Quake Map Magazine - Carson Utz

#### With the highly regarded Castles of Stroggos to his credit, Brian forges ahead in his creation of a trilogy and releases Castles of Stroggos 2: Stroggship. What's next from this 15 year old wunderkind?

Ah, the life of Brian. Hmm, I'm your average 15 year-old teenager who has a special hankering for virtual gratuitous violence and creative expression. I've been an avid game player since the pre-Wolfensteinian era. I like Pepsi, Doritos, girls, Steven King, the works of H.R. Giger (Alien), my canine buddy Laddie, playing guitar, listening to Bush and Green Day, among other things. I live in the small town of Virden, Manitoba, which can usually be found somewhere in the middle of Canada. =)

This would have to be my latest level set for Quake 2, Castles of Stroggos 2: Stroggship. My debut level set, Castles of Stroggos, has been extremely popular with the SPQ2 Community. So for Stroggship, I focussed on recreating the elements that have made the COS series so popular, while addressing some problems that plagued COS1 (bugs, speed problems). I think the reason that COS1 was so popular is because it was different than most of the other stuff out there, so I tried to work with these elements in the sequel. In the end it worked out great.
Many level authors, including myself, struggle for inspiration at one time or another. I think it is one of the most important aspects in a quality level, but when authors find themselves lacking in this area it can get frustrating. The solution, for me, is to go back over what I have created, compare that with what my original goals and hopes were for the area, and see how things stack up. I usually have a concept for each area in my head beforehand (like say action, suspense, architecture) for what the area's main purpose is.

I think a lot can be learned from other medium (television, movies, books, etc.) that can also be applied to games. The Alien movies (with the exception of that last one, was that a cheap cash in or what?!) are great sources of inspiration for me, not architecturally but rather atmospherically. Also, other games are great for inspiration. Who doesn't remember their first encounter with the menacing fiend from Quake?

I make a habit of trying to play every user-made SP level for Quake2, because I can't get enough of this game and I am always looking for more. There are many great authors out there, but some notable mentions (my personal favorites) would have to be Neil Manke (his creativity astounds me more with every level he releases), Marty Howe (his levels always excel in architecture and action), and YooShin Yang, among others.

Quake 2 was a revolution in gaming. Some people look down on id games because of their trademark low story, high action premise (don't think, shoot!), but id's extreme success in the industry says something different. All the new story-enriched FPS titles
coming out in the last while and in the next few months are certainly welcome, but as I see it there will always be a place for a pure action game, served id software style. =)

With the slew of cool FPS games coming out in the next minute (or so it seems after a long time waiting), it is a hard choice to decide which I will edit in the future (Sin, Half-Life, Blood2, and Duke Nukem Forever on my must buy list). I have an idea (rather a glimmer in my eye) for a project for Half-Life, which I cannot tell you about quite yet because nothing is set in stone. I'll give you a few buzzwords to chew on in the meantime: "A Stylistic, Story Rich Action/Adventure Extravaganza of Epic Proportions." =)

I started using Worldcraft for Quake 1, and have stuck with Worldcraft ever since. It was easy to learn and use, while still being powerful enough to be effective when I got deeper into designing. I've tried other editors which all have great things going for them, but were all lacking in some area (be it performance, ease of use, etc.) My machine right now is a P200 MMX with 96MB ram, but it is only now starting to show its age. I'm looking forward to a new computer very soon, if only for the prospect of playing LAN Quake 2 again.

When I'm not designing levels for Quake 2, I'm probably playing them. =) But seriously, I enjoy drawing (although lately my mad Skillz have started to get a bit rusty), playing electric guitar (well, I'm not good enough to actually subject a human being to my idle riffing for any other reason than torture or revenge =) I write a bit, but lately only the plot lines for my Quake 2 levels.

The regular Quake 2 sites: Blue’s, Planet Quake, PC Gamer and game specific sites. I also regularly visit Rust, because of all the great tutorials, design articles, and all the great people on the Quake 2 message board there.

Right now I'm starting work on COS3: Unnamed, which is the final level set in the Castles of Stroggos series (saga?). I have plans for future projects for other games, but I'm keeping them under wraps right now.

Thanks Igor for the interview! I'd also like to take the time to thank everyone in the Quake 2 community, from people who sent me kind words about my levels, to the webmasters, to just anyone who plays Quake 2. If the online gaming community were to become a country, it would the second best darned country in the world! Man, I need a Pepsi. Bye! (Goes to fridge)

~Brian Griffith - November 4, 1998

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