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The Movies - Q&A Feature
Derek dela Fuente
16/07/2005
As development draws to a close on Lionhead's latest inspiration, TVG chats with Development Director on the project Mark Webley...
Peter Molyneuxâs The Movies is finally coming to the end of development and although the release date has slipped on a number of occasions, gamers will find that the wait has been well worth it. Any game created from the mind of Peter is a special experience and The Movies will certain hit that special mark. Having seen the game from its very early stages nearly four years ago, when at the time it was sounding and looking innovative, the changes and honing of ideas on this project have been something truly remarkable and there has been a subtle shift. Games that continue well past their projected release tend to create slight suspicion but this is certainly not the case with The Movies which could well turn out to be yet another classic.
Derek dela Fuente caught up with Mark Webley, Development Director on the project, to get a final update on the game along with some key elements
Can you explain the various interface changes that The Movies has undergone throughout the years; what this has brought to the game and the importance of getting it right?
Our biggest change has been to try to keep the player in the game at all times. Initial interfaces were standard straightforward menu based systems which although functional were not very satisfying. Consequently to do a number of things within the game you would be taken out of the game to some 2D menus. We have tried to change this for example to hire someone you would pick up your characters and place them down within a building. Within each building there are a number of different rooms and each room has a different function, effectively like menus, but within the game. The other change is stat screens, which would typically be outside the game in 2D menus, are available in the game by pointing at characters then bubbles containing the information appear allowing the player to get at them quickly.
When we first saw The Movies it felt more like a âtycoonâ type of game but now feels very much more expansive. Is it a problem in shifting through what you wish to include as opposed to what you canât for it appears the more you delve into the subject matter the more parameters and equations you could add?
The Movies did feel more like a tycoon game in the early stages due to the interface we used. As the game has developed we have added depth to areas like movie making with huge numbers of sets and scenes and you can actually produce a movie at the end of the day, as well as running a business. There is obviously a great sim underlying the movie studio, looking after stars, dealing with the low level aspects of a starâs personality and getting the ingredients right for a successful movie. To run a fantastic studio you need to get the combination right.
"The console versions are coming along really well, and will be appearing on all three of the current major consoles..."
It was never a case of have we got enough ideas for a game but more a case of which ideas can we use. Which ones work. Sometimes we have to bounce ideas, try them out but sometimes they just donât play well or gel with the rest of the game.
Exactly how much control does the player have when it comes to making scripts and movies; is it a case of a finite number of possibilities or is the freedom completely up to the player?
The number of options a player has is vast. Thousands of different scenes, many different sets, vast numbers of costumes, props that can be placed where you want them, backdrops, weather effects, the atmosphere, the music and coolest of all you can add a voiceover and make the characters lip sync lines you have spoken. You can even add subtitles with your own dialogue; the combinations really are infinite. Most scenes have one or more sliders which can affect things like the emotion within the scene, the duration of the scene, the camera angles, the level of violence adding yet another huge dimension of personalisation.
Can you explain the Stage School process within the game?
The starting point of a âstarâ in the movies is at the stage school. Here you can review resumes, access their personality and experience to see if you want to work with them, you can hire directors, actors and extras. You can also fire them here too. In addition you can rehearse people on different sets and improve their acting skills.
What has been an important factor in regard to feedback you have been offered over the last year that you have readily taken up and implemented?
As with all Lionhead games we do go out and seek feedback as much as possible. Every week all of our games have at least two or three play testers playing the game - every week a new bunch of people. Their feedback is always very important. We often ask them to focus on a certain area. Feedback on the movies has been particularly interesting as everyone has an opinion on how movies are made and therefore goes into the game with ideas before ever playing it.
Lip synch to the playerâs recorded dialogue impressed during its recent E3 demonstration; could you explain how advanced this technology is, the importance of it being in the game and the scope available to the player?
The Movies is past its Alpha stage now and apart from bug balancing and polishing is essentially finished. Lionhead has used lip-synching in Black & White and Fable and we are using it in B&W2 as well. It is reasonably advanced technology for us. In the movies it is very important that someone can create their own storyline and being able to add your own dialogue and subtitles makes a huge difference to what a movie storyline is. Being able to record a bit of text makes it so much more realistic and believable and itâs really a great use of technology.
Could you elaborate on how/why a movie succeeds or fails and the competition from rival cinema companies that the player will face?
There are a number of obvious steps to making a movie. It starts with writing a script, then goes on to casting where you choose which actors you want to star in your movie, and follow that by assigning a crew and some extras. Once they have rehearsed they will go round a number of sets and locations and shoot the movie. During each stage of the movie making process, the player is told what the likely success of the movie will be. For example if I cast a bad actor in my script this will have a direct effect on the success of my movie. More subtle things like having leading actors who have a good relationship with each other, being able to keep them happy, keeping the director sober, using people who have experience in a particular genre and using new and exciting sets all pay dividends. Later in the game, factors such as marketing and public awareness all matter. Also current affairs at the time of release come into play in as much as, if youâve created a movie based on say, for example a disaster scenario, then releasing it just after a real disaster event could impact on its success.
We were fortunate enough to catch The Movies during Activisionâs E3 Press Conference and came away impressed; could you please elaborate on the intuitiveness of the new âsensibleâ system and how you ensure the challenge is maintained throughout the game?
We have introduced something called a âguiding streamâ, the aim of which is to point the player at the most sensible choice. However if you want to, you can experiment by trying to turn a janitor into a movie star, or other crazy out-there stuff like that.
How integrated is the movie-making aspect to the overall sim/management structure; can you create movies without playing through the sim aspects?
There are two ways to play the game. Thereâs the simulation where you need to run your whole studio as well as make movies, or a Sandbox mode where you can just concentrate on making the movies of your dreams. In simulation mode you can get as involved in the moving-making process as you like, from directing your people in the choices you want, to selecting the content of every single scene.
How are the console versions coming along, is a release still planned for all three formats, and please, please tell us when we might be able to get our hands on The Movies?
The console versions are coming along really well, and will be appearing on all three of the current major consoles. As for when these versions will be ready, all we can say right now is that theyâre making good progress and that weâll be making further announcements on these in the very near future.
TVG would like to thank Mark Webley for taking the time to answer our questions. Lionheadâs The Movies is one of our most anticipated titles for 2005, daring to be different and coming from a team with a rich heritage of classics in the genre; weâll have further coverage soon.
