What's Your REAL Job, Robb?

[Yankee cannonball]

You make video games and love roller coasters, and you can attend IAPPA and probably E3, damn, I can't think of anyone with a cooler job/hobby/life!

[astroworldfan1]

You have a cool job, Robb. I thought Elissa worked for Magic Mountain. Didn't she at one time?

[ebl]

GuruGuy, I read your post and can really feel for you. I've been drawing a rather simple, but much appreciated comic strip for many years. A number of friends and family members have suggested that I publish the strip.

 

After reading some of the horror stories that go along with that, I've decided to keep the strip as a fun hobby and treat for those close to me. It's always a great thing to turn something you enjoy doing into a career, but as you've said, GG, it becomes your job and you can get burned out or screwed by others in the industry.

 

From what I've heard, those who draw comic strips are all but owned by the distribution syndicates. A few have made it big---Charles Schulz (Peanuts), Jim Davis (Garfield), and Scott Adams (Dilbert).

 

But those are few and far between.

 

Eric

[johnusername]

I loved the Aladdin game, it was the only good game based on a movie.

[Rollerman87]

GuruGuy, I read your post and can really feel for you. I've been drawing a rather simple, but much appreciated comic strip for many years. A number of friends and family members have suggested that I publish the strip.

 

After reading some of the horror stories that go along with that, I've decided to keep the strip as a fun hobby and treat for those close to me. It's always a great thing to turn something you enjoy doing into a career, but as you've said, GG, it becomes your job and you can get burned out or screwed by others in the industry.

 

From what I've heard, those who draw comic strips are all but owned by the distribution syndicates. A few have made it big---Charles Schulz (Peanuts), Jim Davis (Garfield), and Scott Adams (Dilbert).

 

But those are few and far between.

 

Eric

 

You should "publish" a few to your extended family We'd love to see our "Senior member's" other hobbies

[Raider82]

Ok I'm officially jealous now Robb! You work in the video game industry and have been to more theme parks then I have been. Video games and theme parks are my favorite things, and you get to do both!

 

What game are you working on now Robb?

[The Bebes]

Wow, Rob, I've never seen someone link to IMDB for a gaming resume. NEAT! Since everyone is posting their imdb credits here, I thought I'd post mine as well.

 

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1735868/

[Allena.k.a.Alan]

WOW! I never knew that you're on IMDB! Have you considered making games related to theme parks and roller coasters before?

[jjune4991]

^ I'm sure that's never crossed his mind...

 

EDIT: never ever ever

[Allena.k.a.Alan]

^ Haha.

 

^^But I'm sure that he thought about it sometimes.

 

ADMIN EDIT: Please do not double post. If you want to reply to a thread in which you were the last poster, please go back and edit your previous post.

[Corcoran]

most your stuff states your a producer, so what does that en-detail,

 

do you have your hands on a developer kit for PS3?

 

do you think that a couple of rubber flaps overlaping from between one car to the other on the train of terminator the ride would be feasable to help deaden the track noise funnaling up between the cars of the train canceling out the sounds from the speakers? like i posted in the terminator thread.

 

who would i talk to at sfmm to throw a few ideas around? and possibly get employed doing such. no education past high school, self taught electronics creator( simple stuff like the craftsman hat with the LEDs "I" created the original one when i was working "02" HAUNT at KBF i still have the original granted it wasn't built as nice), outside of the box thinker

[CorkscrewFoley]

^ I'm sure that's never crossed his mind...

 

EDIT: never ever ever

 

Nah, I think he'd rather do a game about donkeys first...

[Guest]

Do you know someone named Zak kitslaar He is working on halo stuff

[The Doctor]

this has probably been answered but I did not feel like digging through the 14 pages for the answer

 

In the first page you say you worked for a studio that is now defunct. Based on my understanding grey matter got merged into treyarch for the most part. So my question is what studio do you work for now? treyarch? activision?

 

oh and I just want to say I am pretty sure I read that cod IGN interview back in the day when i had no idea who you were

[robbalvey]

^ Sorry I never got around to answering this.

 

Gray Matter was indeed folded into Treyarch but the studios were both VERY different. Gray Matter was like 25-30 people, small company mentality even though it was owned by a much larger company.

 

When we became part of Treyarch the team grey to nearly 100 people and we were one of three teams at the studio. Much bigger company, a lot more "corporate mentality", very different. Not bad, just different.

 

So from my perspective the old studio (Gray Matter) was now "defunct" at least as we knew it.

 

I now work for WayForward and just finished up A Boy and His Blob for Wii.

 

--Robb

[Volt]

Read the first and last page only, and I know it all

 

Anyways, why don't you work with Treyarch anymore? You could have gotten me some early info on CoD:BO (Call of Duty:Black Ops for teh nubz)

[G$ Kurt]

Hey Robb, I decided to post my question here since it is somewhat related to your job as a video game producer. but anywho..

 

All of the questions here are hypothetical, my real question to you comes at the end of all this.

 

I'm a senior at Southern ILL University and am starting work on my possible thesis for grad school (if I end up going) on the odd and unique relationship between the game industry and Parks. While video games are becoming a threat to parks and the rest of the tourism industry, parks continue to use video games as promotional items within their parks. i.e. Rockband Live, Six Flag's Nintendo Wii Experience, Sonic themed rides.. Disney with its short lived nation-wide Disney quest idea and even into today with interactive games such as Kim Possible at Epcot has shown that Disney has recognized the social shift towards video game experiences. The popularity of "Lazer targeted" dark rides is also evidence of this trend. Also important to note is the fact that amusement parks of old help build the arcade business in turn revolutionizing the gaming industry into what it is today. Can parks continue to be a proving ground for video games or game experiences? Has the whole gaming industry been targeting tourism or amusement parks, or has it been social changes that have brought about this competition between industries? It is my goal to further assess these social changes and see how amusement parks can and will adapt. Though the amusement park industry cannot compete directly with gaming in terms of technological advances, can it in user interface and experience? This is all just a small mish-mash of my many ideas I'm trying to comprehend/organize.

 

So my question to you kind sir is... has there been to your knowledge any work (articles or publications or references) in the gaming industry or the park industry about any of this?

 

Thank you, and I'll leave with the best quote on this topic I've found so far. From the infinite wisdom of Dick Kinzel...

 

"Our biggest competitor right now is electronics. We have to get the teenagers off of the couch, away from their computers and their sport box's and get them out and get them to participate in activities as opposed to just doing it on the internet."

 

 

-Kurt "Wth is a sport box" Boek

Edited July 3, 2010 by G$ Kurt

[CoNNoR]

hello rob i was just wondering what video games have you worked on that has come to the UK and what role do you play in making the video games.

 

Connor 'love gears of war' Walker-Morrison

[mightbeawannabe]

This just struck me as odd when I looked at the dates on the front page, but how do you and Elissa both get all the vacation time for the trips? Because there's what, three big ones a year with each like a week long (or more) and a whole bunch of smaller events that you guys attend.

[fatdaddy]

It is my goal to further asses

 

Thats one hell of a goal.

[G$ Kurt]

HAHA, Thanks. My bad

[Thuur]

When you want to be a game level designer/character creator/animator/anything with 3d modelling, a good place to start is in a company like the place I work (3DIMERCE.com). Next to my management tasks, I also am the internship coach for students who take their internship at our place and help them live their dreams (Or at least... take 8 hours of their day and fill it with 3d-related stuff)

 

We create CGI-content for consumer electronics, which can be used troughout the lifecycle of the product (Consumer electronics are in a fast moving market so timing is key here). We are good in creating concepts for animations and on the technical field we are market leader (In terms of quality and reality). We learn lots of students who want to be in the gaming industry how a company structure works (You can learn this in any good structured company though), besides that we also learn them concept creating/storyboarding/writing scripts and the technical aspects of 3d modelling.

 

Can be a good start! We have seen people grow towards gaming companies (Small companies, but it is a start) However, those were all 3d-creators.

[Mozart67]

Hey Robb. I've been deciding whether I should ask this question for around 2 years now, and am finally getting around to it. I wondered if you (or anyone) would have any advice, suggestions, etc. for someone wanting to get into the soundtracking/composition end of the videogame/interactive media industry. I'm facing rock and roll at age 42 well enough, but I have always wanted to cast my stones into the composition side of gaming, which I have no experience whatsoever, other than performing pieces from SquareSoft, Enix and Atlus games in my classical concerts.

 

Feel free to message me here, PM, or my email.

 

 

Scott "reinvention is the only reason I'm still sane" Mayfield

[robbalvey]

^ I wish I had some advice for you, but I don't. I know of video game composers that we use, but I don't actually know how they got there! Most of the ones we use are freelance and any new ones we have kind of heard about "from other people."

 

There really isn't any formula on how to get into the business.

 

I guess if I had to make suggestions, I'd do a google search for established people in the industry, put together a demo reel, and contact them to see if they need any backups.

 

A lot of times we'll have a guy that's really swamped, and he'll use one or two other guys to help out.

 

Not sure if this is helpful or not, but it's all the advice I can give.

 

--Robb

[Wingwright]

Awesome...you work for WayForward?! You must know the Bozons then. I used to listen to Mark's podcast back when he was at IGN.

Come to think of it, he often mentioned his love of Magic Mountain. Did you guys ever go together?