Age of Conan Lead Designer Gives A Lowdown On Game Designers

Ever thought of game designers as similar to different character job classes? According to Ole Herbjønsen, Lead Designer from Age of Conan, those two are pretty much the same. There are different game designers that have different skills from other game designers, much like the warrior class differs from the mage class. Herbjønsen gives us three different job classes, err.. three types of game designers:

• NPC Designer: these people are in charge of the non-playable characters in the game – from monsters, to passers-by and even chickens strolling on the field. According to Herbjønsen, the most important part of their job is to determine which monster goes where, and how strong it’s gonna be. Much like a Warrior wielding his own customized hammer, the NPC designers use the “monstertool”, which enables them to set specific qualities for a certain monster.

• BCC Designer: Herbjønsen says that they are called BCC Designers because they work at the Behavioral Control Center. These guys are in charge of the logistics for every character making sure that the animation is correct. Monsters can’t run around and be dead at the same time, and the BCC guys make sure of that. They’re also in charge of “sewing cool looking animations together, making the combat flow majestically”.

• Script Designers: These are the programmers slash designers. Herbjønsen says that “it is important that the scripter is both technically skilled as well as having a keen understanding of gameplay mechanics.”  

In a way, game designers are parties composed of different races or job classes. And their mission? To give us a one-of-a-kind gaming experience.

Ever thought of game designers as similar to different character job classes? According to Ole Herbjønsen, Lead Designer from Age of Conan, those two are pretty much the same. There are different game designers that have different skills from other game designers, much like the warrior class differs from the mage class. Herbjønsen gives us three different job classes, err.. three types of game designers:

• NPC Designer: these people are in charge of the non-playable characters in the game – from monsters, to passers-by and even chickens strolling on the field. According to Herbjønsen, the most important part of their job is to determine which monster goes where, and how strong it’s gonna be. Much like a Warrior wielding his own customized hammer, the NPC designers use the “monstertool”, which enables them to set specific qualities for a certain monster.

• BCC Designer: Herbjønsen says that they are called BCC Designers because they work at the Behavioral Control Center. These guys are in charge of the logistics for every character making sure that the animation is correct. Monsters can’t run around and be dead at the same time, and the BCC guys make sure of that. They’re also in charge of “sewing cool looking animations together, making the combat flow majestically”.

• Script Designers: These are the programmers slash designers. Herbjønsen says that “it is important that the scripter is both technically skilled as well as having a keen understanding of gameplay mechanics.”  

In a way, game designers are parties composed of different races or job classes. And their mission? To give us a one-of-a-kind gaming experience.