When Making Games, Do Individuals Matter?

There has been another high profile departure from a major game studio.  This time it’s Cliff Bleszinski who has left his post as Epic’s design director.  He has spent the last 20 years of his life working at epic.  While it is always sad to see good people go, what does this mean for the future of Epic?  What kind of impact will his departure have?

Creating video games is, with very few exceptions, a team effort.  Part of this is because the sheer amount of work required to put out a game precludes the feasibility of someone doing it on their own.  The other major reason has to do with the specialization required.  Creating a video game requires experts in 3d rendering, audio production, writing, testing, engine design and so on.  While smaller indie studios exist, most studios that put out triple-A games are much larger.  Just look at Ubisoft Montreal which boasts over 2,000 employees and has plans to raise that number even more.  In a studio with so many people contributing to the final product, how much does one individual really matter?

It obviously depends on the individual.  Every project has at least one person who shoulders much of the responsibility when it comes to overall game design and direction.  The past several years provide many examples of how important these people can be.  Let’s start by taking a look at Brent Knowles.  He was a long time Bioware employee who was involved with Baldur’s Gate, Neverwinter Nights, and Dragon Age: Origins.  Even if you are not the RPG type you will undoubtedly respect such a resume.  For much of his tenure at Bioware, including his time on DA:O, he served as Creative Director and Lead Designer.

Then development and discussions on Dragon Age II began.  In his blog and elsewhere, Knowles talks about how he saw where the franchise was going, knew he wasn’t going to be satisfied working on that type of project, and quit.  Dragon Age II ended up being a prime example of how to tarnish a great, new IP.  Dragon Age: Origins told a deeply moving and exciting story, brought characters to life, and was a joy to play.  It was announced in 2004 and released in 2009, providing at least 5 years of development time.  Dragon Age II on the other hand was a rushed, sub-par product designed to fill EA coffers.

Another example can be seen with Ken Levine.  With a background in screenwriting he was heavily involved with Thief: The Dark Project, System Shock 2, and of course the masterfully told Bioshock.  Along the way the studio he helped found was bought out by Take-Two Interactive.  Since Bioshock‘s release, Levine has been hard at work as Creative Director over Bioshock: Infinite.  So, what about Bioshock 2?  While not a poorly rated game, it was an obvious step down from the original.

Patrice Desilets provides yet another example.  With a background in film and literature, he served as the Creative Director for Assassin’s Creed and Assassin’s Creed II.  He left Ubisoft during the development of Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood.  When he left, all the official statements pointed to the fact that his role in designing the game was essentially finished.  So here we have someone who helped give birth to a great, new IP and was involved with a couple fantastic sequels.

Desilets is often quoted discussing how Assassin’s Creed was always designed to be a trilogy.  Many hold the opinion that at least part of the reason for his departure was Ubisoft’s insistence on having a sequel released every year, forever.  So how responsible is Desilets for the success of Assassin’s Creed?  At this point it seems to be quite a bit.  The most recent release, Assassin’s Creed: Revelations, was developed after he left the studio.  To everyone familiar with the franchise it was a clear step in the wrong direction.  While Ubisoft likes to place the blame on the consumers merely being saturated with Ezio and ready for something new, that is far from the truth.  I would happily welcome more Ezio based games as long as they could deliver a compelling story and fun gameplay at a quality level similar to the games Desilets worked on.   With the release date of Assassin’s Creed 3 just a few weeks away, we will soon be able to see whether Ubisoft Montreal has been able to right the ship.  As for Desilets, he is now at THQ and I have a feeling we will see something good come from that relationship.

In a lot of cases it can be hard to pinpoint the exact cause and effect.  Is the departure of these individuals the contributing factor behind the subsequent quality loss?  What about the push from up the chain of command to pump out sequels faster in a more brazen attempt to squeeze out more profits?  While there are many factors involved, it is clear that individuals do matter.