We are a small independent game developer located in Warsaw, Poland. Before The Astronauts, some of us worked on games like Painkiller and Bulletstorm.
Our latest project is Witchfire, a dark fantasy first person shooter set in an alternative world in which witches are real and very dangerous – but so are you, witchhunter.
Our first game was a weird fiction mystery titled The Vanishing of Ethan Carter. The game has won many awards, including BAFTA, and we sold over one million copies. It’s available on PC, PS4 and Xbox One. Click here for more details.
(This is an archived old post from the previous version of the page.)
Dropped out of college to make games? Check. Literally wrote a book on 3D graphics? Check. Is slightly insane? Check. Hi, Adam, welcome to The Astronauts.
If you’d like to know more about Adam’s stints like being a university lecturer or the Art Director of Afterfall: InSanity survival horror game, go ahead and see his Linked In profile. You’ll find a pleasant surprise there, too, a link that should make every texture hunter happy.
Meanwhile, let’s talk to Adam, now one of The Astronauts, about the challenges that motivate him, his favorite art tools and silly non-gamedev hobbies.
I think that the biggest challenge for any artist is to stay open and flexible. It’s easier to stick to one’s favorite style and be its master than to try new things. However, the latter gives you more options and a chance to bring that incredible synergy effect into your work.
I create 3D models, textures, and shaders. I build entire levels, and set up the lighting and post-processes. So yes, definitely. I try to be a multi-instrumentalist.
But …why games?
In the case of most other art form you are merely a passive interpreter. The interpretation is your entire interaction. In games you join the author in the act of creation. That’s unique and exciting.
So apart from creating games, you like to play them as well?
Let’s just say that back in the day my Jedi Knight or Quake skills were embarrassingly low, but at least my game characters always featured custom skins and ran around custom levels.
To be honest, nothing comes close to the real paint brush and chisel. The computer interfaces are still a far cry away from being truly efficient. We still spend more time in GUI rather than actually creating stuff. That’s why I admire ZBrush. Its philosophy is more that of a virtual sculptor rather than half-artist, half-engineer. All this incredible art made with ZBrush is the best proof of its power.
“I LOVE CREATING PLACES AND ENTIRE WORLDS, BUT I WAS ALWAYS SCARED OF THE LIMITS THAT REAL LIFE ARCHITECTS FACE. GAMES ALLOW ME TO GO BEYOND THESE LIMITS.”
I’m also a fan of open source or free tools like Blender or xNormal. Quite often they work much better than these expensive system hoggers made and sold by faceless corporations. And as a bonus, they give kids everywhere free access to the most modern techniques of digital creation.
All right, enough of that gamey stuff. Let’s talk about your other addictions.
*laughs* Addiction is the right word. I am addicted to music. I cannot live without it. It accompanies me everywhere, all the time. I grew up listening to punk, but now I love classic jazz, Ausie Rap and electronica.
I’m also addicted to learning more about the world. Whenever there’s a break between projects, I always travel to places I’ve never been to before.
But the thing that excites me the most – apart from the fairer sex – is art. Not only it allows us to communicate using feelings, but also paints our world with all these incredible colors. I try not to limit the means of my expression: I paint on canvas, walls and cars. Lately, I caught the industrial bug. I try to shy away from the likes of Banksy, though. I mostly admire true underground artists hiding from the mainstream and fame.
We bet our readers never heard of them *wink*wink*.
We hope you liked listening to Adam, and can see why we love that he’s a member of The Astronauts crew. If you want to see his extraordinary photo blog, head over to his ArtLog. Out of all the events listed to the left, we recommend examples of his work in Afterfall: InSanity and the Beauties of Woodstock Station 2012 (also available as an album on Google Plus). A hundred and fifty photos of a hundred and fifty girls are the ultimate proof that Adam is not kidding when it comes to his addictions.
