The conversation revolves around the development of The Last of Us, a survival horror game. The developers discuss how their perception of the gaming industry has changed over time, shifting from being seen as "geeks" to being viewed as heroes for creating successful games.
The team shares their inspirations, including games like Donkey Kong Country, Resident Evil, and the work of Fumito Ueda (Team Ico) and Shinji Mikami. They also discuss how they drew inspiration from films like No Country for Old Men, which influenced their approach to storytelling and character development.
Neil Druckmann, the game's creative director, talks about his goal of creating a non-sexualized, feminist protagonist in Ellie, and how he wanted to make a character-driven game that would connect with players on an emotional level.
The developers also share their experiences with the game's voice actors, including Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson, and the challenges they faced during production, including crunch time and re-shooting scenes.
Throughout the conversation, the team emphasizes the importance of passion, creativity, and taking risks in game development. They also highlight the impact that games can have on players and the industry as a whole.
Here are the extracted facts:
1. Jason says that if you asked their parents about their game development activities when they were younger, their parents would say they were supportive.
2. Erick received a call from a place called "Daughty Dog" which he thought was an adult film studio.
3. Andy, Mark, and others were playing a lot of Donkey Kong Country and wanted to make a 3D game like it.
4. They thought it would be a great opportunity to try making a 3D character action game.
5. Bruce says that making Uncharted 2 was a crucial experience for their team.
6. Amy Hennig was a great game designer and had a mentor role for Neil.
7. Neil Druckmann worked with Amy Hennig on Uncharted 1 and learned a lot from her.
8. Bruce went to Japan and visited the Team Ico studio, where he met Fumito Ueda.
9. Fumito Ueda's game made Bruce cry, which was a new experience for him as a gamer.
10. Bruce was inspired by Fumito Ueda's game design approach.
11. Neil and Bruce are fans of Shinji Mikami, the creator of Resident Evil.
12. They met Shinji Mikami and asked him about his game design decisions.
13. The team watched No Country For Old Men and were inspired by its tension and slow pace.
14. Neil Druckmann wanted to create a non-sexualized feminist protagonist in The Last of Us.
15. Neil Druckmann was inspired by Anita Sarkeesian's videos about sexism in games.
16. Ashley Johnson played the role of Ellie in The Last of Us.
17. Troy Baker played the role of Joel in The Last of Us.
18. Nolan North did voice acting for The Last of Us.
19. Cristophe Balestra said that "crunching" (working long hours) is part of making games.
20. Anthony Newman said that he personally loves overwork and gets absolute concentration from it.
21. The team had to re-record some scenes for The Last of Us, which was a challenging process.
22. Troy Baker had to re-record a scene multiple times to get it right.
23. Neil Druckmann directed Troy Baker during the re-recording process.
Note: I excluded some sentences that were not factual or were too vague to be considered facts.