Spicy Horse artist Tyler Lockett did this Alice image in celebration of Halloween. Cool, huh?
Monthly Archives: October 2007
Grimmy Halloween!
Happy Halloween from GameTap!
To mark this dark day, they’ve launched the official placeholder for the official “Grimm” site. Check it out here.
And they’ve prepared a spooky Halloween card for everyone:
Happy Halloween!
Dear Insane Children,
Woooo! Halloween! Our favorite night of the year!
Alex brings you a TREAT – a further evolution of the Alice poster he’s working on. He says of this…
Happy Halloween guys! I just wanted to get this one into you tonight, another WIP, and you can see this poster has turned into a 2-in-1 style, with Alice and her Shadow getting equal billing on the poster.
A few things to note, the “Shadow” concept design is a new one that really just spilled out of my pen as I was sketching, and I was interested to see where she went.
It’s an amalgamation of Alice, Hysteria Alice, Rage Alice and the new Flame styled Alice for Asylum. I wanted something with claws, and I can see her flesh moving and twisting like broken lava and flowing embers. Chaos symbol on her forehead also. Something that all those broken psyches might look like rolled into one form.
I’ve not been able to revisit the face yet, and some proportions will need tweaking to bring the two more in line with one another, but just wanted to share the direction for where this one is heading.
I estimate I’ll have this one nailed in another one or two sittings.
Am liking the composition and movement in this one.
What do you think? Is this one finding a place on your wall?
Halloween Livestream
In case you missed it, here’s a LINK TO the Halloween livestream.
Special guest Roger L. Jackson joined us to discuss his role as the Cheshire Cat, Mad Hatter, and other characters in the Alice series. We also had a look at updates to the White Rabbit Plush design art, the latest “Shadow Alice” image from Omri, and more.
When you’re done trick-or-treat’ing, give it a watch!
From myself, Martin, Lulu, and all of the Alice: Asylum team – we hope everyone is having a wicked night filled with costumes, tricks, and fun!
From Shanghai with Wooooo,
-American (and Lulu)
UE3 Level Designer Incubation
My entrance into the game industry was a bit of pure luck.
In 1993, John Carmack plucked me from an illustrious job as auto mechanic and dropped me into the role of tech support/tester at id Software. I was a high school drop-out with few prospects, a passion for games, and a strong desire to make something better of myself. It was the opportunity of a lifetime.
15 years later, I am acutely aware of how much I owe John for giving me that chance to prove myself. And I’ve always believed that a story like mine is the ultimate proof that anyone can make anything of themselves as long as they’re able to see beyond the present and apply themselves to the future they want.
Today, as I look around the Spicy Horse offices in Shanghai I see new versions of this same story being written. I’ve “paid it forward” for several of our team members, and they’re shining in the roles that have been handed them. Really wonderful.
Only, I want to do more.
I want to expand on and formalize the idea of extending opportunity to people who have the desire and ability to move beyond their current, limited stations in life.
With that in mind, we’re launching a program where we accept applications from people who want to break into the game industry. To start, I’m looking for 3 individuals who would be willing to accept trial intern Level Designer positions at our Shanghai office.
This isn’t an unqualified invitation. Just as Carmack must have seen something “more” in me, we’re looking for unique individuals who fit this template:
-Gamer experience
-Artistic eye
-Strong core computer skills
-Devoted and passionate
-Self motivated
-Resourceful
-Inquisitive, curious
-Strong spatial sense
If you’re in Shanghai, looking for a unique opportunity to create interesting games, and ready to challenge yourself, then please contact me.
Yellow Mountain – Company Trip
Last weekend, as part of a Spicy Horse team building adventure, we took the company to China’s equivalent of the Grand Canyon – Yellow Mountain. Also known as Mt. Huangshan, Yellow Mountain refers to an area of scenic mountains, rivers, waterfalls, and gorges in Anhui province.
Our adventure began at the Spicy offices in Shanghai. We arranged to have a big bus take us two hours south to Hangzhou for dinner, then on to Anhui and the base of the Yellow Mountain region. About 25 people from Spicy and another 10 from Red Rocket (our buddy Jung’s game company) loaded onto the bus at 4 in the afternoon. Shanghai rush hour traffic, here we come!
After a yummy dinner in Hangzhou we drove 4 hours to Yellow Mountain. It was midnight when we arrived, the village was dead quiet and seemed deserted. This would be the last time for the next two days things would feel quiet and empty.
As it turns out, large numbers of Chinese people really like to visit Yellow Mountain. Really large numbers. Upon arriving at the mountain we discovered that half of China had decided to take advantage of the nice weather and visit the mountain. Oops. Who knew mountains had waiting lines?
We spent hours queuing up and down the beautiful terrain. Our fellow mountain tourists were in fine form: pushing, shoving, and generally misbehaving – all while precariously shambling along too-narrow paths over 1000ft cliff sides. Never underestimate Chinese ambition to get ahead at any cost – even when “ahead of what” isn’t at all clear. (Do you sense sarcasm? Visit the mountain, you’ll get where it’s coming from.)
Mountain conquered, we retired to a tranquil bamboo forest lodge. Dinner on the mountain costs more, tastes worse, and takes longer to arrive – but after a long day of hiking and starving, everything seems heavenly. Much Chinese white liquor was consumed, many toasts were made – and as usual I felt like the luckiest man alive. Life in China and time spent building a team – ultimately, the closest many of us have to family here – is sometimes more rewarding than words can express.
Sentiment and sleep passed, the next morning arrives in true China fashion – workers clanging metal against stone. 6am. Apparently stone in China deserves loud punishment – for what exactly, unknown. Anyway, sleep is overrated.
More bus. A visit to where the beautiful “bamboo forest flying” scenes were shot in “Crouch Tiger, Hidden Dragon”. Moments reflecting by crystal blue waters. Then more bus. We stopped in a village called Hong Cun for lunch. Stepping through homes built during the Qing dynasty – in 1646! – one is humbled by the history and longevity of Chinese culture. Where else do people make their lives in homes that are 360 years old?
Riding back into Shanghai I realized something funny… what I once considered an overly chaotic and irrationally hurried city – something too big and brash to get close to – now feels warm, familiar, and comforting. It’s always good to come back home.