NES WORLD:
How/why did you start programming NES games?
FRANZ LANZINGER:
I was hired at Tengen in 1989. My first project there was to
convert Toobin' to the NES. I had learned 6502 assembly language
eight years earlier when I programmed Crystal Castles coin-op, so
the NES was right up my alley.
NES WORLD:
Was it hard to work under the NES units limitations?
FRANZ LANZINGER:
It was at first, especially when given the task to port
a coin-op game like Toobin' which uses much more memory and many
more colors etc. Dave O'Riva and I basically redesigned the
game to make it fit into an NES cartridge.
NES WORLD:
Who came up with the idea for Krazy Kreatures?
FRANZ LANZINGER:
That was me. I wanted to do an original game after porting Toobin'
and Ms. Pacman. I always liked puzzle games, especially Tetris,
so it seemed like it would be fun to invent a new one.
NES WORLD:
KK is my favourite puzzle game, and at the end of the game it says
"watch out for Krazy Kreatures 2". Was this game ever made or even
*really* planned?
FRANZ LANZINGER:
Well, yes and no. We wanted to design and develep a sequel but
American Video Entertainment had trouble selling their games
in large quantities and soon went under.
NES WORLD:
Why was Krazy Kreatures released by American Video Entertainment?
Didn't you work at Atari Games/Tengen?
FRANZ LANZINGER:
Both Dave O'Riva and I left Tengen to form Bitmasters in mid 1990.
KK was our first game. It paid our bills for a few months while we
got started. Soon after we got a contract to port Rampart for the
NES, later published by Jaleco.
NES WORLD:
Is Krazy Kreatures freeware today (to be copied freely) or still
copyrighted?
FRANZ LANZINGER:
Well, copyrights are valid for 75 years here in the U.S., so I
would say that it's still copyrighted. The copyright probably
belongs to Macronix, the old parent company of AVE. But then again,
they might have sold it to someone.
NES WORLD:
Remember how many people who worked in Tengen's NES game department?
FRANZ LANZINGER:
About 8 or so. Some of the Tengen NES games were developed outside.
Also, some projects never saw light of day (XYbots, Police Academy
...)
NES WORLD:
Could you give me a complete list of the games you made or helped
making for the NES?
FRANZ LANZINGER:
Sure: Toobin', Ms. Pacman, Krazy Kreatures, Rampart and Championship
Pool.
NES WORLD:
Have you made any NES games which didnt get published?
FRANZ LANZINGER:
no, somehow all my games always find a way to get published.
NES WORLD:
Do you know what Dave O'Riva is doing today?
FRANZ LANZINGER:
He's working at Atari Games programming the N64.
NES WORLD:
Your new company, Actual Entertainment, has just released a new game
for the PC. What type of game is this?
FRANZ LANZINGER:
Gubble is an action-strategy-puzzle game, reminiscent of the old
Crystal Castles. The sequel, Gubble II, is just now being released
(on September 26th). It's got more of a puzzle emphasis, with
less hand-eye coordination and more thinking required. As with
all my games it's non-violent and suitable for the entire family.
NES WORLD:
Would you want to make a game for the new videogame consoles like the
N64 and Playstation (or even Sega's Dreamscast) if you were asked to?
FRANZ LANZINGER:
Yes I would, especially for Dreamcast!!! The hard part is getting
paid. I've found that it's very difficult to do original game
development and to get a publisher to pay for that development.
I've occasionally funded my own development (Gubble and Krazy
Kreatures) but then I need to go back to doing something that
makes me enough money to try again later.
Right now I'm doing 3D firmware development for a great
new startup company. It's not games, but I enjoy it and it pays
well. Meanwhile I'm getting all kinds of great game ideas. Now
if I only had the spare time to write all those games...
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