Nintendo Galaxy Interviews - Volume 1 - Denis Dyack of Silicon Knights

Welcome to Nintendo Galaxy Interviews, a new series of articles where we interview people on the inside of the video game industry. Our first interviewee is Denis Dyack, of Silicon Knights. Silicon Knights is currently developing Too Human for the Xbox 360.

NGalaxyEric: Thank you for doing this interview with us, Mr. Dyack. Could you explain a little bit of what Too Human is about?

Denis Dyack: In “Too Human”, you play as the cybernetic god Baldur, who has been charged with the defense of mankind against an army of machines set on destroying the human race. It is a retelling of Norse mythology, where you are always being told that you are “Too Human” and you need to cybernetically enhance yourself to fight the growing machine menace.

NGEric: How did Silicon Knights originally come up with the idea for Too Human?

DD: The idea of the game was inspired by the affects of technology on society that I explored while doing my Masters Thesis in Computer Science. We wanted to create a game that spoke to the affects of technology in a way that would not only resonate to gamers, but also be easily digestible. In the end, we wanted gamers to question whether technology is always better for us.

NGEric: Too Human has been in development for a while. Can you explain why the game wasn't released for the Playstation or Gamecube as originally planned?

DD: The PlayStation version of “Too Human” was never completed because during the development of that game we became an exclusive second party of Nintendo and all of our PlayStation development was stopped. We had intended to bring “Too Human” to the GameCube (we even did a technology prototype), but we were too busy with “Eternal Darkness” and then later “Metal Gear Solid: Twin Snakes” to work on it. When were ready to start back on “Too Human”, it happened to be at the same time that Nintendo and Silicon Knights decided to mutually end our exclusivity.

NGEric: Why did Silicon Knights finally choose to partner with Microsoft, and release Too Human on the XBOX 360?

DD: Ken Lobb was always a fan of “Too Human” during his Nintendo days, and when he heard we had ended our exclusive relationship with Nintendo he inquired into its availability immediately. The rest is history.

NGEric: Too Human is currently planned as a trilogy. Do you think that all three games will be released on the XBOX 360, or will you hold off to see what the next generation of gaming consoles brings?

DD: Yes, they are planned to all release on the Xbox 360.

NGEric: Silicon Knights has worked on many platforms over the years, and with many different companies. Do you notice and differences between working with Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo?

DD: Yes, there are big differences between each company. The differences vary from both western and eastern perspectives to the number of people each group assigns to a project. All are great partners.

NGEric: Many gamers were fans of your Gamecube title, Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem. Would you ever consider working with Nintendo on a sequel, perhaps for Wii?

DD: Yes. We get asked about a sequel to ED almost every day, and of course we would always consider doing a sequel.

NGEric: After Too Human, will you immediately begin work on Too Human 2, or are you working on any other projects?

DD: The team is extremely focused on completing “Too Human” right now, so we don’t have any info to share on future installments in the trilogy. We also have a separate team that is working on a project for SEGA that has been underway for some time now.

NGEric: Finally, can you give us a quick opinion about why Too Human is a must have game for 360 gamers?

DD: “Too Human” is a pure fusion between the action and RPG genres. It is a game that gamers often mistake to be like “Devil May Cry”, but in reality it plays more like “Diablo”. This unique fusion is set apart further by the game’s content-driven storyline that seamlessly weaves into the game with no load times. We feel it is a console experience like no other, and Nintendo fans will recognize in “Too Human” some of the qualities that set “Eternal Darkness” apart on the GameCube.

NGEric: Thank you so much, Mr. Dyack!

That concludes the premiere edition of Nintendo Galaxy Interviews. Look for more interviews to hit the site in the coming weeks.