Kyle Choi is the creator of Comer, an immersive adventure game dealing
with creation mythology, aliens, and trees. Read my review
and then order the game from Shine
Studio.
What inspired
you to create Comer (other than your admiration for Myst)?
Myst is the direct inspiration to be sure. There is another
animation cartoon from Japan called Laputa, describing a city
floating in the air, which I regard as the best of animation cartoon
of all times, just as Myst is the best of its kind.
You seem to be a regular Renaissance man, what with being good at
music, art, and game design. What is your educational background?
Thanks for the big hat of Renaissance, which makes me feel that I should
have lived at that time. As for the background, may regard it as multi-cultural
and multi-fielded. I drew and painted a lot as a boy, then played piano
for a couple of years, then somehow entered college with an Architecture
major and graduated alternatively from computer engineering (did spend
my college years in the States, which enabled such diversity). The reason
I entered the computer field was simply because I happened to see a
stunning 3D computer graphics demo.
One thing that really struck me about Comer was the blend of
Eastern and Western design elements. Were you attempting to attract two
different types of audiences, or is that an aspect of your own personality?
It is both. I was trying to make something universal instead of culture-dependent,
while that something universal has to be cultural at the same time.
So I worked in an attempt to mingle the best of all cultures into something
everyone can enjoy.
Why did you decide to sell Comer online only? Was it due to
lack of interest from publishers, as so often seems to be the case these
days, or was it merely so you could keep a bigger slice of the pie?
Comer is sold online because there seems to be no other way
out. I did contact many publishers and got an impression just like you
said.
If a publisher were to approach with an offer to distribute Comer,
would you accept the offer, or do you like the challenge of being
responsible for your own destiny?
I would rather like a publisher to handle the business aspects and
Shine Studio to be kept as a development entity in order to focus on
quality titles. Unfortunately the real world is not like this.
Do you have a "real" job, or do you work full-time on game
design?
I worked full time for the Comer development and believe that
a quality title does require the effort.
How has daily life for the average citizen in Hong Kong changed, if
at all, since China took it back from the British?
Nothing changed at all, from my point of view.
Do you have any plans to create another game(s)?
If Comer turns out to be selling well (still early to tell at
this time), more will be planned. If it is not, more will be planned
as well (I hope, at least I think this way right now).
Comer seems to have been indirectly inspired by Philip Jose
Farmer's series of Riverworld novels. Are you familiar with these
cult classics and, if so, were they an inspiration?
Not connected, and this is the first time I have heard about the Riverworld
novels.
Are there any of the so-called Myst-clones that you personally
feel are as good as Myst, or is there just Myst and then
everything else below it?
In my opinion Myst is still the best of its kind (maybe due
to it was the first adventure game I played). I may be wrong since I
did see other people's opinions. Myst is a perfect blend of all
elements contributing to an graphical adventure, such as story, plots,
puzzles, graphics, music, etc. Other games may exceed in some elements
but not in all. The most important thing is the quality. Myst-clone
is somewhat a negative term these days because of the flood coming out
after Myst. I just could not imagine a game like Myst could
be made in a year. Besides the efforts in the making, the quality also
includes, for lack of better words, culture, taste, etc.
How do you react to critics who claim that the success of Myst
indirectly destroyed the adventure genre?
People can express opinions as long as they have a point. I do believe
Myst pioneered something new, and that something new was grouped
into the adventure genre, which I think is a correct grouping that makes
the adventure genre stronger.
What exactly was is about Myst that so deeply affected you?
I saw a future for adventure games. Can you imagine how closely it
resembles a movie? I always compared Myst with a good movie.
It has a story and good plots like a movie, it has realistic graphics
and astounding music and sound effects like a movie. It exceeds a movie
with its computer-generated beautiful environment only with human imagination
as the limit, it exceeds movie in that you, the player, are the main
character instead of just watching others. With improving computer technology,
this type of game will eventually get rid of the slide-show type of
limit, although there is still a long way to go. After the marriage
of computer and TV in the future (I think they are engaged now), interactive
entertainment of this kind would probably thrive: A movie in which you
make things happen.
If you could say one thing to the Miller brothers, what would it be?
Hi, I just wish there are more people like you with great ideas and
making brilliant games like yours, which would keep me busy playing
them instead of making them myself with a hard time.
Can you tell us approximately how many copies of Comer you have thus
far sold on-line and how many you need to sell in order to break even?
I think I should regard that as a commercial secret (if not embarrassed
when telling the figure). Comparing to other on-line business I know
of, it is a success. If Internet business is getting doubled or tripled
each year as people expected, we can merely survive. I am still optimistic
in that people will quickly and eventually feel safe and get used to
Internet shopping. People will realise that in the lack of a publisher,
this is the only way out for a small developer like us. If they do need
quality titles, I call out with this desperate voice: Please buy online
and support us.
What steps have you taken to publicize Comer and to garner
sales?
Currently we are depending on adventure sites like yours and adventure
lovers spreading words. Any recommendation is welcome to let every one
know about it.
Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, and Sinbad all make an appearance in
Comer, but no Pamela Anderson Lee! Could she possibly be in the
sequel?
This is a good question concerning the design aspect of Comer. In
selecting the 'Comers' in the game, I had to judge who in history are
suitable for the characters. The persons must be universally, trans-culturally
known to everyone in order to get the thriving feel when finding out
who they are.
What's your stance on the timber industry?
Timber industry is not something in my mind when making Comer actually.
I am not in the position, or with good knowledge, to judge whether there
is a balance between the use of wood and preservation of nature. I like
the feeling of forest very much, as well as the feeling of wooden chairs
and desks. The point is, Myst is probably the only game (before
Comer) that gives people a feeling of being immersed in many
trees. However, trees, especially beautiful ones, are a very difficult
thing to be made with computer. Roughly 2/3 of the rendering time of
Comer was devoted to trees. Without them Comer would have
been released years ago, and without them Comer could not be
of the same value as it is. I wish people appreciate this feeling of
nature and the effort behind it. The immersion of many trees is certainly
the distinctive element of Comer.