what is the story behind tmjs begining .. how did it start as an idea and turn into a massive production..

** Back in the mid 1990s, Final Fantasy VI was very popular. My brother and I spent so much time playing it on our quests that we both had all 14 characters at level 99, learned all magics, and had basically every item and ability that was possible to find. That game was so rich is mythological allusions that we started researching into some of the mythology. Of the Greek, Roman, Norse, and other stories, Norse intrigued me the most. Their stories aren't as well-known as others, so it was all new to me.

** Soon after that, I decided to try making a game with some Norse elements. All we had at the time was an old Commodore 128 computer. I couldn't do much with that, so I waited until I got a PC a few years later. In the meantime, I started creating elements of the game world like levels, maps, animal sidekicks, weapons, etc. At that time, I guess story wasn't as important to me because the development was more like a proof-of-concept than anything else. I couldn't proceed too far with development at that point due to technological limitation and the lack of a team to help in areas where I was weaker.

what was the inspiration for the story of tmj.

*** Much of the inspiration for the story so far came from a mis-mash of Norse Mythology and various archetypical themes like the hero's journey, redemption, betrayal, lust for power, and vengeance. Depending on the direction the story goes during development, there may be 8 to 10 chapters in the game. Chapter 1 is done; chapter 2 is in progress; and the basic idea behind the broad outline is ready. The unwritten chapters will incorporate more elements from mythology and archetypical themes because I would like it to be rich enough to, perhaps, spark interest in the players to research more into origins of the story elements.

What about hullbreach the game , did it catch on or was it a mistake iin your opinion.

*** HullBreach is another game I started back in the 1990s as sort of a proof-of-concept. Almost the entirety of the game engine was to be based on Ambrosia Software's Escape Velocity series. The idea was that you are the captain of a spaceship, and you are free to explore the galaxy to trade, fight, mine, explore, take on missions, upgrade your ship, etc. It was very addictive.

*** I started HullBreach as a single-player game. It contained little more than Earth and the moon orbiting Earth (animated), both with trading posts. The player and single elemy ships looked like the alien fighters in Independence Day. The player could fight the enemy, which had simple AI. That was really it because time and my lack of extensive programming knowledge blocked much more.

*** Fast forward to 2007, and I saw the emergence of the new Canvas element in HTML, which is supported by every major browser except Internet Explorer. After some simple speed benchmarks on the Internet Channel, I decided to give HullBreach new life as HullBreach Online, making it the first MMO built from the ground up for the Wii online.

*** I incorporate numerous elements into the game that the Escape Velocity series had, but when an update to the Internet Channel crippled the B button, there went the PvP battle element. All the other buttons were used for something else, so I would have to scrap another feature to bring battling back. Around that time, players lost interest, so I shifted my focus to the Wii Opera SDK, which was a collection of JavaScript tools built for HB Online.

*** At the height of its popularity, HB Online would have maybe 20 players at a time, but that only lasted for a few weeks because the game was too complicated for many players, and many Wii owners were just too frustrated with the Internet Channel lacking a recent version of Adobe Flash, so that hurt the popularity of HB Online from the beginning. The numbers quickly died off until I would only see a few players at a time. The DSi version never really caught on due to the complexity, but the Wii version is the one to try out for those who haven't seen the game yet. Many of the elements of the game engine were models for the Mt. Hildar demo of TMJ.

*** I enjoyed developing HB Online and would like to resume development if I ever have time to address some of the concerns players have with it. The only mistake I would say I made with the game was releasing the beta too early. I had only incorporated about 1/4 of the features into the game, and very little planets had been added, so it gave a false-sense of a small scope in the game. Today, some players have explored for hours and have not found all the planets yet.

many dsipaint members are behind the scenes trying to bring Tmj to life. is it hard working ALL over the internet ..did you expect such a large team.. and whats even more amazing is the age of some of the tmj-imagineers

*** I think it's great having such a diverse team. Sometimes it's tough to judge who will be a member of the team for the long haul, but many very talented individuals have been working with me from the beginning. Without help in graphics, mythology research, back story development, and many other areas, no one would see even the demos that exist today.

what is the aspect of game creation that you enjoy most

*** I enjoy trying to push hardware to its limits. It's always great to see someone's response when you've just made something that no one thought could run on that specific hardware.

You know when tmj is E3 worthy material .any ideas of setting up a booth.

*** We're a long way from anything like that, but I enjoy taking part in and visiting trade shows. E3 is expensive, and since TMJ is a hobby project, it's out of the realm of possibility. Maybe TMJ will spur enough interest that something bigger will come for the team members one day. The future is unwritten.

what parts of the game do you think gamers will be most delighted by.

*** It seems like the MMO aspect has many gamers talking. I checked the database the weekend after releasing the Mt. Hildar demo, and around 500 members had already tried it. Originally, the MMO aspect of the game was going to be just a small piece, but we (the team members) have been talking about expanding it out. Maybe the main quest could have places for players to meet up like taverns or such.

do you have any final message youd like to give to the players that are looking forward to this game?

*** Keep the great ideas flowing! We are making TMJ to be the most enjoyable game possible, so we would like feedback. One suggestion, though: Please read a little about the game before telling us that we HAVE to do things a certain way. I know countless RPGs exist as reference points, but we do have a specific direction we are going; we cannot do everything. The Google Dev Wiki is available to read up on what we have in mind. Just stay away from the story line and character areas if you don't want spoilers.

thanks hull!!!

*** It's been a pleasure!