In the fifth and final installment discussing Hitman 2: SilentAssassin, we talk to Janos Flösser, the founding Managing Directorof IO Interactive and ultimately the Chief Creative Officer forEurope for Square Enix.

Podcast breakdown:

0:22      Intro

1:27      Interview part 1

31:52    Break

32:20    Interview part 2

1:11:24 Break

1:11:45 Next time

Issues covered: Janos's history and establishmentof IO Interactive, Scandinavian demo scene, prototype investment toseek publisher and advance royalty funding, character first, "wehumans mess up everything... but we keep going," cloning, tone andthemes, Eastern European dictatorship, orphans, virtual revenge,iconic design in mannerisms and feel, what makes stories matter,ultimate conflict between humans, epic scope, how people play,voluntary/outside of life/fantasy, character and genre, processingpower at the time, interaction between characters, MDA framework,building technology, character identification, replayable design,reflection of the player in the play style, rankings: meaning andrules, competitiveness, irony, ninja extraordinaire, Brazilianjiu-jitsu, stat collection, balancing, dopamine loop, managingdysfunctionality, adaptation, save functionality - "there's no savegame in real life," budget, QAing a Hitman game, usertesting/user experience, insight into the statistics drivingfeature development, emotional reward, different sorts ofsuccesses, open world, hub-style level organization, concluding agame, water cooler talk, angry parents, provocation, verbs andfreedom of expression, cloth, foliage, rag dolls, "bullet time,"tech supporting a vibrant environment, symphony orchestra,franchise iteration, staying in character, expanding the world,"people had it coming," absurdity, engine development, "no nuns,"child soldiers in Africa, controversy, innovation, VR, interfacechallenges, looking forward.

Games, people, and influences mentioned ordiscussed: IO Interactive, Nordisk Film, Atari, RasmusKjær, Frankenstein, Hamlet, Icarus, James Bond vsJohn Le Carré, Ceaucescu, Dr. Ortmeyer, Coca-Cola, Tim Schafer,Day of the Tentacle, Brütal Lëgend, Jesper VorsholtJørgensen, MacBeth, Terminator, Johan Huizinga,Homo Ludens, Tomb Raider, Square Enix, Max Payne,Remedy, Lumberyard, Epic, Unreal, Unity, Eidos, Crystal Dynamics,Noah Hughes, Uncharted, Hitman (2016), Rebel FM,Hitman: Blood Money, Skyrim, Fallout 3/4, Far Cry series,Thomas Jakobsen, Jesper Kyd, Hakon Steinø, Oblivion, Xbox360.

Next time:
Final Fantasy IX, up to battle with Beatrix

@brett_douville, @timlongojr, and @devgameclub
[email protected]