User talk:Bobby Stein/Archive talk 2

Education questions^^

Hey Bobby, my dream job is to work as a programer for a game (MMO, Shooter, FPS, or work with Rockstar on GTA^^). I'm wondering if you'd feel free to share exactly you studied in highschool in college. I know that you orignally wanted to be a movie producer (or something similar, degree in filiming). What Math and Science classes did you take in HS and College [from what i've heard programmersz have to be extremely good with math and calculating physics and such] (Calculus, Physics, Computer Science, etc...) Did you need to know any programming languages when you started looking at game industries to work for (Java, C, C++, etc...)

And anything else you would feel free to share^^. *By the way, I still have a little while before I start applying to be a game programmer, currently 15 in tenth grade... lol.*

Oh, and thanks beforehand if you can answer this:D--'ÑöẊĭƑý 20:22, 5 December 2007 (UTC)

Not trying to answer for Bobby, but one thing that would definitely help is to start practicing programming immediately. I don't think the language matters, but java and c are the most common ones to begin with. You'll get a good grasp with internet tutorials, but getting someone to help who has some basic knowldge does help. -- (gem / talk) 23:19, 5 December 2007 (UTC)

Hi there. Writers (and to a lesser extent, designers) aren't usually required to know any programming languages, but it's always good to know a bit of rudimentary scripting or coding to understand how things work together. I took a few beginner programming courses in college but didn't go for a computer science degree (I have a BA in visual art, yet I can't draw a straight line without the aid of a ruler...go figure). After my stint in television, I worked for a few different Wall St. equity firms and learned much about client/server architecture, databases, and Unix shell scripting. Even though I don't use much of that knowledge on a daily basis here at ArenaNet, having a mild technical background has helped me. If programming is your forte, my guess is that a computer science degree is what you're looking for. I'm not the best person to ask regarding schooling for game programming, but do know that C++ is a must. Check out some of the programming job listings on the ArenaNet company site for more details on what's expected of you. My other advice is to frequent professional industry sites like Gamasutra and soak up all the knowledge you can. Find a good mod team, get familiar with game engines, and have fun working on your own projects. When it comes time to look for colleges, weigh your options carefully. Some schools like DigiPen are devoted to training the next generation of game developers, whereas a decent college or university might offer plenty of courses (or degree programs) related to game development. If there's enough community interest, perhaps I can ask some ANet programmers for more insight. I hope this gives you a good starting point. Thanks for stopping by. Bobby Stein 23:21, 5 December 2007 (UTC)

Text issues

There are some skills where we don't know if it is the decription or functionality is right. An example would be skills that were correctly saying they affect arrows, until Nightfall came out and they were found to also affect thrown spears, without the decription being updated. How would you like us to handle those? Backsword 07:22, 15 December 2007 (UTC)

Hi Backsword. It really depends on the situation, what's wrong or inaccurate about the skill wording, and if there has been a balance update that has affected the skill in question. Anything I can immediately identify as a text bug I can usually fix right away. Everything else is forwarded to the gameplay designers or QA to investigate. As an aside, I wanted to let everyone know that, while I look at the submitted bugs quite frequently, I need to take a break fixing things since we're in the process of reorganizing our department. I recently took over the team (and we're down two bodies) so other tasks are taking priority. Once the dust settles I'll be actively handling new bugs (or assigning them to various members of the group). Thanks for your patience. Bobby Stein 23:01, 18 December 2007 (UTC)

As you might have noticed, I recently added quite a lot of text issues to the page. I did this by going through all articles in Category:Bugs and Category:Anomalies and making an entry for every bug and anomaly that was most likely a text issue. Anything that was most likely a game mechanic issue was left out. By fixing all of the text issues those categories will get emptied quite a lot and the designers can actually use the categories to track real bugs that should be fixed. No hurry ofcourse, most of those have been around for quite a long while and they don't seem to bother people too much. -- (gem / talk) 23:09, 18 December 2007 (UTC)

And congrats on your new position. :) -- (gem / talk) 23:10, 18 December 2007 (UTC)

Thank you kindly. :) And by the way, I really appreciate the fact that the community is actively helping us in this process. You guys and gals rock. Bobby Stein 23:28, 18 December 2007 (UTC)

With the help of QA, the bulk of current bugs has been logged internally and distributed among the members of the writing team. Most items should be easy to fix, though bear in mind it sometimes takes upwards of a few weeks for something to be localized in all languages, integrated into a live build, and viewable in the game. Thanks for your help and patience. Bobby Stein 22:00, 10 January 2008 (UTC)

No problem and thanks for taking the time to fix the game for us who still need to wait a year or two for the next game. ;) -- (gem / talk) 22:03, 10 January 2008 (UTC)

Heh. Well, we'd better fix 'em now because dev is really ramping up. Gotta clean these off the plate before we're too swamped. ;) Bobby Stein 22:07, 10 January 2008 (UTC)

Localized text bugs

Since there is now a section dedicated to localized versions text bugs at User:Jason Yu's page, may i suggest adding a link to the text bugs section? Would be easier than moving the topics when they are raised i guess.--Fighterdoken 22:09, 21 February 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for the update. You emailed me before the localization folks. I'll have to give them grief for that. ;) Bobby Stein 22:15, 21 February 2008 (UTC)

weapon names

White Scythe and Dragon Scythes could probably be changed to less misleading names. Maybe White Sickle and Dragon Sickles? Just a thought. --Life Infusion «T» 00:28, 5 March 2008 (UTC)

Good point. I forwarded this to our items designer. I'll let you know how it goes. Bobby Stein 04:12, 5 March 2008 (UTC)

Nice. Thanks for the quick response. --Life Infusion «T» 05:08, 5 March 2008 (UTC)

Not a problem. John Hargrove will be renaming those weapons in the next few days. They won't reflect on the live server until the next build update following those edits, but you should see them online in a couple of weeks. Bobby Stein 19:00, 5 March 2008 (UTC)

That's great. It will help newer players not get confused about the weapon types. --Life Infusion «T» 03:03, 6 March 2008 (UTC)

white reaver + dragon kamas :)--Life Infusion «T» 01:40, 14 March 2008 (UTC)

I'll pass this along to John. He gets the credit for this one. :) Bobby Stein 20:10, 14 March 2008 (UTC)

ArenaNet namespace

As we now have an ArenaNet namespace, we are trying to figure out what kind of information that would fit there, and we would love some input from ArenaNet people. If you have an idea, please share it :) The bug report section in your user space has been suggested to be moved to this ArenaNet namespace, so we would really like to have your opinion on this. If you want it moved, or if it should stay. And if moved, who should "take care" of it and how should it be handled. Community dicsussion is mostly centralized on ArenaNet talk:Portal, but feel free to respond here too :) - anja 13:06, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

It sounds like a great idea. I have no problem migrating the text bugs to a more centralized location on the wiki. Is this more for administrative functions, or do you also plan to link to ANet staff user pages from there, too? Bobby Stein 20:38, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

I think our goal is to make it a first stop for users who want to come in contact with the more Arenanet related parts of wiki, be it bug reports, suggestions, news or staff. So links to Anet staff user pages would also be a good idea. - anja 20:57, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

GTA IV is beast :D

Im rank 7 now. Its a sexy online game tbh. I wish g dubz had carz to steal and blood... yes, much blood in PvP ;). If you get hit with a meteor shower, there should be guts everywhere and people on vent should be screaming HOLY $%^& WTF!!!--24.195.135.159 15:22, 18 June 2008 (UTC)

You just made my day. Bobby Stein 23:40, 18 June 2008 (UTC)

Planescape: Torment...

...Is teh awesome!!111 It's one of my three favourite games, thanks mostly to the wonderful writing (although the soundtrack is also great). It amazes me how many details and how many subtleties that game has (incentally, there's a Factions quest that for some reason reminds me of that kind of writing, Messages, Messages Everywhere). Erasculio 23:52, 23 July 2008 (UTC)

I agree. I'm finding that it holds up quite well after all these years. It's my first time playing so it's a brand-new experience. I'd just gotten back into PC gaming when the game was released and was mostly playing the likes of Unreal Tournament, Half-Life, and the original Day of Defeat mod. I didn't really get into RPGs until Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic on Xbox. That hooked me on the genre and I've been going back in time trying to play the classic Western RPGs the past few years. Well, that's not entirely true. I played a share of titles on the Commodore 64 when I was a kid (some Forgotten Realms games, Bard's Tale, and a few others I can't quite remember). Any others you'd recommend? Bobby Stein 04:54, 24 July 2008 (UTC)

PS:T is a perfect example of how the story can make the game. That'd also be why it holds up over time. Actual gameplay is rather poor. Not terrible, but below par. But people tend to forget that, from their love for the story. Backsword 08:11, 24 July 2008 (UTC)

I have to admit that the combat so far in Planescape doesn't do much for me, but the setting, story, dialogue, and art style certainly make up for it. For me, the appeal of that game along with Fallout is the overall vibe. The first time I tried playing Fallout I was thrown for a loop with the whole action points mechanic. I was never into pen and paper RPGs as a kid so the whole thing was sort of lost on me. When I wrote the strategy guides for Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance and Advance Wars: Dual Strike I had to get used to turn-based combat, which I've never really enjoyed that much. I don't mind it, but prefer the faster pace of action RPGs and first person shooters. Bobby Stein 16:59, 26 July 2008 (UTC)

Panel Podcast?

If you know of a recording of your panel, I would love to hear it. Danke! --Ravious 17:05, 19 August 2008 (UTC)

There was a video camera in the back of the room, so assumedly the GCDC folks taped it. If it becomes available for download I'll let you know. I think it went pretty well, but we'll have to wait and see if anyone posts their reviews online to know for sure. :) Bobby Stein 22:02, 19 August 2008 (UTC)

Great! Thanks. Looking forward to it. --Ravious 12:21, 20 August 2008 (UTC)

I talked to the guys at Ten Ton Hammer. They said they have it, I think on video, and it will be up later this week, hopefully. --Ravious 18:40, 26 August 2008 (UTC)

I met the TTH guys at the Frankfurt airport. Really, really nice. I wanted to toss back a few cold ones with them but was tied up for the few days I was at Leipzig. My hotel was in the middle of nowhere (Merseburg) so it was difficult and expensive to get out. Looking forward to the video. Bobby Stein 21:58, 26 August 2008 (UTC)

Well looks like TTH decided not to upload it. That sucks. I love listening to panels, especially when ANet employees are involved. --Ravious 16:50, 8 September 2008 (UTC)

My assumption is that if their readers really want it, they'll post it. Let 'em know you're out there and see what happens. ;) Bobby Stein 17:24, 8 September 2008 (UTC)

I nudged my contact, he said that the audio gave out midway through, and it wasn't a good video anyway due to how they set up and how the place was packed. Anyway, if you ever get the free time (ha ha ha) to want to let your adoring fans know some cool stuff you said, I'd at least love to hear it. --Ravious 19:29, 8 September 2008 (UTC)

Gotcha. Yeah, the place was quite crowded (standing room only by the time we kicked off). There were definitely a few moments worth talking about. I'll put together a list of highlights and touch base with the other panelists to make sure I get the facts straight. Thanks for your interest. Bobby Stein 19:49, 8 September 2008 (UTC)

Panel Highlights

I realize this is a bit late, but in case anyone is interested in reading some of what we discussed at the Leipzig panel I've posted a few notes here.

• The session opened with moderator Stephane Bura introducing each of the panelists. He displayed some box art and book covers from a sampling of our published works, complete with embarrassing pictures.
• Our first topic covered metagames and how they enhance, complicate, or otherwise affect modern games.
• We took a quick turn into Guild Wars country and I described to the audience our title system, which was released to the public after the launch of the original game due to player feedback. While many players were enjoying PvP, a much larger vocal community of PvE players asked us for more post-game content.
• We implemented titles as a way to encourage players to approach the game differently, such as by exploring every section of every map and capturing every available skill.
• Part of our thinking was that if players wanted to "see and do more" they could use the titles as inspiration, but they were not required to do so to beat the game.
• This worked fine until the "great Ursan conflict," which tied a skill's PvE effectiveness to title level in such a manner that it fragmented the community. Some high-ranking players shunned others with lower ranks. We listened to all kinds of feedback and then responded with an update that we thought best served our community of players.
• I talked a bit about Shing Jea Sherman and how Colin Johanson, John Corpening, and myself put him together as a little recognition tool for players. Many folks like to be applauded for their efforts, so having an NPC broadcast one of your accomplishments was us dipping our toes into a much larger pool.
• Fellow panelists discussed their thoughts on similar mechanics. They felt that modern games were notably easier than games made 10 or 20 years ago, for better or worse.
• We all discussed some effective writing approaches to character creation in narratives.
• The panel went a little over schedule, but he had a few minutes to answer some questions. We started discussing our preferences in handling cinematics as a narrative device, and then the panel concluded.

I met a lot of cool people at Leipzig, many of whom were students preparing for careers in game development. Each day I tried to attend a least a couple of presentations and take notes. There are a lot of smart, creative people out there from all over the world. It helps to listen to your peers. Bobby Stein 05:55, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Nice, thanks for sharing your notes. We still have very little information from the gaming conventions, so knowing the kind of thing that was said is rather interesting. Also, funny to see Arena Net's point of view about the "great Ursan conflict" : D Erasculio 12:21, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Cool. Thanks for taking the time to put that up. I too really like Shing Jea Sherman. I know LOTRO (and undoubtedly other MMOs) have something similar where they will note player accomplishments as you walk by. Noteably in LOTRO, if you complete quests for some quest giver and run by they will thank you for the quest or give you a 10 word update. It's just a neat little thing, and I am glad you guys put it in. Peace. --Ravious 17:43, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

I am sorry but the "fracture" base on title discrimination, as you call it, happened as soon as the Tomb of the Primeval Kings (the infamous "Less than fame rank 3? Go away noob!") in HoH (thus way before the other titles were introduced in the game) and much later the DoA relase ("less than Lighbriger R7? Go away noob!"). It is true though that the ursan made it worse. So fr it has expanded to Team Arenas as well... Jaxom 01:01, 1 November 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for clarifying.Bobby Stein 04:49, 1 November 2008 (UTC)

Resolved Text bugs

Heya Bobby! I was looking to archive some of the resolved text bugs, but I see many of them still have notes from Andrew Patrick that there are still open tickets? These are from April... That page is getting a bit long, so can we get the resolved stuff archived? -- Wyn 19:00, 6 November 2008 (UTC)

Hi Wyn. I archived a bunch of resolved bugs over the past couple of days, but there are plenty of open ones that are floating around. Part of the confusion is when a bug is submitted via wiki and then opened internally, but later resolved in our bug tracking system but not updated online. I have a feeling that a bunch of these issues have been fixed but since the bug tracking number isn't listed on the wiki it's hard to match issues up. I'll talk to Mike Z. and we'll figure out the best way to handle it. I'll post an update soon. Thanks. Bobby Stein 19:13, 6 November 2008 (UTC)

Thanks Bobby! I hate to cause you more work, just trying to keep the wiki maintained. Also, the archives should probably be moved to ArenaNet namespace.-- Wyn 20:06, 6 November 2008 (UTC)