People Behind the Scene – Francis

People behind the scene: Francis, Senior ”Duct Tape” Artist, at GolemLabs Studios.

!WARNING!

Warning: what you will read in a couple of days doesn’t represent the ethic and the seriousness of our work, or anything. Or does it?…

Francis, our Senior ‘’Duct Tape’’ Artist, poured his heart out in his interview this week. And we assure you that it doesn’t happen very often around here… So we want you to enjoy it as much as we did!

All joking aside, Francis and his two minions (Pierre-Olivier and Charles) talked about The Guild 3, the rivalry between artists and programmers (again) and the beautiful chemistry that still exists at GolemLabs Studios, despite everything! Enjoy!

PO- Do you love your job?

Francis- Yes.

PO- That’s it? Are you gonna answer to all the questions like that? It’s gonna be one short interview…

Francis- I love my job. I love working with young people. It keeps me on my toes and keeps things fresh around here.

PO- What do you like, exactly, about working with young people?

Francis- I have to keep pace with the newest trends and it’s a good thing. I tend to be old school and seeing new faces with new ideas and new ways to do things keeps things refreshing.

PO- What did you like the most, working on The Guild 3?

Francis- I liked the uncertainties in the beginning. Mostly getting familiar with the technology. Like the first houses I did. There were no limits. Parameters were not yet defined and it truly felt like we could do anything. It was nice.

Charles- Of all the things that you’ve done, what do you think was the most useful?

Francis- (laughs) Hiring you two, guys. And keeping you motivated.

Charles- We are the most important things in The Guild 3…

Francis- Well… Pushing for more artists to work on the game, that’s for sure an important thing. But seriously… We artists do have a great team spirit and I have to say I’m really proud of that. My small contribution to it is what I am most proud of. But on a technical basis, I am more of a bridge between artists and programmers. Back in the day, I was nicknamed The Duct Tape. It hasn’t really changed. I often have to find ways to work past technical limitations; to find ways that artists and programmers can work hand in hand together.

PO- Are you talking about shaders and stuff like that?

Francis- Yeah… Like making sure that things are well integrated, virtually speaking. And in spite of the programmers’ limitations.

PO- Speaking of programmers, what do you think of them?

Francis– The what…? Oh, well… I think they’re doing the best they can. (laughs)

Charles- What a politically correct answer.

Francis- They are a small team but nonetheless, I do think they did a fantastic job. We easily could have been at least 50% bigger, working on a project as big as this one. But we all managed to pull it off anyway. They really did a fantastic job. They worked really hard. Especially if we consider that we always shower them with all kinds of demands. But let me add that I never felt like there was this big competition between artists and programmers. I’ve heard of it, of course. It is common in the gaming industry. But I never felt it. Maybe programmers are more aware of it. Or maybe it’s because we artists are doing what we have to do and we do it well. But all this talk about this competition between artists and programmers never made much sense to me. I love programmers. I want them to be happy. They have so many challenges to meet.

PO- And what are your thoughts on the models in the game?

Francis- I’m really satisfied. Especially when you consider that we didn’t have a firsthand access to medieval buildings like the ones you will find in Europe. Visually, we just couldn’t walk in the streets and soak it all up. We had to rely on the images that were provided to us. The models may not be 100% accurate but I truly believe that realistically speaking, the players will be pleased. And to be honest, we had some technical limitations. But overall, I’m really satisfied.

Charles- I’m curious to know… How do you react to critics from the players?

Francis- I love them, quite frankly. It means that people are paying attention to me. I find it heartwarming.  Do you have something particular in mind?

Charles- Well… Some critics can be helpful. But some can be way over the top.

Francis- I’ll admit that the over the top critics can be kind of startling at first. To know that what you do can provoke such an outburst of, of…

Charles- … of hate?

Francis- Yeah… It makes you think about the person who criticized. It makes you wonder: what happened to them, in the past, to react in such a harsh way.

Charles- Someone even went as far as saying that you should be fired. Were you ever afraid to lose your job?

Francis- I never really thought about that. Honestly, I try to keep an emotional distance between myself and over the top critics. I’ve been working in the industry for so many years now that I’ve learned not to take it personal.

PO- Some critics can be very helpful, though…

Francis- Of course. And those, I’ll consider. Even though I have to admit that they will hurt more. Because sometimes, when I get wind of certain things, I find it frustrating to not have thought about those things by myself, in the first place.

Charles- Where do you see yourself in ten years?

Francis- On a yacht somewhere? I want to get rich. I hope The Guild 3 will make me rich. I’ll make Guild Go[1] and it will make me rich! (laughs) Gotta catch that Balbulus!

Charles- Even though you are, you don’t like calling yourself our lead. Why is that?

Francis- Well… I prefer the cooperative approach. I’m not big on hierarchy. For me, to be able to be productive, I need to know that we’re all working as a team; that we can talk things through and that everyone can work well on their own. I’m aware that some people need structures and like being told what to do. And that’s fine. But that’s not my favourite approach. I love people who are resourceful, people who will initiate things on their own.

Charles- Well… That’s it for me. I don’t have any more questions.

PO- Same here. I’m done.

Francis- Ok, then. Let’s go back to work.

[1] In case you live under a rock, it’s a little allusion to the new popular game Pokemon Go.