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Playboy: The Mansion Q&A Feature
Derek dela Fuente
13/10/2004
TVG's roving reporter finds out exactly what Cyberlore mean by "research"...
This could easily be billed as a real āladsā game as players are transported into the world of Hugh Hefner and will have the opportunity to host incredible parties for dozens of celebrities in Playboy: The Mansion. Each celebrity comes equipped with his/her own characteristic data, unique to the real life personality being emulated. In addition to their physical likeness, every celebrity possesses a set of moods and drives that steer their motivations and reactions in specific social situations. Even their own zodiac signs mysteriously affect the celebrity guests. Players have the opportunity to interact with these celebrities in order to build meaningful friendships, strike profitable business deals, or even stimulate a sizzling romance.
Derek dela Fuente interviewed Brenda Brathwaite, Lead Designer at Cyberlore Studios.
TVG: Some developers may say you have the perfect subject matter for a game - whose idea was it and how did it come to fruition?
I wish we could take credit for the game's original concept, but that would have to go to Jon Walsh over at Groove Games. When you think in terms of a simulation, though, of a life you want to live, for many many people, Hugh
Hefner's life is certainly among the top ten. That he built this whole empire from a few hundred dollars and a dream in 1953 is really pretty incredible. We give you the change to do the same thing.
How did it come to fruition? Well, as you can imagine, there was a lot competition amongst developers for this game. What set Cyberlore apart was our understanding of the sim-genre and our plan for honouring the Playboy brand. We've had a lot of success in the sim arena with Majesty: the Fantasy Kingdom Sim, and we were able to use that experience to create dynamic characters with their own motivations. The other important piece was that when Groove and Arush brought their game concept to us, we felt like we really 'got it' and when we created the proposal, our sizzler video, and then our prototype we were able to prove to them that we saw their vision for the game and were ready to run with it.
TVG: What exactly is the game all about, and because of the nature of the topic, are there any no go areas?
The game is all about exactly what you hope it's all about - living Hugh Hefner's life. You start out just like he did with some great content (he had nude images of Marilyn Monroe), a couple of acquaintances and a big, big dream. It's up to you to build the Playboy Empire from there. If you're a good player, you'll hit mission 12 with multiple girlfriends, a big circle of friends, lots of celebrities clamouring for your attention and a princely sum of money. That, and a ton of Playboy issues under your belt.
Doing that, of course, isn't as easy as it sounds. You really have to develop relationships with people, network and become adept at entertaining them in your Mansion. In order to do that, you're going to need cash. That means you'll also have to be a good businessman. Watch the market, hire the best and keep them happy and schmooze celebrities for content to put together a great magazine month after month.
Are there any no go areas? Not really, but that's not to say that it's without context or that it takes no work to get to where you want to go. If you want to have sex with a woman, you're going to have to develop a relationship first. It mirrors Hef's real life. Some women are more, shall we say, amorous than others, but all in all, there's not much you can't do in this game. However, we still fit safely within the āMā rating. It's not a porn game by any means.
TVG: The player assumes the role of Hugh Hefner. What are some of your tasks and did you meet and get many ideas, comments and feedback from Hugh and what was he like?
As Hef, you really have four core tasks - and this is simplifying it a great deal: make friends, make magazines, make love and make money. If you don't hold up in any of the four, the others are sure to fall. There's really a cycle in this game. To make money, you need to publish magazines. To publish magazines, you need content (six pieces a month: the centrefold, a celebrity cover model, a pictorial, a celebrity interview, a celebrity essay and an article). To get content, you'll need to hire and manage a staff while making key celebrity contacts. To get celebrity contacts, you need to increase your fame (by doing different things and by publishing a great magazine) and you need to network and build relationships with people. The premiere place for making these contacts, naturally, is at the famous Playboy Mansion parties. To throw these parties, you'll need cash. To get cash, you need to publish magazines... rinse, repeat. Mr. Hefner, fortunately, has given us feedback throughout the game's production. In addition, his life has been so well documented that we've never felt like there was something we didn't know. I've never met him personally, though everyone who has says he's every bit the magnetic gentleman you'd expect him to be.
TVG: Can you explain Bunnies and Playmates in the game what they do and how they effect the game and interact?
Sure. First off, Playboy Bunnies are the icing on the cake of the Playboy
Empire. When you really want a party to have that exceptionally classy edge, you hire and invite Playboy Bunnies to greet and serve your guests. Just being around them increases people's moods and opinions of you. Playmates, of course, appear as centrefolds in your magazine. When you hire them they'll spend time at the Mansion getting ready for their shoot in various ways - working out, meeting with the photographers, etc. Of course, Playmates can also be invited to parties.
Like Bunnies, Playmates are exceptionally popular. Your guests love to be around Playmates, both past and present.
TVG: What sort of diversity will the 12 missions offer? Perhaps you can highlight one that really captures the Playboy spirit.
Well, we're covering 50 years of Playboy history in these missions, so they're very diverse. They range from things like the first mission where you're just getting your empire off the ground, to the Playboy Foundation where you're working toward promoting social and civic causes to the 50th anniversary bash. One that really captures the Playboy spirit? Well, they all do, really. I mean, there are so many things that Hef did that were spirited in one way or another, and those many things together make up the Playboy spirit. When he released that first issue in 1953? That's the Playboy spirit. When he kept publishing and kept his chin up through the 1980's moral majority and Meese Commission stuff? That's the Playboy spirit. When he worked for women's rights and civil rights? The Playboy Spirit. When he founded the Playboy Jazz Festival? When he launched Playboy.com, the first national magazine on the 'net, by the way - all of it, the Playboy Spirit. There's nothing that's not as important as anything else. It's like trying to identify which brick of the foundation is holding the house up.
TVG: In terms of a game, strategy simulation, are you sometimes concerned that the Playboy imagery and ethos could be overlooked in terms of solid gameplay that you will present? Tell us about what you see as some of the innovations in the game.
No. We were very careful to make sure that the Playboy imagery and ethos were an integral part of the game and the gameplay. You're living Hef's life here, and all the stuff that makes many, many men want to live that life is in our game. In fact, I feel that it's strengthened by the fact that you know what you're playing has happened for real. Any game can put a super beautiful buxom beauty in a scene, but what it has in cup size, it lacks in mystery and in integrity. I mean, you can have a beautiful women in your dungeon, but can you make her your girlfriend? Can you develop a relationship with and make love to her? If there ever was a game where this belonged, Playboy: The Mansion is it. Because this is really someone's life and that, among other things, developing relationships with these women is a necessary part of game play makes it all the hipper, I think, precisely because it is the Playboy ethos.
TVG: What kind of āresearchā did you undertake in terms of the locations and realism to the game and what has been the hardest aspect in putting this all together?
Iāll let Seth Spaudling, Lead Artist and Project Lead, start off the answer to this question.
āDoing a āreal-lifeā sim forces one to do a lot of research on anything and everything: flamingos, Ferraris, flooring, flowers... Among other feats, I'm now be able to distinguish 24 distinct types of two-piece swimwear and can tell you the difference between a tube top and a mini-bandeauā.
We did do a research tour of the Playboy Mansion and the surrounding grounds, tennis court, pool and of course, the Grotto. I think the thing that surprised me the most about the Mansion was how multi-purpose it was. It's Hef's home firstly, it contains his offices with his work staff, his girlfriends' rooms, exotic birds roaming the lawns, the back lawn converts to an outdoor party pavilion for hundreds of guests and there are dozens of Mansion staff from cooks, butlers and groundskeepers to keep the place running.
If you happen to have six girlfriends and a giant media/commercial empire, it's the place to be.
TVG: What kind of progression does the game have and what are the rewards of success?
There are two ways to play the game: freeform play or mission play. In freeform play, you're doing your own thing and building the empire. In mission play, you're following 12 chapters, really, that take you through key periods in Playboy's 50 years. In both games, you're rewarded with unlockables like special content direct from the Playboy archives, new wardrobe items that you can dress your Playmates in, and reward points that allow you to purchase cheats. There are other obvious rewards, too. For instance, if you build up your fame to a point where four women are willing to be your girlfriend simultaneously...
TVG: What commodities/money do you have and what is the starting point for the game?
The game deals in cash. There are also reward points, but you can only trade those for unlockables and cheats. You start the game pretty much like Hef did originally - you don't have a lot of cash, but you have your hands on some good content. Where you take it from there is up to you.
TVG: Are there any named actors, athletes, authors, comedians, fashion designers, models, and musicians that will be obvious to gamers and how big and open is the game world?
You bet. Carmen Electra is a big one, of course. You'll also recognize people like Unkle Cracker and Felix da Cat and Jose Canseco. The list is pretty long, particularly if you take into account the dozens of real-life Playmates who will be appearing.
Many thanks; we eagerly look forward to the game.
Youāre welcome!
Playboy: The Mansion has recently suffered a slight slip into Q1 2005; weāll have more information soon.
