Most people in the gaming world know who Alan Willard is, at least they should. Alan is one of the talented Level designers behind the best selling, Game of the Year, Unreal Tournament. I had the opportunity to meet Alan at E3 2000 but never really had the time to get anything more than a word or two in edgewise, as Alan was very busy through out the show. So it was nice to get a chance to finally get him in the hotseat.

1.) For the people lost in a cave somewhere. . . who are you and what do you do??

Well, my name is Alan Willard, I'm a 26 year old level designer for Epic Games.  I also do some art and some modeling (though not a whole lot of either).

2.)Speaking of. . .What the hell have you been doing lately???

Working :)  More than this, I cannot say!

3.) A while back you stated that you thought all games would/should be able to be purchased over the internet since broadband is becoming common place. . . are we talking Tex Atomic’s Big Bot Battle kinda stuff here??

No, I think we're looking at something more along the lines of buying software online and never actually seeing a hardcopy version of it.  I can easily see a day where all of your favorite software packages, be they art-related, office software, or games, will be available for purchase online, and downloadable at time of purchase, rather than the current cumbersome method of purchase and shipping.  Internet bandwidth is going to increase spectacularly in the next 5-10 years, and it won't even seem unusual to buy software online by then.

4.) What's the most annoying thing to deal with as a Level Making Guru.

Changing content and technology.  Making worlds is fun, but when you have to remake a ton of stuff because the tech changes and can handle more and more content, it can get on my nerves... In a good way though!  The new tech is amazing, and people are going to go nuts when they see what it can do.

5.) We hear the big ol’ stories about outrageous stuff done around the offices, don’t hold back, what's the most outrageous thing you ever did ON the job.

Filled my office with smoke, turned on all the blacklights and the disco ball, and took pictures of it with my webcam.

6.) CliffyB is notorious for “bustin’ a little knowledge on a guy” with his articles / rants / guides. What bit of info can you share with the masses??

Avoid mixing beer and liquor.  Napping is nice, but not while driving.  When a woman says 'no', stop.  Don't put tons of colored lighting in a room.  Guide the player with finesse, not with a hammer.

7.) Drink of Choice

Jack and Coke.

8.) Tunes of Choice
 

I'm a big Tool fan, and I also listen to older music, like Supertramp, Crosby Stills Nash, and Young, and a whole HOST of other shit that Cliff can't stand :)

9.) Babe of Choice

Jessica Alba is HIGH in the running right now.  

10.) A ton of cool ass games hit the shelves this last year, which have been your favorite. . . what are you still playing.

Total Annihilation is the best epic-scale RTS game I've ever played.  Red Alert is damn good, but there are some really annoying unbeatable tactics in it, and there's just not enough units for it yet.

Also been playing The Sims at home, and I've been trying to get started on Baldur's Gate 2, but the amount of time I'm going to have to put into it is a bit daunting, and I've been putting it off.

11.) Things all fell into place for you sometime ago after meeting Shane Caudle at E3. I met you at E3 2000 and I still don’t work for Epic. . . what’s up with that??

To correct that, I met Shane while I was working at CompUSA in Birmingham, not at E3, but I get your point :)  Sounds like you need to brush up on your peep skillz and spend some mad time with CliffyB!

12.) O.K., we all know now that Asia Carrera is a buddy of mine, and a HUGE Unreal Tournament freak. . . does her own skins, etc. You can tell me. . . what was the first thing that went through your mind when you found out Super Fine Porn Stars we’re playing UT??

Ummm, 'Cliff is gonna love this' was the first thought, the second being 'Well damn... That's cool!'  

13.) you drivin a  Super Car or Levelord Mini-Van??

Midway between the two!  I drive a 2000 Eclipse GT, which is Mitsubishi's apology for not making the 3000GT for the last few years.

14.) I have seen a handful of game developer offices now, everything from Sterile Environment to Certified Disaster Areas. . . . what does your “space” look like…

Depending on the time of year you look at it, it can go either way, but it's usually closer to CDA than anything else!

15.) I write for HardOCP, we love to see the biggest, baddest, most tricked out computers around, what’s in Alan’s Sooopa Computer?? You a big overclocker??? Or more of a Stock Computer kinda guy??

My home system is a P3-1ghz I built for myself a few months ago, nothing horribly special about it.  I tend not to overclock mainly because I need stability to get work done, and if I can't have that, its not worth having the system.

16.) In the industry. . . . who just puts you in awe??

Sid Meier, Richard Garriott, Peter Molyneux, Jay Wilbur, and Hironobu Sakaguchi.

17.) Where does the inspiration come from?? Each level designer has his/her own way of getting inspiration for levels ( yes. . . we know what Levelord’s inspiration is…god I love that guy :^). . . what do you draw on for inspiration.

Everywhere and everything is an inspiration!  I've gotten inspiration from the ass-end of an SUV on my way to work, and I've been inspired by art I've found on the web.  I find its extremely important sometimes to just let go and allow my environment to have whatever impact it can on my consciousness.  Dreams rule too... Let me just start to fall asleep, and I'll have some of the best ideas.

18.) Epic has always been about their fans and the community and fan sites, all hell is breaking loose in the Gaming Community over the whole ad-banner deal, shaking many sites out of the tree…what’s your opinion/suggestions on the matter??

Find a new method of profit.  I'm personally a little surprised that the whole ad-banner thing has lasted as long as it has, at least as a primary source of income for people.  I personally don't click on any banner ads, even if I find the content intriguing.  I'm more likely to open Google and find it myself, just to avoid clicking on a banner. I think sites that survive this are going to be sites that sell their OWN space, rather than relying on some other company to do it for them.

19.) Where do you see the gaming industry heading in the next year??

I think the next year is going to be very important for the gaming industry.  There are some BIG ass games coming out this year (supposedly!) such as Black and White, Warcraft 3, and Return to Wolfenstein.  These games each could potentially grab a huge share of the entertainment market, and I think the combination of these games and others is going to force people to rethink their opinions on the PC gaming industry being in decline.  Its funny how we can post bigger and bigger numbers every year and still be told that we're in a declining market!

and the bonus question

Since we have been friends for years, please tell our readers something about yourself that not many people know.

There is only one thing I could say here.

All your base are belong to us.

I want to thank Alan for letting us bug the hell out of him, like most of you. . . .we are really looking forward to Epics next project. In the meantime, to help everyone over the waiting period,  I snagged a handful of copies of Unreal Tournament: Game of the Year to give out to you guys. . . If your interested in getting your hands on one of the coolest games of all time, click the picture and get in it to win it.