A "new" interview with Fred

[elmuerte]

Some online magazine has a very in-dept interview with Frederick Raynal. However it's completely in French so I can't make up much from it.
As far as I can tell it pretty much goes over Fred's life story concerning video games, but also about the design of hist games (AitD and LBA). It would be great if somebody could translate the whole text (yes, it's a lot).

You can get a copy of the issue (#6) with Fred's interview here. (PDF warning)

Als issue #13 contains a story containing Fred, or at least, he's mentioned in it. No idea what that's about.

[Vultures]

It's this article that I have to translate for Twinadv...
I begin to translate the recent part of the article, I mean Fred's new company and why he choose this way. I've done the first page, I'll do the others when I'll have the time.

[Darkflame]

Fantastic

[Axx]

I found it a couple of months ago. I couldnt make out anything from the google translation, so i handed it over to vultures!

[xesf]

Yes, its a great interview indeed, its too bad that I don't understand everything, but yeah we are wainting what Vultures could do for TwinAdv.

[StraToN]

Great interview !! I'm lucky to be French :/ I hope an english translation will come soon (sorry, I'm already on the Web pages, maybe later ^^)

[Lupin]

Great article, i learnt many things...

[Vultures]

Here's the beguinning of the translation, it's the page 31 in the article.

Sanqua : And the death of Sega, don't you see it coming ?

In fact, we knew it quickly, before that it begin offcial. After NoCliché, F-4 Toys have been created with Bruno Heintz. I won't give any comments about this. It's a very special company, which has interesting ways to work, but very very secret. We work on video games, several video games.

Sanqua : Why this secret ?

The directing team have chosen it. Why not. There are good things. It was a company based at Paris, I was at Lyon.

Sanqua : When does those things happen ?

NoCliché has closed down at the end of 2004...F-4 Toys was founded in the beguinning of 2002.

Sanqua : At F-4's, you were consultant ?

No, Creation director. Now I'm creating Ludoid. It's effective in March ( This interview has been done in December )

Sanqua : On your visit card, surprising thing, there is written : Ludoid : Video games and electronic toys. What is Ludoid ?

It's, in a first time, a consultant company on games, on the creation upstream the game. And why electronics games ? It was already an activité of F-4, where I've already conceived stuffs... I've a lot of ideas as I come from an electronic formation. I'm not a mega professional of the electronic, but I know it enough to know how we build this little gadgets, how they works, how many they cost, what is inside.
And I've realised that something missed, that they were some things which wasn't done in electronics games, I mean by this electronics toys more than electronics games. Electronics games, if it's for a game boy, it's like a computer, we stay in the same stuff.
I think something miss in all those little games. Children begin to be accustomed to differents things because of video games.
In the past, children had wooden toys, and they used to project their imagination on an object... This exist yet fortunately.
But when they grow, they play more to the video game, and with the video games we format them. The machine is here to tell them how to play. Today's games, especially on consoles, it's "come on, press here, follow this way, do this". The rules are dicted, ordonned to the player, who only follow them.
To understang, you need to see the last Sapiens Robot, everybody talks about it at the moment, it's extraordinary. I've bought one of them and it's really fun. But it's again alike the others, children play with it a certain time, but they are weary quickly.
There is no game, however, with something electronic, there is a reflex which is created : " it will make me play, it will tell me something, it will say press here, make me doing this, etc..." some things like this. and it's here that I think some things missed. With Ludoid, I'd like to sell concepts and ideas to societies which will realise them. Electronic and Video Games, it goes together. The gameplay notions and what we expect the Electronic to do, this is almost the same thing.

Sanqua : How many persons for the moment at Ludoid ?

For the moment, My wife and me.We are... consultants in creation. It's this word. Only the advice, for the moment. People ask " We search somebody who is able to do this,who have ideas on that, etc... " - and as there are more and more constraints that I begin to control with the time, I've thought that I really could bring something more. The world of the game is changing considerably. And there are really some things to do.

[Q-Wi-Q]

the article is a very interesting read, I'm glad to finally learn something of AitD aswell ^^

[mrpopo]

This is what WordLingo made out of the original text:
Note that 'play' should have been 'game'

Moderator's note Thanks for the translation, but because it was wrongly formated, it really clogged up the forum. In case people are interested, you can translate it yourself through WordLingo

[master-ekianjo]

Hello everyone, Just happened to find your forum through my referrer's list. I did the interview with Fred Raynal a while ago, and I feel sorry that everything is in french now - I didn't realise that english-speaking gamers would be interested to read it, since it's very long and rather focused on the history of Frederick. So, if you think there are really many people out there who want to read this, I will proceed to a proper translation to english (don't ask me for other languages though !). As for Frederick Raynal, there are two pieces of news : - in our last issue, Sanqua Experience 14, Raynal is also featured is a debate between other well known french developers (David Cage -Quantic Dreams and Florent Castelnérac - from Nadeo (Trackamania)). It's a very interesting debate, I think sooner or later I will translate it too. - in our next issue, (15) we have another long interview of Frederick covering what he did this past year and what are his plans for the future (ie a new studio). Consider it like an update of the interview that you are talking about in this forum. That's it.

[Atresica]

An English translation would be very much appreciated! I await the other two articles with interest

[ChaosFish]

Hi master-ekianjo! Thanks man
I really look forward to those new articles (and I think we all do). English will be awesome as well!

Hmm a new word from Fred Can't wait to read it.

[elmuerte]

Originally Posted by master-ekianjo

I didn't realise that english-speaking gamers would be interested to read it, since it's very long and rather focused on the history of Frederick. So, if you think there are really many people out there who want to read this, I will proceed to a proper translation to english (don't ask me for other languages though !).

I, for one, am very interested in more seriously written articles about computer games and what goes on around it. There are not a lot of magazines out there feature anything else that pourly written (p)reviews. That's why I often visit Gamasutra and read the Game Developers Magazine and the Escapist.

[Axx]

master-ekianjo, The largest standing fanbase for Frederick Raynal is actually english speaking fans of the LBA series. I would really appreciate it, like all people here would, and english translation.

I look forward to the next editions of your magazine.

[Lightwing]

We have about 2000 registered members on the board. Most of the active members (usually 250 per month) speak English pretty well.

We're all fans here and new reads about Frederick and/or his company are welcome.

I'm also really curious about this debate, involving him and David Cage (I am really familiar with the work of Quantic Dream).

[xesf]

The debate was already release in french. Get it here.

[master-ekianjo]

Thank you for your interest. I am now working on the next issue of SANQUA featuring the latest interview with Frederick Raynal. Following this release I will secure some time to do some appropriate translations. But please give me a priority on which one you want first : - the debate ? - the interview with F.Raynal that was released a while ago ? - the new interview with F.Raynal (done about a month ago ?)

[elmuerte]

hmm... tough choice.

I think the new interview should have the highest priority, since it's new for both French and not-French speaking people

[Lightwing]

Only a month ago? That's pretty recent. I side with that then, as the latest news is probably the best thing to go with.

[xesf]

Yes the last one first, please

[Jeffro]

btw when will the interview in downloads will be subbed, i want to know what they say!

[morshem]

*click*

[elmuerte]

Heh.. I completely missed that one

[Axx]

Same here, nice stuff!