MercurySteam Founder says Fun and Clarity Created Castelvania Lords of Shadow

 Enric Alvarez, games director & co-owner of MercurySteam, makers of Castelvania Lords of the Shadow, spoke in his native Spanish through a female translator at the Games Developer Conference Europe today. Alvarez pushed the theme of passion and having fun in your work in everything he said. Through a string of futball references and lovely Spanish cliches, Alvarez clearly had a message: If you work hard and are passionate about your work during this difficult and transitional stage in the development of games, you will make a good product and survive.

This was clearly a man that wanted to paint a picture for developers of the challenges they face today, but also to motivate them -- emphasizing simplicity and clarity as the key drivers that power his company. Alvarez says developers from the 80s were pioneers. They had vast success (showing a photo of a Ferrari) and from that success, other people turned those games into the big business that is gaming today. Alvarez says that's not bad thing, but that the industry today is not and will never be like that again.

Alvarez says we want to live with passion and leave behind good video games, these are things that people can enjoy.