Hey guys and gals!
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! 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 slightly blocky bloke who shared with us his gift for pixel art, Simon, aka Sperin!
Who are you and what do you do at Amplitude?
Hi, I am a 2D artist.
What were you doing before you joined Amplitude?
During my first intership, I worked on Turok Evolution on GBA at RFX Interactive, but I really started in 2005 in a small company created by a friend (Devalley Entertainment), we made small arcade-type games for mobile. Technical constraints were really harsh, but it was fun, I did a lot of pixel art and there weren't any micro-transactions back then. ;) Then I joined Gameloft, which I left in 2010 to work on an iOS game with my brother, which didn't work out but I'm really proud of it.
When did you join the studio?
In February 2013, I was surprised to see that people in the industry were still looking for pixel artists, so I applied to Amplitude. There I was, in April 2013, working on the first proofs of concept for what would become Dungeon of the Endless!
What feature have you worked on that you're super proud of?
I convinced the team to integrate the merchant's dog as a hidden hero, I'm a fan of easter eggs in games.
What are you currently working on?
At the moment I am working on ground battle in Endless Space 2: I draw and animate units for all factions. I hope you'll like it!
What's your favorite game of all time?
Games like Pac-Man or Tetris can be considered as best games of all time for their simplicity, their universal gameplay mechanics that didn't age one bit. Personally, Castlevania Symphony of the Night really struck me in 1997. One of the most beautiful 2D pixel games of all times, the gothic music from Michiru Yamane, the really huge bestiary, the level design, the direction, Alucard's hypnotic animations... I like this game in particular because I really thought a lot about it while working on Dungeon of the Endless's art style.
Is there anywhere on the Internet where I can see more of your stuff?
Not really, I want to open a tumblr one of these days but it's a lot of work... You can see the first games I worked on by clicking this link: http://www.devalley-entertainment.com/
Here's the page for Zorbié, which I created with my brother: https://itunes.apple.com/fr/app/zorbie/id592117730?mt=8
My Twitter account is SimonGordolex, but I am not really active on it...
I have a Soundcloub because I worked on game soundtracks as well: https://soundcloud.com/simon-p-rin
What's your favorite faction or character in our games?
Without hesitation the Broken Lords; as for the characters, I really like Max from Dungeon of the Endless, the perfect mix between Han Solo, Snake Plissken and Ulysses 31.
Is there a funny story that happened to you at Amplitude?
On Winter 2015 Romain and Mathieu graciously took us all on a "ski work seminar". I had never done any skiing, and not being very much at ease on my skis, I got within inches of dying by falling off a chairlift at the start of the ride, taking with me in my fall Eric, our Technical director. Fortunately for us, the snow was very soft and cushioned our landing...
What's the most played song in your music library?
My current favorite band is Tame Impala, but as an old gamer, my playlist is full of game soundtracks: Yuzo koshiro, Zuntata, Konami kueika club, Stéphane Picq, Tim Follin are with me every day. Lots of movie soundtracks too: Spaghetti western, 70s horror movies (Gobelin, John Carpenter, etc.)...
What obscure movie would you recommend watching?
I recently discovered "Boston Strangler" from Richard Fleischer. It's a movie that made industry history for its use of split screen before Brian De Palma, but oddly enough it is not that well-known. The movie is inspired from a real story: the serial murders committed by Albert de Salvo. For me this movie is to thrillers what 2001 Space Odyssey is to SF, you have to see it!
That's it for Simon! We hope you found this interesting. Comments or additional questions, feel free to comment!
If there's a question you would like us to ask the interviewees, let us know!
