57020 réponses à ce sujet

[YamiSnuffles]

SurelyForth wrote...



But at what point does Fenris stop carrying Hawke's weapons so Hawke can carry Anders?

NEVER!

Thus Fenris will spend the rest of his days going: >:[

EDIT: What? Really, top again? Fine, have more Hawke carrying Anders. Although I'm really tempted to post one of the many Fenris scowling pictures I've done.

Some day I vow to get top while making the most insightful comment ever.

Modifié par YamiSnuffles, 09 juillet 2011 - 12:02 .

[beckaliz]

Hahaha Yami, your pics are so cute. I'm almost inspired enough to put the damn 360 controller down, grab my Wacom from the van, and doodle something for you.

But... must... play... yaaargh. I've been playing all day, it's very sad. I need to switch to my Amell canon. >3<

Modifié par beckaliz, 09 juillet 2011 - 12:24 .

[TotoroTori]

Just coming in to post what I found on tumblr!

Damn sexy tortured mages!

[Giggles_Manically]

ITS AN APOSTATE IN A BOX!

Someone should really make that gif.

[Heidenreich]

So.. mesmerizing......


*blinks*

Yami remind me some time this weekend via DA (cuz my husband yelled at me last time cuz pms here spam his email) to hit you up for another commission when you have the time

Modifié par Heidenreich, 09 juillet 2011 - 01:00 .

[Hill-Hurwitz]

Mmmm.... Glowy abominations. Is it July 26 yet?

[YamiSnuffles]

beckaliz wrote...

Hahaha Yami, your pics are so cute. I'm
almost inspired enough to put the damn 360 controller down, grab my
Wacom from the van, and doodle something for you.

But... must... play... yaaargh. I've been playing all day, it's very sad. I need to switch to my Amell canon. >3<

I certainly would never say no to gift doodles. It is just about my birthday after all.

Heidenreich wrote...

Yami remind me some time this weekend via DA (cuz my husband yelled at me last time cuz pms here spam his email) to hit you up for another commission when you have the time

Will do. You should be right near the top of the list. Only a couple commissions ahead of you.

Um, but on topic. That Anders guy sure is... something. That gif makes me think, "Wheeeere's Justice? BOO!"

Modifié par YamiSnuffles, 09 juillet 2011 - 01:14 .

[leggywillow]

YamiSnuffles wrote...
Thus Fenris will spend the rest of his days going: >:[

Hey, that's what he'd be doing anyway AMIRITE?!  >_>

Anyway... yes, I'm very much looking forward to the DLC.  I'm curious to see why he goes all glowy, too.  That doesn't look like he's just going Vengeance mode in a fight.

[KnightofPhoenix]

I am curious as to what triggered Justice like that. Perhaps it's a dialogue option asking Anders to do something?

[dragonageobsessed]

Jennifer Brandes Hepler wrote...

I wrote most of Legacy before going on maternity leave. It takes place before the final battle, so Anders can be present regardless of how you ended the game. And it definitely has some special content for him, though probably not as much as you're all hoping for.

Anything is better than nothing at all

[highcastle]

KnightofPhoenix wrote...

I am curious as to what triggered Justice like that. Perhaps it's a dialogue option asking Anders to do something?

I'm going to make a wild stab in the dark that perhaps the Wardens try to take him back? Or raise the suggestion of it, at least. Stroud seemed to owe Anders some kind of favor, and even seemed to like him a bit. Enough not to drag him back. He also sounded like he respected Anders' decision not to be a Warden anymore. But Anders implies that not all Wardens feel this way. And the short story by Ms. Hepler definitely reveals that some Wardens can indeed be bigoted towards mages. So I'm thinking maybe one of the Wardens we'll meet in Legacy is not too happy to see Anders again.

Or possibly they want to hold him accountable for the deaths he caused. Bodies ripped apart and a missing Anders can't have made too many Warden higher-ups very happy...

[Soapbubbles]

I read a fanfic at one point where the author had this idea that Grey Wardens execute deserters because they know too many secrets and if they were desperate/angry enough could tell people about them. And if the Grey Wardens did do something like that, it would make sense if other Wardens who didn't respect Anders' decisions tried to kill him, Anders has a Justice moment.

[Reflection Muse]

KnightofPhoenix wrote...

I am curious as to what triggered Justice like that. Perhaps it's a dialogue option asking Anders to do something?

Maybe one of the Grey Wardens mentioned getting Ser Pounce-a-lot neutered.

[CulturalGeekGirl]

Toastyblue2 wrote...

Reflection Muse wrote...

Evilnor wrote...
Besides that, she's probably touched that we like her character so much but at the same time creeped out by how we show our affection . . . probably thinks we're all rabid fangirls writing baseless fanfics and drawing pictures about things Anders would never do, unicorns, rainbows, snogging Fenris, Varric, Bianca, etc. . . . *cough* The list goes on. Well, at least things she wouldn't get paid to write him doing.

Haha! Well I think most artists, writers or otherwise, are thrilled when their creations evoke inspiration in others, even if the creations are sometimes not what they themselves would create. Inspiring others is always very rewarding. Who knows, maybe she's a closet Fenders fan, too.

I ain't gonna lie. Hepler has my dream job.

About five years ago, I had the chance to participate in a Q&A with a female video game developer...I forget for which company, but I asked her if there were any jobs specifically for writers who had a passion for video games in the industry. She basically said that no, if I was looking to work in the industry I'd have to look at it the other way around, to start first as a developer of code before I could get my hands on any script writing.

Nowadays, fans are very savvy, and rpg fans demand rpgs that feel like living, breathing, playable books. I'm glad to see that Bioware is using separate writers for each character, so that their "voices" sound unique in the physical script before they even get voiced.

Anyway. Cool story, me.

*back on topic* Anders is the bombsauce.

Oh dear, I just made a pun with my own euphamism.

Going back to this: whoever told you there are no entry-level writing jobs in the game industry is mistaken. Entry level writing jobs are few and far between, so you need a significant amount of hustle, but they're out there. Also, I got into the game industry less than a decade ago without knowing how to rub two pieces of python together. There are ways in that anyone can do, as long as they're clever and quick to learn.

I was in the game industry for over five years. There are many full-time writers, you can get into writing at entry level. They are not exceptionally well-paid, starting salary for a writer might be as low as 20k, 28-30 is more reasonable for a starter, 40-45 is a "decent" wage for someone with a few years of experience in the industry. Someone who is considered very experienced or really good can make significantly more, but I don't know as many details once you get to people with more than 3-7 years of experience. Also: these numbers are guesses and estimates based on scuttlebutt and gossip. Void where prohibited, your mileage may vary. Or you might get contract work, which will probably pay like crap. Still it's a start. Community work (forum moderation, website posts, marketing) is also an interesting way to end up writing for the game industry, though it's not a direct path to scriptwriting.

How do you do this? Get together a portfolio. Write some scripts. Get a book or two on game writing. Put up a website with all your stuff. Haunt the #gamejobs hashtag on Twitter, gamasutra, all those kinds of sites. There are probably a bunch more places I can't think of right now. If you have copy-editing skills (or general editing skills) that's also incredibly useful. If you can design websites and work with multiple website content managment systems, even better. Some smaller companies have someone who does every word-related thing that needs doing: blogs, managing their website, writing marketing copy, writing dialogue for the game.

Now, I got in the hard way: customer service. Yeah, I was one of those in-game GM-types for an old creaky MMO, long long ago. Put in a few years in the trenches, got my ticket up to development and writing, and the rest is history. CS and Quality Assurance are tried and true paths, but you have to be careful: some companies recruit heavily from those departments, others consider them disposable unskilled labor, waiting to be burned out and replaced by the newest fresh kid who wants a shot. Sometimes you can't tell which is which until you're there.

If you can actually learn to design (design, not code, they can be different) you increase your hireability and earning potential a great deal. How to do this? One way is to make a few Neverwinter Nights modules. This will also help the next time Bioware is hiring... they request applications accompanied by NWN-module formatted writing samples. Bioware has stated explicitly before that they do not require game development experience, and that submissions with exceptional writing quality will be considered regardless of your experience. To my knowledge this hasn't changed. There was a writing opening on SWtOR less than a month ago. Beyond that, play around with any game that comes with content creation tools.

If you're just interested in the wriitng aspect, make a NWN module that is almost entirely dialogue. Use your OWN characters, not existing BW characters. Have a bunch of characters with different voices to interact with, and a short, sweet story. If you're interested in learning to actually design, Make yourself a full NWN module, with complex scripting, combat, all that stuff. Ideally, do a few of each, and get feedback from friends and strangers. Your final sample should be a tight 15-20 minute thing, based on recent Bioware job postings.

Here's the thing about writing in the game industry: you have to be willing to write anything at first. I met a guy who was a writer for DS games, so he was writing combat barks for penguins and cutscenes for curious puppies. But he was a full time industry professional, with dozens of launch titles. If you're going to do contract work, you're going to have to have a considerable amount of hustle - grabbing enough work to be a full-time video game contract writer is a real challenge. 

And to get this back on topic: one of the craziest things about being a writer for games is that you end writing someone else's characters from time to time. Yes, I love Helpler's Anders, but I also loved Gaider's Anders, and Hepler's version is built upon Gaider's foundation. If we didn't have all the history nuggets - the solitary, the escape attempts, the kitten - he wouldn't be the same Anders. I find collaboratively written characters fascinating, and while I really appreciate Bioware's decision to give each character their own writer and keep that writer as consistent as possible, it's interesting to think about the fact that most of our favorite TV and movie characters are collaboratively written. I think some of Anders' unique depth comes from being written by more than one person.

Modifié par CulturalGeekGirl, 09 juillet 2011 - 02:44 .

[beckaliz]

I'd rather do voice acting than writing. ^.^ Playing these games always reminds me how much fun I think it'd be. Though I'm not sure which I'd be better at.
What do people think Anders' favorite kind of sandwich is? 

[Jennifer Brandes Hepler]

To my knowledge, Bioware Austin is still currently hiring and require no previous game writing experience, just an understanding of Bioware-style storytelling and a kick-ass sample.

[CulturalGeekGirl]

Hmm, what's this?

Could it be a posting on a game job site?

I've been hard at work on other stuff for the past few months (as people who follow my ramblings on this thread well know), but man, this makes me want to scratchbuild a new NWN module. The posting describes exactly what you need to create to apply to a bioware writing job, so even if you don't finish it in time for this one, you'll have it ready for the future.

Also, when one of you girls ends up there, you'd better remember me. Remember meeeeeee.

Modifié par CulturalGeekGirl, 09 juillet 2011 - 02:56 .

[Soapbubbles]

Curse my age and where I live! And the fact that I'm not a terribly good writer either.

And beck I love your sig.

[highcastle]

Why oh why do I not have a degree yet?

Oh yeah...because I thought professional equestrian was a completely valid career choice. :/

[CulturalGeekGirl]

Guys seriously... if you think you have the chops, at least put together a module. At least start on a portfolio. I have several friends without degrees who are devs, and I just have my useless Psychology and East Asian studies nonsense (this is probably the only time you'll ever hear the phrase 'man, being an English major would have been more relevant to my career.')

If you apply to a writing job with the absolute best module ever, they aren't going to dismiss you out of hand for not having finished college. Also then later, if you do finish college, you'll already have a module and writing portfolio!

Modifié par CulturalGeekGirl, 09 juillet 2011 - 03:11 .

[Reflection Muse]

Everything CulturalGeekGirl has been saying about the video game industry is absolutely true. Highcastle, you don't necessarily need a degree. You'd be surprised (maybe) how many people in the video game industry do not have degrees, and also how many get hired by simply submitting a resume and writing samples on a whim. It never hurts to try! Do eeeeet!

[Toastyblue2]

Reflection Muse wrote...

Everything CulturalGeekGirl has been saying about the video game industry is absolutely true. Highcastle, you don't necessarily need a degree. You'd be surprised (maybe) how many people in the video game industry do not have degrees, and also how many get hired by simply submitting a resume and writing samples on a whim. It never hurts to try! Do eeeeet!

Mm, looks like I'm going to go learn how to use the Neverwinter Nights toolset then. And Austin, hey, I've been there. Great town.

To make this post relevant in the meantime:



By Silentkyrie. Amazing stuff!

[beckaliz]

Soapbubbles wrote...

Curse my age and where I live! And the fact that I'm not a terribly good writer either.

And beck I love your sig.

Thank you very much. XD I FINALLY replaced my copy of Photoshop. And I thought it was cuter than just having text. I made one about the "socks" line but am not sure I like it.

Dangit I need to write. You people, making me actually CREATE things! Ha ha ha no really, you're an inspiration. I hope I can do Anders justice. ..... (badum-CHA!)


And, Ms Hepler, thank you for doing a lovely job writing our favorite character. Being bipolar myself I can identify with his emotions in a lot of cases, even when he's freaking out, so you've written him to be very human indeed. ... I probably would have blown up the Chantry also, in his shoes.

Modifié par beckaliz, 09 juillet 2011 - 04:20 .

[DAYtheELF]

Do you ever wonder if some of the BW people have fake accounts on here? That way they can totally geek out about their awesome creations without getting in trouble. Like maybe HighCastle is REALLY Gaider and Yami is ACTUALLY Hepler!

*Edit*  Maybe Howden is SurelyForth!

Modifié par DAYtheELF, 09 juillet 2011 - 04:28 .