Meeting of Minds

This morning... well, last night, I guess, since I'm BACK IN AMERICA, I met Yoshiro Kimura.

He's pretty rockin'. Rad maximum. Raximum. To the max.

I was pretty nervous about meeting him, in no small part because I know I am an extremely shy man. But! I had set the meeting and I had no intention of turning back. I was determined.

I woke up early to finish packing, because 1) I planned to head to the airport immediately after the meeting ended and 2) I kind of... gave up the night prior. Some inexplicable wave of exhaustion set over me and I collapsed in the middle of folding my clothes. It probably had to do with my extreme hatred for packing, I'm sure. Luckily, I managed to spur forth enough energy to set my alarm extra early.

So, yes... I packed. I finished a little earlier than I thought I would. I looked at the clock. Time passes very slowly at moments like this. Fact of life. Everyone feels it. Probably some science mumbo-jumbo to explain it, but really the only thing anyone needs to know is it's dreadfully dull.

Time to leave. Got to a station near where I'd meet him. Walked around for far too long looking for an open locker for my big suitcase. Found nothing. Ahh, gonna be late if I wait any longer! I stuffed all my other baggage in a smaller locker (two lockers, actually) and took my walking stick and big suitcase to the train for the last few stops. Upon arrival, I exited to meet the creator of a bunch of games I've never played but always been interested in, including but not limited to Moon: An RPG Remix Adventure (or something like that), Chulip, and Little King's Story.

He is known (at least to me) as someone whose games often contain original and intriguing concepts. This is something I strive for when I search for ideas in the great, largely empty and easily distracted ocean that is my mind. Sometimes, though, I think I've hit a real gem, and I will write it down in some fashion, to come back to later.

So, basically, what I'm getting at is I want to be like this guy - taking my (self-labeled) wonderful ideas and creating a (player-labeled) wonderful game. In meeting him, I hoped to get some insight on How He Does It, and start working toward that goal.

I think I damn well succeeded at that. However, out of respect for privacy, I will limit what I say about the conversation...

Granted, a large part of what he told me, I already knew. Stop being lazy and actually do something. Haha, he actually berated me when I said I would. "Will you really?" He knows me already! We talked for two hours! Since what he said was basically true, I couldn't really do anything but laugh. I will work on the laziness.

Another bit of wisdom I already knew (and have actually sort of been working on, I swear!) is to start simple. Copy established games. You don't have to be original until you can actually do originality justice. That's why I've been making pong! And after that, Ijaspy, whose very NAME exudes simplicity! Sort of...

Let's see, what else did he say... Work on one idea at a time; don't spread your personal, limited resources across multiple projects. Think about it every day. Draw in the beginning - don't erase, don't write words, just draw. PRACTICE. Etc. Etc. Etc!

You know, basically the advice you'd give anyone just starting out. But it wasn't just what he said, it was the way he said it. He had stories, and all kinds of shit. A cool dude.

Ah, actually, there is something else I can mention, since it has more to do with me than him! I shared a few of my ideas with him. The first one I wasn't actually that sure about, but I thought the idea was one he would like so I shared it hoping to, I don't know, impress him? Stupid. It was the idea he liked least. It has no focus! That's essentially what he told me. A summary of that idea: you are a werewolf in a small town, and can't control yourself during the full moon, but have to try to hide your identity while human.

The other two ideas I shared, though, he seemed to like a bit more. 1) Messin' about with goo to make tools and weapons. 2) Swinging around an obscenely large hammer to control character movement (or at least to propel the character). He laughed when I explained the pictures I'd drawn! I don't think he was laughing at me. It was a jovial, fun kind of laugh! Anyway, these two ideas had a much bigger focus on interactivity. I think he approved of that. The first idea was just kind of a basic story (which, to be fair, is a crucial part of that idea) and one basic mechanic.

It was nice to get some input from someone who's actually in the industry instead of a bunch of fans of the industry. (That's right. All of you who I share my ideas with are worthless. Eat it!)

Needless to say, it was an extremely enlightening experience (alliteration not intended). I'm kind of in a crossfire of a complete lack of organization and getting ready to move into a new apartment at the moment, but once I get settled again, I hope to start following his advice.

But will I actually do it?

We'll see! I'm back home now, hence the situation. In a week, I move again. Granted, this time I only move to Cincinnati instead of billions of miles away.

Dum dum de dum.