Lost Planet

I have opted to not introduce myself with “Hi, my name is…” like I’m greeting a group of fellow AAA’ers or something. I don’t want to come off as some marketing type who is just going through the motions with this, because that’s not what this is about. Plus, I know this is just a blog, but at the same time this is Capcom’s very first blog. Besides, (cue self-deprecating humor), Capcom itself hasn’t exactly been at the forefront of website design and technology. But I can safely say this now without getting in too much trouble because we just launched the first phase of our new website a week ago.

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Now with the awkward opening bit out of the way, let me properly introduce myself. My name is Brian Dunn, and as you have probably guessed by now, I work at Capcom. I started with the company almost three years ago. I’m originally from the Seattle area, and after getting a BA in Japanese Literature at the U of Washington, I worked freelance on some Sony-published RPGs. I also spent some time in testing with Xbox certification, first as a tester, then as a test lead with my own team of Japanese testers (surprisingly, the ladies on my team were better gamers than the guys), before finding myself here in sunny California working as a translator for good ole Capcom. And the rest, as they say, is history…

At Capcom, the localization of our games is actually done over at our HQ in Osaka. So as a translator at our Sunnyvale office, rather than game localization, I mainly work on translating anything and everything internally here, from product websites and bug reports, to internal reports the producer interviews that you read online and in magazines. Lately Capcom has been going through a lot of changes (some might say ‘growing pains’ ), so aside from my translation duties, and I’ve been able to take on some additional responsibilities within our marketing department.

Outside of work, I love to play games. Actually I play games at work too, when no one’s looking. Except of course if it’s Lost Planet (multiplayer over the LAN!) or another Capcom game. Actually some coworkers and I used to play Halo 2 a lot (on our breaks, of course, in case management asks). That game was pretty much how I got into online/multiplayer play.

Actually, there are a lot of Xbox and Xbox 360 fans here at the office. Not that we (as in myself and the handful of main gamer guys I am referring to) don’t like Sony (we do like Sony, very much). But who doesn’t enjoy jokes about historical giant crabs and massive damage? Well, maybe the guy who uttered those infamous words, for one, but anyway…

I know, Capcom didn’t support the original Xbox all that much. But that’s changing. You can’t deny the awesomeness that is Dead Rising, or the Lost Planet demo (trust me, the full version is going to be way better). And I’d be saying that even if I didn’t work for Capcom. So we are very excited about what our talented Capcom developers over in Japan are able to pull off on the 360 (and of course for the PS3, Wii, and all the other systems). I for one can’t wait to see the rest of the multiplayer maps for LP, not to mention all the other next-gen stuff in the works. Personally I’m not much for portable gaming, but we have a group of die-hard Monster Hunter fans and in the office, and I may be one of the few in my department without either a DS or a PSP.

But once the PS3 launches, not to mention the Wii, and we start seeing what those systems have to offer and how our own Capcom games are shaping up on those systems, we’ll be all over those systems too. We’re gamers, after all. So to us it’s not about the hardware, it’s about the games. If the games are good, it doesn’t matter who makes the console or the video card or whatever. And working for Capcom, you know we are going to support all of the systems out there.

Anyway, I’ve rambled long enough. Let me talk a little about what this blog is supposed to be, and what kinds of things you can look forward to reading here.

Basically, I’m here as the voice of Capcom (no pressure) to reach out to you guys and gals, the gamers, in our Community. We know that there are a lot of you out there that love Capcom (that’s why a lot of us got jobs here – we love the company). And we know we haven’t always been the best at supporting and cultivating the community. But that’s going to change for the better. I’m sure you’ve seen the awesome new Lost Planet website and unlocked the secret wallpaper that shows the new stage (hint: it’s not snowy!!).

Anyway, this blog is another step to bring Capcom into the 21st century, and you can expect to see much more in the future.

In subsequent postings, I’ll be sharing stuff about Lost Planet, of course, but also about other Capcom games and other stuff we are working on. But I also want to try and give you guys and gals a glimpse into our company, what it’s like to work here (it’s kind of like NBC’s The Office, eerily so).

I’ve shared a bit about myself with you already, and in future posts I’ll be speaking to various people in our Sunnyvale office here that all contribute to taking the finished games and getting them to the stores for you to buy. I will also get some questions off to some of the LP development team as well, and anyone else you want to hear from.

If you’ve made it this far, I owe you (those of you 21 and over) a beer. I can get a little long-winded when I write, so you’ll have to forgive me.

I’ll be updating this very soon, and at least twice a week when I can (look for my next post early next week). Feel free to leave comments here, or discuss stuff on the message boards on our Lost Planet community forums. If you have any specific requests for people you want to see interviewed here, what kinds of questions, etc., you can post that directly on the Ask Capcom part of the Lost Planet message board.

Until next time…

—Brian

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