[game_preservation] Personal/Oral Histories Discussion

[Devin Monnens]

I think the questions will depend on what you are researching. So you can't
have a list of questions and just ask everybody those because you won't get
the answers you want! Of course, there may also be some things the developer
wants to talk about that nobody has asked before (What's one story you'd
like to tell that nobody's asked you to tell before?).

If we're talking about game history, it's probably a good idea to ask about
what game development was like then versus now. History seems to be about
change (change is also on the news today): how things differ today from
yesterday, what things have stayed the same, what events happened, how
events shaped history and how history shaped today.

I guess maybe one other thing would be 'Who have you mentored?' Who has the
developer taught and influenced directly? That seems like a pretty important
question because it allows connections to be made through historical design.

-Devin

On Thu, Jan 22, 2009 at 11:11 AM, Andrew Armstrong <andrew at aarmstrong.org>wrote:


> Before I finish off my list of changes for the SIG's main wiki page (see:

> Spring Cleaning earlier. Comments still welcome!), I want to bring up the

> start of a discussion on recording people's personal histories.

>

> I'm thinking that a guide written to provide a list of basic information

> that could be collected when interviewing or researching a person (who could

> be anyone from a developer, to a journalist, to a producer, to admin staff,

> to an academic, to a historian ;) "...related to videogames").

>

> This would help firstly start out the project, and secondly, it'd be damn

> useful.

>

> For instance, I might have possibly been able to discuss getting

> interviews, at least via. email or other mediums then face to face, with

> several classic developers when I've seen them at various events or places.

> However, not knowing what to ask, since the project wasn't started, lead to

> me not bothering.

>

> Therefore, let's start outlining the kinds of things needed to be done.

> Here's some initial thoughts:

>

> ===================

>

> Get their permission to print the information as freely available online,

> and if something needs to be withheld, mark it specifically as such.

>

> Gather a factsheet (asking the person or researching elsewhere):

> - Full name, and how they pronounce it (recorded if possible)

> - Gender (sometimes this isn't wholly obvious in today's world :) )

> - Date of birth

> - Country of origin, places lived (perhaps)

> - (Optionally) Marital status, spouse, children, relations (at least ones

> related in industry)

> CV information

> - place of education, degree type

> - previous work (IE: the stuff on a person's CV), especially games

> developed and under what title.

>

> A list of generic interview questions for necessary information, or just so

> you can compare answers between interviews.

> - On work: How did you get involved in the industry. Why you left company

> X, or joined company Y (job changes). What inspires you at work. What

> resources do you use to work.

> - On people: What are they like.

> - On games: Why are they important to you personally. What do you enjoy

> playing in your spare time. Your most favourite games. What are you playing

> this week. If you can remember, what was the first videogame you played,

> and/or what was the first non-videogame you played.

> - On other things: What activities do you enjoy outside of videogames. What

> physical activities do you enjoy (sports, gym, outdoor things).

> - On other media: What do you think of other art (books, films, music,

> sculptures, paintings/artwork, dance, poetry, architecture, comics, opera,

> etc.)

>

> Need more topics - perhaps depending on the person, certainly their age and

> experience, but also some generic ones about the time they've spent in

> industry too (perhaps on gender, pay, quality of life, the business side,

> etc.)

>

> A photograph (or more then one) of the person if possible. Finding

> photographs of some developers is nigh on impossible, even if they are

> famous (I found a total of 1 for the Bubble Bobble creator!). They are more

> likely to have copies of photographs themselves. Highest quality is better.

>

> A copy of their "signing" signature, most ones who get asked for one make

> their own up for this, so it's nice to have a record.

>

> ===================

>

> I have a feeling that asking Jason Scott and a few people who do interviews

> at different historically-inclined sites would help too, and I might do

> this, and report it on the blog too. Here's the starting place however!

>

> So, any additional generic interview questions, example interviews to take

> questions or ideas from, tips for doing specific types of interviews

> (written interview notes done in person, email, chat client, skype, doing a

> proper oral history in front of a camera or microphone), and

> advantages/disadvantages of them. Tips for a progression from initial

> contact to finished historical information. Tools of the trade...and so on.

>

> Andrew

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>




-- 
The sleep of Reason produces monsters.

"Until next time..."
Captain Commando
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