Jenova Chen Quotes
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'Journey' was very much inspired by Joseph Campbell's work for 'The Hero's Journey,' but, from among his works, I like 'The Power of Myth' best.
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A strong story can move me to tears, and it doesn't matter whether it's a science-fiction or fantasy world. It's about what happens to a person, the choices they make. That's what's interesting.
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I don't believe in a particular god, but I believe in the unknown. I believe that there's something bigger than us.
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In the free-to-play industry, the most money-making games are often coming from making people fighting against each other and really hating each other and wanting to revenge, so they spend more money to dominate.
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What I find the most interesting about games is the feeling of accomplishment. I think this is an emotion that cinema can't do and books can't do. You feel like you've personally accomplished something. You feel you get better at something.
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I was not grown up in the U.S., nor in Japan. In order to create a video game that people around the globe can enjoy and relate to, I can't draw things deeply rooted in the local culture that I'm not familiar with. That's why we are not doing games about football or samurai.
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For adults to enjoy something, they need to have intellectual stimulation, something that's related to real life.
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'Cloud' and 'Flower' are very much egocentric about my own expression. 'Flow' is more utilitarian, and 'Journey' is more about collaboration between various creative voices in the team.
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I would rather see a game where you play to feel happier and to make other people like you and to make the people you care about happy.
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I always played games with my friends, but as I got older, my friends stopped playing.
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I feel, as a game maker, we are responsible to make content that stretch the ruling structure and emotions so that everyone can enjoy.
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A great painter can paint something really complex, but they can crystallize it into something really simple.
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When I was a teenager, I felt my life was constrained by rules, school, my parents. I wanted to feel like I was empowered and different; that's why superheroes, comics, manga, and video games filled my needs. When I got older, I realized power is not free; it comes with responsibility.
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Creativity is not talent but attitude.
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I grew up in Shanghai, a big urban city.
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We tried to just convince big publishers like EA or other people to make games like 'Cloud'... It's just almost impossible.
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I'm a game designer, so I care about the whole experience.
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I always have a problem playing text-heavy games. I'm a slow reader. I don't speak English well. As a kid in China, trying to play these games, I just wanted the text to go away.
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The struggle we went through in the last year of 'Journey' was pretty insane, and I think that is also why, when I was working on the struggle level, I was able to channel my own struggle into the game.
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Seeing games become more of a young person thing, I feel like a toy I grew up with has been left behind. I don't want to. I want this thing to be respected by adults. I want this thing to be growing with me. It's important to have games that could be more nuanced and reflective of the real world and relevant to adults.
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Nothing truly bad happens. There's always good and bad in any changes.
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If we can make great games for PS3 players... how many PS3 players are out there? If we can make great games for everybody, that's a much bigger service. There's no reason I shouldn't do that.
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Our goal is always to make games that can move people, that are designed for everybody so the whole family should be able to play it together, and that bring people together and really move them in a way.
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Designing a game can be like a Japanese garden. It's not what you put in but how much you take away.