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comphermc
The Logical Choice
Interview conducted by MrsSpookyBuz
To say comphermc's talent lies simply with logic creation would be a gross understatement. His skills in the technical side of LBP are quite rightly well regarded, but look beyond the switches and wires and you'll find a veritable treasure trove of fun, well-designed levels. Is he simply addicted to AND/OR gates? Does he produce mathematically sound gameplay? Or indeed, is he actually human?!! Let's ask him a few questions and find out...
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It's addictive, it's nerve-wracking, it's super fun! It's comphermc's All Mine!
The Low-Down
What video games did you enjoy playing before LBP was released?
Oh Geeze! I was all over the place before LittleBigPlanet. I have always been a fan of the Grand Theft Auto games, and I even bought a PS3 just for the release of the latest. In retrospect I didn’t even enjoy the game that much, but it put me on the path to owning LBP. In addition to that, I’ve played the standard “big name” games for the PS3 (I don’t own any other consoles) like Killzone 2, Uncharted 1 & 2, Ratchet and Clank, etc. I was addicted to the game Portal for over a year, playing user-created maps and whatnot. I feel like that has really helped with puzzly-type creations in LBP. I was also really into the game Skate 2 for a few months, but then I started playing LittleBigPlanet for keeps. I haven’t been able to play any other games for more than a week since.
What was the first full level you ever built? And what was it like?
Haha. Over my winter holiday from University, I spent many, many hours creating a level, as I had gotten the game as a gift. It was mostly just learning the tools and whatnot… and it was terrible. I got the dreaded “failed to load level,” so I remade it from scratch. Not much better the second time around. I published for half a second and then deleted it from shame – it was a sort of Indiana Jones type level, but with no direction or consistent theme. I then tried to make a Portal tribute level but just couldn’t hack it. It didn’t feel like Portal, didn’t look like Portal, and surely didn’t look good. At this point, I took a few months off from creating to play other games (besides, it was lacrosse season and I didn’t have a ton of time) and came back to it one day to collect all the prizes. I fell in love with the game all over again and created Sack Ninja Training. So that’s what I consider my first full level. For anyone who hasn’t played it, it’s a bit on the difficult end. It’s not terribly long since I didn’t really understand at that point how long the levels should be, but I do have fun playing through it from time to time. It was “inspired” by the Islands levels that MM created.
What levels have you published to date?
Sack Ninja Training
Aperture Science: Sackboy Chambers (Part 1 of 3)
Aperture Science: Sackboy Escape (Part 2 of 3)
Aperture Science: GlaDOS Confrontation (Part 3 of 3)
Brain Chain Mini-Game Survival Challenge
All Mine! A Canyons Adventure
Cap’n Sackbeard’s Booty (Online Create with rtm223, OmegaSlayer, and GrantosUK)
Brain Chain 2: Industrial Bounce
A handful of tutorial levels.
I was also part of the LBPC Logic Pack team, for anyone who isn’t aware!
Which of these is your own favourite? And why?
Definitely All Mine! This was a level that was created at the peak of my ability. I am always learning, and thusly I feel that my levels are continuously improving. For me, All Mine! was just a great mix of a variety of gameplay elements – all of which was a very conscious design choice. This was also, hands-down, the level that I spent the most amount of time on. It all started back in August. We had just began with the Logic Pack, so I was learning a ton about logic from rtm’s sexy brain (*wink*). I went on a vacation out East (Boston, New York, Rhode Island) with my family and girlfriend, and this meant leaving LBP behind. Instead, I whipped out a sketch pad and drew up plans for a Canyons themed level. In reality, the only thing that remained from those initial sketches was the 3-lap race. Anyone who has played the level knows exactly what I’m talking about… It was actually amazing how well it fit into place. While I’m talking about it, I may as well thank mrsupercomputer again for his help with the level. He’s an idea man, that one. We’d spend hours just hovering in Create mode, he tossing out ideas, me shooting them down. That chase at the end would’ve been much less exciting had he not helped out. Thanks, bud!
Are there any other creators who inspire you?
Oh, of course! Creators like jackofcourse, mrsupercomputer, Javi_Huguse for their visuals, GrantosUK for his backtracking and smart level design, julesyjules for his fantastic lighting (no offense Morgana!), and rtm223 for his great logic work. I tried to mimic these creators in their respective areas of expertise to create All Mine! and I hope I could hold a flame to what they do.
What’s the worst thing that’s happened while creating?
I’ve been surprisingly lucky thus far. As stated above, my first level got the failed to load level bug, but I’ve only had it happen that one time [on a level that actually mattered]. I guess the worst thing that happened was that the Intermediate Logic Pack level started to show signs of the 160 hour bug (which I don’t think is truly related to the time spent in create mode). We sort of had to stop tweaking at that point for fear of what might happen. I took that level under my wing for a month, so to see it potentially fall apart was nerve-wracking. But, no – I save often and always publish a back-up online. Now that we can save backups to our HDD, I do both. You can never be too careful.
What’s your pet hate in LBP?
Um… there are a lot of little things, but a pet hate? I’ve learned to work around most of the finicky-ness of LBP, so I don’t even notice most of the annoying stuff anymore. If I had to choose something it would the sound and screen effect of rewinding, or the noise the game makes when the game is paused. I’m not sure why those things were added in… I don’t feel like they benefit creators in any way.
If you worked for Media Molecule, what tool/object/material would you have liked to see developed?
Sticker Cutout Tool. Next question!
Naw, but seriously, I’ve grown to love making custom stickers for use in my levels, and it would be amazing to be able to cut them out as desired. I would also take an Image Import function any day of the week, but I understand the potential legal ramifications of people using copyrighted material.
Feel the pressure! Play comphermc's Brain Chain Survival Games. But no cursing!
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Digging Deeper
You're one of a rare breed of LBP creators, in that you're a great level designer AND you're very handy with the 'ole logic? Does any aspect take precedent, or is it important that these aspects compliment each other? And how did both aspects actually come together with your work on the Logic Pack?
Wow, tough question. When I started creating in LBP I was all about expressing all of these [believed] great ideas to the rest of the world. In my efforts to achieve this goal, I realized that I would need more tools than what we are given by default. Enter logic. For me, the role of logic is to just expand the toolset at my disposal when creating levels. I don’t use logic for the sake of putting it in the level. In fact, if I could avoid using logic, I would surely do so! That said, I’ve found that using logic effectively can allow more complete control over the level and a player’s interaction with it. So, while I preach that using logic isn’t essential, I can’t foresee myself ever making a level without a plethora of logic behind the scenes. There are just too many neat things you can do with the right combination of logic.
With the respect to the Logic Pack, we really had two goals: to show the players our low-thermo, simple logic gates and to show the player how gameplay and logic can be very intertwined. We consciously tried to make each demonstration unique to the others. This was to show the player how using logic can immensely expand the toolset I mentioned above. Sometimes it can be difficult to fully utilize these new tools, so we hope that we did a satisfactory job of showing the various uses of logic. Also, it looked pretty...
I'm a big fan of your Aperture Science trilogy - the clean, almost-sterile environments, the secret, ominous atmosphere - wonderful stuff! How did you approach this series, and indeed, was it always planned as a series?
Aw, thanks! For me, the [eventual] series was just an effort to transform a game I loved (Portal) into the context of another game I love. I had seen tributes done that were much more faithful to Portal, but I wanted to do something that felt like a great mix between the two. As for creating the sterile environment and ominous atmosphere – that was all emulation. The puzzles were mostly unique, but the setting was completely inspired. It was originally intended to be a single level (go figure), but about halfway into my thermo I came to the realization that it wasn’t going to fit! I conceded and decided to split it into two levels. After finishing the first, I made the final boss in its entirety. My plan was to work backwards to fit the two levels together. Much to my dismay, the boss fight took up nearly half of the level. I conceded again and went with a trilogy.
Next up, an apology... I'm afraid I have to confess that I cursed you many times while playing your Brain Chain Survival level! It's simple to play and difficult to master, it's addictive, and it's genius! How did you come up with the concept, and how important was it to you to make it different from many other survival challenges?
Well, to be honest the idea arose before my idea to make a survival challenge. There is an obstacle at the end of Sack Ninja Training that is two columns of brains being emitted upwards. I got the idea from a brain-bouncing level and thought it might be fun to emit them. I love bouncing around on them, so I had the brilliant idea to make a level out of it. One Friday morning last summer, I woke up and cranked it out. Yep, all of it. It took about 6 hours to make (the idea is actually very simple). The sequel was quite a different experience. It was much more fun to make, and allowed my creativity to run wild in terms of visuals. It also serves as my 'Badge of Honor' as it is my first 3 star level. Thanks Cool Pages!! Hehe. As for other survival challenges, I didn’t even think about them. I had no idea that others would have as much fun as I did on them (well, fun is relative, huh?). So, yeah – go stomp some brains!
And from one genius level to another - All Mine! Two words for you - bloody brilliant! Your thoughts on the level?
Haha. I love this level. It truly is one of my favorites, even if that sounds conceited. As I said above, I had the idea to make a Canyons themed level before I even went into create mode. The MM Canyons levels were a huge inspiration for me, but I wanted to see if I could take it to the next level. Shockingly enough, this level almost didn’t happen. I hit a creator block at the point in the level where you stumble across the facility (whatever it is!). At first, it was going to be entirely created with the red/brown wood – which in retrospect might’ve been boring. I got a bit of inspiration from rtm’s Subterranean Setbacks… why can’t there be an arbitrary facility underground somewhere? It was always my plan to have a sort of chase at the end, but that whole idea was slow to develop. I guess I got a bit of inspiration from the end of Mulberry Woods by mrsupercomputer. Big, cartoony machinery chasing the player is always fun! Finally, I took a lot of inspiration from GrantosUK. His use of backtracking and secrets are amazing; hence their presence in All Mine! I’m just happy to belong to the group of creators who have good levels, but with a low(er) number of plays.
A question about you - you're studying hard for your future vocation, you're a moderator here on LBPC, you're a logic guru, helper, creator, player... the list goes on. How do you organise your time?
I don’t. I procrastinate. A lot. When I should be doing homework, I end up surfing the forums or playing LBP. It’s really not good, but I somehow manage to get most of everything done. In fact, I have to wake up early to go tutor tomorrow morning, but I’m writing this instead… Heh. I know that I spend way too much time playing LBP, but I keep getting ideas! Once I hit a creator’s block I’m sure I’ll slow up a bit, but until then… Full steam ahead! I’m sure you all understand… right?
I don’t think you specifically meant for me to go into this, but you did mention “helper” in that list. Ever since Online Create was released, I love going into other people’s level and helping them out a bit. Whether it be logic help, or idea help, or just distracting them by placing captured objects all over the place. I’ve been feeling extra “helper-y” as I approach my “future vocation,” which for those who don’t know is to become a high school math teacher. Should be fun!
What can we expect from comphermc in the future?
Well, I have officially begun re-creating the third level in my Aperture Science trilogy. I wasn’t happy with how it turned out, so I’m giving it another go. It’s about half finished at the moment, but things have taken a turn towards something else. I just played StarCruiser [by Candyk] with Javi Haguse and mrsupercomputer and thought to myself, "You know, this level would have been infinitely better if the gameplay wasn't 'Move to X, move to Y, move to Z, stay alive, the end.'" So, I've started another level that is inspired by the visual style of StarCruiser, but with my own 'unique' flair. Who knows if I'll be able to pull off 'better gameplay,' but at least I'll try. I'm really happy with how it looks, and production is going very quickly. Expect my best visuals yet, but with more attempt at my lame humor... As a treat, there's a little photo below of the work in progress!
I’d also like to someday do a re-imagining of another MM level. I’m thinking something from the tundra... Or maybe the Islands...
And, as usual, expect there to be a ton of logic stuff going on. Maybe I’ll replace a few of the tutorials I have up now, as some of them are outdated.
And finally, you're trapped in a locked room with no exits. In this room, there is rtm223, CCubbage, mrsupercomputer and ConfusedCartman. Logically speaking, who would crack up first?!!
mrsupercomputer. Easy. Then rtm223 would somehow reason a way out of the room and we’d be fine... once we calmed mrsupercomputer down.
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EXCLUSIVE! Sneak peak at comphermc's impressive work-in-progress.
EXCLUSIVE! Sneak peak at comphermc's impressive work-in-progress.
Our Conclusions
It's no exaggeration to say that comphermc is a busy guy. Nonetheless, his LBP output is always of the highest standards. From the fiercely addictive and on-the-surface simplicity of his Brain Chain Survival levels, to the immersive sophistication of All Mine! and the Aperture Science series, you have a creator who's a whole lot more than 'someone who's good at logic'. His visual design and gameplay don't follow the standards, they set the standards. He's also a team player, and someone who genuinely enjoys helping others. And as well as being a moderator here on LBPC, he somehow finds the time to produce excellent tutorials that can be freely used by anyone who has the sense to read them. So, comphermc IS a superb logic maker, but I believe that his talents are multi-faceted, and his skills go far beyond those little green wires.
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