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Tikitiki - When you first were appointed to this job, how did it happen and what was your reaction?

Ken Allen - RCT and RCT2 were developed by Chris Sawyer and a very small team of contributors. Development of those games required almost no publisher supervision. And Tom Zahorik, a gifted developer and highly respected producer in his own right, had been the Atari producer for those games, but because development of RCT required a smaller-than-average portion of his bandwidth, Tom was able to devote more his attention to other games in development. When the vision for RCT3 began to take form, Tom knew overseeing the development of the new game would interfere with his management of the other titles, so I was offered the chance to get involved. My only previous involvement with the RCT line was having played RCT2, which I found to be very compelling and addicting; but I'd also played a number of the Theme Park games by EA (having once been employed by one of the EA Studios). I was pretty disappointed with the direction the Theme Park games had taken, even though, from my earliest days in game development, I thought that one of the best ideas for a PC game would be one where you make your own Disneyland! So, when my boss invited me to join in on the RCT success story, I was both elated (to at long last be involved in a game I always wanted to make), and also intimidated (asking myself, "How can we create a worthy successor to one of the most heralded franchises in the PC games market?"). Fortunately, the bunch over at Frontier are superb game developers who have the utmost respect for the game franchise, which I think is the most important first-step in creating a sequel to a successful game.

T - What do you exactly do over at Atari?

K - My title is Senior Producer, and I'm involved in all aspects of the product and its development, and to a lesser extent, the testing, marketing, promotion and other aspects of publishing the game. There are two major areas for which I am responsible; 1) to influence product development so the game is of the highest possible quality, and to make sure the game is delivered on time and on budget; and 2) to make sure all the other departments within Atari are coordinated with game development, such as marketing, testing, public relations, package design, manual production, and so on. So, to the developer, I represent the needs and wants of Atari; and to Atari, I represent the needs of the game and the developer. This is much the same role played by an executive producer in film or a show-runner in television. My role varies from project to project, and even from phase to phase within a single project. But basically, I have the duty to make it happen, which I think is the best job in the world.

T - Do you have any information that you could share with us about the expansion, "Soaked!", and any up coming expansions?

K - For RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, both the developer and I really wanted to take this franchise in directions not previously explored. You'll see this in RCT3 where we have things like day-and-night, family groups, VIPeeps, fireworks shows, and (of course) riding the rides in 3D. We also wanted to take the notion of expansion packs in a different direction as well. This is why, for the first expansion pack, we're offering you the ability to add a water park to your amusement park, much the way Six Flags has water parks adjacent to several of their amusement park locations throughout the world. You may have noticed some in-game advertising in RCT3 as well, such as ATI and Microsoft. Because we did this in a tasteful way, players have told us they liked the real brands in their parks and that it gives the game a little more realism. For RCT3 SOAKED, we're also partnering with Hershey's, where you'll see some actual elements from the Hershey park in Pennsylvania, (such as the Kiss Observation Tower and the Roller soaker ride) appearing in the game. We're also participating in the Hershey in another promotion soon to be announced - I can't say much now, but keep an eye out for the promotion in a store near you. As for the future of RCT3 and expansion packs. All I can say presently is, "stay tuned!"

T - What is your point of view about the bugs issue in RCT3 and how are they are dealing with it now?

K - As with everything we do, I always look for ways to improve the process or other aspects of game development. Every game ships with something we wish it didn't. And it's a common saying among those in game development, that a game is never released - it escapes! So, knowing there are very loyal fans to the RCT series, we tried to execute everything to a level that would exceed their expectations. I believe 99.5% of RCT3 does exactly that. But two areas I wish we could have really polished the game even more are compatibility and some instances peep AI. On the compatibility side, Frontier uncovered some pretty nasty bugs in the drivers for ATI, NVIDIA and some sound cards - and we tried to work around those. But there was also the issue of RCT fans whose computers did not meet the minimum requirements to play the game, and to those loyal fans I have no solution except to suggest they upgrade their PCs. Trust me, you'll be glad you did. On the peep AI side, much of the behaviours you have observed in the game were actually implemented as designed - such as peeps in a family group following the desires of the group leader, or peeps deciding to leave the park that could not be enticed to change their minds. This is a direct result of adding peep-group behaviour to RCT3. Thanks to the proactive fans who played RCT3 voraciously, we became convinced that our choices for programming how peeps behave were not 100% correct. So, we've re examined those choices and offered updates based on the suggestions from the community. We really do care about RCT3 and the peeps who play the game, and want to make sure the game pleases you as much as we possibly can. This is why we're offering a limited public beta, where you can play SOAKED now before it is released. You'll be able to provide us with your suggestions and report any bugs you encounter. I promise, we'll read every suggestion and give serious consideration to your feedback. To participate in the limited public beta test, check out the Atari Community Forums for RCT3!

T - Have you ever played RCT3 yourself? If so what was your first reaction?

K - I've played RCT3 for hundreds of hours. After all, I also wrote the strategy guide for Prima. And I got to tell you, I never get tired of playing this game! The first time I road the coaster cam, I was astounded at how real it felt. I REALLY love the look of the characters. I've tinkered with the Fireworks MixMaster to create a countless fireworks shows. I've used the rollercoaster track editor in the creation of dozens of coasters. I've used the land sculpting tools to endlessly customize the terrain. I just LOVE this game! But my first reaction to seeing the very first playable version of RCT3 was HOLY CRAP, THIS IS AWESOME! And it only got better and better as production progressed. My favourite part of the game is the sandbox.

T - How does Atari work with fans of this game?

K - Atari is deeply engaged with the fans of all our games, but especially with those of RCT. I think RCT fans are the most loyal and care more deeply than the average gamer fan. Just look at all the fan sites and the kinds of things RCT players trade with each other. Few games have such steadfast supporters. After all, it was you fans who suggested we add the peep feedback window, which we included in one of the post launch updates. Right now, we're also looking at addressing some your bigger requests, such as adding tunnels to the game-play environment; or a tool to create your own content, like scenery and shops; or ways to design your own flat rides from snap-together parts. We don't have any concrete plans just yet, but we're actively listening.

T - What does Atari think of the fans and the forum?

K - I personally think the Atari Community Forums are one of our greatest assets. The game community is like no other in any other entertainment field. It is a rare occurrence that consumers have meaningful input into industries like TV, movies, fashion or music. I like to think that PC and video games are pioneers - one evidence of this is this phenomenon is that key segments of the entertainment consumer audience is watching less and less of television, and some not at all! That's because many are playing games. In addition, gamers have always formed communities (in the old days known as special interest groups, or SIGs) where they would exchange ideas, or experiences, or tips on playing. This has evolved into a new movement, called the "remix generation," where consumers choose their own audio programs (pod-casts), interact with the news (blog-posts), timeshift and personalize TV-programming (with Tivo and NetFlix), create movies (machimina), and customize their computing and gaming experience with skins, mods and other customizations. For games, the best place I know to accomplish this with a retail game like RCT3 is with the forums. So, peeps... keep those postings coming in!

T - Thank you for being with us today Ken Allen. I too love to play RollerCoaster Tycoon 3! Anything else you would like to add?

K - I usually shy away from the spotlight because I know there are dozens of people who work much harder than I to bring games like RCT3 to the store shelves. This game has won several awards, in no small part to Jonny, Sam, Dave, Jonathan, Jon, James and a host of others at Frontier; to Mike and Jeff and their tireless test team at Atari QA; to the countless fans of the series who've supported us as we have tried to expand the franchise; and to Chris Sawyer who allowed us the privilege to play in his playground. With SOAKED, and other expansion packs in the future, I believe, the real star in the spotlight is you, the peeps who play this game and build incredible parks we never dreamed could be made. Thanks for believing in our work and embracing it as your own.

Thanks again!
Cheers Tikitiki

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