We often mention our team in terms of "Amplidudes and Amplidudettes", but we decided we should give you folks an idea of who we mean. You've guessed it, it's time for another installment of our (semi-)regular feature, Meet the Team! For this feature, we've asked another studio veteran on the team to share some insights. If you want to know more about us, or your nephew wants to learn more about the career path of a game developer, or if you're just curious, read on.
Meet the game designer behind many of your favorite features in Endless Legend, Benoît, aka Kaboomer!
Who are you and what do you do at Amplitude?
I am Benoît, known as Kaboomer on the forums, Game designer since the very beginnings of Endless Legend. I've helped create almost all faction gameplays and specific features of EL. In Amplitude my task is to think about game mechanics in agreement with the game experience we want to offer to players. Under the supervision of Romain, our Creative director, game designers have to think about many things to support the game experience and design new rules: challenges, fun, game flow, accessibility, narrative and visual coherence, technical feasibility... This importance of the technical dimension leads us to work closely with our programmers.
What were you doing before you joined Amplitude?
I worked for three years at Ubisoft on Might & Magic games, mostly with Capybara Games on Clash of Heroes. At the time I was already working with a number of people who then went on to found the studio. I was then Associate Producer, but already very involved in our projects' content and game design.
When did you join the studio?
Just about three years ago, a couple of months after the release of Endless Space.
What feature have you worked on that you're super proud of?
I have been particularly involved in the creation of the 150 or so quests in Endless Legend. I really enjoy working with Jeff to make sure we keep as much coherence as possible between player agenda and game narration, which isn't always easy considering the sheer number of gameplay situations you have to take into account in a randomly-generated game. The tutorial -- while only covering the basics of the game, is also for me sort of a victory, since I am sure it helped many newcomers enjoy our work by easing them into the game.
What are you currently working on?
New content, including but not limited to game elements we want to add to the game to polish the experience as well as add depth and fresh mechanics to players. This is becoming quite difficult, not only technically but also on a gameplay side since there are already so many elements with their own rules to take into account. Having said that, as a game designer new challenges are always stimulating.
What's your favorite game of all time?
The very first Resident Evil, for everything it brought at the time in terms of interactive storytelling and atmosphere. We're straying pretty far from the 4X genre, I have to say.
Is there anywhere on the Internet where I can see more of your stuff?
My contribution to the game experience of Might & Magic Clash of Heroes on NDS, PS3 and PC is probably what I am the most proud of after my work on Endless Legend.
What's your favorite faction or character in our games?
I love the character design and lore of the Broken Lords, but also the Cultists for their disturbing looks and crazy gameplay.
Is there a funny story that happened to you at Amplitude?
I've killed about 3000 fruit flies in the last few days. I don't know why they've started invading us but right now we are literally besieged by swarms of them! I'm not sure what is gonna get us first, the flies or the cans of bug spray we've been using to kill them...
What's the dish you cook to impress people?
Galettes with scallops (galettes bretonnes aux noix de St-Jacques). Easy to make, original and delicious.
What's the next place you want to travel to?
Backpacking in Myanmar, I've heard the scenery is amazing!
That's it for Benoît! We hope you found this interesting. Comments or additional questions, feel free to ask!
If there's a question you would like us to ask the interviewees, let us know!
