Dev Game Club 009: Hitman 2 (part 4) - a podcast by Brett Douville and Tim Longo

In this fourth episode of discussing Hitman 2: Silent Assassin
on Dev Game Club, we wrap up our play-through, and then turn to a
discussion of what we feel are the game's pillars, discuss
iterating on a series, and announce both a guest and our next game!
Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them
over several episodes, providing commentary.

Sections played:

Temple City Ambush

Death Of Hannelore

Terminal Hospitality

St. Petersburg Revisited

Redemption At Gontranno

Podcast breakdown:

0:24        Intro

4:38        Segment 1: Discussion of final five
levels

1:00:45   Break

1:01:26   Segment 2: Pillars, series iteration, guest, next
game

Issues covered: professional vs silent assassin
rating, level clockwork vs more open plans, limitations on
character models, padding for length and content, voice acting and
the strength of the LucasArts voice department, voice talent in
European vs Japanese games, evolution of localization, Brett's
personal story arc with Hitman 2, cinematic set-up and production
scheduling, when timing looks like scripting, reading designer
intent, when the series really shines, competence wish fulfillment,
heist planning, planning out how to pace missions over the course
of a game, story arc construction and story influences, "Hitmen
don't take the bus," artistic moments vs the "bro" aesthetic,
wishing for an opposite and equivalent enemy, making last level
something different from the rest of the game, MDA framework,
iteration on smaller scale and behind closed doors vs in public,
supporting a feature fully, full support of player intent, the
limitations of direct combat as a basis for games, sanding away
rough edges, usability testing.

Specific links:

Philippa Warr, Rock Paper Shotgun: "https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2016/04/20/the-witness-island-design/">The
Great Outdoors: The Witness

Stephen Totilo, Kotaku: "http://kotaku.com/what-a-fan-learned-about-game-development-by-making-his-1772325300">What
A Fan Learned About Game Development By Making His Own Star Wars
Games

Games, people, and influences mentioned or
discussed: Philippa Warr, The Witness, Jedi
Starfighter, Charlie Rocket, Sterling James, David Cage, Ellen
Page, Willem Dafoe, Beyond: Two Souls, Life Is Strange, Quantum
Break, Fallout 4, FX, Bryan Brown, Brian Dennehy, Hitman:
Blood Money, Clue, House of Cards, Kevin Spacey, Robin Wright,
Pulp Fiction, Quentin Tarantino, Starfighter, TIE
Fighter, Aliens, Blade Runner, Star Wars, In the Line of Fire,
Clint Eastwood, Assassin's Creed, Doom, Quake, Half-Life
2, Timothy Olyphant, Hitman (2007 film), Lara Croft,
Hitman (2016), Hitman: Absolution, Project: Spark, Half-Life,
Uncharted 4, Ratchet & Clank series, Republic
Commando, Tomb Raider, Square Enix, Eidos, IO Interactive, Ken
Levine, Final Fantasy (VII, XV, Tactics, and of course,
IX), Baldur's Gate, The Witcher III, Metal Gear Solid.

Next time:

Interview with Janos Flosser

Next game: Final Fantasy IX! Play up through Beatrix and
ensuing cutscene.

@brett_douville, @timlongojr, and @devgameclub

DevGameClub@gmail.com

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