#114 - Kynan Pearson Interview (Metroid Prime 2, Donkey Kong, Level Design, Management etc.)

Channel:

KIWI TALKZ

Subscribers:

18,100

Published on November 12, 2021 6:00:19 PM ● Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6YKebkPZNM

Game:

Metroid Prime 2: Echoes (2004)

Duration: 1:03:26

4,076 views

182

Kynan Pearson is a game developer who has worked on prestigious game franchises such as Metroid, Donkey Kong and Halo. He is currently Creative Director at Discord.

Kynan wrote a document on how to create a Metroidvania game that can be found here

Part 1- https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Q0nMArDDA79ASJgiov9IvlTNpyYcCGTingLa02wwuvo/edit

Part 2 - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1F2NlTIlRDC8WlDp_FV9F-T6B0tkWCOCEq4gTQCcaxLg/edit

SOCIAL MEDIA
TWITTER - @KynanPearson

#metroidprime #donkeykong #retrostudios

TIMESTAMPS
00:00 - Intro
00:56 - Knowing Retro Staff Before Joining/Jason Behr
02:29 - Approach To Level Design For Metroid Prime 2/Dark World
04:15 - Planning Of Metroid Prime Games
05:37 - World Layout/Planning Of Each Room In MP2
07:06 - Focusing On Each Hub/Compression Of Schedule In MP2
08:42 - Dark World Not Being Interconnected Due To Design & Time Constraints
10:20 - MP2 Multiplayer’s Influence On The Dark World
12:06 - Striking A Balance With Backtracking To Not Make It Tedious/MP2 Backtracking
14:27 - MP2 Fetch Quest
16:03 - Mark Pacini Suggested Idea Of GF Marines In Prime 2 Intro Later Into Development
17:55 - Nailing An Introduction/Intro To MP2 & MP3
19:13 - Approach To Design Of MP3/Ship Being A Big Focus
20:35 - Kynan’s Event Planning Role On Elysia, Skytown
23:00 - Elysia Was Built As A Showcase For MP3/Influences On Game Design
24:02 - Creatives Having So Many Ideas/Kynan Would Always Check Everyones Work At Retro
26:18 - Idea Of Background Impacting The Foreground In DKCR/Kynan’s Inspiration
30:58 - Idea Of Rocket Barrel Levels
33:09 - Retro Was A Well Oiled Machine During DKCR/Monday Morning Meetings At Retro
37:09 - Acting Like A Gorilla But Being Super Serious With Miyamoto
37:39 - Idea Of DKCR Silhouette Levels
39:18 - How They Placed Levels In Accordance With World Map
42:07 - Kremlings & K Rool Weren’t Considered As Retro Wanted To Incorporate A New Enemy
43:31 - Metroid Didn’t Have Influence On Halo/343 Industries
44:38 - Kynan’s Philosophy “You Have To Hate Something To Make It Better”
48:05 - No Project Is Ever Finished/Deadlines
49:25 - Working Out Balance Of When To Extend Deadlines & Polish/Release Estimates
51:20 - Adjusting To Different Studios Work Culture/Upper Management Being Key To Studio Culture
54:53 - Be Respectul & Honest With An Individual That Is Difficult To Work With
58:20 - Kynan’s Thoughts On Metroid Dread
1:00:18 - Metroid Dread Was The First Time In A Long Time Kynan Didn’t Critique A Game While Playing
1:01:12 - Where To Follow Kynan Pearson/Kynan’s “How To Design Metroidvania Games” Document

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