5:57 PM
Dave Martin
Growing up, technology played a major role for my friends and I. It was always about who has the latest gadget or widget on the market. Before we were old enough for cell phones (and girls) we raved over what we thought was the best thing ever: video games. During the summer of 1994 a game by the name of Crash Bandicoot was released and quickly became the hot game to have. Unfortunately, I didn’t get hooked until the sequel “Crash 2: The Wrath of Cortex” but once I got into the franchise I was unequivocally a fan.
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| http://www.toy-tma.com/ I’d like to talk briefly about the development of Crash Bandicoot. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the game, Crash was released in the early 1990's during the transition from the Super Nintendo Entertainment System to the N64 era. In my research I came across a series of blog posts by Andy Gavin, co-founders of Naughty Dog, Inc. and one of the of the creators of the Crash series. Andy describes how he and partner Jason Rubin became involved in creating what would eventually be one of the best selling video games of the PlayStation’s lifetime. Andy and Jason cover topics from basic character creation to specific coding dilemmas. The most interesting aspect of the blog was the idea of being at the forefront of a transition. One of the biggest issues Crash faced was translating a traditionally two-dimensional genre into a three-dimensional world. Where past games had two directions (right, which meant progression, and left, which meant regression), Andy and Naughty Dog had to decide how best to create levels that could illustrate this progression in a fully developed environment. Initially the team, knowing they were creating a three-dimensional game, started off by creating a three-dimensional level for their character to explore. After creating two test levels that lacked fundamental elements of platforming and functionality, the team reverted back to their roots. They did this by creating a two dimensional level that allowed for three-dimensional movement. The video below better illustrates this idea. |
After successfully creating this level, the team moved onward into more highly detailed and developed levels with a variety of skins and themes. Eventually, the team made their first jungle-based level with three full dimensions of movement, as seen below.
This approach to product management really provides a lesson to businesses of all types. When creating and implementing a new idea, it is best to take what you’re already good at or what you’ve already done and expand. Without taking the steps between two ideas you are much more likely to run into difficulty, like Andy and his team did the first time around. By revisiting what you already know and building upon it, you can more easily move into new, uncharted territory. Please feel free to leave any questions or feedback below in the comments section. For more information on this wonderful series of blog posts, please visit Andy’s blog.
And finally, for your viewing pleasure, the supposedly hardest level in the game: Sunset Vista.
And finally, for your viewing pleasure, the supposedly hardest level in the game: Sunset Vista.
Wasn't that fun?
