Industry Interview:

Sean Tonks, GlyphX Animator

Contrary to popular belief, no longer are videogames created with one-person teams like in the olden days. Ever seen the credits at the end of a game? It takes dozens of skilled programmers, artists, writers, musicians, and QA analysts to craft an Xbox® title from start to finish. Not to mention the business, publishing, marketing, and advertising side of things. The men and women who make this industry thrive deserve your recognition.

Advent Rising, published by Majesco Games, is a triple-A title that was recently released for the Xbox console. It features a rich story that was co-authored by legendary sci-fi novelist Orson Scott Card. Advent propels gamers into a futuristic world packed with interstellar battles, fantastic environments, and outlandish creatures. In short, it's a very ambitious title that started at a small game development studio in Utah called GlyphX, wherewe spoke with young animator Sean Tonks. He's a 19-year old kid, fresh out of high school, living the American Dream by creating in-game cinematics. His work on Advent Rising is of an epic scale—huge buildings crashing to earth, dazzling fireballs exploding in space, and hordes of Seeker invaders swarming over the landscape are just a few of the visual treats Sean and his team have created for us. Sean took some time out of his schedule to share his experiences with the readers of Xbox.com.

Xbox.com: Hi, Sean. Please introduce yourself to our readers and tell us your role in the development of Advent Rising.

Tonks: Hello, as stated my name is Sean, hardcore gamer and animator, one of those people so into the game world I knew I would end up in it for a career one way or another. I was also one of the cinematic animators for GlyphX on Advent Rising.

Xbox.com: How long have you been with GlyphX? Were you involved in the project from the start, or did you come aboard in the middle of the development cycle?

Tonks: I started at Glyphx in September, so I came fairly late in the development of the game.

Xbox.com: What were some of the challenges your team faced when crafting the cutscenes for the game?

Tonks: One of the biggest issues we faced was time. So many great scenes, and so much story to tell, but when it takes almost eight hours of work for a single shot, and ten shots make up part of one scene, you have to make tough decisions on how and what you need to add. Sometimes entire days were spent on how to tell a half-hour story in five minutes. Another issue was the models. We would create one model, then halfway through the game production we thought, "That doesn't look enough like the character," or, "we've made improvements on the character, you need to put the new model into the scenes, and take the old one out." It was very frustrating to backtrack during such a time-constrained project.

The Advent Rising story has some tragic moments.

Xbox.com: Looking back on the game now that it has shipped, is there anything you wish you could have added or changed to the cutscenes, if you were given the chance?

Tonks: I wish we could have done the scenes exactly as planned, rather than cut them for time. It's always tough making a giant scene that is very poignant, and that took a long time, and hear it's been cut for time.

Xbox.com: Describe the animation process for us. How did you and your team go from concept to design to final product?

Tonks: Like I said, I came fairly late in the game, so when I came on board the concept was basically done. But all that meant is the framework was complete. The cinematic process is not like building a wall. You don't start with brick one, move to brick two, then three, and so on. It's more like a creative blob that is constantly evolving. If we thought of a new scene, we talked with the designer, made sure it would fit. Then we basically acted it out, part by part. Drew a few storyboards, mostly acted and role-played the scenes out. Then it went to animation, which is a very complicated process of trial and error, and a leap of faith that your scene works out.

Xbox.com: Was Advent Rising your first Xbox game, or were you involved with other projects for the system?

Tonks: This was my first project on any platform. I was lucky that the CEO of GlyphX was willing to take a chance on a wide-eyed kid just out of high school.

Xbox.com: It's safe to say that many of our readers have aspirations to become game developers and designers. Care to share your success story with us?

Tonks: Well it sounds corny and cheesy, but never give up. When I e-mailed the CEO of GlyphX to see if I could come in to work on Advent, he said, "You're out of high school and a bit inexperienced. We are very busy and cannot take a chance on that." So I basically bothered him with an e-mail every day: "I won't disappoint you. I am a quick learner and have already come so far with my animation skills." Eventually he said all right, and gave me a chance, and I didn't disappoint.

Each scene was scripted and shot like a film.

Xbox.com: GlyphX is a small, independent game development studio. What was it like working in a tight-knit group on such an ambitious project?

Tonks: It was a great experience. You become very close with everyone very quickly, spending 10 to 15 hours a day with the same people. They ordered dinner and lunch for the entire team every day. Many people spent many nights there. Also, once a week we all spent time unwinding playing Counter-Strike: Source together. I remember one time the CEO/Chief Animator and I were working real late, going on our twelfth hour I believe, and he said we needed food. So he took me to a sushi house and made me try sushi for the first time. He bought it, so it was okay.

Xbox.com: How much input did Donald Mustard give to your team in regard to the cinematics? Was he deeply involved, or did he take a "hands off" approach to the non-gaming aspects ofAdvent Rising?

Tonks: Donald was very involved. He came by, watched what we were doing, and gave us different viewpoints and positions to take on certain scenes. But at the same time he respected the Chief Animator and said, "This is what's happening, do your thing."

Xbox.com: What's next for GlyphX? Are there any other Xbox or Xbox 360™ titles in development?

Tonks: Can't comment.

Xbox.com: What does one do in Utah for kicks?

Tonks: People do stuff in Utah? Oh, right. Well there isn't much, to be honest. I go camping every once in a while so … who am I kidding, I'm a hardcore gamer, I don't know about the outside world.

Xbox.com: Are there features of the Xbox 360 that excite you as an animator?

Tonks: Oh yes. The ability to use complex physics engines, and features like normal mapping to its full extent really excite me. Most people see a game that doesn't look like its cinematics and think, "Why can't those stupid developers make the whole game like this?" Well, it's the limitation of the hardware, but with the Xbox 360 extreme level of hardware we can do amazing things in the realm of visuals.

Xbox.com: Anything you'd like to add in closing?

Tonks: Never stop gaming. You're never too old, and don't let the old stuffy senators try to take our games away from us.

Xbox.com: Thanks for speaking with us.