Last Autumn, BAFTA sat down with Sam Lake (Creative Director at Remedy) to talk about the process of creating worlds for video games. The interview was posted online via their YouTube channel this week, coinciding with the upcoming launch of Alan Wake 2's The Lake House.
In the ten-minute long conversation, Sam talks about his developmental role on Alan Wake 2 and his love of seeing a project through; being able to conceptualise it and to continue to refine those ideas until the journey is complete.
While world building is at the heart of the interview, the questions kindle discussion on a range of linked topics. On the top of collaboration, he brings up his collaborative work with Kyle Rowley (Game Director) and Anssi Määttä (Cinematics Director), how their unique backgrounds and perspectives make the discussions and results richer.
He also reflects on the themes and inspirations from outside that he brought with him going into the project. While Twin Peaks has been a long time inspiration for the original Alan Wake team, the third season of the show, set and filmed twenty-five years after the second, was a strong thematic guide for its sequel. Sam describes it as a “specific mix of elements” and of tones, with the third season showcasing a strong sense of location, with strong personalities. Similar to Alan Wake 2, the season balances quirky humour and nightmarish supernatural horror with the framework of crime in one neat package.
During Sam's role at Remedy, the video game industry has changed a lot, with expectations for AAA titles becoming more demanding across all crafts, including writing. Reflecting his process for screenplays and how they've evolved, Sam states, “when writing the screenplays for our games, in my mind, the starting point still is like, you know... as if it was a movie. Even though we do have interactive elements in it, still the idea of, you know, how do you craft a good plot? How do you craft the story arc? These days, it's always more the idea of a TV show because games are long. Alan Wake 2 will be Remedy’s longest game to date. Pretty much the screenplay is comparable to two full seasons of a TV show plus then of course all the optional exploration and the world screenplay on top of that. But really going through the story arc, dividing it into episodes, and then writing a screenplay. At first, it's very linear and that's the critical path through it. And then, more and more branching elements, more and more optional elements are added along the way.”
He also shares how the best world building is in those smaller details that players can find. Continuing, Sam describes, “Good world building in games, especially... comes on many different levels, and all of those levels are vital in creating a believable world. It's about those big ideas on what the locations are, who the characters living in these places are, what is the journey you go through. On the other end of the spectrum, the small details that you would easily ignore and feel that they are not really that critical, they really are critical. When it goes to branch in the world, when it goes to, you know, the style of how characters talk in this world. All of these small details are the thing that ultimately make it believable.”
You can find the full interview with BAFTA above or on their YouTube channel, HERE!
