It's not easy creating a fictional version of the 1930s and then setting a fun dogfighting game in the middle of it, but that's what FASA and the Crimson Skies®: High Road to Revenge™ team set out to do. Project Lead Jim Deal took some time to talk with us about what it was like to bring Crimson Skies to Xbox®.
Xbox.com: Can you tell us about your history in the games industry?
Deal: I started at Microsoft Games Studios (MGS) as the art lead on Combat Flight Sim. From there I didCombat Flight Sim 2 and was promoted to become the art director of the Simulations Group. As Xbox ramped up, the studio split, and we reorganized to more of a producer model, and I became the group lead or producer for the Crimson Skies project. The Crimson Skies team is now part of FASA Studios at MGS. We have just shipped Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge and are feeling really good about it.
Xbox.com: What challenges did you face making Crimson Skies a fictional narrative game, as opposed to the flight simulator games you've worked on in the past?
Deal: Well, there were a few. The first thing we did was make Crimson Skies an action game, not a simulation. This is not a game about the physics of flying an airplane. We spent a lot of time perfecting the flight model and making it easy to pick up and use. Instead of something to learn and master, it's about getting right into the action. Then we added special moves and a camera look to make it hard to master. These have very real benefits when playing competitively over Xbox LIVE®.
In addition, we had story elements to think about. The story is a huge part of the game, and we wanted it to be great. In the beginning, things were coming around a little slowly, until we hired a director, Matt Brunner, to come in and direct our cinematics. Matt's experience with TV commercials and high-end animation helped us pull them together and make them a solid and gratifying part of the overall experience.
Xbox.com: At one point, the decision was made to take more time before releasing Crimson Skies. What did you do with that time?
Deal: We used the time to do two things: open up the gameplay and make it choice-driven, and add Xbox LIVE support. Our original direction to "play the movie" turned out to be kind of a stiff and stilted experience. It's very hard to get an aircraft going 200 miles per hour to be in certain places at certain times to catch the big cinematic moments. We opened up the gameplay and relegated the story bits to certain key spots. The result is a game where you not only choose the order you do activities in, but you can also choose how to accomplish them. Do you steal an enemy plane or jump into an anti-aircraft gun? It’s now up to you as the player.
Finally we added Xbox LIVE. This was huge. Crimson Skies offers a unique experience on Xbox LIVE: dogfighting. We have been playing it here in the office, and it is a lot of fun.
Xbox.com: What elements of the flight mechanics add the most to the game, and why?
Deal: The flight mechanics are all about being easy to learn but hard to master, but we also tried to preserve the feeling of flying in a huge, prop-driven, three-ton metal war ship. It adds a feeling of power and control to the game.
Xbox.com: What do you think was your greatest asset while working on the game?
Deal: Without a doubt it was the dedication and brilliance of the people on this team. This is a great production team that pulled together many diverse specialties to make a great game. I am very proud of the work we all did together, and Crimson Skies reflects that.
Xbox.com: What advice would you give to someone who wants to follow in your career footsteps?
Deal: Do what you like to do. If you are doing what you are passionate about, like making games or writing code, you will do great work. I never took a job or made a career choice based solely on the money or position. I don't think anyone should. I would advise young people to do what they love to do, and then figure out how to make a living at it. This is how people get into games or any creative career, and this is the philosophy of the people that make up FASA Studio and the Crimson Skies team.
