Interviews

JA Interview
with Benoit Sokal
Conducted by Robert Freese

First of all, Mr. Sokal,
thank you very much for your time. I know you must be very busy now
on the finishing touches of your new PC game, Syberia. I know
our readers would be very interested in your background, your insight
into the PC gaming business, and especially, some information on your
upcoming release.

Well I’m very happy
to take a few moments with you to inform your readers about Syberia.

I understand you have a
number of published books, and are a renowned comic strip creator.
What spurred your interest in these areas and how did you get started?

Renowned? One sure thing,
not in North America though… Seriously, I’ve been in the comic
series writing and illustration for the past 20 years. In 1995, my
editor, Casterman, as all the books editors across the world, feared
that the emergence of the CD-Rom and the whole multimedia frenzy trend
would kill the paper. All books and comics would disappear from the
earth surface and CD-Roms would rule from now on. What a laugh isn’t
it now?

So, Casterman asked
us to develop new mediums to express our talent. I took the videogame
route and here I am now, four years after finishing the Amerzone
and almost done with Syberia.

You authored the book L’Amerizone
which was published in 1989?

Affirmative Roger! (But
it is spelled Amerzone and it was published in 1986)

How did the collaboration
between Microids and you begin with regards to the production of the
PC game Amerzone? Who approached whom?

Well, it was a pretty
natural association. I was looking for an experienced gaming company;
they were looking for some game ideas. We met, we got along very well
and here we are almost five years later, still working together.

Did you have a crew of
artists assist you in graphics and animation production? Were you
in the “front lines” of the process, or did you manage the
overall artwork?

Obviously, I could not
do all this work alone. There was a pretty big artist team working
on this project. The team was made of 12 talented artists who worked
from the sketches I was giving them to the final images you’ll be
seeing in the game.

I was engaged in all
the production process, validating every image, asking for some rework
on some of them and so on.

I’ve played Amerzone
twice and besides the lush graphics and immersive environments, I
particularly enjoyed operating the “vehicle” used to navigate
throughout the game. Was this multipurpose vehicle part of your book,
or added to the game for it’s “puzzle” challenges?

Well, this concept will
once again be present in Syberia. The main character, Kate
Walker is traveling between each of the worlds using an automaton
train.

The vehicle concept
was not in the original comic book.

I’ve downloaded and watched
the Syberia trailer. I’ve got to tell you that, as an inveterate
adventurer, I’m pumped. Could you please tell us how the project is
faring – what development phases are still being worked on?

With just over two months
before the release of the game, the core of the efforts is invested
in the integrating process. All elements (graphics, animations, game
design) are integrated in the game engine. It really is an assembling
process requiring a lot of attention to details.

The team has shrunk
down a bit over the past weeks, as most of the artistic work is completed,
same with the animation work.

We have also begun the
beta testing process with our internal testing team.

Our web page has various
press releases and screenshots of your new game. I understand it involves
a New York attorney’s quest to find the sole heir to an automaton
factory, and she must travel through distinctly different worlds in
order to do so. Could you please briefly describe these four worlds
and the manner in which she travels?

The four worlds in Syberia
are primarily an East to West traveling across Europe on a time line
that ranges from the beginning of the last century to the actual days.

The first one, Valadilene,
is a typical alpine village and the hometown of Anna and Hans Voralberg.
As the location of the Toy Factory, this is where Kate lands to conclude
its acquisition.

The second one, Barrockstadt
serves as a renowned University City specialized in Botanic and Paleontology.

This is where Hans Voralberg
has studied a long time ago. As Kate explores this world, she’ll find
many traces of Hans presence in this very East German education establishment.

The third world, Khomkozgrad
is a forgotten space station guarded by a drunken ex-cosmonaut, a
former star of the soviet space program of the Cold War.

Finally, the last world
is called Aralbad. Imagine a Club Med with no sea. An aquatic vacation
complex on the shore of a sea that just disappeared.

Traveling between each
of these worlds is quite of an important part of Syberia. Kate,
with some external help, will be using an automaton train. I can’t
say much more though cause I’d be revealing some aspect of the game…

Without giving too much
away, could you please tell us just who “Oscar” is, and
how he relates to the story?

You know Oscar?

Oscar will be accompanying
Kate all along her quest to find Hans. He’s the last automaton built
by Hans and probably the most sophisticated. Some of his reactions
are almost human-liked.

Are you using the same
game engine (360 degree 3D game play) and essentially the same user
interface as were employed in Amerzone?

No, for Syberia
we basically built a completely new versatile 3D engine. The biggest
thing about his tool is that it could as well be used for an action
game or an adventure game, allowing us to explore some completely
new avenues for this genre.

As for examples, lets
mention dynamic lightning, full 3D high polygons characters and objects,
particles, projected shadows…

As for the interface,
it is also a completely different one than the one you saw in the
Amerzone, but it’s a secret.

Will your new game be played
in first or third person perspective?

Third-person perspective
with a few switches to 1st person in some occasions.

Lastly, the biggie – does
Microids have a fairly solid estimate on when we might see Syberia
on the shelves in North America and Europe?

Apart from major upsets,
the release date is set for the first half of June.

Very best wishes on your
latest project, Mr. Sokal, and thanks again for spending
some time with us!

Interviewer’s note: the
Syberia trailer may be downloaded at www.microids.com.