a whale calf, how did you manage this extraordinary feat?

[Ross] Over time we got to know individual whale and filmed them in both Hawaii and Alaska.

[IG] Was the calf named by your team and if so, was there a meaning to this name?

[Ross] We named the female calf Kai which means ocean in Hawaiian.

[IG] With thousands of humpback whales arriving in these tropical islands, how did they react to human presence?

[Ross] Some whales are inquisitive but most go about their daily routine ignoring our presence as long as the boats stayed the regulated distance from the whales.

[IG] Is it possible to compare whales to humans in relation to how they interact with each other?

[Ross] Whale like human all seem to have different personalities. In Hawaii they are mainly seen in competitive groups of males trying to get into the primary escort position next to the female. We also see lots of mother calf pairs which have a very close maternal bond.

[IG] What does the future hold for Ross Isaacs?

[Ross] I have a few films on the drawing board which have a focus on global climate change in relation to the ocean.

[IG] Thanks for your time and good luck for the future. Humpbacks From Fire to Ice is available at all good DVD stores.

Andrew Bistak, Editor

LEGO Batman the Videogame Interview Loz Doyle - Head Producer on LEGO Batman: The Videogame.

[IG] LEGO Batman the Videogame... dare we say the most anticipated game of the year? DC Comics has one of the richest universes available, what inspired you to create a game based on one of the world’s most popular superhero characters?

[LD] It was a fairly easy decision. LEGO had made some fantastic Batman sets and were in a sense, already bringing a LEGO Gotham to life. The rich, colourful, comic environment also lent itself very well to a LEGO adventure. All of the mini-figures in these bright, primary colours, look fantastic when bought to life. You’ve also made a good point when you describe him as ‘one of the world’s most popular superhero characters’ – Batman has over 70 years of heritage and is known by all ages the world over. It was too good an opportunity to turn down!

[IG] For comic and non-comic fans, the story sounds like it is dripping with Batman, how did you come up with the great idea of Batman cleaning up the streets of Gotham after a deadly breakout from Arkham Asylum?

[LD] We worked with DC to come up with this very classic Batman story. We’d always wanted to break all of the criminals out as they are so cool to have in the game! One of the great strengths of the Batman universe is the array of colourful villains and we’re now able to bring them to life in mini-figure format. As we weren’t working from any film we have been able to have a lot of fun bringing it all to life, both in the levels and especially in the cutscenes.

[IG] From the screenshots, it seems that LEGO Batman the Video may be based on the animated series with a strong homage to the comics. After over a century of Batman stories, how did you pick just one era? For many, this task may have been too much, how did you handle this rich history?

[LD] There’s no perfect formula, we just tried to create a LEGO Batman taking inspiration from the wide array of source material. You’ll see there are situations and settings where we’ve paid homage to some of the spectacular stories that have gone before, but we’re still creating a LEGO Gotham.

[IG] You've already wetted out appetite by informing us that the characters in the game can control a variety of different Bat vehicles, does this mean we can fly the Batwing through the LEGO streets of Gotham?

[LD] Of course! It wouldn’t be a Batman game if you didn’t get a chance to jump into his vehicles and go and kick some bad guy ass.

[IG] As gamers can play either as Batman or Robin, they also have access to his rogues gallery which include the Joker and Catwoman to name a few, what other characters do players have access to that may not be the norm?

[LD] There’s a huge array of heroes and villains in the game, some are very well known, others I hadn’t heard of until we started making the game. I think two of my favourite characters, who aren’t the most famous in the Batman universe, are Clayface and Killer Moth. Neither are the sharpest tools in the box and add a lot of comedy to the proceedings in the game.

[IG] Batman versus Joker? Who would win and why?

[LD] One of the great things about this game is that as you can play as the heroes and villains you can try this out for yourself. I’d have to back the bat in this one – he’s a bit too tough and smart for the Joker, although you can guarantee the Joker would try to have the last laugh.

[IG] We’ve seen romance in the game between Batman and the Catwoman, any other “Bat” relationships that you have added to the game?

[LD] We’ve been able to bring some of Harley’s infatuation with the Joker in to the game, as you’ll see in some of the cutscenes. I’m not sure if that counts as a romance, as it is a bit one sided. Poison Ivy is also able to use her charms to manipulate those more weak minded characters in the game.

[IG] With regards to characters, who is your favourite character in the video game and what can they do in this LEGO inspired gaming world?

[LD] Clayface and Killer moth are great fun, but I think Man-Bat is my favourite. Once again he isn’t the most legendary of Batman’s foes but he looks great in mini-figure form. He was also one of the characters that our artists were able to create from scratch. They have done a great job!

[IG] Are there any homage’s to other Batmen? For instance, the Adam West Batman or Christian Bale as Batman?

[LD] We managed the resist the temptation to put Adam West in the game! As the films have gone down a very dark path, we’re able to create a more fun, tongue in cheek Batman universe, not one where you’d find Christian Bale’s Batman. That’s not to say that fans of the bat won’t recognise scenes and settings where we have been able to pay homage to some of the classic Batman stories.

[IG] The LEGO series of games generally has a healthy dose of humour in their titles, what were some of the classic moments when transferred this humour into the game?

[LD] It’s been good fun with this game as the content of the story and therefore the cutscenes have not been dictated by any films. We’ve therefore had license to create our own comic moments in the cutscenes and the game. For me, Killer Moth is a cutscene legend – just watch him struggle with those lamps!

[IG] Are there any other DC Comic Super Hero guest stars in the game such as Superman or the Flash?

[LD] There were more than enough characters in the immediate Batman universe to populate the game. There are so many awesome heroes and villains that I think everyone will have their own favourite character, there is no one stand out character in LEGO Batman.

[IG] Do you have any hints as to some of the "Easter Eggs" that gamers might find in the video game?

[LD] Well, as with all eater eggs you’ll need to keep your eyes peeled! You should definitely check out the artwork in the gallery level though.

[IG] Featuring the inspirational music by Danny Elfman which could almost be considered the definitive theme of Batman, how did you come to choose this great composer for the music of the title and how does it interact with the gameplay?

[LD] It was great to be able to drop that score into the game. As soon as we first played it with that classic them it really made the atmosphere just right.

[IG] What were some of the challenges that you faced while creating this game?

[LD] We always work really hard to keep the LEGO games fresh and make sure that each really captures the feel of the story that we’re working on. With Batman that meant we had to work on the combat in the game. The Dynamic Dup are highly trained martial artists and skilled athletes, so we worked to add depth to the combat so that you can now grapple with the goons and dispatch them in a variety of ways. You’ll also find that the gameplay is faster than previous titles as a result.

[IG] What are you favourite moments in the game?

[LD] Probably the scenes from inside the asylum when you see all the villains in their cells. You should check out Killer Moth and Clayface.

[IG] Creating a game for various console sounds like a challenge, how do create such a diverse game for such diverse consoles? Does each console version support its unique control system or graphical capabilities?

[LD] The 360 is the lead console and the game is essentially the same experience across all platforms apart from the DS. We’ve had a dedicated team working on recreating the LEGO Batman console experience on the DS and they’ve done a great job.

[IG] Lastly, the game won’t be released in Australia till the 15th of October 2008, what advice can you give gamers to help during this wait?

[LD] There’s always plenty of things to build with LEGO in those few days!

[IG] Thanks for your time and all the best for the release!

Andrew Bistak, Editor

Free Ride Games
Free Games For Your PC!

Free Ride games site may be a bit more costly in the way a game runs than a gamer is willing to pay. No, you’re not paying any money but Free Ride games are played with an internet connection and ads bombarding the players to the left of the screen and also along the bottom. Not in a small strip but an obnoxious good quarter of screen. This it seems is how they deliver some free gaming your way, by selling ads. It’s an interesting concept and unless the gamer has some computing power in the graphics department, the ads some of which are animated at times themselves in constant changing to new ads, can slow a game down to a slide show crawl. This is best defeated by going to options within the game and tweaking a few things. The first game we tested was Zoo Empire, until we tweaked the mouse sensitivity, turned off the music and changed the scroll speed, the game was unplayable on an older Pentium 4 system until we made these changes. On A dell laptop XPS system it was not too bad, and of course on the Quad Core Alienware area 51 7500 it ran just fine with just the occasional graphic stutter due to the ad bombardment. This service offers full version PC games for free. No payment or registration. They say there is no catch, other than the ads of course. The whole Ad concept it rather interesting and for those who don’t mind the advertisements in your face while gaming, Free Ride games is a good little deal.

The site shows as a BETA service and in order to play any of the wide variety of games, you have to download the Free Ride Games Beta Player. Think of it sort of like a music service, only for games. The theory of how it works is that the Beta Player Caches data that is stored on your PC so it does not have to be cached again. Each of the offered games requires a certain amount of cached data before the game is playable. Once cached though, the game starts up.

Are there some possible downsides to this? In some respects yes, In order to use the Free Ride Games Beta subscription service you have to be connected to the Internet. The games will not play without being connected to the internet. To even launch any of the games you have to use the play button on the Free Ride Games Beta Site. As you play the game additional components of the game download in the background. Depending on your connection this can possibly be a problem, with a fast connection you should have no issues, we experienced a mix of slow playing graphics to internet hiccups. These can perhaps be attributed to the connection itself. Either way some settings and connections have to be tweaked for the optimum gaming experiences. We will be doing some full game reviews on various Free Ride Games from the site, till then you can check them out at http://www.freeridegames.com/do/index

As always,
Have fun, play games
Edwin Millheim

Edwin’s Interview with Ray Lederer, game artist.

EDWIN: I understand that other than computer game art and animation, you have worked on comic books and strips as well. Such titles as Dare Devil, The Incredible Hulk, from the more well known comic publishers, all the way to the far lesser known comic strips with a small fan base such as Bright Future. (Bright Future went on to be a role playing game and is currently about to be republished with expanded role playing game material, the new publisher is Hamster Press, Engle Matrix Games)

Tell us a bit about how it was to work on those Comic Book titles, how much freedom do you have from the large publisher to the small publisher?

RAY: Well all of the stuff I worked on for major comic publishers was really subcontract work I did for some inkers before I went to Ringling. Basically I inked backgrounds or anything else that required straight edged line work and filled in blacks. It was amazing and somewhat terrifying to ink over some of the best talent in the industry at the time.

It was great fun and a really confidence boosting time early in my career. As for creative freedom to work with larger houses - I honestly don't know. I had no real freedom when working on a sub contract basis - and that's ok. As for working independently I think It's always more creatively rewarding. It's just not always financially rewarding. That said, some of the best times I had working in comics was when I was working on Bright Future with you and Roland.

EDWIN : You have done some incredible eye catching work in both comics and in role playing game art. Even some of the static art seems to have some dynamic elements to them, or even a glance or expression the subject is displaying, or the angle on which your
presenting the scene to the reader. Do those ideas come to you easily?

RAY: Uh it's never easy:)

EDWIN: Can you name a few of the gaming projects you have worked on?

RAY: My first game project was a sequel to the Amiga title Hired Guns using the Unreal engine. That got canceled when Psygnosis went under. Afterwards was Nightcaster and Nightcaster2, Goblin Commander, NeoPets, and Auto Assault. Today I'm working on some thing we cant really talk about.

EDWIN: Do you have a any games that you have worked on that where more challenging to work on, and why?

RAY: That's tough to say. I'll say this though, I'm amazed that games even reach the shelves at all. I think all game reviewers should add a point to any game they review on that basis alone!

EDWIN: What's your latest project? Can you tell us a bit about it?

RAY: Well, like I said, I can't really talk about anything at this time...I get to conceive and drive many of the creative elements of a project which is really what I've been seeking for many years in this industry. That's all I can really say.

EDWIN: I have worked with several artists over the years and have always had the utmost respect for their abilities, researching a bit more there are massive amounts of information and technique that has to be learned and it seems rather daunting. Way back when working in art class in schools like Ringling School of Art and Design...did you ever have any doubts about if you where going to make it?

RAY: I still have those doubts however I know that creativity is the key to my vitality and art is the vehicle for it. My goals have changed over the years as I've matured too. I actually am getting closer to my roots again as part of my creative evolution. After years of learning advanced 3D animation Texture Mapping, Modeling, Terrain Building I've come back to the realization that the thing I enjoy the most is putting pencil and paint to paper. Go figure.

EDWIN : Looking at some of the games you have done, you ever look back now and go..gee I should have done it this way or designed it this way instead?

RAY: I've learned to accept what I can do within the time I'm allowed. Ultimately I can only take what I've done in the past and use the knowledge towards the next thing. That said I'd like another crack at designing the main character for Nightcaster.

EDWIN: When doing the concept art for who ever is lead on a gaming project, are there massive amounts of concept sketching before they see something they like?Or do you go in with several design concepts for them to choose from and make requests on? How does that work?

RAY: Usually we meet for a few minutes discuss the needs - I go back and do a few thumbnails - I call the lead(s) over and get an approval and then do the final. Usually that's enough but sometimes it take more iterations if it's something important like a major character or an important setting etc.

EDWIN : I know you have said in past interviews about trying to surround yourself with people who knew a lot or had some skills you could learn from. Can you name a couple of people you have worked with that you have learned from? What was it you learned?

RAY: Good smart people, travel, books, and good music are the keys to growing and inspiration. Variety's the spice of life eh? Well certainly working with you was a cool collaborative process that taught me allot about working with a writer. Roland Paris is another one. He's inking at Marvel now after a long hiatus from Comics. Go Roland! My good friend Adam Adamowicz who's working over at Bethesda doing concepts for Fallout3 and is an absolute genius. Mike Gieger who's like a master renderer and a machine when it comes to art. I don't know how he keeps up his stamina.

There are too many to list... As for learning experiences - some were more harsh than others - One time I got a page handed down to me by one of my Inker clients.One of the panels had a bunch of characters holding guns. The problem was the penciler didn't bother drawing the guns in any of the scenes so it was up to the inker to invent one. That task was handed down to me by the inker and I thought "Wow! This is my big chance to really shine and show these guys just how creative I am. So I spent like 30-40 minutes drawing this really detailed weird looking gun. Boy did I feel proud of myself. Yessiree they're gonna love this sweet baby. I handed it back to the inker the next day and he slaps his forehead and say 'You son of a BLEEP! now I have to draw that damn thing 20 more times!'

EDWIN: That’s great to hear about Roland. (To our Impulse Gamer readers, Ray and I worked with Roland Paris on Bright Future) Tell me, How different is what you need to know to be a gaming artist now as apposed to say ten years ago?

RAY: Nowadays the emphasis is no longer on low resolution, low poly count models. What AD's look for now is film quality models, textures etc.

EDWIN : Donna (Mt Wife, Who you know) and I have done an article for Funk & Wagnalls® New Encyclopedia. © 2006 World Almanac Education Group.
(www.history.com/encyclopedia.do?articleId=210072) about electronic gaming and spoke about game publishers out sourcing work such as art to other design houses. That trend has come into being even more so with the so called Next generation of Gaming and high resolution graphics. With more and more companies out sourcing..do you feel that makes it easier for a really good gaming artist or design house, or is it even more competitive than before?

RAY: So far it's not really a problem for our domestic workforce. In fact it's almost the opposite. We have a glut of unqualified candidates that are either inexperienced or simply lack the core traditional art skills. No, the real problem is finding experienced and qualified candidates in the states. The good ones already have jobs and are well taken care of. Even with all the training these kids are getting with game dev programs cropping up today it's still rare to find a really good candidate. There are many kids who go through these programs to be an artist that don't have a lick of real art training. They grow up playing games instead of drawing or reading or going outdoors and it shows in their work. As Brad Bird asks 'How can you create the illusion of life if you have no life?'

EDWIN : Today's next-gen games can cost $15-20 million each, up from $5-7 million just a few years ago, the cost sounds really surprising for those that do not realize how much work actually goes into one of these games. How many hours do you think counting every department working on a game?

RAY: uh... You'd have to talk with my producer about that. I don't carry around those kinds of numbers in my head. I just make the pictures.

EDWIN: You are a happily married artist now! (yes I feel like crap for missing the wedding actually) How in the world do you manage to balance the work load with home life? Do you bring your work home? Or can you shut that part off for a bit?

RAY : Sometimes I work from home. It's what I love to do so it's sometimes hard to leave it at the office. The real challenge is finding the time to work on personal projects like landscape paintings or comics etc...

EDWIN : For our readers that are thinking of getting into being a game artist, can you give them some advice?

RAY: Love art for art's sake. Get yourself grounded in traditional art training before you start wedding yourself to a particular tool.

EDWIN: Open floor, what do you want the readers to know?

RAY: Being a game artist is a lot more fun than it was even a few years ago. There is so much more flexibility in what you can get away with now than before. Poly counts aren't as much of an obstacle anymore. It's a great time to be an artist!

EDWIN: Ray, thank you very much for taking time to do this interview.

RAY: Thanks Edwin!

Edwin and Shael
perform an Autopsy on Alienware

In this electronic market, there are a dizzying amount of choices for the computer gamer. From low end systems that are just enough to get the job done, all the way to those dream systems that will take any game you throw at it.  There are plenty of companies out there ready to sell you a computer rig for what ever your needs are. One such company that has been around for a modest amount of time is Alienware.

Alienware's claim to fame is that the company manufactures a wide variety of customizable computer systems. Not only do they offer high performance desktop systems, but media centers, notebook computers, professional workstations and even servers. Throw in various peripherals and gadgets such as flash drives, headphones, batteries and adapters, and all other forms of computer goodies and you have a one stop computer aficionados shopping experience.  

Alienware target markets to a diverse customer base, from the average home user to the gamers, businesses. While known for its gaming and multimedia systems, Alienware also has a significant government business. Its customers include the Defense Department, Army, Air Force, Navy, NASA and the National Geo-Spatial Intelligence Agency.

The Alienware marketing department states the company uses cutting edge components, and innovative engineering. This is fairly evident if the saying is true that you get what you pay for. If nothing else the Alienware case designs definitely set it apart from the crowd. Looking more like a sci-fi fans ultimate dream, the designs are eye catching and a definite conversation starter. Shael and I wanted to delve a bit deeper and do our own Alien autopsy so to speak.  CEO Nelson Gonzalez who turned out to be pretty open about the company and the product, took some time out to answer these interview questions.

1: The company is based in Miami, Florida and was founded in 1996 by its current CEO, Nelson Gonzalez, and COO, Alex Aguila. Tell me a little about the beginning. Was it really in a garage?

If you want to go back even farther, you might even say the company had its beginnings on the playground where Alex and I met when we were just kids. We kind of grew up in the same neighborhood, and we just sparked up a friendship that's lasted more than 30 years at this point.

In the beginning days of Alienware, if we had an "office," it was probably in the garage or a bedroom, wherever there was spare room to lay out parts and build the machines. The downside was there wasn't a lot of space. The upside, of course, was that there was no commute.

It really did begin with a dream and a few maxed out credit cards. But that initial investment of a few thousand dollars really paid off. I know when we were 13 years old and always playing video games, our parents weren't too happy about that, but that paid off, too.

It all comes back to gaming for us. We loved flight simulator games, but, back in the day, most PCs just weren't good enough to offer much realism when you're trying to run a flight sim. I just started building my own machines so I could run the flight sims the way I wanted. All of my friends who were also into games saw what I was doing and asked if I'd build them machines, too. I did, and, at some point, the light just went on, and Alex and I realized that if our friends wanted these high-performance machines, maybe there were a lot of other people out there with the same interest. As it turns out, we were right. 

2: What do you want most for yourself and Alienware?

For myself, I think I just want the same things I've always wanted - to wake up every day with a big smile and the knowledge that I'm doing something I love and helping to make a few people happy. For Alienware, I obviously want the company to keep growing and becoming more successful. I suppose the ultimate goal would be an Alienware in every home! The more people gaming and using high performance computers, the better that's going to make the entire computing experience - whether that's for gaming or for someone learning to perform surgery with virtual reality applications. High-performance computing makes a lot of really amazing options available, and I'm glad Alienware is part of that.

3: Do industry/competitors still keep you on your toes?

We have a lot of great industry partners that really help us get access to the best technology out there to build our machines, and of course we know what other PC makers are doing. However, if you're asking whether I think there's anyone that comes close to providing the overall user experience that an Alienware customer receives, then the answer is "No."

I do think that technology is always changing, and the advances in technology mean that PCs are going to keep getting better and faster and, hopefully, more fun.

4: What are your future expectations for Alienware?

I think Alienware is going to keep growing, but we're going to do it in a smart way. We're not looking to become a huge PC powerhouse overnight. Like any company, we want to continue to grow our market share. For us, that means further dominating the high-performance PC space. We've done it for the past several years, and we're going to continue to be a leader.

5: Alienware has been pretty successful in the industry. What qualities of the company do you think have attributed to the companies success?

We know our customers really well - because we ARE our own customers. We design our machines for the toughest users out there, and we know what they want, because we're not easy on machines. We've always kept our focus on performance and style. Over the years, you haven't seen us diversify our offerings and sell a $400 machine. That's not who we are, and we're not going to be that company. I think that focus on the demanding customer has been the source of our success. It's what drives our people to create more powerful machines, sexier cases and a better overall user experience. We're dedicated to producing the best computer you can buy, and we're not going to back away from that.

6: The next generation of gaming has been a phrase used a great deal in the media, with Vista and DirectX 10 coming along, how is Alienware meeting the next wave of gaming technology?

I think it's important to recognize that Microsoft Vista brings some great benefits with DirectX 10, but if you don't have a PC that is powerful enough, you won't really be able to take full advantage of those benefits. Alienware started shipping Vista on the majority of our systems on the day Vista went live. We really feel like the best way for gamers to take full advantage of Vista is with an Alienware.

7: Every company has its bumps along the road. Is there anything that stands out in your mind that was a challenge to yourself or the company?

Those first couple of years were really make-or-break for us. I think it's probably like that for a lot of new businesses, but it was even more so for us. We didn't have a bunch of investors or the backing of some powerful company. It was just us and our credit cards, but we made it work, and we really are living the dream now.

8: Back on March 22, 2006, Dell purchased Alienware. Alienware continued to operate under its own brand name, now being a Wholly-Owned Subsidiary. That must have sent more than a few ripples through employees in the beginning? How well embraced was the change, and what where the benefits?

Any major change like that is going to make people ask a lot of questions, but, since the time of the acquisition, employees and customers have seen that Alienware is still Alienware. We're still committed to the same things - unparalleled performance and style - and our connection to Dell gives us even more avenues to provide our customers with the hottest PCs out there.

10: How important is customer service, from point of speaking to a sales person, on to after the consumer has made a purchase?

Customer service is one of the essential elements to Alienware's success. We've won several third-party awards from some key publications and other organizations, and our commitment to providing excellent customer service and overall ownership experience keeps getting stronger. Alienware customers are special, and we're committed to treating them that way.

11: There have been a smattering of grumbles and complaints here and there on customer service response and sometimes on length of time on delivery of a system purchase. How extensive is the building of the system and then quality assurance testing of the system?

We refuse to sacrifice quality and customization for the sake of pushing more systems out the door. Our policy on building systems has always been, "build it as if it were your own", and we take that very seriously. That's why we give customers such an extensive offering of customization options that we then diligently integrate into their specific system. Afterward, each system goes through a meticulous 200-point quality control process to ensure that everything is just right. Now, all of that is not going to happen overnight. Most of our customers understand this, and they find that their patience is richly rewarded with a highly reliable and personalized system that exceeds their expectations.

12: How seriously does the company take customer concerns and or complaints?

We take all customer concerns very seriously, and we work to resolve any issues quickly and to the ultimate satisfaction of our customers. We're constantly polling our customers to gauge what we're doing right and what we could be doing better. It's an impossible task to make everybody happy, but that won't stop us from trying.

13: That aspect of the business must be difficult to balance customer service with common sense and company growth.

I don't think it's a difficult balance at all. To me, it's just common sense to offer excellent customer service. That's what makes the company grow. When a customer is satisfied, everybody wins. That customer will recommend us to their friends and family, and will likely return to us in the future for their next PC. So, really, you can't have the growth without the commitment to your customers.

14: How would you rate Alienware's customer service?

Again, I think we do a great job, but you don't have to take my word for it. We've been recognized by publications like PC World and Smart Computing for our excellent customer service, plus we consistently receive praise emails and letters from a multitude of customers whose #1 compliment is the outstanding service they have received.

15: Most companies have some form of quality assurance in place for customer service representatives, in the form of quality coaches, some level of accountability. How are Alienware customer service representatives evaluated?

Each customer service representative that a customer encounters can ultimately be the difference between that customer having a very positive experience and a very negative experience, so we fully realize the importance of having the very best people in place. We closely evaluate the effectiveness of our customer service representatives through a number of methods internally and, once again, we also listen closely to the feedback we receive from the customers themselves.

16: Jumping around a bit here, Alienware has over the years been awarded some rather impressive Government and Military contracts. Is that a whole other division of the company?

It's not an entirely separate division, per se, but we do have people dedicated to working with government, military and enterprise customers. When you think about the type of high-performance computers Alienware produces, it makes total sense that certain key branches of the government and military, as well as some enterprises, would look to us to address their computing needs.

17: What are some of the most important things happening in the computer industry right now?

I think the PC industry is finally starting to come around to the idea that gamers are the ones driving forward the real progress. Take a look at how powerful PCs are becoming, and we have gamers and other power users to thank for that. The multi-core processors, the GPUs that keep getting better, the multimedia processing capabilities - these are all, in some way, related to the kind of demands that gamers and other power users make of their PCs. The major players in the industry are beginning to take their cues from what's going on in these more advanced PC sectors. As a gamer myself, it's exciting to know that I'm part of that and that Alienware is a key player in all of this.

18: What do you see as future trends in the industry?

I see increasing importance placed on gaming and high-performance computing. People are now using their PCs for a lot more than just running spreadsheets and checking e-mail. As they increasingly watch movies and play games, that interest in the PC as a hub for work and play is only going to grow. I think we're going to see the PC as a conduit to increasingly "real" virtual worlds where human beings can interact in new and better ways - be it for gaming purposes or other uses like remote surgery. The possibilities of virtual reality really are endless, and the growing power of PCs is going to give us better and more productive access to those virtual worlds. There may be a time - I think in our lifetimes - when the line between what is real and what is virtual is blurred to the point where it's no longer distinguishable.

In the more immediate future, I think the PC also has the potential to finally become the true center point of the home. I think it will go beyond just becoming an entertainment center and will act as a single point from which the habitants of a home can control entertainment, home appliances, security systems and a host of other things. This exists in a much more elaborate format now for very high-end home automation systems, but what I'm talking about is the "common" household PC being this powerful hub that allows control and management of a multitude of applications.

19: Open floor, What would you like Readers, customers, and future customers to know about Alienware?

I'll keep this simple. I want everyone to know that they should expect Alienware to keep pushing the envelope of performance and style. The demands of our customers match the demands we place on ourselves to keep staying ahead of the industry and producing PCs that put everyone else on notice. We're going to keep revolutionizing the PC industry, and we're going to stay focused on keeping our customers happy.

20: Thank you very much for taking the time for this interview.

You're welcome. It's been a good experience.

There you have it Impulse Gamer readers. While I have to admit for a moment there it felt like the Spanish inquisition.and no one expects the Spanish inquisition, Mr. Nelson Gonzalez answered all the questions, even the ones that where on the difficult side with a gamers passion.  Alienware is in good hands and where ever the course is charted, Alienware will be there making those wicked cool gaming and multimedia computers. Direct your browser on over to www.alienware.com to see what they have to offer.

Have fun, play games
Edwin Millheim

Kick back,  relax, let's play.
Shael Millheim

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