Leo's Blog: Infinite Insights — Page 12
This is the mod for Oblivion, The Lost Spires, that got me hired at Irrational Games in 2007 to work on Bioshock Infinite.
At one point in time Lost Spires was one of the most downloaded Mods for Oblivion. Unlike other highly downloaded mods, which were technical in nature, like full overhauls of the combat system, my mod was a full-on quest/adventure expansion for Oblivion. It featured 25+ hours of original connect to showcase my game design, level design, narrative design, and 3D art skills (which, admittedly were less than professional, eh, I was a game designer by trade, not an artist).
This mod took me 8 full months of work. It was 95% solo, except for one part: the final boss rigging animations, which I was not technical enough to complete myself. So I had enormous help from a guy on the Bethesda forums named XMarksTheSpot.
Oh, and I forgot, all the voice over work was done for me for free by a professional fan and aspiring VO actor: Stephen 'Ibsens Ghost' Boyes
There's actually some more minor credits which can be found here: LostSpires.com
Thanks to UnholyForager for the epic trailer. Thanks dude! :D
This was one of my favorite handheld games. If you haven't played it, it's worth the hassle to find:
Now you know why I talk about space kangaroos ;)
According to me, of course. Music taste is highly relative and subjective. But still.... something magical about this one.
Don't get the idea that I'm foolish enough to believe that everyone will love what I love. I'm just sharing with you what I happen to love.
Top YT comment:
"My ex wife had just left me .took my kids lost my house.i was working hard to pay the debts she left me in and my best mate run away with my wife...i was sat in my van one day and decided i was going to end it all....then this song came on the radio.im still here 20+ years later :)"
In the early 2000's, when I was going through some brutally challenging times, I would listen to this song and it would inspire me to never give up no matter how hard things get. This song is basically a manifesto for how to live life.
To be okay, follow your heart ;)
Rayman is what made me fall in love with video game development.
This game is a work of pure artistry and absolute genius. A perfect 10/10.
If you only play one game in your life, play this, and master it. It's surprising difficult. Don't let its cuteness fool you ;)
Vladimir Vysotsky was a prolific Soviet-era guitarist, songwriter, and bard, unlike anything seen or heard in the West. What Bruce Lee was to martial arts, Vysotsky was to song-writing. This guy was a song-writing genius.
He used sophisticated, florid vocabulary in all his songs. My Russian lexicon isn't good enough to understand all of it, maybe like 70%. And he has like 100+ amazing songs.
When I heard him as a kid I would think, "His voice sounds like he drinks gasoline." Well, he was a heavy drinker, as Russians tend to be. Rumor has it that when alcohol was scare in the Soviet era, some men would drink gasoline to hold themselves over. Vysotsky died at age "42 under heavy sedation with an improvised cocktail of sedatives and stimulants". A tragically early death, a la Bruce Lee.
P.S. I'm gonna be sharing more artsy and odd-ball stuff on the blog. Just for fun. As I become more conscious I'm becoming more spontaneously creative. I'm not gonna be the stereotypical dry guru.
