A few weeks ago, there was a post on GamerGod which listed the 10 most interesting people in games 2005. While some of those who made the cut were arguably admirable, it was a hugely US-biased list. In fact, there was no one from any other country. That makes me sad.
So I'd like to propose the following internationally-flavoured list which spans across 2005 to current-day 2006. Please do feel free to add.
These folks are in no particular order.
1. Greg Costikyan Design guru Greg set up Manifesto Games in 2005, with the aim of promoting independent games within an independent distribution model. He's also one of the few big-wigs willing to stand up in front of a crowd of games folk and proclaim the current state of the games industry up the proverbial creek without sign of a paddle.
2. Qui Chengwei The man given a suspended life sentence for murdering another because the victim stole his virtual sword has pushed the questions of ownership, value and the legality of virtual property way up to 11. The virtual ownership debate has been rumbling for years, but this guy made sure that the relativity of what goes on beyond the screen will be given much more consideration in judge's chambers in future. In Shanghai at least.
3. Keita Takahashi He created one of the most talked about series in 2004 (Katamari Damacy), released a sequel in 2005 (out here in two weeks!), won countless international awards and then publicly admitted that he didn't even like games. That makes this trained sculptor with designs on children's playgrounds interesting to say the least.
4. J Allard The figurehead for the next generation of Microsoft's home console system has a lot riding on his shoulders. His excellent implementation of a community-based infrastructure in the Xbox 360 is most notable because in five years time the role of the games consumer will be shaped by what was included in the Xbox 360 technology, and the paltry community practices we have now will be considered as retro as Super Mario Bros.
5. Brenda Brathwaite One area where the GamerGod list and I agree is in the inclusion of Brenda Brathwaite, lead designer on Playboy: The Mansion and countless others, and figurehead of the Sex & Games special interest group with the International Game Developers Association. The timely arrival of the Sex & Games blog – after the pathetic hot coffee incident – created a platform which allows the observer to consider the role of adult themes in interactive entertainment, an increasingly important element as the population who uses them gets older and demands more than kicking and shooting.
6. NCSoft and ArenaNet The Korean publisher/US developer team were the first to roll-out a subscription-free virtual world from launch with Guild Wars, and coupled that with a platform which supported one big happy online space for the whole world. There are no separate servers, no localised languages. If I want to play with my California-based cousin Patrick, I can; I no longer need a separate US account. Bringing over 1 million gamers together from around the globe is, yes, rather interesting.
7. koulamata While Lionhead's machinima-making game The Movies grabbed enough attention for being an innovative product this year, like most creative software it proved to be nothing without a good idea. French user koulamata released his pseudo-documentary about the summer riots that ripped across France and raised the tone of the product from entertainment to serious media platform. I hope to see more from this user, and more from those inspired by his film, in the future.
8. Takumi Yoshinaga Yoshinaga is the creator of the marvellous and surreal grown-up version of WarioWare, Project Rub. His Where Do Babies Come From? (Rub Rabbits here in the Euro regions) will be out in February and is stylish and silly, and made by a team of mostly female programmers, designers and artists. Interestingly (as this is what the post is all about), it implements every gizmo on the innovative Nintendo DS, from the stylus to the microphone. It also does everything in its power to encourage people to play together.
9. David Cage and Quantic Dream This Paris-based development studio has produced some of the most forward-thinking products in the industry since it was established in 1997. Interestingly, they've only released 2 games since that time: Fahrenheit (given quite a few column inches on this blog over the past year) and Omikron: The Nomad Soul (David Bowie's foray into interactive entertainment). While both titles are flawed – arguably constricted by technology – they notably pushed the boundaries for gameplay mechanics. In this world of never-ending sequel series, this studio provides a light at the end of the tunnel.
10. Will Wright Another person GamerGod and I agree on is Will Wright, the man possibly allowed the most leeway of any games designer in the West. Sociologist Wright did mental with my head when he proposed USBEmily as a game that would incorporate the poetry of Emily Dickinson at the Game Developers Conference, and then talked Spore - the evolution simulation that may cause waves upon its release in the Intelligent Design-loony USA - practically in the same breath. As always, a man to keep an eye on. Very very interesting.
