Interviews

AN INTERVIEW WITH BENOIT SOKAL
Conducted by Randy Slugnski

Benoit Sokal was recently kind enough to take time out from his busy schedule to answer a few questions about the most anticipated adventure game of 2003 – Syberia 2. Our thanks to Benoit and Cedric Orvoine – Microid’s Public Relations Manager extraordinaire - for the opportunity to keep Just Adventure readers abreast of the game’s development.

When you were developing Amerzone, did you at the time conceive it as a trilogy that would eventually stretch into Syberia II?

No, Amerzone’s development was my first gaming experience. At that stage all our efforts were concentrated on building a story that could benefit from a new medium. Don’t forget that Amerzone was a comic book before being a video game.

Also there are no direct link between Amerzone’s story and Syberia’s story. Syberia is not the sequel of Amerzone. Syberia is a story in itself completely apart from Amerzone.

Is it true that Syberia & Syberia II were originally developed as one game?

I’ll answer to this by mentioning that overall Syberia is one story. It has been separated in two different chapters. Before being a game, Syberia is primarily a story and I have chosen the video game support to communicate that story.

We briefly considered building only one Syberia game but we quickly had to change our mind, as the challenge was probably too big to overcome. We spent almost two full years on the first Syberia and we will take over one year and a half for the second…Imagine, four years in development!!! That’s too much from an editor standpoint.

This decision also allows us to learn from the mistakes we made with the first “chapter” and to make Syberia II a better game.

Who or what was the inspiration for the character of Oscar?

Somebody or something hasn’t inspired Oscar’s character.

What we really wanted to do with Oscar is to demonstrate Hans’ genius. This guy has been able to bring the technology to the stage where he built an automaton with a personality, expressing emotions and character. But still Oscar is not human…

Are there any new and unforgettable characters we can look forward to in Syberia II?

I hope so!!! But seriously…

Obviously Syberia is all about the interaction between Kate and other characters. Without these interactions, Syberia’s story wouldn’t have a lot of depth. The characters are the vehicles for the emotions we’re trying to communicate to the player.

At this stage we can safely say that the player will get to know Hans better in Syberia II. Other than that, a whole bunch of new characters will cross Kate’s road.

The only complaint we’ve ever received about Syberia inspired the following question – will Kate Walker still be a slave to her cell phone in Syberia II?

Has she ever been a SLAVE to her cell phone?

Kate’s cell phone was important to discover whom she was, where she was coming from and to understand her motivations.

The cell phone will still be present in Syberia but it will have less and less importance. As Kate has decided to cut most of her ties with her past, there won’t be a lot of space for the people from her “previous life”.

Anyway, just from a geographic standpoint, it will be tougher and tougher for Kate to use her phone.

The musical score in Syberia was among the most haunting and enchanting ever heard in any game. Will Syberia II feature the same music or new compositions?

First of all, thanks for your comments on the music.

Syberia II will feature new music for sure but it is still too early in the development process to comment on the music. It has not been composed yet…

Will Syberia II revisit locations from Amerzone?

Definitely no. Kate is heading into a direction that has nothing to do with the Amerzone. Much colder…

Should a gamer play Amerzone and Syberia first in order to understand Syberia II or can it be enjoyed as a stand-alone game?

Syberia II will be a stand-alone game but obviously, having previously played Syberia will bring a complete overview to Kate’s journey.

Syberia II will have a beginning and an ending. It was important for us to make sure that this game was playable by itself.

Are there any literary sources you can cite that inspired any events or characters in the Syberia series?

No. Much of the inspiration from Syberia comes from a more personal source.

My family had to escape the nazi regime before the Second World War. They traveled from Western Europe to Eastern Europe (Opposite to Kate’s journey) by train and by foot searching for a more secure place to establish themselves. So obviously, this is an episode that played a great role in the designing process of Syberia’s story.

I think you can see the influence of WWII mostly in Barrockstadt and in a few characters met here and there in the game.

Will Kate Walker’s journey end with the conclusion of Syberia II or can we look forward to another sequel?

One thing is sure, there won’t be a Syberia III.

Kate & Hans, through mystical and enchanting lands, shall find their way to the mythical Syberia, land of the forgotten mammoths. Will they succeed? Let’s discover together…

But it doesn’t mean Kate Walker’s adventures are over…