DICE 08: Roger Hector of Namco Bandai talks video game characters to icons

Here’s an update on the current DICE Summit 08: Roger Hector, Vice President of Development at Namco Bandai, gave a short talk on how video games have made fictional characters into living icons. He even mentioned one of the greatest icons living until now. Details in the full article.

Roger Hector, Vice President of Development at Namco Bandai, was able to talk about how video game characters have become more than what they are. In fact, some of them are even larger then lie, an example would be the character on the right.

At the DICE Summit, Hector spoke of his experiences in the past, how the limitations of technology led to such interesting characters.

An example he cited was Tory Iwatani’s inspiration from a pizza with a piece missing. It resulted to the lovable Pac-Man in the 1980s.

But managing the characters’ image and equity plays a larger part in sustaining its life. Hector said, “All characters have equity. Equity is something that builds up through time” as the character is associated with quality.”

Of all the characters that were created, the best one would be Mickey Mouse. Mickey has consistency remained an icon for generations.

Just like the fame Mickey was able to attain, video game characters can also reach the summit of popularity. Hector noted a 1990s study that revealed children recognized Nintendo Mario more than Mickey Mouse.

But even with all the power of technology and money that can help boost a character’s image, it really is the production value that counts. Hector said before closing his speech that:

But at the end of the day, itÂ’s really not about production value, celebrity, or intellectual property or licensing. ItÂ’s all about the quality, craftsmanship, creative passion, and keeping a tight focus on supporting novel, original gameplay with fascinating characters.