Wright is Chief Designer and Co-Founder of Maxis, developers of The Sims. As the world's best-selling PC game, The Sims has made an indelible mark on the game industry. Wright will share his motivation and inspiration in creating this legendary franchise, along with new developments and sequels. He also will share his thoughts on how the game industry has changed in the last 10 years, new areas of inspiration for budding game artists and designers, and ways that the next generation of game developers can create compelling games and story ideas. The session will conclude with a Q&A session from the audience.
This event is free and open to all Bay Area students, game industry professionals and the general public. NOTE: Those interested in attending should RSVP in advance by calling 415-865-0198 or emailing aisfadm@aii.edu. Walk-ins will be seated on a space-available basis.
Students in the school's Game Art & Design and Visual & Game Programming degree programs will be on hand to host the event. These programs teach skills needed for entry-level positions within the burgeoning video game industry. The Art Institute of California – San Francisco developed its programs in consultation with industry professionals from leading game development companies in California's vibrant game industry.
The Art Institute of California – San Francisco attracts a diverse mix of students from throughout the Bay Area and the world, offering career-focused degree programs in Advertising, Graphic Design, Media Arts & Animation, Game Art & Design, Visual & Game Programming, Multimedia & Web Design, Fashion Design, Fashion Marketing & Management and Interior Design. For more information about the school, visit www.aicasf.aii.edu or call 888-493-3261.
Will Wright / Chief Designer and Co-founder, Maxis
Will Wright, Maxis' Chief Designer, co-founded Maxis with Jeff Braun in 1987. Wright began working on what would become SimCity—The City Simulator in 1985. Using a complex technique, he found a way to bring realistic simulations to desktop PCs. Previously, simulations of this sort were only available to the military, scientists and academicians. But now, using an easy to use graphic interface, the world of simulations opened up to consumers.
Wright has had a lifelong fascination with simulations. His interest in plastic models of ships and airplanes during his childhood in Georgia eventually led to his designing computer models of cities, ecosystems and ant colonies.
SimCity was released in 1989, and within a few months became a hit. The game has since won 24 domestic and international awards. With Fred Haslem, Wright co-designed SimEarth—The Living Planet in 1990, a simulation of a planet based on the Gaia theory of James Lovelock. In 1991, Wright and Justin McCormick designed SimAnt—The Electronic Ant Colony, a scientifically-accurate simulation of an ant colony. SimCity 2000 and SimCopter, a helicopter flight game, are also part of Wright's recent repertoire. SimCity 3000 Unlimited, the definitive version of 1999's best-selling game SimCity 3000, continued in the tradition. The long-awaited 4th generation, SimCity 4, was released in January 2003.
Taking computer entertainment to its most personal level, Wright's ground-breaking game The Sims, puts players in charge of the lives of a neighborhood of simulated people. Released in February of 2000, this wildly popular title has become a cultural phenomenon, sold over 9 million copies worldwide, has received numerous "Game of The Years" accolades, and has become the best selling PC game of all time. To date, The Sims has inspired seven expansion packs: Livin' Large, which allows players to put their simulated families into new extreme situations and settings; House Party, which gives players the chance to host outrageous parties; Hot Date, which gets The Sims off the couch to an all-new downtown area and into the dating game; Vacation, which allows The Sims to get some rest and relaxation with their families and friends on a fun-filled vacation island; Unleashed, in which The Sims can finally own pets; Superstar, where players can now realize their fantasies of fame and fortune as they pursue the dream of being a Rock Star, Movie Star or a Supermodel; and Makin' Magic, where the Sims have magical powers!
Taking its bow in December 2002 was Wright's much anticipated The Sims OnlineTM. Featured in a cover story in Newsweek, The Sims Online enables you to take your Sims to an online world where you get to be yourself or whoever you want to be. In this world you have your own piece of land to do with as you please. In this open-ended, online world, you choose your role, your attitude and your destiny.
Next up is for Wright is The Sims 2. Due out in the second half of 2004, for the first time, players control The Sims over an entire lifetime. Every choice that is made has a relevant and dramatic effect on the life of a Sim. More life-like Sims, all new gameplay, and the ground-breaking addition of genetics, with the DNA of Sims passed down through generations, gives players a more vivid, realistic, and in-depth Sims experience.
Wright has become one of the most successful designers of interactive entertainment in the world. In 1999 he was included in Entertainment Weekly's "It List" of "the 100 most creative people in entertainment" as well as Time Digital's "Digital 50", a listing of "the most important people shaping technology today." This year he was #35 on Entertainment Weekly's Power List. This past February he joined the likes of Shigeru Miyamoto of Nintendo, Sid Meier of Firaxis Games, Hironobu Sakaguchi of Square USA, and John Carmack of id Software when he was inducted into the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences' Hall of Fame.
However, his interests are not limited to computer games. Each year Wright, along with his daughter Cassidy, takes part in the annual Battlebot competition which was broadcast nationally on Comedy Central. His past robots, which did battle with robots designed by other contestants, have taken top honors. Interestingly, it was Wright's interest in robots that eventually led him into computer programming.