Hexen: Edge Of Chaos mod for Doom III

2 comments by HexenEdgeOfChaos on Jun 25th, 2008 digg this super bookmark

Well, this is it guys. Time to let out all the dirty little secrets of the team and have a 1on1 with all of the teammembers. We tried to make the questions diverse to give you an idea on who's who and who's doing what for the game. Today we are interviewing Slash, our conceptartist from Norway. Hope you enjoy the read and get to know our team a little better.

EOC: Where are you from and what do you do for a living, can you tell us something about yourself?
Slash: I'm from norway. I'm an artist, musician and bum.

EOC: Have you worked on other mods or TC's before Hexen:Edge of Chaos?
Slash: Yes. Looking back i dont even dare start counting. They all had one thing in common tho, they crashed and burned. Because of that i've really learned to appreciate a skilled and dedicated team, because thats the single most important thing in a mod - dedicated team members.

EOC: What is your role in the team?
Slash: I'm the concept artist. I take words and ideas and turn them into pictures to give everyone a clear idea of what we need to do. I'm also a modeler, currently i'm working on the player model for our first episode. I'm also involved in most of the design work in the mod, like everyone else on the team. Thats what i like about this team, every issue is open for discussion, everyone has a say.

EOC: When did you join the team?
Slash: Too long ago... let me check my mail.... January 30th 2006.

EOC: When did you hear first of the TC, and how?
Slash: I first heard about this mod when it was first announced, i think it was on Moddb. I remember wanting to join the team back then, but i forgot to apply. That was back when reskinned trites apparently was a part of the hexen universe!

EOC: What style of developer are you? Do you rush into things, or do you plan a lot in advance?
Slash: I'm the kind of developer who likes to dive headfirst into things. I rarely plan in advance, other than a general goal that i want to achieve. Mostly i just go with the flow. An exception to that are the map layouts. I'm in charge of drawing out the layout of the maps, and from the very beginning of that task i've had a vision as to how the whole map will look.

EOC: What was your first experience with the Hexen/Heretic series, and how did it impact your view on computer games?
Slash: Well, my memory is a little foggy, but i think it was a shareware version of hexen i got from a friend. I remember thinking "It's like doom in a fantasy setting! AWESOME!". It definitely helped cement me into video game fandom.

EOC: What things besides gaming do you currently feel strongly about?
Slash: Art and music have always been my two greatest passions. I also enjoy books, especially those who deal with the breakdown of society and dissolution of moral and ethics or the rise of totalitarian governments. I like to imagine scenarios where stuff goes wrong, and humans have to survive in a setting where normal rules dont apply. Because of this i'm a big zombie and apocalypse/post apocalypse fan.

EOC: Which game are you currently playing?
Slash: The orange box came in perfect bite-size bits. I don't have too much time on my hands for gaming these days, but i've finished episode two and portal. Great games. I've also managed to log about nine hours worth of team fortress 2. That game is completely awesome!

EOC: Some modders play the games they mod for on a regular basis. Other modders actually just primarily enjoy modding. Which would you say you are?
Slash: I've played through doom3 quite a few times. It's a great game, and even more so if you play a coop mod with friends. These days its basically just modding tho, not that that is any less fun!

EOC: Are you working on any other mods or TC's right now?
Slash: Nope! well, not officially. I am in the progress of fleshing out a design doc for one of my private little projects, but thats a secret! I also wanted to join the black mesa source team, but i'm gonna have to put that one on hold until i feel i can dedicate enough time to Edge of chaos.

EOC: What others mods do you like or are you waiting for?
Slash: I'm looking forward to the dark mod and black mesa source, to name a few. I'm also gonna try out the hl2 wiimote mod, and out of hell. I'm sure i've forgotten some, but i'm getting a bit nervous with you putting that microphone in my face.

EOC: What do you like best about the Doom3 engine? What would you improve?
Slash: I'm not a very technical guy, so if there's a technical issue i need to complain about in the mod, i have to explain it to the tech guys with sock puppets, and they have to give me sock puppet answers.

EOC: If you could have any new feature added to the Doom 3 tools, what would it be?
Slash: The escapist's yatzee once mentioned something about a force feedback codpiece. I want that.

About Hexen:Edge of Chaos
EOC: How has this TC influenced your life (either on a personal or professional level) so far?
Slash: For one i never have time to be bored! I also mentioned this mod in a recent job application, we'll see if i get the gig.

EOC: What's been your worst experience so far with making the TC?
Slash: The worst is probably not having worked as much as i've wanted to on the mod. There has also been periods where the team has been disoriented and some people have gone MIA for various reasons. But all in all there has been very little of that, and there's never any drama in the team.

EOC: What part of (working on) the TC do like best so far?
Slash: I like painting and modelling. Its very rewarding seeing something you thought up and created run towards you on screen trying to slash your face off. I'm also growing quite fond of the map layout process, because this forces me to think in new ways, since im pretty new to that kind of stuff.

EOC: Which part of the TC are you currently working on?
Slash: Map layouts and other conceptart duties. Also the player model for episode 1 (the cleric) but thats been pushed down on the priority list a little.

EOC: Which is your favorite character in the game?
Slash: The witch. I mean, she's hot. And i should know, i created her!

EOC: Which aspects do you consider to be crucial in keeping the original Hexen feeling going in this TC?
Slash: This issue does rise every now and then, and we have a round table sort of discussion, where we measure the asset in a unit we've invented, called "hexeney". While there are no specific guidelines as to what we need to do to keep the original feel, things have to be "hexeney" enough to pass.

EOC: Describe the best feature in the TC in your opinion? What should the person look for that they might miss?
Slash: The best feature would probably be... hmm... the attention to details and quality. Quite recently a large chunk of work on the mod got scrapped entirely, because it wasn't quite up to par. We want to reward exploring players, and we've thought up a few cool easter eggs.

EOC: Describe the weapons, what weapon you will use the most and why?
Slash: Hmm.. the weapons will definately be "hexeney", with the return of some well known classics. In the original hexen i always enjoyed the sword, but i'm sure i'm gonna be using whatever weapon is appropriate for the given situation. Our goal is to make every weapon fun to use.

EOC: What is the hardest part about working on Hexen:Edge of Chaos?
Slash: The hardest part is probably not having the time to work on EOC all the time. As this is a game made in our spare time, and we don't get paid, the real world tend to interfere. I would love to work full time inhouse with this great team, but i think i might be a little afraid of zeroth, cackling over his black linux cauldron from the dark cubicle in the corner.

EOC: Any final thoughts?
Slash: To anyone who reads this: PLAY THIS MOD WHEN ITS OUT!