I''m sorry, but thats kinda weird.

What''s a Terrapin? do i want to know?

the guy i talked to was a business major who was studying the whole game development deal.

God Bless the Internet!

P.S. A terrapin is a land turtle.

DBB:
Ever used a penguin laucncher(phhht,weeeeeeeeeeeee,pom)

quote: Original post by Sandman
Chicken pool is on the decline these days, since you need specially designed tables with extra big pockets for the chickens to go into.

Of course, it''s a difficult game. Chickens never roll properly, and have a tendency to walk around while you''re trying to line up your shot.

Anyway, these days its all about terrapin tennis.

Wow, you guys play some strange games...

We used the chicken as the cue. Your idea has merit though, I''m gonna need more chickens...

Chicken pool was great while, but food and cost issues kept it from really getting off the ground. There were simply too many creatures to feed, and not enough in the budget for it. People get hungry during long sessions of game programming, ya know.

----------------------------------------
"Before criticizing someone, walk a mile in their shoes.
Then, when you do criticize them, you will be a mile away and have their shoes." -- Deep Thoughts
"If you have any trouble sounding condescending, find a Unix user to show you how it''s done." - Scott Adams
FaceHat Software -- Wear the hat.

Maintenance for keeping the chickens is always a real pain, but often when the crunch period sets in they can be perfect for late night feasts inbetween debugging sessions. We kept a barbque on hand for just such an occasion.

Terrapin tennis in unfortunatly a summer only event most of the time, often replaced by terrapin tiddly-winks in the winter months.

quote: Original post by MattS423
this is sopposedly to inspire ideas for game development.

I heard the creators of Deer Hunter got their idea while playing chicken pool.

I have a feeling we''re going to see "Chicken Pool" and "Terrapin Tennis" on the budget title shelf any day now (probably with a sticker on each that says "$1 from each sale goes to PETA!" just to really confuse things).

--

To be just a bit more serious for the original poster''s benefit, I''ve seen studios that were indistinguishable from any other corporate software cubeland office space, and some that look like an extended guy''s dorm room with cubicles thrown in. My favorite is Maxis though -- Will Wright is well known for bringing in cool toys to meetings, especially this nifty kind of Crayola clay that dries in the air. It''s really something to see a room full of producers, execs, designers, etc., all making weird stuff with their clay while the meeting goes on. Maxis also has a model train set, several lounge areas (where an amazing amount of work gets done - some have full-wall white boards), and of course a foosball table and a few pinball games that rarely get played.

But all this is sort of just to keep things running well. If the idea behind the "chicken pool" was that by doing wacky things that keeps the creative juices going, your biz friend has it backward. The wacky things happen (people do go to some lengths to decorate their cubes, and Will does in fact speed dangerously through the halls on his electric scooter after hours ), but they''re they''re because the creativity is there, not to summon it.

Yes, but that may be because Mr. Wright has never played Terrapin Tennis, otherwise he would have experienced the joys thereof, and it surely would have become a standard in the lounges at Maxis by now.

Besides, I get some pretty unique ideas whenever I play the game. There was this one involving a gas-powered mechanical salamander wearing a polka-dot blazer. And NO, it wasn''t playing pool..


Brian Lacy
Smoking Monkey Studios

Comments? Questions? Curious?
brian@smoking-monkey.org

"I create. Therefore I am."

quote: Original post by archetypist
I''ve seen studios that were indistinguishable from any other corporate software cubeland office space, and some that look like an extended guy''s dorm room with cubicles thrown in.

Specifically, which ones look like a dorm and are they hiring?