
Thrust to the forefront of AAA development thanks to its PlayStation 3 flagship title, Heavenly Sword, Ninja Theory has made it its business to know the future. The convergence of games and mass media is a common wisdom that’s reiterated year on year, but few have had the privilege of casting Andy Serkis in their game, taking advice from filmmaker Peter Jackson, or working directly with the best Hollywood technicians. As gaming’s appetite for talent grows, so too does its need for outside talent and training.
Imagination, agrees Stuart Adcock, technical art director at Cambridge-based Ninja Theory, is an advantage in even the most technical disciplines. But while some people have it and others don’t, neither kind of person, he believes, should be ignored.
“The games industry is full of both types and I don’t see why either would be held back,” he says. “Artists can always be tailored to a role that suits them. If they have good imagination, then they are encouraged to collaborate with design and help to push ideas around. If they have good technical know-how, on the other hand, then we would want to take advantage of that. At Ninja Theory we have a team of technical artists that bridge the gap between art and programming. They help imagine ways of tackling problems and streamlining existing processes. We rely just as much on that as on creative imagination.”
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