Feature: Take This Job and Love It! - Producer - Fred Dieckmann
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Name: Fred Dieckmann Title: Associate Producer - Maxis Notable Past Projects: Sid Meier's Simgolf (PC), Nascar 2001 (ps2), Hot Wheels: Turbo Racing (PS1, N64) Current Project: Sims (PS2) Schooling/Degree: Some College and a lot of creative juices General duties of your position/title: This will vary on a daily basis, some days it's all about game design, others it's helping with the direction of the art and look of the game. Sometimes I get to answer questionnaires for game magazines. =) When the project is moving along toward an Alpha/Beta stage, it's all about tuning and making sure all the loose ends are taken care of. Example, today I spent time with voice actors for my current project. Salary Range for your title (not necessarily what you specifically make): 50-75k a year How many people are in your department/team? If you are a manager, many people do you oversee? Currently we are a small team about 4 people, here at Maxis, but we work with the development team in Texas, which is 30 people, plus our testing team which is around 20 people. What was the most valuable bit of knowledge or experience you brought with you to the job? There were multiple things I brought with me. One being Art, I've been drawing, painting, and sculpting since I was a kid, and now 3D modeling and animation for about 8 years. All of these have helped in understanding layout and look of games, helping with solutions for visual problems, and helping to give developers a visual mock up for ideas we come up with. The other, obviously, is gaming. My father helped work on the first Pong home system, and I've been gaming ever since. Currently, I try and play as many games as possible. I find this helps me to keep on top of what is new in the industry. What was the first major lesson you learned once you started working in the industry? There is a ton of responsibility; not only to your job but to the gamers out there. You need to make sure all of the work gets finished. And problems don't just go away. You really want to be known as a "problem solver" or "a fire fighter" What academic focuses would you recommend for someone who wants to do your job someday? This is a tough question. It really depends on which part of the gaming industry you are looking at. If you want to be a producer, make sure you have a wide range of interests and skills. Graphics artist, obviously art (drawing, painting, and film) but also understanding the basics of what the machine you are working can do. You don't want to find yourself in a situation where you cannot make art for the game you are working on. Common misconceptions about your job? We play games all day!! Well we do, but it's called work. Try playing the level 1 of your game, finish it and then restart level 1 and tune it all day until it is perfect. You also have design meetings and have many other responsibilities. Is college a necessity, a really good idea, or not required for your line of work? College is very helpful. I didn't go myself but was lucky. I wouldn't recommend that anyone try the route I took. If you have the shot to go to college, do it, and get on an intern program to work at your nearest gaming company. The real world experience will help immensely. What tools and software do you use on a regular basis? I currently use 3DS Max, Maya, Photoshop, Viso, word, excel, etc.... What's your advice for breaking into your line of work? Make sure to have a broad range of gaming experiences. Don't just focus on one type of game. 9 times out of 10, you won't be working on that type of game. Also, make sure when you are playing a game you not only look at the graphics, but really understand how the game play works. Graphics only grabs the gamer in the beginning. The rest is all game play.
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